Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Conservatism: there are some people the law protects but does not bind and others who the law binds but does not protect.

Good lord, these people are nuts.

Battle won, war still ongoing.

Too often we confuse noise with substance. too often we confuse setbacks with defeat.

Bark louder, little dog.

A Senator Walker would be an insult to the state and the nation.

When your entire life is steeped in white supremacy, equality feels like discrimination.

Shallow, uninformed, and lacking identity

Since when do we limit our critiques to things we could do better ourselves?

T R E 4 5 O N

Wow, you are pre-disappointed. How surprising.

I know this must be bad for Joe Biden, I just don’t know how.

You cannot shame the shameless.

Motto for the House: Flip 5 and lose none.

Hot air and ill-informed banter

The willow is too close to the house.

Fuck these fucking interesting times.

Is it negotiation when the other party actually wants to shoot the hostage?

We’ve had enough carrots to last a lifetime. break out the sticks.

Never entrust democracy to any process that requires republicans to act in good faith.

I really should read my own blog.

Republicans are radicals, not conservatives.

Our job is not to persuade republicans but to defeat them.

Come on, man.

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Open Thread

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I’m tired and cranky and it is rainy and crappy and I’m on day five of trying to grow a beard and it is itching like hell, so in order to preserve what remains of my sanity, tonight is an internet free night (kind of) and I will be watching Season 1 of Psych on Netflix.

Here’s a picture of you know who:

Behave.

Reader Interactions

209Comments

  1. 1.

    AhabTRuler

    Oh fortheloveofgodno. Don’t become “neckbearded blogger John Cole.”

    I mean, tell me that it’s a van dyke or soul patch that you are trying to grow, anything, please!

  2. 2.

    beltane

    Tunch looks very peaceful in that picture. I will refrain from making any uncharitable comments about his weight this evening.

  3. 3.

    Chuck Butcher

    The problem with people growing a beard is that just about when it is to the point where it won’t itch, they run out of endurance.

    BTW, face soap & beard doesn’t work well, shampoo on the other hand works nicely. Not exactly the words of a neophyte – this fur of mine is 1976 vintage.

  4. 4.

    Chicago Todd

    I never did get used to the itching past a certain point of growth no matter how many times I tried. I always have to keep it trimmed at a certain length — my theory is my hair follicles are thicker than the average persons. And is that not just TMI? Best of luck with the beard.

  6. 6.

    James K. Polk, Esq.

    Beards for the win.
    You can do it, Cole! Perhaps try a little cold medicine? Or perhaps some booze…

  10. 10.

    Chyron HR

    That big white meatloaf looks tasty, but aren’t the dinner recipes usually posted on Thursday?

  12. 12.

    Roger Moore

    I strongly recommend using conditioner on the beard. I found it made the itching much more tolerable. That said, it’s going to get worse before it gets better.

    And thanks for the picture of our Lord and Master, the Tunchinator.

  14. 14.

    freelancer

    I’m tired and cranky and it is rainy and crappy and I’m on day five of trying to grow a beard and it is itching like hell, so in order to preserve what remains of my sanity, tonight is an internet free night (kind of)

    What’s the over/under on the amount of posts Cole adds before the night is over? I’m gonna say 3.

    Also, not like it matters to anyone I know IRL (they’ve already seen it, own it, or don’t care), but Netflix just put the entire series of Battlestar Galactica on Watch Instant.

  18. 18.

    Lev

    @freelancer: Good news. I’m going through it again because my girlfriend is now interested in the show, and I don’t much want to rent or buy Seasons 3 and 4. I am somewhat interested in watching them again to see if my opinion of them will improve, but unfortunately I have too much faith in my memory to really hope for that.

  19. 19.

    General Stuck

    Don’t know how anyone can stand a beard, I tried it once, decades ago and it annoyed me silly, itching and just feeling like a porcupine had wrapped itself around my face. Never tried again, nor mustachio.

    The Browns are playing the Stillers in two weeks and I’m contemplating making some Browns gear for the pooch, maybe a dogbone around the neck or something for luck. or a brown doggie neck scarf with “stillers are big puzzies” stenciled on it.

  20. 20.

    Turgidson

    Cole better rest up, because I suspect there will be another outbreak of public option recriminations for him to deal with after Daschle’s interview.

  21. 21.

    Phyllis

    I’m just killing time until Thursday, when I’ll be meeting a friend for dinner in Charleston, then getting home in time to sleep through watch the Braves/Giants game. All else is dust in the wind.

  22. 22.

    MikeJ

    @Turgidson: It’s over. The health care bill has passed. Why would anyone give a shit about the debates that lead to the greatest Democratic triumph in a hundred years? Be happy already.

  24. 24.

    John Cole

    @Turgidson: Not sure why- if the WH did in fact deal it away in the summer, it pretty much validates what we’ve been saying about the votes not being there, doesn’t it? That’s what I’ve been talking about ad nauseum- the multiple whip counts that never had us at 60 during the regular bill and never above 50 in the reconciliation.

    This would explain why, wouldn’t it?

  25. 25.

    Nethead Jay

    Man, try clicking through to the large version of the pic and take a look at the fiendish gleam in Tunch’s eyes. That is a cat with a plan…

  26. 26.

    El Cid

    Our awesome, not-at-all sexist justice system: girl who claimed to be assaulted but not naming the attacker, was called before court for a trial on a minor offense. While getting ready to be escorted to court by a counselor…

    A hulking juvenile counselor named Tony Simmons led her in handcuffs from the girls holding area to the elevator.
    __
    She expected Tyson, as Simmons was called, to bring her up to the courtroom where she was scheduled to be sentenced for filing a false police report.
    __
    Instead, the elevator descended to the basement. The 42-year-old counselor pulled down her pants and raped her with calm, practiced precision that made him all the more terrifying…
    __
    …On Sept. 27, Simmons appeared in court and pleaded guilty to raping Ashley and sexually assaulting two other teens.
    __
    He received probation.
    __
    “I got 12 months for a falsified police report and he got probation for raping me and the others,” Ashley said on Friday. “It’s just ridiculous.”

    The important question here, though, is if Ashley had considered aborting the baby potentially spawned by the rape, and if so, she clearly should have been sentenced to death for conspiracy to murder. And then the rapist should be released on the grounds of pre-emptive defense of a fetus.

  27. 27.

    jl

    I did not know Tunch could float in a void. He is not fat at all, but rather like a a light and feathery sweet little angel. I take all my fat Tunch comments back.

    Or… is he in orbit? If so, what will such an immense mass do the stability of the solar system? Are we all Mayans now?

    Very nice Tunchpix. Thanks.

  28. 28.

    El Tiburon

    More on the abortion of the public option before it was even conceived
    http://www.salon.com/news/opinion/glenn_greenwald/

    Maybe someone can help me wrap my head around this eternal Firebagger vs. Juicebagger debate:

    My take is that there COULD have been the votes for the public option but Obama did not push for it. And IF Obama would have pushed forcefully for it, then the votes MAY have been there.

    To me this is the crux of the Hamsher Derangement Syndrome.

    I am really not meaning to start another mud-fight here, but I still come down on the Hamsher/Greenwald take on this debate.

  31. 31.

    Turgidson

    @John Cole:

    and MikeJ:

    I’m perfectly satisfied that we got the bill passed, warts and all. And regardless of the timetable or moving pieces, I don’t think what Daschle says should matter in the slightest. The administration was willing to jettison the PO to get the bill passed. Duh, we knew that already, and that doesn’t mean the administration didn’t prefer a PO if they thought it was attainable. And chowderheads like Baucus pretty much took the PO off the table before there even was a table for it to be placed on. And the votes weren’t there at any stage, regardless.

    I just mean that this will be the latest reason for the WATBs to holler about Obama NEVER WANTING A PUBLIC OPTION and NOT FIGHTING FOR IT BY SMACKING PEOPLE WITH THE BULLY PULPIT and generally being the worst preznit EVAR. It’s already begun at the GOS, of course. I don’t go to FDL but I’m sure Jane is polishing off a masterpiece of Professional Left genius as we speak, also too.

    And I just have a feeling that blog mastermind Tunch will demand that Cole write a post smacking down the nonsense, if it gets to a certain din.

  33. 33.

    Comrade Mary

    Gee, John, I didn’t know you had a big, bushy Santa Claus beard in you, but it looks rather nice. I just want to love it and pet it and squeeze it and pat it and pet it and rub it and caress it — HEY, wait a gosh-darned moment heah …

  34. 34.

    JPL

    I have a question? I have the adorable although ugly Miss Moxie who welcomed a cat into our home and the adopted a cat appears to be mentally impaired. The cat will kiss the dog and then hiss and swat him. Is this normal?

  35. 35.

    Chat Noir

    If WereBear is around, a picture of darling little Tristan would be most appreciated.

    @Roger Moore:

    And thanks for the picture of our Lord and Master, the Tunchinator.

    We are not worthy.

  37. 37.

    Comrade Mary

    (But that is a lovely picture of Tunch, thanks. And there’s barely a white hair to be seen on that chocolate couch. You cleaned today, didn’t you?)

  39. 39.

    RSA

    __

    trying to grow a beard

    What’s this? There is no ‘try’. There’s only ‘let happen out of expedience, laziness, or being stuck in a third-world country without water or a razor’.

  40. 40.

    arguingwithsignposts

    JC, I feel your pain, man. arm issues made me abandon shaving for a while, and it’s in the midst of the itchy stage at the moment. Beards are made for fall/winter. I always shave them in summer – too much sweat. ugh.

  43. 43.

    J.A.F. Rusty Shackleford

    I’m tired and cranky and it is rainy and crappy and I’m on day five of trying to grow a beard and it is itching like hell

    Why are you trying to grow a beard? Why not just ask a close female friend to be your date for the dinner party?

    And to solve the itching problem, I’d recommend attaching an Elizabethan collar to the petri dish.

    Wait…oh.

    Nevermind.

  46. 46.

    Bruce (formerly Steve S.)

    @John Cole:

    This would explain why, wouldn’t it?

    I don’t follow your logic, but even if you’re right it would make the White House look like complete pricks, wouldn’t it? Pretending to be pushing for something that they’d already given up on to keep the left flank on board, then berating them for being whiners when it didn’t happen?

  48. 48.

    JPL

    @TaMara (BHF): My response is to sit the cat in a corner..not really.. but to confine him to his sleeping area. Is this okay? The mutt just walks around dazed.

  49. 49.

    Lev

    Ah, the public option. Like Bob Marley, Joss Whedon, and LOST, a cool thing that is partly ruined by a noxious fan base. Of course, that it wasn’t included in the 2010 bill definitely means that it can’t ever be revisited ever, especially not when Obama wins a landslide victory over Mitt Romney in 2012, right?

    This battle was lost. There’ll be more. I have to admit that I’m completely energized politically at this point. The GOP might actually nominate Sarah Palin for President! Sure, it’s not impossible that she could win if the economy stays bad, but what if she loses? What happens to the GOP then? Who becomes the Jimmy Carter to Palin’s McGovern? I can’t wait to find out.

  51. 51.

    Anne Laurie

    A well-kept beard has turned many a James ‘Dildo’ O’Keefe into a Jerry Garcia. (After meeting my not-yet-Spousal-Unit’s brothers, I informed him that if he ever shaved his beard, it would all be over between us. He replied that if he ever shaved his beard, I should regard it as a cry for intervention.)

    Plenty of men use over-the-counter hair dye on their beards, although it’s especially important to do the ‘patch test’ from the instruction sheet, because facial skin is thinner & more sensitive. And grey hair is notoriously dye-resistant, so they may need to leave the gook on longer. Or they pay the colorist at their hair salon to massage them lovingly with the professional products. (Probably not an option for Cole, unless he switches barbers.)

  52. 52.

    Mike in NC

    I’m on day five of trying to grow a beard and it is itching like hell

    Grover Norquist probably feels your pain. Oh wait, he doesn’t feel anything.

  53. 53.

    Hal

    Beards only look good on certain people. There’s a small leap from stetson man to unibomber

  58. 58.

    Turgidson

    My bad, I didn’t need to say anything about it.

    I just enjoy Cole’s “quit your sniveling” posts.

  59. 59.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Anne Laurie: Just go gray. Deal with it. My grandmother, my father, and my younger brother all went gray in their early 30s, they have handled it with no problems. Of course, my father is the only one of the bunch who ever grew a beard.

  62. 62.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Omnes Omnibus: Damn it, back on the laptop. I need to remember not to click on the submit button with the mouse. In other words, sorry about the double post.

  64. 64.

    Ailuridae

    @El Tiburon:

    No offense to GG but his post pretty much comes down to:

    I know Tom Daschle was being initially truthful when he claimed the PO was negotiated away in July 2009 because it agrees with a largely circumstantial, tenuous case I have tried to make.

    I also know Tom Daschle’s clarification is false because my Matt Taibbi had been correct in revealing that Tom Daschle was pond scum and dishonest.

    But Tom Daschle is either trustworthy or he’s not. If he can be viewed as a liar when he corrects the record about statements he made about negotiating the PO away he certainly could have been lying about negotiating the PO away in the first place to drive book sales or get press. He is Tom Daschle after all and as we all know from Matt Taibbi, he’s not to be trusted.

  65. 65.

    tesslibrarian

    There is something about Tunch that I find soothing. Thank you for posting.

    Second the shampoo for the beard–it helps keep it soft and your skin doesn’t dry out as much, so less itching. The last time my husband didn’t have his beard was maybe our freshman year of college, well before we were dating. At this point, 15 years into marriage, I’m not sure I’d recognize him without it, and cannot imagine how creepy it would feel to kiss him with smooth face.

    ETA: Werebear, that is such an adorable picture of Tristan! Thanks for sharing, and I’m so glad your other cats are adjusting to him.

  67. 67.

    Anne Laurie

    @arguingwithsignposts:

    Grey beard is the appearance of wisdom, unless you’re 25.

    Grey is one thing. Yellow-with-rust-streaks is another, less attractive thing. Redheads, tragically, do not “go grey” attractively. Also, from the guys I’ve known, dying the beard back to a slightly paler version of one’s original hair color actually does turn back the clock, which is important for certain youth-obsessed industries or most HR departments.

    (Edit to add: When in doubt, slightly lighter is better than slightly darker than one’s hair. Nothing screams ‘fake’ like a guy with light-brown hair and a chocolate-brown beard.)

  68. 68.

    Jennifer

    I see both sides of it. Yes, the votes weren’t there, but there wasn’t much of a push to bring anyone on board, at least not much of a push in public, and I don’t recall hearing stories about Rahm twisting arms to line up votes for PO – rather the opposite, that he was eager to bargain more away.

    I mean, who here thinks LBJ didn’t play some really mean hardball with members of his own party to pass the Civil Rights Act? It’s pretty much a requirement if you want to take a big bite out of a big issue.

    Obama’s no LBJ, but then 2010 is not the 1960s, either.

  73. 73.

    MikeJ

    @gbear: I’ve got the Ben Vaughn version of this on Dressed in Black. Didn’t know anybody else would even know the song.

  74. 74.

    bostondreams

    @Cat Lady:

    As long as that wonderful Chinese-Jamaican Patrick Chung keeps playing on special teams, heck yeah looking up. Wish we could play Chad Henne every game too..

  75. 75.

    TaMara (BHF)

    @WereBear: Tristian is adorable. That is quite the hat.

    @JPL: I also separate them if it looks like it might get serious. It usually works itself out as the cat feels more at home. My calico/alpha was all of 8 weeks old when she would rub up against my Danes, then hiss and spit at them. By the time she was full grown she was sleeping with them….but if she wanted a Dane bed all to herself, you better believe she got it, no questions asked.

    WereBear is here and may have other suggestions.

  80. 80.

    YellowJournalism

    I’m on day five of trying to grow a beard

    Why not just rent one like everyone else?

    ETA: TUNCH! : )

  82. 82.

    satby

    Hey, since it’s an open thread: if anyone remembers the thread about death of Molly Hightower in Haiti last January, will the person who knew the family let them know I leave for Haiti at the end of the month and Molly was my inspiration?
    Thanks!

  84. 84.

    Carrie

    @Just Some Fuckhead:
    RL crap, spent the summer at the cottage, jumped into a new job, then my dad died a few weeks ago…it’s been nuts but things are slowly quieting down which is lovely :)

  86. 86.

    gbear

    @MikeJ: I think The Morells are as much of an obscurist’s band as NRBQ. I’d always assumed it was one of their originals.

    I grew a beard in the early 80’s when everyone kept telling me that ‘You look just like the drummer in Cheap Trick!!’ (even the guys in The Replacements told me that). The couple times I’ve shaved it off I felt like I’d had a chin removal so I grew it right back. I’ve found out that the grey hair grows much faster than the remaining original-color hair. I can age years in a short time if I don’t trim it.

    Of course, now the drummer in Cheap Trick has grown a beard so I look just like him again.

  87. 87.

    General Stuck

    @Carrie:

    Well, I’m glad yer back and now fuckhead has a friend to chat with. And you can sit on my front row any time.

  90. 90.

    PurpleGirl

    @Emily L. Hauser/ellaesther: One of the racers my friends fostered had a bad eye. Over time the tumor grew and was causing him pain, so the vet my friends took him to removed it for free. (He liked the idea of retired racers being fostered and often reduced his fees for the greyhounds’ medical work.) Anyway, the dog was a decent runner and since it was his left eye that was bad, they placed on the outermost right lane and he had no problems interacting with the other dogs. He ran for, oh, 5 or 6 years.

  95. 95.

    WereBear

    @JPL: Found your comment, so can reply directly.

    It’s normal for a new cat to lay ground rules for the dog; who is usually much larger, and wants to dominate a lot of the time. Express displeasure with the cat for being unfriendly; then order the dog around to show the cat you have the situation under control. Give everyone treats to show we’re all happy now!

  96. 96.

    MikeJ

    @gbear: It’s a pity you weren’t at Cleek’s blog when I guest spun “Name that tune.” Nobody got the NRBQ tune.

    Ben Vaughn must have had the cover, since his version came out in ’80 something.

  97. 97.

    Punchy

    @Emily L. Hauser/ellaesther: pictures of him/her? We have 2 greys, and looooooooovvvvvve them!

    BTW–my wife hates the “rescued” moniker for our greys. It implies that they were unhappy with running, when exactly the opposite is true. Greys run as much as horses…..and love it

  98. 98.

    jayboat

    Summer cottage? Sweet.

    I love summer- love it so much I live where it is summer all year round (Naples, FL). About 8 blocks from the beach.

  99. 99.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @gbear:

    (even the guys in The Replacements told me that).

    In their defense, they might have been drunk. I had a beer with Paul Westerburg once. He was doing a solo show in Columbus and was having a beer in the bar next to the Newport an hour or so before the show. My friends and I were gathering in the same bar to go to the show. A short conversation and a beer ensued. It was rather cool. I didn’t tell him I thought Tim was better than any of his solo stuff and he didn’t tell me to fuck off. Win-win.

  100. 100.

    burnspbesq

    Greetings from 30,000 feet above Eastern Pennsylvania.

    I am getting dinner from the halal food cart at 53rd and Sixth tonight. Tonight I Will Master The Red Sauce.

    Mortuari te salutat.

  102. 102.

    Emily L. Hauser/ellaesther

    @PurpleGirl: @Punchy: I’m actually very happy to hear that! I guess what matters is how they’re treated when not running.

    In the case of Lily (my mom’s dog, not John Cole’s) though, I think she really was unhappy because she didn’t even get to run, and mostly spent her days in a kennel. But I don’t honestly know the details! I just know that she’s very happy on my couch right now.

    I’ll see about pictures sometime before she goes — right now I’m too tired w/ this damn cold to even attempt to figure it out!

  109. 109.

    asiangrrlMN

    TUNCHIE! Moar Tunchie. All the time Tunchie.

    @WereBear: Awwww! Tristan is all sweetness.

    @jeffreyw: You know, as much as I love the food pr0n, Homer is fast becoming my fave of your pics.

    @El Cid: That made me insanely angry. Nice justice system we have here.

  112. 112.

    Bob Loblaw

    @Ailuridae:

    It’s always star trek chess metaphors and conspiracy theories, isn’t it?

    This continued conflict proves why you all deserve each other so much in your fucked up excuse for a functioning political party.

    The administration, acting in concert with a group of blue dog Senators (the core legislative stakeholders to ensure the bill’s passage), were not honest brokers on the topic of public insurance programs. They had no intention of implementing anything beyond the Medicaid expansion, and any sops to the public option or Medicare buy-in in the Senate only came into play when the legislative momentum was against them. That they can’t just admit this is silly. They got their bill passed. They won. They may not be paragons of virtue, but they, unlike their predecessors, are actually successful legislators.

    Simultaneously, anybody who can’t admit that the ACA bill is thoughtfully designed and will manage to improve the lives of millions of Americans, is being untruthful themselves. It’s a bill that could have died a dozen deaths, but it didn’t, and that’s a pretty good thing.

    But as long as the two sides continue to jealously guard their own fraudulent narratives at the expense of reality, we all will remain fractious and our efforts to improve health insurance reform into an even broader restructuring of the American health care system will be made worse for it.

  113. 113.

    Wile E. Quixote

    @Anne Laurie:

    (Edit to add: When in doubt, slightly lighter is better than slightly darker than one’s hair. Nothing screams ‘fake’ like a guy with light-brown hair and a chocolate-brown beard.)

    Is that what they mean when they say that “the drapes don’t match the carpet?”

  117. 117.

    That's Master of Accountancy to You, Pal (JMN)

    Eddie’s back in the hospital, but this really a bad thing other than that I miss him. At the appointment this morning, the doc said that he was at a point where he would probably do better without a bandage on his paw. However, without a bandage, he would absolutely have to wear the collar.

    I told him that there wasn’t any way I could keep him in it at home; I don’t think supergluing to his neck would be sufficient. So the option was to bring him home in a bandage, or leave him there in a collar. Given that leaving him there also spares me from having to dig him out from under the bed twice a day to give him his antibiotic, it was a pretty easy choice.

    During the two days he was here, he mostly just stayed in out of the way places and lay there. However, he was choosing out of the way places where I could get to him and pet him, which means he isn’t doing it because he’s scared. Mostly, I think, he just hates trying to walk around in the bandage, which keeps him from bending all of the joints below his shoulder.

    So, I’m short a cat again. Hopefully he can come home for good this weekend, with the stitches removed.

    I get my own stitches removed next Tuesday.

  118. 118.

    Ailuridae

    @Bob Loblaw:

    If you write five paragraphs about the health care bill and the legislative fight around it and neglect to mention either of the two clear actual villains in the issue (the GOP and Doctors|Providers) it is just tough for me to take it all that seriously.

    I have no idea what a star trek chess metaphor is. I was just pointing out that within the context of GG’s own post he was been astonishingly intellectually inconsistent. That’s not really in dispute, right?

  119. 119.

    That's Master of Accountancy to You, Pal (JMN)

    @asiangrrlMN: Would this be enough to get you to abandon the Vikings altogether, until he and Indecisive Lad depart?

  121. 121.

    General Stuck

    @Bob Loblaw:

    The administration, acting in concert with a group of blue dog Senators

    There is no evidence of this, and I doubt greatly Obama even needed to act in concert with Nelson, or Lieberman, who claims they didn’t contact him about a PO. These folks were primed to object to a PO on their own accord, and Obama likely knew it and was one reason why, along with likely signaling the HC industry that he would not push hard for a PO so they would stand down opposition, which for a POTUS is always the veto threat in the end.

    And Lieberman was untouchable by the dems and not in their party structure, so any pressure was moot for him. And he was all that was needed to stop the PO.

  122. 122.

    Ailuridae

    @asiangrrlMN:

    I’m going to the Metrodome for the first time ever for a Vikes game with my SO next Sunday (I’m a Cowboys fan); it should be an interesting game.

  123. 123.

    KRK

    fattyfattytwobyfour

    I’m picturing a thought bubble containing the words “rubber” and “glue.”

    And I’m still waiting for the BJ store to stock “Team Tunch” shirts.

  124. 124.

    Bob Loblaw

    @Ailuridae:

    Eleven dimensional chess.

    It comes from three dimensional chess, which comes from the original Star Trek series.

    And if you need to be reminded of the Republican malfeasance in every single conversation to maintain your partisan feel-goods, that’s your issue. Some people are able to take facts already in evidence as a given and move on from there…

  125. 125.

    Martin

    @El Tiburon:

    My take is that there COULD have been the votes for the public option but Obama did not push for it. And IF Obama would have pushed forcefully for it, then the votes MAY have been there.

    Sure, he could have gotten the public option, but at what cost.

    Remember what this legislation started as, right when Obama took office, it was entitlement reform – specifically Medicare/Medicaid reform with some private sector reforms along for the ride. It wasn’t insurance reform. It wasn’t focused on saving consumers money or expanding coverage. It was 100% focused on saving Medicare, whose costs are growing at just shy of 7% per year. Whatever benefits for those shopping in the non-government market that could have been gained were likely to come at the cost of those that had paid into Medicare and wouldn’t be able to get their benefits.

    There are two reasons for this focus:

    1) If Medicare isn’t fixed very soon, the entire political conversation is going to shift to either how to cut benefits from seniors because the trust fund is effectively broke or how to *massively* cut spending. That’s not the landscape that Democrats want to be looking for solutions, but cutting health care *costs* today is good for Democrats, and so that’s where they focused.

    2) The federal government is not the front line of defense against the myriad problems in the non-government market – the states are. They’re the regulatory bodies and they aren’t helpless – MA did it and HI did it. And the private sector is still a player here. In the case of Medicare, NOBODY except Congress can solve that problem. Nobody. The feds can’t pass that buck – it has to take priority.

    The cost problem is a universal problem – it affects both the federal budget and consumers by way of the insurance companies. Let’s say for the sake of argument that ACA would have been able to keep health care costs in line with inflation over the long term, with a short-term reduction in costs. That would have almost completely solved the entitlement issue – no more need to debate how to cut SS or Medicare. Further, it would have given the insurance companies the cost savings they’ve been struggling to find, which would have opened the door to states holding those policy costs in line.

    Would that have happened? Who knows, but it would have in quite a few cases as many insurers are not for profits. Cost savings to a very large degree do flow back to consumers. Would they have expanded coverage? Probably. No business is eager to shrink their customer base, and the insurers are very worried about the current trend. They need more customers. Would it have been enough? I doubt it.

    But imagine if that had worked. Congress could have touted that success in 2009 and then looped back in 2011 and worked on broader health insurance reform. They could have done it through the states, by giving states incentives to reform. They could have done it directly, and they would have had the deficit savings to do something meaningful.

    Instead we insisted on trading the insurance reform for the cost reform. The entitlement problem still remains, though it’s smaller in scope. The insurance problem still remains, though it too is smaller in scope. Will the public look at ACA as a good enough result to give Congress a 2nd pass? Doesn’t look like it now. Democrats took their eye off of the important goal and went after the partisan outcome – the one that used the bully pulpit to put Republicans in their place, to advance liberal ideals, etc. It was stupid. Jane and her allies sold out a meaningful, responsible, long-term government solution for a short term victory lap.

  126. 126.

    eemom

    instead of rehashing this tired old argument again for the eleventydimensionalchessygazillionth time, can someone take a crack at responding to whoever the wise person above was who asked WHY the fuck we are arguing about the fucking public option again now??

    Jestaskinzall.

  128. 128.

    tim serbo

    @burnspbesq: lunch was halal from the cart at 39th & 5th. went for the white sauce, still had some work to crank out. won’t need a big dinner tonight.

  129. 129.

    PurpleGirl

    @Emily L. Hauser/ellaesther: Spending time on the couch: Yeah, the retired dogs do like to sleep or lay about. My friends had 4 greys themselves and they were master loungers, They were taking retirement very seriously.

  130. 130.

    Martin

    @Bob Loblaw:

    The administration, acting in concert with a group of blue dog Senators (the core legislative stakeholders to ensure the bill’s passage), were not honest brokers on the topic of public insurance programs

    The Conservadems weren’t working in concert with anyone but their own and their states’ interests. Let’s not completely lose sight that Senators are elected to represent their state interests in Congress.

    But they weren’t honest brokers on the topic of public insurance because that was never their objective. It was the objective of a bunch of liberal activists. They held onto that card because it kept the insurance companies as allies to the WH, which was far more important to achieving their real goals of cost containment than getting public insurance passed. For fucks sake, they HAVE a public insurance program, a massive one, and it’s rapidly going broke. Why make it bigger until you work out how to make it solvent again?

  133. 133.

    Belafon (formerly anonevent)

    @El Tiburon: I was wondering why this thread was so long. Now I know.

    My take is that when my wife doesn’t want to do something, it doesn’t matter how noble and worthwhile I make it sound.

  134. 134.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @John Cole:

    If I am accurately remembering the illustration to Tattoo Sydney’s opening (and so far, *only*) chapter of “The Fat Man, the Fat Cat, and the Barky Dog,” you had a beard in the picture.

    So what gives? Did you have a beard at the time and shaved it and now you’re trying to grow it back? Or did seeing the TS portrait of you in “TFM,tFC,atBD” serve as inspiration? Or was Tat Syd somehow foreseeing the future down to the last follicle and reality is only now catching up, thus proving that the Time-Space Continuum is well and truly fucked?

  135. 135.

    Bob Loblaw

    @General Stuck:

    There is no evidence of this

    Of course there’s evidence of this. They didn’t pursue a reconciliation-centered strategy. They needed all 60 votes. The administration acts as the intermediary across the Democratic caucus’ internal divides. They negotiate with and ultimately represent the most powerful legislative stakeholders aka the ones most indifferent (or outright opposed) to reform. That’s their power base in Washington.

    You’re accusing them of incompetence. But of course, you don’t realize this because you insist on seeing legislative efforts as tidy morality plays. Which is really ironic given your contempt for Glenn Greenwald…

  136. 136.

    That's Master of Accountancy to You, Pal (JMN)

    @asiangrrlMN: Hey, it sounds like the hold up on the deal is that the Vikings need to sign Moss to a long term contract. That’s the hold up. So, if they get him, Moss is going to be around for a while.

  137. 137.

    schrodinger's cat

    @WereBear: I have the same kitteh carrier, I love little Tristan’s face with his little tongue sticking out.
    Love the Tunch pic, after all he is the ruling deity of Balloon Juice. All hail the mighty Tunch! He looks so soft and squishable.

  140. 140.

    That's Master of Accountancy to You, Pal (JMN)

    @Bob Loblaw:

    They didn’t pursue a reconciliation-centered strategy.

    They didn’t pursue a reconciliation strategy, because most of the health care reform bill doesn’t qualify under reconciliation rules. Had they gone that way, none of the regulatory reforms on insurance could have been a part of the bill.

  144. 144.

    General Stuck

    @Bob Loblaw:

    LOL, you babble with the best of em loblolly.

    you insist on seeing legislative efforts as tidy morality plays.

    More like theater of the absurd, but carry on with the babble. It relaxes me in a strange way.

  145. 145.

    Mary G

    Tomorrow will be two weeks since my mom came home on hospice. She is happy and in no pain, but I am struggling. Lots of help and sort-of support. One camp is emerging that she is really not terminal and that I should not have brought her home so soon but kept trying treatments even though her doctor said it was useless. Another thinks I should stop feeding her and start planning the funeral.

    It’s hard because she gets better then worse then better then worse. One minute she can’t be woken up then an hour later she’s talking about how bored she is and what she wants to do to get better.

    I got the doctor to run another blood test today; if her sodium is still 122, it appears there is no hope. Crap. I don’t know what I hope it to be. I’d love to have her around longer but not as weak and helpless as she is right now.

    Does anyone know any websites that deal with this kind of thing? My Google-fu is weak; all l am finding is commercial stuff. Grief.com sounds a little like what I’m looking for, but charges $10/month for each group. Has anyone been there? Is it worth the money?

  149. 149.

    General Stuck

    @eemom:

    WHY the fuck we are arguing about the fucking public option again now??

    Our bad luck. Somebody let loose the Hamsters of War.

  150. 150.

    Dennis SGMM

    How about this:

    “Fox and Friends” falls for ruse alleging purchase of $1 billion of jetpacks for LAPD, Fire Department

    It’s a story that, by all accounts, shouldn’t have flown.

    Anchors at the Fox News national morning news show “Fox and Friends” reported Tuesday that the city of Los Angeles had ordered 10,000 jetpacks for its police and fire departments. The price tag: a whopping $100,000 per unit.

    For those doing the math at home, the cash-strapped city of Los Angeles, which is regularly sending its police detectives home because it can’t pay all their overtime, allegedly shelled out a billion dollars on space-age transportation that it has never used in an emergency situation, much less tested.

    “We certainly haven’t bought any jetpacks,” said LAPD Chief Charlie Beck. “We haven’t bought [squad] cars for two years.”

    As Gawker.com was the first to note, the “Fox and Friends” report appeared to contain material taken right out of a story from the Weekly World News tabloid, which bills itself as “The World’s Only Reliable New Source.”

    LINK

  152. 152.

    Just Some Fuckhead

    @Dennis SGMM:

    the Weekly World News tabloid, which bills itself as “The World’s Only Reliable New Source.”

    Well, Christ, if ya can’t trust them, who can ya trust?

  154. 154.

    Bob Loblaw

    @General Stuck:

    And you shut down completely when confronted with information you don’t immediately know how to handle. Then you start using nicknames that would be an embarrassment on an elementary school playground and start screaming at Fuckhead.

    This is less amusing. And sorta sad.

  156. 156.

    That's Master of Accountancy to You, Pal (JMN)

    @Bob Loblaw: It may be true that not every bill needs to be an omnibus bill, but this one sure as hell needed to be. For one thing, that would have meant getting two bills out of committee, and I doubt that that would have happened for the reconciliation part.

    Further, your argument depends upon the assumption that the Blue Dogs are complete idiots (hey, no snickering) and are incapable of seeing what you are doing. It only takes one of them to say that they won’t vote for the regulatory part of the bill if there is a separate reconciliation part that they don’t like. Do you really think that Ben Nelson would have stayed on board under those conditions? Lieberman? Lincoln? Baucus? Several others?

    I don’t disagree with you that Democrats were a part of the problem. I just don’t think that Obama, or Harry Reid for that matter, are the right Democrats to be targeting.

  157. 157.

    Martin

    @Dennis SGMM: Great, that’ll be the next ‘Obama and Democrats want to build a maglev train from Disneyland to the Vegas strip’ zombie story. Just wait.

  159. 159.

    Ailuridae

    @Bob Loblaw:

    400B dollar expansions of Medicaid have to be passed through regular procedure. As does 150-200B in subisidies for people to buy insurance. As does changing the actuarial value of qualifying insurance. As does ending recission and pre-existing conditions and every other reform in the individual market. That’s basically the entirety of the bill.

    About the only things that could be passed through reconciliation are the excise tax and the public option.

    And that calculus above is why people started making arguments that the kill the bill crowd were having an ideological purity battle – because the only thing that could be passed through reconciliation was their hobby horse.

  162. 162.

    Corner Stone

    @John Cole:

    Not sure why- if the WH did in fact deal it away in the summer, it pretty much validates what we’ve been saying about the votes not being there, doesn’t it?

    Jesus Christ, Cole. In the summer? Hell, if they’d made this deal Jan 21, 2009 you’d be telling us all it was because they knew the votes weren’t there.

  164. 164.

    General Stuck

    @Bob Loblaw: What information? A soap box speech from some idiot that hasn’t a clue how congress works and legislation is passed.

    The administration acts as the intermediary across the Democratic caucus’ internal divides. They negotiate with and ultimately represent the most powerful legislative stakeholders aka the ones most indifferent (or outright opposed) to reform. That’s their power base in Washington

    I mean wtf does this even mean. I already told you Joe Lieberman isn’t a goddamn democrat, not to mention he campaigned with and fucking voted for Obama’s opponent. Now what kind of, what was it, “acts as the intermediary across the Democratic caucus’ internal divides.” pressure could Obama apply to Holy Joe, short of waterboarding his sorry ass. And his “no” vote on cloture was the only nail necessary to kill the PO for regular order votes, as well as expanding Medicare. And as was pointed out, you have no clue what the reconciliation process is, and that trying to force a PO through it would likely come out looking like some kind of Frankenstein monster legislation that would be useless and un workable in the real world.

    Now go back to predicting the Bush tax cuts being made permanent for the middle class before the election. That was a hoot. Idiot.

  165. 165.

    PurpleGirl

    @Mary G: Have you talked to the social worker at the hospital? Perhaps someone in the hospice office can answer questions for you or connect you to a support group?

    I’m too tired tonight to start searching for on-line groups but I’m sure there are groups out there. (There are groups for soooooooooo many things on the web.) Try using the term “respite care” in a Google search. If you live in a biggish city maybe there is a city agency who has a social worker to help people with respite care issues.

  169. 169.

    FlipYrWhig

    Obama likes the public option. Conservative Democrats in the Senate don’t like the public option. They say they won’t vote for a bill with the public option. Obama decides that he’d rather have a bill with no public option than no bill. End of motherfuckingchristsuckingsmegmadripping story. That’s what happened. It’s not even interesting. This is like listening to someone tell stories about their Grateful Dead bootleg collection when you don’t like the fucking Dead and aren’t even fucking stoned. Enough already.

  170. 170.

    Corner Stone

    @schrodinger’s cat: Honestly, I don’t think he’s fat. I just think he exists in more than one dimension at the same time.
    Our feeble brains perceive him as indistinct, or fluffy, or to some…fat.

  171. 171.

    Bob Loblaw

    @Ailuridae:

    I would think it must be weird to live in a world of exclusive duopolies. It’s not all either/or. You are, in fact, allowed to use complementary tactics. It has been known to happen from time to time. I know, it’s a big, scary world out there.

    I never said the whole bill could be passed through reconciliation. I never said it should. I just, correctly, pointed out that the Democratic caucus chose its own procedural constraints and was necessarily limited by that choice. It wasn’t random. JMN understood what I was saying, and actually countered it on basis. You, however, invoked Jane Hamsher instead for no reason.

    Unless I recently became responsible for Jane Hamsher’s actions somehow, in which case, I’d like to apologize to the world.

  173. 173.

    PurpleGirl

    @Dennis SGMM: I checked the Nobel Prize web site and they have the schedule for announcements of the prizes posted. Literature will be announced October 7th.

  177. 177.

    2th&nayle

    @jeffreyw: caption: “All hail the Wise and Noble Empress of all She surveys!”
    I had to go over and check out the “Kitteth see, Kitteth do” pic again. Still grinnin’ from ear to ear. Too funny! Thx!

  178. 178.

    Ailuridae

    @Bob Loblaw:

    I never said the whole bill could be passed through reconciliation. I never said it should. I just, correctly, pointed out that the Democratic caucus chose its own procedural constraints and was necessarily limited by that choice. It wasn’t random. JMN understood what I was saying, and actually countered it on basis. You, however, invoked Jane Hamsher instead for no reason

    Err, bullshit. You wrote this:

    Of course there’s evidence of this. They didn’t pursue a reconciliation-centered strategy. They needed all 60 votes.

    The only parts of the bill that could be passed through reconciliation were the excise tax and the public option so what does it even mean to “pursue a reconciliation-centered strategy” unless you are talking specifically about either of those two things? A reconciliation based strategy which you seem to suggest was a viable way of doing meaningful health care reform only touched about 5% of any of the committee’s bills.

  180. 180.

    eemom

    You, however, invoked Jane Hamsher instead for no reason.

    Tee hee.

    There were SO enough votes for the public option! Because Jane Hamsher, that’s why!

  182. 182.

    Bob Loblaw

    @General Stuck:

    You’re really very stupid, do you know that?

    You always like to say how powerless Obama is. You’re right, you fucking jackass.

    Obama acts like a Blue Dog, and makes deals like a Blue Dog, and sells out to corporate lobbies like a Blue Dog, and passes legislation like a Blue Dog because without the Blue Dogs he’s a failed President. They are, because of the Senate’s rules, the single most important legislative players. What they say goes, or else it doesn’t go at all. He needs them far more than they need him.

    This isn’t about morality of the cause, it’s just business. Obama’s amoral, the Blue Dogs are amoral, it’s all amoral bullshit. That’s the system.

    I would just prefer the administration stop lying about past outcomes and work for better future outcomes, because it would make them look better and that’s always nice for everybody involved.

    Now go back to predicting the Bush tax cuts being made permanent for the middle class before the election. That was a hoot. Idiot.

    That wasn’t the bet. It wasn’t time locked. You’re lying again.

    I said Congress would pass legislation making, at most, 98% of the Bush tax cuts permanent in this session or the next rather than a temporary extension to some fixed end-date. I said they would do this out of political expediency regarding 2012, regardless of the fiscal irresponsibility of that particular use of tax revenues.

    That’s the bet that you ran away from, sunshine, not me.

  183. 183.

    Larkspur

    @Mary G: Mary G., this is really hard, what you and your mother are going through. I don’t know the particulars, but I’m inclined to say “trust your own judgment”. And also – we should always do our best to prolong life, but if we find ourselves prolonging death, we need to stop and ask ourselves if we’re clear on the mission. So if your mom is mostly relieved of pain, and has some times when she is able to get some enjoyment from her life, I say, keep doing what you’re doing: no treatment that will cause her discomfort when the docs agree that she cannot gain good time from it. And no proactive measures to hurry her. But I am not you, and I don’t know what the fuck I am talking about. I shouldn’t even post this comment, but I am hoping that somehow it will be of some use to you, even if it is only so ridiculous that it assists you in clarifying your thoughts. But mostly because I am so, so sorry that this hard, heartbreaking thing is happening. You have my very best wishes.

  184. 184.

    Martin

    @Ailuridae: They only cared about the public option because they don’t care about health care or entitlements, just about reaffirming liberal values. Most of them don’t know what the fuck is in the rest of ACA nor do they care.

  185. 185.

    Bob Loblaw

    @Ailuridae:

    Centered, as in, an explicit part of the process from the beginning. As in, everybody would know that there would be a multi-track process to getting the bill passed with different moving pieces. That controversial (and by rule, specifically tailored) parts of the bill could be stripped out from the omnibus package and pushed through alternative means that would ensure they get a majority vote in both chambers. That’s what I mean by a reconciliation-centered strategy.

    Considering this is what ended up happening procedurally, which netted us the very useful student lending reforms, I fail to see how I can be accused of fanciful thinking here.

  187. 187.

    General Stuck

    That wasn’t the bet. It wasn’t time locked.

    Maybe on your planet, not on mine. The Bush tax cuts expire on Jan 1, so they cannot be extended after that. They will no longer exist, and any new mc tax cuts will be Obama’s and drafted by him. This is what I recommended from the beginning of this debate, and predicted. And expect he will do, at least propose.

    Otherwise, I think you need a toddy to calm yourself down.

  188. 188.

    Chuck Butcher

    @Mary G:

    I’d suggest talking to the hospice about local resources to help you deal with this. A person to person contact would in my opinion be more useful to you than a distant one.

    I wouldn’t begin to think I can advise you as to a course and I don’t think anyone can. They can help you to clarify your own thinking. Best wishes to you in a difficult time.

  189. 189.

    Bob Loblaw

    The Bush tax cuts expire on Jan 1

    So then why bring up the election date, instead? Didn’t your mommy tell you not to be a fibber? You’ve got yourself all tangled up here.

    Good night, Stuck. Maybe tomorrow will be a better day.

  190. 190.

    Ailuridae

    @Bob Loblaw:

    Centered, as in, an explicit part of the process from the beginning. As in, everybody would know that there would be a multi-track process to getting the bill passed with different moving pieces. That controversial (and by rule, specifically tailored) parts of the bill could be stripped out from the omnibus package and pushed through alternative means that would ensure they get a majority vote in both chambers. That’s what I mean by a reconciliation-centered strategy.

    That’s certainly a bizarre definition of center, though, as relates to any sort of process. Actually it is pretty plain that wasn’t your intent.

    But say that was their strategy from the get go as you wished and the only thing dropped from the bill ends up being the Public Option. How is that any different than the current situation? And why hasn’t a vocal proponent of the public option in the Senate such as Saint Russ since introduced the public option as a stand alone piece of legislation. It certainly could pass, without issue, in the Senate by reconciliation as a stand alone measure if it ever could as a part of larger legislation. By could pass I mean it would be subject to the 50 vote requirement and not actually could garner 50 votes. But it doesn’t have 50 votes and never did, which is why none of the crowd telling you Obama sold out or what have you is pressing any of their heroes to do the obvious now and introduce the public option as a stand alone piece of legislation. Fuck, it probably would struggle to get out of committee and likely wouldn’t clear a majority in the house without the rest of the bill attached.

  191. 191.

    General Stuck

    @Bob Loblaw:

    So then why bring up the election date,

    Because I am pretty sure that was your prediction, something about dems getting hammered even worse if they didn’t do it before the election.

    Good night, Stuck. Maybe tomorrow will be a better day.

    Maybe, but you are going to have to quit making such a jackass out of yourself, or people will continue to talk.

  192. 192.

    Bob Loblaw

    @Ailuridae:

    Which part of that process draws heat? Which part incites howls of unconstitutionality on Fox News and the Post’s editorial page? Which part makes the Ben Nelsons of the world have a sad?

    I’m talking about the rhetorical center of the process.

    And for the record, I don’t really care if the public option has or doesn’t have or never had or never will have the votes to pass. It’s not the end of the world. I just don’t want legislators and members of the administration telling us how much they fought like tigers for stillborn policies. It’s a pathetic way of doing business.

  194. 194.

    That's Master of Accountancy to You, Pal (JMN)

    @Bob Loblaw: Earlier in the thread, you chastised Stuck for fading away when he was challenged with a point he wasn’t prepared for. Therefore, I’m calling you out on this. I presented the objection to this well before you made this post (Post 156). Respond to it.

  198. 198.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @burnspbesq: He just seemed rather surprised and disappointed that politicians would take political postures, make political decisions, and generally behave as politicians.

  199. 199.

    Bob Loblaw

    @That’s Master of Accountancy to You, Pal (JMN):

    I’m not sure what you’d want as a comeback. That certain Senators wouldn’t hold one part of the bill hostage to stall another? Yeah, I’m sure a few of them just might. Certainly plausible. There’s nothing I wouldn’t put past a United States Senator with money on the line.

    There was only one way to pass a public option without immediately jeopardizing the whole effort, and it was reconciliation. That’s all. That doesn’t mean it would work, and it doesn’t mean more than a couple dozen Senators were ever interested in it to begin with, even as a hypothetical. The Senate is the perpetual villain here, with Obama as their accomplice by hostage.

    I’m not sure it really matters. The hospital groups were loathe to take any more payment cuts than they needed to, and that was the early demise of any new public insurance plan. I’ve never been particularly interested in any conspiracy theories more wide ranging than that.

    When did you start following politics?

    Long enough to know that when wannabe reformers start talking about “changing the system,” it’s akin to political open season. If Obama wanted to make the conversation about process reform, despite his obvious pragmatic predilections, I don’t see why I should have to hold back on pointing out all his many (expected) hypocrisies. This is the internet, after all. I’m not on his payroll, and I don’t buy into the “enthusiasm gap” coming from the left argument. He’s not a Christ figure. He sold influence to outside stakeholders for political space and flexibility, let him take his lumps on the issue. He got his bill passed. At the very least, he’s pretty darn competent at most domestic stuff.

  200. 200.

    That's Master of Accountancy to You, Pal (JMN)

    @Bob Loblaw:

    There was only one way to pass a public option without immediately jeopardizing the whole effort, and it was reconciliation.

    No. It would have jeopardized the whole effort.

  203. 203.

    General Stuck

    @Bob Loblaw:

    Even if the trial balloon lasted all of twenty minutes before popping, that’s higher than zero. Details.

    As we end up this silly argument you started from abject ignorance, now you huddle with a trial balloon and twenty minutes in the dunce corner. Fairly cool, if not for time wasted. Details indeed.

  205. 205.

    Bob Loblaw

    @That’s Master of Accountancy to You, Pal (JMN):

    I’m still not clear on what it is that you want.

    If I tell you that Obama is good and great and I luvs him, will that make you happy?

    I already said multiple times that I don’t assign any moral blame to anybody over the public option’s death in the Senate. I don’t really care at this point what the Senate does. I’m pulling for the meteor.

    If anything, we should instead dedicate our time to playing the politician’s game ourselves. We should try and figure out if the administration got a good deal on that buy-off. 155 billion over ten years, eh? I feel like if they really put their shoulders into it, they could have gotten 160B, easy. I want the best bartering whores we can find, damn it.

  206. 206.

    Mnemosyne

    I’m just wondering why we have to rehash the events of last year over and over and over again instead of, you know, moving forward with legislation to improve it.

    Bob Loblaw sounds like that guy at the bar who starts telling you about how his bitch of an ex-girlfriend broke up with him and it takes you 10 or 15 minutes into the story to realize that he’s talking about something that happened to him three years ago like it happened yesterday.

  207. 207.

    platonicspoof

    @satby:

    Hey, since it’s an open thread: if anyone remembers the thread about death of Molly Hightower in Haiti last January, will the person who knew the family let them know I leave for Haiti at the end of the month and Molly was my inspiration?
    Thanks!

    Molly was the niece of a friend of Comrade Luke,
    but I don’t see a hyperlink with his name in that post. I assume John would have his e-mail, but you might have to e-mail John to get his help as an intermediary.
    To newer readers, Molly’s blog is still online.

    Satby, Good for you! I hope you can link us to your blog if you have one, or will have one. Sounds like you’d want to keep a journal anyway. Or maybe offer to do a post here later on.

    Best wishes for you and the people of Haiti.

  208. 208.

    tesslibrarian

    @Mary G: For online support groups, start here Family Caregiver Alliance.

    Another useful site is Caregiving.org. Some of their topics focus on a specific illness (such as Alzheimer’s), but the general guidelines work for any at-home, end-of-life care.

    You should also talk to the hospice service and/or hospital about arranging respite care so you have some time to take care of yourself. Even if you don’t participate in any of their support groups, but just go for a cup of coffee or dinner with a friend, or take yourself to the movies or go sit by yourself in the park and read, you’re going to need time to recharge without worrying. My mom didn’t do that while caring for my grandmother, and she’s still recovering/dealing with that, five years later. Take care of yourself.

  209. 209.

    satby

    @platonicspoof:
    Thanks! I’m hoping that knowing their daughter is remembered is some comfort to the family in their loss.
    I’ll keep the BJ crowd updated.

Comments are closed.