Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

You can’t love your country only when you win.

The worst democrat is better than the best republican.

The next time the wall wtreet journal editorial board speaks the truth will be the first.

Let’s delete this post and never speak of this again.

Yeah, with this crowd one never knows.

The truth is, these are not very bright guys, and things got out of hand.

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

Just because you believe it, that doesn’t make it true.

Some judge needs to shut this circus down soon.

If you’re pissed about Biden’s speech, he was talking about you.

They traffic in fear. it is their only currency. if we are fearful, they are winning.

Americans barely caring about Afghanistan is so last month.

“Jesus paying for the sins of everyone is an insult to those who paid for their own sins.”

Come on, man.

Too often we hand the biggest microphones to the cynics and the critics who delight in declaring failure.

I’d try pessimism, but it probably wouldn’t work.

Motto for the House: Flip 5 and lose none.

It’s time for the GOP to dust off that post-2012 autopsy, completely ignore it, and light the party on fire again.

if you can’t see it, then you are useless in the fight to stop it.

Despite his magical powers, I don’t think Trump is thinking this through, to be honest.

We still have time to mess this up!

A sufficient plurality of insane, greedy people can tank any democratic system ever devised, apparently.

A democracy can’t function when people can’t distinguish facts from lies.

Accountability, motherfuckers.

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Reader Interactions

83Comments

  1. 1.

    General Stuck

    Plans? What are those? I am just a traveler on the winds of time, now and then jumping off to take a piss.

  3. 3.

    Maude

    The plan for my friend with the rescue GH Ellie is to sleep. The dog has slept all night since Sunday. The don’t let her sleep in the evening.

  4. 4.

    Gin & Tonic

    Is Mickey Rourke’s The Wrestler any good? I have a Blu-Ray disc from the collectivist public library.

  5. 5.

    Tulip

    I have to work for another hour or so… then I’m going home and doing crossword puzzles.

    It’s been a horrible week and I can’t think of doing anything other than hibernating.

    Yeah my life fricking ROCKS! :)

  7. 7.

    Sarah, Proud and Tall

    Jesus (as I have noted previously, the nurses’ aid, not God) is coming in to give me my fortnightly colonic irrigation, after which I’m going to get hepped up on cough syrup and try to convince matoko_chan to wash and use verbs properly.

  8. 8.

    Strandedvandal

    Just finished 4X10 lactate threshold intervals, and having chicken and brown rice for dinner. Tomorrow I am doing a practice run of the time trial I have in a week. It’s all very exciting.

  9. 9.

    General Stuck

    I am planning to take a day trip down to the Chiricahua Mountains when my wifi antenna arrives, likely early next week. Maybe I will blog from there if there are some hot spots.

  10. 10.

    Gravenstone

    Just did a couple hours of RIFT, now off for a couple or so in WoW. Exciting times…

  11. 11.

    Chris Williams

    @Gin – I loved The Wrestler.

    I finally bought Dragon Age and am going to try it out tonight, once the kids are asleep.

  13. 13.

    Mnemosyne

    Finishing my multi-day project of clearing my crap out of the dining room and then straightening up for the cleaning people who are coming tomorrow.

    Fun times all around, in other words.

  14. 14.

    FlipYrWhig

    Grading papers. One of the joys of being on that public education, public employee gravy train.

  16. 16.

    arguingwithsignposts

    I don’t know who it is, but SPAT’s peculiar form of performance art creeps me the fuck out.

    It was sorta cute the first couple of threads, but now it’s decided to make a home here. At least it’s on the right side of the m_c divide.

    ETA: I note that David Koch disappeared as soon as SPAT started hanging around. Coincidence?

  17. 17.

    General Stuck

    Not everyone wants to know about your breastfeeding experiences, dear. Just a thought.

    it’s relaxing, I could stand to hear a little more.

  18. 18.

    Bubblegum Tate

    I plan to:

    1. Find out what my girlfriend wants for dinner.
    2. Make it for her.
    3. Continue indoctrinating her into The Wire fandom.

  22. 22.

    Gravenstone

    @gnomedad: What, Old Fucknuts didn’t go the single step further of accusing NASA of intentionally crashing an empty rocket to perpetrate the hoax? Disappointing. I guess he’s suffering an Oxycontin deficiency or something.

  23. 23.

    Strandedvandal

    @FlipYrWhig: I do not miss those days. Esp. now, since Idaho is doing the same thing that Wisconsin and Ohio are doing. It was already hard to get quality teachers here, and now it is going to be damn near impossible. Which will of course affect the quality of education, which will push the Republicans here to gut public education even further.

  24. 24.

    WaterGirl

    @arguingwithsignposts: I couldn’t agree more about SPAT being creepy, and all the “dear”s make my skin crawl. But I do think the timing with David Koch is coincidence. His posts were usually one-liners, not this self-absorbed crap.

    P.S. How is Lady Smudge?

  25. 25.

    FlipYrWhig

    @Strandedvandal: Fortunately I’m in a public _college_ and not primary or secondary education, but there’s a lot of the same stresses, and the same dynamic of cuts and freezes in pay and benefits.

  26. 26.

    Dennis SGMM

    Starting the build on a 2 meter wingspan radio controlled glider. Good old balsa wood. She’ll fly like an angel.

  29. 29.

    Strandedvandal

    @FlipYrWhig: If I do ever go back, I’m thinking community college would be nice. Not going to get rich, but it might be nice to have students who are there because they want to be (at least some of them anyway)

  30. 30.

    stuckinred

    Just watched “Exit Through the Gift Shop” interesting movie about the bullshit world of art.

  31. 31.

    Strandedvandal

    @Dennis SGMM: Nice. I build electrics when I have time. Last one was a 6ft Pfalz eIII. Flies like a giant kite with that huge chord and flat bottomed wing.

  34. 34.

    Sarah, Proud and Tall

    @WaterGirl:

    It’s a big internet, dear. There’s room for creepy old ladies AND whining harridans with a cat obsession.

    ETA – And don’t worry, I’ll get bored soon, and go back to praising Chuluthu on the Disney chat forum and sending Andrew Sullivan abusive emails for kicks.

  35. 35.

    WaterGirl

    @arguingwithsignposts: I still have the photo of smudge (walking the ledge) on my desktop, along with my other BJ favorite, from jeffereyw: it’s his open hand with the words ‘refresh BJ”, which I think is just too funny.

    Edit: maybe we need to ask jeffreyw for a spin-off… his open hand with the words “ignore trolls”.

  36. 36.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    @arguingwithsignposts: Hey, she likes me (or at least she said she does) so I’m cool with having her around. I’m eager to see how well she takes to being mooed at, now that the children have computer privileges again. It could be interesting…

  37. 37.

    JBerardi

    First televised Red Sox spring training game tonight. Cuban defector Juan Carlos Linares just hit a single. Exciting!

  38. 38.

    burnspbesq

    Listening to new records: Social Distortion, Drive-By Truckers, Cold War Kids, Bright Eyes, Guster.

    Also scoreboard-watching.

  39. 39.

    BGinCHI

    @FlipYrWhig: Did that all afternoon. And managed not to ram an icepick into my eardrums.

    Will also be back at it tomorrow and Sunday.

    Watched The Ghost Writer last night. Really great. Polanski still has a nice touch.

  40. 40.

    Steve T.

    I’m trying to ignore the thundering drums on the street outside. I live right on the Mardi Gras parade route in New Orleans, and it’s madness out there.

    You might appreciate this, though. Mardi Gras clubs are traditionally called “krewes.” One of the krewes rolling tonight is called “Krewe D’Etat”. While most krewes have a king, a new one every year, Krewe D’Etat has a Dictator, also a new one every year. He parades on his float masked, and his identity is never revealed.

  41. 41.

    BGinCHI

    @burnspbesq: Dude, you are hipper than I thought.

    Liverpool fan (unless I’m misremembering) and a DBTs listener.

    Wait, are you a friend of mine?

    Ps. Have given up on Bright Eyes. I’m Wide Awake, It’s Morning is the last thing young Conor has done that I liked.

    Do you have the Harlem record? It’s called “Hippies” and you have to get it. Thank me later.

  45. 45.

    Odie Hugh Manatee

    Finish up my new i7-980x system! I’m always busy building or fixing computers for everyone else that I rarely get time to upgrade any of my systems. This one is my main system, a double-wide case on casters (big mofo) that loaded with fans, fan controllers, temp sensors, drives, hot-swap bays and a power supply that doubles as an octopus, making it a real time consuming project to upgrade. The cabling alone takes two days to do because I rewire it so that everything is neat and clean, which allows servicing it without having to rip it all apart just to replace a drive.

    Lots of work but it’s reliable, kicks ass and that’s all that matters to me. :)

  47. 47.

    BGinCHI

    @stuckinred: Have seen them an embarrassing amount of times.

    Also, we saw Patterson Hood solo acoustic a few years back and that was too cool.

    How’s spring? No sign of it round here….

  49. 49.

    stuckinred

    @BGinCHI: Insanely great up until yesterday, shit is bloomin everywhere. Good friends got married outside Sunday and it was 70. Rainy weekend but it is really pretty. You know how it is before the bugs and the humidity and even the pine dust shows up.

  51. 51.

    BGinCHI

    @stuckinred: That sounds so damn good. We’re in the swinging wildly between not-shitty and really shitty period. And when the one nice day falls on a Tuesday it’s the pits.

    Ready for the sunshine and southern winds.

  52. 52.

    BGinCHI

    @stuckinred: Oh, my. What is that? Cherry? Red bud?

    Was thinking about you a week or so back. Heard Rodney Crowell on Fresh Air being interviewed about his new book (memoir of his childhood). It’s called Chinaberry Sidewalks and it sounds really great. Reminds me I need to get it. You should too.

  53. 53.

    stuckinred

    @BGinCHI: In the 26 years I’ve been here the spring never fails to blow me away. My bride is a fanatic gardener and she used her flowers for the wedding. A week later the hellebore bouquet’s are still holding up.

  54. 54.

    stuckinred

    @BGinCHI: Cherry.

    Gotta keep rockin’ why I still can
    I gotta two pack habit and a motel tan
    But when my boots hit the boards I’m a brand new man
    With my back to the riser I make my stand

    I know Earle wrote it but Rodney killed it.

  58. 58.

    burnspbesq

    @stuckinred:

    Ordered that today. Also Majestic Silver Strings (Buddy Miller, Bill Frisell, Marc Ribot, Greg Leisz), Bruce Cockburn, Joe Lovano (the quintet with Esperanza Spaulding), and a few others.

  59. 59.

    burnspbesq

    @stuckinred:

    That other band from Athens has a new record either out or coming out soon. Listened to some of their early stuff on the plane coming back from NY this morning. Still works.

  60. 60.

    Jebediah

    @Gin & Tonic:

    Is Mickey Rourke’s The Wrestler any good?

    Yes. His actoring was great, I thought and the whole thing was well done – but be warned, if you are as sappy as I, you may find the movie a bit wrenching emotionally. I am very sappy.

  61. 61.

    bk

    Tonight – decompressing from a stressful but good work week, drinking wine and dissolving into a pile of goo. Tomorrow night, watching my alma mater kick some Duke ass.

  63. 63.

    suzanne

    Just got back from getting some delicious sushi for dinner, now sitting here with my tit in someone’s mouth.

  65. 65.

    Shadow's Mom

    At Potlatch 20 in Sunnyvale cataloging Clarion West auction items in preparation for the big event tomorrow night. Happy for the existence of Google Docs, which have made entering and managing data entry in real-time across multiple computers a breeze.

  66. 66.

    suzanne

    @BGinCHI:

    Have kinda given up on her.

    Never give up on Lucinda.
    I am friggin’ excited as hell for the new R.E.M. record. I realize that makes me sound old, but fuck all y’all.
    I kind of feel like walking over to the Heart Attack Grill (it’s in my neighborhood) and seeing how many people are eating there this evening. I would assume today’s news might have slightly lowered the headcount.

  70. 70.

    Steeplejack

    Just checking in, so I will report retroactively on my “exciting plans” for the evening:

    1. Finished work at 4:45, went for Mexican food with former favorite coworker (she transferred to a different store a month or so ago). Excellent food and excellent conversation.

    2. Stopped at grocery on way home, picked up a few things, including a bottle of champagne.

    3. Spent the evening drinking champagne, channel-surfing and programming my new universal remote control, just received yesterday from Amazon. Under 20 bucks and awesome! It acquired my TV, cable box/DVR and audio receiver no problem (haven’t bothered with the DVD player yet), but I had to manually map a button or two to handle certain non-standard things, e.g., go into the DVR saved-program list.

    Everything is working fine, and I think I have reached the nirvana that is one remote to rule them all. My Scientific Atlanta cable/DVR remote did a good job of taking over the TV, but for some reason it couldn’t learn the audio receiver, so I had to keep that remote handy solely to adjust the volume. Irritating. And the cable/DVR remote was getting a little flaky after five years of daily use. A few of the buttons were erratic or slow to react. So I thought, what the hell, I’d take a chance on this universal remote. Already can say it has been an unqualified success. The only things it won’t do–and I have no doubt that I can program it to do them with the application of more champagne–are to go into the submenu to turn on/turn off captions, which I use rarely, and to go into the picture-in-picture mode, which I use once every week or so during football season.

    Right now I am contemplating whether I am ready to take the plunge and program one button to turn on TV, cable box and receiver all at once. Be still, my heart.

  73. 73.

    suzanne

    @Comrade Mary: Unfortunately, it’s not THAT exciting. Boobs are for babies, after all.

    I am kind of tempted to use my ice cream maker to make my own breastmilk ice cream.

  74. 74.

    Jebediah

    Big plans for the evening – see if I can skip out of work midnightish, then go home. cuddle my doggses, and try to figure out why I keep wanting to listen to Little Feat. It’s sort of a departure for me.

  75. 75.

    burnspbesq

    @bk:

    Tomorrow night, watching my alma mater kick some Duke ass.

    In your fucking dreams. Your Senior Night is guaranteed to suck. And Miami is going to kill your women.

  76. 76.

    burnspbesq

    @Jebediah:

    try to figure out why I keep wanting to listen to Little Feat.

    Umm, because they were one of the greatest bands there ever was?

  77. 77.

    Allan

    I just got home from seeing the Joffrey Ballet perform in the brand-new $50M performing arts center built practically in my backyard through a public/university/private partnership. This is in Folsom, CA, a city of about 60K people on the edge of the Sacramento metropolitan area. A dazzling array of culture awaits. Next week Gloria Steinem, the week after that Roseanne Cash.

    What made it especially sweet is how every single aspect of what I just said makes Teabaggers shart themselves in disgust.

  78. 78.

    Jebediah

    @burnspbesq:
    I am starting to think so, yes. My only exposure to them previously had been on a visit to my older brother, stationed on the Navy base in Maine. I was 14, we all smoked some weed which had me trippingly high, and a Little Feat album was playing while we watched a football game with the sound off. I am sure the perfect synchronization between the game and the music had nothing to do with THC at all.
    I don’t know why it has taken me this long to listen to them again, but I think I have some album buying to do.

  80. 80.

    Jebediah

    @Jebediah:
    It wasn’t a family visit – it was just me. In case anyone was thinking “we all” included Mom, Dad, etc. Drove up with big brother, took a Greyhound home, and in Boston, where I had to switch buses, had an encounter that I later understood was most likely a pedophile trying to pick me up.

  81. 81.

    WaterGirl

    @Jebediah: That has to be unsettling. I have a couple of things I look at in retrospect with grown up eyes. The details are different, but both are unsettling for me. There are some things you just can’t understand when you are young. In some ways, I guess that’s a good thing, but not being aware when you are in danger is not always so helpful.

  82. 82.

    Jebediah

    @WaterGirl:
    It isn’t as unsettling for me as it might be, because although I was young and naive, I wasn’t that naive – I could tell the guy was hinky, and I wasn’t going to go anywhere with him. He was a hella fast runner, though – he spotted somebody (vice cop?) and I swear I have never seen a person disappear so fast.
    I take it back – it is unsettling – not because I was in danger, but because so many kids are too trusting and naive and there are people like him out trolling for victims.

    I am glad none of your incidents turned out worse.

  83. 83.

    Jebediah

    Just read PZ Myers review on Salon of David Brooks’s latest extrusion, “The Social Animal.” The book seems to live up to the bar set by his columns…

    The technicalities don’t illuminate the story in any way, and the story undercuts the science. Ultimately, the neuroscience in the book feels a micrometer deep and a boring lifetime long, with the fiction of Harold and Erica giving the impression that it’s built on a sample size of two, and both of them utterly imaginary.

    Per PZ, it also has “polysyllabic magical incantations that allow shallow people to pretend to have knowledge.”

    Is it possible to anti-buy a book? To somehow cancel out another’s purchase?

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