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So it was an October Surprise A Day, like an Advent calendar but for crime.

When they say they are pro-life, they do not mean yours.

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The press swings at every pitch, we don’t have to.

fuckem (in honor of the late great efgoldman)

Come on, media. you have one job. start doing it.

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Wow, I can’t imagine what it was like to comment in morse code.

Celebrate the fucking wins.

Accountability, motherfuckers.

No offense, but this thread hasn’t been about you for quite a while.

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You are here: Home / Open Threads / Open Thread

Open Thread

by John Cole|  June 23, 201111:27 pm| 40 Comments

This post is in: Open Threads

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Stones:

Also too, Via Michael D:

“Remember when teachers, public employees, Planned Parenthood, NPR, and PBS crashed the stock market, wiped out half of our 401Ks, took trillions in TARP money, gave themselves billions in bonuses, and paid no taxes? Yeah.. Me neither.”

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Previous Post: « Open Thread: Thursday Garden Chat
Next Post: I was always more of a Bowie girl myself… »

Reader Interactions

40Comments

  1. 1.

    Mike Kay (The Base)

    June 23, 2011 at 11:29 pm

    first

  2. 2.

    TooManyJens

    June 23, 2011 at 11:30 pm

    I just got email from Andrew Breitbart. Apparently I made the mistake of commenting on one of the Big Bullshit sites at one point, and now they’d like to add me to their mailing list. Can’t decide whether “keep an eye on the enemy” or “preserve your sanity” is the better option here.

  3. 3.

    Left Coast Tom

    June 23, 2011 at 11:33 pm

    @TooManyJens: As an email subscriber, would you be likely to receive BreitMissives any faster than Fox News? If not, I’d go with the sanity in a heartbeat.

  4. 4.

    Jeffro

    June 23, 2011 at 11:35 pm

    Apparently the GOP has decided that budget negotiations are fine, as long as they’re one-sided and involve no tax increases on millionaires. Otherwise no debt ceiling limit increase, world markets be d***ed

    Meanwhile, the Dem/Obama message machine is snoozin’

    I can haz ticket to Canada or Europe, please?

  5. 5.

    Left Coast Tom

    June 23, 2011 at 11:35 pm

    By the way John, we didn’t burn your blog down while you were gone. TBogg rewards his minions with Shakira’s ass, I don’t think Rolling Stones will cut it.

  6. 6.

    Steeplejack

    June 23, 2011 at 11:36 pm

    @TooManyJens:

    Preserve your sanity.

  7. 7.

    Calouste

    June 23, 2011 at 11:46 pm

    How John Cole really did his shoulder in. The culprit is easily identifiable.

  8. 8.

    JasonF

    June 23, 2011 at 11:48 pm

    Left Coast Tom, the Rolling Stones always cut it. Especially Sticky Fingers.

  9. 9.

    Corner Stone

    June 23, 2011 at 11:49 pm

    So is Michael D. the Balloon-Juice proto EDK or ABL?
    I think the argument leans toward a front running of ABL.

  10. 10.

    magurakurin

    June 23, 2011 at 11:54 pm

    I don’t think Rolling Stones will cut it.

    “and I won’t forget to put roses on your grave…”

  11. 11.

    The Fat Kate Middleton

    June 23, 2011 at 11:55 pm

    Left Coast Tom, you forget those amazing rolling booties Sarah Proud and Tall gave us. Mmm.

  12. 12.

    Comrade Luke

    June 23, 2011 at 11:57 pm

    Is this just some random coincidence?

  13. 13.

    Comrade Kevin

    June 24, 2011 at 12:07 am

    “The video you have requested is not available”

  14. 14.

    PeakVT

    June 24, 2011 at 12:10 am

    Tsunami cleanup in Japan.

    ETA: From Calouse’s link, NSFW but hilarious.

  15. 15.

    Nutella

    June 24, 2011 at 12:16 am

    Just picked up the mail and there’s a big envelope with a red stamp “OFFICIAL BUSINESS” and visible through the window “VOTER REGISTRATION” and some data fields.

    I got 10 seconds into wondering why the local elections commission had changed their style for mailed notices when I looked more closely at the back to see that it came from the Republican National Committee.

    I love it when even the damn envelope is a lie.

  16. 16.

    Martin

    June 24, 2011 at 12:18 am

    Beck To Visit Auschwitz To Figure Out ‘How Did This Happen?’

    What happens when he learns that it was all planned out on a series of blackboards full of elaborate conspiracies.

  17. 17.

    jane from hell

    June 24, 2011 at 12:22 am

    @Luke: I think not.

  18. 18.

    jane from hell

    June 24, 2011 at 12:24 am

    @Calouste: Holy shit, that is Tunch. And possibly a second Tunch on the hill.
    /BJ injury porn

  19. 19.

    Martin

    June 24, 2011 at 12:32 am

    Tsunami cleanup in Japan.

    That’s astonishing. Why couldn’t we do the same thing in NOLA?

  20. 20.

    Cat Lady

    June 24, 2011 at 12:34 am

    I tucked that Michael D comment away in my email months ago, and it was the first post on my Facebook page when I joined a couple of months ago, since (1) it’s awesome, and (2) it let everyone who wanted to friend me know I might end up unfriending them. It cuts to the chase.

  21. 21.

    Sarah Proud and Tall

    June 24, 2011 at 12:40 am

    OMG Blog has Michael D’s comment as a gif.

  22. 22.

    Violet

    June 24, 2011 at 12:51 am

    Tsunami warning in Alaska.

    The Alaska Earthquake Information Center says a major earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.2 has been recorded in the Pacific Ocean off Alaska’s remote Aleutian Islands.

  23. 23.

    Steeplejack

    June 24, 2011 at 1:02 am

    Thanks, someone, for pointing out that Cole shares his birthday with Todd Rundgren. Been groovin’ on “I Saw the Light.”

    Best use of tom-tom in a song ballad evah.

  24. 24.

    Anne Laurie

    June 24, 2011 at 1:09 am

    CS: I always enjoyed Michael D’s posts, even when I didn’t agree with them. When us commentors got all up in his factuals, Michael D didn’t whine that he was gonna tell Cole and then we’d be sorry. Also, when he decided to stop front-paging, IIRC he left one very gracious exit post, not a series of increasingly reckless self-injury threats and/or cheap-farce revolving-door ‘I wouldn’t give you people the satisfaction’ re-runs.

    But then, Michael D wasn’t trolling for a paid gig, AFAIK.

  25. 25.

    Mark S.

    June 24, 2011 at 1:16 am

    Richard Cohen is too low-rent for even Doug J to bother reading, but I’m a bit mystified by this piece. I guess Cohen defines national greatness as sticking with an unwinnable war indefinitely. I know that Cohen’s an idiot, but this almost seems like it was written by Bill Kristol.

  26. 26.

    Origuy

    June 24, 2011 at 1:17 am

    Tsunami warning has been lifted.

  27. 27.

    Cat Lady

    June 24, 2011 at 1:23 am

    @Steeplejack:

    A whirl with teh google unearthed this gem about Cole’s encounter with God Todd. I’m jealous.

  28. 28.

    Admiral_Komack

    June 24, 2011 at 1:23 am

    Yep, I’ve been to weeseeyou.com:

    “Al Gore Attacks President Obama for Failing to Do Al Gore’s Job”

    Al Gore takes some shots at President Obama in a new Rolling Stone essay, grumbling that he has “thus far failed to use the bully pulpit to make the case for bold action on climate change.” Wait: Isn’t that Al Gore’s job? The president’s job is the action, not the case-making. And while I don’t plan to spend all my time defending him against unfair attacks from the left, his actions on climate have been a lot bolder than Gore suggests…

    http://swampland.time.com/2011/06/23/al-gore-attacks-president-obama-for-failing-to-do-al-gores-job/

    Dear Al Gore:

    If the bully pulpit was so powerful, why didn’t you use it as Vice-President…to become President?

    Don’t trip over an inconvienent truth.

    C-ya.

  29. 29.

    daverave

    June 24, 2011 at 1:32 am

    Perhaps the best Stones tune evah, perhaps because Mick finally STFU for a bit.

  30. 30.

    EvolutionaryDesign

    June 24, 2011 at 1:32 am

    Fantastic tune. I’ll still take the Beatles, but these guys know a thing or two about whiskey.

  31. 31.

    Sarah Proud and Tall

    June 24, 2011 at 1:42 am

    @ cat lady

    A whirl with teh google unearthed this gem about Cole’s encounter with God Todd. I’m jealous.

    Jesus. I clicked on that link then forgot I had (I’m old. Fuck off.) and then spent five minutes wondering why the fuck all the new posts were from Thanksgiving 2005.

    I need another drink.

  32. 32.

    arguingwithsignposts

    June 24, 2011 at 1:49 am

    Just got home from a 17-hour drive. way too much driving. OTOH, at least I didn’t read any insanity from the right today. Instead, here’s some Cloud Cult.

  33. 33.

    John Cole

    June 24, 2011 at 2:09 am

    Thanks, someone, for pointing out that Cole shares his birthday with Todd Rundgren. Been groovin’ on “I Saw the Light.”

    I’ve met Todd Rundgren. He called me an asshole.

    I’ll tell the story some time.

  34. 34.

    joel hanes

    June 24, 2011 at 2:33 am

    >> Tsunami cleanup in Japan.

    > That’s astonishing.
    > Why couldn’t we do the same thing in NOLA?

    Oh, we could have.

    But Bush 43 put Karl Rove in charge of the NOLA recovery (see paragraph 9), and Rove’s goals are always purely political goals.

    So today NOLA, formerly a majority-black and strongly Democratic city, is much less black and tilts Republican.

    Mission Accomplished !

  35. 35.

    Steeplejack

    June 24, 2011 at 2:36 am

    @Cat Lady:

    I had forgotten about that. Cole has had the people skills since way back when!

    Still groovin’ to “I Saw the Light.” Keep thinking I should switch over to “We Gotta Get You a Woman,” but not yet.

  36. 36.

    Steeplejack

    June 24, 2011 at 2:37 am

    @John Cole:

    The Internet never forgets. (h/t Cat Lady)

  37. 37.

    arguingwithsignposts

    June 24, 2011 at 2:40 am

    I’ve met Todd Rundgren. He called me an asshole.

    He is a commenter here?

  38. 38.

    Brachiator

    June 24, 2011 at 3:24 am

    Tsunami cleanup in Japan.

    Amazing photos. Many of the comments on the pictures are thoughtful and eloquent, and it is interesting to note the goodwill still coming from all over the world.

  39. 39.

    Hewer of Wood, Drawer of Water

    June 24, 2011 at 7:38 am

    Calouste

    That was great – did you see the father’s day picture (page 8,I believe). Makes me think of some of the people here

    http://animalsbeingdicks.com/page/8

  40. 40.

    Nylund

    June 24, 2011 at 11:56 am

    I put on Sticky Fingers during a recent road trip with my wife. She had never heard this song before and loved it, especially the long sax-filled instrumental section at the end. I was mainly just flabbergasted that she’d gone her whole life without hearing it before.

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