Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Make the republican party small enough to drown in a bathtub.

Schmidt just says fuck it, opens a tea shop.

Proof that we need a blogger ethics panel.

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

It may be funny to you motherfucker, but it’s not funny to me.

Do not shrug your shoulders and accept the normalization of untruths.

I’ve spoken to my cat about this, but it doesn’t seem to do any good.

Something needs to be done about our bogus SCOTUS.

Ron DeSantis, the grand wizard, oops, governor of FL

They are lying in pursuit of an agenda.

“The defense has a certain level of trust in defendant that the government does not.”

Consistently wrong since 2002

“What are Republicans afraid of?” Everything.

Republicans don’t trust women.

Not all heroes wear capes.

We still have time to mess this up!

T R E 4 5 O N

Let me eat cake. The rest of you could stand to lose some weight, frankly.

Teach a man to fish, and he’ll sit in a boat all day drinking beer.

How can republicans represent us when they don’t trust women?

Peak wingnut was a lie.

I’d like to think you all would remain faithful to me if i ever tried to have some of you killed.

This isn’t Democrats spending madly. This is government catching up.

Following reporting rules is only for the little people, apparently.

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Reader Interactions

162Comments

  1. 1.

    Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, Cardinal mistermix

    Test comment.

  8. 8.

    Schlemizel

    Is it too soon to start whining about how the site is screwed up? Is it time yet to complain about posting times?

    Remember the immoral words of Richard Nixon, “The more things change the more they stay the same”

    Thanks for all your hard work guys

  22. 22.

    Richard Fox

    Where is that drawing of the funny man with the top hat and the megaphone? Why did he have to vanish? He had a balloon in the background, and I liked him. Progress? I guess. The site is still brilliant and my go to read every day, regardless. So carry on.
    :-)

  25. 25.

    Ultraviolet Thunder

    Nice. Now whenever a new commenter complains about FYWP we can regale them with Old Server stories. Freezing gravel, uphill both ways, etc.

    ETA: test edit

  26. 26.

    JPL

    @Richard Fox: Me too!
    According to mistermix
    Remember our plan: step 1 is a new server. Once we’re sure that’s working, step 2 is the redesign. This means that the current site should be working exactly like the old one, except faster.

    Who knows what the redesign will look like. I just hope that the cardinal mistermix doesn’t have to consult the pope.

  31. 31.

    Wag

    This is the Central Scrutinizer. The red zone is for comment loading and unloading only…

  32. 32.

    Ultraviolet Thunder

    Got in at 2:00 am, the end of an epic 19 hour day of work and travel. Totally burned out. Only easy stuff today, like watering plants, reading and cleaning the fish tank. Maybe a nap in there somewhere. Ugh.

  38. 38.

    Roger Moore

    This means that the current site should be working exactly like the old one, except faster.

    Missing the #notintendedtobeafactualstatement tag.

  41. 41.

    Roger Moore

    @JPL:

    Who knows what the redesign will look like.

    I know: it will look worse than the current site, even if it’s a perfect recreation of the old site that everybody liked better.

  42. 42.

    La Caterina (Mrs. Johannes)

    @jeffreyw: That little heartbreaker!

    During the BJ blackout, Johannes & I binge-viewed a four part 2001 BBC adaptation of Trollope’s The Way We Live Now. It was very good, but very naughty of us.

  44. 44.

    Poopyman

    Does this mean I don’t have to go for long walks with Mrs. P anymore, and resume my couch potato status?

    Yay me.

  52. 52.

    Todd

    The new server sucks worse than the old server, and the redesign will screw things up worse than the old design which I hate, but also prefer.

    FYWP

  53. 53.

    Amir Khalid

    @Roger Moore:
    Look on the bright side. The first few iterations of the redesign will be all wonky with, e.g., random avatars drawn by spiders on acid; which for a week or so will give us all a target-rich snarking environment.

  54. 54.

    Todd

    @pamelabrown53:

    @La Caterina (Mrs. Johannes): Is that the version of The Way We Live Now that stars David Suchet? I keep that version in my Roku/Netflix queue; I’ve watched it several times.

    I keep intending to watch that. Maybe I’ll sit down to it when my wife goes to Australia for a couple of weeks next month.

  60. 60.

    Drunken hausfrau

    Hurrah! Bloody Mary’s all around!

    When will Sarah be hosting a drunken meet up? I’d put on my best cocktail outfit for one of her shindigs.

  61. 61.

    RaflW

    I’m so glad you’re back. I felt so untethered.

    OK, actually I watched a Bond movie and played around with summer vacation possibilities, but I wanted you to think I missed you jackals last night.

    ETA: Thank you for doing the behind the scenes work.

  62. 62.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Gex: Preach it, sister. It’s all too easy to take this community for granted. It’s such a remarkable, funny, smart, thoughtful and supportive place. I’m always glad to be reminded of how grateful I am to John G. Cole & Co.

  63. 63.

    pamelabrown53

    @Todd: Definitely worth watching, Todd, although I’d rather go to Australia. BTW, in the latest issue of “The New Yorker” there’s a fascinating profile on Gina Rinehart,Australia’s richest woman. She makes the Koch brothers look sane

  64. 64.

    Valdivia

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    Hi! Thanks for asking.

    Less painful but I haven’t attempted to take off/change the dressing yet. Worse part of my day when I do that. Hope this time it will be less painful. I even had a dream about it! Obviously my brain is traumatized from it.

  66. 66.

    dmsilev

    Huh. Looks like I won the “last comment before the serverpocalypse” lottery.

    Yay me?

  68. 68.

    sparrow

    @Wag: I recently re-watched Airplane! after years and years, and I was really surprised by the abortion joke that I totally forgot about — an interesting proof that it *wasn’t* a divisive issue in the recent past, but has been politicized.

    And the new server rocks.

  70. 70.

    Soonergrunt

    @Mistermix: KICK ASS.
    Fast, responsive in both the pages and the console. Nicely done, Sir. And kudos to John for shelling out the extra cash.

  71. 71.

    mai naem

    I’m watching UP and they’re talking about the gay marriage/DOMA case in front of the USSC this week. I’m just wondering, if you aren’t getting the benefits of marriage, are you getting the negative effects of marriage? e.g. If one of the gay couple owes the IRS or some court judgement, is the IRS/court plaintiff going after the spouse for the money? Are your spouse’s debts listed on your credit report? Just wondering – I had never even thought of these issues before. I’d only thought of the benefits, primarily job related and SS benefits.

  73. 73.

    Baud

    I’m not sure the new server has really been put to the test yet. Someone should post a Greenwald tweet, and then we’ll see how well this baby runs.

  74. 74.

    Suffern ACE

    Was this really the best use of our unlimited donated commenter cash? Perhaps we should convene a grand panel of consultants and nephews of front pagers to look into the matter.

  75. 75.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Valdivia: I would think — and certainly hope — that each dressing change will be easier and less painful. Good wishes for a full and speedy recovery. Are you still friends with the guy who stomped you?

  77. 77.

    mai naem

    @pamelabrown53: Rinehart’s the one who last year said something to the effect that poor people are poor because they’re lazy and smoke and drink a lot. This from a woman who inherited her money. I hope her in their next lifetimes, her and Dick Cheney come back as a black lesbian couple in a dirt poor country run under sharia law. Also too, they should both have some genetic disorder they’re born with. And that would only be the beginning of their karmas.

  78. 78.

    Baud

    @mai naem:

    I thought you were talking about the movie, and I was confused.

    I’m no expert, but I think it’s case-by-case. It depends on the state and the particular legal issue presented.

    @MomSense:

    Good. I don’t know his chances, but I like seeing the fight.

  79. 79.

    Todd

    @pamelabrown53:

    @Todd: Definitely worth watching, Todd, although I’d rather go to Australia.

    I can’t go. She is going on business, and somebody has to mind our youngest daughter’s final weeks of high school responsibly. Maybe next year.

    BTW, in the latest issue of “The New Yorker” there’s a fascinating profile on Gina Rinehart,Australia’s richest woman. She makes the Koch brothers look sane.

    Yeah, I’ve read about her. She is a nasty piece of work.

  80. 80.

    Jay C

    @mai naem:

    Don’t see why not: if same-sex couples are considered legally “married” by a state or the Federal government, they should have to deal with ALL the legal aspects of said status -positive and negative. I’m not sure how much case law out there there has been on this issue, but it’s hard too see where any exceptions might apply…

  81. 81.

    Valdivia

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    :D

    my boyfriend kept telling me I should torture him with pictures of my dressing change on a daily basis. But even I find it totally icky.

    he has been sweet texting and email and calling to make sure I am ok.

  84. 84.

    mai naem

    @Valdivia: If the pain is really really bad you could ask the doc to order you some lidocaine to put around it before you change it unless its painful because the dressing is sticking. I was listening to I think it was TAL and they were talking about a study they did in Australia of burn patients and how caregivers always think that ripping the dressing off quickly minimizes the pain because it’s quick instead of doing it excruciatingly slowly and having the pain last longer. In fact, the patients said that it was less painful if it was done slowly. f

  85. 85.

    mai naem

    @Jay C: I know what it should be, just wondering if it is in practice. If you aren’t going to give the SS benefits etc. then why should the IRS be able to go after you?

  89. 89.

    Valdivia

    @mai naem:

    I have gone with the very slow route because neurotic person that I am I called the nurse at the office five times when I was doing it the first day and she said never to rip it off. It does stick a lot, I am hoping all the antibiotic cream I used yesterday will make it stick less. I think if it’s killing me today as well I may just go back to the doc tomorrow just to make sure all is ok.

    And btw I love TAL.

  91. 91.

    pamelabrown53

    @mai naem: While Rinehart did inherit a shitload of money, the article contends she multiplied the “…value of the business she inherited several times over”.

    Even though it appears she is thoroughly reviled in Australia, Rinehart has a plan: since she gets such awful press she is emulating Rupert Murdoch and buying up the media. Maybe from there she can launch her lower the minimum wage campaign.

  92. 92.

    TaMara (BHF)

    Oh good, it was down just long enough to give the addicts the shakes, but not long enough for them to finish the 12-steps.

    Thisisonlyatest

    EDIT: Edit test. I don’t mean to be a downer, but that comment took a long time to post. Let’s see how the edit does.

  93. 93.

    quannlace

    our part 2001 BBC adaptation of Trollope’s The Way We Live Now. It was very good,

    Worst remake evah. ‘Ben Hur’ over at the Ovation channel. The final chariot race looks like it was filmed at the jogging track in my local park.

  94. 94.

    TaMara (BHF)

    2nd test. First test 7 sec for comment to load, 7 sec for edit to load. I think your new server may not have the MPG listed on the window sticker.

  95. 95.

    MomSense

    @Baud:

    I don’t know either–Agent Orange has an impressive war chest–but we have to try

    I have been reading soooo much doom and gloom about our chances to take both branches of Congress in 2014 but I have decided to ignore them.

    Here is my thinking. A bunch of us who got in early in the Obama Campaign in 2007 were told it was impossible, and certainly history told us that it was impossible–but we didn’t care.

    And now I look at the reality that these Republican mofos are going to dig in and stop everything (why do they hate our country sooo much??). After 4 years of insanity I am not optimistic about our chances in 2016 and climate change is not going to wait around and stop progressing. So I have come to the conclusion that 2014-2016 is our last chance. If we can do this–then I am very optimistic about 2016. And I don’t care what has always been — we have to decide and commit. Our OFA unofficial motto for 2012 was WIFT and that is what we need to harness for 2014. Whatever It Fucking Takes.

    The Republicans are all a bunch of blood gargling sociopaths and we must crush them!

  97. 97.

    JPL

    @Valdivia: I feel your pain!
    Not really but I have broken a toe before. There are benefits, you will be able to forecast the weather or it seemed that the toe would throb before rain storms.

  98. 98.

    Baud

    @MomSense:

    Good for you. One thing about the Clinton era was that, as popular as he was, he was unable to make any structural change to our politics. It’s too soon to tell what the Obama era will produce, but with demographic changes, something may be possible. I think the 2014 and 2016 elections will tell us something.

  99. 99.

    MomSense

    @Baud:
    I think that is what candidate Obama meant by saying that Clinton wasn’t transformational the way Reagan was. It wasn’t an endorsement of Reagan’s policies but it was an accurate assessment of the structural changes that Reagan accomplished that Clinton could not.

    I do think that the young people are Obama democrats the way my grandmother was an FDR democrat. The young people who were organizers in 2007 were running state campaigns in 2012 and in between they were labor union organizers and doing lots of incredible work.

  100. 100.

    Schlemizel

    Instead of focusing on how much we all hate Balloon Juice I’d like to suggest you revel in Bill Cosby’s recitation of the founding principles of the GOP:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fgUNixkTV8c

    Its a three parter but it puts the 2 minutes of hate to shame.

    [warning – offensive language and racial stereotyping]

  102. 102.

    Arm The Homeless

    Well, I have passed the first gatekeeper at my job to getting an interview for a new fulltime position. I figured I would test out the new server and put that out there. Plus we didn’t get hit with a tornado this morning, so there are things to be happy about.

  104. 104.

    Baud

    @MomSense:

    I met some great people during the 2012 campaign, so I agree with you there. I just wonder whether there are enough of them. The FDR era was before my time, but it seems like there were more people willing to step up and take advantage of opportunities (and be effective) then than there are now. And the media and cultural biases against Democrats seem stronger now than they were then, so I’m uncertain about the future.

    One thing I’ve learned is that things often aren’t as bleak as they are portrayed. The polling during the presidential race exemplifies this, but discouraging media appears in more subtle ways as well. The question, again, is whether there are enough people out there who likewise don’t buy into the propaganda.

  108. 108.

    Amir Khalid

    @rikyrah:
    Further to our Les Misérables conversation in a previous open thread, a local (Kuala Lumpur) DVD store told me today the DVD/Blu-Ray of the movie won’t be in stores until late April, or mid-April if I’m lucky.
    (I haz a sad …)
    However, they did have the 10th anniversary concert for just 20 ringgit (US$6.60).
    (I haz a happy!)

  112. 112.

    Villago Delenda Est

    @Soonergrunt:

    Homer: Kids: there’s three ways to do things; the right way, the wrong way and the Max Power way!

    Bart: Isn’t that the wrong way?

    Homer: Yeah, but faster!

  115. 115.

    sb

    So I spent Saturday night (good morning from the west coast) making food for kids I’m tutoring, creating lesson plans for their parents per their request, walking the dog, catching a film, practicing bass (been awhile) and later on, getting together with friends.

    And if you think I’m going to fucking forgive you all but forcing me to do shit some find productive–FUCK YOU! We will never forget. Never!!

    /one of the above paragraphs is over-the-top hyperbole for the purpose of getting a cheap chuckle or two. Nice job on the redesign.

  116. 116.

    Xecky Gilchrist

    @Baud: The FDR era was before my time, but it seems like there were more people willing to step up and take advantage of opportunities (and be effective) then than there are now.

    No, you’re thinking of the Sixties, when everything was better than it is now, before these GenX Alex Keaton wannabes came along with their digital audio and video games and ruined everything.

  119. 119.

    Baud

    @Xecky Gilchrist:

    The Sixties strike me as more of a social revolution than a political one like with FDR. Today’s politics seems like more of a mix, which is the cause of some of the disagreements we see.

  121. 121.

    Elizabelle

    Can access BJ with iPhone, but not w Mac laptop. Don’t really want to clear the cache …

  122. 122.

    Mr Stagger Lee

    So what about that moderation? Do I get it for saying “Gonzaga was fucking overrated!” or “Fucking Gonzaga was overrated?”(Sorry for the language on this Palm Sunday morning.)

  126. 126.

    Arm The Homeless

    Does anyone else using a tablet (Android, JB 4.2) have the problem when you post that it yells you there is some issue posting to the site, but if you press refresh the comment appears just fine, even the html is solid?

    I bought my first big boy hammer this week, and I found myself wondering in my own head, “I wonder how this would hold up in a zombie apocalypse?”

    Is that a sign of stunted development?

  128. 128.

    Arm The Homeless

    I spoke too soon. I just got a pop up telling me my comment was posted and the edit feature showed up.

    Also, too, anyone who needs Flash Player on their Android device, I have found that version 11 seems to work well. Let me know if you need a link to the side loaded apk.

    BJ IT nerds rock

  129. 129.

    FlipYrWhig

    @Baud:

    I’m not sure the new server has really been put to the test yet. Someone should post a Greenwald tweet, and then we’ll see how well this baby runs.

    Kind of like how the big test at a new stadium is to flush all the toilets at once?

  132. 132.

    Arm The Homeless

    @schrodinger’s cat: This is why the server has been placed in an undisclosed location, surrounded by rocking chairs and treadmills. It’s the best we can do. Constant vigilance is the price of edit buttons.

  134. 134.

    Origuy

    I’m getting the new site with Firefox, but Chrome is still giving me the default website page. I’ve tried shift-Reload and executing the “ipconfig /flushdns” command, but no luck. Any ideas?

  135. 135.

    Todd

    @Mr Stagger Lee:

    So what about that moderation? Do I get it for saying “Gonzaga was fucking overrated!” or “Fucking Gonzaga was overrated?”(Sorry for the language on this Palm Sunday morning.)

    Blew hell out of my brackets.

  136. 136.

    different-church-lady

    Faster it is, indeed! But I rest assured the redesign will take it back to the accustomed molasses.

  137. 137.

    Jebediah

    My TV is showing me Jimmy Cliff playing at Guitar Center.

    I love you, TV.

    ETA: “…making so many people life so hard…”

  139. 139.

    Steeplejack (tablet)

    @Origuy:

    I’m getting the old server on my PC (Firefox, WinXP). Cleared my DNS cache, rebooted my cable modem–no luck. Seems like there is a way to specify a site’s address in DNS table. Must look that up.

  140. 140.

    1badbaba3

    @Higgs Boson’s Mate: Those defeated by Obama who will not serve him are slowly driven insane. But I suspect Sister Grifter was on her way there well ahead of ’08. It is harrowing that John Mccain thought that she was a better VP candidate than Multiple Mitt. Ha! VP of the trailer park, perhaps.

  141. 141.

    Cathie from Canada

    @Origuy: Yes, that is happening to me, too.
    Sure hope I don’t have to stop using Chrome just to read Balloon Juice.
    Links to individual posts work, which is how I was able to find the site at all.

  142. 142.

    CaseyL

    Thank Gaia BJ is back. Life is good again.

    I spend most of yesterday (re-)learning how not-handy I am when it comes to home fixit stuff.

    I need to install one of those draft-blocking strips on the bottom of my front door. First I couldn’t find the screws that came with the strip, so I hunted around until I found other ones that would fit. Then when I went to drill the holes for them, the drill battery was dead and needed to be recharged, so I did that. Then the screwdriver bit couldn’t drive the screws into the holes, so am I using the wrong bit? Maybe using the wrong speed on the power drill?… maybe I should use a good old-fashioned manual screwdriver?

    Oy. The community colleges here have evening classes on how to fix stuff around the house. I should take one.

  144. 144.

    Comrade Mary

    Speedy — thanks!

    mistermix, I got the old server the first time I loaded up the site on my desktop this morning. Can you update the post available only on the old server so that you can spell out to people how to flush their local DNS cache?

    This was helpful.

  145. 145.

    Ruckus

    @Elizabelle: Clearing the cache was the only way I got the site to load the first time. The new server probably has a new address and if you don’t clear the cache your machine may never find it.

  149. 149.

    Maude

    @Valdivia:
    This may sound stupid, but can’t you soak that bandaged toe in warm water before removing it? I am a real coward at painful dressing removal. By Wed it will be a lot better.

  150. 150.

    Origuy

    Ok, I found out how to clear the DNS cache in Chrome: Settings, History, Clear all browsing data, Uncheck everything but Empty the Cache, and set the time from which to “Obliterate” data to at least the last week.

  151. 151.

    ruviana

    @gogol’s wife: And weirdly enough, I spent part of the time reading a review of The Way We Live Now. I’ve seen more references to Trollope today than I saw in my entire college career!

  152. 152.

    gogol's wife

    @ruviana:

    A review of the book or the miniseries?

    Clearly they didn’t have BJ back in the 1870s. You need a long time and a lot of concentration to read those books. I’ve been working on it for about a year.

  153. 153.

    kindness

    I forgot about the migration and absent mindedly tried to log on last night. Duh…

  158. 158.

    La Caterina (Mrs. Johannes)

    @gogol’s wife: We had to consult the book a couple of times to verify plot points we did not remember– turns out the BBC writers woosed out a bit at the end.

  160. 160.

    Johannes

    Yea h, having Fisker turn out to have a good faith desire to build the railroad, thus capitalism YEAH! pretty much subverts Trollope’s point.

    Still, pretty good up until then, especially seeing Mr. Carson above stairs, and a bravura performance by Suchet.

  162. 162.

    BruceFromOhio

    This test comment is before the next comment.

    ETA: This test edit comment is after the last comment.

    EETA: Ads still occasionally percolate, wonder how the new digs will perform under load … pretty frisky at 8:06 on a Sunday night.

Comments are closed.