Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Happy indictment week to all who celebrate!

… pundit janitors mopping up after the GOP

I really should read my own blog.

Meanwhile over at truth Social, the former president is busy confessing to crimes.

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

Incompetence, fear, or corruption? why not all three?

Spilling the end game before they can coat it in frankl luntz-approved dogwhistles.

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

Bad news for Ron DeSantis is great news for America.

Trump’s legal defense is going to be a dumpster fire inside a clown car on a derailing train.

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

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

“What are Republicans afraid of?” Everything.

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

Not so fun when the rabbit gets the gun, is it?

An almost top 10,000 blog!

I like you, you’re my kind of trouble.

Putin must be throwing ketchup at the walls.

The GOP couldn’t organize an orgy in a whorehouse with a fist full of 50s.

Ah, the different things are different argument.

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

“Cheese and Kraken paired together for the appetizer trial.”

There is no compromise when it comes to body autonomy. You either have it or you don’t.

Speaking of republicans, is there a way for a political party to declare intellectual bankruptcy?

You are here: Home / Organizing & Resistance / #OWS / Open Thread: It Can’t Be Irony If They Don’t Know What That Word Means

Open Thread: It Can’t Be Irony If They Don’t Know What That Word Means

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“No matter how cynical you become, it’s never enough to keep up.” — Lily Tomlin

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109Comments

  2. 2.

    Cacti

    Makes as much sense as buying a Che t-shirt made by third-world, non-union labor.

    I’m surprised Wally World didn’t start selling those a long time ago.

  4. 4.

    ruemara

    Good god. How repulsive. Frozen and the Hobbit were the opposite of repulsive, although Frozen was better and a much needed antidote to the usual sniveling marriage crap of the modern retelling of fairytales. Would like to see a real version of the Snow Queen done, though.

  5. 5.

    Violet

    Is Wal-Mart also selling posters with pictures of their Thanksgiving food donation bins for employees?

  9. 9.

    Suffern ACE

    @ruemara: I’m glad they called it “Frozen” and not “The Snow Queen”. The story is not based on the snow queen in any way shape or form. I don’t know who started the rumor that it was.

  11. 11.

    Zam

    Well I’ve always believed that many people who get involved with certain movements are there more for the fact that they want to be part of a historical movement than any real commitment to a particular issue.

  13. 13.

    aimai

    @Cacti: I’m old enough to remember when people bought pictures of the guy facing down the tank in tianamen square. There’s always an icon, and always a buck to be made off selling that iconic image.

  15. 15.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Zam: And a lot of people claim to have been somewhere years later when it is “cool.” The vast majority of people who claim to have been at Woodstock saw it in a theater.

  18. 18.

    Amir Khalid

    @Suffern ACE:
    It’s related to the Hans Christan Andersen story in about the same way that Snow White and The Huntsman is related to Snow White and The Seven Dwarves. It’s not a straightforward adaptation, but you do see the similarities.

  20. 20.

    RareSanity

    The engineering world uses a saying that is based on that Lily Tomlin quote…

    “No matter how idiot proof you try and make it, society will always produce a better idiot.”

  21. 21.

    Roger Moore

    @Amir Khalid:

    Snow White and The Seven Dwarves

    Nit: It’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, which was the ordinary spelling at that time. Tolkien deliberately used a non-standard spelling when he called his characters “dwarves” rather than “dwarfs”, and it’s largely through his influence that the former has become an accepted spelling. FWIW, Firefox still shows “dwarves” as a misspelling at least when using the US English dictionary.

  23. 23.

    JGabriel

    Seeing as it’s an open thread ….

    Sign That You’ve Been Reading Political Blogs For Way Too Long:

    When you get a small tub of thermal paste in the mail, with a sticker that reads “Do Not Eat Paste,” and your first thought is:

    So. Safe for Jeff Goldstein then.

  26. 26.

    Amir Khalid

    @Roger Moore:
    I couldn’t remember, off the top of my head, whether the Disney cartoon was titled with -ves or -fs, and picked the wrong one. Thanx.

    ETA. I think Dwarves is way cooler than Dwarfs and shall use only the former spelling from now on — irregardless.

  29. 29.

    evodevo

    All Right !!!! My favorite Lily Tomlin quote !! (Next to “Is this the person to whom I am speaking?”)

  31. 31.

    Dead Ernest

    @aimai:

    Damn. That qualifies as ‘old’ already? Sheesh.
    I think ‘time’ may have broken sometime in the past few years*

    *but how could you know?

  34. 34.

    Violet

    Hack List–Peggy Noonan is Number 8. Alex Pareene is writing in the voice of each person this time and this big made me laugh:

    People are angry with Peggy Noonan. They’re mad. Most of all, they’re disappointed. They’re tired. Reading Peggy Noonan, and seeing her on television every Sunday, the Lord’s Day, when Americans, young and old, rich and poor, used to go to church, with their families, now just makes Americans feel exhausted.

    But they’re optimistic. Americans are always optimistic They know Peggy Noonan will eventually retire.

  36. 36.

    Mnemosyne

    @ruemara:

    It would be really, really tricky to make a modern film that’s faithful to Andersen’s “Snow Queen,” though. It’s the story of a girl who sacrifices everything and goes through great hardship to win back a boy who finds her stupid and boring because he’s had his head (magically) turned by the Snow Queen.

    ETA: Link to the original story

  37. 37.

    ruemara

    @Mnemosyne: AAAAAccck! NO! The classic Snow Queen? Can’t believe you read it that way. It’s a tale of tragic loss. She does win and is unrepentantly wicked throughout. The Girl wins him back, but in the end, she loses. In between though, it’s the hero’s journey, but with nascent boobs.

  39. 39.

    Keith G

    I assume that there have been trademarks taken out on the name as I read reports a few years ago that Occupy Wall Street demonstrators in New York filed to trademark their name with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

    I never heard if they were successful.

    I wonder how the shirts were licenced and if a cut goes to the movement.

  43. 43.

    Mnemosyne

    @ruemara:

    She does win and is unrepentantly wicked throughout. The Girl wins him back, but in the end, she loses.

    Your pronouns confuse me. :-) The Snow Queen loses and Gerda wins (Kay is the boy) through her simple faith:

    Suddenly little Gerda stepped through the great portal into the palace. The gate was formed of cutting winds; but Gerda repeated her evening prayer, and the winds were laid as though they slept; and the little maiden entered the vast, empty, cold halls. There she beheld Kay: she recognised him, flew to embrace him, and cried out, her arms firmly holding him the while, “Kay, sweet little Kay! Have I then found you at last?”

    But he sat quite still, benumbed and cold. Then little Gerda shed burning tears; and they fell on his bosom, they penetrated to his heart, they thawed the lumps of ice, and consumed the splinters of the looking-glass; he looked at her, and she sang the hymn:

    “The rose in the valley is blooming so sweet,
    And angels descend there the children to greet.”

    Hereupon Kay burst into tears; he wept so much that the splinter rolled out of his eye, and he recognised her, and shouted, “Gerda, sweet little Gerda! Where have you been so long? And where have I been?” He looked round him. “How cold it is here!” said he. “How empty and cold!” And he held fast by Gerda, who laughed and wept for joy. It was so beautiful, that even the blocks of ice danced about for joy; and when they were tired and laid themselves down, they formed exactly the letters which the Snow Queen had told him to find out; so now he was his own master, and he would have the whole world and a pair of new skates into the bargain.

    Gerda kissed his cheeks, and they grew quite blooming; she kissed his eyes, and they shone like her own; she kissed his hands and feet, and he was again well and merry. The Snow Queen might come back as soon as she liked; there stood his discharge written in resplendent masses of ice.

  44. 44.

    jon

    Better to wear your officially-licensed Guy Fawkes mask on the street than tack an Occupy poster on your bedroom wall, I guess. When will Warner Bros market the hat?

  45. 45.

    Amir Khalid

    @Keith G:
    If Occupy Wall Street protesters filed to copyright the name, it was more likely to prevent this very kind of commercial exploitation than to practise it themselves.

  46. 46.

    Keith G

    @Yatsuno: Yay. Hope your post op time is as comfortable as possible. Remember this is an excellent time to flirt with cute guys on the nursing staff.

  47. 47.

    Karen in GA

    After spending all weekend sad due to the insufficient kidney function of Phoebe, the World’s Most Affectionate Cat, I took her to a different vet for a second opinion — and the new test results say she’s fine.

    WTF? Now what?

    @Amir Khalid:

    irregardless

    Bastard.

  49. 49.

    Keith G

    @Amir Khalid: If they are getting a cut and able to use it to good ends, such as

    A group of Occupy Wall Street activists has bought almost $15m of Americans’ personal debt over the last year as part of the Rolling Jubilee project to help people pay off their outstanding credit.

  51. 51.

    CaseyL

    @Yatsuno: Seems the least they can do is give you the good stuff, after slicing you open and switching out parts. Did you hold out for the bionic upgrade? I hear it comes with that swoosh-beep sound and automatic slo-mo, perfect for freaking out co-workers :)

  56. 56.

    trollhattan

    Damnit. Just…damnit.

    RENO, Nev. — A lone gunman shot and injured four people before killing himself at a sprawling medical campus in Reno.

    Reno police said the man entered the Center for Advanced Medicine at Renown Regional Medical Center at about 2:45 p.m. with at least one gun and began shooting.

    The shooter turned the gun on himself before 3 p.m., police Lt. Tom Robinson said.

    One of the shooting victims was in surgery, Robinson said. Information on the condition of the others wasn’t immediately available.

    The shooter’s motives were not immediately known.

    Nevada Department of Public Safety spokeswoman Gail Powell said the incident has been “contained.”

    Gov. Brian Sandoval said on Twitter that he and his staff were monitoring the situation and his thoughts and prayers were with those affected by the tragedy.

    http://www.sacbee.com/2013/12/17/6009109/gunman-shoots-4-kills-himself.html#storylink=cpy

  58. 58.

    StringOnAStick

    @Yatsuno:

    Don’t get all heroic and act like you aren’t feeling much pain, or they take away the good stuff and just give you pills. It happened to a friend who just got his hip done; all day he was anxiously anticipating the promised morphine and when the appointed time came they said “you’re doing great, you don’t need it”. Big let down; he wanted to try it!

  59. 59.

    Amir Khalid

    @Karen in GA:
    It might be interesting to ask the first vet what (s)he makes of these new test results, and possibly redo the original test if your wallet can stand it. Then, if your kitteh really is healthy, rejoice!

  62. 62.

    Karen in GA

    @WereBear: Her long fur is a little unkempt — she’s not grooming herself quite like she usually does. She doesn’t look terrible, just not her usual radiant self. A bit of dander on her fur, that sort of thing.

    She’s lost a couple of pounds in the past year, but she was overweight before and she spent most of the summer on different foods while I tried to get her to lose weight — so I can’t tell if it worked, or if the weight loss is because there’s something brewing.

    I’m just worried that if I act like she’s fine when, in fact, there’s something brewing, I’ll make it worse.

    The best part? I have a cat a year older who’s got her checkup next week. Oh boy!

  63. 63.

    Amir Khalid

    @Keith G:
    As I understand,there is no formal Occupy organisation. Unless the copyright holders are also the Rolling Jubilee people, how would the fees get from the former to the latter?

  64. 64.

    Mnemosyne

    @ruemara:

    Also, too, I had to re-read the story for work and it was nothing like I remembered it. I did not remember the Robber Child or the raven and his sweetheart or, well, half the events in the story that was way longer than I remembered. It’s practically a novella.

  67. 67.

    JGabriel

    @Mnemosyne:

    The Snow Queen might come back as soon as she liked; there stood his discharge written in resplendent masses of ice.

    Standing discharge? Ewww….

  68. 68.

    Litlebritdiftrnt

    I don’t know if you guys have seen this story but the fucking sharks are picking Detroit’s bones dry while the retired firefighters and cops are getting shafted.

    http://www.newrepublic.com/article/115967/detroits-bankruptcy-means-big-bucks-legal-and-consulting-fees?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

    One law firm billed $3.8 million for October alone, how many billable hours do you have to rack up to bill $3.8 million for a single month. How many lawyers working 24/7 does it take to bill $3.8 million for a month? Personally I do not think that it is possible to justify that bill.

  69. 69.

    lamh36

    Obama sends message by naming Sochi Olympic delegation

    The White House delivered a strong message of opposition to Russia’s anti-gay laws Tuesday with the announcement of its delegation to the opening ceremony of the Sochi Olympics.

    The White House delegation will include an openly gay athlete: tennis great Billie Jean King.

    It will not include the president, first lady or the vice president, all who headed the previous four Olympic delegations, or a cabinet secretary, only a former one. This marks the first Olympics since the 2000 Sydney Summer Games that a U.S. president, vice president, first lady or former president has not been a member of the delegation for the opening ceremony, which will be Feb. 7 in Sochi.

    A statement from the White House said President Obama’s schedule doesn’t allow him to travel to Sochi. “President Obama is extremely proud of our U.S. athletes and looks forward to cheering them on from Washington,” the statement said. “He knows they will showcase to the world the best of America — diversity, determination and teamwork.”

    The delegation “represents the diversity that is the United States,” the statement said..

  71. 71.

    ruemara

    @Mnemosyne: That depends on the version. My favourite is the one where in the end, The Snow Queen has her due. Poor Gerda, she loses her love. the HSC one, she and Kay are together. I wonder who wrote the one I’m thinking of though?

    @Yatsuno: Live it up. the healing part has less good pot.
    Seriously, get well soon. Wish I could do something, but I guess good vibes will have to do.

  75. 75.

    Litlebritdiftrnt

    @MattR: Exactly, I don’t know many lawyers who can bill that way. How they are getting away with this is beyond me.

    ETA the fact that it is the Emergency Manager’s former employer that is doing the billing should set off huge alarm bells but I guess I am just naïve.

  76. 76.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym (JMN)

    It isn’t Wal-Mart selling the posters. It’s just someone using their website. It’s liking buying something on eBay: Wal-Mart gets a cut but they aren’t the ones marketing or shipping the product. So, while there is some irony here, it says nothing at all about Wal-Mart’s self awareness or anything else.

    This happens a lot. People really need to pay more attention to whether something is being sold by a particular retailer before pointing and laughing.

  77. 77.

    MattR

    @Yatsuno: Try to remember which is the “call nurse” button and which is the button that controls the morphine drip. My dad screwed that up once and kept wondering why the nurses kept ignoring him when he woke up and wanted a drink (the doctors and nurses were wondering why he needed so much morphine) Feel better and good luck with the rehab.

    @Litlebritdiftrnt: Shocking that it is the former employer of the current emergency manager who is raking in those ridiculous fees.

  82. 82.

    Karen in GA

    @WereBear: The tests were this past Friday and again last night. The thing is the urine concentration — I don’t know the exact number from Friday’s test, but yesterday’s was 1.026, which evidently is low enough to make a vet say “Hmmm, let’s do bloodwork.” Of course, the bloodwork both days was normal.

    I’ll get the new results to her regular vet and see what she says.

  83. 83.

    WaterGIrl

    @Amir Khalid: @Karen in GA: I think that’s excellent advice. If the same test came back two different ways then I would think the first vet might want to re-test at her own expense.

    WereBear is the expert on kitties, of course, but what you’re describing… changing food, a bit of lost weight, fur not quite up to snuff, were all things I saw with my kitty soulmate who didn’t get diagnosed with kidney issues until it was too late. Me: oh good, he’s losing weight on the new food, yay. Only not yay at all, as it turned out.

    I am so hoping that your kitty is good, but there’s a lot that can be done if you catch it way early, so even if there’s a problem, I’m still optimistic. But I would not just take the “all clear” from the second vet at face value, not just yet. Amid, excellent advice!

  85. 85.

    WaterGIrl

    @NotMax: I had to read through all the comments first to be sure that no one else had said it already, but now that I know: I saw what you did there.

  86. 86.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Litlebritdiftrnt:

    Exactly, I don’t know many lawyers who can bill that way. How they are getting away with this is beyond me.

    Jones Day is a huge law firm. There are lots of lawyers there who are going to have $1000+/hour billing rates. Then there are paralegal billings, support staff billings, copying fees, transportation to and from Detroit for meetings, meals and hotels in Detroit, entertainment while in Detroit (hookers and blow), fees for non-legal experts, car service fees. Stuff adds up and some of it is even legitimate.

  87. 87.

    Mnemosyne

    @MattR:

    IIRC, to a certain extent the morphine pumps depend on the placebo effect — they don’t want you accidentally overdosing, so if you’ve already pushed the button to your maximum dosage, it only pretends to dispense more drug.

  95. 95.

    Mnemosyne

    @ruemara:

    It could probably be arranged. ;-) BillinGlendaleCA, Roger Moore, Ruckus and something fabulous are all local to the Valley. (There were a couple more people at the last LA meetup but I’m blanking on their nyms.)

  99. 99.

    ruemara

    @WaterGIrl: I am. I only have 3 years training and 7 years producing, but based on the principle that people hire from pools they know, this might give me a shot at real work. And I sold enough stuff to fund this! Not enough for a camera, but you have to look on the bright side or the bright slivers.

  102. 102.

    WaterGIrl

    @ruemara: That was my thought, too, as I looked at the web page. I wondered if you might gain some contacts as well as some skills.

    What kind of camera are you looking to get? (wondering about price range, I know nothing about cameras) A friend of mine is a videographer who is getting a new camera for christmas, I think. I don’t know if you would want a used camera or if he would even want to sell one. Just kind of wondering out loud about whether it would even be something to pursue.

  103. 103.

    ruemara

    @WaterGIrl:

    This is on my Amazon Wish List. I do so much even photography, or did-now I do it in trade for fellow broke artists. Competitiveness is a factor as with multiuse. I think I have enough of an even/set portfolio to book work, but if I’m planning on selling myself with non 20 megapixels and no decent lenses, I’m huffing paint in my sleep. This price is just for the body. Lenses add about another 2-300 in price. Plus, this shoots a very nice moderately good HD footage. This was shot with a combo of DSLR (pro level cameras like this sony) and my Nikon coolpix. Pardon my babbling voiceover.

  104. 104.

    WereBear

    @Karen in GA: I’m very glad you are following up, and I’m a behaviorist, not a vet.

    I’m just familiar with what happens when a lot changes at once. As WaterGirl says, hopefully there’s still stuff that can be done to turn the tide if there is an issue.

  106. 106.

    GHayduke (formerly lojasmo)

    Saturnalia list for the prog

    Marshall 40 watt amp 1×12
    Big muff distortion pedal
    Morley wah pedal
    Epifone electric ukulelee
    Full Tilt Tom Wallisch ski boots

    The lady gets an icebreaker hoodie and lots of swag from her SiL’s company Sloane and Tate

    ETA: I told them if they want to get me anything, specialty tools from a locally closing Sears store (30-50% off)

  108. 108.

    M.C. Simon Milligan

    The new groups are not concerned
    With what there is to be learned
    They got Burton suits, ha you think its funny
    Turnin’ revolution into money

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