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When do we start airlifting the women and children out of Texas?

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You are here: Home / Open Threads / (Grand)Stand with Rand

(Grand)Stand with Rand

by Betty Cracker|  January 14, 20144:14 pm| 123 Comments

This post is in: Open Threads, Politics, Assholes

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Preening, Tribble-topped presidential aspirant Rand Paul is reportedly going to introduce a bill today to repeal the Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF) in Iraq. The White House is said to support the bill in theory:

“The administration supports the repeal of the Iraq AUMF since it is no longer used for any US government activities,” National Security Council spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden said in a statement, laying out the White House stance first reported by Yahoo News.

“We understand that some in Congress are considering legislation related to the Iraq AUMF, and we will certainly examine these proposals as they come forward.”

One US official said the White House has not actively sought to repeal the AUMF “because the effect would be entirely symbolic, and we have many more pressing priorities to take up with Congress.”

Yes, it’s symbolic, as Paul well knows, but it may serve to bolster his credentials among libertarians and a certain type of gullible liberal, which is obviously the point.

The AUMF debate occurred before Baby Doc entered public life, and he may very well have opposed it on the grounds that the money could best be funneled into the pockets of deserving billionaires. Does anyone know if he bothered to speak out on it at the time like another guy did?

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Reader Interactions

123Comments

  1. 1.

    shortstop

    January 14, 2014 at 4:15 pm

    Preening, Tribble-topped presidential aspirant Rand Paul

    That’s some nice work right there.

  2. 2.

    the Conster

    January 14, 2014 at 4:16 pm

    I always think muskrat, but tribble is better.

  3. 3.

    Botsplainer

    January 14, 2014 at 4:17 pm

    Preening, Tribble-topped presidential aspirant Rand Paul

    Fine, fine work, Betty. I’m going to forward this one all around the Bluegrass State.

  4. 4.

    muricafukyea

    January 14, 2014 at 4:19 pm

    It’s as if this story was designed to troll the wr0ng way Coles of the world. Could another “This just shows that Rand Paul has some good ideas, I know this because Griftwald told me so” post from the perpetually wrong one be far behind?

  5. 5.

    Omnes Omnibus

    January 14, 2014 at 4:20 pm

    Are tribbles curly-haired? If not, we’ll just call it poetic license.

  6. 6.

    schrodinger's cat

    January 14, 2014 at 4:21 pm

    OT : My review of the second episode of Downton Abbey.

  7. 7.

    ranchandsyrup

    January 14, 2014 at 4:22 pm

    Open thread? I love the smell of blogwhoring in the afternoon.

    A post about a movie that I like but has a negative connotation, identification with movie characters, the proper use of “cuckold” and a happy ending (not that kind).

  8. 8.

    Ben Cisco

    January 14, 2014 at 4:22 pm

    Preening, Tribble-topped presidential aspirant Rand Paul

    He should always and forevermore be referred to in this exact manner. So say we all?

  9. 9.

    Violet

    January 14, 2014 at 4:25 pm

    Did Rand Paul even follow politics in 2002?

  10. 10.

    ranchandsyrup

    January 14, 2014 at 4:25 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: In the Kentucky humidity they would be curly. Also, if they had eyes and were being worked on by a self-certified opthamologist.

  11. 11.

    schrodinger's cat

    January 14, 2014 at 4:26 pm

    Tribbles are supposed to be cute. Rand Paul is the opposite of cute.

  12. 12.

    scav

    January 14, 2014 at 4:26 pm

    @Ben Cisco: Seconded, but can I have a recognized variant of “tribble-pated”? It’s like bubbles on the tongue.

  13. 13.

    Omnes Omnibus

    January 14, 2014 at 4:26 pm

    @schrodinger’s cat: Wow. You didn’t like it much, did you?

  14. 14.

    cleek

    January 14, 2014 at 4:27 pm

    Obama called for its repeal this past May. :)

    “The AUMF is now nearly twelve years old. The Afghan War is coming to an end. Core Al Qaeda is a shell of its former self,” Obama said. “Unless we discipline our thinking our definitions, our actions, we may be drawn into more wars we don’t need to fight, or continue to grant presidents unbound powers more suited for traditional armed conflicts between nation states.

    “So I look forward to engaging Congress and the American people in efforts to refine, and ultimately repeal, the AUMF’s mandate. And I will not sign laws designed to expand this mandate further,” he said. “Our systematic effort to dismantle terrorist organizations must continue. But this war, like all wars, must end. That’s what history advises. That’s what our democracy demands.”

    the war wing of the GOP shit itself over this

  15. 15.

    Botsplainer

    January 14, 2014 at 4:29 pm

    @ranchandsyrup:

    In the Kentucky humidity they would be curly.

    No, in Kentucky, they’d be stripped off the animal before it was thrown in a pot with roadkill, ramps, turnips and greens for a stew.

  16. 16.

    shortstop

    January 14, 2014 at 4:30 pm

    @ranchandsyrup: Ha! I was going to say something about his being too busy certifying himself to speak out against the AUMF.

    @schrodinger’s cat: It isn’t as though Fellowes can’t write. He did the witty, sophisticated and fast-paced script for Gosford Park. Downton Abbey has gone for the lowest common denominator from the beginning; I’m not noticing it being any dumber than usual. Just watch it for the costumes and sets and you’ll achieve a sort of detached peace.

  17. 17.

    jeffreyw

    January 14, 2014 at 4:32 pm

    Thread needs a meatball sub.

  18. 18.

    ranchandsyrup

    January 14, 2014 at 4:33 pm

    @Botsplainer: Heh. And a side of meth or oxycontin, depending on your mood.

    @shortstop: I meant to ask you earlier why your better half is the 3rd baseperson and not the 2nd baseperson. I can see the solidarity of the left side of the infield but I am wondering if the close relationship between double play partners doesn’t carry the day.

  19. 19.

    kindness

    January 14, 2014 at 4:34 pm

    If they can attach the Patriot Act to the repeal liberals will all keel over and die.

    Won’t someone please tell those conservatives that we have found a way to end all their problems?

    @ranchandsyrup:

    the proper use of “cuckold” and a happy ending (not that kind).

    What other kind is there with a subject of cuckold? It just ain’t the married gent having the happy ending.

  20. 20.

    schrodinger's cat

    January 14, 2014 at 4:34 pm

    @shortstop: I too liked Gosford Park. The first season was good, but now JF just seems to be recycling his story lines. Lord Grantham has gone from slightly old fashioned but lovable and charming to a clueless and pompous prick. Its like the characters are devolving.

  21. 21.

    Aji

    January 14, 2014 at 4:34 pm

    @Violet: My guess is that it was too close to his Aqua Buddha days for him to care.

  22. 22.

    Mike in NC

    January 14, 2014 at 4:35 pm

    Been streaming documentaries today on Netflix: “Out-FOXed”, “Billionaires’ Tea Party”, and “Hating Breitbart”. Will need a shower and a stiff drink after watching this parade of drooling wingnuts.

  23. 23.

    schrodinger's cat

    January 14, 2014 at 4:36 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: I didn’t. I keep wanting to throw things at the screen when Lord Grantham’s pompous mug appears. What I like least is how all the stories are plot driven and plots themselves are recycled from the previous seasons.

  24. 24.

    Suffern ACE

    January 14, 2014 at 4:36 pm

    What law authorizes the detainment of the prisoners in Cuba? Just wondering. I always thought that was the AUMF for some reason.

  25. 25.

    Corner Stone

    January 14, 2014 at 4:36 pm

    OT – Ruh Roh Betty Cracker!!
    Bob McNair likes Jadeveon Clowney
    “He’s one of these players who’s a once in every 10 years kind of physical specimen that comes along,” McNair said. “Mario Williams was that way. I think Clowney is actually a better athlete than Mario.”

    I particularly liked this part:
    “I said, ‘J.J., I don’t know what will happen, but if we get Clowney, we want you to instill in him the same kind of work habits that you have.’ He said, ‘If he’s in the same room with me, then he’ll have them.'”

    HA!

  26. 26.

    Violet

    January 14, 2014 at 4:37 pm

    Bridgegate is getting to the Republicans:

    Conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh on Tuesday said that he wished President Obama would cheat on First Lady Michelle Obama because it would make for a better scandal than the controversy surrounding New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) and the lane closures on the George Washington Bridge last year.

    “Why can’t we have Obama running around on Michelle or something?” he said on his radio show, as recorded by Mediaite. “Wouldn’t that be a much better scandal than Christie and bridge lane closures, for crying out loud?”

    Longing for the days of Bill Clinton, he added:

    “Look, it’s just wishful thinking,” he said.

    Limbaugh started fantasizing about the nonexistent scandal when discussing reports that French President Francois Hollande is having an affair.

    “Why can’t we have scandals like that anymore?” he asked. “The socialists, in one sense of the word, know how to live.”

    Yes, yes. Why can’t they have scandals like that anymore? So sad. As was pointed out before, maybe there’s still sex to be found in the Bridgegate scandal. One never knows who was doing what with whom.

  27. 27.

    Corner Stone

    January 14, 2014 at 4:39 pm

    I knew you wore tribble when you walked in
    So shame on me now
    Flew me to places I’d never been
    Now I’m lying on the cold hard ground
    Oh, oh, tribble, tribble, tribble
    Oh, oh, tribble, tribble, tribble

  28. 28.

    elmo

    January 14, 2014 at 4:39 pm

    @schrodinger’s cat:

    Plot? Plot? Who cares about plot? The show is about Bates’ crinkly eyes, Carson’s grand pipe-organ of a voice, and Maggie Smith’s delighted and delightful amusement with her many amazing lines.

    That’s enough to make it appointment TV for me.

  29. 29.

    Another Holocene Human

    January 14, 2014 at 4:40 pm

    @jeffreyw: I was gonna write “damn you” but that pic is singularly unappetizing.

    A good meatball sub don’t need no stinking olives to make it schmeckt gut. In fact, it don’t need no stinking mozzarella cheese or time toasting.

    Best meatballs I ever had were in a joint with a 60’s incandescent light bulb-a-ganza sign in Cleveland Circle.

  30. 30.

    max

    January 14, 2014 at 4:41 pm

    Yes, it’s symbolic

    It is symbolic in the sense that it seems unlikely to pass a Senate where 10 or so Dems are keen to sabotage negotiations with Iran so we can then have a war with them. (Apparently almost 2/3rds of the Senate are keen to get a war started with Iran, but they also want to preserve plausible deniability in the event things go south.)

    If the bill *actually* repeals the AUMF then that is well and good – because if there were to be a President Christie in 2017 for example, you can bet your last bottom dollar he would use the still-existing AUMF as legal authority for reinvading Iraq.

    The thing is an unexploded landmine.

    max
    [‘Has everyone gone insane today? Did they hand out the crazy pills? Feinstein is trying to keep Benghazi alive apparently, a bunch of Dems in the Senate want a war with Iran, the Israelis are actively trying to sabotage the United States in public, a bunch of Jersey Dems are trying to save Christie (because why?), and let’s not get started on the budget bill.’]

  31. 31.

    Betty Cracker

    January 14, 2014 at 4:41 pm

    @Corner Stone: Son of a bitch! I didn’t know McNair was a ‘Cock.

  32. 32.

    Betty Cracker

    January 14, 2014 at 4:42 pm

    @jeffreyw: Nom nom nom!

  33. 33.

    Corner Stone

    January 14, 2014 at 4:42 pm

    @Violet:

    As was pointed out before, maybe there’s still sex to be found in the Bridgegate scandal. One never knows who was doing what with whom.

    I like to think Christie and Wildstein were passionately making out, hot, sweaty and gropy while observing the lane closures.
    That’s really why he’s trying so hard to distance himself from Wildstein and claim what an athlete he was.

  34. 34.

    shortstop

    January 14, 2014 at 4:44 pm

    @ranchandsyrup: Long story involving two sets of childhood experiences. I maintain the utmost respect for and reliance upon second baseman.

    @schrodinger’s cat: This is going to sound elitist as hell, but so be it. The reason DA is record-breakingly popular is that it’s simplistic and mostly predictable with one-dimensional characters who only occasionally surprise us (evil Thomas suffering with anti-gay discrimination, a proper young lady of the aristocracy sleeping with a hot Turk, etc.). Fellowes could have given us a brighter, sharper and more challenging show, but it’d be watched by far fewer people. I assume he and the producers are doing exactly what they intended to do.

  35. 35.

    Corner Stone

    January 14, 2014 at 4:44 pm

    @Betty Cracker: We all Cocks up in this hizzy.

    He’s been all over the place talking about that 1st pick. I think he’s baiting people.

  36. 36.

    Botsplainer

    January 14, 2014 at 4:44 pm

    @ranchandsyrup:

    A post about a movie that I like but has a negative connotation, identification with movie characters, the proper use of “cuckold” and a happy ending (not that kind).

    I had a really eye-opening conversation with what I suspect is a real life fetishist cuckold recently. His woman is pregnant by another man, and the cuckold makes excuses as to why she is still talking to the guy he describes as a “real alpha male, just full of testosterone” at least twice a day, plus, stammers through why he appears to want to be father to and responsible for alpha male’s baby.

    In that conversation, I began to understand why the cuckolds of classic literature were so mocked. It was some sick, twisted shit, listening to the worm excuse and defend his wife while being in awe of his better.

    Twenty five years in this business, and I’ve never seen that before.

  37. 37.

    Another Holocene Human

    January 14, 2014 at 4:44 pm

    @ranchandsyrup: I really like the way you told the story.

  38. 38.

    Belafon

    January 14, 2014 at 4:45 pm

    @muricafukyea:

    It’s as if this story was designed to troll the wr0ng way Coles

    You know, a period is a lot shorter than “wr0ng way Coles” if you want people to stop reading what you write.

  39. 39.

    Poopyman

    January 14, 2014 at 4:45 pm

    @Corner Stone: Oddly enough, the inner voice that read me that was Leonard Nimoy’s.

  40. 40.

    shortstop

    January 14, 2014 at 4:46 pm

    @shortstop: I swear that said “second basemEn” when I typed it.

  41. 41.

    Botsplainer

    January 14, 2014 at 4:46 pm

    @Corner Stone:

    I like to think Christie and Wildstein were passionately making out, hot, sweaty and gropy while observing the lane closures.

    Thanks for the soft-on, asshole. Its gonna take a case of V!agra and a crane to lift me up after that, and the mental image is likely to cause me problems at odd moments for the rest of time.

  42. 42.

    IowaOldLady

    January 14, 2014 at 4:46 pm

    Every time Rand Paul opens his mouth, I become more convinced that he’s not very smart. Not that I object to this bill. Just that Paul seizes on a few ideas and desperately acts on them.

  43. 43.

    Another Holocene Human

    January 14, 2014 at 4:46 pm

    @Corner Stone: +1

  44. 44.

    shortstop

    January 14, 2014 at 4:47 pm

    @Botsplainer: I remember a “Savage Love” letter that…but no. No.

  45. 45.

    MattR

    January 14, 2014 at 4:48 pm

    @max:

    a bunch of Jersey Dems are trying to save Christie (because why?)

    Yesterday someone at TPM posted a link to this Salon article from June 2011 discussing the history of Chris Christie Democrats. Democrats like Sweeney want Bridgeghazi to go away so people don’t keep digging where they will discover all the other backroom political deals he and his ilk made with Christie at the expense of his constiuents.

  46. 46.

    Aji

    January 14, 2014 at 4:48 pm

    @IowaOldLady: Of course he’s not very smart. But for his base, smart is actually a disqualifying trait, so it’s all good.

  47. 47.

    elmo

    January 14, 2014 at 4:49 pm

    @shortstop:

    I don’t think that’s it. I think you’re giving short shrift to the power of DA’s visual beauty, its pacing and direction, and the sheer charisma of many of its main players – Maggie Smith of course, but also Carson, Anna, Mrs. Pattimore, and (for me, at least) Bates.

  48. 48.

    schrodinger's cat

    January 14, 2014 at 4:50 pm

    @elmo: Agreed about Carson and the Dowager Duchess. I fail to see Bates appeal though.

  49. 49.

    srv

    January 14, 2014 at 4:51 pm

    Young Rand look-a-like Justin Beeber’s home is raided by sheriffs.

    Apparently looking for video of him egging his neighbors house.

  50. 50.

    Roger Moore

    January 14, 2014 at 4:51 pm

    I found a mummified hummingbird under my bed this morning while searching for cat toys. It’s not that surprising that a cat would catch a bird, but I’m not sure when he had a chance; my balcony is the closest he gets to going outside.

  51. 51.

    ranchandsyrup

    January 14, 2014 at 4:51 pm

    @Botsplainer: Wow. Intertwined with masochism?

    @Another Holocene Human: Thank you kindly. :)

  52. 52.

    schrodinger's cat

    January 14, 2014 at 4:52 pm

    @elmo: They deserve better than the current slop.
    My prediction: since Rose is Sybill II she is going to run off with the servant (or was it a tenant farmer) who she met at the dance.

  53. 53.

    Another Holocene Human

    January 14, 2014 at 4:52 pm

    @Botsplainer: I think you just contradicted yourself. People like that fellow are rare, but cheating leading to pregnancy is pretty prevalent, enough that you’d run into it a lot. Apparently there are some areas with not a lot of phenotype variation where the rate is much, much higher than in urban areas with diversity. Like 20% of the kids’ fathers are not the one on their birth certificate. Because everyone looks alike the men don’t suspect.

    People mock cuckolds because they are: fools, their manhood is in question, they can’t please their wives. It’s the same phenomenon where people who get ripped off rarely report it because they feel stupid. Many people who are being cheated on go into denial about it because they feel stupid. Plus you have all the people who keep up a conspiracy of silence because they don’t want to be the one to tell it so the cheated upon person becomes social isolated and thus an easy target for bullying and scapegoating and ostracizing.

  54. 54.

    elmo

    January 14, 2014 at 4:52 pm

    @schrodinger’s cat:

    I’m a sucker for pronounced crow’s feet. :)

  55. 55.

    Suffern ACE

    January 14, 2014 at 4:53 pm

    @MattR: Please dig. Please.

  56. 56.

    elmo

    January 14, 2014 at 4:55 pm

    @schrodinger’s cat:

    Oh, no question. And most of the upper-class twits are tiresome as hell anyway. Duchess Gullible indeed! And one of the characters I really did like – O’Brien – up and disappeared this season, and I haven’t bothered to Internet the explanation.

  57. 57.

    Corner Stone

    January 14, 2014 at 4:55 pm

    @Botsplainer: “Ohhh, you kinky bitch! Try and close your access lanes to me, will ya! No..no..you like that? You want some traffic? Do ya?!
    Now make some trouble for my little Serbian you stat geek!”

  58. 58.

    Betty Cracker

    January 14, 2014 at 4:55 pm

    @Roger Moore: Maybe the bird got inside somehow? Sad in any event. Hummingbirds are four grams of awesome.

  59. 59.

    Another Holocene Human

    January 14, 2014 at 4:56 pm

    Btw, all of this blaming the person cheated upon is an infantile dodge to shift responsibility for the self-absorbed wankers bumping uglies to third parties who didn’t make the choice to be deceitful and selfish and think with their ‘nads and egos first.

    The term is kinda old school because traditional (more authoritarian societies) seem to inculcate arrested development and crabby thinking like this.

    It’s all best left in the past where it belongs. If you’re cheating, that’s sorry. Freedom means you are not compelled to stay in a relationship you’re not committed to or lie about who you sleep with.

  60. 60.

    shortstop

    January 14, 2014 at 4:56 pm

    @elmo: I gave a hearty nod to its visual beauty above. Its pacing is extremely uneven — sometimes dead on, sometimes inappropriately rushed and often unforgivably draggy.

    Maggie Smith is a treasure and gets all the lines Fellowes used to be known for writing and Mrs. Patmore is a wonderful character, but Bates, Anna and Carson are all too shallowly developed for my taste. I recognize that these three are beloved by most viewers, however.

    It could be a great show, but it wouldn’t have the viewership it has now, particularly among Americans. It’s just an okay show — and that’s just how they wanted it. It is what it is and I watch it every week for what’s good about it.

  61. 61.

    shortstop

    January 14, 2014 at 4:57 pm

    @schrodinger’s cat: That young man was quite handsome. We need to see more of him.

  62. 62.

    schrodinger's cat

    January 14, 2014 at 4:59 pm

    @shortstop: I can’t stand Rose, what is her purpose on the show anyway?

  63. 63.

    Botsplainer

    January 14, 2014 at 5:03 pm

    @Another Holocene Human:

    Oh, I’ve dealt with a lot of cheating, both men and women, and some pregnancies. Women display anger and disgust (usually, there’s been a pattern, which women can’t abide – most seem to be able to forgive a single transgression). Men display rage, and are unlikely to forgive even the first one.

    What I haven’t seen before is a guy who is so passive in the face of being badly used emotionally and financially over a lengthy period of time, and that it appears that he is getting some sort of pleasure from it.

  64. 64.

    shortstop

    January 14, 2014 at 5:03 pm

    @schrodinger’s cat: Embodies the questioning, boundary-testing spirit of the Jazz Age — a sharp contrast to the obedient propriety of the prewar years — or some such crap.

  65. 65.

    jeffreyw

    January 14, 2014 at 5:03 pm

    @Another Holocene Human: You’re trolling the wrong thread.

  66. 66.

    kdaug

    January 14, 2014 at 5:04 pm

    @Ben Cisco: So say we all

  67. 67.

    schrodinger's cat

    January 14, 2014 at 5:08 pm

    @shortstop: The characters keep saying, things are not like they used to be before the war but continue to behave as if nothing has changed since 1912. BTW I think cheater Gregson is going to turn out to be a German spy.

  68. 68.

    Betty Cracker

    January 14, 2014 at 5:09 pm

    @shortstop:

    Maggie Smith is a treasure and gets all the lines Fellowes used to be known for writing and Mrs. Patmore is a wonderful character, but Bates, Anna and Carson are all too shallowly developed for my taste. I recognize that these three are beloved by most viewers, however.

    Co-signed. I think Mrs. Hughes could well be instrumental in turning Carson into a Cheerful Charley soon, though!

    @schrodinger’s cat:

    I can’t stand Rose, what is her purpose on the show anyway?

    Agreed. Her character seems very grafted on, perhaps as a vehicle for upstairs plot lines that wouldn’t be remotely credible if they involved Mary or Edith. She’s a vapid flapper — which would make a great band name!

  69. 69.

    Roger Moore

    January 14, 2014 at 5:10 pm

    @Betty Cracker:

    Maybe the bird got inside somehow?

    It might have been chased by another hummingbird and wound up inside. I do have a feeder on the balcony, and they can get pretty territorial in defending it.

  70. 70.

    shortstop

    January 14, 2014 at 5:14 pm

    @Betty Cracker: Rewatching the end of the last season so I could remember who did what (besides die) before the debut of this season, I was walking around the house paying only half attention to the TV. Carson went off on some pompous tirade about Keeping Up Standards and I muttered, “Pipe down, you tiresome old cartoon character.” The fellow infielder announced in a stern tone, “You just have a problem with authority, my dear,” and I burst out laughing, ’cause it’s kinda true.

  71. 71.

    replicnt6

    January 14, 2014 at 5:17 pm

    … Tribble-topped …

    I love you, Betty.

  72. 72.

    shortstop

    January 14, 2014 at 5:18 pm

    @schrodinger’s cat: @Betty Cracker: Is it Cousin Oliver syndrome?

  73. 73.

    kdaug

    January 14, 2014 at 5:18 pm

    @Another Holocene Human:

    Best meatballs I ever had were in a joint with a 60′s incandescent light bulb-a-ganza sign in Cleveland Circle.

    You don’t want to know what we did with light bulbs in college. (Think cooking, not orifices).

    Statute of limitations has probably run out, anyway.

  74. 74.

    Betty Cracker

    January 14, 2014 at 5:21 pm

    @shortstop: Yep — shades of Scrappy Doo!

  75. 75.

    schrodinger's cat

    January 14, 2014 at 5:27 pm

    @shortstop: Definitely! and a replacement for Lady Sybil with none of her sweetness or sense of purpose.

  76. 76.

    lamh36

    January 14, 2014 at 5:27 pm

    @TPM 3m
    Oklahoma judge rules state’s same-sex marriage ban unconstitutional: http://bit.ly/JZIaJG

  77. 77.

    Joe Buck

    January 14, 2014 at 5:27 pm

    Paul is wrong about most things, but he’s not wrong about wanting to repeal the AUMF. There’s nothing “gullible” about making tactical alliances on specific issues.

  78. 78.

    Omnes Omnibus

    January 14, 2014 at 5:27 pm

    @schrodinger’s cat: Rose is the first character on the show who became and adult in the post-Edwardian era. The other upstairs women simply are not going to understand her nor will she understand them – she’ll manage to get along well with the Dowager Countess, however.

    Also, Lord Grantham is aware of his status as a dinosaur; he is just having trouble deciding if he wants to, or, indeed, is able to make the necessary adjustments to go on. He was raised to live and behave in a certain way, but he was also raised to preserve the estate for future generations. Does he go full on Lord Emsworth or does he adapt to the post-War world?

    ETA: Am I the only person who likes Rose? She and Violet are the only women abovestairs that I like at all.

  79. 79.

    boatboy_srq

    January 14, 2014 at 5:27 pm

    @cleek: the new Reichwing mantra:

    War is Peace.
    Slavery is Freedom™.
    Ignorance is Strength.

    (apologies to Orwell, but one just can’t imagine the modern GOTea denouncing Freedom™, especially when their agenda provides so little of it. Never mind that what they market under that name is somewhat different from what Orwell envisioned).

  80. 80.

    scav

    January 14, 2014 at 5:28 pm

    OT addition to annals of responsible gun ownership: Cops tell man, 80, to stop shooting icicles from roof

    “It’s still unincorporated, so some of those places it’s OK to shoot a gun,” Gengler said. “I’m not sure why somebody would want to do this to begin with. … I’ve never heard of anybody shooting a gun at icicles. That’s something new.

  81. 81.

    Mnemosyne

    January 14, 2014 at 5:31 pm

    @scav:

    If I remember my childhood correctly, it’s pretty common for people to shoot icicles with a BB gun. Never heard of someone doing it with a real gun, though.

  82. 82.

    Chris

    January 14, 2014 at 5:32 pm

    @kindness:

    If they can attach the Patriot Act to the repeal

    … then this might actually matter. As in, make a difference in our political system. Here. Now.

    The Pauls don’t do things that matter; they do grandstanding, risk-free bullshit, like repealing a war after the last troops have already been withdrawn (hey, anyone wanna repeal the Tonkin Gulf Resolution while we’re at it?) Or that grand filibuster about DROOOONEZ, after which Rand Paul said that oh yeah, actually, he was totally okay with drones on U.S. soil as long as it was under really important/extreme/serious circumstances (i.e. exactly the position of mainstream Republicans and Democrats).

  83. 83.

    Bill E Pilgrim

    January 14, 2014 at 5:32 pm

    The weird part is that he actually claims that that’s his real hair.

    Or put another way, he says it’s no tribble at all.

    Could someone be so genetically dorky that his perfectly natural hair just looks exactly like a devil toupee?

  84. 84.

    Omnes Omnibus

    January 14, 2014 at 5:33 pm

    @Chris: This.

  85. 85.

    schrodinger's cat

    January 14, 2014 at 5:33 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: I like the idea of Rose, but the actress is terrible, agree completely about Violet. Violet reminds me of my grandmother who was tough as nails and quite pragmatic but a bit of a snob.

  86. 86.

    Keith G

    January 14, 2014 at 5:38 pm

    @Corner Stone: It doesn’t matter which stud hoss the Texans pick. He will have two good, maybe very good, seasons; be injured and ineffective in the third; gone in his fourth.

  87. 87.

    Villago Delenda Est

    January 14, 2014 at 5:39 pm

    Well, I react to Rand Paul the way Klingons react to tribbles, so there’s that.

  88. 88.

    scav

    January 14, 2014 at 5:39 pm

    @Mnemosyne: Wernher von Braun Home Maintenance! Once the bullets go up who cares vhere they come down!”

  89. 89.

    Bill E Pilgrim

    January 14, 2014 at 5:40 pm

    @schrodinger’s cat: I figured everyone watched it primarily to watch Violet be snarky. I have to say I don’t buy the idea that it treats women any worse than men, I mean either the characters’ fortunes and how they fare, or how sympathetic or idiotic they’re made to look. For the former, the best examples are Thomas, Bates, and most of all Molesley, and for the latter, Lord Grantham.

  90. 90.

    Villago Delenda Est

    January 14, 2014 at 5:40 pm

    @scav:

    Plus, it’s an expensive way (ammo ain’t cheap, by design by the manufacturers, nowadays) to remove icicles.

  91. 91.

    Omnes Omnibus

    January 14, 2014 at 5:41 pm

    @schrodinger’s cat: Well, I like her and the actress who plays her. So there. And if you hate Lily James, you should avoid Disney’s live action Cinderella since she will be playing Cinders.

  92. 92.

    Bill E Pilgrim

    January 14, 2014 at 5:41 pm

    @scav: “I aim at the stars…. but sometimes I hit London”

  93. 93.

    Keith G

    January 14, 2014 at 5:42 pm

    @cleek:

    Obama called for its repeal

    In a manner of speaking.

  94. 94.

    Betty Cracker

    January 14, 2014 at 5:43 pm

    @Joe Buck:

    There’s nothing “gullible” about making tactical alliances on specific issues.

    You’re right — as long as you realize what you’re dealing with, in which case, you’re not gullible. But there are folks who believe Paul’s relative sanity on a few narrow issues, e.g., foreign misadventures, NSA, etc., means he’d be as acceptable as president as a moderate Dem. That kind of thinking is what I meant by gullible, but “stupid” is probably a better word.

  95. 95.

    schrodinger's cat

    January 14, 2014 at 5:43 pm

    @Bill E Pilgrim: Did not like the whole assault on Anna story line. Incredibly misogynistic. YMMV.

  96. 96.

    Villago Delenda Est

    January 14, 2014 at 5:44 pm

    @Violet:

    Outside of another foray to the Dominican Republic, it’s the only sex Limbaugh gets.

  97. 97.

    Omnes Omnibus

    January 14, 2014 at 5:45 pm

    @Keith G: No, he did not say “I call for the repeal of the AUMF” in those exact words, but is there another way of reasonably interpreting the statement cleek cited?

  98. 98.

    Bill E Pilgrim

    January 14, 2014 at 5:48 pm

    @schrodinger’s cat: Why? Okay I just went and read your review to find out (hey, I’m a good sport) and hmm, I’m not sure the “message” was that, or that there was a message being delivered, but to each ones interpretation and so on. Things did tend to be a tad misogynistic in those days, compared to now, you have to admit.

    I’ve also seen the entire season so it might be interesting to see what you think when er, well never mind. I’ve said too much.

  99. 99.

    Corner Stone

    January 14, 2014 at 5:48 pm

    @Keith G: No, no, no. Trade that 1st pick down to someone for their lower 1st and a 3rd. Take CB Justin Gilbert in the 16 – 20 spot, then make a trade to get high 2nd round and take QB Bortles.

  100. 100.

    Mnemosyne

    January 14, 2014 at 5:55 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    Actually, he did:

    So I look forward to engaging Congress and the American people in efforts to refine, and ultimately repeal, the AUMF’s mandate. (emphasis mine)

    I’m not quite sure why “repeal” doesn’t really mean “repeal” when Obama says “repeal,” but I’ll be interested in the explanation. ;-)

  101. 101.

    shortstop

    January 14, 2014 at 5:56 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    Lord Emsworth

    Hmmm, not seeing the parallel beyond a certain dreaminess and resistance to change. Emsworth is easygoing, haphazard and passive. Grantham is uptight, fastidious and wants to be in control. Much less likeable and certainly not a bit funny.

  102. 102.

    shortstop

    January 14, 2014 at 5:57 pm

    @scav: What is the protocol for shooting at icicles? Do people shoot into the house, out of the house or sideways (into the neighbors’ house)?

  103. 103.

    Omnes Omnibus

    January 14, 2014 at 5:57 pm

    @shortstop: Emsworth in the sense of being entirely in his own little world and not adapting in the slightest to modern reality. In the rest, you are entirely correct.

  104. 104.

    schrodinger's cat

    January 14, 2014 at 6:00 pm

    @Bill E Pilgrim: Let me guess, Bates knew Green from his days in jail and was warning Anna off?

  105. 105.

    Omnes Omnibus

    January 14, 2014 at 6:02 pm

    @Mnemosyne: My point was he did not use the magic phase that I put in quotation marks in my comment. Of course he said the same thing and not, pace Keith G, in a manner of speaking.

    @shortstop: @Omnes Omnibus: Also both Emsworth and Grantham are fundamentally decent and well-meaning.

  106. 106.

    shortstop

    January 14, 2014 at 6:02 pm

    Semi OT, the fellow infielder and I saw Maggie Smith in Lettice and Lovage shortly after it opened in London…1987? 1988? It was one of the very top theater-going experiences of my lifetime, and I’ve been fortunate to see a lot of plays. I recall an interview with Peter Shaffer in which he said he wrote the part specifically for Smith. My god, what a master she is.

  107. 107.

    Bill E Pilgrim

    January 14, 2014 at 6:03 pm

    @schrodinger’s cat: Oooh no, you’re not getting a word from me.

  108. 108.

    Omnes Omnibus

    January 14, 2014 at 6:04 pm

    @Bill E Pilgrim: You better not.

  109. 109.

    schrodinger's cat

    January 14, 2014 at 6:05 pm

    @Bill E Pilgrim: What I hate most is that DA has become very predictable.

  110. 110.

    shortstop

    January 14, 2014 at 6:07 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: I wish Grantham were funnier. Maybe a little less Molesley dropping hot chafing dishes and falling down drunk, and a little more Bonneville buffoonery. I realize few others want this character to lose his dignity, but I’m all for it.

    By the way, since you enjoy Wodehouse as I do, you might try Joe Keenan (not to be confused with Joe Queenan). Putting on the Ritz is one of the funniest books I’ve ever read; Blue Heaven only slightly less so.

  111. 111.

    scav

    January 14, 2014 at 6:09 pm

    @shortstop: Don’t look at me! My landlords have usually run icicle friendly, gutter hostile environments, when in fact I had icicle-prone landlords. @Mnemosyne: might know more.

  112. 112.

    Omnes Omnibus

    January 14, 2014 at 6:11 pm

    @shortstop: Bonneville is a great buffoon. And I will look for Keenan’s books.

  113. 113.

    kindness

    January 14, 2014 at 6:12 pm

    @Villago Delenda Est: I can’t believe you are the first person to mention Klingons in this thread with all the tribbles flying around everywhere. I thought about it but chose not to let my nerd flag fly.

    Tip o’ my cap to you.

  114. 114.

    Bill E Pilgrim

    January 14, 2014 at 6:13 pm

    @schrodinger’s cat: Yeah it’s interesting– well I’m not going to defend it on any profound level, I mean it’s a big, high-production-value soap opera, basically. I’ve seen people say that it had lost something after the first season, after the second, after the fourth episode, etc. FWIW I didn’t find this season as a whole any more predictable than others, by the end.

  115. 115.

    Bill E Pilgrim

    January 14, 2014 at 6:14 pm

    @kindness: Hey I actually quoted the episode.

  116. 116.

    schrodinger's cat

    January 14, 2014 at 6:21 pm

    @Bill E Pilgrim: JF is recycling the stories again and again so what seemed fresh in the first season, doesn’t seem so any more.

  117. 117.

    Omnes Omnibus

    January 14, 2014 at 6:29 pm

    @schrodinger’s cat: Well, I never liked Matthew, so at least he is gone.

  118. 118.

    kindness

    January 14, 2014 at 6:49 pm

    @Bill E Pilgrim: Please forgive me. I am the low man on this totem pole.

  119. 119.

    Chris

    January 14, 2014 at 7:07 pm

    @Betty Cracker:

    Here’s my thing; I have no problem with the concept of “tactical alliances on specific issues” (humoring white racists in order to overthrow the Gilded Age, for example). But the point of those alliances is that your ally (the lesser evil) has to be bringing something to the table that can help you with the problem at hand.

    What do Ron and Rand Paul bring to the table? It’s not votes – they’ve never had enough voters to get anywhere in the election process (the way Ross Perot or George Wallace or Teddy Roosevelt did), nor are they influential in Congress. And like I said, they don’t even do anything more than grandstand when it’s just them – see the drones, the AUMF repeal, etc.

    I’d be fine with a tactical alliance with the Pauls if I thought they had anything to offer us, but as it is I think we’d just be reaching out to find that there’s nothing there.

  120. 120.

    schrodinger's cat

    January 14, 2014 at 7:32 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: He was too goody goody.

  121. 121.

    AxelFoley

    January 14, 2014 at 10:09 pm

    @Ben Cisco:

    He should always and forevermore be referred to in this exact manner. So say we all?

    So shall it be written, so shall it be done.

  122. 122.

    SiubhanDuinne

    January 14, 2014 at 10:19 pm

    @shortstop: I saw her as Rosalind in As You Like It at the Stratford (ON) Festival in, I think, 1977 or thereabouts. Cast included Brian Bedford as the Melancholy Jaques. Just … wonderful. As in, full of wonder.

  123. 123.

    moops

    January 14, 2014 at 11:56 pm

    Some how I thought the fall of Fallujah to Al Queda would result in us postponing any change in our military authority in the Middle East.

    …oh, right, Obama is President. Carry on Rand.

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