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You are here: Home / Open Threads / Open Thread — And Tech Question (Updated)

Open Thread — And Tech Question (Updated)

by Betty Cracker|  June 11, 201411:51 am| 261 Comments

This post is in: Open Threads

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It’s a rainy day where I am. That’s fine by me — keeps the heat down. I’m still a bit fatigued from spending all night dancing on Eric Cantor’s political grave. I have no idea what it means in the long run. I just never could stand that smarmy prick, so good riddance.

Now, here’s my question: If you were in the market for a used or refurbished iPad 4 with 64GBs and could choose a $300 model sold by some dude on Craigslist who claims it’s in great shape or a $450 model sold by Apple that comes with a one-year limited warranty and 14-day return policy, which would you choose?

UPDATE
Okay, your rare unanimity on the used from Craigslist dude model vs refurb from Apple question has convinced me to go with Apple inside 20 minutes. Thanks! Next question: Anything I should know about cases, keyboards, etc.?

Please feel free to discuss whatever.

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Reader Interactions

261Comments

  1. 1.

    Aaron

    June 11, 2014 at 11:53 am

    store bought unless you know the seller personally.

  2. 2.

    pharniel

    June 11, 2014 at 11:53 am

    I’d go with the refurb from Apple but that’s me being ultra conservative.

  3. 3.

    raven

    June 11, 2014 at 11:53 am

    Apple and buy the Apple Care.

  4. 4.

    cleek

    June 11, 2014 at 11:54 am

    get the one from Apple.

  5. 5.

    Laertes

    June 11, 2014 at 11:55 am

    Apple, unless that extra $150 is the difference between eating and going hungry the day before payday.

  6. 6.

    raven

    June 11, 2014 at 11:56 am

    And get a good case.

  7. 7.

    Woodrow/asim Jarvis Hill

    June 11, 2014 at 11:56 am

    Unless you’re very tech-fixes savvy or it’s a major financial burden, go with the Apple refub.

  8. 8.

    Mnemosyne

    June 11, 2014 at 11:58 am

    I’ve gotta go with the crowd — unless you’re buying it from a friend or at least a friend of a friend, you’re safer with the Apple refurb, which you can at least return and get your money back if it breaks within the warranty period.

  9. 9.

    Tommy

    June 11, 2014 at 11:59 am

    I am an Andriod/Samsung guy myself, but IMHO as a tech nerd I would always, I mean always pay a few more dollars and get something from Apple then a third party. Now with that said, if you trust the person on Craigslist hard deal to pass up. I run an Andriod tablet cause I have an Andriod phone, therefore any app I had bought on my phone I could install for no additional cost.

    That was/is nice. I think I might have only paid like $75 for all the apps I run. So that cost savings you could get, well your apps are kind of free. I just, and I guess this is sad, don’t trust other people that much. You know buying from Apple you will get a sound device. Some person on Craigslist, not so much.

  10. 10.

    dmsilev

    June 11, 2014 at 12:00 pm

    As everyone said, get the factory-refurb from Apple. Costs more, but the risk is much lower. Besides, the batteries in those things lose capacity over time (like anything which uses lithium cells) and part of the refurb process is putting in a new battery.

  11. 11.

    SFAW

    June 11, 2014 at 12:02 pm

    I’d go with the Craigslist guy – but only if he throws in a “sweetener.” Something like a suspension bridge, maybe one that runs between Brooklyn and Manhattan.

  12. 12.

    srv

    June 11, 2014 at 12:03 pm

    Give apple all your money.

    Sent from my iphone

  13. 13.

    PaulW

    June 11, 2014 at 12:03 pm

    Build your own tablet.

    …whadda ya mean, they don’t sell tablet kits at TigerDirect?!

  14. 14.

    boatboy_srq

    June 11, 2014 at 12:05 pm

    Another vote for the Apple refurb. Unless you’re acquainted with a hardware genius who’s shown you how he upgraded the DAC in his last two iPods, wrote his own algorithm to convert MP3 to master-quality Ogg Vorbis and tweaked the iPods’ OS to play that (and now what you hear sounds better than SACD on a Roksan Caspian M2 amp driving Focal Utopia IIIs), Apple will give you a far more predictably reliable product.

  15. 15.

    Belafon

    June 11, 2014 at 12:06 pm

    Yes. I’ve had good luck with both (buying from someone, and buying from a company), and the failures on both have been about the same. What I would say on buying from someone on craigslist/amazon/ebay is look at the number of things sold and the seller’s rating.

    I realize I’m not helping that much, but I’ve generally had pretty a pretty good experience buying from a person, so choose what you are comfortable with. If the most strenuous thing you want to deal with is going to an apple store, then buy from them.

  16. 16.

    boatboy_srq

    June 11, 2014 at 12:06 pm

    @srv: WIN.

  17. 17.

    raven

    June 11, 2014 at 12:07 pm

    Read this profile of Bergdahl. I had no idea he had washed out of the Coast Guard during basic. He reminds me of my sister’s boyfriend. All his buddies joined in 1969 but they sat with him and said “there is no way you’ll make it”. He split to Canada and the FBI got him in my parents living room when he snuck back in the states.

  18. 18.

    Commenting at Balloon Juice since 1937

    June 11, 2014 at 12:07 pm

    Given the choice , I’d get a 7 inch Android for a lot less.

  19. 19.

    PurpleGirl

    June 11, 2014 at 12:08 pm

    @PaulW: Does Radio Shack?

  20. 20.

    Poopyman

    June 11, 2014 at 12:08 pm

    My vote’s for giving your cash to the shady online character. Or perhaps he takes VISA?

    Go to the store.

  21. 21.

    pseudonymous in nc

    June 11, 2014 at 12:09 pm

    Apple’s factory refurbs are retail spec. As dmsilev says, Craigslist dude’s one will have 18 months of battery wear, like all lithium batteries, and it’s $99 for a replacement when it finally doesn’t hold a charge.

    If you have a credit card like Amex with extended warranty, you can get some extra protection on top of the standard year.

  22. 22.

    amk

    June 11, 2014 at 12:09 pm

    At either of that price, you could get a very good, new android pad with full warranty.

  23. 23.

    raven

    June 11, 2014 at 12:09 pm

    @Belafon: Where do you see ratings and sales on Craiglist listings?

  24. 24.

    SFAW

    June 11, 2014 at 12:09 pm

    @PaulW:

    …whadda ya mean, they don’t sell tablet kits at TigerDirect?!

    Maybe not, but I bet Heathkit does.

  25. 25.

    Fogeyman

    June 11, 2014 at 12:10 pm

    I bought my first iPad from “a guy,” but it was a situation where I could touch the thing and verify that it was in decent shape.

    My last one was store bought. Go that way. Apple service is pretty easy to deal with.

  26. 26.

    MattF

    June 11, 2014 at 12:10 pm

    Note that Apple has a trade-in/recycle program:

    http://www.apple.com/recycling/

    So, it’s just possible that the Craigslist guy has a reason for not wanting to trade it in. E.g., a bad battery.

  27. 27.

    raven

    June 11, 2014 at 12:10 pm

    @pseudonymous in nc: Most Apple Care coverages are transferable, might be worth it to see if it’s the case here?

  28. 28.

    raven

    June 11, 2014 at 12:11 pm

    @MattF: Yea but you get zip on those Apple trade-in deals.

  29. 29.

    Villago Delenda Est

    June 11, 2014 at 12:12 pm

    I’m with everyone else…go with the Apple offering. Sure, it’s 50% more…but unless I personally know the seller, I’m not touching the $300 one. “Some guy on Craiglist” pretty much says it all.

    “It was only used on Sundays by a little old lady from Pasadena to go get tins of cat food on Colorado Boulevard”

  30. 30.

    raven

    June 11, 2014 at 12:12 pm

    @Fogeyman: Um, touching it is nice but not really to see if it’s has deep internal issues.

  31. 31.

    SFAW

    June 11, 2014 at 12:13 pm

    @raven:

    Where do you see ratings and sales on Craiglist listings?

    There’s a link right next to the Shopping Cart icon.

  32. 32.

    Jamey

    June 11, 2014 at 12:13 pm

    Why do you need that much onboard storage?

    Also, go with Apple refurb.

  33. 33.

    Tommy

    June 11, 2014 at 12:15 pm

    @Commenting at Balloon Juice since 1937: Yeah agreed. I don’t want to start an Android vs. Apple war. Heck I was an Apple user from 1984 until a few years ago. But IMHO if you factor in price, well there is only one way to go. I will honestly admit the iPad is a superior device to my Samsung tablet. But I could not figure out nor make the commitment to not get an Android device, like my phone, where I could run the same apps and basically have two devices that mirror each other.

  34. 34.

    raven

    June 11, 2014 at 12:15 pm

    @SFAW: cool, thanks!

    eta Hmm, a shopping cart on Craiglist?

  35. 35.

    SFAW

    June 11, 2014 at 12:15 pm

    @Jamey:

    Why do you need that much onboard storage?

    To store all her photos of Rick Scott?

  36. 36.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 12:16 pm

    @raven:

    Ironically, it looks from that article as if he might have gone Galt! I still think he sneaked out of the camp for some alone time and to clear his head and got jumped by the Taliban. Either way, he very obviously should not have been in the Army, much less in a combat zone.

  37. 37.

    SFAW

    June 11, 2014 at 12:16 pm

    @raven:

    My pleasure, it’s so rare that I get to be useful.

    ETA: re: your ETA: just go with it, OK?

  38. 38.

    MattF

    June 11, 2014 at 12:16 pm

    @Jamey: A large music collection? That was my reason.

  39. 39.

    The Moar You Know

    June 11, 2014 at 12:17 pm

    Good lord. No contest. I tear tablets, phones and computers apart for a living, and I’d be buying it from Apple. They’ve gone through it.

    And my maxim: Not everything on Craigslist is stolen, but everything stolen is on Craigslist.

    ETA: Android fanboys: I have a Nexus 7, a Cyanogen-modded Nook Color, and a Moto G phone. I am all over Android. But Apple people like their Apple stuff, so don’t be an asshole and whine “why aren’t you getting Android derp derp derp”.

  40. 40.

    raven

    June 11, 2014 at 12:18 pm

    @The Moar You Know: That’s great!

  41. 41.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 12:19 pm

    I’d strongly advise you to spend the extra money and get an official, returnable iPad, rather than trusting some dude on Craigslist. False economy and all that.

    Updated: the NSA and I are both very happy to see Betty taking the path of wisdom here.

  42. 42.

    raven

    June 11, 2014 at 12:20 pm

    @Morzer: Yea, after the Coast Guard that was what stuck out the most. I bet the court martial him and he uses the “never should have been in the Army in the first place” defense.

  43. 43.

    Anoniminous

    June 11, 2014 at 12:21 pm

    I would:

    Step 0: Buying from Craigslist — No.

    Step 1: Check for local outlets carrying re-furbs and compare prices, quality, and function to the Apple refurb. Ask about support, guarantees, etc. as well. I feel it it is better to buy locally so if something goes wonky you can deal directly with the technicians. YMMV

    Step 2: If not Step 1 go with the Apple refurb.

  44. 44.

    khead

    June 11, 2014 at 12:22 pm

    Welcome to the dark side.

  45. 45.

    Tommy

    June 11, 2014 at 12:22 pm

    Since we are kind of geeking out, can I ask if anybody here has the Samsung Galaxy S5? Heck the mini version. I have a S4 and it is huge. I love the darn phone, but want something much, much smaller. But I’m a tech nerd and long ago I learned when you have something you like, heck that works, it isn’t always best to get the “new shinny thing.”

  46. 46.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 12:23 pm

    @raven:

    I wonder if they’ll consider him competent to face a court martial. He sounds pretty mentally fragile in his own writings and I doubt that 5 years with the Taliban enhanced his sanity. What are the rules in a case like this?

  47. 47.

    Betty Cracker

    June 11, 2014 at 12:24 pm

    @MattF: Bingo. I have cloud storage, of course, but I spend a not-inconsiderable amount of time off the grid, so storing stuff in the cloud and downloading over Wi-Fi isn’t always an option for me. It’s a convenience thing.

  48. 48.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 12:24 pm

    @Tommy:

    long ago I learned when you have something you like, heck that works, it isn’t always best to get the “new shinny thing.”

    Ah, so you’ve met that nice Mr Vista from Microsoft too.

  49. 49.

    Tommy

    June 11, 2014 at 12:25 pm

    @The Moar You Know: LOL. LOL. I don’t think you were referencing me :). I have a Nexus 7 as well and as I noted, will openly admit, it is an inferior device next to an iPad. I would just note the cost difference. Some folks, myself included, are on a budget with shit like this.

  50. 50.

    Tommy

    June 11, 2014 at 12:27 pm

    @Morzer: Well yes but first Apple in the 90s with their OS.

  51. 51.

    jame

    June 11, 2014 at 12:28 pm

    Uhm, maybe can you wait ’til next month to purchase tech gear? Auspices aren’t so favorable for that now.

  52. 52.

    rikyrah

    June 11, 2014 at 12:28 pm

    Let’s be absolutely clear about the bullshyt meme that the sycophants in the MSM want to push now because of Cantor’s loss.

    All that was ‘lost’ because of Cantor’s loss, i.e. Immigration Reform and the VRA.

    NOTHING was stopping Cantor from doing Immigration Reform before his loss, and even if you say that his opponent running on it was the reason he denied a vote in the House, ok. His ass has lost now. He has nothing to lose. Bring the bill up for a vote.

    Now, as far as that VRA is concerned, I feel like climbing through the computer screen and bytchslapping you myself.

    The reason why they won’t even hold hearings on the VRA IS BECAUSE THEY DON’T WANT TO FIX THE VRA.

    They are VERY pleased by what the Supreme Court has done and anyone who wants to write anything other than that can kiss my entire Black ass.

    Eric Cantor was part of the GOP cabal that met

    ON JANUARY 20, 2009

    And chose to commit ECONOMIC TREASON AGAINST THIS COUNTRY.

    So, what the fuck do I care if his replacement will also commit economic treason against this country?

  53. 53.

    raven

    June 11, 2014 at 12:28 pm

    @Morzer: The Hagel spat with Miller was good:

    Rep. Jeff Miller and Hagel just had a testy exchange about why Bergdahl still is being held at a military medical facility in Germany, as opposed to being questioned about his captivity in the United States.

    Miller, R-Florida, argued that wounded soldiers are often transferred quickly to the United States, and he asked whether Berghdal was being held in Germany only because medical personnel don’t believe he’s ready for transfer.

    “I hope you’re not implying anything other than that,” Hagel responded. “I don’t like the implication of the question.” Hagel said Bergdahl remains in Germany because medical professionals don’t believe he’s ready to make his next step in his rehabilitation.

  54. 54.

    Barry

    June 11, 2014 at 12:28 pm

    @MattF: “So, it’s just possible that the Craigslist guy has a reason for not wanting to trade it in. E.g., a bad battery. ”

    Or it was acquired under dubious circumstances.

  55. 55.

    Mandalay

    June 11, 2014 at 12:28 pm

    The jackass pollster who predicted last week that Cantor would romp to victory is blaming the Democrats:

    Then McLaughlin cited the “Cooter” factor – the fact that former Rep. Ben Jones, a Georgia Democrat who played Cooter in The Dukes of Hazzard, had written an open letter urging Democrats to vote for Brat to help beat Cantor.

    “Over the weekend Democrats like Ben Jones and liberal media were driving their Democratic voters on the internet into the open primary,” McLaughlin wrote. “Eric got hit from right and left. In our polls two weeks out Eric was stronger with Republicans at 70% of the vote, but running under 50% among non Republicans.”

    “Untold story,” McLaughlin continued, “is who were the new primary voters? They were probably not Republicans.”

    I guess he showed great restraint by not explicitly blaming Obama.

  56. 56.

    NotMax

    June 11, 2014 at 12:28 pm

    Holiday here – it’s Kamehameha Day.

  57. 57.

    schrodinger's cat

    June 11, 2014 at 12:31 pm

    @SFAW: Eewww. I think Betty has better taste. It is probably for her Cumberbatch pics.

  58. 58.

    Suffern ACE

    June 11, 2014 at 12:31 pm

    @Mandalay: So, we can get our voters to come out on primary day to vote against Cantor but not on election day? Which Democratic voters are these?

  59. 59.

    catclub

    June 11, 2014 at 12:33 pm

    I read Josh Brown’s “The Reformed Broker” which is mostly finance and investing stuff.
    He is sane but I suspect a big fan of Chris Christie.

    But today, the two things he talked about were the takeover of Mosul by ISIS and the Cantor defenstration – which may lead to even more disfunctional government. It should be noted that the advertising against Thad Cochran also was heavy on ‘He voted to raise the debt limit’ ( and thus keep the government operating. Josh Brown’s take was that this kind of thing might start to worry investors.

    Interesting. http://www.thereformedbroker.com/

  60. 60.

    Woodrow/asim Jarvis Hill

    June 11, 2014 at 12:33 pm

    Cases etc.: The best review site (really, sort of a review/meta-review) site for tech gear is The Wirecutter. Everything I’ve bought based off a review there, save one charger that was my mistake, has been awesome.

  61. 61.

    rikyrah

    June 11, 2014 at 12:34 pm

    Right-Wing Billionaires To Use California Ruling to Nationally Crush Teachers’ Unions
    By: Rmuse
    Wednesday, June, 11th, 2014, 9:57 am

    If one was to examine why some poor children fail in schools and attempted to come up with the reasons why, they might say huge budget shortfalls, poverty, poor parenting skills, disparity between rich and poor neighborhood school funding, unsafe school environments, or a lack of access to technology. However, if you are corporate moguls, billionaires, and privatization advocates, the only reason nine poor students failed is because of public school teachers’ due process protections. Due process protections include not being fired without a reason, receiving a fair hearing when a parent complains their child did not earn a high grade, or worst of all belonging to a union. None of those due process protections have any impact on teacher competence or a students’ success, but being assigned a teaching position in a poor neighborhood with underfunded schools does.

    What the Republican Party, Koch brothers, Michelle Rhee, the religious right, and billionaire corporate owners all have in common regarding education is destroying public schools, privatizing the education system, and breaking teachers’ unions. There have been unsuccessful attempts in the past to privatize California’s public school system, but the public and legislature are adamantly opposed, so a conglomerate of billionaires, corporations, and for-profit charter school advocates appealed to a Republican judge for assistance and he complied. On Tuesday a judge ruled in a lawsuit filed by billionaires that California teachers’ due process protections are unconstitutional and the reason nine students in poor neighborhood schools were unsuccessful.

    The lawsuit was brought by a group called Students Matter, which is led by a Silicon Valley optical entrepreneur David Welch who has absolutely no education experience and is closely aligned with such notable figures in the anti-union, pro-charter, school privatization movement such as Michelle Rhee of StudentsFirst and Eli Broad. The joke of the billionaires’ lawsuit against due process for teachers is that the focus was “education equality” that has nothing whatsoever to do with due process protections and tenure. For the record, tenure means a teacher cannot be terminated without the administrator giving a reason (cause). Without tenure, a teacher can be fired because a parent complains their lazy brat did not earn an A, or an administrator’s sexual advances were rebuffed. There is no such thing as a guaranteed lifetime teaching job, but that is not what the billionaires’ lawsuit presented to the judge.

    http://www.politicususa.com/2014/06/11/right-wing-billionaires-california-ruling-nationally-crush-teachers-unions.html

  62. 62.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 12:34 pm

    For those who like to combine GoT with the soccer world cup:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iytLTAD1oyg

    I think their choice of Hodor is amazingly brilliant and totally like wonderful!

  63. 63.

    Aaron

    June 11, 2014 at 12:35 pm

    Just wanted to add to my FIRST COMMENT (ever on a discussion)
    If you buy from Ebay, theres a reputation system and you can know that the seller has a history of reputable transactions and will likely be there in the future if there is an issue. That would be okay. Otherwise with craigslist your buying from some guy in a coffee shop that you will never see again and find out later that when the tablet warms up the screen goes blank because it needs fixing.
    I occasionally buy office chairs from craigslist. takes about a minute to test it, give it a sniff for odors, sit, check for lumps, mechanism works, etc.

  64. 64.

    Belafon

    June 11, 2014 at 12:36 pm

    @Mandalay: According to this (I can’t look at twitter links at work), voters were less likely to vote in Democratic areas than Republican ones.

  65. 65.

    Culture of Truth

    June 11, 2014 at 12:37 pm

    I bought a used smartphone phone cheap from a stranger on eBay, who claimed it was mint condition. When it came in the mail, it was in… mint condition. It’s worked great for six months now. No regrets.

  66. 66.

    Betty Cracker

    June 11, 2014 at 12:38 pm

    @Woodrow/asim Jarvis Hill: Good to know. Thanks!

  67. 67.

    catclub

    June 11, 2014 at 12:38 pm

    @raven:

    I bet the[y] court martial him and he uses the “never should have been in the Army in the first place” defense.

    I bet there is not enough evidence, and it blows over. He had left and come back before.

  68. 68.

    JPL

    June 11, 2014 at 12:40 pm

    @raven: Now a repub is crying cuz Hagel doesn’t trust him.

  69. 69.

    Suffern ACE

    June 11, 2014 at 12:41 pm

    @raven: Do they not know how to question people in Germany?

  70. 70.

    Cervantes

    June 11, 2014 at 12:41 pm

    @Mandalay:

    The jackass pollster who predicted last week that Cantor would romp to victory is blaming the Democrats

    The logic escapes me. Were the Democrats expected to be on Cantor’s side? Why would they not work to defeat him?

    Anyhow, McLaughlin is not known for his competence. Among his other recent achievements, he predicted that in 2012 Obama would get about 40% of “the Jewish vote” (his language) — whereas the result was nearly double that.

    The real question: Why on earth did Cantor hire him?

  71. 71.

    cat

    June 11, 2014 at 12:42 pm

    My wife has had two ipads, because she doesn’t want to pester me for support, and liked her first one, but loves her 2nd one.

    The Logitech Bluetooth keyboard case is the reason why she loves it. Mostly because the stand function is 10x better then the smart covers apple sells that are completely unstable, but also being able to type emails and web addresses easily.

  72. 72.

    JPL

    June 11, 2014 at 12:42 pm

    Hagel is holding his own. Some repubs are just making statements and not allowing him to speak.

  73. 73.

    gbear

    June 11, 2014 at 12:44 pm

    @raven: I wonder if they’re not keeping him in Germany for his own protecton. It’s still a dangerous environment for him and his family in the US.

    I wouldn’t be surprised if they first fly his parents to Germany for their first reunion with him.

  74. 74.

    Tommy

    June 11, 2014 at 12:45 pm

    @rikyrah: In 2000 my town had 5,500 residents. In 2010 we had 8,700. We can’t build houses fast enough. Why? We have the best public schools in the area if not the state. Heck the nation. In an election (and I live in IL) we voted 53% for McCain and 67% for a bond issue to build a new $60M high school.

    My little town, and it isn’t a hippie liberal town, but feels like it at times has figured out schools matter. Promote your schools and people move here and buy said house. Taxes. They then shop local. Taxes. We take those taxes and make a better town. More people move here.

    It is a very stunning thing to watch. Outside my front door is a couple hundred acre field of mostly feed corn. As we speak 270 new houses are being built. As I said we can’t built houses fast enough.

  75. 75.

    Belafon

    June 11, 2014 at 12:45 pm

    @catclub: In the Rolling Stone article written before he was abducted about Bergdahl’s group, Bergdahl, some his fellow soldiers, and the report all left and then came back later.

  76. 76.

    Anoniminous

    June 11, 2014 at 12:46 pm

    Next question: Anything I should know about cases, keyboards, etc.?

    Yes.

    Case: it should have one.

    Keyboard: that’s a good idea, too.

    :-)

    I don’t give a rat’s about cases so won’t say anything.

    Ergonomic factors for keyboards are so personal it’s impossible to give advice. How big are your hands? What is your maximum, minimum, and typical finger stretch? Do you like the rectangular typewrite style or are you into curved geometry key layout? Do you want a corded or wireless keyboard? Integrated or separate mouse? How often do you use specialized keys? Do you use the number pad? If so, how often and is it a critical factor? What about height and angle?

    The only person who can answer those questions is you.

  77. 77.

    Punchy

    June 11, 2014 at 12:47 pm

    Then McLaughlin cited the “Cooter” factor

    Women voters are so fickle.

  78. 78.

    rikyrah

    June 11, 2014 at 12:49 pm

    Republicans Block Elizabeth Warren’s Student Loan Bill That Would Have Helped 40 Million

    By: Jason Easley
    Wednesday, June, 11th, 2014, 12:14 pm

    Senate Republicans have blocked Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s student loan refinancing bill that would have helped 40 million borrowers because it would have raised taxes on millionaires.

    Warren’s student loan refinancing bill, the Bank on Students Emergency Loan Refinancing Act, failed by a vote of 58-38. (Harry Reid changed his vote to a no for procedural reasons.) Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME), Bob Corker (R-TN) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) were the only Republicans to vote for the bill.

    Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said, “In America today, millions of Americans are caught in financial quicksand, and they are looking for a helping hand to pull them to safety. Instead, the Republican leader has reaffirmed his commitment to the status quo. Why reform today, what he and his party say they’ll reform next year?”

    Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) continued to hide the real reason why he was blocking the bill, “The Senate Democrats’ bill isn’t really about students at all. It’s really all about Senate Democrats Because Senate Democrats don’t actually want a solution for students. They want an issue to campaign on — to save their own hides in November.”

    http://www.politicususa.com/2014/06/11/republicans-block-elizabeth-warrens-student-loan-bill-helped-40-million.html

  79. 79.

    Mandalay

    June 11, 2014 at 12:49 pm

    Since productivity is his litmus test, our free market economics professor doesn’t seem to realize that he is advocating an increase in the minimum wage, and a decrease for our 1 percenters:

    TODD: Should there be a minimum wage in your opinion?
    BRAT: I don’t have a well-crafted response on that one. All I know is if you take the long-run graph over 200 years of the wage rate, it cannot differ from your nation’s productivity. Right? So you can’t make up wage rates. Right?

    Cantor must be a very special kind of idiot to lose to this clown.

  80. 80.

    Belafon

    June 11, 2014 at 12:49 pm

    @Tommy: But, would your town be willing to pay more in taxes for schools in Chicago?

    We have that here in Texas. We have a number of good school districts, but people don’t want to pay for education of someone else. Dallas is trying to pass an education funding reform what would pretty much separate the wealthy parts of the city from the poorer parts.

  81. 81.

    Anoniminous

    June 11, 2014 at 12:50 pm

    @raven:

    As soon as he is released from the medics he will be debriefed by various ‘Alphabet Soup’ intelligence people. Guy is a potential Gold Mine of hard to get information.

  82. 82.

    raven

    June 11, 2014 at 12:51 pm

    @gbear: No, they will reunite in San Antonio when he comes back according to Chuck.

  83. 83.

    raven

    June 11, 2014 at 12:53 pm

    @Anoniminous: You’d give a rats ass if you drop one without a case.

  84. 84.

    dmsilev

    June 11, 2014 at 12:54 pm

    Next question: Anything I should know about cases, keyboards, etc.?

    Keyboard depends on what you want the thing for. If you think you’ll be doing a lot of writing on it, or if you just plain don’t like typing on a sheet of glass, get a keyboard (or a keyboard case). There are a whole bunch of models at a range of prices. I don’t use one on mine, so I can’t be of much more help.

    A cover or case is a good idea, to give a bit of protection etc. The Apple magnetic covers are ok, and conveniently fold up to make a little stand for the iPad if need be. Even more so than keyboards, there are an infinity of options for cases and covers out there, both functional and fashionable. Depends a lot on what you want.

  85. 85.

    Smedley Darlington Prunebanks (formerly Mumphrey, et al.)

    June 11, 2014 at 12:55 pm

    Anybody know where the gathering in Alexandria is going to be tonight? And when?

  86. 86.

    JCT

    June 11, 2014 at 12:55 pm

    re: case/keyboard – tradeoff is size/weight vs use of a keyboard.

    For the most part I use my iPad with a cheap shell to protect the back and an Apple cover. No external keyboard. Keeps it light and comfortable to carry.

    If I am going to travel without a laptop or decide that I want to do any serious writing I switch over to a Belkin QODE keyboard case. These are not cheap but the keyboard is great and it covers the front and back while remaining light.

    Logitech has some excellent folio options and keyboards as well. Just pay attention to how much of the iPad is protected with the different options, because some of the keyboards don’t work well with cases that just protect the back. Another option in that case is to use one of the thin film protectors – this is what I do with the mini that I carry on hospital rounds, film + simple keyboard.

  87. 87.

    raven

    June 11, 2014 at 12:55 pm

    @dmsilev: I can never remember to plug the damn keyboard in to charge the battery.

  88. 88.

    Belafon

    June 11, 2014 at 12:56 pm

    @Mandalay: And a large increase at that. You would think that, as an economics professor, he would have seen the divergence between productivity and wages. Though he probably only looks at one that has CEO salaries averaged in.

  89. 89.

    gbear

    June 11, 2014 at 12:56 pm

    @raven: Texas. Great.

  90. 90.

    Mike in NC

    June 11, 2014 at 12:57 pm

    @raven: I had to turn off the TV after watching Hagel getting dissed by a bunch of Southern-fried GOP chickenhawks.

    When are they and their media allies going to recommend re-invading Iraq like Rick Perry mused about?

  91. 91.

    Ash Can

    June 11, 2014 at 12:59 pm

    For me, Eric Cantor’s finest political moment was when Obama pointed at the huge stack of binders and papers Cantor had hauled to the ACA meeting as a prop and said — even before Cantor could say a word about them — “Don’t tell me, let me guess; that’s ‘all 1,287 pages’ of the ACA,” and Cantor looked like he was about to cry.

  92. 92.

    gene108

    June 11, 2014 at 1:00 pm

    @raven:

    From your link:

    Several days after he vanished, a box containing his blue spiral-bound journal, his Apple laptop, a copy of the novel “Atlas Shrugged,” military records and other items arrived at the home of his close friend Kim Harrison, whom Bergdahl designated in his Army paperwork as the person who should receive his remains.

    SNIP

    “He is the perfect example of a person who should not have gone” to war, said Harrison, who spoke on the condition that she be identified by her former married name because she is concerned about threats.

    I really hope the right-wing hate machine gets destroyed one day. They have made life insufferable for people, who have done nothing wrong other than have an association with a POW.

  93. 93.

    JPL

    June 11, 2014 at 1:02 pm

    @Mike in NC: I’m still listening.

  94. 94.

    Cervantes

    June 11, 2014 at 1:03 pm

    Have owned a number of iPads. Cases and covers, too, but rarely use them as they add too much weight. The iPads — not in cases — have been dropped, maybe 2 or 3 feet to the floor, but so far they have not faltered.

  95. 95.

    Cervantes

    June 11, 2014 at 1:03 pm

    Have owned a number of iPads. Cases and covers, too, but rarely use them as they add too much weight. The iPads — not in cases — have been dropped, maybe 2 or 3 feet to the floor, but so far they have not faltered.

  96. 96.

    JPL

    June 11, 2014 at 1:06 pm

    Cantor is stepping down as majority leader.

  97. 97.

    Steeplejack

    June 11, 2014 at 1:11 pm

    @The Moar You Know:

    I’ve been thinking off and on about rooting my Nook Simple Touch (with glow light), mostly so I can put the Kindle app on it. Can you point me to some good sources of information, or is it even worth doing?

    (I don’t have a physical Kindle but sometimes have the need to fiddle with a Kindle document. Currently doing that on my Nexus 7, but I really like the Nook for readability.)

  98. 98.

    jurassicpork

    June 11, 2014 at 1:12 pm

    Mike Flannigan in “Tea Party Like It’s 1899” or How Teabaggers Put the “Riot” in “Patriot”

  99. 99.

    The Dangerman

    June 11, 2014 at 1:13 pm

    I’ve dropped an iPad and it isn’t pretty*. Buy the Apple Care.

    *repair cost nearly as much as a new iPad. It works fine, so I had a screen protector (more correctly, a finger protector, the glass shattered bigtime) and it’s still usable. So far.

  100. 100.

    dmsilev

    June 11, 2014 at 1:14 pm

    @JPL: Let the games begin! GOP Leadership Thunderdome begins NOW!

  101. 101.

    Steeplejack

    June 11, 2014 at 1:18 pm

    @Tommy:

    I told you once, I’ll tell you again—Moto X, baby!

  102. 102.

    Elizabelle

    June 11, 2014 at 1:19 pm

    @JPL:

    Just saw that.

    Guess it’s time for his dog to run away, about now.

    ETA: And it might be the only friend Eric Cantor’s got now.

  103. 103.

    rikyrah

    June 11, 2014 at 1:20 pm

    @Belafon:

    Dallas is trying to pass an education funding reform what would pretty much separate the wealthy parts of the city from the poorer parts.

    But, people seem to be on to this scam.

  104. 104.

    Amir Khalid

    June 11, 2014 at 1:20 pm

    @JPL:
    It’s good that Eric Cantor is now fading into obscurity. When I had occasion to Google him — fortunately, only a few times — I tended to type in “Eddie Cantor” by mistake. (I saw The Eddie Cantor Story on TV once.)

  105. 105.

    mm

    June 11, 2014 at 1:23 pm

    I really like the MoKo line of tablet cases. I bought mine on Amazon. The iPad is protected on both sides and corners by the case. It has a strap on the inside cover which you can put your hand through to hold the iPad while using it. Or you can open the case and use it as a stand.

    I wish they’d put out an iPhone case. They’re available for a number of other tablets and the Kindle Fire.

  106. 106.

    Elizabelle

    June 11, 2014 at 1:23 pm

    @Amir Khalid:

    And that kid from the Munsters for Paul Ryan.

  107. 107.

    Cervantes

    June 11, 2014 at 1:25 pm

    @The Dangerman:

    Buy the Apple Care.

    Good idea always.

  108. 108.

    Anoniminous

    June 11, 2014 at 1:26 pm

    @JPL:

    whoa

    Let the gladiatorial games begin!

  109. 109.

    The Moar You Know

    June 11, 2014 at 1:30 pm

    I’ve been thinking off and on about rooting my Nook Simple Touch (with glow light), mostly so I can put the Kindle app on it. Can you point me to some good sources of information, or is it even worth doing?

    (I don’t have a physical Kindle but sometimes have the need to fiddle with a Kindle document. Currently doing that on my Nexus 7, but I really like the Nook for readability.)

    @Steeplejack: The Nook Simple touch, quite frankly, can’t handle a full Android build. Unfortunate. I like mine as well. So you’re out of luck on that front.

  110. 110.

    Bob In Portland

    June 11, 2014 at 1:30 pm

    The shelling of civilian and industrial areas of Slavyansk continues. More civilian casualities. Weighted bodies recovered from a lake. The Ukrainian air force is getting new planes from Poland (through NATO?). Apparently, the air war isn’t going well for Ukraine, with loss of jets and helicopters (one helicopter shot down took a Ukrainian general), nor is the ground war. Ukrainian headquarters moved back towards Kharkov so as not to be outflanked by rebel forces.

    Concern about the sabotage of gas lines running from Russia across Ukraine to Europe as arguments about Ukraine paying its bills comes to a head.

    Refugees seeking shelter across the Russian border and in Crimea.

    Why doesn’t American media cover any of this?

  111. 111.

    chopper

    June 11, 2014 at 1:31 pm

    @dmsilev:

    boner’s gonna step down soon. i’m betting the tea party goes all the way in the fight for the speaker’s chair.

  112. 112.

    Elizabelle

    June 11, 2014 at 1:31 pm

    @Bob In Portland:

    Um, have you noticed that there’s plenty of news this week? Including the fall of some cities in Iraq?

    Get in line.

  113. 113.

    Tommy

    June 11, 2014 at 1:31 pm

    @Steeplejack: I know you did and I didn’t forget. I am just a brand loyal guy. Or when I buy something that works, maybe not perfect, I keep buying the darn thing. Never thought I’d get there, but with that way now with Samsung via my tablet and phone.

  114. 114.

    raven

    June 11, 2014 at 1:32 pm

    (CNN) — Rep. Eric Cantor is expected to relinquish his leadership position as the No. 2 House Republican after losing his Virginia primary in a stunning upset, a senior GOP source tells CNN’s Dana Bash.

    Cantor is expected to step aside as majority leader on July 31. The decision sets up a leadership scramble among Republicans in the House, which is led by Speaker John Boehner of Ohio.

    The heavily favored Cantor lost Tuesday to college professor and political novice Dave Brat, who triumphed in the Richmond-area district with tea party support.

  115. 115.

    Pete

    June 11, 2014 at 1:34 pm

    My Logitech keyboard works great EXCEPT for protection. I have a big crack across the screen and now a little one near the side, both of which appeared while the iPad was closed onto the keyboard. It still works great, and the big one is basically not visible except at certain angles. But beware.

  116. 116.

    gbear

    June 11, 2014 at 1:35 pm

    @Bob In Portland: Why don’t you provide links for your statements so that we can all be better informed?

  117. 117.

    The Moar You Know

    June 11, 2014 at 1:36 pm

    I told you once, I’ll tell you again—Moto X, baby!

    @Steeplejack: The Motorolas, at the moment, are the best deal going out there for Android phones. If money is tight, Moto E or G. The Moto X is probably the best phone made by anybody at the moment, period.

    However, production on it shuts down at the end of this year at the latest. And all this Moto goodness can and probably will go away once the transfer of Motorola to Lenovo is all said and done. Too bad.

  118. 118.

    DeeLoralei

    June 11, 2014 at 1:36 pm

    Anyone. Know what’s going on in Dc? I’m on King Street and a Ron of emergency vehicles just tore down the road.

  119. 119.

    raven

    June 11, 2014 at 1:37 pm

    @The Dangerman: Apple Care doesn’t cover screen breakage unless it’s that ” Apple Care +”.

  120. 120.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 1:38 pm

    @DeeLoralei:

    Eric Cantor’s holed up with Boehner’s whisky stash and he’s threatened to start drinking unless his demands are met?

  121. 121.

    The Dangerman

    June 11, 2014 at 1:38 pm

    @DeeLoralei:

    Anyone. Know what’s going on in Dc? I’m on King Street…

    Cantor refusing to go quietly?

  122. 122.

    Betty Cracker

    June 11, 2014 at 1:40 pm

    @Tommy: Ever used a Samsung laptop? I have one I use for work (my clients are PC peeps, so I’ve stuck with Windows for office crap), and I have a love-hate relationship with it. Mostly hate. I’m thinking about finally making the jump to all-Apple, all the time.

  123. 123.

    Gin & Tonic

    June 11, 2014 at 1:40 pm

    @gbear: All-purpose BiP linky.

  124. 124.

    The Dangerman

    June 11, 2014 at 1:41 pm

    @raven:

    Apple Care doesn’t cover screen breakage…

    When I went to Apple Store post-oh-shit, their first question was “do you have Apple Care”?

    The real shit is I was being sooooooo careful with the tablet and one massive brain cramp ended in a drop. I coulda cried…

  125. 125.

    JPL

    June 11, 2014 at 1:41 pm

    @raven: Congress will only be in session for a few weeks.
    A lot of the deliberations on leadership will happen without the benefit of the news media, I fear.
    I want to see a fist fight.

  126. 126.

    SFAW

    June 11, 2014 at 1:46 pm

    @Amir Khalid:

    I saw The Eddie Cantor Story on TV once.

    With the immortal Keefe Brasselle!

  127. 127.

    TerryC

    June 11, 2014 at 1:46 pm

    @Cervantes: My first iPad cover was cracked by a Black Walnut falling from a tree. My second was cracked when my Cattle Dog kicked it off a car seat onto gravel. Ugh.

  128. 128.

    tesslibrarian

    June 11, 2014 at 1:47 pm

    I rarely use my ipad (it was a gift), but the main reason I’ve kept it is my Logitech keyboard. Most useful $99 I’ve spent on technology, as it makes taking notes in an archive, library, or meeting much less of a hassle than trudging in with my whole laptop. It also speeds up emailing, as well as the little stuff like entering usable names to scan files of old documents that I can make with the scanning app (on both my phone and tablet).

    Plus, the battery on the Logitech just seems to last forever. That’s one of my favorite things about it; I hate forgetting to charge all my crap.

    ETA: I also have one of those cases looks like an old leather-bound book that holds both the keyboard and the tablet. Pretty good protection, but not something one would necessarily use as a stand (though it’s possible). The ipad is just a little big for my hands, which is why I don’t use it much for just reading.

  129. 129.

    raven

    June 11, 2014 at 1:47 pm

    @TerryC: Cow dogs are so cool!

  130. 130.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 1:52 pm

    @TerryC:

    A Black Walnut? Clearly, Obama is to blame! If you had only been under a bipartisan centrist White Walnut tree…

    j/k

  131. 131.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 1:53 pm

    @Betty Cracker:

    I’d put in a pitch for Lenovo. They aren’t generally too expensive, they are reliable and they’ve got a pretty decent range of options.

  132. 132.

    jackmac

    June 11, 2014 at 1:53 pm

    Jumping in late on this, but if you’re in the market for a keyboard go with the Apple bluetooth model. Reliable and durable. I used an iPad/Apple bluetooth keyboard combo for three years in my career as a freelance writer, carting each to a variety of locales. I switched to MacBook Air this year because I needed more power and graphics capability, but if I were still just writing I could have happily stayed with ipad/keyboard combo.

  133. 133.

    raven

    June 11, 2014 at 1:54 pm

    Hagel:

    The options available to us to recover Sergeant Bergdahl were few, and far from perfect. But they often are in wartime, and especially in a complicated war like we have been fighting in Afghanistan for 13 years. Wars are messy and full of imperfect choices. I saw this firsthand during my service in Vietnam in 1968, when we sent home nearly 17,000 of our war dead in one year. And I see it today as Secretary of Defense. A few of you on this committee have experienced war and seen it up close. There is always suffering in war – not glory. War is always about human beings – not machines. War is a dirty business. And we don’t like to deal with those realities but realities they are.

  134. 134.

    Steve from Antioch

    June 11, 2014 at 1:55 pm

    Another day, another shooting: http://www.ksdk.com/story/news/crime/2014/06/10/bevo-hill-neighborhood-shooting-one-dead/10272967/

  135. 135.

    Redshift

    June 11, 2014 at 1:55 pm

    @Smedley Darlington Prunebanks (formerly Mumphrey, et al.): Elizabelle and I are finalizing details; I’ll post something shortly.

  136. 136.

    Kilgore Trout

    June 11, 2014 at 1:57 pm

    I think mine is a gen 4 (not positive) but the Logitech bluetooth keyboard/cover/stand is awesome IMO. I still have the freedom of using the iPad strictly as a tablet, but also the option of treating it like a mini-laptop. And as a stand the keyboard is much more stable than the smart covers.

    I see others have mentioned this little accessory as well, so it’s a +1 from me on that.

  137. 137.

    Calouste

    June 11, 2014 at 1:58 pm

    @raven:

    Well, Hagel explains it right there. You have to deal with realities, something the teahadis are completely incapable of.

  138. 138.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 1:59 pm

    @Calouste:

    But war looks so much prettier on screen, especially if you are chatting away to your buddies with a cup of coffee at your elbow as you fight through the mud and blood to the goblin king’s lair.

  139. 139.

    Southern Beale

    June 11, 2014 at 2:00 pm

    Heh. Brat seems to have mastered the Tea Party art of “technically true but essentially bullshit” verbal obfsucation which the Teanuts are so good at:

    One of his “About Dave” selling points: “that he tested his rural values against the intellectual elite while at Princeton.”

    But Brat never attended Princeton University, home to just the type of elites – we’re looking at you, Paul Krugman – some conservatives love to bash. “We have no record under that name,” said Princeton University spokesman Martin Mbugua.

    Alas, Brat’s full 17-page CV lays out the facts: His Master of Divinity, Brat writes, came from Princeton Theological Seminary – a well-regarded institution, but far from the hotbed of Krugman-like liberal excess some conservatives may have imagined.

    Mbugua said people occasionally “make an association between the institutions here in Princeton, an incorrect association.” The two independent institutions simply “happen to be in the same town,” Mbugua said.

    Wow.

  140. 140.

    ranchandsyrup

    June 11, 2014 at 2:01 pm

    @TerryC: this beetle case is cattle dog tested and approved. our cattle dog knocks it around constantly with no damage.

  141. 141.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 2:03 pm

    @Southern Beale:

    A lying teabagger? The world reels in amazement!

  142. 142.

    skerry

    June 11, 2014 at 2:04 pm

    Re: the local GOP in Troutdale, OR (site of yesterday’s school shooting).

    This year, the party planned to give away an AR-15 at a dinner honoring Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King — two men who were shot to death. Portland’s KATU reported that this was “the third time in less than a year that the group [had] raffled off an AR-15.” Bad publicity led Portland’s Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Cathedral to rescind its offer to host the dinner, which was subsequently held at a Portland hotel; the featured speaker was Ted Cruz’s father, the Reverend Rafael Cruz, who’s said he wants to send President Obama “back to Kenya” and compared him to Fidel Castro.

    They celebrated Lincoln and King by raffling off a rifle. Irony is dead.

    Also, I listened to a bit of the hearing with Hagel today. I learned from a some congressman with a southern accent (didn’t catch the name) that the Taliban had defeated Alexander the Great. Hmm.

  143. 143.

    Elizabelle

    June 11, 2014 at 2:05 pm

    @Redshift:

    Sent you an email.

    How lovely to have something historic to drink to. Not that we would not be drinking on a garden variety Wednesday.

  144. 144.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 2:08 pm

    @skerry:

    Well, the Congresscritter was wrong about that. Alexander actually did rather well in his military tour of parts of Afghanistan.

  145. 145.

    FlipYrWhig

    June 11, 2014 at 2:09 pm

    @Southern Beale: I have a former student who did a Div degree there. I think he and the seminary alike relished the confusion.

  146. 146.

    JPL

    June 11, 2014 at 2:09 pm

    @Southern Beale: He can cover his ass on that one since Princeton is also the name of the town. He’ll just say that he shared coffee with the elite at the local restaurant.

  147. 147.

    beltane

    June 11, 2014 at 2:09 pm

    @skerry: Those Muslims are so crafty that they were even bringing the white man to his knees 1,000 years before the birth of Mohammed.

  148. 148.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 2:11 pm

    @beltane:

    Luckily, Jesus rode in on his velociraptor and set them straight with an AK-47.

  149. 149.

    JCT

    June 11, 2014 at 2:11 pm

    @raven: You’re not the only one — one of the most highly touted “advances” of the newer keyboards is how long the batteries go between charges…

  150. 150.

    FlipYrWhig

    June 11, 2014 at 2:11 pm

    @JPL: Plus he’d get to say, “What, so you’re saying that theologians aren’t the intellectual elite?”

  151. 151.

    Steve from Antioch

    June 11, 2014 at 2:11 pm

    I tried for months to use an external keyboard with my iPad when traveling – read on the IPad on the plane and then take out the keyboard when I have work to do. Never could get used to it.

    I switched to taking a small laptop and a kindle paperwhite. Still sucks having to lug two devices (plus phone) around.

    That said,the stylus that is designed to work with Evernote is nice – really useful for taking notes with Penultimate and syncing with evernote.

  152. 152.

    beltane

    June 11, 2014 at 2:11 pm

    @Morzer: The city of Kandahar is named for Alexander the Great. I doubt you’ll ever see a city named for Bush there.

  153. 153.

    JPL

    June 11, 2014 at 2:12 pm

    @Morzer: Many of the republican representatives seemed to be confused, during the hearing about lots of things.

  154. 154.

    ? Martin

    June 11, 2014 at 2:12 pm

    @raven: I know that it does now for iPhones. I don’t know about iPads, though.

  155. 155.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 2:13 pm

    @beltane:

    You’ve obviously never heard of Fuckuperabad.

  156. 156.

    FlipYrWhig

    June 11, 2014 at 2:13 pm

    @beltane: It’s like Garfield Without Garfield. Islam Without Muhammad.

  157. 157.

    WereBear

    June 11, 2014 at 2:13 pm

    This is a timely thread, as we have decided to trade in an elderly iMac on an iPad, because they are about the same price but we can get more usefulness from the iPad.

    PowerMax.com. Ask for Michelle.

  158. 158.

    Betty Cracker

    June 11, 2014 at 2:14 pm

    @skerry: Unbe-fucking-lievable.

  159. 159.

    Gene108

    June 11, 2014 at 2:15 pm

    @catclub:

    Funny he should worry about the impact of far right-wingers on the markets.

    Wall Street types spent big bucks in 2010 to beat Democrats.

    Now the monster they created is coming for them.

  160. 160.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 2:16 pm

    @Betty Cracker:

    Would that it were!

  161. 161.

    Kristin

    June 11, 2014 at 2:18 pm

    I’d never used Cragislist before, but I needed to get rid of a couch, but I have no truck (and I live in an apartment so no curbside pickup by the city). I put the couch up as “free” because it was worth less than it would cost me to dispose of it, and, within 2 hours, had handed it off to someone who came to my place to pick it up. I got around 40 responses within 45 minutes. It’s pretty awesome for that. I don’t know if I’d buy something from there, though.

  162. 162.

    Suffern ACE

    June 11, 2014 at 2:23 pm

    @Morzer: And what is Chuck Hagel supposed to do about that? Marry a Bactrian Princess and adopt the local religion?

  163. 163.

    Julie

    June 11, 2014 at 2:23 pm

    @skerry: Especially since the RHS shooter apparently used an AR-15.

  164. 164.

    kindness

    June 11, 2014 at 2:25 pm

    Who else here saw that Markos gave a big call out to BJ’s very own John Cole wrt service in the military?

  165. 165.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 2:26 pm

    @Suffern ACE:

    It would certainly make for memorable reality TV. “Chuck Does Kandahar” might be his breakout series. Although, God help us when John McCain gets jealous and demands to be the star of the sequel.

  166. 166.

    SatanicPanic

    June 11, 2014 at 2:28 pm

    @skerry: They probably celebrating the fact that those two are dead more than anything else

  167. 167.

    SiubhanDuinne

    June 11, 2014 at 2:37 pm

    @rikyrah:

    Jeeze, I hate these people SO MUCH. Just disgusted with them.

    On the amusing side, though, the guy who beat Cantor was asked about his views on minimum wage. His reply, verbatim: “Um, I don’t have a well-crafted response on that one.”

    He has a Ph.D. in economics, so this non-answer is sad enough. But it was the “well-crafted” modifier that set off all the alarm bells for me. Way to tell a national audience that you don’t dare express views on anything until the Tea Nuts* send you your approved talking points.

    * H/T Mr. Luntz

  168. 168.

    D58826

    June 11, 2014 at 2:37 pm

    @Morzer: And Alexander was smart enough not to out stay his welcome.

    I know Sully isn’t popular around here but he had a number of links to different points of view on the Iraqi implosion. The most interesting is Juan Cole as he recounts some of the history of the region. By the time I was done reading it I really was ready to take up drinking. The neo-cons, like Max Boot, that he links to have learned nothing in the past 14 years. Sully likens them to Charlie Brown and the football.
    Why Bush and his minions thought for one second that we could just waltz in there and reverse all of that history is beyond me. I think historians will have to create a second list of presidential rankings just for Bush. There will all the rest ordered by accomplishment and then there will be W with his very own badge of failure.

  169. 169.

    Calouste

    June 11, 2014 at 2:37 pm

    @SatanicPanic:

    They probably celebrating the fact that those two are dead were assassinated more than anything else

    Fixed for accuracy.

  170. 170.

    Calouste

    June 11, 2014 at 2:41 pm

    @Julie:

    More responsible gun owners in action, considering this 15-year old kid managed to get an assault rifle out of his family’s gun safe.

  171. 171.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 2:46 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    You can now read Brat’s thesis (lots of outdated Protestant work ethic stuff) over at TPM, if you feel inclined to wade through 211 pages of derivative garbage.

    http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/david-brat-dissertation-american-university

  172. 172.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 2:47 pm

    @Calouste:

    Clearly, that gun safe needed more good men with guns to take down this juvenile delinquent.

  173. 173.

    Suffern ACE

    June 11, 2014 at 2:48 pm

    @D58826: Someday, we’ll find those “moderate elements” in Syria who we can arm to the teeth so they’ll be the biggest badasses on the block, both overthrowing Assad and defeating the other baddies. Then we’ll impose our will. Then liberal democracy will flourish.

  174. 174.

    skerry

    June 11, 2014 at 2:49 pm

    @Julie: I saw yesterday the type of weapon. I had not seen that the shooter was a 15 yr old freshman. Tragic. The report said he got the weapon from home. His parents should be held accountable. Criminal negligence, at least. As a minor, he should not have had access to the weapon.

    The boy killed was a 14 yr old freshman. The teacher was wounded, but not seriously. Sad.

  175. 175.

    SatanicPanic

    June 11, 2014 at 2:49 pm

    @Calouste: Gun safe rhymes with unsafe.

  176. 176.

    D58826

    June 11, 2014 at 2:53 pm

    @Suffern ACE: And they will ride into battle to save the west on pink unicorns

  177. 177.

    Kristin

    June 11, 2014 at 2:54 pm

    @rikyrah:

    For the record, tenure means a teacher cannot be terminated without the administrator giving a reason (cause).

    This really downplays the amount of protections teachers in California have. And, in doing so, he fails to provide an analysis of the judge’s reasoning with regard to the tenure dismissal statutes. His anger at billionaires setting educational policy is justified, but it would be a better piece if he explained that critical part of the ruling. He could probably make pretty good arguments against that part of the ruling, in fact.

  178. 178.

    Belafon

    June 11, 2014 at 2:57 pm

    @skerry: One of the things I remember from my childhood is that you can’t keep anything in the house a secret. Kids will find out eventually.

    The strange thing is, I have a shotgun. I don’t keep it in a safe, it’s under my bed. The shells are not with the gun, so you have to find those separately. But I do not have to worry about my kids grabbing it. And I think the biggest reason is that I don’t talk about how my gun will solve any problems or save the world.

    Similarly, I have alcohol sitting both in a cabinet that is not locked, and in the fridge. My kids don’t get into it either. And I think that’s because we just don’t make a big deal about it. I rarely pull it out, and I rarely have more than one drink when I do pull it out.

  179. 179.

    gene108

    June 11, 2014 at 2:58 pm

    Why we are doomed:

    WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Republicans on Wednesday blocked legislation aimed at letting people refinance their student loans at lower rates, a pre-ordained outcome that gave Democrats a fresh election-year talking point against the GOP.

    The 56-38 vote fell short of the 60 that would have been needed to advance to debate on the measure by Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass. Her bill would have let millions of borrowers, some with years-old debt and interest rates topping 7 percent or more, refinance at today’s lower rates.

    SNIP

    Republicans said the bill wouldn’t have done anything to lower education costs or reduce borrowing, and they accused Democrats of playing politics by highlighting an issue that was bound to fail.

    http://finance.yahoo.com/news/senate-republicans-block-student-loan-142945982.html

    The media now accepts that 60 is a simple majority of 100 and not 51. The knuckledraggers in Mississippi, Alabama, etc. have no problem with the Republicans, who represent them.

    The amount of legislation that was never allowed a floor vote in the Senate, despite majority support, is at a record high but the attitude of the media is a boys-will-be-boys one towards Republican obstructionism.

  180. 180.

    Ken

    June 11, 2014 at 2:59 pm

    buy applecare
    then if you want to sell it do so with between 3 and 6 months of applecare still on it.
    you will get better price by far and since with apple the warrenty goes with the machine the buyer would have that time to address any potential issues with apple.
    it would be a win win for everybody and if you sell it to a friend or relative less chance of alienation if an unforeseen problem arises just after the sale is finalized.

  181. 181.

    srv

    June 11, 2014 at 3:01 pm

    @Morzer: Somebody please run a plagiarism app on that.

  182. 182.

    gene108

    June 11, 2014 at 3:03 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    On the amusing side, though, the guy who beat Cantor was asked about his views on minimum wage. His reply, verbatim: “Um, I don’t have a well-crafted response on that one.”

    He probably wants to abolish it, but that is not a popular view so he is waiting for a clever way to talk about the theoretical impact of the minimum wage that is not seen in reality, with regards to solving unemployment and poverty.

  183. 183.

    Steve from Antioch

    June 11, 2014 at 3:04 pm

    @Belafon:
    You might want to get one of these if you are storing your gun outside of a safe in a house where there are children: http://www.projectchildsafe.org/safety/get-a-safety-kit

    Even if your own kids are completely responsible – they probably have friends who visit your house who are not.

  184. 184.

    SiubhanDuinne

    June 11, 2014 at 3:08 pm

    @Morzer:

    Oh, gosh … Thanks anyway.

  185. 185.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 3:09 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    I know – it’s the special friendship gift you always dreamed of, right?

  186. 186.

    raven

    June 11, 2014 at 3:10 pm

    Trammell’s website has changed again!

  187. 187.

    WereBear

    June 11, 2014 at 3:11 pm

    @gene108: This so utterly infuriated me! And I speak as someone with college debt; but also a job.

    And a husband; which at this point is all I got out of the deal. I got my job on my previous expertise. I show the husband how much he cost me.

  188. 188.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 3:11 pm

    @raven:

    He’s gone unTrammelled! That faculty Brat better be afraid, very afraid!

  189. 189.

    raven

    June 11, 2014 at 3:13 pm

    @Belafon: What’s the point of an unloaded shotgun under the bed? If you don’t have it for protection isn’t there somewhere better to keep it?

  190. 190.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 3:14 pm

    @raven:

    It’s the gun-fapper’s equivalent of the alcoholic’s bottle of whisky on the night-stand.

  191. 191.

    Redshift

    June 11, 2014 at 3:15 pm

    Alexandria Ballon Juice Meetup! 7pm Tonight!

    We will be at Murphy’s Grand Irish Pub, 713 King Street, near the corner of Columbus Street.
    http://murphyspub.com/murphys/alexandria/

    There is a free shuttle from the King Street Metro, the Old Town Trolley. It only runs until 10:15 on weeknights, but we’ll have enough locals with cars to get people back to the Metro.

    Murphy’s has great food in addition to drinks.

    We have a table reserved upstairs under the name “Balloon Juice.” I’ll be there by 7, and I’ll try to pick up a green balloon, but our spot shouldn’t be hard to find.

    Hope to see everyone there! (Well, everyone local who’s expressed interest, at least.)

  192. 192.

    skerry

    June 11, 2014 at 3:15 pm

    @Belafon: You are not a responsible gun owner. You are part of the problem. You should be held criminally liable if your gun is used to harm persons or property. Your gun should be locked. The ammunition should be locked away. Think your kids don’t know where to find it? Think again.

    My husband’s shotguns and rifles were ALWAYS in a locked safe when he wasn’t hunting. His handgun ALWAYS had a safety lock and was never loaded when stored. All ammunition was ALWAYS in a different lockbox in a different location in the house. ALWAYS. My children did not have the keys or the combination to either safe. They learned to shoot at a range. None of them were/are interested in hunting. They do go to the range occasionally with him. My oldest is a remarkably good shot. Better than her father who was on the USAF shooting team.

    As to the alcohol, you’re being foolish there too if you think your kids won’t access it (especially when they are teenagers). It’s harder to kill someone with a beer than with a shotgun though.

  193. 193.

    Calouste

    June 11, 2014 at 3:16 pm

    @srv:

    I’m sure Rove is already looking into that.

    I wouldn’t be surprised if Brat is going to get an offer he can’t refuse from the GOP powers that be, and that Cantor will come back in via a party conference. Of course, it’s not going to be plagiarism they’re going to get him on, that’s not a crime in GOP circles.

  194. 194.

    Bob In Portland

    June 11, 2014 at 3:17 pm

    @Elizabelle: The ISIS forces are the Sunni zealots that the US and House of Saud have been backing to overthrow Assad in Syria. They now seem to have spilled into Iraq and are speeding up its dissolution. Peter Galbraith was talking about this back in 2006.

    Dividing and conquering still works. We’ve seen it in the former Yugoslavia where the country was divided into festering ethnic enclaves at the mercy of western corporate interests. It’s happening in Iraq (where it has the added bonus of blocking the planned Shia Iranian-Iraqi-Syrian pipeline). And it’s happening in Ukraine. Shelling civilians in a region which already does not trust the Kiev government is not going to bring about peace and unity.

    What do you think is the ultimate strategy for the US in Ukraine? What does the US gain? The spread of democracy?

  195. 195.

    CONGRATULATIONS!

    June 11, 2014 at 3:18 pm

    Gun safe rhymes with unsafe.

    @SatanicPanic: Depends on the safe. I cringe when I walk into a Big 5 or most gun stores here in SoCal and see the locking file cabinets that somehow got certification as safes. You could literally open them with a can opener if you didn’t have a screwdriver handy.

    Mine weighs about 900 pounds and took a team of folks to install (bolt into the floor). The only way you’re getting into it is if you have explosives, or the combination.

    Sadly, I will bet any amount of money anyone cares to name that the kid had the combo for his parent’s safe. And yes, they should be held liable.

  196. 196.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 3:18 pm

    @Calouste:

    Cantor will vanish into the sunset of a lobbyist’s gig worth millions to him and his family. I doubt that the powers-that-be are going to make any effort to save him from it.

  197. 197.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 3:18 pm

    People, please don’t encourage Bibble in Pooterland to disseminate yet more conspiracy theories about undead zombie Nazi armies led by the CIA.

  198. 198.

    Elizabelle

    June 11, 2014 at 3:20 pm

    Andy Borowitz has their number:

    G.O.P. Proposes End to Social Security, Return to Child Labor, Gun Rights for Pets

    WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report) — The morning after Tuesday’s stunning Tea Party victory in Virginia, House Republicans unveiled a sweeping new legislative agenda.

  199. 199.

    Ash Can

    June 11, 2014 at 3:24 pm

    And in other news, there’s a good story up at LGF right now about Brat’s campaign manager scrubbing his Facebook page of all his misogynistic rants, racist links, etc.

  200. 200.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 3:26 pm

    @Elizabelle:

    http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/borowitzreport/2014/06/morning-after-tea-party-win-house-gop-proposes-end-to-social-security-return-to-child-labor.html?utm_source=tny&utm_campaign=generalsocial&utm_medium=twitter&mbid=social_twitter

    As for what is perhaps the most controversial G.O.P. proposal, guaranteeing gun rights for pets, Boehner said, “It’s clear that the authors of the Second Amendment meant it to apply to all mammals. All our new law says is, if you have four legs and a tail, you get a gun.”

    As if cats didn’t already have a big enough advantage over your average hairless tree ape.

  201. 201.

    Southern Beale

    June 11, 2014 at 3:29 pm

    @JPL:

    My husband is from a tiny town in Kentucky called Princeton — just a little bit east of Hopkinsville. I’m sure he is relishing all of the adjustments he can now make to his resume.

    LOL

    This is a good, simple explanation for why Cantor lost: he just failed to campaign. I think we’ve seen this with the establishment Republicans in general. They’ve forgotten how to campaign. Oh they can bring in the money like a sonofabitch, and they turn that money over to PR firms and ad agencies, and think they’ve done their part. They forgot how to GOTV and do the hard stuff, the hands-on stuff.

  202. 202.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 3:30 pm

    @Southern Beale:

    Eric Cantor – all steakhouse and no sizzle.

  203. 203.

    SiubhanDuinne

    June 11, 2014 at 3:31 pm

    @Morzer:

    If only I weren’t so busy alphabetizing my spices, color-coding my socks, walking the goldfish ….

  204. 204.

    SatanicPanic

    June 11, 2014 at 3:32 pm

    @CONGRATULATIONS!: Sure, I was just kind of thinking aloud with that comment. But yeah, I’d bet he knew the combo. Parents probably thought- “well, what if a HOME INVADER tries to break in while our child is home alone, how will he defend himself”

  205. 205.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 3:33 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    Many reasonable people color-code their socks, but the alphabetized spices thing is a little worrying.

  206. 206.

    Bob In Portland

    June 11, 2014 at 3:33 pm

    @gbear: Why don’t you try to find the information?

    The game that was played by the Nazi apologists here at Balloon Juice was to essentially regurgitate State Department memes and say I was a lackey for Putin. If I offer any link which is not surrounded by red, white and blue borders I’m just a comsymp.

    While my Mac was in the shop I was having problems doing links with my iPad, but really, what does it matter? If you are interested you’ll look it up. Try Google for starters. If you’re not interested, you will notice in a month or a year or a decade from now what has been happening on your dime by your government. You may not have gotten a whiff of the smell with Vietnam, or the murderous death squads in Latin America. There may not have been much coverage of the 1965 coup in Indonesia and the bloodbath that was that gave the west those oilfields, but to notice that you’d have to believe that the US was essentially doing what the Japanese did in WWII. And you may have gone along with the WMD story in Iraq for awhile, the Assad-is-a-bad-man okeydoke in Syria because our government says it’s all his fault what the rebels there are doing, and soon we will have a failure in the negotiations with Iran because their oil and gas will compete with US-controlled petrol resources.

    Can you see any similarities with what is happening in Ukraine?

  207. 207.

    Ash Can

    June 11, 2014 at 3:34 pm

    @Southern Beale: I love how his campaign’s own pollster had him up by over 30 points going into the election.

  208. 208.

    raven

    June 11, 2014 at 3:35 pm

    @skerry: USAF shooting team! dang!

  209. 209.

    Belafon

    June 11, 2014 at 3:37 pm

    @Southern Beale: That’s what got Scott Brown elected in MA: His opponent failed to campaign, partially because she didn’t know how but also because it was assumed that kennedy’s seat would automatically go for a Democrat.

  210. 210.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 3:37 pm

    @Bob In Portland:

    If you are interested you’ll look it up.

    Apparently this is the new “BiP was bull-shitting and now he’s running away with his ass on fire to complain to his “Uncle” Vladimir”.

  211. 211.

    Smedley Darlington Prunebanks (formerly Mumphrey, et al.)

    June 11, 2014 at 3:38 pm

    @Redshift:

    Hey, you misspelled Mumphrey. Mumphrey’s Irish Pub. Even though Mumphrey isn’t an Irish name.

  212. 212.

    raven

    June 11, 2014 at 3:40 pm

    @skerry: Check out the USAF Security Police. They sent them way the hell up with us on the DMZ to qualify!

  213. 213.

    Ash Can

    June 11, 2014 at 3:40 pm

    @gbear: The FSB probably doesn’t want its shills to provide links. It would shoot all the plausible deniability straight to hell.

  214. 214.

    Belafon

    June 11, 2014 at 3:41 pm

    @Calouste: He’s a believer. He would never go for that. I expect him to talk about how God helped him win this.

  215. 215.

    Gin & Tonic

    June 11, 2014 at 3:41 pm

    @Morzer: You should take your own advice.

  216. 216.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 3:41 pm

    If anyone would like a look at the Fresh Prince of Macon’s “thinking”, he apparently published an article arguing that the rise of Hitler could happen again:

    http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/david-brat-hitler-rise

    Capitalism is here to stay, and we need a church model that corresponds to that reality. Read Nietzsche. Nietzsche’s diagnosis of the weak modern Christian democratic man was spot on. Jesus was a great man. Jesus said he was the Son of God. Jesus made things happen. Jesus had faith. Jesus actually made people better. Then came the Christians. What happened? What went wrong? We appear to be a bit passive. Hitler came along, and he did not meet with unified resistance. I have the sinking feeling that it could all happen again, quite easily. The church should rise up higher than Nietzsche could see and prove him wrong. We should love our neighbor so much that we actually believe in right and wrong, and do something about it. If we all did the right thing and had the guts to spread the word, we would not need the government to backstop every action we take.

  217. 217.

    Chyron HR

    June 11, 2014 at 3:42 pm

    @Bob In Portland:

    The Ukrainian air force is getting new planes from Poland (through NATO?).

    Bear in mind that on Planet Portland, NATO is viewed as an international evil second only to SPECTRE.

  218. 218.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 3:43 pm

    @Gin & Tonic:

    I know, I know. I am a weak and flawed and imperfect human being. I couldn’t resist poking the critter just one more time. I’ll go away and read the Collected Works of David Brat Child Theologian as a punishment.

  219. 219.

    Redshift

    June 11, 2014 at 3:43 pm

    @Smedley Darlington Prunebanks (formerly Mumphrey, et al.): I’m sure if you take it up with them, they’ll be happy to repaint the sign.

  220. 220.

    Redshift

    June 11, 2014 at 3:44 pm

    @Belafon: He already did, in his victory speech.

  221. 221.

    CONGRATULATIONS!

    June 11, 2014 at 3:44 pm

    Apparently this is the new “BiP was bull-shitting and now he’s running away with his ass on fire to complain to his “Uncle” Vladimir”.

    @Morzer: What I find most offensive about his posts is that he thinks we’re a bunch of imbeciles who don’t know anything about what’s going on in the world – or what our country’s been up to for the last fifty years.

    We know. If we aren’t talking about it that simply means we don’t give a shit. For God’s sakes, this is an Android vs. Apple thread. You’re not going to pry people off that topic even if nukes are raining down the entire Eastern seaboard.

  222. 222.

    raven

    June 11, 2014 at 3:45 pm

    (CNN) — Sheriff’s deputies delivered the fatal wound that killed a man who, along with a woman, gunned down two police officers and a civilian in Las Vegas on Sunday, a sheriff’s department official said Wednesday.

    Authorities had earlier said the woman shot and killed her partner before taking her own life. But Assistant Sheriff Kevin McMahill told reporters Wednesday that a review of forensic evidence at the scene and autopsy results showed that the male gunman was fatally wounded by police.

  223. 223.

    Suffern ACE

    June 11, 2014 at 3:45 pm

    @Ash Can:

    The Reed piece called for the end of women teachers in co-ed or boys’ schools. “It is time to get women out of the schooling of boys,” wrote Fred Reed. “It is way past time. Women in our feminized classrooms are consigning generations of our sons to years of misery and diminished future.” The piece further argued that “women should not be allowed within fifty feet of a school where boys are taught” and that “Women are totalitarian. Men are happy to let boys be boys and girls be girls. Women want all children to be girls.”

  224. 224.

    Redshift

    June 11, 2014 at 3:45 pm

    @Ash Can: He hired the pollster who told George Allen he was going to win his Senate race. If you go with the pollster who tells people what they want to hear, you get what you pay for.

  225. 225.

    raven

    June 11, 2014 at 3:46 pm

    @CONGRATULATIONS!: It’s an open thread.

  226. 226.

    Julie

    June 11, 2014 at 3:46 pm

    @skerry: To be fair, it does say in the article that the guns were locked (no detail yet on whether it was a safe or what), but that the kid broke in and took them.

  227. 227.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 3:47 pm

    @CONGRATULATIONS!:

    Alas, you are right. This thread is indeed the Democratic Technological Plantation manifest on earth and the FEMA vans are coming to take back-sliders away to the re-education camps as we speak.

  228. 228.

    Bob In Portland

    June 11, 2014 at 3:48 pm

    @Morzer: You’re not interested, Morzer. You are what they used to call “conformists” in fascist Italy.

    Do you even believe that there is a war going on in Ukraine? Do you even wonder why it’s fallen off the map again? Of course not.

    Look over there, Morzer, another school shooting to “tsk tsk”. Oh, those crazy Republicans!

    Elvis Costello noticed it thirty years ago.

    I would send out for assistance but there’s someone on the signal wire
    And the corporation logo is flashing on and off in the sky
    They’re putting all your names in the forbidden book
    I know what they’re doing but I don’t want to look
    You think they’re so dumb, you think they’re so funny
    Wait until they’ve got you running to the
    Night rally, night rally, night rally

    Everybody’s singing with their hand on their heart
    About deeds done in the darkest hours
    That’s just the sort of catchy little melody
    To get you singing in the showers

    Oh, I know that I’m ungrateful
    I’ve got it lying on a plate
    And I’m not buying my share of souvenirs
    You can stand to attention
    You can pray to your uncle
    Only get that chicken out of here
    Everyone gets armbands and 3-D glasses
    Some are in the back room
    And they’re taking those night classes

    You think they’re so dumb, you think they’re so funny
    Wait until they’ve got you running to the
    Night rally, night rally, night rally

    Gee, and is that the NSA on the signal wire?

  229. 229.

    skerry

    June 11, 2014 at 3:48 pm

    @raven: He was more impressed when I worked with a guy who was on the AF golf team.

  230. 230.

    JPL

    June 11, 2014 at 3:49 pm

    @Morzer: Wow! I can feel the love now. If you don’t behave, I’ll have to stand my ground.

  231. 231.

    raven

    June 11, 2014 at 3:49 pm

    Open Thread — And Tech Question (Updated)

  232. 232.

    jenn

    June 11, 2014 at 3:50 pm

    Re Cantor, what I’d like to know (well, not enough to employ the google, but evidently enough to comment about it!) is whether Cantor’s internal polling was really that far off, or was it a case of getting the likely voter portion badly wrong. I mean, I can imagine a scenario where polling showed Cantor with a fairly big lead, but the majority of voters felt it was so far in the bag, that they didn’t need to show up – leaving the motivated anti-Cantor voters there to kick him to the curb.

  233. 233.

    raven

    June 11, 2014 at 3:50 pm

    @skerry: :)

  234. 234.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 3:51 pm

    @Bob In Portland:

    You’re not interested, Morzer. You are what they used to call “conformists” in fascist Italy.

    Both of me are interested in your views and would like to subscribe to your newsletter. Kindly also add “cat-lover” to your searing indictment. I’d hate to lose credit for my various thought-crimes.

  235. 235.

    Mandalay

    June 11, 2014 at 3:51 pm

    @raven:

    Dave Brat, who triumphed in the Richmond-area district with tea party support

    CNN are on pretty thin ice with that claim. He did not get any financial backing from any national Tea Party organization, and he last month didn’t show up to the meeting where he was supposed to kiss Grover’s ring. AFAIK Brat owes nobody nothing.

    Brat isn’t the only candidate who didn’t get Tea Party backing. WaPo did an interesting article on how cash rich Tea Party PACs don’t seem to be funding candidates very much at all. Sarah Palin showed them that model.

  236. 236.

    Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name)

    June 11, 2014 at 3:52 pm

    @Morzer: Stop poking the LaRouchie with a stick.

  237. 237.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 3:53 pm

    @jenn:

    The pollster that gave him the 34 point advantage is generally agreed to be one of the worst in the business – and Cantor spent more on steakhouses than he did on polling.

  238. 238.

    Mnemosyne

    June 11, 2014 at 3:53 pm

    @Bob In Portland:

    If I offer any link which is not surrounded by red, white and blue borders I’m just a comsymp.

    We’d settle for a link to a news source other than Russia Today. Why not try Agence France-Presse (AFP)? Or have you already decided that they’re part of the conspiracy?

  239. 239.

    jenn

    June 11, 2014 at 3:54 pm

    @Morzer: Oofda. Wondering if that guy’s ever going to get hired again!

  240. 240.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 3:55 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name):

    But it’s a very nice stick and I just had it sharpened….

    Joking aside, I pity the fool and I’m done with him.

  241. 241.

    skerry

    June 11, 2014 at 3:56 pm

    @Julie: Broke in or opened it? You’d need explosives to break into ours. Bolted into the basement floor. My kids never had the combination as teenagers. Only the oldest does now, but she is 27. The teenager does not.

  242. 242.

    Bob In Portland

    June 11, 2014 at 3:56 pm

    @CONGRATULATIONS!: It’s an open thread.

    But you are right, CONGRATS. You don’t care. We have no arguments here. Your moral universe doesn’t include the death and destruction done under the cover of lies by our government. I was sensitized during the Vietnam War.

    And maybe that’s the best way to deal with something you can’t change. These things happen no matter who you elect. So just don’t look too closely and be quick to make a joke about it when it becomes painfully apparent.

    I’m just saying that there is a difference between not seeing and ignoring. If you see and are just ignoring what is happening in your name, just say so. Some people here make excuses for the Nazis we put into power around the world, for the religious zealots we give arms to. Maybe you are successful in compartmentalizing it. But an acknowledgment is better than the other games played here. Thank you. Now get back to those Androids!

  243. 243.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 3:58 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name):

    He’s got a stick? Damn, that’s more advanced technology than I thought him capable of mastering!

  244. 244.

    skerry

    June 11, 2014 at 3:58 pm

    @raven: Cool pics!

  245. 245.

    Bob In Portland

    June 11, 2014 at 3:58 pm

    @Mnemosyne: Don’t read Russia Today, even if it’s the only news source available about the continuing war. Because if you do you may become a comsymp.

    You’re safe, Mnem. A closed mind is a safe mind.

  246. 246.

    Belafon

    June 11, 2014 at 3:58 pm

    @raven:
    @skerry:
    I should not have implied that the gun is not locked up. The case it’s in is locked, and the shotgun has a trigger lock on it. I was trying to convey that my kids don’t have any interest in it because we just don’t bring up guns. They’re not even interested in shooting a gun. My middle son and I went to an outdoor sporting event because it was associated with one of this classes, and about the only guns he was interest in were the muzzle loaders.

  247. 247.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 3:59 pm

    @jenn:

    Hey, conservatives have to get their unskewed polls from somewhere…

  248. 248.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 4:00 pm

    @Mnemosyne:

    Congratulations. You’ve just become eligible for the BiP Nazi Alphabet Soup t-shirt.

  249. 249.

    Bob In Portland

    June 11, 2014 at 4:07 pm

    @Chyron HR: Stay Behind.

    Operation Gladio. Propaganda Due. Strategy of Tension.

    Or not. Your choice, Chyron.

  250. 250.

    Bob In Portland

    June 11, 2014 at 4:11 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name): That’s the beauty of being a boogeyman. I can be all scary things to all people. The process of scapegoating has a long and cherished history.

    But please, stay uninformed. Keep your head down. Someone will let you know when it’s safe to look. They’ll even tell you what you see.

  251. 251.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 4:11 pm

    @Bob In Portland:

    Are they available on Steam yet?

  252. 252.

    Steeplejack

    June 11, 2014 at 4:11 pm

    @The Moar You Know:

    I got my Moto X in January (after four years with a Droid Incredible) and love it. Small form factor, very fast, cool bamboo back, and it’s a veritable camel on battery usage. I routinely go two days between charges. Lots of “regular” usage, but I don’t do much streaming (movies, music, etc.).

    I know Moto is going away, but, barring some mishap, I look forward to a good four years or so with this phone, too.

  253. 253.

    karen

    June 11, 2014 at 4:14 pm

    @pharniel:

    I got a refurb and you get to buy that same three year warranty so you get all the perks of a new one for less money.

    Are we still doing the meetup on Thursday?

  254. 254.

    Calouste

    June 11, 2014 at 4:15 pm

    @Belafon:

    An “offer you can’t refuse” consists of both a carrot and a stick.

  255. 255.

    Morzer

    June 11, 2014 at 4:16 pm

    @Calouste:

    Or something large, furry and very angry attached by its teeth to your testicles.

  256. 256.

    Julie

    June 11, 2014 at 4:21 pm

    @skerry: The police were very careful about how they worded it, so there’s some room for speculation at this point. I think we’ll see more details in the days to come:

    He used an AR-15 type of rifle, owned by his family, that he obtained after removing it from its secured storage place, said Troutdale Chief Scott Anderson.

  257. 257.

    Adam Lang

    June 11, 2014 at 4:21 pm

    I agree that your best bet is a refurb.

    If you happen to have a Discover card, use shopdiscover.com and you can get an additional 5% off of the refurb by buying it through them. In addition you get an additional year added to your warrantee, whether you buy AppleCare or not. (Buying with an AmEx will also do this. If you buy with a Visa or MasterCard you will get 1 extra year of warranty only if you don’t buy AppleCare).

  258. 258.

    Steeplejack

    June 11, 2014 at 4:22 pm

    @kindness:

    Link, please?

  259. 259.

    Belafon

    June 11, 2014 at 4:29 pm

    @Steeplejack: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/06/11/1305937/-From-one-vet-to-another-preach-it-brother

  260. 260.

    Steeplejack

    June 11, 2014 at 4:40 pm

    @Belafon:

    Thanks.

  261. 261.

    J R in WV

    June 11, 2014 at 9:33 pm

    @Kristin:

    I’ve sold a couple of VWs on Craigslist, they came and looked at it, drove it around a couple of miles, took it away.

    Never heard back… must have been relatively satisfied. The most recent was a 1998 VW Jetta TDI… worked out for all of us.

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