What do you all want to talk about? I’m currently in a lazy mid summer lag where I kinda don’t want to do anything during the day but nap, sip iced tea, pet the critters, and sit on the porch, provided it doesn’t get too hot.
Summers are just so boring politically. It just always feels like there is nothing going on but faux scandals and race-baiting. Normally, the Republicans whip up the anti-black sentiment during the summer, but now that the ACA/Obamacare is turning out to be quite successful, it looks like they have decided to move on to something newish and are hating Hispanics this year. Which is awesome, because it’s an election year.
Might watch some comedy standup specials on Netflix after the Pirates game, but I need some new ideas.
Gin & Tonic
You need a cocktail, not iced tea.
MaximusNYC
John, try watching Orphan Black. You won’t regret it.
raven
The Hendrix documentary on Netflix is pretty good. They gloss over his drug and alcohol issues but there’s some great footage.
John (MCCARTHY) Cole
@MaximusNYC: I do. Tatiana Maslany got totally fucked by the Emmy’s again this year.
lamh36
did you catch the last “season” of Luther? It was also nominated for Emmy. I think it’s in Netflix. Sherlock too was nominated, also on Netflix. I think
lamh36
Yeah baby. I got a letter in the mail a couple of weeks ago saying I may owe Louisiana taxes from year 2012. But hol’ up, I didn’t move back to Louisiana until January 2013! So I went into the Louisiana Department of Revenue office in Baton Rouge today, to dispute it. I had all my documents ready that she asked for and I walked away today with a letter saying that the amount of the supposed taxes owed had been cancelled!!!!
schrodinger's cat
I too am bored with politics so I tried my hand at fashion blogging instead.
BTW is Bobo going through some personal crisis, his op-eds have been pretty weird off late.
raven
@lamh36: My wife just can’t hack the bloodshed. Idris is great but goddamn, no wonder they call them the bloody british.
pentatonix
Why would anyone ever doubt that ACA would be successful. Unless of course you believe GOP propaganda. People here are smarter than that no?
Waspuppet
Is there such a thing as Reverse Seasonal Affective Disorder? Cause I have it. Not only do I not like the heat, but the thought of going out in it just makes me want to cry. And it takes me about an hour to screw up the courage to do so.
When I got my book contract, I thought in the back of my mind that a Sept. 1 deadline carried that sort of problem with it. Now it’s crunch time, and the fact that I’m pissing away days being depressed about the weather just makes me more depressed.
Mnemosyne
@schrodinger’s cat:
Isn’t he in the middle of a divorce? I’m too lazy to actually look it up.
lamh36
@raven: oh yeah some of the episodes that last season were scary as hell. one particular episode had me checking under my bed for a while damn week!
I remember reading articles about how viewers watched it in large numbers and a lot of them said they were “terrified” just watching it. as a woman alone I understood and yet I watched every minute of it!
RSR
How’s the garden? We got a late start and only have some tomatoes planted (Philly).
burnspbesq
World Championships in lacrosse are all over ESPN. There’s a weather delay, so England vs. Iroquois is going to start around 11:30 p.m. Eastern time.
schrodinger's cat
@Mnemosyne: That would explain a lot.
lamh36
Ok, this is longish comment, but please bear with me.
So on Monday I found out that I was no longer being considered for the CDC job I wanted.
Well on Wednesday, I went over my yearly review with my new Supervisor (I’ve only been working here since Feb but you still get an evaluation…go figure???). My review was really good just barely shy of exceptional (they claim that u can get a high exceptional rating but somehow they always find a way for u to fall short).
When it came time for him to give me his ideas for personal goals, he says that he basically could see me in a leadership role. That from what he has observed of my interactions with staff, coworkers & patients and also my personal behavior that he sees me as being someone who was either born to lead or who could definitely learn to lead! He essentially said he doesn’t plan to be in a managerial position forever, that he not planning to leave right now, but he could definitely see himself retiring or getting out of the lab entirely in the foreseeable future and he’d like to do so knowing someone could take his maybe take his place. He said that he can see me with a leadership role in the future! He said he see the qualities in me that would make me a good prospect for a leadership role. The only thing I’m lacking is maybe more senior input and more time with the organization and seeing more of the supervisory side of the lab!
He asked me if I was interested in maybe someday pursing a more leadership position. He remembered me saying that I was wasn’t necessarily looking to be in that role. He remembered me saying that I’d prefer to stay more in the trenches. I told him that my views on it has changed and I’ve realized that it was a reasonable transition from what I am currently doing, which is basically a holding pattern. The only real move for me to make are lateral moves and since I’ve got a lot more years in me I figured maybe it was time for me to think of ascending to a higher position.
I told him that actually I had been thinking about that exact thing. In fact, I applied and was accepted into the Health Care Management, MBA program at UNO. And in fact I was soon gonna be coming to him to discuss a possible modification of my schedule so that I could attend at least one evening class (or two) during the semester.
He said he was glad to hear that I was also thinking of it and he’d be happy to work with me in regards to scheduling for the classes and if I would like, he’s gonna start to try to introduce me to more of the Lead Technologist roles that would later lead to a more substantive understanding of some of the things that a supervisor leader would and should know. With more experience like that coupled with my getting that HCM degree, he could def see me in a leadership role at the organization in the future!!!
Karen in GA
I haven’t told Iggy about his possible heartworm diagnosis, so he’s more concerned with his new gold bling.
lamh36
@raven: I know is on Netflix, but I’m thinking I’m gonna buy all 3. seasons of it. Along with Sherlock so I can rewatch them
Karen in GA
@lamh36: So when one seemingly decent door closes, another OMG TOTALLY FREAKIN’ PHENOMENAL ONE opens! Congrats on the new path!
Suffern ACE
Hazing. I have to remember that it’s just hazing the new arrivals. I mean they can’t possibly think putting land mines on the border is going to be helpful?
burnspbesq
RIP, Charlie Haden. One of the great jazz artists of our time.
MattR
@burnspbesq: And now there is overtime in the Australia-Japan game which will push back the start time of the Iriquois-England game. Very interesting that it is not sudden victory.
schrodinger's cat
@lamh36: Congratulations!
Corner Stone
@lamh36: I hope this is just how you informally talk on a random blog.
Corner Stone
@Suffern ACE:
…it’s not?
Origuy
One of the sources of my nym is origami, but the other is orienteering. This is the sport of navigation–almost unknown in the US but very popular in parts of Europe.
The World Orienteering Championships are going on in northern Italy. Saturday was a sprint event (lots of short legs with quick decision making) through the center of Venice. Monday was a sprint relay (two men and two women on each team) in the town of Trento. Wednesday was a Long event (16km for the men and 11km for the women) in Lavarone. Today was the Middle distance (5.86km for the men and 4.96km for the women) in Campomulo. The WOC ends with a forest relay in Campomulo, this time with men and women on separate teams.
As you might expect, the US isn’t a powerhouse. Canada usually does a little better and the US and Canadian teams compete against each other. In the Sprint, the only North American in the finals was Samantha Saeger of the US in 32nd. In the Sprint Relay, Canada finished in 26th and the USA missed a checkpoint. In the Long distance, the best women were Emily Kemp of Canada and Alison Crocker of USA 25th and 26th. In today’s middle, American Eric Bone was 61st and Canadian Robbie Anderson was 64th.
Those distances, by the way, are straight lines from one checkpoint to the next. Each competitor chooses their own routes, so they’ll have gone a lot longer.
Gin & Tonic
@burnspbesq: That’s sad to hear.
Mnemosyne
@lamh36:
That’s awesome! It sounds like he’s really interested in mentoring you, so you should definitely grab that opportunity with both hands.
KG
@Gin & Tonic: all my iced teas come from Long Island
Gin & Tonic
@Origuy: When I was a little younger and in better shape I’d run recreationally from time to time in NEOC events. I think Samantha Saeger grew up in NEOC.
Origuy
@Gin & Tonic: You remember well. She lives in Sweden now.
Corner Stone
Abusive Surveillance Is an LGBTQ Rights Issue
“A half-century later, this history has not been lost on the nation’s leading LGBTQ equality organizations, which yesterday joined allies in the civil liberties and human rights community in sending a letter to President Barack Obama, raising serious concerns over revelations that the FBI targeted leaders of the Muslim community for yearslong secret surveillance.”
Dudebros. Amirite?
KG
Speaking of the GOP hating Latinos this year, anyone catch the bullshit Wingnut freak out over the Mexico-Guatamala border deal? Basically Mr Derp himself gateway pundit linked to a Spanish language article about a border deal that allows Guatemalans 72 hours in the southern Mexico states and spun that into “Mexico helping illegals enter US from Central America, effectively declares war on US”
Mike in NC
We’re about to run out of dry cat food, and the vet won’t restock until at least Monday, so any brand recommendations (wet or dry) are welcome. Two cats, age 6-7.
Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name)
Anyone else watching All Quiet on the Western Front?
@lamh36: Cool.
burnspbesq
@MattR:
It is now. Going to OT3.
OT at the men’s international level is similar to OT in the women’s college game. Two periods that aren’t sudden-death, and if it’s tied after than, it is sudden-death.
Australia hit two posts in the second OT. Japan’s tying goal was scored from one step inside the restraining line (i.e., 19 yards out) in transition by a LSM.
David Koch
I’m enjoying the Baseball and WNBA races.
These are some badass bitches
Also too, NFL preseason in 4 weeks.
Also, also too, Rachel Maddow has never been better.
pat
@Mike in NC:
My finicky Susy will eat Kit and Kaboodle…Purina, I think.
Mnemosyne
@Mike in NC:
I get Blue Buffalo Wilderness for our three — they have it at all of the big box pet stores (like Petco). Grain-free, so it doesn’t upset sensitive tummies.
burnspbesq
@David Koch:
Mistie Bass is Chubby Checker’s daughter.
MattR
@burnspbesq: And Australia gets the golden goal. Been a pretty physical tournament so far. I am guessing it the result of relatively inexperienced international refs.
A couple close games today, but mostly blowouts as the various divisions sort themselves out. Should be mroe competitive come Monday when they start playing for placement. Was nice to be able to hear the cheer from the next field over when Uganda scored their first ever goal (down 17-0). Louder than any cheers during the Germany-Belgium game (which was the game being broadcast).
Roger Moore
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic.
Mnemosyne
@Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name):
Not currently watching it, but have seen it. Definitely a classic. The rawness of the scene where they visit their wounded friend in the hospital is still jaw-dropping.
Suffern ACE
@KG: I thought 2010 was bad. Little did I know that four years later, the rhetoric could get worse.
Corner Stone
@Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name): Is the supermoon going to push you into Crankytown tonight? Because otherwise I’m going to binge watch Vampire Diaries on Netflix.
MazeDancer
Any Day Now – movie on NetFlix. Alan Cumming is riveting. (And he sings!) Yes, bit of a tear jerker. But movie good reminder of how much equality has been achieved since just a few decades ago.
@Mike in NC: Wellness, wet or dry is a fine brand.
RSR
fyi, Atlantic City, NJ’s casino industry is imploding. One casino has already shut down this spring. It was consumed via auction by other nearby casino interests which stripped it of equipment and shuttered it to eliminate competition. Now, two more casinos are (as of an announcement tonight on #2) slated to close by the end of the summer season. And word is a fourth is likely to announce a shut down at any point.
I am no fan of the industry, but these closures represent thousands of primary on-site jobs per casino, and thousands more of outside supporting employment.
Gov. Christie’s pet, the one he begged Bruce to help open, Revel Casino, is on its second bankruptcy, after blowing through ~$400 million in state aid. And in the last year or two, Jimmy Buffet’s Margaritaville opened up their non-union beach bar.
It’s a shame that Bruce’s Atlantic City is coming around again (or never ended). We’re going to need another cover. I nominate Tom Morello, but in the mean time, here’s The Band’s version: http://youtu.be/hdSkXMnYH9I
David Koch
It’s Lebron’s world and we’re just livin in it.
Suffern ACE
@efgoldman: I believe the plan is to somehow mine the other side of the border.
burnspbesq
@MattR:
Pretty amazing that there are 38 teams competing. I think we’re right at the point where they have to start thinking about having regional qualifying and a 16-team world championship.
phoebes-in-santa fe
I’m looking for a picture or action video of Steve tonight. Can you accommodate me, Cole?
Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name)
@Mnemosyne: That scene is just finishing up right now.
@Corner Stone: That depends as much on others as it does on me or the supermoon.
David Koch
I wonder – our progressives-betters who wanted to “KILL THE BILL”, we they ever apologize for being so wrong?
burnspbesq
@MattR:
I think Hong Kong beating Austria is the only result that you could fairly call an upset. Nice win for Mexico over Spain.
Ireland is pretty good. That’s a tough first match for Uganda.
mclaren
I think it would be interesting to speculate about how bad things will get under Hillary’s presidency. As everyone knows, the collapse of America has accelerated sharply under Obama, with the constitution now effectively used as toilet paper by law enforcement and so-called “security” agencies (none of which do anything related to “national security,” but act primarily to repress domestic dissent, enforce corporate copyrights, and protect the super-rich against the protests of the impoverished formerly middle class masses) and with the economy flatlining.
Hillary has publicly announced that she intends to embark on many more endless uniwnnable foreign wars:
Source: “Hillary Clinton Begins to Move Away From Obama Ahead of 2016:
Presumed Presidential Candidate Makes Clear She Won’t Be Running for de Facto Third Obama Term,” The Wall Street Journal, 6 July 2014.
The phrase about wooing Republicans is code for more tax cuts for billionaires and more cuts to the social safety net. The talk about a “more assertive foreign policy” is obvously code for more foreign wars.
So we already know that Hillary plans to crank up the endless unwinnable foreign wars, ram through more tax cuts for the superwealthy one-percenters, and slash social security as well as medicare.
The question then becomes:
How bad will things get under Hillary?
I for one find these questions tantalizing. It’s a complex process of keeping her supporters from openly rebelling while at the same time continuing the Democratic move to the extreme far right.
Will Hillary push for the legalization of slavery? We can easily deduce from the Supreme Court’s previous rulings that they’ll soon move toward legalizing indentured servitude for American who can’t repay their debts. Of course, what we’re really talking about is slavery — whips, chains, the usual stuff. It won’t be called “slavery,” obviously, but it will amount to the same thing. Passing laws that load people up with undischargeable debt which can never be alleviated through normal bankruptcy was the first step on the road to the return of slavery: the second step involves the return of the debtors prison, which has now reappeared from its Victorian grave.
Source: “The Return of Debtors’ Prison: Thousands of Americans Jailed For Not Paying Their Bills,” Thinkprogress site, 13 December 2011.
Now, under Hillary’s presidency in 2016, will the third and final step from undischargeable debt to debtors prison to full legalization of slavery be taken?
Then there’s the matter of killing U.S. citizens with drone strikes. Obama has gone full-in on that policy, as the murder of Al-Awlaki and his son shows, but only overseas. (Apparently Obama has also murdered four other U.S. citizens overseas, but their names seem to be classified, according to a New York Times article from last year: “Secret `Kill List’ Tests Obama’s Principles” from 29 March 2012). Will Hillary extend the policy of murdering American citizens via drone strikes to people who live on U.S. soil?
Look forward to lots of Balloon Juice commenters applauding this new policy and sying things like “I have zero sympathy for any traitors who are trying to destroy America by protesting the new indentured servitude ruling by the Supreme Court. They deserve what they get.”
The big question, to my mind, involves how far Hillary will go to put the military on U.S. soil repressing dissent and enforcing corporate edicts. The Department of Homeland Security has already abandoned its ostensible job of tracking down terrorists since there are no terrorists to find (the FBI has to create them) in favor of protecting corporate copyrights. And once drone strikes start up against U.S. citizens on American soil, the camel’s nose will be under the tent. So it’s a real question as to whether HIllary will be first president to sign an authorization permitting military troops to kick in U.S. citizens’ doors and shoot them on sight for doing things like writing blog posts criticizing U.S. policy or trying to organize demonstrations against Hillary’s corrupt coddling of Wall Street financial crime lords, like the Goldman Sachs hedge fund trader to whom Hillary’s daughter is married.
Then there’s the matter of the ongonig financial collapse.
I take this to mean that HIllary will go all-in on Naomi Klein’s “disaster capitalism,” using the never-ending collapse of the U.S. economy as an excuse to implement `emergency measures’ which will do things like eliminate unemployment insurance, or perhaps revoke the mortgage tax deduction, or possibly shut down the food stamp program entirely.
The big quesiton here is how Hillary will react when the starving mobs being to riot in the streets. Martial law? Drone strikes? Or simply air strikes with A-10 warthogs against non-violent protesters, as authorized under the NDAA?
It goes without saying that any alternative to HIllary will be much worse. I have an open bet going that the Republican presidential nominee in 2016 will run on the explicit platform of shutting down the IRS and ending all forms of public assistance, with a stated policy of letting sick people die and the unemployed starve if he gets elected.
Hillary is the kinder gentler alternative to the Republican policy of genocide of the middle class. Hillary’s policies will amount to a slow holodomor, rather than a quick Year-Zero-style extermination of the middle class. The question that intrigues me is: how bad will it get under HIllary?
Crucifixions? Public impalements? Use of military weapons against non-violent protesters? (This already started under Obama, of course, with LRAD military sound cannons deployed against Occupy protesters and DHS thugs used to break up nationwide protests.) As everyone knows, America already languishes under effective martial law, as the lockdown of Boston and the patrol of empty streets by military units after the Boston marathon bombing so clearly shows — the question then becomes whether HIllary will make it official.
Jay C
@Mike in NC:
What sort of dry cat food are you running out of? Also: what are the cats’ issues that they need “vet-supplied” dry food?
(We have a similar problem: one of our furry darlings has food-allergy issues -at least as far as the vet surmised. She (the cat, not the vet) had been breaking out in vile disgusting sores on her head; which disappeared when we put her (and our other furry companions) on a hypoallergenic diet. )
a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)
@lamh36: Congrats!
lamh36
@efgoldman: thx for that advice.
but naw I’m not naive. the whole point of me trying to get the HCM degree is to enhance my resume not just for this job, but also to make me more attractive for possible job prospects I the future. if I ever feel I’ve been lied to, I’m perfectly willing to leave for better prospects
Corner Stone
@mclaren: Co-signed en toto.
burnspbesq
@mclaren:
Did you work on that incoherent mess all day?
Joel Hanes
“The best thing for being sad,” replied Merlin, beginning to puff and blow, “is to learn something. That’s the only thing that never fails. You may grow old and trembling in your anatomies, you may lie awake at night listening to the disorder of your veins, you may miss your only love, you may see the world about you devastated by evil lunatics, or know your honour trampled in the sewers of baser minds. There is only one thing for it then — to learn. Learn why the world wags and what wags it. That is the only thing which the mind can never exhaust, never alienate, never be tortured by, never fear or distrust, and never dream of regretting. Learning is the only thing for you. Look what a lot of things there are to learn.”
― T.H. White, The Once and Future King
David Koch
I’m kind of surprised there isn’t more buzz around the world cup, considering it’s less than 48 hrs away.
Corner Stone
@Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name): Does this mean you’re not going to strip down and chain yourself to iron cuffs anchored into the walls?
Jay C
@mclaren:
Oh, and in case any of our other commenters haven’t jumped in before me, let me be the first (FYWP willing), to reply to your comment.
GO FUCK YOURSELF, ASSHOLE TROLL!!!
Sincerely yours,
Jay C
Groucho48
@burnspbesq:
Just saw that over at LGM. Sad! I wasn’t familiar with the name but looks like he’s played on tons of albums I’ve listened to over the years.
For anyone wondering how to spend the evening, there are far worse choices than listening to some Charlie Haden.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=7n9mDZnKH6I
Botsplainer
Distressed about my personal assistant. She’s normally extremely competent, in her early 30s, used to work as Philip Seymour Hoffman’s personal assistant. Her husband is a raging alcoholic and opiate addict, and refuses to tail off methadone.
He’s dragging her down, verbally and physically abusive, unkind and unappreciative of the fact she’s working 3 jobs in order to keep things going along for Mr. “I hurt too much to work” and his methadone.
He frequently tells her that if she leaves him, he’ll kill himself, she gives in every time.
I’m tempted to buy him a gift basket of a bottle of whiskey, a bottle of lortab a street pistol with a single round.
MomSense
@raven:
I just watched it and the footage is great.
madmommy
Just got home from watching my son’s band camp concert. He surprised us with a solo, his first! He’d said earlier in the week he might have one, but that he wasn’t sure he wanted to do it since it meant standing up alone on stage. Then later he said that he didn’t get it, and he was fine with that. I’d already recorded 2 of the 4 songs they were doing in the jazz ensemble and the storage on my phone was full when the director said there were going to be a lot of solos in the next song. As soon as my son’s name was mentioned I started frantically deleting video so that I could record it. All the solos were improvisation, and he was quite proud that he’d done it without playing a clunker!
Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name)
@Joel Hanes: I love that book.
@Corner Stone: Despite the persistent rumors, I am not actually a werewolf. I did once have someone yell “Vampire!” at me though.
Corner Stone
@Botsplainer: Any chance you could pay her a decent salary so she doesn’t have to work 3 jobs to get by?
MomSense
@lamh36:
Same here!!
Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name)
@efgoldman: Wisconsin doesn’t share a land border with Canada.
Mike in NC
@Jay C: Royal Canin Weight Control (don’t have the bag in front of me). Vet said canned is preferable to dry for calories, but just too many choices.
Corner Stone
@Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name): That’s fine. While I don’t actually have a gold hoard, I do have multiple rounds of silver .40 ammo.
Not saying. Just saying.
zmulls
Showed my sons BARTON FINK tonight and they really enjoyed it. Also showed them the part of the Ricky Jay documentary about the block of ice. Riveting.
Suffern ACE
@Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name): we do share an accent though. It’s what makes us the most dangerous threat for Canadian sovereignty.
Corner Stone
@zmulls: Ricky Jay is straight crazeballs.
Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name)
@efgoldman: Well, I always thought that Michigan’s UP really is an extension of northern Wisconsin. But that would still leave a water border around Sault Ste. Marie.
MomSense
@lamh36:
Well done, you!
@Botsplainer:
Can you get her into some counseling?
Mike in NC
One of our neighbors stopped by last night and showed us a letter her Republican-voting husband got from some ultra-Christian nut job group with a post office box in DC. They were looking for contributions to fight Hillary Clinton and her allies in the ACLU, who plan to ban the practice of Christianity after taking power in 2016. Pathetic and hilarious at the same time.
Tommy
@zmulls: That had to be fun. I don’t have any kids myself but if I did, and age appropriate, I would show them Barton Fink, well I would be happy. Very happy.
Mike E
@Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name): I’m watching getTV over the air and they’ve been running a pre code Barbara Stanwyck marathon: Shopworn with Zasu Pitts is on now, The Miracle Woman just finished.
Botsplainer
@Corner Stone:
I share her with two others. Problem is that while we pay her well, we don’t have enough in our budgets to include methadone and fines for her jackass husband’s multiple DUIs, including an airborne felony.
His money from whatever jobs when he works goes to a black hole, her’s supports the both of them.
I’ve offered to fund her to return home to NYC without him, repeatedly. Plane ticket, moving expenses. She refuses.
ruemara
My day started at 4:50 am and my work day started at 8:20pm. It stopped at 6:20pm. I get a day to rest up and tidy the chaos of my living space and then Sunday, I can start working on the work I couldn’t get around to while I was working. And I have to cook for an office potluck. So I do this until I die and then I get to rest? I didn’t agree to this. Next weekend I get to pet sit two little foster kittens. I”m going to try to kitten proof my house but I think the main thing is just having multiple litter boxes around.
MomSense
@Mike in NC:
Same letter is going around here.
TaMara (BHF)
@burnspbesq: I’m going tomorrow for the whole day. Very excited. Expecting more rain delay,too. Storms on the horizon all weekend.
Botsplainer
@MomSense:
Finally got her in this month. I see her as kind of a daughter, there’s only a 10 year difference between her and my oldest.
satby
Just contemplating how long it takes karma to show up and hand out some justice sometimes.
Corner Stone
@satby: Cantor is no longer getting his mug in front of news cameras.
That may have taken too long, but it happened.
Liquid
@satby: I stood in line (at a baseball game) behind a man that ordered four “Kobe” beef burgers at $25 a piece. As I heard somewhere: “Karma is only justice without the satisfaction…”
KG
@satby: sometimes, you have to wait multiple lifetimes
ruemara
@satby: Karma went out of business decades ago. How else do so many wicked people from back in the times of Nixon and even Eisenhower still have power, money and control?
“I have never seen the righteous forsaken, nor his children begging bread.” Obviously, you weren’t looking.
Corner Stone
@Botsplainer: She’s making $60K+ and also having to work 2 other jobs to get the meth bill down?
TaMara (BHF)
@lamh36: Totally awesome.
pentatonix
Looks like that US spy in Germany thing was all horseshit as usual.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/07/12/cnews-us-germany-usa-spying-diplomat-idCAKBN0FG2C820140712
Of course the hyperventilatorsphere douche bags (Yea I’m looking at you muckymux and wr0ng way Cole) will just quietly move on to the next shiny object. They will not say “I was wrong”. They will not say “I am a reactionary cynical moron that believes every bit of snake oil Griftwald/guardian tries to sell me”. Nope, they just pretend it never happened and meanwhile it’s still out there as if the past assumptions are still true and then they try build on that with the next Griftwald/guardian regurgitated horseshit story.
Jay C
@Mike in NC:
If it’s just a “weight control” type of food, I’m guessing (IANAV, please note!) that changing brands – for just a few -3? – days – will probably not be very much of a problem, if they get back on their regular stuff by Monday. PS: If it were MY vet(s) who had run into a supply problem with the cats’ normal nosh, I’d be damn sure they had a backup recommendation: prescription-only pet food is a lucrative-enough racket: they should be able to give you a weekend-supply-lag backup recc.
satby
@Corner Stone: true ‘dat
MomSense
@Botsplainer:
Hoping some time with a good counselor will help.
satby
@ruemara: @KG: And I also wouldn’t argue with either of you about that.
Botsplainer
@Corner Stone:
I can’t speak to her economics; hubs refuses to work the way that most normal men work.
He’s an addict, fucks up and demands her support.
satby
@Liquid: hmmm…
I’ve previously gotten a great deal of satisfaction when karma bitchslaps someone and I witnessed it (ie Cantor). I know a couple of people who karma needs to visit soon, for their own good.
Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name)
@pentatonix: Hi, Derf.
stinger
@Joel Hanes: Perhaps my all-time favorite literary quote.
satby
@Botsplainer: she’s an enabler, possibly a 12 step group for family members of addicts?
Suffern ACE
@satby: simple karma is way too slow. That’s always been the problem. We need to move things along a bit.
Does anyone know how the evil eye works?
MattR
@burnspbesq: Soon, but not yet. I think they need another tourney or two that is open to all to give the emerging nations the exposure they need to grow the game and also to narrow the difference between the top 5-7 teams and the rest of the world. Next step may be a European championship in the years between World Lacrosse Championships (ie. in 2016, 2020, etc) which could eventually be used as a qualifying tournament for the World Championships,
Mnemosyne
@Mike E:
The Miracle Woman is pretty interesting — Stanwyck plays one of the many thinly-veiled versions of Aimee Semple McPherson that Hollywood has done (Sister Sharon Falconer in Elmer Gantry is another one).
Keep an eye out for Night Nurse — that’s a really fun one with Stanwyck as a heroic nurse and Clark Gable in an early villainous role as a gangster.
trollhattan
@mclaren: How is it that WP doesn’t allow the name of Sherlock Holmes partner yet you can paste in the entire Bronx phonebook?
trollhattan
@mclaren: How is it that WP doesn’t allow the name of Sherlock Holmes’ partner yet you can paste in the entire Bronx phonebook?
Liquid
@satby: The tail-end of that quote would be “…and I don’t belive in justice.” So it’s cynicism all around.
ruemara
@Suffern ACE: Usually, my gran, mum or an auntie would just give me a LOOK, if I was fidgeting in church. It was mighty quick, but I’m not sure it’s easy to transmit the power to you via internet, since I’m child-free.
Botsplainer
@satby:
I’ve suggested Al-Anon repeatedly and pointed out her propensity for excuses and deflections multiple times.
In all my years of family law practice, I’ve never seen anybody willing to accept so much abuse. The suicide threats, combined with the name calling was just evil.
KG
@efgoldman: the santeria secrets have been lost in my family as well.
yoohoocthulhu
Again Friday, same situation. Still in the bio postdoc holding pattern, still funding uncertainty, still looking for industry jobs or non-research jobs but still facing the catch-22 that I’m either too qualified for research type roles, not qualified enough for research manager type roles, or adequately educated but not experienced enough for non-research type roles (medical writing or entry-level scientific advisor/patent agent type stuff).
I’m thinking I’m going to have to squeeze an unpaid internship/volunteer opportunity in here somewhere to satisfy employers that I’m qualified for non-research roles. God knows when I’ll fit that in.
Ironic that this would be significantly easier if I hadn’t finished my Ph.D…
And of course, the girl I’m dating is still mystified at my inability to find an industry job with excellent benefits, since all her less educated friends with science masters have found them…
Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name)
@Suffern ACE: Most of the convicted witches in my family were hanged. Nothing got passed on. Sorry.
Liquid
@ruemara: Statistically most of those present are in their 60’s (being generous here) which can make cross-generational discussions umm/err/uhh the opposite of informative.
My grandmother would just call me by my *full* name. At nine years old it might as well have been the voice of some authority figure situated above one’s self.
Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name)
@Liquid: 60s? How do you figure? I would guess an average age around here of mid-40s.
ETA: Or were you talking about the average age of church attenders? I would dispute that but I have been in a church for anything other than a wedding, baptism, or funeral for more than 25 years.
Suffern ACE
@Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name): @KG: @KG: @ruemara: @efgoldman: well that eliminates four traditions.
Liquid
@Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name): Eh, it’s just the new “fact” going around. I do believe I read someone (j) on LG&M bitching about those white/privileged/60’s/hippie/etc./&C.
Mnemosyne
@ruemara:
The Italian “evil eye” is an actual curse that you put on someone. I never learned it, either, since my Italian-surnamed grandmother was German/Irish.
I had someone threaten to curse me once because I wouldn’t pick him up from the other side of town at 3:00 am. And then his car caught on fire a couple of weeks later.
Yatsuno
@efgoldman: UNSKEW THE AGES!!! Ain’t my fault, I’m The Answer in October.
@ruemara:
And pictures. Lots and lots of pictures. Becuz KITTEH!!!
Liquid
@Mnemosyne: White Man from Town says Take It Off.
ETA: That could be hilariously misconstrued.
burnspbesq
@TaMara (BHF):
Jealous!
Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name)
@efgoldman: Why, yes. Yes, it does. It should read “but I have not been in a church for anything other than a wedding, baptism, or funeral for more than 25 years.”
Mnemosyne
@Liquid:
Either it’s a movie line or you’re one of my neighbors. If the latter, eeeeewwwwwww!
Liquid
@Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name): What about a handjob?
@Mnemosyne
I do believe any discussion of a “White Man” or “Town” must refer to our (blog) patron: the big J.C.
^ I actually never noticed that before and the implications are terrifying. Hold me.
MikeJ
@Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name):
About half of the regulars have admitted that everybody in their dorm had a copy of Squeeze’s Singles: 45’s and Under that would put the age squarely at mid 40s.
Every time I think of “out on a windy common, that night I ain’t forgotten” I think of kissing Mary under the columns.
burnspbesq
@MattR:
Took the Iroquois about 25 minutes to get rolling, but they closed the half on a 7-0 run.
Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name)
@Mike J: It is the music that caused me make that estimate. And that might well be my favorite Squeeze song.
@Liquid: Sorry, Protestant.
Liquid
@burnspbesq: Out of context that is one of the best sentences-open-to-riffing I have ever seen. It’s like that scene about what’s her name talking about what’s his name referring to “Cellar Door.”
MattR
@burnspbesq: Yep. Kinda like the Germany-Belgium game which was 3-2 Germany before they pulled away (though Germany scored first in that game). I would be very surprised to see England get back within 3 and kinda expect the Iroquois to end up winning by double digits.
England’s goalie is, umm, husky.
Mnemosyne
@Mike J:
As of this year, I am at the exact middle of my 40s.
(Forgot at first that FYWP hates you and I need to insert a space in your nym.)
Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name)
@MattR: It is surprising how many rather serious lacrosse fans are around here. Not me, I am a rugby guy (I generally played wing, but it is still rugby no matter what the front five say).
⚽️ Martin
@Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name): I’d say mid-40s as well. There’s a number of youngins like psy to balance out our more revered members age-wise.
MikeJ
@Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name): Years after I was living in London and had a client in Croydon. Every day as the train went trough Clapham Junction I would start singing that song, badly, much to the annoyance of my colleague who couldn’t understand the influence a train junction I had never even seen had had on me. Happily, we were only there a week or two.
burnspbesq
Shit. Lyle … one-handed … with his off hand.
LT
Yoga and bowling.
Totally serious.
MattR
@Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name): If you get a chance, watch one of the Iroquois games. They play the game so differently than every one else, which makes sense since it is their game. The last goal by Lyle Thompson was just ridiculous.
Mnemosyne
@MattR:
I know nothing at all about lacrosse (and don’t particularly care to) but the British visa problems of the Iroquois team in 2010 got some pretty widespread coverage.
burnspbesq
A couple of possessions ago, all four Thompson brothers were on the field at the same time.
Mnemosyne
@LT:
I’m getting ready to do some pre-bedtime yoga. I’ve actually been very good with my Fitocracy routine this week and even managed to ride my bike to work 3 days this week. It definitely helps to have to report to an actual group rather than not having any accountability.
Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name)
@⚽️ Martin:
I really hope that dude comes to Madison at some point. He seems like a metric shitload of fun. I also hope that if he comes it is over a weekend so that any meet-up can give me a day of recovery time.
@Mike J: Some people just don’t get how important music can be. I’ve walked away from lovely “sure things” over such things as love of Paul McCartney’s early 80s work. I mean, one must have standards. Looking back though, I do regret that particular decision. She really was lovely.
Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name)
@efgoldman: ::genuflecting::*
*Mockingly, bitches.
Liquid
@⚽️ Martin: What age and how Revered?
mclaren
@Jay C:
Thank you for indentifying yourself as a member of the NSA’s JTRIG. It’s always useful to know who the paid corporate whores and police/military/national security astroturfers on this forum are. People can now put your name down alongside burnspbesq, Martin, mnemosyne, Omnes Omnibus, eemom, and raven as paid shills for the 1% whose comments everyone can ignore.
MattR
@Mnemosyne: Same issue may pop back up in 2018 when the championships go back to England. At least the Federation of International Lacrosse placed the Iroquois in the top division in 2014 despite not participating in 2010. A small consolation, but at least it didn’t add insult to injury.
@burnspbesq: Ty’s not on the roster? Don’t think I heard his name.
LT
@Mnemosyne: I should put my money where my mouth is. Years ago did regular yoga (lessons in Katmandu and India), but haven’t done it in ages. Would possible help my arthritis.
mclaren
@Mnemosyne:
Presumably this involves trying to pull your head out of your ass. That’s a tough one — I’ve been trying for years now to help you do that, and haven’t succeeded.
Liquid
So is anyone here in their 60’s and looking at a knee replacement?
Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name)
@MattR: I am sure that the quality of play is great. I think the game is cool. it just isn’t something I follow. Watching people loop around on a rugby attack is beautiful to a rugby fan, but the technique, improvisation, and skill involved passes by the casual watcher. It is the same with me for lacrosse. Not knocking at all; it just ain’t my thing.
burnspbesq
@mclaren:
Where do you come up with this shit?
mclaren
@LT:
Medical surveys show that people who do yoga suffer a higher per capita rate of injuries than non-yoga practitioners, most of the injuries being self-inflicted.
Another case of a beautiful claim slain by an ugly fact, like the finding that beta blockers actually increase deaths from heart attacks, that arthroscopic surgery typically incapacitates people with knee injuries at a higher rate than non-surgery patients, and the finding that moderate exercise is far better for lower back pain than back surgery.
burnspbesq
@MattR:
Ty is on the roster. He’s a cousin, by intermarriage (He’s Mohawk, the brothers are Onondaga).
Miles is putting on a show. The rookies on attack (Miles and Jordan Wolf from Duke) are a big reason why Rochester is the most fun team to watch in MLL this year.
Liquid
@burnspbesq: Someone’s been playing a little too much Metal Gear Solid. But seriously folks when are we going to see a “TRAINZ” movie by blah-blah-blah and yadda/yadda/yadda incorporated.
Not to mention some other rant about some such here in the what-now!
MattR
@burnspbesq:
How many players in the world could do that with their strong hand? A couple dozen? Maybe.
@burnspbesq: Don’t think I have seen Ty on the field. Haven’t been able to find a final 23 man roster on the web. Will have to wait to see the box score of this game. Kinda interesting to watch Miles act as a playmaker setting up his teammates after he was usually the finisher on the Albany attack off of passes from Lyle.
LT
@mclaren: Do you mean injuries while doing yoga? If not, sounds like a pretty whack study.
Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name)
@mclaren: Shouldn’t I be a complication for you? I have been saying for years that the NSA should not collect anything from US citizens without a proper warrant. You can google it. OTOH, I did not have a huge concern about the killing of al-Awaki. Who pays me? Come on, figure out the correct agency. BTW, during Basic and OCS, I was technically enlisted and paid as an E-5 during OCS, I wasn’t ever really an enlisted soldier.
burnspbesq
@MattR:
I don’t watch much box. Between the NLL and the senior leagues in Canada, maybe a couple of dozen, but I couldn’t tell you who they are.
LT
@mclaren:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/eva-norlyk-smith-phd/yoga-injuries-debate_b_2896134.html
What I know for a fact is that when I regularly did yoga I was a more stress free person. I still smoked and drank – but it made my body *calmer.
MattR
@burnspbesq: I am sure there are a few in the MLL who could do it as well, they would just never think to try it in a game :)
Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name)
@LT: I cannot speak to mclaren’s expertise in other areas, but in law, he has been completely off base far more often than he has been correct. LT, I tend to disagree with you about a lot of substantive issues, but mclaren is simply a kook. YMMV
burnspbesq
Gawd. One of the Iroqouis defensemen has a wooden stick.
Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name)
@Mike J: Well, as long as we are who we are, there is this.
LT
@Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name): Well, this is re yoga! Still sounds like a nonsense study finding.
Violet
@Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name): That probably makes you a double agent and you’re being paid by the Russians or Chinese.
Did I guess right? What do I win?
mclaren
@burnspbesq:
“How Covert Agents Infiltrate the Internet to Manipulate, Deceive, and Destroy Reputations,” Glenn Greenwald, 24 February 2014.
See this slide from the powerpoint briefing Ed Snowden released. This particular slide describes the use of “information ops” in online social media to produce the “four Ds” for the military/intelligence community: Deny/Disrupt/Degrade/Deceive
Snowden powerpoint slide
These particular techniques represent an outgrowth of the Nixon-era COINTELPRO tactics (AKA “ratfucking”) used by American intelligence services against domestic political opponents and the U.S. news media during the 1960s and 1970s.
Now these COINTELPRO methods have been updated for the cyber-age for use in U.S. online social media.
Anonymous commenters operating under pseudonyms whose only contributions to Balloon-Juice seem to involve smears aimed at anyone who criticizes the tools and toadies of the U.S. military-police-prison-surveillance-prison-torture complex are not very hard to identify as members of JTRIG. A piece of advice, astroturfers: to effectively guide public opinion, you need to seem credible. Popping up online only to hurl smears like “Fuck you” won’t do it. You need to go back to your JTRIG handler and ask for advice on producing a better cover, and you also need to brush up on your psychological manipulation techniques. Study Ronald Reagan’s campaign commercials or Richard Nixon’s speeches. They’re classics of the psyop genre.
Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name)
@LT: I don’t do yoga and have no idea about good and bad wrt it. I just suggest that mclaren is not a reliable source for anything. Do what you want.
Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name)
@mclaren: Seriously, I am willing to do a personal meet up. OTOH, I will not go south of Memphis for it.
Mnemosyne
@mclaren:
Sorry, which one of us voted for Bush?
Oh, that’s right, it was you. I’ve never voted Republican in my life. Sorry it took you so long to wake the fuck up.
mclaren
@LT:
A classic example of the mindset identified in the New Yorker article “Why Do People Persist In Believing Things that Aren’t True?” Maria Konnikova, 19 May 2014.
(We now pause for the eruption of various commenters hurling smears at me to claim that I’m “insane” and “a troll” and “demented” and “in need of therapy” because I state that vaccination is harmless and prevents illness. Finished? Good, let’s continue. The evidence of course is overwhelming that vaccination prevents disease and has essentially no side effects; the latest piece of evidence comes from an “unprecedented” outbreak of whooping cough in California which the CDC has now classified as an “epidemic,” linked to anti-vaccination sentiments and parents who foolishly and ignorantly refused to have their children vaccinated. See the CNN news report “Whooping cough epidemic declared in California.”)
We observe the same refusal to believe documented facts among Republicans who deny global warming and deny evolution, and among Democrats who deny the stated social policies and military stances Hillary Clinton has already outlined in her speeches. Standard stuff. It’s a classic case of IOKIYAR (It’s okay if you’re a Republican) or IOIYAD (It’s okay if you’re a Democrat). In either case, the mindset boils down to: anything our guy says must be true, and anything anyone says to criticize our guy must be a lie by an evil troll. Pure tribalism.
Source: “John Dean and authoritarian cultism,” Glenn Greenwald’s old blog, July 2006.
Compare with Konrad Lorenz’s description of the phylogenetic fight response of a brown rat community to a foreign rat placed in its midst:
Source: “On Aggression,” Konrad Lorenz, 5th edition: New York, Bantam Books, pg. 155.
The particular significance of this primal enemy-identification response found in primates from the brown rat on up to humans is that it has now migrated from the Republican party to the Democratic party. Today, denial of the documented facts and “the vicious, limitless methods used to attack and demonize the `Enemy,’ which encompasses anyone — foreign or domestic — threatening to their movement” documented by Greenwald is now a common property of the Democratic political movement as well as movement conservatives. This proves a fascinating example of the Democrats falling into Nietzsche’s dictum: “He who fights against the dragon must be beware of turning into a dragon.”
Mnemosyne
@efgoldman:
Poor mclaren just can’t accept that s/he is regularly pwned by a middle-aged, cat-owning secretary, so s/he has developed an elaborate fantasy where I’m really a secret NSA agent. It’s like s/he caught an episode of The Americans when s/he was half-asleep and thought it was a documentary.
mclaren
@Mnemosyne:
No, I never voted for Bush.
Once again, you need to improve your lying skills. When I watched the Gore-Bush debate in 2000, I remarked to my friends that Bush looked like a sadistic creepy no-neck frat boy of the kind who liked to set cats on fire and brand pledges with red-hot coathangers.
You might have confused me with burnspbesq, who surely voted for Bush — because Senator Bilbo was dead.
Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name)
@mclaren: I feel badly for you. The life you live must be horrible. Come to the real world and it is not so bad.
mclaren
@Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name):
Carrying your Hush Puppy, no doubt — the subsonic smooth-bore 9 mm .22 caliber pistol used by SEALS for quiet assassination.
Steeplejack
@Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name):
I gave it a miss. I’ve seen it several times, and Lew Ayres’s hammy acting always irritates me. And I don’t think it’s all his fault. It’s a combination of him, the acting style of the time and the subject matter, which cries out for underacting, if anything. But it’s a good movie.
Thanks for reminding me, though, because I think I am going to record Westfront 1918 and Kameradschaft. I haven’t seen the former in about 40 years, and I don’t think I have ever seen the latter.
Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name)
@mclaren: I promise that i will carry nothing more than my pen knife.
Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name)
@Steeplejack: Ayres did overact a lot, but other people did not.
mclaren
@Mnemosyne:
Now this is a better use of psyops to promote the four D’s: DenyDegradeDisruptDeceive.
Notice the clever use of implication here: “s/he” casts doubt on my gender, implying that I’m trying to deceive someone about who I am. My username is my real name. I’m not trying to deceive anyone, but Mnemosyne is cleverly trying to imply that I am. Notice that Mnemosyne never uses “s/he” for other commenters who don’t use a username explicitly defining their gender — for example, Mnemosyne never describes burnspbesq as “s/he” or Omnes Omnibus as “s/he.” Only me.
Again, note the implication in the phrase “developed an elaborate fantasy where I’m really a secret NSA agent.” The implication is that I’m mentally ill.
Of course this is the same JTRIG tactic used against Snowden himeslf, and against inconvenient public figures like Noam Chomsky. Snowden got described as “mentally unabalanced,” Chomsky is regularly smeared as a “self-hating Jew,” and so on. The implication is clear — anyone who cites documented facts embarrassing to the people in power in American society is mentally ill.
Clever, but once again, not credible. Too many news reports have documented Snowden’s powerpoint slides. Too much detail converges on the conclusion that the NSA really does employ online agents provocateurs to disrupt social media…like this blog. For example, the well-known documentation on the CIA’s Operation Mockingbird, which does for U.S. news media what the NSA’s JTRIG program does for online social media, contains too much detail from too many sources to be credibly denied.
It’s not hard to see that someone like Mnemosyne who claims that a person stating documented facts is mentally ill and suffering from “an elaborate fantasy” is spewing out pure disinformation. From there, you can connect the dots yourself.
Congratulations to mnemosyne, and a note to the JTRIG operatives like raven and burnspbesq: this is how you do it, boys. The smears must be subtle and the comment must sound concerned (like the very subtlest concern troll) and sympathetic. Comments like “fuck you” or “where do you get this shit?” just won’t cut it.
Mnemosyne
@mclaren:
I distinctly remember you admitting you voted for Bush, but trying to search for “Bush” on this website is an exercise in futility.
Instead, enjoy this blast from the recent past where you insisted past the point of all rationality that Chelsea Clinton was a vice provost at NYU. (Hint: titles matter, and you kept “forgetting” an important word in her three-word title.)
Mnemosyne
@mclaren:
That’s because you have, at various times, implied both that you are a man and that you are a woman, and when you were asked point-blank, you refused to answer the question. So am I supposed to randomly assign you a gender since you refuse to say what gender you are, or should I be polite and keep the question vague?
Both Omnes and burnsesq have publicly identified themselves here as male, so I follow their lead. If one of them announces that they were pretending to be the other gender online, or that they are transgender and have changed their gender identity, then I will change their pronouns to what they prefer.
If you refuse to say what gender you identify as, I will use s/he, because no one seems to agree what the proper genderless English pronoun should be.
mclaren
@Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name):
This is also a better use of the 4 Ds: DenyDegradeDisruptDeceive.
The implication here is that someone who observes people spewing out disinformation and supporting insupportable American policies like the murder of U.S. citizens without a trial or even criminal charges, and then comments on it, is mentally ill and not living “in the real world.”
Although better than the heavy-handed disinformation offered by burnspbesq (Where do you come up with this shit? — The New York Times, CNN, CNBC, NBC News, etc.) this particular smear also suffers from a lack of credibility. If I’m so mentally ill, why am I able to cite dozens of different major news sources, well-known books, and interviews describing in detail the facts I remark on?
You’re doing better at spewing out the disinformation but you still have a long ways to go. Study the tactics of Karl Rove and Egil Krogh — those are the masters.
mclaren
@Mnemosyne:
Can you cite any evidence to back up that claim?
I’m genuinely curious because I don’t believe I’ve implied anything about my gender and I don’t recall refusing to answer anyone’s question about the matter.
Steeplejack
@Mike E:
GetTV and another channel, Movies!, have appeared recently on my cable system, and they have become a slightly seedy backup to TCM. Lots of good movies tucked in among lots of mediocre stuff. And larded with commercials, but that’s what the DVR is for.
Bogart and Lizabeth Scott coming up in Dead Reckoning (1947) at 2:30 a.m. EDT on GetTV. And Gene Hackman in The Conversation (1974) on Movies! at 3:10 a.m. But then it’s followed by Prancer (1989): “A widower’s daughter finds a wounded reindeer that she is sure must be from Santa’s sleigh.” To be fair, I haven’t seen it, so it may be fantastic, but I’m guessing not.
Radio One
I’m glad that Iota is still around and booking interesting alt-country bands. When I lived in Arlington, I used to go there at least once a week. Most of my friends thought I was pretty crazy.
mclaren
@Mnemosyne:
Well, I distinctly remember you admitting that you piloted one of the 757s that hit the Twin Towers on 9/11, and I distinctly remember that you further said that you parachuted out just before the jet hit.
This is unconvincing. Anyone can “distinctly remember” anything.
I never voted for Bush. I never voted for either Bush. In 2000 I voted for Al Gore, while in 1988 I voted for Dukakis.
As disinformation goes, your latest attempt is just sad.
Mnemosyne
@mclaren:
Anti-vaxxers do the same thing, and for the same reason — because they mistakenly think they understand the articles they link to.
Mnemosyne
@mclaren:
So clear it up for us right now: what gender do you identify as?
mclaren
@Steeplejack:
Hey, that sounds like a cool channel. Dead Reckoning is a great flick. Always thought it was weird though that they kept calling Miami “Cape City.” What, they were scared of a lawsuit?
I wish some movie channel would show out-of-print films noir like The Window (1949) and Fraulein Doktor (1969) and Gun Crazy (1949). Saw ’em on 16mm film at the San Diego comic con back in the day when they used to have film rooms that would show anything and everything at 3:00 am while people sacked out in the back rows because they couldn’t afford a hotel room. But haven’t seen those films since.
Mnemosyne
@mclaren:
And you were anti-Iraq War in 2003, or you supported it? It’s possible I’ve conflated you supporting the Iraq War and you voting for Bush.
Personally, I did neither — I knew Bush was lying his ass off and couldn’t believe that anyone bought Powell’s dog-and-pony show at the UN.
mclaren
@Mnemosyne:
Male, obviously. Why on earth was there any doubt?
mclaren
@Mnemosyne:
I initially and foolishly supported the Iraq invasion in 2003, then became vehement against it as soon as it became clear there were no WMDs. By that point, of course, the harm has been done and it was too late.
You’re smarter than I was. I just couldn’t believe the Secretary of State would gin up a bunch of phony evidence in a presentation to the whole world in front of the UN. Stupid me. If you want proof I’m stupid, that’s Exhibit One. In my defense, a lot of people are in the same boat. But that’s no excuse. I should’ve known better. After all, I lived through LBJ’s horseshit dog-and-pony show about the Gul of Tonkin and Reagan’s horseshit dog-and-pony shows about Nicaragua and the Sandanistas.
Mnemosyne
@mclaren:
You can get both Gun Crazy and The Window on DVD. Fraulein Doktor is not a film noir, it’s an Italian WWI film.
Mnemosyne
@mclaren:
Thank you. I will adjust my pronouns.
mclaren
Incidentally, speaking of LBJ lying his ass off about the Gulf of Tonkin and Reagan lying his ass off about Nicaragua and Colin Powell and Bush and the rest of the toadies in the White House lying their asses off about WMDs in Iraq…that kind of history makes it a very poor tactic to accuse someone of being “paranoid” and “having fantasies” when they suggest that similar things are happening today vis-a-vis the NSA and online disinformation.
The last 30 years of American politics shows that there’s no goddamn such thing as being too paranoid. As John Cole keeps saying, the Dirty Fucking Hippies warned us back in the sixties and we should have listened.
Steeplejack
@mclaren:
Gun Crazy was on TCM a few weeks ago. And I think The Window has been on one of the channels recently, but I can’t swear to it.
I always felt like the town in Dead Reckoning is smaller than Miami and on the Gulf side of Florida. Haven’t seen it in a while, so I can’t offer any evidence.
There is a long tradition in detective fiction of fake city names. Philip Marlowe was always going down to Bay City (Santa Monica, I believe) and getting in trouble there.
mclaren
@Mnemosyne:
Kewl. Thanks for the info. Fraulein Docktor feels noirish to me, despite its WW I setting. Fortunately, someone appears to have put it on YouTube in its entirety.
Mnemosyne
@Steeplejack:
I assume comic books picked that habit up from detective fiction, what with “Metropolis” and “Gotham” clearly being New York City. One of Marvel’s innovations was saying, Yeah, it’s New York City.
Mnemosyne
@Steeplejack:
Also, too, upon re-watching Murder, My Sweet recently (the Dick Powell version), I discovered that Chandler did at least two versions of the story that it was based on — he had written one version before he came up with the character of Phillip Marlowe, and then re-wrote it later to put it into the Marlowe canon.
This may be one of the reasons a character ends up dead and even Chandler didn’t know whodunit.
mclaren
@Steeplejack:
That’s good news. Gun Crazy has one of the most famous tracking shots in cinema history. They cut open the back of a station wagon and mounted a full 35mm camera rig in it. Then they had the actress go into a real bank and come running back out with an actor playing a policeman chasing her. The camera tracks their getaway through the front windshield of the car.
The people on the street are real people, not extras. They didn’t know what was going on. The director wanted realistic reactions.
Nowadays, that kind of stunt would get your actors and camera crew shot by a SWAT team, I guess. But it looks great on film.
Mnemosyne
@LT:
If you have some physical limitations, you might want to consider Pilates instead. It’s more expensive to do reformer classes, but you do it laying down because it was originally developed as a form of physical therapy.
SiubhanDuinne
@efgoldman:
Could have done without the bolding, but I admit to some skewiness. Even so, I don’t think I’m the oldest commenter around here — I have a vague memory that someone has me beat by a couple of years. Still, I think I’m senior to Iowa Old Lady, Dance Around in Your Bones, and Sarah Proud and Tall, to name just three of our more, um, venerable Juicers.
Liquid
Let’s just agree to line up Steeplejack, mclaren, and Mnemosyne and just shoot ’em in the fucking head. I’ve got two tickets to Iron Maiden, baby!
BillinGlendaleCA
@mclaren: Being that scene was filmed in the part of town I used to live, I’m sure the Glendale PD were informed. You know, you have to even get a permit from the city to film.
another Holocene human
@raven: ditto
Plus the whole first season was like a live action comic book. I think actors were cast for having exaggerated facial features.
another Holocene human
@ David Koch
Was Lebron thinking about global climate change when he fled Miami?
another Holocene human
?@mclaren: Today: they all lied and spied, the ‘noia is justified
Yesterday: Dems used to be clear eyed about their pols, now we’re in Reagan worship territory
Shorter NSA concern trolls: whatever argument seems expedient at the time
Because we don’t want to say we just can’t seem to trust the guy or give him the benefit of the doubt. … huh.
Corner Stone
@Omnes Omnibus (the first of his name):
He seems like exactly what he is. A metric shitload of douche.
Have you ever read anything that stupid hipster douche has ever posted here?
J R in WV
@Mike in NC:
Iams kibble has been getting our cats to 18-20 years old. With a spoonful of Friskies meaty bits on top.