Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Is it negotiation when the other party actually wants to shoot the hostage?

We are aware of all internet traditions.

As long as McCarthy is Speaker, the House will never be in order.

Perhaps you mistook them for somebody who gives a damn.

Republicans: slavery is when you own me. freedom is when I own you.

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

Authoritarian republicans are opposed to freedom for the rest of us.

Republicans in disarray!

The poor and middle-class pay taxes, the rich pay accountants, the wealthy pay politicians.

Wow, you are pre-disappointed. How surprising.

Republicans don’t want a speaker to lead them; they want a hostage.

Let there be snark.

Republicans seem to think life begins at the candlelight dinner the night before.

You cannot shame the shameless.

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

“Squeaker” McCarthy

It’s the corruption, stupid.

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

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

You are so fucked. Still, I wish you the best of luck.

If you are in line to indict donald trump, stay in line.

Conservatism: there are some people the law protects but does not bind and others who the law binds but does not protect.

A snarling mass of vitriolic jackals

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

You are here: Home / Open Threads / It Takes a Village

It Takes a Village

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Christion stopped by for dinner, and afterwards sat down and was immediately claimed:

village

Basically, these are going to be the best socialized puppies in the world by the time they are adopted. Well, by the time Thurston is adopted, because as you all know by now, commenter geg6 was approved by Furkids and will be picking up Lovey at the 12 week mark (4 weeks from now). We’re planning to meet in the interim so she and Koda can meet Lovey- probably at a dog park. I’m going to get the puppies their shots tomorrow or Friday, so hopefully soon.

On the personal front, I didn’t sleep well last night, and it is starting to look like I am really going to have to consider getting my reconstructive shoulder surgery sooner rather than later. I can’t sleep for more than an hour before my right shoulder freezes into place, and with it being bone on bone, it’s kind of excruciating to get it mobile enough to move so I can fall back asleep. Like- hurts so bad it takes your breath away. Wasn’t so much an issue when I was drinking (and, in fact, one of the reasons I was drinking), but now that I am living the clean life, it hurts. A lot. We were trying to hold off a couple more years, but I’m not sure I want to keep on like this or for how much longer I can.

Speaking of drinking, according to Maddow, two secret service officers were caught crashing their car into a WH barricade after a late night of drinking.

Reader Interactions

159Comments

  5. 5.

    Josie

    Sorry you are having shoulder problems. It would probably be good to go ahead and have the surgery while Shawn is there to help you during the recovery period.

  8. 8.

    Mnemosyne (iPhone)

    FWIW, my retired boss had her knee replaced last year because it had gotten to bone-on-bone and is now wondering why she waited so long. The difference is like night and day, she says. You will probably need narcotics for at least a few days afterwards so it will heal properly, but if you do it on a schedule and have someone else give them to you, it shouldn’t be a concern.

  11. 11.

    raven

    A year ago I was diagnosed with a torn labrum. I signed up for surgery and Violet, among other here, urged me to check it out further before I did it. I am in no way saying John’s injury is the same but I quit swimming for 6 weeks and it got better. I had been swimming every other day up until a couple of weeks ago. After hitting it every day I am starting to feel that little tweak return so I’m going to back off again.

  12. 12.

    JPL

    The Secret Service agent stuff is just stupid. I know they have a stressful job but really how do you crash into barricades in front of the White House. Thurston is just shaking his head.

  18. 18.

    mainmata

    Yes, Lovey goes to Pittsburgh (if I am not mistaken), my hometown. That’s great and the universe is now in balance.

  19. 19.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @JPL: So your question was not so much about the mechanics of it but rather addressed the “WTF were they thinking when they decided to get that drunk?” aspects of the story?

  20. 20.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @JPL:

    There are enough reasons (RWNJs, open-carry crazies, Republican Senators, etc.) to worry about the First Family’s security. I would really REALLY REALLY like to not have the Secret Service be one of those reasons. Jeezopete.

  22. 22.

    Iowa Old Lady

    Sorry about your shoulder, John. The inability to sleep would really suck.

    Christian and the puppies are so cute.

  23. 23.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @raven:

    We need to start using third person around here, e.g., “How does one crash into barricades?” It may sound stuffy but it eliminates most of the ambiguity.

  26. 26.

    Jacks mom

    I just hope you get better John. The world needs good people like you & the world needs them in fighting form.

  27. 27.

    JPL

    @Baud: Probably not while crashing into barricades at the White House.
    I kinda feel bad for the agents and at the same time thinking how can you be so stupid. I say move the agents to Ferguson.

  28. 28.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    I’m sure the stress is considerable. And I have no idea how much they’re paid (probably not nearly enough). And many of us have, on one or more occasions, had more to drink than we should have and maybe have even done some embarrassing things under that influence.

    But come ON. You’re responsible for the security of the President of the United States and his family, and you get shitfaced on your night off? Uh-unh.

  29. 29.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    @Baud: Or, one drinks. I still think using “you” for the question and answer is best.

    Any ambiguity can be pretty easily cleared up as raven did.

    My comment was an answer to “how do you crash into barricades”. you drink. Not YOU DRINK.

  31. 31.

    Ruckus

    John, I put up with a shoulder for years that didn’t heal right after a torn rotator cuff. Tried 6 months of PT, twice over 3-4 yrs and while it got a little better, no where near enough. So after like 12 yrs I finally had the surgery. It did take another round of PT and time to heal but it was well worth doing 8 yrs ago. And that shoulder still works better than the other one.

  33. 33.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Baud:

    Yes I do. I’m enjoying a glass of wine at this very moment. I’m also not responsible for the safety and security of POTUS, FLOTUS,and FDOTUS.

  35. 35.

    Mike J

    two secret service officers were caught crashing their car into a WH barricade after a late night of drinking.

    Why did Hilary let this happen? When is she going to come clean about it?

  42. 42.

    April

    I have twice had the honor of adopting litter mates. I thought it wonderful that they were always matched in energy and could rough house equally matched together. The only difficult part is they tend to pass away in proximity to each other, so it is a double hurt when they go. But then, years of double fun more than outweigh that. Sorry to hear the kiddos are gonna be separated.

    Sorry also to hear your shoulder keeps you from sleeping. Seems to me if you can’t sleep well, you can’t live well.

  43. 43.

    JPL

    OT.. I sent my son the two statements from the SAE members that withdrew from O.U. I asked him what one had the same crisis management company that Target used for their credit card breach working for them. He guessed wrong. link

    He admitted that he should have guessed the right one because only one sounds genuine.

  47. 47.

    Roger Moore

    @Omnes Omnibus:
    I suspect the root cause of the problem is that they didn’t decide how much to drink when they were still sober. Drinking causes you to lose your judgment, including your judgment about just how drunk you are. Many terrible decisions have hung on exactly this point.

  51. 51.

    Mnemosyne (tablet)

    @JPL:

    I didn’t see anything in that link about the statement being written by a crisis management company, so now I’m curious. I’m assuming that you’re saying the more sincere-sounding one that came from the student himself was the crisis management company one? If so, his parents got very sound advice.

  52. 52.

    Bill Murray

    The best novel about the Secret Service protecting a Prwsidentg is John Welter’s “Night of the Avenging Blowfish: A Novel of Covert Operations, Love, and Luncheon Meat”

  53. 53.

    Anne Laurie

    Congratulations, geg6! If you guys are meeting up in advance, you might want to consider including Thurston in the party — Koda might be happier with a new ‘little brother’ than with another girl dog usurping *her* space. I know Koda’s a sweetheart & she’ll probably be happy just to have another playmate, but dogs can be sex-selective when you least expect it…

    Cole — as far as your shoulder repair goes, if ’twere done, ’twere well it were done quickly. And once it’s over, you won’t have that excuse any more.

  54. 54.

    JPL

    @Mnemosyne (tablet): It was the parents statement. Earlier this morning, I read the Dallas news that mentioned Pettit’s family hired the firm, before I read the comments for the O.U. students. They are contrite and Parker’s statement has excuses.

    My son said he should have figured it out because they had a website set up.

  56. 56.

    Mary G

    I needed a knee replacement in the 1980s, but I didn’t have it because a) 30% copay out of my financial reach, and b) at the time they said it would only last 10-15 years and you could only have it twice. That meant I would be SOL at about 65-70 years old and I didn’t want that.

    In 2006 I got my moocher certificate in the form of a Medicare card and ran directly to the orthopedic surgeon. I was terrified of the surgery, but at that point I could wake myself up screeching from pain just by turning over in my sleep. Lots of people told me I’d be sorry I waited so long. I didn’t believe them until a couple of months after the surgery, but then I was totally upset with myself for not just doing it years earlier by running up credit cards or robbing a bank or something.

    So I know whereof you speak. I hope you too feel like you should have done it years ago.

    Congrats to geg6 and Lovey! We expect photos, you know.

  57. 57.

    Gin & Tonic

    @JPL: Am I getting this right? It sounds to me like the Rice one was written by a human, and the Petitt one by a firm of professionals.

  58. 58.

    Mnemosyne (tablet)

    @JPL:

    See, it was the parents’ apology that seemed full of excuses to me, mostly because it was the parents making the apology on behalf of the (young) adult child. At least Rice made his own apology and said he was ashamed of his own behavior instead of letting Mommy and Daddy say it for him.

  60. 60.

    Mnemosyne (tablet)

    @JPL:

    Also, too, as I said in another thread, Rice’s apology sounded like he had just gotten off the phone with a Jesuit who was very, very disappointed in him. I have some hope that, with some education and community service under his belt, Rice just might learn something from this at some point down the road.

  61. 61.

    JPL

    @Mnemosyne (tablet): Mommy and Daddy said there are consequences and that not only words but actions will fix this. It was polished. Parker mentioned threats and social media against him, his family and his fraternity . If you parse the two, you can see the difference.

  63. 63.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @JPL: Parker’s was less polished, but more believable. At least it was to me.

    ETA: Especially in that it was his own statement not that of his parents.

  66. 66.

    Hal

    My co-worker needs a hip replacement, but keeps putting the surgery off. Meanwhile, every shift she spends the entire time moaning in pain and popping a butt load of pain pills she’s basically immune to at this point. I can’t figure out why she keeps putting the surgery off since she’s obviously uncomfortable, but she is a stubborn old mule.

  67. 67.

    Mnemosyne (tablet)

    @JPL:

    To me, though, the mention of the threats sounded like it was part of what he was apologizing for, because he realizes that it’s his own fault that his family and friends are getting harassed. So, as OO said, overall it came across as much more sincere than the other one.

  68. 68.

    JPL

    @Omnes Omnibus: Had I not read the Dallas news first, I don’t know how I would feel. The first thing I read was about the Pettit’s hired the same firm that worked with Home Depot and Target during their credit card breach. Their comment was polished and it’s true that Parker’s wasn’t. It must have worked because the news media seem to have left them alone.

  70. 70.

    Omnes Omnibus

    Completely OT: I met a 92 year immigrant from Germany earlier today. During our conversation, he mentioned that he had been a lieutenant in the German navy. It took a couple of beats but the math came to me that he had been of junior officer age in the first part of the ’40s. He also had the social snobbery thing that I found in a number of the Germans I have met; once he found out that I had been an officer as well, his manner toward me became different. In this case, he spoke more equal to equal than old guy to young(er) guy.

  73. 73.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    @SiubhanDuinne: I thought they both sucked, but I’m a hard room to work. My sense continues to be that the regret is having gotten busted at, rather than having actually been, arrogant racist shitheels.

    The Rice statement noted the family victimhood (out of our house due to death threats) but at least sounded like it was written by one author and delivered in the first person. The Pettit statement was issued by the parents (?!?), who claim that their son is a good boy and so much more than an arrogant racist shitheel, and they want privacy to heal. Plus there’s a website (?!?) with the statement, so the whole thing seems clearly the product of a less than excellent crisis management plan.

    It will take much more than either for me to believe any of the douchecanoes actually regret their behavior and the attitudes it demonstrated.

  74. 74.

    aimai

    @SiubhanDuinne: Its not even the getting drunk that matters–its being arrogant and stupid enough to drink and drive. Nothing says they can’t drink to stupefaction at home or with friends in a hotel.

  75. 75.

    PurpleGirl

    @Omnes Omnibus: F-DOTUS. Or if you don’t want it to sound nasty, you say the whole thing First Daughters of the US. Personally I’d just say the President’s daughters.

  77. 77.

    PurpleGirl

    I know Christion must like holding Thurston but the look on his face has a certain tinge of resigned acceptance that the puppeh has claimed his lap.

  80. 80.

    PurpleGirl

    @Hal: She’s probably scared of the surgery. She knows she needs it and that it would help her but she’s also probably heard horror stories about the surgery. So she puts up with the pain.

  82. 82.

    PurpleGirl

    @Mary G: Luckily when I needed the hemilaminectomy at L5-S1, my insurance/healthcare was HIP and they covered the whole cost.

  83. 83.

    Mike E

    @a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q): Yes. I’ll be watching the Rice chap with a keen eye. Similarly, even as I was impressed by a contemporaneous and effortless apology given by one Michael Vick, I still watch that channel with great interest. Too.

    The check may still clear, who knows.

  84. 84.

    Mary G

    @efgoldman: That Fred. One of my friends had a hip replacement that never worked right, she might have gone to his California branch.

    Turned out the one they used (Stryker??) was bad from the get-go. The metal modular necks and stems of the one they gave her were prone to corrosion, releasing excessive metal debris into her body, damaging surrounding bone and tissue. Not only that, but it released a ton of cobalt into her blood, which she will have to be tested for the rest of her life. The surgery she had to replace and repair it wasn’t a whole lot of help. A nightmare. I guess I have been lucky.

  85. 85.

    Mike J

    @aimai:

    Nothing says they can’t drink to stupefaction at home or with friends in a hotel.

    When I lived in DC they also had “taxicabs”, cars for hire that would drive you to any place you named in exchange for money.

  86. 86.

    PurpleGirl

    @Mary G: I’ve seen the name Stryker mentioned in those attorney commercials for settlements from class actions suits.

  88. 88.

    Gopher2b

    I’m at a crossroads. At what point do you give up on public service (that you love) to either sell out or altogether quit your profession because it’s too hard on you family? What would be the trigger for you? I’ve been traveling like crazy for five years, missed at least 1/3 of my youngest’s life. Feeling under appreciated (macro climate – federal budget woes – doesn’t help) and ready to cash in or just quit.

  92. 92.

    Mary G

    @PurpleGirl: @efgoldman: She joined the class action suit a couple of years ago. She is a bit embarrassed about it, because even though she’s a lifelong Democrat, she’s bought into the “too many frivolous lawsuits” demagoguery, but she thinks these assholes need to pay for making her go through all the misery. I told her to take them for every penny she can get. Sounds like she might get something. When the bottom-feeders start the late-night advertising, it’s usually because the defendant is getting ready to pony up, and they want in on that sweet fill-out-some-forms-and-get-40%-of-the-dough action.

  93. 93.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Gopher2b: I thought so, but wasn’t sure. BigLaw would be worse*, but, as an ex-AUSA, BigLaw would let you cash in. If you want to switch to the dark side, I am sure crim. def. firms would love to have you. Ever consider teaching? I’ve done some adjunct teaching and it’s fun.

    *I spent exactly one year in a BigLaw firm. Never again.

  94. 94.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    Report: Texas Frat Member Posts Racial Tweets Defending Oklahoma Chapter

    “Let’s start gangs and shoot each other and attack cops then maybe the media will like us. #CNNHatesMe,” Coulson apparently wrote in one of the tweets.
    “I’ve been chanting Cracker for 20 minutes, no CNN story yet. Will keep you updated,” he reportedly wrote in another tweet.

    The charming lad is a junior at Texas State- San Antonio, and a gentleman of SAE, as they like to call themselves. The picture on his now deleted twitter account is a former president, guess which one.

  95. 95.

    wasabi gasp

    A bunch of years ago, I tore something just below my bicep. Told mom about it and she knew exactly what to do: yank and twist my arm in every possible (and impossible!) direction until it burned like the fire of the sun requiring a visit to the doctor.

  96. 96.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    @Gopher2b: That’s a tough question. A friend of mine quit at just about my age now and is doing white collar defense for bucketloads more money. She didn’t travel though. Another friend left for a common fleas judicial appointment, and she was quite good in that role. Now she’s in higher ed. Neither traveled though, so it’s a very different decision in your case.

    I never had a fed gig, so it was never an issue for me, for better or worse.

    @Omnes Omnibus: I always thought BigLaw would be hell on earth. As for teaching, a psychiatrist told me last month “we should just put you on the faculty,” when I ran into him for my 2d lecture to 4th year psych residents that month. I always wanted to be a Professor of Psychiatry and adjunct would suit me fine. Apparently they was a lawyer in that dept. earlier.

  100. 100.

    Mary G

    @Gopher2b: I believe that you should do whatever you won’t regret on your deathbed, which is usually not spending enough time with family, I think, but YMMV.

    That said, thank you for your service. America needs people like you and the constant assault from all the wingnuts in and out of Congress must be awful.

  101. 101.

    Gopher2b

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    I’m in a Main Justice travelling unit. The lifestyle is hell but the work is 100x better than Biglaw (where I was for 3 years prior). I would never go back. Boutique maybe but it all sucks. I might just go teach history (no idea how that would work).

  102. 102.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: You know, years ago, my fraternity got busted for bad behavior (damage to property at a county club we rented out for a formal; apologies had been made at the time of the incident and payment to cover repairs was made almost immediately, but the CC still reported us to the school). I re-rented Animal House and memorized Otter’s speech. I was the only member of the leadership to be banned form attending the hearing. We were put on probation for a year and told to pay for the damage (which, I’ll note we had done before the complaint was filed).

    /former over-privileged, hipster, preppy youth

  103. 103.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    and the Great Outreach rolls along…

    Richard Quinn has been quoted in the press as South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham’s longtime political adviser and his consultant and pollster. But there’s another title that Quinn once held: neo-Confederate magazine editor..

    Common man, it’s been like ten years

    It was in his capacity as editor that Quinn wrote that Martin Luther King Jr.’s role in the Civil Rights movement was “to lead his people into a perpetual dependence on the welfare state, a terrible bondage of body and soul.” He called Nelson Mandela a “terrorist” and a “bad egg.” He wrote positively of David Duke’s election: “What better way to reject politics as usual than to elect a maverick like David Duke?” In one column, he called Martin Luther King Day’s purpose “vitriolic and profane.”

    I’m sure Lindsey knew nothing about all this

    “I’ve been with (Graham) since he ran for Congress in ‘93, and whatever Lindsey does this cycle, I’ll be in his corner,” Quinn said in one interview last year.
    In 1999, Graham himself did a lengthy question and answer with the Southern Partisan on his life and the Clinton impeachment. A spokesman for Graham said they were waiting to comment until after this story was published.

  105. 105.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q): There is a Div-III Wisconsin college that has advertised in the past for a Legal Studies professor – part of the College of Business. It involves teaching basic criminal and business law course to undergrads. And being a pre-law advisor. If I see it again, I am applying. I have actually enjoyed my teaching gigs – my mom and her dad were teachers, so it runs in the family.

  107. 107.

    Mary G

    I am getting a little reader’s crush on Paul Waldman, I think. I posted a link of an open letter he wrote to HRC, now he has a column out taking on the Village as well.

    Here’s a tip for my fellow scribes and opinionators: If you find yourself justifying blanket coverage of an issue because it “plays into a narrative,” stop right there.

    and later:

    To be clear, I’m not saying reporters shouldn’t aggressively investigate Hillary Clinton, when it comes to her tenure at the State Department, her time in the Senate, her activities as a private citizen, or anything else. They absolutely should, just as they should look into all candidates — that’s their job. She wants to be president, and the public needs to know as much as possible about who she is and what she would do if she gets to sit in the Oval Office.

    But as they do that, they should exercise their considered news judgment, just as they do every day on every other topic. They should apply similar standards to all the candidates; if it’s important that Clinton used a private email account while at State, then it must be equally important that other candidates have used private emails for work, and they should be subject to as much scrutiny as she is.

  112. 112.

    Mike J

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    damage to property at a county club we rented out for a formal; apologies had been made at the time of the incident and payment to cover repairs was made almost immediately, but the CC still reported us to the school)

    You could be PM if you’d done that at a school in England.

    How many future leaders can you name in this pic?

  113. 113.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Mike J: DTD at my LAC isn’t quite the Bullingdon. But we paid for what we broke when the bill was presented and we were open to minorities. And on Wednesday evenings, we had semi-formal dinners where we had intellectual discussions with professors. Later that evening, we would crack a keg for Wednesday night drinking club. Sometimes the professor would stay.

    ETA: I know Cameron and Boris Johnson were members. I think Hugh Grant was in the more deviant Piers Gaveston.

  114. 114.

    eemom

    @Mary G:

    I like him too….except I’m not sure what to make of his apparent concept that the emmessemm actually cares about doing the job it’s supposed to be doing.

  115. 115.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Violet:

    Actually, I am heading for bed now, as I’m not sure how early I’ll have to be on call for the Trip to the Hospital. Not too early, I hope.

    Anyhow, I would be very glad of your hard-earned advice, but maybe we should take it off-line. My email address is SiubhanDuinne (at) gmail (dot) com.

    Looking forward to hearing from you. Thanks so much.

  116. 116.

    Violet

    @SiubhanDuinne: Okay, I’m happy if any of my experience can help.

    1. Find a geriatrician and make that person your elder relative’s primary physician. Like a pediatrician for kids, a geriatrician works with older adults. Some things change as adults age. Medications work differently, needs are different. A good geriatrician can help identify issues.

    2. Make sure all medications are purchased through the same pha rmacy if possible. That way the phar macist can look over any interactions. If some are purchased locally and some are purchased via mail order, make sure the doctor knows all (especially if some are prescribed by a different doctor) and double check with a pha rmacist. Tip: Costco is usually the cheapest local pha rmacy. You don’t have to be a member to go to the pha rmacy

    3. Getting her to a neurologist who specializes in older adults is a good idea, but some of the testing can be rough. The nurse for the neurologist my mom saw eventually told me “off the record” that she wouldn’t recommend my mom have the testing because it took all day and can be rough on older people. Be sure the treatments are worth it.

    4. Always consider depression in your older relative. Depression in older people can present differently than in younger adults (complaints about pain, for instance, can be a sign of depression). Double check with your geriatrics specialist and/or neurologist about this.

    Hope some of that helps. What was she going into the hospital for? I guess I missed that she was headed to the hospital.

  117. 117.

    Violet

    @SiubhanDuinne: Sorry I missed you by just a minute. I am also heading to bed. If you miss seeing this tomorrow I’ll work at following up by email. I’m probably not able to get to it tomorrow until late.

    Best of luck at the hospital!

  120. 120.

    Elie

    I tell you, there is something wrong with the whole SS thing and its being given notoriety as well. There is intent here –whether in the actions or behaviors — or in the broadcast of these breeches. It is intended to be frightening and demoralizing — to the President as well as those who support him. If this keeps up much longer, I advocate disbanding this group and letting the President hire his own security team or have a more direct hand in recruiting and vetting. These people, it is evident, cannot be trusted. Sad for real, but evident on its face.

  123. 123.

    Elie

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    Best to you!

    I have missed what has been an issue for you. My apologies! I wish you the very very best and will try to catch up and find out what I have missed. Sleep well and best to you always —

  124. 124.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Mike J: Nah. My school did Rush in January. As a result, I had friends in just about ever house and friends who joined no house. Of my best friends for undergrad, one is a fellow Delt and two others were Fijis. I don’t think my experience is necessarily typical, but it is mine.

    ETA: You’ve the punk/alt scene street cred to avoid the handshake anyway.

  127. 127.

    cckids

    @PurpleGirl:

    I know Christion must like holding Thurston but the look on his face has a certain tinge of resigned acceptance that the puppeh has claimed his lap.

    To me, its the same look I get from my 20-ish aged kids: “Really, another picture? Fine, go ahead. “

  130. 130.

    Steeplejack

    @John Cole +0:

    I feel you on the shoulder thing. A couple of months ago I pinched or irritated a nerve in my neck, and my right shoulder and arm were very sore for quite a while. Aleve didn’t help much, and sleeping was difficult because I couldn’t find a single comfortable position. It’s really daunting when you don’t have the refuge of sleep. I ended up sleeping at odd times when I was so tired that it overrode the discomfort.

    Probably a good idea to go ahead and have the shoulder surgery sooner rather than later.

    This post also has reminded me that my right knee is sore almost all the time. It crept up slowly over a long period of time, and I unconsciously adapted to it, so I typically notice it only when I make a sudden “wrong” move and get a twinge. Might be an operation in the future there.

  131. 131.

    Mnemosyne (tablet)

    @Elie:

    I remember that the Clinton SS detail was the source of a lot of the craziest stuff about them (like “crack pipes on the White House Christmas tree”). I wonder if this batch of SS agents are more professional (I know, but hear me out) and are NOT running to the press with all kinds of crazy stories, so the MSM is reporting everything that’s always gone on but got covered up when the SS was cooperating.

  134. 134.

    srv

    @Gopher2b: I hear the SS is looking for a few good men.

    In other news:

    In 2002, observations gathered by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey led to the recognition of a ring of stars concentric with the rest of the disk of our Milky Way galaxy, but protruding beyond the galactic plane. This ring, dubbed the “Monoceros Ring”

    Now, a new study led by Professor Heidi Jo Newberg of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute has found that there are several concentric protruding rings in the Milky Way’s disk, indicating that our galaxy is at least 50 percent larger previously thought.

    I guess 50% is close enough for sciencey stuff.

  137. 137.

    CanadaGoose

    My 80+ neighbor just has a shoulder replacement and completed her physical therapy. She’ll be out in her garden when the weather gets a bit warmer. She’s pleased as can be.

    Shoulder surgery has improved greatly in the last decade.

  138. 138.

    piratedan

    @Mike J: a few of u have shared our fondness of our greek experience, but I can see the dark side and how and why so many are turned off by the experience. At the time, when I joined DTD back at Carolina, we were one of the few mixed houses in the system. There are a few other delts here that comment on the blog as well.

  140. 140.

    Mike J

    @Mike J: My guess: top people in the Republican party have decided that they have lost the gay civil rights struggle, and they’d rather surrender to the Americans than the Soviets. Gay people, having fewer children than straights, tend to have more money and may become stalwart tax dodgers.

    The Mormons don’t like being reminded that they didn’t consider black people human until 1979 and have decided to get out in front of history/minimize what gets passed.

    Regardless of their corrupt motives, it’s a step in the right direction.

  142. 142.

    SRW1

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    He also had the social snobbery thing that I found in a number of the Germans I have met;

    Are you refering to German officers or Germans in general?

  144. 144.

    Baud

    I just realized that FDOTUS refers to the First Daughters and not the First Dogs. I must have been subliminally influenced by the picture of Cole’s pups.

  145. 145.

    BillinGlendaleCA

    @Baud: Well, if you’re Rush Limpdick in the 90’s there’s no difference.

    ETA: Conservative “entertainers” sure do have an odd sense of humor.

  147. 147.

    BillinGlendaleCA

    @Baud: What ever happened to that Franken guy, he was really funny? I saw his cousin on the TV machine the other night talking about HillMail.

  149. 149.

    Keith G

    @a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q):

    My sense continues to be that the regret is having gotten busted at, rather than having actually been, arrogant racist shitheels.

    I believe that to be a distinction without a difference.

    In the throes of a self-created crises, universally human defensive emotions kick in. However, once the immediate storm passes, there is actual time and space for reflection. If these guys are salvageable, this is when the extent of their misconduct will hit them.

  150. 150.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @SRW1: A sub-set of the Germans in general.*

    *Caveat: anecdotal only. And class consciousness might have been a more accurate term than snobbery.

  151. 151.

    PIGL

    @Gopher2b: it’s not selling out. not anymore. We’ve already been sold out, by our rulers and our fellow citizens. I’d sell out in a microsecond if anyone in industry would pay me more than I am making now….you do need to think about the pension, but there’s a real risk they’ll steal those from us anyway. Public sector pensions being considered fully thieve-able these days.

  152. 152.

    Aleta

    @raven: Thanks for this link. Trying to decide about surgery even though I’ve got full tears bc some say don’t do it.

  153. 153.

    Josie

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: A correction – It’s Texas State San Marcos, not San Antonio. There is a big difference. The university in San Antonio is UTSA and is extremely diverse and inclusive. I know because my youngest graduated from there.

  155. 155.

    J R in WV

    I had total right shoulder joint replacement surgery 3 weeks ago by a surgeon recommended by my family doc, who we’ve been seeing since the late 1970s. I saw the surgeon yesterday for second post-op follow-up. He removed the clear plastic strip that covered the wound – it was like pulling off a band-aid.

    Then he held his hand up in the air and asked if I could touch his hand – yes, I could.

    Serious pain meds, so far mostly at night to aid sleep. Now my left shoulder hurts far more than my right shoulder does. Of course I had the worst shoulder done first. Pain meds don’t work all that well for bone pain. Of course my surgery removed the bone that hurt.

    I will lose some moblility – from ideal 180 degrees (which was already gone from joint damage) to around 140 degrees. I will not be able to lay block, hang sheetrock, etc. I also won’t have pain. Won’t have pain is the whole point.

  156. 156.

    Fair Economist

    Late to the party here:

    I’m generally a footdragger on reconstructive surgery, and the shoulder replacements aren’t too great BUT …

    Bone on bone is not acceptable, and there’s really no therapy or healing that can help with it. It’s time for replacement. If you need incentive, bone on bone grinding can cause permanent bone deterioration.

  158. 158.

    LongHairedWeirdo

    You know – one possible cure for shoulder pain on a hefty guy during the night is a CPAP.

    See, some folks can’t breathe as easily on one side (and almost everyone breathes more poorly on their back at night). But if your body wants oxygen, it’ll find a position where you can get it. So a person with relatively mild sleep apnea might find that s/he keeps rolling to one side, even though it hurts. And bigger, heftier guys tend to be more vulnerable to apnea.

    And a mild case of apnea might not make you *so* tired you notice it.

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