Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Republican speaker of the house Mike Johnson is the bland and smiling face of evil.

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

You cannot shame the shameless.

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

Bogus polls are all they’ve got left. Let’s bury these fuckers at the polls a year from now.

Innocent people don’t delay justice.

I also would like a pony to improve my balloon juice experience.

Jack be nimble, jack be quick, hurry up and indict this prick.

We won’t go back.

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

Live so that if you miss a day of work people aren’t hoping you’re dead.

A thin legal pretext to veneer over their personal religious and political desires.

The arc of the moral universe doesn’t bend itself. it’s up to us.

It’s all just conspiracy shit beamed down from the mothership.

Somebody needs to explain to DeSantis that nobody needs to do anything to make him look bad.

Chutkan laughs. Lauro sits back down.

Hi god, it’s us. Thanks a heap, you’re having a great week and it’s only Thursday!

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

Yeah, with this crowd one never knows.

Republicans would impeach Biden if he bit into a whole Kit Kat rather than breaking the sections apart.

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

Never entrust democracy to any process that requires Republicans to act in good faith.

We’ll be taking my thoughts and prayers to the ballot box.

Fuck these fucking interesting times.

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Reader Interactions

221Comments

  10. 10.

    Steeplejack

    Anybody got a recommendation for a (cheap) universal remote control? I have a Universal WR7 that has worked great for six or seven years, but some of the buttons are getting hinky. I would get another one, but it has been discontinued.

    My needs are simple: just something to control the TV, cable box and receiver (at least for volume and sound on/off). I never bothered to program the current remote for the DVD player. A quick look on Amazon seems to show things that are way more complicated and expensive than I need.

    ETA: And I just celebrated the Pi Minute!

  13. 13.

    WereBear

    If Mr WereBear is up for a jaunt today, perhaps we will roadtrip to a diner two towns over, which is known worldwide for its pie.

    It is Cabin Fever month, after all.

  16. 16.

    BruceFromOhio

    Dates with math, or math with dates, was a thing with the 10/10/10 and 11/11/11, etc. I like Google’s instant result from just searching pi brings up the calculator and 3.14159265359.

    Alas, the morning pi minute has passed in EDT. Shall await the evenings pi minute.

    Just think, its 11 years, 3 months and 13 days until Plancks Constant Day!

    Until then, it’s another cup of tea on a cold, wet grey morning, with a later trip to the market for some fresh salmon, almonds, and other veggie goodies for dinner. I’m grateful for the rain to wash away all the damned salt so I can get the bikes out.

  17. 17.

    schrodinger's cat

    I am bit dazed, when I woke up this morning I had the dreaded news from India, this time arrived not by a phone call but by a text. One of my father’s cousins who I was close to while growing up died Friday night, she was only 64.

    She was a quite a woman, she was divorced and was a single mother before she was 20. This was in India of 70s. She went back to school became a Chartered Account (similar to a CPA here) and was a successful stock broker.

  19. 19.

    Iowa Old Lady

    My life is boring. At the gym yesterday, a woman was telling us about working for a hotel chain. They once sent her to Cedar Rapids where someone was running a prostitution ring out of one of their hotels. She had to fire the hooker related people. She also decided to order all new sheets.

    Next week, she’s going to NYC as one of the chaperones for 61 high school kids going to a chorus competition. The kids have to bring their luggage early and the chaperones search it.

    So yeah, my life is boring.

  20. 20.

    max

    @Steeplejack: My needs are simple: just something to control the TV, cable box and receiver (at least for volume and sound on/off). I never bothered to program the current remote for the DVD player. A quick look on Amazon seems to show things that are way more complicated and expensive than I need.

    Comcast? The remote they ship with the cable box should do all that.

    The premise behind this song is that there was a law in Texas prohibiting the sale of firearms to customers who are crying.

    Naw, no such law. Wiki:

    Their first album, You Can’t Buy A Gun When You’re Crying, is a reference to comedian Lord Carrett’s joke “I learned a lot from my second marriage… I learned they won’t sell you a handgun if you’re crying…”

    max
    [‘They won’t sell you a handgun if you’re crying, usually, because they don’t want to get shot.’]

  22. 22.

    schrodinger's cat

    I am bit dazed, when I woke up this morning I had the dreaded news from India, this time arrived not by a phone call but by a text. One of my father’s cousins who I was close to while growing up died Friday night, she was only 64.

    She was a quite a woman, she was a divorced single mother when she was not even 20. We are talking about India of 70s, I don’t even know what her life must have have been like. I am sure it was anything but easy. She went back to school became a Chartered Account (similar to a CPA here) and was a successful stock broker.

  23. 23.

    Botsplainer

    Babysitting my grandcat while my wife and daughter are in Thailand and Cambodia. He’s a really chatty, sweet little guy. I’m supervising the interaction between the cats and the dog – they’re having a lot of fun together, and the dog is settling down in how they interact. Weirdly, the cats seem to kind of get along despite a wide age difference.

    The kid managed to (after much effort by her mom) get approval from three necessary government officials to enter a recently-cleared-of-land-mines dig site to consult and work with a Hungarian government funded archaeological team for a few days. She’s stoked.

  26. 26.

    Violet

    @Iowa Old Lady:

    The kids have to bring their luggage early and the chaperones search it.

    Wow. Really? Things have changed. No one ever searched our luggage on those kinds of trips when I was a kid.

  27. 27.

    Botsplainer

    @Violet:

    I was nice, and refrained from snarky (there were a few giggles at the funeral – my cousin, a Methodist minister, was being overly complementary).

  28. 28.

    Gin & Tonic

    Story from Occupied Crimea. March 9 was the birthday of Taras Shevchenko, Ukraine’s most famous poet and activist (from the 19th C), so several people in Simferopol commemorated it by going to that city’s Shevchenko park carrying Ukrainian flags. They were arrested for the crime of displaying a Ukrainian flag. While released pending sentencing, today, Saturday, one of those people went out to meet with some journalists. He wore a blue and yellow sash (blue and yellow being the two colors of the Ukrainian flag.) He was arrested again, for the crime of displaying Ukrainian “symbolism.”

  32. 32.

    Germy Shoemangler

    This evening our local PBS station will be featuring (between awkward pledge breaks) the Doc Brown movie. I’m only familiar with some of the later seasons’ episodes, so the previews looked different to me. Doc Brown smiles more and seems more outgoing. But the townsfolk seem as eccentric as ever.

  34. 34.

    Germy Shoemangler

    My local tv news website ran a story about an older black woman who was mistreated by a CVS clerk while trying to redeem a coupon. The clerk made insulting remarks about her being “dark” (???) and she complained, and fortunately the idiot was fired.

    The reader comments didn’t disappoint. One person called her a “troublemaker” while two other geniuses accused her of playing the (GULP!) “race card”

    I mentioned in an earlier thread my fascination with the horrible and shit-filled comments on my local news media.

  36. 36.

    Betty Cracker

    @max: The radio show host I heard the original story from must have been making shit up again. It happens. They’re notorious stoner-fogeys.

  37. 37.

    schrodinger's cat

    @Iowa Old Lady: Thanks, she gave no fucks about what anyone thought of her and lived life on her own terms. She was with her mom, they were watching TV and sharing a laugh, she died of a massive heart attack on the spot. She went too soon, but not a bad way to go at all.

  38. 38.

    Cervantes

    @Gin & Tonic:

    Also, activists, including Crimean Tatars, are being harassed. Some who have made a trip abroad are not being allowed back in. Others are being deported without warning. Misery abounds.

  39. 39.

    MomSense

    I keep trying to watch the recent Dr. Who season but I can’t quite get into it. Anyone else having trouble with it? I like the new doctor well enough but the story lines aren’t working for me.

  41. 41.

    Mnemosyne (tablet)

    I really, really wanted to go for a hike this weekend because it’s wildflower season and apparently Point Mugu State Park in Malibu is spectacular right now, but I managed to aggravate my old whiplash (shoulder) injury and wouldn’t be able to carry enough water. We would need plenty of water even for a short hike because it’s also going to be 90 freakin’ degrees today — thanks, global warming!

  44. 44.

    Suzanne

    I have to leave in a couple of hours to fly to San Antonio to attend a conference that starts tomorrow. I’ll have a few hours of sightseeing time this afternoon by myself. My hotel is near the convention center. Anyone have any suggestions? Or anyone want to meet up?

  45. 45.

    scav

    @MomSense: Experiences were across the spectrum. Some ranked at the near absolute top for me. others decidedly meh. But then, I’m strongly of the shake things up and let’s see what other dimensions / directions are in here tendency. I found generally there was more to think about after many of these episodes. Not always. Not to mention some wonderful all-hands on deck disagreements about any number of incidents.

  48. 48.

    Yatsuno

    @Suzanne: Oh damn. I have a friend touring around ASU right now looking into doing his doctorate there. I think Virginia is going to win out (he’s from New England and he already thinks the Valley of the Sun is too hot) but if he does decide on Tempe I’ll pass him your name if that’s okay.

  49. 49.

    Avery Greynold

    @Iowa Old Lady: “She had to fire the hooker related people. She also decided to order all new sheets” I’ll bet she didn’t last long in that job. The next week there was an AIDS survivors conference. Week after that was a furry convention. The week after that was…

  51. 51.

    CaseyL

    @schrodinger’s cat: So sorry for your loss! She must have been a real firecracker.

    I have a lot of things to do today, and fortunately (because it’s raining) they’re all indoor things. Shopping for stuff. I’m embarrassed by how much I enjoy shopping for stuff. The old hunter-gatherer instincts, rebooted for modern civilization.

  53. 53.

    schrodinger's cat

    @Cervantes: She has one son and we were close when we were growing up. I haven’t seen him in a while since he now lives on the left coast. I will call him when he is back from India after the funeral.
    I was quite close to her younger brother who lives in Toronto now. The funeral will be on Monday, to give the family time to go back to Bombay.

  59. 59.

    Amir Khalid

    @Origuy:
    It’s ominous that there are people in Russia who think Putin isn’t hardline enough. And who, if sufficiently pissed off with his weakness, might depose him.

  60. 60.

    schrodinger's cat

    @CaseyL@Mnemosyne (tablet): seyL: @Amir Khalid: Thanks!
    Another story about my aunt. She performed her father’s last rites, when he passed away five years ago. In India, upper caste woman are not supposed to even go to the cemetery, she refused to let any of her male cousins stand in for her.

    ETA: Hindu last rites include lighting the funeral pyre and saying good bye to the mortal remains and returning them to the five elements where they came from.

  61. 61.

    NotMax

    Happy happy joy joy.

    Big, big pot of tomato soup is prepared. Big as in a #10 can of diced fire-roasted tomatoes to start with before adding broth and spices. Used newest kitchen toy – an immersion blender – for the first time. Powerful tool. Only drawback is that the power pad (one has to keep it pushed in to operate or to pulse) requires heavy pressure, so the ol’ arthritic thumb had a workout and a half.

    Interesting recipe as it uses a little maple syrup as a sweetener to balance the acidity. Just have to reheat tonight and whisk in creme fraiche before serving.

    Will be tackling the 7 pound eye round roast this afternoon.

  66. 66.

    Iowa Old Lady

    @Suzanne: A stroll on the River Walk is a great way to pass the time. The Alamo is just a block or so off it too, and that’s worth a look.

    If you’re by the Convention Center, I think you can just stroll on out to the River Walk. It’s been a while since I was in San Antonio, but that’s what I recall.

  67. 67.

    MomSense

    @scav:

    I’ll try to watch a few more episodes and see how it goes. I do like the actor who is playing the doctor.

  68. 68.

    Yatsuno

    @Iowa Old Lady: Agreed on the River Walk. And when I was there most of the interesting stuff in San Antonio is pretty much within a 2 mile radius of the River Walk so it’s a good place to be homed in on anyway.

  70. 70.

    NotMax

    Set those recorders.

    Monday, 1:45 p.m. Eastern, TCM

    Wages of Fear

    A favorite. Partially subtitled. Down and out at about its down and outiest, and tension aplenty. You’ll never hear the Blue Danube quite the same way again afterward.

    Later remade as Sorcerer.

  71. 71.

    Origuy

    @Suzanne: If you only have a few hours, the Riverwalk and the Alamo will fill it up. When I was there, I had a little more time and a car, so I went to the MacNay Art Museum and the old missions. I also went (don’t laugh) to the Museum of Texas Cultures. No, it’s not about yogurt; it has exhibits about each culture that made up Texas (Mexican, Czech, German, etc.) It’s not far from the convention center.

  72. 72.

    schrodinger's cat

    @Karen in GA: Thanks! I has a sad, my visits to India are so short and hurried, there is never enough time to catch up with everyone, especially because of my all drama, all the time, MIL takes up a fair amount of my mind space when I am there.

  75. 75.

    Germy Shoemangler

    Quote from Charlie Chaplin’s autobiography:

    “…the lugubrious Hoover sat and sulked, because his DISASTROUS ECONOMIC SOPHISTRY OF ALLOCATING MONEY AT THE TOP IN THE BELIEF THAT IT WOULD PERCOLATE DOWN TO THE COMMON PEOPLE HAD FAILED. And amidst all this tragedy HE RANTED IN THE ELECTION CAMPAIGN THAT IF FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT GOT INTO OFFICE THE VERY FOUNDATIONS OF THE AMERICAN SYSTEM (not an infallible system at that moment)WOULD BE IMPERILED.
    However, FDR did get into office, and the country was not imperiled….”

  76. 76.

    Kay

    My eldest son emails me every day, sometimes several times a day, about everything under the sun yet he did not tell me got a dog. I had to find out third hand.

    What else don’t I know about this person? :)

  78. 78.

    PsiFighter37

    Yesterday marked our 6-month anniversary…hard to believe time has gone by so quickly! It also reminds me we still have a couple of unfinished wedding items (final print of the photo album, sending thank-you notes to folks who got their gifts to us late, etc.).

    Out of curiosity – what is the policy these days on thank-you cards for weddings? We did them, just because I thought that was generally good etiquette. That said, of the 7-8 weddings we’ve been to for other people over the past couple of years, we’ve received thank-you cards from less than half. I don’t honestly care all that much, and I can see how people view them as a money sink of sorts, but I was pretty certain that it was common courtesy to do it. Maybe the times have changed.

    Otherwise, it’s a rainy day here in NYC…need to run some errands and do some light reading for work.

  79. 79.

    Kay

    @Iowa Old Lady:

    I used to get his parking tickets when he was in college because the car he was driving was in my name. I could have tracked his weekend activities based on those tickets. “On Friday January 9 at 2:13 AM you were parked illegally at 111 Main St….”

  80. 80.

    cckids

    @Kay:

    My eldest son emails me every day, sometimes several times a day, about everything under the sun yet he did not tell me got a dog. I had to find out third hand.

    I found out from my daughter that my middle son had a serious girlfriend. (as in, they’d been dating 6 months ++) Which is weird because I would have bet money on them not talking to each other unless in person (they’re at 2 different colleges)

  81. 81.

    ThresherK

    @MattF: Read it. Fascinating stuff, especially finding out there was a “chicken bubble” for certain breeds in (I think) Victorian England.

    I did skim over some of the more precise descriptions of modern poultry ‘farming’. And it’s totally coincidental (sic) that since I’ve read the book I’ve been paying more attention to the sourcing of my chickens.

  82. 82.

    cckids

    @PsiFighter37:

    Out of curiosity – what is the policy these days on thank-you cards for weddings?

    Official etiquette is to still send them. I know many people don’t, but I can guarantee those who receive a handwritten thank you note appreciate it & think you’re classy.

  83. 83.

    Tommy

    @Steeplejack: I just got a Blumoo. Might not fall into the cheap category but lets me control everything, like 20,000 devices with my phone or tablet. With that said depending on your equipment and cable provider, there is most likely a free app for that.

    Before I got the Blumoo I used a Logitech universal remote. Plugged into my computer via a USB port to configure it. A workhorse of a remote control. Bet you can find one online for under $50.

  84. 84.

    rikyrah

    this is utter lunacy mixed in with utter evil

    ………………….

    The Shocking Finding From the DOJ’s Ferguson Report That Nobody Has Noticed

    Posted: 03/13/2015 2:42 pm EDT Updated: 03/13/2015 2:59 pm EDT

    In the city of Ferguson, nearly everyone is a wanted criminal.

    That may seem like hyperbole, but it is a literal fact. In Ferguson — a city with a population of 21,000 — 16,000 people have outstanding arrest warrants, meaning that they are currently actively wanted by the police. In other words, if you were to take four people at random, the Ferguson police would consider three of them fugitives.

    That statistic should be truly shocking. Yet in the wake of the Department of Justice’s withering report on the city’s policing practices, it has gone almost entirely unmentioned. News reports and analysis have focused on the racism discovered in departmental emails, and the gangsterish financial “shakedown” methods deployed against African Americans. In doing so, they have missed the full picture of Ferguson’s operation, which reveals a totalizing police regime beyond any of Kafka’s ghastliest nightmares.

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/nathan-robinson/the-shocking-finding-from-the-doj-ferguson_b_6858388.html

  85. 85.

    Tommy

    @cckids: Yes, yes, yes. A few years ago I bought in bulk these super expensive thank you cards. I hand write a note to new clients. In them I say something along the lines of, hey I built a website for you. We work virtual. Never seen you face-to-face. But I just wanted to take the time to send you a handwritten note and thank you for your business.

    The response I get back from something that takes me only a few minutes to do is staggering in a very positive manner.

  86. 86.

    Kay

    @cckids:

    That’s nice though, that they talk to each other. I used to admire it a little when they were little and would join forces against me or defend one another from my dictatorial demands. I would think “oh, that’s cute that they’re a team of small angry people”.

  91. 91.

    Tommy

    @MomSense: Yes, yes it is. Ferguson is only a few miles from me and I have ranted on these arrest warrants 24/7. There are a lot of staggering things in the DOJ report but the arrest warrants was known long before said report came out.

    What is important to note is most of those warrants are because of unpaid tickets. So you get a ton of tickets for no real reason and then when you can’t pay in full you get an arrest warrant out in your name.

  92. 92.

    cckids

    @Kay:

    I used to admire it a little when they were little and would join forces against me or defend one another from my dictatorial demands. I would think “oh, that’s cute that they’re a team of small angry people”.

    I know! Mine were so, so close when they were small, up until they hit 5th & 7th grade or so. Then the bickering began & lasted for a few years, and I always hoped they’d get back to where they’d been. Looks like that is happening. :)

  96. 96.

    Cervantes

    @rikyrah:

    Numbers for comparison (population, warrants issued in FY, warrants outstanding at end FY):

    Ferguson     21,135     32,975     40,569
    Lee’s Summit     91.364     3,525     2,873
    Independence     116,830     24,051     33,309
    Kansas City     459,787     123,614     249,110

    These are from FY 2013.

  97. 97.

    max

    @Betty Cracker: The radio show host I heard the original story from must have been making shit up again. It happens. They’re notorious stoner-fogeys.

    Or they were yankin’ your chain. No biggie.

    @Origuy: The story that there’s been a coup in Moscow is gaining traction. Still speculation, but with more information behind it. It’s not clear, though, which side is behind it.

    There’s a plausible argument to made for a counter-coup. (Just like there was a plausible argument for his girlfirend giving birth.) Problem is, is that it’s wildly unlikely that a Kiev-born politican who is out of government is going to hook up with a Chechen to do so and succeed. (Because if there’s a palace coup in motion, you need someone on the inside – in fact, a whole lot of somebodies on the inside – to keep it this quiet.)

    Naw, if there’s a palace coup in motion here, it already failed and we’re waiting for the results from the counter-coup. And it would have to be a palace coup because the other kinds of coups are really really noisy.

    Most likely version of violence is that they figured that somebody pulled a hit on Nemtsov as the beginning of a play against Putin and then Putin has gone all in on finding them. In that situation you have your subordinates plea sickness while go to ground (relatively speaking) and conduct a silent purge. There’s a non-violent version in which Putin just decides to take an out-of-sight breather while trying to run down what happened.

    But what I need for a coup or a palace coup is dead bodies or tanks. Guys need to start turning up dead. After enough of them turn up dead, you can figure out who is doing what.

    max
    [‘If the dude was recovering from a heart attack though, that’s plausible. If he’s waiting to play whack-a-mole, laying low is useful – it makes people nervous.’]

  100. 100.

    PurpleGirl

    @Baud: Thanks for the link. I have to copy that article so I can save it and the visualizations. I like the Fibonacci series. You can it in knitting to get some amazing color changes; it doesn’t work too well in crocheting because crochet is a different and thicker stitch. A mathematician in the UK was working in Chaos theory and thought one of the numbers she printed out looked like a crochet pattern and she began to crochet it. (The pattern is twenty-odd pages.) And, of course, there is hyperbolic crochet which creates a magnificent ruffle.

  101. 101.

    PurpleGirl

    @WereBear: There used to be a great yarn store in Peekskill called Cabin Fever. Spent time and money there and mourned it when it closed.

  103. 103.

    Another Holocene Human

    @Iowa Old Lady:

    Next week, she’s going to NYC as one of the chaperones for 61 high school kids going to a chorus competition. The kids have to bring their luggage early and the chaperones search it.

    lord that blows

    not that long ago I was a teenager on an orchestra trip in Europe, the seniors were indulging in alcohol and nobody got prosecuted, and yeah, they brought some of it with them (obviously pre-9/11)

    kids are less violent than they ever were but have less freedom than ever too … don’t they ever consider that all this control and helicoptering can set these kids up for depression?

  108. 108.

    Another Holocene Human

    @Tommy:

    What is important to note is most of those warrants are because of unpaid tickets. So you get a ton of tickets for no real reason and then when you can’t pay in full you get an arrest warrant out in your name.

    And it’s all totally corrupt. I’ve been to traffic court in a county that has money issues but isn’t trying to extract blood from turnips and when the indigents show up for their racist/classist cops hassling me tickets (oh, too bad, sun went down and you are flat broke and there is no light on your bike–TICKET!) the judge scraps the fine and gives them community service*. There are a couple of places that routinely work with the court, like Humane Society, which is on the bus line so that works.

    *-and not an unreasonable amount, either

    What sucks is that the truly indigent can’t even afford bus fare and the way they’ve been trying to mitigate this has been … terrible. Disorganized. Too many poor people, not enough subsidized passes, making it easier on themselves by handing out yearly passes which is damn stupid for multiple reasons. Some hit the jackpot and others gotta walk.

  111. 111.

    Another Holocene Human

    It’s funny, #Ferguson has been an education. I’ve been digging through old homicide cases, unsolved mostly, and it’s funny how often Jennings and Ferguson come up. (Also St Louis City and East St Louis in their own right.)

    The way MO splits up these little jurisdictions is an obvious fail. They need to devolve the local PDs and put that in the hands of the county police, who should have the numbers, resources, and training to more effectively investigate major crimes. (Instead of perpetrating the major crimes. Damn.)

    Where I am in Florida those little speed trap PDs are getting dissolved one by one.

  112. 112.

    Germy Shoemangler

    Here’s something interesting and new with my macbook pro: Has anyone else experienced this?

    When I start up the computer, instead of the dock appearing at the bottom, the screen starts blinking, going back and forth from my lovely blue mac desktop pattern to a flat gray. The dock does not appear.

    I restart the computer and then everything is fine.

    It’s out of warranty, so if I bring it back to the mac store they’ll all just stare at me. I bought a mac many years ago at that store, and they were helpful and friendly. My last purchase, my experience was somewhat different.

  114. 114.

    Another Holocene Human

    @Baud: I gotta see that. Though sometimes I find his attempts at comedy a bit awkward. Now, SOTU quip, that was funny.

    Mike Tyson was good on The Nightly Show on Thursday, btw. Just came to mind because who knew he was such a comic genius? Until the last few years. He didn’t disappoint.

  115. 115.

    schrodinger's cat

    @Baud: Aaww thanks! My handwriting is not bad at all, but it is not as pretty as the one on the Declaration of Independence.

    ETA: I was actually trying to make a funny! Let’s see if anyone gets it.

  117. 117.

    Tommy

    @Baud: Exactly. As a kid in highschool in the 80s I was a preppy. But I hung with kids that wore all black, maybe goth. My house was where we played D&D. Listened to the Cure. School called my parents to tell them I was using drugs. Not only wasn’t I using drugs but I never got drunk until college. My parents house was a safe zone where you could be whatever you wanted.

    I do think our kids, and I don’t have any, might get strip searched to walk into school. So freaking sad. I recall my parents called the school and told them to fuck off.

  122. 122.

    raven

    @Baud: Nuthin but a thang. I’m self-contained. The conference tournaments have added an additional to March Madness and it’s been part of my life since my dad and I would attend the entire Illinois High School Tourney. I know most people don’t care but it’s in my blood.

  123. 123.

    Tommy

    @Baud: I bought a $139 pen the other day that will take what I write, and I can’t get away from paper, to a computer. Evernote. Writing is still something people do. I rarely don’t have a legal pad a few feet from me. I am a huge tech nerd but I can not find anything that is better than a mechanical pencil and a pad of paper. I’ve tired like 20+ programs. Paper. Pencil.

  127. 127.

    Botsplainer

    Looking at conservatard outrage over the DOJ Ferguson report and the followon resignations, you’d think that New Rome Sucks was never a thing and that their abusive enforcement was never a subject of great scorn by Wingnut John Stossel.

    http://www.newromesucks.com/topten.html

  130. 130.

    Violet

    It’s gorgeous here. I desperately want to go outside and work in my garden but I’m dealing with Day 2 of some stomach bug. Ugh.

    Just found out that apparently a high percentage of people who attended an event I went to last weekend got sick a day or so after. Everyone is trying to figure out if it was the cake or other refreshments or some bug that one of the kids had. Or both. And when say sick I mean bad sick. Almost end up in the hospital, lose 10 pounds in three days kind of sick.

  133. 133.

    Bystander

    I’m just going to blurt it out.

    Gene Gene the Dancing Machine has passed away at age 83.

  139. 139.

    Violet

    @trollhattan: Don’t know who catered it. I left before refreshments were served so I didn’t get it from food. It was in a smallish venue, packed, and lots of kids were there.

  140. 140.

    Germy Shoemangler

    Bill Badger, who was credited with saving people’s lives during the 2011 shooting in Arizona that critically injured Representative Gabrielle Giffords, died on Wednesday. He was 78.

    The cause was pneumonia, said his wife, Sallie Badger. She did not say where he died.

    Mr. Badger was wounded — a bullet grazed the back of his head — in January 2011 in a grocery store parking lot near Tucson at a constituent event for Ms. Giffords, a Democrat. He nonetheless managed to tackle the shooter, Jared L. Loughner, and helped others hold him down and disarm him before the police arrived. Ms. Giffords was shot in the head at close range.

  141. 141.

    Tree With Water

    Josh Marshall of TPM notes that as of last night Netanyahu seems to have entered ‘Nixon Walking The White House Corridors After Midnight’ territory:

    “..This evening, Netanyahu or whoever posts to his Facebook page penned a slashing series of accusations against the ZC/Labor list claiming his rivals’ campaign is “illegitimate” because it is the creature of a world conspiracy involving foreign governments, international tycoon, Israeli media, NGOs, all banding together to bring him down. The claims read so febrile and unhinged that if Netanyahu weren’t a Jew and the head of government of the Jewish State you would almost expect to end up claiming a global Zionist conspiracy was plotting to bring him and the right to its knees..”.

  142. 142.

    raven

    @Baud: Lil Bit. The boss is preparing stuff for a memorial thing she and her buddies are putting on for our friend that died in the fall.

  143. 143.

    mai naem mobile

    Just saw on my twitter feed, Bristol Palins engaged to Medal of Honor winner Dakota Meyer. I really want to make some distasteful jokes but jeebus who would want to marry into that crazy family? I hope they don’t use him up and spit him out.

  144. 144.

    WaterGirl

    @Baud: I saw the other day that you were wondering about whether it was time for a change in your life, but moving to a pencil? That’s living on the edge; I had no idea you were thinking this big!

  148. 148.

    WaterGirl

    @Baud: And here I thought maybe the move to the pencil was just a first step!

    I was immediately punished for my earlier teasing mockery toward you – my pup put his head on my laptop and executed the dreaded (unknown) keyboard shortcut that does something to my accessibility settings that makes my laptop downright unusable. I have found no way to fix it but to restart the computer.

    I was teasing you, but I don’t think I could switch from a pen to a pencil, but I might just challenge myself to try it. You know what they say, do one thing outside your comfort zone every day. :-)

  149. 149.

    Violet

    @mai naem mobile: Oh, he knows what he’s getting into. He’s the one who posed with Sarah Palin at some gun show with a “Fuc You Michael Moore” poster with crosshairs in the O’s. He spoke at CPAC. People keep urging him to run for Congress. I think he sees the Palins as a stepping stone for whatever political grifter career he would like to have.

    They haven’t been dating all that long so who knows how this will really work out. Does Bristol have a bun in the oven? Did Klondike Kardashian manipulate this engagement in hopes of selling the rights for a TV wedding?

  150. 150.

    BillinGlendaleCA

    @Mnemosyne (tablet):

    but I managed to aggravate my old whiplash (shoulder) injury

    Taken up naked mopping at the new place?

    My dad and I used to hike Pt. Mugu. We’d start out from Newberry Park and get almost to the coast. La Jolla valley was always quite nice.

  151. 151.

    Baud

    @WaterGirl: Maybe tomorrow I’ll go cave diving!

    As far as pen or pencil or computer, definitely do whatever works. I’m a little frustrated that I don’t have a system yet that I’m completely comfortable with.

  153. 153.

    Botsplainer

    @mai naem mobile:

    (Shrug)

    Boy was handed that “Dakota” moniker at birth. In Kentucky we’ve learned a prejudice – boys handed that name are born at the shit end of the trailer park, regardless of anything they’ve accomplished.

    In any event, he’s still MUCH better than Snowball Snooki, and while I know this union is destined for collapse, hopefully those assholes won’t wring him out too much before that happens.

  158. 158.

    Botsplainer

    @Violet:

    They haven’t been dating all that long so who knows how this will really work out. Does Bristol have a bun in the oven? Did Klondike Kardashian manipulate this engagement in hopes of selling the rights for a TV wedding?

    Remember the excitement over the engagement of Bristol and Levi prior to Obama’s 2008 win? That harridan, as I recall, had visions of nuptials in the National Cathedral with celebrities and pols gazing upon the lovebirds.

    Nauseating.

  162. 162.

    Violet

    @JPL: Dakota’s dick. He seems to have a thing for her. I think the Bristol thing is a way to get closer to Sarah. Creepy as hell. According to their Instagrams they’ve only even known each other since January and Bristol was apparently with another guy not that long ago. Sure, short engagements can work out but add in long distance, her wacko family, his suicide attempt, and I think there are some definite issues that might benefit from them both taking time before making a big step like marriage. Not to mention any impact on her son. She lives in Alaska. He’s in Kentucky. They’ve never even lived in the same state and done day to day things. Recipe for a mess.

  163. 163.

    NotMax

    (tap tap) Is this thing on?

    After 38 years of use, the bristles on my hairbrush have worn down enough that it became necessary to purchase a new one.

    Things just aren’t made to last anymore.

    :)

  164. 164.

    Mnemosyne (tablet)

    @BillinGlendaleCA:

    I was moving stuff around to make room for the new couch in my craft room and made my shoulder angry. It doesn’t help that my carpal tunnels are acting up, too — that tends to trigger a muscle spasm in that whiplash spot.

    @Violet:

    They should have a decent selection at REI, so I’ll take a look — thanks! Since it’s in the 90s this weekend, it’s probably not enough water to go now, but maybe in a few weeks.

  165. 165.

    Amir Khalid

    @Violet:
    It’s amusing, how these people reckon that if you just write “FUC_” on your sign you haven’t said “FUCK”.

  166. 166.

    Violet

    @Mnemosyne (tablet): Yeah, REI should have a good selection. They make ones that hold fewer bottles and ones that hold more. Depending on the length of the hike you might find the six bottle types hold enough.

    You might also look at REI for waist packs. Those hold larger bottles because they’re not designed more for running. And they should have a zipper pocket section where you can put some food.

  167. 167.

    Another Holocene Human

    @Botsplainer: They’re supposed to harass the hell out of Blacks. When they start inconveniencing whites they’re doin’ it rong.

  168. 168.

    Another Holocene Human

    @Violet: Yeah…. sounds like food poisoning. Did anybody report it to the state health department?

  170. 170.

    Violet

    @Another Holocene Human: I saw one of the women who had come down with it today. She emailed the person who organized the gathering and asked them to do it. They knew who ordered the food so they would need to be involved with any report.

  171. 171.

    NotMax

    @Amir Khalid

    Owner of the summer camp nearly succumbed to apoplexy the first time we counselors led the campers in a particular cheer.

    Gimme an F!

    F!

    Gimme a U!

    U!

    (pregnant pause)

    Gimme an …(another pause)… N!

    N!

    What’s that spell?

    FUN!

  175. 175.

    Mary G

    Is it basketball occupying people’s attention or did some snow melt somewhere so gardens are being started? I leave and come back to the same thread, which rarely happens here.

    Came out of Lowe’s at 1 p.m. or so, maybe half a mile from the ocean, and the car says it’s 97 degrees. Ugh. Wunderground says is 89 now, which is still ridiculous for mid-March.

  176. 176.

    Another Holocene Human

    Mnemosyne,

    Hey I looked into that port of Miami thing a little bit and FECI said that they’re moving a lot of empty carloads northbound from Miami and that they’re ready willing and able to haul container doublestacks. They say this will require no new infrastructure so they must have high bridges over their FECR railroad line.

    I follow all things Florida East Coast because of All Aboard Florida which I am having all the nosebleeds about.

  178. 178.

    BillinGlendaleCA

    @Mary G: It’s 90 here in beautiful downtown Glendale, 91 inside my cave. I may have to turn the A/C on for the furry ones.

  181. 181.

    SiubhanDuinne

    Wow! A shower, an entire opera, and dinner, and it’s still the same thread as when I woke up this morning! I haven’t read the comments, so I assume I’m not the first person to notice, but isn’t this a little odd even for The Gang Who Couldn’t Post Straight?

  185. 185.

    Violet

    @BillinGlendaleCA: I thought the policy was 24 hours before you get a refund. If someone steals your mustard or you impale yourself on a mop you might get a hardship exemption.

  186. 186.

    Amir Khalid

    @SiubhanDuinne:
    Just wait. In a little while, a front-pager will post something, followed by three more posts in five minutes — and there’ll be at least two posts on the same topic.

  190. 190.

    Corner Stone

    @Baud:

    At this point, I really wish Hillary would do something ambiguously scandalous.

    I’m sure she’s breathing somewhere, for fuck’s sake.
    That all by itself should be a Cole Bat Light.

  195. 195.

    Corner Stone

    @raven:

    and none of the hoopers that used to dwell here it makes it pretty slow.

    This New Era of Civility ™ is hard.
    But Cole got what he wanted.

  199. 199.

    Corner Stone

    @Violet: I, for one, can’t wait to see commenter askew respond to Gov O’Malley throwing Obama under the fucking bus recently.
    Wonder if she’ll keep pushing his potential candidacy?
    /rhetorical

  205. 205.

    geg6

    I saw another interview with him where he said something similar but it was more a comparison of their governing styles, not a criticism. Just saying they come from different perspectives, Obama from a legislative background and him having more executive experience. That the difference would make them govern differently. Didn’t turn this Obot off at all.

  210. 210.

    Baud

    @Corner Stone: You link was to twitter, but the tweet seems to link to Morning Joe.

    In any event, I agree with Black Twitter. And if Hillary had said something analogous, she would be skewered, so kudos to Black Twitter for consistency.

  213. 213.

    Southern Beale

    For some reason my husband insists on watching the Walt Disney version of Robin Hood, ca. 1973. It’s very weird to see these animals dressed up in Medieval clothing.

  218. 218.

    Gretchen

    Cervantes: Interesting statistics, and they seem to track in order of black population. Lee’s Summit almost all white, Independence a little blacker, Kansas City blacker still, Ferguson blackest. Total coincidence I’m sure.

  220. 220.

    Matt McIrvin

    @rikyrah: So many of the people I get into arguments with on this subject will look at that statistic and think, see, Ferguson really is a town inhabited solely by criminals!

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