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You are here: Home / Past Elections / Election 2016 / Friday Evening Open Thread: HRC Weekend

Friday Evening Open Thread: HRC Weekend

by Anne Laurie|  April 10, 20155:57 pm| 182 Comments

This post is in: Election 2016, Open Threads, Women's Rights Are Human Rights

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.@mmfa LaPierre: "And that's OUR job, Goddammit!"

— Billmon (@billmon1) April 10, 2015

The HRClinton campaign is about to go live, probably. Per the Guardian:

Hillary Clinton is planning to officially launch her US presidential campaign on Sunday while en route to Iowa, a source familiar with the campaign has confirmed to the Guardian.

The former secretary of state is scheduled to declare her second run for president on Twitter at noon eastern time on Sunday, the source told the Guardian, followed by a video and email announcement, then a series of conference calls mapping out a blitzkrieg tour beginning in Iowa and looking ahead to more early primary states.

Clinton’s Sunday schedule is booked beginning with takeoff from New York to Iowa, where speculation has centered for weeks that Clinton was focusing attention for an April campaign launch. Her scheduled calls are with advisers in other key battleground states…

***********
I’ve got to go out for a couple of hours, so feel free to explain at length just how ready you may or may not be for Hillary without fear of interruption.

What other excitement is on the agenda as we start the weekend?

.
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Reader Interactions

182Comments

  1. 1.

    Baud

    April 10, 2015 at 6:02 pm

    High noon! I would think the NRA would appreciate that.

  2. 2.

    Pogonip

    April 10, 2015 at 6:05 pm

    I’m hoping Cole posts pix of Lovey’s big send-off. Also, Geg6 has mentioned Koda, who I think is a dog, but may be a cat. Either way would like to see pix of Koda and Lovey.

    In other news from the animal world, my neighbor has actually tamed two of her cats and the animal shelter is going to take them and put them up for adoption. This is quite an accomplishment.

  3. 3.

    John O

    April 10, 2015 at 6:08 pm

    Cannot think of any way she gets my primary vote. Too…Republican when it comes to money and war.

    Maybe in the general. She’ll win IL anyway.

  4. 4.

    Quaker in a Basement

    April 10, 2015 at 6:12 pm

    “A permanent darkness of deceit and dispair?”

    Zow. Hil’ has really stepped up her game.

  5. 5.

    Princess

    April 10, 2015 at 6:13 pm

    Anyone after Obama is going to be a come-down for me. But I think the way Hillary makes the wingers heads’ explode is going to compensate to some degree.

  6. 6.

    Mart

    April 10, 2015 at 6:13 pm

    Really a good question, is the mushy middle ready to vote for a woman? Afraid a tougher hill to climb than for a bi-racial man.

  7. 7.

    Baud

    April 10, 2015 at 6:14 pm

    @Princess:

    Anyone after Obama is going to be a come-down for me.

    For a lot of folks. But that was inevitable.

  8. 8.

    Villago Delenda Est

    April 10, 2015 at 6:15 pm

    The salted dicks people are really happy though, because Wayne LaPierre is one of their best customers.

  9. 9.

    jl

    April 10, 2015 at 6:16 pm

    @Quaker in a Basement:

    That is one cold comment by LaPierre. He is already forgetting Obama’s cataclysmic reign of tyranny and oppression?

    What kind of respect is that for our president?

  10. 10.

    Villago Delenda Est

    April 10, 2015 at 6:16 pm

    @Quaker in a Basement: It’s always projection with these assholes. Always.

  11. 11.

    scav

    April 10, 2015 at 6:17 pm

    Running away for sanity, but I plead reading the below gem of a quote. Context. County sheriff in the same SC county as Walter Scott punished with trash collection after dog attack on suspect and had his assault charge erased for doing so.

    Cannon said in an interview on Friday that the experience had given him “a greater appreciation for litter”.

    “I think it was an appropriate punishment in light of other cases and given my position,” he said.

    Holy.
    Fuck.
    Twice.

    gotta admit, I’ve got a better appreciation of the trash that needs to be cleared out of that locality too, no?

    ETA, did I forget the Guardian?

  12. 12.

    Fair Economist

    April 10, 2015 at 6:17 pm

    Here we go! I’m looking forward to what her platform is going to be. The rumor is that she thinks her last campaign was too much about her so she wants this one to be about ideas and policies. Gender equality is guaranteed; she’s been a fierce advocate of that since, well, forever. The stuff coming from friendly think tanks indicates it’s mostly going to be about worker’s rights – minimum wage, sick leave, parental leave, organizing rights, etc. Could be very inspirational.

  13. 13.

    jl

    April 10, 2015 at 6:19 pm

    @Fair Economist:

    ‘ she wants this one to be about ideas and policies. ‘

    HRC already picking a fight with the Village Press, huh?

  14. 14.

    Comrade Luke

    April 10, 2015 at 6:19 pm

    I eagerly await voting against her in the primary.

  15. 15.

    Hal

    April 10, 2015 at 6:21 pm

    The supreme court alone is reason enough for me to vote for Hillary is she is the nominee.

  16. 16.

    Brachiator

    April 10, 2015 at 6:22 pm

    @Mart: In 2007/2008 I got the feeling that there were some women and others who really, really wanted Hillary to be the first woman president of the United States. Then Obama came along and stole her thunder. She is no longer Inevitable, and it is more than a question of whether the mushy middle will vote for her. She has to make the case that she deserves our vote. You know, apart from the usual “must vote Democrat to keep the GOP hand of darkness off our throats.”

  17. 17.

    gogol's wife

    April 10, 2015 at 6:23 pm

    @Princess:

    That’s how I feel.

    ETA: I want her to crush them in the election.

  18. 18.

    Baud

    April 10, 2015 at 6:23 pm

    @efgoldman:

    Someone speculated recently that any Hillary challengers would wait until after she announced. So it’ll soon be time to put up or shut up.

  19. 19.

    geg6

    April 10, 2015 at 6:24 pm

    @Pogonip:

    Koda is a dog. To be specific, a 3 yo chocolate Lab which I also acquired through the auspices of Balloon Juice and the kindness of the commenters here (and Anne Laurie!) who chipped in to fly her from CA to PA.

    She’s pining for a companion after our beloved Otis passed away from cancer in October.

  20. 20.

    Kay

    April 10, 2015 at 6:24 pm

    If she runs on this she’ll win:

    “That’s because the middle-class label is as much about aspirations among Americans as it is about economics. But a perspective that was once characterized by comfort and optimism has increasingly been overlaid with stress and anxiety.”

    Economic insecurity. It’s not dramatic or inspirational and political media will hate, hate, hate it but that is a perfect fit for her as a candidate, IMO

  21. 21.

    muddy

    April 10, 2015 at 6:25 pm

    @Villago Delenda Est: I know! Whenever I can’t understand what they are on about, I put it in those terms and then all comes clear. Rubber, glue etc like that.

  22. 22.

    gogol's wife

    April 10, 2015 at 6:25 pm

    @Brachiator:

    You people must be men.

    There are a lot of women in the country.

    I’m not a Hillary fan (I’m not a fan of anyone who’s likely to throw their hat in the ring), but I think it’s time, long past time.

  23. 23.

    askew

    April 10, 2015 at 6:32 pm

    Having a nertz tournament tonight and hoping to enjoy the great weather outside this weekend.

    In political news, Jim Webb is giving his first major speech in Iowa tonight and O’Malley is also speaking. I am guessing no guitar tonight though.

    As for Hillary, I hope her announcement is better than her in it to win it and let’s have a conversation nonsense from 2007. I also hope she is giving her speech in person to a group like Obama did instead of just releasing a video. Better optics.

  24. 24.

    Kay

    April 10, 2015 at 6:32 pm

    @Brachiator:

    She has a really loyal supporter base here and it’s primarily women. It was kind of fun in ’08 because there were men here who supported her that I would not have predicted. It’s always interesting when people go against “type” or what I’ve decided they are :)

  25. 25.

    MomSense

    April 10, 2015 at 6:33 pm

    Homeland is now free on xfinity on demand. I haven’t seen it so I’ll probably give it a try.

    I was looking at my Instagram feed and saw a gorgeous picture of a puppy and then I realized it’s my puppy!

    Even though she ate the arm of my couch and I should be angry with her, I’m a fool for puppy love.

  26. 26.

    NotMax

    April 10, 2015 at 6:33 pm

    She has, by statute, 15 days to announce after making certain campaign expenditures, such as leasing a headquarters. So she’s making an announcement just under the wire.

  27. 27.

    WaterGirl

    April 10, 2015 at 6:34 pm

    @efgoldman: If you don’t think O’Malley is running, you haven’t been paying attention.

  28. 28.

    Brachiator

    April 10, 2015 at 6:36 pm

    @efgoldman:

    That’s enough, as far as I’m concerned, but I can see where it might not be for some of the electorate that only shows up in presidential years.

    I voted for Obama because I felt he offered more than “well, at least he’s better than a Republican.”

    I hope that Hillary, or a worthy challenger, sparks a similar feeling. The country desperately needs it.

  29. 29.

    SiubhanDuinne

    April 10, 2015 at 6:37 pm

    @geg6:

    Cannot wait to see photos of Koda and Lovey together. I’m guessing they will become great friends.

  30. 30.

    WaterGirl

    April 10, 2015 at 6:37 pm

    @askew: Jim Webb: Ugh.

  31. 31.

    divF

    April 10, 2015 at 6:37 pm

    Billmon’s tweet brings to mind the following quote from Morticia Addams:

    Don’t torture yourself, Gomez. That’s my job.

  32. 32.

    Kay

    April 10, 2015 at 6:38 pm

    This is why we need primary:

    “On the economy, of course, she has been a little too close to Wall Street, and that’s Sen. [Elizabeth] Warren’s point,” he said. “I have a strong record of voting against the Bush tax cuts, the vote that favored the wealthy. Every single Bush tax cut that favored the wealthy, even though as a Republican, I voted against them. So I have a strong record of supporting the middle class.”

    “Bush tax cuts”! Now Jeb Bush has to talk about them.

    http://www.politico.com/story/2015/04/lincoln-chafee-criticize-hillary-clinton-116841.html#ixzz3WwABKI9j

  33. 33.

    askew

    April 10, 2015 at 6:39 pm

    @Baud:

    O’malley is supposed to declare at end of May. We’ll see if he actually does it. Hillary’s #s have fallen in polls released today by PPP and Bloomberg but he is still polling under 5%.

  34. 34.

    22over7

    April 10, 2015 at 6:40 pm

    Love that quote. Hillary as Galadriel. “All will love me, and despair!”

  35. 35.

    Baud

    April 10, 2015 at 6:41 pm

    @Brachiator:

    The country desperately needs it.

    True, but the country failed to take advantage of the opportunity Obama offered.

  36. 36.

    Baud

    April 10, 2015 at 6:42 pm

    @askew:

    Seems later than I would have expected. I support him getting in. Hope he does it.

  37. 37.

    Mnemosyne (iPhone)

    April 10, 2015 at 6:43 pm

    Am I allowed to not really care, or do I have to find a hill to die on prior to the announcement?

    In weekend news, we’re going for a wildflower hike in Malibu tomorrow now that the weather has calmed back down to normal temperatures for this time of year (low to mid 70s). Still need rain pretty desperately, though.

  38. 38.

    WaterGirl

    April 10, 2015 at 6:45 pm

    @Baud: It always seems like the people on the fringes have more energy. Fueled by hate in this case, I guess.

  39. 39.

    WaterGirl

    April 10, 2015 at 6:46 pm

    @Mnemosyne (iPhone): Sounds like you are over whatever bug was getting in the way of knitting things and hikes and such. Yay for that.

  40. 40.

    kindness

    April 10, 2015 at 6:46 pm

    Well we all say the right wing nutz have been in overdrive because Obama is a black man (that one is true) and that they will stay in overdrive because Hillary is a woman (again that will be true) but the really sad truth is it wouldn’t matter if the Democrats nominated James Stewart’s Mr. Smith (of the goes to Washington fame), right wing nutz would be hysterical and unhinged because that is what the do. That is the only thing they do.

    Get used to it. It won’t change no matter who it is. They will always be ‘The Most Liberal Evah!’

  41. 41.

    the Conster

    April 10, 2015 at 6:48 pm

    Can we start a “draft Sherrod Brown” movement? Kay?

    ETA: Dried up husk Bob Schieffer mansplains that the email kerfuffle will hurt her. OH NOES

  42. 42.

    Elizabelle

    April 10, 2015 at 6:50 pm

    @Kay: Political media might hate it, but it’s a huge issue for the middle class, or what remains of it, and the working class and even forward-thinking captains of industry who realize it might be nice for lots of Americans to be able to buy their goods.

    And that marvelous Elizabeth Warren could do a lot of appearances on behalf of HRC and Warren’s career-long interest in analyzing and leveling the playing field.

  43. 43.

    Mnemosyne (iPhone)

    April 10, 2015 at 6:51 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    I managed to get knocked out by two completely unrelated things (old shoulder injury acting up and the cold from hell) but, yes, I am finally feeling better! :-) Getting psyched for the Vogue Knitting convention next weekend, though a little bummed they scheduled it for the same weekend as the Festival of Books.

  44. 44.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    April 10, 2015 at 6:52 pm

    @askew: Hillary’s #s have fallen in polls released today by PPP and Bloomberg

    By how much?

    @Kay: Economic insecurity. It’s not dramatic or inspirational and political media will hate, hate, hate it

    There were key points when Obama knew to ignore the political press (and his own party) such as the “stop picking on capitalism!” in 2012. I always thought 21st century Clintons were obsessed with winning over the Beltway. If she’s learned anything from Obama, let it be that the cast of Morning Joe does not reflect the country.

    I thought Elizabeth Warren was very good on the TDS last night talking about student loans. I admit I’m not well synced to the tote-baggers and the great wave of Lo-Infos, but I think that’s a really good issue for Dems.

  45. 45.

    Baud

    April 10, 2015 at 6:53 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    It’s not the fringe. Obama’s approval among whites is shockingly low. The open question is how those people will react now that Obama will not be on the ticket.

  46. 46.

    Elizabelle

    April 10, 2015 at 6:54 pm

    Prominent on the NYTimes website, right now: Middle Class, but Feeling Economically Insecure.

    The blurb, accompanied by a 1950s color photo:

    A perspective that was once characterized by comfort and optimism has increasingly been overlaid with stress and anxiety.

    It’s a huge issue. And if the political press is honest (uh huh), they’re in a diminishing profession too.

  47. 47.

    WaterGirl

    April 10, 2015 at 6:56 pm

    @kindness: Yeah, but it’s harder to stir up the kind of hate / fear combination that’s been stirred up with Obama as president.

    I’m just not sure women are “other” enough and threatening enough that to engender all that hate because they are your mothers and daughters and sisters. Just try to control their bodies, that’s enough to keep them in their places, so outright hate isn’t necessary.

  48. 48.

    Kay

    April 10, 2015 at 6:57 pm

    @the Conster:

    I asked a woman I know who works for him if he wants to run and she “no”. No waffling, no chance.

    He’s REALLY blunt, too. It would just be non stop outrage and not from Republicans. either- from political media. He says whatever he wants to say, whenever. I think it would be portrayed as “gaffes” by the uber-savvy.

    He’s also the worst debater I have ever seen at that level. No kidding- he’s just bad.

    He and Marcy Kaptur had an anti-TPP rally in Toledo but I was on vacation so I didn’t go. He’ll also be a big part of Ted Strickland’s Senate run, I’m sure. He’ll be doing a lot.

  49. 49.

    MomSense

    April 10, 2015 at 6:58 pm

    @Mnemosyne (iPhone)
    Vogue knitting should be fun. Would you ever consider doing some test knitting?

  50. 50.

    Elizabelle

    April 10, 2015 at 6:58 pm

    You read the comments to the NYTimes article, and you want to throw a brick.

    High price, GOP knob-washing media and political class wants to be sure you throw the brick at Obama or Hillary or Democrats. But I suspect people are waking up.

  51. 51.

    WaterGirl

    April 10, 2015 at 6:58 pm

    @the Conster: I would crawl over broken glass to vote for Sherrod Brown for president. I think Kay mentioned months ago that he would have to have been lining up big donors ages ago, and that hasn’t been happening.

    I console myself with the thought that at least he and Elizabeth Warren are senators, and very effective ones, at that.

  52. 52.

    Kay

    April 10, 2015 at 7:03 pm

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:

    but I think that’s a really good issue for Dems.

    I do too. I have two grown children in that demo and their friends talk about student loans constantly. Mine don’t have loans, because we were able to pay for their undergrad (although we won’t pay for grad, if they go) and it’s absolutely the reason my son was able to buy an apt in Chicago and my daughter is trying to get into dental school. They don’t have college debt so they have options. They are acutely aware that this is not the situation for a lot of their friends.

  53. 53.

    WaterGirl

    April 10, 2015 at 7:03 pm

    @Baud: I’m sure you’re right. But it’s terribly depressing to think about how uninformed you have to be or how blinding your hate has to be to think that things aren’t better for you under Obama.

  54. 54.

    WaterGirl

    April 10, 2015 at 7:05 pm

    @efgoldman: Got it. I thought when you said: “For whom? Bernie Sanders? Linc Chaffee?” that you were implying that there would be no one of consequence to vote for.

  55. 55.

    Mnemosyne (iPhone)

    April 10, 2015 at 7:06 pm

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:

    I wouldn’t object if Warren decided to run, but if she does stay in the Senate, she and Hillary would play off each other very well on economic issues, IMO.

  56. 56.

    Brachiator

    April 10, 2015 at 7:08 pm

    @Kay:

    She has a really loyal supporter base here and it’s primarily women. It was kind of fun in ’08 because there were men here who supported her that I would not have predicted. It’s always interesting when people go against “type” or what I’ve decided they are :)

    I remember that in 2008, there were some Republican women who contributed to Hillary’s primary campaign. I found this very interesting.

    And yeah, she had a loyal fan base, and some of them may have felt that they really related to Hillary in a number of ways, and felt that Hillary’s circumstance and background made her the ideal choice to be the first woman president. And I think that some of these women also wanted to see Bill back in the White House.

    I don’t know if the generation of women who came after Hillary feel the same heat for her.

    In 2008, I kinda wanted Obama to pick a woman for vice president, but I also wanted him to kick Hillary to the curb for her clumsy and divisive primary campaigning. But I think she did well as Secretary of State and am curious to see how she does this time around as a candidate.

  57. 57.

    WereBear

    April 10, 2015 at 7:08 pm

    I love this. Leaving up to the reader how apropos it may seem:

    http://the-toast.net/2015/01/26/gleeful-mobs-women-murdering-men-western-art-history/

  58. 58.

    Mnemosyne (iPhone)

    April 10, 2015 at 7:09 pm

    @MomSense:

    I would love to, but I am the world’s slowest knitter. I could maybe test hats or mittens and hit a deadline, but nothing larger than that.

    (It’s not so much slowness as “Bored now!” As someone with ADHD, my tolerance for large projects is very low.)

  59. 59.

    WaterGirl

    April 10, 2015 at 7:10 pm

    @efgoldman: My point was that they can’t engender the kind of fear and hatred about women that they have about Barack Obama. I followed that with the acknowledgement that they are trying got control women’s bodies and keep them in their place, so I think you and I agree, even if I didn’t do a great job of getting my point across.

  60. 60.

    Baud

    April 10, 2015 at 7:12 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    My point was that they can’t engender the kind of fear and hatred about women that they have about Barack Obama.

    Expect lots of rhetoric about “radical feminists.”

  61. 61.

    Kay

    April 10, 2015 at 7:14 pm

    @Brachiator:

    I was surprised by some of the men. My favorite magistrate is an elderly Republican and he supported her. I was really surprised. I said “really?” He said “well, sure!” as if I should know he’s a secret Hillary-lover.

    He likes the health care law because he’s a genuine conservative and uninsured people make him nervous (all that medical debt written off! chaos! ) but he thinks she would have done it “better”.

  62. 62.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    April 10, 2015 at 7:14 pm

    @Mnemosyne (iPhone): I think a Warren-Brown-Sanders…. Franken? Whitehouse? Baldwin? Markey? I’m kinda sad I’m having trouble coming up with more names, anyway, that bloc, the make-her-do-it caucus, in the Senate would be more useful than all the fantasy candidates in all the minds of Daily Kos.

  63. 63.

    MomSense

    April 10, 2015 at 7:14 pm

    @Mnemosyne (iPhone):

    I happen to have a hat pattern that I need to test.

    My son was just diagnosed with ADD so we are in the figuring out the meds phase. It seems like a lot of things are at least making sense now.

  64. 64.

    EriktheRed

    April 10, 2015 at 7:16 pm

    Meanwhile in MY state:

    Governor Rauner shows why he’s a jaggoff.

  65. 65.

    WaterGirl

    April 10, 2015 at 7:18 pm

    @Baud: I’m sure! But fear of scary black men trumps fear of man-hating radical feminists every time. I just don’t think it has the same traction.

    But what the hell do I know? I clearly have nothing in common with the white people you referred to who give our president such a low approval rating, so I may be completely wrong.

  66. 66.

    WaterGirl

    April 10, 2015 at 7:19 pm

    @Kay: Kay, your stories always make me feel better.

  67. 67.

    Pogonip

    April 10, 2015 at 7:20 pm

    @geg6: I hope she and Lovey live happily ever after. But we must have pix, or it didn’t happen!

  68. 68.

    Morzer

    April 10, 2015 at 7:21 pm

    It seems that Dr Weevil is still not ready for prime time:

    http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/apr/10/rand-paul-walks-out-live-interview

    The Republican presidential candidate Rand Paul walked out of a live interview with the Guardian on Friday, in his third testy exchange with a journalist since launching his campaign for president three days ago.

    The Kentucky senator abruptly ended the interview when he was pressed over whether his campaign focus on the racial imbalances of criminal justice reform would win him support among Republicans.

    “I think your premise is incorrect,” he said, in the interview in Iowa City. “Actually, I think I can take that message into a white evangelical church anywhere in Iowa and give exactly the same speech and be received well.”

    When the reporter attempted a follow-up remark – referring to a December Washington Post-ABC poll that showed roughly two-thirds of Republicans to believe minorities receive the same treatment as whites under the criminal justice system – Paul walked out of shot.

  69. 69.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    April 10, 2015 at 7:21 pm

    @WaterGirl: Yup, and the dog whistles won’t be nearly so easy to get away with, the Golden Girls jokes, the nutcrackers… I can’t imagine what else they’ll come up with, but I suspect they’ll create more Clinton voters (insert all caveats here)

  70. 70.

    Baud

    April 10, 2015 at 7:22 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    I too am clueless about the American electorate. It’s pretty clear our nominee will be white, so we’ll see what that means for the election.

  71. 71.

    satby

    April 10, 2015 at 7:23 pm

    @Brachiator: I met the President years before he was even a state senator, and he was notable way back then. But he is a really nice, decent guy, and in 2008 I wanted someone who would fight back hard against the Republicans. I voted for Hillary in the primaries and Obama in the general and haven’t been sorry for either vote.

    There are a lot of Republican women of a certain age who would donate and vote for Clinton. They’re very aware of what kinds of crap has been shoveled at her for being a female, they went through it too. The Republican men will let their freak flags fly because they can’t help it, and be instrumental in turning out their own wives for Hillary. I’m looking forward to that!

  72. 72.

    seaboogie

    April 10, 2015 at 7:23 pm

    @the Conster: I cannot muster even the slightest bit of enthusiasm for HRC at this point. I see her pic and just sigh, because our bench is exactly one person deep, and she feels entitled to the nomination and position. Plus she seems kind of manic sometimes…maybe too accustomed to Spock as President. Maybe if she picked Sherrod Brown for veep from day one I might summon some enthusiasm.

    Kind of looking forward to the clownshow of debates on the other side though – time to invest in popcorn futures. Paul the Petulant Younger seems to be in fine form these days, and can’t wait to see Heb! v Cruz for the Hispanic vote to play out. Hoping that Graham (“we’re all gonna dieeeeeee!!!!) and Fiorna (90% sure…I was fired for incompetence!) to toss their hats into the circus ring too.

  73. 73.

    WaterGirl

    April 10, 2015 at 7:24 pm

    @MomSense: What is test knitting? Do you just knit something quick and dirty with cheap yarn to get an idea of how it might come out? (I am sure that is totally off base, but that’s the only thing I could come up with.)

    edit: are you sure you have enough going on your life? son leaving for college, son diagnosed with ADD, crazy couch-eating (adorable) puppy…

  74. 74.

    Brachiator

    April 10, 2015 at 7:27 pm

    @gogol’s wife:

    I’m not a Hillary fan (I’m not a fan of anyone who’s likely to throw their hat in the ring), but I think it’s time, long past time.

    For as long as I have been able to vote, I would have voted for a woman president in any year in which a good candidate won the nomination. That’s how my momma raised me.

    Hillary was inevitable until Obama stole her thunder. She still has to show that she is worthy of the nomination even if it is long past time for a woman president.

  75. 75.

    Corner Stone

    April 10, 2015 at 7:28 pm

    @Kay: Hey, Kay. When are you going to give some airtime to items like this?
    Senate Committee Reaches Agreement on Néw ESEA
    “Secretary Duncan will not be pleased. The act specifically prohibits him from meddling in the states’ choice of standards and tests. He also can’t rewrite the law with his own waivers, because the states are given wide latitude, not subject to his control. Basically, the bipartisan bill repudiates almost all of his initiatives; notably, it does not authorize Race to the Top.”

    Fuck Arne Duncan and Fuck President Obama.

  76. 76.

    schrodinger's cat

    April 10, 2015 at 7:28 pm

    On a completely shallow note, I am not a fan of her new hairstyle.

  77. 77.

    Corner Stone

    April 10, 2015 at 7:29 pm

    @Baud:

    For a lot of folks. But that was inevitable.

    This was seen. Just sayin’.

  78. 78.

    Mnemosyne (iPhone)

    April 10, 2015 at 7:32 pm

    @MomSense:

    I’ve found ADDitude magazine to be both easy to read and have a lot of good information in it. A lot of it is online, too. A really good psychologist/psychiatrist team is invaluable — one prescribes the pills (if needed) and the other can teach the coping skills.

    One of the big realizations you will probably come to is either that your ex has undiagnosed ADHD or you do. One of the reasons women tend to get diagnosed until their 30s or later is that it was missed earlier in their lives but they figure it out once they have an ADHD kid and the symptoms sound all too familiar.

    (I don’t have kids, so I just had to figure it out on my own. I’m pretty sure in retrospect that my dad had it, though.)

  79. 79.

    Corner Stone

    April 10, 2015 at 7:32 pm

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:

    @askew: Hillary’s #s have fallen in polls released today by PPP and Bloomberg

    By how much?

    In reality or in the askew mind of commenter askew?
    The idea of a candidate is always higher than an actual person as candidate. People commenting not named askew understand this.

  80. 80.

    WaterGirl

    April 10, 2015 at 7:33 pm

    @Corner Stone: I re-read that comment 3 times and I still don’t notice anything there to “be seen”. What did I miss?

  81. 81.

    MomSense

    April 10, 2015 at 7:34 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    It depends. The test knitter uses the same gauge yarn and knits the pattern to see if there are any errors and if the pattern is clear and easily followed. Test knitters for yarn companies are supplied with the recommended yarn. There are also sample knitters who make the finished objects to be photographed for publication and for trunk shows and yarn shops.

  82. 82.

    Corner Stone

    April 10, 2015 at 7:35 pm

    Man, that fucking LaPierre guy…

  83. 83.

    MomSense

    April 10, 2015 at 7:40 pm

    @Mnemosyne (iPhone):

    I think I have it too but it was never diagnosed. I’ve decided to start the process of talking to my doctor about it.

  84. 84.

    Corner Stone

    April 10, 2015 at 7:40 pm

    “Hillary Clinton has more “gates” than a South Texas cattle ranch!”

    Hmmm, Wayne LaPierre or commenter askew?

  85. 85.

    Pogonip

    April 10, 2015 at 7:41 pm

    Still more news from the animal world: according to Listverse, science still doesn’t know why cows like to position themselves on a north/south axis. The article also claims that science just recently noticed that cows do this, but I find that hard to believe. At some point in the last few thousand years, Science must have wandered outside to gaze upon the cows.

    I have noticed that cats also seem to prefer north/south, though not as strongly as cows do.

  86. 86.

    ms_canadada

    April 10, 2015 at 7:41 pm

    @MomSense: Started watching Homeland last Sunday and am at season 3. It’s very tense at times, but some of the editing is sloppy.
    Love Mandy Patinkin. (I keep waiting for him to sing!)

  87. 87.

    Cervantes

    April 10, 2015 at 7:41 pm

    @Fair Economist:

    Here we go! I’m looking forward to what her platform is going to be. The rumor is that she thinks her last campaign was too much about her so she wants this one to be about ideas and policies. […] Could be very inspirational.

    Could be, and one hopes it will be, but then there’s this kind of thing from her campaign:

    The former secretary of state is scheduled to declare her second run for president on Twitter at noon eastern time on Sunday, the source told the Guardian, followed by a video and email announcement, then a series of conference calls mapping out a blitzkrieg tour beginning in Iowa and looking ahead to more early primary states.

  88. 88.

    WaterGirl

    April 10, 2015 at 7:41 pm

    @Corner Stone: Steve Benen talked about polls today and linked to an article:

    COLORADO: Paul 44 – Clinton 41
    IOWA: Paul 43 – Clinton 42
    VIRGINIA: Clinton 47 – Paul 43

    In very simple terms, you like Hillary and askew doesn’t. Why does it have to become personal? I would be wondering that under any circumstances because I’m more of a “let’s all get along” person, but particularly after the recent loss of a parent, I don’t really understand the motivation on your part for making it so personal.

  89. 89.

    MomSense

    April 10, 2015 at 7:42 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    I like to be busy.

  90. 90.

    Pogonip

    April 10, 2015 at 7:43 pm

    @satby: How’d things work out with the soap sale? I hope you were able to catch up your house payment.

  91. 91.

    Corner Stone

    April 10, 2015 at 7:45 pm

    @WaterGirl: What does that have to do with anything? That’s fucking bullshit for you to pull that.

  92. 92.

    WaterGirl

    April 10, 2015 at 7:46 pm

    @MomSense: I didn’t mean that comment as critical in any way, and I hope I didn’t come across that way. I was just thinking about everything you have going on, apologies for any carelessness in how I wrote the comment.

  93. 93.

    Cervantes

    April 10, 2015 at 7:47 pm

    @Brachiator:

    I voted for Obama because I felt he offered more than “well, at least he’s better than a Republican.” I hope that Hillary, or a worthy challenger, sparks a similar feeling. The country desperately needs it.

    Same here on all counts.

  94. 94.

    WaterGirl

    April 10, 2015 at 7:52 pm

    @Corner Stone: I was just thinking that it’s going to be a long 18 months if we can’t hold differing opinions about the various candidates without making it personal. It wasn’t my intention to offend you with my question, so clearly I broached the subject in a way that wasn’t productive. Apologies for that.

  95. 95.

    Peale

    April 10, 2015 at 7:52 pm

    As a night owl, I’m looking forward to the permanent darkness.

  96. 96.

    Corner Stone

    April 10, 2015 at 7:59 pm

    @WaterGirl: Of course it’s personal, at some points. Commenter askew is incredibly disingenuous in how she uses so called “facts” to put forth her case against HRC. I dispute her bullshit and think she’s not telling us her actual truths for the things she says here. I am not a fan of askew. Fine.
    But you pulling out the recent personal tragedy and trying to hang it on me when I have never, and would never, mention that or use that against someone sharing with the BJ community their grief is way fucking beyond called for.

  97. 97.

    Cervantes

    April 10, 2015 at 7:59 pm

    @Pogonip:

    according to Listverse, science still doesn’t know why cows like to position themselves on a north/south axis.

    Would have to look at the article before commenting.

    The article also claims that science just recently noticed that cows do this, but I find that hard to believe. At some point in the last few thousand years, Science must have wandered outside to gaze upon the cows.

    Again, can’t comment on your article, but the first study to document this behavior in large mammals (cows and deer, actually) used Google Earth to spy on thousands of them and was published in 2008.

  98. 98.

    ruemara

    April 10, 2015 at 8:01 pm

    @askew: You seem gleeful. And you know what, being SoS is an accomplishment. Like Lincoln Fucking Chafee is something serious.

    I don’t want HRC, but I don’t really see any other strong contenders in this race. Any of the current crop of republicans winning, along with the clown car of horrors in the House and a possible Senate would set civil rights, workers rights, environmental works, national infrastructure and world peace back for decades. it would be the end of the ACA but a retained mandate and many of my younger military friends would be back in service for no goddamned reason. I don’t need “a” reason to vote for HRC, I have plenty and most aren’t even about me. Who knows though? HRC is inspiring to some and last time around, Hillary was being crowned and the skinny jug-eared black dude came out of no where. I don’t have psychic powers (if I did, I’d have played the lottery and blown this popsicle stand). Here’s to having a candidate or two that I can feel very enthusiastic about and GOTV for. I’m going to stay positive because I know what I’m fighting for.

  99. 99.

    Cervantes

    April 10, 2015 at 8:04 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    Something to do with “inevitable,” I expect.

  100. 100.

    MomSense

    April 10, 2015 at 8:06 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    No, no offense taken at all!! I cannot sit still and have to be doing something all the time. Usually I am doing about three things at a time.

  101. 101.

    gian

    April 10, 2015 at 8:07 pm

    I’d like Wayne to run himself. It would make the GOP primary even more fun. I’d love to see a debate with him and trump

  102. 102.

    WaterGirl

    April 10, 2015 at 8:08 pm

    @Corner Stone: It seemed like a reasonable question to me when I wrote it. I was trying to start a conversation, but I offended you instead, and I’m very sorry about that. What can I do to make it right?

  103. 103.

    WaterGirl

    April 10, 2015 at 8:09 pm

    @Cervantes: Of course! I don’t know how i missed that.

  104. 104.

    Mnemosyne (iPhone)

    April 10, 2015 at 8:09 pm

    @MomSense:

    ADDitude has several good checklists for women/girls with ADHD. It’s seriously undiagnosed because the typical female symptoms (like daydreaming or “motor mouth”) are usually less disruptive in the classroom than typical male symptoms.

    I also found Sari Solden’s book “Women with ADD” helpful, and Ari (somebody)’s “More Attention, Less Deficit.” And I’m actually in my doctor’s waiting room right now, so gotta go!

  105. 105.

    Elizabelle

    April 10, 2015 at 8:19 pm

    Love Sari Solden, and also found Kathleen Nadeau’s work very useful. Understanding Women with ADHD is a classic, although several years old.

    Solden and Nadeau are both informative and non-patronizing. Of the two, I had more “aha” moments with Solden’s book. It was startling sometimes.

  106. 106.

    ms_canadada

    April 10, 2015 at 8:20 pm

    @Mnemosyne (iPhone): It wasn’t until I started teaching Spec. Ed., in 1990, to students with learning disabilities/ADHD/ADD/OCD, etc., that I recognized my own struggles with ADD, and my now 35 year old son’s ADHD (although identified as ‘gifted’ he was an absolute failure in school).
    So yes, there is a genetic component which I only became aware of when I had interviews with the parents of my students. It was clear they had struggled in their own lives, as I did.

  107. 107.

    Cervantes

    April 10, 2015 at 8:24 pm

    @Kay:

    That’s great — what you were able to do for your kids.

    You should be as proud as they should be grateful.

  108. 108.

    Hungry Joe

    April 10, 2015 at 8:25 pm

    “If fifteen cows is browsing on a hillside, how many of them eats with their heads pointed in the same direction?”

    “The whole fifteen, mum.”

    — from “Huckleberry Finn.” So in the 1800’s people knew that cows liked to face the same direction, and I’ll bet they knew it was north. (The PEOPLE knew it was north — not the cows. Unless there’s a word for “north” in Bovine, which I doubt.)

  109. 109.

    Howard Beale IV

    April 10, 2015 at 8:30 pm

    If it comes down between Hillary and Jeb, then we are truly fucked.

  110. 110.

    Cervantes

    April 10, 2015 at 8:31 pm

    @efgoldman:

    Perhaps — I couldn’t say.

    But there’s certainly a good deal of folk knowledge out there that is proving useful or exploitable — in pharmaceuticals, for example. Raises ethical questions, too — but that’s another discussion.

  111. 111.

    MomSense

    April 10, 2015 at 8:32 pm

    @ms_canadada:

    It’s really good so far.

  112. 112.

    Peale

    April 10, 2015 at 8:35 pm

    @Cervantes: “She doesn’t want to campaign. She just wants a coronation!!”

    “oh, all she does is talk about her campaign!”

  113. 113.

    Cervantes

    April 10, 2015 at 8:35 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    I wonder if it’s significant that you left wives off that list!

  114. 114.

    Howard Beale IV

    April 10, 2015 at 8:37 pm

    @ms_canadada:

    So yes, there is a genetic component which I only became aware of when I had interviews with the parents of my students. It was clear they had struggled in their own lives, as I did.

    Cite/source?

  115. 115.

    WaterGirl

    April 10, 2015 at 8:40 pm

    @Cervantes: I dare say that it is.

    *particularly since I paused (while writing) and wondered if there should be another item in that list. when “niece” and “cousin” came to mind, I decided the answer was no. so, yes, I suspect it is significant.

    edit: clearly not having my best night tonight. off to watch some mindless tv and snuggle with my pups.

  116. 116.

    Cervantes

    April 10, 2015 at 8:40 pm

    @Peale:

    But to me, it’s not a matter of whether she wants to campaign — it’s a question of how. Remember, the subject was inspiration.

  117. 117.

    Cervantes

    April 10, 2015 at 8:44 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    The human mind does not easily give up its secrets!

    Have a great evening. (I’m off, too.)

  118. 118.

    Comrade Luke

    April 10, 2015 at 8:45 pm

    @efgoldman: Definitely Sanders, if that’s an option.

  119. 119.

    ms_canadada

    April 10, 2015 at 8:51 pm

    @MomSense: You’re singing my song! Projects galore, but finishing just one is super challenging. (And I’m still struggling at 61!)

  120. 120.

    redshirt

    April 10, 2015 at 9:28 pm

    Am I the only one excited to vote for Hillary? Cuz I am.

  121. 121.

    Mnemosyne (iPhone)

    April 10, 2015 at 9:35 pm

    @Howard Beale IV:

    It’s been known for a while. Here’s an article from 1992:

    http://archpsyc.jamanetwork.com/Mobile/article.aspx?articleid=495879

    Here’s a more recent one:

    http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/mrdd.10036/abstract;jsessionid=646D779DFCD50F8B64ABCCCBEE6CB1F3.f02t04

    Anecdotally, it’s pretty common for at least one of an ADHD child’s parents to be diagnosed shortly after their child was, particularly now that doctors are looking at mothers as potential ADHDers, not just fathers.

  122. 122.

    rikyrah

    April 10, 2015 at 9:47 pm

    @Kay:

    He likes the health care law because he’s a genuine conservative and uninsured people make him nervous (all that medical debt written off! chaos! ) but he thinks she would have done it “better”

    because she did it so much better in 1994

  123. 123.

    Howard Beale IV

    April 10, 2015 at 9:47 pm

    @Mnemosyne (iPhone): Unfortunately your cites don’t back the claims.

    Unless I see a Cochrane review or a rigorous longitudinal study, I’m going to be very leery of such a pronouncement. Anecdotal evidence is the least reliable evidence out there-and of all people, you should know that.

  124. 124.

    Elizabelle

    April 10, 2015 at 9:47 pm

    @redshirt: That’s wonderful. I felt a twinge of hope today, myself.

  125. 125.

    Zinsky

    April 10, 2015 at 9:56 pm

    While I think we desperately need more women in politics (they are smarter and less violent), Hillary is not the one I want to see shatter the glass ceiling. She carries more baggage than a 747! I can’t even begin to think about how awful eight more years of Whitewater, Vince Foster, Monica, cattle futures, travel office, Mena, Juanita Broaddrick, Benghazi, etc. ad nauseum is going to be!

  126. 126.

    FoxinSocks

    April 10, 2015 at 9:58 pm

    @Quaker in a Basement:

    I want to put that on my business card.

    True fact: One of my nicknames at work is “Harbinger of Doom” because I do cost control/policy compliance and if I’m headed your way, it usually isn’t good.@Quaker in a Basement:

  127. 127.

    Roy G.

    April 10, 2015 at 9:58 pm

    Deja vu back to the 2000 campaign. Ugh.

  128. 128.

    redshirt

    April 10, 2015 at 9:59 pm

    @Zinsky: I think this is a feature, not a bug.

    I’ve come to re-think how we should deal with the wingnuts, and I believe focusing their hate on one object – be it person, idea, or agenda – is a more effective method of handling them then trying to deny them outright.

    As such, Hillary will focus their hatred, and allow progress to go on outside their field of view.

  129. 129.

    Mnemosyne (iPhone)

    April 10, 2015 at 10:03 pm

    @Howard Beale IV:

    Since you don’t think mental illness exists at all, I’m not sure why I’m supposed to pay attention to your opinion of whether or not it has genetic roots.

  130. 130.

    The Other Bob

    April 10, 2015 at 10:04 pm

    @efgoldman:

    Maybe either one, or O’Malley.

  131. 131.

    Kay

    April 10, 2015 at 10:04 pm

    @Corner Stone:

    I can’t discuss this subject in 500 words. I may need a roundtable :)

    I’m going to their meeting in Chicago. I can’t quit the angry public school teacher beat. It’s addicting.

    This is one of my favorites.

  132. 132.

    Kay

    April 10, 2015 at 10:11 pm

    @Corner Stone:

    Also, this thing is really heating up:

    Top state prosecutors from Oregon to Massachusetts, who contend they have evidence that thousands of Americans were fraudulently urged to take out federal student loans to attend dodgy for-profit schools, urged the U.S. Department of Education on Thursday to forgive the borrowers’ debts.
    The group of nine Democratic attorneys general demanded that Education Secretary Arne Duncan use his existing authority to cancel debts for students who attended schools currently or formerly owned by Corinthian Colleges Inc., a once-multibillion-dollar company that owned more than 100 for-profit schools with names such as Everest, Heald and Wyotech.

    So first it was Cordray insisting that Duncan do something then it was Warren and now it is NINE state AG’s. I loathe Duncan so I;m glad to see them all gang up on him.

  133. 133.

    Howard Beale IV

    April 10, 2015 at 10:18 pm

    @Mnemosyne (iPhone): Quite the contrary-I live with it daily. OTOH, so much of what goes on in the name of so-called ‘research’ doesn’t pass real true scientific rigor. Just look at the clusterfuck that happened at the University of Minnesota in the Dan Markingson case, which led to the resignation of the of University of Minnesota’s head of psychiatry.

  134. 134.

    Pogonip

    April 10, 2015 at 10:19 pm

    @Hungry Joe: Yup. I bet even Science didn’t have to wait for Google Earth to find this out.

    “Moo” is also South, East, and West in Bovine. It’s a tonal language.

  135. 135.

    magurakurin

    April 10, 2015 at 10:19 pm

    Just an observation, but it is pretty hard to take anyone serious about their primary vote if they continue to insist that they want to vote for Warren.
    She. Is. Not. Running.
    I can think of any number of fantasy choices I would like for POTUS that are way better than Warren. But a fantasy is just that. At this point when I see someone say they like Warren for president all I really see is Hillary Hate.

  136. 136.

    Zinsky

    April 10, 2015 at 10:24 pm

    @redshirt: Acknowledging that makes it no less painful. Hillary is also quite far right on the conservative-liberal spectrum. I’d take Elizabeth Warren’s position on almost any topic you care to name, over Hillarys’. Augh!

  137. 137.

    Pogonip

    April 10, 2015 at 10:26 pm

    @magurakurin: I am not committing myself till I find out the candidates’ position on cow placement (north-south, preferably). The Bovine-American group has been ignored by politicians long enough. This year they will raise their voices! “We are cows! Hear us moo!”

  138. 138.

    Howard Beale IV

    April 10, 2015 at 10:32 pm

    @Pogonip: Isn’t it amazing that if extra-terrestrial life decides to pay us a visit, the two things they’ll find in abundant supply should they come near the US is country music and methane…..from cow farts.

  139. 139.

    redshirt

    April 10, 2015 at 10:36 pm

    @Zinsky: I don’t even care any more about positions among Democrats. All I want is for Democrats to beat Republicans in elections. Hillary has the best chance of doing so in my opinion, so go Hillary!

  140. 140.

    AxelFoley

    April 10, 2015 at 10:37 pm

    @Princess:

    Anyone after Obama is going to be a come-down for me

    Co-signeth.

  141. 141.

    Tom W.

    April 10, 2015 at 10:37 pm

    @Baud:

    After a man, a woman candidate seems always to be a come-down. This is part of our culture (even if she’s a bit more liberal).

  142. 142.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    April 10, 2015 at 10:40 pm

    @efgoldman: It’s been clear about horses, to those of us who observe groups of them. No research grants, though – missed a bet there, clearly.

  143. 143.

    Peale

    April 10, 2015 at 10:45 pm

    @Zinsky: it is within your power not to bring them up at every opportunity. Anyway, it’s kind of nostalgic for me anyway. I was much younger and thinner during travel gate.

  144. 144.

    Cervantes

    April 10, 2015 at 11:09 pm

    @Pogonip:

    I bet even Science didn’t have to wait for Google Earth to find this out.

    You might not want to place that bet!

    Here’s the paper I alluded to:

    “Magnetic alignment in grazing and resting cattle and deer,” Sabine Begall, Jaroslav Červený, Julia Neef, Oldřich Vojtěch, & Hynek Burda, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 105:13451-13455.

    Here’s how the abstract concludes:

    This study reveals the magnetic alignment in large mammals based on statistically sufficient sample sizes. Our findings open horizons for the study of magnetoreception in general and are of potential significance for applied ethology (husbandry, animal welfare). They challenge neuroscientists and biophysics to explain the proximate mechanisms.

  145. 145.

    Cervantes

    April 10, 2015 at 11:14 pm

    @Hungry Joe:

    Thanks for bringing Mr. Clemens in. He’s one of my heroes.

    So in the 1800’s people knew that cows liked to face the same direction, and I’ll bet they knew it was north.

    Do you think they (the people!) knew it was magnetic north rather than geographic?

    Also, I’ve been meaning to ask: Who counted the exaggerations? Counting the footnotes is a lot more straightforward!

  146. 146.

    Aleta

    April 10, 2015 at 11:16 pm

    @MomSense:
    Elon James White started #ADDcheckin on Twitter. (Don’t have to be on Twitter to read it. Sorry I can’t put in a link from here.). It’s really supportive and warm, informative.

  147. 147.

    Cervantes

    April 10, 2015 at 11:17 pm

    @Zinsky:

    I can’t even begin to think about how awful eight more years of Whitewater, Vince Foster, Monica, cattle futures, travel office, Mena, Juanita Broaddrick, Benghazi, etc. ad nauseum is going to be!

    How are all these things her “baggage”?

  148. 148.

    Cervantes

    April 10, 2015 at 11:22 pm

    @Howard Beale IV:

    so much of what goes on in the name of so-called ‘research’ doesn’t pass real true scientific rigor

    But as you know, one example, no matter how bad one thinks it is, does not make the above a meaningful statement.

  149. 149.

    Pogonip

    April 10, 2015 at 11:24 pm

    @Howard Beale IV: And Balloon Juice.

  150. 150.

    satby

    April 10, 2015 at 11:45 pm

    @Pogonip: a bit, thanks. Getting a few more hours at work, maybe picking up another part time job. Hopefully getting there.

  151. 151.

    satby

    April 10, 2015 at 11:56 pm

    @Cervantes: see that’s something that has always struck me as unfair to Hillary in a similar way to the wingnuts reaction to Obama. How are they to blame for whatever the Wurlitzer decides to obsess about? They’re essentially getting blamed for being targets. And a lot of why they are targets is just nuts.

  152. 152.

    askew

    April 11, 2015 at 12:17 am

    @WaterGirl:

    As I mentioned in my original post, I was talking about Bloomberg and PPP released polls today where Hillary has dropped. In PPP’s NC she dropped a net 3 percent. she is now trailing GOP by average of 1 after leading last month. Bloomberg shows her honesty numbers are underwater. % of Dems who will absolutely vote for Hillary in general has dropped 10 points and 3/4 of Dems want a competitive primary. Quinnipac’s Iowa poll has her as untrustworthy by 7 pts, her favorables have gone down as well. Her favorables are underwater in CO and VA. That is a big problem before she even starts running.

    Corner Stone will blow all those lower polls and attack me. He isn’t interested in facts or a debate. He just wants to lob attacks at me. Not worth engaging in any way.

  153. 153.

    AxelFoley

    April 11, 2015 at 1:26 am

    @Corner Stone: No, fuck YOU.

  154. 154.

    Mnemosyne (tablet)

    April 11, 2015 at 1:33 am

    @Howard Beale IV:

    And that article has what, exactly, to do with the heritability of ADHD?

    Here’s a twin study, but I’m sure you’ll find some bogus reason to claim twin studies aren’t really valid and only studies that you personally design are valid:

    http://www.karger.com/ProdukteDB/Katalogteile/isbn3_8055/_92/_37/KIMH176_02.pdf

  155. 155.

    Peale

    April 11, 2015 at 1:39 am

    @askew: Hillary is going to win fewer states than Obama. She may even top out at her husbands level and he never won a majority of the vote. And? If no one else runs who can get the nomination those polls will not matter so it’s pointless to debate the polls.

    Why you insist on blaming her for having a money and organizational advantage over other democrats is beyond deranged. Seriously. Why should she give that up so that you’ll be happy? You don’t think that is fair, but then perhaps you should take that up with the other potential candidates who don’t play the game nearly as well, or are too cowardly to run and risk losing. If she is vulnerable, democrats will start listening to Martin O.

    You really are no different from all of those pundits who started giving Obama “advice” in 2011 that he shouldn’t run for a second term for tge good of the country. What you want her to do is concede, we get that, but why should she? You’ve given no real reason why she should drop out.

    She is a politician running for office. Get over it. It’s what they do. Getting mad at her for running makes no sense. And no, she doesn’t have to help their detractors by finding other candidates to run against herself so that voters can have a choice. Not her fault that people are loyal to her and won’t run.

  156. 156.

    Howard Beale IV

    April 11, 2015 at 1:51 am

    @Mnemosyne (tablet): You were the one who falsely asserted that I thought all mental illnesses were non-existant.

  157. 157.

    Matt McIrvin

    April 11, 2015 at 8:49 am

    @efgoldman: My understanding is that that NRA convention isn’t allowing operating guns in the hall because of the local laws. It wasn’t their decision, at least not alone.

  158. 158.

    Matt McIrvin

    April 11, 2015 at 9:21 am

    @Peale: Bill Clinton’s electoral win was substantially better than Obama’s, both times; he never won a popular majority because there was a significant third-party candidate.

    I doubt the map is going to be like that in 2016: times have changed in many ways, party lines have hardened, there’s probably not going to be a major third-party figure, and I suspect Hillary Clinton’s map will be more like Barack Obama’s than Bill Clinton’s. But we shall see.

  159. 159.

    Corner Stone

    April 11, 2015 at 10:36 am

    @AxelFoley: C’mon, ONT. We know you’re a 100% sell-out for your man President Obama. But damn, you’re endorsing his education policy. That’s some fucked up shit and bullshit, right there.

  160. 160.

    Corner Stone

    April 11, 2015 at 10:43 am

    @askew: This is the disingenuous part I was referring to. You dropped the “fallen” part without indicating it’s basically an amount equal to a rounding error.
    But as I said, as the reality of her candidacy comes closer and people on all sides of the spectrum start taking direct shots at HRC, the polls moving is inevitable. Almost all candidates are more beloved when people imagine them as a candidate. The reality shifts perception.

  161. 161.

    askew

    April 11, 2015 at 11:24 am

    @Peale:

    I’m not mad at her for running. I just don’t like Hillary. I think she is a mediocre politician with almost no charisma, political skills and was nothing but a seat warmer in the Senate. Her time at State left her with no real accomplishments to speak of. She also has serious character issues and her campaign engaged in race-baiting during the 2008 primaries so much that Kennedy and Clyburn had to publicly come out and shame them for it.

    I’m irritated that just because she was married to a former president that she is front-runner piggybacking off his network and taking credit for his another other people’s hard work.

    And I am annoyed that her supporters can’t engage in a positive discussion about her qualifications. All they can do is talk about her gender, her polling (which is falling – she has already underwater in her favorability), and her husband.

    And I find it depressing that the first female president is going to be someone who isn’t extraordinary in any way. AAs got Obama as the first AA president who truly is a once-in-a-generation politician who inspired people around the world and has been the best president of my lifetime. As a woman, I get Hillary as the first woman president whose supporters #1 reason for supporting her is her gender.

    Lastly, I find it infuriating that her supporters are already bullying anyone who doesn’t support her in the primaries and personally attacking them.

  162. 162.

    Cervantes

    April 11, 2015 at 11:29 am

    @Corner Stone:

    But damn, you’re endorsing his education policy.

    When you think about it, you know he’s really not doing that …

  163. 163.

    Cervantes

    April 11, 2015 at 11:31 am

    @askew:

    As a woman, I get Hillary as the first woman president whose supporters #1 reason for supporting her is her gender.

    Here’s a promise: you find a better female candidate and convince her to run, and I’ll support her, too, against any Republican of any gender.

  164. 164.

    Brachiator

    April 11, 2015 at 11:48 am

    @askew:

    I’m not mad at her for running. I just don’t like Hillary. I think she is a mediocre politician with almost no charisma, political skills and was nothing but a seat warmer in the Senate. Her time at State left her with no real accomplishments to speak of.

    I probably share some of your cautions about Hillary, but I disagree with you big time about her time at State. I think that she not only ably represented the president, but clearly built her own relationships with various world leaders, and she did it without using her husband’s charm to prepare the way.

    I was also in the fortunate position of being able to ask a couple of State Department employees, including an ambassador, what they thought of Hillary, and got very positive assessments of her operating style and ability to set a positive tone at State.

    Charisma is an odd thing. Either you have it or you don’t, but this does not necessarily make a politician ineffective (Nixon had anti-charisma). Whether she has developed better political skills and instincts is much more critical, and if she has not learned from her past mistakes, this may sink her.

    That she is piggybacking off her husband’s network is a non-issue. She probably helped build it. And while it can help her, it does not give her an insurmountable advantage.

    I also think that many of her supporters think that she is the best woman and that she somehow represents them and her aspirations. I think this is very different from suggesting that she must be supported just because of her gender.

    However, if Hillary did not learn from 2008 that she has to earn the nomination, not assume that a coronation is at hand, then her candidacy might be lost before it is even officially announced.

  165. 165.

    J R in WV

    April 11, 2015 at 12:11 pm

    @Zinsky:

    All of those things you listed but one were Republican attacks on good people doing a good job.

    The “Travel Office scandal” was B S, those people were will and pleasure employees hired by Republican administrations and loyal to the Republican party, I would not have trusted them to keep travel plans confidential from their Republican masters either.

    So lets not attack Hillary Clinton for the faux scandals whipped up by Republicans horrified that the country was electing a popular southern DEMOCRAT man, please!

  166. 166.

    Brachiator

    April 11, 2015 at 12:30 pm

    @J R in WV:

    The “Travel Office scandal” was B S, those people were will and pleasure employees hired by Republican administrations and loyal to the Republican party, I would not have trusted them to keep travel plans confidential from their Republican masters either.

    Just not true that the Travel Office was filled with loyal Republicans.

    Also probably not true that the Clinton involvement here was illegal, but it was unnecessarily messy.

    And the overzealous investigation tarnished the value of an Independent Counsel investigation.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_House_travel_office_controversy

  167. 167.

    Mnemosyne (tablet)

    April 11, 2015 at 12:37 pm

    @Howard Beale IV:

    Changing the subject again? Please explain why twin studies are not sufficient to show whether or not ADHD is heritable.

  168. 168.

    Cervantes

    April 11, 2015 at 1:02 pm

    @Brachiator:

    I was also in the fortunate position of being able to ask a couple of State Department employees, including an ambassador, what they thought of Hillary, and got very positive assessments of her operating style and ability to set a positive tone at State.

    Were they being … diplomatic?

    That she is piggybacking off her husband’s network is a non-issue. She probably helped build it.

    An exquisite point.

  169. 169.

    Brachiator

    April 11, 2015 at 1:10 pm

    @Cervantes:

    Were they being … diplomatic?

    No, they were being honest. Asked an open question. What they thought of her. How she compared to earlier Secretaries of State. We had had conversations before she was appointed, and their views have been consistent.

  170. 170.

    Mnemosyne

    April 11, 2015 at 1:11 pm

    @Howard Beale IV:

    Also, too, as I head out the door:

    If you want to debate whether or not ADHD is overdiagnosed, that’s a fair debate to have. (Summary of my take: it’s often overdiagnosed or misdiagnosed in middle-class and upper-class kids, severely underdiagnosed in lower-class kids. Distinguishing between ADHD and ASD (autism spectrum disorder) is extremely tricky.) If you think that kids with mild cases of ADHD are being medicated unnecessarily, I tend agree with you there — I think our current “teach to the test” mania that eliminated recess and gym classes has hurt mildly ADHD kids who wouldn’t have as many issues if they were allowed to get up from their desks occasionally.

    But if you want to debate whether ADHD is “real” or if mental illnesses can be inherited at all, that’s where it starts like being an argument with an anti-vaxxer or a climate denialist. No amount of evidence will ever convince you, so let’s not even start.

  171. 171.

    grandpa john

    April 11, 2015 at 1:55 pm

    @WaterGirl: Wonder if he looked at the crosstabs as I did, It was a Qpac poll where chief emphasis was push polling the stuff about the e-mails

  172. 172.

    WaterGirl

    April 11, 2015 at 2:48 pm

    @grandpa john: I pretty much ignore all the polls, so I definitely didn’t! I was just trying to show that there had been a poll announced yesterday so it would be clear that askew didn’t pull the polling data out of her ass out of the wacko hat, as we liked to call it in college.

    Personally, I think it’s way to early for polls to really tell us much of anything. And that works both ways – we shouldn’t count on all that hypothetical support for Hillary being real, so she’s no sure thing for the win and we should be too surprised when those hypothetical numbers come crashing down, as they always do when hypothetical person becomes real person again.

    Everybody seems to love Hillary when she’s not running for something; I’m not at all sure that will be the case once she’s actually campaigning. Personally, I don’t think she wears well. But I think her solid base, whatever that is, will remain solid come hell or high water. It will be good once we have an idea of what that base % actually is.

  173. 173.

    Corner Stone

    April 11, 2015 at 2:55 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    I was just trying to show that there had been a poll announced yesterday so it would be clear that askew didn’t pull the polling data out of her ass out of the wacko hat, as we liked to call it in college.

    You also didn’t bother to ask what the amount of “fallen” was. It was a garbage time 3%. Basically still in the margin of errors for a push poll.
    She does shit like that all the time. She keeps harping on HRC’s favorables being underwater but guess what? So are President Obama’s.
    Yeah, he ain’t running but it means just about the same damn relevance at this point in the cycle. She can’t be arsed to bring the truth to any of this threads and you can’t be assed to actually realize it because of your bias.

  174. 174.

    Corner Stone

    April 11, 2015 at 2:56 pm

    “Oh, look! Crime has gone up 300% in our town!”

  175. 175.

    Corner Stone

    April 11, 2015 at 2:57 pm

    @grandpa john: The poll was garbage time and inside the margin of error, at the end of the day.
    Meant nothing but it keeps getting repeated. Almost like it should be impactful, somehow.

  176. 176.

    Corner Stone

    April 11, 2015 at 2:58 pm

    @Cervantes: Isn’t he, though? I mean…isn’t he?

  177. 177.

    Corner Stone

    April 11, 2015 at 2:59 pm

    @askew: You pre-emptively negate or dismiss all the milestones in her public life. And then exasperatingly ask why her supporters don’t want to talk about her accomplishments. Which you state upfront you could not give a shit less about.

  178. 178.

    WaterGirl

    April 11, 2015 at 3:27 pm

    @Corner Stone: None of my beliefs or feelings relative to Hillary Clinton have anything to do with polling. As I said in response to grandpa john, I don’t pay a lot of attention to polls, especially when it’s this early.

    Emotions run high around Hillary, from both directions and I’m guessing we all read a lot into what other people say about Hillary. Last night ruemara, who I really like and respect, said that askew seemed gleeful in this comment:

    O’malley is supposed to declare at end of May. We’ll see if he actually does it. Hillary’s #s have fallen in polls released today by PPP and Bloomberg but he is still polling under 5%.

    I re-read that multiple times after ruemara’s comment, and I just don’t see “gleeful” there. O’Malley is gonna declare on this date, we’ll see if he does. Hillary’s poll numbers have fallen. O’Malley (askew’s guy in this race) is still polling under 5%.

    That’s just one example of how complicated the Hillary waters are around here.

  179. 179.

    Corner Stone

    April 11, 2015 at 4:29 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    None of my beliefs or feelings relative to Hillary Clinton have anything to do with polling.

    And I quite clearly didn’t say that you did/they were. My statement was that your internal bias leads you to not bother asking any contextual questions about what askew is using as her basis for trashing a potential D candidate.
    Like my comment above with the 300% increase in crime. Yeah? What was the original number?
    I think we get enough misleading bashing from pundits, and don’t care to swallow disingenuous bullshit from a relentless hater.

  180. 180.

    The Gray Adder

    April 11, 2015 at 4:48 pm

    @Princess: Instead of blindingly stupid and irrational racism, we get blindingly stupid and irrational misogyny. I can’t wait.

    Maybe after she gets her ass handed to her in the lowest turnout Presidential election since 1984, we can get Al Franken to run in ’20.

  181. 181.

    WaterGirl

    April 11, 2015 at 5:16 pm

    @Corner Stone: I don’t see askew as a relentless hater who is spewing disingenuous bullshit. But for the next week or so I’ll make an effort to read anti Hillary comments with a more objective eye rather than my usual nodding in agreement with most of the concerns expressed here about Hillary.

    But it may really come down to differences of opinion, which I think are fine as long as they don’t turn into personal attacks. That’s the part I really don’t get – why do things have to turn personal when there is a difference of opinion.

  182. 182.

    Corner Stone

    April 11, 2015 at 5:30 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    I don’t see askew as a relentless hater who is spewing disingenuous bullshit.

    Of course you don’t.

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