Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

There are consequences to being an arrogant, sullen prick.

Bad news for Ron DeSantis is great news for America.

It’s the corruption, stupid.

A last alliance of elves and men. also pet photos.

Joe Lieberman disappointingly reemerged to remind us that he’s still alive.

No one could have predicted…

Despite his magical powers, I don’t think Trump is thinking this through, to be honest.

A democracy can’t function when people can’t distinguish facts from lies.

I did not have this on my fuck 2022 bingo card.

Nothing worth doing is easy.

The GOP couldn’t organize an orgy in a whorehouse with a fist full of 50s.

Republicans don’t trust women.

A consequence of cucumbers

My years-long effort to drive family and friends away has really paid off this year.

Take your GOP plan out of the witness protection program.

If you are still in the GOP, you are an extremist.

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

Wow, you are pre-disappointed. How surprising.

You cannot shame the shameless.

Within six months Twitter will be fully self-driving.

And now I have baud making fun of me. this day can’t get worse.

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

Something needs to be done about our bogus SCOTUS.

American History and Black History Cannot Be Separated

You are here: Home / Open Threads / Night Owl / Early Bird Open Thread

Night Owl / Early Bird Open Thread

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This post is in: 

We’ve got a mosquito in the house. It’s not just any blood-sucker either: it is the James Bond of mosquitos, very elusive and hard to kill. 

Every time I try to close my eyes and get some rest, it materializes near my ear, hovering in the darkness with a high-pitched whine more irritating than a dozen puling brats insisting on a rest stop. 

I’ve knocked over lamps and rousted dogs and clapped empty space until my hands sting, all for naught.

Also, I’ve got a toothache. And the feral cats a soft-headed neighbor has attracted with bags of Meow Mix are staging a yodeling / mixed martial arts contest in my side yard.

Looks like I’ve hit the insomnia trifecta tonight / this morning. Might as well put on a pot of coffee.

PS: Speaking of irritants, here’s a partial screen grab of today’s NYT op-ed page:  Nope.

Reader Interactions

115Comments

  1. 1.

    Narcissus

    Just bought by brother one of those guns you use to shoot salt at bugs. Seems to work.

  2. 2.

    Keith G

    Sleepytime mosquito attacks are the worst. If one is awake, the audible evidence of the menace can be unnerving.

    If one is asleep, in a summertime home set at a reasonable air conditioned temperature, one may end up with mosquito bites in places where one might not normally get them.

    Never fun.

    @Narcissus: Can you use that contraption on baked potatoes?

  4. 4.

    mai naem mobile

    You.have my sympathy on the toothache. It seems like the worst ones always happen on Sat.evening so that you have to live through Sunday before you can get to a dentist on Monday. Theres a place near me which just opened this year – 24hr dentist – which I think is such a great business idea.

  5. 5.

    Gene108

    Do you have a fan? A good breeze from a fan can make it hard for the mosquito to buzz in your ear.

    Time to start tidying up around the house after some coffee.

  7. 7.

    Aimai

    However terrible our politics can i say : ha! Ha! ? Because im in rome right now and their pspers are full of their latest scandal. Twas ever thus. Our politicsl system does still look bad though, even from a distance. Best thing ever:int wall street journal has bitchy hysterics over “madam president warren”.

  8. 8.

    Sister Rail Gun of Warm Humanitarianism

    @Narcissus: Doesn’t look like it would have the power for palmetto bugs, though. Wonder how well it would spray diatomaceous earth?

  10. 10.

    bystander

    If I lived in Florida, I’d just wear a pith helmet with a full length body veil.

    The constant HRC bashing is making me her most ardent supporter. The assertion that she’s “untrustworthy” is based solely and only on the barrage of repub charges, none of which has ever resulted in the slightest indication of bad conduct.

  11. 11.

    Rob

    I used to have a cat that would very quickly find and eat the occasional stray mosquito that would manage to sneak into my room. Otherwise, a fan breeze will keep them off of you.

  12. 12.

    PurpleGirl

    Betty: It is all well and good that the neighbor is feeding feral cats… but is said neighbor also prepared to trap the cats and have them spayed/neutered? They can be quieted down but it takes a real interest in the animals welfare. After the spay/neuter the neighbor can release back into the wild, but spay/neuter is important.

  13. 13.

    hidflect

    Madame la Fraud and her scam charity run by her spawned daughter have no chance of winning. And you know what? I bet her shillsters known it. But it’s a paying gig until something better comes along.

  14. 14.

    Keith G

    @hidflect: So, ah…assuming for a nano second that your assertion is somewhat correct. If not Hillary, which other human being can appeal to a large enough swath of our increasingly diverse, state-by-state electorate and cobble together a winning coalition?

    /trollfeeding

  15. 15.

    Ultraviolet Thunder

    Praying Mantis, Asiatic House Gecko, Short Tailed Bat. These all eat mosquitoes. And are of no use to you.
    The fan trick does work. Skeeters need still air to settle on you.

  16. 16.

    redshirt

    I hate them all, but I still stand amazed watching the Republicans work. Years long efforts to drag someone through the mud at any cost. Oh for such discipline among Democrats!

  18. 18.

    Matt McIrvin

    @Keith G: Any Republican Party nominee gets 45% of the electorate for free; it doesn’t really matter who it is. That candidate wins if enough potential Democratic voters can be persuaded to vote third-party/independent or stay home, through scandal or FUD. I don’t consider it inevitable or even likely, but it’s a possibility.

  21. 21.

    tybee

    the “bug a salt” may kill some flies but a lot just fly away after being knocked down with the salt charge.
    however, a single shot will do in the largest slug.
    so far, no damages observed on “palmetto” bugs, large stink bugs or wasps.

  22. 22.

    Germy Shoemangler

    @Rob:

    I used to have a cat that would very quickly find and eat the occasional stray mosquito that would manage to sneak into my room.

    Last night I heard a soft, muffled “meow” on the floor next to my chair. Our cat found a centipede downstairs, grabbed it with her mouth and brought it up to us. She watched while I grabbed it with a napkin and dumped it outside.

    After that, she was agitated, sniffing all around the floors, hoping to find another.

  23. 23.

    Brendan in Charlotte

    Betty – had you included another Hillary op-ed screengrab, you would have had a second trifecta. A trifecta of stupid!

  24. 24.

    Trentrunner

    Frank Bruni is Maureen Dowd, unless someone produces evidence otherwise.

    These plus yesterday’s article arguing Hillary was dissing establishment Democrats by following Obama’s demographic/electoral path to victory really show how the Media Strikes Back.

    They are not going to be ignored, Dan!

  25. 25.

    Keith G

    @Matt McIrvin: well, that’s just it isn’t it?. A lot of things are possible, but the likelihood of any of the Republican contenders in 2016 having the type of juice to get above your 45ish% number is slim.

    This is a classic “running from the bear” situation. Hilary doesn’t have to be the most perfect candidate out there. She just has to be seen as being a better national leader then the others on the stage with her.

    She’ll be able to do that, warts and all.

  27. 27.

    johnnybuck

    No Frank, the Democrats are re-discovering how much they despise the media. They already know about the Clinton’s (as does 95% of the electorate) and are already anticipating the breathless idiocy that awaits. And then, right on cue, the NYT steps up!

  28. 28.

    Bobby B.

    “In the early part of the 21st century, Republican thralls favored the goatee, perhaps in tribute to the “evil Spock” character from an episode of the TV series Star Trek.”

  30. 30.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    Jamelle Bouie ‏@ jbouie 11h11 hours ago Bloomingdale, Washington
    It’s ludicrous to say that Obama’s strategy—which earned him 51.1% in 2012 & 52.9% in 2008—is more “narrow” than one that never broke 50%
    “But what about Perot?” Fair point! Still, a strategy that relies on pulling an assortment of different racial and class groups…
    …across urban AND RURAL areas around the country isn’t “narrow” by any definition. Unless you don’t think that massive turnout…
    …for say, rural blacks in Georgia, doesn’t “count” the same way rural turnout for whites does.
    .

  32. 32.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Trentrunner: Frank Bruni is Maureen Dowd, unless someone produces evidence otherwise.

    Maureen Dowd never got a nickname! not one that Bush would use in public

    @Brendan in Charlotte: Betty – had you included another Hillary op-ed screengrab, you would have had a second trifecta. A trifecta of stupid!

    Ron Fournier is tweeting his approval of Bruni. All the Democrats he knows hate Hillary! Anonymously.

  33. 33.

    PurpleGirl

    @Betty Cracker: Agree completely. The shelter kitten cams I follow all try to trap ferals to spay/neuter them and they try to encourage people to do the same.

  34. 34.

    PurpleGirl

    @debbie: I saw the man who developed the contraption on a reality show (to win investment money). From what he said, it was only developed to kill to kill flies.

    I still don’t understand why you would want to kill a fly with salt; think of the time it takes to load the gun and then aim and shoot.

  35. 35.

    Nicole

    @PurpleGirl: It was a beautiful day, you’re right. Last year’s was hot and overcrowded and no fun. The New York Racing Association did a much better job handing the crowd this year, but the glorious weather helped.

    He has a little brother- Irish Pharaoh. I notice they got the spelling right the second time around.

  37. 37.

    Chris

    Democrats are rediscovering how cruel any romance with the Clintons can be

    Tee hee! Cruel romance. You know? Because Bill Clinton was a cheating husband, LOL! Get it? Get it?

    I love it. There’s just so much stuff in the Clinton presidency they could go after, both real world problems (e.g. merrily continuing Reaganite “the era of small government is over” deregulation) and more conservative friendly problems (e.g. “his criminal negligence is why 9/11 happened!”) which isn’t real but at least would be concern-worthy if it was.

    But no. All these years later and still all they care about is Blowjobgate. Gag.

  38. 38.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    We’re going back… to the 90S!

    WASHINGTON — Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) said Sunday that he supports a constitutional amendment banning nationwide marriage equality.
    The Supreme Court is expected to issue a decision this month that could grant, for once and for all, same-sex couples the right to wed across the country.
    “I personally believe that marriage is between one man and one woman,” said Walker, a prospective GOP presidential candidate, on ABC’s “This Week.” “If the court decides that, the only next approach is for those who are supporters of marriage being defined as between one man and one woman is ultimately to consider pursuing a constitutional amendment.

  40. 40.

    Chris

    @bystander:

    The constant HRC bashing is making me her most ardent supporter. The assertion that she’s “untrustworthy” is based solely and only on the barrage of repub charges, none of which has ever resulted in the slightest indication of bad conduct.

    Yeah, me too. I’m not actually wild about her. Yet. But I have a feeling that by the time the next year and a half of loony conspiracy theories and inane gossiping about her is over, I’ll be as completely gung ho about her as I ever was for Obama.

  41. 41.

    Ghost of Joe Liebling's Dog

    Mnemosyne – I’m so sorry. I wish there were words that could do some good.

  46. 46.

    dww44

    @johnnybuck: Re despising the media, or at least what passes for the MSM versions, at the end of today’s quite good CBS Sunday Morning (hosted by Jane Pauley) the last story was a lead-in to today’s Face the Nation with its new host John Dickerson. The lead-in was an historical video look back at the latter’s mother, Nancy Dickerson. Dickerson (who also has a gig at the NYT) mentioned his guests today who are Chris Christie, Bill Diblasio, Rick Perry, and the GOP chair of the House homeland Security committee, whose name I forget. So, I figure this is the way it’s gonna be with the new host ( whose political leanings I’ve never been a fan of,) 3 GOP’ers for every Democratic one. I guess it also matters that Dickerson is a product of his inside-the-beltway raising.

    Serious question: Does the GOP truly have this much influence over the MSM, or is their bias, particularly their Sunday morning shows, or do their guest lists reflect their own political leanings? They better watch it, though, they may gin up a large sympathy vote for Clinton. I know it’s beginning to impact my views.

  47. 47.

    Matt McIrvin

    @Bobby B.: But Evil Universe Spock was both the most competent person we met in the evil universe, and arguably the least evil, because he was still entirely rational and could be induced to act according to enlightened self-interest. I suppose Republican pundits may think this is how they behave, but they’re tragically deluded.

  55. 55.

    The Pale Scot

    Too late to help you now but;

    I’m from a land called Bayonne NJ, surrounded by salt marsh on three sides (probably condos now) that are inhabited by marsh squeeters the size of A-10s. screen and other technologies were not as sophisticated as now an days.

    I recommend keeping an appropriate sized towel next to your bed. Just grab the towel and swing that sucker in circles above your head.

  59. 59.

    Iowa Old Lady

    @Chris: An occasionally rational R woman at the gym joked that the Global Clinton Foundation should be called the Global Criminal Foundation. Sigh. Where do you even start? And what would be the point?

  62. 62.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Iowa Old Lady: my personal skepticism about him and his magic touch notwithstanding, Bubba oughta take the lead on that, talking about the good they do and have done. The long Wash. Post piece that got approving links from most Villagers had exactly two things that I found inappropriate, beyond all the “appearances” and “optics”, was that Huma Abdeen (sp?) was paid a salary from the foundation while also working for State, and they paid Sid Blumenthal and obscene amount of money for advice in helping shape Clinton’s legacy, whatever the hell that means.

  63. 63.

    azlib

    Ross’ problem seems to be he hates strong women who actually have agency. Hillary is not as left as I would like, but she lives in the real world unlike the folks on the Republican clown car.

    If Hillary gets the nomination it looks like we are in for a campaign of personal attacks from the Right. They really have nothing else.

  65. 65.

    The Pale Scot

    @PurpleGirl:
    Thumbs down on release of cats into the wild. If they lived on the FL roaches, I’d think about it. but they prey on the critters that eat the bugs.

    It’s just a bad way to run an environment.

    What the birdies ever do to you? /S

  67. 67.

    Chris

    @azlib:

    If Hillary gets the nomination it looks like we are in for a campaign of personal attacks from the Right. They really have nothing else.

    When have they ever? Obama was born in Kenya and a Weather Underground sympathizer and a Muslim who was also from a Christian Black Nationalist church. John Kerry loved terrorists and Vietcong and hated America and probably faked his injury in combat. Al Gore was fat and claimed he invented the Internet and was too nerdy and was fat. Bill Clinton… well.

  69. 69.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Omnes Omnibus: my take was that was for consulting work. Maybe pretty standard at that level of… whatever this is, but if I were donating to a charity, and they were paying that kind of money for PR advice, I’d be unhappy.

  70. 70.

    Glidwrith

    @dww44: I think the electorate is so bloody stupid that they would elect a ‘Thug, just because we’ve had a Dem for eight years. However, I also think the press and ‘Thugs are going to be so bluntly over-the-top misogynistic that it will drive people into voting for her.

  71. 71.

    Chris

    @Glidwrith:

    I think the electorate is so bloody stupid that they would elect a ‘Thug, just because we’ve had a Dem for eight years.

    Yeah. Tragically, I don’t see American voting public treating the GOP as its radicalism warrants. Yes, Bush soured them on the GOP, but that’s still nothing voter fatigue and a sub-par Democratic campaign couldn’t cure.

  72. 72.

    Yatsuno

    @Mnemosyne (iPhone): *hug* I’m sorry hon. I know you’re making frantic preparations to go back to Chicago (if not on your way by now) But if you check back in please know we’re all thinking of you and your family at this terrible time.

  73. 73.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    Questions for any PA people: What do state Dems have against Sestak? I remember in 2010 there was a lot of grumbling that seemed to come from party insiders, but I was never clear on the reasons.

    The party’s biggest lingering problem, however, is in Pennsylvania, where national Democrats have made no secret of the fact that they would prefer former representative Joe Sestak not be their nominee against Sen. Pat Toomey. (Sestak ran against Toomey in 2010 and lost.) But attempts to lure Montgomery County Commissioner Josh Shapiro into the contest have failed, and it’s not clear that there’s another good anti-Sestak option out there.

    Chris Cilliza artlice on the strength of Dem Senate recruits in 2016

  74. 74.

    Valdivia (The Terrible)

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: I have no idea what the problem is, maybe how he ran his last campaign? But I have seen articles almost every week about the PA Dems trying to get someone else into the race. It would be useful if there was some data out there that illuminated if his numbers were awful against Toomey. That would be the only reason I can think of for wanting someone else.

    I was thinking about that NYT piece on Hillary’s ‘narrow’ strategy. I think that aside from the usual ‘everything is bad for dems’ trope the piece is castigating her for her failure to do what the media expected her to do, which was to dump on Obama left and right, and run for Bill’s third term. I would guess we will see pieces like these a lot: it’s a perfect way to showcase negative stories on both Obama and Hillary.

  75. 75.

    Cervantes

    @Mnemosyne (iPhone):

    “I am going to seek a great perhaps; draw a curtain, the farce is played out.”

    Rabelais may have felt that at the end. Your brother, too, maybe.

    Hang in there. Grieve. Live.

  77. 77.

    Chris

    @Valdivia (The Terrible):

    I think that aside from the usual ‘everything is bad for dems’ trope the piece is castigating her for her failure to do what the media expected her to do, which was to dump on Obama left and right, and run for Bill’s third term.

    Oh Lord, yes. One of the MSM’s big moments was convincing Al Gore in 2000 that revulsion at That Boorish Hick In The White House was a sentiment that ran through the entire nation, rather than just the gossiping cocktail party cliques in Official Washington. They’re salivating at the thought of Hillary doing the same thing for Obama.

  78. 78.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Chris: The thing is, it’s not 2000 anymore – it’s not even 2008. People (outside the Village) learn. It looks like HRC has.

  79. 79.

    Rex Everything

    Florida mosquitoes are already the T Rexes of mosquitoes, so that’s the James Bond of the T Rex of mosquitoes.

    I was at the Everglades once in the middle of summer (never, NEVER do this), and they bit right through my jeans. I’ve never seen anything like it.

  83. 83.

    Chris

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    Well, if anyone should know better, it’s the wife of the last guy this was done to.

    Also, I suppose it’d be boringly obvious to point out that when the MSM contrasts Clinton’s “wider” appeal with Obama’s “narrow” appeal that Hillary is supposedly following, all they really mean is “Clinton was more popular with white people?”

  84. 84.

    johnnybuck

    @dww44: Dickerson is just another village clown. Nothing really changes, just the spokes models. I really believe they are behind the curve with Clinton so to speak, because they expected a rerun of 2008. As someone upthread pointed out, people really do learn things, except the self-satisfied opinion makers, who learn nothing ever.

  87. 87.

    Valdivia (The Terrible)

    @Chris: This push for her to distance herself from Obama reinforces their own view of the country as a ‘center-right’ nation. They never forgave Obama for not abiding by the Village dictums and ruining their narrative that he is absolutely toxic to everyone (he is toxic in certain states for sure, but not everywhere). But as @Omnes Omnibus: notes, it’s not 2000 anymore and Hillary’s Team is on the ground and knows what they need to do to win. The rest I think is just Village noise. I am glad she’s paying them no mind.

    @Chris: yep, the ‘narrow’/’wide’ thing is about Real ‘Muricans

  91. 91.

    Chris

    @Valdivia (The Terrible):

    Yeah. And I don’t even think most of them are consciously trying to screw the Democrats. They just accept unquestioningly that we are a center right nation, that most Americans are repelled by [insert Democrat here] and his left wing extremism, and that the only way for a Democrat to demonstrate that he’s in touch is to denounce the other Democrat.

  92. 92.

    Valdivia

    @Chris: Agreed. They think they have the finger on the pulse of what is the ‘real’ message of any given election. And push relentlessly until they make it so.

  93. 93.

    jayjaybear

    The fact that Douche-hat is still paid for his stuff is a criminal conviction against modern US society…

  94. 94.

    Chris

    @Valdivia:

    And when they don’t make it, pretend it’s a fluke. Their reaction to 2008 was to proclaim that we were still a center right nation.

  95. 95.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Chris: I remember a few months back Tweety was braying about Obama’s aggressiveness in touting “center left” ideas like the minimum wage increase, which was polling IIANM between 2/3 and 3/4 favorability. But if your core sample group is the rolodex of Morning Joe and MTP, that’s a ‘center left’ notion

  96. 96.

    Brachiator

    @Chris: I don’t know whether the pundit came up with the title and subhead for the column, but I had no interest in checking it out.

    And it’s not just because of any implications of the Lewinsky thing. The headline suggests that the column will be about Hillary, but the subhead suggests a piece about “the Clintons,” which doesn’t interest me. The Clintons are not running as a collective for the presidency (not yet, anyway), so I have no interest in a vague rehash or finger pointing at them as a couple.

    Lastly, “cruel romance” comes across as a vaguely sexist dismissal. Has a pundit written of a cruel romance concerning Jeb Bush or Rubio or another passenger of the Republican klown kar?

    I look forward to ignoring more of this tripe.

  97. 97.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    also, this

    Eric Boehlert ‏@ EricBoehlert 53m53 minutes ago
    Jeb’s GOP polling cratered 21-10% in poll last week; Hillary’s favorable dipped 3 pts. Guess what BIG STORY was on Sun talk shows?

  102. 102.

    Ruckus

    @bemused:
    This is a big part of the issue. They read each other and reenforce each other. They really do live in a tiny little circle of bullshit. Problem is they can’t see anything else. They’ve been trained/duped their entire careers to see the big print media/TV opinion shows as creating the important vision of the country. And they capture a large enough percentage of the viewing/reading audience that they think they are correct. So they keep heading in the same direction, time after time. Their bosses like that those eyeballs are focused on them and keep paying them and people like them to spew the same crap. And the people who own those eyeballs believe each word because there is little alternative, like almost none in the upper end of the media. Once again it’s about money, who has a study stream and which stream is the largest.

  104. 104.

    bemused

    @Ruckus:

    Agree. I don’t think the Villagers would like being compared to rural, insular, redneck type communities who cling to their tribe, mainly hang out with each other, don’t accept “newcomers” as one of their own even even if they have lived there for decades and marry each other.

  105. 105.

    Brachiator

    @Keith G: @Ruckus: it’s true that this bunch read and reinforce each other, but the media is less monolithic and much less influential than ever. And there is a clear generational issue at play here. Those who keep tabs of the conventional media are increasingly becoming the the “darn kids, keep off my lawn types.”

    Big print media ain’t what it used to be and the eyeballs that focus on the tv opinion shows are declining in both number and value to advertisers. And there are many alternatives, especially for the younger generation.

  106. 106.

    Chris

    @Ruckus:

    The other thing is, not just how they relate to each other, but how they relate to the professional right wing media (the people who’re just straight-up unapologetic propagandists rather than both-sides-do-it-but-liberals-are-worse milquetoasts basking in their VSP Moderate Centrism). Which is, generally, equivalent to the behavior of a middle school Non Cool Kid following the Cool Kids around and desperately trying to win their approval, even as they heap abuse upon him.

    It makes it worse, because they’ve convinced themselves that the only kind of “dissenting opinion” they need to listen to is that of the right.

  107. 107.

    Ruckus

    @Brachiator:
    Well it’s getting less monolithic but it certainly hasn’t gone real far down that road effectively. Big cities still have their hometown newspapers and while circulation is down the same people who grew up with newspapers as being the source of news still read them. So they still have power. You are right that this is changing but I don’t see it as changing all that fast. Will that change accelerate? I’m sure it will, I’m just not convinced that it will change enough anytime soon.
    @Chris:
    Well we were being dragged (in many cases kicking and screaming) to the left 30 yrs ago and conservatives can’t have any of that. What would life be like if they found out that they have been full of shit for ever? More importantly, what would life be like if the average white voter found out that conservative policies don’t just fuck over the poors/minorities but everyone other than the 1% and above? Can’t have that….

  108. 108.

    Elie

    Believe me, I was not a Hillary supporter by the end of 2008. However, all of this obviously anti-Hillary screed put out by the media these days is actually making me support her! Modo is completely off her rocker, for example– while letting that increasingly ridiculous Republican clown show go on un-criticized! As I have said, she must be doing something right, based on the ridiculousness of her enemies. I also agree with her strategy of saying very little in response to these ridiculous, non serious or content driven attacks —

  109. 109.

    Brachiator

    @Ruckus: I’ve mentioned the PEW report a couple of times. There is a clear generational divide. Millenials surveyed got the majority of their news from Facebook. In the office where I work, only one person subscribed to the print edition of the Los Angeles Times, and when he would bring the paper in, it would quickly be thrown away, except for the Sports section. No one in the office even reads the online edition of the Times, and none of them would spend a nanosecond watching the Sunday news shows.

    Now, I am not saying that this group is especially well informed, but old media is dead to them, and it’s never coming back.

    Even in my generation, a friend may be indicative of new trends. She is a fierce Facebook user, because she finds it easy to use and doesn’t bombard her with pop up ads. And so increasingly she reads news stories served up to her on Facebook. She does still read newspapers and watches tv and, since this is Southern California, listens to talk radio and public radio, but the proportion of news coming from the Internet is increasing.

  110. 110.

    mclaren

    Hillary the Tormentor? Really?

    Why not go for the gusto and just try Hillary the Impaler? Hillary the Unspeakable? Hillary the Horror From Beyond Space?

    Cue the Japanese monster movie VARAN THE UNBELIEVABLE in…3…2…1…

  111. 111.

    mclaren

    @Keith G:

    This is a classic “running from the bear” situation. Hilary doesn’t have to be the most perfect candidate out there. She just has to be seen as being a better national leader then the others on the stage with her.

    She’ll be able to do that, warts and all.

    Easily.

    As Tim F. (I think) remarked years ago, the American political landscape is no longer defined by a clash twixt liberals vs conservatives, today it’s defined by the conflict between the sane and insane.

    Hillary is sane.

  112. 112.

    Mnemosyne

    I know it’s a dead thread and all, but I wanted to (belatedly) thank everyone for the kind condolences. I was already here in Florida with my mom so we were here for the end. Got a 4:30 am phone call and had to rush over.

    The worst part was that I was the one who had to break the news to my 9-year-old niece. I was the only one who could do it. That really, really sucked, though.

  113. 113.

    Steeplejack

    @Mnemosyne:

    Mnem, deepest condolences. I am just catching up on the threads after a hectic weekend. So sorry to hear about your brother’s death. My thoughts are with you and your family. I hope you can connect with your niece in a way that helps her going forward.

  114. 114.

    sharl

    @Mnemosyne:

    The worst part was that I was the one who had to break the news to my 9-year-old niece. I was the only one who could do it. That really, really sucked, though.

    Aww damn, Mnem, that DOES suck. I’m so sorry.
    Again, please accept my condolences.

  115. 115.

    zoomar

    How to get a sleepy time mosquito. A few minutes after you hear the buzz. Quietly get up and turn on the light. Look at the walls. The mosquito will be on the wall somewhere. Look carefully. It will be there. When you see it, swat it. Enjoy the victory splat of your own blood on wall when you connect.

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