Hat tip, once again, to commentor LAMH36, who is awesome.
Also awesome: Gail Collins, “Poking the Republican Pyramid“:
Is it my imagination, or are half the governors in the country running for president?
On the Republican side they’re piling up like … those huge stacks of walruses we see off the coast of Alaska now that there’s global warming. A stack of governors! Different from the walruses only in 1) lack of tusks, and 2) failure to believe that melting ice floes are a serious problem…
Almost all governors brag about their economic development programs — hey, it’s economic development! But we could have an excellent conversation about how often these things really work. They’re frequently huge, thudding wastes of money. Louisiana, for instance, covers about a third of the in-state production costs for any movie that’s filmed there, a policy that will pay off only if it turns out that tourists visit New Orleans just because it was the site of “Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.”…
Next door in Texas, then-Gov. Rick Perry claimed that his Texas Enterprise Fund created more than 12,000 jobs with a $50 million investment in an institute for genomic medicine. It was actually more like 10 jobs once you stopped counting every single biotech job created anywhere in the entire state for the previous six years.
In Florida, when Jeb Bush was governor, he came up with a plan for biotech corridors that would spawn tens of thousands of jobs, transforming the state just the way Disney World did in the 1970s, except possibly without any pirates. Reuters studied the results and estimated that Florida state and local governments had anted up $1.32 billion and generated 1,365 jobs, or $1 million per new employee…
Under Chris Christie, New Jersey has handed out $630 million to get companies to move jobs to the woebegone city of Camden. Which would seem like a worthy goal, except that most of the jobs in question were already in the state — in fact, frequently in an adjoining neighborhood. “Most of the jobs coming to Camden are filled by existing employees who currently work just a few miles away,” reported The Associated Press. “Nearly all the recipients boast notable political connections.”…
***********
What’s on the agenda for the new day?
raven
That was a great piece on Rachel.
We met with the contractor yesterday and they are going to start tearing off the siding today with a Monday start on the framing. Most of the meeting was between the boss lady and the contractor and it looks like we’re going to take down a good part of the wall that separates the kitchen from the sun porch to give us some light since we are losing a big window. We also are going to extent the brick tile floor from the sunporch into the addition. Here we go. . . again!
BillinGlendaleCA
I’m just going to hazard a guess that none of those jobs came with a salary approaching $1 million.
NotMax
@raven
Here’s hoping they make much progress before the coming long holiday weekend.
NotMax
10 just ended on TCM. Had never seen it before. Perhaps it hasn’t aged well, or perhaps it is one of those movies that comes across better on the big screen, but found it a tepid, even enervating, offering.
Mustang Bobby
Gotta love getting an e-mail that starts with “Congratulations Playwright!” My play Which Way to the Beach has been selected for New Theatre’s New Stages Festival Miami 1-Acts on August 1 and 2.
This is the fourth time one of my plays has been selected for this semi-annual festival and I’m honored and excited to be working with such a great group again.
raven
@NotMax: I wonder about that too. They’ve been down for 2 week and maybe they will work the 3rd.
Mustang Bobby
@BillinGlendaleCA: I can testify that your conclusion is correct. Boy howdy can I.
OzarkHillbilly
@Mustang Bobby: Congrats.
Schlemazel
@raven:
you’re a brave man, ripping the siding off the week before a long holiday weekend. Still it must be exciting to see the change.
on the jobs front; I am not aware of any program anywhere that gave money to people to create or move jobs has produced as many jobs as they claim & everyone (except the 1% takers) would have been better off if the money were just given as wages directly to some random group of people in the area supposedly helped.
ThresherK
@NotMax: I knew I was different from the other young men when this movie came out. All the scuttlebutt was about how much one could see of Bo Derek and for how long. And this was at a male-only Catholic high school.
I didn’t see the movie, but my curiousity ran to wondering if Dudley Moore was the “Monty Python” or “Benny Hill” kind of funny Englishman.
(Now I’m gonna hop on my penny-farthing, ride to my nephew’s, and spread the news about how video of Peter Cook and Dudley Moore would just sit somewhere until a TV station aired it.)
ETA: Congratulations playwright!
Betty Cracker
My grandfather played football at Ole Miss. When they’re not playing the Gators, I root for them.
@Mustang Bobby: Congrats!
Schlemazel
@NotMax:
Meh, I was around for its initial run & was not as thrilled as most people. I always attributed that to my failings. I hated ET, Saturday Night Fever, Close Encounters and several other big hit movies including 10. I also never thought Bo Diddler was all that either. 10 was OK not great & I guess I am not surprised it has not held up well.
NotMax
@ThresherK
Trivia: her husband, Jon Derek, was a mediocre actor on screen but must have had something as among his wives were Ursula Andress and Linda Evans as well as Bo.
Baud
@Mustang Bobby:
Fourth time? I guess that makes you officially accomplished.
NotMax
@Mustang Bobby
Nice.
Schlemazel
@Mustang Bobby:
very cool, congrats!
ThresherK
@NotMax: I don’t know about Andress and Evans, but I seem to remember John Derek as a stretch older than Bo, and also a Svengali to her career.
Actually a bit surprised she came out of the whole thing intact (for want of a better word) and seems a happy and healthy person. (As of that piece on CBS Sunday Morning earlier this year.)
satby
@NotMax: I’m all excited because I just found out I can get TCM on Sling on the Roku.
TCM is the only channel I’ve missed since I cut the cable cord.
germy shoemangler
@ThresherK: John Derek was in movies in the 1940s. He went way back to “old” hollywoodland
germy shoemangler
Mustang Bobby
@Baud: Thanks. There’s tough competition in the mix, too. I’m glad they like my work.
satby
@Mustang Bobby: Congrats! That’s awesome.
Baud
@germy shoemangler:
Good for Bernie. Although, if he had lost the teachers union in Vermont, I would think he would have had to pack it in.
germy shoemangler
anyone see Obama last night deal with that White House heckler?
Baud
@Mustang Bobby:
You are clearly the tough competition for those other competitors.
BillinGlendaleCA
@germy shoemangler: So that’s what DougJ’s been doing.
Iowa Old Lady
@Mustang Bobby: Go you! Congratulations!
OzarkHillbilly
@germy shoemangler: “If you’re in my house…”
Iowa Old Lady
@germy shoemangler:
I just saw the video. Obama was very cool. “You’re in my house.” What was the guy screaming about?
Baud
@Iowa Old Lady:
Wants release of LGBTQ people in immigration detention.
ETA: Not sure about number, thought I read that somewhere.
germy shoemangler
@Iowa Old Lady: Obama: “You’re eating my food. Drinking. I know that’s true!”
germy shoemangler
@Baud: How long before foxx newz says “Obama claims White House is HIS house! Our panelists disagree: it’s OUR house. And we want it back” or some such thing? Counting…. five, four, three, two…
Baud
@germy shoemangler:
Elizabelle has been on the right-wing media beat. Maybe she can give us a report.
Luthe
@germy shoemangler: The Advocate confirms her identity. I saw this story on Tumblr this morning with people taking Obama to task for “rudeness” and having her escorted out by the Secret Service, but no matter how important her message, I’m on his side for this one. You wanna heckle and tell the President about your cause? Fine, but don’t do it at a formal White House event.
Germy Shoemangler
@Baud: Elizabelle has been doing a great job as an undercover viewer. Reminded me of Hunter Thompson at the Las Vegas police convention.
Baud
@Luthe:
Hecklers aren’t big on protocol. But they can’t expect not to be removed.
BillinGlendaleCA
@Baud: She was, but then this happened as a result.
Geeno
Helping the in-laws today. Their house burned down last night.
I saw the smoke on the horizon, a minute later – the firetruck sirens. I’m thinking “I hope that’s one of those empty old buildings outside of town and not some one’s house”, about twenty minutes later we get a call and find out it was my mother and father in law’s place.
Germy Shoemangler
@Geeno: what caused the fire?
satby
Today? Why, it’s raining. Again. But we had the last two days to dry out a bit at least.
danielx
@raven:
Got to remember that ordinary time and contractor time are two different time scales, especially when working with existing structures. When a contractor says two weeks, it really means four. Because you never know….like the time when your humble obedient went to remove a wallpaper accent border (perforate, steam, removal gel etc) in the kitchen I was redoing and found another accent border that some asshole had painted over underneath the one I was removing. Which of course had to be removed also. And now a job that should have taken maybe eight to twelve hours is up to thirty hours by the time you count skimcoating drywall, using an oil based primer and generally fiddlefucking around to make it look right.
raven
@danielx: We’re at 2 years 3 months and counting!
MrSnrub
We are planning to release my current software project today. It was a planning nightmare – the amount of work that was required was underestimated by a huge amount. I wound up working 70+ hours per week the past 2-3 weeks in order to get it released 10 days late.
I want to say that I’m proud of the project, but mostly I just want it to go away.
OzarkHillbilly
@Luthe:
You have to be an idiot to think he was being rude to her. Who interrupted who?
Baud
@BillinGlendaleCA:
Ha! I haven’t heard that song in forever.
danielx
@raven:
And some of the contractors are like family at this point, including family like your Uncle Charlie who everyone wishes could be gagged and put in a straitjacket at family gatherings.
raven
@danielx: Our guy and his wife are also our friends. When this is all done I hope I can say it was a good choice. I think it was.
JPL
@Geeno: Good luck and I can only imagine, today will be busy. I’m glad they are okay.
Betty Cracker
@MrSnrub: Isn’t that always the way? You put so much heart and soul into a project — whether for work or a home renovation job — and at the end, you just want it to finally go the hell away so you can have your life back. Congrats.
@OzarkHillbilly: Agreed. Public events are one thing. Sometimes raising a ruckus is justified, and no president deserves deference all the time — this ain’t no monarchy. But if you attend an event at someone’s home, be respectful or prepare to be tossed out on your ass. Fair is fair.
JPL
@satby: Yesterday, I heard thunder on and off for four hours. According to wunderground, they were popping up all over but all I got was noise. I could really use some rain.
Valdivia
@Mustang Bobby: Congrats!
@Baud: Exactly. Specially if it’s a formal event at the White House. Obama usually lets people who interrupt him talk if it’s a public event, wonder what she expected would happen. That she would be given a mike to come to the stage and talk?
Iowa Old Lady
@Luthe: A formal White House event celebrating gay pride, no less.
raven
@JPL: It poured here for about 10 minutes.
JPL
@raven: Don’t worry, once they tear off that siding, you will get your share of rain.
Betty Cracker
Least surprising headline ever: Whole Foods overcharges customers, probe finds.
Baud
@Betty Cracker: Gotta pay for Obamacare somehow.
BillinGlendaleCA
@Baud: My college roommate and I used to listen to Dr. Demento and I loved that song.
Kay
As opposed to those divisive Democrats who kept asking all those irritating questions in public. Very unprofessional. Better to leave all that to the private sector representatives on the appointed trade team.
raven
@JPL: That side of the house gets the afternoon sun so temps will soar!
MattF
@Betty Cracker: Seriously, we sorta kinda already knew that. Fwiw, there are… um… four Whole Foods stores within a couple of miles of my front door. If you want a quick characterization of neighborhoods in and around NW DC, ‘Whole Foods’ would be a good start.
ETA: changed ‘five’ to ‘four’. May need eventually to recount and change it again, though.
ETAA: Nope, it’s five.
danielx
Rain and low thunder……hard to get motivated, especially since this popped up on the playlist.
danielx
@Kay:
Such as, “if this proposed agreement is all that great, why can’t we see what’s in it?”
debbie
@germy shoemangler:
If Fox doesn’t say it, Glenn Beck will be sure to.
debbie
@raven:
If this means you resolved that weekslong delay, congratulations!
Paul in KY
@Mustang Bobby: Way to go!!
Paul in KY
@Geeno: Very sorry to hear that. At least no one was injured. Try to focus on the positives, such as they are.
raven
@debbie: thx
Kay
@danielx:
Oh, the Democrats in Congress saw what’s in it. They knew what they were opposing. Labor saw what’s in it too. They have representatives on some of the negotiating sections (although there are far, far more representatives for various business interests). They just aren’t allowed to tell anyone.
Their objections were not to some abstract idea of “free trade” although that’s how they were portrayed for political purposes.
It looks like the White House is shutting Congressional Democrats out going forward though and fast track means passage so it doesn’t matter.
I hope Mr. Froman, our trade negotiator who went from the Clinton team directly to Citigroup and then back to government (there was some overlap there in 2009 where he was working both places) writes a good deal.
Steeplejack
@satby:
Not sure that it matters now, but you can stream TCM directly. Dunno if it’s “on demand” or just a live feed, but there it is.
danielx
@Kay:
Oh, I’m sure it will be a good deal for someone.
OzarkHillbilly
@raven: yeah, glad to see movement for you.
raven
@Steeplejack:
<blockquoteWhat movies are available?
TCM licenses movies from major studios and other rights holders to air on the network as well for Watch TCM. However, some titles will not be available for Watch TCM. We are continually working to grow the amount of titles, so check back often.
TCM licenses movies from major studios and other rights holders to air on the network as well for Watch TCM. However, some titles will not be available for Watch TCM. We are continually working to grow the amount of titles, so check back often.
How long are they available?
Movies are available on Watch TCM 7 days after they air on the TCM network on TV.
How can I find if my favorite star or movie is available in Watch TCM?
In most cases, movies are available within 3 hours after they air on the network, and then they are available for 7 days.
Steeplejack
@Mustang Bobby:
Congratulations!
raven
@OzarkHillbilly: And I appreciate your input.
OzarkHillbilly
@raven: As long as it helped.
PurpleGirl
@germy shoemangler: The only movie I remember him in is The Ten Commandments. He played a Hebrew slave — a stone cutter.
PurpleGirl
@Geeno: How awful for them. Do/did they have any pets?
PurpleGirl
@raven: True, but that is not your contractor’s fault. There was a little interruption caused by a sewer line needing to be relocated, if I remember correctly.
Southern Beale
I can never get MSNBC clips to play. Am I the only one?
Betty Cracker
@Southern Beale: This one did play for me, but quite often they don’t. I think the fault lies with MSNBC. Their site redesign a few years back bollixed everything up — laptop, tablet and smartphone.
MattF
SCOTUS decides in favor of health care subsidies. 6-3.
Iowa Old Lady
@MattF: Sweet cartwheeling Jesus.
Geeno
@Germy Shoemangler: No idea yet, they think it started in the garage.
They were out to dinner when it started, so they’re safe and the car is intact, but what a thing to turn onto your street and see your house on fire.
Frank in midtown
I enjoy Rachel, but she really sold the current/recent students short. Over the past 5 years the students at the University of Mississippi convinced the school to drop Col. mascot for a native black bear mascot and ban the battle flag in the stands AND enforce the ban (to the point that their shakers don’t have a stick handle so the handle can’t be used for a flagpole.) The story should/could have been much more positive.
Felonius Monk
Does anyone actually believe that this latest SCOTUS decision will be the last challenge to the ACA? What will the right-wing shitheels dream up next to try to undermine it? Any thoughts?
fuckwit
@Felonius Monk: With every challenge, and every passing year, the law gets more entrenched and harder to remove or destroy. It has become, as the Rethugs used to love to say, “facts on the ground”. Can’t be changed. Sorry, this is the way things are now.
But as I’ve said in another thread, we can’t count on the courts to keep this alive. We MUST take back the House and Senate, and all of the state legislatures too. This ultimately has to be solved as a political problem, not a litigation problem. All the people who like living in a country with affordable medical insurance need to VOTE DEMOCRATIC, and continue to do so, for as long as possible.
Tenar Darell
There’s a kickstarter for a Molly Ivins documentary here. the trailer made me laugh and tear up. I bought too many books this month, but I’ll try to catch an open thread earlier to spread the word.