Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

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

So it was an October Surprise A Day, like an Advent calendar but for crime.

It’s time for the GOP to dust off that post-2012 autopsy, completely ignore it, and light the party on fire again.

We cannot abandon the truth and remain a free nation.

Republicans are radicals, not conservatives.

He really is that stupid.

No one could have predicted…

Speaking of republicans, is there a way for a political party to declare intellectual bankruptcy?

I’m pretty sure there’s only one Jack Smith.

if you can’t see it, then you are useless in the fight to stop it.

Hot air and ill-informed banter

We’ve had enough carrots to last a lifetime. break out the sticks.

Our job is not to persuade republicans but to defeat them.

Give the craziest people you know everything they want and hope they don’t ask for more? Great plan.

Whatever happens next week, the fight doesn’t end.

Proof that we need a blogger ethics panel.

A snarling mass of vitriolic jackals

Fuck these fucking interesting times.

And we’re all out of bubblegum.

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

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

In my day, never was longer.

A lot of Dems talk about what the media tells them to talk about. Not helpful.

Something needs to be done about our bogus SCOTUS.

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Orangmandias

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orangmandias

Y’all may have already heard this, but it has been confirmed that President Obama’s humiliation of Trump at the White House Correspondents Dinner five years ago is indeed what set Trump off on his quest for the presidency:

After the humiliation of President Barack Obama raking him over the coals for pushing birther conspiracy theories, a top surrogate for Donald Trump said he will have his “ultimate revenge” when all of his critics have to “bow down” to him in the White House.

In a clip previewing an upcoming special from PBS Frontline, published online Thursday, Omarosa Manigault spoke about the abject humiliation Trump felt after Obama did an extended bit about the real estate mogul at the 2011 White House Correspondents Dinner.

“Every critic, every detractor, will have to bow down to President Trump,” Manigault said. “It’s everyone who’s ever doubted Donald, who ever disagreed, who ever challenged him. It is the ultimate revenge to become the most powerful man in the universe.”

Roger Stone, a longtime Trump confidant [and crackpot scumbag! — ed.] with loose ties to the campaign, called the 2011 event “the night that [Trump] resolved to run for president.”

Yeah, nothing deranged and egomaniacal as fuck about that! Since this confirmation is coming from a top campaign surrogate, maybe Lester Holt could ask Trump to explain how the public pantsing he got from PBO figured into his decision to run and whether it’s appropriate to make the American people and indeed the world’s entire population bit-players in Trump’s ego-driven psycho-drama.

While he’s at it, Holt might also ask both candidates to weigh in on the question of whether or not the U.S. president is really the “most powerful man in the universe.” Have leaders throughout the entire universe been considered, not just the Magellanic Clouds (large and small) and Andromeda?

Reader Interactions

261Comments

  1. 1.

    Trentrunner

    “Expectations game” is the latest media shiny toy that works in Trump’s favor.

    “Expectations game” can go die in the same fire that “pivot” has.

    (After all, it’s made of the same flammable material: media desire for horserace.)

  3. 3.

    JMG

    He’s going to come out as if he was sedated (maybe he will be) and just repeat the less offensive lines from his stump speech. The danger for him isn’t that he’ll go nuts, it’s that his attention will wander and he’ll get caught in a Rick Perry moment like calling Albania a US state.

  4. 4.

    Jerry

    @JMG:

    He’s going to come out as if he was sedated (maybe he will be) and just repeat the less offensive lines from his stump speech. The danger for him isn’t that he’ll go nuts, it’s that his attention will wander and he’ll get caught in a Rick Perry moment like calling Albania a US state.

    My prediction is that he’s not going to address any of his policies at all. It will just be attack, attack, attack Hillary and her so-called scandals.

  6. 6.

    Mai.naem.mobile

    Lester Holt is a registered Republican. Not expecting him to intentionally humiliate Trump at the debate. If he is humiliated,believe me, it will be all of his own doing.

  8. 8.

    Calouste

    @Jerry: The deranged fascist would need to have actual policies to address any of them. So failing that, it will just be attack, attack, attack.

  10. 10.

    nominus

    “Every critic, every detractor, will have to bow down to President Trump,”

    Put me on the fucking list then, because I’ll be the first one to tell President Trump he can eat a bag of dicks. Order the dick sandwich, it comes with a side of dicks. And eat it all, Donald.

  11. 11.

    schrodinger's cat

    I am finding Trump and his acceptance by the media more scary rather than funny. I see the footage of Jewish citizens of Germany trying to escape the Nazi death machine and wonder whether we will see another holocaust?

  12. 12.

    tanman

    He doesn’t have to be the most powerful man in the universe to effect revenge, just the one with control of the Justice department. It is a sobering thought that he could gain power and begin persecuting his political enemies with the apparatus of the state. He really does have a lot in common with Putin.

  13. 13.

    germy

    President Obama’s humiliation of Trump at the White House Correspondents Dinner five years ago is indeed what set Trump off on his quest for the presidency

    Obama destroyed one monster that night, and created another. This is a combination Greek Tragedy/Comedy Of Errors/Craziest Sci-Fi Story Ever.

  14. 14.

    hovercraft

    Small insecure person likes to bully other people, gets what he deserves but now seeks revenge on the rest of us for laughing at him. Sigh. Do these surrogates not realize that they’re telling us he’s not fit to serve? The position he’s seeking would make him the most criticized and mocked person in the world. His parents have a lot to f**king answer for, what the hell did they do to this asshole to turn him into this dickwad who is now endangering the entire world with his fragile ego? Well what ever it was, we need to finish the job, we need to make sure that he suffers the humiliation of losing to a woman. A woman who has been voted the Most Popular Woman in the World year after year, the woman who he has called every name in the book, a woman he deems old and unattractive. Let ‘s make him wake up on November 9th feeling as inadequate as he’s ever felt. I want him to know that he lost to a woman him and the media has spent years calling untrustworthy and unlikable. I want every pundit telling the world that the republicans squandered their chance to take back the White House, that if they had nominated anyone else they would have won. Let him know that he was the worst of candidates. And then I hope that all of his ponzi schemes come crashing down around him, and that he and his spawn are forced to slink back into the swamp they crawled out of.

  15. 15.

    germy

    @wormtown:

    I really think they need to stop the White House Correspondents Dinner.

    True. The correspondents spend all year giggling, why do they need a special night?

  16. 16.

    Jeffro

    @wormtown:

    I really think they need to stop the White House Correspondents Dinner.

    How about if they pause it for the next eight years? I’m not seeing Hillary do as cutting a job as Obama has been doing.

    What’s the name of that one dinner up in NYC – some sort of Catholic gathering just before each election (each presidential election)? The Al Smith dinner? The speeches Obama/McCain and Obama/Romney gave were hysterical.

    Btw thanks to whomever made that “Orangemandias” graphic, that is awesome

  19. 19.

    MattF

    I do wonder whether Trump will bring up all the old OCD stuff– Travelgate, Vince Foster, Bill’s womanizing, etc., as a way to rattle Hilz. If so, I think he’s in for a surprise.

  20. 20.

    germy

    @Mai.naem.mobile:

    Lester Holt is a registered Republican. Not expecting him to intentionally humiliate Trump at the debate.

    Holt has the same boss as Lauer. And I think he likes his job.

  21. 21.

    Jeffro

    Also, what is up with “most powerful man in the universe”? Once again, if this were a TV pilot, the series would never get off the ground – too unbelievable.

  23. 23.

    Amir Khalid

    Whose side is Omarosa on, anyway? She’s only making the Donald seem all the more like a petulant little boy: “One day I’m going to be bigger than all of you, and then you’ll all be sorry!”

  28. 28.

    FlipYrWhig

    Also, I’m not sure that Trump doesn’t think that his becoming president retroactively makes Obama never-president. Because Trump, who sees himself in the mirror as a 40 year old (or whatever it was he said to Dr. Oz) and who thinks that America has been one big Death Wish movie for the last 30-40 years, doesn’t seem have a good grasp of how time runs forwards.

  30. 30.

    hovercraft

    @Jeffro:
    The Gridiron dinner. Once every four years.

    EDIT: Wrong, it’s the AL Smith dinner, you’re right. Gridiron is an annual media thing like the WHCD

  31. 31.

    gene108

    I find Omarosa’s statement about how Trump will exact revenge on his detractors particularly disturbing.

    There has always been some favoratism the winning side gives their supporters, but never an open declaration to get back at opponents.

    @schrodinger’s cat:

    I think Putin’s Russia will be a template for Trump’s Presidency. Though if he lets the KKK-wannabes of the tight leash they are on because of fear of Federal prosecution, we may end up with the race war they have been dreaming about for decades.

  32. 32.

    Ceci n'est pas mon nym

    I’m not seeing Hillary do as cutting a job as Obama has been doing.

    She’s got to be better than W.

    And maybe Luther the Anger Translator can make a repeat appearance. Women have a similar “not allowed to express emotion” tightrope to walk, so I don’t think Luther necessarily has to be retired for the next 8 years. (Incidentally, I highly recommend the new film “Don’t Think Twice” in which Keegan-Michael Key is really great, though really it’s an ensemble piece with no true “star”. In fact that’s the point, that comedy improv is about the group and not the individual.)

  34. 34.

    germy

    @Calouste:

    He doesn’t want to be President. The most accurate word for what he wants to be is possibly “autocrat”.

    “Top of the world, Ma!”

  35. 35.

    SFAW

    First of all, EVERYONE knows that the most powerful man in the universe is Mr. Neutron.

    OK, not that we’ve settled THAT …

    “Every critic, every detractor, will have to bow down to President Trump,” Manigault said.

    I never watched his idiotic show, so I’ve never experienced Omarosa in all her glory, but how fucked up is that statement? She’s as sick as he is.

    Somewhere in Heaven, The Goat is weeping at the (indirect) tarnishing of his name.

  36. 36.

    Dr. Ronnie James, D.O.

    Contrast this with every “it’s so hard to divine why HRC is really running for POTUS” article.

  37. 37.

    jimmiraybob

    “Every critic, every detractor, will have to bow down to President Trump”

    Personally, I’ll be joining the resistance. And, shouldn’t that be Emperor Trumpenfuhrer?

  38. 38.

    The Ancient Randonnuer

    @gene108:

    Though if he lets the KKK-wannabes of the tight leash they are on because of fear of Federal prosecution, we may end up with the race war they have been dreaming about for decades.

    Charlie Manson can die a happy man.

  40. 40.

    clay

    I love how the people in the clip are like, “Obama started something that night”, while glossing over the fact that Obama didn’t START anything. Obama was simply responding to Trump’s months-long crusade to de-legitimize him. But, of course, the orange baby can’t take what he dishes out.

    “How dare he respond to my attacks! I’ll get him back for this!!”

    Also worth noting was that Obama had just smoked bin Laden that night, but no one knew it yet.

  41. 41.

    dr. luba

    @Amir Khalid: A take on a poem by Shelley, it is about pretensions to greatness. Ozymandias was teh ancient Greeks’ name for Ramses.

    I met a traveller from an antique land
    Who said: Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
    Stand in the desert. Near them, on the sand,
    Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown,
    And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,
    Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
    Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
    The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed:
    And on the pedestal these words appear:
    ‘My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:
    Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!’
    Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
    Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare
    The lone and level sands stretch far away.

  42. 42.

    hovercraft

    @Calouste:
    He doesn’t want to do the job, he just wants the power and prestige of the position. That way he can settle all his scores. He’s already said that anyone who’s been against him, since he won will not be forgiven.

  43. 43.

    The Ancient Randonneur

    @SFAW:

    I never watched his idiotic show, so I’ve never experienced Omarosa in all her glory, but how fucked up is that statement? She’s as sick as he is.

    She’s Donald Trump without the bank account: an unbridled narcissist with no sense of shame.

  46. 46.

    Shell

    Betty, is that your painting?

    I guess there’ll be a lot of avoidance of political news this weekend. Looks like its gonna be debate-talk forever. The Trump camp is practically screaming that he MUST be graded on a curve, cause Clinton is just too slick and savvy a politician.

  47. 47.

    hovercraft

    @clay:
    It’s the classic reaction of a bully. I only hit you honey because you made me so mad, I love you but you’ve got to stop provoking me.

  48. 48.

    PaulWartenberg2016

    These are the questions I would ask at the debate to Trump:

    1) Why did you use your non-profit Trump Foundation to pay out for things related to your for-profit businesses? Were you aware that you were violating certain laws when you did so?

    2) The IRS has informed the media that their audits on your tax returns DO NOT interfere with your obligation to the voting public to reveal said tax returns over at least the previous decade. Other candidates, including Senator Clinton here, have released their tax returns in part or full. Why are you hiding your tax returns from the voters?

    3) You’re currently accusing Hillary Clinton of being the one who instigated the entire Birther movement that falsely accused Barack Obama of not being a natural-born citizen of the United States. But Senator Clinton is on official record from her 2008 campaign calling such accusations ludicrous and much of the Birther movement has been tied to Republicans and those on the Far Right, those who openly repudiate Clinton as much as they do Obama. Sir, WHY ARE YOU LYING ABOUT YOUR OWN BIRTHER BULLSHIT?

    4) Please justify every bankruptcy filing for your failed businesses.

    5) You’ve recently gone public with the belief that the “Stop And Frisk” program by city and county law enforcement should go nationwide, even though studies have proven that Stop and Frisk DOES NOT REDUCE CRIME and even though the courts have ruled that Stop And Frisk is Unconstitutional for its skewed racial bias. Why are you being a total dick about this?

  51. 51.

    SFAW

    One of the things missing in this discussion: When will Obama disavow Omarosa’s comments. Because, after all, he’s accountable for every controversial thing said by any black person in the US.

    Well, I guess that’s not strictly true — anything that supports wingnuts, or craps on Obama (or blacks in general) is not a problem.

  54. 54.

    Ceci n'est pas mon nym

    @PaulWartenberg2016:

    Why are you being a total dick about this?

    In my dream debate, that is the actual question the moderator asks after each of your lead-in paragraphs. Perhaps slightly louder and spittle-flecked each time.

  60. 60.

    Betty Cracker

    @Shell: Yes — I “painted” it using “Fresh Paint,” which I believe came for free with my upgraded Windows thingy. It’s a fun app, though “Sketches” is probably my favorite doodling app.

  61. 61.

    cynthia ackerman

    The best part is that clip from 2011 WHCD is headline news. Laughing and pointing seven weeks before Mr. Universe becomes Mr. Inreverse.

  65. 65.

    Betty Cracker

    @schrodinger’s cat: Finger! I have a touch screen laptop. It’s not at all useful except for that app, which I rarely use. Otherwise, it just needlessly scrolls through documents when I’m trying to remove a dust speck!

  67. 67.

    the Conster, la Citoyenne

    The media still thinks this is all still just a game. They’ve been so fat, lazy and stupid for so long, they really don’t see the threat that Trump poses to them, personally and professionally. With Putin as his role model, he’ll disappear them one by one if they wait to wake up to the threat too late – which is basically Nov. 8. I expect the media to declare Trump as the presidential winner if he makes any coherent point at all. They are going to get us all killed.

  69. 69.

    Scamp Dog

    @Amir Khalid: Several people have mentioned the poem, but for the first part, think “orange”, the color, instead of the Malay word. Which reminds me, doesn’t orangutan mean “man of the forest” or something like that?

  71. 71.

    mellowjohn

    While he’s at it, Holt might also ask both candidates to weigh in on the question of whether or not the U.S. president is really the “most powerful man in the universe.” Have leaders throughout the entire universe been considered…

    is it possible that this whole campaign is being run for the amusement of the Gamesters of Triskelion? in that case, my quatloos are on Hillary.

    p.s. i’ve always wondered wtf il Douche was doing at the dinner in the first place.

  74. 74.

    JMG

    @the Conster, la Citoyenne:
    Don’t forget that the “media” who proclaim debate winners and losers are predominately the paid partisans for each side TV news puts on the air for no reason. Trump will have people proclaiming him the winner because it’s their job. So will Clinton. This allows the “talent” (never was a word more inappropriate) to scratch their chins and say, “we’ll have to let the voters decide.”

  78. 78.

    dmsilev

    @the Conster, la Citoyenne:

    The media still thinks this is all still just a game.

    That’s the real problem, and it’s systemic. Policy is boring, but hey it’s fun to talk about today’s shiny object. Who’s on a hot streak right now and who’s losing. It’s truly like sports coverage, except that sports journalists tend to be more honest and competent.

  80. 80.

    Wapiti

    @hovercraft:

    His parents have a lot to f**king answer for, what the hell did they do to this asshole to turn him into this dickwad who is now endangering the entire world with his fragile ego?

    Whatever it was, he did it to his own children.

    Fred Trump, KKK member, demonstrated discrimination as a landlord
    Donald Trump, racist, misogynist, bigot, etc.
    Donald Trump, Jr., avid Stormfront fan

  82. 82.

    gvg

    It sounds correct, and reinforces our speculations, but keep in mind this comes from Stone, whom I don’t consider all that reliable in either truth telling or judgement. Trump has been speculated to be considering a Presidential bid with his encouragement, since the 80’s. I suspect he was always going to try though he may actually believe that was when he decided. I also recall that he did try in 2012 but got no traction that time and dropped out to save face before it was official.

  83. 83.

    TS

    @wormtown:

    I really think they need to stop the White House Correspondents Dinner.

    They need to remove the White House Correspondents from the White House. I hope Pres Clinton refuses to ever speak in front of such a gaggle & disbands the completely ridiculous concept.

  84. 84.

    Adam L Silverman

    @schrodinger’s cat: What is interesting is that the crowd that spends a lot of time worrying about why there was no Jewish armed resistance to the NAZIs (there was) and what they’ll have to do when President Obama or a potential President Clinton turns the US into a full on tyranny are largely supporting Trump for President.
    http://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/2015/09/robert-farago/armed-jews-fought-back-against-the-nazis-to-no-appreciable-effect/

    The below is by the son of Holocaust survivors:
    http://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/2016/07/robert-farago/how-i-learned-to-stop-worrying-and-love-donald-trump/

    The comments to both the link to my unintended guest post and the link above are, shall we say, interesting.

  87. 87.

    Botsplainer

    @TS:

    Hell, I’d do a list of print and TV reporters from the lower 45 of the top 50 metropolitan areas of the country. bring two from every city for press conferences. Answer their questions, however the chips may fall.

    Send people like Andrea, Wolf, Cooper, Williams, etc. a very powerful message.

  89. 89.

    Adam L Silverman

    @germy: Lauer was given specific instructions by his boss on how to do the questions at that forum. Lauer’s boss wanted Clinton raked over the coals and Trump pitched softballs.

  90. 90.

    FlipYrWhig

    @dmsilev: I have long said it’s almost exactly like the way sports commentators talk about “momentum.” It’s not who’s winning, exactly, but whether the team that’s winning is going to continue winning by as much over some unspecified stretch of time after some unspecified event. Hence comments like “that blocked shot got them all fired up, maybe that’s what we’ll look back on as the turning point.” When the potential turning point is followed by some actual change in the score, then the story is treated as fact. When the potential turning point results in nothing, nobody mentions it, but nonetheless the commentators will continue to speculate on turning points and momentum. Why? Because if every game has a turning point that could happen at any time, it’s always a good idea to keep watching.

  91. 91.

    NorthLeft12

    You know, almost everyone who saw that clip from the dinner thought that Deadbeat Donald was just petulant, childish, and outright stupid enough to do that. Imagine that running for President out of spite and a desire to punish those who ridiculed and laughed at him.
    Now does that sound like a recipe for disaster?

    Oh, and BTW……..THANKS OBAMA!

  92. 92.

    Miss Bianca

    @Mustang Bobby:

    If you needed any further proof that Trump’s dick is so small that he could fuck a Cheerio, this is it.

    Aaaannd…thank you for the spit-take and the lukewarm coffee in my lap, MB. I only hope to be able to repay you in kind someday.

    Off to find a rag and a bucket of brain bleach…

    ETA: Must remember O2’s advice about not drinking anything while I’m refreshing my screen…

  94. 94.

    NorthLeft12

    @Jerry: I agree with you that Trump will just attack Sec. Clinton non-stop. I see him pulling a Palin and completely ignoring the questions he is asked to just say what he wants to say.

  97. 97.

    Miss Bianca

    @Adam L Silverman:

    Lauer was given specific instructions by his boss on how to do the questions at that forum. Lauer’s boss wanted Clinton raked over the coals and Trump pitched softballs.

    Is the blowback that ensued from that decision going to cause a rethink on that strategy for the debates, or a double-down? We wonders, yes, we wonders…

  98. 98.

    Felonius Monk

    @Mustang Bobby:

    If you needed any further proof that Trump’s dick is so small that he could fuck a Cheerio,

    And afterward the Cheerio could still truthfully say, “I’m a virgin”.

  99. 99.

    JMG

    @Miss Bianca: I don’t think Holt will fact-check Trump, but I’ll bet the questions are fairly even-handed. Audience for this will be much larger, and NBC doesn’t want to take another hit.

  100. 100.

    MomSense

    If only presidential debates were about the competition of ideas, rhetoric, and policies. Instead it is going to be about optics, and who scored, and sound bites. And who knows what gestures the media will decide are unacceptable. If Hillz rolls her eyes or doesn’t smile or smiles too much or sighs or raises her voice or seems angry or keeps her voice level and seems weak we will hear about it. Meanwhile agent orange can rage, interrupt, lie, insult, and make Jack Nicholson as the Joker faces. Expectations have been set so low that if he doesn’t obviously crap his pants (those depends hold a yuuuge amount and are much classier now which is good for der Trump) he will seem presidential.

    I’m pretty sure I could be Hillary’s anger translator. I bet there are a bunch of us. Actually that could make a fun supporter created video.

  101. 101.

    hovercraft

    @Mike in NC:
    He was invited by Fox because he was in the news with the whole birther crap, he was seen as a get. Trump should have known better than to attend because there was a lot of speculation before hand that Obama would go after him.

  102. 102.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Miss Bianca: I don’t know. NBC doesn’t actually control the debate the way they did the CiC forum. My guess is that Holt has instructions from the Committee on Debates.

  107. 107.

    Miss Bianca

    @Adam L Silverman: I was shooting pool with some friends last night and caught the NRA’s latest “Hillary will grab your gunz!!” ad. Featuring a nice white woman – all long (perfect) hair tossing and panicking in slo-mo – being menaced by some unseen, but presumably male and non-white “thug” in HER OWN HOME, and she’ can’t pull a gun on him and blow him away because it’s VANISHED, ZOMG!!

    Seriously, who the fuck falls for this shit? If I had a ton of money, just to fuck with the NRA I’d love to do the counter to that commercial – the nice white lady getting her gun wrestled away from her and turned on her. Or even better, the fat white guy with delusions of Dirty Harry-dom. Then the voice-over: “There’s no situation so bad that thinking you’re going to have what it takes to defend yourself with a gun can’t make even worse.”

  108. 108.

    dmsilev

    @Adam L Silverman: And, of course, the big difference is that this will be an actual debate, with Clinton on stage next to Trump and willing/able to directly rebut and call out the lies.

  110. 110.

    hovercraft

    @JMG:
    They’ve already been responsible for two of the worst atrocities this election, why not go for the trifecta. The forum was awful, and the CNBC GOP was a trainwreck. Both were universally panned so why not keep it up?

  111. 111.

    singfoom

    Not sure if this has been mentioned already, but Trump has already called Holt a Democrat:
    Trump calls Holt a Democrat

    “TRUMP: Look, it’s a phony system. Lester is a Democrat. I mean, they are all Democrats. Okay? It’s a very unfair system.”

    I don’t think party affiliation makes Trump treat anyone more nicely. Remember, unless someone kowtows to him figuratively (and possibly literally), they’re biased and against him, it’s all rigged you see.

  112. 112.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Miss Bianca: There has been a steady, 4 decades long push to move the framing of Liberty, Freedom, the meaning of the Constitution, etc to the minority offshoot position among the anti-Federalists (from the 1790s) to radical localism. All government beyond the municipal is, at best, proto-tyrannical, local authorities have the right and the duty to nullify all legislation and rules from above the municipal level if they are deemed unConstitutional at the local level, the militia isn’t supposed to be under state control, rather it is supposed to be under local (municipal) control and used to violently, if necessary, promote the local understanding of law, order, liberty, and freedom. This belief didn’t even amount to a plurality within the anti-Federalists and the early (turn of the 19th Century) and the majority within the emerging Jeffersonian Republican movement/party. And the anti-Federalists and emerging Jeffersonian Republican movement/party, along with their political opponents in the Federalist party/movement considered the radical localists to be dangerous, fringe extremists.

    The people that have bought into this are the people that that add is aimed at.

  114. 114.

    Betty Cracker

    @Major Major Major Major: I was saying in the morning thread it would be cool if Cuban winks and makes faces at Trump, pretends to scratch his nose with his middle finger, etc., prompting Trump to fly into a rage.

  125. 125.

    SFAW

    @Betty Cracker:

    pretends to scratch his nose with his middle finger, etc., prompting Trump to fly into a rage.

    I scared the cat when I read that.

    Fortunately, I was not drinking anything at the time. Trigger warnings are my keyboard’s friend, by the way.

  128. 128.

    Adam L Silverman

    @schrodinger’s cat: OT: I’ll just leave this here for you to play with:
    http://gizmodo.com/breakthrough-quantum-cat-experiment-captured-on-camera-1786923180

    The paradox of Schrödinger’s cat—in which a quantum cat is both alive and dead at the same time until we check to see which state it’s in—is arguably the most famous example of the bizarre counter-intuitive nature of the quantum world. Now, Stanford physicists have exploited this feature weirdness to make highly detailed movies of the inner machinery of simple iodine molecules.

    In a new paper posted to the arXiv, and accepted for publication by Physical Review Letters, the physicists report they’ve used X-ray laser light to to capture details as small as the width of an atom, lasting just 30 millionths of a billionth of a second.

  130. 130.

    TriassicSands

    Have leaders throughout the entire universe been considered, not just the Magellanic Clouds (large and small) and Andromeda?

    What about the head honcho on Tralfamador? Actually, now that I think of it, Trump should be running for leader of the Tralfamadorians. After all, they communicate by tap dancing and farting. His message would translate nicely into fetid methane.

  131. 131.

    Miss Bianca

    @Adam L Silverman: Is this phenomenon the premise of that 2nd Amendment book you have mentioned here? And I guess it’s always been a seam – as in “seamy underbelly” – in American social and political consciousness – particularly out West and down South – but I’m more than a little alarmed at the virulence of it all. It looks like the NRA is the driver of this bus, but it feels like there’s some force even more maniacal standing behind that driver, holding a gun to its head and screaming, “JUST DRIVE OVER THEM ALL, DAMN IT!”

  132. 132.

    Brachiator

    @Betty Cracker: Just got around to looking at Balloon Juice.

    Wow. You are on fire with your post! Great Ozymandias reference and pic.

    It should be obvious that a dope whose ego is so fragile that for years he would send a photographer photos of his short fingers would be enraged at the public spanking he got from Trump at the White House Correspondents Dinner.

    Also, I hear that Ozymandias built a huge wall. Alas, nothing is left of it.

  133. 133.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Miss Bianca: Its part of the book’s narrative. The book is a history of the founding of the US with an emphasis on the 2nd Amendment and the issues pertaining to it/around it. Its written by a professional historian who focuses on the Revolutionary/Founding era.

  134. 134.

    Shalimar

    Why do so many people assume Amir doesn’t know who Shelley was, instead of assuming he was making a joke and providing interesting info on a Malay word no one else here would know? From numerous previous discussions, Amir is pretty clearly more knowledgeable about English history and literature than most of us.

  136. 136.

    ? Martin

    @Betty Cracker: I think Cuban should sit in the front row with his dick hanging out the entire time. If he needs a prosthesis, so be it, but it should be a YUGE dick hanging out.

  140. 140.

    WaterGirl

    @Mustang Bobby: I was eating a very dry piece of toast when I read that, laughed and then ended up inhaling the crumbs. You nearly killed me! :-) But that was very funny, so all is forgiven.

  141. 141.

    SFAW

    @Shalimar:

    Why do so many people assume Amir doesn’t know who Shelley was, instead of assuming he was making a joke and providing interesting info on a Malay word no one else here would know?

    Because Amir’s comments don’t contain any evidence that he knows anything about Western civilization, or culture, or wit in general.

    Well, except for all of them, that is.

    ETA: In other words, it would surprise many of us, I suspect, were he NOT to know of or have read Ozymandias.

  142. 142.

    Miss Bianca

    @Emma: @Shalimar: I presumed Amir was making a funny, but one of the more delightful things about his posts is that their humor can be so dry and dead-pan, sometimes it’s hard for me tell whether he’s joking or serious!

  143. 143.

    WaterGirl

    @Adam L Silverman: Do we actually know this to be true, or is this speculation? I completely believe you’re right, by the way, but I am interested to know if any of them are stupid enough to have actually admitted this out loud.

  145. 145.

    germy

    @Adam L Silverman:

    Lauer was given specific instructions by his boss on how to do the questions at that forum. Lauer’s boss wanted Clinton raked over the coals and Trump pitched softballs.

    I assume Holt will receive instructions, as well.

    When I first read that Lester Holt was a registered republican, the same article revealed that Chris Wallace is a registered democrat. When asked about it, Wallace explained he did it so he could vote in democratic primaries. (!)

    So he was basically saying “I’m a ratfucker, but I do it in a small way, within the parameters of acceptability.”

  146. 146.

    Kay

    Really pretty amazing:

    Cincinnati Enquirer editorial board endorses Clinton after having supported Republican nominee for almost a century

    i don’t think newspaper editorials matter to voters but it’s as if they want to create a record that they didn’t support him

  147. 147.

    SFAW

    @? Martin:

    I think Cuban should sit in the front row with his dick hanging out the entire time. If he needs a prosthesis, so be it, but it should be a YUGE dick hanging out.

    Right church, wrong pew: he should stuff his pants with a kielbasa or similar. That way, he doesn’t get thrown out.

    Other than that, great idea.

  149. 149.

    Mnemosyne

    @Shalimar:

    Given who responded, it’s because we’re a bunch of earnest liberals who love to be helpful. It’s his own kindly way of trolling us.

  150. 150.

    Shalimar

    @MomSense: At this point, I strongly suspect that if Trump did crap his pants, his supporters and some members of the media would say he won the debate because it was a brilliant way of pointing out that Hillary is full of shit.

  151. 151.

    dmsilev

    @Adam L Silverman: That’s a technical tour de force to be sure (X-ray lasers are a PITA to deal with), but having scanned the technical paper, I’m sad to say that it doesn’t really have much to do with Schrodinger’s famous feline. I assume some PR person at SLAC or Stanford per se wrote up a press release based on the paper, and based on cruel personal experience I can tell you that what ends up in the release often bears only the faintest resemblance to the original work.

  152. 152.

    RaflW

    @hovercraft:

    His parents have a lot to f**king answer for, what the hell did they do to this asshole to turn him into this dickwad who is now endangering the entire world with his fragile ego?

    And now Trump has incredibly twisted and quite possibly diagnosable offspring. Jr. seems to be the worst off, but the whole family system is in need of psychological intervention. Not that they’d ever see that about themselves.

  154. 154.

    Brachiator

    @Major Major Major Major: BTW, I didn’t see a lot of variation among various posters in the sentiment graph stuff you posted earlier. Also didn’t see much difference in a trolly poster like srv and anyone else. I thought about looking at some of the biggest Bernie supporters (not that they are bad people, but because they sometimes were engaging a specific counterargument politically), but didn’t get around to it. Has anyone noticed any pattern?

  156. 156.

    Major Major Major Major

    @Roger Moore: Good find, looks like that’s a spreadsheet formula error (in one of mine). I might get around to correcting it, but I’m kinda done recreationally formatting data for the moment…

    @Brachiator: Did you see it since last night’s update with more normalization?

    As for srv, if you write like a normal person you’re probably going to end up pretty close to the median BJ user. People like NR and Reggie Mantle are the ones that stand out, not people like srv.

  159. 159.

    Miss Bianca

    @debit:

    First question for Trump: What has it gots in its pocketses?

    And follow-up question from Walter: “Is it nice? Is it juicy? Is it sweet??”

  160. 160.

    MJS

    @singfoom: Because I can’t celebrate anything these days, I’m really hoping that Cuban’s announcement of his attendance at the debate doesn’t lead to Donald attempting something similar. Would you put it past him to attempt to get a figure from the Lewinsky saga a ticket front row center? I’m quite sure Hillary could handle it, but it would be all the media talks about for days on end. And this time, they could credibly say, “Both sides do it.” GD Twitter! Why can’t people just keep their mouths shut? Cuban could have announced this the day of the debate, and it would have had much more of an impact.

  161. 161.

    Shalimar

    @Amir Khalid: Yeah, I figured that. And I wasn’t trying to criticize people for being helpful. It’s just that Ozymandias is so basic in English literature that I assume everyone was at least supposed to read it.

  162. 162.

    chopper

    @Shalimar:

    why would you assume that nobody here knows the malay word ‘orang’? haven’t you ever looked up the etymology of ‘orangutan’?

  163. 163.

    Amir Khalid

    @dmsilev:
    Ideally a PR person who writes press releases about technical subjects should have some “domain” knowledge, as it was called a while back, but knowing that kind of physics and having PR skillz is a pretty rare combination.

  167. 167.

    Adam L Silverman

    @WaterGirl: It was reported in one of the post-mortem articles I read after the forum was over and Lauer was being panned. The reporting was that the same person that told Lauer what to do then hung him out to dry when the bad reviews came in.

  168. 168.

    SenyorDave

    @MJS: Cuban could have announced this the day of the debate, and it would have had much more of an impact.

    Disagree strongly. Let Trump think about the whole weekend. Trump loathes Cuban, he’s many things he would like to be. As bad as the MSM is, Lewinsky in the front row would be unacceptable.

  170. 170.

    What Have the Romans Ever Done for Us?

    @mike in dc: I’m pretty sure EVERY place in DC will be showing the debate. This is the only city where they have CNN on at the bar rather than sports.

  173. 173.

    dmsilev

    @Amir Khalid: Usually, the researchers will come up with either a first draft of a press release or some bullet points, and the PR folks will iterate from there. However, a lot can get lost in translation so to speak.

  174. 174.

    germy

    @MattF: And never mind all the reports of Trump’s father and his documented record of housing discrimination and blatant racism. If you want to feel it on a visceral level, just do a goole image search and look at photos of his parents.

  176. 176.

    germy

    First thing they should do during the first debate is frisk trump; make sure he isn’t wearing a wire. No whispered help into his earplug from “advisors”

  177. 177.

    Elizabelle

    NY Times breaking news: Keith Scott’s wife filmed the fatal encounter on her cellphone, although footage does not show whether or not he was brandishing a gun. No word in this story if police officers were dressed in undercover attire.

    Here’s a transcript of the video:

    Following is a transcript of the video, which contains offensive language:

    OFFICER: Hands up!

    RAKEYIA SCOTT: Don’t shoot him. Don’t shoot him. He has no weapon. He has no weapon. Don’t shoot him.

    OFFICER: Don’t shoot. Drop the gun. Drop the fucking gun.

    RAKEYIA SCOTT: Don’t shoot him. Don’t shoot him.

    OFFICER: Drop the gun.

    RAKEYIA SCOTT: He didn’t do anything.

    OFFICER: Drop the gun. Drop the gun.

    RAKEYIA SCOTT: He doesn’t have a gun. He has a T.B.I. (Traumatic Brain Injury).

    OFFICER: Drop the gun.

    RAKEYIA SCOTT: He is not going to do anything to you guys.

    RAKEYIA SCOTT: He just took his medicine.

    OFFICER: Drop the gun. Let me get a fucking baton over here. [muffled]

    RAKEYIA SCOTT: Keith, don’t let them break the windows. Come on out the car.

    OFFICER: [muffled]

    OFFICER:Drop the gun.

    RAKEYIA SCOTT: Keith! Don’t you do it.

    OFFICER: Drop the gun.

    RAKEYIA SCOTT: Keith, get out the car. Keith! Keith! Don’t you do it! Don’t you do it! Keith!

    OFFICER: Drop the gun.

    RAKEYIA SCOTT:Keith! Keith! Keith! Don’t you do it! [SHOTS]

    RAKEYIA SCOTT: Fuck. Did you shoot him? Did you shoot him? Did you shoot him? He better not be fucking dead.He better not be fucking dead. I know that fucking much. I know that much. He better not be dead. I’m not going to come near you. I’m going to record, though. I’m not coming near you. I’m going to record, though.He better be alive because …I come You better be alive. How about that?Yes, we here, over here at 50 … 50 …9453 Lexington Court. These are the police officers that shot my husband,and he better live. He better live. Because he didn’t do nothing to them.

    OFFICER: Is everybody good? Are you good?

    RAKEYIA SCOTT: He good. Nobody … touch nobody, so they’re all good.

    OFFICER: You good?

    RAKEYIA SCOTT: I know he better live. I know he better live. How about that I’m not coming to you guys, but he’d better live. He better live. You all hear it, you see this, right? He better live.

    OFFICER: [muffled]

    RAKEYIA SCOTT: He better live. I swear, he better live. Yep, he better live. He better fucking live. He better live. Where is…He better fucking live, and I can’t even leave the damn…I ain’t going nowhere. I’m staying in the same damn spot. What the fuck. That’s O.K. did you all call the police? I mean, did you all call an ambulance?

  178. 178.

    MJS

    @SenyorDave: I get the idea of Trump having to stew on it for days. Unfortunately, it also gives Trump’s campaign time to prepare if not him, then at least for a response/similar act. I don’t think Lewinsky herself would participate, but certainly Linda Tripp, or Paula Jones or another woman who claims to have been molested or harassed by Bill would willing to sit there. As for “unacceptable”, unacceptable to whom? THAT is what would turn voters off of Trump? Or get the media to call him out? That’s not the world I’ve been living in for the past year+.

  183. 183.

    MJS

    @srv: It’s worth noting that Trump had plenty of time to challenge Obama in 2012, but wisely decided to sit that one out. I guess one night of having your face rubbed in your own feces was enough for Trump.

  184. 184.

    Felonius Monk

    @srv:

    will always be sentimental about Obama for making Trump possible.

    Then perhaps you ought to take a Sentimental Journey to a faraway galaxy.

  185. 185.

    Elizabelle

    When Mrs. Scott says “Keith, don’t you do it, don’t you do it”, does sounds a little bit like Keith Scott had a gun in the car. Possibly unbeknownst to her.

    What a mess. Tragedy.

    Were the officers in uniform? Did Keith hear their initial commands; did he know they were police?

  186. 186.

    Calouste

    Mark Cuban should shout out “10 million dollars if you do it by Friday”, whenever Trump makes some kind of promise, about releasing tax returns or something.

  188. 188.

    Shalimar

    @srv: As are we all. With no Trump in the race, we would still be hearing constant dogwhistles from Republicans instead of the naked racism we are getting now. This is who you are. Might as well own it.

  189. 189.

    germy

    @shomi:

    After the humiliation of President Barack Obama raking him over the coals for pushing birther conspiracy theories, a top surrogate for Donald Trump said he will have his “ultimate revenge” when all of his critics have to “bow down” to him in the White House.

    In a clip previewing an upcoming special from PBS Frontline, published online Thursday, Omarosa Manigault spoke about the abject humiliation Trump felt after Obama did an extended bit about the real estate mogul at the 2011 White House Correspondents Dinner.

    “Every critic, every detractor, will have to bow down to President Trump,” Manigault said. “It’s everyone who’s ever doubted Donald, who ever disagreed, who ever challenged him. It is the ultimate revenge to become the most powerful man in the universe.”

    Roger Stone, a longtime Trump confidant [and crackpot scumbag! — ed.] with loose ties to the campaign, called the 2011 event “the night that [Trump] resolved to run for president.”

    I guess I’m wrong for believing anything his followers, supporters and spokespeople say.

  190. 190.

    What Have the Romans Ever Done for Us?

    @J.: I’m not compiling a list but my favorites are Combover Caligula and Hair Führer.

    Until Trump has a fully operational Death Star he’s never going to be the most powerful man in the universe.

  191. 191.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Elizabelle: The officers were a plain clothes detachment. It has been reported they were wearing their shields/badges displayed. They were on site to serve a warrant and they knew that Scott was not the person they were looking for. It has also been reported that part of his disability (the TBI) included a hearing deficit.

  193. 193.

    Botsplainer

    @MJS:

    I don’t get the impression that Monica would do it.

    Now, for some lowlife grifter who has made a little wingnut cash, I can totally see it, but have my doubts as to what happened or if Hillz would even recognize them.

  194. 194.

    Amir Khalid

    @dmsilev:
    And the science will invariably get garbled in the usual game of Chinese whispers. As a media person, I was usually part of the garbling process.

  195. 195.

    Botsplainer

    @Adam L Silverman:

    I’m sorry, but if you’re interacting with the public and expecting compliance, you should damn well have a uniformed cop in your group to make it clear who you are.

  197. 197.

    Enhanced Voting Techinques

    Wow the thoughts that come from this:

    So is The Donald the real source of the “Obama is so arrogant” talk from the Right?

    Does wee little hands Donny get the kind of mockery he’s going to be on the receiving end as president?

    I really can see President Trump getting impeached by a GOP congress over a separation of powers crises now.

  198. 198.

    MJS

    @Botsplainer: Hilz wouldn’t have to recognize her. Introducing that person will be the first words out of Trump’s mouth. Before the debate even starts, every network will show that person, say who she is, and explain why she is there (i.e., because the Clinton campaign started it with Cuban, otherwise known as the media’s favorite game of “Both sides do it.”). Again, my concern is not that it will rattle Clinton. My concern is that it will take away from the already scant coverage Clinton’s substantive answers, and Trump’s vacuous ones, will get. I hope I’m wrong about how Trump’s camp will respond, but it won’t surprise me to be right.

  199. 199.

    Felonius Monk

    @hovercraft: Maybe the management of this fine blog could arrange a Troll-a-thon or maybe even a Troll Cage Match (Last Troll Standing) for the entertainment of the regulars.

  200. 200.

    hovercraft

    @Enhanced Voting Techinques:
    No the arrogance talk is because he is never deferential to his ‘betters’, and he has an ‘arrogant tilt to his head’. He never expresses gratitude to the white people whose benevolence got him everything he has in life.

  201. 201.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Botsplainer: Detectives go and detect all the time without uniformed officers. In this case, however, I don’t disagree. Also, I do not understand at all why they felt the need to interact with Scott at all. It wasn’t an active crime scene, they weren’t on a call out to respond to suspicious or criminal activity, they were there to serve a warrant. And NC is an open carry state and simply openly carrying is not, according to NC law, sufficient to lead to a stop. So even if he got out of his car while open carrying, it shouldn’t have been an issue for the cops. We seem to be missing several pieces of information, of which I’m not even sure the video will help with if there isn’t audio between the cops and Scott on it. As a result none of what is being reported seems to add up to a coherent whole.

  202. 202.

    Matt McIrvin

    @Miss Bianca: Handguns for home defense are routinely sold with the pitch that they’re for killing home invaders who have come to rape and kill your woman and your children (as if this happens all the time). That’s the fantasy that sells them, to an even greater degree than joining some kind of armed resistance, and I’ve personally seen people go on and on about how their home weapon collection is set up to make an instant 3 AM armed response from the bedside against those home invaders as easy and rapid as possible. I get the strong impression that they wish somebody would.

    I don’t personally know anyone who this has happened to, whereas a friend of mine was once awakened by cops with guns drawn busting down his door by accident (wrong address). If he’d had one of those bedside anti-home-invader guns he’d be dead, dead, dead.

  203. 203.

    gogol's wife

    @dr. luba:

    “Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown,
    And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,”

    Thank you, Percy, you really nailed Trump.

  205. 205.

    Elizabelle

    I think the root of all these police shootings is too many guns out in the general population. Thanks, NRA and ammosexuals.

    And black people are greatly less likely to survive the encounter if they’re armed, or just perceived to be armed.

    My hope is that we’ll get some actual gun control once the police realize they will be safer and better off without so many guns. Especially if localities get sick of paying out multimillion dollar settlements.

    I hope Hillary can turn attention to how we could move forward. Trump’s got the lizard brain types.

    And more people than you think are appalled at police shootings of black people. The mentally infirm too. (A few Downs Syndrome people killed by police, in the past year.)

  207. 207.

    D58826

    OT but the family of the man shot in Charlotte has released a cell phone video of the shooting. It’s jerky and kind of hard to see what if anything the man had in his hand. The cops are screaming drop the gun. His wife is shouting he doesn’t have a gun and is on meds and won’tr hurt anyone.

    Now the 64k question is since his wife and several neighbors were on the scene and trying to deescalate the situation why didn’t the cops just back off a bit and see what developed. They could have kept their weapons out, just in case but why so trigger happy?

    Which also might exoplain why the city doesn’t want to release the police footage. It might show that while the situation was a bit chaotic there were options short of deadly force. Heasdan knows if the footage had show Scott approac hin with all hguns blazing the tapes would be posted on Mt. Rushmore.
    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/keith-scott-police-shooting-video_us_57e55fb6e4b08d73b83101d1?qx7npur45pa0v0a4i

  209. 209.

    germy

    SEATTLE—Speaking privately with advisors between campaign stops Thursday, Libertarian Party presidential candidate Gary Johnson expressed his concern that he was peaking too early after reaching 9 percent in national polls, sources reported. “Boy, this doesn’t look good—it’s way too soon for my numbers to be spiking like this,” said a visibly uneasy Johnson, who added that there was no way he could maintain the sky-high support of nearly one in 10 voters for the remaining seven weeks of the election season. “I’d been hoping to keep expectations realistic, but now what am I supposed to do? I’m at 9.1 percent here—that’s practically double digits. If I try to keep that up, I’m not going to have any gas left in the tank come mid-October. Dammit.” Johnson then reportedly shook his head and quietly muttered there was “nowhere to go but down” after being informed his favorability numbers had skyrocketed above 20 percent.

    (the onion)

  211. 211.

    Botsplainer

    @Adam L Silverman:

    My rule of thumb, as a matter of best practice and procedure, is that plainclothes need not interact with the public outside of targets and known associates in a way that involves the initiation of force unless force is initiated first.

    And warrant service needs to be by uniforms so as to minimize risk.

  213. 213.

    D58826

    RAKEYIA SCOTT: Keith, don’t let them break the windows. Come on out the car.

    OFFICER: [muffled]

    She he was in the truck with the window shut? What threat could there be?

    Or maybe that unit was under their ‘shot a civilian’ quota for the month (bitter sarcasm )

  214. 214.

    Botsplainer

    @D58826:

    This is where there would be an advantage in returning to good ol’ hard-to-twitch-pull .357 magnums.

    A lot of these tragic shootings are related to Glock use – it is, after all, a military weapon designed for military use.

  216. 216.

    Adam L Silverman

    @hovercraft: Its an excellent column/op-ed and encapsulates the problem with the arguments about open carry. African Americans are quite aware that the historic pushes for firearms restrictions have always been in response to African Americans – first the potential for a slave revolt, then to maintain control of African American free men and women all the way down through Governor Reagan signing the CA restrictions because of the black panthers and, to a certain extent, the Assault Weapons Ban resulting from inner city drug trade violence. They’re neither stupid nor uninformed. At the same time they know full well that its only been about 50 years or so where the law, as applied, has considered them fully articulated humans in the US and that significant portions of Americans still refuse to believe that should be the case.

  217. 217.

    Miss Bianca

    @Matt McIrvin: I know, but this fantasy is always wrong. The firearms experts in the crowd here can certainly speak to this far more eloquently than I, but I know that research has been done that indicates that unless you are highly trained, and have a high level of situational awareness (thank you, Adam, for that wonderful phrase!), guns are worse than useless to you in a home-invasion/mugging/active shooter situation.

    That’s the thing that makes me angriest about gun fetishization – it’s not just that it’s a delusion, selling a dream to a bunch of desperate or self-deluding people. it’s such a tragic and deadly delusion.

  218. 218.

    SFAW

    @Villago Delenda Est:

    For example, Cuban is actually a billionaire. Unlike Teh Donald.

    As I’ve said before, Corrupt Deadbeat Donnie is a thousandaire, a hundred times over, which is almost the same thing.

  219. 219.

    redshirt

    Great post Betty. You’re awesome.

    Maine has a gun control referendum up this year which would enforce background checks on private gun sales. The NRA is funding the opposition to the hilt of course, using Mike Bloomberg of all people as the bad guy – “Don’t let a New York Billionaire take away your freedom.” is the general gist of the response. All the lawn signs refer to “New York laws in Maine”.

    I chuckle, depressingly, as these same voters will be lining up to vote for a New York “billionaire”, and I doubt they’ll notice the irony.

  222. 222.

    hovercraft

    @Adam L Silverman:
    Like so much else, we all understand that most rules don’t apply to us. Negro rules dictate that we shouldn’t run in the street, get locked out of the house, break down, mouth off, I could go on and on, but then it’ll just put me in a deeper funk.

  223. 223.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Botsplainer: Its not specified in their manual:
    http://charlottenc.gov/CMPD/Documents/Resources/CMPDDirectives.pdf
    (section 400-002)
    According to this site, which is the only one I can find that actually delineates CMPD is authorized, they carry the following:
    https://sites.google.com/site/worldinventory/pw_northcarolina

    Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department

    Issued the 10×22mm (.40 S&W) S&W Model 4046 pistol to uniformed officers in 199?-200?.

    Issued the 10×22mm (.40 S&W) S&W SW99 pistol to uniformed officers in 200?-2007.

    Issued the 10×22mm (.40 S&W) Glock 23 pistol to detectives in 200?-2007.

    Issues the 10×22mm (.40 S&W) S&W M&P40 pistol to uniformed officers from 2007.

    Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department

    Special Weapons And Tactics (SWAT)

    Issues the 10×22mm (.40 S&W) S&W M&P40 pistol from 2007.

    Issues the 10×22mm (.40 S&W) H&K UMP submachine gun from 200?.

    Issues the 5.56×45mm Bushmaster BCWA2S20 M16A2 rifle from ????.

    Issues the 5.56×45mm Colt AR-15A? R???? rifle from ????.

    Issues the 7.62×51mm Remington Model 700 Police Sharpshooter bolt-action sniper rifle from ????.

    Issues the 12.7×99mm ??? sniper rifle from ????.

    Issues the 18.5×76mmR (12-gauge) Remington Model 870 Police Magnum pump-action shotgun from ????.

    Issues the 37×122mmR Def-Tec ??? grenade launcher from ????.

    Uses the Cadillac Gage Peacekeeper 4×4 armoured car and AV Technologies Dragoon 4×4 armoured personnel carrier.

  224. 224.

    D58826

    Interesting discussion on MSNBC. They ran the wife’s video and stopped at certain points. Early in the video there was nothing on the ground. Later in the video several objects appear on the ground. What are those objects and how did they get there? Would not be the first time the cops planted evidence to CYA.

  225. 225.

    Original Lee

    After Drumpf’s energy policy speech yesterday, I had a sudden vision of him announcing that one of the first things he would do as president would be to redraw the state boundaries into a nice grid so we could have 100 states. It would be YUUUGE and awesome, because 100 is a much better number than 50, amirite? And he would use this redistricting to make our national parks available for private development, and change the leases for mining, oil, gas, ranching, and timber, so we can profit!!!! from all of these natural resources that have been locked up for so long.

    After reading the OP, I am now not so certain it’s unlikely.

  226. 226.

    Brachiator

    @Major Major Major Major:

    Did you see it since last night’s update with more normalization?

    As for srv, if you write like a normal person you’re probably going to end up pretty close to the median BJ user. People like NR and Reggie Mantle are the ones that stand out, not people like srv.

    Interesting stuff. I looked at the graphs for Bailey, NR, Reggie Mantle, three people who incited a strong reaction recently. Still, a lot of variation in their patterns.

  227. 227.

    Gvg

    Actually I read somewhere months ago that Lewinsky had endorsed Hillary. Not a big deal was made of it, just a bit of a chuckle. I think Lewinsky is well aware she was used by the republican’s. And after all, I don’t recall Hillary attacking her back then, Lewinsky is the one who harmed Hillary and probably knows it now.

  228. 228.

    gorram

    I’m late, but I’m also inspired.

    “I met a traveler from a not so antique land
    Who said: ‘Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
    Stand in the desert… Near them, on the sand,
    Half sunk, a plastered visage lies, whose frown,
    And wrinkled lip, and sneer of tweet’d command,
    Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
    Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
    Small hands that haunt’d him, and no heart to love;
    And on the pedestal these words appear:
    ‘My name is TRUMP, king of presidents:
    I have the best words, and post-9/11 the tallest towers!’
    Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
    Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare
    The irradiated and ozone-rich sands stretch far away.’
    Sad!”

  229. 229.

    Roger Moore

    @Brachiator:

    Has anyone noticed any pattern?

    I did some additional stuff on the raw data to normalize for the overall Balloon-Juice sentiment. Believe it or not, the most emotionally representative poster (100 posts minimum) was shomi. Of course that will all have to be looked at again once Major Major Major Major fixes the problem I mentioned above (sadness and surprise being identical).

  230. 230.

    catclub

    @gvg:

    I also recall that he did try in 2012 but got no traction that time and dropped out to save face before it was official.

    In 2012 he got his contract with NBC renewed and then piped down.

    If he wins this time, we can blame NBC for not renewing his contract.

  233. 233.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Miss Bianca: There’s a couple of things going on, and without turning it into an all afternoon affair… There is significant simulation/recreation evidence, some done by 2nd Amendment Absolutists themselves, that indicate that even if one knows when something is coming, effectively using firearms for self defense is difficult (I would open that to almost all weapons used for self defense as its a perishable skill). There is also significant evidence, in terms of we know it happened because it got covered in the news, of people with virtually no training/no ongoing or regular training effectively using a firearm in an emergency situation to protect themselves. We also know that it is very, very difficult to keep oneself in a state of vigilance (even if one thinks that’s what they’re doing) for prolonged periods of time – like 24/7. It is even harder when one is asleep and/or just awakened. For instance, when I teach aikido defense against weapons, especially knives (we use wooden replica tantos) and blunt objects, I generally teach two things in every session. The first is the actual aikido techniques, which need to be practiced regularly (read weekly) until one achieves proficiency and then regularly (read weekly) to maintain that proficiency. The second is something called grab, undo, neutralize (GUN) that was developed by a Wisconsin police officer. It is intended to be taught to people with no training and/or no time for regular training, utilizes the body’s natural reactions to being threatened (as in putting one’s hands/arms up in a defensive position), and is intended to be utilized even if one is at a disadvantage (smaller, weaker, placed in an off balance or pinned position). Its beauty is it can be learned in about ten minutes and needs only minimal follow on training to be able to learn it and utilize it.

    All of that said, there are both practical reasons for owning a firearm (or any other weapon) for defensive purposes and for not doing so. For instance, do you live in an area that has, regardless of reason (rural or poorly functioning local law enforcement), poor law enforcement response times? Then it might make sense to have something you are comfortable using to defend yourself if necessary. Do you live in a place with lots of four footed threats that are active at dusk, dawn, night and may threaten you, your family, your own animals (pets or livestock)? Then it might make sense to have something to defend yourself if necessary. And, of course, the big question: if it became necessary to utilize the weapons, whether its a firearm or an axe or a knife or a sword or a staff or a baseball bat, could you bring yourself to use it? Regardless of the answers to the other questions if the answer to the last one is not an unequivocal yes, then getting a weapon, of any type, for self defense is something you probably aren’t going to want to do.

  235. 235.

    Roger Moore

    @Matt McIrvin:

    I’ve personally seen people go on and on about how their home weapon collection is set up to make an instant 3 AM armed response from the bedside against those home invaders as easy and rapid as possible. I get the strong impression that they wish somebody would.

    Which is probably why so many people who think that way wind up shooting a friend or relative who surprises them in the middle of the night.

  238. 238.

    Adam L Silverman

    @hovercraft: We’ve got your back. Also, front and sides. It will not happen here (again). And if it should be tried it will not be met without appropriate responses.

  239. 239.

    Jeffro

    @gorram: That’s excellent – nice work!

    I still cannot believe an adult human said, to an audience no less, “I have the best words”

  240. 240.

    Adam L Silverman

    @D58826: Wouldn’t be the first time the cops dropped their own gun or taser in a rush to secure the person and/or administer first aid. Even if that blur turns out to be a gun, there’s no way to know from the image who’s gun it is. Especially given how far it is from Scott.

  241. 241.

    SFAW

    @catclub:

    Queens? What did it do to you?

    If Corrupt Deadbeat Donnie were sentenced to live in one unit– and only one — in LeFrak (a/k/a Lefrak) City for the rest of his life, I think that would be A GOOD THING

  243. 243.

    catclub

    There was an interview at VOX, that was highlighted in WaMonthly, on how the 35-40% minority (Far right GOP congressmembers, Trump voters)
    still thinks in some ways it is a majority, so is even more frustrated when it finds out they do not actually have the votes.

    The WaMonthly article is here.

    I thought it was useful for clarity.

  244. 244.

    SFAW

    @Jeffro:

    FOX NEWS BREAKING REPORT (j/k, but I did see it over at TPM): Cruz might actually endorse the guy that insulted his wife and dad.

    Normally, I’d say that a flip-flop like that would enrage Cruz’s base of support, make it tougher for him in 2020. But that would imply some sanity/rationality/integrity in his base, so forget it.

  245. 245.

    SFAW

    @catclub:

    on how the 35-40% minority (Far right GOP congressmembers, Trump voters)
    still thinks in some ways it is a majority, so is even more frustrated when it finds out they do not actually have the votes.

    I see a couple of problems with that analysis:
    1) The polls are skewed
    2) It does not use the 60-percent factor for the darkie vote
    3) It assumes that liberals (or at least, non-wingnuts) are “real” people who should be allowed to vote.

    Outside of that, no issue.

  246. 246.

    MisterForkbeard

    @Miss Bianca: If the current articles I’m reading are any indication, the media’s received wisdom from the Lauer townhall is that he was too soft on Trump, so therefore the next debate will be much more negative/harder on BOTH candidates.

    Sigh.

  247. 247.

    Roger Moore

    @Brachiator:
    One thing I found interesting looking at the data in Excel is that a few posters show up as more than one entry (e.g. Raven vs raven) and have notably different profiles under the different entries. For example, Trollhattan has a much higher level of disgust (1.09 vs 0.91) and a lower level of trust (1.01 vs 1.22) when compared to trollhattan, and Ben Cisco shows more anticipation but less trust when he’s (onboard the Defiant). It’s unclear to me if this represents a significant difference in their posting personalities in different circumstances, or if it shows the error bars on the measurements.

  248. 248.

    Major Major Major Major

    @Betty Cracker: That was just on the raw emotional-score-per-post numbers. Once normalized to control for an overall high level of emotion and the general shape of a BJ comment, you’re actually very slightly negative. And angry.

    @Roger Moore: I remember that for most of the duplicates, one of the nyms had the vast majority of posts; for some of them I just removed the little ones (2, 5, 10 comments) by hand instead of adding them all in. Mostly because I suck at spreadsheets, I do most stuff in python, go, and r.

    Do you want the raw spreadsheet? I also have the whole BJ scrape in sqlite.

  249. 249.

    Peale

    @Roger Moore: Different responses on different devices? One only posts on mobile when one is pissed off, otherwise it can wait until the commenter gets home and can login?

  250. 250.

    Roger Moore

    @Betty Cracker:
    I think you must have looked only at the non-normalized data, which made almost everyone look positive simply because a lot of words get classified as positive by the lexicon. In the normalized data (adjusted to compare you to the overall sentiment in the group) you come across as slightly less positive than typical; your most notable difference from the norm is higher anger.

  251. 251.

    Roger Moore

    @Major Major Major Major:

    Do you want the raw spreadsheet? I also have the whole BJ scrape in sqlite.

    That might be fun. If you could get it into something easy to work with, like tab separated text, that would be great. I mostly work in perl, but I also know my way around Excel.

  252. 252.

    catclub

    @SFAW: The main point was that, since they saw themselves still as a majority:
    1) No need to compromise
    2)No need to form alliances to get a majority
    3)Disappointment at failures of their leadership to carry through on promises.

    I was saving pointing and laughing for a different post.

  254. 254.

    hovercraft

    @catclub:
    I hate La Guardia, other than that, it is the place of origin, and he’s all for sending people back where they came from. Sorry Queens.

  256. 256.

    SFAW

    @catclub:

    And I was noting that they really ARE a majority, once you weed out all the undesirables and not-quite-full-persons.

    But, yeah, I had seen a similar analysis, maybe it was the same one at a different site. If they had to take a one-question, “prove that you’re not delusional” test in order to be allowed the vote, the House would be 350 D – 85 R, and the Senate would be about 75D-25R.

    The question, of course, would be either “Was President Obama born in the United States?” or “Is President Obama a Muslim?” (However, the number of persons being able to pass that test has probably increased slightly since Corrupt Deadbeat Donnie’s hotel-promo-disguised-as-a-“major”-announcement of one or two weeks ago.)

  260. 260.

    SFAW

    @Adam L Silverman:

    Some of us know it wasn’t all that long ago that we weren’t considered to be white or white enough.

    I don’t know about the “not white enough” thing (assuming you’re talking about Jews), but whatever the underlying reason for the hatred by some, I’m not sure that it’s disappeared as much as we’d like. (If you’re not talking about anti-Semitism, then my apologies for misinterpreting.) Tom Lehrer was right, you know.

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