Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

We can show the world that autocracy can be defeated.

I am pretty sure these ‘journalists’ were not always such a bootlicking sycophants.

The current Supreme Court is a dangerous, rogue court.

The willow is too close to the house.

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Anne Laurie is a fucking hero in so many ways. ~ Betty Cracker

They want us to be overwhelmed and exhausted. Focus. Resist. Oppose.

One of our two political parties is a cult whose leader admires Vladimir Putin.

When they say they are pro-life, they do not mean yours.

It’s easy to sit in safety and prescribe what other people should be doing.

There are no moderate republicans – only extremists and cowards.

Let me file that under fuck it.

Republicans do not trust women.

fuckem (in honor of the late great efgoldman)

Is it irresponsible to speculate? It is irresponsible not to.

I really should read my own blog.

The truth is, these are not very bright guys, and things got out of hand.

Conservatism: there are people the law protects but does not bind and others who the law binds but does not protect.

Lick the third rail, it tastes like chocolate!

When do we start airlifting the women and children out of Texas?

I’d like to think you all would remain faithful to me if i ever tried to have some of you killed.

You are so fucked. Still, I wish you the best of luck.

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

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

You are here: Home / Nature & Respite / Birdwatching / Thursday Afternoon Open Thread

Thursday Afternoon Open Thread

by | 240 Comments

This post is in: ,

It was super foggy this morning — the foghorns in the bay woke me up at OMFG o’clock. Again. But shortly after dawn, I got this foggy photo of a starling (maybe) perched high in one of our bamboos:

If you think the Tbogg unit-curious thread below about the Topic That Shall Not Be Named is bad, you should see Twitter! But I’m glad I did check it out because of this lesson in persistence in the face of absurd adversity, courtesy of Patti LaBelle:

Lord, what a catastrophuck! This apparently happened in 1996, and I’m furious that I didn’t know about it for 21 years. Ms. LaBelle was a professional throughout — an inspiration, really. Open thread!

Reader Interactions

240Comments

  2. 2.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    he Topic That Shall Not Be Named is bad,

    unless you’re using your FP powers to enforce that, I give it six comments

  4. 4.

    BlueDWarrior

    @TenguPhule: I don’t think the Federal Government has worked since 2011. Sure it has funcitoned since then, but can you really say it did any work.

    And yet the rabble will continue to be roused to throw spanners in the works and watch the sparks as more pieces of our collective society flying comically in the air. Because everything is terrible now so why not just bulldoze it all and let the murders begin?

    If you couldn’t tell, I’m very mad just not about the news today, but because half of our polity apparently believes that if society won’t bow to it, then it can all burn, even if it immolates themselves as well. We’re being held hostage by a group of people who think murder-suicide politically is a quite viable and effective option for the future.

  5. 5.

    TenguPhule

    And let’s brighten the day with even more good news. //

    The Trump administration proposes allowing tip-pooling in restaurants. Critics call it stealing workers’ wages.

    One of the most contentious issues in restaurants, at least in higher-end restaurants, is the pay disparity between the tipped servers and hourly cooks. The U.S. Department of Labor has just proposed new regulations to help narrow that gap, but critics say the Trump administration’s rules go too far: They would allow employers to control all tips, potentially legalizing a practice that is now considered wage theft under the law.

    The regulations are “not just about sharing tips with the back-of-the-house staff — that part would be okay — but employers would have the right to decide what to do with the tips,” said Saru Jayaraman, president of Restaurant Opportunities Centers United, or ROC, an advocacy group for restaurant workers.

    Allowing employers to distribute tips as they see fit, Jayaraman added, would end the Labor Department’s practice of treating gratuities as the property of workers, a custom that dates to the 1974 amendments to the Fair Labor Standards Act.

    Wage theft by employers. Here’s that economic concern.

  6. 6.

    schrodingers_cat

    The days grow shorter and my SAAD gets worse. November and December are for me the most difficult months of the year. The lack of sunlight affects me more than the cold.

  7. 7.

    Yutsano

    @TenguPhule: As it seems like virtually nothing is happening in that regard right now, you might get your wish.

    As long as I get back pay I’m good.

  8. 8.

    TenguPhule

    @BlueDWarrior:

    We’re being held hostage by a group of people who think murder-suicide politically is a quite viable and effective option for the future.

    Yeah, I figured that out last year. But apparently its rude to point out the obvious.

  9. 9.

    Yoda Dog

    I need my buddy, Julio Jones, to hook me up tonight for my fantasy football playoff match. It hasn’t been the best year for him and the Saints have been playing some serious defense, but I remain optimistic, nonetheless.

    We shall see.

  11. 11.

    Dorothy A. Winsor (formerly Iowa Old Lady)

    I had a good writing day because a friend gave me useful feedback on my current novel draft and I enjoyed working with it. OTOH, a short story was supposed to be in a November anthology that’s not out yet, and the editor says on FB that they’re waiting for writers to turn in their edits. I notified them I hadn’t received edits yet.

  14. 14.

    Comrade Colette Collaboratrice

    @Major Major Major Major:

    At my latitude, the sunsets are now getting later.

    Yeah, but still getting up at the crack o’dark. Nonetheless I always look forward to the winter solstice (even though it falls on my sister’s Yahrzeit this year), because the darkness bothers me more than the cold and the winter rain. There’s a hell of lot to put behind me/us as we face the new year.

  16. 16.

    Brachiator

    A consistent theme of the Trump administration is to try to streamline the running of federal agencies by ignoring the input of anyone with knowledge and expertise. What could go wrong? Well,

    VA kills plan to cut homeless-vet program after outcry

    Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin has killed a plan to shift money from a major homelessness program in response to a wave of protest from veterans’ advocates, who said the move would aggravate conditions for chronically ill and vulnerable vets.

    Advocates for veterans, state officials and even officials from HUD, which co-sponsors the $460 million program, had attacked the decision, saying the service has helped dramatically reduce homelessness among veterans. After POLITICO published a story about their anger, Shulkin reversed course late Wednesday.

    “There will be absolutely no change in the funding to support our homeless program,” he said in a news release, adding that the money would not be shifted to the Choice program, which enables veterans to get health care outside the VA system.

    Shulkin promised to get input from local VA leaders and others “on how best to target our funding to the geographical areas that need it most.”

    The announcement came after a confusing week of messaging from the VA. On Nov. 27, Shulkin and HUD Secretary Ben Carson appeared at a Washington shelter to tout President Donald Trump’s commitment to ending veteran homelessness.

    Then on Dec. 1, Shulkin’s staff told advocates on a phone call that the agency was ending the program–one of two major VA homelessness projects– and funneling the money to local VA hospitals that could decide how to use it. The original VA decision was buried in a September circular without prior consultation with HUD or veterans’ groups.

    A person involved with the program said the decision to cut it was made with no input from rank-and-file VA or HUD staff and surprised even employees at the VA.

    These goons are consistently mean spirited and stupid. And yet their core supporters keep giving them a pass.

    The one positive note is that crap like this clearly sets the Democrats up to take advantage of these mis-steps. Assuming the Dems don’t keep shooting themselves in the foot.

  17. 17.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    The first lady wrote, in a now-deleted tweet, “Today we honor Pearl Harbor heroes 11/7/1941. Thank you to all military for your courage and sacrifice,” mixing up the dates by suggesting the attack took place on November 7, as opposed to December 7.

    Imagine the firestorm if a Dem first lady said this.

    Washington (CNN)Donald Trump, who has made his advocacy for New York City after the 9/11 attacks central to his candidacy, accidentally referred to it on Monday as 7/11 — the ubiquitous convenience store.

    “I wrote this out, and it’s very close to my heart,” he said at the outset of his remarks on Buffalo on Monday evening. “Because I was down there and I watched our police and our firemen down at 7/11.

    Both of them with the ingrained 7/11

    Drumpf must have made Melania make late night slurpee runs to 7/11

  20. 20.

    Betty Cracker

    @Major Major Major Major: We’ve got a lot of bamboo — several different types. It’s so pretty, and it grows so fast! My husband planted the “clumping” kind vs. the “running” type. Easier to contain that way, apparently. (I’m not the gardener in the family.)

  22. 22.

    TenguPhule

    @Brachiator:

    The one positive note is that crap like this clearly sets the Democrats up to take advantage of these mis-steps. Assuming the Dems don’t keep shooting themselves in the foot.

    Our order for crutches is backlogged with the VA.

  23. 23.

    Tenar Arha

    I want to put my head down and take a nap so bad.

    I’ve been trying this week to figure out what plan to buy for health insurance this year, since I have had to change/move doctors anyway. I’m running into that metal confusion thing where a bronze plan is looking almost as good or better than the silver. There’s a gold about $100 more too that might be reasonable if I start to get good old middle-aging issues too. ?

  25. 25.

    Raoul

    Since we have at least the beginning of a theme @top (and wow is she great as everything fails around her), I actually paid 99c plus tax for a late GenX (I think?) Christmas carol on iTunes this week.
    Weezer’s O Holy Night. It’s good. Really. (And free via youTube)

  27. 27.

    Brachiator

    I think I forgot a link for the VA story. Here.

    Maybe the change in the sunsets is affecting me, too. Of course, here in Southern California, much is due to the blotting out of the sky due to smoke from brush fires.

  29. 29.

    Betty Cracker

    @Dorothy A. Winsor (formerly Iowa Old Lady): According to the mister, there are varieties that do not run amok. But you do have to plan carefully when planting stands of bamboo, taking into account the eventual radius of the clump, lest it heave over your fence. We learned that lesson the hard way!

  30. 30.

    Raoul

    @Major Major Major Major: Another week here in Minneapolis. We’re stuck at 4:31 till the 14th. We don’t creep back to even a 4:45 sunset till friggin’ Jan 4. What a slog this time of year is. But yes, the analemma is kinda cool.

  31. 31.

    Comrade Colette Collaboratrice

    @Raoul: Oh yes! That’s an awesome version of my favorite carol! It’s on my workout music rotation year-round. Since I don’t celebrate Christmas, I figure I can not-celebrate it anytime.

  33. 33.

    Humdog

    I just brought my dog home from hospital after major surgery. She is so shaved and stitched and sad it is pathetic. Eight weeks of keeping her still will be a challenge, but not today. Poor little thing!

  39. 39.

    Betty Cracker

    @Humdog: Poor thing. Hope she’ll be okay. I hate it when the dogs are sick. They have no idea what’s going on, and it’s not like you can just explain they’ll be okay.

  41. 41.

    satby

    @Humdog: hope she feels better soon.
    As to weather, we had the first real snow today, and it was about an inch.
    Weather and animals is all I am willing to discuss right now. Everything else sickens me.

  42. 42.

    Kay

    The British publicist who arranged the June 2016 meeting with Russians and Donald Trump Jr. sent multiple emails to a Russian participant and a member of Donald Trump’s inner circle later that summer, multiple sources told CNN, the first indication there was any follow-up after the meeting.

    The Trump Administration sure lie and omit a lot for people who don’t have anything to hide.

    Objectively- do innocent people lie this much? Not usually! Maybe they just enjoy lying but usually it’s to cover something up.

  43. 43.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    First Mark Halperin, now Harold Ford.

    I’m shocked – shocked!

    The cast of Morning Blow is rife with sexual harassers.

    HOOOOOOOOOOOOOCOONODE!

  44. 44.

    Brachiator

    @rp:

    Shulkin was originally an Obama appointee, so I wonder if a RWNJ staffer said they were cutting the program without his approval.

    Thanks for the clarification. Things get interesting. A Democrat blamed “the Trump administration for this.”

    Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), who sits on a veterans’ affairs subcommittee, had called the earlier VA decision “a new low” for the Trump administration that was “especially callous and perplexing” in view of the latest data on homelessness.

    But here, it is possible that Shulkin and Carson are executing Trump’s vision. Between the two of them, they are some sad sacks.

    At the Nov. 27 event, Shulkin and Carson said Trump was increasing funding for veterans homelessness. They promised to help every veteran find a home.

    When asked about the administration’s budget, which still includes no additional vouchers for the hard-case veterans, Carson said HUD had “excess vouchers. When we use those, we’ll look for more,” he said.

    “The old paradigm of dumping money on problems doesn’t work,” Carson added.

    Some communities have excess vouchers, but many more don’t have enough, said Harig-Blaine, who is also a member of Shulkin’s advisory committee for homelenessness. Even in cities where there are excess vouchers, they exist only because the voucher community can’t compete with private market rents, he said — not because there aren’t homeless veterans there.

    And yeah, Shulkin was originally nominated to an under-Secretary post by Obama. But Trump and both political parties appear to bear responsibility for his rise to his current position.

    On January 11, 2017, Shulkin was nominated by President-elect Donald Trump as United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs. Trump, who had first considered five others, nominated Shulkin after a recommendation by Ambassador David M. Friedman. [Friedman is ambassador to Israel and a big Trump advisor]

    On February 13, 2017, the United States Senate unanimously confirmed Shulkin as the U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs in a 100–0 vote, making him the only cabinet nominee by President Trump to have unanimous consent. He is the first non-veteran to hold the position.

  45. 45.

    NotMax

    Surprisingly, only chance this month to catch it on TCM is Friday the 8th at 8 p.m. – the Alastair Sim version of A Christmas Carol.

    Followed at 9:45 p.m.by the 1935 Seymour Hicks version, Scrooge.

    Pretty solid weekend line-up all around, whole lotta pleasantly companionable stuff. Plus one odd duck, Nine Days in One Year at 2 a.m. on Monday, a Soviet film from 1962 revolving around a fateful mishap at a nuclear lab.

  46. 46.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    resident Donald Trump on Thursday delivered a rambling tribute to World War II veterans in which he boasted of his administration’s purported efforts to build up America’s military, while simultaneously describing the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor as a “pretty wild scene.”

    Evil Frank Drebin

  48. 48.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @NotMax: Surprisingly, only chance this month to catch it on TCM is Friday the 8th at 8 p.m. – the Alastair Sim version of A Christmas Carol.

    I’m a sucker for ACC. My only disappointment in the more recent ones (Patrick Stewart, George C Scott) is you’d think with all your modern technology they could make Marley’s scream much scarier. I like Scott’s Scrooge because he’s well- and cleanly dressed, not obviously nuts or nasty, just cold.

  49. 49.

    Lapassionara

    Alain posted this morning. That was a nice start to the day. Now, can someone bring me up to date on EFGoldman?

  50. 50.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch: the Japanese were some bad dudes back then, bad hombres, believe me, could’ve used a wall around Hawai’i, but now there our friends, they love me now, I got a hat, a beautiful hat, many people in Japan say they like me much better than Obama, but I’m not supposed to say that

    /he didn’t really

  51. 51.

    Hungry Joe

    Wind whipping up, 78 degrees, humidity below 10 percent. Wandering outside every 20 minutes or so to check for smoke in the air or on the horizon. No fires around here (central San Diego) yet, but when it happens, it happens fast. We’ve got a list of stuff to grab, and a crate for the cat out (hidden, of course), and enough dog and cat food packed to get ’em though a couple of days. … Damn! What about litter and a litter box? It’s one thing after another ….

    All this while Ms. Joe is hammered with a monster cold and I’m recovering from yesterday’s eyelid surgery. I look like I got my ass whupped — lots of swelling, two black eyes in the works. I should come up with a good “Yeah,-but-you-should-see-the-Nazi” story.

  52. 52.

    Betty Cracker

    @Kay: I just read that too. Do the Trumps ever tell the truth? About anything? I remember Trump lying about his own reaction to winning the election, telling one audience he was completely surprised because he thought he would lose, then telling another (a couple of days later, IIRC) that he knew he would win all along. Why lie about something like that?

    It’s just weird, how much they lie. And it depresses me to contemplate hearing about that pack of pathological liars for the rest of my life, no matter what becomes of them.

  53. 53.

    different-church-lady

    That woman can sing a song she doesn’t know better than most stars today can sing songs they do know.

  54. 54.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Kay: @Betty Cracker: I think that as he nears forty, Junior still has the kind of daddy-worship that makes him think he can be got out of any kind of trouble. I guess no one’s explained to him about federal vs state laws.

    also vaguely wondering if SNL will alter their portrayals of the Fredos this weekend, they very convincingly still portray Eric as the dumber one, or if those details are too inside-baseball for their audience

  56. 56.

    different-church-lady

    @cope: Am I not doing enough to promote my own coinage?

    UPDATE THE LEXICON ALREADY, FOLKS!!! IT’S THE ONLY INTERNET THING I’VE EVER BEEN PROUD OF!

  58. 58.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    @TenguPhule: Since he doesn’t read anything, his faint knowledge of Pearl Harbor must be solely based on the raunchy John Belushi film (1941) (photo)

  60. 60.

    WaterGirl

    @Humdog: My dog had to to the same thing for 6-8 weeks after back surgery. You get a crate where there’s not a lot of room for them to get rowdy, and they have to be in it unless they are going outside to the bathroom or come out just to lie with you on the floor. I promise the time goes much faster than you think it will.

  61. 61.

    germy

    I will now be bringing legal action against the reporter who made these false claims about me as well as Morgan Stanley for improper termination.— Harold Ford, Jr. (@HFord2) December 7, 2017

  63. 63.

    different-church-lady

    @TenguPhule: The entire tipping system is broken beyond repair. We should force the restaurants to pay their workers. Repeat: their workers.

  65. 65.

    gene108

    @schrodingers_cat:

    The days grow shorter and my SAAD gets worse. November and December are for me the most difficult months of the year. The lack of sunlight affects me more than the cold.

    For me it’s both the cold and the sunlight. I don’t get to feeling right until March. Hang in there. Spring is just around the corner!!!

    We just have to get Winter out of the way first :-(

  66. 66.

    TenguPhule

    @different-church-lady:

    We should force the restaurants to pay their workers. Repeat: their workers.

    Instead we now appear to be heading in the exact opposite direction. Workers must now subsidize their employers, only more so.

  68. 68.

    Kay

    @Betty Cracker:

    I think Don Jr. is dumb, a stupid person, so I’m delighted that he’s all tied up in his clumsy lies. He’s the weak link in the crime family.

    I agree with you about hearing about them. I went to get my hair cut today and US magazine had Ivanka on the cover. To torture myself I looked at it, hate-reading. The issue she feels passionate about is education, because of course it is. It’s the issue everyone who doesn’t know anything jumps into :)

  71. 71.

    Mary G

    @Major Major Major Major: This month’s splurge is “Persepolis Rising,” the latest Expanse novel by James S. A. Corey. Little bit of plot recycling, but good, very very good.

    Also, too bamboo is the devil’s plant.

  72. 72.

    schrodingers_cat

    @gene108: Cold is okay as long as there is no sleet and ice, you bundle up. I have built a formidable winter wardrobe now, I am like a walking ad for L L Bean. BTW if you don’t already try silk long underwear, its the secret to being toasty warm in winter.

  75. 75.

    raven

    After tons of input from the jackals last night we got way too expensive nonrefundable tickets to LA and it’s Rose Bowl here we come!!!

  76. 76.

    Major Major Major Major

    @Mary G:

    Also, too bamboo is the devil’s plant.

    Is that a good thing, or a bad thing?

    I just finished reading The Wrong Stars by Tim Pratt, a space opera I was accidentally at the reading of; and White Corridor by Christopher Fowler, from the Bryant & May series of books about a pair of cranky old British detectives.

  77. 77.

    Tazj

    @NotMax: Thank you, that version of A Christmas Carol is my favorite followed by the Muppet version. I have it on DVD somewhere, it’s lost in a pile of other DVD’s in the house.

    Well, the third time was a charm. It’s the first heavy snow of the season and I finally went down in the driveway while carrying back the recyclables they failed to collect this morning. This is after I slipped twice, first when taking some kitty litter to the curb last night and then again while shoveling off the front steps. I’m not hurt, just a little embarrassed though it must have been a funny sight from a far.

  82. 82.

    lamh36

    @David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch: Ugh.. Joe Scar and Mika B are the LAST persons I want to hear talk bout this stuff…Joe Scar is free and clear…because he harmless office flirting led to wedding bells with Mika…

    Still came off as skeevy to me…seeing as BOTH of them were married at the time, so … that office romance could have gone any number of ways…

    As for Harold Ford, as I said in the past thread, I don’t like the guy, but the glee with which folks are “celebrating” the accusation against the guy, is ugh…in my book, because if true, there is an actual person who was the recipient of his actions

  83. 83.

    raven

    @ruemara: That’s going to be tricky. No one I know thinks it’s a good idea to try to do both and, as of now, i/we don’t plan to. There is some good info abut going to see the floats being built the day before so we might try that.

  84. 84.

    Betty Cracker

    Well, this is interesting! (Via Roll Call)

    Arizona’s Trent Franks Expected to Resign

    Rumors of inappropriate behavior surround Freedom Caucus member’s anticipated exit

    Arizona Republican Trent Franks is expected to resign from Congress, a source with knowledge told Roll Call.

    The congressman did not confirm or deny any plans to resign. Franks said he expected to make a statement Thursday.

    “We will have a statement a little bit later, but that’s all I can tell you right now,” Franks told Roll Call. “The statement will explain.”

    It is unclear exactly why Franks is stepping down, but one Arizona Republican said there had been rumors of inappropriate behavior. The Republican said the congressman had apparently been making plans to run for Senate in 2012, but abruptly canceled those plans.

    “There’s been rumors swirling around him for years, at least in 2012,” the Republican said. “And if this turns out to be true there won’t be that many people who are surprised.”

    Riddance, rubbish, etc.

  88. 88.

    Sister Rail Gun of Warm Humanitarianism

    @Major Major Major Major: I’ll second the Expanse books. Hard SF that doesn’t devolve into hardware porn, decent characterization. And also recommend the Ancillary books mentioned in the earlier thread.

    Anything by Ursula Vernon / T. Kingfisher.

    Getting more to the horror side, Alyssa Wong has some amazing short work.

    And a page of links to recommendation discussions: File770 2017 Recommended SF/F Page

  90. 90.

    lamh36

    I have never meant the following three words more than I do now:

    FUQ THIS BISH (and this entire administration…and their supporters…hell, fuq any and every one who’s purity test and stupidity…led to these mofo being here)

    @ElizLanders
    Follow Follow @ElizLanders
    More
    NEW from @PressSec on Lewis, Thompson missing the Civil Rights Museum opening: “We think it’s unfortunate that these members of Congress wouldn’t join the President in honoring the incredible sacrifice civil rights leaders made to right the injustices in our history.” (1/2)

    As someone said, do they NOT know who da fuq John Lewis is…

  91. 91.

    Mary G

    Columbia Journalism Review says Facebook/Twitter fake news bad, but MSM worse:

    To reiterate, in just six days, The New York Times ran as many cover stories about Hillary Clinton’s emails as they did about all policy issues combined in the 69 days leading up to the election (and that does not include the three additional articles on October 18, and November 6 and 7, or the two articles on the emails taken from John Podesta).

  92. 92.

    Litlebritdifrnt

    So Sarah Fuckerbee Sanders is going after John Lewis for “not honoring civil rights leaders”. Didn’t any of the Trump administration take history lessons? Today both Trump and Melania fucked up their “Pearl Harbor” tribute tweets and now this? WTF.

    In happier news we are going to stay at Pine Lake Resort next week with Mum and Norman. (I had tried to do a cut and paste of the website for you guys so you could see it but what can I say computer fail anyway if anyone wants to look its Diamond Resorts Pine Lake Carnforth) Anyhoo, nice lodge by a lake full of wild fowl, swimming pool, jacuzzi, spa and a gym for DH. Got Christmas dinners and lunches to attend as well, so it should be a fun week. Also we are going on a trip to Hawes to the Wensleydale Cheese Factory. Finally going to the Church in Warton to lay wreaths on all the relatives graves (Warton is the home of George Washington’s family by the way).

  93. 93.

    Raoul

    @different-church-lady: Agree. The system in many countries, of ‘service included’ makes so much more sense. A few coins or small bills for a nice nod, but the cost of dining out should be built into the menu.

    And in places like Minneapolis, it’s confusing. We don’t have a tip credit, but still have the expectation to tip 15-20 percent. I do it, as to not be a pig, but it would be better IMO fo restaurants to pay $15/hr or more and build the cost in!

  99. 99.

    Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes

    Sucktastic afternoon. I got to experience an emegency extraction of an abscessed tooth.

    Fucker actually formed a zit on the gum, it had grown so quick. I already had an appointment set for Monday to put in a permanent filling on a root canal under a crown (which is where I thought the soreness was from). Figured I could wait. Then the zit formed while every bite of lunch hurt. I called the dentist, and she demanded I come immediately.

    She started a root canal, but the moment she hit the pulp, it was clear that the tooth was cracked through and rotten – all I could do was keep apologizing for the smell.

  103. 103.

    ruemara

    @schrodingers_cat: If you can get a bulb that goes to minimum 5000 K – 6000 K, that can help. If possible, look for a full daylight spectrum bulb, but an LED that does up to 6000 K might do the job.

    @raven: The behind the scenes is the best part for me. I’d want to go to photograph that.

  105. 105.

    TenguPhule

    @Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes:

    She started a root canal, but the moment she hit the pulp, it was clear that the tooth was cracked through and rotten – all I could do was keep apologizing for the smell.

    Look on the bright side. Thanks to modern medicine, at least you survived the experience. That used to be an actual cause of death not that long ago.

  108. 108.

    cintibud

    I use a light for SAD as well. Good thing I live on the Western edge of Eastern Time zone – sunset here isn’t until 5:15! My app says sunset will be at 5:15 from Dec 1 until Dec 13th. Will get all the way up to 5:18 on the 21st.

    And my favorite Christmas Carol movie is the one starring Mr. MaGoo!

  112. 112.

    japa21

    @Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes: Just had an extraction last week. Was easier than I thought. Didn’t have to be an emergency. They had me on penicillin for a week to get rid of the abscess, but bone loss was too great. Dentist recommended an implant but my dental insurance doesn’t cover those so I’m getting a bridge instead.

  121. 121.

    No Drought No More

    Esquire is shutting me out from posting today, so please bear with me as I piggyback here to respond to the a post by Charles Pierce re. Al Franken’s resignation. If I don’t get this stuff of my chest, my toes will explode, it’s as simple as that:

    Also: Had the governor of Minnesota not been a democrat, would the calls from his fellow democrats for Franken to resign happened at all? I doubt it, which diminishes the whole point about this political execution. But if so- if they tell us they were indeed prepared to do just that, come hell or high water- what does that say about their collective political judgement?

    The republican party is today conspiring with Donald Trump to aid and abet Russia’s successful attack upon American democracy. Make no mistake about it- it was another Pearl Harbor, albeit one without all the noise. The republican party and their supporters are the mortal enemies of the government of our inheritance. They hate this country, and mean to destroy it. They are well on there way to achieving their goal, the rotten motherfuckers, and I’m sick and tired of mushed mouthed congressional democrats who lack the courage to attack them for what they are.

    In the face of the ongoing crimes of the GOP, it seems to me congressional democrats in 2017 are inexplicably terrified at even raising their voices, much less fulfilling the obligations of their oaths of office, that is, of doing their duty as they swore they’d do. And you are right, C. P. For the good of the country, GODDAMNIT, they better snap the hell out of it, and fast.

  122. 122.

    sharl

    @LurkerNoLonger: I see that your question was already answered, but the origin story of the TBogg Unit involves two commenters here – a Trollhattan comment inspired different-church-lady to propose the term, and it took off from there.

    {Paul Harvey voice} And now you know the REST…of the story.{/PHv}

  125. 125.

    Steeplejack

    @NotMax:

    I remember Blackadder’s Christmas Carol as being very funny, although I saw it only once. Robbie Coltrane was particularly good as the spirit of Christmas. I think it’s on Netflix.

  126. 126.

    Irony Abounds

    @Betty Cracker: I’m going to have to see the hides of about 50 GOPers to make me feel better about what happened to Franken today. I may have reached the end of being even partially rational in my hatred to Trump and the GOP, and it doesn’t help that the Democratic Party is pretty much of a clusterfuck organization itself. It’s hard to count on plans you’ve made for the future when the USA is rapidly becoming the USSV (United States of Soon to be Venezuela).

  127. 127.

    Humdog

    @WaterGirl: She will not stay quiet in her crate with her padded e collar on. She thrashes about dangerously. She will accept one or the other but not both.
    I’ve moved a spare mattress to the floor in a small room and she and I lay on it and she will settle down. It I should like a giant crate for two. Doesn’t even need the e collar as long as I stay close. February 1 is a loooong time away!

  133. 133.

    sharl

    @lamh36: willsommer’s follow-up tweets say that cerno and his fans were actually whooping it up in that facebook link, thinking this he came out looking pretty good in that exchange.

    Those alt-right chumps, and the MAGA chuds in general, really do live in their own world. Separate media and “information” delivery systems, separate mutual support teaming, separate sets of standards for public comportment, etc. I don’t know how populous and committed that crowd actually is, but there are enough of them to make the situation very very super ungood.

  134. 134.

    lamh36

    I made a prediction almost right after the allegations against F&C came out, that we would see a Congress with C&F forced out, and Roy Moore being sworn in as the next Senator from Alabama…

    Welp…2 out of 3…soon we’ll see if I can go 3 for 3

  135. 135.

    lamh36

    Sen Ron Johnson (R) on MTP bascially saying by SCOTUS, Roy Moore, if he wins should be seated, but will “of course” have to go before an ethic board…and the women called to testify…

    YEAH RIGHT…bullshit

  137. 137.

    germy

    In response to the president’s announcement, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh called for a new uprising (or “intifada”) against Israel. Thousands of demonstrators gathered in the West Bank cities of Hebron and Al-Bireh Thursday, chanting, “Jerusalem is the capital of the state of Palestine,” Haaretz reports. Clashes between Palestinians and Israeli soldiers in the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza left at least 19 Palestinians wounded.

    Meanwhile, multiple rockets were fired from Gaza toward southern Israel. Most of these did not make it across the Israeli border — but one did, according to the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF). In response, an IDF tank and aircraft attacked two so-called “terror posts” in central Gaza. The Israeli government holds Hamas responsible for the rocket attacks. As of this writing, it is unclear how many people were killed or injured in those strikes.

  139. 139.

    lamh36

    @TenguPhule: Reboot…different timeline. Logan is much advance in the future…

    I think the Pheonix film will be the 2000s…Apocalypse was 90s

  141. 141.

    JeanneT

    @cintibud: OMG I thought I was the only one who watches the Mr. Magoo Christmas Carol. That one, and the Patrick Stewart version are my favorites!

  142. 142.

    Cacti

    In case you weren’t feeling depressed enough, just thought I’d leave this set of facts:

    Bob Menendez (D-total sleaze), was charged with multiple felonies, fought them, wasn’t convicted, and still has his Senate seat.

    Al Franken (D-MN), was charged with innuendo, didn’t put up a fight, and was hounded out of the Senate.

    Fighting back: It works

  144. 144.

    Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes

    @Peale:

    She opened it up to jam in gutta percha fibers in order to determine the channel of the infection and thus determine which root was abscessed.

    In other words, the fibers followed a subcutaneous river of pus.

  145. 145.

    germy

    @JeanneT: I haven’t seen Magoo’s Christmas Carol in about fifty years. It still holds up? I’ve been reluctant to spoil a fond childhood memory by watching it again.

  146. 146.

    Kay

    @lamh36:

    I think they’ll get rid of him. It’s Alabama. They can get any random Republican who is not a child molester. They’ll trade up.

    The fact that he’s a child molester distracted from the fact that he’s a nut job with a 20 year history, including video of him telling people teaching evolution causes drive-by shootings. He’ll embarrass them weekly.

  147. 147.

    different-church-lady

    @Kay:

    I think they’ll get rid of him. [snip] He’ll embarrass them weekly.

    You’ve seen who’s president, yes?

  148. 148.

    NotMax

    @japa21

    Little portable heater I recently ordered arrived yesterday. Instruction pamphlet is a veritable feast of Chinglish. Includes this warning, verbatim:

    Keep the heater off the people of disability, sensory handicaps, intellectual deficiency or lack of experience and general knowledge (including children), except the usage is fully under the watch and guard by their guardians.

  149. 149.

    lamh36

    I’d like to give a preemptive FUQ YOU to Alabama Republicans for electing Roy Moore (And if I’m wrong, still FUQ em anyway for being Trump supporters and voting for him in ’16)

    @Eugene_Scott
    Follow Follow @Eugene_Scott
    More
    Moore to an African American asking when he last thought America was “great”: “I think it was great at the time when families were united. Even though we had slavery, they cared for one another…. Our families were strong, our country had a direction.”
    https://twitter.com/Eugene_Scott/status/938873902369067008

  152. 152.

    Patricia Kayden

    @Brachiator:

    “The old paradigm of dumping money on problems doesn’t work,” Carson added.

    This is never said by Rightwingers when money is dumped into the laps of the ultra wealthy via tax cuts though. Funny that.

  153. 153.

    TenguPhule

    @lamh36:

    Even though we had slavery, they cared for one another…. Our families were strong, our country had a direction.”

    I can see which amendment is first on the Republican repeal list come the Constitutional Convention.

  155. 155.

    lamh36

    @Kay: you obviously have more faith in a certain segment of the voter population and GOP Congresspeople than I do

    ETA: Johnson basically called Franken a scumbag, but wouldn’t even use the same words for Roy Moore, instead he mentioned a “ethics procedure”…again I say BULLSHIT

  156. 156.

    different-church-lady

    @Cacti: As I said in an older thread (or maybe even this thread, I can’t keep up anymore…): You know what happens when you don’t fight against a rat fuck? You get fucked, and everyone thinks you’re a rat.

  158. 158.

    Kay

    Natasha Bertrand‏Verified account
    @NatashaBertrand
    Follow Follow @NatashaBertrand
    More
    Holy cow. Another email sent by Goldstone referenced the DNC hack: In a June 14, 2016 message Goldstone described news of DNC hacks as “eerily weird” given what had been discussed at the Trump Tower meeting 5 days earlier.

    Given what had been discussed. So Don Jr. lied. Again. He’ll have to revise his account of that meeting for the 4th time.

    Having Trumps testify is really a waste of time, unless the objective is to catch them lying. That’s the only information they impart- that they’re liars – and sensible people knew that already.

  159. 159.

    Brachiator

    @Mary G:

    Columbia Journalism Review says Facebook/Twitter fake news bad, but MSM worse:

    Great story. Thanks very much.

    Another from the same site that I think is worthy of a closer look is the degree to which the news has become more partisan, and how conservatives especially seek out only right wing sites. This article focuses on Breitbart, but one very interesting tidbit about the right wing media ecosystem in the age of Trump was this.

    A remarkable feature of the right-wing media ecosystem is how new it is. Out of all the outlets favored by Trump followers, only the New York Post existed when Ronald Reagan was elected president in 1980. By the election of Bill Clinton in 1992, only the Washington Times, Rush Limbaugh, and arguably Sean Hannity had joined the fray. Alex Jones of Infowars started his first outlet on the radio in 1996. Fox News was not founded until 1996. Breitbart was founded in 2007, and most of the other major nodes in the right-wing media system were created even later.

    When you factor in the growth of other right wing media, such as Sinclair Group, the impact on media becomes even more chilling.

  160. 160.

    TenguPhule

    Dupuy said she was offended by Franken’s resignation speech and thought it was inappropriate that he delivered it on the Senate floor.

    “His speech was about his experience, his grief, his embarrassment and his pain and had nothing to do with the female experience of what he did against his accusers,” Dupuy said. “It was a very un-empathetic speech to the women who told him and the public that it was not okay. There was no apology.”

    Dupuy is Ms. Waist fee fees. She can kindly find a hole to go fuck herself in.

  161. 161.

    Patricia Kayden

    @germy: What a mess. MAGA!! And while you’re at it, cause unnecessary strife in an already tense Middle East.

  162. 162.

    Mary G

    @Yutsano:

    https://t.co/20xD2XbhvFBustos, Crist, Gottheimer, Murphy (FL), O'Halleran, Peters, Peterson, Rosen, Ruiz, Schneider, Scott, David, Sinema, Speir, WaalzFreedom caucus crazies (Gohmert, et. al) voted no— Mary Michel Green (@marymichelgreen) December 7, 2017

    ETA: 14 Dems listed voted yes, WTF, and the Rep nuts known as the Freedom Caucus voted no.

  163. 163.

    TenguPhule

    Yet Carlson quickly curbed his enthusiasm and urged conservative viewers to do the same.

    “Enjoy the schadenfreude, the pure animal thrill of watching a powerful person knocked from a high perch, but at the same time, ask yourself, what if this happened to you?” Carlson said. “Imagine being accused by someone whose name you didn’t know of something that supposedly happened more than a decade ago. How would you respond? How could you respond? What if you were innocent, by the way? And what if nobody cared?”

    Carlson is not alone among Fox News commentators in arguing that Franken was denied due process by his fellow Democrats, who before conducting an investigation into his alleged groping habit suddenly blitzed the Minnesotan with calls to quit.

    Fucking Democratic Leadership is making me agree with FUCKING CARLSON.

    AAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!

  165. 165.

    ThresherK

    @NotMax: Sounds similar to any Japanese motorcycle manual from the early 70s. Hope your heater works just as well.

    Intellectual deficiency and lack of general knowledge

    Why don’t you buy one and ship it to the White House? We can start a pool to see how soon the curtains in the Oval Office catch fire.

  166. 166.

    different-church-lady

    @Kay:

    Having Trumps testify is really a waste of time, unless the objective is to catch them lying.

    That’s the ENTIRE point, in my view.

  167. 167.

    Cacti

    @TenguPhule:

    Dupuy is Ms. Waist fee fees. She can kindly find a hole to go fuck herself in.

    As of today, we are the party of Tina Dupuy.

    Real mystery why the GOP keeps eating our lunch.

  168. 168.

    germy

    @NotMax:

    Keep the heater off the people of disability, sensory handicaps, intellectual deficiency or lack of experience and general knowledge (including children), except the usage is fully under the watch and guard by their guardians

    Here we elect them president.

  171. 171.

    different-church-lady

    @TenguPhule: Wouldn’t it be a bit difficult for Franken to speak from the “female experience” and presumptive of him to speak to it?

    I mean, I know what she’s getting at, but that is some kind of word salad.

  172. 172.

    germy

    Tina Dupuy is the former communications director for Congressman Alan Grayson,[1] and has been a nationally syndicated op-ed columnist, freelance investigative journalist and comedian.

    As a teenager, Dupuy was convinced that she was an alcoholic and joined Alcoholics Anonymous, and would eventually gain prominence for telling the story of her sobriety to AA audiences. Twenty years later, however, having drifted away from the organization, she began to question the interpretation she had been given of her life story, and decided the only way to know for sure whether she was an alcoholic was to have a drink and see what happened. She discussed the process that led to this conclusion in an interview for This American Life.[5]

    wikipedia

  177. 177.

    different-church-lady

    @germy:

    …in an interview for This American Life.

    Is it possible for a radio show to die in a fire?

    If so, I wish it for this one.

  178. 178.

    Kay

    I’m going to the school Christmas concert tonight. We always go. It’s a fundraiser for the music program so you “buy” tickets. They are of course also free to anyone who wants to come but if you can afford it you buy them as a donation.

    I feel like I’m (sadly) sort of cynical about Christmas but 2nd graders singing just slays me every time and I wish peace and goodwill to all mankind for several hours afterward :)

  179. 179.

    Irony Abounds

    @TenguPhule: Carlson is making that argument today, so he can make the same argument for Moore. One big difference, among others, is that Moore is clearly lying about his past associations with the young women all the while calling them liars while Franken took responsibility for some of his actions and while denying others he was extremely respectful in doing so. All the good it did for him, btw.

  184. 184.

    Cacti

    @different-church-lady:

    Makes you wonder if maybe they got a point with this “SNOWFLAKE!” garbage.

    I’d say they have strong case for that one.

    I’d also say they have a point with their belief that Dems aren’t nearly as smart as they think they are.

  187. 187.

    debbie

    @raven:

    That would be more fun. We used to watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade balloons being inflated the night before. Loads of fun and merriment.

  188. 188.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    Can’t find anything on the tubes to link to, but according to MSNBC right now, it sounds like the Russians are dropping the piano on Slab-Head Donnie.

  190. 190.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @ruemara: @germy: Christ. When you consider she’s a fairly regular guest on liberal chat shows.

    I’d never heard of her before yesterday, but she subbed for uber-Bernie-Bro and lefties-than-thou Jon Fuglesang today. I didn’t listen

  191. 191.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    Natasha Bertrand‏ @NatashaBertrand
    2h2 hours ago

    CNN: Previously undisclosed emails show there was follow-up after the Trump Tower meeting, despite Trump Jr.’s insistence that there was none. Trump Jr. told House Intel yesterday that he could “not recall” the emails.

    Goldstone apparently encouraged Dan Scavino in one email to create a social media page for the Trump campaign on the Russian version of Facebook, VKontakte.

    Holy cow. Another email sent by Goldstone referenced the DNC hack: In a June 14, 2016 message Goldstone described news of DNC hacks as “eerily weird” given what had been discussed at the Trump Tower meeting 5 days earlier.

    This is the first sign we’ve gotten that hacked emails were discussed at the Trump Tower meeting.

    Manu Raju‏ @mkraju

    In another email, the son of the Russian attendee at the mtg sends an email to his dad after Don Jr released the Goldstone emails. He asked: Why did they admit to “collusion?”

    1:41 PM – 7 Dec 2017

  192. 192.

    John Revolta

    @ThresherK: @NotMax: My favorite example of this was in a manual for something I don’t remember what about 40 years ago, It told me, “Should the abnormality occur…………….” For years we used to say “Uh oh, the abnormality is occurring……………….”

  193. 193.

    Leto

    @Litlebritdifrnt: The other home is Sulgrave Manor. The Crown sold the estate to Lawrence Washington in 1539/1540, and he then built the manor over the next twenty years. Sulgrave is right next to where I was stationed and the locals are very proud of it’s connection to us. I know it’s a bit of a drive, probably about 5 hours, but it’s definitely worth it if you get the chance. Cheers!

    Edit: make sure to take plenty of pictures to send to Alain!

  194. 194.

    J R in WV

    @Lapassionara:

    EFGoldman took a turn for the worse, got less able to get around, had some falls. Spent time in the hospital, w/o wifi so off the networks. Then a rehab center, also not good communications.

    Now he’s home, has posted sporadically since getting his freedom back, seems to be doing OK. Slowed down some is all, apparently. Still remembers to fuckem!

  195. 195.

    Cacti

    @Irony Abounds:

    Carlson is making that argument today, so he can make the same argument for Moore. One big difference, among others, is that Moore is clearly lying about his past associations with the young women all the while calling them liars while Franken took responsibility for some of his actions and while denying others he was extremely respectful in doing so. All the good it did for him, btw.

    Of course he’ll make that argument for Moore.

    And after they seat him in the Senate, and have an ethics committee investigation, the GOP gets to cast themselves as the party of due process and respecting the will of the voters, while pointing to the Dems as a kneejerk mob hunting for heretics.

    This was such an own-goal by the Dems.

  198. 198.

    Patricia Kayden

    @TenguPhule: I’m kind of sad because I love Ms. Dupuy as I’ve heard her speak on several lefty radio programs and she’s always very interesting. She should be happy that he resigned and she and his other accusers got their pound of flesh. Given who we have in the White House, I’m not sure he should have resigned but here we are. She really needs to let this go now. I hope she understands that quite a lot of folks on our side are furious that Franken has left the Senate. I was just listening to Randi Rhodes and a few callers were asking whether he could reverse his resignation. If Roy Moore is seated in the Senate, Franken should withdraw his resignation immediately.

  201. 201.

    different-church-lady

    CNN.com frontpage article headline:

    Majority polled think there was probably improper contact

    And I’m like, “Are we talking about Russia or Franken?”

  202. 202.

    bystander

    @Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes: As sucktastic as that may have been, it’s a whole lot better than septicemia. You’re lucky your dentist insisted on the procedure today. Don’t make me recount the story of the second day of my trip to Rome spent ankles in the air and a drill and suction in my mouth for six hours being worked over by Italian dentistry’s distaff response to Sid Caesar and Howard Morris.

  203. 203.

    frosty

    @raven: Great news! Have fun and go DAWGs!

    (Not normally a college ball fan but thanks to you I now have a dawg in this hunt).

  205. 205.

    Steeplejack

    @Shana:

    That movie is a hot mess, but it will always hold a place in my heart for the sight of legendary film icon Toshiro Mifune deadpanning “Rotsa ruck!” to the dick German officer as the Japanese kick him off their submarine.

  208. 208.

    bystander

    Goldstone apparently encouraged Dan Scavino in one email to create a social media page for the Trump campaign on the Russian version of Facebook, VKontakte.

    My impression is that Facebook is the Russian version of vKontakte.

  209. 209.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Patricia Kayden: I hope she understands that quite a lot of folks on our side are furious that Franken has left the Senate.

    Sounds to me like there’s no such thing as bad attention for her

  210. 210.

    mai naem mobile

    Just saw on the twitter machine rhst AZ Rep Trent Frank’s is going to resign. This is the wingiest of wingy RWNJ of the AZ Grand Ole Pedophile caucus. He was a nut job when he was in the state house and remains a nutjob. Bet he had several govt paid sexual harrassment settlements.

  211. 211.

    Patricia Kayden

    @lamh36:

    Even though we had slavery, they cared for one another

    Who is the “we” and what does he mean by “cared for each other”? White enslavers did not care for the Black people they enslaved. What rubbish.

  215. 215.

    Another Scott

    Bitcoin almost touched $16,000 today:

    […]

    The latest move brought its so-called market cap, its price multiplied by the number of bitcoins in circulation, to nearly $280 billion, according to Coinmarketcap, a trade website. By comparison, the market value of Wal-Mart Stores Inc (WMT.N) is around $288 billion.

    Analysts said the launch slated for this weekend of bitcoin futures by Cboe Global Markets Inc’s (CBOE.O) Cboe Futures Exchange, one of the world’s biggest derivatives exchanges, was helping drive up the price on expectations it would draw more investors to the market.

    The CME Group will launch bitcoin futures one week later, while Nasdaq Inc (NDAQ.O) plans to get into the mix next year.

    It is not clear to what extent big U.S. banks will participate in the new bitcoin-related activity.

    Goldman Sachs Group Inc (GS.N) will clear bitcoin futures for certain clients when they go live, a spokeswoman said on Thursday.

    The bank is “evaluating the specifications and risk attributes for the bitcoin futures contracts as part of our standard due diligence process,” spokeswoman Tiffany Galvin said.

    Bitcoin climbed as high as $15,995 on the Luxembourg-based Bitstamp exchange BTC=BTSP, up more than 14 percent on the day. It was last at $15,791.51.

    Coinbase, the largest U.S. platform for buying and selling cryptocurrencies, said on Thursday on Twitter that it had experienced an outage due to record traffic. The venue was last up and running.

    Some investors said they still see scope for bitcoin to soar even higher.

    “It will hit potentially $20,000 because so much capital is coming in and it’s the most liquid secure coin out there,” said David Drake, founder and chairman of DLJ Capital, a family office in New York.

    Other trading venues showed different prices for bitcoin, which trades in more than 100 cryptocurrency exchanges that are not accountable to any central authority. For instance, at institutional trading platform GDAX, bitcoin topped $19,000, while it hit above $16,000 at itBit.

    Those price discrepancies could add another level of speculation by introducing the prospect of arbitrage trades between the markets.

    What could possibly go wrong?!?!??! I mean, if Goldman Sachs is involved, it has to be safe, right??!?!?!?

    (sigh)

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  217. 217.

    germy

    @mai naem mobile: Trent’s a weird looking dude. Looks like a character actor from the 1950s that would throw his pistol at George Reeves’ Superman after the bullets bounced off.

  220. 220.

    Patricia Kayden

    @debbie: Possibly. Never thought of it. It’s interesting that the only two countries where Trump is popular are Russia and Israel and yet those two countries may not like each other.

  222. 222.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    I caught a clip of Sally Quinn (reactionary Queen of The Village): says Drumpf is worst than Watergate and he’ll be forced to resign. Have to think she’s reflecting what she’s hearing from her well connected sources.

  223. 223.

    JanieM

    @Major Major Major Major: Where I live, sunset is at 3:59 today through the 11th. I don’t have time to dig for the seconds hand at the moment, but hey, that’s close enough. So we start to get later on the 12th. I can’t wait! As a night person I’m almost never up at sunrise, so this is the turn that matters to me.

    This and the day I can’t see any more ice in the lake across the road are two big days I wait for each year. This one is bittersweet, because although I’m glad for later sunsets and less darkness, what’s to come (a Maine winter!) can be just a tiny bit daunting. ;-)

  224. 224.

    Miss Bianca

    @TenguPhule: I know. As I said to Mnem the other day, when you find yourself agreeing with RWNJs that “political correctness” has gone too far, you know you’re having a terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad day.

  225. 225.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Dorothy A. Winsor (formerly Iowa Old Lady):

    I thought bamboo was one of those things you’re not supposed to plant because it takes over. Not so?

    I believe faithful commenter JPL is out of town and may not be tracking BJ threads, but when I first met her IRL — a good six or seven years ago, now — she was engaged in a fight to the death with bamboo just going berserk all over her back yard. I think I told her she should just get herself a couple of giant panda cubs from ZooAtlanta and let them deal with it.

  226. 226.

    germy

    apparently scheduled a physical in response to Slur-gate.

    A real physical, or a “physical”? The physical in quotes is when his Dr. Quackenbush gives him a quick glance and then writes “Looks good to me” while drumpf waits in his limo.

  228. 228.

    sharl

    @debbie: Here’s his post of the audio. I couldn’t figure out who the reporter was, but Cernovich sounds like a real a-hole.

    I’m not 100% certain, but I’m pretty sure that’s Bob Garfield, which likely means ol’ cerno-the-rapist is gonna be featured on WNYC’s On the Media, which is rebroadcast by a lot of NPR affiliates. Excellent…

  229. 229.

    Miss Bianca

    @germy: Oh, fuck me, Jesus. Is that from Wikipedia, or The Onion?

    So, what if this dimbulb decides to “question the story she’s told herself and others” about her terrible sexual assualt trauma at the hands of Senator Franken? Is she going to *try* to get raped to see what it’s really like?

    I can’t even anymore.

  234. 234.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Dorothy A. Winsor (formerly Iowa Old Lady):

    Keep an eye out. Glad you’re safe for now.

    There’s a lovely bit in The Education of H*Y*M*A*N K*A*P*L*A*N in which his assignment is to write a letter to a family member. So he writes to his uncle, who works in an appliance store or something, and at one point says “If your eye falls on a bargain, pick it up.” The night-school ESL teacher, Mr Parkhill (“Pockheel”), points out the grammatical ambiguity, whereupon Mr. Kaplan points out, with great dignity: “Mine onkel has a glass eye.”

  238. 238.

    TenguPhule

    @Sab: Sadly, no. They’ll be required to report it and probably pay deducted or fired if they don’t and get caught.

  240. 240.

    cintibud

    @JeanneT:

    OMG I thought I was the only one who watches the Mr. Magoo Christmas Carol. That one, and the Patrick Stewart version are my favorites!

    I just looked at wikipedia for the Mr Magoo Christmas Carol and it says the music was written by a duo who went on to do the music for Funny Girl. I haven’t seen it in many years but I still remember some of the songs.

Comments are closed.