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You are here: Home / Foreign Affairs / Monday Morning Open Thread: Just Another Week of International Embarrassment (At Best)

Monday Morning Open Thread: Just Another Week of International Embarrassment (At Best)

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But seriously, folks…


Singapore is twelve hours ahead of the US-Eastern time zone, so the next item on the public agenda seems to be a one-on-one meeting between Trump and Kim scheduled for 9am Tuesday local time (9pm Monday from our perspective). Per the Washington Post:

… The two men, joined only by their interpreters, could talk as long as two hours, depending on how well their conversation goes, according to a senior U.S. official who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private details.

Following their one-on-one time, Trump and Kim will hold an expanded bilateral meeting along with senior members of their delegations, the official said.

The private meeting without aides represents an risky attempt by Trump to build a personal rapport with the young authoritarian leader. Trump has said he believes he will be able to determine quickly whether Kim is serious about taking steps to denuclearize…

Meanwhile, it’s Duck Facepalm & Cover Time…


Reader Interactions

173Comments

  2. 2.

    Viva BrisVegas

    Lest we forget, it was only 18 months ago that Kim had his brother murdered not 200 miles away from his Singapore hotel. Using what is normally regarded as a WMD.

    Odds are high that Kim will make a vague agreement based on future actions and as usual renege at the most convenient moment.

    Although it doesn’t actually matter what comes out of this summit, Trump will simply declare it a triumph and the MAGAts will throw flowers and kiss his feet.

  3. 3.

    Amir Khalid

    About Jennifer Jacob’s tweet:
    The PM’s office is in a building called Istana. Istana is Malay for “palace”. No Singaporean who understands Malay calls it Istana Palace.

    Meanwhile Trump shows up on Tuesday for what may be the most important meeting of his presidency having disdained any preparation at all, relying instead on an unshakable belief in his own awesomeness. Everyone in the real world is expecting a train wreck. Let’s hope we all survive to Wednesday.

  5. 5.

    Shalimar

    The one-on-one meeting isn’t risky and Trump isn’t trying to build “rapport”. He thinks Kim is weak and can be bullied into an agreement that Trump wins and Kim loses. Given North Korea’s long history of agreeing to terms they have no intention of actually implementing, this seems like an incredibly stupid strategy. But at least Trump will get his “win” and not start WWIII, so that is something.

  7. 7.

    Shalimar

    @Amir Khalid: Trump is using his standard business negotiating strategy, which has been very effective for him judging by the thousands of people who have sued him for not fulfilling the terms of the contracts he agrees to. So in that sense, he is right that his lifetime has prepared him for the sort of grift he has planned. And Kim will most likely go along because just getting diplomatic recognition is a big win for him and he won’t have any intention of doing what he agrees to either. So it is farce, but hopefully nothing to worry about from a death-of-us-all perspective.

  10. 10.

    Bobby Thomson

    Even though Bobby D has become an anti-vaxxer dipshit coasting on the old days, this goes a long way toward putting him back in my good graces.

  11. 11.

    Ruckus

    And some, I assume, are morons.

    Much safer to assume they all are, unless you are assuming that the ones that aren’t morons, simply can’t rise to that level. The original system was idiots, imbeciles, then morons, going from zero to at least a positive number.

  13. 13.

    arrieve

    Please tell me that Times article is really from the Onion. I’ve given up on them a long time ago — I now use the Post as my daily paper — but how could anyone write that Trump has prepared for anything, ever, without being satirical?

  14. 14.

    Jeffro

    I love the godlike aspect of Trumpov being able to size up Kim within the first minute. It’s one of his many superpowers! MANY

    What was it W said when he met Putin, again, about going with his gut feeling?

    Yeah, not so different…

  15. 15.

    Platonailedit

    One is the unstable narcissistic lying psychopath and the other is kim jong un.

  16. 16.

    Shalimar

    @Amir Khalid: What are the chances Kim has one of the interpreters murder Trump with a nerve agent passed during the handshakes? 1%? 10%? I wonder if anyone at the White House has even thought of the possibility.

  18. 18.

    satby

    I posted this last night but I wanted to repeat it for the morning crew, apologies to those who have already seen it:

    Eyeball update: both present and accounted for. Very minor PVD (posterior vitreous tear) that doesn’t appear to be pulling on the retina at all. So everything’s fine, and we had a nice visit to boot.

    But, lesson for going early when symptoms start,and telling the doctor ALL of them: she just had a 17 yo patient who was there to get contacts,exam seemed normal, kid had no complaints that she voiced. The doctor reviewed her retinal photos (done every year as part of the exam) and asked her if she had been having headaches. Why, yes doctor, now that you mention it.

    She was referred out to an ophthalmologist, though she and mom wanted to wait because graduation was coming up, but the doctor convinced them they really shouldn’t wait.

    Which was lucky, because the brain tumor they removed was golf ball sized. She did miss her graduation, but she’s going to get to be around for a whole lot longer.

  19. 19.

    Jeffro

    @Shalimar: why would he do that? Trumpov’s the best thing that’s ever happened to Kim

    Attention, legitimacy, a free stay in a swanky hotel…what’s not to love?

  20. 20.

    Amir Khalid

    @Shalimar: The Secret Service is supposed to foreclose all avenues of physical attack against POTUS, so any such attempt would be a very long shot. But trying it at all would be … an interesting surprise move, shall we say.

  21. 21.

    Gravenstone

    While perusing Yahoo news headlines to start my morning, ran across one from a right wing moron outlet (the National Interest) that suggested the US “loan” nukes to SK and Japan. Um, how about NOPE!!!? Fucking idiots, the lot of them.

  23. 23.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @Jeffro: @Shalimar: “I looked the man in the eye. I found him to be very straightforward and trustworthy. We had a very good dialogue. I was able to get a sense of his soul; a man deeply committed to his country and the best interests of his country.” -GW Bush

    ‘Mr. Prime Minister, I’m looking into your eyes, and I don’t think you have a soul.’ -Joe Biden

    ‘We understand one another.’ -V Putin

  24. 24.

    Platonailedit

    I don't even know who the NYT even imagines their audience is anymore. Trump and his base aren't reading them, they're alienating anyone with a lick of critical thinking w their apologism for him & their soft-lens puff pieces on neo-Nazis & assorted reactionaries. Ridiculous.

    — Jasmin Mujanović (@JasminMuj) June 10, 2018

    wsj ‘opinion pieces’ have become fynyt’s ‘news’ section.

  26. 26.

    gene108

    At least Trump will have his own interpreter, unlike his meeting with Russians. Progress I guess.

  30. 30.

    Schlemazel

    @satby:
    Fascinating story about the tumor. The stuff ODs can see in eyes is stunning. I had one tell me I was missing a kidney just by looking in my eyes.

    Glad yours is simple, did they give you an Rx for eye drops?

  33. 33.

    debbie

    That last tweet is genius! I’ll have to get on Twitter and find it, just so I can like it.

  36. 36.

    MomSense

    Just read that US is not going to bring up human rights with NK at Singapore Meeting. Maybe our Commander of Cheese envies Kim’s approach to human rights. Or it could be our Commander of Cheese is just that desperate for a yuuge deal.

    Meanwhile our Commander of Cheese’s counterpart has brought his own portable toilet with him to prevent anyone from ANALyzing his stool.

  39. 39.

    Schlemazel

    @MomSense: @MomSense: Meanwhile our Commander of Cheese’s counterpart has brought his own portable toilet with him

    I bet Dump is pissed off he doesn’t have one of his own. In gold with the Presidential seal on it

  41. 41.

    WereBear

    @satby: So glad to hear!

    Yes, ignoring problems does not make them go away. That is a big part of the reason men die sooner in our culture; they resist seeking medical attention until things are out of control.

    Of course, now, we have the problem of not wnating to seek medical attention because our choice is between death and bankruptcy…

  46. 46.

    Cheryl Rofer

    Kim’s interpreter is a high-ranking intelligence officer, so he will have someone to provide advice. Probably not the case for Trump’s interpreter, but at least he will have one.

    In a discussion on Twitter last night, a Washington type said that Pompeo is consulting with NSC and the departments of State, Energy, and Defense. Which is better than his and Trump’s public statements suggest. The question is whether he can get Trump to listen. Best of all would be to have someone who actually knows about nuclear weapons and verification at the table, as was the case in the negotiations with Iran.

  48. 48.

    Jack the Second

    Trump’s attitude reminds me of the kid who needs a 100 on the final to eek out a D, hasn’t studied, barely shown up to class, and is totally confident he’s going to do it.

    Also, does Trump know that Kim almost certainly understands some English, even if he isn’t fluent or just prefers to work through an interpreter? I feel like Trump is the sort of guy to forget that sort of thing is possible.

  51. 51.

    Platonailedit

    @Baud: Thanks. Sensational clickbaits stratergy seems to have worked for them.

    This is, however, a joke.

    This has, however, resulted in a bump in subscriptions at the publisher, which is building on the online readership it gained during the 2016 presidential election by marketing unbiased reporting as a sales strategy.

  58. 58.

    MomSense

    @Baud:

    Trump would take it as a compliment. He’s only a pair of epaulets and some decorations shy of the dicktator he longs to be.

  60. 60.

    MomSense

    @rikyrah:

    Of course her last name is Oakeshott. Of fucking course it is. I feel like Sully just slammed the Overton window on my hand.

  61. 61.

    satby

    @rikyrah: Good morning ?!

    @Baud: Thanks, me too ?!

    @Schlemazel: it always amazed me what the Dr. could diagnose via the eyes. They really are a window into the body of not actually the soul.
    Contrary to GWB’s silliness.

  64. 64.

    MomSense

    @satby:

    So happy you are ok. Can we please talk about why it’s important that everyone have affordable, quality health insurance that includes vision?! It’s too late for so many people when they finally get diagnosed.

  65. 65.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @WereBear: We are taught from an early age to “grin and bear it.” Tomorrow I’m getting an MRI on my shoulder because the severe arthritis I thought I had in it** is not that bad. Been dealing with this pain for going on 8 years now. We’ll see.

    ** not sure if it was misdiagnosed (doubt it) or if I misheard (can never rule out that possibility) or what is most likely is that the repeated cortisone shots and physical therapy I had from 8-6 years ago that could not eliminate the pain just masked an undiagnosed injury and/or I injured it later and I accepted the increase in pain as just normal.

  71. 71.

    Cheryl Rofer

    Worth noting that Singapore is about 12 hours ahead of the US, so for most of us the summit begins tonight.

    Here’s hoping Donny’s jet lag isn’t too bad.

  72. 72.

    Waldo

    @WereBear:

    Can the corporate media stop pretending this is all normal NOW?

    …

    How about now?

    You’d hope, but I’m thinking we may be past the point where that even matters.

  73. 73.

    Just one more canuck

    @Quinerly: trump’s opinion always seems to be that of whoever spoke to him last. Sometimes, it’s the voices in his head

  74. 74.

    zhena gogolia

    Kay just commented in the Sunday Night Open Thread. She’s still pissed, but everybody go welcome her back.

  76. 76.

    OzarkHillbilly

    “The danger is clearly not that robots will decide to put us away and have a robot revolution,” he said. “If there [are] killer robots, it will be because we’ve been stupid enough to give it the instructions or software for it to do that without having a human in the loop deciding.”

    -Sir Nigel Shadbolt, professor of computer science at the University of Oxford,

    Sir? I have one thing to say to you: trump.

  79. 79.

    satby

    @debbie: @WereBear: @rikyrah: thanks, it was a relief.
    @MomSense:

    It’s too late for so many people when they finally get diagnosed.

    so important, and why I wanted to share the story about the teen. But honestly, even when people have great insurance they often delay seeing a doctor. Especially the eye doctor. It used to amaze me when someone would tell me he or she had been experiencing some severe symptom for days or weeks before deciding to come in and get it checked out. I think we’ve just made everything around health care so fraught with bureaucracy and fear in this country.

  82. 82.

    OzarkHillbilly

    Later, the reporter asked what he would serve at a summit between Donald Trump and Kim. “Hemlock,” Bourdain said.

  85. 85.

    Immanentize

    @rikyrah:
    That is an amazing story, rikyrah. Especially the part where Banks (Brexit BadBoy) shared his Russian contacts with the Trump people. Mueller must know so very much.

  86. 86.

    Schlemazel

    @Baud:
    I went back & looked to see the end of it, I don’t really want to know what started it, I guess. I can only imagine given those two. I have a great affinity for Kay because I know she is one of the few of us that regularly busts ass in the trenches trying to get Dems elected. I have it much easier here in the bluest part of MN than she does in OhellO. She is aces in my book so id those two want to start a shit fight they better have breathing apparatus because they will be in deep.

  87. 87.

    Baud

    @Schlemazel: I welcome her return, but unlike people like me, she is more valuable in the real world than she is here. I’m certain she’ll do what’s best.

  90. 90.

    Immanentize

    Another thing about the Mueller probe —
    I suspect, with Trump out of the country and given his horrible behavior this weekend, that any lingering reluctance on the part of Western governments to share their detailed intelligence with Mueller’s team has been overcome.

  94. 94.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    he had to go an put this idea in trump’s head

    David Nakamura @ DavidNakamura
    Kim Jong Un’s cargo plane brought his portable toilet to Singapore to “deny determined sewer divers insights into to the supreme leader’s stools.” #singaporesummit

  96. 96.

    JPL

    @Immanentize: The other possibility is that they are already sharing information, and Trump found out. Trump showed signs of becoming totally unhinged before he left for the meetings.

  100. 100.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    The lack of people in the room during the meeting will be so Trump can control the information get a picture of Trump looking tall and stern next to Kim for the Fox Viewers thus having a “win”. Nothing beyond vague promises will be made since substance and policy are besides the point for Trump, this is all more theater for his base.

  102. 102.

    raven

    @satby: I had shingles in my eye years ago so my eye doc visits are covered. I ran over my $600 pair at the beach and I think the lenses are ok so I’m going over there to see what the deal is.

  104. 104.

    Immanentize

    @JPL: I think there was always sharing but also a lot of holding back, going through formal channels, all of that in order not to completely turn over the apple cart.

  107. 107.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Immanentize: I suspect what they can/would be able to share would be limited to by concerns about their own sources and methods, perhaps including their own dealings with people and institutions of less than entirely good repute– like the Bank of Cyprus, or Malta, or Rhodes… I can never remember.

  111. 111.

    Shalimar

    @Schlemazel: It wasn’t really a fight, or at least Kay didn’t do anything wrong and wasn’t fighting. Just a pointless shit show all around her. You won’t miss anything not following the whole thing through 4 or 5 threads.

  112. 112.

    raven

    @OzarkHillbilly: I was really lucky, scar tissue but no vision damage. The worst part was that it hit while I was on a plane to LA and had to hang tough for 4 days until I got home. Then part of the deal was that they were brought on by stress and I was at the end of writing my dissertation and defending which did not lend itself to chillin.

  113. 113.

    OzarkHillbilly

    PM Justin Trudeau of Canada acted so meek and mild during our @G7 meetings only to give a news conference after I left saying that, “US Tariffs were kind of insulting” and he “will not be pushed around.” Very dishonest & weak. Our Tariffs are in response to his of 270% on dairy!

    -d trump
    I know you all will be shocked, shocked I tell you, to learn this: US Trade Policy on Dairy Is Simple: We Basically Allow No Imports at All

    TRQs are Tariff-Rate Quotas. We set very tiny quotas for the amount of dairy product that can be imported at low or zero tariffs, and above that the rate is so prohibitive that imports cease entirely. For example, the price of dry skim milk currently runs around 80 cents per pound, while the over-quota tariff is about 50 cents. The price of butter is $2.30 per pound, while the over-quota tariff rate is about 80 cents. No one can sell dairy into the already glutted US market with tariffs like this, so the TRQs essentially act as hard quotas on dairy imports.

    In total, US import quotas amount to about 2 percent of total dairy production, and it’s only that high because of cheese. For other products, the quotas amount to well under one percent of production. For all practical purposes, then, this is US dairy trade policy:

    We allow a little bit of foreign cheese to be imported.
    Everything else is subject to tariffs so high that we allow no imports at all.

    -K Drum

  115. 115.

    MomSense

    @Immanentize:

    I’ve assumed all along that they were sharing their intelligence with Mueller – also that they’ve been the source for some of the leaks against bad actors that have been well timed to prevent interference with the Mueller investigation.

    I also have this fantasy that in some of those quick trips Obama took to visit Merkle before the end of his term he had some special thumb drives in his pockets.

  116. 116.

    NotMax

    Meant to pop in earlier to (re)post this as an annual item, but stuff happened.

    Anyway, The Tony Awards were last night. Perfect time to revisit the best Tonys opening number ever. In the years since they haven’t come close (last night’s was pathetic). Anyone who has ever been on a stage or has a minimal bit of knowledge about production cannot help but be wowed that they managed to pull the linked eight and a half minuted number off. With very little rehearsal, BTW (it’s not like all the people on stage are readily available to be gathered together for more than maybe a an odd hour here or there outside of their regular work).

    (Don’t assume the first 90 seconds to be representative of the whole. That’s necessary set up.)

  119. 119.

    jonas

    My guess is that Trump and Kim talk for a while, but there’s no major agreement about anything because of course DPRK wants to 1. keep a nuclear deterrent while 2. formalizing an end to the war on its terms, including lifting all sanctions and getting US troops out of SK. Trump wants 1. to make Trump look good. It will become clear within a couple of minutes that there’s nothing to agree on, so they’ll just make it about pleasantries and say that they will “continue conversations” in the future. So disaster avoided, but Trump will just do what he has accused all his predecessors of doing, which is kick the can down the road, but claim it’s a major breakthrough and that he deserves a Super Nobel for the effort.

  120. 120.

    rikyrah

    UH HUH
    UH HUH

    A clear and present danger
    by Liberal Librarian

    There’s a rhythm to this blog since I took over the running of it.

    The week is given over to detailing the parlous state of our Republic.

    The weekend is when we recharge with an open thread highlighting the best of what humanity can do.

    It’s a rhythm I hardly ever break.

    The last time I broke this pattern was when the young people from Parkland held their rally for gun control.

    Today is another one of those days.

    It seemed as if we’d avoided the worst. So-called president Donald Trump was strong-armed into agreeing a communique with the other leaders of the G-7 nations. It, indeed, seemed as if an acrimonious end had been avoided.

    But, in a fit of pique, while on his way to Singapore to meet with murderous dictator Kim Jong Un, whom he will gladly fellate in return for a good news cycle, Trump had a change of mind after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had sharp words for him. He instructed US representatives to not agree to the joint communique.

    This is something which has never occurred in the history of G-7 meetings. And that the scuppering of the communique comes from the leader of the G-7 is even more catastrophic.

    Any nation is only as strong as its alliances. This holds true for the United States.

    …………….

    But the G-7 grouping of the world’s most powerful industrialized nations, along with NATO, is one of America’s greatest alliances.

    The G-7, for better or worse, runs the world’s economy. It has been the backbone of the post-World War II global economic order.

    The G-20 grouping is all fine and well. But it doesn’t have the power of the G-7. Any decisions which impact the global economy are taken there.

    And in one tweet, Trump has undone the work of US presidents since Nixon.

  122. 122.

    lowtechcyclist

    1) Dear GOP: you gave this corrupt bozo the keys to our foreign policy. If what you’re seeing now isn’t enough to get you to take the keys away from him and give them to someone else, what’s it gonna take? Nobody should ever trust you with this country again. Thank God my father, a lifelong Republican, didn’t live to see you abandon all sense of responsibility for this nation’s well-being.

    2) Matt Yglesias: Good on you for calling it bribery. About fucking time someone used that word to describe what’s going on here.

  124. 124.

    rikyrah

    While lashing out at Canada, Trump accidentally shares his genuine beliefs
    06/11/18 08:40 AM—UPDATED 06/11/18 08:47 AM
    By Steve Benen

    ……………………….

    The oddity about the broader dynamic is that Trudeau did largely the opposite of what Team Trump claimed In his press conference. Indeed, the prime minister tried to downplay differences among G-7 members, and he offered no meaningful criticisms of Trump or his administration. The White House’s tantrum against one of America’s closest allies seemed wholly unconnected to real-world events.

    But take another look at Trump’s tweets and note that he said his tariffs are “in response to” Canada’s trade policy on dairy products. This is one of those rare instances in which Trump made a mistake by accidentally sharing his genuine beliefs.

    Because when the president announced his tariffs on steel and aluminum, the official line was that the policy was necessary on national security grounds. By way of Twitter, Trump effectively admitted that his stated rationale was a lie.

    And that may yet take the debate in an interesting direction. As Jon Chait noted, “[I]f there was any possible way for his tariffs to fail in court, it would be because he decided to blurt out an explicit confession that his motive is not the one he is legally obligated to base it on.”

    Trump World can’t even throw a dishonest tantrum about an imaginary problem without screwing up in important ways.

  126. 126.

    Immanentize

    @raven: I had shingles, but just on my side. Also stress induced. Man, they hurt so much, felt like I was kicked by a horse.

    Also too, good sun glasses are worth the cost. I have a pair of prescription Maui Jims that are so good. I ought to replace them just from wear, but I’m afraid the next pair won’t live up to the first.

    Finally, PSA! All you jackals should get the shingles vaccine, even if you have had shingles! It’s free with insurance at my local Rite Aid.

  132. 132.

    MomSense

    @NotMax:

    GOAT Tony opening! You know it’s good when the Bway veterans in the audience are wide eyed. It really was outstanding.

    I actually loved the beginning. It was clever and a nice way to honor all the gigging musicians working and hoping for a break.

  135. 135.

    Elizabelle

    @JPL:

    The other possibility is that they are already sharing information, and Trump found out. Trump showed signs of becoming totally unhinged before he left for the meetings.

    Entirely possible that the G-7 G-6 cares more about the health and security of the USA than fucking Trump does.

    It’s not in their interest to have the US as a rogue nation, with all the ugliness at the controls. (Bolton and Miller, Bannon earlier, ugh.)

  136. 136.

    MomSense

    @different-church-lady:

    I’m still not fully recovered from seeing him in the sweaters he wore during his FAILED campaign for president. Give me Obama in mom jeans every time. There was one particularly heinous “colorblock” in various shades of oatmeal.

  137. 137.

    jonas

    @rikyrah:

    This is one of those rare instances in which Trump made a mistake by accidentally sharing his genuine beliefs.

    Not so rare. The whole Comey firing comes immediately to mind: 1. Claims it was because Comey screwed up Clinton email investigation. 2. immediately tells multiple parties, including the Russian ambassador, that it was to put the kaibosh on Russian investigation.

  139. 139.

    rikyrah

    Welcome back, Kay :)

    PS- did you see that it was revealed that Kobach and Bannon are behind the citizenship question on the upcoming Census?

  140. 140.

    NotMax

    @MomSense

    Oh, nothing whatsoever the matter with the beginning. Was thinking of some acquaintances I tried to get to watch it who tuned out about 15 seconds in.

    @satby

    Radio City Music Hall is big. Really, really big. Still marvel how Neil managed to get from beneath the main stage all the way to the back of the house to appear there in maybe 20 seconds. Presume there was a golf cart (or motobike) waiting for him.

  143. 143.

    No Drought No More

    “Today would be a good day for Donald Trump to release his tax returns”. D. Corn.

    Why didn’t the democratic party shot-callers failed to make that a campaign issue in 2016 beats the hell out of me. Or why they didn’t make a campaign issue out of the stolen Supreme Court seat. Were they waiting for that election to be over with, too, before feeling free to acknowledge the republican party for its mortal attack upon American democracy? After all, that’s exactly what todays democratic party shot callers advise the rank and file democrats to do in 2018.

    Today would also be a good day for congressional democrats to remind Americans that Dick Cheney deliberately blew the cover of an experienced CIA operative whose expertise was the field of nuclear proliferation. Cheney did so to cover up his role in the 2003 plot to war.

    But congressional democrats won’t do that, will they? And that’s because John Kerry, Hillary Clinton, Dick Gephart, Tom Daschle, and far too many other woefully misguided democrats supported the same war that Cheney had plotted. And they continue to hold the party in thrall to their own catastrophic bad judgement by turning a collective blind eye to it..

    Valerie Plame had made them look bad, too, you see. .

  145. 145.

    Elizabelle

    For your “no shit Sherlock” files. From the LA Times WH press corpse critter (MARK Z. BARABAK): a top story on their website at this hour: And look at this shitwad’s framing: classic opening paragraphs:

    Obamacare used to be political poison for Democrats. Now they see it as a winning prescription — even in red states

    When Republican repeal efforts threatened to leave 23 million Americans without insurance, public opinion shifted in favor of the Affordable Care Act.

    For years Democrats ran from the healthcare issue as though it were a heap of flaming rubble, which, politically speaking, it was.

    Passage of the Affordable Care Act cost them control of Congress, gave rise to the upstart tea party movement and helped install Donald Trump in the White House.

    Bull fucking shit, Barabak. You have got your cause and effect ass backwards. The ACA did not birth the tea party.

  146. 146.

    zhena gogolia

    @Elizabelle:

    I made the mistake of clicking on a WaPo piece called something like “The Cowardice of the Political Class,” not noticing that it was by Robert Samuelson. The cowardice of the political class, you see, is in trying to protect Social Security and Medicare, not in enabling the orange traitor.

  148. 148.

    Brachiator

    From one of the Twitter comments

    When the US sends its people to Singapore, they’re not sending their best people.

    This is not true. Even though the media is focusing attention on Trump, much of this summit is being conducted using standard foreign policy protocols.

    Separately:
    —10a, US and North Korean officials meet, led by Amb. Sung Kim.
    —5p, admin officials do press briefing.

    Sung Kim, former Bush and Obama administration ambassador, will be doing the background discussion with the North Korean foreign minister. These folks have been in discussion before and the American rep is an expert on North Korea.

    However, this still leaves lots of room for Trump to fuck things up.

    There is a special place in hell for the New York Times. I was watching a BBC news report, and one of the journalists practically broke out laughing over the idea that Trump ever thought about North Korea before. Which reporters wrote that crap? Any of the usual suspects?

    ETA. The government of Singapore is picking up the $20 million tab for this event. Even though it might end up a Trump catastrophe, Asian nations are investing in hopes for something substantial to come out of this thing.

  149. 149.

    germy

    South Fulton, Ga.’s Entire Criminal Justice System Is Run by Black Women

    According to the Atlanta Voice, these black women are quite deliberate in the way in which they carry out their duties to the citizens of the city.

    “Our goal is to ensure justice for everyone,” said Judge Seller, who appointed Cofield as court administrator. “However, as African American women we are sensitive to the history of criminal justice in our country. We want to be an example of how to do things right.”

  150. 150.

    Anotherlurker

    @OzarkHillbilly: IMHO, the “grin and bear it” is a direct of the Puritan/ Protestant influence in US culture.
    God suffered so now its your turn.
    I do the same thing. Instead of seeking med advise at the first sign of a tingling/burning/different type of pain on one side of my face, I ignored it, thinking it would go away. 3 days after I first noticed it, it blossomed into Shingles on the left side of my face.
    With meds, I’m on on the mend. Pain in left side of face significantly less. Flu-like symptoms slowly subsiding.
    However, I now look like someone put out a cheap cigar on one side of my face.
    I know this won’t kill me, but for 2 days I was wishing I was dead!
    Get the vaccine!

  151. 151.

    Dorothy Winsor

    On the way home from the gym, I heard NPR repeating Trump aides’ claim that Trump reacted to Trudeau because he couldn’t afford to look weak before meeting Kim. Then they went to Scott Horsely, who was in Singapore and asked him about that. He said that tweet didn’t sound any different from Trump’s other impulsive tweets so he didn’t think any strategizing was involved.

    Good for him for challenging the narrative.

  152. 152.

    rikyrah

    Oprah Keeps Painting of Enslaved Family in Her Home to Keep Her Grounded
    Angela Helm
    Today 6:30am

    The indomitable Oprah Winfrey, who was recently honored with an entire exhibit of her life and work at the National Museum of African American History and Culture, will never forget those who made it possible for her to be the trailblazing pioneer that she remains.

    According to a segment shared widely by CNN, during the opening of the exhibit last week, Winfrey says that she keeps a six-foot painting of an enslaved woman on the auction block holding her daughter’s hand placed prominently in her home, so that in the midst of all of that opulence (because you know Oprah’s Santa Barbara manse is nothing if not fabulous), she remains grounded.

    “I cannot come in the door… or I cannot leave without passing that painting,” says Winfrey work that she says that she’s owned for 30 years titled, “To the Highest Bidder,” by Harry Roseland. “I am reminded of where I come from every day of my life,” says Winfrey.

    The media mogul says she was very deliberate in the painting’s placement at the center of her home, because it is in fact, the center of her life.

  154. 154.

    boatboy_srq

    It’s fascinating that we are observing the gyrations of two individuals well known for their bad faith in negotiation, yet expecting that anything other than a piece of paper and a photographed handshake (with no effective agreement, enforceable treaty of other functioning mechanism) will come of it all. All this panic when all that is likely is a cordial face to face and a photo op, and mutual meaningless denunciations laced with the obligatory vitriolic accusations of bad faith after the fact.

  155. 155.

    rikyrah

    Malcolm Jenkins’ ‘You Aren’t Listening’ Silent Interview Is the Blackest Thing That Ever Happened This Week

    Damon Young
    Wednesday 4:33pm

    I remember when I first learned that the deployment of young people during the protests, marches, boycotts and sit-ins to defeat Jim Crow was strategic.

    Even as a kid, when I watched footage of that era, it was easy to notice that many of the people getting arrested, beaten, fire-hosed and bit by dogs were, well, kids—high school and college students, specifically. But I didn’t realize that it was intentional until my parents taught me. And the way my dad articulated why, particularly, has stuck with me for 30 years: “Even the worst white people could see that beating on kids was wrong.”

    Error loading player:
    Network error
    Messaging and speeches and agendas are great and necessary. But they don’t induce the immediate and visceral reaction that images—still or moving—can. Hearing how fucked up segregation and racism are just doesn’t have the same impact as seeing a 17-year-old with a bloodied forehead from a police baton.

    Anyway, earlier today, Philadelphia Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins provided America with a similar lesson. Of course, the circumstances are vastly different. Jenkins is a rich and famous professional athlete with status, privilege and a large platform. He is not an 18- or 19-year-old in 1950s or ’60s Alabama or Mississippi. And while his life, as a black person in America, is more tenuous than a white person’s life, he’s not in the same sort of ceaseless mortal danger as those aforementioned teens.

    But responding to droning, inane and unending questions and the intentional misinterpretations of the NFL players’ anthem protests with signs articulating exactly why they’re doing this was clever, bold and, all things considered, black as fuck. Because he knows, as they knew back during Jim Crow, that while (white) America has a selective-hearing problem, even the worst white people can see posters.

  156. 156.

    Brachiator

    @Immanentize:

    Finally, PSA! All you jackals should get the shingles vaccine, even if you have had shingles! It’s free with insurance at my local Rite Aid.

    Also, note that there is a new shingles vaccine. Slightly more side effects, but supposedly superior to the older vaccine.

    Shingles Vaccine. The CDC recommends that healthy adults ages 50 and older get the shingles vaccine, Shingrix, which provides greater protection than Zostavax. The vaccine is given in two doses, 2 to 6 months apart. Zostavax is still in use for some people ages 60 and older.

    Talk to your doctor.

  157. 157.

    rikyrah

    UH HUH
    But, no difference between the candidates, right Purity Ponies?

    Supreme Court Upholds Ohio Voter Purge Law
    An eligible Ohio voter who was removed from the voter rolls prompted the case.
    headshot
    By Sam Levine

    The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that Ohio could continue to use an aggressive process for removing people from its voting rolls, saying the procedure did not run afoul of federal voter protections.

    The decision in Husted v. A. Philip Randolph Institute helps clarify the steps states can take to remove someone from their voter rolls, and it could encourage them to be more aggressive. The case was brought on behalf of the A. Philip Randolph Institute, a labor and civil rights group, and an eligible Ohio voter the state had removed from its voter rolls. The voter had been living at the same address for about 16 years.

    ………………………………….

    he League of Women Voters noted in a friend-of-the-court brief that only five other states ― Georgia, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania and West Virginia ― use someone’s failure to vote to trigger the process for canceling their voter registration. But all those states, the League noted, give someone longer than two years of not voting before they begin the cancellation process.

  158. 158.

    Leto

    @Brachiator:

    However, this still leaves lots of room for Trump to fuck things up.

    Amb. Sung Kim and the other delegates could come to a working agreement on a host of things and 20 mins later Trumpov would blow it up via Tweet. I feel like the world is finally coming to terms with this administration in that, 1) they’re going to wait this administration out until sanity returns in 2020, or sooner. But 2) if that doesn’t happen, they’re just going to move on without us. With #1 it’s going to cause a lot of pain, but we can recover from it. It’ll take a while, but we can. With #2, it’ll be a true fundamental realignment with how the world has operated post WW2. Would be treated like a rogue state with a great economy and nuclear weapons? I don’t know. I feel like it’s like the Dr. Strange scene out of the last Avengers movie. 14.2 million possible permutations, but there is 1 possible path out of this. Man, I hope we’re on that path.

  161. 161.

    Brachiator

    @Leto:

    I feel like the world is finally coming to terms with this administration in that, 1) they’re going to wait this administration out until sanity returns in 2020, or sooner.

    The world cannot simply shun Trump or pretend he is not there. The US economy is too important to world trade. Hell, the UK is hoping that new trade agreements with the US will soften the pain of their disconnection from the EU.

    If Trump has a hissy fit and pulls the US out of NATO, we would be worse than a rogue state, although this would make Putin very happy.

    The European leaders thought that they could placate Trump, and I don’t think they realized how single minded he is in his foolish resentments.

    But they have to find a way to deal with him, and also try to maintain economic and political order with or without the participation of the US president.

  165. 165.

    Manyakitty

    @satby: Glad to hear all is well with your eyes! My dad is an OD and I worked with him for 20 years. The eyes are truly the first line of defense for so many things. He referred people out after seeing signs for MS, tumors, etc.

  166. 166.

    jl

    I was so young during the Cuban missile crisis, I didn’t understand what was going on. I thought it was cool all the Army Men were going to their bases to march around and I thought that the local afternoon kiiddy show star Captain Satellite would be helping.

    So, I guess, in some ways, this prepped me all my life for whiz-bang technological fixes to international nuclear proliferation issues.

    I’m surprised Commander Trump hasn’t called me to help out. I’m prepared by the NYT standards.

  167. 167.

    AnnaN

    Not sure if this thread is dead yet, but was only now able to read and post. That said:

    Trump has been so rude and belittling toward Kim that it makes me wonder what he has in store for Trump at this summit. Kim is such a murderous version of Trump that I can’t believe he HASN’T gone through a dozen assassination scenarios for Trump just to pay him back for the personal abuse. Would he? Wouldn’t he? If people are predicting some Fiery Destruction coming out of Singapore, that’s the only action I think would provoke it.

  168. 168.

    J R in WV

    @satby:

    Glad for your eye issue being relatively minor. Also glad your optometrist was able to diagnose the teen with her retinal scans! Thanks for pointing out the importance of actual eye MDs in diagnosing brain issues.

    A friend of ours, teen boy, son of close friends, came home from freshman year at school on spring break, and told his radiology tech mom he was having headaches. She looked at his eyes, left for hospital right then. He was not so lucky as your Dr’s 17 y o patient, massive tumor in his brain stem. I helped dig his grave on a chilly April ridge top. There were jackhammers.

    When I get severe headaches they tend to be diagnosed as muscle cramps in my scalp muscles, go figure! NOT complaining… but charley-horses on your head….? ouch.

    Take care!

  169. 169.

    catclub

    @AnnaN: I was hoping someone will ask how long it took him to figure out that his giant casino
    was going bankrupt due to bad management and bad planning.

  170. 170.

    J R in WV

    @rikyrah:

    by Liberal Librarian:

    And that the scuppering of the communique comes from the leader of the G-7 is even more catastrophic.

    That anyone thought the US President was still the leader of the G-7 is so strange!! I think not…

  171. 171.

    Ruckus

    @satby:
    Well we’ve also made vision care specifically not part of health care, same for dental. How can two parts of the body that we use every day and are somewhat important to getting through that day not be part of healthcare? I know of a man from Appalachia with a wife and three kids who joined the army during Vietnam so he could get dental care for him and his family. It was his squad leader that told me about him. When I purchased healthcare insurance for my workers and myself it just was not available. That was 40 yrs ago. It’s still not. Sure you can purchase insurance for them, but it pays so little that it isn’t worth it.

  172. 172.

    Ruckus

    @raven:
    Shingles in the eyes! Damn that must have been fun. Had it on one side of my face and neck and that was bad enough.

  173. 173.

    AnnaN

    @catclub #169

    Hah! The failure was planned from the beginning – only the BEST bankruptcies!

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