• Menu
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Before Header

  • About Us
  • Lexicon
  • Contact Us
  • Our Store
  • ↑
  • ↓
  • ←
  • →

Balloon Juice

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Take your GOP plan out of the witness protection program.

Peak wingnut was a lie.

I see no possible difficulties whatsoever with this fool-proof plan.

Let there be snark.

If you’re pissed about Biden’s speech, he was talking about you.

Seems like a complicated subject, have you tried yelling at it?

You don’t get to peddle hatred on saturday and offer condolences on sunday.

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

I’d try pessimism, but it probably wouldn’t work.

He seems like a smart guy, but JFC, what a dick!

The words do not have to be perfect.

Republicans seem to think life begins at the candlelight dinner the night before.

This blog will pay for itself.

A consequence of cucumbers

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

Republicans choose power over democracy, every day.

Balloon Juice has never been a refuge for the linguistically delicate.

We’re not going back!

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

“Squeaker” McCarthy

Don’t expect peaches from an apple tree.

Let me eat cake. The rest of you could stand to lose some weight, frankly.

This isn’t Democrats spending madly. This is government catching up.

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

Mobile Menu

  • Winnable House Races
  • Donate with Venmo, Zelle & PayPal
  • Site Feedback
  • War in Ukraine
  • Submit Photos to On the Road
  • Politics
  • On The Road
  • Open Threads
  • Topics
  • Balloon Juice 2023 Pet Calendar (coming soon)
  • COVID-19 Coronavirus
  • Authors
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Lexicon
  • Our Store
  • Politics
  • Open Threads
  • War in Ukraine
  • Garden Chats
  • On The Road
  • 2021-22 Fundraising!
You are here: Home / Economics / C.R.E.A.M. / Friday Evening Open Thread: SPACE FORCE! Forces Space!

Friday Evening Open Thread: SPACE FORCE! Forces Space!

by Anne Laurie|  August 17, 20186:43 pm| 216 Comments

This post is in: C.R.E.A.M., Hail to the Hairpiece, Military, Open Threads, Republican Stupidity

FacebookTweetEmail

Riveted by the sociological significance of it all…

BREAKING: Pentagon says military parade proposed for Veterans Day delayed at least until 2019.

— The Associated Press (@AP) August 17, 2018

I've been told that Kelly is "freaking out over the cost."

Trump's military parade was originally advertised as costing $12 million. It's basically ballooned to $100 million. https://t.co/wvN2axrdGy

— Kate Brannen (@K8brannen) August 16, 2018

An alternate new headline on this might be: The Pentagon reached the conclusion it can't afford the parade Trump wants this year.

Reached for comment, Col. Rob Manning at the Pentagon just referred me to the White House. https://t.co/XbeH45uPmU

— Dan Lamothe (@DanLamothe) August 17, 2018

This administration is running so smoothly. https://t.co/ctzCTPigNF

— Daniel W. Drezner (@dandrezner) August 17, 2018

Delayed *and* over budget. Way to be #onbrand DoD. https://t.co/EwPbfk7Oio

— EM Simpson (@charlie_simpson) August 17, 2018

Honestly, a victory parade that keeps getting promised and pushed off is a little too on the nose as American military tributes go

— Adam Weinstein (@AdamWeinstein) August 17, 2018

Pushing it to 2019 might as well be putting it to Eric’s second term. https://t.co/U9KYcA9aDV

— Josh Marshall (@joshtpm) August 17, 2018

The delay of Trump's military parade is a letdown for QAnon believers, who had become convinced that the parade would mark a celebration of Trump arresting the global pedophile cabal https://t.co/COTSi58PKd

— Will Sommer (@willsommer) August 17, 2018

FYI: VoteVets has submitted a Letter of Intent, with DC, to do a 5K around the National Mall, for Veterans Day 2019.

So, unless he kicks out a veterans race, @realDonaldTrump will not get his ego parade there, on that day next year, either.#NoTrumpParade

— VoteVets (@votevets) August 17, 2018

Per the Hill:

… VoteVets, an organization that focuses on nonpartisan education and advocacy on behalf veterans and their families, said on Twitter that it has submitted a Letter of Intent with Washington, D.C., to hold the race around the National Mall next year.

The announcement came the same day Trump canceled his plans for a military parade in the capital, citing its soaring cost estimates.

“So, unless he kicks out a veterans race, [Trump] will not get his ego parade there, on that day next year, either,” the organization added in the tweet, with the hashtag #NoTrumpParade…

In an email asking for signatures to support their request, the organization also said that it decided to make the race five kilometers long to symbolize “each of [Trump’s] deferments.”…

Their statement arrives on the heels of Trump’s Twitter announcement on Friday morning that he was canceling plans for a military parade over the estimated $92 million cost.

The president said in his tweet that “local politicians” in D.C. were to blame.

“The local politicians who run Washington, D.C. (poorly) know a windfall when they see it. When asked to give us a price for holding a great celebratory military parade, they wanted a number so ridiculously high that I cancelled it. Never let someone hold you up! I will instead attend the big parade already scheduled at Andrews Air Force Base on a different date, & go to the Paris parade, celebrating the end of the War, on November 11th,” Trump wrote…

Did they tell Trump, “Space Force or parade, you can’t have both?”

— Schooley (@Rschooley) August 17, 2018

FacebookTweetEmail
Previous Post: « The Wilderness of Mirrors: Open Sourcing a Counterintelligence Investigation Edition
Next Post: That God Damned Parade »

Reader Interactions

216Comments

  1. 1.

    lamh36

    August 17, 2018 at 6:49 pm

    If any group of white folk would try to find a way to make Fox News Aretha Franklin/Patty Labelle mistake look like maybe a clerical error…it’s the folks at National Review.

    I won’t even post the clipbait, but suffice it to say…they had the GALL to say “Sure Aretha Franklin could sing, but she’s no Kelly Clarkson or Linda Ronstadt”….BISH WHET????

    WOOSAH…

    If Kelly Clarkson or her people are made aware of that bullshit from NR…a quick lil tweet of “are you crazy” would go over well.

    Of course, it’s not on Kelly Clarkson to do anything bout NR trolling bullshit…but IJS…if…

  2. 2.

    Major Major Major Major

    August 17, 2018 at 6:49 pm

    Well, that’s a relief at least.

    Reposting from downstairs, because it’s fun: this enormous rescue cat is blowing up the internet and is an obese Samwise doppelgänger https://www.facebook.com/107610862618401/posts/1898291750216961/

  3. 3.

    The Dangerman

    August 17, 2018 at 6:49 pm

    Space Force or parade, you can’t have both?

    Trump would have chosen the parade.

  4. 4.

    geg6

    August 17, 2018 at 6:55 pm

    @lamh36:

    I’ll bet Kelly Clarkson (related by marriage to a country music liberal) and Linda Ronstadt (former girlfriend of Jerry Brown) would agree. But not in the way that stupid statement means. They’d probably say she was greater than both of them put together. If they’d deign to speak to some asshole at National Review.

  5. 5.

    NotMax

    August 17, 2018 at 7:00 pm

    “Mr. President, why not wait until you can view it from Space Force One.”

    :)

    Meanwhile,

    Element Electronics is the first South Carolina factory to say it will close in response to President Donald Trump’s tariffs; the S.C. Chamber of Commerce warns it likely won’t be the last.

    Based on conversations with companies in the state’s business community, S.C. Chamber president and chief executive Ted Pitts told McClatchy Friday he expects more local manufacturers to announce closures or layoffs in the coming weeks.

    “I think we’re going to hear about more manufacturing operations in South Carolina shutting down because of the trade conflict,” said Pitts. Source</a.

    So much winning. //

  6. 6.

    Hungry Joe

    August 17, 2018 at 7:01 pm

    If Linda Ronstadt isn’t too ill (Parkinson’s) I wouldn’t be surprised to see her rip the National Review six new ones. Make that seven. She’s a very smart, very no-bullshit person.

  7. 7.

    Platonailedit

    August 17, 2018 at 7:02 pm

    Trump cancelledlled his parade. This is really going to hurt the tiki torch industry.

    — Tim Hanlon (@TimfromDa70s) August 17, 2018

  8. 8.

    lamh36

    August 17, 2018 at 7:03 pm

    Repost:

    @AP_Politics
    AP source: It’s not just audio, Manigault Newman has video.
    By @dsupervilleAP.http://apne.ws/1qLO23L

  9. 9.

    Elizabelle

    August 17, 2018 at 7:04 pm

    I think that military parade may never happen. It’s an enormous waste of money, and perhaps Trump will be out of office or dead in a year. A lot can happen in the meantime.

    Mr. Trump may find it glacial-going, with his generals and admirals.

  10. 10.

    Jay

    August 17, 2018 at 7:04 pm

    Unfortunately, today, it sucks to be me,

    http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/bc-fires-satellite-1.4789298

    The smokes so bad, I can’t even see the 350′ tall History tree at the end of the driveway from the house.

  11. 11.

    geg6

    August 17, 2018 at 7:04 pm

    All staffers are back on campus (and about half the students) and that means our food service is back in business. Went to get lunch today and found that the Bistro staff is a seething cauldron of Trump and Trumpster hate. Every staffer there pulled me aside to discuss how much they hate him and everyone around him or who supports him. In 20 years, I’ve never experienced anything like it. Took me about a half hour to order lunch because everyone had to say something they were outraged about. It was nice.

  12. 12.

    WaterGirl

    August 17, 2018 at 7:06 pm

    @lamh36:

    I won’t even post the clipbait, but suffice it to say…they had the GALL to say “Sure Aretha Franklin could sing, but she’s no Kelly Clarkson or Linda Ronstadt”….BISH WHET????

    I snorted out loud. Always so attractive!

  13. 13.

    burnspbesq

    August 17, 2018 at 7:07 pm

    @lamh36:

    I would suggest asking Linda whether she thinks she deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as Aretha. She couldn’t even measure up to Fontella Bass, although I think the Eagles were primarily responsible for the lameness of Linda’s cover of “Rescue Me.”

    20th century American singers: there are Sinatra, Leontyne Price, Ella, and Aretha. Then there’s everybody else.

  14. 14.

    Mike in NC

    August 17, 2018 at 7:08 pm

    @NotMax: A similar article I saw someplace recently put the potential layoffs in South Carolina alone at around 45,000.

  15. 15.

    NotMax

    August 17, 2018 at 7:09 pm

    This is a helluva lot more awful to contemplate than any parade.

    President Donald Trump is increasingly venting frustration to his national security team about the U.S. strategy in Afghanistan and showing renewed interest in a proposal by Blackwater founder Erik Prince to privatize the war, current and former senior administration officials said. Source

  16. 16.

    Corner Stone

    August 17, 2018 at 7:09 pm

    @lamh36: I saw something about that earlier. I’m happy for any success Kelly Clarkson can drive herself into out of sheer hard work and relentless effort, but FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, MAN!

  17. 17.

    Platonailedit

    August 17, 2018 at 7:10 pm

    .@BorowitzReport: Pence Stages One-Man Parade in Honor of Trump.

    https://t.co/fMGof6HiBQ pic.twitter.com/cWX5ugF4Me— The New Yorker (@NewYorker) August 17, 2018

    Marching proudly with his chest thrust forward and breaking out into a near-strut, Pence’s parade route took him down Pennsylvania Avenue, where he waved occasionally to confused-looking passersby.

    “It was weird seeing him walking all by himself,” Carol Foyler, a tourist who witnessed the Pence parade, said. “I waved back because it was just so sad.”

    Pence’s one-man march drew high praise from Trump, who took to Twitter to declare it the largest parade in history.

  18. 18.

    debbie

    August 17, 2018 at 7:10 pm

    @lamh36:

    How did they come up with Linda Ronstadt? The vast majority of people in this country have never heard of her.

  19. 19.

    MobileForkbeard

    August 17, 2018 at 7:12 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: The Onion AV club has a hilarious article on this, too.

  20. 20.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    August 17, 2018 at 7:13 pm

    @lamh36: I like Linda Ronstandt, I have no opinion of Kelly Clarkson and don’t know that I’ve ever heard her sing, but if someone sat down to write a self-parody of what a mayonnaise-brained, “What about white history month?” type would write about Aretha Franklin, they couldn’t do much better.

  21. 21.

    debit

    August 17, 2018 at 7:13 pm

    Open thread? I finally got a decent picture of Merrill, the stray cat I took in. My vet went into raptures over her. “Such an exotic face! What dramatic markings!” He estimates she’s about a year old, is already spayed (my credit cards thank FSM for that) is parasite free and is now current on shots. Also FIV and FeLV negative.

    She is an incredibly talkative and affectionate cat. And confident! She jumped out of the carrier at the vet’s office and loved all over the vet, then set about exploring. She has a lot of the characteristics of an Oriental Shorthair: the aforementioned talkiness, the very triangular head shape and almond eyes, the lean and tall body type.

    My daughter is in love with her and is working me really hard to keep her, but I just don’t know. Right now she’s out of quarantine and in the guest room with baby gates over the doorway so she can see the other pets and they can see her. I guess I need to see if there’s going to be drama and evaluate if I really, truly can take on the responsibility of yet another animal, and if it’s fair to the ones I currently have. Still tired from my trip and undecided.

  22. 22.

    Mike in NC

    August 17, 2018 at 7:13 pm

    @Elizabelle: Many years ago I belonged to what was then called a Readiness Unit at the Armed Forces Reserve Center in Providence, RI. One fine day we got a new commanding officer who immediately got everybody to hate him. As a form of payback we’d swap nametags several times during drill weekends so he could never learn our real names.

  23. 23.

    Kelly

    August 17, 2018 at 7:13 pm

    @Jay: Smoke has cleared from the Willamette Valley. My wife and I just returned home from a lovely kayak run on the N Santiam.
    I’m a bit somber about about the long term prospects for summers here. Wildfire smoke blanketing the Valley seems certain to be an ordinary summer event for the rest of my life.

  24. 24.

    Major Major Major Major

    August 17, 2018 at 7:14 pm

    @debit: quite a head on that one!

  25. 25.

    Jay

    August 17, 2018 at 7:14 pm

    @burnspbesq:

    Lynda’s Cancun du mia padre proved her chops.

    http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/bc-fires-satellite-1.4789298

  26. 26.

    NotMax

    August 17, 2018 at 7:14 pm

    @Hungry Joe

    She’s a very smart, very no-bullshit person.

    Suffice it to say my single one-on-one recording business related dealing with her (early 1970s) left a different impression.

  27. 27.

    Ceci n est pas mon nym

    August 17, 2018 at 7:14 pm

    @NotMax: Time to interview the laid off factory workers on why they still support Trump and his policies.

    Speaking of gullible, are we really supposed to believe the military’s estimate of $92 million consisted of one line item, “hey DC, what would you charge us to have this parade?”

  28. 28.

    debbie

    August 17, 2018 at 7:15 pm

    Other than a single tweet from the D.C. mayor, I’m not seeing much pushback against Trump’s statement that the parade’s expense was due to the city’s gouging.

  29. 29.

    Chetan Murthy

    August 17, 2018 at 7:15 pm

    @debbie: One presumes you’re not (yet) aging-out then. Linda Ronstadt sure signifies for my demo (53) and I’m sure for Littledick even more — she’s the same age as he is, so I’m sure for a while there he lusted after her big time.

  30. 30.

    burnspbesq

    August 17, 2018 at 7:16 pm

    @debbie:

    > 100 million records sold carries a certain amount of weight. And she was blessed with a fabulous instrument.

  31. 31.

    Chetan Murthy

    August 17, 2018 at 7:16 pm

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:

    if someone sat down to write a self-parody of what a mayonnaise-brained, “What about white history month?” type would write about Aretha Franklin, they couldn’t do much better.

    Debbie Boone or GTFO.

  32. 32.

    Mandalay

    August 17, 2018 at 7:16 pm

    @Elizabelle:

    I think that military parade may never happen.

    I think you are right. If they can’t afford it now then why would it be affordable in 2019?

    But I also suspect some internal Republican polling revealed that letting it go ahead would have been pouring gasoline on the fire for the November elections, and by some miracle Trump was persuaded to call the whole thing off.

  33. 33.

    Jay

    August 17, 2018 at 7:17 pm

    @Kelly:

    Yup, we are into the “new normal”, and it’s just going to get worse.

  34. 34.

    Corner Stone

    August 17, 2018 at 7:17 pm

    @lamh36: I hope Trump can’t hold himself back and talks shit about Omarosa. She’s going to drop that ton of bricks on him no matter what but with a little animus thrown in…

    God what happened to me. I’m rooting for Omarosa.

  35. 35.

    debit

    August 17, 2018 at 7:17 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: It has to be that big to hold those ears.

  36. 36.

    Elizabelle

    August 17, 2018 at 7:17 pm

    @debit:

    Merrill is beautiful! You can see the personality.

    @Mike in NC:

    a new commanding officer who immediately got everybody to hate him.

    Ugh. You’d hope that talent would get him selected out. But no …

  37. 37.

    Major Major Major Major

    August 17, 2018 at 7:18 pm

    @Ceci n est pas mon nym: @debbie: IIRC npr this morning said the DC police estimate was in the $20 million range.

  38. 38.

    Omnes Omnibus

    August 17, 2018 at 7:18 pm

    @Chetan Murthy: Tiffany

  39. 39.

    Chetan Murthy

    August 17, 2018 at 7:18 pm

    @Corner Stone:

    I’m rooting for Omarosa.

    So say we all. So say we all.

  40. 40.

    Mike in NC

    August 17, 2018 at 7:19 pm

    @debbie: National Review is like FOX News: catering to old people

  41. 41.

    debbie

    August 17, 2018 at 7:20 pm

    @Chetan Murthy: @burnspbesq:

    I’ve liked Linda since Stone Pony, you whippersnappers. I just don’t think most of the people know of her like they know of Aretha.

  42. 42.

    Chetan Murthy

    August 17, 2018 at 7:20 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: I see your Tiffany, and I raise you Ashlee Simpson!

  43. 43.

    Quinerly

    August 17, 2018 at 7:21 pm

    @lamh36: Chris Matthews just said Omarosa also has texts….. And EMAILS!!!!!

  44. 44.

    Platonailedit

    August 17, 2018 at 7:21 pm

    @debbie:

    Because it is too stupid and too ridiculous of a lie to respond to? Plenty of pushback on twitter though.

  45. 45.

    debbie

    August 17, 2018 at 7:21 pm

    @debbie:

    Can’t edit. I meant to say most of the people in this country.

  46. 46.

    Chetan Murthy

    August 17, 2018 at 7:22 pm

    @debbie: *giggle* OK, OK, you’re right on that count. I’m sitting here listening to Youtube’s Aretha search results, and it’s …. oh sigh. Sorry, one can never tell: on the Internet, nobody knows you’re ollllllld. Uh, I mean, *I’m* ollllld. I know y’all are all young whippersnappers, what with your gaming and instant-pots and book of faces and all….

  47. 47.

    Cacti

    August 17, 2018 at 7:23 pm

    Okay, have to ask.

    Who else thinks Donald had his very own, Qaddafi-style “Commander in Chief” uniform made for the occasion, with medals everywhere?

  48. 48.

    Chetan Murthy

    August 17, 2018 at 7:24 pm

    @debbie: Holy cow, I just remembered, Steely Dan even wrote a song about her!

  49. 49.

    Mike in NC

    August 17, 2018 at 7:24 pm

    @Mandalay: I would hope the Trump parade turned out like the one they had towards the end of “Animal House”, complete with Deathmobile.

  50. 50.

    debit

    August 17, 2018 at 7:24 pm

    @Quinerly: Oh boy.

  51. 51.

    debbie

    August 17, 2018 at 7:25 pm

    @Platonailedit:

    Still, I think there was a racial element to his statement that should have been loudly condemned.

  52. 52.

    Corner Stone

    August 17, 2018 at 7:25 pm

    Tweety just called Lara Trump “Laura Bush”. Dude has real mental issues.

  53. 53.

    Jay

    August 17, 2018 at 7:25 pm

    @Cacti:

    Pajama’s, with feet.

  54. 54.

    Mike in NC

    August 17, 2018 at 7:26 pm

    @Elizabelle: He was a banker whose biggest ambition was to make Rear Admiral. Never happened!

  55. 55.

    smintheus

    August 17, 2018 at 7:27 pm

    When the news popped up the other day, my first thought was ‘This is going to become an election issue, it’s tailor made to bash Republicans with.’ I think the same has to have occurred to Trump’s advisors. All the talk about ballooning expenses is a smokescreen. Trump doesn’t care how much his crazy ideas cost so he wasn’t going to cancel it for that reason. His advisers decided to make a virtue of the bloated costs for the parade, pretending that was part of their cost/benefit analysis; what they were actually assessing was the political damage from admitting that Trump does not care about the cost.

  56. 56.

    The Dangerman

    August 17, 2018 at 7:29 pm

    @Chetan Murthy:

    Debbie Boone

    “You gaslight up my life…”

  57. 57.

    NotMax

    August 17, 2018 at 7:29 pm

    @Cacti

    Sneak peek of the work in progress.

    :)

  58. 58.

    Jay

    August 17, 2018 at 7:32 pm

    @NotMax:

    http://www.weirduniverse.net/blog/comments/nixon_palace_guard

  59. 59.

    Platonailedit

    August 17, 2018 at 7:32 pm

    @debbie:

    When did any of the racist thug’s ‘statements’ not have a racial element in them?

  60. 60.

    JPL

    August 17, 2018 at 7:34 pm

    @Corner Stone: It wasn’t that long ago that I was hoping a porn star would take him down.

  61. 61.

    debit

    August 17, 2018 at 7:35 pm

    @JPL: Her lawyer moved on to bigger and better things.

  62. 62.

    Platonailedit

    August 17, 2018 at 7:35 pm

    DOJ is investigating whether longtime Republican fundraiser Elliott Broidy sought to sell his influence with the Trump admin by offering to deliver U.S. government actions for foreign officials in exchange for tens of millions of dollars, WaPo reports.

    https://t.co/JQo5rbRJlM— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) August 17, 2018

    24×7 corruption is sooo hard.

  63. 63.

    Major Major Major Major

    August 17, 2018 at 7:35 pm

    Meanwhile, at the Arkansas statehouse

    The Satanic Temple gives a special thanks to @jasonrapert– who spearheaded the push to put the Ten Commandments monument on capitol grounds. #arpx #arnews pic.twitter.com/hEvdIfLypV

    — Jessi Turnure (@JessiTurnure) August 16, 2018

  64. 64.

    smedley the uncertain

    August 17, 2018 at 7:37 pm

    @Mike in NC: I resemble that remark! Don’t read NR a tall.
    Now Git off my lawn!

  65. 65.

    NotMax

    August 17, 2018 at 7:37 pm

    @Jay

    Remember that well.

    Will see your Nixon and raise you an Elvis.

    :)

  66. 66.

    JPL

    August 17, 2018 at 7:39 pm

    @debit: The cat is beautiful and hopefully fits right in.

  67. 67.

    debbie

    August 17, 2018 at 7:40 pm

    @Major Major Major Major:

    The world, if not the universe, is laughing at us.

  68. 68.

    khead

    August 17, 2018 at 7:40 pm

    @Chetan Murthy:

    53, you say? The name you are looking for here then is Debbie Gibson.

  69. 69.

    Mandalay

    August 17, 2018 at 7:40 pm

    @Corner Stone:

    Tweety just called Lara Trump “Laura Bush”. Dude has real mental issues.

    He certainly has personal interaction issues. I realize he gets D-list pundits on his show because they are desperate to become C-list pundits, but he treats them like they are garbage. Why on earth would you appear on his shit-show to get constantly interrupted, shouted down, dismissed and soaked in his saliva?

  70. 70.

    Corner Stone

    August 17, 2018 at 7:40 pm

    @Jay:

    Pajama’s, with feet.

    Are you implying there’s a problem with footies? Dawn. Fields of honor.

  71. 71.

    WaterGirl

    August 17, 2018 at 7:41 pm

    @debit: I like what I have seen of Michael Avenatti with Stormy Daniels, but I am appalled that he apparently thinks he could be president.

    Enough already of famous people with no political expertise!

  72. 72.

    zhena gogolia

    August 17, 2018 at 7:41 pm

    @debit:

    Sweetie!

  73. 73.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    August 17, 2018 at 7:41 pm

    The extraordinary bias of the judge in the Manafort trial
    By Nancy Gertner
    August 16
    Nancy Gertner, a retired U.S. District Court judge in Massachusetts, is a lecturer at Harvard Law School.

    I wonder what Judge Ellis will think when he sees this. His expression of surprise that the Manafort case drew so much attention is too precious by half.

  74. 74.

    zhena gogolia

    August 17, 2018 at 7:42 pm

    @Jay:

    She’s an excellent singer. I see no reason to diss her for something stupid someone else said!

  75. 75.

    Corner Stone

    August 17, 2018 at 7:42 pm

    @Mandalay: Tweety has been forgetting people’s names and other details for months now. I’m not his biggest fan but I think someone needs to get him some help if they are not already.

  76. 76.

    WaterGirl

    August 17, 2018 at 7:43 pm

    @debit: My stripe-y girl kitty looks a lot like that. Just stunning, I think. Keep your new sweetheart, I imagine she is attached to you already. Not to mention the vet! A love like that gives back a lot more than she takes.

  77. 77.

    zhena gogolia

    August 17, 2018 at 7:43 pm

    @Corner Stone:

    Was it you who said “The enemy of my enemy is Omarosa”? That’s how I feel.

  78. 78.

    Platonailedit

    August 17, 2018 at 7:44 pm

    If the manafort judge ‘fears’ for jurors’ safety, why didn’t he sequester them with protection? This guy’s thumb is overworked.

  79. 79.

    khead

    August 17, 2018 at 7:44 pm

    @debit:

    Very cute kitteh. Good luck!

  80. 80.

    lamh36

    August 17, 2018 at 7:44 pm

    Not versatile!!! FUQ U NRO!

    She started out singing jazzy tunes…

    Flashback: See Aretha Franklin, Age 22, Sing a Jazzy “Runnin’ Out of Fools’ in 1964 https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/flashback-see-aretha-franklin-age-22-sing-a-jazzy-runnin-out-of-fools-in-1964-711970/ via @RollingStone

  81. 81.

    Corner Stone

    August 17, 2018 at 7:45 pm

    @JPL: I go to bed every night hoping a porn star will take me down.
    ***sobs***

  82. 82.

    NotMax

    August 17, 2018 at 7:46 pm

    @debbie

    “Whether you can hear it or not, the universe is laughing behind your back.”
      – Deteriorata, National Lampoon

  83. 83.

    lamh36

    August 17, 2018 at 7:47 pm

    @lamh36:
    Aretha Franklin – Tiny Sparrow (LIVE!) https://youtu.be/qpvcQOzyJ6U via @YouTube

  84. 84.

    smintheus

    August 17, 2018 at 7:47 pm

    @debbie: Ronstadt has sold 100 million records so she’s not obscure.

  85. 85.

    Platonailedit

    August 17, 2018 at 7:48 pm

    @debit:

    Or the cowardly thug has moved on to his next target.

  86. 86.

    debit

    August 17, 2018 at 7:48 pm

    @WaterGirl: I liked him a lot when he focused on representing her, and I really liked that he jumped into helping families at detention centers. But then he seemed to abruptly abandon all that for vanity appearances at protests and visits to Iowa. He claims that he has political experience (ran a couple of campaigns?) but there is simply no way he’s a candidate. I want someone how can fix this shit, not someone who prefers to go on The Last Word and be scrappy.

  87. 87.

    WaterGirl

    August 17, 2018 at 7:48 pm

    @NotMax: – Deteriorata, National Lampoon

    I had a poster of that on my walls for years when I was a student.

  88. 88.

    Corner Stone

    August 17, 2018 at 7:50 pm

    @zhena gogolia: No, I think what I said was, “I’m going to keep shuffling Omarosa ahead of me whilst hunting the QB and when the time comes I am going to shove her to the turf in front of any blockers in my way.”

  89. 89.

    Chetan Murthy

    August 17, 2018 at 7:50 pm

    @khead: I don’t remember Debbie Gibson’s music, but the reason I called out Ashlee Simpson, was that the only reason she was famous was she was Jessica Simpson’s sister. I recall reading of an incident where the lip-sync failed on SNL (or something like that). If that isn’t “pretty white girl fail”, I don’t know what is. I mean, there are pretty white women who are … phenomenal. Alison Krauss comes to mind.

    So I stand pat. *giggle*. Debbie Gibson is no Ashlee Simpson. HA!

  90. 90.

    WaterGirl

    August 17, 2018 at 7:50 pm

    @debit: I agree. He was great at what he was doing, then he appears to have gotten too big for his britches, as my mom used to say. Very disappointing.

  91. 91.

    lamh36

    August 17, 2018 at 7:52 pm

    @burnspbesq: I love me some Linda Ronstadt…NRO was doing their damndest to find a way to be as racist and stupid as they can…so of course they went Ronstadt who’s more liberal than conservative and Kelly Clarkson, who they assume is conservative…

    Kelly Clarkson if I recall sang Aretha for her American Idol audition…and her statement on Aretha was bascially saying…Aretha was HER singing idol…

  92. 92.

    lamh36

    August 17, 2018 at 7:53 pm

    One mo’gin…FUQ U NRO!

    Aretha Franklin – Live on The Steve Allen Show (1964) https://youtu.be/VEIdwaXYNPc via @YouTube

    ETA: She playing piano…WITHOUT ANY FORMAL TRAINING…just by ear!!!

    FUQ YOU NRO

  93. 93.

    NotMax

    August 17, 2018 at 7:54 pm

    @WaterGirl

    Fame is a potently addictive narcotic.

  94. 94.

    Chetan Murthy

    August 17, 2018 at 7:54 pm

    @lamh36: Oh my god. Oh my god. Thank you so much. These sorts of songs don’t seem to come up in the YT Aretha mix.

  95. 95.

    Mnemosyne

    August 17, 2018 at 7:54 pm

    @debit:

    FWIW, I think it was Pogonip who was starting to look for an Oriental kitty because her (grand?) son on the autism spectrum wants a cat and she was told that that’s the best breed for him. Or maybe it was Ohio Mom? One of those folks.

  96. 96.

    John Revolta

    August 17, 2018 at 7:54 pm

    @debit: @WaterGirl: I prefer to think he’s just trolling- he’s a pretty smart guy-
    but I dunno. Hubris is a helluva drug.

  97. 97.

    debit

    August 17, 2018 at 7:54 pm

    @WaterGirl: There’s no question that my daughter became VERY attached to her while I was out of town, and I am wavering. It’s all going to depend on how/if she integrates with the household.

    And thanks to everyone who said she’s pretty. I think so too. :)

  98. 98.

    zhena gogolia

    August 17, 2018 at 7:55 pm

    @debit:

    That’s how I felt. I was always somewhat wary of him, but this running-for-president thing is ridiculous.

  99. 99.

    Mnemosyne

    August 17, 2018 at 7:56 pm

    @lamh36:

    I want to see the look on that writer’s face when someone tells him that Ronstadt is half-Mexican. She even did a whole album of Mexican folk songs. ?

  100. 100.

    germy

    August 17, 2018 at 7:56 pm

    Instead of a $92 million military parade, I think Trump would find penis augmentation much more cost effective. — Anonymous Fed (@EvilBobJ) August 17, 2018

  101. 101.

    Mnemosyne

    August 17, 2018 at 7:58 pm

    @lamh36:

    Here’s the Wikipedia article on Ronstadt’s first album of songs from Mexico, Canciones de Mi Padre. She also had relatives who were well-known musicians in Mexico and she is very proud of her Mexican roots:

    https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canciones_de_Mi_Padre

  102. 102.

    debit

    August 17, 2018 at 7:59 pm

    @zhena gogolia: I followed him on twitter. When he took umbrage at the criticism and said, “If you don’t think I should run, go ahead and unfollow me.” it took a nanosecond for me to comply. Dude, no. Just no.

  103. 103.

    germy

    August 17, 2018 at 7:59 pm

    Instead of a $92 million military parade, I think Trump would find penis augmentation much more cost effective.— Anonymous Fed (@EvilBobJ) August 17, 2018

  104. 104.

    NotMax

    August 17, 2018 at 7:59 pm

    @lamh36

    Well, she was no Britney Spears.

    For which (in unison now) a voluble THANK FSM is in order.

    :)

  105. 105.

    Another Scott

    August 17, 2018 at 8:03 pm

    @debbie: It’s all too easy for the press to take Donnie’s word for it – it’s on Twitter after all. (groucho-roll-eyes.gif)

    GovExec:

    After reports circulated Thursday that estimated costs of a Veterans Day military parade in the nation’s capital had risen to $92 million, Government Executive’s Erich Wagner reported that some of Trump’s requests, like tanks, would run afoul of an NDAA provision prohibiting “motorized vehicles.”

    […]

    According to CNBC, the estimated $92 million would have been split between $50 million from the Pentagon and $42 million from other agency partners like the Homeland Security Department. The money would cover transportation of troops, weapons and other “parade assets.” CNBC also reported that the parade would showcase some of the military’s storied past.

    (See the original for embedded links)

    I think the cost is a convenient excuse. And blaming Bowser for the estimated $22M for city security costs, overtime, etc., is another convenient distraction. Donnie doesn’t care how much he’s costing us – look at all his golf trips that’s he charging us for.

    Donnie wants his tanks and planes and APCs and everything else. He wants a parade to show up Macron and Kim and Xi and Vlad. The DoD funding bill that he just signed says he can’t spend any money on any motorized vehicles (with a few tiny exceptions) for his stupid parade. So he had a choice of defying Congress (in a way that is clearly unconstitutional), or “delaying” it and hoping to get the funding authorized somehow in the future. The choice was “easy” as he had no choice.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  106. 106.

    chris

    August 17, 2018 at 8:03 pm

    @Jay: Wow. Local news tells me there 44 fires burning on northern Vancouver Island. I lived and worked there in the 70s into the 80s. Memory is hazy now but I only remember a couple of fires and they didn’t get far before the rain came. Jeez, maybe the climate is changing.//

  107. 107.

    Platonailedit

    August 17, 2018 at 8:03 pm

    @germy: Doesn’t he have to find it first?

  108. 108.

    BruceFromOhio

    August 17, 2018 at 8:04 pm

    But… everyone loves a parade!

  109. 109.

    germy

    August 17, 2018 at 8:04 pm

    @Platonailedit: I believe KellyAnne has tweezers.

  110. 110.

    NotMax

    August 17, 2018 at 8:07 pm

    @Another Scott

    “Hello, Adelson? Got a spare hundred mil lying around? Time to pay up for my moving that Jew embassy for you.”

  111. 111.

    JPL

    August 17, 2018 at 8:08 pm

    @Corner Stone: lol I’m going to sign off and go read The Death of Democracy. I’m only about 1/3 of the way through, but I want to see want trump plans next.

  112. 112.

    lamh36

    August 17, 2018 at 8:09 pm

    @lamh36: FYI…this video has a series of LIVE performances from the Queen of Soul when she was no older than 25…her first set of charted hits…most with a jazzy feel.

    Before she became the Queen of Soul and how she caught the ear of everyone when she came on the scene.

    Also too, there is a LIVE performance of Skylark, the song I mentioned that Sara Vaughn and Etta James said made them sit up and notice this young lil gal named Aretha Franklin!

    Give it a watch, you won’t regret it.

  113. 113.

    satby

    August 17, 2018 at 8:09 pm

    @debit: ” I guess I need to see if there’s going to be drama and evaluate if I really, truly can take on the responsibility of yet another animal, and if it’s fair to the ones I currently have”

    I know exactly how you feel.

    At the market today, one of the other vendors brought a small white kitten over to me. She was found on the river walk across from the market nowhere near any houses, and looks to be about 4-5 weeks old. Of course, everyone knows I’m in a rescue group, so they brought her to me, and she’s now in isolation in my bathroom.
    Until she gets her immunizations she has to kept separate from the others, but she’s all over me every time I go in there. No way can I keep her, but she’s adorable.

  114. 114.

    Geeno

    August 17, 2018 at 8:10 pm

    @debit: OMG She is PRECIOUS! I adore her from afar.

  115. 115.

    JPL

    August 17, 2018 at 8:12 pm

    President Obama would not sell precision bombs to Saudi because of human rights abuses, and now we know that one of our precision bombs killed the students in the bus in Yemen. Trump has no shame though.

  116. 116.

    Jay

    August 17, 2018 at 8:13 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    I think he’s just killing time between court to Troll The Insane Clown POSus.

  117. 117.

    Procopius

    August 17, 2018 at 8:15 pm

    @The Dangerman: This is insane. Last year the Congress added $70 BILLION (with a B) to the military budget more than the Pentagon asked for. This year they used that as the base to increase the fcking Pentagon budget again. $100 Million is no longer a big deal. I’m so old I remember when $1 Million was considered Real Money. Now if it’s less than a TRILLION it’s a pittance. Delayed and overbudget. What we’ve come to expect.

  118. 118.

    MoxieM

    August 17, 2018 at 8:16 pm

    @debit: Many congrats on the new family. I had one I swear must have been Asian Shorthair, or partly, due to just those characteristics. He was a lovely grey with a snazzy tuxedo, and had double-double paws, front and back. I don’t know if intelligence goes with the breed–I wouldn’t be surprised if they are related to Siamese? But Lorenzo was a corker. I swear he learned to use some of his copious digits like opposable thumbs. Fair warning! But just a lovely, social, cuddly fellow, once he got over the trauma of being on the rough streets of Jamaica Plain. (I adopted him from a big shelter in Boston.)

  119. 119.

    Jay

    August 17, 2018 at 8:19 pm

    @chris:

    Yup, the Rainforest didn’t used to burn, now it does, every summer.

    Where I live, summer fires happened occasionally, now it’s a constant drumbeats of fires from spring to fall.

    The only upside is the Petro Provinces are currently choking on our smoke. Not that, or declining revinues will change their policies.

  120. 120.

    Procopius

    August 17, 2018 at 8:19 pm

    @burnspbesq: You missed Dinah Washington, every bit as great as Aretha and possibly her inspiration.

  121. 121.

    debit

    August 17, 2018 at 8:20 pm

    @satby:

    Until she gets her immunizations she has to kept separate from the others, but she’s all over me every time I go in there. No way can I keep her, but she’s adorable.

    Oh man, it’s hard to say no to kittens. You’re doing important work, but I know it’s hard sometimes. Will your group take care of the vet expenses? If not, can we help out?

  122. 122.

    NotMax

    August 17, 2018 at 8:22 pm

    @Procopius

    Also too, Mahalia Jackson and Miriam Makeba.

  123. 123.

    jl

    August 17, 2018 at 8:23 pm

    @lamh36: Aretha Franklin was Clarkson’s biggest, by far the most important, really crucial, influence in music, and one of the biggest influences in her life, so Clarkson says herself. That garbage the NR pumped out must hurt deeply at a time she is grieving deeply. I’ll be interested in Clarkson has to say, but would understand if she cannot bear to respond to it right now.

  124. 124.

    Mnemosyne

    August 17, 2018 at 8:26 pm

    @jl:

    Aretha Franklin was Clarkson’s biggest, by far the most important, really crucial, influence in music, and one of the biggest influences in her life, so Clarkson says herself.

    So, basically, it was a dick move all around to everyone named and not just a slam on Aretha. Nice work, I guess?

  125. 125.

    chris

    August 17, 2018 at 8:28 pm

    @Jay: I went to work at the hemlock mill in Tahsis in February ’77. It was raining when I got there and it rained until September. Wasn’t much of a fire season that year.

  126. 126.

    sukabi

    August 17, 2018 at 8:28 pm

    @lamh36: lol I don’t like her, but may have to send her flowers if she manages to bring him down.

  127. 127.

    Geeno

    August 17, 2018 at 8:30 pm

    @debbie: The Stone Poneys was the band name. Kids these days.

  128. 128.

    jl

    August 17, 2018 at 8:31 pm

    I think the Pentagon is clearly slow walking this as much as possible. I am still surprised at the visceral disgust the TV military brass guests reveals in their expressions and tone when they talk about this kind of military parade, especially arranged for the vanity of one dipshit president. And though it is probably known here that I consider all presidents dipshitty in on way or another, Trump is a very special dipshit in his own very special world historical truly personal and authentic dipshit league. Other presidents were dipshits because the necessity of sometime acting like one is sad reality of leading a large nation. Trump is a dipshit down to the marrow of his bones.

    From what I’ve heard them say, a proper military parade consists of sober, low key and no-frills citizen soldiers marching in honor of some accomplishment or a national holiday. Running spit and polish tanks and cannons and missile launchers up and down a boulevard with a humongous horde of shiny spit-and-polish solders marching like wind-up toys, seems to disgust them. And and making a special big parade out of nowwhere because one dipshit president wants on disgusts them even more.

  129. 129.

    SiubhanDuinne

    August 17, 2018 at 8:32 pm

    @lamh36:

    BISH WHET????

    ? Oh lamh, I ❤️ you so much.

  130. 130.

    WereBear

    August 17, 2018 at 8:32 pm

    @debit: she looks awesome and she’s already won over your daughter and vet. It’s probable she can win over everyone else.

  131. 131.

    Suzanne

    August 17, 2018 at 8:33 pm

    So Mike Ness of Social Distortion punched a MAGA troll at one of his shows who was acting like a complete dick.

    I am SO HAPPY that America’s punks are acting like punks.

    MOAR PLEEZ.

  132. 132.

    debbie

    August 17, 2018 at 8:34 pm

    @Another Scott:

    Isn’t this the bill where he issued 50 signing statements?

  133. 133.

    The Midnight Lurker

    August 17, 2018 at 8:34 pm

    Just back in… always first, what’s he done now?
    Second, O’Roarke has finally closed the gap with Cruz. He’s only down (or up) within a single point. Here’s to everybody that made that happen.
    Now that he’s on the ground, it’s time to drive a stake through Cruz’ heart. If you’re in Texas, call your local Democratic HQ and ask what you can do. Outside Texas, send money if you can. I suck at the adding the link thing, but I’ll try.
    Beto! = betofortexas.com (aaaah! I told you I suck! Damn my feeble mind!)
    Anyway, follow the link. You can also tell him how great he is and how he needs to buy a razor. If we win this thing, I’ll post a photo of me and Beto! and you can see just how big an asshole I really am.
    I’m not done. I want you to send money to Colin Allred in 32. He rocks.
    Colin Allred – TX 32 <a href="http://colinallred.com&quot;
    More later.

  134. 134.

    debit

    August 17, 2018 at 8:35 pm

    @MoxieM: They are descended from Siamese, yes. Lorenzo sounds like a handful!

  135. 135.

    Miss Bianca

    August 17, 2018 at 8:38 pm

    In other national headlines, I finally unfriended an acquaintance on FB today. She’s a midwife who has been going on these increasingly unhinged rants about transwomen – and excusing it by calling it “biology not bigotry”! She started conflating children’s trans sexuality/gender issues with child sexual abuse – as if somehow there were all these people out there forcing kids to transition so they could…I dunno, have sex with them or something? It became decreasingly clear to me what sort of basis in the real world her issues may have had, and when she descended to trying to justify the baker in the “gay wedding cake” case and blame the resulting furor on some sort of sinister trans agenda, I told her that her transphobia was becoming nauseous. Still smdh over it all. She never struck me as this big a nutball before – what the hell?

    On the other hand, the Trump *presidency has shown me a lot of bad craziness in my family and friends circle that I’d be happier not ever having seen.

  136. 136.

    debit

    August 17, 2018 at 8:42 pm

    @WereBear: Right now she’s mildly curious about the other cats, but doesn’t get too close to the gate. The other cats, especially Dani, are desperate to get in and check her out. No real growling yet, so I’m cautiously optimistic.

  137. 137.

    SiubhanDuinne

    August 17, 2018 at 8:44 pm

    @debit:

    Wow! That is a gorgeous cat!

    Can you believe it’s been almost two years since we were rescuing (and losing our hearts to) Walter?

  138. 138.

    debit

    August 17, 2018 at 8:45 pm

    God, what kind of world do we live in when I click “like” on a tweet by William the bloody Kristol? I feel so dirty.

    Bill Kristol
    ‏Verified account @BillKristol

    Trump was much more eager to take action against John Brennan than against Vladimir Putin.

  139. 139.

    debit

    August 17, 2018 at 8:47 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: Thank you and I know. The anniversary of buying this house (last day in July) is always bittersweet because Walter came to me very shortly after I moved in. I still miss him, every day.

  140. 140.

    Chetan Murthy

    August 17, 2018 at 8:49 pm

    @Miss Bianca:

    I finally unfriended

    Can I say that, this is a hard thing to do, and you should pat yourself on the back for it. I had to do this to a Trumpist (now former) friend I’ve known since I was 30 — so, most of my adult life. I used to call myself “Boswell to his Johnson” and inside, I felt like “Watson to his Holmes”. I’ve missed being able to talk to him about non-political matters many, many, many times. Chewed seeds of bitter regret many a time over it. But evil people can be nice to those whom they wish to treat well — that doesn’t change their evil. Maybe he’ll redeem himself (and maybe your former friend will also) but that’s up to them, not me and you.

    In these times, there are battle lines, and when somebody identifies themselves as an enemy of decency, we can’t give them succor. Or at least, we should think carefully before doing so. Because sure, if they win, maybe they’ll stick up for us. But even if they do, there’ll be a Himmler to say “If I had a dollar for every German who writes in asking to save their “good Jew”! There ARE no good Jews!” [yeah, he actually wrote that someplace.] We’re in this together, and that means we don’t leave anybody behind. That includes transwomen [the instance you mention] and the list is long. So again, thank you for taking this step.

  141. 141.

    lamh36

    August 17, 2018 at 8:50 pm

    FYI…just get used to me posting Aretha Franklin stuff until she’s laid to rest…

    sorry…

    @60Minutes
    “He was tall, dark and handsome, I can tell you that.” In 1990, Aretha Franklin sat down with Ed Bradley and talked about the inspiration for “Day Dreaming,” a song she said she wrote from personal experience. The “Queen of Soul” died Thursday at 76. https://cbsn.ws/2KYuJZR

    Ed Bradley and Aretha Franklin…sigh…legends

  142. 142.

    Dan B

    August 17, 2018 at 8:53 pm

    @Corner Stone: Harry Reems? Jeff Stryker? That one with eight breasts?

    Details at 11?

  143. 143.

    chris

    August 17, 2018 at 8:53 pm

    Haha, the coffee boy’s going to jail.

    JUST IN: Mueller says “a sentence of incarceration” for Papadopoulos of between 0-6 months would be “appropriate and warranted.” pic.twitter.com/vDFxTlVBwQ— Natasha Bertrand (@NatashaBertrand) 18 August 2018

  144. 144.

    Platonailedit

    August 17, 2018 at 8:55 pm

    Judge Ellis receives “death threats” and has US Marshalls protectin’ him while he let’s his jury roam loose and unsequestered, free to hear the President call the trial a “disgrace” and the defendant a “good person?”

    Tea Pain smells a polecat!

    — Tea Pain (@TeaPainUSA) August 17, 2018

  145. 145.

    Mike in NC

    August 17, 2018 at 8:56 pm

    @debit: You are definitely not alone. I started Rick Wilson’s “Everything Trump Touches Dies” and he blames the one and only Reince Priebus for not terminating the Trump virus when he had the chance. Reince was petrified that Trump might make an independent run.

  146. 146.

    Kayla Rudbek

    August 17, 2018 at 8:57 pm

    Came home really pissed off at both my union and management today. Essential servers were taken down at work for emergency maintenance Wednesday in the small hours of the morning. It’s now Friday night and the essential servers are still down and may be down through the weekend . And the spineless gutless pantywaisted wimps in the union apparently agreed with management to only grant us SIX hours of credit TOTAL for the THREE DAYS that we couldn’t use those essential servers and actually get our work done and out.

    At least management did lift the cap on online training time, so I have a day of training time to my credit, but I’m still really ticked off.

    I’m trying to decide whether to email the union reps I know and politely ask them what the decision process was, or whether to send a nastygram straight to the union higher ups and ask them not so nicely WTF they were thinking.

  147. 147.

    jl

    August 17, 2018 at 8:59 pm

    Regarding US military’s disgust for fancy and wasteful parades for some dipshit Dear Leader, I know the idea the US military is just citizen soldiers only fighting when absolutely necessary is by now a myth. And that is not a new development. It’s been almost 90 years since General,and two-time Medal of Honor winner, Smedley Butler said ‘ I spent most of my time as a high class muscle man for Big Business, for Wall Street and the bankers. In short, I was a racketeer, a gangster for capitalism’, and wrote a pamphlet titled ‘War is a Racket’.

    But it is very good that the most of the military brass, for whatever reason, still believe the myth enough to have visceral disgust at overt public displays that betray it. And it is very bad and dangerous that we have a president that doesn’t see how subversive it is, or doesn’t care.

  148. 148.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    August 17, 2018 at 9:00 pm

    @Platonailedit: the kind of thing that demands explanation in my layman’s opinion. Hasn’t come up the Hayes show with Velshi sitting in> Maddow will devote her first half hour to John Brennan’s grade school career and summer job at his Uncle Mort’s greengrocer and how it leads to the question that will open her interview, coming up, right after this. In sixty seconds.

    Maybe O’Donnell will bring it up.

  149. 149.

    Kayla Rudbek

    August 17, 2018 at 9:01 pm

    And I have a comment awaiting moderation. Looks like I have a typo in my email (should be gmail.com)

  150. 150.

    Omnes Omnibus

    August 17, 2018 at 9:01 pm

    @Suzanne: Mommy’s Little Monster.

  151. 151.

    Jay

    August 17, 2018 at 9:05 pm

    @Suzanne:

    Wonkette was all over it yesterday. What kind of asshat goes to a Punk show, expecting it not to be political, and get’s punched for being an ass hat front and center, then whinges about it on social media pretending he was a fan,……

    Robyn add links to the long history of Nazi punching in Punkdom, plus a great Public Service Announcement.

    https://www.wonkette.com/mike-ness-punched-a-trump-supporter-at-a-social-d-show-and-now-we-are-all-pregnant

  152. 152.

    Villago Delenda Est

    August 17, 2018 at 9:05 pm

    @jl:

    And it is very bad we have a president that doesn’t see how subversive it is, or doesn’t care.

    Donald is out of his depth on a wet sidewalk. He has no idea what the implications of such a thing might be. In any room he’s in, he’s not the adult.

  153. 153.

    Suzanne

    August 17, 2018 at 9:05 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: I don’t approve of violence, but I also think that if you get in the pit at a Social D show, and you hold a middle finger up to a very liberal veteran punk, and you expect nothing untoward to go down……that you’re an unbelievable dumbass.

  154. 154.

    Honus

    August 17, 2018 at 9:07 pm

    @burnspbesq: Sara Vaughn ain’t everybody else.

  155. 155.

    lamh36

    August 17, 2018 at 9:07 pm

    @Procopius: In fact one of Aretha Franklin’s 6th studio album
    “Unforgettable: A Tribute to Dinah Washinton”

    Quincy Jones on Aretha Franklin’s passing…

    “From the time that Dinah Washington first told me that Aretha was the ‘next one’ when she was 12 years old until the present day, Aretha Franklin set the bar upon which every female singer has and will be measured,” Jones wrote. “And she did it with the professionalism, class, grace and humility that only a true Queen could.”

  156. 156.

    Villago Delenda Est

    August 17, 2018 at 9:08 pm

    @Mnemosyne: Probably more like a click move, to gather page views. The notion that either of them is superior to Aretha is one they’d both deny, but the writer of that little snippet is your typical National Socialist Review racist dickhead.

  157. 157.

    Platonailedit

    August 17, 2018 at 9:09 pm

    @Jay:

    Trump supporters — you can’t take them anywhere.

    LOL. So true.

  158. 158.

    Suzanne

    August 17, 2018 at 9:10 pm

    @Jay: I’ve been a Social D fan for more than twenty years. As such, I have:
    A) listened to their songs, and ergo
    B) know Mike Ness is anti-everything Trumpy (racism, sexism, bragging, dishonesty, bad toupees).

    Punk shows are one of the few remaining places for that kind of aggressive behavior. If you don’t want to experience it, DON’T GET IN THE FUCKING PIT AND BE AN ASS.

  159. 159.

    Dan B

    August 17, 2018 at 9:10 pm

    @chris: Yes. There are almost 600 fires in BC right now. 36 new today from lightning strikes. California is not tge only place turning into a scrub savannah.

    And to think that this is just the preview of global climate change.

    We’ve got solar pv panels (cut into the retirement funds a lot) and an electric car. But all our friends don’t get the need.

  160. 160.

    TS (the original)

    August 17, 2018 at 9:11 pm

    Just listening to John Brennan on Rachel – the language, the sentiments, the valid description of trump’s behavior – is such a pleasure to listen to – after the unhinged grammarless drivel that comes from the president*

  161. 161.

    The Moar You Know

    August 17, 2018 at 9:12 pm

    Judge Ellis receives “death threats” and has US Marshalls protectin’ him while he let’s his jury roam loose and unsequestered, free to hear the President call the trial a “disgrace” and the defendant a “good person?”

    @Platonailedit: As I found out during that period of my life in which I was an expert witness, federal judges have 24/7/365 protective details, it’s more than one lone guy, and it’s not optional.

    I will agree that not sequestering the jury is hinky, but he gets to make that call. Again: elections have consequences. Judge Ellis is one of them. So is this trial.

  162. 162.

    Arlene

    August 17, 2018 at 9:14 pm

    Debit – He’s a cutie and I hope he stays with you. I think he might be quite entertaining. My brother at one point had 2 Siamese and 2 Maine Coons. It was never dull. I have had Maine Coons for 30 years and they’re entertaining too.

    Moxie – I believe you know my grandkitties, the fabulous Duck and Jabber. Small world.

  163. 163.

    Chetan Murthy

    August 17, 2018 at 9:14 pm

    @Honus: She sure isn’t just “everybody else”! Tea for Two: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJ9Q2xaE6Nw

  164. 164.

    Jim Parish

    August 17, 2018 at 9:15 pm

    @Chetan Murthy: Yep; they used her as a symbol of the old days the nineteen-year-old knew nothing about. Shortly afterward, Aretha got her second wind and zoomed back into the spotlight.

  165. 165.

    hilts

    August 17, 2018 at 9:15 pm

    @lamh36:

    The folks at National Review.

    The National Review is nothing more than a super sized, putrid, steaming pile of excrement. The best use for a print copy of that magazine is to serve as the lining of a bird cage or a cat litter box.

  166. 166.

    WaterGirl

    August 17, 2018 at 9:19 pm

    @Jay: @John Revolta: If he’s just trolling trump, I can get behind that. But the “if you don’t think I should run, then un-follow me” story doesn’t really support that theory.

  167. 167.

    Platonailedit

    August 17, 2018 at 9:20 pm

    Ex-Met terror chief: Extreme right infiltrating UK politics

  168. 168.

    WaterGirl

    August 17, 2018 at 9:22 pm

    @debit: Can’t the cats just jump the baby gate?

  169. 169.

    Omnes Omnibus

    August 17, 2018 at 9:23 pm

    @Suzanne: I have a friend from law school who was bothered that Elvis Fucking Costello got political about Iraq at a concert in 2006/7. As Henry Rollins said, this is what Joe Strummer trained us for.

  170. 170.

    Amir Khalid

    August 17, 2018 at 9:23 pm

    @Jay:
    Canciones de Mi Padre.

  171. 171.

    WaterGirl

    August 17, 2018 at 9:23 pm

    @chris: That’s all???? 0 to 6 months?

  172. 172.

    Kayla Rudbek

    August 17, 2018 at 9:24 pm

    All right, to summarize my last three days at work:

    Essential servers were taken down Wednesday morning 12:01-5:30 am for emergencies maintenance. As of 6:30 pm tonight, they were still not working. So three days where we couldn’t finish and move our work. 6:34 pm tonight we get the official email from management that we will get a TOTAL of SIX hours credit for the THREE days of work that we couldn’t do.

    I’m really pissed off at both management and my union at this point. I don’t know whether to send a polite-and-dismayed email to the two union representatives that I personally know, or whether to send a nasty email to the union officers starting out, “you spineless gutless wimps…”

    The one saving grace is that management lifted the cap on the online training time, so I have a full day of training time credit.

  173. 173.

    Aleta

    August 17, 2018 at 9:24 pm

    @lamh36:
    The Clairvoyance of the Fourteen-Year-Old Aretha Franklin, by Doreen St. Félix
    (There is als a link to a recording she made at 14 in 1956 of “Precious Lord.” And mention of how the song travelled (Sister Rosetta Tharpe to Nina Simone, Elvis Presley, Mahalia Jackson, who visited C. L. Franklin and met young Miss Aretha. )

  174. 174.

    hilts

    August 17, 2018 at 9:26 pm

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:

    Maybe O’Donnell will bring it up.

    Ari Melber is filling in for Lawrence tonight and will be polluting MSNBC’s airwaves by airing an interview with Steve Bannon.

  175. 175.

    Jay

    August 17, 2018 at 9:28 pm

    @Amir Khalid:

    Hey, I provided a you tube link to the whole live show,

    That should be worth sumthin,……

  176. 176.

    PaulWartenberg

    August 17, 2018 at 9:29 pm

    hope it’s alright to share this, the publisher for the first volume of Strangely Funny, a humor-horror anthology that printed my short “I Must Be Your First” is offering the book FOR FREE through BookFunnel. The link is at https://dl.bookfunnel.com/viamgtdcwu

  177. 177.

    Aleta

    August 17, 2018 at 9:30 pm

    @debit: I looked at a few of your photos beyond M. … those pictures of Dani snuggling up each animal are beyond words. And the faces of some of the other cats…I know those expressions.)

  178. 178.

    Jay

    August 17, 2018 at 9:31 pm

    @Suzanne:

    Old DOA Skin here, SOAR Veteran, still own a pair of blue laced vintage Doc’s with some Nazi blood in the sole stitching.

  179. 179.

    Platonailedit

    August 17, 2018 at 9:32 pm

    @hilts:

    Of course he did. Uugh.

  180. 180.

    chris

    August 17, 2018 at 9:33 pm

    @WaterGirl: Looks like. There’s a document attached to Natasha’s tweet.

  181. 181.

    PaulWartenberg

    August 17, 2018 at 9:34 pm

    @Platonailedit:

    according to some of the lawyers I follow on Twitter, sequestering a jury is actually pretty rare. It *is* odd that for a high-profile case like this with the likelihood of foreign intervention (Russians helping their buddy Manafort), but the judge has the right to make that call. So far, most of the experts I’m following haven’t noticed anything out of the ordinary from the judge’s behavior (yes, even his open beratement of the prosecution during the early parts was explained as commonplace).

  182. 182.

    Suzanne

    August 17, 2018 at 9:36 pm

    @Jay:

    a pair of blue laced vintage Doc’s with some Nazi blood in the sole stitching

    You should frame those.

  183. 183.

    Jay

    August 17, 2018 at 9:37 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    He’s killing time between Court cases. He’s not an immigration lawyer, but his firm has people working on that. He’s a Celebrity Tort Lawyer, he’ll probably pivot to Insane Clown POSus NDA’s next week.

    He’s not gonna run, he’s just trolling.

  184. 184.

    Suzanne

    August 17, 2018 at 9:38 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: I have been hoping that an unintended benefit of the Trump era would be some fierce work from America’s best punk and hip-hop artists. I haven’t seen enough yet. The Left needs to get back to it.

  185. 185.

    Jay

    August 17, 2018 at 9:40 pm

    @Suzanne:

    I was thinking of selling them or donating them on Kajijji to some worth young punk who wanted to continue the tradition. They don’t even need resoling.

  186. 186.

    chris

    August 17, 2018 at 9:41 pm

    @Dan B:

    all our friends don’t get the need.

    Lot of that going around. Hemis and big diesels are popular here in rural NS.

    I’ve been watching for a long time and still can’t get over the idea of the soggy old rain forest burning. I loved those woods and the shores but most of the time it was hard to keep a cigarette lit. We were proud to say, “We don’t tan, we rust.”

  187. 187.

    debit

    August 17, 2018 at 9:42 pm

    @WaterGirl: It’s 3 gates, covering the entire door way.

  188. 188.

    debit

    August 17, 2018 at 9:47 pm

    @Aleta: Every single animal in my house just adores Dani. We call Kelpi, the yellow lab mix, her dog mom. I feel so lucky that we have a very harmonious household. There’s the occasional squabble, but mostly it’s one or more animals cuddling with each other.

  189. 189.

    Amir Khalid

    August 17, 2018 at 9:48 pm

    @Geeno:
    There is a famous music venue in Asbury Park, New Jersey called the Stone Pony, which was probably named after Charles Patton’s song Stone Pony Blues like Ronstadt’s band was. I don’t know if Ronstadt and/or The Stone Poneys ever played there; they were from Tucson so were clearly not part of the Jersey music scene

  190. 190.

    Amir Khalid

    August 17, 2018 at 9:50 pm

    @Jay:
    I’ve already seen it, and it is indeed wonderful.

  191. 191.

    MagdaInBlack

    August 17, 2018 at 9:52 pm

    @Suzanne:
    Ok, Im old, and I had no clue what Social D was, so, off to youtube …and oh my lord ! how did I miss them !?!
    I’m in love ?

  192. 192.

    Anotherlurker

    August 17, 2018 at 9:54 pm

    @NotMax: How about Odetta and Sarah Vaughn?

  193. 193.

    Jay

    August 17, 2018 at 9:54 pm

    @Amir Khalid:

    So why didn’t you cut me slack on the spelling,

    Have you become a pedant too?

  194. 194.

    Omnes Omnibus

    August 17, 2018 at 9:59 pm

    @Suzanne: I’ve posted this song here before. English, not American. And an Etonian to boot. Still one takes what one can get.

  195. 195.

    Jay

    August 17, 2018 at 10:03 pm

    @chris:

    When it comes, it’s gonna hit hard. The Killer Whales are starving to death here.

    One would think the sled head’s would have bought a clue several years ago when they had to migrate to Northern Quebec to skidoo, but, nope.

    Too many years of living with out consequences have left them dumb.

  196. 196.

    Omnes Omnibus

    August 17, 2018 at 10:05 pm

    @MagdaInBlack: Better in concert.

  197. 197.

    MagdaInBlack

    August 17, 2018 at 10:11 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus:
    Undoubtedly ?

  198. 198.

    J R in WV

    August 17, 2018 at 10:21 pm

    @zhena gogolia:

    Yes, Ms Ronstadt was a great singer. That’s why she was invited to sing with Dolly Parton and Emmy Lou Harris on the albums Trio… I was heartbroken to learn she could no longer sing due to her Parkinsons – which I had to watch my Uncle fade away from. I’m sure she would give years of continued life to be able to sing for a couple of years.

    As much as I appreciate the work Aretha did, that doesn’t mean there aren’t many other female singers with great talent.

  199. 199.

    chris

    August 17, 2018 at 10:24 pm

    @Jay: Yep, same here. They will celebrate catching the last fish.

  200. 200.

    Another Scott

    August 17, 2018 at 10:28 pm

    @debbie: Yup.

    The proposed parade is Section 1090 of HR 5515.

    Donnie’s signing statement doesn’t mention Section 1090.

    Hehe.

    Of course, Donnie did find it important to reward Vlad by giving him what he wants in Crimea.

    Grr…

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  201. 201.

    Another Scott

    August 17, 2018 at 10:32 pm

    @The Midnight Lurker: Donated. (To both.)

    Looking forward to seeing the picture! ;-)

    Keep fighting!!

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  202. 202.

    satby

    August 17, 2018 at 10:33 pm

    @debit: my group has it. And when she is adopted the fees will end up reimbursing the group, and roll right into the next ones we rescue. But thanks!

    I’m in bed, and I hear her crying in there. I may have to go get her to (not sleep, she’ll jump all over me) with me.

  203. 203.

    Another Scott

    August 17, 2018 at 10:41 pm

    @Suzanne: It is strange, isn’t it? I haven’t seen it either.

    But maybe the push-back is happening in music that I don’t listen to, or something.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  204. 204.

    debit

    August 17, 2018 at 10:43 pm

    @satby: Awww, poor little sweet kitten. She will settle and sleep once she’s snugged in with you.

  205. 205.

    satby

    August 17, 2018 at 10:44 pm

    @satby: yup, tiny bundle of energy is now climbing and rubbing all over me with her itsy little see sharp claws. And purring non-stop. wqccc< she typed that.of

    No sleep for me

  206. 206.

    rikyrah

    August 17, 2018 at 10:44 pm

    @geg6:
    It was nice ?

  207. 207.

    rikyrah

    August 17, 2018 at 10:47 pm

    @debit:
    Awe??
    Adorable ?
    I can see why your daughter is a goner.

  208. 208.

    debit

    August 17, 2018 at 10:55 pm

    @rikyrah: Thank you. She is pretty adorable.

  209. 209.

    debbie

    August 17, 2018 at 11:00 pm

    @Another Scott:

    Grrrr. Can Congress overrule those statements.

  210. 210.

    debbie

    August 17, 2018 at 11:02 pm

    @zhena gogolia:

    Maybe the flu is making me paranoid, but I wasn’t dissing her.

  211. 211.

    debbie

    August 17, 2018 at 11:05 pm

    @Another Scott:

    Also, Putin’s smile in that photo is as expansive as I’ve ever seen. It’s like he just got invited to the prom.

  212. 212.

    Omnes Omnibus

    August 17, 2018 at 11:05 pm

    @Suzanne: @Another Scott: It is never the artists that everyone knows. I am sure that the underground scene is percolating with interesting shit that will never hit main street radio. In the 80s, it was on college radio. Do you still listen to the live-streams of your local college stations? And I did offer an artist who is out there. I got crickets. Say you hate his shit, but if you ignore it, you don’t really get to say no one is doing anything.

  213. 213.

    Another Scott

    August 17, 2018 at 11:32 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: DC is a music radio wasteland. :-(

    I don’t do any streaming, myself (music or video). J likes live sports, so that’s mostly what we watch (tennis and the Boston teams).

    Thanks for the pointer. I’ll check it out this weekend.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  214. 214.

    Suzanne

    August 17, 2018 at 11:41 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: I listened to it and I really liked it! I just didn’t say anything because my liberal elitist white ass was at Costco.

    The Resistance will have paper towels and a very large bag of dog food.

    I wish there was more mainstream music that was political, though. Like how the 60s had all those great anti-war artists. The 80s and 90s had Rage Against The Machine and R.E.M and U2. Like, where the fuck is Green Day? That motherfucker thinks of himself as a musical elder statesman with Something To Say, but he is doing nothing but cash in these days. Motherfucker. I did go see Rise Against last year and Tim McIlrath was pretty outspoken about opposing Trump, and they displayed an upside-down American flag. I really like that band.

  215. 215.

    SWMBO

    August 18, 2018 at 2:57 am

    @debit: I keep telling my husband that the world has gone barking mad. I keep agreeing with Bill “the Bloody” Kristol. Yes it does make me feel unclean.

  216. 216.

    Tehanu

    August 18, 2018 at 2:06 pm

    @burnspbesq:

    20th century American singers: there are Sinatra, Leontyne Price, Ella, and Aretha. Then there’s everybody else.

    What, are you kidding? Elvis (for Chrissake!). Billie Holiday. Judy Garland. Paul Robeson. Helen Morgan. Patsy Cline. Barbra Streisand. Tony Bennett. Johnny Cash. Hank Williams. Marilyn Horne. Martha Reeves. Marvin Gaye.
    @Chetan Murthy: Couldn’t agree more. It is hard to leave friends when you discover that their whole attitude is so negative.

Comments are closed.

Primary Sidebar

Political Action

Postcard Writing Information

Recent Comments

  • Ramalama on In Legal News Today (Sep 27, 2023 @ 5:36am)
  • Tony Jay on Late Night Open Thread: Rude Mechanicals (Sep 27, 2023 @ 5:28am)
  • lowtechcyclist on Late Night Open Thread: Rude Mechanicals (Sep 27, 2023 @ 5:16am)
  • HumboldtBlue on Late Night Open Thread: Rude Mechanicals (Sep 27, 2023 @ 4:14am)
  • Baud on Late Night Open Thread: Rude Mechanicals (Sep 27, 2023 @ 4:07am)

🎈Keep Balloon Juice Ad Free

Become a Balloon Juice Patreon
Donate with Venmo, Zelle or PayPal

Balloon Juice Posts

View by Topic
View by Author
View by Month & Year
View by Past Author

Featuring

Medium Cool
Artists in Our Midst
Authors in Our Midst
We All Need A Little Kindness
What Has Biden Done for You Lately?

Balloon Juice Meetups!

All Meetups
Talk of Meetups – Meetup Planning

Fundraising 2023-24

Wis*Dems Supreme Court + SD-8

Calling All Jackals

Site Feedback
Nominate a Rotating Tag
Submit Photos to On the Road
Balloon Juice Mailing List Signup
Balloon Juice Anniversary (All Links)
Balloon Juice Anniversary (All Posts)

Twitter / Spoutible

Balloon Juice (Spoutible)
WaterGirl (Spoutible)
TaMara (Spoutible)
John Cole
DougJ (aka NYT Pitchbot)
Betty Cracker
Tom Levenson
TaMara
David Anderson
Major Major Major Major
ActualCitizensUnited

Join the Fight!

Join the Fight Signup Form
All Join the Fight Posts

Balloon Juice for Ukraine

Donate

Cole & Friends Learn Español

Introductory Post
Cole & Friends Learn Español

Site Footer

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Comment Policy
  • Our Authors
  • Blogroll
  • Our Artists
  • Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2023 Dev Balloon Juice · All Rights Reserved · Powered by BizBudding Inc

Share this ArticleLike this article? Email it to a friend!

Email sent!