Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

If you are still in the GOP, you are an extremist.

Make the republican party small enough to drown in a bathtub.

fuckem (in honor of the late great efgoldman)

Do not shrug your shoulders and accept the normalization of untruths.

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

Let us savor the impending downfall of lawless scoundrels who richly deserve the trouble barreling their way.

You don’t get rid of your umbrella while it’s still raining.

Thanks to your bullshit, we are now under siege.

White supremacy is terrorism.

Anyone who bans teaching American history has no right to shape America’s future.

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

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

Impressively dumb. Congratulations.

Take hopelessness and turn it into resilience.

We still have time to mess this up!

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

A last alliance of elves and men. also pet photos.

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

Shallow, uninformed, and lacking identity

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

We are builders in a constant struggle with destroyers. let’s win this.

Fuck the extremist election deniers. What’s money for if not for keeping them out of office?

Nothing worth doing is easy.

Technically true, but collectively nonsense

You are here: Home / Open Threads / Open Thread: It’s a Blizzard Out There!

Open Thread: It’s a Blizzard Out There!

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Just got back from a wonderful week completely unplugged, exploring wonderful Havana and some nearby beaches.  Back to the grind today with a week’s worth of work to catch up on…but it was worth it.

Of course, some of the critters were not amused and are doing their best to hang out with me while simultaneously ignoring me.

We are awaiting blizzard-like conditions in about two hours, it’s raining now. I have a house full of company and well-stocked cupboards, so we’re all set.

Open thread

Reader Interactions

76Comments

  3. 3.

    swiftfox

    Tried to talk family into doing Cuba cruise instead of the standard Caribbean that does not appeal to me. Voted down, of course, so I did not go. I missed nothing. Would like to see it before the first Taco Bell franchise gets there.

  6. 6.

    SenyorDave

    A Fox Headline:
    Kellyanne Conway slams Huffman, Loughlin as ‘stupid’ over admissions cheating scheme

    Normally, this would be a true example of the pot calling the kettle black and would be the height of hypocrisy. But hypocrisy is a meaningless word to anyone involved with Trump. KAC works for a man who LITERALLY RAN A SHAM UNIVERSITY.

    If George Conway has any sense he’ll divorce her ASAP, she really is an evil person.

  8. 8.

    TaMara (HFG)

    @jeffreyw: I actually watched that! I have an entire Cuba story to write, complete with photos, but first I must get the backlog of work done. Self-employed means not really having time off. But not complaining!

  9. 9.

    Betty Cracker

    Would love to hear more about your impressions of Havana when you have time. I’ve never been, but the place has always fascinated me in literature, music and the tales of friends and relatives who’ve been.

    Anyone following the Manafort sentencing? Sounds like Judge Berman is about to bring the hammer down.

  12. 12.

    Ohio Mom

    Misc Cincinnati news:

    The Covington Catholic smirker’s Family is now sueing CNN in addition to the Washington Post.

    The family of the incorrectly doxxed Cov Catholic student is involved in pushing a Kentucky anti-doxxing bill.

    Last night Sheriff David Clark and Steve Bannon headlined a Build the Wall event in a posh downtown Cincinnati Hotel and drew less than 100 people. Although that might be because their target audience doesn’t do downtown. Too hard to park and it’s dangerous!

    I have to keep reminding myself I live here because there are great services for my son.

  13. 13.

    Betty Cracker

    @Raven: I’m reading the TPM liveblog. So far, it doesn’t sound like Berman is buying Manafort’s bullshit like the last judge did!

  17. 17.

    MattF

    @Betty Cracker: Judge is still not amused.

    Judge Berman Jackson is now turning to the crimes that are in front of her to consider. “It is hard to overstate the number of lies, and the amount of fraud,” she says. Unlike what the defense suggests, she says that “This is not just a failure to comport to some pesky regulations.”

  18. 18.

    Raven

    @Betty Cracker: MSNBC has some kind of contact in the courtroom and they are reading statements from Judge Jackson. She just told him to stop the “no collusion” bullshit.

  19. 19.

    rk

    Yet another tape of Tucker Carlson. Listening to it made me sick. Question for the men out there. What percentage of men talk like this? I ask because in all my years I have never heard men talk this way. I know it’s not all, but the fact that this was all done out in the open, broadcast on the radio indicates that it is more prevalent than we’d like to believe. These guys have no shame whatsoever in talking about sex with underage girls, hinting that they’d have their way with unwilling women. The part that pained me the most was when he compared her to a “wounded gazelle” and ripe for the taking. So he/they would take advantage of a vulnerable girl. No wonder they all support Brett Kavanaugh. I have a daughter and this just hurt and made me furious.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0F9SxX9wgtk

  20. 20.

    MisterForkbeard

    @MattF: Oh look, a Judge that takes her responsibilities seriously even for rich white guys. So far.

    Crossing fingers about the sentencing.

  21. 21.

    MisterForkbeard

    @rk: I don’t. I do know a few guys in high school that would make sexual jokes (and yes, they were clearly jokes) about their friend’s little sisters, to needle their friends. But it was always in a “This is funny because it’s so ridiculous and out of line” kind of way. Not what Tucker was doing.

    I was uncomfortable with it then. All of those guys are pretty upstanding now, too.

  22. 22.

    germy

    There was a school shooting today in Brazil, in São Paulo state: 2 teenager shooters entered and killed at least 8 people, including 5 students and 3 school employees. Just happened so details are still sketchy https://t.co/mQbuIsEtOg— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) March 13, 2019

  23. 23.

    SiubhanDuinne

    I think Canada has just grounded the MAX 8, but can’t yet find confirmation. If true, the cheese stands alone.

  24. 24.

    Kay

    @Dorothy A. Winsor:

    She’s not, but don’t get your hopes up. It doesn’t mean anything. Sometimes it’s the opposite of how it sounds. They do a big wind up that sounds favorable to one side and that’s just an predicate to the other side winning. It’s really odd, but it’s true.

    The judge at the last sentencing said a lot that sounded stern before he got to “blameless life”.

  25. 25.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    as others have said, Judge Jackson ain’t buying any bullshit today

    Natasha Bertrand @ NatashaBertrand
    Oof. Judge ABJ has called out Manafort over his comments today– says they seem to have been prompted by the comments he made at the last hearing. Says “elements of remorse and acceptance of responsibility” in submissions so far have been “completely absent.”
    Judge ABJ has gone back to this now: “The ‘no collusion’ refrain that runs through the entire defense memorandum is unrelated to matters at hand.”
    “It’s hard to understand why an attorney would write that…The ‘no collusion’ mantra is simply a non sequitur.” It’s also not accurate, since the investigation is ongoing, she says.

    that last one looks like a direct (okay, technically indirect) STFU to the President of These United States from a co-equal branch of government.
    Fifty quatloos says at least 8 years, consecutive (borrowing language from TeeVee lawyer friends)

  27. 27.

    MattF

    @MisterForkbeard: The whole concept that a Federal Judge is a powerful person you should not try to fool or anger seems to be entirely outside Manafort’s field of view.

  30. 30.

    Kay

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    It’s either an over-reaction that we’re wisely not buying into or….Trump is a bad manager :)

    Both or either. No one knows. Well, we know the second part.

  32. 32.

    Dorothy A. Winsor

    BREAKING: Paul Manafort has been sentenced to:
    – Count 1: 60 months, with 30 months concurrent with EDVA sentence
    – Count 2: 13 months, to run consecutive to count 1 and the EDVA sentence

  33. 33.

    germy

    BREAKING: Paul Manafort has been sentenced to:- Count 1: 60 months, with 30 months concurrent with EDVA sentence- Count 2: 13 months, to run consecutive to count 1 and the EDVA sentence— Zoe Tillman (@ZoeTillman) March 13, 2019

  34. 34.

    MisterForkbeard

    @Baud: Oh yeah. Lots of that.

    I’m not as old now as Tucker was then and I know better. That said, I HAVE said things that HR would get me in trouble for, if I hadn’t said them solely with a group of private friends. Again, as jokes and still nowhere near Tucker’s statements.

    But I do think a lot of dudes act like Tucker. How many that is, I dont know. Even 5% of men would be a staggeringly large amount of people.

  35. 35.

    TaMara (HFG)

    The winds have picked up, sleeting. I just put the protesting ducks into their coop – they were fine, but I was not going out in the middle of it when they suddenly decide the wind and sleet are too much to bear. ??

  39. 39.

    Bruce K

    Judge Jackson gave Manafort six years plus, according to Zoe Tillman.

    BREAKING: Paul Manafort has been sentenced to:- Count 1: 60 months, with 30 months concurrent with EDVA sentence- Count 2: 13 months, to run consecutive to count 1 and the EDVA sentence— Zoe Tillman (@ZoeTillman) March 13, 2019

  42. 42.

    Another Scott

    Zoe Tillman Verified account @ZoeTillman

    BREAKING: Paul Manafort has been sentenced to:
    – Count 1: 60 months, with 30 months concurrent with EDVA sentence
    – Count 2: 13 months, to run consecutive to count 1 and the EDVA sentence
    ===

    FWIW. Don’t know if that’s it, or just the first of several charges…

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  43. 43.

    hueyplong

    So we’re looking at 7.5 years total for the two cases, not far off the 8 yr guess above.

    Shoulda been more.

  44. 44.

    PJ

    @germy: Only an extra 43 months – 73 months total with the earlier sentencing, so he’ll be out in 6 years (minus time served, probably). Fuck him and his corrupt ass.

    ETA: It’s apparently 90 months total, because the EDVA charges ran consecutively. Still too little.

  46. 46.

    TaMara (HFG)

    @Betty Cracker: It is as wonderful as those who visit and love it have said. Worth the hop from FL. And we stayed at a sweet Casa Particular that I would recommend to anyone. I feel like I now have family in Havana.

  48. 48.

    SiubhanDuinne

    BREAKING: Paul Manafort has been sentenced to:
    – Count 1: 60 months, with 30 months concurrent with EDVA sentence
    – Count 2: 13 months, to run consecutive to count 1 and the EDVA sentence

  53. 53.

    Another Scott

    HighlySelectiveHat @Popehat

    So that’s 43 months additional time on top of the EDVA sentence, for a total of 90 months, or 7.5 years. He gets credit for time served, will get good-time credit of up to 15%, and may get additional credit under the new and untested First Step Act.

    ===

    It’s a good thing he wasn’t charged with trying to vote or something… :-/

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  56. 56.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    Wow, politics aside (to the extent that that’s possible), given all the talk about the soft sentences for white collar crime in the last week, I’m really surprised she didn’t come down harder on him.

  59. 59.

    Shana

    @Ohio Mom: That reminds me: I’ll be in Cincy in mid-October. Family wedding one weekend followed by The Wodehouse Society convention the following weekend. I think I’ll be staying in town in between to visit MIL and other family, probably in the Mason area but I’ll have a car. Want to try to get together sometime during the week?

  62. 62.

    Baud

    Does anyone know if this was within the Guidelines range? The Virginia sentence was a substantial downward departure from the Guidelines.

  65. 65.

    WaterGirl

    Manafort didn’t get enough time, in my opinion. I think there might be one more sentencing to go, from some other court. Or am I wrong about that?

  67. 67.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @WaterGirl: one of the MSNBC former-federal-prosecutors just rattled off the states where charges could but have not yet been filed. I think it included NY, Illinois and Rhode Island

  70. 70.

    R-Jud

    For those of you interested in reading more about Brexit, one of the more entertaining and incisive pundits is Marina Hyde:

    The story of Brexit since the referendum has in large part been the story of politicians finding out in real time what the thing they had already done actually meant, then deferring the admission or even acceptance of it. We hear a lot about low-information voters, but low-information politicians are the bigger problem.

  71. 71.

    Jay C

    @R-Jud:

    That’s a brutal piece (though entirely well-deserved by its targets:

    “On close inspection, the “beacon of democracy” turns out to be a bin fire”.

  73. 73.

    J R in WV

    We would really like to do a Cuba music trip, love Cuban traditional music. Perhaps a bunch of Jackals could all do the same trip? After a search [Cuban Music travel] it doesn’t even look very expensive…

  75. 75.

    Shana

    @karen marie: I’ll try at some point, but in the meantime: the US Society (there’s also an English Society, but ours is older) meets every two years for a long weekend. There’s sometimes a cricket game, but always a cocktail party Friday evening, “riveting talks” on Saturday followed by a banquet on Saturday evening – with costumes if you’re inclined – and a brunch on Sunday including a skit by one of the local chapters.

    It is, as you might imagine, a fun group of people. We frequently get a bunch from England, sometimes a woman from Japan who does Wodehouse manga, a representative or two from the Dutch society. Usually around 200 people.

    There are local chapters all over the country. DC, Chicago, Detroit, Minneapolis/St. Paul, LA, San Francisco, Philly, Texas, and New England are some of the bigger ones. The chapters have occasional meetings/parties.

    More info available at wodehouse.org. I think membership is only $20-25 a year and includes a quarterly newsletter.

  76. 76.

    karen marie

    @Shana: I had seen something about it years ago but never followed up. I should. I read Wodehouse when life gets me down. They never fail to make me laugh no matter how often read. Thanks!

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