Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Thanks to your bullshit, we are now under siege.

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

Can we lighten up on the doomsday scenarios?

It is possible to do the right thing without the promise of a cookie.

He imagines himself as The Big Bad, Who Is Universally Feared… instead of The Big Jagoff, Who Is Universally Mocked.

If senate republicans had any shame, they’d die of it.

And we’re all out of bubblegum.

Putin must be throwing ketchup at the walls.

Something needs to be done about our bogus SCOTUS.

Sadly, there is no cure for stupid.

“When somebody takes the time to draw up a playbook, they’re gonna use it.”

Everybody saw this coming.

You’re just a puppy masquerading as an old coot.

Authoritarian republicans are opposed to freedom for the rest of us.

Baby steps, because the Republican Party is full of angry babies.

Oh FFS you might as well trust a 6-year-old with a flamethrower.

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

White supremacy is terrorism.

Putting aside our relentless self-interest because the moral imperative is crystal clear.

If West Virginia and San Francisco had a love child.

He wakes up lying, and he lies all day.

A snarling mass of vitriolic jackals

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

Republicans are the party of chaos and catastrophe.

You are here: Home / Open Threads / Poor Poor Pitiful Devin

Poor Poor Pitiful Devin

by | 205 Comments

This post is in: 

I was going to write something about Devin’s stupid lawsuit against Twitter, but this pretty much encapsulates my view of his hurt fee fees over some mean tweets:

Also, what a snowflake/WATB.

Reader Interactions

205Comments

  2. 2.

    Amir Khalid

    I have no understanding of civil litigation in America. Does Nunes stand any chance of actually getting this case to trial?

  4. 4.

    kindness

    I just read DailyKos’s version of this. This is too funny! Now if only the good people of Fresno/Visalia will figure out they are electing a moron and feel ashamed enough to vote for someone better……Na. Who am I kidding?

  7. 7.

    sharl

    @Amir Khalid: The handful of lawyers I follow on Law Twitter say this is dead on arrival. In fact, they can’t find evidence he actually filed a lawsuit with a court system, though it’s possible it just hasn’t been logged into a widely accessible online judicial system yet. So far though, we only know about this because of the report on Fox News.

  8. 8.

    MattF

    On the other hand, Nunes’ complaint provides a comprehensive list of the insults that really, really bother him– so it’s not completely useless.

  9. 9.

    germy

    @sharl:

    In fact, they can’t find evidence he actually filed a lawsuit with a court system

    He’s filing in the Court of Public Opinion.

  10. 10.

    Gin & Tonic

    @MattF: It has sure led to a proliferation of new or renamed Twitter accounts of the “Devin Nunes’ Mom’s Cow’s Dog” form.

  11. 11.

    Gary K

    Had to scratch my head a bit about WATB, wondering what voice range was replacing the Sopranos.

  12. 12.

    rp

    @Amir Khalid: I haven’t read the complaint, and I’m still 100% certain that this case won’t survive a Motion to Dismiss for failure to state a claim. IOW, Twitter will file a motion saying that, even if everything in the complaint is assumed to be true, Nunes has failed to allege a legally valid claim. So this will be over fairly quickly.

  13. 13.

    sharl

    @sharl: OK, here’s a TechCrunch piece that provides a scribd.com link to the Nunes complaint. Still doesn’t prove it actually has been filed, though the document indicates the intent is to file in Virginia, “IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR THE COUNTY OF HENRICO.” So…whatev.

  14. 14.

    Ruckus

    @kindness:
    They elect him because that puts him 3000 miles away most of the time. He has almost no power or ability to hurt them in DC, so at least they don’t have to run into him if he isn’t there.

  15. 15.

    bemused

    I have a hard time deciding who is more stupid, Nunes or Louie Gohmert. And then a lot more republican contenders come to mind.

  17. 17.

    Christopher Fisher

    IANAL, but it seems like this would be the sort of thing that a judge would take a look at and say, “Really?” before dismissing the claim and awarding legal fees to the Defendant.

  19. 19.

    randy khan

    @MattF:

    On the other hand, Nunes’ complaint provides a comprehensive list of the insults that really, really bother him– so it’s not completely useless.

    i’m looking forward to reading all of the tweets in one convenient document.

  20. 20.

    Ruckus

    @bemused:
    In a race to the bottom, there are many winners in republican world.
    Nunes and Gomert may not be the bottom of the barrel.
    Isn’t that a wonderful thought for the day?

  22. 22.

    Anonymous At Work

    IANAPL (P = Practicing), but what’s Virginia law like for sanctioning attorneys who make frivolous claims? Does Twitter have a “clap-back” against such a horribly conceived lawsuit?

  23. 23.

    Aleta

    Off topic: SC ruling (case description is below)

    SCOTUS Blog

    Next opinion is from Alito, in Nielsen v. Preap. 


    The Ninth Circuit is reversed and the case is remanded.
    * 

    
In these cases, the Ninth Circuit had held that a provision requiring the mandatory detention of non-citizens who have committed certain dangerous crimes applies only if a non-citizen is arrested by immigration officials as soon as he is released from jail. The Supreme Court rejects this interpretation.

    Here’s the opinion in Nielsen v. Preap. Jennifer Chacon will have our analysis:
 
https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/18pdf/16-1363_a86c.pdf



    The vote is 5-4.
    Breyer dissents, joined by Ginsburg, Sotomayor and Kagan.

    Breyer writes that the law’s “language, its structure, and relevant canons of interpretation make clear that the Secretary cannot hold an alien without a bail hearing unless the alien is taken into custody when the alien is released from criminal custody.”

    Breyer is reading from his dissent from the bench, which is relatively rare.
    It’s clear that Breyer thinks that the majority viewpoint is not just the wrong one, but clearly wrong on it’s face. Hence, reading from the bench isn’t much of a surprise here.

    Breyer’s conclusion is indeed strong: “To speak less technically, I fear that the Court’s contrary interpretation will work serious harm to the principles for which American law has long stood.”

    From Ballotpedia

    The case: Under the mandatory detention provision of the Immigration and Naturalization Act, the government is required to detain noncitizen U.S. residents who were convicted of certain crimes “when…released” from criminal custody. The government had relied on this provision to begin detaining lawful permanent residents years after their release from criminal custody. Three filed suit, alleging that because they were not detained immediately when they were released from criminal custody, the government could not rely on the mandatory detention provision to hold them without bond. The Ninth Circuit agreed, ruling that the mandatory detention provision only applies to noncitizens who are detained by immigration authorities promptly following their release from criminal custody.

    The issue: “Whether a criminal alien becomes exempt from mandatory detention under 8 U.S.C. 1226(c) if, after the alien is released from criminal custody, the Department of Homeland Security does not take him into immigration custody immediately.”

  24. 24.

    germy

    When @RyanLizza reviewed videos he captured of the people following him, he discovered: the redhead was Devin’s sister-in-law, the chubby guy his brother, the guy with CA plates his dad, and the woman from a newer Yukon was Devin’s mom & campaign treasurer, Toni Dian Nunes.
    NUTS. https://t.co/c6CoWALjtX
    — Polly Sigh (@dcpoll) October 1, 2018

  26. 26.

    Amir Khalid

    @MattF:

    Nunes’ complaint provides a comprehensive list of the insults

    So all he’s done is provide his tormentors with a crib sheet? That’s genius.

  27. 27.

    WaterGirl

    @MattF:

    On the other hand, Nunes’ complaint provides a comprehensive list of the insults that really, really bother him– so it’s not completely useless.

    I like the way you think!

  28. 28.

    Barbara

    Nothing would make me happier at this point for Twitter to finally admit that it has no profit making strategy and to fold. I only use Twitter to follow speeches through trusted interlocutors like Daniel Dale. Otherwise it’s just a place for the wasted effort of throwing both good and bad snarky comments into the same boneyard.

  29. 29.

    different-church-lady

    Option #3 is that Twitter could roll over, die, and thus stop pouring ebola encrusted anthrax all over our public discourse.

  32. 32.

    Mainmata

    @Amir Khalid: Absolutely not and not just because there is zero evidence but also because Twitter is a privately owned social media so he has no legal standing.

  33. 33.

    mrmoshpotato

    @bemused: The wonderful thing about the human brain is that it can hold two diametrically unopposed ideas at the same time.

    In other words, they both equally stupid. And, for clarity, the level of stupid is REALLY REALLY STUPID.

  34. 34.

    Miss Bianca

    @rikyrah: wasn’t Sirota the guy who wrote that “Beto is so not a True Progressive!11!” article for the Guardian that started the anti-Beto backlash? Why yes, yes I believe he was. And now we know why.

  35. 35.

    mrmoshpotato

    I’m writing a Suessian story about this: Oh All The Cowfucking That Discovery Will Expose.

  36. 36.

    J R in WV

    Parker, the twit-er quoted in the original post, seems to assume that Twitter, the corporation, has any interest in appearing to be even-handed or moderate. Why would Parker Molloy even dream this in his dreams?

    It appears to me that these new “social media” tool companies all would prefer to be also tools of the fascist minority, and so will use this lawsuit as a method for conforming to their leader’s wishes.

    Trump seems to be their most popular user, in some peculiar fashion, so where do they go from here?

    In looking Parker up I see that she thinks Joe Manchin is a flaming trash pile, so she can’t be all bad.

  38. 38.

    WaterGirl

    @Miss Bianca: The question that remains is… was Sirota writing the article so he could get Wilmer’s attention so he could get the gig, or was Sirota already on board with Wilmer and that was a condition of his hiring, or does Sirota just not have any integrity.

    Please check all that apply.

  40. 40.

    trollhattan

    @kindness:
    Relentless heat and air pollution can have mal effects on locals. OTOH li’l Devin figured out his escape and on their (and Vlads?) dime, so maybe him dumb like fox.

  42. 42.

    bemused

    @Ruckus:

    It’s a more frenzied race to the bottom by the day but the really horrifying thing is that there doesn’t seem to be a bottom.

    @mrmoshpotato:

    They have created an incomprehensible level of really, really stupid.

  43. 43.

    smintheus

    Teddy Roosevelt successfully sued Mark Twain for $150 million when he published "The Hunting of the Cow", so Devin Nunes is just following tradition.

  44. 44.

    bemused

    I love this Jonathan Chait paragraph: “I have spent innumerable hours excavating the loopy theories emanating from Nunes. And yet none of that prepared me for the full barking-mad preposterousness of his lawsuit”.

    I have no doubt Nunes can go even more loopy.

  45. 45.

    matt

    We’re being driven into a fascist, post-truth information shitscape by these efforts. Is there no defense?

  46. 46.

    PPCLI

    Don’t forget that Liz Mair is also a target of this suit. The point is to threaten ruinous legal fees for anyone critical of RWNJs. A page out of the Trump/Thiel notebook.
    No doubt Nunes’ lawyer fees are being paid by some super-rich RWNJ. This is part of a long-termstrategy and it has to be fought hard.

  47. 47.

    SFAW

    @matt:

    We’re being driven into a fascist, post-truth information shitscape by these efforts. Is there no defense?

    Hitlary would be worse?

  49. 49.

    rikyrah

    Lips pursed.

    Wisconsin focus group suggests Trump’s dishonesty is a problem
    03/19/19 10:06 AM
    By Steve Benen

    Democrats suffered a series of bitter disappointments in the last presidential election cycle, but Donald Trump’s narrow victory in Wisconsin was among the most severe. The Badger State had supported the Democratic ticket in each of the last seven presidential elections – Barack Obama carried Wisconsin with relative ease in both of his national races – but the state nevertheless backed Trump by about 0.7% of the statewide vote.

    It’s against this backdrop that Axios reported yesterday on a focus group conducted in Appleton, Wis., featuring a group of swing voters, most of whom voted for Obama in 2012, before switching to Trump in 2016. There were a variety of interesting takeaways, but one of the things that stood out for me was a common thread among some of the voters who backed the Republican, but who aren’t sure about voting for him again.

    “I think he’s a dirty crook that lies, cheats, and steals when he can,” said George Engelmann, a 49-year-old Obama/Trump voter. […]

    Adam K., a 47-year-old Obama/Trump voter, said he wishes Trump would own the things he’s lied about. “He’s been caught in a lot of lies. … You know, just admit that you made a mistake and say ‘I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that.’”

    Amanda S., a 39-year-old Obama/Trump voter, said: “He’s getting stuff done, but he lies. I don’t think he’s a very good person, but he’s getting stuff done, so it’s hard.”

    What the PHUCK is he getting done? Just name 3 things that if you aren’t rich, he’s ‘gotten done’.
    Phuck outta here with that idiocy.

  50. 50.

    Brickley Paiste

    Well, I think Devin Nunes is going to make me join twitter: Look for me @DevinNunesLeftTesticle

  52. 52.

    Peale

    @SFAW: That’s works as a defense mechanism, and denial is a powerful drug. But I think we need a bit better plan.

  56. 56.

    rikyrah

    About AOC and that poll that has recently been released showing her underwater in her own district.
    I was reading the Twitters, and someone reminded me that this is post the fallout of Amazon deciding against putting its center in her district, due to the lobbying of the purity ponies.
    And, that 80 union leaders wrote to Bezos directly to ask him to reconsider the project.

    This person wrote that these Union Leaders have long memories…and that is absolutely true!

  57. 57.

    Barbara

    @rikyrah: What is he getting done? Well he seems to be doing what he can to destroy the American agriculture industry. Stories about the Nebraska floods note how many farms are already on the precipice because of the counter tariffs from other nations. So, you know, they didn’t say the stuff he was getting done was actually good.

  58. 58.

    Darrin Ziliak (formerly glocksman)

    What’s interesting is that Nunes filed the suit in Henrico County, Virginia while Twitter is based in San Francisco and Nunes represents California’s 22nd District and presumably owns a home there.

    I believe he’s suing in Virginia because California has an anti SLAPP law while Virginia does not.

  59. 59.

    WaterGirl

    @rikyrah: Could these people be stupid enough that they can turn “sending the right signals about the right people” into “getting stuff done”?

    Three possible actual things trump has done:

    1. locking up the brown immigrants

    2. locking children in cages

    3. tax cuts, cause you know those poor people are gonna be rich one day, so that counts for them.

  61. 61.

    Barbara

    @rikyrah: I don’t know anything in granular detail about either the proposal or the economic status of her district, but for those of us in Northern Virginia, the opponents to the Amazon proposal in Arlington struck me as completely bonkers. Arlington has depended forever on robust occupancy of commercial space in various metro hubs, and Crystal City, where Amazon would go, has suffered a lot of vacancies as federal agencies have moved to other locations, and their contractors have followed suit. Restaurants and retailers have closed. Vacant office space has no impact on the cost of housing because people still buy in order to be close to DC, but it has a big impact on commercial tax revenue. The “subsidies” are tied to improvements and are spread out over a relatively long time and will likely benefit other businesses. It’s hard for me to see how we could have turned this proposal down. I just don’t have the same understanding of what is going on in AOC’s district, but really, I believe you do have to evaluate these closely based on those kinds of details. The opponents to Amazon in Virginia did not do that and gained no traction.

  65. 65.

    Mandalay

    IANAL so I have no idea if this is true, but I sure hope so:

    …if some Trump appointee judge tries to give Nunes a break by permitting discovery for the Mom and Cow accounts that would create precedent for Hillary Clinton and the DNC to seek the real identity of thousands of online commenters and trolls, and it would look very bad for the RNC if it turned out that there were offices where Republican Super-PACs and groups like the NRA had people paid to post derogatory comments about DNC candidates all day long.

    https://thehill.com/homenews/house/434642-nunes-sues-twitter-users-for-more-than-250m?mode=comments#disqus_thread

    Careful what you ask for Devin…

  67. 67.

    AThornton

    @rikyrah:

    Wouldn’t take that poll too seriously. Remember about half of Americans thought MLK was a communist and a directly paid agent of the Soviet Union; conservatives are still pushing that line today. Rep. Ocasio-Cortez is outside the permitted US political discourse, has 2.1 million twitter followers*, and so the corporate propaganda machine has to try and take her down.

    * average Fox News daily audience is ~2.8 million to compare

  68. 68.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    @Mandalay:Ehen as a Republican these days ever resisted the temptation to stick their wedding tackle into a meat grinder?

    I

  70. 70.

    VOR

    @rikyrah: Trump’s accomplishments, as seen by his base: Tax cuts, which make liberals unhappy. Supreme court picks, who give liberals a sad. Federal court picks, which own the libs. Muslim ban.

    The real accomplishment is giving validation to them about their bigotry and emboldening them to be public about their rage.

  73. 73.

    chris

    @rikyrah: Well he is hurting all the right people. You know, women, children, the old, sick and poor.// This is one hellish thread, scroll up:

    This budget would take food away from the hungry, shelter away from the impoverished, health care away from the sick, assistance away from people with disabilities. How cruel can you be? You don't get to propose policies like this and still pretend to care about people.— Bobby Kogan (@BBKogan) March 19, 2019

  74. 74.

    Darrin Ziliak (formerly glocksman)

    @Mandalay:

    IANAL so I have no idea if this is true, but I sure hope so:

    “…if some Trump appointee judge tries to give Nunes a break by permitting discovery for the Mom and Cow accounts that would create precedent for Hillary Clinton and the DNC to seek the real identity of thousands of online commenters and trolls, and it would look very bad for the RNC if it turned out that there were offices where Republican Super-PACs and groups like the NRA had people paid to post derogatory comments about DNC candidates all day long.

    https://thehill.com/homenews/house/434642-nunes-sues-twitter-users-for-more-than-250m?mode=comments#disqus_thread“

    If the suit papers are correct it’s filed in state court, not a Federal court.
    Trump doesn’t appoint state judges, though I’m sure he’d like to.

  77. 77.

    Gin & Tonic

    @Barbara: NYC is not wanting for commercial tenants. And no disrespect to NoVa, but if the choice is Crystal City vs New York City, where do you think the modern creative companies would locate to find modern creative staff? This was just Bezos trying to shake down NYC, knowing that Andrew Cuomo is and always will be a sucker.

  78. 78.

    rikyrah

    @Barbara:

    You know….large parts of Nebraska are now rivers…and yet, I don’t see it on my tv.
    Am I being too sensitive to point out that if this was 44, we would be seeing pictures from Nebraska all the time?

    But, like you, if you aren’t rich, I want you to tell me five things that this clown has done.

  84. 84.

    Darrin Ziliak (formerly glocksman)

    @Brickley Paiste:

    I’d let you keep your AR.
    Though I’d limit you to 5 round magazines and treat possession of larger capacity ones the way possession of an unregistered machine gun is treated.

  86. 86.

    Mandalay

    @rikyrah:

    About AOC and that poll that has recently been released showing her underwater in her own district.

    I think her mistake was not opposing the sweetheart deal with Amazon, but gloating about her victory. She could and should have said that there were two sides to the issue, but overall the Amazon’s decision to walk away was the better outcome for New York. Instead she tweeted this vitriol:

    Anything is possible: today was the day a group of dedicated, everyday New Yorkers & their neighbors defeated Amazon’s corporate greed, its worker exploitation, and the power of the richest man in the world.

    While I agree with her sentiment, her tone is horrendous. This going to come back to haunt her in 2020.

    But for me the real villain is Bill de Blasio. He always wanted that deal with Amazon so that he could brag about it. But the negotiations were done behind closed doors in smoke filled rooms. It stank of being a done deal, with no input allowed from those who were concerned about the downside. Worse yet, when the whole thing fell apart de Blasio threw himself a pity party and blamed Amazon instead of taking a hard look in the mirror.

  87. 87.

    MisterForkbeard

    @rikyrah: “Don’t sell any more weapons intended for war” is actually a pretty huge improvement over what we’ve got now, isn’t it?

    Though if you’re willing to ban them, I’d think you’d be willing to confiscate.

  88. 88.

    Brickley Paiste

    @Darrin Ziliak (formerly glocksman):

    Personally, I don’t care about ARs. I don’t see the point in owning centerfire semi-autos.

    The fact that “ban assault weapons” is such a rallying cry in this country just demonstrates that most people who advocate “gun control” don’t do so for the purpose of lowering gun deaths – most of them are working through some kind of personal phobia about firearms.

    https://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/14/sunday-review/the-assault-weapon-myth.html

  89. 89.

    matt

    IMO the ‘Brickley Paiste’ troll should be banned from here, if more violent means aren’t available.

  90. 90.

    BobS

    I’m assuming there’s history, but may I ask why all the hostility directed at Brickley Paste (whose comment about Nunes suggests they’re on the same side of the Nunes issue as virtually everyone else who’s commented)?

  93. 93.

    Brachiator

    @rikyrah:

    “I think he’s a dirty crook that lies, cheats, and steals when he can,” said George Engelmann, a 49-year-old Obama/Trump voter. […]

    Adam K., a 47-year-old Obama/Trump voter, said he wishes Trump would own the things he’s lied about. “He’s been caught in a lot of lies. … You know, just admit that you made a mistake and say ‘I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that.’”

    Amanda S., a 39-year-old Obama/Trump voter, said: “He’s getting stuff done, but he lies. I don’t think he’s a very good person, but he’s getting stuff done, so it’s hard.”

    Three good lines of attack that the Democrats can use to demolish Trump. Including the last (“he’s getting stuff done”) which can hit his actual lack of accomplishment. What has he done: he holds the record for the most lies by a president, and probably also the most Twitter rants.

  97. 97.

    Brickley Paiste

    @matt:

    Thanks for your thoughts, Matt. May I call you, Matt? I posted a completely innocuous post making fun of Devin Nunes and idiot just turns and attacks me. I ask him what his fucking problem is and another idiot (this is a guy who is sore that there aren’t as many football threads as their used to be because he really likes to masturbate while watching young African American men inflict brain damage on one another) jumps in with an insult.

    And I’m the problem.

    Har-de-fucking-har.

    You know there’s a pie filter, right? That you can protect your wittle snow-flake eyes from ever seeing anything I write? But now, better to pollute the thread with pointless calls for banning. Nice life on you, Matt. I mean matt.

  98. 98.

    Roger Moore

    @Darrin Ziliak (formerly glocksman):

    I believe he’s suing in Virginia because California has an anti SLAPP law while Virginia does not.

    IIRC, Virginia has an anti-SLAPP law, but California’s is much stronger and allows a suit to be dismissed before discovery. If they’re serious about fighting, I would certainly expect Twitter’s lawyers to move to have the suit transferred to California.

  99. 99.

    SFAW

    @matt:

    IMO the ‘Brickley Paiste’ troll should be banned from here, if more violent means aren’t available

    You could always look at him/it from the “Big Tent theory” point of view, i.e., that even utter fucking morons are allowed to consider themselves Democrats — not that I think he/it really is. [ETA: I don’t subscribe to the “Big Tent without Limits” idea, by the way. Just throwing it out for consideration.]

    Violence? Come on.

  104. 104.

    trollhattan

    @Amir Khalid:
    Yes and no (that is unless you have the required federal license to possess a full-automatic weapon). However the so-called “bump stocks” are not yet outlawed and they effectively make the conversion without violating the letter of the law. I never heard of them before Stephen Paddock introduced us to industrial-scale slaughter and BTW, he could not have done what he did without his military-sourced arsenal.

  106. 106.

    SFAW

    @?BillinGlendaleCA:
    I’m wondering if Cleek could modify his filter, so that instead of pie-related stuff when creatures like BP start their trolling, we get some of your photos.

    At the moment, I have never pied anyone, but with a mod like that, I might consider it.

  107. 107.

    Darrin Ziliak (formerly glocksman)

    @Brickley Paiste:

    Personally, I don’t care about ARs. I don’t see the point in owning centerfire semi-autos.

    They’re decent deer hunting weapons in states where you can use a rifle to hunt.
    An SKS with proper ammo is a good brush rifle, if a bit heavy.

    They’re also toys for those who like the ‘military look’ and/or veterans who trained with similar rifles in the service.
    Though like I said earlier, no civilian needs high capacity magazines for them.

    If you expect a gang to attack you, that’s what your local police SWAT team is for, not your AR.

  109. 109.

    trollhattan

    @SFAW:
    On that topic I’m finding the pie set volatile; it sticks for awhile then disappears and requires reentering the nyms.

  111. 111.

    Brickley Paiste

    IMO the ‘Brickley Paiste’ troll should be banned from here, if more violent means aren’t available

    America has a violence problem, Matt. I mean matt.

    Do better.

  112. 112.

    mr gravity

    This has inspired me to create my first internet meme. I hope I don’t come to regret it.

  113. 113.

    SFAW

    @matt:

    I guess I’m more on the Nazi Puncher end of the spectrum than the Nazi Debater end.

    I don’t think he’s a Nazi, just a run-of-the-mill troll/asshole, with delusions of intelligence.

  115. 115.

    SFAW

    @Barbara:

    Let’s piss off all sides equally is not a good look

    “Then I must be doing something right” is, I believe, the standard rejoinder when people — usually RWMFs — do shit like that.

  117. 117.

    Mandalay

    @matt:

    Oh come on jackhole, the guy is virtually waving guns in everyone’s faces here.

    If you can’t handle a troll without issuing moronic calls to violence you don’t belong here. Seriously, knock your violence shit off right now.

    Grow the fuck up and step away from the keyboard for a while, or find another web site that will satisfy your violent urges.

  120. 120.

    tobie

    @rikyrah: It just so happens that fivethirtyeight has a post up right now “What Does Beto Believe” that might answer some of your questions:

    Those stances from O’Rourke include:

    Supporting the abolition of for-profit and private prisons. Supporting a ban on so-called assault weapons. Supporting the elimination of bail sentences that require people to pay money to be released from jail ahead of trial. Criticizing not only Trump’s border wall, but also some of the existing barriers on the U.S.-Mexico border and the increase in border security spending over the last decade. Supporting the impeachment of President Trump.Supporting a proposal to allow anyone who wants to enroll in a Medicare-like insurance plan the option to do so. Supporting an increase of the minimum wage to $15 per hour. Supporting marijuana legalization. Opposing the death penalty. Supporting NFL players kneeling during the national anthem in protest of racism. Describing himself as benefiting from “white privilege.”

    I cut some stuff out of the quote and reformatted so it wouldn’t take up the whole page! It’s more readable on 538.

  122. 122.

    SFAW

    @?BillinGlendaleCA:

    I think some of the variations of pie in the latest version of the pie filter actually have visual representations of pie.

    Shows what I know, I thought they already did. [As I said, never pied anyone.] But there’s only so much pie one can look at. Whereas your photos are always a treat.

  123. 123.

    Brickley Paiste

    @Darrin Ziliak (formerly glocksman):

    Well, they can be used for that, but I think the tendency for “spray and pray” hunting really goes up when hunter’s use semi-autos centerfires.

    If I were king for a day, I would outlaw semi-auto centerfire rifles for hunting use. And I think semi-auto shotguns should be limited to two rounds. I can’t remember the last time I was sitting in a duck blind and heard a single shot. It’s always 2 or 3. That’s just me, though.

  125. 125.

    Ceci n est pas mon nym

    @Brickley Paiste:

    Always eat pie when you can; it is cheap medicine.

    Peach, strawberry, apple, blueberry, pecan, even mincemeat, they’re all damned good. Because they’re pies.

    I like the way you think, Mr. Paiste-eater. And so glad you left cream pies and lemon meringue off that list. Bleah!

  128. 128.

    Martin

    The real news out of this is that Nunes isn’t running for reelection in 2020. He hasn’t officially announced it, but there’s no fucking way he think this helps him keep his seat.

  131. 131.

    Mandalay

    @BobS:

    I think she’ll endure that statement. In fact, she’ll probably be touting it as she skates to a second term.

    Well I certainly hope so, but at the moment she is only slightly more popular than de Blasio. That is not a good place to be.

  132. 132.

    Barbara

    @Anonymous At Work: More fundamentally, as I keep saying, personal jurisdiction should get the case bounced altogether, though without prejudice. Jurisdiction has to do with whether you can sue someone in a given location; venue has more to do with the appropriateness of the court with regard to the convenience of witnesses, location of evidence, etc.

  134. 134.

    trollhattan

    @Martin:
    His margin plunged in 2018: 52.7-47.3% compared to 67.6-32.4% in 2016.

    I like the trend and reapportionment won’t take place until after 2020. Hopefully the Dems dump considerable resources into it.

  135. 135.

    SFAW

    @Martin:

    The real news out of this is that Nunes isn’t running for reelection in 2020. He hasn’t officially announced it, but there’s no fucking way he think this helps him keep his seat.

    Right. Because RWMF voters care a lot about that stuff.

    I mean, I understand your reasoning, but if he won by 12 points four months ago, it seems like the only thing he could do to fuck up his chances is to get on Shitgibbon’s bad side.

    ETA: OK, so I apparently looked at the wrong article, and his margin was only five percent, not 12. I still think it’s a heavy lift for a Dem, but I guess it’s not as bad as I originally thought. [Thanks to trollhattan for doing better research than I did.]

  137. 137.

    Barbara

    @Martin: There has to be personal jurisdiction as to each defendant sued, although the presence of a Virginia resident would prevent Twitter from removing to federal court based on diversity grounds.

  139. 139.

    Ceci n est pas mon nym

    @Martin: That would be nice. Would also be nice if the Everything Trump Touches Turns To Shit principle removed McConnell from our lives in 2020, if not sooner.

    A number of our most deplorable senators come up for re-election in 2020, including McConnell, Jim Inhofe, Tom Cotton, Joni Ernst, and Lindsey Graham. A guy can dream, can’t he?

  140. 140.

    Roger Moore

    @Anonymous At Work:
    He’s also suing Liz Mair, who lives and has a company in Virginia. I wouldn’t be surprised if his main reason for including her in the suit is to give him an excuse to sue somewhere other than California.

  142. 142.

    Uncle Cosmo

    @Prickley Waste: Even if Amir were a “fucking asshole,” which he is not, it would be a yooooooge step up in the anatomical rankings from “Devin Nunes’ left testicle,” which you just admitted to being, (Also an Imbecile, but most of us figured that out long ago.)

  143. 143.

    SFAW

    @Barbara:

    These things can’t both be true.

    Agreed, I have corrected/modified my comment. I blame my poor literacy skills. Thanks, Obama!

  144. 144.

    Ceci n est pas mon nym

    @?BillinGlendaleCA: You are apparently correct. This thread has caused me to reactivate the pie filter for the first time in ages, and on my last refresh I see an image of a slice of pumpkin pie.

  145. 145.

    MattF

    @mr gravity: Enter the text to be used as the link in the comment box and select that text, then press the ‘link’ button, then delete the ‘http://’ string that appears in the link text box, then copy the desired address into the link text box.

    Or, you can just enter the html code in the comment box.

  147. 147.

    Uncle Cosmo

    @Darrin Ziliak (formerly glocksman): Consider confiscating the AR-15 & replacing it with a shotgun & a couple of shells & a video instructing him how to work the trigger with a big toe while his mouth is wrapped around the muzzle. Then mock the fucking shit out of him until he’s despondent enough to try it.

  148. 148.

    Darrin Ziliak (formerly glocksman)

    @Brickley Paiste:

    Well, they can be used for that, but I think the tendency for “spray and pray” hunting really goes up when hunter’s use semi-autos centerfires.

    There’s are differences between a Remington Model Four semi-auto and an AR/AK type rifle.
    It’s solely my opinion, but I think that the military styling of AR & AK type rifles encourages the ‘spray & pray’ mentality in a lot of people.

    If I were king for a day, I would outlaw semi-auto centerfire rifles for hunting use. And I think semi-auto shotguns should be limited to two rounds. I can’t remember the last time I was sitting in a duck blind and heard a single shot. It’s always 2 or 3. That’s just me, though.

    Magazine limits for hunting depend upon each state’s laws, though there is a Federal 3 round shotgun limit when hunting migratory game birds.

  151. 151.

    Darrin Ziliak (formerly glocksman)

    @Honus:

    The 7.62x39mm cartridge is .30-30 class and with proper ammo (no FMJ) is fine for brush hunting.
    The SKS itself, as I noted earlier, is a bit heavy to haul around in the brush and I’d prefer a Mini-30 if I wanted a semi-auto

    Still, back in the day when I could get a Chinese SKS for $90, it would have made a cheap alternative to a $400+ Marlin or Winchester.

  152. 152.

    A Ghost To Most

    @BobS: Maybe in the east. It wouldn’t fly out here. I don’t hunt, but vilifying hunters doesn’t help on advancing useful gun control. Anyone who would hunt with an assault weapon is cosplaying, and not to be trusted.

    Purely pedantic: shotguns are center fire.

  153. 153.

    The Thin Black Duke

    Uh, folks?
    I pied BP a long time ago and I never regretted it.
    Life’s too short, y’know?

  155. 155.

    Roger Moore

    @tobie:
    I agree that large magazines are a huge part of the problem. I would also distinguish between removable and integral magazines. Integral magazines generally have a fairly limited capacity, are relatively slow to reload, and are much harder to replace with a higher capacity magazine. I’m not sure that I would ban guns with removable magazines, but they should at least be much more heavily restricted than ones with integral magazines, as should high capacity magazines.

  160. 160.

    Darrin Ziliak (formerly glocksman)

    @A Ghost To Most:

    Heh…back in the day I couldn’t find reliable aftermarket high-capacity magazines for my 10/22 or my Mini-14.
    That was when Ruger wouldn’t sell 20 round Mini-14 magazines to civilians and never made anything beyond 10 for the 10/22, so my options were limited.

    I’m sure anyone who’s competent working with sheet metal could come up with a serviceable mag body and use the follower out of a legal magazine, but getting a spring to work right might be another story.

    Of course an effective high cap ban would also include banning the selling of parts to non-LEO’s or the military, so some dude making a 30 rounder in his garage just couldn’t mail order a spring from Wolff.

  161. 161.

    Miss Bianca

    @Uncle Cosmo: Numb-Left-Nut has apparently failed to notice that there’s a difference between American football and European football, which is what Amir actually follows. I guess spending all that time in Nunes’s panties would tend to diminish one’s cranial capacity by a significant degree.

  162. 162.

    BobS

    @A Ghost To Most: I understand there’d be plenty of push back (as there would be here in Michigan), but it’s certainly possible (albeit more difficult), as there are plenty of people hunting with bows (as well as shotguns) in the mountainous west.
    A semi-automatic isn’t necessary for hunting. I don’t use it for hunting, but my Remington 700 bolt-action would bring down a deer (or larger game) anywhere.

  163. 163.

    Miss Bianca

    @A Ghost To Most:

    vilifying hunters doesn’t help on advancing useful gun control. Anyone who would hunt with an assault weapon is cosplaying, and not to be trusted.

    QFT

  164. 164.

    Brickley Paiste

    @Darrin Ziliak (formerly glocksman):

    There’s no question you can get center fire semi autos which can be used for hunting. I had a Remington 30-06, forget the model, when I was a kid

    I just see and hear semi-autos firing waaaay to much when I’m out hunting

  165. 165.

    catclub

    @SFAW:

    TPM has also noted the Thiel parallel

    There is also a serious anti-parallel. They are suing the WAPO, which is owned by an incredibly rich person. If he wants to defend the WAPO,
    money will be actually no object. VERY different from the Gawker case.

  167. 167.

    glory b

    @AThornton: On the other hand, about 80% of the African American and Hispanic populations there wanted the Amazon facility, while she celebrated them withdrawing.

    My understanding was that the opposition to it was mostly white and upper middle class.

  168. 168.

    Brickley Paiste

    @A Ghost To Most:

    Oh look the guy who thinks banning centerfire semi-autos means everybody would have to use .22s is here to tell us about nuance

    Like with Trump, it’s always projection, projection, projection with you.

  171. 171.

    A Ghost To Most

    @Darrin Ziliak (formerly glocksman):
    I know guys who make them, just because. But then, I know a guy with a working Gatling gun (original), and one with a Civil War mortar that fires cement-filled paint cans 500 yards. Too many crazy ass MoFos out there.

  174. 174.

    Darrin Ziliak (formerly glocksman)

    @glory b:

    On the other hand, about 80% of the African American and Hispanic populations there wanted the Amazon facility, while she celebrated them withdrawing.

    My understanding was that the opposition to it was mostly white and upper middle class.

    Considering that the facility in question was Amazon’s HQ2, which would mostly employ college-educated, upper class people, a citation is needed.

  176. 176.

    A Ghost To Most

    @Honus:
    I agree, but lots of fine hunting rifles are semi-auto.
    A good lever action is almost as fast, and bolt action is hard on old hands.

  177. 177.

    WaterGirl

    @A Ghost To Most: Was it just yesterday that people were complaining that he answered too specifically to the question about the equal rights amendment, saying he should have given a more simplistic answer so as not to upset the voters? And today people are complaining that he answered the gun question with too broad a brush?

  179. 179.

    Anonymous At Work

    @Martin: Thanks. I was missing that detail.

    @Barbara: I’m not sure because I don’t know the Virginia rules for civil procedure when it comes to jurisdiction but I tend to think that “lack of jurisdiction” for any nationwide company should fail, with extra laughter from the judge. Twitter is a Delaware corporation, HQ’d in California, with its shares overseen by New York (trade on NYSE) with a literal world-wide reach.
    So, I think “venue” is the way to go here, without any due diligence on my part, IF Liz Mair wasn’t included. I think a court should rule that she isn’t a sufficient anchor to bring in Twitter when California is a better venue and because she wouldn’t know who Nunes’ “mom” or “cow” were.

    Then again, feel free to dismiss my ramblings, as I tend to think “judicial economy” and a lot of the “kick the poors out of court” rules are silly at best and corrupt at median.

  180. 180.

    different-church-lady

    @BobS: It is completely possible for one to have good politics and yet still be an irredeemably insufferable asshole at the same time.

  183. 183.

    SFAW

    @BobS:
    Long history of his assholishness. He used to have another nom/nym, maybe two or three — can’t recall what, not worth wracking my (alleged) brain — and he was an asshole then, too.

    ETA: His immediate jump from Amir’s relatively mild remonstrance to “you’re a fucking asshole, Amir” kind of gives you a clue that he appears to have “issues.”

  184. 184.

    BobS

    @SFAW: I understand, and thanks for replying. Again, it just seemed like a couple of people saw that assholishness, and raised.

  185. 185.

    Barbara

    @Anonymous At Work: You could be right. “Minimum contacts” is a low bar to clear. However, Twitter doesn’t have much of a physical presence anywhere. I wonder where Liz Mair lives in Virginia, because Henrico would not be my first guess given her other business activities, but maybe she does live in Richmond these days.

  186. 186.

    SFAW

    @BobS:

    Again, it just seemed like a couple of people saw that assholishness, and raised.

    I think part of that “raise” was a response to the example I cited in my ETA.

  189. 189.

    Miss Bianca

    @SFAW: I seem to recall some troll or other – might have been one of Bricky’s previous incarnations – actually said something offensive enough about Amir to get ban-hammered. The reason I think it was Bricky was that his reaction seems like a bit of a tell about what one of his particular issues might be.

  191. 191.

    FlipYrWhig

    @SFAW: If I particularly cared, I’d try to figure out how a person reconciles a view that guns are wonderful with a view that football is abhorrent. But I don’t particularly care.

  192. 192.

    SFAW

    @Miss Bianca:

    The reason I think it was Bricky was that his reaction seems like a bit of a tell about what one of his particular issues might be.

    I had only considered the idea that it was substance-related, but I’m a-guessing you’re suggesting a different type of issue. Interesting.

  196. 196.

    BobS

    If anyone’s interested, I just put a used Doc Pomus tribute CD I just picked up in the player, and 5 songs in (Los Lobos, Bob Dylan, Shawn Colvin, John Hiatt, Lou Reed) it might be the best tribute album I’ve ever heard (the Arthur Alexander one is great, too). And now B.B. King….damn, this is really good.

  200. 200.

    mrmoshpotato

    @SFAW: I’d like to amend pet pictures to this filter.

    “You’ve been Badgered or Rosied or Samwised or…”

  202. 202.

    Brickley Paiste

    @Honus:
    Yep

    A Ghost on Avocado Toast doesn’t really know what any of these terms mean. But like to argue anyway!

  205. 205.

    A Ghost To Most

    @Brickley Paiste:Dipshit. I was on a competitive rifle team for 10 years. I’ve forgotten more about guns than you will ever know.

    Buzz off, BorisInPutinland.

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