Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Mediocre white men think RFK Jr’s pathetic midlife crisis is inspirational. The bar is set so low for them, it’s subterranean.

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

Fear or fury? The choice is ours.

New McCarthy, same old McCarthyism.

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

The party of Reagan has become the party of Putin.

The low info voters probably won’t even notice or remember by their next lap around the goldfish bowl.

At some point, the ability to learn is a factor of character, not IQ.

If you thought you’d already seen people saying the stupidest things possible on the internet, prepare yourselves.

A norm that restrains only one side really is not a norm – it’s a trap.

Compromise? There is no middle ground between a firefighter and an arsonist.

Fuck these fucking interesting times.

They traffic in fear. it is their only currency. if we are fearful, they are winning.

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

Proof that we need a blogger ethics panel.

Wake up. Grow up. Get in the fight.

Many life forms that would benefit from greater intelligence, sadly, do not have it.

Never entrust democracy to any process that requires Republicans to act in good faith.

Speaker Mike Johnson is a vile traitor to the House and the Constitution.

It’s a good piece. click on over. but then come back!!

America is going up in flames. The NYTimes fawns over MAGA celebrities. No longer a real newspaper.

If you can’t control your emotions, someone else will.

Come on, media. you have one job. start doing it.

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

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59Comments

  3. 3.

    Mart

    I have been completing research on this topic for about 50 years. The results of my studies are more research is needed.

  4. 4.

    Frankensteinbeck

    Amazingly, we will be told the results of that research is that marijuana makes black people violent and it must be declared illegal everywhere and horribly punished, but with police discretion in case the offender is obviously a good person*. Then, because the Trump administration is that incompetent, the actual research of ‘Eh. It’s no big deal.’ will be leaked.

    *White

  5. 5.

    mrmoshpotato

    @Frankensteinbeck:

    Amazingly, we will be told the results of that research is that marijuana makes black people violent and it must be declared illegal everywhere and horribly punished

    C’mon! We all know weed makes you listen to hot jazz and dance the jitterbug.

    I really need to rent Reefer Madness. I haven’t seen it in years.

  7. 7.

    Another Scott

    Good. DEA should be doing science on these drugs, and making them available to sensible researchers. And Congress needs to update the drug laws.

    ICMI, Charlie Pierce on the Debate:

    […]

    And what Julian Castro said was, once again, correct. Biden does use his service as vice president in just that way, and he’d be a fool not to do so. He’s also campaigning for a return to normalcy, and he’d be a fool not to do that, either. But part of a return to normalcy in our present context is a return to a president who a) knows what he’s talking about, and b) can express those thoughts in a way that doesn’t seem as though he learned English 20 minutes before he took the stage. (On Thursday afternoon, El Caudillo del Mar-a-Lago had another one of his public episodes at a Republican Party retreat.) If that is the Biden campaign’s goal, then answers like the one he gave in the middle of a discussion of education policy do not, ah, further that argument very much.

    Number two, make sure that we bring in to help the teachers deal with the problems that come from home. The problems that come from home, we need — we have one school psychologist for every 1,500 kids in America today. It’s crazy. The teachers are — I’m married to a teacher. My deceased wife is a teacher. They have every problem coming to them. We have — make sure that every single child does, in fact, have 3-, 4-, and 5-year-olds go to school. School. Not daycare. School. We bring social workers in to homes and parents to help them deal with how to raise their children. It’s not want they don’t want to help. They don’t — they don’t know quite what to do. Play the radio, make sure the television — excuse me, make sure you have the record player on at night, the — the — make sure that kids hear words. A kid coming from a very poor school — a very poor background will hear 4 million words fewer spoken by the time they get there.

    You can hear almost anything you want to hear in that answer, and that’s a very serious problem. (And, no, I don’t believe the reference to a “record player” is Biden’s acknowledgement that vinyl is making a comeback. I mean, really, people. Come on.) You can hear that Biden is criticizing poor families for their child-rearing skills. Or you can hear someone who genuinely knows the myriad social problems that affect learning in impoverished communities. But in neither case can you be absolutely sure that’s what you actually heard. And that’s not because Biden was being slippery.

    It’s because he was being as utterly incoherent as the current president* was earlier that afternoon. He’s got to get a grip on this or, if and when he’s the nominee, any debates Joe Biden has with the incumbent is going to require English subtitles and, perhaps, consecutive translation.

    Yup.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  8. 8.

    Yarrow

    They’re actually doing research on weed? I thought that was illegal. Are they going to arrest themselves?

  9. 9.

    The Dangerman

    The DEA also asked for 4.8 million grams of Cool Ranch Doritos

    In related news, Jack in the Box stock went way up.

    ETA: At least in SoCal, they proudly talk about their food being the answer for the “late night munchies”

  16. 16.

    Jay

    Listened to a stupid CBC segment on CBD oils.

    Not once did they mention that the lack of “medical studies”, had anything to do with the Government banning research on pot and hemp, until recently.

  21. 21.

    Ruckus

    OT so I’m going to pitch a Netflix original short film.
    Called Resurface, it is an amazing program about veterans PTSD, and a group that takes vets surfing as part of rehabilitation. It is a break in the way PTSD takes over your mind, something that you have to work at, and think about only what is happening that minute. Most of the vets have been physically injured as well and some of them pretty badly. I was watching another program and there was an Iraq vet with a case of PTSD and that reminded me about this program. I spend a lot of time a the LA VA hospital and I see a lot of vets with permeant injuries. And I spent 2 months in a navy hospital in 73 with a lot of service personal who were massively injured both physical and mentally. It left a lasting impression about what we now call PTSD, because at that time it didn’t have a real name and a methodology of treatment. You were just supposed to get over it. And it doesn’t work that way at all. 22 vets a day, kill themselves. They have been asked to do impossible things time and time again and it takes a toll on a human being.
    This half hour program, one of the best things I’ve seen.

  22. 22.

    Jay

    JOB OPENING: National security advisor for head of state located in DC, New York, and Florida. Duties include sycophancy, humiliation, wild goose chases, and some light treason. Interested candidates should apply by appearing on Fox & Friends or Hannity.— Top Conservative Cat (@TeaPartyCat) September 12, 2019

  24. 24.

    Chetan Murthy

    @Jay: Jay, can I say, I like how you post these tweets here. It means those of us who don’t use Twitter [and some of us don’t want to & avoid it like the plague] get to ….. ahem … cough cough …. taste those mangoes without getting out of the boat! Thank you!

  28. 28.

    Aleta

    @Chetan Murthy: Where do you get on this boat everyone keeps mentioning? Do I need a ticket? Is there dinner service or at least a snack bar? What happens to the people who want to get off?

  29. 29.

    Jay

    @Chetan Murthy:

    One can hunt twitter with out joining.

    I joined twitter because a bunch of the Modern Nazi Hunters, I was reading had to go dark, ( followers) to stay safe.

    Twitter ain’t just trenders selling used bathwater, there’s a lot of powerful voices out there,

    I just try to relay some I find.

    But thank you.

  30. 30.

    Chetan Murthy

    @Jay:

    One can hunt twitter with out joining.

    I’ve done that before. Twice, actually. Each time, I eventually reactivate my account in order to reply to some tweet. And then, sometime after that, upon being presented with some enormously objectionable tweet, I reply with vitriol. Eventually it grows to consume a lot of time, and all spent getting angry. Sometime after that, I tweet something that some dickweed objects to, they report it, and my account gets blocked. This has happened twice so far. So at this point, I prefer not to tempt fate.

    B/c really, it doesn’t seem possible for me to read Twitter without getting enraged. Better not to start.

    So again, thank you!

  35. 35.

    Jay

    @Chetan Murthy:

    The trick is to read the tweets, not the replies.

    If the tweeter finds a pearl in an oyster, they will retweet it,

    Otherwise it’s all sand, detrius and sea foam.

    Ignore the comments, too many bot’s, trolls and other ill doers.

    I retweet, and once in a blue moon comment with a “preach sister”, or an “are you okay? I love you!”.

  36. 36.

    Ruckus

    @Aleta:
    I obviously highly recommend it. I’ve been a Netflix subscriber for years. This show is worth every penny I’ve ever spent with them.
    A lot of vets have PTSD but it’s not just a vet issue. All humans can experience it, given the right circumstances. A lot of vets just have been placed in situations that are practically tailor made to cause PTSD.

  38. 38.

    JaySinWA

    @Martin: I’ll take your word for it. Joe-Joes was one of the few bad experiences from TJ’s. I trusted them enough to foist them off at a meeting without trying them first. Most remained after the meeting. Never again.

  39. 39.

    jl

    So, that DEA guy, he looking for skunk bud or will he settle for stems? ’cause I know a somebody who knows somebody…

    I had to google the dope slang because I’m a square. I probably typed this before, but around west end of Golden Gate park, back when weed was illegal in CA, guys would walk by me and whisper ‘bud?’. And I would wonder, ‘Who’s Bud? Do I look like some guy named Bud?’ until if figured it out. I’m not the sharpest blade in the drawer.

  44. 44.

    Kattails

    I’m off to bed, but was just looking at a photo essay on Bored Panda in memory of the rescue dogs of 9-11, for all the poochie people here. Very moving. I haven’t been successful at linking in the past but will try it, but otherwise it’s worth a look.

  45. 45.

    Martin

    @Jay: Should be noted that the private prison ban also applies to ICE facilities.

    Something serious is going down with Schiff.

    “A Director of National Intelligence has never prevented a properly submitted whistleblower complaint that the [inspector general] determined to be credible and urgent from being provided to the congressional intelligence committees. Never,” Schiff said in a statement. “This raises serious concerns about whether White House, Department of Justice or other executive branch officials are trying to prevent a legitimate whistleblower complaint from reaching its intended recipient, the Congress, in order to cover up serious misconduct.”

    Schiff indicated that he learned the matter involved “potentially privileged communications by persons outside the Intelligence Community,” raising the specter that it is “being withheld to protect the President or other Administration officials.” In addition, Schiff slammed Maguire for consulting the Justice Department about the whistleblower complaint “even though the statute does not provide you discretion to review, appeal, reverse, or countermand in any way the [inspector general’s] independent determination, let alone to involve another entity within the Executive Branch.”

  46. 46.

    hervevillechaizelounge

    Why yes, I do realize I’m about 8 hours late with this but my juicing time is limited and all the other threads are dead.

    I’d just like to say a few words about weeping anal fissure Julian Castro and his attack on fellow democrat Joe Biden.

    This country is teetering on fascism. There is no question in my mind if we lose 2020 democracy is over—any subsequent elections will be Russian-style. Call me a Teng-fool if you will, but my predictions have been on on the money thus far.

    Julian Castro is not going to be our nominee; Uncle Joe, god help us, might be. The nominee will be picked by Southern democrats of color; my state’s primary is late so I’ll follow their lead.

    Pointing out (truthfully, I might add) that Uncle Joe is slipping will depress turnout and give the Republicans a talking point. “Both sides are senile,” the MSM will crow triumphantly.

    Policy disagreements are fine but shitting on any fellow dem at this point is treasonous. Plus, Castro is an idiot. Old people love to vote—it’s their third favorite activity, superseded only by watching Jeopardy and fetching the mail. Let’s not alienate the geezer contingent. “Leftist extremists hate the olds,” the media will tsk-tsk.

    So fuck Julian Castro with one of Marianne William’s supersize healing crystals—preferably while Tulsi Gabbard’s “homosexual extremists” rant plays on a scratchy Victrola in the background. The end.

  48. 48.

    sukabi

    @Martin: looking more and more that Nancy Pelosi just might get her wish to see drumpf in jail.

    Next couple of months are going to be crazy.

  49. 49.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    @hervevillechaizelounge: So you would prefer that we nominate a candidate that may be not quite all there and then have the Republicans point it out in the general? This blog skews older, reminds me…I’ve not checked the mail today, and the general consensus is that Joe(and Bernie) are too old for the job. I think most older folk are pretty much self aware that a person close to 80 might have problems with the rigors of starting off as President. I think it’s open to discussion on Castro’s tact in pointing out Biden’s error(and his comment was at best muddled), but if he isn’t up to the task, I’d like to know before voting in the primary.

  50. 50.

    prostratedragon

    @Martin: Had a friend who swore by Hydrox and applesauce. Without going into tedious detail I will merely note that they were eaten with a spoon.

    Of course many of us made do with whatever was at hand —peanut butter from the jar, that old pound of liver from the back of the freezer (doesn’t take long to thaw and cook).

  51. 51.

    Sister Golden Bear

    Home again, home again, jiggety jig. Though leaving Taiwan and midnight at arriving at SFO at 8 p.m. is wreaking havoc on my sleep cycle.

    I was almost going to go back to the sleep once I got home, but made the mistake getting something to eat and now I’m been awake for a couple hours, although thankfully getting sleepy again.

  53. 53.

    Amir Khalid

    @Sister Golden Bear:
    One time I flew back to KL at the end of the week after 48 hours in Rochester, Minnesota. I was fine on Saturday and Sunday, but on Monday the jet lag finally caught up with me and I didn’t wake up until 4pm.

  54. 54.

    JAFD

    @Sister Golden Bear: A young lady whom I was close friends with, a couple of decades ago, concluded “You are actually a space alien from a planet where the days are 26 hours long; that’s why your sleep cycle keeps getting out of synch with the rest of us humans…”
    It’s gotten worse since I’ve retired

  55. 55.

    kit kinneson

    Instead of a piece of chocolate, trump’s hotels will leave a gram on each special guest’s pillow! Stay another night at half price! Get another gram!

  56. 56.

    Miss Bianca

    @Ruckus: Cool. There’s a similar program here in the central mountains of CO. Only it’s white-water rafting and fly-fishing that are the rehab sports of choice on the Arkansas River. The guy who runs it says that of the 200 vets who have so far gone through the program, not one suicide attempt post-sessions. I think that’s mighty.

  59. 59.

    MoxieM

    @Ruckus: Sounds like a great program. I swear by EMDR. My Dx is c-PTSD (“Complex PTSD is different from PTSD because it often occurs in people who’ve experienced extreme violence and stress over an extended period of time.”). EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is short-term therapy, highly successful, has had numerous studies with both veteran and general population. It reworks how your brain processes (hence how you understand, or feel) traumatic event(s). It’s quite the experience… and it works. At least, it’s been working, for me. There are lists of EMDR certified therapists in different regions of the country. A lot of the training, and the theory of the treatment, originates with Bessel Van der Kolk. He’s Boston-based, but people move around.

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