Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Fight for a just cause, love your fellow man, live a good life.

Optimism opens the door to great things.

She burned that motherfucker down, and I am so here for it. Thank you, Caroline Kennedy.

Republicans cannot even be trusted with their own money.

Take hopelessness and turn it into resilience.

Thanks to your bullshit, we are now under siege.

Dear elected officials: Trump is temporary, dishonor is forever.

We are aware of all internet traditions.

There are no moderate republicans – only extremists and cowards.

That’s my take and I am available for criticism at this time.

The next time the wall street journal editorial board speaks the truth will be the first.

We can show the world that autocracy can be defeated.

Hey Washington Post, “Democracy Dies in Darkness” was supposed to be a warning, not a mission statement.

One lie, alone, tears the fabric of reality.

In after Baud. Damn.

Tick tock motherfuckers!

Republicans don’t lie to be believed, they lie to be repeated.

Disappointing to see gov. newsom with his finger to the wind.

Their freedom requires your slavery.

So it was an October Surprise A Day, like an Advent calendar but for crime.

Roe is not about choice. It is about freedom.

Polls are now a reliable indicator of what corporate Republicans want us to think.

Within six months Twitter will be fully self-driving.

Let’s bury these fuckers at the polls 2 years from now.

You are here: Home / Elections / Georgia Runoff Races 2020 / Georgia Voices for a Blue Senate: A Virtual Concert Tonight at 8pm Eastern

Georgia Voices for a Blue Senate: A Virtual Concert Tonight at 8pm Eastern

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This is a benefit for Fair Fight, Warnock and Ossoff Campaigns – as I told raven when he brought this to my attention, Good Music + Georgia Runoffs is right up our alley.

Posting this now for anyone who might be interested, so you can plan ahead.  Then I will pin it to the top of the blog at 7:30 for the duration of the concert.

The concert is free.  They will ask for donations between performers.

I have never heard of 1000 Grandmothers for Future Generations, but just reading that name brought tears to my eyes.

Open thread.

Reader Interactions

197Comments

  3. 3.

    Kelly

    Open Thread: Charlie Pride

    In the sixties we lived in a tiny two bedroom house with an adjacent unheated bunkhouse. My brother and I slept in the bunkhouse during the warm months. We shared a hide-a-bed in the living room once the cold rain set in. The wood stove was there. Dad always got up first, before daylight. Left the lights off. He’d turn on the radio, always tuned to KXL. It was a country station at the time staffed by DJs with classic mellow radio voices. Built the fire then sat in the rocker next to the stove smoking a hand rolled cigarette. Charlie Pride would sing “Crystal Chandeliers”. Dad turned a light on when he finished his smoke. It was as cosy as I’ve ever felt.

  5. 5.

    geg6

    Just an FYI, WaterGirl.  Just sent you an email about a site issue.  Am currently on my laptop but site is inaccessible through my phone.  I’m taking a wild guess that it’s the banner ad.  But I don’t know a damn thing about it, thus my plea to you.

  6. 6.

    raven

    Art Rosenbaum is a retired UGA art prof who won a grammy for:

    BEST HISTORICAL ALBUM

    Art Of Field Recording Volume I: Fifty Years Of Traditional American Music Documented By Art Rosenbaum.

    Hawk Proof Rooster and Hog Eyed Man are dear friends who love music and love the effort.

  7. 7.

    Ceci n est pas mon nym

    We just said goodbye to an old friend. This couple had been very important to my wife when she was an undergrad, and we saw a lot of them when we were first married, but in recent years they’d kind of faded to Christmas card friends (funny how that happens, isn’t it?)

    We heard from the husband that his wife had died on Thanksgiving Day after a battle with cancer, and he passed along a recording of the Zoom service which we just finished watching.

    So… kind of in a somber and melancholy mood here at the moment. They are our age or just a few years older.

  9. 9.

    WaterGirl

    @geg6: I just saw that and replied.

    Not sure if the ad guys is reachable on Sunday, so I made a few changes that could possibly help. Or not.

    I asked you to try a couple of things so I can see if the problem is limited to the front page and to ask you to check to see whether what I did helped

    edit: Thanks for writing.  I can’t fix what I don’t know about.

  10. 10.

    zhena gogolia

    @Yutsano:

    I love Rhiannon Giddens.

    I’m on a monthly donation to FairFight already, and we were going to watch TV tonight. I hope maybe this will be recorded.

  12. 12.

    LuciaMia

    Everytime now when I hear some Maga spoiled brat huff, “Im never voting again!”

    Please proceed, darling!

  13. 13.

    WaterGirl

    @zhena gogolia: A lot of these live fundraiser events this year have not been recorded – not sure if this one will be that way, or not.

    But I imagine the idea is that if a person can watch later, they will be less inclined to give, and you can fast-forward through the “please give us money” parts!

    It sounds good.  I am going to watch as much of it as I can.

  21. 21.

    geg6

    @WaterGirl:

    I could get in with the direct link.  If you have other questions, email me at my email address on my account here.  I’m happy to answer.

  24. 24.

    Catherine D.

    I got an email from Stacy Abrams about the concert. Rhiannon Giddens and Bonnie Raitt, yah you betcha! And I just upgraded my intertube connection in time.

  26. 26.

    WaterGirl

    @geg6:  Thanks for clarifying.  Bummer.  Then I’m guessing it’s likely to be an ad issues.  I asked Cole to contact the ad guy, but I don’t have high hopes on a Sunday.

  27. 27.

    Cameron

    With all that talent lined up, might run pretty late. If they’re still going strong at midnight, I’m thinking of taking my Kindle and sitting on the step in front of my apartment, so I can listen to music and watch the meteor shower. Hope that makes facing Monday easier…

  28. 28.

    Chris Johnson

    @WaterGirl: Meaningless. How the fuck do you ‘launder’ the entire United States Treasury? It kind of just draws attention to the fact that all this is sort of fiction anyway. Increasingly, money isn’t tied to anything tangible (no I am NOT a gold bug) and while it is possible to ‘hack’ the Treasury, at some point you get to a place where you’re like ‘okay, that was stupid, restore from backups’ and then you just deny that anything happened.

    Again, how do you LAUNDER a United States Treasury? I don’t think that works the way you’d think it would work. It’s possible to hack MY bank account and then I’m stuck trying to justify that it was a mistake and not a ‘real transaction’. I don’t think it’s possible to hack the Treasury in quite that sort of way.

  30. 30.

    geg6

    @WaterGirl:

    I can take the rest of the day off from BJ when I’m sick of sitting with my laptop.  I suspected it was an ad issue.  Never really had one before this, other than the irritation of those huge full-page ones that used to pop up whenever you clicked on the front page.  I hated those.

  34. 34.

    Alison Rose

    LOL BYE FELICIA

    The name of a retired English lecturer who sparked an uproar with an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal that called on Jill Biden to drop the academic title “Dr” has disappeared from the Northwestern University website. Joseph Epstein, who has only an honorary doctorate, said Biden’s use of the title was “fraudulent” and “comic,” and sneered at that fact that her degree is in education and she got it in her 50s. He weirdly also referred to her as “kiddo.” Northwestern blasted him, telling the campus newspaper that it “strongly disagrees with Mr. Epstein’s misogynistic views.” Epstein has not taught there since 2002, but the Internet Archive shows that he was listed on the school’s website as an “emeritus” member of the faculty until the controversy.

  35. 35.

    WaterGirl

    @geg6: Others are having the issue, too, and I don’t like people walking away from BJ because of technical issues.

    I don’t know for sure that it’s an ad, but last time this happened I believe it was.  We’ll find out, and if it’s not an ad, then we’ll figure it out.

  36. 36.

    geg6

    @WaterGirl:

    Oh, I’m not walking away!  I’ll be here.  It’s not a bad thing to take some time out to do other things.  It’s just that I’m a junkie jackal and get panicked if I can’t get on the site.  ;-)  Glad to know I’m not the only one with the problem.  I’m such a tech idiot, I always think I did something wrong.

  37. 37.

    trollhattan

    @Alison Rose:

    Good riddance to old trash. Ten bucks says he’s getting back slaps at WSJ for riling the Lib Dems. Maybe he can hit the Vineyard with Dersh next season.

  38. 38.

    mrmoshpotato

    @MattF: 

    Rod Dreher on the shitshow on the Mall yesterday

    They lost and really aren’t getting over it. Also – fuck their feelings.

  39. 39.

    TS (the original)

    @Chris Johnson:

    Just became front page news on Wapo

    Russian government spies are behind a broad hacking campaign that has breached U.S. agencies and a top cyber firm

    The Russian government hackers who breached a top cybersecurity firm are behind a global espionage campaign that also compromised the Treasury and Commerce departments and other government agencies, according to people familiar with the matter, who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.

    The campaign is said to be quite broad, encompassing an array of targets, including government agencies in the United States and other countries. It has been running for months, one person said.

    The SVR, by contrast, hacks for traditional espionage purposes, stealing information that might help the Kremlin understand the plans and motives of politicians and policymakers. Its operators also have filched industrial secrets, hacked foreign ministries and gone after coronavirus vaccine data.

  41. 41.

    TS (the original)

    First time in ages, a post disappeared. It contained a large quote from WaPo – don’t know if that was the reason it went into cyber space (or spam or wherever such posts go)

  45. 45.

    raven

    @WaterGirl:
    Chip in to get access to the Hamilton holiday celebration!

    Chip in any amount to join the original Broadway Company of Hamilton for a virtual holiday celebration featuring performances by Lin Manuel Miranda, Leslie Odom Jr, Renée Elise Goldsberry, Phillipa Soo, Christopher Jackson, Jonathan Groff, Sasha Hutchings, and more! With special appearances by Senator Elizabeth Warren and Senator Cory Booker.

    Hurry! It will only be live-streamed once on Sunday, December 13th at 8:30pm ET.

  47. 47.

    jonas

    @MattF: Rod Dreher on the shitshow on the Mall yesterday

    When Rod Dreher is telling you your religious fanaticism has gone too far…damn.

    Someone really needs to write a good novel about a guy, thinking he’s all righteous and brilliant, creates a monster who soon rampages out of control and turns on him. Call it, I don’t know, Dreherstein or something.

  55. 55.

    jonas

    @NeenerNeener: WaPo and other outlets are on this now. Seems to be a Russian attack. This is a bfd. I wonder if the point isn’t to give Trump cover to claim the election was hacked: “Hey if Russia can break into the Treasury department, China could steal votes!”

  59. 59.

    mrmoshpotato

    @jonas:

    I wonder if the point isn’t to give Trump cover to claim the election was hacked: “Hey if Russia can break into the Treasury department, China could steal votes!” 

    “Jhina filled out everyone’s paper ballot who didn’t vote for meeeeee and I saw one of the babies and the baby looked at me!”

  63. 63.

    Mary G

    They’ve found a way to go even lower:

    Breaking NYT: White House staff who work in close quarters with Trump have been told they are scheduled to receive injections of the coronavirus vaccine soon, at a time when the first doses are being distributed only to high-risk health care workers. https://t.co/mDOvnOrK70— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) December 13, 2020

    First of all, they’ve all caught from each other, so it’s both malicious and stupid to take doses from nurses and doctors on the front lines.

  67. 67.

    Anotherlurker

    Legit question here:  How big are the actual numbers of these shit eating Proud Boys and their equally malodorous other Nazi supporters?

    If the shit keeps rising and ends up in a shooting contest, what actual effect could it have?

    Do the cops go all in on supporting these assholes?  Do they support them when a cop is killed?

    I guess this is a question for Adam Silverman.

    For the record: I would expect some very ugly outcomes, but I don’t think there are enough fanatics to really overthrow the Government.  I think the loudmouths and the cosplayers will fade into the woodwork and leave the fanatics hanging out to dry.

    Yup. I’m a starry eyed optimist.

  68. 68.

    Phylllis

    @raven: Totally rad. Have you read Barbarian Days: A Surfing Life, by William Finnegan? He writes so cogently about how waves work and break I could see it in my mind’s eye.

  71. 71.

    Kathleen

    Deleted. Information already covered in earlier comment.  Note to Self: Dear Kathleen: Please make it a point to read the entire thread before commenting. Thank you and make sure you stop in the gift shop as you exit the thread.

  74. 74.

    WaterGirl

    @Kathleen: If everybody waited until they finished reading all the comments, no one would ever comment on Balloon Juice!

    Plus, there’s been many a time when I haven’t clicked a link, or have skimmed a comment and moved on, only to find a second comment about the same thing that catches my eye.

  75. 75.

    Phylllis

    @raven: I devoured it; related to it in the sense of also being that last generation of ‘feral’ children. We roamed for miles across my hometown both by foot and on our bikes and skateboards.

  78. 78.

    sab

    @WaterGirl: I agree.

    I sometimes comment midthread and find somebody else said it better earlier. So what? My comment affirms theirs. Not everyone reads every thread through at once (not all jackels are retired.)

    Also, many threads remain open for a long time, with the end of the thread different from the beginning, and some people don’t read the first half of the thread they a jumped into until many hours later if ever.

    We just wander around here. That is who we are.

    Didn’t you comment earlier today about someone apologizing for being off topic on a no topic thread?

  80. 80.

    WaterGirl

    The Georgia concert is starting, if anyone is interested.

    Pro tip, which you all may know by now: If you click play in the post, open another version of the post that you can comment in and not interrupt the concert when the page refreshes. Or click to open in YouTube.

  82. 82.

    WaterGirl

    These two have a lovely sound.

    This second fellow (John McCutcheon) reminds me of a preacher.  In a good way.

    Now he’s singing “vote, dammit!”

    I miss John Lewis.

  88. 88.

    Another Scott

    Video works for me on YouTube, using my link at #79, also too.

    McCutcheon’s “Vote Dammit” is a good song!

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  92. 92.

    raven

    I’ll be interested in what my friends do, Art generally does Sea Shanty’s, Hog Eyed Man old time and Hawk Proof fun ukulele tunes.

  96. 96.

    Another Scott

    @WaterGirl: They’ve all been excellent.

    I don’t think I’ve heard Deidre before – she’s great.

    Rhiannon is always wonderful.

    A really great show.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  101. 101.

    raven

    IGina Louise Breedlove in 1997, she originated the role of Sarabi in the Broadway production of The Lion King.[2] She has appeared in the 1987 Broadway musical Sophisticated Ladies.[3] Breedlove sang in 1995 with Harry Belafonte in Costa Mesa, where their duets on “Skin to Skin” and “How Do You Keep the Music Playing” were praised by the Los Angeles Times.[4] In 1996, she was part of the cast of Sheila’s Day.[5] She also contributed a song to the soundtrack of the 1997 Shaquille O’Neal film Steel.

  107. 107.

    Tony Jay

    @p.a.:

    I used to frequent the American Conservative site where Dreher had/has his column right up until November 2016 (something happened around that time that put me off spending any time with those people, can’t recall what it was) and I can confirm that he is a deeply committed adherent of the School of “Yes, but the Leftists!”

    This is the man who once explained that ‘The Left’ were entirely hypocritical in chastising Paula Dean (is that right? Southern style TV chef who was exposed as entirely racist in the mid-2010s) for racism because, while pondering the topic, he’d listened to Brown Sugar by The Rolling Stones and realised that, since no Leftists have ostentatiously rejected their Stones records and thrown them on the Bonfire of the Profanities, then they were obviously the most terrible hypocrites and should, therefore, be dismissed as commentators on Rightist behaviour.

    He does that a lot. It’s basically his second most common trope after being a lunatic theocrat who wants a God who will whip him hard all day and tell him what a bad, bad boy he is, but not as bad as those people.

    Might go back to the American Conservative now, see how they’re suffering.

  109. 109.

    Yutsano

    Not sure how I feel about the storyteller. Especially cutting the wonderful folk music off.

    EDIT: EMILY!!!

  112. 112.

    raven

    This is obviously pre-recorded so they are trying to mix it up some. I think the whole thing is just an hour.

  114. 114.

    raven

    @Catherine D.:

    Every generation or so, a young bluesman bursts onto the scene and sends a jolt through the blues community.  Jontavious Willis may just have that effect on people. The 24-year-old multi-instrumentalist was nominated for a GRAMMY in 2020 thanks to his latest album, Spectacular Class. Through original lyrics written by Willis himself, the gifted musician delivers a timeless album that features dynamic vocals and all types of blues: Delta, Piedmont, Texas, and Gospel. His stand-out fingerpicking, flat-picking, and slide prowess are also on display.

  115. 115.

    frosty

    @Phylllis: Not the last generation. Younger Son told us a year or so ago about riding around miles from home with friends on their bicycles. Pretty much the same thing I did in the 60s. I had no idea!!

    This would have been a few years on both sides of 2010.

  116. 116.

    raven

    Josh Kornbluth is an American comedic autobiographical monologist based in the San Francisco Bay Area who has toured internationally, written and starred in several feature films, and starred in a television interview show.

  118. 118.

    Another Scott

    They upped the thermometer from $120,000 to $150,000.  Here’s hoping they get there.

    (I enjoyed the Statue of Liberty story very much, myself.)

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  121. 121.

    Brachiator

    Breaking news (via BBC News)

    British espionage writer John le Carré has died aged 89, following a short illness, his literary agent has said.

    The Spy Who Came In From The Cold, and Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy author died from pneumonia on Saturday night.

    Real name of author, David Cornwell.

    I loved the hell out of the adaptations of the Smiley novels shown here on PBS.

    RIP, Smiley and all his people.

     

     

  125. 125.

    raven

    @Catherine D.: He plays it quite a bit along with a bunch of other strings. I was lucky enough for him and Charlie to play at my retirement gig last year. They were really excited to play before Bonnie! The fiddle player is a law prof who specializes in immigration law.

  130. 130.

    WaterGirl

    I wrote the Medium Cool post this afternoon, long before Raven told me about this fundraiser.   So it’s dumb luck that MC was about music, but it’s not jarring to go back and forth between MC and this Georgia musical thread.

    Definitely better to be lucky than good.

  136. 136.

    Another Scott

    1628 people have donated according to the thermometer.  1752 people watching on YouTube at the moment.  92+% (ignoring people who left, people watching other ways, etc.).  Not too shabby.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  145. 145.

    O. Felix Culpa

    It looks like the program is still up for viewing, if anyone missed it or wants to watch a particular act again.

  154. 154.

    wvblueguy

    Great concert raising over #132,000 before it ended,  It can be watched again at the YouTube link given.  Awesome to be able to help out this wonderful cause.

  156. 156.

    JanieM

    @WaterGirl: He said this:

    “The three justices that President Trump appointed, his three justices, voted not to hear the case,”

    “his three justices”? This guy taught law at Harvard…?

  157. 157.

    Another Scott

    Howard University public TV is playing a Fleetwood Mac concert as part of their begathon.

    Playing “Rhiannon”.

    Synchonicity.  ;-)

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  174. 174.

    Amir Khalid

    @Patricia Kayden:

    The Supreme Court — any court, anywhere, come to that — isn’t supposed to be for anyone to “count on” in that sense. Trump’s assumption that justices he had appointed would/should be partial to him was wrong as well as corrupt.

  176. 176.

    dnfree

    @Catherine D.: We saw Bonnie Raitt at a concert at Ravinia (north of Chicago), along with John Prine and Corky Siegel (I think that’s who we went to see).  I think it was 1972.  Yes, a long time ago….

  184. 184.

    Bill Arnold

    @MattF:
    That whole piece by Rod Dreher is worth reading, even with the swipes at the left. He is genuinely worried about the damage that the Trump Cult is doing to Christianity [Mmm. Funz have been had. Trump has been a test, and Trumpism is a multi-purpose wedge. :-) ] . Formal link for the record:
    What I Saw At The Jericho March (December 12, 2020, Rod Dreher, American Conservative) (bolds mine)

    Festivities began with a large American-born Israeli man whose website is Shofar So Great, who says he received a blessing from his Orthodox rabbi to break Shabbat so he could fly to Washington and blow the shofar at the Jericho March, because it’s that important to support Donald Trump. Though he was puffing a bit as he talked — as I said, he is not small — he came through in the clutch, blowing two shofars at once, impressively. Then he blew a special red, white, and blue shofar made especially for You Know Who. He referred to it as the “Trump Shofar..
    …
    Metaxas came onstage after Lindell spoke, and told the crowd that the president’s helicopter, Marine One, would soon be hovering above the crowd. It was a Felliniesque moment: Trump descending from on high to bless the mighty throng. “Praise God!” says Metaxas. “Thank you Jesus! God bless America! … That’s not the Messiah, that’s just the President.” Remember the opening sequence of La Dolce Vita?: [video link worth watching]
    …
    Yes, it is bonkers. All of it. But you would be wrong to make fun of it and blow it off. This phenomenon is going to matter. Divinizing MAGA and Stop The Steal is going to tear churches to bits, and drive people away from the Christian faith (or keep them from coming in the first place). Based on what I saw today, the Christians in this movement do not doubt that Trump is God’s chosen, that they, by following him, are walking in light, and whatever they do to serve Trump is also serving God. They have tightly wound apocalyptic religion to conservative politics and American nationalism.

    Oh, and Alex Jones thinks Mark Zuckerburg is a “miserable slave of Satan”. (Stopped clock.)
    And Catholic Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano made a video appearance:

    This was a hugely significant development, one no doubt brokered by Steve Bannon. It is hard to overstate how much credibility Vigano has with a large number of conservative Catholics. “We are the silent army of the Children of Light,” Archbishop Vigano told the crowd. Fighting for Trump is a holy crusade. He denounced the Deep State. It is fascinating that Vigano, an Italian citizen, kept talking about “our homeland,” as if America was his.

  187. 187.

    Jay

    UPDATE: Loeffler took this unmasked selfie with a notorious white supremacist on FRIDAY at Dawson's pool hall in Dawsonville, Georgia. https://t.co/AJTRsKroYi— Judd Legum (@JuddLegum) December 13, 2020

    NEW VIDEO: #TheRealKellyLoeffler TURN VOLUME UP!The real Kelly Loeffler has earned nothing herself.The real Kelly Loeffler profited off the death of Americans.The real Kelly Loeffler stands with white supremacists.The real Kelly Loeffler thinks racism can win her election pic.twitter.com/Mb6nqKzwo7— Don Winslow (@donwinslow) December 14, 2020

  188. 188.

    John Revolta

    @dnfree: Yeah, those names bring back memories fer sure. My band opened up for Siegal-Schwall at some high school when they were the rage in Chicago, c.1972. (Can’t say which high school because my dog chewed up the poster I brought home from the gig, about 30 years ago. Pretty much the only thing she ever chewed up, too. Stupid dog.)

  194. 194.

    Jay

    The scenes from Washington last evening were grotesque. Tearing Black Lives Matter signs off churches and burning them in the streets is frighteningly reminiscent of Kristallnacht in Germany in 1938 – as is the silence from too many in positions of power and influence.— Rep. Dean Phillips ?? (@RepDeanPhillips) December 13, 2020

    Medics at Black Lives Matter protests in PA were held on $1,000,000 bails. Proud Boys came to DC from several states, attacked people and property while breaking every COVID regulation, and tonight they’ll sleep in their own beds.— Joshua Potash (@JoshuaPotash) December 14, 2020

  195. 195.

    Calouste

    @Bill Arnold: Divinizing MAGA is not going to tear churches to bits, because people have already self-selected which church they go to, and their fellow church-goers think more or less the same. The days that people just went to their neighborhood Catholic/Lutheran/Presbyterian/etc church are long gone.

  197. 197.

    Bill Arnold

    @Calouste:

    Divinizing MAGA is not going to tear churches to bits, because people have already self-selected which church they go to, and their fellow church-goers think more or less the same.

    Trump tore apart my local Reform synagogue. In particular, he, the Republicans and Netanyahu turned support for the current Israeli government into a partisan political test and conflated it with support for the simple existence of the state of Israel. I loath the national US republicans and their propaganda apparatuses for this. Though that was just part of it. Dreher is talking about religious institutions that are attempting to remain non-political, by my reading.

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