Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Too often we confuse noise with substance. too often we confuse setbacks with defeat.

When someone says they “love freedom”, rest assured they don’t mean yours.

All your base are belong to Tunch.

“Jesus paying for the sins of everyone is an insult to those who paid for their own sins.”

We are aware of all internet traditions.

Yeah, with this crowd one never knows.

I know this must be bad for Joe Biden, I just don’t know how.

Whatever happens next week, the fight doesn’t end.

I’ve spoken to my cat about this, but it doesn’t seem to do any good.

Good lord, these people are nuts.

Give the craziest people you know everything they want and hope they don’t ask for more? Great plan.

Russian mouthpiece, go fuck yourself.

Is it negotiation when the other party actually wants to shoot the hostage?

Schmidt just says fuck it, opens a tea shop.

Consistently wrong since 2002

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

It’s always darkest before the other shoe drops.

Damn right I heard that as a threat.

You can’t attract Republican voters. You can only out organize them.

Meanwhile over at truth Social, the former president is busy confessing to crimes.

Only Democrats have agency, apparently.

Republicans don’t want a speaker to lead them; they want a hostage.

Optimism opens the door to great things.

Perhaps you mistook them for somebody who gives a damn.

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Tuesday Morning Open Thread: Stimulating

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174Comments

  3. 3.

    NotMax

    Nugget of history learned recently. Can’t recall if already mentioned this so apologies if it is a rerun.

    We’ve all seen them in airports and such. Knew they are not a new invention but had no idea they went back so far.

    (Link should go directly to the beginning of the relevant portion of the video.)

  7. 7.

    Baud

    The big COVID relief bill continues the ban on federal funding for ACORN, an organization that has not existed for years

     

     

    Artifact. Each years omnibus bill is based on the prior years, and the budget process has been broken for a while now.

  8. 8.

    debbie

    That ACORN, now gone for 10 years, is in the bill is something Congress should be mercilessly mocked and shamed for.

  11. 11.

    Baud

    @debbie:

    I don’t know what that means.  I gave a reason, not an excuse.  It’s not worth anyone’s time to focus on this.  Maybe if Dems take over everything after 2022.

  14. 14.

    NotMax

    In case anyone is curious about what happened with that recalcitrant flat tire with some lug nuts tightened by The Hulk brought up early yesterday –

    Tried everything feasible and no luck. Resorted to calling a mobile mechanic with whom I have dealt in the past to swing by and tackle it. Sure enough, nuts still didn’t budge and he ended up snapping two of the bolts clean off. He’s already called back to tell me he picked up the replacement parts and arranged to come by first thing Wednesday morning to replace them and the two goldarn nuts which have broken off pieces of bolt still firmly inside. So *should* be able to drive landlady into town on the doughnut tire on Wednesday and get a replacement tire just under the wire before the long holiday weekend.

  16. 16.

    Baud

    President-elect Joe Biden is set to nominate the commissioner of public schools in Connecticut as his education secretary, settling on a low-profile candidate who has pushed to reopen schools and is not aligned with either side in education policy battles of recent years, two people familiar with the matter said Monday.

     

    Miguel Cardona was named Connecticut’s top schools official last year and if confirmed will have achieved a meteoric rise, moving from an assistant superintendent in Meriden, Conn., a district with 9,000 students, to secretary of education in less than two years.

     

    He was born in Meriden to Puerto Rican parents who lived in public housing. He began his career as a fourth-grade teacher and rocketed up the ranks, becoming the state’s youngest principal at age 28. He was named the state’s principal of the year in 2012.

  19. 19.

    Baud

    Trump has gone too far.

    President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Monday looking to ensure that federal buildings feature “beautiful” architecture, expressing a preference for classical architecture over modernist designs.

    The order did not explicitly define what standards buildings must meet to be considered beautiful, saying that new federal buildings should be of classical design but not mandating that style. The order defines classical architecture as “the architectural tradition derived from the forms, principles, and vocabulary of the architecture of Greek and Roman antiquity” and that “encompasses such styles as Neoclassical, Georgian, Federal, Greek Revival, Beaux-Arts, and Art Deco.”
    ……

    The move is already being met with resistance from some architects, with the American Institute of Architects issuing a statement Monday that it “unequivocally opposes” the order, but expressing relief that the order was not as powerful or as comprehensive as expected.

  23. 23.

    Geminid

    I was glad to hear that the bill included “a raft” of climate change measures. I have not checked them out, and they certainly won’t be as far reaching as needed. But combatting climate change ultimately will be a much larger “raft” of measures in different areas. Electrical generation, agricultural practices, alternate fuels are just a few. The new Administration can do a lot in this area, and the next Congress can push solutions further along. While “climate change denial” looms large in people’s minds, it’s played out as a political strategy. Polls show large majorities favoring action to combat climate change, and some republicans are starting to grudgingly go along.

  25. 25.

    NotMax

    Can’t help but be curious as to how the prices might compare with any of your local fast charging stations for electric vehicles.

    Owned and operated by Hawaiian Electric, the publicly-accessible DC fast chargers offer a lower rate during daytime hours to encourage charging when solar energy is typically abundant.

    The EV-Maui charging rate is $0.28 per kilowatt-hour between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.; $0.40 per kWh between 5 p.m. and 10 p.m.; and $0.38 per kWh between 10 p.m. and 9 a.m. Source

  27. 27.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    @Baud: Have you seen some of the Federal Building built in the 60’s?

    Actually, I kind of agree with this EO, government buildings should have a certain imposing ‘look’.

    (I’m looking at a photo on my other screen with the 1925 Hall of Justice, 1930’s Federal Courthouse and 60’s era Federal building.)

  28. 28.

    Baud

    Several Trump immigration restrictions will remain in place, Biden advisers say, urging patience

    The headline is designed to inflame and get retweeted, but the story is of interest with respect to Biden’s plan for immigration.

  29. 29.

    Geminid

    One news item from yesterday: after a vote to extend budget talks failed in the Knesset, the Israelis will almost certainly have their fourth election in two years, tentatively scheduled for March 23 of next year.

  31. 31.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @Baud: We’ll know he’s gone too far when he signs an executive order declaring the Lincoln Memorial be gilded in gold.

  37. 37.

    schrodingers_cat

    @Baud: What makes them think that they will prevail. Right now, Britain, Israel and India are all ruled by right-wing parties and they are parliamentary democracies.

  38. 38.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @Geminid: from the Guardian’s article:

    Political analysts in Israel have speculated that Netanyahu might want to torpedo the government prematurely rather than hand over power, especially as the 71-year-old leader is engaged in a lengthy corruption trial that he would rather fight as prime minister.

    It was the first thing I thought of.

  40. 40.

    Raven

    @NotMax: They are actually called “studs”  

    I had a VW bus that had a flat coming back from a Dead show in Charlotte.  I couldn’t get the damn thing off and called a tow truck. The dude tried but couldn’t get them off and then his 12 year old son said “I think that VW has reverse threads on tha side”. Damn if he wasn’t right!

  41. 41.

    Baud

    @schrodingers_cat:

    I don’t know.  It does seem to be an assumption that’s unexplained.  I think a lot of people just like the idea of voting for a party more aligned with their views, instead of having to support Dems to keep Republicans out of power.  I also think they believe it would also give them a bigger platform to sell their views to the public.

  42. 42.

    Spanky

    I notice that the bill bans ACORN “or their successors”. How tightly defined is “successor” in the legislation, because I could see them going after some orgs while claiming that it’s a successor of ACORN?

  44. 44.

    Amir Khalid

    @Baud:

    I don’t think the CNN story even mentions how many federal building projects are affected by the order, if any. It sounds like a nuisance order that is going to be ignored until President Biden gets around to rescinding it.

  47. 47.

    Geminid

    @Baud: Israel’s parliamentary system is particularly problematic. Candidates run nationwide on party slates. If a party gains 10% of the vote, the top 12 on the slate are are awarded Knesset seats. The “parties” fielding slates are often themselves coalitions of smaller parties and factions, and often are created for an election, only to disappear by the next election. Very confusing to follow. And the Knesset is very boisterous, with a lot of name calling. A couple weeks ago, a member of the left Meretz Party called Blue and White leader Benny Gantz “a Trojan Horse who spits in our faces!”

  48. 48.

    rikyrah

    For a virus that’s a hoax there sure are a lot of Republicans rushing to get that vaccine before the healthcare workers who were warning us about it the whole time.— The Volatile Mermaid (@OhNoSheTwitnt) December 21, 2020

  49. 49.

    schrodingers_cat

    @Baud: They are delusional. They are not as as popular as they think they are. A parliamentary democracy is not going to change that.

    Also forming coalition governments requires a lot of compromise.

  50. 50.

    rikyrah

    BIG BOLD PREDICTION – Kelly Loefler's attack on Raphael Warnock's faith and the Black Church will be the event that defines how the 2 Georgia Senate races turn out.— ??Quarantine Gluttony Champion!?? (@Geechee4Kamala) December 22, 2020

  55. 55.

    raven

    @OzarkHillbilly: My buddy in Champaign came down here in the late 90’s to buy a 56 Chevy Apache. He and his son were driving it back and when they got to Chattanooga a brake cylinder started leaking badly. After pondering the situation his son (my godson) said “why don’t we pull that line, put a bolt in it and drive it home”! They did! He’s now a civil engineer in Colorado.

  57. 57.

    OzarkHillbilly

    Thailand rescue worker Mana Srivate has performed dozens of resuscitation attempts in his 26 years on the job, but never before on an elephant. Mana was called into action while off duty on a road trip, treating a baby elephant that had been struck by a motorcycle while crossing a road with its wild herd in the eastern province of Chanthaburi.

    In a video that spread on social media in Thailand, Mana is seen giving two-handed compressions to a small elephant lying on its side as colleagues a few metres away treat a dazed and injured motorcycle rider. Afterwards, both the rider and elephant were recovering and neither had serious injuries.

    “It’s my instinct to save lives, but I was worried the whole time because I can hear the mother and other elephants calling for the baby,” Mana said. “I assumed where an elephant heart would be located based on human theory and a video clip I saw online. “When the baby elephant starting to move, I almost cried.”

    The elephant stood up after about 10 minutes and was taken to another location for treatment, before being returned to the scene of the accident in the hope of being reunited with its mother. The elephants soon returned when the mother heard her baby calling out, Mana said.

    Despite having dealt with dozens of road traffic accidents involving humans, Mana said the elephant was the only one of his CPR recipients that had revived.

  58. 58.

    Geminid

    @Baud: Ideas of a parliamentary system for the U.S. are just pipe dreams. We’ll never have one. And the Democratic party is already a standing coalition, comprised of different groups and diverse individuals. Unlike Israel and the UK, though, party leadership does not control who runs on a party’s line. Rather, candidates are selected by voters in primaries.

  59. 59.

    schrodingers_cat

    Always Online Complaining gave her third interview bashing Dems since the election, this time on the Intercept podcast.

  60. 60.

    Soprano2

    So, COVID status update – I’m back to work and except for the weird loss of smell I’m pretty much feeling “normal” again. I was excited this morning because I smelled vanilla in body lotion, and then was able to smell the perfume I put on! I tasted some of the fiber bar I had for breakfast this morning, too, so I’m hopeful my sense of smell is going to come back.  Still no joy on coffee, though. :-( Some people go 6 months or longer without it coming back. My husband is still experiencing the occasional coughing fit and the extreme fatigue – I think he spent most of yesterday on the couch sleeping. He said the dogs stayed outside all day in the nice weather so he was actually able to get some sleep! (When you’re home, a lot of your day is spent being the “dog butler” – let the dogs out, let the dogs in, rinse and repeat over and over.) We aren’t going to have Christmas with my mother until around New Years’ Day just to be safe, plus I’m not sure my husband would be ready for it this weekend anyway. He said at this point being sick is mostly an annoyance, because he doesn’t feel like doing much of anything. He also still has loss of appetite. I told him he should taste it for me. :-)

  62. 62.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @raven: Took my sons camping next to a small spring at the bottom of a heavily rutted steep 4wd track. At the end of the wkend going back up thru a particularly brushy section, one set of wheels slid into a rut and we got high centered. I got my shovel and dug it out to the point where I could back up and make another run at it. Got stuck again. Dug it out again. Got stuck again. Dug it out again. Getting ready to make 4th run at it when my youngest pipes up:

    “Why don’t you just drive around it Pop?”

    Took a good look at the brush and realized it was mostly briars and such and nothing that would slow us down at all. I looked at him and said,

    “Why the fuck didn’t you ask me that before???”

    The little fucker just grinned.

  63. 63.

    Chyron HR

    @Baud:

    President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Monday looking to ensure that federal buildings feature “beautiful” architecture

    …for the next 30 days.

  65. 65.

    Betty Cracker

    @Geminid:

    A couple weeks ago, a member of the left Meretz Party called Blue and White leader Benny Gantz “a Trojan Horse who spits in our faces!”

    Should have called him a Trojan llama then. Horses don’t spit.

  69. 69.

    Betty Cracker

    @Soprano2: I missed the news that y’all got the virus somehow — so glad you are on the mend!

    PS: The “dog butler” thing really resonates. I’ve worked at home for many years, and I spend half the day opening the door for mutts.

  70. 70.

    Baud

    @Geminid:

    And the Democratic party is already a standing coalition, comprised of different groups and diverse individuals.

    In the aggregate. But if you’re in a particular district, you have to swallow however the nominee is (also true for governors and president)

     

    Unlike Israel and the UK, though, party leadership does not control who runs on a party’s line.

    I think people don’t realize how much more top down parliamentary parties are.

  72. 72.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Chyron HR:

    President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Monday looking to ensure that federal buildings feature “beautiful” architecture

    classy like the rotting husk of a trump casino waiting to be blowed up real good, for charity. I’m sure he took out all the mirrors and marble to be re-installed somewhere

  73. 73.

    WaterGirl

    @Elizabelle: That’s one of the keepers that I go back to again and again.  I have put it up several times in the comments.  I join you in thinking that it’s a masterpiece!

    It cannot be posted enough.

  80. 80.

    zhena gogolia

    @Chyron HR:

    I don’t know why, but this just broke me when I saw it yesterday. The text of it is so illiterate and philistine, and of course the Albert Speer echoes don’t help.

  81. 81.

    Dorothy A. Winsor

    @WaterGirl: That is hilarious!

    A number of years ago we were on a cruise around New Zealand and Australia, and we ate dinner almost every night with a Kiwi couple. They laughed when we said that we couldn’t tell their accent from Aussies’.

  82. 82.

    schrodingers_cat

    @Baud: BS was the vessel of white resentment against the Obama years for people on the left and libertarian Ron Paulites. Their most vicious attacks are reserved for women and minorities. Obama, HRC, Nancy Pelosi and Kamala Harris. They can’t stand it that black people, women and other minorities have gained a toe-hold in the leadership of the Democratic party.

    These are the same people that booed John Lewis at the 2016 DNC convention.

  84. 84.

    Ken

    @Geminid: A couple weeks ago, a member of the left Meretz Party called Blue and White leader Benny Gantz “a Trojan Horse who spits in our faces!”

    Cudgeling my aging brain here… Wasn’t Gantz the one who, after the last Israeli election, announced his surpise support for Netanyahu, preventing the Labor-led coalition from taking control of Parliament?  And I’m vaguely remembering that Gantz did so because Netanyahu promised he’d step aside in a couple of years and let Gantz become PM?  Assuming my decaying mind has it right, I can see how some might harbor hard feelings about Gantz.

    BTW, as far as I recall, I got the above rundown largely from Balloon Juice. Won’t it be nice when both Trump and the pandemic are over, and Adam S. and Cheryl R. can go back to explaining international politics for us?

  85. 85.

    Elizabelle

    @WaterGirl:   Appreciate your keeping this one in rotation.

    Here is hoping Blake Pavey comes up with something else “genius” this year.  Maybe the rest of his humor does not translate??  Will check him out again later ….  some time …

    This one is museum quality for humor (and accuracy) during the pandemic.

  86. 86.

    Betty Cracker

    Regarding parliamentary systems and coalitions, I wonder how voter participation rates compare with a U.S.-style system? I’ve always heard the U.S. voter participation rate is shamefully low among wealthy democracies. I wonder if parliamentary systems allowing voters to sort themselves in a way that more closely aligns with their views motivates people to participate more?

    Not sure there’s any evidence that parliamentary systems produce better or worse results than a two-party system. The UK coughed up BoJo and Israel has the awful Netanyahu, but New Zealand’s PM seems pretty awesome, and I’d take Canada’s Trudeau over Trump any day.

    I suspect the results in either system are more a reflection of the people than the system. But voter participation is always an issue.  We hit 66% in 2020, and it was the highest turnout in more than 100 years. In New Zealand’s most recent election, more than 80% of voters showed up. What would this country look like if Americans voted at those rates? More like New Zealand maybe?

  89. 89.

    gene108

    @Baud:

    Liberals tend to like parliamentary democracy, but I don’t see Americans having the patience for it.

    Liberals fantasize about parliamentary systems of government, without understanding no system is perfect.

    Also, in parliamentary systems political parties have near total control on who gets to stand as the party’s candidate in any given election.

    No more primaries

    The DNC would actually become the powerful entity Bernie supporters thought it was in 2016.

  92. 92.

    Betty Cracker

    @Geminid: It really is a comical image!

    One of the best “instant vindication” moments I’ve ever experienced in my life concerned spitting llamas. I was walking through Busch Gardens in Tampa with my sister and a friend, and the walkway passed between two enclosures containing llamas.

    I noticed that some llamas gathered at the fence on either side of the walkway were working their lips in an odd circular motion, and I said I hoped they wouldn’t start spitting. My sister and friend scoffed at the notion that llamas spit, but I knew llamas are spitters, probably having read about it somewhere or seen it on PBS.

    Anyhoo, no sooner had they ridiculed me for suspecting that the llamas would spit, the llamas DID start spitting at each other, and giant llama loogies were passing overhead, causing a human stampede that carried us away from the camelid war zone. My companions never questioned my pack animal knowledge again!

  93. 93.

    Geminid

    @Ken: The once dominant Israeli Labor Party was down to just a handful of Knesset spots after the last election, and could not have put together a 61 member government. No one could. Netanyahu’s coalition was stalled at 58, just like after the first two elections. Gantz broke the impasse by bringing his Blue and White party into a coalition with Netanyahu, contrary to campaign pledges. The secularist Yesh Atid  party promptly bolted. They had campaigned on a joint slate with Gantz. Now Gideon Sa’ar, a top Likud leader, has left Likud and formed the New Hope party, and  Likud members and Blue and White members have signed on.

    Now I’m getting dizzy. But those interested can follow this story in The Jerusalem Post and The Times of Israel. Haaretz is better, but it is paywalled.

  95. 95.

    mrmoshpotato

    The big COVID relief bill continues the ban on federal funding for ACORN, an organization that has not existed for years

    Not funding an organization that doesn’t exist – good on ya, mates!

  96. 96.

    Matt McIrvin

    @gene108:

    The DNC would actually become the powerful entity Bernie supporters thought it was in 2016.

    Even as it was, they complained about the DNC rigging primary elections (which it had no control over, since state governments run them) but were perfectly happy with caucuses (which the party DOES run, but Bernie’s people were very good at gaming them). It never made any sense.

  98. 98.

    gene108

    @Betty Cracker:

    I wonder what other countries do to reduce barriers to voting, and insure faith in their election process?

    I have a feeling the USA is unique in that the major conservative party here makes voting harder, and sows doubt on the validity of the process. I don’t think other countries have a party he’ll bent on throwing up barriers to voting.

  99. 99.

    Baud

    @gene108:

    The DNC would actually become the powerful entity Bernie supporters thought it was in 2016.

    True, but the idea is that they could bolt to another party.  Of course, that doesn’t address the problem that every party in a parliamentary system is more top down.  But I suspect that if a party were aligned more closely to their views, they would care less about how democratic it is. See Green Party.

     

    ETA: I’m not sure about every place, but I was surprised to learn that only dues paying members get to choose leaders in the Labour Party in UK.

  102. 102.

    Betty Cracker

    @gene108: Great point! I agree voter suppression is a huge problem. Still, tens of millions of people don’t bother to vote because they don’t think it makes a difference. There have been tons of studies that show pulling those folks off the sidelines would transform U.S. politics.

    Trump motivated the angry bigots among the vast apathetic group, and stopping Trump motivated a smaller share of apathetic voters, which, combined with regular Democrats, was enough to rid us of Trump but unfortunately not sufficient to kick Republicans out of power altogether. I don’t know what the answer is.

  104. 104.

    Immanentize

    @Omnes Omnibus: The support for democracy is miles deep — when one’s choice prevails.

    In other news — actual voter fraud revealed in Pennsylvania!  Trump voter also voted Trump via his dead-you-know (for 10 years!) Mother.  I just wonder if she voted for Trump in 2016 too?

  107. 107.

    mrmoshpotato

    @Immanentize:

    In other news — actual voter fraud revealed in Pennsylvania!  Trump voter also voted Trump via his dead-you-know (for 10 years!) Mother.  I just wonder if she voted for Trump in 2016 too? 

    Oh felonious Trump trash…

  108. 108.

    OzarkHillbilly

    Listen up: making music from the northern lights

    There’s a hypnotic crackle before a whoosh of sound flies from ear to ear. It’s followed by a heavenly chorus that might be whales whistling, frogs calling or the chirping of an alien bird. It sounds celestial because that’s what it is. The noise is the aurora borealis: the northern lights.

    The vivid green lights that trace across the Arctic sky emit electromagnetic waves when the solar shower meets the Earth’s magnetic field, and these can be translated into sounds that are made audible to human ears by a small machine.

    These mysterious, sweeping noises are celebrated by a new Radio 3 documentary following the biologist Karin Lehmkuhl Bodony into the wilderness on her dog sleigh to record the soundscape, which has now been turned into music by an Alaskan composer.

  109. 109.

    germy

    8. UPDATE: Facebook has now removed ALL of American Crossroads ads for violating its policies.

    (All of these ads were attacking Warnock.)

    This is a Super PAC run by Karl Rove and funded by Mitch McConnell's operation. pic.twitter.com/4yLlpiFQUi

    — Judd Legum (@JuddLegum) December 21, 2020

    Lying liars and the lies they tell.

  111. 111.

    sdhays

    @Betty Cracker: I think the voter participation rates are a major reason liberals tend to think favorably of parliamentary systems, although each parliamentary government seems to be its own special snowflake of tradeoffs. And like others have said, coalition building happens after the election and is handled by (hopefully) trusted leaders negotiating and getting tangible positions in a governing coalition.

    For years, liberals have had to deal with various people excusing their decision not to vote for Democrats because they don’t have the maturity to enter into advantageous political coalitions themselves, so I think taking that out of the hands of the voter (who can then vote their pure essence) and handing that off to leaders has a distinct appeal. I don’t think it’s the panacea it can appear at first glance, but I think the appeal should be evident.

  112. 112.

    Geminid

    @Baud: During last year’s run up to the  general election, the British Conservative had a “primary” in which less than 300,000 dues paying party members selected Boris Johnson to lead the party.  And now the Conservative Parliamentary Majority can run the show until 2025, unless there are significant defections or losses in by-elections. They can call for a new election, however, any time they think conditions are favorable, and reset the six-year clock.

    By the18th century, the British Parliament had developed into a powerful instrument for moneyed interests. It’s still getting the job done.

  115. 115.

    mrmoshpotato

    Dump-humping Ross Douthat fanfic is the best fanfic.

    (Sit down, stop drinking your coffee for a second and enjoy this thread.)

    JFC, I came across this Ross Douthat column from November 13, 2016. It’s titled, no shit, “He Made America Feel Great Again,” and it’s a speculative piece about how wildly successful Trump’s first term “was,” pretending to look back from 2020, after his reelection. Holy fuck.— The Rude Pundit (@rudepundit) December 21, 2020

  117. 117.

    Just One More Canuck

    @Baud: Here in Canada, the party leader has the final say on nominees. The veto doesnt happen often, usually in cases where the person did or said something so outrageous that there was no choice and the person was likely to resign anyway

  118. 118.

    H.E.Wolf

    @Baud: Have you seen some of the Federal Building built in the 60’s?

    Paraphrasing an architectural walking tour in my former home city, as we gazed at the faceless facade of our City Hall:

    There was a certain amount of fear of civic unrest in the 1960s (terrible scary protestors are coming for us! omg!1!), and it dovetailed with some very unfortunate architectural fads to produce some ugly, intimidating, fortress-like government buildings.

    Tangentially: Harry Truman, when he was the presiding County Court Judge (an administrative, not judicial, position) in Missouri in the early 1930s, researched building styles and hired the architects for the Jackson County Court building. He chose Art Deco. :)

  119. 119.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    Trump would view Pence performing his constitutional duty — and validating the election result — as the ultimate betrayal.

    This is from axios.

    Hilarious. Maybe Pence can get out of this by faking his own death like JFK jr. and Chavez.

  120. 120.

    gene108

    @Betty Cracker:

    Lack of voter participation has been a problem for ages. We covered the declining voter participation rates, when I was in high school civics, in 1988.

    But I think those rates are against eligible voters, which has grown as we’ve expanded the franchise and tried to enforce the four voting rights amendments in the Constitution.

    Chart of voting as percentage of total population, and not just eligible voters.

    Trump motivated the angry bigots among the vast apathetic group, and stopping Trump motivated a smaller share of apathetic voters, which, combined with regular Democrats, was enough to rid us of Trump but unfortunately not sufficient to kick Republicans out of power altogether. I don’t know what the answer is.

    Trump did activate the angry bigots more than anyone had predicted in 2016, but I think his election sparked a lot more people to go against Republicans than switched over to him.

    Also, a lot more people, like myself, became more active in politics. 2018 was the first time I canvassed for a candidate. I did text and phone banking this year.

  122. 122.

    Immanentize

    @H.E.Wolf: The failure to include Art deco/nautical moderne/and other amazing WPA styles really is the epic fail of this executive order.

    And I am a guy who likes brutalist architecture like Boston City Hall — much hated by most.

  123. 123.

    gene108

    @germy:

    “High ranking” Congressional Republican needs to go on the record or STFU.

    I’m sick of these bullshit anonymous drops to reporters that Republicans don’t like Trump personally, even though all their actions show they are 100% behind Trump, and are onboard with his plans to stage a coup invalidating election results.

    I wish these reporters would quit falling for this shit. Go on the record, or act like you want some daylight between you and Trump’s ass.

  124. 124.

    Aleta

    (Salon) Jared Kushner personally signed off on keeping salary payments to top campaign officials off the books, according to a person involved with the arrangements.    Federal Election Commission records show that the Trump campaign has made no salary payments to chief strategist Jason Miller, who came on board in June, or to campaign manager Bill Stepien, who joined the campaign in late 2018 and took over the top job from Brad Parscale in July. Kushner agreed to both arrangements, and personally directed the payments to Miller, the person involved said. [Source: approved by Trump]

    While the Trump campaign has reported $20,000 monthly salary payments to chief of staff Stephanie Alexander and senior adviser Katrina Pierson, it has not done the same for COO Jeff DeWit or senior advisers Bob Paduchik and Bill Shine. Deputy campaign manager Justin Clark has not taken a direct payment from the campaign since February 2019, according to federal records.  Instead, the campaign has paid these top-tier advisers through intermediaries — some of which are still unknown.

    For instance, according to the source, after salary negotiations with Miller, Kushner directed the campaign to route the top strategist’s $35,000 monthly payment through Jamestown Associates, a media and production firm where Miller once worked, and which the campaign contracts for video production. Miller, who is currently contesting child-support payments in court, requested the anonymous arrangement for the $420,000 annual rate, for unclear reasons. Communications, court documents and FEC filings reviewed by Salon make clear that the money was paid to by way of Jamestown. President Trump himself was aware of the deal, a person involved said.

    To this point, the campaign has not told government that it has paid Miller anything. Instead, it has stated that all payments to Jamestown are for “video production,” without mentioning Miller’s name or strategy work. Furthermore, Miller’s official role means that he has often directed how and when the campaign uses Jamestown Associates, the company that technically pays him.

    Stepien replaced Parscale as campaign manager in mid-July, and allegedly pleased Trump by taking a pay cut when he accepted the position. Salon reported last week that in 2018 the campaign created an in-house shell company called American Made Media Consultants (AMMC) in response to rumors about Parscale’s spending, which according to a campaign source had made the president uneasy.

    Reports over the summer said that Parscale had stepped aside partly in response to criticism of his profligate spending, which Stepien promised to rein in. In fact, the campaign’s expenses increased significantly after Stepien took over, including, FEC records show, payments to a company called Elections LLC, a legal firm that Stepien founded in 2019 with fellow campaign adviser Justin Clark.

    …

  125. 125.

    Immanentize

    @gene108: Very interesting chart, thanks!

    Historically interesting that increase in independent voting generally correlates with decreased GOP voting.  Until Trump?

  127. 127.

    germy

    @gene108:

    They’re afraid of angry mobs outside their offices and/or homes.

    They spent years filling their base with poison and now their base is spitting it back at them.

  129. 129.

    UncleEbeneezer

    Asking again here from a dead thread: So here’s a question for the group: yesterday my wife ran over to help our neighbor with a pet emergency and forgot to grab a mask. Was inside with her for 30-45 mins, only close for a short time. Neighbor has no symptoms or positive test, but obviously that is no guarantee. I am 47, fit and no known co-morbitities (though I have had bronchitis a few times). How would you handle a bubble-broken without a + Covid test (everything about testing, quarantine etc., is always premised on CONFIRMED contact with the virus). We live in a tiny place, and tomorrow is my birthday. My understanding is that it takes 5-7 days before a test for my wife, would even show anything. Not sure how we should handle things. Gonna call my doc this morning and see what they say, but curious to know others’ thoughts.  All 3 parties including neighbor have taken Covid very seriously and worn masks, social distance etc., regularly.

  131. 131.

    trollhattan

    @?BillinGlendaleCA:

    +1. I always think of Soviet block housing when I see that…er, style. “How can we do this the most cheap way possible?”

    A few postwar State buildings could really use a vigorous tearing down.

  132. 132.

    Yarrow

    @UncleEbeneezer:  Inside without a mask for any amount of time is very high risk for transmission. Not having symptoms is no guarantee of negative test, as you know. Personally, I’d stop any planned contact with loved ones over the holiday and stay home for 7-10 days. If you can get a quick test about 5 days from now I’d do that and watch for any symptoms.

    If you can convince neighbor to get a test that could cut down on your time staying home if that test came back negative. Since neighbor would have to have it first before your wife could get it. In this scenario I mean.

  133. 133.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    @Aleta:said that Parscale had stepped aside partly in response to criticism of his profligate spending, which Stepien promised to rein in. In fact, the campaign’s expenses increased significantly after Stepien took over,

    To funny.

    But isn’t there a tax issue if this orgination isn’t reporting it’s employees salaries, or is this more Republicans so the law doesn’t apply?

  135. 135.

    UncleEbeneezer

    @Yarrow: The big issue is that we live in a tiny 900 sq ft cottage together (me and my wife).  No plans to see anyone for two weeks at least so that’s easy.  But it’s pretty much impossible for us not to be around each other.  We slept in separate rooms last night and my wife is wearing a mask indoors and we plan to get tested if we can next week.

  140. 140.

    Just One More Canuck

    @?BillinGlendaleCA: there’s a line from a Tragically Hip song (Wheat Kings) that describes this type of building perfectly – ‘walls are lined, all yellow, grey and sinister’

  141. 141.

    Another Scott

    @?BillinGlendaleCA: I think government architecture should reflect the best work of architects of the time.  Donnie’s EO is a stupid abomination.

    The quintessential example is the Vietnam Veterans memorial.  It’s a powerful place that would never have had the powerful impact it does if it were yet another GrecoRoman temple.

    Let architects do their jobs, considering all the relevant factors (the site, the available materials and technologies (HVAC, solar, windows, etc., etc.).  Don’t tie their hands this way.

    Cheers,
    Scott.
    (“Who is spending part of his morning upgrading a Win7 VirtualBox machine to Win10 on macOS.  Fun!!11”)

  142. 142.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    @OzarkHillbilly: Normally I would agree but it does seem like the Trumpets break the law as a matter of habit.  I guess they assume Trump will just issue them all a blanket pardon.

  143. 143.

    Yarrow

    @UncleEbeneezer:  Outside of someone pitching a tent outside that’s probably the best you can do. So sorry you’re having to deal with this. Is where you live warm enough that you can open windows and doors to get in fresh air? Even if not, a small cracked window or occasionally opening doors to bring in fresh air may be worth it.

  144. 144.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    @Another Scott:The quintessential example is the Vietnam Veterans memorial.  It’s a powerful place that would never have had the powerful impact it does if it were yet another GrecoRoman temple.

    And at the time the Right crapped their pants over it  so badly the government had to do the heroic Victory Vietnam monument they wanted and no one remembers.

  145. 145.

    artem1s

    @debbie:

    That ACORN, now gone for 10 years, is in the bill is something Congress should be mercilessly mocked and shamed for.

    I’m fine with it staying.  It’s a fine example of why it’s a bad idea to elect know nothings and ideologues to Congress or any other office.  It should serve as a reminder to anyone who is tempted to vote third party in a close election.  The GOP wants to put a Planned Parenthood ban in all the funding bills right along side ACORN.  And would probably mandate government funding of the NRA in every bill if they thought they could get away with it.

  146. 146.

    Uncle Cosmo

    @Baud: Surprised the list didn’t include “Stalinist wedding-cake.” Cf. Warsaw’s Pałac Kultury i Nauki (PKiN) for a particularly obnoxious example.

    Varsovians say the most charming view of their city is from the top of PKiN – mostly because that’s the only place in town where you can’t see PKiN…

    For an entire town planned & rebuilt post-WW2 in that style, try Sillamäe. Dr Rofer has spent time there & can confirm.

  149. 149.

    gene108

    @Enhanced Voting Techniques:

    I think contracting to another company that someone owns, which in turns pays the person is not illegal.

    IT person works as a contractor. He/She has their own S-Corp or LLC, which the client pays instead of the person directly. This seems similar.

    I’m not sure if the actual payment arrangement is illegal.

    @OzarkHillbilly:

    It might be illegal depending on campaign finance disclosure requirements. I think this is where Trump and his gang may trip up here.

  150. 150.

    Miss Bianca

    @Betty Cracker:

    @Soprano2:

    So we’re not the only dog butlers up here at the Mountain Hacienda! “First I go out, then I come in. Then I go out, then I come in. Then I go out, then I come in…” Sometimes within the space not of moments, but *seconds*, merely. Roxy, particularly. Little fuckers.

    Of course, Roxy the Wolf Girl was off her feed for a little while last week, and was doing nothing but lying around refusing food and looking peaky for a couple days, so the fact that she’s back to her old tricks is actually a gladsome sign!

  151. 151.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @Enhanced Voting Techniques: Such creative corporate structuring happens everywhere anymore. A lot of it for the dodging of taxes, other times for avoiding certain regs. It’s the inevitable result of our piecemeal law making.  It’s almost impossible to avoid creating loopholes.

  152. 152.

    Uncle Cosmo

    @Dorothy A. Winsor: On my first trip to Europe I heard a couple speaking English & asked if they were Australian. They both looked very sad & replied, Naaow, we’re from New Zealand.

    So the next time I heard a similar fashion of English being spoken I asked the young fellow if he was from New Zealand. He looked at me with disgust & snarled, Wha’, I sound like a fookin’ Kiwi ta yew?

    Three nations separated by a common language…:^D

  153. 153.

    Geminid

    Politico has a report on an interview McConnell gave to the WSJ, in which he said that every Biden Cabinet nominee will get a vote on the Senate floor. He did not guarantee that they would all get voted out of committee.

  154. 154.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    @Another Scott:

     I think government architecture should reflect the best work of architects of the time.

    I’ve seen the results of this line of thinking, it’s not pleasant.

    Good luck with the Win upgrade on V-Box, Windows is pretty well behaved in a virtual environment so you shouldn’t have too much of a problem.

  155. 155.

    artem1s

    @?BillinGlendaleCA:

    Actually, I kind of agree with this EO, government buildings should have a certain imposing ‘look’.

    yea, sorry, Conservatives love Brutalism and Soviet style Neo-Brutalism almost as much as it does Neo-Classical.  Donnie is espousing ‘beautiful’ buildings and has no idea what he is talking about.  Modern can describe anything from the 1920’s onward.  Neo-classical hasn’t been used much since the 40’s for public buildings because no one wants to pay for all that stone detailing.  I’m sure these know nothings would be fine with Post-Moderism and International Style as those are typical choices for Fortune 500 companies, suburban office complexes and useful if you have lots of worker bees and shared/flex spaces.

    What they are really are probably talking about is Deconstructivism as the thing they want to hate-ban.  All those wavy lines make them stabby. They get confused if they have to take more than a second to identify the front door.

  156. 156.

    scav

    I rather doubt there’s a bright and universal line for “beautiful” and am in no way in favor of a guideline that would rule out (Untraditional!!) the Vietnam veterans memorial.

    (Personally, there’s a lot of federal stuff that looks like nothing more than cheap banks — and am also entirely fond of a grand bit of Rochardson Romanesque when given the opportunity.)

  157. 157.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @gene108: They should have lawyers to advise them on setting this stuff up, but if Ghouliani and Powell are any indication of the level of legal talent they hire….

  158. 158.

    Uncle Cosmo

    @Immanentize: The failure to include Art deco/nautical moderne/and other amazing WPA styles really is the epic fail of this executive order.

    Um…

    The order defines classical architecture as “the architectural tradition derived from the forms, principles, and vocabulary of the architecture of Greek and Roman antiquity” and that “encompasses such styles as Neoclassical, Georgian, Federal, Greek Revival, Beaux-Arts, and Art Deco.”

  159. 159.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    @artem1s:

    Neo-classical hasn’t been used much since the 40’s for public buildings because no one wants to pay for all that stone detailing.

    Both the east and west fronts of the US Capitol were replaced in the 1960’s and 1980’s(sandstone to marble), so the skill set exists.  But it doesn’t have to be built in stone, we had really nice looking high schools here in LA that ended up being replaced by fugly shit.  I’ll also point to the California Capitol annex as well as the Criminal Court building here in LA.  FUGLY!

  161. 161.

    Brachiator

    @Baud:

    President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Monday looking to ensure that federal buildings feature “beautiful” architecture, expressing a preference for classical architecture over modernist designs.

    Trump has gone too far?

    Or, Trump has gone insane.

  163. 163.

    scav

    @Uncle Cosmo: So I guess they’ve ruled out yurts, Saxon roundhouses and possibly a wealth of really fine southwestern, mission style and adobe buildings. There may be a lot of gothic edifices tossed out with the bathwater as well, depending on how anal they are about the holy greco-roman talisman.

  166. 166.

    catclub

    @artem1s: They get confused if they have to take more than a second to identify the front door.

     

    I think it is a big architecture fail if you cannot immediately identify the front door of a building.

  167. 167.

    Kattails

    @debbie: I watched the video, not familiar with the guy. My quibble is with him referencing friends who are in the mental health field who would “never attempt a diagnosis of someone based on headlines” (i.e. Trump’s latest meetings). As I understand from Bandy Lee and others, one needs a clinical setting to make a clinical diagnosis of specific mental illness.

    However it’s entirely possible to make a reasonable prediction of behavior based on more than ample publicly available evidence both current and past. We have years of videos of Trump, in his own words, in a variety of settings– more evidence than any psychiatrist is likely to have available in an hour or two meeting once a week. We can also make predictions of behavior from repetitive crime scenes even when we don’t know who the criminal is.  A heft swatch of psychologists and psychiatrists have al declared Trump to be a malignant narcissist, which comes with a set of predictable results.  So far, their predictions have borne out.

  168. 168.

    Tenar Arha

    @Immanentize: Not everyone. This is a very nuanced Brutalist Architecture explainer, with a segment on BCH too.

     

    @?BillinGlendaleCA: It was actually planned to be an open plaza/gathering place like in Europe, but it never had a proper surround of small cafes & business to bring life to the plaza, except for when a music festival or Super Bowl celebration occurred. (& IIRC it was because of security they closed the North entrance making it harder for the public to pass thru the building).

  169. 169.

    Another Scott

    @?BillinGlendaleCA: Other than forgetting that I need to stretch the install partition in Winders after expanding the disk in the VM…

    And having to change the VM type from Win7 to Win8.1 to overcome the CompareExchange128 fatal error…

    And Windows Update continuously trying to install an update everytime Win7 shuts down…

    And who knows what will be next…

    It hasn’t been too bad!!  ;-)

    Cheers,
    Scott.
    (“Who isn’t a fan of Brutalism, either, but mandating is bad…”)

  171. 171.

    Yarrow

    @UncleEbeneezer:  Well, that makes a big difference. You guys are probably fairly safe given your neighbor has been very safe too. If your neighbor can get a test fairly quickly and it’s negative that should put your minds at ease. Best of luck.

  172. 172.

    Brachiator

    President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Monday looking to ensure that federal buildings feature “beautiful” architecture, expressing a preference for classical architecture over modernist designs.

    This kind of thing is another example of why Trump’s supporters love him. This shit is trivial and retrograde, but some people see a building they thing is ugly or … modern … and wish they could just get rid of it and go back to something from the good old days.

    And now they have someone big and powerful in the White House who can snap his fingers and make their wishes come true. They don’t have to go begging to some planning commission composed of disdainful elites.

    It’s Deplorables Nirvana.

  173. 173.

    Another Scott

    @catclub: Public buildings, maybe.  Maybe.

    All buildings?  No. Robie House.

    IIRC, Wright designed the main entrance so that the architecture confronts you gradually – a low wall, then a higher wall, then steps, then the overhanging roof, etc. It’s sensible and it works. There’s not some overwhelming “Here is the Entrance” quality to it. Federal buildings might have good reasons to have similar architectural features.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

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