Breaking News: Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas has tested positive for the coronavirus and is isolating while receiving treatment. Abbott, who has banned mask and vaccine mandates in the state, has faced criticism as virus cases increased sharply. https://t.co/7wqTaKPNPp
— The New York Times (@nytimes) August 17, 2021
I’m sure he’ll be fine, under the ancient doctrine of ‘Hell doesn’t want him, and Heaven won’t have him’:
… An ardent opponent of mask and vaccine mandates, Mr. Abbott has taken his opposition to such requirements all the way to the state Supreme Court. Mr. Abbott, who is fully vaccinated, will now be isolated in the Governor’s Mansion while receiving medical treatment.
“The Governor has been testing daily, and today was the first positive test result,” the statement said. “Governor Abbott is in constant communication with his staff, agency heads, and government.”…
Mr. Abbott has faced withering criticism as coronavirus cases have increased sharply in Texas and available intensive-care beds have dwindled in Austin and other cities. But he maintained his ban on mask mandates, which prohibits local officials from imposing restrictions in their communities…
Last month, responding to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issuing new guidance recommending that fully vaccinated people did not need to wear a mask indoors in high-risk areas, Mr. Abbott doubled down in the opposite direction. He issued an executive order that prohibited local governments and state agencies from mandating vaccines, and reaffirmed previous decisions to prohibit local officials from mandating masks.
The governor also affirmed that schools could not enact mask mandates for students, a move that some public health experts warned could lead to another surge in cases…
Nelle
Not even thoughts and prayers.
Elizabelle
Putting him and the even more odious Cardinal Burke on the Satan please call your servant home list.
piratedan
my schaden…. it is frueded….
Elizabelle
Fully vaccinated. No symptoms. Already receiving monoclonal antibody therapy. Damn, Skippy. Won’t any of these weasels pay a price??
Raoul Paste
No matter what happens, he will learn nothing
Matt McIrvin
Well, since he’s vaccinated, he’ll likely be OK. Sounds like he hasn’t been tremendously careful otherwise. I do wonder if people will take salutary lessons from all this or if it’ll just be antivaxxer fodder.
JPL
@Elizabelle: No..
Matt McIrvin
@Elizabelle:
The COVID treatment of KINGS!
debbie
My soul is crushed. No, not really. Thank you, Universe, for once again showing us that karma is real.
Jay C
Well, according to reports I’ve read, Gov. Abbott has not only been “fully vaccinated”, but is also on Regeneron antibody treatment as well, Nice that he can afford it: must be a state health benefit (//sarc).
So unfortunately, he has a low likelihood of suffering serious effects.
Beisbol Houligan
Bet he doubles down on his antimasking positions.
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@Elizabelle:
My question is why is he receiving monoclonal antibody therapy if he’s experiencing no symptoms? Something doesn’t add up here. Unless he panicked and wanted every expensive treatment? Sounds about right for a Republican
debbie
@Matt McIrvin:
I can’t think of a time I’ve seen him masked.
Shalimar
Vaccinated and getting daily tests. Abbott will be fine since the lying asshole was taking it seriously while telling others they didn’t need to. Unlike all the idiot anti-vax right-wingers who have died because they got sick before they even realized what they had.
MomSense
He’s fully fucking vaccinated the asshole. Why hasn’t he been pleading with Texans to get vaccinated? Why hasn’t he been talking about getting vaccinated 24/7.
matt
I hope he gets what he deserves.
Low Key Swagger
For years we’ve endured a local radio host named Phil Valentine. Him and I used to get into pretty regularly, to the point where he’d actually call me back to get me to engage on the air. I haven’t even listened to his shit show in a decade, but he has been anti-mask and pro Trump because of course. He has been on a ventilator since July, and his family released an update today that he is in “grave condition”. They have asked everyone to get vaccinated. Sigh. I’m scared because I feel….nothing. I do not blame myself though.
JoyceH
@Elizabelle:
Man, it helps to be a big shot, doesn’t it? Remember after 9/11 when Cheney and other WH big wigs were given Cipro ‘just in case’? Meanwhile, the WH mail sorters weren’t give Cipro even when they ASKED for it, after they’d been exposed to anthrax. At least two of them died.
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@JPL:
I mean, he might not pay a political price
Shalimar
@Matt McIrvin: He was getting tested daily. That tells me they were taking it very seriously, knowing he was more at risk because he couldn’t wear a mask for political ambition reasons.
Comrade Colette
I’m confused – I thought the new CDC guidance was the opposite of this? I’m out of FTFNYT clicks so I can’t check the original.
Also, fuck that guy.
MomSense
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):
You can’t trust anything they say. If he has no symptoms he doesn’t need monoclonal antibodies. He’s either lying about being asymptomatic or he’s advertising for regeneron. Probably owned or invested in by a donor
Chief Oshkosh
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):
You might be onto something there…
Mat
[deleted]
MattF
Abbott and DeSantis have perfected their ‘Little Donald’ routines. However, they’re not actually morons (unlike the paradigm) and they have non-zero attention spans, so they are actually quite dangerous.
Shalimar
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): The earlier you get the monoclonal antibody treatment, the more effective it is. He’s getting it now so he will never even have symptoms. It’s not like he is paying for it personally.
SiubhanDuinne
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):
That’s precisely what I asked in the downstairs thread where the news first broke. I doubt it’s standard protocol for asymptomatic, fully vaccinated people. Something seems a bit hinky here.
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@MattF:
I don’t think they can replicate what Trump was to be honest. His voters want the real thing, not an imitation
laura
Oh, have I got thoughts for Abbott, lots and lots of thoughts, all of which involve personal responsibility, character – or the lack thereof and consequences. Same for the clan of the red beanie guy.
Suzanne
Oh, oh, oh how I wish we could comment only in gif form.
MattF
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): Maybe. But it’s been noticed (by, e.g., Ann Coulter) that Trump didn’t deliver on most of his promises. We shall see.
Shalimar
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): Which is funny, since only 40% of them voted for him in the 2016 primaries. The majority of Republicans did not like him then. But I guess once you join a cult, you have to be all-in.
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@Shalimar:
Wow, what a baby. I hope his insane anti-vax R opponents use this against him as evidence that’s he’s a RINO
Ten Bears
I wish for him as he would wish for me ~ drown in puss, scum.
Statistically inevitable, like playing roulette with a semi-automatic pistol.
catclub
@Comrade Colette:
That was way back in time, maybe June, when the CDC had that policy recommendation (that it no longer has), which Abbott responded to by forbidding mask mandates.
Mallard Filmore
@Low Key Swagger:
I find that the thought “You can’t save everybody.” helps a lot.
debbie
@MomSense:
I can’t imagine his lungs wouldn’t already be compromised.
Scout211
@Comrade Colette:
Actually, the CDC updated guidelines do leave a little wiggle room for people like Abbott to defend their stupidity: “I was only in indoor public settings with LOW transmission, I swear!”
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/fully-vaccinated-guidance.html
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@MomSense:
Probably a little of both tbh
catclub
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):
Not likely. Trump got Millions of dollars worth of monoclonal antibodies and other treatments over three days. No harm to his standing with crazy people.
memory holed.
bnateAZ
Dear Delta Variant:
Major Major Major Major
fuckem
VeniceRiley
Nora Lenderbee
Hypocrite.
Matt McIrvin
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): Because he’s the governor and if he asks for monoclonal antibodies, he gets monoclonal antibodies.
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@catclub:
Ah, but that was Trump. He has a cult of personality. Abbot does not
Dorothy A. Winsor
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): Trump’s years as a TV celebrity affected voters too
Nobody in particular
A fully vaccinated woman who wore masks succumbed to the virus last week.
The Pale Scot
@MomSense:
https://twitter.com/jennycohn1/status/1427484780468133892
Mary G
@VeniceRiley: OOh, I got it, I can say things are misleading. Too bad I’m such a prolific blocker.
Ken
@Scout211: Texas is an “area of substantial or high transmission”.
dm
@VeniceRiley: They need a “twit and re-twit did not read original article, only misunderstood the headline” reporting category.
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@Matt McIrvin:
That doesn’t really answer the question (which I sort of answered myself). If he wasn’t actually sick, as well as fully vaccinated, then why would he need such an expensive treatment that the average people can’t afford? Somebody needs to ask him or his spokesperson that question as well as frame that question with his government’s total unwillingness to enforce or even allow local authorities to enforce public health measures with resulting excess deaths
Uncle Jeffy
“The moral arc of the universe is long, but it bends toward giving Gov. Abbott a sharp slap in the throat.” — UJ
Van Buren
I’m sure that if he’s getting Monoclonal antibodies, then anyone in Texas could get same. No ‘merican leader could ever take advantage of his position of privilege and survive politically, right?
burnspbesq
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):
In order to have a cult of personality, you have to have a personality. That disqualifies Abbott.
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@Nobody in particular:
Sadly, this can statistically happen. Being vaccinated and wearing masks does not make you bulletproof. It’s all risk reduction, not risk elimination. I feel sorry for that woman’s family and friends
Gravenstone
Each and every one of these high profile positives needs to have it clearly specified what their treatment regime ended up being. I mean, we know they basically threw the kitchen sink at Trump and managed to (unfortunately) claw his carcass back from the gaping maw. Let them make it explicit that the sole reason many of them remain alive is because they were fortunate (and connected) enough to get access to treatment far beyond the reach of your average covid patient.
Matt McIrvin
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): If he takes the antibodies and is fine, it will also not challenge the beliefs of his antivaxxer friends–they can just say it was Donald Trump’s favorite treatment, the wonderful Regeneron antibodies, what did it.
Warblewarble
Tots and Pears. May he get to use the freezer truck real soon.
JMG
More and more indoor mask wearing here at the Cape. Of course, I’m not at the bars for the youngs that really need to have mask mandates. In other news, I put the rotisserie attachment on my charcoal-burning Weber and cooked a chicken for dinner. Rubbed it with salt, pepper and Old Bay. It smells great.
burnspbesq
As far as I can tell, Abbott sincerely believes the bullshit he is spouting about personal responsibility.
It might work somewhere. But this is Texas.
Almost Retired
Oh, I have thoughts and prayers, all right, but I don’t think the Abbott family is going to like them. Actually, he’s such an asshole that some of them might….
VeniceRiley
@Mary G: Report, then block
@dm – Oh, yeah!
Mary G
O/T but somewhat hopeful news from Afghanistan:
Gravenstone
@burnspbesq: You telling me that “inflamed asshole” doesn’t qualify as a personality?
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@Matt McIrvin:
He is fully vaccinated, however. He’s admitted to that. He was also being tested daily. That’s proof of him taking this seriously. Anti-vax BS runs rampant in the GOP party rank and file. I imagine the TX GOP is especially bad. Why not use vaccination as a wedge issue against the GOP and pols like Abbot who are vaccinated yet act anti-vax/anti-pandemic measures? Micro target GOP voters with how much of a RINO hypocrite he is
Scout211
@The Pale Scot:
You know, I could be wrong but I am thinking that Regeneron treatments just might cost more than a box of masks at Costco.
Cermet
Again, not gonna wish death upon anyone; just as long as he gets seriously ill, gets put on a respirator and finally recovers only to have extra long covid. That would be a very nice wish – as for the Florida ghoul, would be nice for that non-human thug but I’ll certainly reserve my hopes for this monster, for now.
trollhattan
Confederacy of Dunces alright.
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@burnspbesq:
LOL!
@Dorothy A. Winsor:
That too. It’s why Tucker Carlson worries me. He’s a guy who will lie for money and power. A bad combination. And he’s not stupid either. He’s also visited Hungary and said the West can learn much from Orban’s government. That’s chilling to me
Cermet
@Mary G: While old dog’s don’t change their spots … wait, a leopard can learn new … no, I mean a zebra can’t change its strips …nah, doesn’t sound right. Oh well, maybe for a while the taliban wants the people most aligned with the US out of the country rather than deal with them via jails and executions.
SiubhanDuinne
@trollhattan:
The South will writhe again.
trollhattan
Here’s a question, what was Greg Abbott doing just [checks notes] last night?
Link
MomSense
@trollhattan:
yup. Asshole
a thousand flouncing lurkers was fidelio
@Low Key Swagger: I felt something all right when I saw that news, and his family’s frantic scrambling to get him the very best and shiniest treatment they could manage.
I promise you I felt it strongly enough for both of us.
trollhattan
@SiubhanDuinne:
“A-yey yeah! Rise like a loaf of bread.”
Another Scott
@Mary G: Defense.gov:
It seems to be going well. Fingers crossed that it continues to do so.
Cheers,
Scott.
Chris Johnson
@Low Key Swagger: This is war, just in a weird way. Don’t be hard on yourself. Some things you just can’t be sympathetic for and it’s not your job to be.
Roger Moore
@VeniceRiley:
I am! I just checked. I plan on using it. I’ve seen lots of tweets I wanted to report exactly for that but haven’t been able to because there wasn’t a “this person is lying about COVID” option.
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@trollhattan:
I wonder how many people in that room are unvaccinated
burnspbesq
@Gravenstone:
Abbott is the most boring politician I’ve ever seen, and I grew up in New Jersey when its senators were Clifford Case and Harrison Williams.
MomSense
@The Pale Scot:
Figures.
Cacti
Neocon Bob Menendez has promised a thorough investigation of Biden ending his precious war.
With friends like these.
dmsilev
@trollhattan: Not a good time to be a cancer patient or get into a car accident or whatever in those states.
Another Scott
@trollhattan: (Man, that’s an ugly URL. It looks like something out of MS Teams…)
I see lots of rich white people at something like a party. What could go wrong??
:-/
Cheers,
Scott.
germy
burnspbesq
@Another Scott:
For now. All it takes is one Talib with a SA-25 and an itchy trigger finger for the whole thing to go sideways.
Ken
@trollhattan: How is Louisiana not on that list? Are they at 89.99%?
germy
A
Let the fuck die already
Ken
I was expecting your link to be for “The Masque of the Red Death”, but that’s a good alternate.
germy
WaterGirl
@trollhattan: The super-long naked URL was breaking the screen for mobile users, so I added “Link” and moved the url there.
tom
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): she was also over 75, so at a higher risk even if vaxxed.
gene108
@Elizabelle:
He’s lucky he’s receiving top notch treatment. He’s a paraplegic, which puts him at greater risk for complications from COVID.
Also, I wonder how often he gets tested for COVID? I bet this was caught pretty early.
dr. bloor
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):
His spinal cord injury might play into it. It’s been a good long while since my sojourn in rehab medicine, but IIRC that probably increases his risk for circulatory complcations.
trollhattan
@Another Scott:
Something new about Twitter seems to prevent navigating to a source Tweet. Need to figure a workaround, because eleventy lines of code for one URL is…not good.
jonas
Of course he will receive premium care with all the latest treatments and probably be fine and come out of the house in a week giving thumbs up and claiming it was “no big deal” and he doesn’t understand “what all the fuss is about.”
trollhattan
@WaterGirl:
Thanks, it was driving me bonkers.
germy
trollhattan
I wonder how Abbott would do, running New Zealand. (Truly, I already know)
One case, and a nation responds. What’s that like?
Delk
He was at a packed, indoor fundraiser hours before he announced the infection.
germy
@gene108:
Tested every day, from what I understand.
The Moar You Know
Least surprising thing ever. Wish the media would point it out a lot more.
Another Scott
@trollhattan: I think the URL was just including every forwarded stop along the way. If they’re going to keep track of all that, they should at least run it through something like TinyURL for people who want to pass it on.
(I usually strip all that stuff including and after the “?” off when I think about it. So your tweet would become: https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/1427742212553691140 HTH.)
Cheers,
Scott.
different-church-lady
@Nelle:
Oh I have plenty of thoughts for him, but none he’d like.
dmsilev
@trollhattan: What worked for me last night (and is still working so far) was to go into browser settings and trash all Twitter-related cookies and other saved data.
Ksmiami
@Nelle: As a Dallas resident (but not for long) seriously fuck that guy
germy
a thousand flouncing lurkers was fidelio
@trollhattan: Per the state department of health website, 11% of the total hospital beds are unoccupied, and 9% of the ICU beds are unoccupied. Most of the hospitals in the central part of the state had no open ICU beds. Vanderbilt Medical Center was not accepting new patients.
Ksmiami
@dr. bloor: here’s hoping
dr. bloor
@Delk: So he’ll survive, but the donors on the receiving end of the viral bullets he was likely spraying around the event will either get sick or, in the very least be god-fearingly pissed.
Nobody in particular
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):
Don’t I know it.
https://www.dictionary.com/e/vaccinate-vs-inoculate-vs-immunize/
debbie
@Roger Moore:
I also have it. Pity I don’t see any reportable tweets on my feed.
Dan B
@Mary G: Is there any information about bypassing the Visa restrictions TFG’s Flying Monkeys put in place? Is Canada planning on taking more refugees than other countries? I feel anxious they’ll be turned back after they arrive in a number of countries.
gwangung
@VeniceRiley: If put in general use, it will be gamed by right-wingers to censor liberal and progressive thought.
Kay
@Cacti:
I think it’s good though. Biden isn’t budging. I think he’s fine with battling with them. He thinks he’s right and they’re wrong so let’s just hash it out. He is right. He can defend it.
mrmoshpotato
No need for vaccines or masks on the Sun.
Dan B
@Another Scott: The C-17 in the photos / video from yesterday was from Joint Base Lewis Mc Chord, Tacoma, WA. I hope the crew is scheduled for counseling. People fell off the plane and were run over as it taxied.
Kay
@Cacti:
germy
Mousebumples
Open thread, so I wanted to post this awesome statement from Gov Evers of Wisconsin –
Glad to see we are ready to help and receive the refugees who need our help and assistance.
germy
@Kay:
They really want the excitement of a new war to report on.
They don’t care about troops or the budget, they just want to impress each other with their scoops.
And Richard Engel thinks he’s Edward R. Murrow. (He won a prize!)
Kay
@Mousebumples:
That is nice. That’s the way to do it. No one needs to apologize for welcoming them.
Elizabelle
@Delk: Ah. Indoor packed fundraiser. So there is room for. …. hope. LOL.
Dan B
@dmsilev: There are stories from doctors about patients who cannot get prompt emergency treatment. A physician in Houston, I believe, couldn’t get a 30 year old with sudden acute leukemia into a bed in Texas. How would this patient, his family, and friends feel?
We’re losing nurses and others in significant numbers. Can’t link but I believe The Guardian or Huffpost has stories.
Kay
@germy:
In that instance I don’t think he “wants” a war. He’s knocked off balance. He thinks all he has to do is say “national security” and they’ll immediately fall in line. He’s just saying what we’ve always said and he probably believes it. It’s not just him. It’s the offocial posture of all the people he talks to – an assumption.
Elizabelle
@SiubhanDuinne:
Delta gonna go through that region like Sherman.
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@germy:
It’s sad. I used to sort of respect Richard Engel. I never knew much about him, but he came across as a straight shooter during his reporting
MomSense
@Dan B:
My friend’s son flies C-17s out of Virginia. She said he is flying people out of Afghanistan.
Ken
“Do you think perhaps it would be a good idea not to hold the war on Earth?”
— Aziraphale, Good Omens
(Well, not quite. He thinks of saying that, but decides against it, lest his superiors figure out that he’s going to try to stop the war. Not quite as powerful a moment of morality as when Huck Finn decides he’d rather be damned than turn in Jim, but close.)
WaterGirl
Preet has Richard Engel on his podcast tonight. This is when Preet really pisses me off – when he has guests like this or Maggie H from the NYT and Toobin. I think Preet is either more conservative than people realize or he is closer to Republican than I would like.
Steeplejack
@Nobody in particular:
Important note (from the story):
Dan B
@MomSense: Do we have any idea where they are being evacuated to? I’m assuming US airbases since there would be legal issues flying them to the USA of Bobert, Gosar, and Kavanaugh / Thomas – or to many allies cities.
Pete Mack
I’m sure he’ll be all right because the odds of serious COVID after vaccinated are tiny unless you’re immunocompromised.
burnspbesq
@WaterGirl:
Preet was an outstanding U.S. Attorney. So were Rudy Giuliani and Chris Christie. There is nothing about the job that inherently qualifies anyone for sainthood.
Steeplejack
Gee, where was Governor Abbott last night? ? (Video.)
WaterGirl
@burnspbesq: Agree on all points. A lot of people looked up to Preet when he first started his podcast, including me, but these days I find myself frequently feeling annoyed by his take on current events. It’s disappointing because I really used to look forward to his podcast. I think I am going to cancel come December at renewal time.
Kathleen
@Another Scott: So what are our poor media gonna do now? Other than make up more lies?
dr. bloor
@WaterGirl:
We can’t all be Rachel Maddow.
WaterGirl
@Steeplejack: Surely these people need to suffer some consequences – at some point – for their “contribution” to the Covid problem.
Is reality never going to kick in with the natural consequences of their behavior?
WaterGirl
@dr. bloor: Why not? :-)
Steeplejack
@trollhattan:
D’oh! Searched the comments before I posted mine and didn’t see this.
UncleEbeneezer
Dear God, I know it’s been awhile and I don’t technically believe in you but…
Josie
@WaterGirl: We can only hope.
ETA: At this point I am really discouraged about Texas and what we have become. I’m not sure we can ever overcome the stupidity and evil that has taken over.
dr. bloor
@WaterGirl: OMG you’re mrs. dr. bloor’s long-lost twin sister, aren’t you?
Felanius Kootea
@Elizabelle:
Why is he receiving monoclonal antibody treatment when he’s fully vaccinated? Does everyone get that now?
Danielx
Fuck that guy.
debbie
@Steeplejack:
Uh oh. Superspreader?
Ksmiami
@burnspbesq: he’s like drying paint
WaterGirl
@dr. bloor: Quite possibly!
WaterGirl
@Josie: Yeah, I just do not understand why people don’t wake up in the morning and see that he’s trying to kill them??!!
Maybe there’s something in the water. :-)
We aren’t giving up on all of you… just the bad ones that are dragging the rest of the state down.
trollhattan
@Kay:
“We must determine {Iran} the next, largest threat {Iran} to the United States and {Iran} formulate our plans {Iran} for squelching this threat {Iran} before it’s too {Iran} late.”
Ken
@Felanius Kootea: I’m leaning toward the idea mentioned above, that Abbott whined a lot and some hospital administrator said “just give him the stuff, he can screw over our budget.” (The original was phrased differently.)
What I’m now wondering is how it will work out for him. The monoclonal antibodies have not been approved for asymptomatic patients, nor for persons who have been immunized. That doesn’t mean they have bad effects, just that the pharma companies haven’t run/finished the testing to identify possible effects. He probably won’t immediately dissolve into a puddle of slime, but if his immune system gets goosed in the wrong way he might wish that had happened.
Ken
@trollhattan: Neocons are absolutely horrible at Mad Libs.
dexwood
@Ksmiami: Nah, paint is useful, serves a purpose.
senyordave
Regarding Abbot, what result would save the most lives? I hope for that result. Just saying
If Abbot needs an ICU bed he should have to wait his term.
Geminid
@Cacti: Menendez is head of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and investigations are what they do. As long as the Chairman and his fellow Democrats don’t take a hostile approach I am fine with this. Presiden Biden’s handling of this episode will stand up to criticism.
And now that the initial shock and panic are past, the ongoing evacuation may end up being one of the few successes in our Afghanistan misadventure. Obviously, the Taliban could still blow it up. But in addition to pacifying a nation of 40 million fractious people, the Taliban really need two things: foreign recognition, and foreign aid. A peaceful evacuation of foreign nationals and Afghan allies furthers those goals.
JoyceH
Does anyone else think that video of Abbott at the fundraiser looks hazy? I’d think it was cigarette smoke if that’s allowed anymore. What are the smoking rules at Texas fundraisers?
Geminid
@WaterGirl: Are you going to listen to Bharari interview Engel? I’d be interested to hear what you think. It may not be as bad as you assume.
WaterGirl
@Geminid: I was planning on skipping it, but maybe I’ll listen until I get pissed off. I will report back tomorrow.
Richard
@piratedan: ja, ich auch ganz genau mit Schadenfreud.
Geminid
@WaterGirl: Great! Maybe Mr. Bharara can calm the overwrought foreign correspondent down. Bharara seems to have his feet on the ground.
Richard
@JoyceH:
It’s Texas, don’t mess with them.
topclimber
@Geminid: Gee whiz, I wonder if a small part of the trillion-plus we spent on war there might yield a more positive outcome if we spent it on diplomatic efforts.
burnspbesq
@senyordave:
My personal preference is for Abbott to suffer grievously and eventually recover. Who knows, he might get some humility and compassion.
I sure as shit don’t want the fucker to die. If that happens, Dan Patrick becomes Governor.
Lapassionara
@Major Major Major Major: thank you. Well said, and we remember him well.
Geminid
@topclimber: We surely could have spent the money better. Just carpetbombing the country with hundred dollar bills would have yielded a better result. I read that Afghanistans per capita yearly GDP is 675 dollars.
rikyrah
@Elizabelle:
And, got a booster shot?
Geminid
@Geminid: Fifty dollar bills might have been better received, though, since Ulysses Grant had a beard.
Geminid
But I repeat myself.
topclimber
@Geminid: He was also more a true member of the people of the Book than that Deist Franklin.
rikyrah
How many people did he infect at that fundraiser??
SpaceUnit
Greg Abbott with Covid? They should shove a tube down his throat even if he’s breathing fine. You know, just to be safe.
And another one up his butt.
Geminid
@topclimber: Grant was not an especially pious person. I bet he and Franklin would have seen eye to eye regarding religion. They both were very pragmatic people.
MoCaAce
Pretty sure I’m not the first to get here:
Thinking of him drowning in his own fluids as some Doctor starts filling out his death certificate while he is still conscious… praying that DOG makes it so.
Ruckus
I think Covid denial is factual proof that living with one’s head firmly planted in one’s solid waste exit orifice is not conductive to adult privileges – like voting, roaming free in public, holding political office, getting paid to be a public service officer…. It is possible that the only job a person of this nature is suited for is cleaning large ship hulls for algae and barnacles – by hand with a putty knife and Scotch Brite – while underway.
Ruckus
@SpaceUnit:
The one down his throat could be forced all the way through. I doubt he’d notice the taste when it was removed, he is after all, full of shit.
MoCaAce
More thoughts and prayers!
SpaceUnit
@Ruckus: So true.
WaterGirl
@Lapassionara: I did add fuckem as a rotating tag last week.
WaterGirl
@rikyrah: Not enough?
I really don’t mean that, but damn I hate these people.
Kent
True. Dan Patrick is a walking horror show who makes Ron DeSantis look like a reasonable thoughtful moderate. He would be like trading Abbott for say…Jair Bolsonaro.
Lapassionara
@WaterGirl: ?
RaflW
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): I aim to not freak out. But I also do try to manage risk.
Last night we needed to get a couple things at the big orange box home repair store. In a reddish-purple area near Milwaukee. I said to my BR, “I think I’m wearin’ my mask.” He, usually cautious, didn’t really want to – he grew up here and worries we’ll get hassled by anti-mask ppl.
Thankfully I spotted a 20-something woman walking in in a mask. “She’s masked, let’s do it.” He agreed. Most customers and most employees turned out to also be masked. I think things are shifting, a bit, in this area. I hope they’ll shift more masky!
But I also understand we with our vaxs and masks aren’t foolproof.
rikyrah
Stretch Marks of the Beast (@KieseLaymon) tweeted at 5:53 PM on Tue, Aug 17, 2021:
Here’s what’s not being said about Mississippi. The system has already failed. When medical professionals call and beg you to keep your elderly family from needing the hospital because there is no staff and no rooms, the system has already failed. Literally left for dead.
(https://twitter.com/KieseLaymon/status/1427765431830450180?s=02)
Mary G
@Dan B: I haven’t done any deep reading, so I could be completely wrong, but my recollection of articles I read yesterday and brief glimpses of Twitter today is that Canada is taking 20,000, refugees who’ve already applied and been accepted and had the hard copies of the paperwork with them will come straight here, and the rest are being taken to three US Army bases for now. Those who couldn’t supply hard copies of approved SIVs will be thoroughly verified and released in a day or two. We’ll probably need more bases, though, while we sort out everybody else,
Matt McIrvin
Lots of talk online about a possible reason why vaccine efficacy seemed to decline so severely in Israel when the delta surge hit: that it’s a statistical artifact of the unvaccinated being predominantly young. Within both young and old subpopulations, efficacy is quite high, but combine the groups and the fact that the unvaccinated are, on average, much younger than the vaccinated creates a statistical illusion of a less effective vaccine.
https://twitter.com/CT_Bergstrom/status/1427767356600688646
rikyrah
No Lie with Brian Tyler Cohen (@NoLieWithBTC) tweeted at 9:01 PM on Tue, Aug 17, 2021:
BREAKING: A Texas school board has found a loophole in Greg Abbott’s ban on school mask mandates by instead adding masks to the district’s dress code.
(https://twitter.com/NoLieWithBTC/status/1427812904863154181?s=02)
There are those who call me...tim... (Still posh)
Dear dog forgive, as a health-care frontliner, either die or don’t, I couldn’t give the rat’s least ass, it’s been your choice for a year and a half now. Do not regret now. Do not beg forbearance now. Do not have denied a cure up up until now. You have chosen your path, damn you. Better you than someone I know and love. Although you might be one of them. Many will die and I can’t stop it. O fucking well. Goodnight and pleasant dreams.
.
Another Scott
@Matt McIrvin: Thanks for the pointer. Interesting thread from a seemingly sensible voice. (I was trying to recall his handle a day or so ago!)
Cheers,
Scott.
Tehanu
You and me both. At the same time, I really hate how these people bring out the worst in me. If I were a kinder person, maybe my first thought wouldn’t have been, “I hope he chokes.”
TriassicSands
Abbott: The only rational and simultaneously moral thing to do is to hope he dies.¹ At the very least, an endless case of “long COVID” would be appropriate. He has blood on his hands.
The burning question today, in the Death Olympics, is who will kill more people — Abbott or DiSantis?
¹ Actually, it’s neither moral nor immoral to hope someone dies, since one’s wishes have no impact on any real world event.
sab
@rikyrah: That’s wonderful. I remember being tormented by the dress code back in my youth. I am looking forward to seeing it put to a useful purpose.
JoyceH
@sab:
As someone who pre-dates panti-hose, I heartily concur. It’s not even as if those ghastly garter belts served a life-saving purpose.
J R in WV
@Scout211:
Because we can all identify the exact level of transmission going on upon entering any indoor space, right? Right? Fuck that noise!!! The most stupid advice possible to promulgate ever!!
The CDC has the most ignorant and stupid people generating their public statements ever, contradictory, injurious, and counterproductive. Just terrible.