Saw some really neat behaviors a few years ago. A mountain chickadee taking advantage of an American red squirrel's efforts (a thread).
I spotted a mountain chickadee searching bark and flaking it off from the tree, with a lot of effort. pic.twitter.com/hiSQflk4ZI
— Jennifer Campbell-Smith, PhD ???? (@drcampbellsmith) November 11, 2021
When you’re not strong enough to tear off an entire essay, sometimes you can scrape up an aggregation from others’ work…
The chickadee caught on to what the squirrel was doing and started inspecting the bits of bark on the ground, carelessly flung down by the sap-obsessed rodent. pic.twitter.com/r9z856fJ33
— Jennifer Campbell-Smith, PhD ???? (@drcampbellsmith) November 11, 2021
And success!! Insect larva located with minimal work!! It kept coming in and out of the area focusing all of its attention on the bits of bark the squirrel was flinging to the ground and reaped many tasty rewards. That's what I call optimal foraging! Good job chickadee! pic.twitter.com/p8h2rGtLaC
— Jennifer Campbell-Smith, PhD ???? (@drcampbellsmith) November 11, 2021
SiubhanDuinne
Indeed, a fine life lesson there!
Truly a nice story.
NotMax
Surmising Selenian shedding.
Kay
Announcement of the end of the wokeness panic. Market saturation.
zhena gogolia
@Kay: Oh, I always know what their next play is by the front page of the NYT. A couple of days ago it was Afghanistan, but that was just a last gasp. Yesterday it was a big full-color chart of rising prices.
Baud
@Kay:
If anything is imperfect, a Dem administration is incompetent.
In a GOP administration, that’s just life.
Kay
@zhena gogolia:
Well, it’s gotten embarrassing, what with the book bannings and proposed criminal investigations of…librarians. Time to leave the dirty work to Republicans.
Kay
@Baud:
I’m pleased with Biden. I think he does a good job. I’m genuinely grateful to him for having the political courage to leave Afghanistan. It was the right decision. I don’t care if it’s popular.
zhena gogolia
@Kay: Ditto.
I care if it’s popular only insofar as we HAVE to win in 2022 and 2024. We’re heading for being Hungary or worse if we don’t.
Baud
@Kay:
Yep. Same here. Too bad the inflation monster may be the last excuse for Manchin to kill BBB though. We’ll see.
Ken
Ten million years from now, chickadees will locate suitable patches of bark and emit cries which draw squirrels to rip it down.
Fifty million years from now, colonial chickadees will nest on the backs of the giant descendants of squirrels, guiding them to knock down whole trees.
Baud
FYI. I’ll be gone for several weeks. Don’t call Cole.
Baud
@Ken:
Return to the Planet of the Chicadees.
debbie
@Baud:
Wherever it is you’re off to, I hope you have a wonderful, restful time. Bon voyage!
Dorothy A. Winsor
@Baud: Several weeks? Holy cow. Hm. Major reconstructive surgery. Walking the entire length of the Camino Royale. Appearing in an off-Broadway play. In isolation as part of a medical experiment.
Ken
@NotMax: An astronomer, quoted in the wikipedia article on Kamo`oalewa: “Since 2016 HO3 loops around our planet, but never ventures very far away….” How do you know someone is an astronomer? They call 9 million miles “not very far away”.
Dorothy A. Winsor
If you’re looking for non-political podcasts, my friend A. M. Arktos has launched his podcast of THE SPACE GOD MEMOIRS. I heard this read at my writer group and was always happy the nights it was on the schedule. A. M. has had actor training so he reads well. It’s also been interesting to hear him talk about putting the tech stuff together to do this.
Check it out. I thought the story of Keph was amusing and entertaining.
NotMax
@Baud
Did you ever get the feeling that you wanted to go….
;)
satby
@Baud: South America, I think you said in a thread a few weeks ago? Have fun, even if it’s for work.
Ken
@satby: South America is the cover story. He’s canvassing Iowa as prep work for the 2028 caucuses.
(Joke’s on him, there won’t be any 2028 caucuses because (1) the DNC will have eliminated caucuses, (2) Iowa won’t be part of the U.S., and/or (3) there will not be any elections after 2024.)
Steeplejack (phone)
@Baud:
“You damn dirty birds!”
Kay
There should be a Book of Critical Race Theory. Smuggle it in, slide it onto the shelf, see if anyone finds it.
WaterGirl
@Baud: Oh, no! a Baud-free Balloon Juice. :-(
I have questions!
When is your last BJ day before you leave, and what does “several weeks” mean? Three? Seven?
It’s important to manage expectations. :-)
Steeplejack (phone)
@Dorothy A. Winsor:
Ducking a subpoena.
Ejoiner
While we’re plugging podcasts – the latest edition of Sean Carroll’s “Mindscape” (#172) is an hour long interview with David Goyer and his work writing/producing the Apple TV series “Foundation” – really good stuff with lots of fun science, Asimov stories, and cultural relevance. Goyer is also tackling the new Netflix “Sandman” series so he’s a pretty busy guy these days!
WaterGirl
@Steeplejack (phone): @Dorothy A. Winsor:
Let the speculation begin! :-)
NotMax
@Ken
Hereby propose all such objects be officially designated moondruff.
:)
Steeplejack (phone)
@NotMax:
Recursive link bends the space-time continuum.
NotMax
@Ken
Scouting out possible locations for the community of Balloonistan?
Ken
@NotMax: Brilliant! And the IAU generally seems open to fun names, possibly as over-compensation for their stodgy legalistic de-planetization of Pluto.
Gin & Tonic
@Steeplejack (phone): We have a winner!
eldorado
coming out of the store at a turnpike gas station recently i saw a grackle hop up to the top of license plate of a parked suv to pick insects out of the front grill. never witnessed that behavior before (or since).
NotMax
@Steeplejack
Fixed.
@Baud
Did you ever get the feeling that you wanted to go….
;)
evodevo
@Kay: Yeah…Mrs. Greenspan had Larry Summers on yesterday to whine about inflation and how his warning was ignored last spring(?) about too much stimulus, and now the inflations were here, and how bad it was and on and on and on…
I recall that when I saw Larry was Obama’s pick for the Economic Advisory Council I despaired of any economic progress – and voila, Obama’s stimulus was too small and resulted in an anemic recovery that Repubs tried to kill anyway…
Luckily for the country, Biden learned that lesson and refuses to listen to him…probably why Larry is so pissed off…
gene108
@Kay:
Democrats really need a cheerleading squad in the media. The right-wing folks will always bitch about Dems. The MSM usually joins in the pile-on unless Republicans are crashing the global economy, or inciting a coup.
We just need a consistent “look at the good things Democrats are doing” in the media.
Edit: Inflation is aggravating. But we’ve had really low levels of inflation the last 30 years, along with a shitty overall economy where the rich get richer and not anyone else.
Edit 2: The Fed could always raise interest rates, like Volcker did in the 70’s, even though it’d plunge us into a recession. One problem of the day gets solved.
Baud
@WaterGirl:
Probably tomorrow.
I’ll be home for Christmas. You can count on me.
Kristine
@evodevo:
That’s apparently the excuse the financial sector will use for inflation. Monthly audio update from firm handling my IRA said the same thing. They felt the last round wasn’t needed.
SiubhanDuinne
@Baud:
Have a good time, write if you get work, and don’t forget your pants.
Kalakal
@NotMax: Laughs a lot
Geminid
@SiubhanDuinne: Or at least a kilt.
NotMax
@Baud
“Only to ten, Mudhead.”
– Firesign Theater.
:)
guachi
@Kristine: I thought back in February or whenever the latest stimulus passed that the government shouldn’t send out all of the money at once because it would lead to too much money chasing too few goods and services. I think the government should have sent the money out over the course of a year or six months.
How much the stimulus is affecting prices, I don’t know. Prices jumped 0.9% in October and that’s months after most stimulus checks were issued, so maybe it wasn’t much of a reason.
KSinMA
@Baud: Have a good trip!
satby
@evodevo: @Kristine: Kevin Drum had a post about paying attention to everything Summers says, not just the bits cherry picked by our media:
WaterGirl
@Baud: I will miss you.
That long???? Yikes.
Don’t forget to send me a postcard.
:: sniff sniff ::
O. Felix Culpa
@satby: What would Our Media do, if not for cherry-picking?
Betty Cracker
@Baud: I had the same thought regarding Manchin. We’ll see, but using inflation as an excuse to kill BBB ticks all the boxes for Manchin, e.g., makes him look (in his own mind, at least) prescient, prudent, bipartisan, etc.
I don’t blame The Squad for voting against relinquishing the leverage BIF represented, and I also don’t blame Rep. Jayapal and the rest of the Dems who originally held out for deciding a leap of faith was their best play.
As always, negotiating with bad-faith conservatives is a no-win situation. Even when they’re in your own party.
O. Felix Culpa
@Betty Cracker: My fantasy is that Old Handsome Joe will kick Manchin in the nuts if he reneges on the deal. A girl can dream.
Kay
@gene108:
Rank and file Democrats could insist the Democratic political operation get better. “Media” is an actual thing that people are currently getting paid to do. It wouldn’t be ideological. Not “sell Left” or “sell Right” but just “sell”. It’s simply asking if we’re getting good value for the money we spend on the political managers in the Democratic Party- not the campaigns, but the Party itself.
There’s resistance to it, of course, because that’s an implied criticism of the people who are paid to do it but asking is good. Just look at it. Could it be better?
schrodingers_cat
@Betty Cracker: That the DSA progressives had any kind of leverage over Manchin was always fanfiction.
BTW evil Manchin votes with Schumer and Ds far more often than the sainted DSA Squad does with the Ds and Pelosi
We don’t know whether BBB will pass but the squad has already started bad mouthing the infrastructure bill, doing the Republicans work for them in the 2022 campaign.
Betty
@Betty Cracker: The last I saw he just wanted to kill an incentive for electric vehicles, per request of Toyota planning a new plant in WVA. Seen as possible evidence he wouldn’t kill the whole bill. Who knows? It’s a different objection every week.
JMG
@schrodingers_cat: It’s not so. Squad votes with Pelosi as much or more than Manchin votes with Dems. House has more votes, since when Manchin doesn’t want to vote for a Democratic bill, Schumer doesn’t even bring it up because what’s the point
PS: Last thing Manchin wants is for BBB to come up for a vote. Whether he votes yea or nay, the story’s over and he is no longer the center of Washington attention. So he’ll neither kill it nor endorse it, just come up with more and more of these inane quibbles allowing him to shoot his mouth off to the media yet again.
p.a.
@Baud: Actually, it’s the Fox/Hate Radio Magic Time Machine. Any + when Dems in power is the result of previous R actions. Any – is the immediate result of Dem actions. When Rs in power the inverse holds, of course. Also too, includes assumed future actions: market drop during R admin when Dems polling ahead in upcoming election is, of course, result of market fears of Dem future actions.
satby
@O. Felix Culpa: well, since truthful reporting, much less policy analysis, is beyond their capacity I would prefer they all quit to become yoga instructors and improve society.
jeffreyw
@Steeplejack (phone): OT, was it you that mentioned slow loading tweets the other day?
Geminid
@guachi: I think a lot of the Amirican Rescue Plan money will in fact be spent over two years. And initiatives like Virginia’s projected investment of $500 million in upgrading public school HVAC systems have hardly begun to kick in. So I tend to discount the stimulus’ effects upon inflation.But we won’t have better knowledge of how transitory or not current inflation is for a few more months.
O. Felix Culpa
@Betty: Definition of bad faith. I can understand, sort of, arguing for more conservative policy choices, but Manchin keeps moving the goalposts. It’s infuriating.
rikyrah
Good Morning, Everyone???
topclimber
@Baud:
Do pack some pants, milord. Customs may be different where you are going.
O. Felix Culpa
@satby: I have a dear friend who’s a yoga instructor. I’d hate to inflict them on her. :) Isn’t there some other odious career these mooks could do without inflicting societal harm?
O. Felix Culpa
@rikyrah: Good morning!
delk
Will there be Best of Baud posts during the hiatus?
schrodingers_cat
@JMG: This thread has the details of the most famous Squad member’s voting record
BTW I am not defending Manchin, just pointing out that Squad leads him when it comes to sabotaging Democratic priorities. They talk the talk but vote with McCarthy when it comes to walk the walk.
Spanky
@Baud: Christmas! Holy cow that’s a long … wait a minute, Christmas is only 6 weeks away!
Shit.
Geminid
@schrodingers_cat: I’ve noticed that at least two of the Squad have started modulating their criticism of the infrastructure bill. It may be that they have been getting pushback from their real constituents in New York City, which under this bill will get scores of billions for badly needed infrastructure improvements. I think the Metropolitan Transit Authority alone will get $11 billion for subways and buses. Hopefully some will go to transitioning to electric buses.
topclimber
@schrodingers_cat: I much prefer you to be painting birds rather than stressing out over the squad, who you clearly consider to be bird brains.
Spanky
Have hit Minute 10 of the mandated 15 minute post-booster chill time. I think I feel the prehensile tail is finally starting to sprout.
schrodingers_cat
@topclimber: They are not stupid. They want to take over the Democratic party, that is their stated goal. DSA and their satellite groups like the Sunrise movement is the Green Tea Party.
Spanky
I’m guessing Baud is heading south of the equator just so he can remain pantless in the warming weather.
Baud
@rikyrah: Good morning.
RSA
How cool. I did some work in the field of animal behavior a long time ago, and reading the literature I realized that a not-insignificant amount of we know about behavior in the wild comes from attentive people who make careful observations, write it down, and share it with others. Unlike behavioral ecologist Jennifer Campbell-Smith, they’re not always experts, just interested, and sometimes their reports are just a couple of paragraphs in a local birder/wildlife newsletter. They remind me of citizen scientists of Darwin’s time.
L85NJGT
@satby:
He also called out the “billionaire tax” for being the regressive piece of garbage it is.
My working theory is it speaks to the income levels of the donor base over there in Bernieland. Don’t tax us top 1% income Americans, stick it to the man!
Sure Lurkalot
@Betty Cracker:
Well, since the other is the party of obstruction and insurrection, there’s only one left to govern, so it seems we will be stuck in this internecine war for a while.
Omnes Omnibus
@satby: Summers, for better or for worse, doesn’t really speak in sound bytes.
Steeplejack
@jeffreyw:
Probably. I have noticed the last few days one of two things (on Win10 with Firefox):
I don’t know what any of this means. I report, nobody decides.
Geminid
@RSA: The more I learn about bird behavior, and then compare it to that of humans, the more I think of “birdbrain” as a compliment
SiubhanDuinne
@RSA:
Great observation on your part. And I’d love to see Tom Levenson or someone of his calibre write a book about these people and some of their discoveries. (Or maybe someone has?)
Betty Cracker
@O. Felix Culpa: Yep. Meanwhile, Sinema insisted on raising the floor for the wealth tax from $5M to $10M because it’s hard to scrape by on a mere 7-figures these days.
Steeplejack
@Steeplejack:
I have not noticed this happening on my Android phone (with Brave browser).
Betty Cracker
@Sure Lurkalot: True. I really do try to ignore it mostly, but it’s infuriating. The problem is only one party is interested in governing at all, and all policy debate takes place in that party. It’s not indefinitely sustainable, IMO.
topclimber
@Geminid: I was going to make it “for the birds,” which is more inclusive in its disdain.
jeffreyw
@Steeplejack: Yeah, I’m seeing the same behavior in FF, Chrome seems OK. I disabled all the extensions but that didn’t help.
lowtechcyclist
@NotMax:
“Don’t eat with your hands, son, use your entrenching tool.”
Steeplejack
@rikyrah:
Good morning! ?
O. Felix Culpa
@Betty Cracker:
“It’s hard to scrape by on a mere 7-figures these days.”
For sure. Have you seen the cost of minions lately?
ETA: At this point I’d take the $10m figure and call it a win. For now. Assuming Sinema doesn’t change the terms. Again.
Geminid
@Betty Cracker: I’m curious. Are you hearing much from or about Val Demings’ campaign?
topclimber
@topclimber: See #80.
Baud
@Betty Cracker:
Not just the right flank, from your link:
lowtechcyclist
@schrodingers_cat:
Tell me the biggest fucking thing the Squad has killed this year.
Go ahead, tell me.
Steeplejack
@Spanky:
Congrats on the shot! ?
topclimber
@schrodingers_cat: See #80.
schrodingers_cat
@lowtechcyclist: They don’t have enough numbers yet to kill bills. When they get them that’s exactly what they will do.
JMG
Yeah, that’s the thing. Pelosi gives the Squad free votes. When she has a majority, some or all of them can vote “no” to signify, well, whatever. In the case of the infrastructure bill, it was to signify “we don’t trust Manhin and Sinema,” which I bet Pelosi agrees with though she can’t say so. Schumer has no free votes to give. If his caucus isn’t unanimous, he’d lose a vote, so he doesn’t bring up bills where Dems aren’t unanimous.
schrodingers_cat
@topclimber: I will comment about whatever I want to. I don’t comment for your approval.
schrodingers_cat
@JMG: That the Squad had NP’s blessings and they were not voting to tank the bill is pure speculation.
Omnes Omnibus
@schrodingers_cat: It fits with Pelosi’s past practices.
WaterGirl
@delk: Maybe people should post their best “be Baud” comments to help tide us over until his return.
frosty
@Spanky: Oooh, prehensile tail! I’m not going to get one because the pharmacy tech said since I had a mild reaction to House Moderna #1 and #2 there was no need for the 15 minute wait. I left, and left the chances for a prehensile tail behind. If only I’d known!
(sore arm 20 hours later, nothing else yet)
topclimber
@schrodingers_cat: Well that’s a relief!
And yet, sometimes what you say gets my approval, like it or not.
In your quixotic crusade against the Squad, not so much.
Steeplejack
@SiubhanDuinne:
This is an interesting subtheme running through Patrick O’Brian’s Aubrey/Maturin novels (which take place in the early 1800s). Physician (and spy) Stephen Maturin always makes detours for “naturalizing and botanizing” wherever their voyages take them. And there are many conversations with other interested and knowledgeable “amateurs” about exotic flora and fauna. Maturin even gets a tortoise species named after Jack Aubrey!
Jharp
My bird story.
Had a chickadee house right outside my office window for a few years. Occupied very year.
Had to take it down to clean about December and didn’t out it back up right away.
Sitting in my office one March day I heard a tap tap on the window.
It was a chickadee asking where the fuck is my house.
House went back out and chickadee started moving in the next day.
Betty Cracker
@JMG: Jayapal was whipping progressive votes for the BIF, and IMO she signaled approval for the nays in no uncertain terms by retweeting this:
I’m pretty sure Jayapal coordinated with Pelosi.
Another Scott
@evodevo: Too many people want us to forget that oil was negative $37.63/bbl on April 20, 2020.
The pandemic has caused wild, temporary, swings in prices. That’s it. That’s the story.
People talking about inflation now are using it as a cudgel for other reasons, not because inflation is a real concern going forward. (There’s still 5M (IIRC) fewer people working than in 2019; there’s still a glut of manufacturing capacity for cars, planes, etc.; there’s still far too much money on the sidelines doing nothing productive; etc.)
Cheers,
Scott.
WaterGirl
@Jharp: Nice!
My sister is religious about changing her hummingbird food every single day. One day she didn’t get it back up right away as dinner was ready.
We are sitting at the table and right outside the window is where the hummingbird feeder hands. A VERY PISSED OFF hummingbird was staring right at us. Very indignant!
My sister got up from the table, filled the feeder with the food that had cooled and hung the feeder back up. Hummingbird was happy again.
Steeplejack
@jeffreyw:
A few minutes ago I had a thought—wondered if the weird behavior might be related to my turning off AdblockPlus when the site went ad-free. I turned it back on but the weirdness remained.
Alison Rose
Chickadees are the best birbs, I loves them. Now I must share this amazing passage from a book I read a couple of years ago:
Fuck yeah chickadees!!
Betty Cracker
@Jharp: Hahaha, that’s awesome!
I had a similar exchange with a hummingbird this spring. I usually put the feeders back up on my side porch around mid-March. But earlier in that month this year, I heard a weird scraping noise on the open window and looked up to see a hummingbird clinging to the screen and raking its beak across the screen. I am 100% convinced he was telling me to put the nectar out.
zhena gogolia
@Baud: Oh, no, I’ll miss you so.
Geminid
@schrodingers_cat: I think that if and when the BBB bill passes we’ll get a better retrospective on the attitude Speaker Pelosi and other Congressional Democrats had towards the six no-votes. While the recriminations and counter-recriminations have been flying here and on Twitter, I’ve seen very little from actual Democratic Representatives. It may be that word went out to Caucus members that Nonna Pelosi still has a big cake in the oven, so don’t be stomping around!
The HouseDemocratic Caucus had a very wrenching blowup in July, 2019 over the emergency border funding bill. I thought it came out the stronger, though, with more mutual understanding between it’s two wings. One lesson was how much harder these disputes are to resolve when members try to fight them out in the media and on Twitter.
Steeplejack
@jeffreyw:
I’ve been seeing stories about “Chrome bad! Run away!” but haven’t really delved into them. I use Firefox on my computer, Brave on my Android phone. I use Chrome only on my Chromebook to load HBO Max and PBS Passport.
Lyrebird
Since this is an open thread, hope this is fine to post:
From Attorney Ben Crump:
Lots of replies saying on the one hand, pack that court with every Black Pastor who can travel! Other people saying, he’s trying to force a mistrial. I’m not Omnes or Burns, I don’t know. But maybe some Georgians know some sane Pastors of any color, sounds like they might want to go stand up and lift up the Arbery family.
topclimber
@Another Scott:
Inflation is clearly getting out of hand. Why else would Sinema want the wealth tax threshold to double?
SiubhanDuinne
@Alison Rose:
I adore chickadees, and am so happy to read the delightful passage you quoted. Thank you for finding and sharing it.
wombat probability cloud
FWIW, it looks like a red squirrel, not a gray, unless the color of the photo is really off. Different species.
zhena gogolia
@Alison Rose: Neat. I had one right outside my window yesterday, on the roof of the front porch.
Kristine
@WaterGirl:
Hummingbirds are the whip-cracking dictators of the bird world. We should be thankful they’re not the size of crows.
zhena gogolia
@wombat probability cloud: Aren’t the ears and the size like a gray squirrel? i.e. I think the color is off
guachi
@Baud: Either you support a 15% minimum tax or you don’t. And if you want exemptions then you don’t.
SiubhanDuinne
@Lyrebird:
I have a friend who leads an AME church somewhere down near Valdosta (former colleague who left the Canadian Consulate to become a pastor). She’s very plugged in, and I expect she knows if there are any such plans in the works. I’ll try to get in touch with her and find out.
Kristine
Apropos the inflation discussion, this interesting post by Judd Legum cited inflated corporate profits as one of the reasons. Little/no competition, so no check on prices.
schrodingers_cat
Other than deep blue districts and in white/privileged liberal and/or leftie spaces the DSA Squad, their rhetoric and tactics are electoral poison. Crowley and Engel (who AOC and Bowman defeated) would have voted for the infra bill so it is not about those specific districts either. BTW Biden outperformed the Squad members in their respective districts.
Their votes are to build their own brand and for fundraising. NP had to work around them. This time she could, but if there were say 30 reps who voted like the Squad, Ds would not be able to achieve anything.
Geminid
@guachi: A 15% minimum corporate tax is a means to an end, not an end in itself. I have no problem with modifying the tax if that serves the end of increasing investment in effective clean energy initiatives.
SiubhanDuinne
@Betty Cracker:
We are all Tippi Hedren.
WaterGirl
I am very pleased to see that Jen Psaki will be back today doing a press briefing.
SiubhanDuinne
@WaterGirl:
Glad to hear that!
UncleEbeneezer
@schrodingers_cat: Has any bill ever failed to pass in the House, solely because of the Squad’s votes? I’m guessing not. Whereas countless bills can’t even be discussed in the Senate (including Voting Rights) because of Manchin’s refusal to budge on the filibuster. It’s really not complicated to see who is personally doing more to prevent Democratic legislation from becoming law.
Ladyracterinok
@eldorado:
Years ago my then husband and I or taking a bus from Iowa to Utah. When the bus pulled into Cheyenne we watched birds coming out of the bus shed rafters to eat the smashed insects on the windshield.
Birds filling a niche????
J R in WV
@Betty:
Actually it is a major addition to an existing Toyota engine plant, to allow the plant to begin manufacturing electric trans-axles for various kinds of electric vehicles, as in fully e-autos and/or hybrids.
Since Toyota came to WV we have also gained a whole lot of variety of sushi places all around the region — hurray!!
UncleEbeneezer
@Omnes Omnibus: It’s like the most famous fact about Pelosi: she doesn’t bring something up for a vote unless she already has a count. Everyone here has taken that as a given and even trumpeted it (rightfully) for years as a testament to why she’s the GOAT Speaker.
Mike in NC
So tired of the media’s current fixation on INFLATION which FOX News made up out of thin air…
slybrarian
I don’t see why anyone should be more upset about the Squad making a protest vote that didn’t threaten passage of the bill than they are about the ‘centrists’ who caused the entire blowup in the first place by suddenly trying to stop BBB the day the votes for the two connected bills was scheduled. There would have been no drama and no protest vote if the right wing hadn’t done that.
schrodingers_cat
@UncleEbeneezer: Not yet because they don’t have the numbers. But they poison the well and help depress the turnout. The same tactics the Vt senator used against HRC in 2016.
JWR
@O. Felix Culpa:
I think Manchin has been asked by his good Republican friend Moscow Mitch to keep the BBB bill down to the size of TFG’s 2017 tax cuts/giveaways to the billionaires. Why? I dunno. Maybe it was a private
yachthouseboat joke that turned into a side bet. Who knows with these people?Baud
@slybrarian: People are plenty upset with the centrists. There’s simply less disagreement about the centrists’ role in hurting our interests.
Mary G
@Baud: Will miss you. Keep safe. Have fun.
Old School
@schrodingers_cat:
Last I checked, the split was 221 Democrats and 213 Republicans. It seems like the Squad would more than likely be able to kill any bill they’d like.
zhena gogolia
germy
Look at the face on this old hero:
https://www.shorpy.com/node/26388
topclimber
@Kristine: Wait, we are still in a national state of emergency re: COVID, right?
In a state of emergency, you crack down on profiteers, even if they are just garden variety monopolists. Cueing Senator Liz to float this trial balloon, maybe via hearings in her committee? It will at least spread your word on corporate profits as a major source of inflation.
Joe Falco
@schrodingers_cat:
Is there some evidence you can point to to back that assertion up? I could argue Sinema and Manchin’s refusal to dump or amend the filibuster to pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Act will do more to depress voter turnout in next year’s elections than what any Squad member can say or do.
topclimber
@WaterGirl:
So is Peter Doocy. He misses his daily face-plant.
Mary G
@Betty Cracker: They will. I’ve had hummingbirds hover in my face so close I can hear their wings whir and click at me to FILL THE FEEDER NAOW! One would do the scratch the window screen on my bedroom window when he saw I was in there, even though I have no door to get outside from there, so it’s GO IN THE KITCHEN AND MAKE DELICIOUS SUGAR WATER THEN COME OUTSIDE THE OTHER SIDE OF THE HOUSE AND WALK THROUGH THE BACKYARD TO THE PATIO TO FEED ME NAOW.
Steeplejack
@zhena gogolia:
@KBoopaloo:
zhena gogolia
@Steeplejack: I know.
jeffreyw
@Steeplejack: I think the “Chrome bad” stems from “Oh No! they are evil huge corporation not like cuddly Mozilla”. I for one don’t worry about all the tracking and privacy issues because the seamless integration of their services is a genuine good thing for me. I don’t care if my location is tracked. They are up front about all of that. They even tell me where I’ve been every month.
Steeplejack
@zhena gogolia:
Not directed at you. Just wanted to see it again.
zhena gogolia
@Steeplejack: Yeah, I wanted to include it but didn’t have the knowhow.
ETA: What do you think of Grantchester?
WaterGirl
@zhena gogolia: Wow.
I wonder when that recording of Trump was made.Double-wow. Last March and not a peep. Unconscionable.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
what the fuck does it take to get through their marble heads?
WaterGirl
@Mary G: Sounds pretty smart to me!
gwangung
I’m seeing some REALLY dumb shit posted about the squad this morning.
C’mon, folks. Y’all can do better.
Steeplejack
@zhena gogolia:
Haven’t watched it yet. One of the weird side effects of my having PBS Passport is that I miss the Sunday night viewing and then tell myself I’ll binge it later. (Not just Grantchester.) And then I never get around to it. Grantchester situation exacerbated because I realized that I need to go back and look at the previous season (at least!) to remind myself what the hell’s going on.
The last ones I binge-watched were Unforgotten and Professor T (which I didn’t like as much as the original Belgian series). Next up was going to be Baptiste. I liked the first season of that okay.
O. Felix Culpa
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: Sadly, it appears that not even an increasing body count from their ranks will deter the hardcore cultists.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@Jim, Foolish Literalist:
That’s cause they’re dead, Dave. They’re dead.
JWR
@Steeplejack:
I’ve used Firefox since forever, but when commenting here with FF became so complex, (I had to remember my amateur HTML), I finally made the painful switch to Chrome. I really miss FF’s File Menu, and I still have the “after commenting” problem, (Back button breaks) with Chrome, but oh how nice it is to have both Visual and Text tabs available at least 99% of the time.
zhena gogolia
@Steeplejack: I can’t remember anything from last season, but it doesn’t really matter for this season.
I’m giving it a B+.
O. Felix Culpa
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: I don’t know who this Rubin guy is, but the people I know who regret getting the vaccine form a null set.
Full disclosure: I don’t know anyone who hasn’t got their vaccine.
WaterGirl
@jeffreyw: I thought the “chrome bad” stuff is because they are making their browser so the ad blockers don’t work.
Geminid
@Betty Cracker: I saw Jayapal’s tweet the day after the infrastructure vote. I don’t know if she coordinated it with Pelosi, though. She might not have even have told the Speaker beforehand. If she did, I wonder if the Speaker’s reaction was “Great!” or “Okay,” or “…whatever.”
slybrarian
@Baud:
Most people seem to agree about the centrists, but schrodingers_cat is much more vocally concerned about how the Squad might maybe possibly someday be obstructive, despite the Progressive caucus being the president’s biggest supporters, while remaining silent about the actual last-minute obstruction that happened last week by the centrists.
WaterGirl
@zhena gogolia: You didn’t ask me, but I’ll share anyway.
*I do not like their plot line for Leonard at all this season.
Imagine that written in ALL CAPS, bold, and flashing red.
zhena gogolia
@WaterGirl: Me either. Although it gives Al Weaver a chance to shine.
Baud
@slybrarian:
That’s a bit hyperbolic, but they have mostly supported initial Biden’s BBB proposal.
We don’t have a quota system. Whether you agree or disagree with SC’s views about the Squad, the perfidy of the centrists is not responsive to her criticisms.
hotshoe
@Baud:
<3 <3 <3
Lyrebird
@SiubhanDuinne: Rock on. Best to you and to her!
WIshing I could make this happen: Pizzas for any pastors showing up for basic human dignity and shining a light on such wrong.
jeffreyw
@WaterGirl: Are they? I don’t keep up.
Steeplejack
@JWR:
Good to know. As a veteran of semi-pro HTML and someone who composes many comments in Word and then copies them over, I tend to use text mode a lot. Visual mode is nice for short comments when it shows up.
WaterGirl
@jeffreyw: I read that here either last week or earlier this week.
UncleEbeneezer
@Joe Falco: Bingo.
Steeplejack
@zhena gogolia:
Okay, I’m bumping it up the list.
Will note that I was also worried that the subplot with the gay assistant vicar and the housekeeper was going to run off the rails.
jeffreyw
@WaterGirl: I saw this just now when I went looking. I’m not at the hair on fire stage, yet. Might be nothing.
Fair Economist
@Mary G:
TBF it’s not really reasonable to expect a hummingbird to understand human house layouts.
Betty Cracker
@Geminid: I meant Jayapal coordinated the PC whip count with Pelosi, including the nays, not the tweet. I assume Pelosi doesn’t give a flying fuck about tweets.
WaterGirl
@jeffreyw: I hate Chrome anyway, so it won’t affect me. But I doubt if it’s nothing. We will know soon enough.
WaterGirl
@Fair Economist: I thought Mary G.’s point was how smart the hummingbirds are… but I could be wrong.
JWR
@Steeplejack: “Visual mode is nice for short comments when it shows up.”
Sure is. I think of the Visual tab as my preview. But I’m getting used to the feel. And It’s easy to import bookmarks from FF, they just show up in a bookmark bar along the top.
BC in Illinois
I have a “Friend on Facebook,” who doesn’t post anything nowadays, but through their postings I came in touch with the FB page of someone who is fully into the world of Trump — the Once and Future President [Praeses Quondam, Praesesque Futurus]. Here is what they are saying.
Yesterday:
There are “highest level top-secret, military” things going on, to facilitate the Return of the King. (Which, if I remember correctly, is the 2nd volume, followed by the struggle of the Two Towers. But I’m not up to date on all the prophetic literature.)
Which leads to today’s revelation (with a picture of cake and balloons and celebration and flags):
[sic]
zhena gogolia
@Steeplejack: The weekly mysteries have suffered from the attention paid to the ongoing regulars’ storylines. The same happened in the “Gary Bell” season, but I thought that one kept a better balance.
zhena gogolia
We finished season 2 of The Crown last night and watched the first few minutes of season 3. I was disturbed by the change in the music.
Betty Cracker
@Mary G: They know exactly who’s got the nectar!
schrodingers_cat
@Joe Falco: Defund the Police slogan favored by many in the Squad is as popular as Ebola even in my dark blue neck of the woods. It definitely did not help in many of the Senate races last year.
Steeplejack
@JWR:
I will say that in Visual mode it can be harder to navigate into and out of links and blockquotes when composing. In text mode it’s always obvious where you are.
schrodingers_cat
@Baud: Thanks Baud for standing up for me. I appreciate it.
satby
@zhena gogolia: but it’s faithful to the actual history of what happened to homosexuals in Britain in the 1950s. And 1960s, until 1967.
zhena gogolia
@satby: Yes, of course, but they dealt with that subject in season 1. I think we’re objecting to the feeling that it’s just manufacturing drama because the show is tired. Kind of like Anna being accused of murder in season X of Downton, after Bates was accused of murder in season 1 or 2.
Betty Cracker
@zhena gogolia: Sometimes I wonder if The Crown writers have a dead pool on members of the royal family since that might affect plot lines. Or maybe they already know they’re going to end the series with events up to 2000 or something. No idea!
Geminid
@Betty Cracker: Now I understand the point of your comment. I agree generally but I would posit that the Speaker may not have been happy with Ocasio-Cortez’s tweet saying in so many words that Joe Biden was misleading Americans about replacing lead pipes. Ron Klain might not have liked that one either. When that idiot gets finally around to calling me I’ll ask him about this.
Gravenstone
@BC in Illinois: The rantings of someone in dire need of an emergency psychiatric hold.
zhena gogolia
@Betty Cracker: I’m developing a theory about the writing. But I’ll get through seasons 3 and 4 before expressing it.
I hated what they did with the Kennedys. Other than that, we’re mesmerized. I was glad to see Matt Smith on Seth Meyers and realize he’s not really a jerk, or at least seemingly not.
zhena gogolia
Meanwhile, I LOVE The Souvenir, dir. Joanna Hogg. It’s disappearing from Prime on Sunday, so see it while you can! Absolutely spellbinding.
ETA: Unbelievable performance by Tom Burke. And Honor Swinton Byrne is also amazing.
Betty Cracker
@Geminid: You’re probably right about that, and my guess is 95% of the caucus and 100% of the admin wish Manchin would STFU about “entitlements,” Sinema would stop being human bubblewrap for the 1% and both would stop humping the filibuster so Democrats can protect democracy from actual fascists. Coalition politics! ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Re: your question about Demings — I’ve not read much about her lately in the media, but she’s got an extremely aggressive supporter outreach strategy, so I hear from her a lot. Sounds like she’s competitive with Lil’ Marco on what little polling there is.
evodevo
@Jharp: yep…they used to come peck on my dinette window when I didn’t keep the bird feeder filled up to their satisfaction lol
evodevo
@satby:
Yes it is…never forget Alan Turing…
Geminid
@Betty Cracker: Well, we know Lil’ Marco is sweating, just not how much. I suspect he knows he will have to bring his A game, both in financing and campaigning, to beat Demings.
I read an interesting article in Politico about trump and DeSantis. The report was that trump is letting people around him know that he is not pleased that DeSantis hasn’t ruled out running for President if trump runs. Evidently a few other people mentioned as potential candidates have taken the pledge. Chris Christie, for one, obviously won’t.
Betty Cracker
@Geminid: It would be brilliant if Trump and DeSantis get into a damaging brawl, and I could see it happening because Trump is a narcissistic attention hog. DeSantis is a sociopath who is capable of controlling himself, but Trump is a different brand of psycho, and he DGAF about blowback on the party. He will not be ignored, and it could get interesting.
Geminid
@Betty Cracker: A part of the article that made me laugh is when trump was said to have described Charlie Crist as “a killer.” I’m not sure anyone has ever called Charlie Crist that. It sounded like something of a veiled threat to DeSantis, that he’d better get on the trump train or else.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@Betty Cracker: there were some clips going around yesterday of Chris Christie and The Beast sniping at each other. Interesting to think that CC, who knows trump pretty well, seems to think that having blood that’s at least 65% McD’s sludge won’t be around for 2024, cause no way in hell anything but death or incapacity is gonna stop trump from running.
Geminid
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: Christie is ready to run trump or no trump. He may force other candidates to get off the fence. Glenn Youngkin just demonstrated that trump’s MAGA magic is not so magical, at least in a general election. trump has endorsed a raft of candidates for GOP nominations all across the country. Next year’s primaries will show how strong the MAGA magic is in the party.
Elizabelle
@Baud: Come to Berlin, baud. If it was good enough for David Bowie.,,
Geminid
@Geminid: I have a weird sense of humor. I’ve been cracking up over the image of Charlie Crist, with his goofy astronaut crewcut, bounding onto a rally stage to sound of Queen singing “Killer.”
Kayla Rudbek
@O. Felix Culpa: my personal suggestion is sorting recycling at the local landfill or incinerator, or something like that that’s a really dirty job