Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Usually wrong but never in doubt

Take your GOP plan out of the witness protection program.

Only Democrats have agency, apparently.

This has so much WTF written all over it that it is hard to comprehend.

The cruelty is the point; the law be damned.

You cannot shame the shameless.

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

New McCarthy, same old McCarthyism.

When I decide to be condescending, you won’t have to dream up a fantasy about it.

I did not have this on my fuck 2022 bingo card.

Republicans do not pay their debts.

“Everybody’s entitled to be an idiot.”

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

Anyone who bans teaching American history has no right to shape America’s future.

Reality always lies in wait for … Democrats.

You can’t love your country only when you win.

Fuck the extremist election deniers. What’s money for if not for keeping them out of office?

If you tweet it in all caps, that makes it true!

No offense, but this thread hasn’t been about you for quite a while.

The willow is too close to the house.

I like you, you’re my kind of trouble.

I was promised a recession.

Conservatism: there are some people the law protects but does not bind and others who the law binds but does not protect.

When do we start airlifting the women and children out of Texas?

You are here: Home / Open Threads / Sunday Morning Open Thread: Pray for A Modern Miracle

Sunday Morning Open Thread: Pray for A Modern Miracle

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Main obstacle to this tactic, of course, is that Putin would never accept it. On the positive side, dictators are invicible… until they’re not!

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87Comments

  2. 2.

    debbie

    We can’t just pray….we must all get involved, in some fashion, to defeat this attack on our democracy!
    Democracy requires participation!
    People in #Ukraine are risking their lives for their democracy; certainly, we can donate, volunteer to protect our democracy! pic.twitter.com/6w1Z4X0AbY
    — Carol (@FiredUpCarol) April 16, 2022\

    (The photo is the best part.)

  3. 3.

    Omnes Omnibus

    On Solovyov’s program, they started talking about the withdrawal of troops from #Ukraine, because “the army has fulfilled its task”.

    That used to be phrased as “Declare victory and move out.” Bush, with his “Mission Accomplished” appearance, did the first but not the second. And the US forces actually accomplished the initial military victory. The Russians haven’t, but they can portray one on their domestic media.

  4. 4.

    Butch

    This text is from a Twitter account called The Eastern Border.  I thought it was worth reprinting:

    Also in the news: Looted stuff stolen by Russian soldiers is now being, in turn, stolen by Russian postal workers. For example, from the 130 boxes that were supposed to arrive to the town of Rubcovsk, only 3 made it there.

  8. 8.

    Ohio Mom

    That’s what Ohio Dad keeps reminding me — every time I say I can’t see this war ending well, how can Ukraine possibly win, he says, Afghanistan beat Russia.

  11. 11.

    mali muso

    Quite the holy-days weekend eggstravaganza.  Yesterday we were guests at our dear friends’ Seder, kiddo went egg hunting first thing today (skipping the church thing tho), and tomorrow we are participating in a local Iftar celebration.

  12. 12.

    Jager

    For the first time since 91, all of the world’s major religions have high holidays at the same time, thinking about this over my 5 AM coffee, I was reminded of my grandmother’s funeral, her Presbyterian minister officiated and one of her dear friends a Catholic priest participated. I was one of the pallbearers. On the ride back from the graveyard I asked the two of them whether they would get in trouble for doing the service together. The priest laughed and said, “We both have the same boss, it’s middle management that causes all the trouble.”

  16. 16.

    Alison Rose ???

    @Jager: That’s awesome :) Many years ago, I attended my cousin’s (well, first cousin once removed) wedding, and being that we’re Jewish and her now-husband is Irish Catholic, it was officiated by rabbi and a priest (I assume?? I can’t keep straight what title refers to what type of church official). It was a lovely ceremony with a blend of traditions, and both men made a few jokes about being “coworkers” and such.

  17. 17.

    Alison Rose ???

    One day, when all this is over and Zelenskyy is allowed to be a regular person in regular times again, I really hope he decides to become an audiobook narrator.

  19. 19.

    Yarrow

    Welp, holiday celebrations are all canceled as family member has cough, temperature (highest 100.6 but averaging around 100), and has had some trouble breathing. Pulse oximeter reading was 96% so so far doesn’t seem to be in dangerous territory. At home Covid test was negative. Triple vaxxed.

    No idea what to do now. It seems a bit unlikely to be Covid as they’re careful about mask wearing and don’t do things that are risky. Maybe it’s something else? Pneumonia? Ugh. Of course it’s a holiday weekend. Also, GP retired recently and “getting a new GP” has been on the list but due to other life things hasn’t happened yet. Of course.

  20. 20.

    Ohio Mom

    @Omnes Omnibus: I love Leonard Cohen.

    I remind myself that every war ends, eventually. This one will too, and if sadly, Ukraine does not prevail, they will another time.

  21. 21.

    rikyrah

    First World problems…

    Washing machine broke. Took awhile- supply chain issues,  and two tries to get one that works to my satisfaction. Had an issue with the spin cycle… Finally got the combination right to get a good spin cycle.

     

    Only to have the sump pump break and the washing machine water flood the basement???

     

    I am so over doing laundry at the laundromat.

    Been sitting here for an hour, just sitting on my bed, going???

    I was so sure that I wouldn’t have to leave my house today, because the new washer and dryer were delivered this week.?

  24. 24.

    TerryTime

    @Yarrow: You should assume covid. It’s going around vaxxed and boosted populations who are still being careful, like my household. College student brought ours, first day of symptoms test was negative. Two days later we were all positive.

  25. 25.

    Jager

    @rikyrah:

    While we were waiting for our house to be finished (a “couple of weeks” stretched into a month) we used laundromats, after several tries, we found one owned by a no-bullshit, but cheery Asian woman. She lightened up the dreary process. One day a kid came in with a load of filthy work clothes, she watched him load the machines, walked over said, “You don’t know to do this do you?” She then showed him how to sort and properly wash his clothes.

  26. 26.

    Yarrow

    @TerryTime:  Yeah, we’re assuming that and acting accordingly. Isolating, masks, HEPA filters, windows cracked. Just not sure what to do. At least pulse ox is okay. I’m worried about pneumonia.

  29. 29.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @NotMax:

    @OzarkHillbilly:

    I toured the Technion on a visit to Haifa in 1980. But all they were working on then was boring stuff like figuring out how to desalinise the Mediterranean for agricultural applications. Nothing useful like this. I am, needless to say, disappoint.

  30. 30.

    no comment

    @rikyrah: Sorry to hear that.

    Years ago, my husband & I rented a house that had flooding problems in the basement. The sump pump was not powerful enough to deal with the amount of water & sometimes it got overwhelmed & just stopped. A repairman suggested putting in a second sump pump in another area of the basement & letting both run. We were just renting & couldn’t make that call. So the sump pump got repaired, & we crossed our fingers that it would handle the job.

  31. 31.

    Kirk Spencer

    @Jager: my first thought was wondering if it was an example of the Vimes metric in action. Instead of boots, how many loads of clothes can you afford to wash and dry? Sure, separating them will keep them better in the long run, but if you can only afford one load that’s what you do to have clean clothes.

  33. 33.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @Jager: Oh c’mon… Everybody knows how to separate clothes. The dirty clothes go in one pile, the clean clothes go in a different pile. The dirty clothes pile goes in the washing machine. The clean clothes pile gets pushed into a corner of the bedroom.

    See? Easy peasy!

  37. 37.

    Benw

    @rikyrah: more first world problems: we’re out of baking powder for Easter biscuits. I hit 3 stores this morning and all were out, so I brought bagels home. They were still warm from the oven :)

  41. 41.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @MagdaInBlack: I never could do that. When I was single the laundromat always insisted I remove my clothes when they were dry. Now I’m married and my wife complains about my monopolizing the dryer for clothes storage.

    People are just so selfish.

  42. 42.

    MagdaInBlack

    @rikyrah: You have my deepest sympathy. I despise laundromats.

    Also; had a sump pump die during a heavy rainstorm, while living in garden apartment 2 flat in Melrose Park ( IL)  6 inches of water all through the place. That was fun times.

    This is why I know live in a 3rd floor condo.

  43. 43.

    Lapassionara

    @Yarrow: I would be worried if pulse ox goes down below 95%. Do you have any Mucinex D? You have to ask the pharmacist for it, it is not on the shelves. It can help dry out mucus in the lungs.

  49. 49.

    Jager

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    My college roommate never did laundry, his allowance from his indulgent parents allowed him to buy new underwear weekly. OTH my parents bought me a suitcase, handed me 100 bucks, and said, “See you at Christmas.”

  54. 54.

    Ramalama

    @rikyrah: I feel you. Our laundromat is terrible with machines that only half-work. And while my ville is a one-laundromat kind of place, it’s larger than the surrounding villages, which means when our washing machine breaks, it’s … turtles all the way down. Or something.

  57. 57.

    trollhattan

    @rikyrah:

    I feel for you, we went through that very process last year and the supply complications are no joke. Happy Easter?

    It WILL get better and afterwards, you’ll truly appreciate the whole concept of clean clothes without having to leave the house.

    TBH I think appliances plot against us, collectively. Our washer and dryer coerced the furnace to crap out in a big way New Year’s eve. Took two weeks to get the part (that supply chain thing, again, and an extra two-hundred bucks for “expedited” shipping) so we spent the coldest stretch of winter heating the house with portable electric heaters we panic-bought before the stores closed. That was a fun electricity bill.

  59. 59.

    trollhattan

    @Jager:

    That kid was probably me, freshman year. I stared at the top-load washer–the parents had a front-loader–baffled by the very idea of how it might clean clothes. The other thing was the local water hard as rocks and you needed what seemed like an entire box of detergent for one load. Someone took pity on me and explained things, but she probably had doubts about my ability to learn anything, afterwards.

    Could-a changed the oil in her car, though!

  60. 60.

    Chetan Murthy

    @Yarrow:

    No idea what to do now.

    Can you get an at-home test ?  [faster than PCR]  In many states there’s a “test to treat” program, whereby if you test positive, you can get your local pharmacy to deliver a course of Paxlovid to your home.  Maybe ask your doc?  I know that if I got covid, that’s what I’d be banking on.  And you gotta get the course started in the first 5 days of the infection, so gotta get on that pronto.

  62. 62.

    phdesmond

    watching that Zelenskyy video, i had an odd thought.  it reminded me of the early Fidel Castro!

  63. 63.

    JAFD

    Before I left for college, waybackwhen, Father said “You’ll have to do your own laundry, now.  Mother showed you how to go about it, right ?”

    “Yes”

    “OK.  So do it exactly the way she said.

    That way, if something goes wrong, you’ll know who to blame.”

  64. 64.

    Yarrow

    @zhena gogolia: Thanks, it is worrying, not least because this particular person has a shit ton of other health issues and has been making progress on them but isn’t out of the woods. It’s why we’re so careful.

    @Lapassionara:  Latest pulse ox is at 95 but it seems to be staying about 95/96 so not yet really worrying. Don’t have Mucinex D but do have regular Mucinex. Can see if it’s okay with the other medications. Ugh. So complicated.

  65. 65.

    Yarrow

    @Chetan Murthy:  The current at-home test was negative yesterday. As I said, the doctor retired and getting a new one was on the list but hadn’t got done yet. Could just randomly pick one, I guess. But it’s Easter Sunday so no one is working.

  66. 66.

    TonyG

    @Butch: Wow.  The United States is a pretty good kleptocracy, but, damn, the Russians have it perfected.  Stealing from the top to the bottom.

  67. 67.

    Chetan Murthy

    @Yarrow: As they say, it can take more than one test, administered at (IIRC) 3-day intervals, to catch it.  Also, maybe call around to your local pharmacies, ask them about “test to treat”?  The reason I suggested asking a doc, was only b/c they might know.  The idea of the program is that you do NOT need to see a doc, to get the course of pills: the pharmacist can sight the test result and dispense autonomously.

    Of course, I haven’t actually done this; I’m just recounting what I read about it.

  68. 68.

    StringOnAStick

    @Frank Wilhoit: Yeah, decongestants that use pseudoephedrine dry up mucus but that means it thickens and is much harder to expell, significantly increasing the risk of bronchitis and pneumonia.  Mucinex is a much better option.  I’ve had doctors tell me they hate the former and to avoid decongestants; also nasal sprays that do the same thing.

  69. 69.

    StringOnAStick

    I’m seeing remarkable parallels between the eliminationist rhetoric of the Putin mob and of our right wing, especially the Christianist subset.  It’s all to give permission for violence against who they oppose, which is us.  That’s the goal of all the “grooming” crap, etc.   Franklin Graham issued an Easter message to “pray for Putin”; the backlash had better be huge.  That Putin, such a Christian he is!

  70. 70.

    NotMax

    @StringOnAStick

    Yeah, most any cough medicine containing Guaifenesin (or labeled Expectorant) will serve, doesn’t have to be Mucinex. Costco sells their own Kirkland brand of pills, labeled Mucus Relief Chest (400 mg Guaifenesin), which work a treat.

  75. 75.

    jonas

    @StringOnAStick:  I saw Twitter light up yesterday with a bunch of outraged hot takes on Graham’s comments. I looked at what he said and it appeared to be a fairly conventional evangelical “pray for your enemies” sentiment, a bit like Pelosi’s observation a few years ago that she prayed every day for Trump (not to fuck everything up). Graham is a talibangical nutbar, but he’s not really simping for Putin here.

  77. 77.

    Yarrow

    @Chetan Murthy:  Thanks for the info. I will have a look and see if “test to treat” is available in my area. I know a lot of places are closed today. I think we might do another test tonight/tomorrow morning. In retrospect the symptoms might have started on Thursday but were so mild as to be nothing you’d even think about, like occasional throat clearing and tiredness. The two days prior had been absolutely crazy busy and very stressful so the tiredness was easily explained that way. It wasn’t until Friday night when it became a little more obvious that there might be more to it. Then negative test yesterday and symptoms worse today. So could this be Day 4? Who knows.

  83. 83.

    Wapiti

    @Jager: My dad tells of sending his laundry home, in a duffle bag on Greyhound, for his mother to wash. I just shake my head.

  84. 84.

    Wag

    @Yarrow:   There should be an urgent care clinic open where you can retest.  Given your symptoms I’m suspicious you may have had a false negative home test.

  86. 86.

    wetzel

    Shout out to fully cast iron sump pumps. Get the $300 Zoeller from Lowes, or at least one of the better Wayne pumps. The cheaper pumps have HDPE parts which will not last.

    Be sure to drill a weep drain using a 3/16″ drill-bit between the back-flow valve and the pump. Most directions don’t call for it, but trapped air fouls a lot of pumps.

    We replaced four in fifteen years, which explains my detailed knowledge of this thing which can go wrong. I am expert on all the things that can go wrong with a house. One day we will get our house back to ‘fair’ condition. I can write a Southern gothic novel about soffet and fascia boards.

  87. 87.

    Chetan Murthy

    @Yarrow: It’s all so …. probabilistic, isn’t it?  But at-home tests are cheap (though sure, if you can manage to get a PCR test, do that too) and apparently in copious supply these days.

    Fingers crossed, it’s just a bad cold.

    Also, the reason for the 5-day window is that after a certain point, the antiviral med doesn’t do any good; but it doesn’t hurt either, so if it were me, I’d keep pushing to find out a diagnosis, and just hope that if I were positive, that the antivirals would work.  I mean, the rate of onset is also a variable factor in different people: so somebody in whom the infection comes on slow, might also be someone who can benefit from the antiviral later in the course of the infection.

    I’d just keep trying to figure out whether I was positive, and see if I could line up a course of the antivirals.  Maybe I wouldn’t need it after all, so a bit of effort wasted, but that’s all.

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