Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Usually wrong but never in doubt

Being the leader of the world means to be the leader of peace.

Wow, you are pre-disappointed. How surprising.

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

Not all heroes wear capes.

Motto for the House: Flip 5 and lose none.

Take hopelessness and turn it into resilience.

The GOP couldn’t organize an orgy in a whorehouse with a fist full of 50s.

People are complicated. Love is not.

Something needs to be done about our bogus SCOTUS.

Tick tock motherfuckers!

“Everybody’s entitled to be an idiot.”

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

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

If senate republicans had any shame, they’d die of it.

This really is a full service blog.

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

Let’s not be the monsters we hate.

Speaking of republicans, is there a way for a political party to declare intellectual bankruptcy?

I’d hate to be the candidate who lost to this guy.

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

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

Second rate reporter says what?

I see no possible difficulties whatsoever with this fool-proof plan.

You are here: Home / Balloon Juice / Tuesday Evening Open Thread: Gosh, Who Could Resist?

Tuesday Evening Open Thread: Gosh, Who Could Resist?

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Suddenly, I miss the ‘Show Us on the Doll Where the Invisible Hand Touched You’ category…

But… but… the peasants are REVOLTING!

Reader Interactions

116Comments

  3. 3.

    sab

    Important point. If you aren’t employing people and paying payroll taxes, or if you don’t have a honking big truck you never should have bought when a normal car would suffice, then inflation is a problem but not a huge one.

  4. 4.

    trollhattan

    Handsome Joe did a thing about PV solar panels.

    US officials are scrambling to resuscitate the solar power industry in the wake of a trade investigation that has choked off the supply of solar panels into the country.

    For the last couple of months, the US department of commerce has been investigating allegations of tariff-dodging by Chinese solar panel manufacturers. Some of them, the department believes, may have relocated their operations to Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam as a way to skirt US import fees. The investigation is ultimately meant to protect US solar manufacturers from unfair competition, but has backfired: Spooked by the possibility of up to $3.6 billion in retroactive tariffs, many solar manufacturers in the four southeast Asian countries have cut off exports to the US, leaving more than half of planned US projects at risk of cancellation.

    On June 6, the Biden administration will roll out a solution, according to Reuters: A two-year reprieve for tariffs on solar panels coming from the four countries. The policy will protect any panels delivered during that window, which officials hope will jumpstart deliveries and forestall the cancellation of solar construction projects. At the same time, president Biden will tap the Defense Production Act to produce more panels within the US. But domestic production lags so far behind imports, according to intelligence firm Rystad Energy, that it would take years to catch up even in a best-case scenario. Getting imports started again, then, is the only way to keep US solar installations from burning out.

    Year and a half late, but better than pulling a Navarro and cranking tariffs up more.

  5. 5.

    RaflW

    I worked for a company years ago that sent out a letter to each employee annually saying what all the fringe benefits + pay equaled. It was probably a net negative to morale. We weren’t ‘making’ $30,000 even if that’s what we cost. Our rent or mortgage was unimpressed by our vacation accrual.

    So, yeah, the job up top pays $13/hr with “up to” a 50c annual raise. Woot! Hitting the big $15/hr! In … 4 years or more.

  6. 6.

    The Moar You Know

    That’s some fine print under “starting pay”.

    Christ, what an asshole.

  7. 7.

    justawriter

    “And yes, we mean a 50 cent raise per year, not per hour, you silly non-superior being.”

    How much you want to bet he charges his workers for working on holidays by calling the regular shift an office party?

  8. 8.

    Suzanne

    Mr. Suzanne shared this good piece about gun control and why we won’t have it from Salon.

    I feel like it misses an important line of analysis, which is that lots of the white dudes described feel an acute loss of relative social power as women increasingly make gains. It’s no accident that the vast majority of our mass shooters are dudes, and many can’t get any.

    Shorter me: some important subset of people want to have guns if they don’t have any accomplishments.

  11. 11.

    JanieM

    @RaflW: It’s been several years (eight or ten at least) since I started to hear the usual suspects talking about what people make in terms of what they cost an employer *with* benefits — but they don’t say that’s what they’re actually talking about. This is done to deliberately mislead people, often to make wage-earners resent other wage earners. “Oh, those tolltakers on the turnpike, they make $70,000 a year.” No, they don’t, not in the way regular people talk about and understand this stuff.

     

    Edited for clarity.

  12. 12.

    Baud

    Spoiler: “low skill”, low pay workers are winning and winning big

    If so, I can only hope they turn out.

  13. 13.

    Jay

    @Baud:

    many, many years ago, I had an Exect, ‘splain to me in a meeting about our new industrial computer product, that “yes, we lose $1500 on each one we sell, we will make it up in volume”.

    Moron.

    Tagging in “crisis” words to the ad, as it’s posted on the door or main window, allows the MGMT or Owners, to try to shift blame for the “crisis”, amongst the weak minded, from supply chains and greed, to you know, those “lazy workers”.

    Must be one of those MidWest diners the FTFNYT is always visiting.

  14. 14.

    WaterGirl

    Anne Laurie I must protest the besmirching of my good name.  :-)  (indirectly)

    I made that category on Sunday – everything that used to be separate under Sarcasm is now a subcategory called “Commentary” and you find it under balloon juice.  As soon as I can I will make that a separate taxonomy again, but for now that was the fastest way to get everything going again.

  16. 16.

    Citizen Alan

    I genuinely think that within 20 years at the most there will be a serious push by Republicans to repeal the 13th Amendment and bring back slavery. IIRC, that whited sepulcher Mike Huckabee already floated the idea of using convicts as slave labor on his radio show.

  20. 20.

    debbie

    Oh, boy.

    Journalist Bob Woodward is going to publish 9 hours of tapes of Trump that have never been heard before. God only knows what’s on them.
    — Clair cognizant Vaxxed AF (@CarolynGarman5) June 7, 2022

  21. 21.

    Scout211

    Today is election day here in the People’s Republic of California. I hope more voters return their ballots or vote in person today because last week election officials were concerned that only about 10% of the ballots had been turned in. I don’t have any idea how low turnout will affect the results, but come on, people! 

  22. 22.

    Jay

    @Suzanne:

    It’s no accident that the vast majority of our mass shooters are dudes, and many can’t get any.

    Spent 2 decades underemployed as a disposable worker with little to show for it. Years where income covered room and board, with the “Buck a Beer” nights out.

    Never had an issue, despite my “low status”, other than occasionally, having more than one “date” at a time.

    I would attribute my “success” to two key things, 1) actually liking women, ( thanks Mom) and 2) not being an as$hole all the time.

  23. 23.

    Benw

    @Suzanne: proof that you got laid within 5 days prior to purchase, and then a 5 day “hot stuff” period after which you have to prove you got laid again before you get the gun would be fun

  24. 24.

    VeniceRiley

    In 20 days, I’ll be living in a country where the pay is even shittier! But, at least there’s water.

  27. 27.

    narya

    There was an article in the FYFNYT the other day about how they talked to eight people at the gas pumps. I did NOT click on it–I figured that DougJ had somehow slipped it onto their website.

  29. 29.

    bbleh

    @Baud: I would think it’s that more applications will help them lower their prices (assuming they actually mean to do that), because it means they can cherry-pick the ones who will work for the lowest wages.

  30. 30.

    trollhattan

    @Scout211:
    Seems to be a disconnect between turnout today and the metric tons of election crap mail we’ve been receiving the last two months.

    Political Data Intelligence is reporting 18% voter turnout statewide with about 3.8 million ballots returned. The most recent available data was updated Tuesday, but it is unclear at what time. Turnout through June 6 was reported at 15% Tuesday morning.

    Sacramento County’s turnout was reported at 19%. “The last gubernatorial primary, we were at 42% voter turnout,” said Janna Haynes with the Sacramento County elections office. “So we would need to literally double. “I do think that we’ll get close.” During a tour of the Election Office on 65th Street, Haynes said there “just seems to be a little bit of apathy.” About an hour later, Haynes said turnout is now at 20%. “I don’t know if it’s because we just had the recall, and people are like, ‘another election, already?,’” she said. Haynes expects a surge of ballots coming in over the next few days, as election offices can accept ballots post-marked by Election Day up to June 14.
    https://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/election/local-election/article262211807.html#storylink=cpy

  31. 31.

    RSA

    @Suzanne: 

    It’s no accident that the vast majority of our mass shooters are dudes

    Not only mass shooters. According to the FBI, below, almost 90% of known murderers were men in 2018 (I’m presuming that’s the last year complete data is available).

      In 2018, most (77.3 percent) of the 14,123 murder victims for whom supplemental data were received were male. (Based on Expanded Homicide Data Table 1.)
      Of the murder victims for whom race was known, 53.3 percent were Black or African American, 43.8 percent were White, and 2.8 percent were of other races. Race was unknown for 233 victims. (Based on Expanded Homicide Data Table 2.)
      More than 49 percent (49.2) of all murders for which the UCR Program received supplemental data were single victim/single offender situations. (See Expanded Homicide Data Table 4.)
      Of the offenders for whom gender was known, 87.7 percent were male. (Based on Expanded Homicide Data Table 3.)
      When the race of the offender was known, 54.9 percent were Black or African American, 42.4 percent were White, and 2.7 percent were of other races. The race was unknown for 4,821 offenders. (Based on Expanded Homicide Data Table 3.)
      More than 72 percent (72.7) of the homicides for which the FBI received weapons data in 2018 involved the use of firearms. Handguns comprised 64.3 percent of the firearms used in murder and nonnegligent manslaughter incidents in 2018.(Based on Expanded Homicide Data Table 8.)
  32. 32.

    bbleh

    Spoiler: “low skill”, low pay workers are winning and winning big.

    Oh so THAT’s what they mean by “economic anxiety.”

    “The Lower Classes are catching up! Next thing you know they’ll expect decent housing, and decent schools for their children, and [shudder] actually to be served at the Better Restaurants!!”

  34. 34.

    trollhattan

    Caitlyn Jenner striving for full white trash status.

    Caitlyn Jenner is, we guess, the one trans woman Fox News viewers have decided isn’t a groomer, because she is allowed to be a Fox News contributor. She was on Fox News this afternoon talking about [insert who the fuck cares hand motion here] and she made an alarming claim: Beverly Hills is GONE.

    Not like burned down in an antifa attack, though they could say that on Fox News and it would become gospel repeated through the armpit farts of all the Gomers of northern Alabama within seconds, and no Fox News viewer would ever bother to fact-check it. (See: 2020 Black Lives Matter protests that definitely leveled Portland and Minneapolis and probably all the other cities, who knows.)

    Instead Jenner says that because of the inflation, and because of the crime, everything is now terrible and the “quality of life” has gone to hell in Beverly Hills. She keeps accidentally saying this is happening in San Francisco, as if she can’t remember what she’s supposed to be saying, but that’s no reason to believe it’s not true about Beverly Hills.

    “It’s even reached the wealthy people down here in San Francisco!” she says, laughing about her Beverly Hills story. “I mean, Beverly Hills has turned into Gotham City because of [Los Angeles D.A. George Gascon’s] process that he’s done.”

    In what respect, Caitlyn?

    “And it’s a shame to see! You can’t drive a nice car. First of all gas is so expensive out here in California. You can’t wear jewelry on Rodeo Drive. You have to dress down!” She repeated that it’s “turned into Gotham City.”

    https://www.wonkette.com/-2657471602

    You can’t drive a nice car or you can’t afford gas for your nice car–which is it Karen…er…Caitlyn?

  36. 36.

    Mike S

    I’m digging this LA Times Op/Ed. It is so quintessential republican that I can’t stand it. It would be funny if it wasn’t so typical of this putz.

     

    I see the Jan. 6 committee as being at least as much a symptom of our democracy’s failure as a mechanism for its salvation. First, because the committee should not be necessary and, second, because the forces that made it necessary threaten to undermine democracy even now.
    I don’t mean the committee shouldn’t be necessary simply because the attack shouldn’t have happened. That’s obviously true. The storming of the U.S. Capitol was a heinous act, and Trump’s role in it, even under the most generous interpretation, was, simply, villainous. For even if he had no intent to incite a mob, he neglected his constitutional duty to stop one as it was attacking the Capitol on his behalf.
    The Jan. 6 committee shouldn’t be necessary because the proper response and remedy to the attack should have been a rapid impeachment and conviction. The defeated president suborned a mob to hector and harass Congress into invalidating a presidential election. A Congress with an iota of institutional and constitutional sense would have done so within a few days of the attack. All of the vital evidence and testimony sought by the committee should have been sought by a Senate trial.
    But congressional leaders saw themselves as leaders of their parties first, and their institutions second. Nancy Pelosi rightly wanted to impeach Trump, but she pursued a strategy that made a bipartisan impeachment harder. There was no serious consultation with Republicans about how to craft an article of impeachment or even an effort to write one that would have made it more difficult for some Republicans to vote against it. An article simply laying out that Trump was derelict in his duty on Jan. 6 would have garnered more GOP support.
    For the benefit of the incoming president and her party’s agenda, Pelosi dawdled in sending the article of impeachment to the Senate, letting passions cool and partisanship reassert itself. Pelosi was happy to have Liz Cheney denounce Trump in a floor speech, but Cheney, then the third ranking Republican in the House, should have been offered a manager slot in the impeachment trial (I have it on good authority she was not).

  39. 39.

    Cameron

    @Mike S: Ah, yes, all those many, many Republican senators and representatives who were outraged and would have impeached him in a hot second if only….if only….   I believe this style of essay is referred to as pantloadery.

  40. 40.

    Chief Oshkosh

    @Suzanne:

    Mr. Suzanne shared this good piece about gun control and why we won’t have it from Salon.

    But I don’t want gun control from Salon. I want it from the government!

  43. 43.

    Villago Delenda Est

    @Mike S: Both sides bullshit.  Author needs to be put on a rocketship to the sun along with Chuckles the Toddler, Chris Clitzilla, and Mrs. Greenspan.

  45. 45.

    bbleh

    @Villago Delenda Est:  And that they’re emotionally, uh, differently abled. Which might have something to do with their, uh, size anxiety, which of course is irrelevant because … nobody else ever sees it!

  49. 49.

    lollipopguild

    @Citizen Alan: I can see many of the usual suspects on the gop side going on fox and talking about bringing back legal segregation. They also want business to be able to discriminate on the basis of religion. These  will be sold as “freedom”.

  50. 50.

    WaterGirl

    @Anne Laurie:  I hope you know my phrasing was just for dramatic effect and that i wasn’t offended at all.

    I did want to make sure you knew that all the items were there, even if they were hidden in plain sight..

  51. 51.

    Mike S

    @Chief Oshkosh: Agreed. He should have been banished after convincing the idiot republicans that Hitler was a liberal but he still writes columns for The LA Times.

  52. 52.

    Spanky

    @Baud: FTR, I’m having no problem on Android.

    Ok, I hit post and nothing happened

    ETA and then it did on the 2nd try.

  53. 53.

    WaterGirl

    @Baud: Ah, I was not getting that.  522?  524?  Something else?  I can report it if I know what the error was.

    I know it seems wrong, but “Somebody got some kind of error”  doesn’t engender much of a response.  :-)

  54. 54.

    A woman from anywhere (formerly Mohagan)

    @Scout211: my husband and I turned in/dropped off our ballots yesterday. So there’s 2 reliable Dem votes!

  55. 55.

    MagdaInBlack

    I’ve just learned that my company is paying new hire body men, painters and office managers more than they’re paying existing employees. They’re gonna be in a world of hurt when this gets out, which it will. I will make sure it does.

  56. 56.

    Dorothy A. Winsor

    Mr DAW is watching MSNBC and they’re reporting on FOX’s failure to cover the hearings. I thought that was interesting since we’ve been talking about that too

  58. 58.

    bbleh

    @MagdaInBlack:  Ergo, unions. (Specifically, ones that tell management to stuff their “two-tier” plans into some tightly puckered orifice.)

  64. 64.

    bbleh

    @WaterGirl: FWIW, no problems in mountainous tribal WestVirginiastan, using either OS X Safari via Spectrum or iOS Safari via AT&T wireless. (If anything, seems a little faster than usual … ?!?)

  65. 65.

    Another Scott

    Meanwhile in the UK…

    Boris Johnson's spokesman says the Prime Minister will transform the NHS into "a blockbuster health care system in the age of Netflix."

    Asked repeatedly to explain what this means, Johnson's spokesman is unable to say which features of Netflix he believes the NHS should imitate.

    — Adam Bienkov (@AdamBienkov) June 7, 2022

    Imagine that. :-/

    The press always, always should push back against pabulum from people in power.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  66. 66.

    NotMax

    ‘@Scout211

    Wagering pool now open on how long it takes for a Chyron to pop up identifying her as Rep. Liz Cheney (D-WY).

    //

  67. 67.

    Scout211

    @Another Scott:

    Asked repeatedly to explain what this means, Johnson’s spokesman is unable to say which features of Netflix he believes the NHS should imitate.

    Stranger Things?

  68. 68.

    MomSense

    @debbie:

    Oh fuck no.  I’m guessing I’m going to be as furious with BW for withholding information when it could have saved lives as I will be with the cruel idiocy of the Tangerine Tinpot.

  71. 71.

    MagdaInBlack

    @Xavier: This is why it surprises me employers arent in favor of Medicare for All. I suppose its because they’d loose the leverage over employees.

  72. 72.

    Ruckus

    @Scout211: 
    I mailed my a few days ago, many of the occupants of the complex I live in were talking about voting at the time so I think most of them hadn’t yet. What with the ballot that we had I’m amazed that many haven’t decided use their ballot as a dart board, as that’s what it feels like it should be. I imagine there was a lot of confusion about the vote for senator, what with us having to vote twice. Took me a full read to see why there were 2 places and you could vote for the same person twice, yet not every candidate was running in both.
    CA does a pretty good job but I’d guess there were close to 20 people running for senator, with I’d say half with no affiliation, which automatically loses my vote. If you are ashamed of your political party, think how I’m going to feel about it.

  74. 74.

    James E Powell

    @Mike S:

    Jonah Goldberg says (among other BS)

    An article simply laying out that Trump was derelict in his duty on Jan. 6 would have garnered more GOP support.

    Murc’s Law applies to every situation.

    Jonah Goldberg is and always has been an a hole. That is he slightly less of an a hole than current Republican leadership doesn’t change that.

  75. 75.

    Peale

    @Another Scott: I doubt he means that you can get any medical care at anytime…binge watching a whole treatment in one night or dribble out when you have the time,

    maybe he wants to raise prices to reduce the number of subscribers.

  76. 76.

    bbleh

    @MomSense: There is some almost myth-level tragedy in the phenomenon of Woodward.  Yes he was key to the Watergate scandal, and yes he has an uncanny ability to get people to tell him things they shouldn’t tell anyone and that yield other scandals, most of which redound to the public benefit, and so great praise is due, but OTOH he withholds so much information that could provide substantial benefits in real time, merely for the sake of his own status (and I dunno, probably profit), that he substantially undermines his own contributions.

    Oh well, you go to war with the publicity-hounds you have …

  77. 77.

    sab

    @Another Scott: Whenever a Tory wants to do anything to change NHS be skeptical. Winston Churchill wanted to abolish it, which is why the Brits voted him out immediately after WWII.

  79. 79.

    Old School

    @Another Scott:

    Boris Johnson’s spokesman says the Prime Minister will transform the NHS into “a blockbuster health care system in the age of Netflix.”

    Did Blockbuster Video exist in the UK?

  80. 80.

    BellyCat

    The wage increase for low skilled labor is damn encouraging. The unfortunate part is that portions of the pie are simply being shifted from the middle to the lower socioeconomic class. What we really need is more frickin’ pie from the top shelf. Until we get that, it’s easy to see why the Democratic platform could suffer in the next election due to inflationary concerns. I just filled my truck and it cost $175. The fuel price is not a trivial issue for many who need their vehicles for work.

    Real question: if the government can give people checks for Covid relief, why not give people checks for gas and inflationary relief? Call it something feel-good like Ukraine Patriot Payments or some such Rah-Rah thing. Then give the top .01% tax free options to contribute piles of money to same.

  81. 81.

    Cameron

    @Mike S: It’s been quite some time since I’ve read anything by The Doughy One.  I could have gone quite some time more.

  82. 82.

    JanieM

    @Xavier: Sort of. But speaking as someone on Medicare: bare Medicare, without a medigap policy or a Part C plan, is deeply inadequate (or to be blunter, just plain shitty) health insurance. This has been mentioned on this blog fairly recently, I don’t remember by whom. Too big a topic for me, certainly for for tonight.

  83. 83.

    cain

    @lollipopguild: 
    Everything is labeled as freedom .. the GOP Twitter handle talks about texting Freedom unironically to some number.

    Freedom to discriminate to everyone who is not a white male.

  86. 86.

    BellyCat

    @cain:  You misspelled “Freedumb”. (Clever way to build a scammer phone list of idiot marks, though!)

  87. 87.

    Mike S

    Sorry Cameron

     

    @cain: Freedom is the new tactical. Put it in front of anything and money will be made. My retirement plan is to sell “Freedom Tac survival kits” on FOX, Newsmax and OAN for 50 dollars a bucket.

  88. 88.

    Cameron

    @cain: Like that Kris Kristofferson song, “Freedom’s just another word for bullshit on the loose.”  I think that’s how it went, anyway.

  89. 89.

    Calouste

    @sab: 
    The NHS was only created by Attlee’s Labour government that came into power when Churchill was voted out in 1945.

  90. 90.

    Ceci n est pas mon nym

    @Citizen Alan: That language is already in the 13th Amendment. I read it recently and was shocked to read that it says in effect that slavery is not totally abolished.

    Here, let’s go to the source.

    Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.

  91. 91.

    Ken

    @RSA: According to the FBI almost 90% of known murderers were men

    Maybe women are just better at getting away with it?

  93. 93.

    BellyCat

    @Ken:  Apparently not always

    ETA: “During her time with ISIS, Fluke-Ekren also discussed plans for terrorist attacks on US soil, including parking a van full of explosives under a shopping mall, telling one witness that any attack which didn’t kill a large number of people was a waste of resources.”

  94. 94.

    kalakal

    @Old School: Yep. Up till about 10 years ago. Most people these days would probably think of the game show.  In the ‘there’s always a tweet’* dept:

    Rees-Smug on Theresa May winning her vote of no confidence in 2018

    “This is a very bad result for the prime minister, 117 votes against her… much worse than she thought” says Jacob Rees-Mogg MP, who insists the result is worse that it looks as an ”overwhelming majority of backbenchers have voted against her”

    Rees-Smug on Tarquin Fin-tim-lin-bin-whin-bim-lim-bus-stop-F’tang-F’tang-Olé-Biscuitbarrel Johnson winning his vote of no confidence with 140 votes against him “a good victory”

    The day before he opined

    “This is a democracy, and in a democracy, if you win by one vote, you have won,” Rees-Mogg claimed.

    He also said that Johnson’s authority would be intact even if he wins by such a tiny margin.

    I really, really hate these people

    *or in this case, interview

  98. 98.

    bbleh

    @MagdaInBlack: I rather suspect that, at least in the case of many* small-business owners (who employ the majority of American workers), it’s because they think their taxes would go up to pay for it, and if there’s anything they* hate more than having to pay their employees a fair wage, it’s paying taxes.  I think big business would be perfectly happy with it if they weren’t saddled with the majority of the costs, but they worry they might be (because big business), so they keep their mouths shut.

    * (Yes yes, #notAllSmallBusinessOwners. My family’s small business goes out of its way to pay a good wage because we realize the value of non-exploitive, non-adversarial relations.)

  99. 99.

    Jinchi

    @Ruckus: CA does a pretty good job but I’d guess there were close to 20 people running for senator

    Slightly more than 20, plus you got to vote for Senator twice! (Once for filling the office next January. Once for filling the same seat, currently occupied by Alex Padilla.)

    So Padilla appears twice on the same ballot, but not everyone running against him appears on both questions. It’s unlikely but possible that he could win the seat, and lose it on the same day.

  100. 100.

    bbleh

    @kalakal: Tarquin Fin-tim-lin-bin-whin-bim-lim-bus-stop-F’tang-F’tang-Olé-Biscuitbarrel Johnson

    OMG lol.  Best laugh of the evening thus far

  101. 101.

    Misterpuff

    But… but… the peasants are REVOLTING!

    You said it! They stink on ice.

  102. 102.

    Ken

    @kalakal: I wonder when Rees-Wossname will admit, or brag, that he voted against Johnson.

    Though as I typed that, I realized that the only possible answer is “five minutes after Johnson leaves office”.

  103. 103.

    Xavier

    @JanieM:  No doubt Medicare needs improvement. But speaking as someone who has Medicare (primary) and Federal Employees insurance (secondary), I can state that insurance is going downhill fast.

  104. 104.

    Brachiator

    @Scout211:

    Today is election day here in the People’s Republic of California. I hope more voters return their ballots or vote in person today because last week election officials were concerned that only about 10% of the ballots had been turned in.

    I dropped off my ballot about an hour ago. The polling place was pretty sparse, but there was a steady trickle of people coming in as they got off work.

    The poll workers were helpful and cheerful. I thanked them for volunteering.

  105. 105.

    Steeplejack

    I felt the bite of inflation myself today. Gassed up the doughty Kia and paid $4.99 a gallon (regular), total $68.30. She was very thirsty (13.7 gallons), but that’s still by far the most I’ve ever paid for a tank of gas. Last time I got gas was on May 3, and it was $4.26 at the same station. So it went up 73 cents in five weeks (in Falls Church, VA). I don’t drive much—only 274 miles in those five weeks—but I can imagine the bite that people who have to commute every day are feeling.

    I did take a moment to laugh at my RWNJ brother in Las Vegas, who drives an F-250 pickup truck (it might even be an F-350, he just got it a few months ago) and has as his backup a Mercedes coupe. And, yes, of course he bitches constantly about Joe Biden’s high gas prices. Suck it, bro’.

  107. 107.

    bbleh

    @Steeplejack:  Well, just for the record, it’s not so much “inflation” as it is (1) profiteering by oil companies and — to a considerably lesser extent — (2) fluctuations in global oil prices thanks to (2a) Donald Trump’s BFF Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and the rest of the world’s reaction to it and (2b) the Bush family’s good friends the Saudi royal family using their production flexibility to extort both profits and political concessions.

    It really is Republicans all the way down …

  108. 108.

    Scout211

    @Steeplejack:

    @Brachiator:

    I just sent WaterGirl a screen shot of that. I could see it, too. Several commenters earlier today had the same thing happen but no one (so far) has actually attempted to edit another person’s comments.  This is the third time it’s happened to me (iPad pro iOS 15.5).

  112. 112.

    Nettoyeur

    @Mike S: It’s by Jonah Goldberg  author of the oxymoronic book Liberal Fascism, opponent of the metric system, terminally afflicted with the peculiar soft bellied form of oppositional/defiant disorder that afflicts members of the wingnut welfare funded 101st Keyboard Brigade.  All the woozy thinking of a liberal infused with the sociopathy of a National Review nutjob.

  113. 113.

    Nettoyeur

    @Mike S: It’s by Jonah Goldberg  author of oxymoronic book Liberal Fascism, opponent of the metric system, terminally afflicted with the peculiar soft bellied form of oppositional/defiant disorder that afflicts members of the wingnut welfare funded 101st Keyboard Brigade.  All the woozy thinking of a liberal infused with the sociopathy of a National Review nutjob.@Mike S:  His softness of head and belly caused him to fall out with the militant crazy MAGAs. Also , too, he found he couldn’t get anything published in the wingnut press anymore. Gotta feed that belly.

  114. 114.

    TriassicSands

    @Another Scott:

    For only $9,995.00 you can have MRIs with 480p resolution. That way, unless a tumor is at least the size of a grapefruit, you can pretend it doesn’t exist.

  115. 115.

    different-church-lady

    Regarding that last tweet: look, I hate to be the contrarian, but what the hell good is a handful of dollars more per hour when inflation is just going to soak it right back up? Gas and food prices aren’t hurting the people making six figures a year at all compared to those punching the clock at the bottom.

  116. 116.

    evodevo

    @JanieM:  Yep..you owe 20% on ANY medical bill, whether it’s $200 or $200k or$2 million….way beyond most elderly people’s means…it helps, but…without a supplemental policy that only the recently employed can afford, it’s not the answer for everyone…

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