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You are here: Home / Open Threads / Squishable Morning Thread

Squishable Morning Thread

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I don’t know if this will work as a technique to move undecideds into the D column, but I love that Tim Ryan called Vance out for surrendering his dignity to Trump:

In other news, the Murdoch media ghouls are still poring over the contents of Hunter Biden’s laptop, and while I can sort of see the logic that leads them to think airing the most salacious bits might redound to the benefit of their depraved master, this won’t:

It reminds me of the 2020 presidential debate where Trump mocked Biden’s son’s addiction, smirked and stuck out his wattled chin in a gloating manner, sure that he’d landed a devastating blow. Joe Biden acknowledged his son’s struggles and replied that he was proud of Hunter for overcoming his addictions.

In that moment, Biden cemented the notion that there was only one loving father on that stage and revealed by contrast just what an empty and heartless piece of garbage Trump was, is and always shall be. I’m not sure why a Fox propagandist would want to repeat that moment, but please proceed, obnoxious, slab-headed trash person Sean Hannity.

Open thread.

Reader Interactions

230Comments

  2. 2.

    eclare

    MJ highlighted that exchange this morning.  Great to see dignity become an issue.  Also, Tim Ryan was on.  Great message combining economic freedom with bodily freedom.

    I listened to that vm.  It will make you cry.

  4. 4.

    Almost Retired

    Good morning! JD Vance is a tool. I got about half way through his stupid book before abandoning it when he referenced young bucks buying T-Bones with food stamps. oooh, original and biting social commentary there Hillbilly Jimmy.

  6. 6.

    Jerzy Russian

    Who is the bigger asshole, Hannity or Trump?   I think they are equally big assholes, but people of good faith can argue for one over the other in this case.

  8. 8.

    Anne Laurie

    Actually, Betty, I was wondering if either of those two topics were too weighty for the first thing in the morning, when you saved me the trouble! Thank you for sharing, more eloquently than I could manage right before staggering off to bed…

  9. 9.

    Amir Khalid

    I guess Sean Hannity, like Trump, doesn’t get that love and empathy are a mark of strength in a person, not weaknesses to be exploited.

  11. 11.

    Soprano2

    I guess Hannity cannot imagine having a child who is troubled and yet still loving that child. I guarantee a portion of his audience has lived that exact experience. There are some people who believe the only way to handle an addict is through “tough love”.

  12. 12.

    Betty Cracker

    Tulsi Gabbard finally takes off the mask:

    I can no longer remain in today’s Democratic Party that is now under the complete control of an elitist cabal of warmongers driven by cowardly wokeness, who divide us by racializing every issue & stoke anti-white racism, actively work to undermine our God-given freedoms, are…

    …hostile to people of faith & spirituality, demonize the police & protect criminals at the expense of law-abiding Americans, believe in open borders, weaponize the national security state to go after political opponents, and above all, dragging us ever closer to nuclear war.

    I believe in a government that is of, by, and for the people. Unfortunately, today’s Democratic Party does not. Instead, it stands for a government of, by, and for the powerful elite. I’m calling on my fellow common sense independent-minded Democrats to join me….

    …in leaving the Democratic Party. If you can no longer stomach the direction that so-called woke Democratic Party ideologues are taking our country, I invite you to join me.

    Good riddance to that asshole, who unsurprisingly found another cult to join.

  13. 13.

    narya

    Just reading that little bit of transcript brought tears to my eyes. Even now, even after watching performative-cruelty-is-the-point antics for years, I cannot understand anyone reading that and thinking that it’s a bad thing.

  19. 19.

    eclare

    @narya:   If you go down the thread, you can click to listen to the whole voice-mail.  It’s so powerful.  I don’t know how Fox got it.

  21. 21.

    catclub

    @eclare: ​
     Note that it was Daily Mail 2018 – wasn’t there some Fox outlet in the UK that was breaking into celebrities’ phones?

  22. 22.

    SFAW

    @Betty Cracker:

    Her “statement” reads like RWMF Mad(-at-)-Libs. I didn’t spot “socialist” or “socialism” in there, but I’ll be dipped in shit (as the saying goes) if I read her entire statement on tweeter.

    Reading some of the replies was … scary, maybe? Some of her ostensible supporters are fucking deranged.

  26. 26.

    Soprano2

    @ChicagoPat: Trump is such a girly man – he probably spends more time messing with his appearance than the average woman! Him being a “tough, manly” man is not why his supporters like him.

  27. 27.

    SFAW

    @ChicagoPat:

    As Paul Krugman once characterized Newtie as “the stupid man’s idea of what a smart person should sound like,” Trump is the weak man’s idea of what a strong person should sound like.

  28. 28.

    Tony Jay

    @catclub:

    Murdoch’s ‘News of the World‘, a Sunday tabloid shitfest of awfulness to go with all of the other awful tabloid shitfests that malignant lich has been allowed to inflict on this country.

    It had to shut down, making the whole scandal mysteriously go away like seedpuffs in a gust of dog-huff.

  30. 30.

    Betty Cracker

    @eclare: The VM is part of the laptop/cloud trove the Murdoch-employed ghouls have been picking over for months. NY Magazine did a piece recently on the scale of the contents they got their grubby mitts on — more than 200G of personal data.

  31. 31.

    SFAW

    @Soprano2:

    Him being a “tough, manly” man is not why his supporters like him.

    It is, but that’s only part of it. But I think his “manliness” is a distant second to his racism and bigotry and all-around nastiness.
    ETA: One example is his disgusting face photoshopped onto Rocky Balboa’s [sic] body

  32. 32.

    DFH

    @catclub:

    There’s my updated slur for the day, thank you!

    I haven’t tried an Impossible Burger because our local BK ruins all food it touches, so another town probably.  And I will think of all the bucks enjoying one.

  33. 33.

    Soprano2

    @SFAW: Well, my point is that he’s the exact opposite of a “tough, manly” man. His followers say he’s one, but everyone else can see the truth of the matter.

  34. 34.

    Betty Cracker

    @Steeplejack: In supporting Putin, I assume. I wonder if Bernie Sanders might take this opportunity to kick her out as a “fellow” of his self-branded institute? Or not.

  38. 38.

    Baud

    @Betty Cracker:

    I wonder if Bernie Sanders might take this opportunity to kick her out as a “fellow” of his self-branded institute? Or not.

    Wow.  I didn’t know about that.  It should have been done already IMHO.

  39. 39.

    eclare

    @Tony Jay:   Hey, I’ve seen where others have given you grief about the length of your sentences, paragraphs, etc.

    Just want to say, bring it on!

    From a huge Faulkner fan.  Hemingway, not so much.

  40. 40.

    sdhays

    Why the fuck are Hunter Biden’s voicemails in the public record? The only thing I care about with regards to a politician’s family is their being a potential vector for corruption. Otherwise, they don’t deserve public scrutiny. There’s absolutely no evidence of public corruption in Joe Biden. As for Hunter, he …. I don’t care. Law enforcement will handle it.

    On the other hand, the former President’s son in law, who was randomly put “in charge” of some of the biggest policy portfolios the US government has, got a billion-dollar slush fund from a notoriously evil and corrupt dictator after leaving the White House. He also tried to talk to Putin at the Russian embassy over their secure diplomatic channels (although we now have to wonder if Russia actually has any secure channels after witnessing the shitshow that is their battlefield communications) before his father was inaugurated, something too sketchy even the Russians.

    Where are his fucking voicemails?

  41. 41.

    gene108

    Every time Republicans try to drag President Biden about Hunter’s addiction, there are a bunch of Tweets about people whose families are going through or went through struggles with addiction.


    Ralphs girl@Sharonp79304539
    Replying to
    @RexChapman
    I heard this from my father, same tone of love and support, same words, to help both my brothers. He did everything to save them. He’s gone now and both my brothers are clean with families, doing great. My father was a great man. So is Biden.

    Hannity is trash.
    6:38 AM · Oct 11, 2022
    ·Twitter for Android

  42. 42.

    Tony Jay

    @Betty Cracker:

    That’s fucking hilarious, It’s 100% MAGAt in-speak from nose to tail. Anyone – and I mean anyone – who possesses an ounce of self-respect simply has to conclude from the language and terminology of that rant that she is, was, and always will be a willing tool of the Far-Right.

  43. 43.

    Quinerly

    Good Morning from Santa Fe! Pretty much settled in after 6 months. Second houseguest of the month arriving this AM. The Song Dogs (Coyotes ) kept JoJo and me up most of the the night. Plus, I think daddy Bobcat was back on the roof. Haven’t seen him in months. Bully (my yard snake…a beneficial Bull Snake) has moved on into hibernation. Finally caught the mouse that had been putting JoJo’s kibble in the toes of my hiking boots.

    Hope everyone is well. I lurk about once a week. This move was the best thing I have done in 20 years. It’s been a Spring and Summer of yardwork….and visitors. And wildlife.

    Have a great day!!!

  48. 48.

    Geminid

     

     

    @Betty Cracker:

    “I’m calling on my fellow common sense independent-minded Democrats to join me…” I’m not sure how many Democrats will heed Gabbard’s call, but enough conservative billionaires will, and they will finance Gabbard’s independent or third party spoiler campaign in 2024.

    I may despise her, but I think Gabbard has elements of a good candidate: a former member of Congress, verbally  glib and physically attractive. She also would start out with a small but loud base among anti-“imperialist” lefties.

    One factor contributing to Trump’s 2016 win was the unusually large harvest of votes by third parties, especially the Libertarians. Republicans are betting on various ways to win again in 2024. Outright election theft is one of them, and diverting voters to third party and independent candidates like Gabbard will be another.

  50. 50.

    different-church-lady

    I’m not sure why a Fox propagandist would want to repeat that moment

    Because they will never stop believing that empathy is weakness.

  51. 51.

    Betty Cracker

    @sdhays: See the NY Mag article linked at #30 for a technical answer, but yeah, it should be much more of a scandal that these depraved shitweasels dumped the entire contents of someone’s digital life into the public record.

    And speaking of depraved shitweasels, Matt Gaetz entered the “laptop” into the Congressional record in anticipation that they’ll hold hearings about it if the GOP takes the House.

    If any of the contents validated the corruption accusations, we’d have seen them. There’s one vague reference to “the big guy” they’ve blown up that proves nothing. Instead, we’ve seen a steady stream of hookers and blow. No matter what anyone thinks of Hunter Biden as a person, the invasion of privacy is grotesque.

  53. 53.

    Tony Jay

    @sdhays:

      Where are his fucking voicemails?

    Village Class Spokesperson – (rolls eyes) “Yet another ‘online expert’ (smirk) who doesn’t have the faintest idea how journalism works. Our vocation, and yes, it is a vocation, drives us to seek out and submit newsworthy stories, not gossip and tittle-tattle to suit nakedly partisan agendas. If that means we have to take spittle-flecked barbs from extremists on both sides, well, we’re prepared for that, and we’ll sleep just fine knowing we did our jobs.”

    Entire Village puts down its cocktail glasses and, as one, breaks into teary applause. The bravery. The bravery.

  54. 54.

    Baud

    @Geminid:

    “I’m calling on my fellow common sense independent-minded Democrats to join me…” I’m not sure how many Democrats will heed Gabbard’s call, but enough conservative billionaires will,

    I expect an Andrew Yang tweet today.

  56. 56.

    Quinerly

    @Baud: thanks!

    It’s been an adjustment. 40 years living in the inner city to now this. I had never been out here in tourist season so the summer has been a blur of doing stuff here and avoiding tourists in town. I’m about 12 miles out of Santa Fe. Lots of critters. I was barefoot on my patio watering my petunias in the Spring when I had my first encounter with Bully. He was behind the flower pot. Bull Snakes really do look a lot like Rattlesnakes. I screamed. JoJo freaked.

    During the last month, a very young healthy coyote has been hanging around. Very curious. Very close. JoJo is not amused.

  57. 57.

    Tony Jay

    @eclare:

    Everyone is entitled to their opinion. And if it basically boils down to “I’m aghast at the size of these delicious portions” I can live with that.

  58. 58.

    Quinerly

    @eclare: the one Pecos way was pretty close. Smoky mornings and most days could see the smoke plumes. A beautiful area has been destroyed.

    Thanks for thinking about us. Hope you are doing well.

  60. 60.

    Geminid

    @Baud: Yang could be a plausible VP candidate on a ticket led by Gabbard. He has his own set of wealthy, conservative backers. We may see some of their names when the Forward Party’s third quarter FEC filings are made public.

  63. 63.

    kalakal

    @catclub: The Daily Mail is now being sued for phone hacking by a range of people including Elton John, Meghan Markle & most damagingly Baroness Lawrence. Doreen Lawrence’s son was murdered in a vile racist attack in 1993 and has spent years campaigning against racism. Unlike Prince Harry, Elton John etc she’s not rich and famous but an ordinary* person who suffered an awful tragedy and has spent years fighting to stop it happening again. The Daily Fail to its credit supported her years ago and has used that as a shield ever since. Now it turns out they may have been hacking her phone all along. What’s brought it to a head is the tories want to make the Mail’s editor Paul Dacre, the UKs answer to Roger Ailes a lord. Questions are being raised.

    *She’s actually pretty extraordinary.

    ETA Here’s the background to Stephen Lawrence’s murder. It shocked the UK but may not be well known over here

    https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_Stephen_Lawrence

  64. 64.

    sab

    @gene108: @gene108:

    That’s us with my stepson, clean for about five years after twenty years of problems.

    I just showed that e-mail to my husband (his father) and now he is all teary eyed.

  67. 67.

    Nelle

    @sdhays: i was wondering this too.  How did Fox get Hunter’s voicemails?

    Hunter has never had a government position, so yes, let law enforcement deal with any law breaking.  Jared and Ivanka, on the other hand.  So much in plain sight and as a country, we just breezed past it.  And what was hidden was probably the major part of their law breaking.  Emollient violations were likely the smallest part of it.

  68. 68.

    Tony Jay

    @Mathguy:

    There’s not even an attempt to slide gracefully from faux-Left to far-Right, it’s just a cannonball of embittered OAN GOPatois blasting right through whatever tattered shroud of credibility Gabbard had left.

    She might as well have read the speech from a podium flanked by TRUMP flags and Dixie Swastikas, it’s that in your face.

    What a gobshite.

  71. 71.

    bbleh

    @Soprano2: @SFAW: It’s not just that he’s a smarmy asshole, but that he gets away with it.  I think that is what really appeals to his supporters.  He breaks laws, he ignores even basic civilized norms, and he gets away with it — in public!  And he’s “rich” and therefore “successful” on top of it!  He’s all they want to be, especially the weak assholes.

  74. 74.

    different-church-lady

    The fact that Gabbard was every Berniac’s second choice should tell us something quite chilling.

  75. 75.

    zzyzx

    Gabbard’s whole career was pretending to be a Democrat solely to get on Fox news to be the “Even a Democrat hates” person. Now that she’s dropping the facade, she’ll get a few weeks out of being the “They even lost me!” person, but her income is going to dry up fast.

  76. 76.

    cope

    @Quinerly: Thanks for the update. My wife and I are on the brink of selling our house of 32 years in Florida and moving back to western Colorado where all my family lives. I would never have predicted that I would move half way across the continent in my 73rd year of life but there you go.  We are so looking forward to this.

  77. 77.

    Betty Cracker

    @Baud: Yep. He’s got some good people among the “fellows,” but there’s a rogue’s gallery of grifty assholes too, including Gabbard and Shaun King, who pretty much everyone acknowledges as a fraud. Maybe it’s an untended website…

  78. 78.

    Tony Jay

    @Baud:

    It’s one thing to have assets on the Left and Right playing complimentary tunes on different ideological strands, that’s just good tradecraft, and the Russians have a long history of being damned good at it.

    But that statement from Gabbard, there’s not even an attempt to bridge the divide. It’s just 100% MAGAt cult-speak with nary a whisper of faux progressive gilding. That did surprise me. I’d have thought someone trying to take a non-insubstantial chunk of the Online Left with her would have been a tiny bit more subtle about donning the white robes in public.

  79. 79.

    sdhays

    @Tony Jay: “Oh, hackers who steal (Democratic) politicians’ family members electronic life artifacts and illegally publish them, we so thank you for your service!”

  80. 80.

    Ceci n est pas mon nym

    I’ve been watching Meidas Touch videos lately, and Ben Meiselas of MT aired that clip of TFG saying “he kisses my ass”. It was quite an amazingly humiliating moment to be part of a supposed rally for Vance. And I’m sure Orange Jesus knows and enjoys that humiliation, as do the MAGAts. All part of why they love him.

  81. 81.

    Tony Jay

    @sdhays:

    No, not ‘hackers’, that’s a teeny bit shady. They prefer the term ‘whistleblowers’. Makes it sound all brave and shit.

  83. 83.

    Geminid

    @zzyzx: Gabbard will not hurt for money. Fox News will still welcome her, and the money required to finance an organization headed by and paying a salary to Gabbard is just pocket change for the many wealthy conservatives, and the fewer wealthy leftists.

  84. 84.

    Starfish

    @Geminid: Leaving the Democratic Party when people have always questioned her abortion position is not the winning strategy that she thinks it is. It is a very important issue that she has not spoken clearly on, and “girl bye.”

  87. 87.

    Ohio Mom

    @Almost Retired: Lucky you. Someone gave me Vance’s book because she had loved, loved, loved it and I felt compelled to slog through the whole thing lest she try to involve me in a discussion.

    My reaction was mostly boredom. Family dysfunction mixed with poverty and substance abuse is an old, oft-told story.

  90. 90.

    thruppence

    @Quinerly: I’m visiting Santa Fe for a couple of days, no doubt being one of those annoying tourists doing touristy things. So far I’ve been mainly focused on sucking enough oxygen out of this 7200 foot elevation air. Thought I’d exercise. Ha!

  91. 91.

    zzyzx

    @Geminid: I don’t see what role she has on Fox without the crucial “Democratic who speaks the TRUTH” role. And like others said, that’s not how you split the left.

    It’s a very easy game. “Biden sold us out. He promised us student loan forgiveness but only gave a small amount. He’s in the pocket of war mongers and (insert antisemitic rant here if you want to go there). He is on the side of the police, not true justice. We need a true voice for the people!”

    Instead, she is going after who exactly?

  92. 92.

    germy shoemangler

    They always claim victory:

    Oh man. Tim Ryan was very shook at the end. Really was jarred and had no response. This type of debate style by JD Vance is the new standard. Hold Democrats accountable. They are the ones doing evil. No more apology tours. Put them on the hot seat.

    pic.twitter.com/ZQ9DeRCOyL

    — Cernovich (@Cernovich) October 11, 2022

    This is the exact moment where JD Vance won the Ohio Senate seat. It’s over. And it only took 30 seconds.
    You will never see a more 🔥 response, then brutal reversal in politics. pic.twitter.com/nIqmvDl2Qh

    — Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) October 11, 2022

  93. 93.

    Ceci n est pas mon nym

    @Soprano2: There are some people who believe the only way to handle an addict is through “tough love”.

    Probably without the “love” part. I imagine he’s more the type who would kick a teenage kid out of the house and cut off contact without a thought in the world about how they’d eat, sleep or survive.

  94. 94.

    jonas

    Rightwing outlets may come to regret all the time they’ve spent showing that Hunter Biden was a drug-addicted wastrel. He’s under DOJ/IRS investigation for tax evasion, but my understanding (and the actual lawyer jackals here can correct me if I’m wrong) is that they’re going to have to prove he was compis mentis at the time and knew that he was not reporting income properly. If he was a coked-up, drunken mess, it may be hard to prove intent there.

  95. 95.

    Mimi haha

    My parents left their small town in a non-mountainous  part of the south to raise their kids in the suburbs of Chicago. So I was interested in reading that book. I didn’t get very far, I couldn’t identify with anyone who actually wanted to grow up somewhere without museums and Chinese takeout.

    I didn’t realize he was a total creep until he started shooting his mouth off about politics.

  97. 97.

    Betty Cracker

    @Tony Jay: Agreed — needs more left-fringe cowbell. If Gabbard thinks her reference to “warmongering” covers it, she’s wrong — we all know she means leave Putin alone, FFS.

  98. 98.

    Geminid

    @Starfish: Gabbard does not need to attract a broad base of support to have an impact. Abortion rights is a defining issue for most Democrats, but not so much for isolationists and anti-imperialists on the left and right. They are her natural constituency.

  99. 99.

    Miss Bianca

    @Quinerly: You are living in Santa Fe now? Yay! I can’t wait to skedaddle back down to New Mexico one of these days – last time I was there I had a wonderful meet-up with O. Felix Culpa and Cheryl Rofer.

    Maybe we could go for a repeat! : )

  100. 100.

    zzyzx

    @Starfish: I think ”

    “actively work to undermine our God-given freedoms, are…

    …hostile to people of faith & spirituality”

    pretty much shows where she’s standing there. She’s going for the hard core Christian, racist with a “but some of my friends are” denial, branch of Democrats and they left decades ago.

  101. 101.

    Geminid

    @zzyzx: Gabbard has plenty of time to test and refine her messaging. She’s no dummy, and I think a lack of core principles is an asset for a facile communicator.

  106. 106.

    sab

    @Soprano2: Tough love is an oxymoron. The tough part gets in the way of the love part so the kid feels abandoned.

    Our kid had been self-medicating for anxiety since he was old enough to get his hands on any substance. And once you have substance abuse on your record most of the medical profession washes its hands of you. He finally found a doctor who would treat the anxiety and things have gone well since.

    Hunter Biden is a somewhat different case because he never chose to do drugs. He was hooked on pain killers as a tiny child after the accident.

  107. 107.

    Jeffro

    @Geminid:Yang could be a plausible VP candidate on a ticket led by Gabbard. He has his own set of wealthy, conservative backers. We may see some of their names when the Forward Party’s third quarter FEC filings are made public.

    Democracy needs some better ways to protect itself from billionaire-backed stalking horses like this.

    Higher qualifications for office, perhaps.  One of which might have to be having won a much lower-level office.  These clowns should not just be able to step in with Thiel’s or Musk’s or (Putin’s laundered) money and run for state or national offices on the first go-round.

  109. 109.

    different-church-lady

    @Geminid: ​
     
    “Andrew, what would you like for breakfast?”

    “We believe breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and that divisions between different breakfast choices do not lead to good nutrition.”

  112. 112.

    Jo Jo las Orejas

    @sab
    Hola, me estoy esforzando mucho, pero también aprovecho el hecho de que el inglés no es mi idioma nativo para ignorar a mi madre cuando me grita que no persiga a la serpiente del jardín. Mi hermanita, que fue adoptada antes que yo, vino a visitarme. Ahora vive en Carolina del Norte. Viajaron 2000 millas solo para que pudiéramos reunirnos y jugar.

  113. 113.

    lowtechcyclist

    @Betty Cracker:

    Boy howdy, she hit all the buzzwords, didn’t she? My card is just about full!

    I believe in a government that is of, by, and for the people. Unfortunately, today’s Democratic Party does not. Instead, it stands for a government of, by, and for the powerful elite.

    Maybe someone should point out to her that the powerful elites are overwhelmingly on the GOP side. Elon Musk, Peter Theil, the Koch and DeVos families, the list goes on.

    Somebody needs to tell her that the Democratic Party has on several occasions tried to pass legislation that would at least enable us to know where the money that dominates our politics is coming from.  The GOP has stood foursquare against such legislation.  And it is the Republican-dominated Supreme Court that has gutted campaign finance laws to the point of meaninglessness.

    That’s who’s on the side of the elites, the party that has not only gotten rid of all limits on their ability to throw their weight around in our politics, but also would strongly prefer that we don’t even know who they are.

    Funny way to be supposedly on the side of the people.

  114. 114.

    EmbraceYourInnerCrone

    @Betty Cracker: gee, I guess HIllary was right about Tulsi,  all along. Good we don’t need her inside the tent trying to burn it all down or sell it to Putin…

  115. 115.

    AWOL

    @Soprano2: As a young man, he spent many an hour with chickenhawk (not in the sense of “war wuss”) Roy Cohn. The had the idea to go into business together in the 1970s producing Broadway plays. Like most in the GOP, one of his pathologies is sexual insecurity and inadequate masculinity. His sexual banter is rather unusual for a man from his place and time, too—I grew up in Trumplandia. Mary Trump would likely have better insight.

  117. 117.

    Splitting Image

    @zzyzx:

    what power does she have over the senate?

    He mistook your comment about Gabbard for one about Sinema.

    An understandable error.

  120. 120.

    J R in WV

    @Quinerly: ​
     

    Great to hear from you again !!

    So glad you are fitting into the Santa Fe world and happy being there. We liked Santa Fe when we visited there for a week some years ago, to visit Museum Hill for the Native American Art Show one spring, our first introduction to real arts and crafts by real artists of the west.

    Then spent another week in Navajo Nation, was also wonderful.

    Take care, show up when you feel like it.

  121. 121.

    lowtechcyclist

    @Geminid:

    One factor contributing to Trump’s 2016 win was the unusually large harvest of votes by third parties, especially the Libertarians. Republicans are betting on various ways to win again in 2024. Outright election theft is one of them, and diverting voters to third party and independent candidates like Gabbard will be another.

    To the extent that those third-party votes hurt our side, I have to believe that Hillary-hate was the driving force.  There’s nothing like that about Biden, despite the best efforts of Fox News et al.

  123. 123.

    Tony Jay

    @Betty Cracker:

    I’ve written stuff like that before, but only here, and only when mocking the circle-jerking groupchat of the Conservabubble.

    Are we entirely sure it’s not a cry for help? Something so 100% proof off-model that alarm bells would have to ring? Maybe Hawaii-50 need to do a welfare check.

    She is the Hawaiian blow-hard, isn’t she? I lose track.

  124. 124.

    Geminid

    @lowtechcyclist: Yes, it will be a different political dynamic in 2024 without Clinton in the race. That doesn’t mean a third party candidate still can’t attract or demoralize enough potential Democratic voters to have an impact.

  126. 126.

    Geminid

    @Tony Jay: Gabbard won four congressional terms as one of Hawaii’s three representatives. She was thought likely to lose her primary in 2020, but ran for President instead.

  128. 128.

    UncleEbeneezer

    @SFAW: His racism, sexism, bullying etc. is his manliness, in the eyes of his supporters.  That’s what being “manly” is to them.  It’s not about courage, toughness, or any other principles.  It’s hating the right people and feeling entitled.

  130. 130.

    rikyrah

    Been said that Hillary should walk around in a t-shirt that says:

     

    I WAS RIGHT ABOUT EVERYTHING. 

     

     Mr. Weeks  (@WonderKing82) tweeted at 8:45 AM on Tue, Oct 11, 2022:
    Hillary Clinton said there’s a Russian asset lurking around. The Russian asset career was never the same after that then the Russian asset was forced out of the Democratic party. Today the Russian asset departed from the Democratic party. Thank you Hillary Clinton, always right
    (https://twitter.com/WonderKing82/status/1579830490185760768?t=4f9CG82WmokMSgPfLviPjQ&s=03)

  131. 131.

    Betty Cracker

    @Bupalos: Probably the contents of his iPhone and Mac laptop were automatically backed up in the cloud, and the wingnut repairman who got his mitts on the laptop used the device to access to access all the cloud data.

  133. 133.

    Quinerly

    @Paul in KY:

    Love it out here. Had traveled the state once a year for the month of February since 2011.

    Then Covid Times hit, and I decided I needed to move. I feel like I am literally erasing the last 40 years of my life. Take care. Thanks for piping in.

  135. 135.

    Quinerly

    @Miss Bianca:

    Please let me know when you come this way. I keep in pretty regular contact with Cheryl. She’s been to my home to a lunch party I had back in July. Let’s set something up!

  136. 136.

    Frankensteinbeck

    @Splitting Image:

    He mistook your comment about Gabbard for one about Sinema.

    Oh thank goodness.  Yes, I totally mistook this for Sinema.  I was very depressed about McConnell being handed majority leader status.  Never been so happy to find out I had a brain derp.

  141. 141.

    Betty Cracker

    @Geminid: I could be wrong, but I don’t think Gabbard has that kind of juice. If she’s the best stalking horse wingnut billionaires can come up with, that’s good news, IMO.

  143. 143.

    Quinerly

    Thanks for all the comments. Will catch up later.

    Off to the satellite station (the dump) with trash and recycling….then into town to pick up my friend who is flying into Albuquerque and taking the train in.

    I’m playing tourguide today. Thinking lunch at La Fonda or La Choza.

  144. 144.

    Geminid

    @Betty Cracker: Some assert that the Biden laptop gambit was a Russian intelligence operation, and that material they had hacked was selectively inserted into the laptop.

    I believe this question was why most media outlets would not propagate the laptop contents. That was a huge disappointment to the trump campaign. They thought the laptop story would blow up the Biden campaign, but it turned out to be a dud.

    They wasted valuable October messaging bandwidth on this gambit. That’s one reason trump and his allies are so fixated on the story. They think it proves that the media helped Biden win the election.

  145. 145.

    MisterDancer

    @EmbraceYourInnerCrone: HIllary was right about Tulsi, all along.

    As someone who really disliked 2007-8 Clinton, I will 100% support that she was brutally accurate in 2015-16. From working to expand the role of Democrats in social justice, to all the callouts around the path the GOP was taking, she really saw and said something, and when there was real risk in saying it.

  146. 146.

    sab

    @rikyrah: The JD Vance approach is that all pregnancies go smoothly.

    I know women in Ohio who have a history of miscarriages who very much want another child and now are afraid to try, because now they might die of septicemia because with another miscarriage a d&c might not be available.

    Abortion isn’t only about careless teen-agers. In the olden days, half of all women eventually died in childbirth, because  all pregnancies don’t go smoothly. How can a twenty first century man not know this?

  147. 147.

    MazeDancer

    @Quinerly: Oh, how I loved living in Santa Fe. Miss it everyday.

    Be aware, that besides filling your heart with Beauty, Santa Fe will test you. “It’s the desert. Nothing in excess.” So you may be stripped of that which you do not need.

    And the old maxim uttered by that Governor of the past is true. “How to make a small fortune in NM? Come with a large one.”

    Learn. Living in Santa Fe is a blessing.

  150. 150.

    Betty Cracker

    @Geminid: I savor the fact that Trump and enabling wingnuts like Giuliani got hoist on their own petard with the laptop story. They flooded the zone with so many lies and exaggerations, and when they actually got their grubby mitts on some truly salacious shit, no one believed them. They have only themselves to blame.

  151. 151.

    lowtechcyclist

    @Geminid:

    Yes, it will be a different political dynamic in 2024 without Clinton in the race. That doesn’t mean a third party candidate still can’t attract or demoralize enough potential Democratic voters to have an impact.

    Tru dat, but the fewer votes such a candidate can affect, the closer the race has to be for them to tip it.

  152. 152.

    frosty

    @Quinerly: Good to hear from you! We finished our Third Annual COVID/National Park Challenge in June but I didn’t post any OTR pix this time. Gonna take a break from the trailer next year.

    Glad you’re enjoying Santa Fe! Keep a close watch on the Song Dogs. Wouldn’t want JoJo to get into a scrap with them.

  153. 153.

    Geminid

    @Betty Cracker: She may not have the juice, but for many less engaged voters she is still a blank canvas, and conservative money can fill that canvas in to her advantage.

    Like I said above, I think that Gabbard has the elements of a good candidate: she served four terms in Congress, is a glib speaker and physically attractive. She also did a tour in Iraq while on active Army duty, and is still a Lieutenant Colonel in the Army Reserve..

  154. 154.

    cope

    @Quinerly: We’re doing it. Our Florida house is under contract and getting an inspection for the buyer as I type. We have a target house in Grand Junction on which we plan to pull the trigger as soon as we have a closingl date here.

  158. 158.

    Betty Cracker

    @Geminid: She was also in a weird anti-gay cult led by her father and has a record of saying some truly deranged shit. She’ll lock in the tankie vote though!

    As I’ve owned repeatedly in this space, my political instincts are shit. I was sure Trump would lose in 2016, for example. So maybe you’re right and Gabbard will be a successful chaos agent. I don’t see it myself.

  159. 159.

    SFAW

    @MazeDancer:

    And the old maxim uttered by that Governor of the past is true. “How to make a small fortune in NM? Come with a large one.”

    I hadn’t realized that TFG had been in NM (except while campaigning).

  161. 161.

    lowtechcyclist

    @rikyrah: I would need to see substantiation.  And I have no idea what that could consist of. After all, assholism towards the Other is so ingrained in evangelicalism that surely there are some corners of that world that teach that empathy is bad.

    (I guess they somehow draw a major distinction between empathy and compassion: it’s hard for them to dis compassion when it’s something that, according to the Bible, Jesus frequently experiences for people he encounters.)

  162. 162.

    Betty Cracker

    @cope: Please stick around long enough to vote for Crist! But seriously, congrats on the move. It sucks to lose a sane FL voter, but Grand Junction is a beautiful place, and I hope y’all will be very happy there.

  163. 163.

    rikyrah

     Dr. Yadira Caraveo for CO-08 (@Needle_of_Arya) tweeted at 7:13 AM on Tue, Oct 11, 2022:
    once Covid established that white conservatives would die for white supremacy, voting for white supremacy as a substitute for a fully-funded social safety net and for economic equality across racial lines was placed in a new perspective and made new sense with that mindset
    (https://twitter.com/Needle_of_Arya/status/1579807358435282998?t=r-Anlgc5DZx4QBFlC9u7Pg&s=03)

  164. 164.

    SFAW

    @sab:

    How can a twenty first century man not know this?

    Well, when he’s a self-absorbed asshole, there are lots of things he doesn’t  — but should — know.

  166. 166.

    rikyrah

    Heartland Signal (@HeartlandSignal) tweeted at 7:07 PM on Mon, Oct 10, 2022:
    Rep. Tim Ryan (D-OH): “Can you imagine saying out of one side of his mouth he’s pro-cop and out of the other … he’s raising money for the insurrectionists who were beating up the Capitol police? … One guy he tried to raise money for got four years in prison!” https://t.co/ZtDwrbO9ZA
    (https://twitter.com/HeartlandSignal/status/1579624716561944577?t=5UfbUbDqr5FYPxTtpoXB_Q&s=03)

  171. 171.

    Geminid

    @NotMax: Thank you for the correction.

    I should send you a gift for that! Which flavor of Spam would you prefer? I have a limited budget and can only send one can.

  172. 172.

    jonas

    @Bupalos: In my office at least, voice mails are sent to your email inbox so you don’t have to actually access them through your phone if you’re on the road or something. I imagine that’s what was going on here.

    It’s a disgusting invasion of privacy what these rightwing trolls are doing to the Bidens. Looking forward to the day when we can listen to a candid voicemail from Trump calling one of his sons a boneheaded moron he wishes had been aborted or something. Because you know he does it.

  173. 173.

    rikyrah

     

    I watched that segment and I just got angrier and angrier. Why is it the Democrats’ responsibility?

    Why won’t the phucking MSM do their damn job. Everytime they report on these lunatics, bring up all their ridiculous positions and that they are fundamentally ANTI-DEMOCRACY. That’s not a political slant – that’s TELLING THE PHUCKING TRUTH ABOUT THEM!

     

    Michelle_BYoung (@michelle_byoung) tweeted at 3:27 PM on Mon, Oct 10, 2022:
    Watching Nicole Wallace & I’m very tired of the “Dems aren’t framing this election like democracy is at stake” take. 1) it’s FALSE Dems do it all the time 2) it’s more on THE MEDIA to tell voters the stakes when it comes exclusively from Dems it just comes off as he said she said

     

    Michelle_BYoung (@michelle_byoung) tweeted at 3:29 PM on Mon, Oct 10, 2022:

    2) We know the GOP is gonna work the refs (the media) NO MATTER WHAT that doesn’t absolve the media of the responsibility to TELL VOTERS OUR DEMOCRACY IS AT STAKE & clearly connect the dots! The evidence is UNDENIABLE if the MAKE THE CASE!
    (https://twitter.com/michelle_byoung/status/1579569747246874624?t=d-iPTD1Le4n-LnPnoWIs7Q&s=03)

  174. 174.

    Jay C

    @Betty Cracker:

    I agree. Outside of online political junkies current-events obsessives*(or just blog surfers), I don’t think Tulsi Gabbard is that familiar a name that – however well-financed – she is going to be a major vote-attractor on the national stage. Unfortunately, I don’t think that’s going to stop her deep-pocketed backers from trying.

     

    *present company excepted

  175. 175.

    eachother

    Two years ago we were pretty busy at the voter registration table.  It was mostly new residents bringing their interest in updating their registrations.  A presidential year which is usually busier.  A big influx of movement to the area which made the established, once predictable local political choices muddled.  In a blue way, concerning.  (The local trend has been trending red for many cycles.  Retirees, and California flight newcomers.  Angry at the prosperity they have suffered.  In general, angry.)

    This year… crickets.  Almost no activity at the registration table.  This is Idaho.  At some point, the glass is overflowing and can hold no more.  Yet the pour continues.  The roads are full of cars.  The cry for more ‘affordable’ housing gets louder.  Construction material shortage is stalling building progress.

    Surrounded by  a raging sea of red farther than the eye can see, this is a blue, isolated district.  This year, long planned redistricting has accomplished a preliminary taint of intended discoloration.

  176. 176.

    Gin & Tonic

    What the war is about:

    Pavel Gubarev, Russia’s “DPR” figure in Donetsk, states their intent towards Ukrainians: “We aren’t coming to kill you, but to convince you. But if you don’t want to be convinced, we’ll kill you. We’ll kill as many as we have to: 1 million, 5 million, or exterminate all of you.” pic.twitter.com/tgQAuyM4Sp
    — Julia Davis (@JuliaDavisNews) October 11, 2022

    I think I have to spend some time off the Internet.

  180. 180.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    This whole Conservative obsession with Hunter Biden’s drug addiction feels like a repeat of their whole NOT gay act with the openly gay.  Considering by all accounts Trump is stoned out of his mind on adderall to the point Trump paints his face orange to hide the stains on his face, I won’t be surprised it comes out that drug abuse is wide spread with the Right. The Right sure as heck act like stoners with all their conspiracy theories and anti-science.

  181. 181.

    Eyeroller

    @Betty Cracker: ​
      This thread may be dead but I’d just like to note that there’s not a lot of evidence that the “repairman” actually had Hunter Biden’s laptop. More likely somebody or somebodies hacked his iCloud account directly. I am pretty sure Adam Silverman noted a while back that the expectation would be said somebodies would mix real data with forgeries on the “laptop.”

  182. 182.

    ian

    After the previous administration, it is incredibly difficult for me to give a shit about Hunter Biden.  When the Republicans condemn Trump, Kushner, Ivanka, Uday, and Qusay, we can talk about Hunter Biden.  Until then this is all IOKIYAR and EAIAC.

  183. 183.

    Geminid

    That clip of Ryan carving Vance up is great! I especially  liked Vances body language and appearance. He looks  like Dr. Seuss’s Grinch, dressed up in a coat and tie.

  185. 185.

    rikyrah

    UH HUH

    UH HUH

     

    David Darmofal (@david_darmofal) tweeted at 7:25 AM on Tue, Oct 11, 2022:
    Two 2020 Democratic candidates, Andrew Yang & Tulsi Gabbard, have now used the low primary debate threshold to get national visibility & then turn around & use that visibility to attack the party while leaving it. Dems would do well to raise the debate threshold next time.
    (https://twitter.com/david_darmofal/status/1579810400698527746?t=zClfk3Ek8piMSh-NpQ46ZA&s=03)

  187. 187.

    Miss Bianca

    @cope: Woo, Western Slope! I miss it just as much as I miss New Mexico.

    I mean, where I live now in the central mountains is certainly beautiful – stunning, even – but I moved from Chicago to Paonia and I still pine for the North Fork Valley. Sometimes I gotta wonder why I left…

  189. 189.

    Tony G

    @Jerzy Russian: Tucker Carlson might be worse than either of them, but it’s so hard to choose.  Regarding the “scandal” of Joe Biden’s message to his son: There are tens of millions of people in this country (in all countries, I suppose) for whom cruelty is admirable, and for whom any act of kindness and decency is a contemptible sign of weakness.  These people are the core audience for Fox News and other right-wing propaganda outlets, and they are the base of the Republican Party.  Many of these people are old and will be dead soon, but there are new ones coming of age every day.

  191. 191.

    Geminid

    @lowtechcyclist: Yeah, third party candidates can only make a difference in close races. 2016 was extremely close. Looking at the result in Michigan I see that trump beat Clinton by about 11,000 votes out of 4,824,000 votes cast. Gary Johnson pulled in 172,000 votes, and Jill Stein received  51,000.

    In 2020 the Libertarian vote dropped to 60,000 and the Greens’ dropped to a little under 14,000. The two parties together received almost 150,000 fewer votes than in 2016. This was while the total vote in Michigan rose by 700,000, to 5,539.000.

    How much if any of the two parties’ “overvote” would have gone to Clinton is unproveable. But I suspect that the two parties captured enough potential Clinton voters to swing Michigan to trump, and might have even if he’d won by twice his actual margin.

    Now, I’m not saying that Gabbard will have an impact in 2024. I don’t even know that she will run, but if she does Gabbard will not lack for billionaire supporters, and she’ll start out with a small but motivated grass roots base.

    I happen to think that the political landscape in 2024 will be favorable to the Democratic Presidential candidate, but there are too many unkowns for me to rule out a dead heat where third party defections could be a factor.

  192. 192.

    Immanentize

    Personal Update —

    My mother, nee Rhoda Thelma Fish,* died yesterday; just a day short of her 93rd birthday. I can hear her saying, “Who wants to be that old.” She had some serious health challenges which she met without (much) complaint, she almost never swore and certainly avoided taking the Lord’s name in vain; “shoot,” “fooey” and “oh my” were her go-to expressions of displeasure although I did hear a “damn” occasionally which was always well deserved. She outlived her husband and her eldest son but her life certainly had more in it to celebrate than to mourn, and I am grateful that she and my dad decided things were stable enough in the world (maybe foolishly) to have a third child. But still, although expected, and certainly deserved repose for her, this leaves a gap, a beckoning breach — the removal of the final generational barrier to my own mortality.

    I will miss who she was but fuck, I am with Harry — “Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more! Or close the wall with our […] dead.”

    * You jackals would certainly soon figure out what her high school and junior college teasers did with such a name — “I rode a fish.”

  193. 193.

    Geminid

    @Jay C: Two years, hardly anyone in Virginia knew there was such a thing as a Glenn Youngkin. Money can take the right unkown, or in Gabbard’s case a slightly-known, a long way.

  194. 194.

    Ruckus

    @Jerzy Russian:

    Two peas in a pod, they smell like shit because they are, we all know that, it’s just that normal people don’t ooze it out of every pore/orifice and constantly prove we are full of it every single time normal people open their mouths – but they do.

    As to which one is more full of it, they are equal opportunity flingers because they are both 100% full of shit.

  196. 196.

    Baud

    @zhena gogolia:

    Google brought this up from February.

    NEWS: Sanders Statement on Russian Invasion of Ukraine

    • February 24, 2022

    BURLINGTON, Vt., Feb. 24 – Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) Thursday issued the following statement on the Russian invasion of Ukraine:

    “The Russian invasion of Ukraine that the world is witnessing today is a blatant violation of international law and of basic human decency. It may well kill thousands and displace millions. It could plunge Europe into long-term economic and political instability.

    “The United States and our allies must impose severe sanctions on Vladimir Putin and his fellow oligarchs. At a time when thousands may die as a result of his war, Putin, one of the richest people in the world, should not be allowed to enjoy the billions he stole from the Russian people. The United States must also work closely with international partners to provide humanitarian relief for the Ukrainian people.”

     

    ETA: Not a lot of other hits for me.

  199. 199.

    Gvg

    @Betty Cracker: actually if I understood what I read, most of that laptop was probably fake propaganda with some real data sprinkled into it to make the fake seem plausible. So putting this obviously real Biden stuff out there, primes most people to believe the next thing posted is also real. It is a necessary set up for bad propaganda. Remember, there probably was no actual laptop. There is stolen data that is being attributed to the “laptop”. The whole story about where the laptop was left is so rediculous it cannot be believed.

  200. 200.

    Ruckus

    @Immanentize:

    I’m sorry for your loss. It’s rare when a mom goes that it doesn’t leave a pretty big hole but just remember the things she taught you about life. And I know she did, because of who you are. My mom left 10 yrs ago, the day before her 95 birthday. I can still hear her voice, still remember that look (all moms have that look – it comes with the territory) and you will as well.

  205. 205.

    different-church-lady

    @rikyrah: ​
      I clicked the link to that tweet. Coincidentally two of the “Politics • Trending” highlights on the sidebar are “Good Riddance” and “Bye Felicia”

  209. 209.

    Spanky

    @Immanentize: My mom died at 64, so while we didn’t get old together, she at least had the satisfaction of knowing that I outlived her. I suspect your mom did too.

  210. 210.

    JillR

    @Quinerly: La Choza only if they’re really into HOT spicy food, most normal people can’t tolerate it. It’s a beautiful day today, maybe Gabriel’s.

  211. 211.

    Ruckus

    @sab:

    “How can a twenty first century man not know this?”

    First, because he’s not a 21st century man. He’s working very hard to be a 19th century man. A relic of a time thankfully past, even as shitheads such as him try to bring it back. The world doesn’t rotate backwards and neither does time. Conservatives believe that if they try hard enough they can reverse it to a time when their particular brand of crap was the top of the pile. It’s a loosing battle for them but there will be victims and they think that’s OK. They can’t see forward because of where they locate their heads. Makes everything a lot tougher to see as I’d bet it’s very dark up there. They do not want to learn anything that challenges their view because that would make their view the problem and their egos get in the way of ever being able to admit they are wrong. They can’t be wrong, the world doesn’t rotate forward and neither does time. Just ask them. They really, really want to be important, to be right, and they aren’t. Their kind has been around since there was only 3 people in the world, in a time when no one had a clue about anything. They fight the future because it is unknown and that scares the crap out of them. We don’t know where it’s going either but we do know that it can be better. They can’t imagine that, because that makes them smaller and their egos can’t be bigger than the rest of them. The planet can’t exist with egos bigger than all outdoors. vlad is the current prime example of this. He can’t own what he wants to own, the world can no longer work like it tried to work less than 100 yrs ago. There are too many of us to live like that.

  213. 213.

    Betty Cracker

    @Gvg: WaPo and other respectable dailies have verified a lot of the data that is purportedly from the HB laptop, so I don’t think it’s accurate to say most of it is fake, though a lot of the stuff could be. I linked a NY Mag story at #30 that goes into some detail about what’s there, how much is verified and the provenance of the data. The repairman story struck me as outlandish too when I first heard it, but my impression after reading up on it is that it’s possible and maybe even likely. Just an opinion though.

  214. 214.

    cope

    @Betty Cracker: We both voted already so we covered that. We lived out there a lifetime ago, married out there, had both kids out there and loved it out there so we’re glad to be going back

     

    @Miss Bianca: That’s funny, our family moved to Montrose in 1970 from the Chicago area and later slid down to Grand Junction. The world is an interesting place.

  215. 215.

    Soprano2

    @Geminid: Some assert that the Biden laptop gambit was a Russian intelligence operation, and that material they had hacked was selectively inserted into the laptop.

    I think Adam has said as much on this very blog. It’s to the press’ credit that they refused to take this bait; it shows that they do have some standards. It would have been very easy for them to use the “well people are saying” or “it’s out there” cop-outs.

  217. 217.

    Rileys Enabler

    @Immanentize: condolences, Imm. That’s a fine write up for your mom, who’s sounds like she was an excellent lady. I’m so sorry for your loss.

  221. 221.

    Tony G

    @Soprano2: “Tragically, the Russians have been forced into genocide by the threat of NATO expansion.” (The Right Reverend Chris Hedges)

  223. 223.

    StringOnAStick

    @Immanentize: So sorry for your loss.  It sounds like your mother lived a great life and dealt with it’s slings and arrows with her good nature fully intact.  May her memory be a blessing.

  227. 227.

    Paul in KY

    @Immanentize: My condolences to you. I still somehow have my mother. She will be 97 in January. She does occasionally say ‘shit’. But she really has to be wound up. ‘Bloody Hell’ is heard more frequently.

    She says she can go anytime, has had a great life. Is physically still in pretty good shape for that age & might live to 100. Her mind is not working as well, though. It frustrates her. I’m glad you got to enjoy your mother as long as you did.

    I will give mine a hug this evening.

  228. 228.

    Ghost of Joe Liebling’s Dog

    @Immanentize: I’m so sorry.  I wish words meant more, or that I had better command of them, but all I can think to say is that I’m so very sorry to hear this.  My condolences.

  230. 230.

    J R in WV

    @Immanentize: ​
     

    Sorry for your loss, although I do understand knowing when it is time for an elderly beloved relative to depart.

    My mom died fairly young, especially for her family, wherein most women lived into their 90s, like your mom, but my mom was hooked on free Pall Malls passed out at the U’s football games by students with big bag-fulls of packs of cigs. And had a terrible time kicking the vile habit. COPD sucks as a fatal disease.

    Basically murdered by Phillip Morris. Hang in there for your friends and for the Imp, who will need you more now than ever before.

    My dad kept her little box of ashes on his bedside stand the rest of his life, and my brother and I sprinkled their ashes into a waterfall together with friends and relatives. Was sad but beautiful.

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