Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Balloon Juice, where there is always someone who will say you’re doing it wrong.

Prediction: the gop will rethink its strategy of boycotting future committees.

If America since Jan 2025 hasn’t broken your heart, you haven’t loved her enough.

Is it negotiation when the other party actually wants to shoot the hostage?

Historically it was a little unusual for the president to be an incoherent babbling moron.

’Where will you hide, Roberts, the laws all being flat?’

Radicalized white males who support Trump are pitching a tent in the abyss.

The willow is too close to the house.

Baby steps, because the Republican Party is full of angry babies.

Take hopelessness and turn it into resilience.

Sadly, there is no cure for stupid.

Republicans got rid of McCarthy. Democrats chose not to save him.

You are so fucked. Still, I wish you the best of luck.

Fuck these fucking interesting times.

The unpunished coup was a training exercise.

Republicans seem to think life begins at the candlelight dinner the night before.

This fight is for everything.

But frankly mr. cole, I’ll be happier when you get back to telling us to go fuck ourselves.

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

If you cannot answer whether trump lost the 2020 election, you are unfit for office.

We will not go quietly into the night; we will not vanish without a fight.

A sufficient plurality of insane, greedy people can tank any democratic system ever devised, apparently.

All hail the time of the bunny!

Those who are easily outraged are easily manipulated.

You are here: Home / Open Threads / Open Thread: Inherit the Wind

Reader Interactions

77Comments

  1. 1.

    RaflW

    I’m feeling pretty glum. But I did attend a national zoom session this evening put on by the justice folks at my denomination (Unitarian Universalists) called Showing up for Trans Justice.
    One hundred and fifty six attendees! Plus nine presenters.

    The whole thing was only announced about a week ago. Some of the stories were harrowing. But there is resolute energy to fight like hell (subtle UU joke, there…). And I was buoyed by how many of us who are cisgender showed up and wanted to learn and connect and find he next thing to do about all this evil bullshit.

  2. 2.

    Alison Rose

    Re: the title of the first clip…sounds like the GOP’s got their new motto.

    I only watched this once as a teenager. Should probably rewatch it.

  3. 3.

    Librarian

    The thing is, William Jenning Bryan was politically quite on the left for his time, especially on economic issues, but he was also a religious fundamentalist. Back then such a thing was possible.

  6. 6.

    Trivia Man

    When I was at BYU we put on this play on campus. One performance only but I hope somebody walked away thinking about the content.

  7. 7.

    Deputinize Eurasia from the Kuriles to St Petersburg

    So today is my biggest shit sandwich of shit sandwiches.

    My 88 year old father in law is shot through with cancer. Due to a comedy of errors generally involving my fuckup of a Talibornagain brother-in-law and his shitty wife and children (that my wife refuses to speak with), I got voted by my wife and her big sister to come here to Hilton Hell to discuss his trust, will, POA, health surrogate designation, assets, funeral arrangements, etc. with him in a whirlwind day and a half visit, since his previous lawyer kinda shanked it on the docs.  The goal is to get him to go with sister-in-law to North Carolina while his fairly invalided partner gets shipped by her kids to assisted care at her oldest daughter’s town (also NC). The catch? The partner doesn’t know that she’s moving Saturday, nor does my father-in-law.

    Sound shitty to you all? Is there a likelihood that the info gets leaked while I’m here?

    Lemme add the new wrinkle – the oncologist finally got the full liver biopsy report and wants to meet tomorrow to discuss the prognosis (MRI says it’s in the liver, lungs, pancreas and bones, even the spinal column). So none of his kids are here, he’s on a walker and opioids due to this tumor action in the spine, his partner has frequent falls, and I get to be the one to go with him to a super consequential medical consult. He wants me to be in the room. He’s been arguing with his partner all night – she wants HER son in there, too, but he says no. He wants her, and me.

    I get to be the one to deal with the fallout and something that’s going to sound a lot like “you have 90-120 days”. Thing is, I’m not equipped with that much empathy.

  8. 8.

    Trivia Man

    @RaflW: I never joined a fellowship but I have been very active, off and on, in several. There is great willingness to learn there, I see it in the discussions on racial equity and the Eighth Principle. Asking (white) people how they feel about White Supremacy is a shock. NOT ALL WHITE PEOPLE is the immediate reaction of most… then the conversation starts. Trans rights are similar in that “I never think about it” is another way to say “I don’t have to think about it unless I choose to”.

  11. 11.

    Mike in NC

    “Inherit the Wind”, a classic movie never seen by anybody who watches FOX News. On that note, may Rupert’s honeymoon last all of 15 minutes before he croaks.

  15. 15.

    Lyrebird

    @Deputinize Eurasia from the Kuriles to St Petersburg:

    I have two things to say:

    1. May the FSM shield you with (pasta) shells and shed olive oil to untangle this situation.

    2. That may sound like I joke, but I mean it that I am praying for you and your wife’s family…  my mom is dying and you reminded me that even though it sucks, we are dam lucky in many ways.

     

    ETA: let me also add that I am sorry he and you have to go through this.

  16. 16.

    Deputinize Eurasia from the Kuriles to St Petersburg

    @Mai Naem mobile:

    You’d think.

    I’m both exhausted and nauseous. I sat silently as they were talking to the home health nurse about next week’s appointment and refills of prescriptions.

  21. 21.

    MoeLarryAndJesus

    One of my favorites since I saw it as a kid.

    It’s only a matter of time before some Jesoid in the Tennessee legislature bans it AND suggests banning the teaching of evolution again.

  22. 22.

    gVOR08

    @Mike in NC: “On that note, may Rupert’s honeymoon last all of 15 minutes before he croaks.” I expect that’s exactly what the blushing bride is thinking. And may his spawn, Lachlan, quickly prove to be a failson.

  23. 23.

    AJ of the Mustard Search and Rescue Team

    Powerful clips, wow. Didn’t know of this movie growing up in Canada.

  25. 25.

    Betsy

    @Deputinize Eurasia from the Kuriles to St Petersburg: I feel the agony and conflict and fear in your message.  You have had a shit sandwich delivered without asking.  You are frank and real and you will do the best you can.  Its going to be tough and I’m sorry.  Sending thoughts that the words, the actions, and the sense that you need to rely on will be there for you in the clutch.  I am REALLY sorry.  I know something of that kind of hurried, painful burden.

  26. 26.

    Scamp Dog

    @RaflW: One of the members of our UU choir spoke about being trans at last Wednesday’s rehearsal. They started taking hormones recently and is now singing with the tenors. This is great because we need tenors!

  29. 29.

    gVOR08

    @Librarian: I’ve read that Bryant’s problem with evolution stemmed from reading a memoir by a Red Cross official who spent WWI in Belgium distributing aid to civilians. He was housed by and took his meals with the occupying Germans and recounted their self justification as the more evolved nation. So Bryant was reacting to social Darwinism, a perversion of evolution that Darwin never countenanced. I think that sort of thing is very common.

    No one seems to understand Darwin. When people say they don’t believe in evolution  they don’t even know what it is. What they don’t believe in is some horror movie distortion of evolution.

  30. 30.

    Jackie

    @Deputinize Eurasia from the Kuriles to St Petersburg: I am so sorry you’re going through this. You brought back memories of me having to break the news to my family that Mom/Grandma only had weeks left to live. Not cancer; cirrhosis of the liver. My sisters didn’t believe me. My kids knew I wasn’t a bullshitter and were prepared. Dad was oblivious: he was 15 years older and just assumed he’d die before Mom. She died 19 years ago. Dad passed in 2018 – just six months before his 100th birthday.

    It’s difficult and draining dealing with family who refuse to accept responsibility and reality. My heart goes out to you. ❤️‍🩹

  34. 34.

    Frankensteinbeck

    @Librarian:

    Back then such a thing was possible.

    For centuries, charity, even to the heathen, was ‘the Christian thing to do.’  Maybe it was observed in the breach, but American evangelicals have repudiated the whole concept of kindness.  They think it’s evil.

  35. 35.

    kalakal

    @gVOR08: I can’t help thinking of the Caroline Aherne interview whenever I hear of elderly millionaires marrying.

    Wait till the end of the clip.

    Mrs Merton

    Mrs Merton was a Caroline Aherne character who had a mock interview show. The other woman is Debbie McGee who was a magicians assistant  to and then married to a guy called Paul Daniels who was very successful, very rich, much older and, lets be honest, never going to rival Adonis.

    In fairness to McGee & Daniels they were happily married for about 30 years until his death

  37. 37.

    MoeLarryAndJesus

    @gVOR08: If you read Mencken’s account of the trial this is obviously not true. Bryan was a fundamentalist nutjob by this point in his life.

  38. 38.

    Odie Hugh Manatee

    Going nuts with anxiety here as our little orange guy is quite sick and so far the vet can’t figure out what is wrong. I’m leaning towards intestinal blockage as one of the cats horfed up a large quantity of partially digested food on Saturday and I think it was Chuckie (orange kitteh) who did it. He wasn’t playful at my bedtime (we play a few games to wear him out so the other cats have some peace) that night either. Sunday morning I finally realized that he wasn’t feeling well and monitored him into Monday, where he seemed to have a brief improvement in activity which led me to delay calling the vet.

    Monday evening he went back downhill so I called the doc Tuesday am and they got him in right away. He relieved himself in his cage at the vets so we know that is working. Testing the urine showed traces of blood (inflammation) but no infection. A full blood panel was run and came back clean except for slightly elevated white blood count. They are doing further testing on his urine and will let us know the results tomorrow. I dropped off a fecal sample this afternoon, the first time he has dropped one since Sunday. The vet prescribed an anti-inflammatory for the bladder and an anti-nausea drug.

    What I know:

    He last ate kibble on Saturday. He had nothing but water Sunday. Monday I fed him some tuna (about a half-teaspoon) when he came to the fridge and meowed for some. Same thing about six hours later but he did not finish it. He ate one tube of chicken puree at the vet when they pilled him Tuesday and I fed him another one late that evening. This morning I fed him another one (tuna) and this afternoon I was able to feed him another 2/3rds of a tube of one. He hasn’t taken a drink of water since Monday evening.
    He lethargic but doesn’t seem to be in pain. He is running a steady fever of around 104, nose warm. One thing that is real odd is that he keeps gulping, again and again. Nearly constant with about 30 seconds between gulps with brief periods of nothing before starting it back up. Constantly. He is not grooming himself. His eyes look red-rimmed and dull.
    His bowel movement today was soft/loose and horrible smelling (much more so than usual).

    I hate seeing the poor guy suffer. He’s normally like Mentos and Coke and now he’s flat out of it. My last orange guy died in my arms of an intestinal blockage and a shitty vet 14 years ago. This vet is much better and got him right in for treatment, so that is reassuring. We will see where it goes from here.

    Just venting, feeling helpless sucks and we love the little shit dearly.

  40. 40.

    CaseyL

    @Deputinize Eurasia from the Kuriles to St Petersburg:

    That is a horrible situation to be in; but, to be painfully honest, I think a lack of empathy is useful here.  You know what needs to be done and have enough emotional distance to do it.  FIL must realize that, if he insists on your being there.  It also sounds like arrangements have been made, and your “only” task is to execute them.

    It also sounds like a good thing that your fundamentalist in-laws aren’t involved: I can’t think they’d add anything positive to the mix.

    Bless you for doing this at all.  I hope things work out with a minimum of trauma.

  42. 42.

    BeautifulPlumage

    @Deputinize Eurasia from the Kuriles to St Petersburg: as others have expressed, I am sorry you have to deal with this. I can very much relate to some of your pain, having been the sibling giving care to our oldest sister.

    One thing I can suggest: see if the doctor’s office can arrange for a telehealth visit. Have a home nurse visit to get current vitals signs if they’re needed, but if the doc just want to relay information there is no reason to drag both of them to an in-person appointment.

    This suggestion assumes you have computer or smart phone access and that the clinic is set up for it. I don’t know your situation, so apologize if this suggestion isn’t helpful.

    Know that you’re doing the best you can in the circumstances and that you have a chance to make a difference. Please be easy on yourself and try to get make space for yourself to breath & release the stress.

  44. 44.

    Odie Hugh Manatee

    @Benw:

    Thank you. These furry little friends of ours depend on us to care for them and I’m here for that.

    Love can be stressful… :)

  47. 47.

    Odie Hugh Manatee

    @RaflW:

    That’s probably the best description of our Chucker Kitty…lol! He is always on the go and always looking to fuck with his Uncle Morty and Stewie, the Big Guy around here. He is a talkative little guy, which is funny because his Uncle Morty is a Siamese/Fold mix and Chuckie talks a lot more than Mort. They both purr like idling diesel trucks too.

    Cats are cute!

  48. 48.

    BeautifulPlumage

    On another note, I got my postcard order from cafe press site and they are wonderful. I haven’t done any postcard writing yet, but now am excited to let these cuties fly away to help GOTV! Good job to all involved in making these happen.

  49. 49.

    CaseyL

    @Odie Hugh Manatee:

    Poor little guy! I’d be beside myself with worry.  I mean: a wreck.

    Is it possible he does have a blockage from a hairball?  The gulping might be him trying to bring one up.

    I hope he pulls through!

  54. 54.

    Odie Hugh Manatee

    @CaseyL:

    I think it’s a hairball in the intestine. He hasn’t coughed up a hairball in some time. He tried to cough one up with a couple of tries on Monday at tuna time but nothing happened. He was making a weird purring that was way louder than normal and then he started retching, but just a couple of times and nothing came up.

    Tomorrow I’m going to ask the doc if they can check for blockage because he’s not improving and nothing else seems to make sense at this time.

  56. 56.

    prostratedragon

    That up top is a very good movie. Saw it a couple of months ago and was impressed all over; also depressed, since it seems like the rate of learning in society is very slow.

    To that point, I’m watching the “Bang, You’re Dead!” Episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents.” Reminds me of the present-day case with the 1st grade teacher. But it’s 62 years old and in b&w so how could it be relevant?

  58. 58.

    prostratedragon

    Last year there was a thread here on the subject of movies that strongly convey hot weather. Inherit the Wind might not have been mentioned, but it sure counts. Also the end of Greed.

  60. 60.

    Ruckus

    @Deputinize Eurasia from the Kuriles to St Petersburg:

    My condolences. Families can be, what’s beyond exhausting? My remaining family member is in a cult. A major world wide cult. We haven’t talked in 10 yrs, which is when the other, sane sibling passed away. My choice so I don’t hear things like when dad was on his literal deathbed with Alzheimers that he’d had for 15 yrs before and his doc was telling us to say goodbye and this person said, “Take him off his meds and I’ll do a session with him and he’ll be fine.” If looks could kill…. He passed about 30 minutes later with me sitting next to him in his hospital bed with my arm around him.

    The point is that it’s family. We don’t get to choose family. If we get lucky they are great people. If we are average some of them will be OK, and one may actually be good. If we are normal, at least one will be insane (I had dibs first!) one or two will be in the running with the first to join them and you will survive. If you are unlucky, and I’ve known a couple, an insane asylum might be better. Now my experience may be off a bit, but as I’ve said here before, I was a mental health counselor at a city mental health clinic for 4 yrs, and my experience there sort of confirmed this family concept, from both sides.

  61. 61.

    Ruckus

    @Jackie:

    It’s difficult and draining dealing with family who refuse to accept responsibility and reality.

    It absolutely is.

    It’s worse when their reality has no basis other than cultish bullshit. Because the deeper they get in, the difficulty becomes exponentially worse till there is no exit and you just have to let go and save yourself.

  63. 63.

    NotMax

    @Ruckus

    Coined a word many moons ago to describe the condition beyond exhausted: tattersnapped.

    Never caught on but I use it still.
    ;)

  64. 64.

    Dangerman

    @Deputinize Eurasia from the Kuriles to St Petersburg: The oncologist and support staff will have gone through this many, many times previously. It’ll be handled as well as possible and, my prediction, it will go surprisingly easily. For all involved, including the soon to be deceased.

    For those that need trigger warnings, consider skipping the rest of this post.

    I went through something similar with my Uncle. He was very long term Parkinson’s and I was his Court Appointed Conservator. He had had 7×24 care for several years and had been on a feeding tube only for his nutrition for months. Parkinsons took his ability to swallow (and other things I’ll skip from describing). He wanted to pass at home but he finally ran out of money. I had to sell the house, which meant hospice.

    Anyway, the Hospice worker and I were talking to him to soften the blow to leaving the house and I offered him the choice (that thankfully he did not accept). California is a die with dignity state and I said if he wanted to pass at home, I’d authorize Euthanasia. Well, to him, that was worse choice then hospice, and away we went (to the most beautiful hospice; Eureka, CA, did it right).

    I got lucky. If he had chosen Euthanasia, I woulda been so screwed. One, no Doctor in the area would provide the drugs and, two, he wouldn’t have been able to self-medicate. I don’t recall all the details of my authority but I guessed it stopped at doing the actual injection. Thankfully, I didn’t have to find out.

  65. 65.

    Ruckus

    @NotMax:

    I’ve been that tired before, when one can’t get enough sleep, an alarm goes off – there are 3 alarms in the Navy, battle stations, fire and abandon ship. (BTW, That’s not the official names) When you are in the North Atlantic and a Russian ship is following you, the battle stations alarm is a bit concerning – ask me how I know… especially when it’s the wrong alarm for the actual situation, but the guy in charge panics. You really, really do not want the guy in charge to panic.

  71. 71.

    Matt McIrvin

    Last I heard, the state currently having a go at getting creationism into the school curriculum is WV. The ruling in Pennsylvania years ago had quieted them down for a while but I guess the troglodytes are feeling their oats again.

  77. 77.

    misterpuff

    @Ken_L: I never knew Colonel Sherman Potter was a judge before he went into the army.

    No, he was a cop. Partner to a Sgt. Joe Friday.

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