Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

My years-long effort to drive family and friends away has really paid off this year.

“Cheese and Kraken paired together for the appetizer trial.”

“That’s what the insurrection act is for!”

People are complicated. Love is not.

No Justins, No Peace

Bad news for Ron DeSantis is great news for America.

An unpunished coup is a training exercise.

I’ve spoken to my cat about this, but it doesn’t seem to do any good.

Whoever he was, that guy was nuts.

“I never thought they’d lock HIM up,” sobbed a distraught member of the Lock Her Up Party.

It’s easy to sit in safety and prescribe what other people should be doing.

Hi god, it’s us. Thanks a heap, you’re having a great week and it’s only Thursday!

Putin must be throwing ketchup at the walls.

Yeah, with this crowd one never knows.

They think we are photo bombing their nice little lives.

Cole is on a roll !

Everyone is in a bubble, but some bubbles model reality far better than others!

Do not shrug your shoulders and accept the normalization of untruths.

Some judge needs to shut this circus down soon.

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

Reality always lies in wait for … Democrats.

if you can’t see it, then you are useless in the fight to stop it.

fuckem (in honor of the late great efgoldman)

This really is a full service blog.

You are here: Home / Open Threads / Squishable Morning Thread: Fresh Hell Edition

Squishable Morning Thread: Fresh Hell Edition

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Squishable Morning Thread 3

According to Florida Repubs, the governor’s Stop W.O.K.E. Act was necessary to remove leftist indoctrination from public schools. But right-wing indoctrination is fine, which is why the state has approved far-right material from PragerU for classroom use. From the Miami New Times:

PragerU, a conservative nonprofit often criticized for downplaying systemic racism and promoting anti-immigrant theories, announced today that Florida is “the first state to officially approve PragerU as an educational vendor…”

Responding to a request for comment, the Florida Department of Education says that it “reviewed PragerU Kids and determined the material aligns to Florida’s revised civics and government standards…”

Founded in 2009 as a nonprofit by conservative radio host Dennis Prager, PragerU posts a variety of content online: mini-documentaries, shorts, kids’ shows, and five-minute videos on YouTube. The content propounds Christian conservative values, decries mainstream media narratives, and promotes capitalism.

In PragerU’s universe, “there is no gender wage gap” and “the nuclear waste problem is a myth.”

With titles such as “Playing the Black Card” and “Blacks in Power Don’t Empower Blacks” and a roster of hosts that, in addition to (Candace) Owens, features right-wing personalities Ben Shapiro, Jordan Peterson, and Charlie Kirk, PragerU’s videos have tallied more than a billion views.

This is fine!

Lately, to distract myself from the smoke and flames and boiling coral, but in a way that doesn’t require levels of concentration I can’t access at this moment, I’ve been rewatching The Leftovers. It’s better than I remembered.

Open thread!

Reader Interactions

273Comments

  2. 2.

    Baud

    the nuclear waste problem is a myth.

    True. Nuclear waste is not a problem but a solution to our growing need for road building material.

  3. 3.

    bleh

    MEANwhile, Texas is punishing a professor for daring to say something mildly critical of the Lieutenant Governor. https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/news/2023/07/25/457789/texas-am-suspended-professor-accused-of-criticizing-lt-gov-dan-patrick-in-lecture/

    They’re systematically turning state schools — at all levels — into strictly controlled propaganda operations.  Classic authoritarian stuff.

    Alas for them, there are these things called smartphones.

    I know every generation thinks the older ones are narrow-minded idiots, but I almost can’t imagine what’s going through kids’ minds right now.

  4. 4.

    Baud

    With titles such as “Playing the Black Card” and “Blacks in Power Don’t Empower Blacks”

    I wonder if John Roberts knows that these people aren’t colorblind.

  5. 5.

    brantl

    Republicans: Institutionalizing stupid, in ways you’ve never imagined. ( They seem to be thinking YEAH, let’s run on THAT! )

  7. 7.

    OzarkHillbilly

    An expected high of 99 today, 101 tomorrow, and the next day, 99 on Saturday with finally a reprieve on Sunday when the high is foretasted to be…

    94.

    Blech.

  8. 8.

    Honus

    Meanwhile, here in Virginia Glenn Youngkin’s new Board of Visitors at UVA wants to track students’ religious and political ideology and faculty’s political contributions.  Just to insure diversity, mind you.

  9. 9.

    MazeDancer

    Been re-watching Elementary, myself, for similar sanity reasons. Back when networks did 24 episodes a year.Glut of riches.

    Think of you, Betty, and send light, every time I read another wretched thing about Florida. At least you get to see Governor White Boots crash and burn.

    But in Anne Laurie’s excellent COVID thread, below, there is news COVID is up 51% in Miami. Please stay home. And don’t throw away your masks.

  15. 15.

    Kay

    @bleh:

    For our free speech warrior media to notice it has to be 1. an Ivy League school and 2. Leftists being not deferential enough to Right wing public employees.

  17. 17.

    Dorothy A. Winsor

    What do people in FL with school aged children do about this? Assuming they’re aware, of course. I don’t know. My parents sent us to Catholic schools, so maybe kids survive anyway.

  20. 20.

    JAFD

    Today I celebrate 73 trips around our Sun.  “What a long strange trip it’s been”.  Aches, pains (sometimes both at once), skin of teeth escapes…  a bunch of MD’s , with pills for morn and night.  But all in all, it’s been worth it, am going to try, keep on my feet for another 27 years or so.

    Did a bit of celebrating this past weekend at Historicon – the grand gathering of ‘grown-ups who still play with toy soldiers’

    Any jackals or friends ambling thru North Jersey or NYC, want to get together for lunch, get in touch !

    Love, luck and lollipops, JAFD !

  21. 21.

    p.a

    If schools lose certification and Jack and Jill can only get into Prager U there could be pushback from some parents.  Given Florida voters’ recent performance not too hopeful abt pushback however.

  24. 24.

    NotMax

    @MazeDancer

    Speaking of Miami (repeated from somewhere downstairs):

    Miami Is the OnlyFans Capital of the United States
    [snip]
    According to the study, Miami has the most OnlyFans creators per capita of any large city in the nation, with 1,110 accounts per 100,000 residents. Las Vegas came in second place with 670 OnlyFans creators per capita, and “no other cities are close,” according to the study released by men’s supplement company Madhouse Labs. Source

  25. 25.

    Rusty

    @Honus: It’s come to a point now, where if you scratch the surface even the supposed moderate Republicans are really reactionaries underneath.  They just want to achieve the  same goals by a more genteel path, but the end will be exactly the same.

  27. 27.

    MattF

    Those right-wing ‘personalities’ are all just super-duper dandy.

    On a more serious note, Bret Stephens (yes, I know) does the necessary judgement on Israel (NYT gift link). He makes the IMO correct point that small-country nationalism can be either very very good or very very bad, and Israel has chosen the bad.

  29. 29.

    Kay

    @Dorothy A. Winsor:

    I went to a new neighbors meet and greet (I’m one of the the new neighbors) here in MI last night – very nice of them to do – and there was a young couple there up from FL. Husband just took a job as assistant principal of the high school. He’s a MI native so it’s a homecoming for him but his wife is a FL native. I didn’t say anything about Florida. He volunteered that he didn’t like rural FL because it’s “too southern” and he didn’t fit in. I felt like there was a definite “too Right wing” subtext. He also said his wife wanted to get out too because the people she grew up with have changed. The district is helping him get the MI certification he needs.

  30. 30.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    With titles such as “Playing the Black Card” and “Blacks in Power Don’t Empower Blacks” and a roster of hosts that, in addition to Owens, features right-wing personalities Ben Shapiro, Jordan Peterson, and Charlie Kirk, PragerU’s videos have tallied more than a billion views.

    This whole thing sure can be read as state sponsored wingnut welfare and wingnut troll fan service.

  31. 31.

    Betty Cracker

    @Baud: More from the excerpted statement by the FL DoE:

    “PragerU Kids is no different than many other resources, which can be used as supplemental materials in Florida schools at district discretion,” the department’s deputy director of communications Cassie Palelis says via email.

    Sounds like all public schools to me. Here’s the lede from the Tampa Bay Times story on the issue:

    The big story: An unaccredited conservative non-profit organization known for its anti-immigration theories and downplaying of systemic racism has been approved to provide classroom materials to Florida schools.

    PragerU, founded by radio host Dennis Prager, sent out a news release Monday saying Florida is the first state to allow its K-12 lessons, which it aims to get into as many states as possible.

    “Thousands of American teachers and school board members have contacted PragerU desperate for wholesome, quality, engaging resources to help educate their students,” the release stated. “They are sick and tired of curriculum laced with radical political agendas — from Critical Race Theory and gender fluidity to overt anti-Americanism.”

    Their education coverage is pretty good, so I expect we’ll get more clarification from them eventually.

  32. 32.

    Baud

    @Kay:

    I don’t know why we talk about it in euphemisms.  And I do it too when I’m not with people I know are blue.

  36. 36.

    NotMax

    @JAFD

    Have a happy!

    Also too, very early mention that will be in NYC area late August through early September. First weekend there is taken up by stuff revolving around step-nephew’s wedding (logistics for which get more complicated by the day – don’t ask) but Labor Day weekend is at present wide open for scheduling a meet-up.

  37. 37.

    Kay

    @Baud:

    I see what you mean but I think it’s good. We really do have to live together and probably better than half the group are or were Trump supporters. This part of MI, this county in the western part of the state, is 50/50.

    I’m glad he didn’t start a big fight at Marys neighbor meet and greet, Baud :)

  38. 38.

    Dorothy A. Winsor

    @Kay: If I had kids in school there, I honestly don’t know what I’d do.

    Mr DAW’s sister and BIL have a house in FL and one in RI. They’re FL residents because of the taxes. But lately they’ve been talking about moving back to RI permanently. The reason they give is that the health care is better near their RI house than near the one in their part of FL

  39. 39.

    WereBear

    @Kay: I am always pleased to hear when Midwestern practicality triumphs over Deep South madness. I feel for the lady who has lost her family, essentially.

  40. 40.

    Betty Cracker

    I know why Axios uses this format (scannable!), but sometimes it’s unintentionally telling:

    Driving the news: Nate Hochman, a speechwriter on the DeSantis campaign and a former writer for National Review, created the video on his own and shared it through a pro-DeSantis Twitter account, according to a person familiar with the matter.

    Hochman then retweeted the video, but it was deleted shortly afterward. “Nate Hochman is no longer with the campaign. And we will not be commenting on him further,” a DeSantis campaign official told Axios.

    Semafor first reported Tuesday evening that Hochman had been fired.

    Why it matters: The controversial video and Hochman’s dismissal are the latest instances of internal disorder inside the DeSantis campaign, which announced Tuesday it was firing over a third of its team amid a cash crunch.

    So “it matters” because it’s a sign of “internal disorder” in a campaign, not because a presidential candidate’s aide is tweeting out Nazi content. Okay then.

    I wonder if Hochman goes back to his job at National Review now? Or do they have a higher “No Nazis” bar than DeSantis?

  42. 42.

    Dorothy A. Winsor

    I see today is the day Hunter Biden’s plea agreement is supposed to be finalized. Assuming that happens, what’s the betting the Rs will call off all the hearings about Hunter. (Haha. I slay myself)

  44. 44.

    WereBear

    @Baud: Because these people are delusional and can be triggered into rage by nothing.

    My own rule is about when someone puts Bible verses in letters six inches high as a prominent feature of their home. It never bodes well.

  45. 45.

    Baud

    @WereBear:

    My own rule is about when someone puts Bible verses six inches high as a prominent feature of their home

     
    Jesus wept.

  46. 46.

    Rusty

    @Baud: I think the legacy issue is a red herring that plays into the conservatives hands.  The conservatives want to say that getting rid of legacy admissions is equal to getting rid of affirmative action so all even.  I went to another gold plated university and at a reunion we had a presentation by someone from admissions.  A question was asked about legacy admissions. The admissions officer’s comment was that alumni children were as a group the strongest applicants.  They came from well to do to very wealthy families, they went to top schools, they had every advantage before they even applied.  Having the extra reading of the application (that’s what being a legacy got you) made little to no difference, but it mattered to the alumni that they thought they might be getting an advantage, so there was alumni support to continue the process. Getting rid of affirmative action will have real and negative consequences, getting rid of legacy admissions (which by the way I am also in favor of killing) will make almost no difference, but one will be played off against the other as equivalent.

  47. 47.

    Kay

    @WereBear:

    She was very friendly. I’d like to know more about how the people she grew up with “have changed” to the extent that she was avoiding them in the grocery store,but she didn’t tell me that, her husband did.

  48. 48.

    Matt McIrvin

    @Dorothy A. Winsor: I’m fascinated by how there is all this vague buzz about the House impeaching Biden that fails to say what they’re impeaching him for, except that it seems to be connected to Hunter Biden in some vague way. Especially considering that this is exactly what Trump got impeached for the first time–trying to extort this kind of dirt from Ukraine.

  49. 49.

    WereBear

    @Baud: I have the Adirondack Park attitude that these six million acres are my home, and my town is my neighborhood.

    This becomes even more evident when we travel outside of it. To be clear, I feel sorry for people so Authoritarian they need constant threats in their own environment.

    In case you were wondering about what verses such folks pick.

  50. 50.

    Bruce K in ATH-GR

    @OzarkHillbilly: Could be worse. Athens (the original) hit 104 today, which is still not as bad as last Sunday’s high of 109. (Yes, my brain still processes temperatures in Fahrenheit.)

  51. 51.

    Another Scott

    @Matt McIrvin: “Impeachment is a political, not a legal, process.” – RWNJ neckbeard.

    It doesn’t matter what the “reason” is.  Remember they were making noises about impeaching Hillary on January 20.

    It’s to stay in the news, enrage the libs, distract from their actual policies and dysfunction.

    [/everyone-knows-this-already]

    Eyes on the prizes.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  53. 53.

    OzarkHillbilly

    A Democrat’s obsessive quest to change the way America is farmed and fed

    “Every year is an uphill battle. We’re up against entrenched, wealthy, strong interests,” said Blumenauer, known for his signature bowtie, circular glasses and bicycle enamel pin. He’s the spitting image of a progressive environmentalist and doesn’t shy from discussing some of agriculture’s most divisive issues.

    But he remains optimistic and steadfast in his vision for the American food system. Now more than ever, he feels momentum and support surrounding the future of farming and food production. People care about where their food comes from and what kind of impact their food is having on the climate, he says.

    Blumenauer’s newest plan, the Food and Farm Act, was introduced earlier this year, as an alternative to the farm bill – the package of food and agricultural policies passed every five years that is up for renewal this fall. His proposal would redirect billions of dollars away from subsidies for commodity farms towards programs that support small farmers, climate-friendly agriculture and increasing healthy food access.
    ………………….
    At the heart of Blumenauer’s bill is farm subsidy reform. In the most recent iteration of the farm bill, approximately $63bn was dedicated to subsidies. These mostly benefited the largest farms and agribusinesses, with 70% of subsidy payments going to just 10% of farms, most of which produce commodity crops like soy, corn and wheat, which are often used to make animal feed, processed foods and even fuel for cars.

    This means that taxpayers are subsidizing processed food, but not the fruits and vegetables you buy in the grocery store – and that commodity farms have little incentive to switch to more sustainable modes of production or more nutritious foods that people will actually eat.

    “Most of us don’t even know that the public dollars initially designed to protect farmers and keep supply managed to feed a hungry nation in the Great Depression are now reinforcing wealthy agribusiness corporations to grow commodities that are not even meant for human consumption,” said Joshua Sewell, a policy analyst at the nonpartisan watchdog group Taxpayers for Common Sense.

    It sounds Quixote-esque, big Ag will fight it tooth and nail, but damned if I can find anything to disagree with. If he can just get one or 2 items into the Farm bill, I would consider it a success.

    Much more at the link.

  56. 56.

    Anyway

     

    Miami Is the OnlyFans Capital of the United States
    [snip]
    According to the study, Miami has the most OnlyFans creators per capita of any large city in the nation, with 1,110 accounts per 100,000 residents. Las Vegas came in second place with 670 OnlyFans creators per capita, and “no other cities are close,” according to the study released by men’s supplement company Madhouse Labs. Source

    Didn’t know Baud was a Floriduh resident …

  59. 59.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @WereBear: @Baud:

    I have Matthew 6: 5-6* on the back of my truck. Does that count?

    * 5 And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.

    6 But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.

    I loosely translate it as “STFU about your religion.”

  64. 64.

    Betty Cracker

    @Kay: Do you know what part of the state they lived in? In my experience, the madness pattern differs somewhat by region, though there’s lots of overlap. I live in the “too Southern” part, where people have always been right-wingers, but they’re angrier, more paranoid and less polite now. The anger and paranoia are off the charts in parts of South Florida too, but it’s more driven by anti-communist hysteria than dumb culture war bullshit.

  65. 65.

    Dorothy A. Winsor

    @rikyrah: The last I heard they were claiming “dereliction of duty” because he failed to close the border. I assume they were trying that one out to see if it flew. I can’t see that it fits in the high crimes and misdemeanors category. As I understand it, it’s a military phrase.

  66. 66.

    Chris Johnson

    @p.a: no no, there is no such thing as a ‘Prager U’. It’s just a name for a YouTube right wing propaganda mill. Being a youtube channel doesn’t make you a school.

  68. 68.

    Kay

    @Betty Cracker:

    Outside Tampa. He said he “might have liked Tampa, but we were way outside”. Hence I think his objection was less “southern” more “rural”.

    where people have always been right-wingers, but they’re angrier, more paranoid and less polite now

    This is true where I live in OH now, too. And it’s far North.

  69. 69.

    cain

    @Kay: Considering what the schools are like – doing anything that even smells like woke would likely get them in trouble. If you’re a assistant principal I can’t imagine what kind of stress you’d have managing a school In Florida.

    Next monday, my wife starts as an assistant school principal in one of the West Linn schools. Much celebration. :)

  71. 71.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @Baud: ’05 Dodge, half ton, crew cab, 4wd, rust bucket. It’s got enough body damage* that people know I don’t give a fuck.
    *all of it from people trying to run me off the road. Bumper trucks, it’s a sport out here.​

  75. 75.

    sab

    @Kay: We voted early yesterday. When my husband presented his ID his election worker told him that it would take a couple of minutes for his ballot to print out. He told her “no problem.” She said she wished everyone felt like that. The day before a large man had slammed his fist on the counter and sworn at her. She said it was frightening.

    People are nuts these days.

  77. 77.

    The Pale Scot

    @Dorothy A. Winsor:

    My parents sent us to Catholic schools,

    The Caths in Fl are mostly olds, only the big cities have Cath schools. The rest of the state are godless pagans.

  79. 79.

    Jeffro

    A cousin of mine once forwarded something to me from Prager U, and I got back to him with, “hey cuz, I’m sure you didn’t mean to or weren’t paying attention, but that last piece you sent me was from Prager U…and those folks are nucking FUTS.  Here’s the real story on X as reported in the Post, WSJ, etc.”

    I haven’t heard from him since, come to think of it.  LOLOL

  80. 80.

    Betty Cracker

    @Kay: Lots of agriculture in inland central FL, so yeah, more rural for sure. I wonder if the wife has ever experienced a harsh winter. It might be hard for her, but at least she won’t have to deal with an extreme right authoritarian government!

  85. 85.

    Chief Oshkosh

    @bleh: A few years ago, the daughter of some friends of ours was struggling in making her choice among some great graduate programs. She’d narrowed it down to UT Austin and UC Davis and asked my opinion.

    I’m feeling really good about the advice I gave her now (and her dad told us at dinner last night that she’s really happy, too).

  86. 86.

    comrade scotts agenda of rage

    @JAFD:

    Didn’t realize there was another historical miniature gamer here.

    I’m the Tournament Manager for HMGS, have been for decades.

  89. 89.

    WereBear

    @Betty Cracker: It IS different in different places, even in the same county. Like the rural areas of Brevard, which contained polar opposites when I lived there.

    And the “the more north the more South” of the Florida border.

  90. 90.

    Jeffro

    @Honus:

    @Rusty: if they keep pressing forward with this, well, they still don’t have the votes on the BOV (nor any influence with the current admin).  but in the end, even if the kids and professors will just fuck it up by “identifying” as hard right.

    It’ll be quite the egg entire omelet on the RWNJs’ faces so I almost…almost…hope it comes to pass.

  91. 91.

    Kay

     

    @Betty Cracker:

    It’s not just the winter. This is essentially a vacation town. It’s on Lake Michigan. It’s hopping in the summer but there are only about 3000 full time residents and it is QUIET in the winter. They cross country ski on the street past my house in February after a snow and it’s in “the village” – the city. I hope she doesn’t take to day drinking and such. Cabin fever.

  92. 92.

    John S.

    @OzarkHillbilly:

    Fantastic choice of Bible quote. It has long been one of my favorites.

    ETA: It is also generally viewed as an indictment of religion, especially modern Christianists. Who you are in private is way more important than who you profess to be in public.

  93. 93.

    Jeffro

    @Betty Cracker:PragerU, founded by radio host Dennis Prager, sent out a news release Monday saying Florida is the first state to allow its K-12 lessons, which it aims to get into as many states’ education budgets as possible.

    They want some of that sweet, sweet state cash for themselves and why not?  It’s not like their crappy product has been able to hold its own in any blessed marketplace of any kind.

  94. 94.

    WereBear

    @NotMax: Thankfully, no. Plant-based has holes, like the oxalate and bio-availability angles, that explains why we are omnivores. I maintain my position that kale is for shoe repair.

    A new book, Ultra Processed People, indicates there’s a huge difference between NOVA-3 (traditional preservation methods like cold cuts) and NOVA-4 (de-matrixed artificial food) levels of food.

    Something that explains a lot about about the current states of chronic metabolic illness.

  95. 95.

    UncleEbeneezer

    @Dorothy A. Winsor: I think they do the same thing that black parents have been doing forever: educate their kids.  Let the schools cover all the basic, a-political stuff, but make sure kids are aware of the bullshit.  Encourage them to read (or read along with them and discuss) the 1619 Project, Stamped From The Beginning, and countless other books, podcasts, documentaries etc., that can set them straight on the real history and the way it has been purposefully white-washed and explain why that is happening.  Teach them not to fall for the bullshit that their MAGA classmates spout.  Kids will also learn some things from like-minded peers, but most of it will fall on the parents to make sure their kids are getting the “woke” material that MAGAts are trying so hard to keep out of schools. It sucks, but that’s about the only way around it I can think of.  The upside is that it can be done.  America has gone to great lengths to white-wash/erase Slavery and the Genocide against Native/Indigenous people, but if you talk to anyone in those marginalized groups everyone knows that the myths peddled in our history classes have been biased against the truth forever.  The problem, of course, is that these myths will always have a certain appeal to White People, Latinx, Asian-Americans etc. (everyone who isn’t in the marginalized groups).

  96. 96.

    Kay

    @sab:

    Have you noticed the signs in health care facilities now warning people to behave? “Threatening or disruptive behavior will not be tolerated”? Like that?

    My NP has one and I also saw one in the hospital where my son went for his broken ankle in MI. I feel like that’s from the covid denier crazies and anti vaxxers.

  97. 97.

    JAFD

    @comrade scotts agenda of rage: Salutations !

    Sent WaterGirl some pics of just-painted Picts a while back, didn’t impress her enuf to get them posted here, darn.

    Will look you up at Fall In.

    And many many thanks for everyone’s birthday wishes !

  99. 99.

    WereBear

    @Kay: I just finished reading Authoritarian Nightmare by John Dean & Dr. Robert Altemeyer. It explains so much.

    It’s their nightmare, but they must make us live there, too.

  102. 102.

    Jeffro

    @rikyrah:

    @Baud:

    some of the less-insane members of the House GOP caucus have already stated publicly that presidents shouldn’t be impeached for “policy differences”

    let’s see if they stand by their words when the vote gets taken

  105. 105.

    TS

    the material aligns to Florida’s revised civics and government standards

    There is something seriously wrong with a country (or a state of same) that revises history when teaching children. Dictatorships come to mind.

  107. 107.

    Hildebrand

    We loved The Leftovers – one of the best ruminations on grief and loss that has ever been put on screen.  Great writing, excellent cast, willing to take huge risks with the story, and easily one of the best series finales ever.

  108. 108.

    Yarrow

    @WereBear:  Haven’t seen all the comments but in case no one else linked it, there was a kitten adoption question regarding FIV in this thread last night. Just in case you could offer your expertise, thought I’d mention it.

  109. 109.

    Betty Cracker

    @Kay: I’ve noticed that too in healthcare facilities. Also schoolboard and county commission meeting facilities. It’s as if tens of millions of people contracted Trump’s arrested development case of oppositional defiant disorder. Not that there weren’t plenty of rude asshole role models before Trump, but his actually winning the presidency seemed to give them permission to act that way everywhere. I don’t know how we put that foul genie back in the bottle.

  110. 110.

    Chris

    @MazeDancer:

    Been re-watching Elementary, myself, for similar sanity reasons. Back when networks did 24 episodes a year.Glut of riches.

    I watched most of Season 1 when it came out but then dropped off from it, and have started re-watching it now.

    It’s a very good show, but yes, the number of episodes is an amazing thing in the age of streaming.  It’s crazy to watch the first three episodes of a season, then browse ahead and realize that instead of watching half the season, you’ve still got twenty episodes to go.

  111. 111.

    Jeffro

    @NotMax: ha!

    There was a good piece out a couple days ago about how most all the school vouchers (in Missouri?  Arizona?) were going to wealthy families with their kids already in private school.

    That’s (obviously) yet another way these leeches work.

    I’m surprised no one on the left has floated the idea of “police vouchers”, where if you’re fed up with the lousiness of your local police, you get a voucher for police services (divide the police budget by the number of citizens) and the $$$ comes straight out of the police budget.

    Why not?  Same principle, right?  Make the RWNJs’ heads spin faster.  Make them argue that “we all need to pitch in for the collective good”, LOL.

  112. 112.

    schrodingers_cat

    OT: Oppenheimer lives up to its hype. Robert Downey Jr and Cillian Murphy will definitely be Oscar contenders next year. I loved it. It was dense in parts but knowing most of the story helped. I didn’t know about Strauss much before the movie.

  114. 114.

    Jeffro

    @Betty Cracker: his actually winning the presidency seemed to give them permission to act that way everywhere…

    …and his continued toddler-temper-tantrums, going on nearly 3 years after he LOST, continue(!) to ‘model’ that behavior for those tens of millions of MAGA losers.

    It’s probably a hard thing for reporters to nail down, but an article highlighting the differences in how each voting bloc acts in public (Biden supporters don’t fly “fuck trump” flags or screech at Target clerks, times infinity) would make for some nice Sunday morning reading.  A guy can dream…

  115. 115.

    Chris Johnson

    @Jeffro: The issue with stuff like Prager is that it doesn’t have to exist in a marketplace, it has to APPEAR to thrive in a marketplace by being real visible and upfront except it’s through heavy advertising funded by oligarchs here or abroad.

    If you fall for it and think it’s representative of organic interest, they got you, that’s what you’re meant to think and why it’s worth a lot of money to do that.

    See: countless conservative books bought to get them on sales charts, and Elon Musk buying twitter in order to push rightwingers onto it (and then doing too much ketamine and not keeping up any appearances of sense or sanity).

    It doesn’t have to be about grift or ‘this makes money, therefore it exists’. It can be about stuff worth spending money ON.

    …if you’re a wealthy Nazi.

  116. 116.

    Chris

    @Kay:

    For our free speech warrior media to notice it has to be 2. Leftists being not deferential enough to Right wing public employees.

    I remember junior year at AU, not exactly a hotbed of right-wing instruction.  One of the philosophy teachers had to take an extended sabbatical her first week over a family emergency, and for the rest of the semester we had a half-senile WWII veteran.  Routinely went on twenty minute tangents about “when I was in the war,” and more general GreatestGenerationSplaining about the yutes these days and how they don’t understand or appreciate the military at all.  Were supposed to cover five philosophers, but literally only ever covered Plato, because he adored and was obsessed with that guy and didn’t care about the others (though they were still on the final, natch).

    We had leftie teachers who were idiots too, occasionally even in ways that were tied to their leftiness.  But never any that were that blatantly uninterested in doing their job, or devoted to just rambling on about ideology they didn’t even pretend was related to the source material.  I choose to believe that the reason he was teaching was that they literally couldn’t find anyone else to do the job, but I did wonder a couple times if the reason someone that inept was allowed to bray on was simply that the university didn’t want to court controversy by firing a guy who’d then turn himself into the next Fox News martyr.

  118. 118.

    WereBear

    @rikyrah: My senior cat loves his cooling MAT this summer! And I admit I borrow it.

    Get a big one, so you can roll to the cool area and let the warm side recharge — lose its warm. Is that how the blanket works?

  119. 119.

    Chris

    @Rusty:

    @Honus: It’s come to a point now, where if you scratch the surface even the supposed moderate Republicans are really reactionaries underneath.  They just want to achieve the  same goals by a more genteel path, but the end will be exactly the same.

    Nixon was over fifty years ago.  Even the Dubya era is already fifteen years old.  At this point, any good “moderate” Republican in the Eisenhower or Rockefeller vein, the kind the media is desperate to make us believe still exists and will take back the party any minute now, has been a Democrat for decades.

  120. 120.

    NotMax

    FYI.

    Bloomberg, so only partial access (emphasis mine).

    On Sunday, in the middle of a quiet summer weekend, Elon Musk decreed that Twitter’s product name would be changed to “X,” and that he is getting rid of the bird logo and all the associated words, including “tweet.” Musk’s move wiped out anywhere between $4 billion and $20 billion in value, according to analysts and brand agencies. Source

  121. 121.

    Sanjeevs

    Rudolph W. Giuliani has conceded that while acting as a lawyer for former President Donald J. Trump, he made false statements by asserting that two Georgia election workers had mishandled ballots while counting votes in Atlanta during the 2020 election.
    The concession by Mr. Giuliani came in court papers filed on Tuesday night as part of a defamation lawsuit that the two workers, Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss, had brought against him in Federal District Court in Washington in December 2021.
    The suit accused Mr. Giuliani and others of promoting a video that purported to show Ms. Freeman and Ms. Moss — who are mother and daughter — of manipulating ballots while working at the State Farm Arena for the Fulton County Board of Elections.
    In a two-page declaration, Mr. Giuliani acknowledged that he had in fact made the statements about Ms. Freeman and Ms. Moss that led to the filing of the suit and that the remarks “carry meaning that is defamatory per se.” He also admitted that his statements were “actionable” and “false” and that he no longer disputed the “factual elements of liability” the election workers had raised in their suit.

    Mr. Trump invoked Ms. Freeman’s name 18 times during a phone call with Brad Raffensperger, the Georgia secretary of state, on Jan. 2, 2021. In the call, Mr. Trump asked Mr. Raffensperger to help him “find” 11,800 votes — enough to swing the results in Georgia away from the winner, Joseph R. Biden Jr.
    “I’ve lost my name, and I’ve lost my reputation,” Ms. Freeman testified to the House committee, adding as her voice rose with emotion, “Do you know how it feels to have the president of the United States target you?”

    https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/26/us/politics/giuliani-georgia-election-workers.html

  122. 122.

    Dorothy A. Winsor

    @NotMax: I keep being brought up short by the way most of us live on real money (like in our bank accounts) while very rich people live on imaginary money. Remember when Trump said his worth depends on how he’s feeling that day? To me, this sounds like that. A sign of my blue collar upbringing, I guess

  123. 123.

    Captain C

    @Baud:

    I wonder if John Roberts knows that these people aren’t colorblind.

    The real question is if he knows that they’re making him look like the mediocre political hack that he in fact is.  Dred Scott Roberts is to SCOTUS-ing as Angel Hernandez is to calling balls and strikes.

  124. 124.

    Jeffro

    I do loooooove this: plunging inflation might cause the GOP to rethink its attacks on Biden

    YA THINK???

    Soaring egg prices. Gas for more than $5 per gallon. Used cars that cost 30 percent more than they had the year before.

    For most of President Biden’s term, the fastest inflation in four decades provided Republicans with no shortage of ripe targets for political attacks over his economic stewardship, emerging as the central talking point of their 2022 midterm campaigns and the early 2024-presidential election campaigns.

    But now that message may no longer be as powerful. Inflation has eased to 3 percent on an annual basis, down from 9 percent last year

    Historically, political science research suggests that voters base their election year decisions on economic performance over the prior year. That would mean how the economy fares from now until the election may matter more than how it’s done up to now. But it’s unclear how voters will react to inflation that was high but is falling, leaving experts guessing as to exactly how the economy will influence the 2024 campaigns, said Matt Grossmann, director of the Institute for Public Policy and Social Research at Michigan State University.

    “We seem to be in a position where people are staying dour, and if that continues into the election that could disrupt the historical pattern,” Grossmann said. “I don’t know if we have a firm grasp on whether inflation moving in the right direction will be enough.”

    so let’s keep highlighting those good economic stories whenever, wherever we see them, peeps!

  125. 125.

    Yarrow

    @Betty Cracker:  I think the issues you outlined are probably the main reason but I also think there’s an added issue of social media and how easy it is to make videos. Many people seem to want to be the stars of their own show and now they can. So they do things that get them attention. Yell and scream about something. Get it on video, that goes viral. Now you’ve got a bunch of new followers. Maybe you even get an interview on TV or a podcast. Again, not the only factor but a contributing issue.

  126. 126.

    cain

    @OzarkHillbilly: Earl is one of our most popular House members from Oregon. Our Dems from Oregon have always been progressive activists and I’ve always been proud of our representation.

  132. 132.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @Raoul Paste: None of them get it. I’ve only had a few people ask me what it is. As usual, the actual* words of Jesus are forgotten.

    *who knows what his actual words were, but these are the ones ascribed to him.

  134. 134.

    Deputinize Eurasia from the Kuriles to St Petersburg

    @Anyway:

    LOL

    Over 1% of the population.  Figure the demographic probably runs from about 19 to 50, which means that maybe 1 in 5 adults under 50 has a creator account.

  136. 136.

    Betty Cracker

    According to TPM, a judge in DE will hear Hunter Biden’s misdemeanor tax charges plea deal today, and House Repubs are trying to interfere:

    The House GOP has taken the unusual and absurd step of trying to file an amicus brief in Hunter Biden’s criminal case urging the judge not to approve the plea deal. It’s hard to imagine a world in which the judge allows the filing of such a friend of the court brief. But wait, there’s more …

    In a bizarre twist, the lawyer for House Republicans is claiming that a staff member at the major law firm representing Hunter Biden called the clerk of the court and pretended to be associated with him in an effort to get the amicus brief pulled from the public court record.

    The law firm denies the allegation. The judge is a Trump appointee, so who knows what will happen. I don’t personally give a flying fuck about Hunter Biden, but he should be treated like anyone else. On its face, it seems outrageous that House Repubs would involve themselves in this way.

  137. 137.

    narya

    @OzarkHillbilly: Be still my heart . . . I would love to see that type of reform. I have a year-round CSA share and buy the rest from farmers’ markets when I can, but I am only one person.

  138. 138.

    cain

    @Chris: But they also fine if they don’t show up. The media thrives on conflict because they use it to sell a circus that keeps you glued to the screen. So there is no incentive other than performative shit.

  141. 141.

    Chris

    @OzarkHillbilly:

    As usual, the actual* words of Jesus are forgotten.

    Remember that moment in Indiana Jones where the bad guy picks the wrong grail because he assumes it’s going to be shiny and golden and diamond-encrusted and the actual one’s just, well, a cup?

    Me, watching that as a kid: “Oh, come on.  No one would fall for that.  Even Westerners who’ve never been Christian or set foot in a church know ‘blessed are the meek,’ ‘give away all your worldly goods and follow me,’ Jesus being born in a stable for fuck’s sake.”

    Me, watching that twenty years later as an adult: “People would totally fall for that, and an American one-percenter up to his eyeballs in Nazi ties is exactly the kind of asshole who would.”  (After all, we have entire seminaries dedicated to explaining in exhaustive detail that Jesus Loved The Rich And Thought Being Poor Meant You Were Going To Hell Actually).

  142. 142.

    catclub

    @narya: I have a year-round CSA share and buy the rest from farmers’ markets when I can.

     

    I am sorry, but all I see with CSA is Confederate States of America…. and then I am on to TIDOS

  143. 143.

    Paul in KY

    @Baud: I just would like to have to refrain from basically calling them idiots. Which I would be forced to do if they IDed as MAGA, etc.

  144. 144.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @Kay: ​

    @Baud: ​
     

    In a sign of our times: Oregon hospital mourns guard shot dead while defending maternity ward

    Though Smallwood usually worked at another of the network’s hospitals, he was covering a shift at the Legacy Good Samaritan medical center when a gun-wielding man arrived at about 11am on Saturday. Smallwood – who was unarmed – died after being shot in the chest as he stood between the intruder and staff and patients in the hallway of a maternity ward, his parents were reportedly told.

  146. 146.

    NotMax

    @Baud

    Marketing dildos modeled on Hunter’s dick in 3…2…1….

    “Now available in the Congressional gift shop.”
    //

  150. 150.

    Chris

    @catclub:

    I am sorry, but all I see with CSA is Confederate States of America…. and then I am on to TIDOS

    Corporate Sector Authority.

    The big-business-out-of-control counterpart to the Empire’s big-government-out-of-control in the Star Wars expanded universe.

    So basically the same thing.

  151. 151.

    Paul in KY

    @Bruce K in ATH-GR: I mentioned to my wife, who hails from the land of the C-Only, that Fahrenheit is better, as it is a more granular form of temperature measurement. It just gets weird at the lower temperatures.

  152. 152.

    narya

    @Dorothy A. Winsor: Right there with you. My spreadsheets have spreadsheets–it’s how I planned my mortgage payoff and retirement, and why I was the opposite of upset when I was offered severance and a slightly earlier retirement (though they didn’t know it was retirement). I have a feeling that the only thing that would change if I won tonight’s Powerball is that I’d have more commas on the spreadsheets.

  155. 155.

    Hoodie

    @Betty Cracker: Yeah, there’s a bit of leap in assuming that DeSantis doesn’t deliberately hire Nazis since, well, that’s what he did.  He just wants Nazis who are better at following orders.  Go figure.

  156. 156.

    narya

    @catclub: AHHHHH! no–Community Supported Agriculture! also known as a farm share.

    ETA: I have no idea what that other acronym is . . . (TIDOS)

  160. 160.

    mrmoshpotato

    But right-wing indoctrination is fine, which is why the state has approved far-right material from PragerU for classroom use.

    Oh good lord…

    “And that’s why, kids, it’s perfectly fine to get shot at school!  Gun control is tyranny!”

  164. 164.

    rikyrah

    @Betty Cracker:

     

    So “it matters” because it’s a sign of “internal disorder” in a campaign, not because a presidential candidate’s aide is tweeting out Nazi content. Okay then.

     

    uh huh

  165. 165.

    MattF

    @Betty Cracker: Yeah, and Hugh Hewitt thinks Hunter Biden should go to prison for several years for tax evasion, no link. I say sure, and audit all the Trumpspawn, while you’re at it.

  168. 168.

    cope

    @Dorothy A. Winsor: My daughter and her hubby moved with their two kids from central FL to Vermont last November, mostly because of the direction education in FL was going. She was extremely involved in progressive Democratic politics for years but finally gave up the good fight for the sake of her kids.

  169. 169.

    Subsole

    @Kay:

    Infuriating. Makes me want to grab an editor at the Atlantic and shake them like a rattle.

    Yes, guys, you did it. You put that kid who just stepped off the bus for their first semester at Oberlin back in their place.

    Nevermind the book bannings and loyalty pledges and censorship laws. Your fellow well-paid pundits are now safe to ask if maybe the Transes don’t deserve to exist, or if the Jews have too much influence on society.

    It’s fixed, folks. You fixed America.

  171. 171.

    cain

    @MattF: oh no – Hugh will say that they need special exception because they are just kids and aren’t hardened tax cheats like Hunter!

  172. 172.

    M31

    “the nuclear waste problem is a myth.”

    did a huge unstable pile of coal ash write this?

  173. 173.

    Subsole

    @Betty Cracker:

    “Hello, students. I’m Dennis Prager. It certainly is lovely to see you fresh faces here today. In an unrelated note, God has told me the age of consent is too high.”

  175. 175.

    Matt McIrvin

    @Jeffro: I’d expect them to simply say that those numbers are fake and inflation is still terrible. Who are you gonna believe, me or your lying eyes?

  176. 176.

    Matt McIrvin

    @Chris Johnson: The Youtuber “Big Joel”/”Little Joel” was just ruminating about this, inconclusively as he often does (content warning, excerpts a Nazi-curious guitar-strummer):

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6cqQd36-kKY

    pointing out that being a paid twitter blue-check now is basically a sign that you’re one of the right-wing hardliners that Elon Musk wants to promote, and that his site does a really good job of creating a false impression that marginal or even overtly Nazi viewpoints have overwhelming majority popularity.

  177. 177.

    Steeplejack

    Just turned on the news to see some breathless coverage (with video!) of a high-rise crane collapse in Manhattan earlier this morning. “Let’s hear from officials.” And there’s mayor and camera hog Eric Adams on the street, talking about “one of our cranes” blah blah blah. At least he didn’t say “one of my cranes.” Guess he realized (or one of his aides told him) that might not be a good look. No useful information added, of course.

    ETA: And now MSNBC—along with all the other channels, I’m sure—is doing wall-to-wall “breaking news” coverage of Hunter Biden’s hearing in Delaware. Jesus.

  178. 178.

    JAFD

    @Subsole: Mainly Ancients, from classical Greece up to the 1100’s (After that, have to paint heraldry on 15mm shields, too big challenge for my eyes and hands.)

    Also Georgian and Napoleonic era sailing ship models in 1/1200 scale.

    Be there a potential Balloon Juice meetup at Fall In ?

  180. 180.

    NotMax

    @Jeffro

    “Consumer confidence rose in July 2023 to its highest level since July 2021, reflecting pops in both current conditions and expectations,” said Dana Peterson, Chief Economist at The Conference Board. “Headline confidence appears to have broken out of the sideways trend that prevailed for much of the last year. Greater confidence was evident across all age groups, and among both consumers earning incomes less than $50,000 and those making more than $100,000.” Source

  181. 181.

    Paul in KY

    @Yarrow: That’s why half the yahoos you see on Tour de France coverage are there (IMO). They know that when the leaders/peloton comes by, they’ll be on TV for a few seconds in their sad lives.

  182. 182.

    Yarrow

    I’m sure this will work out well.

    Musk’s rebranded Twitter is offering extremely hefty discounts to advertisers while simultaneously threatening them that if they don’t spend at least $1k on ads in the next 30 days their brand will lose its checkmark and they won’t police impersonation

    Link to Taylor Lorenz Threads post.

  185. 185.

    rikyrah

    This is a 15-20,000 person convention.

     

    Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. ® (@apa1906NETwork) tweeted at 8:32 AM on Wed, Jul 26, 2023:
    Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. moves 2025 General Convention from Orlando, Florida due to Governor Desantis’ harmful, racist, and insensitive policies against the Black Community.

    Please share.

    #APA1906Network #MenOfDistinction #AlphaPhiAlpha https://t.co/8YiFtwYe47
    (https://twitter.com/apa1906NETwork/status/1684195005634686976?t=xXGM1TuLMEqiIGN1Zo7n_A&s=03)

  186. 186.

    Yarrow

    @Paul in KY:  People have always jumped in front of cameras. But the difference now is everyone has a camera they carry along with them and they can broadcast their idiocy to the world without needing TV cameras to do it for them.

  195. 195.

    Paul in KY

    @Yarrow: I do think (Tourwise) that back in the good ole days (Late 70s – Mid 80s), more of them were there to actually cheer on the racers and were not so cognizant that they would be on TV briefly.

  197. 197.

    rikyrah

    YEP

     

    Dr. Genevieve Guenther (@DoctorVive) tweeted at 6:42 AM on Wed, Jul 26, 2023:
    Right-wing think tanks have written a 920 page plan, which begins day one of a Republican presidency, to dismantle most of the federal government’s work on climate.

    Make no mistake: this is a battle plan. The war being waged is against our children’s future.

    Elections matter! https://t.co/qFoGm0IMaR
    (https://twitter.com/DoctorVive/status/1684167246942179328?t=ZZT32WLZozdhqURfjzSGvw&s=03

  198. 198.

    rikyrah

    From the clown whose whistleblower was a SPY

     

    The Recount (@therecount) tweeted at 8:39 AM on Wed, Jul 26, 2023:
    House Oversight Chair James Comer: “For some in the media, we need more evidence … We’ve far exceeded anything that Adam Schiff or Jamie Raskin’s ever produced on the Russian collusion, or January 6th, or anything. But for some of you all, it’s not enough.” https://t.co/9z4ywFitkT
    (https://twitter.com/therecount/status/1684196785328099331?t=_g6LH91_3fBfZaJCH6rdJw&s=03)

  202. 202.

    jimmiraybob

    Prager U: #1 lesson, and subtext for everything else is, America is built on Judeo-Christian* principles ergo, henceforth and et voila., Christian Nation.

    *European derivatives of course

  204. 204.

    gvg

    What have you got against Khan academy? My dad describes them as a great online tutoring resource for math subjects from a guy with a talent for explaining hard concepts well. I think they are mostly free or cheap and they don’t substitute for actual classes, just help kids who are struggling get extra help, as I understand it.

    No system works for everyone though. My nephew struggles. My dad is brilliant himself but a terrible teacher. Nephew really prefers video and has dyslexia related distaste for more reading so we always look for videos. Sometimes Khan helps. They are math only as far as I know.

  211. 211.

    Steeplejack

    Oh, jeez—breaking news! No plea deal in the Hunter Biden case! 🙀 Our nation quivers with fearful anticipation.

  212. 212.

    catclub

    @gvg: ​
     

    What have you got against Khan academy?

    Nothing. The Christianist PragerU is if Khan went bad.

  214. 214.

    NotMax

    @gvg

    “How much of this math stuff do we have to get through before getting to the pleasure dome?”
    :)

  215. 215.

    catclub

    @rikyrah: ​
    &nbsp

    ;is Hindu and therefore anyone who supports him “will have a fight with God.”

    has he heard of India?

  218. 218.

    cain

    @rikyrah: oh MAN – that’s dangerous territory. He’s playing with fire.

    Given the right wing lurch in India, I can see bhakts going apeshit – probably try to find some Christian on the streets of Delhi and beat the shit out of them.

    But it will also underscore for Indians living here what happens if you support the GOP and you are not Christian.

  219. 219.

    Steeplejack

    Just realized that Andrea Mitchell is coming up at the top of the hour, and she is going to make a royal mess of this live coverage. She has lost a step, to put it in charitable ESPN terms.

  220. 220.

    lowtechcyclist

    @Honus:

    Meanwhile, here in Virginia Glenn Youngkin’s new Board of Visitors at UVA wants to track students’ religious and political ideology and faculty’s political contributions.  Just to insure diversity, mind you.

    I’m sorry I’m not a student at U.Va. because I’d love to tell Youngkin that my religion is Fuck You, and my political ideology is And Fuck That Idiotic Fleece Jacket Too.

  221. 221.

    mrmoshpotato

    @Chris Johnson:

    no no, there is no such thing as a ‘Prager U’. It’s just a name for a YouTube right wing propaganda mill. Being a youtube channel doesn’t make you a school. 

    Potato U is totally a real school!

  229. 229.

    NotMax

    @,a href=”https://balloon-juice.com/2023/07/26/squishable-morning-thread-fresh-hell-edition/#comment-8909638″>cain

    And 0 Shakers.

    God: “What did they expect?”
    :)

  233. 233.

    Steeplejack

    @NotMax:

    It has a certain car-wreck fascination. But now I see that she will be “sitting down live” with Chris Christie. Dunno if that leaves much time for Hunter Biden’s hearing.

  234. 234.

    Chris

    @cain:

    Given the right wing lurch in India, I can see bhakts going apeshit – probably try to find some Christian on the streets of Delhi and beat the shit out of them.

    Republicans mostly don’t care all that much what happens to Christians elsewhere, at least if those Christians aren’t white, so there’s that.

  237. 237.

    trollhattan

    Apropos to the banner image.

    Antarctica hasn’t rebuilt its sea ice this winter. At least one scientist is calling it a “five-sigma event”—that is, a thing that should only happen once every 7.5 million years.

  239. 239.

    The Lodger

    @Baud: Medical bouncers are a thing already (just ask any large male nurse or orderly) but I think HIPAA or something forbids actual use of the term.

  241. 241.

    narya

    @catclub: Oh, good! Sometimes it’s hard to tell on the intertubes. :-) Had not heard of the other one before–so I’ve learned something today!

  246. 246.

    Steeplejack

    Today is also the birthday of valued commenter KayInMD (formerly Kay (not the front-pager)), according to my records.

  247. 247.

    cain

    @Chris: Yes, but it does lead to a foreign policy headache – you don’t want India looking for other partners or doing things in regards to markets.

  250. 250.

    LiminalOwl

    @Baud: WereBear: *gets out the measuring tape* I think the folks in the other section of town only have the Bible quotes about four inches high. (The nearby house with “LET’S GO BRANDON” on a banner that goes approximately the width of the yard, however…)

     

    @WereBear:

  251. 251.

    Ken

    @LiminalOwl: The nearby house with “LET’S GO BRANDON” on a banner

    Do you think they realize the meme shifted under them, and they’re now showing support for Biden?

  253. 253.

    patrick II

    I was trying to remember the name of the program from about ten years back (or maybe more) that was pushing for national educational standards, mostly so kids who transferred to schools in different states would be placed correctly.  I couldn’t remember it, so I went to the ed.gov site to find standards and found U.S. Department of Education/standards and found that page to be blank. I thought they had kept the standards but made it voluntary for the states. Maybe if I remembered the actual name of the program the Dept of Education has it tucked away somewhere. But presently the “standards” page is blank.

  254. 254.

    eversor

    @Chris:

    That isn’t really true.  The religious right has ringing the bell of the fate of Christians in the Middle East for some time now.   The logic being three fold.  It’s the ancesertal homeland of Christianity so the US military should be used to protect Christianity there.  The Christians there are vastly more socially conservative than Christians here and don’t run from the teachings around patriarchy and gender roles so they aren’t fakers like liberal western Christians who pretend that doesn’t exist or spout the lie that it’s only in the Old Testament.  Lastly that if the US is going to take in refugees from the Middle East we should be focusing on Christian ones to help re-Christianize the US.

    It’s more complicated when it comes to Latin America.  But even then you have Republicans like Sorhab Ahmari who openly advocate for sort of fusing with Latin American Catholics to create a New World Christendom which can enforce Catholic Integeralism because everyone by the farthest right mens activists in the younger generations is fleeing Christianity and justifiably actively hostile to it.  So making a grand New World alliance of Christians who are hostile to abortion and still believe in Biblical mandated roles of men and women is their best hope of restoring Christian dominance in the US.

    They are all still racist as fuck but they’ll put that behind them for a bit to regain Christian dominance in every area and force it on people.   Christianity is still the greatest threat we face.

  255. 255.

    cope

    @patrick II: I’m guessing you are thinking of the Common Core Standards. These are not standards mandated by the federal government but rather by the National Governor’s Association (the initial sponsors)  and The Council of Chief State School Officers. Some states (not all) adopted them, some didn’t. Some states that adopted them (including Florida) later dropped them.

  257. 257.

    Steeplejack

    Well, Andrea Mitchell spent her entire hour on the Hunter Biden hearing and related issues, with a 10-minute time-out for a tongue bath of Chris Christie, allowing him to opine on Hunter Biden, Trump and other issues of the day.

  261. 261.

    Soprano2

    @Jeffro: I saw a moron in WalMart last Saturday wearing a T-shirt that said “I’d take a mean tweet and $1.79 gas now”. They truly believe TFG being president would make gas cheaper.

  262. 262.

    The Pale Scot

    @WereBear:

    these people are delusional

    I read a long time an account by someone who said his in-laws died when the roof they refused to fix ’cause “Jebus is coming real soon now collapsed

  264. 264.

    Manyakitty

    @Steeplejack: the fact that ANYONE thought it was a good idea to invite Chris freaking Christie on to discuss Hunter with that worthless Andrea Mitchell is just about enough to make me stop watching MSNBC entirely. I am sure AF never watching her again.

  266. 266.

    dr. luba

    Betty, you’re always welcome to move to Michigan.  We have lots of water (lakes, streams rivers, wetlands), as well as the Great Lakes. We get a few tornadoes in the south, but are hurricane, tsunami, earthquake, mudslide, etc. free.  We do get lots of snow sometimes. And our hot days are tolerable.

    Plus we have democratic (both small and big d) government. We do have MAGAts and crazies, so you’ll have a taste of home….

  268. 268.

    Ksmiami

    @Paul in KY: A German guy I knew said Fahrenheit is much better for applying temperature to humans. Like 72 degrees is way different than 79 and those finer adjustments are more difficult w Celsius.

  272. 272.

    Aris Merquoni

    I’d like to throw a drive-by credit to KC Green’s comic Gunshow for that image from On Fire that has been viral everywhere.

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