Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

He wakes up lying, and he lies all day.

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

This really is a full service blog.

Jesus, Mary, & Joseph how is that election even close?

Republicans can’t even be trusted with their own money.

In after Baud. Damn.

Too often we hand the biggest microphones to the cynics and the critics who delight in declaring failure.

Not all heroes wear capes.

Despite his magical powers, I don’t think Trump is thinking this through, to be honest.

They think we are photo bombing their nice little lives.

Balloon Juice has never been a refuge for the linguistically delicate.

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

I wonder if trump will be tried as an adult.

Roe isn’t about choice, it’s about freedom.

Since when do we limit our critiques to things we could do better ourselves?

Republicans in disarray!

Republicans: slavery is when you own me. freedom is when I own you.

Every one of the “Roberts Six” lied to get on the court.

This year has been the longest three days of putin’s life.

Usually wrong but never in doubt

Consistently wrong since 2002

Second rate reporter says what?

Republicans are the party of chaos and catastrophe.

Some judge needs to shut this circus down soon.

You are here: Home / Balloon Juice / Make The World A Better Place / The Kids Are All Right

The Kids Are All Right

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I’m pretty sure my biggest accomplishment at 10 was convincing my classmates to pick up trash along the fence line during recess and writing tv show episodes to perform with friends in my garage. This kid:

I’ve been told I don’t post enough photos of my cats. So here is Willow, guarding the yard.

The Kids Are All Right

 

This is an open thread

 

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80Comments

  11. 11.

    The Pale Scot

    No app, no entry: How the digital world is failing the non tech-savvy

    This is becoming a big issue. Really I can’t leave FL because my dad or his sisters get befuddled at least once a day, I suck on the phone and haven’t found a good Remote Desktop client  for both Mac and Windoze. I’m not going to even talk about cellphones. They’re all from NYC, need a ride? Call a taxi. Make an appointment? Call and get a person answering. My parents didn’t need to deal with this shit  for their parents. They all live in “senior centric” towns with no services for seniors. They can’t even drive over to make an appointment because the phone service is remote. Ted Kaczynski has a point.

  13. 13.

    Suzanne

    Willow looks like a larger version of my dearly departed Nico (the best cat ever). Just beautiful.

  16. 16.

    Ruckus

    @OzarkHillbilly:

    Sister won a coin toss at the local city fair when I was still in single digits. The very young, tiny bird turned out to be a very beautiful, but almost total asshole mallard. I got to take care of him. In many ways a good time. In some ways not so much.

  18. 18.

    way2blue

    10 years old?  I think my biggest accomplishment was learning how to square dance in 4H.

  20. 20.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @Ruckus: I’ve had a few asshole roosters, They’d attack me every time I brought them scratch. After I drop kicked them a few times, they’d wait until I turned my back and then attack me. I learned not to turn my back to them. I also had one or 2 that were just to be laughed at. The most memorable was the bird I named Bruce Lee. When he crowed he sounded just like Bruce in a fight scene.

  23. 23.

    Ruckus

    @JPL:

    Freshman year HS I had to ride a bus ~ 30 minutes each way, to arrive at a Catholic all boys technical HS. Most of the teachers were brothers or fathers, for the six shops and almost all the kids didn’t act as much like kids as they did prisoners, right up until the doors on the bus closed. At which point all hell broke loose, every day. I believe more swear words were spoken in that 30 minute ride than when I was in the Navy. It didn’t look like the women bus drivers enjoyed their job.

  25. 25.

    Alison Rose

    Today is the 40th anniversary of Depeche Mode’s third album, Construction Time Again. It’s such a wonderfully odd mix of the beginning of the end of New Wave, 80s synthpop, kooky electronica, and industrial bits inspired by Einstürzende Neubauten and achieved through banging pipes with sticks and recording in tunnels under trains. My first, second, and third favorite tracks, plus an honorable mention because more songs should talk about ice cream.

  26. 26.

    Soprano2

    I read that NY Times article about the focus group of TFG supporters. Ugh, it was as bad as I thought it would be, although some of them seem to not be that keen on TFG anymore. That they all think any Republican is going to beat Biden is delusional, though. They’re as bad as the people on our side who think Biden can’t lose no matter what.

  28. 28.

    Raven

    Fuck, we got halfway and another ferry had to us the same lane so we sat dead in the water. On the long ride they didn’t care if you ran your vehicle and used the AC but no-go on this hop. There are some folks and dogs who are struggling. We’re underway so it should be soonly.

  33. 33.

    dmsilev

    @The Pale Scot:

    haven’t found a good Remote Desktop client  for both Mac and Windoze.

    Try TeamViewer. The only downside I’ve found is that while it’s free for non-commercial use, whatever code they use to detect “illicit” commercial user can sometimes mistakenly tag home users and then you start getting annoying messages and time-limited sessions.

  45. 45.

    smith

    @Jackie: I thought it was texts, not emails, that were deliberately deleted. The story you link seems to go back and forth between “text” and “email” without any clear explanation.

  46. 46.

    Scout211

    @Jackie: Interesting. These are things we all knew or suspected, but this article points to Chad Wolf as the center of the cover-up, with Cuccinelli involved as well.  “Raises questions,” indeed.

     

    From the article in your comment:

    Among the things that the committee had discovered from emails was that there had been a series of warnings about the possible attacks on Jan. 6 well before the Capitol insurrection happened.

    The agency was moved under the purview of the Department of Homeland Security, a Cabinet-level position that was added after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. The Secret Service was sounding the alarm to Trump’s acting DHS Secretary Chad Wolf, who abruptly left on Jan. 12, 2021 after pledging to stay in office until Jan. 20. Wolf was never confirmed by the Senate for the post.

    Wolf and acting deputy secretary Ken Cuccinelli both were found to have deleted text messages around Jan. 6, 2021.

    It raises questions about whether Wolf was given the information by the Secret Service and if he passed it on to the White House, the Pentagon, Congress or any other law enforcement agencies.

    It makes access to emails all the more important for the Justice Department’s investigation.

  49. 49.

    trollhattan

    @Ruckus: My junior high years (grades 7-9) were via bus–maybe 40 minutes each way but seemed like two hours. Believe today as I did then you’re better off imprisoning the lot, then returning them to civilization at grade 10. Hated the entire experience.

    Have often wondered what the transit people thought at the end of the day when they noticed benches were missing.

  50. 50.

    Jackie

    @smith: You’re right. I wonder if it’s a combo of both? Or just sloppiness on the author’s part. Either way, “deleted” and J6 are key.

  51. 51.

    Scout211

    @smith: The article was kind of confusing, but it’s Raw Story. Enough said.

    The way I read it, the text messages were deleted after J6 but there were also emails that the J6 committee discovered:

    Among the things that the committee had discovered from emails was that there had been a series of warnings about the possible attacks on Jan. 6 well before the Capitol insurrection happened.

  52. 52.

    piratedan

    @Jackie: I’m dreaming of a miniseries being made and at the end of it, using the teletype printer montage of sentencing for members of the 45 Administration, a member of SCOTUS and his spouse, as well as members of Congress from both the House and the Senate and a final one for DJT and his family being remanded to jail.

  53. 53.

    Jeffro

    Btw I skimmed through that last thread (‘Surrender’) and…all of these clowns think they’re going to get off scot-free by employing a “First Amendment” defense?

    For real?

    Even when Jack Smith shows them THIS instance and THAT instance and oh yeah ANOTHER instance of where they were told they’d lost, and they decided to overthrow the government anyway?  When Eastman himself said that, in front of witnesses?

    The coup was just them employing their First Amendment rights?  Oh my.

    I mean, I know MAGA nation is dumb enough to believe it, but wow.

  54. 54.

    rikyrah

    I didn’t know he was a Thiel stooge.

     

    Uh huh Uh huh

     

    Ruth Ben-Ghiat (@ruthbenghiat) posted at 10:06 AM on Sun, Aug 20, 2023: They did that on Jan 7, 2021, when they did not disavow Trump and take the party in another direction. Ramaswamy’s “success” is symptomatic: he is backed by billionaire fascist Thiel, wants Putin to triumph in Ukraine, and wants to restrict voting rights. Couldn’t be clearer. (https://twitter.com/ruthbenghiat/status/1693278307427451178?t=4OL0mKF4pgXMdO9sQkMeBw&s=03)

  55. 55.

    patrick II

    I loved the national  science fair winners that Obama would invite to the White House each year. I especially remember a high school 17 year old who was stricken by a possibly deadly disease that was genetically determined, so she got an internship to a medical lab and found the genetic markers herself.  Also Obama loved the marshmallow gun.

  56. 56.

    Doc Sardonic

    @schrodingers_cat: We have used Veterinary Pet Insurance (VPI) in the past, which is now under the Nationwide Insurance umbrella. It was good, but a little pricey after Nationwide took over. We now use MetLife since it is an optional benefit from my wife’s job. We have been satisfied with it but sometimes their claims process gets a little quirky and takes a few phone sessions to sort out, mainly with how the vet does invoicing. We have multiple cats so if more than 1 goes to the vet if their invoices get combined that triggers the claim processing quirk.

  57. 57.

    Tony Jay

    Back in the sepia-toned days of childhood we would sometimes holiday at a Butlins camp outside Pwllheli (pronounced Puh-Thelly) in North Wales. Great fair, much fun, but it either included or was nearby a cable car ride that was hands down, no debate, absofrigginglutely the most terrifying experience of my life. And we went on it every single year.

    I still have the occasional nightmare about it now. Those poor kids. 

  58. 58.

    oldster

    The part that brought tears to my eyes was when he said,

    “My device is named “Revere” after Paul Revere, our famous American revolutionary….”

    Yes!  He is *your* American revolutionary, because you are American, even if many of your fellow citizens will not recognize you as one. And as an American, you get to claim Revere and Franklin and Lincoln and every great hero that has contributed to our nation. Your nation.  And you get to add your name to the list of great Americans who contribute.

    That’s the country I believe in — where a nerdy kid with parents from anywhere can claim his American identity proudly and join the honor roll of heroes by doing something cool and constructive.

  59. 59.

    bbleh

    @piratedan: … or it being typed out on a typewriter, click-click, click-click-click, ding! Followed by the paper being pulled triumphantly out of the roller and …

    … wadded up and tossed in the wastebasket.  “Nah, no producer’s ever gonna buy this.”

  60. 60.

    narya

    @Jeffro: I know they’re all trying to try this in the press–but in front of a jury the lawyers are going to say, “THIS is protected. THAT is not. Here’s why.” In one of the seditious conspiracy trials, the prosecutor said, if someone pulls up next to you at a light, and you look at each other and then drag race, you have made an agreement. Even if you didn’t talk about it, email about it, etc. I thought it was a brilliant example. In this case? You absolutely can make claims, whine, take these LEGAL actions; what you cannot do is that whole pile of things you did.

  61. 61.

    rikyrah

    Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) posted at 2:19 PM on Tue, Aug 22, 2023:
    ALERT:  Mark Meadows files “emergency motion” in federal court seeking judge’s order to “protect Mr. Meadows from arrest” in Fulton County case

    gov.uscourts.gand.319225.17.0.pdf

     

     

    Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) posted at 2:22 PM on Tue, Aug 22, 2023:
    In their court filing, Mark Meadows’s defense says it made a request yesterday to Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis to “extend” the Friday 12pm deadline for arrest
     

    Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) posted at 2:23 PM on Tue, Aug 22, 2023:
    Meadows’s defense “emergency motion”: “Mr. Meadows asks the court to order District Attorney Willis not to arrest Mr. Meadows before the hearing scheduled for Monday, August 28.”

    Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) posted at 2:35 PM on Tue, Aug 22, 2023:
    !! And noting this:

    Mark Meadows’s filing includes an email sent to his defense team by Fani Willis, in which Willis says “we are not granting extensions”

     

    BWA HA HA HA HA HA AH HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA

  66. 66.

    Jeffro

    @rikyrah: “yes, Mr. Meadows…you really are going to jail for the orange clown.  Feel like talking yet?”

    (You’re next, Ginni)

  67. 67.

    bbleh

    @rikyrah: IIRC Jeffrey Clark, the DOJ mole, did the same, and they’re both pursuing the same line of argument, ie they were Federal officials doing their jobs, so they have to be tried in Federal court.

    (One counterargument appears to be, plotting an autogolpe with people outside the government ain’t exactly part of their jobs.  Also “I vas chust followink orderss” didn’t work very well the last time, but wadda I know.)

  68. 68.

    Tony Jay

    @rikyrah:

    “Mr Meadows asks the Court to respect the time-honoured precedent of ‘Heeeey, come on, we’re all just joking around here’ and abide by the well-respected tradition of ‘Now just hold on one cotton-picking minute, Missy, do you know who I am?’ in all matters concerning Mr Meadows’ keenly felt aspiration to stay out of jail and not be inconvenienced by your people’s partisan lawfare.”

    “………….”

    “You wanna meet some billionaires?”

    “…………..”

    “The defence rests.”

  71. 71.

    Roger Moore

    @narya:

    To me, the biggest issue is that the courts ruled against them again and again.  Trump and his band of miscreants have tried to pretend there was some uncertainty about things, but that’s just not true.  They thoroughly exhausted their legal remedies and only decided on the coup when everything else failed.

    Someone made the analogy to trying to settle a dispute with a bank over some money by going down and demanding it at gunpoint.  Even if you’re sure the money is really yours, you still don’t have the right to do that.  Trump’s situation is actually worse.  In his case, it’s more like suing the bank over the money, losing in court, and then going down to demand it at gunpoint.

  72. 72.

    lowtechcyclist

    @Raven: ​
     

    96 degrees and we’re waiting for the Ocracoke Ferry!

    I’ve tried cherry Coke and vanilla Coke, but I think I’ll take a pass on okra Coke.

  74. 74.

    UncleEbeneezer

    I’m a war correspondent, reporting on endless anti-LGBTQ violence:

    Canadian writer, journalist, novelist and anthologist Michael Rowe reflecting on this heinous crime wrote in a Facebook Post on August 21st:

    “Quick exercise: take the phrase, “these are good, decent people who simply take issue with the LGBTQIA lifestyle,” and substitute literally any other minority group for “LGBTQIA.” What happens then? When you do that, are they still “good decent people?” Maybe ask Ms. Carleton’s annihilated husband and her now-motherless children.

    “As for me, I’m tired of the “thoughts and prayers” sop, and I’m tired of bigoted straight people’s primitive religious superstitions—pardon me, “religious freedoms”—taking precedence over the safety and freedom of queer people and their allies. And I’m especially bone-tired of the people who hate us being accorded the “good, decent people” designation in “debates” about our humanity, just because, apparently, in the general consensus, “alphabet people” still don’t really rate.”

    I’m in complete agreement with my journalist colleague and likely more so than bone-tired as I have literally like many in the LGBTQ+ movement and community been on the front lines waging this warfare against a segment of society who actually don’t possess a shred of humanity.

    Recently, the war has been focused on “parental rights,” directed at the LGBTQ+ community, most especially transgender and queer youth, in a campaign of terrorism designed to erase trans youth from existence. The right wants to forcibly inflict pain and suffering all in the name of “their” rights as parents to raise their children but the consideration for other people’s children be damned.

    …

  77. 77.

    TaMara

    @John Cole: Yes she is and she has the sweetest personality. All tomboy energy. Hangs with her boys and loves on the dogs. Sits on my lap and licks my eyelids for reasons…

  78. 78.

    smith

    @rikyrah: One thing about Meadows that might legitimately hang things up for him is that there are big, undeniable clues that he has flipped for Jack Smith (he’s not one of the co-conspirators cited in the indictment), but hasn’t flipped for Fani Willis (he’s named in that one along with the other miscreants). If Smith is going to rely on Meadows’ testimony, it will be awkward if that testimony is pertinent to his GA charges. Jack and Fani will need to work this out.

    On the other hand, I don’t see how moving his trial to federal court would help with that, so that may be just delaying and jury-shopping.

  79. 79.

    lowtechcyclist

    @Roger Moore:

    To me, the biggest issue is that the courts ruled against them again and again. Trump and his band of miscreants have tried to pretend there was some uncertainty about things, but that’s just not true. They thoroughly exhausted their legal remedies and only decided on the coup when everything else failed.

    This. Not only that, before the legal challenges, they asked for and got full recounts in many of the disputed states. (The very thing Al Gore wanted in 2000, and SCOTUS shut it down. At which point Gore conceded.) And then all their legal challenges failed.  And then the electors voted in the 50 states and DC, and that should have been it. Fini. Done.

    They had the First Amendment right to scream bloody murder that the election had been stolen. They didn’t have the First Amendment right to create fake slates of electors and pass them off as real. They didn’t have the First Amendment right to try to persuade state officials to ‘find’ 11,780 votes.  They didn’t have the First Amendment right to encourage TFG’s followers to attack the Capitol in order to disrupt the counting of the electoral votes.  And they didn’t have the First Amendment right to make plans to take advantage of that disruption to further postpone the counting to create additional opportunities to change the outcome of the election.

    So good luck with that, Eastman, Meadows, etc.

  80. 80.

    Miss Bianca

    @TaMara: Wow. OK, now I actually want to watch The West Wing. That was a masterful speech and I render mad respect to Mr Sheen.

    Been thinking about what our community playhouse/movie theater will do when we run out of first-run movies and the strike continues. Documentaries and OLD movies the answer, I think. Also, we have been urging people to remember the power of live performance when movies are lacking.

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