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Balloon Juice

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

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

Bark louder, little dog.

fuckem (in honor of the late great efgoldman)

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

Donald Trump, welcome to your everything, everywhere, all at once.

Republicans don’t lie to be believed, they lie to be repeated.

After dobbs, women are no longer free.

GOP baffled that ‘we don’t care if you die’ is not a winning slogan.

Be a traveling stable for those who can’t find room at the inn.

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

Impressively dumb. Congratulations.

Fight for a just cause, love your fellow man, live a good life.

🎶 Those boots were made for mockin’ 🎵

It’s all just conspiracy shit beamed down from the mothership.

No one could have predicted…

You come for women, you’re gonna get your ass kicked.

Republicans would impeach Biden if he bit into a whole Kit Kat rather than breaking the sections apart.

Stop using mental illness to avoid talking about armed white supremacy.

Relentless negativity is not a sign that you are more realistic.

The republican caucus is covering themselves with something, and it’s not glory.

Not so fun when the rabbit gets the gun, is it?

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The current Supreme Court is a rogue court. Very dangerous.

Motto for the House: Flip 5 and lose none.

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You are here: Home / 2024 Elections / Monday Morning Open Thread: Another Week, Same Old Battles

Monday Morning Open Thread: Another Week, Same Old Battles

by Anne Laurie|  April 1, 20247:29 am| 151 Comments

This post is in: 2024 Elections, Biden Administration in Action, Proud to Be A Democrat

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Don’t threaten us with a good time, Repubs!…

if they get rid of the 22nd amendment that would only make 88 year old Trump lose to Obama in one of the biggest landslides in modern history https://t.co/LXKeNNK8HA

— shmulik (@souljagoytellem) March 30, 2024

Biden Campaign calls out 'unhinged all-caps tirade' from 'feeble and confused Trump'https://t.co/OyMRXVI7hs

— Acyn (@Acyn) March 31, 2024

… Trump posted an Easter message which attacked the prosecutors and judges involved in the various legal cases against him as ‘crooked and corrupt.’ …

The Biden Campaign responded by posting an image of his rant with the message ‘ A feeble and confused Trump spends the Easter holiday spewing an unhinged all-caps tirade attacking America and talking about himself.’

The Biden Campaign continues to show that they are willing to take on Trump head-on with his own words, using Trump’s own posts to portray the indicted former president as unwell and unhinged…

One of the challenges of the 2021 COVID-driven supply chain disruptions was visibility—the lack of a shared picture of the supply chain. Since then, we've built unprecedented partnerships & data-sharing infrastructure giving us useful insights into the challenges of this moment. pic.twitter.com/6YkNbBFH4R

— Secretary Pete Buttigieg (@SecretaryPete) March 31, 2024

Chair @harrisonjaime: Trump is a broke, small, thin skinned, wannabe dictator, calling for a bloodbath when he loses in November. He regularly incites political violence, we need to take these threats seriously, and we'll make sure he's not anywhere near the White House pic.twitter.com/ERip2n87f5

— DNC War Room (@DNCWarRoom) March 30, 2024

“Once social change begins, it cannot be reversed. You can not un-educate the person who has learned to read. You cannot oppress the people who are not afraid anymore.” – César Chávez, PRESENTE! #CesarChavezDay pic.twitter.com/lSxdWd0Ofw

— Christine Pelosi (@sfpelosi) March 31, 2024

It's time for @SpeakerJohnson to decide what matters more: defending democracy or helping Putin. pic.twitter.com/IRtgoDK2pJ

— Rep. Jim McGovern (@RepMcGovern) March 29, 2024

Pastor Johnson, still in the hot seat…

Always worth pointing out that Ukraine is one of only two countries on earth where millions of Russians live in freedom (the other one is the U.S.), and they’re not particularly keen on giving it up. https://t.co/qmNGG1iNHw

— Peter Wolf (@peterawolf) March 30, 2024

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    151Comments

    1. 1.

      Baud

      April 1, 2024 at 7:33 am

      Not sure I agree with Chavez. Not the first sentence at least.

      Reply
    2. 2.

      satby

      April 1, 2024 at 7:41 am

      Vote Vets new ad is going to kick some Republican ass too. Good job showing how the current crop betrays it’s own history.

      Reply
    3. 3.

      TeezySkeezy

      April 1, 2024 at 7:41 am

      Yes, Trump would lose to Obama in a fair election, but if they win and manage to get rid of the 22nd amendment then there actually won’t be a legitimate election again, so, no, we won’t see this happen.

      Reply
    4. 4.

      lowtechcyclist

      April 1, 2024 at 7:47 am

      Good morning, y’all.

      Reply
    5. 5.

      WereBear

      April 1, 2024 at 7:48 am

      I am a proud follower of Dark Brandon!

      The Biden Administration had to point at the elephant in the room. It was so freakin’ obvious.

      No one else in such authority, like most media, had bothered to do that…

      Reply
    6. 6.

      Baud

      April 1, 2024 at 7:51 am

      @lowtechcyclist:

      Good morning.

      Reply
    7. 7.

      Princess

      April 1, 2024 at 7:52 am

      @Baud: There are plenty of historical examples of people having rights then losing them.

      Reply
    8. 8.

      Baud

      April 1, 2024 at 7:55 am

      @satby:

      I really appreciate the veterans groups that have broken with the Republicans.

      Reply
    9. 9.

      Baud

      April 1, 2024 at 7:57 am

      @Princess:

      And our side has suffered from complacency for many years based on the assumption that someone else will stop the oppression.

      Reply
    10. 10.

      Betty Cracker

      April 1, 2024 at 8:01 am

      Kudos to the Biden social media team for attacking Trump as “feeble and confused.” For one thing, it’s the truth. It’s also useful counterprogramming for all the crap Biden gets for being a mere four years older. Biden needs to neutralize the age issue as much as possible, and this can be an effective tactic.

      Reply
    11. 11.

      Dorothy A. Winsor

      April 1, 2024 at 8:13 am

      @Baud: I was ready to post something similar.  Dobbs decision anyone?

      Reply
    12. 12.

      Dorothy A. Winsor

      April 1, 2024 at 8:15 am

      I literally cannot read Trump’s all caps posts. I can’t tell where sentences stop and start, assuming there are sentences. Add that to the crazy talk and my brain just bounces off it.

      It’s better that way.

      Reply
    13. 13.

      Anne Laurie

      April 1, 2024 at 8:19 am

      @Baud: Not sure I agree with Chavez. Not the first sentence at least.

      There is a difference between ‘Farm workers will never be allowed to organize’ and ‘Farm workers have organized, but our employers have managed to prevent us from doing so here.’

      Just as there is a difference — we are now discovering how much of a difference — between ‘Republicans can’t actually end Roe v Wade, they just us it as a talking point’ and ‘Republicans have ended Roe, because they hate women’s autonomy’.

      The ‘learning to read’ analogy goes back to antebellum slave revolts, of course.  (I think Sojourner Truth used it.)  Knowing that real change *is* possible, even if that change has since been reversed, gives people courage!

      Reply
    14. 14.

      Ben Cisco

      April 1, 2024 at 8:20 am

      @Dorothy A. Winsor: What’s left of his mind is an abyss, no need to look in there.

      Can’t wait for Election Day!!

      Reply
    15. 15.

      rikyrah

      April 1, 2024 at 8:20 am

      Good Morning Everyone 😊😊😊

      Reply
    16. 16.

      Baud

      April 1, 2024 at 8:23 am

      @Anne Laurie:

      Knowing that real change *is* possible, even if that change has since been reversed, gives people courage

       
      I get that. But see my #9. I feel like too many people use it as an excuse to be complacent. Similar to how the right uses the idea of “American Exceptionalism” as a god-given reality that applies no matter how they behave, rather than a command to be better.

      Reply
    17. 17.

      frosty

      April 1, 2024 at 8:23 am

      One thing I find really interesting about Pete Buttigieg is how the DOT has been brought to the forefront of the administration, and he’s really good at discussing it. I can’t remember any others where this was the case. Maybe because it’s one disaster after another, but maybe it’s because this is an area that Biden wants to focus on. It’s a major part of the country’s infrastructure after all.

      I hope his move to Michigan keeps him in politics.

      Reply
    18. 18.

      Baud

      April 1, 2024 at 8:23 am

      @rikyrah:

      Good morning.

      Reply
    19. 19.

      Anne Laurie

      April 1, 2024 at 8:31 am

      @Baud: I feel like too many people use it as an excuse to be complacent.

      Fair enough.  I’d still defend the sentiment, though:  Look what they took from us!  is certainly an effective rallying cry for the revanchists.  I think we can usefully repurpose it, with non-voters and non-voters who’ve been convinced that their votes won’t make a difference.

      Reply
    20. 20.

      Nukular Biskits

      April 1, 2024 at 8:31 am

      Good mornin’, y’all! Hope everyone is doing well.

      Took today off to finish (?) up a few things.

      Glad to see Dark Brandon and team going on the offense often and early.  With that in mind, I also have to agree with this from the Great Orange Satan from yesterday:

      According to Robison, what is happening here—much to the frustration of those of us who obsess over Trump’s daily antics—is that the American people are simply otherwise occupied, living their lives. They’re attending their kids’ soccer games, doing yard work, or figuring out the dinner budget. They’re sharing their social outings on Facebook, TikTok, or Instagram. They’re not following the latest economic trends and they don’t know what the economic indicators or consumer price indexes are showing.

      Most voters don’t know the stakes of the election. That will change

      As some of you know, I can attest to this, having run for elected office a couple of times.  My SWAG is that probably 60%-70% of folks simply don’t know what the issues are, who is running (particularly at the local and state level) and what the respective positions of the candidates are.

      With all this in mind, Team Biden is going to have to keep messaging this EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. until Election Day.

      Reply
    21. 21.

      Jay C

      April 1, 2024 at 8:35 am

      @rikyrah:

      Good morning, rikyrah!!

      BTW, does anybody know what the status of the House Discharge Petition (re Ukraine aid) is at present? Last I read, they were still short by about 30 signatures (or more): no (maybe 1?) Republicans have signed on yet, and there is resistance from the lefties in the Dem caucus over aid to Israel being included. Yeah, it would nice if some sort of pressure (from anywhere) could get a bill to the floor: but given the chaos the KooKoo Kaucus seems determined to foster in the House, who knows?

      God, I hope the Biden-Harris campaign and the DNC/DCCC can coordinate to seriously attempt to take back the HoR this election, gerrymanders or not.

      Oh, and speaking of the campaign, I saw the B-H folks are finally offering a Dark Brandon coffee mug with color-changing eyes! Everyone should have one….

      Reply
    22. 22.

      SiubhanDuinne

      April 1, 2024 at 8:35 am

      @Dorothy A. Winsor:

      I can’t tell where sentences stop and start,

      They don’t.

      assuming there are sentences.

      There aren’t.

      HTH.

      Reply
    23. 23.

      Gvg

      April 1, 2024 at 8:37 am

      @frosty: some of America’s earliest use of taxation was to build roads, then canals and then trains which are IMO really important sources of our rise from poor nation to rich. They also put in the Constitution that land could be confiscated for roads, but owners had to be compensated, both points that had historically been a problem for other countries merchants.

      Reply
    24. 24.

      Betty Cracker

      April 1, 2024 at 8:40 am

      The all-GOP, majority DeSantis-appointee FL Supreme Court has to rule on the abortion rights and recreational pot ballot initiatives today. A ruling was expected Thursday, but today is the last day by law, I think. It’s a thoroughly corrupt court, but analysts seem to think there’s a good chance they’ll allow the initiatives, even though they could be beneficial for Democrats in November.

      Last September, the court heard arguments about the 15-week abortion ban DeSantis signed before subsequently signing a 6-week ban while running for president. The ban was challenged because of a previous FL Supreme Court comprising judges appointed by both Democrats and Republican governors had interpreted the state constitution’s privacy right as applying to reproductive healthcare.

      One of the current judges — who did not recuse — is married to the statehouse wingnut who sponsored the 6-week ban bill. I’m not a lawyer, so maybe I’m off base here, but I am convinced they are sitting on this ruling to help Republicans politically.

      The court is widely expected to allow the 15-week ban, which is already in effect during deliberations. If they do, that will automatically trigger the 6-week ban 30 days later, effectively banning abortion in Florida. I wonder if this corrupt-as-fuck court can drag the ruling out for a year?

      Reply
    25. 25.

      comrade scotts agenda of rage

      April 1, 2024 at 8:40 am

      @frosty:

       

      One thing I find really interesting about Pete Buttigieg is how the DOT has been brought to the forefront of the administration, and he’s really good at discussing it.

      Having worked for DOT for 27 years and saw all the Secretaries during that time frame, Pete’s definitely a different beast and you nail the reason: he’s a great communicator. None of his predecessors were.
      In fact, Sec of Transportation was for the longest time one of those cabinet positions typically given to the opposite party in some effort to show bipartisanship. Which given how transportation bills used to be funded, actually represented real bipartisanship at least when it came to old-school pork.
      I also recall reading that Pete asked for this position and given the Biden administration’s obvious goal of massive infrastructure spending in his first term, having a gifted communicator like Pete out in front made perfect sense.

      Reply
    26. 26.

      Jeffg166

      April 1, 2024 at 8:41 am

      My next door neighbor told me her medication went from $400 a month to $8 a month. She didn’t know why. Biden was my answer.

      Reply
    27. 27.

      Baud

      April 1, 2024 at 8:43 am

      @Jeffg166:

      👍

      Reply
    28. 28.

      SiubhanDuinne

      April 1, 2024 at 8:45 am

      @frosty:

      He was the perfect choice for that job. I was always a Mayor Pete fan, but when Biden nominated him to Transpo, I thought, Well, we’ve seen the last of Pete Buttigieg, that’s a Cabinet department where ambitious politicians go to die. But then I watched his confirmation hearings, and he was just powerful in articulating a critical role for transportation and infrastructure. He’s actually made these functions exciting and sexy, and I love watching him explain the complexities. He does it simply enough that even I can understand, yet I never feel that he’s condescending. I hope he stays in government, and I hope he goes as high as he wants.

      Reply
    29. 29.

      comrade scotts agenda of rage

      April 1, 2024 at 8:50 am

      @SiubhanDuinne:

      I hope he stays in government, and I hope he goes as high as he wants.

      Oh, there’s no doubt he’ll run for President again.

      Reply
    30. 30.

      Soprano2

      April 1, 2024 at 8:54 am

      It’s a great start to a Monday morning – the database where I do almost all my work is down because they did some stuff over the weekend. Every time I see the e-mail saying they’re going to do “maintenance” I hold my breath, because about once a month it messes up that database.

      I think hubby is going to come home today. I haven’t heard anything from the hospital yet, but I called the nurse on his floor and told her to have the doctor call me. I want to talk to her about his blood pressure. He has historically had high blood pressure when he doesn’t take any meds, but his BP has been pretty normal the whole time he’s been in the hospital. I want to ask her if she thinks perhaps his meds need to be adjusted. I’m wondering if taking too much BP medicine could be making him feel sluggish and tired all the time. I took his BP for a couple of weeks before Christmas, and it seems like it was always on the low side.

      Reply
    31. 31.

      Baud

      April 1, 2024 at 8:55 am

      @comrade scotts agenda of rage:

      We have more good people than we have offices for. It’s a pity.

      Reply
    32. 32.

      Dorothy A. Winsor

      April 1, 2024 at 8:56 am

      @SiubhanDuinne: His experience as a mayor was probably useful at DOT

      Reply
    33. 33.

      SiubhanDuinne

      April 1, 2024 at 9:02 am

      @Dorothy A. Winsor:

      Good point. In a way, it’s all potholes and snowpocalypses writ very, very large.

      Reply
    34. 34.

      TBone

      April 1, 2024 at 9:02 am

      @Jeffg166: was she at least curious about WHY?  Or was she just happy to benefit no matter how it happened and content to leave it at that?

      Reply
    35. 35.

      Soprano2

      April 1, 2024 at 9:07 am

      @Nukular Biskits: It’s why we have those annoying ads. I read somewhere that people have to see a message 7 times before they begin to absorb it. Everyone says advertising doesn’t work on them, but it must because otherwise companies wouldn’t spend millions of dollars on it. The key is to figure out the best place to advertise.

      One of the Republican candidates here is running an ad against one of his primary opponents about wanting to protect our land from China (they think this is a big issue, apparently). I think the ad is ineffective, because the audio is in Chinese; if I hear it from the other room I have no idea what it’s about. Most people only half pay attention to the commercials anyway. Maybe they think the language will get people to look, but I’m betting it has the opposite effect.

      Reply
    36. 36.

      SiubhanDuinne

      April 1, 2024 at 9:08 am

      @comrade scotts agenda of rage:

      Shit. I’m gonna hafta choose between Pete and Kamala, aren’t I?

      (FTR, it would be MVP for me in this scenario.)

      Reply
    37. 37.

      RSA

      April 1, 2024 at 9:08 am

      if they get rid of the 22nd amendment…

      This is a weird framing. There’s no “they” who can “get rid of” a Constitutional amendment. It’s the same process as adding an amendment, which has always involved ratification by 3/4 of the states.

      Reply
    38. 38.

      Dorothy A. Winsor

      April 1, 2024 at 9:09 am

      In the week since my publisher suggested I used tiktok and Instagram to reach YA readers, I’ve posted every day. I make mistakes, but they’re new mistakes each time, so that’s progress. Yesterday, I successfully flipped the image so a book title was no longer backwards. Today I aim to make a post from a video already in my gallery and then share the tiktok to Instagram. I’ll film the video today at the library which currently has a large display of YA fantasy books. I love my library.

      Reply
    39. 39.

      Lyrebird

      April 1, 2024 at 9:11 am

      @satby: ​
        oh THANK YOU for posting that. (and as always, THANK YOU AL!!) but I have been hoping Vote Vets would put something together that could be used in strongly Republican districts. This is fantastic.

      Reply
    40. 40.

      TBone

      April 1, 2024 at 9:12 am

      This lady judge is cool as all get out.  I love her name as well as her wisdom.

      Retired California Superior Court Judge LaDoris Hazzard Cordell: “Please don’t eat the daisies!” As always, the “you moron” part is left unspoken.

      https://youtu.be/bRaxfuYloQE

      Reply
    41. 41.

      lowtechcyclist

      April 1, 2024 at 9:12 am

      @Nukular Biskits:

      With all this in mind, Team Biden is going to have to keep messaging this EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. until Election Day.

      And the more we get our message into people’s minds early, the harder it will be for them to dislodge it later on.

      While the vast majority of potential voters aren’t paying conscious attention yet (or anytime soon), if they hear a short message enough times, it’ll register enough for them to buy into it without much thought if it makes sense to them.  Once that happens, we’re in the position of reinforcing the message while the other side’s in the position of having to try to dislodge it. Reinforcing is easier.

      Reply
    42. 42.

      zhena gogolia

      April 1, 2024 at 9:12 am

      @Betty Cracker: And Trump’s own words right below confirm it!

      Reply
    43. 43.

      lowtechcyclist

      April 1, 2024 at 9:15 am

      @Dorothy A. Winsor: ​
       

      I literally cannot read Trump’s all caps posts. I can’t tell where sentences stop and start, assuming there are sentences. Add that to the crazy talk and my brain just bounces off it.

      The main takeaway from my POV is that for him, even Christmas and Easter are all about his grievances. Worth mentioning to one’s Christianist friends if they should mention Dump.

      Reply
    44. 44.

      Soprano2

      April 1, 2024 at 9:16 am

      @SiubhanDuinne: This is true, a lot of a mayor or city manager’s job involves managing infrastructure. The citizens want all the money to go to police, fire and roads, because those are the three things they see that they think help them. If we didn’t have dedicated taxes and fees for everything, 90% of the money would probably go to those three things. So much of what city government does is invisible to most people, like inspecting restaurants or making sure your neighbor can’t have 10 dead cars parked on their property. Most people don’t think about things like that until it’s their neighbor with all those cars.

      Reply
    45. 45.

      TBone

      April 1, 2024 at 9:18 am

      @lowtechcyclist: every day is Festivus for the foolish.

      Reply
    46. 46.

      Soprano2

      April 1, 2024 at 9:18 am

      @Dorothy A. Winsor: It’s all stream of consciousness – he’s vomiting what’s in his brain onto social media. I agree, it’s unreadable.

      Reply
    47. 47.

      zhena gogolia

      April 1, 2024 at 9:18 am

      Say what you will about LP, they make lovely short films.

      Reply
    48. 48.

      Another Scott

      April 1, 2024 at 9:19 am

      @Jay C:

      https://clerk.house.gov/DischargePetition

      #1 has 213 signatures.

      #9 has 191 signatures.

      None of the summaries explicitly mention Ukraine, but instead talk about “common sense policies”. One may have to do some digging to figure out the details.

      HTH a little.

      Cheers,
      Scott.

      Reply
    49. 49.

      What Have the Romans Ever Done for Us?

      April 1, 2024 at 9:20 am

      @frosty: I have a family friend who is one of Buttigieg’s mom’s good friends. She told me about his place in Michigan but said not to tell anyone because it was supposed to be a secret, but I’ve since discovered, despite not breathing a word about it to anyone, that everyone seems to know about it. The general vicinity of where his house is happens to be one of my Shangri La’s – basically the whole of the East Coast of Lake Michigan North of Muskegon would do though. I don’t dream about a place on “the big lake” just one of the smaller ones near it, of which there are hundreds, maybe thousands.

      He is great with the media for sure and runs the Department well.

      Reply
    50. 50.

      Another Scott

      April 1, 2024 at 9:23 am

      @Soprano2: Low BP is dangerous in oldsters because, among other things, it increases the risk of falling when they get up.  (My FIL fell on the coffee table getting up out of his chair and cracked a couple ribs.  Ouch!).

      Best of luck with the meds and getting hubby home in good shape!

      Cheers,
      Scott.

      Reply
    51. 51.

      Brachiator

      April 1, 2024 at 9:29 am

      I never knew that Easter Monday is observed as a holiday in some countries. Is this when a resurrected Jesus went to have breakfast?

      Also, Trump is an idiot. If he sees his shadow, he rages and hurls stupid insults.

      He always sees his fat ass shadow.

      Reply
    52. 52.

      Jeffro

      April 1, 2024 at 9:30 am

      You almost have to laugh.  Almost.  The 22nd Amendment to the Constitution is AN AMENDMENT.  To THE CONSTITUTION.  It’s not some ‘norm’ or ‘tradition’ or even a ‘rule’ that we just sort of have around.

      These people are so fucking out of their minds with this bullshit.  “Rule of law?  Constitution?  Constitutional amendment?  What’s that? durrrrrrrrr”

      We KNOW you’re inspired by your darling little white supremacist blowhard mouthpiece, GOP!  Anything goes when you can’t win power legitimately, amirite GOP?  Just follow trumpov’s lead and honor absolutely nothing but your own quest for the power to hurt others.  Unbelievable.

      Reply
    53. 53.

      What Have the Romans Ever Done for Us?

      April 1, 2024 at 9:32 am

      @comrade scotts agenda of rage: I work at DOT too, but not quite as long as you (20 years August of next year). He’s definitely the best with the media I’ve seen. I remember Ray LaHood (one of those opposite party guys) because I briefed him once or twice.

      Also because of the comments he made when someone asked him what the most surprising thing about being Secretary was and he said, and I’m paraphrasing here, “that some GS 13 from OMB can tell me no and make it stick.” I saw that happen first hand and it IS weird but I don’t think it’s actually the GS 13 making those decisions, he or she is just the messenger.

      I will say that the Cass Sunstein era OMB made the job of getting new regulations out pretty difficult…I know he wrote a bunch of books that were popular – or as popular as books about the intersection of behavior, economics and the legal system ever get – but I felt like he either had some agenda that was counter to the goals of the administration, or let career staff with said agenda roll him all the time. At any rate I was expecting him to be good but was thoroughly unimpressed with him as an OMB OIRA director. It was another version of what I saw as the main flaw of the Obama era – giving people the benefit of the doubt even when they have repeatedly shown they don’t deserve it anymore.

      Reply
    54. 54.

      Brachiator

      April 1, 2024 at 9:37 am

      @Dorothy A. Winsor:

      Today I aim to make a post from a video already in my gallery and then share the tiktok to Instagram.

      Pretty soon you will be a video pro!

      Reply
    55. 55.

      Layer8Problem

      April 1, 2024 at 9:43 am

      @Brachiator: “I never knew that Easter Monday is observed as a holiday in some countries. Is this when a resurrected Jesus went to have breakfast?”

      Yes. Among the other benefits the Romans brought to Judea, they extended the weekend brunch menu into Monday.

      Reply
    56. 56.

      Bruce K in ATH-GR

      April 1, 2024 at 9:44 am

      @Layer8Problem: Easter Monday is actually a bank holiday in Greece. (However, it’s not until May 6 this year.)

      Reply
    57. 57.

      Baud

      April 1, 2024 at 9:45 am

      @Brachiator:

      I never knew that Easter Monday is observed as a holiday in some countries. Is this when a resurrected Jesus went to have breakfast?

       

      Monday is when he could get $1.50 hotdogs at Costco, which is closed on Easter Sunday.

      Reply
    58. 58.

      WereBear

      April 1, 2024 at 9:46 am

      @Betty Cracker: I stop this talk in their tracks with “Yes, thank goodness we have a President who has so much experience with NATO.”

      Reply
    59. 59.

      cmorenc

      April 1, 2024 at 9:50 am

      @RSA:

      This is a weird framing. There’s no “they” who can “get rid of” a Constitutional amendment. It’s the same process as adding an amendment, which has always involved ratification by 3/4 of the states.

      Knowledgeable RW politicos and think-tanks know that, and will more likely attempt to mount a call for a Constitutional Convention, which under Article V of the US Constitution, only requires 2/3 of the states (34) to call for such, as opposed to 3/4 to pass an Amendment to the current constitution (38).  Still a heavy lift, but with all the red states in the south and central mid-west, it’s not hard to see that they are only single digits short of being able to do so, whereas in even the worst red-wave election cycle, there are at least 13 reliably blue-enough states to block a RW constitutional amendment.

      Reply
    60. 60.

      TBone

      April 1, 2024 at 9:50 am

      On this April Fools’ Day, the Associated Press is running a series of articles highlighting the miriad ways Americans can be fooled.

      https://digbysblog.net/2024/04/01/no-april-foolin/

      Reply
    61. 61.

      Baud

      April 1, 2024 at 9:51 am

      Political humor on Reddit. Funny comments.

      Reply
    62. 62.

      Wapiti

      April 1, 2024 at 9:52 am

      @SiubhanDuinne: Well… MVP is probably going to need a White male running mate in 2028. So the primaries might be about who gets that nod.

      Reply
    63. 63.

      Soprano2

      April 1, 2024 at 9:53 am

      @Another Scott: What’s so crazy is that his uncontrolled BP used to be dangerously high. I’m wondering whether his weight loss the last couple of years plus getting older has lowered his BP enough that he doesn’t need the meds anymore.

      Reply
    64. 64.

      lowtechcyclist

      April 1, 2024 at 9:55 am

      @Brachiator: ​
       

      I never knew that Easter Monday is observed as a holiday in some countries. Is this when a resurrected Jesus went to have breakfast?

      You’ve heard of the Last Supper, of course. Well, Easter Monday celebrates the First (Resurrected) Brunch. ;-)

      Seriously, there’s exactly zero events in the Bible that specifically happen on the day after the Resurrection. Here in Maryland, the schools have Good Friday and Easter Monday off, so spring break in most counties is the week before Easter.

      When I’ve griped about the absurdity of the Easter Monday holiday, my wife used to say it was a travel day. That never made sense to me: Easter-related celebrations look like church in the morning, then a big family meal in the middle of the day, so plenty of time to get back home afterwards.

      I looked it up awhile back on the DOT website (too lazy right now to find it), but air traffic on Easter Monday was something like 8% more than the Mondays a week before and a week after. Not anything that would justify a day off of school, and nowhere close to, say, the day before Thanksgiving.

      Reply
    65. 65.

      SiubhanDuinne

      April 1, 2024 at 9:56 am

      @Wapiti:

      That’s my dream ticket for 2028.

      Reply
    66. 66.

      WereBear

      April 1, 2024 at 9:57 am

      @Jay C: You are right. They also have a 2 mug pack…

      Reply
    67. 67.

      RevRick

      April 1, 2024 at 9:58 am

      @Princess: Like women in Iran and Afghanistan. Like Jews in Germany in the 1930s. Like blacks in post-Reconstruction America. Like indigenous native peoples after Columbus showed up.

      Reply
    68. 68.

      Baud

      April 1, 2024 at 9:58 am

      @SiubhanDuinne:

      Traitor!

      Reply
    69. 69.

      WereBear

      April 1, 2024 at 10:01 am

      @Dorothy A. Winsor: I’m on TikTok too!

      • Watch my videos on TikTok at Way of Cats.

      And friend me? Unless we already are. I seem to remember following you there?

      Reply
    70. 70.

      Baud

      April 1, 2024 at 10:02 am

      @Dorothy A. Winsor:

      I can’t wait for the Winsor challenge to go viral.

      Reply
    71. 71.

      WereBear

      April 1, 2024 at 10:03 am

      @lowtechcyclist: Worth mentioning to one’s Christianist friends if they should mention Dump.

       

      Trumpists are a different story, and I think their golden calf is all they have room for now.

      Reply
    72. 72.

      RevRick

      April 1, 2024 at 10:04 am

      @Anne Laurie: There’s some focus-group studies that show that the most effective anti-Trump messages are not what he’s done but what he’s threatening to do. That also, of course, applies to the GOP as a whole with their 2025 Project.

      Reply
    73. 73.

      lowtechcyclist

      April 1, 2024 at 10:06 am

      @cmorenc: ​
       

      Knowledgeable RW politicos and think-tanks know that, and will more likely attempt to mount a call for a Constitutional Convention, which under Article V of the US Constitution, only requires 2/3 of the states (34) to call for such, as opposed to 3/4 to pass an Amendment to the current constitution (38). Still a heavy lift, but with all the red states in the south and central mid-west, it’s not hard to see that they are only single digits short of being able to do so, whereas in even the worst red-wave election cycle, there are at least 13 reliably blue-enough states to block a RW constitutional amendment.

      Um, NO. A Constitutional Convention only bypasses the need for Congress to pass an amendment. An amendment passed by a convention would still need to be ratified by 38 states.

      It’s right there in the language of Article V:

      The Congress, whenever two thirds of both Houses shall deem it necessary, shall propose Amendments to this Constitution, or, on the Application of the Legislatures of two thirds of the several States, shall call a Convention for proposing Amendments, which, in either Case, shall be valid to all Intents and Purposes, as Part of this Constitution, when ratified by the Legislatures of three fourths of the several States, or by Conventions in three fourths thereof, as the one or the other Mode of Ratification may be proposed by the Congress

      This is why I’ve never grokked why people get all agitated about the possibility of a Constitutional convention. Anything they pass still has that same 38-state hurdle, and good luck with that.

      Reply
    74. 74.

      Matt McIrvin

      April 1, 2024 at 10:15 am

      @lowtechcyclist: The argument I hear is that the original Constitutional Convention’s output wasn’t passed under the amendment provisions of the Articles of Confederation, so there’s no reason to expect the Constitution’s process to be any barrier to a new one– laws only apply if people act like they do, so it’s a question of what you can make stick.

      Reply
    75. 75.

      TS

      April 1, 2024 at 10:17 am

      @Brachiator:

      I never knew that Easter Monday is observed as a holiday in some countries. Is this when a resurrected Jesus went to have breakfast?

      It’s when workers have a 4 day weekend – as in Australia.

      Reply
    76. 76.

      Almost Retired

      April 1, 2024 at 10:18 am

      I love the Jack Wolf quote about there only being two countries where millions of Russians live in freedom – Ukraine and the US.  Never thought of that before, but it’s a powerful observation.

      Reply
    77. 77.

      kalakal

      April 1, 2024 at 10:24 am

      @Brachiator:

      I never knew that Easter Monday is observed as a holiday in some countries. Is this when a resurrected Jesus went to have breakfast?

      It’s a 4 day weekend in UK, I think the Monday holiday is driven by the tradition that if the actual holiday falls on a Sunday everybody gets the Monday as a holiday from work

      Reply
    78. 78.

      snoey

      April 1, 2024 at 10:24 am

      @lowtechcyclist: The clause that allows for state conventions instead of legislatures to ratify amendments seems to open the process to calvinball.

      More likely is a bogus scotus argument that the 22nd really means consecutive terms.

      Reply
    79. 79.

      rikyrah

      April 1, 2024 at 10:25 am

      @Jeffg166:

      My next door neighbor told me her medication went from $400 a month to $8 a month. She didn’t know why. Biden was my answer

       

      That’s right. And, tell her to tell everyone else.

      Reply
    80. 80.

      lowtechcyclist

      April 1, 2024 at 10:26 am

      @WereBear:

      Trumpists are a different story, and I think their golden calf is all they have room for now.

      Never hurts to give them reason to be uncomfortable about their worship of their orange cow.

      No, it won’t change their minds overnight. Or even in time for this election.  But being derisive of Dump, and for reasons based on their home turf, will at the very least make them more reluctant to spout their bullshit about him around you.  And might even plant some doubts, you never know.

      Reply
    81. 81.

      Matt McIrvin

      April 1, 2024 at 10:32 am

      @snoey: We don’t actually have evidence that the current SCOTUS is that personally loyal to Trump, as opposed to generally reactionary– his attempts to get them to overturn the 2020 election wouldn’t have been booted so quickly if they were.

      Reply
    82. 82.

      Brachiator

      April 1, 2024 at 10:32 am

      @WereBear:

      Trumpists are a different story, and I think their golden calf is all they have room for now.

      I’m surprised that Trump isn’t selling a golden calf to go along with the gold tennis shoes.

       

      Reply
    83. 83.

      rikyrah

      April 1, 2024 at 10:33 am

      @Dorothy A. Winsor:

       

      Your handle on TikTok?

      Reply
    84. 84.

      What Have the Romans Ever Done for Us?

      April 1, 2024 at 10:34 am

      @lowtechcyclist: The simplest path is to have the ScROTUS find that particular amendment “unconstitutional” because it conflicts with some other Constitutional principle, because of some bullshit originalist or textualist or some other new made up term mumbo jumbo reasoning they can come up with over their morning coffee.

      Reply
    85. 85.

      Brachiator

      April 1, 2024 at 10:38 am

      @kalakal:

      It’s a 4 day weekend in UK, I think the Monday holiday is driven by the tradition that if the actual holiday falls on a Sunday everybody gets the Monday as a holiday from work

      Uh, isn’t Easter always on Sunday?

      In some cultures, I think the week after Easter is Bright Week. Easter Monday is the first day of Bright Week.

      Easter Monday is a bank holiday in the UK.

      Reply
    86. 86.

      cmorenc

      April 1, 2024 at 10:38 am

      @lowtechcyclist: Happy to be informed of my erroneous assumption that Constitutional Convention bypasses the 3/4 ratification requirement.  Nevertheless, it is true that by a vast proportion, it is RWers, not progressives who push the notion that a Constitutional convention is needed to cure in one fell swoop what they think ails the current version of the constitution.

      Reply
    87. 87.

      pat

      April 1, 2024 at 10:42 am

      @Soprano2: ​
       
      Do you have a BP measuring device at home? I’d suggest taking his BP for a while, like maybe morning and evening. With or without meds.

      Reply
    88. 88.

      Luther Siler

      April 1, 2024 at 10:43 am

      “It’s an amendment to the Constitution” sounds great until the Supreme Court decides no one has standing to sue to keep him out of office, the states aren’t allowed to keep him off the ballot because the amendment doesn’t mention elections, and it REALLY meant more than two terms in a row anyway.

      Plus he’s not President, he’s ACTING President.  Totally different.

      Reply
    89. 89.

      TBone

      April 1, 2024 at 10:44 am

      @Matt McIrvin: Ginni Thomas is all I need to know in that regard. That’s hard evidence enough for me.

      Reply
    90. 90.

      Gin & Tonic

      April 1, 2024 at 10:46 am

      @Brachiator: In Eastern Europe, the Monday after Easter is the remnant of a pre-Christian springtime holiday, in which boys sprinkle (or douse) girls they like with water. The springtime/planting symbolism should be obvious. This does not, of course explain a bank holiday in Britain.

      Reply
    91. 91.

      Another Scott

      April 1, 2024 at 10:47 am

      @lowtechcyclist: They probably figure that since a secret cabal meeting got rid of the Articles of Confederation, they can do the same with all the pesky constraints of the Constitution via such a meeting as well.

      MountVernon.org:

      Yet, the Articles of Confederation’s weaknesses triumphed over its virtues. As a result, the Annapolis Convention was called on September 11, 1786, just a few weeks after the outbreak of Shays’ Rebellion. The convention was called initially to address changes regarding trade, but the delegates realized the problems had a broader scope. John Dickinson, who had chaired the committee to draft the Articles, was president of the Annapolis Convention. He along with other delegates, particularly Alexander Hamilton, resolved to reconvene at a convention in Philadelphia to revise the Articles in May 1787.

      The Philadelphia Convention of 1787 went beyond its mandate to revise the Articles by replacing it with a new constitution. However, the delegates to the Constitutional Convention incorporated several ideas from the Articles into the new charter. Examples of this incorporation include the full faith and credit clause and the power to declare war. In addition, the privileges and immunities clause of Article IV of the Articles was incorporated into Article IV of the Constitution.

      Even after state conventions ratified the Constitution in 1788, the Articles of Confederation continued to inspire changes to the new federal charter. In 1791, Article II of the Articles of Confederation served as the basis for the 10th Amendment to the Constitution. Born out of necessity to fight the War for Independence, the Articles of Confederation created a “perpetual union” that later generations of Americans would later strive to make “more perfect.”

      Sensible present-day changes could be made by sensible people in a new Constitutional Convention.  Of course, if a sufficient number of sensible people were present then one wouldn’t be as needed in the first place… :-/

      Cheers,
      Scott.

      Reply
    92. 92.

      TBone

      April 1, 2024 at 10:49 am

      Doing my part today, whatever I can no matter how small the pebble, it makes ripples.  If he hates it, I spread it!

      https://www.democraticunderground.com/100218827044

      Oh and it’s great so that’s a big plus! 😆

      Reply
    93. 93.

      Gin & Tonic

      April 1, 2024 at 10:50 am

      @Soprano2: We went through something like this with my (very old) MIL, but I can’t remember what it’s called. The effect was that when she was lying down, her BP would go up, then when she sat up, it would drop, enough that she felt faint or sometimes would pass out. The solution was to elevate the head of her bed – you can of course use a hospital-type bed, but there are foam wedge cushions that’ll do the same. The angled sleeping reduced the resting BP somewhat.

      But diagnosing this requires an experienced gerontologist.

      Reply
    94. 94.

      rikyrah

      April 1, 2024 at 10:51 am

      Peanut goes on her first trip by herself today. She’s going to NY City for Spring Break with classmates. Yes, they will be chaperoned, but, still. I have requested a daily proof of life selfie from her…LOL

      Reply
    95. 95.

      kalakal

      April 1, 2024 at 10:51 am

      @Brachiator: Yes it is, but it’s a general rule. applies to christmas as well. A bank holiday is a public holiday.

      Reply
    96. 96.

      schrodingers_cat

      April 1, 2024 at 10:52 am

      @Gin & Tonic: That sounds a lot like Holi celebrations in north India.

      Reply
    97. 97.

      snoey

      April 1, 2024 at 10:53 am

      @Matt McIrvin: That’s true now, but we’re not in the world where TFG is likely to win a third term and many other things will have been changed for the worse should that disaster happen.

      Reply
    98. 98.

      moonbat

      April 1, 2024 at 10:53 am

      In Washington, Easter Monday began as a celebration of Easter for the African American domestic workers whose children were not welcome at the White House Easter egg hunt, egg roll, and story time even though they were the folks who kept “the nation’s” Easter celebrations running smoothly. So they took the following Monday for their own celebration. In DC going to the Smithsonian National Zoo for such celebrations has become an annual tradition.

      Reply
    99. 99.

      pat

      April 1, 2024 at 10:54 am

      I mentioned in a previous thread that I am in Austria now.

      A couple of things:  Two people have asked me if I plan to move here permanently if trump is elected.  (Um, no….)

      Also, we were invited on Saturday to a friend’s place out in the country where he could burn his Easter fire.  This morning we read in the paper that, usually, all the Easter fires increase air pollution, but this time it couldn’t compete with the dust blowing in from the Sahara.

      Also, stores (including grocery stores) were closed on Sunday (always) and Monday.  Plan ahead with the groceries….!

      Reply
    100. 100.

      RSA

      April 1, 2024 at 10:57 am

      @cmorenc: Aha, that does make sense, and it would be “they”. Thanks.

      Reply
    101. 101.

      JML

      April 1, 2024 at 10:58 am

      I think my favorite bit of the crazy-ass right-wingers agitating for the repeal of the 22nd amendment is how they claim that the people who passed the amendment couldn’t have conceived of a president serving non-consecutive terms. It’s as if Grover Cleveland didn’t exist?

      Reply
    102. 102.

      Tony Jay

      April 1, 2024 at 11:00 am

      @kalakal:

        Everybody gets the Monday as a holiday from work

      Not everyone. For example we brave, unsung (but did I mention brave?) heroes of the NHS have to cover the Bank Holidays. I was in today.

      Bang those pots and pans, Britain!

      Reply
    103. 103.

      Baud

      April 1, 2024 at 11:00 am

      @JML:

      🎶Mister we could use a man like Herbert Hoover Grover Cleveland again.🎶

      Reply
    104. 104.

      Frankensteinbeck

      April 1, 2024 at 11:02 am

      @Matt McIrvin:

      We don’t actually have evidence that the current SCOTUS is that personally loyal to Trump

      We have a lot of evidence to the contrary.  Trump has won almost nothing that has gone before the Supreme Court.  They let him delay one court case and voted 9-0 that he can’t be taken off ballots – which means the legal reasoning for that one was good enough the liberals agreed.

      For the latter I am told, and I am too lazy to look it up, that Article 14 states that congress does have to pass an enforcement law, that it wasn’t just pulled out of SCOTUS’s ass.

      EDIT – Something else I read that hasn’t gotten much circulation.  Apparently when SCOTUS sent the Texas immigration law back to the 5th Circuit, the 5th Circuit struck it down.  As disgustingly corrupt as our court system is, conservatives are winning less than you think.

      Reply
    105. 105.

      Sure Lurkalot

      April 1, 2024 at 11:02 am

      Trump is a self-medicated John Gill in 2024, odds are he will be a literal puppet by 2028 so we’d actually get Stephen Miller pulling the strings (even moreso than now).

      I’m scaring the shit out of myself.

      Reply
    106. 106.

      Torrey

      April 1, 2024 at 11:02 am

      @TBone: ​
       
      Judge Cordell makes excellent sense. I think the judges need to spell things out: “you may not make threats, explicit or implicit, against [name specific groups, including judges’ families]; you may not do [X, Y, Z].” Make the point clear that none of this interferes with the conduct of an election campaign. “Nothing in this instruction impedes your ability to debate policy, to state your policies or to argue with your opponent’s policies, to encourage your voters to vote, or any other action involved in a campaign.”

      BTW, I see that Her Honor has a book out, titled, appropriately enough, Her Honor. I had a look at the Amazon write-up, ad I will be buying it.

      Reply
    107. 107.

      TBone

      April 1, 2024 at 11:02 am

      JFC Delco, get your shit together.  Woolley bully!

      Today we have the story on Delaware County’s first diversity, equity, and inclusion director, who was fired after she filed a complaint alleging racial discrimination by her boss

      Reply
    108. 108.

      Philbert

      April 1, 2024 at 11:04 am

      @cmorenc: If they have a Constitution Convention, the Blue states get to make suggestions too!

      Reply
    109. 109.

      TBone

      April 1, 2024 at 11:05 am

      @Torrey: 😘👍Her Honor is a badass. For the rest of these cucks, it’s like they all know the old saying:

      Don’t just do something, stand there!

      Reply
    110. 110.

      Uncle Cosmo

      April 1, 2024 at 11:05 am

      @Another Scott: 

      @Soprano2: Low BP is dangerous in oldsters because, among other things, it increases the risk of falling when they get up

      One year back in the Oughts, on the Friday before July 4, I got a call from the dental office next door to the house where I grew up. “We saw your mother passed out in her garden & called the paramedics. They just took her to the hospital.”

      By the time I got there she seemed OK. The docs found her BP was low but nothing else was amiss and released her the next day. In consultation with my brother and her MD, we decided to discontinue her maintenance BP meds and check her readings regularly. BP stabilized in normal range and she never passed out again. Seems it was “white coat syndrome” – whenever she went to the dr’s office her BP would go up & not knowing any better he’d prescribed Rx to bring it down.

      Reply
    111. 111.

      yellowdog

      April 1, 2024 at 11:06 am

      @SiubhanDuinne: Me too. But Pete is younger; he can wait. But isn’t it great that we have a deep bench?

      Reply
    112. 112.

      Soprano2

      April 1, 2024 at 11:08 am

      @pat: I do, I was thinking about that. I want to talk to the doctor and see what she thinks.

      Reply
    113. 113.

      Soprano2

      April 1, 2024 at 11:10 am

      @Gin & Tonic: Lucky for us, I switched him to a gerontologist last year for just this reason. There are specialists for children because their needs are different. The needs of older people are different too, so I decided he’d be better off with one of them. Besides, I don’t think his previous doctor gave even one fuck about his memory problems. That guy’s name was Post, and it was certainly apt.

      Reply
    114. 114.

      Citizen Alan

      April 1, 2024 at 11:10 am

      @lowtechcyclist: I think the scary part comes in the word legislatures. As in, how many state legislatures at this point are so hopelessly.Gerry mandered in favor of the republicans that they would Is approve a fascist constitution over the wishes of the majority of their voters?

      Reply
    115. 115.

      hueyplong

      April 1, 2024 at 11:12 am

      @JML: You have to remember that all they know is what FoxNews told them today. It’s likely that FoxNews has not not mentioned Grover Cleveland today.

      Reply
    116. 116.

      Uncle Cosmo

      April 1, 2024 at 11:14 am

      @Baud: ​Cracked me up that the reporter referred to the toppling podium as a “pulpit!”

      Reply
    117. 117.

      pat

      April 1, 2024 at 11:16 am

      @Soprano2:

      It can only give you good information, in my opinion.  When I start a new med, I take my BP a couple of times a day, just to check.  Sometimes I’ve felt tired in the morning and it’s down to 110 or so. Good to know.

      Good luck, you have an extremely difficult road ahead of you.  Come here for good thoughts (always welcome) and good advice (to ignore if necessary.)

      Reply
    118. 118.

      Brachiator

      April 1, 2024 at 11:17 am

      @SiubhanDuinne:

      Shit. I’m gonna hafta choose between Pete and Kamala, aren’t I?

      I would like to see Mayor Pete moved into an ambassadorship, to get some foreign policy experience.

      Reply
    119. 119.

      hueyplong

      April 1, 2024 at 11:17 am

      @Frankensteinbeck: You’re right about the Fifth Circuit case and you could add that the Fifth fairly clearly understood that it was supposed to cut the bullshit and dimiss when the case was returned to them.

      Reply
    120. 120.

      Baud

      April 1, 2024 at 11:19 am

      @Frankensteinbeck:

      Not struck down, but the Fifth Circuit declined to allow the Texas law to stay in effect pending appeal.

      Reply
    121. 121.

      satby

      April 1, 2024 at 11:21 am

      @Jeffg166: @SiubhanDuinne: Infrastructure improvements are a passion for (still in my heart my) Mayor Pete. He did a ton of road and park improvements and redesign for better use while mayor, and put in some sort of storm sewer monitoring system on flood prone streets as an early warning for the city to take action before the St. Joe river flooded them. He started a program to buy back houses on the flood plain that basically flooded every year, and had the riverbanks through town reinforced and made higher where possible. The first three years I lived here there were floods closing streets near the farmers market, houses, and the downtown park, which was designed to be a flood plain. We’ve had a lot of rain each year, but no flooding. I’m sure we might with a catastrophic storm, but people say it used to be a routine thing. Dude’s good at infrastructure.

      Reply
    122. 122.

      Scout211

      April 1, 2024 at 11:22 am

      @Soprano2: What’s so crazy is that his uncontrolled BP used to be dangerously high. I’m wondering whether his weight loss the last couple of years plus getting older has lowered his BP enough that he doesn’t need the meds anymore.

      I’m late to this discussion, but talking to the doctor about his bp meds is a good idea.  We deal with this all the time with my husband and his many specialists.  There are so many factors when we are talking about older adults with fragile health and high blood pressure, low blood pressure and bp meds.  Using just a standard recommended number does not always apply to everyone equally.

      Long term high blood pressure can damage kidneys (which happened to my husband) but too low can cause other issues like dehydration, falls and confusion. Both my husband’s cardiologist and his nephrologist would like to keep his bp low but the cardiologist agreed to change his medication to a different class of bp meds.  That seems to have made a big difference.  So that may be something to explore with his doctor.

      Long-term poor kidney function can be a factor in dementia and at first my husband’s neurologist thought his cognitive decline was vascular dementia due to his kidney disease and his cardiac issues.  After the MRI, he changed it to Alzheimer’s.

      It’s been a long road for us but at least at this point all of my husband’s doctors are working together.  But none of them suggest stopping the bp meds even though it tests low sometimes.  The change to a different class of bp meds worked well for him, though. It could be an option for your husband.

      Sending you strength and hoping you have some answers and some help.

      Reply
    123. 123.

      Brachiator

      April 1, 2024 at 11:22 am

      @Gin & Tonic:

       In Eastern Europe, the Monday after Easter is the remnant of a pre-Christian springtime holiday, in which boys sprinkle (or douse) girls they like with water. The springtime/planting symbolism should be obvious.

      Sprinkle. Water. Sounds like fertility rituals being cleaned up.

      This does not, of course explain a bank holiday in Britain.

      Maybe in olden times, aristocrats would sprinkle pound notes on the heads of peasants.

      There’s probably some tradition behind declaring bank holidays.

      Reply
    124. 124.

      Uncle Cosmo

      April 1, 2024 at 11:31 am

      @RevRick: ​There’s some focus-group studies that show that the most effective anti-Trump messages are not what he’s done but what he’s threatening to do. That also, of course, applies to the GOP as a whole with their 2025 Project.

      Well heck, chessplayers have understood that for generations. From about a century ago:

      A great chessmaster (Aron Nimzovich IIRC) who was sensitive to tobacco smoke extracted a promise fromhis heavy-smoking opponent (might’ve been Emanuel Lasker) to refrain from smoking during their impending tournament game. At a tense moment in the contest, the opponent withdrew a cigar from his jacket pocket and placed it on the table next to his scoresheet. The GCM ran to complain to the tournament director, who mildly pointed out that the opponent had not violated their agreement since he was not in fact smoking the cigar. Yes but he’s threatening to smoke it – and everyone knows that the threat is often stronger than its execution!

      (Nimzovich, a great original thinker whose strategy was often too convoluted for his own good, is also know for an instance when, about to be beaten by a clearly lesser opponent, he jumped up on the table scattering the pieces in all directions and shouted Why must I lose to this idiot??!!!??!! :^D)​

      Reply
    125. 125.

      Dorothy A. Winsor

      April 1, 2024 at 11:34 am

      @WereBear: I follow you but it’s from a different account than the one I used on my phone. I like my PC one better! That’s what I use to see your posts.

      Reply
    126. 126.

      Dorothy A. Winsor

      April 1, 2024 at 11:35 am

      @rikyrah: @dorothywinsor (I think)

      Reply
    127. 127.

      Dorothy A. Winsor

      April 1, 2024 at 11:35 am

      @Baud: I’d settle for selling a few books

      Reply
    128. 128.

      Uncle Cosmo

      April 1, 2024 at 11:43 am

      @Sure Lurkalot: ​???? Who TF is “John Gill”???? Google is coming up empty.

      Reply
    129. 129.

      Mike S. (Now with a Democratic Congressperson!)

      April 1, 2024 at 11:45 am

      @cmorenc:  But don’t changes to the constitution proposed by a Constitutional Convention need to be ratified by 3/4 of the  states? I thought that it was just a way to bypass congress, not state ratification

       

      Eta: @lowtechcyclist:  got to this before me and muchmore thoroughly, but at least I remembered correctly!

      Reply
    130. 130.

      Soprano2

      April 1, 2024 at 11:51 am

      @Scout211: That’s helpful information, thanks. It’s so hard to know what to do because you have to balance one harm against another harm.

      Reply
    131. 131.

      rikyrah

      April 1, 2024 at 11:53 am

      @Dorothy A. Winsor:

       

      thanks. found you and am following

      Reply
    132. 132.

      Brachiator

      April 1, 2024 at 11:59 am

      @lowtechcyclist:

      This is why I’ve never grokked why people get all agitated about the possibility of a Constitutional convention. Anything they pass still has that same 38-state hurdle, and good luck with that.

      A great discussion here, and I have certainly been educated about the process.

      Maybe this has already been covered. I think the fear of a constitutional convention is that radicals would seek to rewrite the entire Constitution, not just propose amendments.

      Still a heavy lift.

      Reply
    133. 133.

      SFAW

      April 1, 2024 at 12:30 pm

      @Dorothy A. Winsor: ​
       

      I can’t tell where sentences stop and start, assuming there are sentences.

      Re: sentences stopping and starting: here’s another one of his, although his upper/lower case usage was better:
      “riverrun, past Eve and Adam’s, from swerve of short to bend of bay, brings us by a commodious vicus of recirculation back to Howth Castle and Environs.”
      Although it does make a little more sense than his usual ravings.

      Reply
    134. 134.

      SFAW

      April 1, 2024 at 12:34 pm

      @Uncle Cosmo:

      ???? Who TF is “John Gill”???? Google is coming up empty.

      Star Trek (TOS) reference. “Patterns of Force” episode. He was the “leader” of a Nazi-like society, but Skip Homeier’s character was the real power, and he kept Gill (a former history professor, I think, maybe at Starfleet Academy?) perpetually doped up.

      ETA: Here’s a digest of the episode.

      Reply
    135. 135.

      mrmoshpotato

      April 1, 2024 at 12:37 pm

      @Ben Cisco:

      What’s left of his mind is an abyss, no need to look in there.

      Can’t wait for Election Day!!

      A Kremlin-humping abyss.

      Reply
    136. 136.

      Barbara

      April 1, 2024 at 12:44 pm

      @Scout211: I would expect a lot of push back for eliminating BP meds entirely for the reasons you outlined.  High blood pressure is known as the “silent” killer — but especially for African Americans, who are at much higher risk for kidney disease.

      Reply
    137. 137.

      Matt McIrvin

      April 1, 2024 at 12:48 pm

      @pat: I know from online experience that Austria quite definitely has the equivalent of Trump supporters. Maybe not as powerful, for the time being.

      Reply
    138. 138.

      Matt McIrvin

      April 1, 2024 at 12:50 pm

      @SFAW: he was Captain Kirk’s old history prof, who for some reason believed the Nazis were an “efficient society” so you could do good by having Nazism without the evil. He learns the hard way that that’s not true, but I question how good a historian he could be to believe that in the first place.

      Reply
    139. 139.

      pat

      April 1, 2024 at 12:55 pm

      @Matt McIrvin: ​
       
      I have never understood the Austrian politics. Too many parties. Ha. But obviously our friends (Austrian; we don’t know any Americans here) are aware of the dangers of trump and wonder if it’s time to get out if he is elected.

      Reply
    140. 140.

      Brachiator

      April 1, 2024 at 1:26 pm

      @Sure Lurkalot:

      Trump is a self-medicated John Gill in 2024, odds are he will be a literal puppet by 2028 so we’d actually get Stephen Miller pulling the strings (even moreso than now).

      Cool TOS reference. Trump alternately seems nuts or medicated, but he seems to throw off efforts to make him a puppet. Any manipulation must be indirect.

      Reply
    141. 141.

      Manyakitty

      April 1, 2024 at 1:30 pm

      @SiubhanDuinne: in my dream scenario, we’ll see 8 years of Harris-Buttigieg, then he’ll be ready for the big chair.

      Reply
    142. 142.

      randy khan

      April 1, 2024 at 1:49 pm

      @Frankensteinbeck:

      For the latter I am told, and I am too lazy to look it up, that Article 14 states that congress does have to pass an enforcement law, that it wasn’t just pulled out of SCOTUS’s ass.

      That is not the first reading of that provision that comes to mind when you see it.  This is the text, which is Section 5 of the 14th Amendment:

      “The Congress shall have power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article.”

      First, it does not say that only Congress can enforce the 14th Amendment – just that Congress has that power.  (It doesn’t even say “have the power,” which might imply that it has all of the power, although again that’s not a slam-dunk obvious reading, just “have power.”)

      Second, because it’s in Section 5, not Section 3 (which is the insurrection clause), it applies to the entire 14th Amendment.  Nobody ever has claimed that Section 1, which is the basic citizenship and civil rights provision of the 14th Amendment, or Section 4, the kind of obscure provision about honoring debts (which basically says that U.S. debts will be honored, but that the U.S. is not responsible for debts of the Confederacy) require Congressional enforcement mechanisms.  So the Supreme Court reading here is inconsistent with how Section 5 has been understood before.  Not to mention arguably being in direct conflict with a whole slew of cases that treat Section 1 as being enforceable on its own terms.

      Reply
    143. 143.

      Torrey

      April 1, 2024 at 1:49 pm

      @Brachiator: ​

      Trump . . . seems to throw off efforts to make him a puppet.

      I have never before claimed to understand what is going on in Vladimir Putin’s head, but I suspect he would disagree with this assessment.​

      Reply
    144. 144.

      Brachiator

      April 1, 2024 at 2:04 pm

      @Torrey:

      RE: Trump . . . seems to throw off efforts to make him a puppet.

      I have never before claimed to understand what is going on in Vladimir Putin’s head, but I suspect he would disagree with this assessment.​

      Good point. But I think that the Heritage Foundation has more impact on Trump than Putin.

      It’s interesting that NY Times hack Haberman is all up Trump’s ass, but doesn’t have much coherent to say about who influences him.

      Reply
    145. 145.

      wjca

      April 1, 2024 at 2:07 pm

      @Brachiator: I would like to see Mayor Pete moved into an ambassadorship, to get some foreign policy experience.

      Secretary of State might be better.  Broader foreign policy experience.

      Reply
    146. 146.

      wjca

      April 1, 2024 at 2:25 pm

      @Manyakitty: in my dream scenario, we’ll see 8 years of Harris-Buttigieg, then he’ll be ready for the big chair.

      A Harris-Buttigieg ticket is a good way to lose.

      People tend to be change averse.  They’ll accept one novelty, then they want a breather before the next change.  That was part of Hilary’s difficulty.  A first black President, followed by a first woman Persident?  Just too much change too fast for some people.  (And “some people” are enough to shift a close election.  Which is mostly what we have.)

      Having had an “old white guy” as President means that MVP has a decent change in 2028.  But add a gay guy to the ticket?  Again, too much change too fast.  Pete is young, he can wait.  Much as I’d love to see him as President, and sooner rather than later, I’m wary of trying to move the needle too fast.

      Reply
    147. 147.

      strange visitor (from another planet)

      April 1, 2024 at 2:25 pm

      @rikyrah:  bummer. we’ve only been teased by spring in nyc. the weather here is gonna be dreary and grey for the next several days.

      Reply
    148. 148.

      strange visitor (from another planet)

      April 1, 2024 at 2:35 pm

      @Uncle Cosmo: star trek tos episode. patterns of force. gill sets up a nazi regime but is usurped and sedated by the “deputy fuhrer” melakon who uses gill as a big brother figurehead of the fascist state

      eta- i see sfaw and others got there already.

      Reply
    149. 149.

      Bill Arnold

      April 1, 2024 at 2:53 pm

      @lowtechcyclist:

      The main takeaway from my POV is that for him, even Christmas and Easter are all about his grievances.

      Representative Jason Smith’s (Chair of the Committee on Ways and Means) Easter email newsletter is similar in form, though not all caps and better written. It starts like this:

      He is risen! Wishing you and your loved ones a happy and blessed Easter Sunday!
      On President Joe Biden’s first day in office, he declared war on American energy by cancelling the Keystone XL pipeline, which would have supported thousands of jobs and supplied 830,000 barrels of oil from Canada to U.S. refineries. It’s gotten even worse since then.

      This may become a norm for MAGA politicians.

      Reply
    150. 150.

      Bill Arnold

      April 1, 2024 at 3:10 pm

      @What Have the Romans Ever Done for Us?:

      The simplest path is to have the ScROTUS find that particular amendment “unconstitutional” because it conflicts with some other Constitutional principle,

      Perhaps you would accept a SCOTUS opinion that the constitution is unconstitutional, but many millions would not, and as those on the militant right continuously remind us, the USA Constitution includes an implied mechanism other than “petition” for address of grievances.

      Reply
    151. 151.

      Kayla Rudbek

      April 1, 2024 at 3:52 pm

      @Almost Retired: how many Russians live in Finland and the Baltic states?

      Reply

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