Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Beware of advice from anyone for whom Democrats are “they” and not “we.”

Red lights blinking on democracy’s dashboard

Never give a known liar the benefit of the doubt.

White supremacy is terrorism.

Today in our ongoing national embarrassment…

They don’t have outfits that big. nor codpieces that small.

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

The media handbook says “controversial” is the most negative description that can be used for a Republican.

Nancy smash is sick of your bullshit.

In after Baud. Damn.

People are complicated. Love is not.

If you’re gonna whine, it’s time to resign!

When I was faster i was always behind.

Never entrust democracy to any process that requires Republicans to act in good faith.

You passed on an opportunity to be offended? What are you even doing here?

The poor and middle-class pay taxes, the rich pay accountants, the wealthy pay politicians.

Quote tweet friends, screenshot enemies.

The real work of an opposition party is to hold the people in power accountable.

Too often we confuse noise with substance. too often we confuse setbacks with defeat.

He seems like a smart guy, but JFC, what a dick!

He wakes up lying, and he lies all day.

They were going to turn on one another at some point. It was inevitable.

“Loving your country does not mean lying about its history.”

Wow, you are pre-disappointed. How surprising.

You are here: Home / Open Threads / Mr. Bear Thinks We Need an Open Thread

Reader Interactions

176Comments

  5. 5.

    rikyrah

    @TBone:

    The U.S. Department of Education on Friday announced a final rule that will update Title IX regulations governing how schools respond to sexual misconduct, undoing changes made under the Trump administration and former Education Secretary Betsy DeVos.

     

    clap clap clap

  9. 9.

    comrade scotts agenda of rage

    @TBone:

    Butbutbut, there’s no difference between Dems and Reps.  I know because the Leftier-Than-Thou crowd tells me so.

    And Totebagger Radio implies it much of the time.

  10. 10.

    MisterForkbeard

    @TBone: I guess to be fair:

    • That woman has been propagandized to hell and back
    • Actually expressing other opinions like “I wish my son hadn’t died in this war” is dangerous in Russia

    What a clusterfuck.

  13. 13.

    Trollhattan

    @WaterGirl: If ever there were a “The fuck you’re taking me to the groomer” stare, that’s it.

    All the Cole-and-Steve stories come flooding back.

  14. 14.

    TBone

    @comrade scotts agenda of rage: I checked in at tankie website today.  They are DEEP in denial mode 🤣😆 and very butthurt about President Biden.  They are literally on the Rump “IT’S NOT FAAAIIRRR” bandwagon and can’t find the offramp before the burning dumpster fire clown car careens off the cliff.

  16. 16.

    Trollhattan

    @MisterForkbeard: Actually expressing other opinions like “I wish my son hadn’t died in this war” is dangerous in Russia

    This. IIUC such a statement can be charged as “Denigrating the Army” or somesuch, resulting in hard prison time.

  17. 17.

    TBone

    @MisterForkbeard: I don’t feel any need to fair to anyone murderous no matter how brainwashed or cowed.  In fact, I recommend fighting dirty.  Any household object of enough heft can become a missile.  Or a blade if it has edges.

  22. 22.

    Scout211

    President Biden signed the foreign aid bill.

    Sorry if this has been posted already.  If so, here it is again!  LOL

    ETA:

    The Pentagon announced a $1 billion aid package would go to Ukraine just moments after Biden signed the bill into law.

    Among the capabilities included in the new package is ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), artillery rounds, RIM-7 and AIM-9M air defense missiles, Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicles, Stinger anti-aircraft missiles, and more. It also includes various logistics and tactical vehicles, anti-armor systems, training munitions and spare parts, and small arms ammunition including .50 caliber rounds to counter drones.

    CNN reported Tuesday that administration officials have indicated to Congress the US would send long-range Army Tactical Missile Systems, or ATACMS, a system Ukraine has long asked for. The ATACMS were not included in the Pentagon’s official list of equipment being sent to Ukraine, though that’s not entirely unusual; last year, when the US provided a particular variant of the ATACMS, the administration did so quietly.

    An official told CNN at the time that the intent in keeping it quiet was to surprise Russia, lest they moved weapons out of range of the missiles before Ukraine could use them.

  24. 24.

    Anonymous At Work

    Mr. Bear needs a bath and a brushing, and I think he knows it too.  Hence, distraction via Open Thread.

  26. 26.

    TBone

    Rep. Justin Jones xit (has video I will not click on)

    Tennessee Republicans just cut off debate and passed a bill to arm teachers in our schools. The public chanted “Blood on your hands!” as the Speaker ordered troopers to clear the gallery. This is what fascism looks like.

  28. 28.

    Sure Lurkalot

    I think Mr. Bear looks cuddly but I also thought Henry looked happy when the fire alarm went off and he insisted on an early lunch. Obviously my pet whisperer cred is failing.

    I didn’t tune into to the EMTALA hearing because I vowed today to be a good one, having recovered from Covid (not the worst crud I’ve ever had but sick sucks) and on the mend from a major sciatica event (worse than Covid). So I’m off to lunch with my SIL and it’s a lovely spring day.

    Still, little snippets have come through and the “seek emergency treatment if your Viagra/Cialis erection lasts more than 4 hours” comes to mind as something we should leave up to the states.  Masturbators are baby killers, there oughta be a law.

  32. 32.

    Old School

    @Scout211:

    The Pentagon announced a $1 billion aid package would go to Ukraine just moments after Biden signed the bill into law.

    This $61 billion package was too slow in coming.  And tentative.  And who knows if the Biden administration is competent enough to send weapons right away?  And Kamala Harris has to go!  And why isn’t Biden working on the next round of funding yet?

    Oh wait, this is a daytime thread.

    Never mind.

  34. 34.

    Jackie

    @TBone: Info from The Hill:

    Rep. Donald Payne Jr. (D-N.J.), who represented New Jersey in the House for more than a decade, has died at the age of 65.

    New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy (D) confirmed Payne’s death in a statement on Wednesday.

    “Tammy and I are deeply saddened by the tragic passing of our friend, and a steadfast champion for the people of New Jersey, Congressman Donald Payne, Jr.,” he wrote.

    Payne suffered what his office called a “cardiac episode”related to complications from diabetes more than two weeks ago and had been hospitalized since.

    He had served in Congress since 2013, representing New Jersey’s 10th Congressional District, which covers parts of Essex, Hudson and Union counties.

    https://thehill.com/homenews/house/4618099-donald-payne-jr-dead-new-jersey/

    RIP

  40. 40.

    smith

    Joe F Spaulding 🦉. @beyond_proces🚨🚨BREAKING🚨🚨 Donald Trump, Rudy Giuliani, Jenna Ellis, former state house speaker Tom Leonard and his wife Jenell, GOP consultant Stu Sandler, and former MIGOP chair Laura Cox are named as “unindicted co-conspirators” by an investigator in the Michigan fake electors scandal!

  44. 44.

    MisterForkbeard

    @Scout211: This bill also included the “Hey TikTok, you need to be sold to a non-Chinese owner or we’ll make it an illegal service in the US” bill, which is getting a lot more whining on the sites I read.

    They’re especially angry that the Biden campaign has said they’ll continue to use TikTok to reach people while it’s under the review period. They’re busy screaming “hypocrisy” without understanding what it means

  46. 46.

    MisterForkbeard

    @TBone: Damn, the poor man.

    Also not great that this makes it a slightly bigger lift to regain control of the chamber.

  49. 49.

    Trollhattan

    Holy crap, an Aryan Brotherhood dude has been on trial for a prison murder and is it ever a shitshow.

    Staring at the jury on the 16th floor of Sacramento’s federal courthouse downtown this week, Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Hitt held up the knife used by inmate William Sylvester to kill another prisoner, a slaying Hitt said was done to gain entry to the Aryan Brotherhood prison gang. “This is the knife he used to kill that man in cold blood,” Hitt said of the Oct. 7, 2011, attack at California State Prison, Sacramento, that left inmate Ronald Richardson dead from 31 stab wounds.

    “He killed Richardson to earn his ‘rock.’” The rock, in this case, is a shamrock tattoo that prosecutors say symbolizes membership in the California prison gang, which has been the focus of a trial that began in February against Sylvester and two other defendants accused in a racketeering, drug and murder conspiracy case that investigators have been building since 2016.

    Prosecutors say the case shows how the prison gang had the power to order hits on inmates inside California prisons as well as targets outside of prison, and evidence shown in court has included extremely graphic prison video and photos of inmate murders.

    Sylvester and fellow inmates Ronald Yandell and Danny Troxell have been sitting in court under tight security for weeks as prosecutors have tutored jury members on the peculiar phrases the gang used in phone conversations captured on wiretaps — “in the hat,” for an inmate marked for death; “on the shelf” for one no longer politically active in gang affairs.

    “They have proudly adorned themselves with the shamrock, the feared symbol that only belongs to Aryan Brotherhood members,” Hitt said during closing arguments in the case Monday.

    The closing arguments began on the 32nd day of a trial that has been marked by tight security inside the courtroom and tensions that spilled out into the open at least once. Last month, an incident in court led to a discussion outside the presence of the jury after a representative of the U.S. Marshals Service told the judge that at the close of one court session he heard Yandell calling Troxell attorney Leras “a rat.”

    “It was very quick,” the marshal’s representative told the judge, according to a transcript of the session. “And at first when it was happening I wasn’t sure which one it was directed to because there was a cluster of attorneys, and then after realizing it was directed to Mr. Leras.”

    The same day, as the defendants were being taken in a van back to the Sacramento County Jail next door to the courthouse, emotions “went from zero to 10 about that fast, and shouting arguments between — it was definitely Yandell and Troxell,” the Marshals representative said.

    “It was so loud I couldn’t tell, Sylvester might have been a part of it too. I’m not sure if it was everybody. And so, ‘I’m going to kill you. I’m going to f—— kill you. You’re a rat.’ All sorts of expletives.” The incident continued at its high pitch for 20 to 25 minutes, with the three inmates separated in the van so they could not get at each other.

    https://www.sacbee.com/news/local/crime/article287911565.html#storylink=cpy

  52. 52.

    JoyceH

    @smith: I wish investigators would start calling that designation “unindicted (yet) coconspirators” just to make people think.

  56. 56.

    Josie

    @eclare: ​
    On the contrary, age has taught me to think more carefully before speaking. Sometimes our first thought is not necessarily our best one.

     ETA: Being incognito on the internet seems to give people the right to say cruel things.

  58. 58.

    smith

    Acyn@Acyn Biden: Remember when Trump was trying to deal with COVID, he suggested injecting a little bleach in your veins… he missed, it all went to his hair

    (Nitter link with video)

  60. 60.

    JoyceH

    Latest Whimsy news – have I mentioned that she digs? I know, it’s not good, and I need to stop her – but in the overall scheme of things, digging is about the least harmful way she’s discovered to burn off some energy, so I’ve been letting it slide. But now she’s started concentrating on one spot, and she’s reached the top of the pipe that takes waste from the house to the septic tank – so that can’t be allowed to continue. I need to refill the hole (difficult because the soil here is clay and the consistency of brick), and I think put some heavy flagstones on top of the spot. And I guess I can’t allow her unsupervised time loose in the yard anymore, until she grows up and grows out of some of those puppy habits. Sigh.

  61. 61.

    eclare

    @JoyceH:

    I don’t know what breed Whimsy is, but my terrier chewer/destroyer loves his rawhide treats.  Could that help?

    I also gave a mild sedative to Sophie, it helped us both.  It was half a Trazadone pill.

  64. 64.

    Scout211

    @MisterForkbeard:

    I actually haven’t paid that much attention to the tik tok ban threat in the bill.  For some reason I haven’t taken it seriously. Maybe because I’m not a user or maybe because it just seems like weak threat.

    CBS has some interesting points:

    In an internal memo obtained by CBS News, TikTok executive Michael Beckerman called the legislation “unconstitutional” and warned that the company will pursue a legal challenge once it’s signed by President Joe Biden.

    “At the stage that the bill is signed, we will move to the courts for a legal challenge,” Beckerman, head of public policy for the Americas at TikTok, wrote. “We’ll continue to fight, as this legislation is a clear violation of the First Amendment rights” of TikTok users.

    . . .

    The bill would give TikTok’s owner nine months to arrange a sale, with the potential for an additional three-month grace period, according to a copy of the bill released earlier this month.

    But, Allen of Eurasia Group noted, that would put the nine-month mark in mid- to late January, which could also coincide with the U.S. presidential inauguration. If former President Donald Trump wins in November, he could very well take a different tack with TikTok, the analyst noted.

    This might become a question for the next administration,” Allen said. “Looking at the language of the bill, I’m not sure Trump would be as bound to pursue what the Biden administration would want. He could use it as a point of leverage with China.”

    . . .

    However, Ives thinks ByteDance would be unlikely to sell TikTok with its core algorithms, the vital software that provides video recommendations to users based on their interests and viewing habits.

    “The value of TikTok would dramatically change without the algorithms and makes the ultimate sale/divestiture of TikTok a very complex endeavor, with many potential strategic/financial bidders waiting anxiously for this process to kick off,” Ives said in a research note.

    I will wait and see what happens in the next 9 months +3 months to see if this is anything more than threats.

  65. 65.

    MisterForkbeard

    @Scout211: The argument that it’s unconstitutional doesn’t hold a lot of water, I don’t think. It doesn’t violate free speech, and the US has a longstanding tradition of banning certain products or services for the public good, national security reasons, or otherwise. The fact that it’s on the app store and that the security problem is the owners doesn’t really enter into it.

    I do expect it to get litigated to hell and back, though

  67. 67.

    ETtheLibrarian

    Arguing with Mr. Bear might mean him stepping on the wrong computer key and crashing the entire internet. Don’t mess with Mr. Bear.

  72. 72.

    CaseyL

    I honestly don’t care one way or the other about TikTok being banned- I realize it’s one of, if not THE, most used social media apps, but I have also come to believe that social media apps are pernicious far more than they’re “good” in any way.  So if it is banned, I don’t much care.  People will either find something else, or reduce their online time (which would be great).

    A sale, though, would be problematic, since it is most likely going to be sold to an oligarch or syndicate of oligarchs, and become just another RW tool of filth.

  76. 76.

    Timill

    @Scout211: Interesting thing about “nine months” here is not that it’s (just) into the next administration, it’s about 3 weeks into the next congress. Which should have a better balance of power…

  83. 83.

    JoyceH

    @eclare: Whimsy, like all my dogs, is a Samoyed. Looking back, I don’t think I allowed Jazzy so much unsupervised yard time as a pup as I’m letting Whimsy have. Probably because it was colder when Whimsy was a pup and I didn’t want to hang around the yard, and this time there are two of them, so I figured she was sort of supervised. I’m afraid it’s going to be hard to break the digging habit once it’s developed, but I guess I’m going to have to try. I know she needs more exercise. I should use the flirt pole more, that really gives her a workout without exhausting me.

  91. 91.

    JoyceH

    @Trollhattan:

    The “flirt pole?” Sounds like something from a Mormon ritual.

    You know those cat teasers? Looks kind of like a fishing pole? A stick with a string with a toy on the end? They make bigger ones for dogs, call them flirt poles. You can fling them all around, go around in circles, the pup can run and run. Whimsy goes berserk when I get out the flirt pole.

  93. 93.

    PaulWartenberg

    Who else is ready for NFL Draft Night?

    …

    As a Bucs fan, I’ll be happy if we get a good Edge rusher to slide down to us, but if we get a good starting Center that will help a lot.

  94. 94.

    JoyceH

    @eclare:

    Seems like a trainer for a few would be a good investment.

    We’re taking the basic dog training class – what used to be called Obedience and now is titled “Manners and Life Skills”. She really enjoys that and is quite good at it too – but basically I need to supervise her more than I really want to. It’s been over ten years since I had a puppy and it’s hard to remember, but I can’t help but think I’m more impatient this time. (Though I distinctly remember once saying to Jazzy, “Maggie never did that!”)

  95. 95.

    Kosh III

    In addition to Tennessee Talibangelists and fascists arming teachers yet another gay-bashing law was passed which will harm children.

    https://tennesseelookout.com/2024/04/24/in-the-childs-best-interest/

    ” Republican Rep. Mary Littleton characterized it as a necessary safeguard for families who want to offer loving homes to foster and adoptive kids but worry that they would have to compromise their faith or moral beliefs.”

    Frak ’em all!

  97. 97.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @TBone: Okay, fair point about it being a statement not a question, but you still shouldn’t be upset that someone agreed with your statement.  FWIW I didn’t express an opinion either way.

  98. 98.

    Baud

    Via reddit

    Tesla Learns Hard Lesson: Go Anti-Woke, Go Broke

    When CEO Elon Musk took a hard turn to the right, the number of Democrats buying Teslas dropped 60 percent.

  99. 99.

    Citizen Alan

    @TBone:

    Republicans want school shootings. They love school shootings. Every child who dies in a school shooting means more paranoia among gun humpers, more money for the NRA, more lobbying money for 2nd Amendment absolutist politicians. And as an added bonus, it triggers feelings of helpless rage among us “libtards.” Every Republican politician secretly cheers when a child is murdered with a gun.

  102. 102.

    Cacti

    The TikTok ban is Dems stepping on a rake set out by the Rs.  An own-goal.  An unforced error.  Pick your metaphor.

    I get that it’s not a big deal to the average 60-something who comments at BJ.  But to the young voters Biden needs to win, it’s a big deal.

  103. 103.

    scav

    @Kosh III: Children of Tennessee Christians please note!  Your parent’s love for you is absolutely conditional.  Do something of which they do not approve and they will cease to love you and, moreover, their desire to abrogate parental duties so as not to get holy cooties may be enshrined in law (it all might depend on the accidents of genetics).  Act accordingly.

  104. 104.

    geg6

    @suzanne:

    My feelings exactly every time I’m forced to go to FL.  Which used to be problematic when I was young and my sister lived in Stuart and it was the only place I could afford to take a long, leasurely vacation (no hotel bills!).  It’s rare that I have to go there these days, but every once in a while I have to go to a conference or something in Tampa or, much worse, Orlando and all I can think of is when do I get to leave?

    Why can’t they have conferences somewhere I enjoy and want to go, like NYC, Chicago or even Philly?

  105. 105.

    Melancholy Jaques

    @MisterForkbeard:

    Also not great that this makes it a slightly bigger lift to regain control of the chamber.

    Not to worry. NJ 10th is D+30. I’d say it’s a hold.

  106. 106.

    Dangerman

    Mr. Bear has the look of “Human, have I not trained you enough?”. Roughly, cat version of Yoda.

  107. 107.

    David 🏀Caitlin Clark🏀 Koch

     WASHINGTON (AP) — Ukraine for the first time has begun using long-range ballistic missiles provided secretly by the United States, bombing a Russian military airfield in Crimea last week and Russian forces in another occupied area overnight, American officials said Wednesday.

    Boom goes the dynamite

  108. 108.

    Old School

    @Cacti:

    I get that it’s not a big deal to the average 60-something who comments at BJ.  But to the young voters Biden needs to win, it’s a big deal.

    Perhaps, but the bill gives 9 months to a year to arrange a sale, so I don’t know how worked up people will be until 2025.

  110. 110.

    Cacti

    @Old School:  I’m a believer in the campaigning maxim that if you’re explaining, you’re losing.  At least to some extent.

    It handed Trump a piece of easy, low hanging fruit.  “Biden wants to ban TikTok” vs. “Well, that’s only true if XYZ, blah, blah, blah”.

  111. 111.

    TBone

    @Omnes Omnibus: thank you!  I was in the hospital ICU room with hubby.  Just getting in there is a huge hassle. First the sign on the door says “check in at unit desk.” No one is at that desk.  Then they yell over from across the other side of the huge room like “what do YOU want?”. I calmly and softly say “your sign on the door instructed me to check in here.  I’d like to see [hubby’s full name].  “There is no such person here.  You’re in the wrong unit, on the wrong floor.” Again, with all the dignity I can muster, I calmly say “he just telephoned me from here. He’s in room #.” Finally, his charge nurse arrives on scene, laughing…”ENGLISH, MOTHER FUCKERS! DO YOU SPEAK IT?” did not escape my lips until I told hubby how hard it was to get there!

  112. 112.

    Steeplejack

    On the “trying to ignore politics and GQP craziness” front, I’ve been fiddling with a minor handyman project. Thanks to NotMax and others for helping me solve my light-bulb problem. I was trying to find a smart bulb that would fit in a beloved old lamp with a welded-on harp. The couple of smart bulbs I had tried previously wouldn’t fit—too big to get them under the harp and screw them in.

    I bought a smaller (A15) smart bulb that NotMax recommended, but I also got a pack of not-smart A15 LED bulbs—warm white (2700K) and 60W equivalent (650 lumens). I put one of those in and think I’m going to stick with that for the time being. The bulb that came out was only 40W (450 lumens); I think I was mainly craving a little more brightness.

    The smart bulb—which will fit in the lamp—works only on the 2.4GHz wi-fi band, so I’ll have to rejigger my setup to add that to the 5GHz I’m currently using. My router supposedly can handle dual channels. But it’s a back-burner project for now. I am content with the brighter light and turning the lamp on and off with a smart plug via Alexa.

  113. 113.

    O. Felix Culpa

    @TBone: It’s not eclare’s sense of “humor” that needs work. Cruelty masked as insouciance is still cruelty.

  114. 114.

    Jeffro

    @PaulWartenberg: I’m psyched!  But not enough to actually watch the whole thing!!

    I just want to know if KC is going to draft a WR (please!) or a tackle with their first pick, so after the first round, I’m done.  =)

  119. 119.

    Geminid

    @Jeffro: I have mixed feelings about this years NFL draft. My team picks 2nd but with the Commanders, “The higher they pick, the harder they fall.”!

  120. 120.

    Jeffro

    OT but in today’s NYT, Thomas Edsall has quite a bit to say about how hard it is to de-polarize a very polarized country (cough that’s us cough)

    He does make two good points, though:

    1. Most of the issues we are divided on are not ones that we can ‘meet in the middle’ on, like tax rates.  So it really does feel existential to both sides.  However, this is not to “both sides” these important issues…there is a right and a wrong when it comes to securing reproductive rights, LGBTQ rights, etc.
    2. The polarization will only have a prayer of going away if and when trump and MAGA exit the political stage (or at least, go back under their rock).

    He also notes that ending gerrymandering would have the nice side effect of tempering our politics a bit, as our districts would be less deep red/bright blue.

    Expand the House!  Expand the Court!  End gerrymandering!  And if we want to have a prayer of any of it, let’s shove MAGA back under its rock!!

  121. 121.

    smith

    @Jeffro: I think we may be making a little progress on the last of those, thanks largely to the severe deficiencies of the man they chose to lead them.

  125. 125.

    Trollhattan

    @JoyceH: Thanks, you really had me there.

    For better or worse, a laser pointer has my pooch desperate for the catch that will never happen. Have to limit myself lest he burst an artery.

    @Betty Cracker:

    Yeah, totally going there.

  129. 129.

    Melancholy Jaques

    @Jeffro:

    Adding a couple hundred congressional districts would also help. The people who decided to freeze it at 435 in 1929 had no idea what the long term impact would be. There is no reason we should be bound by their decision.

     

    This may be the most important proposition revealed by history: At the time, no one knew what was coming. ― Haruki Murakami, from his novel 1Q84

  130. 130.

    geg6

    @Cacti: ​
     
    Asked my college senior niece about it. Neither she nor anyone in her huge group of friends cares at all about it. As she said, they’ll just find something else. TikTok won’t be the last social media space, after all.

  133. 133.

    smith

    Moscowitz strikes again.

    Jared Moskowitz @JaredEMoskowitz I was hoping our breakup would never become public. We had such a great thing while it lasted James. I will miss the time we spent together. I will miss our conversations. I will miss the pet names you gave me. I only wish you the best and hope you find happiness.

    Jim Sciutto @jimsciutto “After 15 months of coming up short…Comer recently approached one of his Republican colleagues and made a blunt admission: He was ready to be “done with” the impeachment inquiry into Biden” -⁦@AnnieGrayerCNN⁩ ⁦@MZanona⁩ cnn.com/2b024/04/24/politics/…

  135. 135.

    Trollhattan

    @geg6:

    Mine would sign on if I asked. They’ve been through SO MANY social media platforms already, and would/will doubtless ditch TikTok for something else, assuming they have not already.

    Seems to be a preference for volatility of postings (Snapchat >Insta) and Facebook is so your mom’s platform, if not your granny’s.

  136. 136.

    Anyway

    @Cacti:

    The TikTok ban is Dems stepping on a rake set out by the Rs.  An own-goal.  An unforced error.  Pick your metaphor.

    The senate ban has 270 days to take effect – past the November elections. Plus it will be challenged in the courts etc…

  138. 138.

    Bupalos

    @Jeffro:

    He does make two good points, though:

    1. Most of the issues we are divided on are not ones that we can ‘meet in the middle’ on, like tax rates.  So it really does feel existential to both sides.  However, this is not to “both sides” these important issues…there is a right and a wrong when it comes to securing reproductive rights, LGBTQ rights, etc.

    Here’s where I finally get to sound like a flaming partisan to people here: The sides most liberals support on these issues already are a kind of meeting in the middle in a true American sense. Separation of church and state is how we defend society from religious fervor but also how religious fervor is defended from the state. Bodily autonomy, sexual autonomy, all of that is not just stuff we want or how we want society to look, it’s life, it’s liberty, it’s the only stable way to support the broadest pursuit of happiness. The concession liberals make here is that everyone is allowed to be as repressed and rigid as they want and form freaky little communities of people who indoctrinate their children with purity balls and whatnot. A maximalist position would be using government to force people and the world into a certain shape.  That’s largely what these right wing populists are all about. What we’re all about IS a compromise. To the extent we aren’t harming each other, you let me do me, I let you do you.

  139. 139.

    zhena gogolia

    Another fun day in America. We got a “shelter in place” order because of a shooting and teachers were rolling up tables to the doors of their classrooms. So glad they have their free-dumb as the rest of us lose ours. (We’ve gotten the all clear.)

  140. 140.

    JWR

    For any SoCal readers, local NBC has ongoing live coverage of a growing pro-Palestinian demonstration at USC.

    Also from NBC News:

    Ukraine uses long-range ATACMS against Russia for the first time
    The U.S. provided Ukraine with the powerful ballistic missiles this month but did not reveal it publicly for operational security reasons, a National Security Council spokesperson said.

    ETA Oh boy! Looks like the LAPD is about to rile things up make sure the students remain calm. (I think LAPD is there.)

  141. 141.

    Jay C

    @Melancholy Jaques:

    Actually, the 1929 “freeze” on the size of the HoR simply preserved the status quo from the previous (and last) expansion. Which was legislated in 1911, based on the figures from the Census of 1910: they expanded the House to 433 seats (allocated at the then-current population distribution); with two At-Large seats reserved for the projected admission of Arizona and New Mexico as States (which happened in 1912). So the current House is the same size as it’s been for 113 years.

  147. 147.

    catclub

    @MisterForkbeard: Do the parts of government demanding a sale know about VPN’s?

    I suspect that any of the yoots that do not know about them will learn. It will be very strange to request a location in China on the VPN.

  149. 149.

    Jeffro

    @Cacti:The US won’t survive a generation of the current SCOTUS majority.  Court expansion is the most urgent.

    I’m good with any of them going first as long as we. get. going.

    (Personally, I think we can “walk and chew gum” here, and get all of them going a.s.a.p.)

    But our current system is going to break if we don’t make some big changes, and quickly.  Too many undemocratic structures are keeping MAGA in the game, when they should have been forced back under their rock a long time ago.

  150. 150.

    Jeffro

    @Melancholy Jaques:Adding a couple hundred congressional districts would also help. The people who decided to freeze it at 435 in 1929 had no idea what the long term impact would be. There is no reason we should be bound by their decision.

    Right!  That’s what I mean by “expand the House”! back at #120 ;)

    I’m good with doubling or tripling the size, honestly.

    We can get around to abolishing the Senate later!

  151. 151.

    TBone

    @A Man for All Seasonings (formerly Geeno): crooksandliars is a free website.  There is no paywall.

    Here ya go.  See if you don’t feel some sorta way.

    https://twitter.com/Gerashchenko_en/status/1782708697715601901

     If you look closely, you’ll notice that Zhanna Polupanova is wearing a sweatshirt with the English words “Follow Your Dreams.” Apparently, hers includes a new roof for her modest house in the country, which she hopes will be repaired with what the Russians call “coffin money.” Zhanna also rather cold-bloodedly says she does not feel sadness for her sons going to war in Ukraine as they are meant to serve the Motherland. That’s what they’re for.

  152. 152.

    The Kropenhagen Interpretation

    @catclub: A lot of users won’t bother with a VPN. There will, necessarily be a chilling effect.

    I’m going to call my rep and complain this whole thing stinks of jingoism.

    Ukraine aid is the bigger win, though, so we should take that.

  153. 153.

    Jeffro

    @smith: Moskowitz is just phenomenally good at this!  LOL

    Him and Raskin and Crockett are somethin’ else, that’s for sure. =)

  154. 154.

    David 🏀Caitlin Clark🏀 Koch

    First they came for TikTok and I said nothing because I’m an Onlyfans user​

  155. 155.

    Jay C

    @smith:

    I read that under their legislative rules, the State Senate has to “read” and “re-read” the repeal bill, which make take some time (a month??), but still good news.

    At least AZ doesn’t have a wingnut R Executive Branch (any more) to make things difficult….

  156. 156.

    The Kropenhagen Interpretation

    @David 🏀Caitlin Clark🏀 Koch: For me, it’s less to do with Tiktok and more the face that the bill does nothing to prevent other companies from engaging in the practices Tiktok is being criticized for.

    Apparently it’s OK if your company is American.

    ETA: We need comprehensive data privacy reform, not a broadside against a particular company. I’m embarrassed Dems voted for the Tiktok ban.

  157. 157.

    gwangung

    @Jeffro: There are definitely fairness arguments to expanding the house that make it a lighter lift. That would really help both in political matters and in theory.

    And expanding the court has the same advantages (but there’s a timing and strategy for that; it wouldn’t do to have it take five years….).

    Better to have term limits on the Supreme Court, but I don’t know what the votes are for that

    @The Kropenhagen Interpretation:

    Yeah, absolutely fair.

  158. 158.

    japa21

    @Bupalos:

     

    A maximalist position would be using government to force people and the world into a certain shape. That’s largely what these right wing populists are all about.

    Unless I totally misread you, you are saying that we should follow the same path as the RWNJ’s out there and force people to see everything our way and act our way. That you want to make intolerance or prejudice illegal.

  159. 159.

    smith

    @The Kropenhagen Interpretation: I admit I haven’t followed the ins and outs of the Tik Tok thing, but at a glance it looks to me not so much like jingoism as American oligarchs wanting to get their hands on a profitable business, and an efficient way to do that is have govt force the sale.

  162. 162.

    The Kropenhagen Interpretation

    @smith: but at a glance it looks to me not so much like jingoism as American oligarchs wanting to get their hands on a profitable business

    Ah, I see you don’t live with people who play Fox News 24/7. I can’t speak to the attitudes of all Representatives who voted on this, but it started with jingoism.

    I believe what you described was the icing on the nationalist cake.

  165. 165.

    Hamlet of Melnibone

    I don’t really get the Tik Tok ban myself.  Is a Chinese company owning Tik Tok a greater threat to national security than Musk owning Twitter?  It’s not clear to me that it is.

    It just seems mostly about the olds not liking whatever kids are doing these days.  Maybe there are details that I haven’t seen, but it seems silly to me.

  166. 166.

    catclub

    @Hamlet of Melnibone: Yes. Musk is much less likely to hand off users’ personal data to the Chinese government.  The US is ok with him (or TikTok) passing off users personal data to the US government.

  168. 168.

    The Kropenhagen Interpretation

    @catclub: The US is ok with him (or TikTok) passing off users personal data to the US government…

    …or fellow US corporations. Money is the last source of power not accountable to democracy. Capitalism is the last bastion of feudalism.

  170. 170.

    Sallycat

    @gwangung: A constitutional amendment is required to term limit any federal judge.  The constitution gives them life time appointments.

  175. 175.

    Odie Hugh Manatee

    A handsome floofy void appears! Those are some very scritchable ears there!

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