The CFPB is super popular. They've given 195 million consumers abused by finance companies $19.6 BILLION in actual dollars, principal reductions, canceled debts and similar. It took another $5 BILLION from companies that broke the law. "Terrorizing financial institutions" WHO BREAK THE LAW indeed.
— Dalié Jiménez (@dalie.bsky.social) November 27, 2024 at 3:28 PM
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is one of our most efficient agencies. Costs less than $1B a year & has fought to return over $20B directly to Americans.
But I guess it makes sense that a billionaire wants to eliminate one of the agencies that fights for working people. pic.twitter.com/37Yg6TmCud
— Maxwell Alejandro Frost (@MaxwellFrostFL) November 27, 2024
Oligarch Elon Musk said Wednesday that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau should be abolished. Like Putin's oligarchs, Musk wants no regulations so he can make money by screwing over working class people. Musk is a cancer. https://t.co/iCupXSQ6BI
— (((DeanObeidallah))) (@DeanObeidallah) November 27, 2024
What’s also hilarious about this, beyond the CFPB saving both the consumers and government money, is that Musk is trying to take credit for something that’s been a Republican priority since the CFPB was created. It’s not as if this is a new idea to Republicans—it’s literally their idea.
— Jason Karsh (@jkarsh.bsky.social) November 27, 2024 at 1:26 PM
Weird how he wants to eliminate a government agency that would protect the people who buy his shitty cars innit
— Ragnarok Lobster (@eclecticbrotha1.bsky.social) November 27, 2024 at 1:40 PM
You can tell they're smart & qualified by how they're billionaires
— Chatham Harrison is tending his garden (@chathamharrison.bsky.social) November 28, 2024 at 11:44 PM
But those…women persons… insulted them!!!
Here’s the most charitable reading I can offer:
The tech barons behaved as though they were atop a social hierarchy, and expected mass adoration for their generosity+forgiveness for mistakes.
Instead, Elizabeth Warren, Lina Khan et al treated them like the heads of *massive corporations.*
— Dave Karpf (@davekarpf.bsky.social) November 29, 2024 at 8:26 PM
Joe Rogan nods, agape, as Venture Capitalist Billionaire talks really fast and sniffs a lot, which might make some suspicious liberal prudes wonder about his recreational drug hobbies…
Venture capitalist billionaire lies to @joerogan’s face about the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. That agency returned $17.5 BILLION to working class Americans defrauded by big financial institutions. It’s one of the absolute best agencies we have pic.twitter.com/7fqDfiO2Pg
— Secular Talk?? (@KyleKulinski) November 27, 2024
Agency that was created to prevent another subprime mortgage crisis that caused a recession — "Who needs this?" -Elon Musk
— zatchary (@zatchary.bsky.social) November 27, 2024 at 9:39 AM
If Musk thinks CFPB is redundant someone ask him what the overlapping other agencies are. The guy's grasp about even the most basic stuff is so poor you'd have a fun time at least watching him struggle.
— Josh Marshall (@joshtpm) November 29, 2024
Elsewhere: Our very serious billionaire betters, at play:
I can’t decide what the saddest part of this video is.
Elon doesn’t know the YMCA dance? They’re playing the YMCA song at Thanksgiving? Elon insisted on wearing his X t-shirt to dinner like a child clinging to their Halloween costume? Elon can’t spend Thanksgiving with his own family?— Evan Hurst (@evanhurst.bsky.social) November 28, 2024 at 11:26 PM
rikyrah
Good Morning, Everyone😊😊😊
Jay
As far as I know, nobody voted for Felon Husk or Scam Boy.
Jay
@rikyrah:
Good morning.
NotMax
Like visiting with an old friend.
Discovered all three seasons of The Alfred Hitchcock Hour are available on Prime..
Good stuff.
Balconesfault
And yet, I constantly hear from progressives that the reason Democrats lose elections is because they’re too beholden to the billionaires.
mrmoshpotato
Someone needs to be the first colonizer of the Sun. I hear it has an emerald mine.
Baud
@rikyrah:
Good morning.
Baud
@Balconesfault:
Who else are they going to blame for their lack of political success?
MagdaInBlack
Elon’s mom (also a lunatic) posted some nonsense about how Elon and Barron sat up all night talking about consciousness and something something……..like two 20 y/o stoners amazed with their own brilliance.
I just can’t even with these people. Weird no longer even touches it.
Jay
@Balconesfault:
@Baud:
Words are important. “They” are not “progressives”, there are a lot of other words for them, many not safe for work, but “progressive” is not one of them.
“They” are trying to sell you a narrative, which has appeared to have succeeded.
There are no “Soro’s” checks and you are buying into Nazi propaganda.
Baud
@Jay:
Stop playing no true Scotsman. There are awful progressives just like there are awful liberals and Dems and centrists and independents and everything else.
Right now on Bluesky they’re laughing at Cenk Uyger for something moronic he said. And some progressives are pushing the Dems and billionaires thing. I’ve seen it here and on social media. Go argue with them for betraying progressive values.
JoyceH
I can’t stand Ramaswami, but I hope the Trumpers put him out there often to represent them because frankly, nobody else can stand him either.
NotMax
@Baud
Consistently predictable as night following day.
NotMax
@JoyceH
Somebody needs to whip up a parody ditty to the tune of Okl;ahoma.
♩♩ Ra-ma-swam-y…
Betty Cracker
Haven’t investigated the provenance of this picture, but I hope it’s real:
Sweet Jeebus, that nasty-ass cornbread! And the congealed, rubbery object on the left side of the plate! Not even sure what the hell that is.
One time in college a bunch of us were marooned at school for various reasons, and we put together a dinner called Thanksgiving in a Can where all of the stuff came from the canned food aisle at the discount grocery, including canned chicken. Our pathetic feast looked more appetizing than that spread pictured above. And we didn’t pay hundreds of thousands of dollars for the privilege of eating it.
Jay
@Baud:
If they aren’t upholding “progressive values” but instead sabotaging them, are they “progressives”?
If somebody is selling you a shit sandwich, they are shit sandwich sales people.
Go ahead, eat it, consume it like you already are.
Baud
@Jay: Since progressives have more than one value, yes. Same with any other complex group of people. So go fight the people you regard as heretics, and then I won’t have anything left to consume.
Chris T.
Nothing to do with this thread, and if I can remember and manage, I’ll comment on the COVID thread later, but: I’m in hospital recovering from pneumonia. What I thought was the flu, was the onset of something apparently starting to be called Post COVID Organizing Pneumonia. It commonly kicks in about 8 weeks after recovering from COVID (even a mild case stopped by Paxlovid), using the damage trail from the original COVID to invade the lungs.
So, if you seem to be getting a flu or something roughly two month after COVID, it might be this. There is no one specific pathogen here, it’s just opportunistic invasion from whatever bacterial colonies live in your head.
TBone
@Chris T.: oh dear lort, my best wishes for speedy recovery go to you!
Betty Cracker
@Chris T.: Jeez, sorry to hear that. Hope you recovery quickly!
Baud
@Chris T.:
Hope you feel better soon.
Jay
@Chris T.:
Take care and I hope you have appropriate treatment.
We have an epidemic of “Walking Pneumonia’ going around here, mostly teens and kids.
lowtechcyclist
@MagdaInBlack:
Barron at least has the excuse of not even being 20 yet. If we can’t be stupid in our teens, when can we be?
NotMax
@Jay
Walking pneumonia
Walking pneumonia
You’ll come a-walking
Pneumonia with me
;)
Martin
@Betty Cracker: When I was at university, the last day before thanksgiving weekend the cafeteria had a formal thanksgiving dinner. It was VERY well done, and the faculty served the students. It was a really neat tradition. Certainly a plate much nicer than what you get at the $100K membership fee place. What a cheap motherfucker.
It stood in stark contrast to the tradition I had the 2 years prior when I worked display for a local department store, working damn near nonstop from the close of Wed to doors open on Black Friday decorating trees, hanging wreaths, dressing mannequins, you name it, all fueled by a grocery bag of Subway foot long turkey subs. It was good money – about 30 hours of holiday + overtime pay. One of those jobs that was kind of brutal and also weirdly fun.
TBone
Funny how this works (not at all funny). Very informative article.
lowtechcyclist
@Chris T.:
Yeesh. Hope you get better soon!
TBone
@lowtechcyclist: Hitler Youth gonna yute.
🎶
https://youtu.be/SDuHXTG3uyY
rikyrah
@Chris T.:
🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽
NotMax
@Martin
There’s a possibly apocrypha tale of a major department store in Japan whose management didn’t quite get the vibe of Western winter holidays.
To save precious space which could otherwise be dedicated to merchandise, one display prominently featured a crucified Santa Claus.
Baud
@TBone:
That cost difference will be eliminated when Medicare is fully privatized.
NotMax
@TBone
Mexico will pay for it.
//
Baud
@NotMax:
He died for our toys.
satby
@Baud: People on Medicare Advantage end up paying more and getting treatment denied more often too, compared to regular Medicare with a supplement. Just another privatized scam.
satby
@Chris T.: Hope you’re feeling better soon!
p.a
@TBone: MA was worse as originally (Republican) written. It got to where it is only because Dems & CMS keep fixing the (feature not bug) holes in the original.
re: that dinner: Long ago I showed up at a friend’s appartment to find guys (of course) cooking “sweet” corn they had stolen from a field at URI.
Me: you know those are experimental strains, right?
Them: uhhhh… looks ok.
The kernels were TAN.
They all survived. That particular incident.
lowtechcyclist
@NotMax:
Oh, go jump in the billabong. ;-)
Rockin’ Pneumonia and the Boogie-Woogie Flu
Baud
@satby:
Well, I’d want to know MA enrollees vote before I feel sorry for them as a group.
Betty
@MagdaInBlack: Elon’s Mom is a story all by itself. What a kook! What we know of his parents does explain some things.
Betty
@TBone: It was always primarily for the benefit of insurance companies. It was W’s initiative, so naturally.
Baud
Ohio: Socialist where it counts
Suzanne
Think we have too many dad-bod billionaires. Not efficient. Not Lean.
Maybe they can go pick some strawberries and thereby be of some use.
lowtechcyclist
@Suzanne:
Sounds good to me! The first of the winter strawberries will be ready to pick in a few weeks.
At the very least, we need to bring back the 90% tax bracket. For estates and trusts, as well as income.
matt
Andreessen was trying his hardest to be a good ally? That’s bullshit.
Chris Johnson
@Baud: In fairness Cenk doesn’t count as a progressive. Count the number of alumni he’s produced that are tankie vatniks. He is some kind of training ground for fash and has been a running joke for some time.
You can just look at his (a) high production values and (b) Alex Jones style performativeness and tell. Cenk is a goddamn spook of some sort. He’s as Russia-directed as Trump is, just working a different beat. That they seem contradictory to the point of impossibility IS the point.
Baud
@Chris Johnson:
Wouldn’t surprise me if he’s corrupt. But who is his audience? I know it’s fairly small, but which group of people does his propaganda appeal to¿
Jay
@Baud:
Demoncrats are doing it wrong are his audience.
Also the one trick crowd.
Baud
@Jay:
That’s a large and diverse array of people. I think you’re avoiding the obvious answer.
Suzanne
It’s an open thread, so I can complain for a hot minute. We finally decided on a new fridge, and ordered it. So now I have to replace three cabinets; two uppers, one lower, because the new fridge needs a wider and taller spot.
Which means I have to go to IKEA.
Arrrrrrrrgggggghhhhhh.
Snarki, child of Loki
“Musk is trying to take credit for something that’s been a Republican priority since the CFPB was created.”
So, jump into an existing thing and take credit, just like Tesla, Space-X, and Twitster? On brand.
Ramalama
@Baud: he died for Hello Kitty.
Gin & Tonic
@Suzanne: Should have had somebody measure the space and the fridge before committing. Wonder if you know anyone qualified to do that.
Jay
@Baud:
The obvious answer is that you are his audience.
Citizen Dave
@Suzanne: Not to mention how Rogan and the Sniffing Guy are making white bald dudes look like complaining idiots/liars. The Bald Community weeps.
Thanks again to AL for compiling this stuff. Hard enough to read it. These are just idiots in a reality TV show. Trying to figure out whether to retreat from the stock market.
Baud
@Gin & Tonic:
I miss Ozark.
Jay
@Gin & Tonic:
Burn,……
Baud
@Jay:
Obviously someone who never watches his show is to blame. It’s always someone else’s fault.
ETA: I’m probably responsible for MAGA too. Sorry, guys!
TBone
@NotMax: LOL! Thank you, I was hot and grumpy over my turkey noodle soup work. Not so grumpy now! Am grateful for the slicing wheel on my food processor and hubby’s assistance in washing up.
Baud
Via reddit, go Boston.
Suzanne
@Gin & Tonic: Oh, I did measure. I knew what I was getting into.
We have been wanting to replace the fridge for a while, and I have a whole kitchen reno planned. But with the tariffs likely to go into effect, it kind of sped up that timeline, at least on the fridge. The question has really been about how much kitchen disruption and cost we wanted to take on in this phase.
The decision tree has been thus:
Need new fridge, which means cabinet modification adjacent and above. But then why not do all the cabinets on that wall, because then they’ll look the same and we only have to tear it up once? But then we should do the other wall of cabinets, too! But then, while the cabinets are out, let’s add two grounded electrical outlets. And I really want to move the sink over one foot to get it centered under the window. And, ultimately, we need to replace the floor, too, and there would be no better time.
So you can see how replace fridge quickly becomes replace whole kitchen. Which is not on the immediate agenda.
Ramalama
@Chris T.: damage trail, Jesus. Yes this same thing happened to wifey and me after getting Covid in France. Super mild case for us both (though it almost killed my SIL who we were visiting and who lied about getting vaccinated because…hoax) and we get home and bronchitis for me, pneumonia for she that was much worse than Covid. Though I forgot all about it till your post here because I was Thrilled to not have brain fog or digestive problems like after the first time.
Speedy recovery.
TBone
Me and Mark celebrating today!
WereBear
Gee, and I thought Musk & Trump Thanksgiving would be a fun movie.
WereBear
@NotMax: And the people we see! Our favorite part of old shows.
Suzanne
@Citizen Dave:
Nothing sadder than bald dudes in denial. I got Mr. Suzanne to shave his head about a decade ago, and he has not looked back. It’s hot.
Nukular Biskits
Good mornin’, y’all!
Cool here. 34 degrees. Glad I brought plants in last night! We had clear skies so plenty of surface frost.
Probably means all my lantana and the hisbiscus in the front beds were clobbered.
TBone
@Baud: yup, and just in time for my eligibility too.
sab
@Gin & Tonic: Ouch.
Suzanne
@Nukular Biskits: It was 19 degrees when I first came downstairs to make coffee. We’re at 20 now.
Indoor workout it is!
Jay
@Suzanne:
Funny how that all works out.
Suzanne
@Jay: Scope creep is a thing for a reason!
Dave
@NotMax: Hope it is actually true. I absolutely adore whenever the Japanese take hold of Western holidays and religions.
Exdapt the hell out of those my friends it’s always fascinating.
sab
@Suzanne: We got the fridge that fit, so Thanksgiving was a challenge. Thank god we had a cold spell so garage is a fridge backup. The turkey thawed at stepsons house. I was up last night after the family dinner boiling the turkey down for soup because the carcass wouldn’t fit in our fridge.
Annoying now but your big fridge will probably be worth it.
Gin & Tonic
@Suzanne: Oh, been there, done that, understand. Just having a little fun after a mostly sleepless night (speaking of Ozark.)
Had both daughter and son visiting the last two days, each in the process of working with architects to plan major house renovations, so well experienced with tradeoffs. Daughter has the extra enjoyment of having to deal with the NYC Buildings Dept, which is its own circle of Hell.
WereBear
@Chris T.: Take care! Dang.
Suzanne
@sab: Other than a dorm mini-fridge, or like a specialty wine fridge, I couldn’t find one that fit the opening. And the existing cabinets are crap anyway, and not worth planning around. So, here we are.
IKEA is one of my least favorite places on earth.
sab
OT: Our new adoptive re-homed cats have finally realized (after football season and Thanksgiving) that the world will not end and catastrophe ensue if ocassionally ten noisy people gather upstairs in the house for a few hours.
This morning they are bleating for breakfast. On earlier occassions. they stayed hiding for at least a day.
rikyrah
@Suzanne:
First world problems😂😂😂
Gloria DryGarden
@Chris T.: I’ve had regular pneumonia, and I’m sorry. How horrible to believe you recovered from Covid, and 2 months later get this rotten kind of long Covid type illness. I sure hope you feel better.
rikyrah
@Suzanne:
Ok..now I have sympathy. Being in a store like Ikea?
😲😲😲😢😢😢
Suzanne
@Gin & Tonic: House design is annoying AF. I am very happy to stick to large-scale, technically intensive buildings in my career (hospitals, labs, airports, hangars, etc.).
Jay
@Suzanne:
Fan i helvete satans jävla fittröv,
Isle 17.
WereBear
@TBone: Thanks to some informative Youtubers, I just took what they gave me. My doctor is better able to handle my tricky treatment if I don’t get stuffed into:
“They give me grocery money and this exercise program!”
And if you have a difficult or expensive condition the insurance can “recommend” a treatment that is cheaper. I have a patchwork of diagnoses and I need what my doctor and I figure out.
I am, mind you, cheap as heck to take care of at this point. Not the case two years ago when I was on the brink of collapsing. And I take one cheap drug a month, prescription, because we finally found an anxiety med that works for me.
Suzanne
@rikyrah: IKEA has so many people. God. The worst.
I will admit that I have fun riding on the shopping carts.
WereBear
@NotMax: But it’s so perfectly distilled, it has that irresistible pull.
different-church-lady
@Suzanne: Ah, yes: the frightening realization that every part of the kitchen is attached to every other part of the kitchen. It’s one of the reasons mine has been half torn apart for 18 years now.
WereBear
@Suzanne: A game on Bluesky is to spell your first name backwards, with an umlaut somewhere, and give it a spoofy description.
Now i see Ikea, and I make up my own.
different-church-lady
@Balconesfault: Well, you know, people say a lot of shit.
WereBear
@Baud: Me too. Every morning since.
different-church-lady
@WereBear: OK, this is a bit disconcerting: Google tells me my real first name spelled backwards is a real name in Arabic.
Betty Cracker
@Suzanne: Visiting IKEA and assembling the products is awful, but once in place, they are reasonably stylish and hold up well. At least in my experience. (We did a kitchen reno at our last house using IKEA cabinetry, and we still use an IKEA sofa we put together seven years back.)
Good luck with yours!
WereBear
@sab: I love when cats learn.
Gin & Tonic
@Suzanne: IKEA’s materials sourcing was also for years a major contributing factor to illegal deforestation in Ukraine. They’ve tightened up somewhat, but I still avoid them.
different-church-lady
@Betty Cracker: Ikea saved me a couple of hundred bucks on window blinds, so I ain’t gonna join the hate pile.
different-church-lady
Somehow I am totally not comforted by the suggestion that Musk will have no real power because of rules or something.
WereBear
@different-church-lady:
I am Älemap, a shaky sofa table which has a finish that retains interesting stains.
Raven
@Betty Cracker: We got our custom cabinets from Costco.They were made somewhere in Florida and are great. Tuscan Hills. https://www.tuscanhillskitchensandbaths.com/
Nukular Biskits
@Suzanne:
19 degrees? NO THANK YOU!
Barbara
@TBone: This phenomenon is mainly attributable to the actuarial requirement that plans be paid on a “risk adjusted” basis. If you key in the search terms “medicare advantage” and “risk adjustment” you will likely find a lot of information on this issue.
Suzanne
@Betty Cracker: The IKEA cabinets are pretty good for their price point, and there are a number of companies that sell nicer doors for them.
@Gin & Tonic: I had not heard that. THX for the tip. I will ask.
Barbara
@Suzanne: I don’t have experience with Ikea kitchen cabinets but I have generally been okay with Ikea furniture except for dressers — drawers that are repeatedly opened and closed weren’t sturdy enough for us. My friend renovated her kitchen with Ikea cabinetry and was happy with the results. New refrigerators are much larger, that’s for sure. One option is to just have your “back up” refrigerator in the garage or basement. I know, not very convenient, but it buys you time and you will avoid whatever tariffs Dumbo plans to impose that would raise the price of appliances. Even American brands rely on parts sourced in other countries.
Nukular Biskits
Normally I don’t try to repost Bluesky material here but this is apropos given the start of this thread (sorry in advance for the formatting). And, again I ask: Why are we not organizing mass boycotts?
Marc Elias – Bluesky
different-church-lady
@Chris Johnson: The dude is so crack brained he got run off Daily Kos.
different-church-lady
@Nukular Biskits: My favorite reply:
Betty Cracker
@Raven: Very pretty! I like that color.
Chief Oshkosh
@Chris T.: Good luck and I empathize. I didn’t know it was a thing, but it happened to me last year. Or was it this year? It’s all a blur.
Baud
@Nukular Biskits:
Are you going to boycott all goods and services?
narya
@Suzanne: it’s 15 here; I’m still trying to convince myself to get out of bed and go for a short run.
different-church-lady
@Baud: I already kind of do that, but it’s only because I’m trying to not go broke.
Baud
@different-church-lady:
People tell me the Republicans are great when it comes to the economy. You’ll be buying stuff in no time.
different-church-lady
@Baud: Well, I guess it’s also because I no longer have any place to put it.
Raven
@Betty Cracker: Here is ours https://flic.kr/p/2mXv6Pg
WereBear
@different-church-lady: All this time in a consumerist society, and they went and done it.
I don’t want to buy things any more. It’s more trouble than it’s worth.
Nukular Biskits
@Baud:
If only it was possible.
Boycotts are a crude instrument but I have to wonder what, if any, kind of pressure can be put upon corps rolling back DEI programs (not to mention submissively rolling over in hopes Trump will scratch their bellies).
I’m definitely open to suggestions but I’m not so naive as to think that any type of interaction (mostly being economic) with corporations can be avoided. And there is a good counter-argument that a “successful” boycott of, say, Acme Corp negatively impacts employees and those whose 401Ks have stock in Acme.
I wonder if “targeted” activity, similar to what auto unions do with carmakers, would be an avenue to effect change. Or at least get the C-Suite types to reconsider their mad rush to curry favor with Trump & Co.
sab
@Betty Cracker: Lol. That meal makes me wish I was a billionaire.
//
different-church-lady
@Nukular Biskits: I just realized the stupidest part of this: you don’t get attention from Trump; Trump gets attention from you.
Gloria DryGarden
@Nukular Biskits: I need a list. I would prefer to boycott companies, brands, products..
Nukular Biskits
@different-church-lady:
True dat.
And, to me, it’s pathetic at how so many individuals and companies are absolutely groveling to give him that attention.
TBone
@WereBear: I’m glad – it sounds like you’re well aware of, and avoiding, pitfalls.
Nukular Biskits
@Gloria DryGarden:
There was at least one floating around right after the election but, to put words in Baud’s mouth, it’s probably impractical to effect a boycott of any/all Trump supporting/groveling businesses.
Hell, I’m still trying to put together a list of businesses that advertise on the statewide radio talkshow network here in MS. That’s a long row to hoe!
TBone
@Barbara: thanks! I’ve seen too many horror stories about MA with my real life friends. I’m going straight Medicare all the way, the only thing MA offers are disadvantages for me. I’m not yet eligible anyway, I just detest scams (especially when the elderly are preyed upon). Senator Blumenthal recently concurred.
https://insideinvestigator.org/blumenthal-releases-scathing-medicare-advantage-report/
A tidbit:
Kristine
@Chris T.: May you have a speedy and complete recovery.
different-church-lady
@TBone: Blumenthal is so cute: he thinks insurance companies pay for things.
Chief Oshkosh
@Nukular Biskits: I think that the “solution” to addressing the behavior of corporations with regards to societal impact is to do what Warren and Khan and other Democrats were doing, which is why corporations and vulture freaks like Musk and Andreessen (and the fucking CEO of Delta) are whining about those very effective solutions.
TBone
@different-church-lady: ha! I have useless private health insurance and hubby has regular Medicare. Guess who gets treated like a king.
Until they hold him hostage by not refilling prescriptions unless he comes in for an appointment first (heart meds).
JeanneT
@TBone: as am I – Happy Birthday!
Baud
@TBone:
@JeanneT:
🎉🎊🧁🎈🎂
TBone
@JeanneT: smart cookie gets the prize! Hugs and happiness to you!
TBone
@Baud: thank you Baud!
Nukular Biskits
@Chief Oshkosh:
Funny you should mention that.
As part of my weekend morning reading (actually, more skimming) across the intertubes, I came across this via Crooks and Liars:
Naming the Perp: Very Few People Cause All of the World’s Worst Problems
WereBear
@Nukular Biskits: Disability retirement and doing a side business at home. So I can easily not buy clothes, shoes, tschotke, pans/cooking things, so I will not. I already buy gifts and cards from locals or online crafters, etc.
Not everyone can, but I think a stark Christmas would send a message all the corporate overlords might see red about. Because I am not in the mood.
I have books I haven’t read. (Boy, do I.) We’ll be sorting through our subscriptions for books, movies, and music, our basic entertainment budget. I’ll keep a few channels like Nebula which focus on supporting independent creators. Compared to dropping a big name with a big price and yet, they can’t seem to skip back a few minutes reliably.
Since new releases are markedly unexciting lately, we could swap around and wind up with a new, with more classics, mix. Off to find out where the Criterion Collection is lurking these days…
Chief Oshkosh
@Raven: Very clean lines – love it.
different-church-lady
@WereBear:
Yes, but we’ll need a majority.
WereBear
@TBone: Yet another part time job when one is Sick in America. I’m fortunate that it is responding to the latest research, which is more lifestyle changes than anything else.
That’s a best investment in any case.
Central Planning
@Martin: So you were Buddy The Elf decorating Gimbels!
Kristine
@TBone: A friend who was a benefits administrator for a Midwestern university strongly advised against MA. Traditional Medicare and supplement (she recommended G).
Betty Cracker
@Raven: Nice!
Betty Cracker
We’ve got a FEMA contractor coming this morning to inspect our flood damage. Wish me luck!
Baud
@Betty Cracker:
🤞
p.a.
@Betty Cracker: 🤞🏻
My GF had a small part of roof going bad (no FEMA/natural disaster issue). Insurance adjuster just offered to fix the bad spot. She hired a pvt adjuster who had a local rep as a bulldog. Got her insurance to give her a complete roof, including wood. Pvt adjuster was $1,200, a bargain. Again, no feds involved, but if you don’t like your results today, it’s an option for you maybe.
Kristine
@WereBear: I’ve bought no more than the very occasional Christmas gift for years—no area family and friends who’ve reached the point where they don’t need more stuff.
Feels a little strange at times to watch it all from the outside. But also liberating.
Our 70% consumer-driven economy is a problem.
lowtechcyclist
@Suzanne:
But most of the time, it’s at the level of “while we’re doing X, it makes sense to do Y at the same time” but you don’t really have to do Y.
In your case, there really doesn’t seem to be a good stopping point once you replace the fridge. You’ve chosen a stopping point, but it doesn’t sound like a good stopping point. Just better than having to renovate the whole kitchen right now.
Kristine
@Betty Cracker: Good luck 🍀 !
Dorothy A. Winsor
@Chris T.: Oh wow. Sorry you’re in the hospital but glad you’re somewhere you can get help.
lowtechcyclist
@rikyrah:
I actually like being in an Ikea. But on this weekend? Forget it.
Central Planning
@Gin & Tonic: When we renovated our kitchen, we realized that having four different styles of flooring on the first floor would look dumb, so we decided to re-do all the flooring.
Thanks to owning a house built in the early 70s, we had to do asbestos abatement (twice to avoid getting permits – it’s based on square footage) for the linoleum and fake slate flooring. The flooring guy said he would just do it, but we didn’t want to have particles floating around the house or be responsible for him (most likely his workers) getting lung cancer/mesothelioma. Thankfully I was able to pull out the 2″ wood flooring to minimize labor costs. So many nails!
Suzanne
@lowtechcyclist:
Agreed. It is an adequate and sensible stopping point, but it would certainly be better to do it all at once.
Eh, this is the story of my architectural life, actually. The needs and dreams always exceed the budget, available space, available time, and/or regulatory approval.
The project I’m working on right now is a five-story hospital expansion. Top two stories are hospital beds. The hospital wanted to build a sixth story to account for growth of the population and to have another floor of available hospital beds in the future. City wouldn’t allow it, because they want short buildings, because “character”. So. When we get to that future, and there’s not enough capacity for the population, remember that there is all matter of dumbness like this at play.
Dorothy A. Winsor
@Suzanne: I’ve never been in IKEA
TBone
@WereBear: you have that nailed – the onus to act is placed up on those who can least afford to do so – wherewithal, time, energy, money, and peace of mind enough to even try to heal – all sucked into the vortex, hoovered up by that which is our medical care payment system.
I’m glad the vortex didn’t get you!
NeenerNeener
@TBone: If you have pre-existing conditions you may be shoved into an Advantage plan anyway. I tried to switch last week to straight Medicare and was told I wouldn’t pass the underwriting and would have to stay in the MA plan I was put in last year.
Suzanne
@narya:
I just took the dog for a walk (warmed up to 20), and I will stick to the Peloton bike today, TYVM. My lips are a bit numb.
WaterGirl
@Baud: Good news, indeed! Hope we see more of that.
I think we will see more of that because I think most decent people and entities have been waiting for the tipping point to see which other social media site was most likely to prevail.
I still think that Spoutible is the one most likely not to turn into the next shitshow social media site, but people have voted with their feet, so BlueSky it is for now. Hopefully Spoutible will still be there at the end of what I think is the (all but inevitable) eventual BlueSky crash and burn.
I would be happy to be wrong but we won’t know for a few years, I think. Unless the cycle speeds up somehow.
Suzanne
@Dorothy A. Winsor:
It is peopley hell.
TBone
@Kristine: smart people who have smart friends helping to achieve a happy outcome. That’s the America I like to see! That’s the whole point of being here most of the time.
TBone
@Suzanne: LOL after my comment above!
I too tend to the feral side.
Suzanne
@TBone: I am in the mood for my armchair, a book, and hot chocolate today. Alas.
TBone
@NeenerNeener: gah!
I have read about that SNAFU and, when my time to sign up arrives, will go straight Medicare or nothing. Even if I have to die in protest.
In the meantime I hope you receive relief!!!
Baud
@WaterGirl:
I’m not really sure how any social media site can stay a good place. Bad people follow the good, and so do commercial interests. Supposedly, blue sky has strong blocking features compared to Twitter but it’s probably too early to know how well they actually work over the long run.
ETA: my short term goal is to see Twitter’s demise.
lowtechcyclist
@Barbara:
We have had a backup refrigerator in the basement ever since moving into our current house 26 years ago, and it’s really really handy to have it. Anything that you aren’t likely to need for a few days can go there. The kiddo eats cheese slices like crazy, so a pack only lasts a few days, so we keep a few extra packs in the basement fridge. Stuff like that.
When you move, in some parts of the country, the refrigerator stays with the house, but in other places, it goes with you. So when we moved from Bristol, VA, where you take your fridge with you, to southern MD, where it stays with the house, we suddenly found ourselves with two refrigerators. We moved the previous owners’ basic fridge to the basement, and put ours in the kitchen. 26 years later, they’re both still working.
Dorothy A. Winsor
@Kristine: Mr DAW is retired from John Deere. They provide us with a pool of money and an advisor, who recommended the same thing your friend did: traditional Medicare plus a supplement
Betty Cracker
Finally deactivated my Twitter account. I will miss Baseball Twitter most of all, but hopefully a Baseball Bluesky will develop over time
ETA: Hadn’t posted on it in over a year but I kept it to prevent anyone from squatting on my nym. Don’t give a shit anymore.
Another Scott
Meanwhile, … one for Frank Wilhoit and similar musically inclined folks.
Such passion!!
:-)
Best wishes,
Scott.
eclare
@Dorothy A. Winsor:
Me neither. The one here in Memphis is at an incredibly busy intersection, just off of I-40 and behind a Costco. No way.
eclare
@TBone:
Happy birthday!
eclare
@JeanneT:
Happy birthday!
TBone
@Suzanne: take a bit of of time for that if you can! I just had hot turkey noodle soup for breakfast, it is 18 degrees with wind chill. I hope you can put your feet up today for a spell!
Another Scott
@Betty Cracker: Inflation is terrible. MaL’s $1M annual membership fee just doesn’t go very far any more, ya know??
Just terrible.
Best wishes,
Scott.
Another Scott
@Chris T.: :-(
Thanks for the report and the warning!
Get better rapidly and completely.
Best wishes,
Scott.
Lapassionara
@NeenerNeener: that sounds wrong to me. Who told you that? I would not take that as the final answer.
p.a.
My Verizon retiree medicare-eligible age healthcare is United Health MA, no choice. But no premium either. Seems ok for now, but I’m on the phone more than pre-65 me.
Cheryl from Maryland
@Suzanne: I know the feeling. My kitchen appliances from 1999 are dying, and now white is back in style (I dislike stainless and black). My kitchen cabinets have solid oak fronts, so I’m not replacing them. But modern fridges don’t fit the hole — they are now too deep (even the so-called counter-sized ones) and need extra clearance in the back for ventilation (my current one gets airflow from the front). So I’m considering an apt. size fridge for the upstairs (since it is now just me) and a large one for the basement where it can be any size.
Baud
@Lapassionara:
I’ve heard switching from MA to Medicare is difficult. But I’m pretty sure pre-existing conditions aren’t a thing in Medicare.
raven
@NeenerNeener: Not if you sign up for a non-advantage plan from the beginning.
https://youtu.be/oHdPlLUxx6I?si=Frdxf1AiBo_8R7Rb
sab
Must be a house repair day. We were having the bathtub snaked for a minor blockage, and now the ADT alarm for basement flood went off and there is sewage backup. Restoration guy called in. The pitbull is barking, locked in her bedroom. The new big cat is hiding under a loveseat in his part of the basement (still dry). God knows where the other cats are. Fun times.
raven
@Baud: You have to go through underwriting to switch and, if you have an preexisting condition, will be denied.
WaterGirl
@lowtechcyclist: I love to shop at home stores, but i have only been to IKEA once.
I was visiting my niece, and I walked through the store like I was in shock. i just kept saying “wow” (not in a good way). Totally overwhelming.
We left without me buying a single thing, which my niece thought was funny because it was totally out of character.
I would not willingly go back to IKEA. It’s too much, in the same way that IMAX is too much. Do not want.
citizen dave
I live a mere 3.1 miles from an IKEA. We were here many years before it was, though. I like their plant stuff, and of course any artwork/frame/organizing thingy. OK, all of it… Not that we have a problem or anything. I’d say I go in there every 2-3 months. But it is a nice walking spot in the coldest of winter, or a pandemic. Being so close, we can access it when it is not crowded.
WereBear
@Suzanne: I once did a shoot at a ski resort and my thighs went numb.
Grabbed an old point and shoot digital “in case” and it was the only one working in those temps.
A blue blue sky, no wind, bright sun, about 12. Got up to 19.
sab
@Baud: Not in medicare, but they can be in the medigap/ medicare supplementals, depending on your state insurance laws.
Another Scott
@p.a: [ memories ]
When I was a youngster, I remember riding in my great aunt’s car in rural Ohio and looking out at a giant field of corn and saying something like “that looks amazing, I’ll bet it’s delicious” and she said, “Oh no, you wouldn’t want to eat that – that’s horse corn.” IOW, animal feed. Not tasty at all for humans. [ /memories ]
It made me appreciate the importance of having local, relevant subject-matter knowledge, and not letting myself take immediate observations as being accurate.
Sounds like your friends learned that lesson much later!
:-)
Best wishes,
Scott.
sab
@Cheryl from Maryland: White is back in style? That must be why I couldn’t get it here in the boondocks. We run years behind in what’s available to us.
Cheryl from Maryland
@NeenerNeener: Agree with Lapassionara. Wayne had NO Issues when he turned 65 getting straight Medicare after surviving bypass surgery right after he turned 50, kidney cancer, and a host of other chronic issues. If you get the same answer, ask for the person’s supervisor, and if that doesn’t work, ask for the policy in writing that keeps you out. After Wayne died, the DMV asked for my marriage license when I changed the title of our car as we had different last names (I was listed as spouse on the death certificate). I was on that person so fast and so hard they went straight to their supervisor, so all was settled to my satisfaction in a hot minute. These fuckers like to jerk people around to make themselves feel better.
@:
TBone
@eclare: thank you very much!
Kristine
@Baud: preexisting conditions can be an issue with the supplemental plan
aaaand I see many folks got there before me. Shoulda knowed.
sab
@Another Scott: O hio here. My brother in law from China prefers animal corn to our regular sweet corn. Depends on what you are used to, and apparently in China everyone gets the same corn.
Baud
@raven:
Thanks!
TBone
What I read a while back stated that, once you choose MA, there are snags to getting back to regular Medicare but, if you choose straight Medicare at the outset you can avoid all of that mess. It would be just like this country to change the rules incrementally along the way though.
TBone
@raven: that was my understanding, thank you for confirming.
Barbara
@NeenerNeener: I assume you mean that you were trying to obtain Medicare supplemental insurance (Medigap) in combination with Medicare fee for service. A lot depends on the state and how competitive the market is. If you were told that by an agent, get a different agent and tell them that your willingness to switch agents depends on whether he or she can get you a reasonably priced Medicare Supplemental plan. MA is hugely more profitable for agents than Supp is. Nonetheless, I helped a colleague figure out how to move his mother back to a supplemental plan, and it was possible to do so where she lived in New York.
For everyone else: You can ALWAYS join an MA plan without underwriting during open enrollment, but Medicare Supplemental has underwriting rules that vary by state. You are only guaranteed a non-underwritten policy if you purchase one at the same time you first enroll in Medicare.
Kristine
@sab: I wonder if animal corn still has that “corn” taste? All the corn I buy now, canned, fresh, or frozen, just tastes sweet.
Another Scott
@Chris Johnson:
But but, he ran for President as a Progressive Democrat. The last Progressive Democrat in the race! And the first US naturalized citizen to be on the primary ballot! And his site generated 500 M views a month! That’s huge! Nobody else could say that! He couldn’t lose!!1
[ Ron Howard ] He did lose. [ /Ron Howard ]
…
As you say, nothing is as it appears on the surface with him.
Best wishes,
Scott.
Eunicecycle
@p.a.:
Quinerly
@Suzanne:
I so miss one of Ikea’s flagship stores in St. Louis.
It’s looking more and more like I will be adding on a Phoenix trip after Christmas in Winslow. I opened the 3 blinds up 16-18ft up when I painted the kitchen. Now that they are open, the heat from the southern exposure is fabulous. I haven’t had to turn on the mini split that heats that area even when 21 degrees outside. Have now opened up my bathroom ones, along with the 4 in a guest room. Wonderful. The house was designed passive solar with trombe walls. Full southern exposure with lots of glass. I’m still learning….although, from the looks of it, the previous owners never opened these large shades in the winter either.
Long story short, the Ikea motorized blinds are the cheapest out there….1/3-1/4 the cost of the other motorized blinds available. I only need to open/close twice a year. Great videos on how to modify the size.
It’s either scoot over from Winslow on 12/26 or do a stand alone Phoenix trip and stay a week/10 days in Jan or Feb. Phoenix is the closest Ikea for me now. I actually want to look at these in person instead of ordering.
Good luck with your cabinets. I just had to do a slight modification on cabinetry for a new refrigerator. The width was fine. Had to move that cabinet over the refrigerator up. Worked out great. We solved a lot of my design problems with new oversized cabinet doors and some additional moldings on top. I am very happy with the results.
Sure Lurkalot
@Nukular Biskits:
Agreed, but no doubt there will be lists and people can try to avoid the ass lickers.
Also, ridicule when they kiss the ring but get screwed over by his “policies” anyway. One way street and all that. Why at this point people don’t know the guy’s MO is proof positive that great wealth does not always indicate some super strain of intelligence.
p.a.
@sab: My relatives visiting from Italy wouldn’t eat corn: animal feed. This was 1980, 81, 82 ish so maybe things have changed there.
Obvious Russian Troll
@NotMax:
For Halloween, I suggested to my wife that we put up a crucified Santa. I mean, add an Easter Bunny and a leprechaun and you can keep it up all year!
For some reason she didn’t go for it.
sab
@Barbara: Thank you for the actual technical information instead of our laypeople word of mouth.
I have really relied on Mayhew Anderson and you these last ten or so years
UncleEbeneezer
@Suzanne: I’ve been shaving my head since early 2000’s. Partly because of hairline/thinning, heat (I’m always warm and shaved feels so much cooler) and ease. The only real downside is always having to wear hats in the SoCal sun. When I visit places with less sun or even some gloomy/rain I very much enjoy being hatless as much as possible. I do miss having enough hair continuity (front-to-back) to pull off a mohawk. I had one briefly in 2008-10ish and loved it, but the bald spot in the back pretty much killed it.
Another Scott
@WaterGirl: I think the last time I was there I bought a couple of glass cereal bowls. Other times I’ve gotten silicone kitchen utensils and the like.
A few decades ago we got a bunch of Billy bookcases there, but regretted it a few years later because the’re really too shallow (and the shelves too bendy) for use as a proper bookcase. (YMMV).
It’s Ok if you know exactly what you want and know where it is. It’s a huge time sink if you’re going to look around and get ideas – too much stuff!
Best wishes,
Scott.
NeenerNeener
@raven: Unfortunately when I called to sign up initially the agent put me in an MA plan and I didn’t realize it at the time. I was in the process of retiring, selling my house and moving to another state (NY to VA) so I didn’t spend enough time figuring out what I had or didn’t have. Now I’m looking at potential back surgery AND having to change my MS meds and Virginia is locking me into what I had for 2024.
comrade scotts agenda of rage
Late to this morning’s thread, that’s what getting up at 2:30am then going back to bed at 5am will to do you.
Chris T: Ugh, pneumonia is the pits. I had a “mild” case back around 1990 and thought I was gonna die. Hope you’re somehow doped up and get thru this quickly.
Cenk as a progressive? As noted above, bwahahahahahahahahahaha. He’s a clown since Day 1 when he was at Daily Kos. Like so many people back in the early days, he wanted to be a PLAYUH (think Jane Hamsher) but turns out he’s a) a simpleton, and b) a nutjob. Because of that and his views, he’s learned that his “audience” is beyond niche.
Kitchens: As part of our historic house renovation when coming back to Denver, we redid the kitchen (ourselves!) from scratch with the exception of the floor. Whoever previously did the only kitchen redo had put stone tiles overtop the old tongue-and-groove wood floor. You could see the latter when you pulled away the fridge and ripped out the old cabinets/counters. We got lucky in that only one section not done like that would show and it was impossible to find an exact match. I got something really close and laid them down.
Our fridge/cabinet/counter issues were slightly different in that somebody had built this massive soffit in that corner of the kitchen to run hot water heater exhaust up thru the roof. Pulling that down and rerouting the exhaust bought a relative ton of space but then we discovered all the damage to the base of the flue because the chimney wasn’t capped all these years. Had to fix that. These two photos provide an idea of yet another joy of working on historic homes:
https://flic.kr/p/2qxdzUh
https://flic.kr/p/2qxcRnN
https://flic.kr/p/2qxdC8k
Last shot shows the late Twinkle (she’s been on previous BJ Calendars) inspecting.
Geminid
I ran into a good news site this morning, by way of British-Lebanese war correspondent Oz Katerji. I was looking at his social media account for news about the Syrian civil war. Katerji is best known for his work in Ukraine and currently is in the U.S. promoting his documentary The Battle of Kyiv. In recent weeks Katerji has turned his attention to events in his native Lebanon and neighboring Syria.
Katerji reposted an item by journalist Haid Haid about developments in Syria and described Haid as a “must read” for anyone interested in the subject. Haid’s articles do in fact seem useful to this novice Middle East student.
Mr. Haid works for the London-based, Saudi-owned news magazine Majalla, and that seems like an informative site. It explores topics like deforestation and Arab soccer fan culture in addition to its coverage of the wars in Gaza, Lebanon and now Syria, where a “frozen conflict” has just thawed explosively.
A typical Majalla article might be Hassam Itani’s “As Lebanon’s war ends, hard truths emerge.” There are also articles about the modern history of the region including Sami Moubayad’s “JFK’s history with Arabs and Palestine.”
Ragip Soylu is another journalist offering sound reporting on the Syrian conflict for MiddleEastEye. Soylu is Istanbul bureau chief for MEE. He began work as a journalist in 2010 and the Syrian civil war started in 2011, so he has reported on the war for almost all his professional career.
s e
BlueGuitarist
@WereBear:
So my ikea game name is
Eülb – a discontinued desk lamp
schrodingers_cat
Am I the only one who is tired of hearing about Elon Musk? And seeing his ugly mug pasted everywhere.
lowtechcyclist
@Baud:
Naughty, naughty! :shakes finger:
;-)
Quinerly
@Another Scott:
Ah….the Ikea bookcases….fun project here.
16 ft wide wall in the old attached garage that previous owners converted to a karate studio. I converted the karate studio to a large den/media room/library. Bought enough Ikea bookcases to fill that 16ft wall floor to ceiling. Raised then up off the floor with a base, attached to wall, and then did trim to make them look like custom, built in. They look great, saved a lot of scratch. I can’t even imagine finding a carpenter out here to build custom bookcases on an entire wall.
I made a trip out in my van in Feb before my final move 4/2022. Transported all those Ikea bookcases, along with some other stuff. Went to work and knocked out the project. Full disclosure…great Ikea hacks videos on ideas how to make them look custom, with stock trims. The most recent generation of these bookcases are quite sturdy. No bend, no give….especially when you literally build them into a wall. I know those older ones/knockoffs….flimsy.
RevRick
@Chief Oshkosh: GOP economic policy has three components: 1). Cut taxes on the rich and businesses; 2). Oppose any downward distribution of wealth; 3). Eliminate regulations.
It’s one of the reasons the GOP unanimously opposed the ACAPPA.
Democrats pushed for the CFPB, as well as other regulatory agencies, for one simple reason: corporations and wealthy individuals like Musk will always —always — run roughshod over anyone they can. Even Adam Smith, the Godfather of capitalism, understood this and was in favor of keeping a watchful eye on their shenanigans.
Steve LaBonne
@schrodingers_cat: I am starting to wonder how long Trump is going to stand for Elmo hogging the spotlight.
Chris Johnson
@Baud: Wow, this thread got away from me :) I went and watched an FD Signifier video about the Kendrick/Drake feud.
Progressives. Cenk’s thing is designed to lure in and then vatnikify progressives. That’s what he is. He is there to get people to come closer to Russian propaganda one step or two steps removed. I bet he’s as dirty as Tim Pool.
Baud
@schrodingers_cat:
Nope.
NotMax
@Suzanne
Bring home takeout orders of Swedish meatballs.
N.B.: Not an option on certain days of the week. The one time I went to IKEA was informed “We don’t do takeout orders and Tuesdays and Fridays.” May vary store to store.
lowtechcyclist
@Betty Cracker:
That’s just what they say they’re coming for. Don’t forget to send us a postcard from the FEMA camp! ;-)
TBone
@p.a.: polenta is corn!
Geminid
@BlueGuitarist: I saw a humorous Ikea post a couple years ago. It showed a Swedish intelligence agent preparing to assassinate some terrorist in an apartment across the street.
But the agent runs into trouble when he tries to assemble his sniper rifle. After puzzling over the various parts and failing repeatedly to assemble them, the frustrated agent gives up. The video ends with the agent knocking on the terrorist’s door and clubbing him on the head with the rifle when he opens it.
lowtechcyclist
@Kristine:
We made a deal in my family years ago, that the kids got presents, but we adults already had enough stuff, so we agreed to stop buying presents for each other. Definitely made December less stressful.
Baud
@lowtechcyclist:
Your lack of spending makes baby Jesus cry.
NotMax
@TBone — @JeanneT
Have a happy!
Barbara
@NeenerNeener: Has it been more than a year that you have been in an MA plan? Are you saying that it’s state regulation that prevents you from buying a Supp plan?
I urge you to go to Medicare.gov and find the number for consumer assistance and call it. I do not trust agents. MA is unbelievably profitable for them and they will tell you lies to keep you enrolled.
TBone
@NotMax: thank you!
That’s a spicy meatball!
Lapassionara
@Barbara: this. Thanks
RevRick
@lowtechcyclist: The IKEA in Conshohocken is the place we often meet our daughter and family whenever our granddaughter comes to stay with us. And if it’s near supper time, I’ll get the Swedish meatballs platter.
Whenever MrsRev gets a yen to go to IKEA, I make the best of it by modeling the chairs, sofas, beds by plopping my lazy ass down. This embarrasses/irritates the heck out of her, but, hey, what are spouses for? And those do not ride on the carts warnings. Nope, that’s me.
Quinerly
@WaterGirl:
I can take Ikea in small dosages now. I am always on a mission. Know exactly what I want.
When the one in St. Louis was built it opened pre Covid. At the time it was the largest one in the country. 2 full stories. Underground parking garage.
I never went in it until Covid Times. It was one of the few places that truly enforced wearing of masks. A lot of people who would never go in an Ikea were pitching fits, challenging the guards/workers just to be asses. I was curious so I masked up winter of 2021 to check it out. The employees were great. They loved kindness and respect. I would visit with the security guards. I just wandered around to get out and to be amongst people. First 3 trips got terribly lost in the store.
I ended up later buying some storage stuff to outfit my van for that 4 month camping trip after we all got vaxxed. With all that said, I probably would have never stepped foot in an Ikea but for Covid Times. It kinda became my entertainment winter of 2021. Met a lot of nice people. Sat on a lot of furniture.
zhena gogolia
@schrodingers_cat: No, you are not the only one.
p.a.
@TBone: I meant corn on the cob. They wouldn’t touch it.
Barbara
@NeenerNeener: Here is a site that gives accurate information:
https://www.kff.org/medicare/issue-brief/medigap-may-be-elusive-for-medicare-beneficiaries-with-pre-existing-conditions/
NeenerNeener
@Barbara: I had an MA plan for about 3 months in NY and the MA plan in Virginia started Dec 1st of 2023, so it will be a year old very soon. I’ll find the medicare.gov help line and see if they tell me anything different.
CaseyL
@Geminid: I would normally never read a WSJ article, but a post on BlueSky linked to this one, and it’s a handy brief precis on the very interlocking interests in the Syrian civil war:
Setbacks for Russia, Iran and Hezbollah Turn Into a Catastrophe for Syria’s Assad
Puts a lot into a broader context.
BlueGuitarist
@Geminid:
A sense of humor helps.
I remember looking at some ikea instructions & realizing the emoji meant:
if you do this by yourself you will be sad or angry,
if you do this with another person, you will be happy and successful
Or, in a locally banned phrase, “teamwork makes the dream work”
looking forward to your advice on Virginia elections 2025.
postcards etc will matter more in odd year elections
Sure Lurkalot
Obligatory IKEA worker spoof:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P7KBcsdPhxA
UncleEbeneezer
@Chris Johnson: If you want a serious deep-dive on the Drake/Kendrick beef as it happened, by a huge hip hop fan, The Black Guy Who Tips podcast has a playlist of episodes on Spotify where they talked all about it. Rod Morrow, the show host, is a huge Kendrick fan and goes through the layers upon layers of Kendrick’s lyrics. It really opened my eyes to just how deep Kendrick’s lyrics are. My impression is that he really is a level or two above most rappers in that respect.
Geminid
@Suzanne: The Univerity of Virginia Medical Center added two floors to its hospital building some years after it was originally completed. The architects had apparently provided for this in the original plans because the contracto did no additional structural work to the first six floors, just built on what was there.
I think what happened is the original project was already the most expensive capital project the General Asembly had ever authorized and U. Va. didn’t want to push it, but the planners figured they could get more funding down the road.
They weren’t worried about local permitting because they knew the city of Charlottesville would give U. Va. whatever it wanted. Although it may have been Albemarle County which is no different in that respect.
NotMax
Weekend long watch.
The INSANE Truth About IKEA.
schrodingers_cat
IKEA is the Swedish Walmart according to my Norwegian friend. IIRC their founder had Nazi connections.
More here.
A lot is forgiven about IKEA because they are European. Their furniture looks good but is not that sturdy. I used to live near an IKEA in MD and had lot of their stuff when I lived there. I like them for lighting, frames and decor and organizer type items rather than furniture.
jonas
@Nukular Biskits: A lot of the corporate DEI stuff was so much cynical window-dressing at a time when BLM seemed briefly trend-worthy in 2020. Are we really surprised that their actual commitment to diversity was about a micron deep now that they sense the political winds are shifting?
Sure Lurkalot
@Barbara: I also want to thank you for offering your expertise when the Medicare/Medicare Advantage topic comes up, as well as your honest appraisal of the agents who are so not incentivized to sell what the customer wants or needs.
Question: I have a Medicare Supplement Part G. I got shoved to an agent by my insurer when asking what my new payment would be in 2025. The agent said that the company had a new charter for Colorado and the premium would be cheaper. She said I could apply for that new charter plan any time to get a quote with no danger of losing my current plan if I didn’t like the quote or was denied. True? I just don’t trust these agents.
Soprano2
@Suzanne: For us it was “hole in floor under sink because of leak” turned into a tear down to the studs complete renovation that took 6 years to complete. I love our kitchen now, before it was a nightmare.
Kayla Rudbek
@Chris T.: yikes, I hope you recover well and that you have competent medical care..
Starfish
@matt: You can tell all these tech billionaires were great allies. They are still mostly all white bros except the few who are Indian bros like Satya Nadella and Sundar Pichai.
WaterGirl
@lowtechcyclist:
Cue a comment on Dec 2 that both fridges have stopped working. :-)
Geminid
@CaseyL: I read paper WSJ copies from time to time. They seem to have good coverage of Middle East news. Their articles on the Gaza war provide an accurate picture of the costs borne by the people there.
NeenerNeener
@Barbara: Based on this I’m stuck in Medicare Advantage. I had way too much going on at the end of last year and the beginning of this year (retired at end of Sept, sold house, packed up and moved from NY to VA, various emergency medical and dental issues, bought new house, moved and unpacked, tried to rebuild my pit crew of doctors in new area) to devote the proper time and attention to what I could and couldn’t do and I’ll be paying for it now.
WaterGirl
@Another Scott: Yes, way too much stuff! And I say that as someone who likes to buy stuff. :-)
Kristine
@WaterGirl: My first and thus far only visit to an IKEA store took place a couple of years ago when I was searching for new dining room furniture as part of the renovation. The store nearest me is in Schaumburg. It’s big.
I wandered. Took photos. I did like some of the pieces but didn’t wind up buying. I was surprised to see an in-store resale area where you can buy stuff from their Buy Back program.
Anyway, later on I did buy some really nice coathooks that matched the metalwork of room lighting. Hefty metal at a ridiculously low price.
Kayla Rudbek
@Chief Oshkosh: yes, corporations are soulless psychopaths who need to be kept in line with all the weaponry you can muster (a whip and a chair would be a good start).
Kristine
@Soprano2: My contractor complimented me on how well I dealt with my reno, and I didn’t even have a down-to-the-studs job. It’s just the fact of having people in your house most every day and dust everywhere plus the noise. Taxing as hell for someone who likes to be alone.
I guess it can be rough sometimes with couples. Contractor told me about shopping trips during which the couples are arguing over fixtures in the middle of the store. FB friend who’s an architect has had to tell clients “I’m not a marriage counselor.”
SomeRandomGuy
This is why a study of history is useful. All you need to say about the CFPB is, it’s useful, and was invented by a Democrat, and you can guarantee every Republican wants to kill it.
Okay, I guess I’m like Cassidy – now that I’m not thrown out, yadda yadda.
Anyway
@zhena gogolia: meh. I hate the nitpicking and complaints about AL’s efforts.
Splitting Image
@jonas:
Not surprised at all, but it does surprise me a bit that they aren’t the least bit concerned about how they will look four years from now when they’ll be shamelessly putting their corporate weight behind DEI again as though the Trump era never happened.
The G.O.P. aren’t the only ones who have figured out that the average American has the memory of a goldfish.
WaterGirl
@Kristine: I think it was the Schaumburg store. Utterly overwhelming to me. I found it really stressful to be in there. Not my thing, I guess.
But I am definitely more of shop at small stores, individually owned, buy from the farmer kind of a person.
That’s not for everyone but it suits me.
Kristine
A book came out a few years ago entitled Horrorstör. It’s a ghost story that takes place in…a Euro-style furniture superstore.
MagdaInBlack
@TBone: Thumbs up.
Josie
@WaterGirl:
I can so relate to this. There was a department store where I used to live that had an entire floor of women’s clothing. It was quality stuff, but I froze when I walked in there. I could not shop there. The choices were too overwhelming. I am happy now to shop for clothes at one or two online sites that carry the type of things I am comfortable with.
Steve LaBonne
@NeenerNeener: It just infuriates me the mazes and hoops people are expected to navigate at Medicare enrollment time. In this fucked up country it seems like even good things like Medicare are required to come with all kinds of avoidable pain and pitfalls because we can’t just have nice things in a straightforward way. I’m sorry this happened to you, and it’s an example of why “Advantage” (which costs the government 22% more per capita than traditional Medicare but delivers worse coverage) needs to be abolished. Instead we’re going to have 4 years of them trying to foist it on everyone.
Jackie
@Steve LaBonne:
Musk bought TCFG his presidency. If TCFG tries to “cold-shoulder” Musk, I think TCFG will learn the richest man in the world has a chokehold on him he can’t escape from.
I wonder if TCFG already realizes that? If he’s truly delusional, and really thinks HE is “The Power,” it’s gonna make for interesting times ahead.
laura
IKEA now has a plant based hot dog that is absolutely, utterly delicious- they top it with the little fried onions. $1.20 per dog. Two thumbs and a big toe up
We were forced to buy a new fridge and we hate it. It’s gigantic, poorly laid out, hisses, buzzes, and sighs. Worst is it looks like the koolaid man busted through the wall and protrudes way too far into our wee galley kitchen. Hate It!
Geminid
@BlueGuitarist: My guess is there will be a dozen or so closely contested Delegate seats next year. The special masters who ended up drawing the new districts seem to have come up with a fairly neutral map.* I’m hoping Abigail Spanberger will have coattails that will help Democrats add to our 51-49 majority in the House of Delegates.
Spanberger is an interesting politician who was one three Democrats– all women– who flipped Virginia seats in 2018. She gave Democrats a heads up about her plans to run for Governor in August of last year, so they’d know they would have an open Congressional seat to defend.
At the time, former Lt. Governor Bill Bolling commented, “Abigail Spanberger is a formidable politician, and I don’t see anyone on the Republican bench who can compete with her.” A Republican, Bolling was himself a fairly formidable politician who won eight of his eight elections, including two statewide.
* I couldn’t say the same about their U.S. House map but that’s a whole other story.
comrade scotts agenda of rage
Trickle-down economics doesn’t lift all boats. It just floats the yachts.
Baud
@comrade scotts agenda of rage:
And generates the votes!
Ruckus
Elon can’t spend Thanksgiving with his own family?
Would you want him there if it was your family?
I think not.
MagdaInBlack
@WaterGirl: Yup. That’s the one about 7 miles from me. it’s freakin HUGE. And awful.
Kristine
@comrade scotts agenda of rage:
The Septic Tank Law of Life. The biggest chunks always rise to the top.
raven
@NeenerNeener: The same thing happened to my sister. Her husband died when she hit the age and they put her in Kaiser. She’s in LA so it’s not all that bad but I wished she had known.
raven
@Kristine: We did two major renovations and my wife knew what she wanted so I stayed out of it.
Archon
America is a complicated, difficult place to live in. Even things like voting is complicated in the United States. To that end you can’t tell me MAGA voters are too stupid to recognize how and what the Republican Party is, even with Trump leading it.
This is about grievance and malice towards Democrats and it’s voters. This is not about people being too dumb to know where their economic interests lay.
Kayla Rudbek
@citizen dave: I would have to drive to either of the two IKEA stores in our area, so we don’t go very often. The only one on a reasonable bike route by me is the planning and pickup store in Arlington. And Mr. Rudbek hates going to the other store where we have to drive.
Baud
Mainstream news article via blue sky
comrade scotts agenda of rage
@Kristine:
Hah, brilliant. Another related quote:
The Modern GOP’s Unholy Trinity: Authoritarians, Fundamentalists and Free Marketeers.
I’m sure some people here remember the late blogger Doghouse Riley. Another brilliant commentator on ‘Murkin politics who left us too early. One of his comments is pertinent here:
WaterGirl
@Josie: I’m with you on that.
I will shop at TJMaxx but I go straight to the Home Store section. Heaps of clothing and a million pieces of whatever smushed together, I just can’t do it. Just too much.
Sister Golden Bear
@Dorothy A. Winsor: @Suzanne: IKEA is worse than (fake) Werner Herzog’s Trade Joe’s on Hyperion.
WaterGirl
@laura: Oh, I’m sorry to hear that.
I looked forever for a fridge that didn’t have all sorts of bulges taking up what should be space for food. Luckily, my sister had just gotten a new fridge that annoyed her and that I would have found intolerable. And I loved my niece’s new fridge, so I knew what features to look for and what to avoid.
Even the ice maker thingie is inside the door itself in a secret compartment.
I also got the counter depth model so it doesn’t stick too far out into the room.
It sucks to have a fridge that you hate.
Steve LaBonne
@raven: If there’s one message I would give to people approaching Medicare enrollment, it’s that you absolutely must do the research and make the decisions yourself- do not let “them” (neither “agents” nor glitzy mendacious ads) “put” you in anything. The internet makes the necessary information and comparison shopping tools easy to access. It’s a confusing pain in the ass and you shouldn’t have to do it, but you’re very likely to regret it if you don’t.
WaterGirl
@MagdaInBlack: I had always wanted to go to an IKEA since I had been hearing about them for year. That’s a nope for me now.
Sure Lurkalot
@laura:
We had to replace one that died a few years ago and while it’s counter depth and fits, everything about it is cheaper than the one it replaced. The plastic drawers and sliders are much less sturdy and hard to open and close when they have things in them. Probably did their testing when empty.
Ruckus
@TBone:
Medicare Advantage
Who’da imagined it would get worse…….
Costs more does less.
Still it’s likely that the profit margin is less than 22% so the investors will not like it and raise prices to compensate…..
In large private businesses what gets done is never the point, how much money it makes ALWAYS is.
And yes I’ve owned 2 businesses. One manufacturing and one retail. You may want to do a good job/have a decent company for your customers – but money is always in the forefront of your mind, it’s the fuel – the part that powers the engine that is the business.
Now stressing over making 20% when you are told that you should be making 30-40% by people that really do not mind screwing their customers – that is the hubris of many business owners. However if you want to become big business……
UncleEbeneezer
@Geminid: Years ago someone told me “WSJ does great reporting, just never read the Op-Ed page.” I feel like that assessment has held up pretty well. Some of these more conservative-slanted organizations actually do good work on international issues. Hell, if I have two articles about Russia/Ukraine, one from WSJ and one from The Nation, it’s the one from The Nation that I’m gonna be much more skeptical reading. Same goes for anything from The Intercept on Gaza.
Anyway
@Geminid: I’m more interested/slightly concerned about the NJ governor race next year. Ds have been bleeding voters in blue states and cities – taking them for granted a little and chasing after purples and moderates. Which is good but the base is eroding a little.
Baud
@UncleEbeneezer:
I heard the same thing about the WSJ but that was from before Murdoch bought it. I’m less sure about their reporting now.
comrade scotts agenda of rage
@Sure Lurkalot:
When we bought the B&B (www.dauphinehotel.com) back in 1994, it came with a Kelvinator fridge. The label on the front said “Product of the American Motors Corporation”. It had been manufactured in 1974.
Now, while AMC couldn’t make a care worth a shit by that point, that fridge was a reliable tank. Okay, it was an energy hog like no other but it kept running and running…
For another 20 years when, in 2014, we finally replaced it. Not because it was dying but because we needed something more efficient and more modern in terms of space usage in a semi/quasi-commercial kitchen.
And yes, the new one, while laid out more to our liking, definitely wasn’t a tank. It’s now ten years old, I wonder if the current owners have had to replace it?
UncleEbeneezer
@comrade scotts agenda of rage: I miss Doghouse Riley so much. Same with Jon Swift (Al Weisel). Two of the funniest and most brilliant blogs of the early-aughts. Funnier and better at satirizing the Right, imo, than anything Colbert or Stewart have ever done :(
MagdaInBlack
@Baud: And magots upset with the exodus are now referring to Bluesky as ” Bluecry.”
JaySinWA
@NeenerNeener: You need to check with your state insurance regulations as well. Here in WA there special provisions (at least for retirement MA plans) in addition to the Federal requirements.
ETA The state can impose additional requirements on insurers beyond what the Feds do, so there are a few more cases in WA where you can convert from MA to traditional Medicare without underwriting for supplementals.
Baud
@MagdaInBlack:
I don’t really care.
One thing Bluesky has opened my eyes to is how much the right wingers psychologically owned our side online. So many posts talking about the switch from Twitter, comparing it to leaving an abusive relationship. I’m glad people are happier, but the fact that they were in an abusive relationship to begin with speaks volumes.
MagdaInBlack
@Baud: I agree. It’s all one big abusive relationship. I’m glad for Bluesky.
Chief Oshkosh
@RevRick:
Much of Smith’s writings cover the equivalent of the need for regulating markets. Few people, and no conservatives, seem to understand this. I find that their understanding of the messages of Jesus parallels this.
Geminid
@Anyway: Unlike Virginia, New Jersey will have a contested Democratic primary for Governor. The crowded field includes two U.S. Representatives, Mikie Sherrill and blog favorite Josh Gottheimer.
I’m not sure about Gottheimer, but Sherrill is a member of the very talented House Class of 2018. Two others, Andy Kim and Elissa Slotkin, just won Senate seats while another, Abigail Spanberger will be our candidate for Governor here in Virginia. All four won their seats by beating incumbent Republicans.
I’m waiting for Festivus to pitch a couple ideas to WaterGirl. One is a fundraising thermometer for Josh Gottheimer. It would start at Absolute Zero.
mrmoshpotato
@Chris T.: Hope you have a quick, full recovery.
Starfish (she/her)
@MagdaInBlack:
There is a reason for that. The other day, I was watching Hank Green’s video on comparing his reach on Threads, X, and BlueSky. He noticed that if he mentions BlueSky on Twitter, his content does not get boosted the same way.
These folks saying BlueCry are avoiding having their reach minimized by using the platform’s real name.
Ruckus
@Steve LaBonne:
As an old fart I’d say extremely likely over very likely.
Now as a veteran I use the VA for what Medicare is used for and find that it is better. Far better. Sorry folks, but if I was on Medicare you’d be paying as well and likely more.
MagdaInBlack
@Starfish (she/her): I was just reading about that very thing. Thank you.
Eta: and the podcast i just started is discussing this too.
Starfish (she/her)
@Baud: It didn’t begin as an abusive relationship. The partner was charming to start out with. We could be the first to know things. But then, the platform noticed that we are more engaged if we are more emotional so they boost things that piss us off into our time line right before bedtime. They can make some dodos like me stay up late and argue with some chuckleheads.
When I left for some place else, I noticed that everyone had this tendency to want to fight folks they didn’t even know because Twitter had thrown so many people who shouldn’t have been thrown together into the same spaces. And when no one wanted to fight, it was confusing, but then everyone chilled and was like “Here is a picture of my bunny.” And then we said “Your bunny is cute” and went to bed on time.
I haven’t joined the people flocking to BlueSky yet because a lot of social media is generally bad for me.
Steve LaBonne
@Ruckus: Unpossible, the VA is soshulized medicine and everybody knows that can’t possibly work.
comrade scotts agenda of rage
@Steve LaBonne:
Yup, which is why the Orange Fart Cloud has put forth a privatizer of the VA to head it.
Man do we need to retake the House in 2 years.
Another Scott
Meanwhile, speaking of doing the work (or not)… VOANews.com:
I’m old enough to remember bits and pieces of Angola’s Civil War which started in the mid-70s. As usual for the times, many viewed it (rightly or wrongly) through the lens of proxy wars between the USA and the USSR. And, of course, the people suffered terribly.
It’s good to see progress there, and it illustrates that political progress can be heart-breakingly slow. It’s an important country, and continent, for lots and lots of reasons.
Best wishes,
Scott.
WaterGirl
@Starfish (she/her):
I love this.
Aziz, light!
I’m quite fond of IKEA and have bought a lot of stuff there, including an entire kitchen that I built myself. The only thing to avoid are the kitchen appliances, which are relatively cheap designs made by Whirlpool but given cosmetic alterations to look European, then jacked up in price. The IKEA in Portland listened to its customers’ complaints about being trapped in an endless maze, then opened up the floor plan to make it easier to exit. Sure there’s cheaply made crap at IKEA but also an abundance of well-designed, tasteful, useful, and highly affordable stuff as well.
I also buy a heck of a lot of merchandise from Amazon, so I guess I must be lacking in virtue.
MagdaInBlack
@WaterGirl: Yes! It made me smile too.
MagdaInBlack
@Aziz, light!: Too be honest, I have been to our local Ikea several times, and I have some nice stainless steel cookware to show for it. And a couple lamps. It’s just the last time I went it was, as some have said, overwhelming. And awful.
I probably caught the slow times the the first few visits.
Eta: factor in that I am fed the f up with the suburbs.
The Audacity of Krope
@MagdaInBlack: I only go to IKEA for the food.
Suzanne
Awwwww. IKEA called and had to reschedule our appointment. Guess I’ll have to spend the rest of the day at home with a book. #bummer
frosty
@schrodingers_cat: No, you’re not the only one tired of hearing about and seeing Musk. And Trump. Too much of both of them everywhere.
Quinerly
Jared’s dad and convicted felon, Charles Kushner, new ambassador to France.
different-church-lady
@schrodingers_cat: Of course not. But that doesn’t mean it’s going to stop anytime soon.
Bill Arnold
@Chris T.:
Ouch.
Please, everyone, take possible pneumonia symptoms very very serious and with urgency.
A case of bacterial pneumonia (following bronchitis) was the first time my life was saved by a modern medicine emergency intervention.
Called my primary care doctor on a Saturday; he listened to my voice and called in a Cipro (broad spectrum antibiotic) script, and insisted on an X-ray on Monday for confirmation. (Positive.)
Six hours later and I would have been in the hospital.
TBone
@Quinerly: JFC.
different-church-lady
@RevRick:
That can’t be a real place.
Ruckus
@Jackie:
I wonder if TCFG already realizes that?
It’s difficult to see what he sees/realizes/actually understands.
First he’s an old. Second he’s an old pompous, arrogant asshole, who thinks he is the highest shit in the land/world. Now he is the most arrogant, pompous, full of shit human in the world so he’s just not seeing the entire picture. But it must be difficult to see the big picture with one’s entire head, entirely up one’s exhaust chute. (he is a big enough ass for it all to fit….)
different-church-lady
@Jackie: [LetThemFight.gif]
different-church-lady
@Ruckus:
Which one?
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@Jackie:
What’s stopping Trump from just having Musk thrown out a window? Putin has done that many rich oligarchs who have annoyed him
different-church-lady
@Baud: It’s a shame they had to let democracy be murdered before they figured that out.
Baud
@different-church-lady:
They’re not the only ones.
Layer8Problem
@different-church-lady: As real as Ho-Ho-Kus and Tunkhannock.
Geminid
@Geminid: Another media site that provides useful reporting on events in Syria is Turkiye-based Clash Report. They are mainly a news aggregator along the lines of Poland(?)-based Visegrad24. Syria being a close neighbor, recent events in Syria are big story for them.
In October, Ankara freelance reporter Levent Kemal joined Clash Report as a contributing editor. Kemal is very knowledgeble in the area of armed conflict in the Middle East and Africa,and Middle East Eye has featured his reporting on Russian activities in Africa.
Kemal and a couple partners also run a site called ActaFabulae that features granular reporting on various insurgencies from Pakistan to Cental Africa.
Kemal apparently has contacts among various militaries including both the IRGC and the IDF and has brought some in-depth reporting to Clash Report.
The latest stories he/they have reported are that rebels have entered Hama, a city of slightly 1 million people that I think lies almost halfway from Aleppo to Damascus. Also, that Kurdish YPG miltitia formations have entered the fighting northeast of Aleppo on the government’s side.
And Clash Report just put up a “big if true” story, that there is a military coup being attempted against President Assad who is now in Moscow, with unconfirmed reports of gunfire near Army headquarters in Damascus.
taumaturgo
@Balconesfault: Both can be true at the same time, billionaires scammers and Democrats who receive funding from them.
Jackie
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): I think TCFG and Musk are chained at the hips… precisely for that reason. And Musk has the only key…
Gloria DryGarden
@Nukular Biskits: do you have any idea where that list is floating? I’m not all or nothing.
I can do my best to cut back and avoid as much as I can. It might be hard to boycott ace hardware, although there is a try value not much farther away. even a partial boycott seems worthy.
laura
@Suzanne: When you are forced to appear at the IKEA, try the plant-based hot dog. They top it with the fried onions and it is seriously, ridiculously delish. I would swing by for that particular dog in a quick minute. It is the opposite of gut bomb.
Gretchen
@Lapassionara: No, that’s correct. Once you choose a Medicare Advantage plan you can only move to another MA plan, unless you undergo underwriting. Anyone with preexisting conditions (like everyone over 65) won’t be able to switch. We were lucky because BCBS stopped offering MA in our area, so we got a one-time chance to move to standard Medicare without underwriting. We regretted being on MA when they refused to pay for treatments the doctor ordered.