I promised an open thread and here it is.
I’m glad to hear from people calling their Senators and Representatives. I think it’s worthwhile action, even if it is just to complain. As people have been mentioning in the comments, calling the Republicans is worthwhile, too. Just turning off the Medicaid disbursement system (which is apparently what’s happened) is something that affects their constituents and can make them mad, even if their district is as red as a baboon’s ass. The more heat they feel, the better. Trump never said he’d turn off Medicaid, WIC or any of the programs he just stopped funding with a stroke of the pen, so if you want to act like an aggrieved Trump voter, I’m not going to complain.
Baud posted this link to Krugman explaining his exit from the Times, and it’s an interesting hate read for me (since I hate the Times a hell of a lot).
Leto
OT but on brand: in our Reagan and Gorbachev class, we covered Reagan’s first inaugural address. Prof gave us a copy of it, we followed along via YouTube, and he would occasionally stop and provide commentary. I marked mine up with just a host of, “Lies/trickle-down Econ/deregulation” and other shit like that. I wish I had done some more specific/focused reading on the shithead, but I definitely plan to bring an anti-Reagan perspective on that shitweasel. And the times when I can link his worthless policies to where we are now, even better.
In other news, last Friday’s pizza bake went very well. Per TBone’s suggestion, I grabbed two dough balls from my local pizzaria and made two excellent pies. Ofc, discovered that one of those doughballs would’ve been good for both pans. Seriously. I made tonno y cipollia (tuna and red onion) for Avalune, while the boy and I had a supreme (pepperoni, Calabrian sausage, mushroom, black olive, red onion, and green pepper). Not sure what I’m making for Friday (Pizza and Severance) but it’ll be good!
Matt McIrvin
My Senators and Representative have been pretty reliable about standing firm against Republican stupidity lately, but historically it’s not 100%, and I’ve been motivated to start sending them encouraging messages just to counter any hate messages they’re getting that might soften their opposition. I think mostly constituents respond to votes when they object to them (to read my rep’s Facebook comments you’d think we were all deep-red wingnuts who hated her), and I figure saying thanks is important.
Betty Cracker
All of my local, state and federal reps are Repubs, and I’ve been contacting them while also wondering if it is pointless. I’ll keep plugging away.
Matt McIrvin
People in purple districts/states presumably have the most leverage. That makes them enervating places to live but the other side of the coin is the increased power you have.
Ohio Mom
I have been goggling, looking for exactly what parts of Medicaid funding have been frozen. Are they really stopping payments to nursing homes? That’s a big business. I can’t imagine they are standing for this.
Then there is the funding that subsidizes the ACA, of course Trump hates that. Straight up Medicare for poor people he also hates, waivers for disabled people, I can find anything on any disability sites but he’s no friend to us.
There may be other Medicaid programs I’ve never heard of.
prostratedragon
Caroline Kennedy has issued a statement urging the Senate not to confirm her cousin. Spoken like a capable ambassador.
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
Does this stop of all federal funding affect Medicare and Social Security? I know my grandmother also relies on some military benefit as a surviving spouse of military veteran
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@Ohio Mom:
He’s making a lot of enemies, very fast
prufrock
I just called Anna Luna’s office. The guy was polite, but I don’t know if I was wasting my breath.
This is personal. My wife works for a bank. Her job is for a program that uses money from SBA, and as of this morning, that money is no longer there.
My family’s livelihood is being fucked with because of these assholes. I hate them.
Leto
He did not, but it was documented extensively in Project 2025 that they wanted to get rid of all this. As you said previously, he might have tried to distance himself from it, but he’s been signing every EO that’s been generated by the Project 2025 authors/enablers. And as someone else said 1-2 threads down below, yeah, you did vote for this. Finally, as Hudson said in Aliens: “We’re on an express elevator to hell!”
Percysowner
I just emailed My Representative, Joyce Beatty, who has pretty much always done the right thing, Bernie Moreno, who I have zero confidence in but still deserves some pressure and John Husted, who I have NO feeling for. First blast was a general condemnation of all of Trump’s actions. I plan to go into more detail on how the freeze is hurting Ohio in my next contact.
Belafon
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): Who would have thought going after trans people would affect others? /sarc
Trollhattan
Trump claimed:
The State clapped back:
Every time. Do this.
JaySinWA
My wife’s doctor recommended she try the 2 week low FODMAT diet. We’ve been scrambling to find things that fit in out current pantry and add enough variety. Going into this cold turkey is a challenge. It does seem to have helped in the first day or so.
The process going forward looks daunting, adding back restricted foods one at a time.
The Monash University web site seems like a vending machine, the FODMAP everyday site gives out more useful information with less investment. I did buy the Monash app though.
The Healthline info her doctor gave her seemed very scattershot to me. Requiring lots of rereading.
Professor Bigfoot
Open thread, so I’m gonna talk about something I’ve been thinking about a lot these last few days.
I loved Paul Simon’s “Rhythm of the Saints” album, but it has been a long time since I last listened to it; and really was always much more enamored of the interesting rhythms he used much more than the lyrics.
But one song, “Cool, Cool River” keeps playing in my head. It starts out:
and man, that’s how I’ve been feeling lately.
But then, much further on:
Again, just seemed to hit home. But THIS PART got me:
and that I feel down in my soul. “Hard times? I’m used to that.”
We are the witness, we are the warriors, we deny our urge to break and run.
https://music.apple.com/us/album/the-cool-cool-river/380597264?i=380597296
JPL
@prostratedragon: Might I add that baby chicks and mice don’t belong in a blender. That alone should disqualify him.
chrisanthemama
@Ohio Mom: Medicaid is essential funding for most rural (i.e. red-area) hospitals, which are usually the largest employers in their areas, and which are on the knife’s edge of keeping their doors open. Federal grants go disproportionately to red states, as well, to support housing, policing, food programs, child care, etc. I wonder when all the lawless chaos will begin to bite stupid Nixon in his commodious ass.
TBone
Again, and I know you reamed me before for saying this M.M., but thank you for hipping me to The Contrarians. Paul Krugman has joined them. From their newsletter alert today:
Last time I spoke up about subscribing, it was about Laurence Tribe’s piece on the 28th Amendment.
JPL
@Ohio Mom: Democratic Atty Generals are suing and hope to block it from happening at five. If the Supremes side with trump on this, we are really screwed.
Dangerman
More strokes on last round of golf or more lawsuits since inauguration? Lost count.
Kayla Rudbek
@chrisanthemama: taking food away from people and leaving them their guns is a recipe for an uprising
zhena gogolia
@prostratedragon: Wow, “predator.” I can’t listen to it right now, but I will watch later.
chrisanthemama
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): No.
“Medicare and Social Security benefits are not affected by President Donald Trump’s sweeping freeze on trillions of dollars of federal payments effective at 5 p.m. Jan. 28 but it remains unclear how that surprising action will impact other programs for retired Americans. A coalition of state attorneys general Jan. 28 said it would file suit to block the executive order for all federal grants and loans impacting millions of Americans.
“A Jan. 27 memo from the Office of Management and Budget does not explicitly exempt Medicaid, which provides health coverage to low-income seniors and supplements Medicare for many retirees, including long-term care coverage. The scope of the order remains unclear but could hit food assistance programs such as SNAP and Meals on Wheels as well as Section 8 housing…” Medicare, Social Security Immune From Trump’s Federal Freeze – Retirement Daily on TheStreet: Finance and Retirement Advice, Analysis, and More
@mistermix.bsky.social
@TBone: I take it back! I’m still leery of that crew, but they’ve been doing well so far.
@Betty Cracker:
You can make it fun — get a Google Voice number and use a different accent when you call to talk about Trump taking away Medicaid that’s paying for your mom’s nursing home, and how you’ve been flying a Trump flag since he announced, blah blah blah. You could develop a whole schtick!
Old School
@Ohio Mom:
That’s because the order is vague.
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@chrisanthemama:
Thank you, that’s a relief on that front
TBone
@@mistermix.bsky.social: No hard feelings, I never hold a grudge for long, despite my natural red hair highlights.
I really am grateful to you for knowing about them immediately!
prostratedragon
Meals On Wheels, for heaven’s sake. What you get when you elect a shitbird who threw his own needy grandnephew off an insurance policy that was a pittance relative to family resources.
TBone
@prostratedragon: good eye as usual, P.D.!
Belafon
@TBone: Maybe they should publish a newspaper.
TBone
@Betty Cracker: me too, except for Senator Fetterman hahahaha!
TBone
@Belafon: I would pay for a paper edition (I am subscribed for free, currently).
prostratedragon
@zhena gogolia:
In the comments, someone also reproduced her complete letter. A quick, devastating read. In ordinary times, that would be that.
Parenthetically, what the hell is Whitehouse’s problem? There is no game here worth playing.
rikyrah
Medicaid payments…..
Means that the nursing homes aren’t getting paid.
Once again….
The poster children for Medicaid…
Should be MeeMaw and PawPaw.
Those nursing home residents take the largest percentage of Medicaid dollars
rikyrah
@prufrock:
Come sit by me
TBone
@prufrock: my Rumpy neighbors across the street bore an
inceloffspring who worked in Lunar’s office last year before moving to work for another despicable congresscritter from Georgia (not MTG thankfully – if it were her I wouldn’t be able to restrain myself). The kid is in charge of communication and is literally functionally illiterate! Liberty Uni grad (or almost grad). The pipeline of Liberty U fucks straight into the veins of our government is a huge problem!Formerly disgruntled in Oregon
@Professor Bigfoot: Beautiful – thank you for sharing these lyrics.
Chris
Thanks, it’s a good read, if a depressing one.
I’ve honestly always been mildly shocked that he lasted as long at the NYT as he did. It was always clear that they thought they were hiring another professional centrist, so much the better if he had a D after his name, who was going to spend most of his time punching hippies like he did in his various arguments with anti-globalists in the nineties. It was equally clear that they were very chagrined when he turned into one of the loudest voices in the nation denouncing the Bush administration. (He’s kinder to them in his letter than he sometimes was in the past. For all that he says the editing had a “light touch” before 2017, I remember him noticing once that someone had recommended to him that he should write a column praising something about the Bush administration just in the name of “balance” – and then being caught flat-footed and without an answer when Krugman responded “like what?”)
Though as he says in the article, the New York Times was certainly glad they’d had him by the late 2000s. It allowed them to say “what? Us? Why, we never pushed for the Iraq War! Look, we had Paul Krugman!”
I suppose it was always overdetermined that the relationship would end like this. It’s spectacular that it took a quarter-century for that to happen, though. He remains probably my favorite political writer from my youth, and I hope he continues writing for a long time. All the better if it’s not at the fucking New York Times.
TBone
@Professor Bigfoot: he is a prophet!
Exhibit A
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=-I_T3XvzPaM
Trollhattan
@rikyrah:
And if our region is at all representative, folks caring for MeMaw and PePaw are predominantly…immigrants.
Is this a Donny twofer?
Emily B.
@JaySinWA: Mr. B is on day 10 of the same FODMAP regime. We tried dining out twice and decided that restaurants are no-go zones for the duration of the diet. At home, we’re using lemon, rosemary, cinnamon, and maple syrup liberally, but miss garlic and good bread. I agree, information online is scant and often contradictory.
He’s not seeing much in the way of positive results so far, alas. This exercise may just be a way to rule out some stuff.
Soprano2
This has been such a shitty month besides the Orange Error and his outrageous actions. I’ve replaced my home computer monitor and the battery in my car, spent another couple of hours on the phone with AT&T to find that the reason my phone didn’t come on was because they were trying to use a number they didn’t actually control, had to call the lab to find out why they didn’t do all of hubby’s tests for his two doctor’s visits, had to call the plumber Sunday because our toilet was stopped up and I couldn’t get it unplugged with my manual snake (and I couldn’t wait until morning, hubby was trying to find a plunger to fix it!).
Then I took hubby to the doctor this morning because he’s developed a deep hoarse cough and I was worried he was getting pneumonia. I don’t think he has that, but the read of the X-ray says they saw an 8mm spot that hadn’t been observed before and they recommended a CT scan. She hasn’t called me yet about that, but I’m sure I’ll hear something today or tomorrow. Oh, and the Terminex people I hired to do some work in my basement were supposed to call me to schedule an appointment, but instead they just showed up yesterday, asked hubby what they were supposed to get rid of in the basement (he said nothing, of course, because he knows nothing about this), so they proceeded to tent off everything in the basement so they could do the work! Thing is, I paid them to both get rid of a lot of that junk and then do the other work in the basement (it’s a treatment to retard mold and mildew). I had to call the area supervisor this morning and have a talk with him about it. Those guys are going to have to come back on Wednesday and do a bunch of extra work all because they couldn’t be bothered to call me before they came (they weren’t supposed to come on Monday anyway!!). Oh, and hubby fell down on his knee three weeks ago when we had that bad weather. Luckily, he was able to bend it and walk on it, but it hurt quite a bit. I never took him to the ER and it’s mostly gotten better.
Ok, I feel a little bit better now. Sorry to unload like that.
tam1MI
@Soprano2: Unload away! Sounds like you have been having a dreadful time. Sending “things get better soon” vibes your way!
Soprano2
@tam1MI: Thanks, I could use them. Any and all good vibes accepted.
zhena gogolia
@Soprano2: I hope things get less horrible!
Professor Bigfoot
@TBone: omg, that is one of my favorite tracks on my all-time favorite albums!
“He’s a poor boy, empty as a pocket- empty as a pocket with nothin’ to lose” and “She was physically forgotten but then she slipped into my pocket with my car keys” like damn, Paul, *how do you DO this?
Professor Bigfoot
@Soprano2: Sending all the luck, right down to the quantum level. Man, I always say “the universe conspires against us,” but it’s been on your ass this month, hasn’t it?
May your luck turn completely around.
Soprano2
So I got the message from the NP about needing a CT. Guess I’ll find out shortly when that is. I’m going to try not to think too much about what it could be ahead of time, but shoot my husband already has two things that could be fatal – chronic severe kidney disease and multiple myeloma. He’ll tell you he feels fine!
zhena gogolia
@Soprano2: I guess it’s a good thing he doesn’t feel bad. Hoping for some good news for you.
Geminid
@Matt McIrvin: I have not found living in a Purple district to be enervating. On the contrary, I find it invigorating. We had real fights here in VA07 the last two cycles; ultimately, Abigail Spanberger and the Eugene Vindman won out but they had work hard for those victories and so did district Dems.
And these districts are very educational as well. The road to a House majority runs through Purple districts and they are important to know about. I study them as closely as my time allows.
And the Democtats we elect from purple districts are impressive, I think. I know the ones from.the Class of 2018 best. That’s when 40 Democrats flipped red seats, which to me means they won purple districts.
These included Elissa Slotkin and Andy Kim, who are now Senators; Mikie Sherrill, Chrissy Houlahan, Elaine Luria, Abigail Spanberger, Colin Allred, Sharice Davids, Xochitl Torres Small, Jason Crow and Katie Porter.
Reps. Torres Small and Luria got knocked out in 2020 and 2022 respectively, but that wasn’t because they lacked talent or a good work ethic; Purple districts are just tough to win if there are any kind of head winds.
The same is true for purple state legislative districts, like the dozen or so we’ll be contesting here in Virginia this year. We’ll need good candidates and they’ll have bring their “A” game to win.
But I’ll say about this about our Blue district House members. Gerrymandering has led to a race to the bottom among Republicans. Not so with Democrats. We elect strong, pragmatic politicians from Purple and Blue districts alike.
Ohio Mom
@Percysowner: When I tired, I had to leave a message in Bernie Morino’s (whatever the spelling of his name is) mailbox, and Husted’s mailbox was full.
Which is what I expected. Portman’s mailbox was often full, his staff hardly ever answered the phone. Now Sherrod Brown, his staff always answered the home promptly.
Ohio Mom
@JaySinWA: I have a friend on the FODMAP diet, she swears by it. It does look difficult to me because a lot of great vegetables are prohibited. But if it works, it will be worth it.
Matt McIrvin
@Geminid: I have family there so I take an interest…
Darkrose
@Matt McIrvin: I called my rep’s local office today. We’re in a deep blue district, and Matsui’s been excellent so far—growing up in a camp, she recognizes fascism when it knocks on the door. I wanted to thank her and urge her to nudge her colleagues who seem to be confused anout what’s happening.
The staffer who answered thanked me for the call. She also looked me up and found my name and address because I’ve contacted them in the past. I think it’s good for them to know constituents are paying attention.
Ruckus
@Betty Cracker:
It can go 2 ways.
1. First they will listen and think about what you say. And actually decide to agree or disagree.
2. It’s either a complete waste of time and effort. Or not. And that depends on how far down the rat hole your reps have fallen down that hole.
So getting them to change, to see the issue, to give a damn is the hard part.
This countries politics seems to be, at least on one side, falling down a very crappy hole and for all the wrong reasons for anyone involved in politics of a representative government. What I see many republicans doing is seemingly deciding that just being a politician isn’t enough, because in this current world we can have differences from what some of the uber wealthy seem to have decided is totally their country, and that we all exist to make them far wealthier and far more powerful. They are trying to turn this country into the opposite of a democracy, because being one makes it just a tad tougher to be far more than exceedingly wealthy and powerful.
TBone
@Professor Bigfoot: Well, I always knew you have good taste!
JaySinWA
@Emily B.: Sourdough bread may be a possibility. No onions, garlic and wheat products rule out a lot of prepared stuff.
@Ohio Mom: It’s very strict in the beginning, but hopefully we can reintroduce things to make it easier going forward. Apparently each individual tolerates different things.