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Radicalized white males who support Trump are pitching a tent in the abyss.

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Tick tock motherfuckers!

One of our two political parties is a cult whose leader admires Vladimir Putin.

Narcissists are always shocked to discover other people have agency.

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People really shouldn’t expect the government to help after they watched the GOP drown it in a bathtub.

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Some judge needs to shut this circus down soon.

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That’s my take and I am available for criticism at this time.

It may be funny to you motherfucker, but it’s not funny to me.

You are here: Home / Open Threads / Totally Out of the Loop Open Thread

Totally Out of the Loop Open Thread

by | 79 Comments

This post is in: 

The past three days for me have been totally about trying to put my house back together after at least 3 weeks of disruption and chaos.  At this point, my closet room (small bedroom that I turned into a closet years ago) is a disaster, and I can barely step into the room because the floor is nearly covered.  At one point I thought, “oh this must be what it’s like to be a hoarder”, trying to find a spot where you can take the next step without tripping and hurting yourself.

And my dining room table is covered with stuff I have to deal with and put away…. somewhere?   Not to mention all the stuff I shoved under the dining table to get it out of the way while the work was being done.

So at this point, the chaos is now quarantined into those two areas, and the rest of the house feels more like a normal house again.  I have the weekend to get those two areas workable and live-able again.  It’s been a ton of work, and I have almost completely ignored the outside world.  It’s really hard for me to focus on anything when I am surrounded by chaos.  Guessing that most of us are that way?

Except that a couple of times a day I look to make sure it hasn’t been 8 hours since the last post, and then I read a couple of lines of the top post and find out the next totally unbelievable over-the-too crap that is being done in the name of government.  Holy shit, they aren’t drowning it in a bathtub, when they aren’t setting it on fire they are bludgeoning it to death.

I find myself hoping that some good stuff has happened, too, and also hoping you guys can share some of those things in the comments.

What have you guys been up to?  I had a humorous moment yesterday when the nice Amish man who put in the hardwood floor came to move the furniture back.  About halfway through that process he said “I was really surprised to see your sign” and I’m thinking, “what sign?  I don’t have a sign”, and then I wondered if he mean my “NO KINGS in America since 1776” bumper sticker.  He must have seen the quizzical look cross my face because he gestured toward something in the living room.

Then I knew!  I have a nameplate (where your name and possibly job title would normally be) that says:

LET ME FILE THAT UNDER

fuck it

As I was taking all that in, he said “You seem like such a nice lady that …”, and I laughed and said “I thought it was funny!” and he said “I did, too.”

So we had our little moment.  He was surprised that this nice lady would have that sign, and I was surprised that the nice Amish man thought it was funny, too.

Open thread.

Reader Interactions

79Comments

  1. 1.

    WaterGirl

    If anyone has a browser tab open from Monday, 5/12 in the afternoon still open, please don’t refresh and let me know what the daily sidebar image said (Image by xx) and describe the image – because I left the date at 5/10, I think, so I can’t tell what image I used for 5/12.

    thank you.

  2. 2.

    Jackie

    I love your sign, too!

    I’m happy you’re seeing the faint light getting brighter at the end of your tunnel! :-)

  3. 3.

    WaterGirl

    @WaterGirl: Steeplejack was as bad as I am about leaving browser tabs open, so for half a second I nearly reached for my phone to call him.  It’s been nearly a year, and I still miss him.

  4. 4.

    AJ of the Mustard Search and Rescue Team

    That’s a beautiful moment between you two haha

    Good luck getting it all back how you like it WG.

    I got laid off this morning. Doing ok so far. Have a lot of time scheduled with community this week as I booked vacation days. Grateful for all the support I have and for the FP’ers here.

  5. 5.

    SiubhanDuinne

    I’ll bet that nice Amish man was a real hoot during his rumspringa year!

  6. 6.

    currawong

    It’s raining here at the moment – one of the first decent falls we have had this year. And this weekend is one of the first reminders that winter is just over two weeks away. Looks like only a couple of wet days though before the sunshine returns. Ridiculous weather for the second half of May – Victoria just had it’s warmest April on record.

    The government’s answer will be to approve a new gas field I suspect.

  7. 7.

    Suzanne

    SuzMom’s little doggo passed away this afternoon. We knew it was coming, she was very old and had stopped eating a few days ago. I’m sad for my mom….. that pupper was 100% devoted to her (and hated everyone else).

  10. 10.

    WaterGirl

    @AJ of the Mustard Search and Rescue Team:

    Good luck getting it all back how you like it WG.

    The funny thing is, almost nothing is going back where it was before, because the couch color didn’t look good with the new floor color.  So I am trading much of the furniture between rooms – it’s almost like moving in to a new place, trying to figure out what can go where.  And somehow I have more stuff than I can fit.

    Loaves and the fishes?  :: shrug ::

  12. 12.

    Trivia Man

    Marble size hail yesterday

    mrs trivia showing at her first art fair tomorrow and she is having mega anxiety attacks

    lettuce and cabbage in the garden are up, the volunteer clematis are going ape shit

  16. 16.

    H.E.Wolf

    Something good… ooh, ooh, I have one!

    Today I met a very recent immigrant from Turkey at a local tourist attraction that I hadn’t been to in years. Her English was better than my Turkish (minimal, vs. none), but we communicated well enough to get by.

    Thank goodness for the “make a heart shape with your hands” gesture. It translated just fine, and I left her with a smile on her face.

    (On mine, too.)

  17. 17.

    Suzanne

    We have a primary election coming up. Most of the races are easy, but you have to vote for judges here. And you only get to vote for eight, so I have to look them all up and try to pick.

    Kinda wonder why we vote for judges. I feel unqualified.

  19. 19.

    Jackie

    Something good? FFOTUS had a really bad news day: The MAGA House and “his” Supremes were BAD, BAD, BAD ;-D

  20. 20.

    MagdaInBlack

    Got up from a “nap” and discovered we are having dust-storm season in Northern Illinois. FB news feed has pictures of a “haboob’ coming across the prairie out where I grew up ( Serena IL area)

    Brownish dusty clouds here in NW Chicago-land.

    Eta: not necessarily good stuff, but interesting at least.

  21. 21.

    H.E.Wolf

    @Suzanne: ​[voting for judges] I feel unqualified.

     This may not work where you are… but do any of your local bar associations rate judges on their websites? Around here we have the county Bar Assoc’n, and also specialty groups’ BAs: Asian-American, LGBTQ, etc.

  22. 22.

    WaterGirl

    @Suzanne: At this point, my feeling is that voting for judges is self-defense, so I vote based on political party.  If it’s a non-partisan election (yeah right, pull the other one) where they don’t list parties, I look at what groups support them and who appointed them in the first place.

    Even if a Republican was a much better judge based on prior standards, at this point I don’t care about that.  I want someone who will uphold the rule of law.

  23. 23.

    Gvg

    @Suzanne: you are qualified. It’s the journalists and media that are unqualified. They haven’t been keeping us informed for decades now especially about things like judges, so we have no info and even googling it is nearly useless because nobody wrote anything about cases and laws or rulings so there is nothing for a search engine to find!

  24. 24.

    H.E.Wolf

    Something else good, to celebrate the end of the work week: a short video clip which reminds me of the shenanigans the Shipping & Receiving folks used to get up to, many eons ago when I worked in manufacturing.

    May we all be so lucky as to have a friend or two we can be silly with! Happy weekend, y’all….

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WruWV4SqlZ8

  26. 26.

    Gin & Tonic

    Don’t want to jinx anything, but my Knicks are up by 35 points in the third quarter.

  27. 27.

    Suzanne

    @WaterGirl: Yes, that’s my project for Sunday. The judge part is nonpartisan, so I need to look them all up. I just….will struggle with picking the eight best.

  29. 29.

    Suzanne

    @H.E.Wolf: That’s a good idea. In the past, I have looked for endorsements from trusted organizations. I got two mailers about the judges….. one was from the County Party and indicated their preferred slate of eight. A second mailer from one of the other’s campaigns, indicating she was endorsed by Planned Parenthood. If so, why isn’t she one of the Party’s suggested candidates?!

    I have to look them all up.

  31. 31.

    Yutsano

    Tell me something good eh?

    First of all: I’m alive! I have been way smoking busy getting in as much overtime as I can.

    Point two: I’m looking at a place on Sunday! They have a few options, some within my price point plus all the units have full kitchens! There will be updates.

    Point three: a old friend of mine I haven’t seen in over 30 years will be getting off the Amtrak in about an hour! I plan to drop her off at Westlake while I’m working a few hours tomorrow, then I’ll be meeting her on Mercer Island after another old friend gets done with their kid’s lacrosse match, then we’re all going to dinner. It’s going to be quite the adventure!

  35. 35.

    sab

    @Yutsano: I have been wondering where you have been. I am very glad you are alive and still running your life.

    Keep us posted. Many here care about you.

  42. 42.

    Sister Machine Gun of Quiet Harmony

    The first big tornado to hit St Louis since the 1950s came through and did major damage. 4 dead. We were not in it’s path and feel very lucky.

  43. 43.

    Jackie

    @Suzanne: Suzanne, maybe your family can rescue a little dog and let your mom “adopt” as her own? My heart breaks for her – and you all, as I’m sure you all loved her doggo.

  44. 44.

    Kayla Rudbek

    Going on five hours of a power outage here in Northern Virginia and I am glad that I had charged up my neck lamp this week. There were at least two stoplights out on the way home from work today. And it’s still cloudy enough that I can’t even see any stars out, so there’s no fun from it either.

  45. 45.

    Sister Golden Bear

    @Sister Golden Bear: Speaking of trans issues, the far-right activist federal judge in North Texas, who’s the go-to judge for right-wing causes, ruled today that despite SCOTUS rulings, Title VII no longer protects LGBTQ+ people from workplace discrimination and harassment—only from being fired.

    The case was brought against the EEOC by the state of Texas alongside the Heritage Foundation, a central force behind Project 2025—an aggressive right-wing policy blueprint that explicitly calls for rolling back LGBTQ+ protections in federal law. In siding with the plaintiffs, Judge Kacsmaryk pointed to the Texas Department of Agriculture’s current employee policy, which requires “employees to comply with this dress code in a manner consistent with their biological gender,” specifying that “men may wear pants” and “women may wear dresses, skirts, or pants.” The ruling also upheld the department’s policy banning transgender employees from using restrooms that align with their gender identity….

    Ultimately, Judge Kacsmaryk ordered the complete removal of all references to sexual orientation and gender identity as protected classes under Title VII from EEOC guidance. His ruling declares that “all language defining ‘sex’ in Title VII to include ‘sexual orientation’ and ‘gender identity’” must be stripped from federal employment policy. Specifically, it targets and nullifies Section II(A)(5)(c) of the 2024 EEOC guidance, which states: “Sex-based discrimination under Title VII includes employment discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.”

    I’m sure the Trump Administration—which in the deportation case they lost today argued federal judges have no right to issue nation-wide rulings—will undoubtedly argue that this ruling applies across the U.S. Because reasons.

  48. 48.

    laura

    @Suzanne: Here’s a source to help you make as informed a choice as you can. I look at where they went to school, what areas of practice, what organizations they may be associated with, where there support is, if they are seeking the bench, reelection, or have been serving for a long time and whatnot. I hope that you may find it of use:

    https://ballotpedia.org/Sample_Ballot_Lookup

    Sorry about the loss of SuzMom’s wee boon companion.

  49. 49.

    mvr

    Stereotypes are useful (which is why we are prone to them) but they also make us miss things.

  52. 52.

    Glidwrith

    Omaha, Nebraska has elected a new mayor, African-American, over a three term mayor by a12 point spread.

  53. 53.

    Glidwrith

    Brainworm Kennedy literally went swimming in sewage contaminated water with his grandchildren.

  54. 54.

    JoyceH

    open thread topic – knock wood and cross fingers but I do believe I got my book unstuck! I’ve been writing every day this week and know what I’m going to write to the end. This is Book 5 of a series in which I published book 4 in *2019*. Every few months I get a mournful pm from a reader wanting to know if more books in the series will be coming. Right now, signs are indicating Yes!

  56. 56.

    FastEdD

    Word is the Orange Cockwomble has been invited to the Indy 500 next week. I will be there a week from Sunday. I have my traditional seat in SW Vista. I need to practice how far I can spit.

  57. 57.

    mvr

    @Sister Machine Gun of Quiet Harmony: Oh Crap! I’m headed there Sunday.  This time of year is hell on Missouri.  10+ years ago I went down there for this same conference.  IT was the Joplin Tornado on the way down and dodging others on the way back.

    While at the conference we ate at a restaurant for lunch when the wind came up and blew the brick kneewall off the roof of the building and it landed on the other side of the window where we were sitting, maybe 3 feet away. I ran for the stairwell and eventually the fire department closed the place down.

    Other years have been in the running for shittiest/most dangerous weather.

    Anyway, not to focus on me too much, Climate Change is moving tornado alley North so that Kansas and Missouri are now in the East/West lane.  Many of us are in the North South Lane, Where they cross is really bad.

    Why I hate Donald Trump and Republican efforts to stop us from mitigating climate change. (OK, to be fair I’ve hated Trump for 40+ years.)

  58. 58.

    Redshift

    I think this is good news: WaPo and other outlets are covering the fact that many of the “deals” TCFG announced during his overseas trip actually happened during the Biden administration.

  61. 61.

    Glidwrith

    My youngest is home for the summer after a wonderfully successful first year of college. Landed a summer-grant part time job too!

  63. 63.

    Glidwrith

    The Qatar government gave shitforbrains a jumbo jet described as a flying brothel. Valued at $400 million, the royal family has apparently been trying to get rid of it for years because it’s too expensive to operate, out of date by at least a decade and is so large, most airports do not have landing strips to accommodate it.

    Even the MAGAts can’t turn a blind eye to the corruption on display, and I’ve been LMAO watching the spectacle.

  64. 64.

    Glidwrith

    Oh! Are you familiar with the Murderbot series? A TV series just launched and a bunch of other Juicers have seen the first two episodes. Thumbs up and I’m probably going to subscribe to Apple TV just to see it!

  66. 66.

    Ruckus

    @Suzanne:

    Because you don’t want a pompous, arrogant jackass who hates everyone else on the planet putting your neighbors, friends and possibly you in jail because he hates every other human, that he of course believes are obviously beneath him, becoming a judge. As well this is a country that is supposed to be of, by and for ALL OF US, not just the wealthy, pompous arrogant jackasses who think they own everything. I spent a not insignificant amount of time in the military of this country, hoping that might help it not become the plaything of pompous, arrogant, wealthy jackasses who have zero concept of equality, democracy, government of, by and for the people – ALL OF THE PEOPLE, not just the rich, pompous and arrogant.  (I’m working hard not to put in all the swear words in my mind that are screaming to be typed here) A fair number of US citizens have served in the US military, many during a time of war (waves a hand…) at least with some idea that we have to protect the concept of this government is for and by all of us, not just the rich. Money is nice, I imagine a lot of money is nicer. But it does not make anyone more powerful or louder, or more of a citizen, no matter how much you have or how loud you shout. Or don’t. And that is the major point of our government, our laws, our democracy. And this a major point of our government and should be for each of us. This country, this government was not founded upon our monetary value, but our value of each of us and every one of us.

  69. 69.

    Mart

    Years ago I had to cut through an empty office to get to an electrical room in a factory that was 90% run by Amish. Barge in on a poor guy sneaking a peak at the NBA Championship game on a tiny TV. I felt like a jerk the way he looked at me, but it wasn’t my fault!

  70. 70.

    Jackie

    Reposting here, as I can’t believe this isn’t worth a response?

    This is CRAZY STUPID!

    The Trump administration has decided to permit the sale of devices that enable standard firearms to fire like machine guns, a move that one person familiar with the matter said was “by far the most dangerous thing this administration has done” on gun policy, NBC News reports.

    The Justice Department on Friday announced a settlement in a lawsuit brought by the National Association for Gun Rights. The lawsuit challenged an ATF rule banning “forced reset triggers” — devices that allow semiautomatic weapons to fire rapid bursts of bullets.

    “This Department of Justice believes that the 2nd Amendment is not a second-class right,” Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in a statement. “And we are glad to end a needless cycle of litigation with a settlement that will enhance public safety.”

    The move comes after a majority of judges on the conservative 5th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals appeared to side with the gun rights group during oral arguments in the case in December. The judges cited a Supreme Court decision last year finding that another rapid-fire device, called a bump stock, did not convert firearms into illegal machine guns.

    *snip*

    The gunman in the 2017 Las Vegas mass shooting killed 58 people while firing from his hotel room window using bump stocks.

    Uh, WHO was president in 2017???

  71. 71.

    Ruckus

    @prostratedragon:

    To me he is something that all animals do, hopefully regularly and that we have a room specifically designed for, that we most often do alone, which would push a suppository out. IOW a suppository he isn’t.

  72. 72.

    NotMax

    Something good?

    The super duper bread m,chine baked up a picture perfect loaf of challah sandwich bread (tall standard shaped load, not ;the braided kind).

  73. 73.

    Ruckus

    @Jackie:

    I have forced myself to not think about that horrible time in life. Because it does 2 things to me. Because it reminds me of, well now. I’m an old, I could have 20-25 yrs left or could have hours. Dad lived 8 years longer than I have, mom lived 19 years longer than I have, I’ve outlived oldest sister by 11 years…. My point is that I’m not done.

    And yes it is crazy stupid. I can’t not say it, it’s fucking crazy stupid. But then it’s really not possible for him to be anything but fucking crazy stupid. It’s who he is. Through and through. Not a molecule that isn’t.

  74. 74.

    Sister Golden Bear

    @Glidwrith:

    Murderbot is a fantastic series, and the first two episodes on Apple TV definitely nailed it (and “The Rise and Fall of Sanctuary Moon” story within the story).

    My only disappointment is that I need to wait for more episodes. Content! I want my sweet, sweet content!

  76. 76.

    prostratedragon

    @m.j.:  Thanks for the help. I couldn’t get the Elephant Song out of my head. I was beginning to worry.

  79. 79.

    Ruckus

    @WaterGirl:

    I want someone who will uphold the rule of law.

    You don’t like the rule of bullshit?

    Because that is what these people want – pure bullshit. Not humanity. Not equality – although few humans can equal her sports achievements. They want the ability to publicly hate anyone that doesn’t fit into their thimble sized concept of humanity. Equality? Nope. What they want is a world where no one can be ahead of them. Which leaves out about 75-80% of humanity – maybe/likely more. Their view of the world is that they are the top of the heap. And they are, it’s just not the heap they “think” it is, in their tiny, deranged, far worse than useless pea brains. They can’t in any way, shape or form – be the top of any heap that isn’t made up of bullshit and stupidity.

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