Gerald and Landrea had to buy a new (used) car today, so Breyana and I went to the big city so I could get a haircut:
Took that just a few minutes ago on my perch on the back porch while using the merlin app to see if there were any newcomers last night. There have been a few more, but off the top of my head the only ones I can remember “new” from last were the blue jay and the grackle, but I knew about them and see and hear them all the time. Gonna check later after sundown for any owl activity.
By now you have seen the news about thugs roughing up Senator Padilla, and if you were wondering how some in the media were going to spin it, here ya go:
Because I am a sentient human being, this made me very mad. Also, as a mature rational adult, I felt the need to act:
A mature and quite reasonable response. No idea if it has been deleted. Seriously fuck that guy and every bro like him. And if you are a young this is the “Mad Bitch” Beer imbroglio:
Washington Post reporters Dana Milbank and Chris Cillizza regularly do a political commentary video series called “Mouthpiece Theater.” In the newest segment, Milbank and Cillizza discuss President Obama’s “beer diplomacy,” and what types of beer various public officials should drink. They suggest a “Happy Ending” beer for Sen. David Vitter (R-LA) and a “XXX Porter” for Gov. Mark Sanford (R-SC). Their suggestion for Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, however, is considerably more offensive — a “Mad Bitch” beer.
He’s just a fucking sexist twerp who never grew up. The two other men mentioned, Sanford and Vitter, both did something wrong so their insults were deserved, but they just had to toss in Clinton and they hate her and called her a bitch.
Oddly enough, some jackass came in out of nowhere and called Tamara a bitch for literally no reason. I have no idea who pissed in their cornflakes, but I literally read the post 3-4 times and could not figure out how anything she said could be found offensive, let alone opening up with all cannons with “bitch.”
I was talking to someone yesterday about it, and she remarked “I don’t think most men understand how much women hate being called a bitch,” and I think she is probably right. I thought about it for a while and realized, yeah, any minimally competent woman, particularly our age, has heard that muttered under someone’s breath at the office a billion times. And I don’t mean to imply that competence has any relevance in whether it is appropriate to call someone a bitch, but that what most women are being called a bitch at the office for is being more competent than her male counterparts and actually following the rules. And that’s just the start of it.
Having said that, you can call Kristi Noem and any of those nazis like her “bitch” any day of the week and twice on Sunday and hell pepper her with some c-bombs. Just not in the comments, please.
This is the song currently stuck in my head for the last 24 hours, and most of you will ABSOLUTELY HATE IT:
It’s a pretty amazing video if you watch the whole shot.
I am off to eat a late dinner and watch some Acolyte.
Baud
I for one like the center justified text.
billcoop4
As do I. Distracts me from my thoughts about Cilizza. Which are not good thoughts. At all.
MattF
Someone should ask Milbank what he now thinks about Cillizza. OTOH, my Cillizza file was trashed long ago and won’t be updated, ever.
Omnes Omnibus
@Baud: Is Cole signaling that this is, in fact, a centrist blog as some have argued for years?
Nix Besser
@Baud: Agree. It adds a somewhat poetic look to it.
I am extremely sorry that Chris Cillizza exists.
Betty
@MattF: Milbank gas definitely improved with age. Cillizza not so much.
Nix Besser
Cole, what is your glasses prescription? I had very similar until Lasik. I feel you.
geg6
We are so fucked. I’ll be at the Beaver County Courthouse on Saturday with the handful of little US flags I bought today. Not sure it will do any good but I have to do something or I will burst with anger and frustration.
Sister Golden Bear
I’m not a fan of Gov. Unctuous Hairgel—albeit I’m gritting my teeth at the moment since his naked ambition is useful for us now—but ICE Barbie’s declaring we be “liberated” from our duly elected governor is especially outrageous given:
Nix Besser
@geg6: Yes, we are fucked. I will be at the event in West Chester, across the state from you. Going out to buy sign materials tomorrow.
BellaPea
John, you look very distinguished in that photo. I will adhere to your command and will not call Noem the c-word on this blog while continuing to call her that here in the confines of my home. What a shallow, stupid, and sickening woman.
This is shocking, deplorable and horrifying to treat a sitting U.S. Senator in this manner. I sincerely hope that Shumer is outraged enough to take action to shut down the Senate from voting on the Big Beautiful piece of shit bill until Noem is fired or resigned.
This shit is getting serious, folks.
billcoop4
The Saratoga Springs and Warrensburg (NY) events are coordinated. Saratoga is actually a non-part parade but folks will wear their No Kings shirts, (and I can’t get there ) and then the main gathering in Warrensburg is later — I’m able to get there. In the heart of Stefanikland.
It’s definitely no good if one can’t go. It may be good if one can.
BC
sab
My spouse cheered when Cole revived the Mad Bitch thing because my spouse is also still mad after six years. He would never bother to tell Cole that, so I will.
Jackie
VERY nice haircut, Mr Cole! And that’s a great picture of you!
geg6
@Nix Besser:
My sign game sucks but maybe I should make one, too. Maybe I’ll check out the old thread put up by Betty C soliciting sign suggestions.
Spanky
Can we call Noem a “tw*t”? Should I be using a,e,i,o,u, or y?
dmsilev
Definitely a step down from Andor. A big step down. Some interesting ideas, but the writing was all over the map and it got incoherent from time to time.
SiubhanDuinne
I hereby invite Chris Cillizza to:
1. Eat a giant family-size bag of deep-fried salted dicks
2. Get fucked with a rusted-out pitchfork that’s been standing in a large pile of rotting goat manure for the past eight years
3. Repeat as necessary
Spanky
Dan Lefkovitz over at Morningstar.com keeps the meme going:
It’s nice to see staid investment publications latching on to shit like this.
Juju
@geg6: just remind them that protesting is a constitutionally guaranteed right, or if we’re going to deport felons we should start with the president.
Hilbertsubspace
Query: Is harridan considered sexist? Also, what percentage of the population even knows what harridan means?
billcoop4
I really want to use a slur to refer to Cilizza.
BC
MagdaInBlack
I am watching raw footage of the ICE operation at the meat packing plant in Oklahoma. What is most striking to me is the behavior of the ICE officers. Completely professional and nothing at all like the thugs we see grabbing people off the street. Also, not dressed in full storm trooper costumes.
I just find that interesting. Who, then, are the folks doing the kidnapping?
schrodingers_cat
It was a nice day here, breezy not too hot. I ate lunch under a tree in our front yard. And I grilled for the first time this season. Corn on the cob with cayenne, lime and salt and chicken thighs. The thighs were marinaded in yogurt, mint, cilantro, ginger, garlic, turmeric, cumin and coriander.
I served the thighs on a bed of greens, basmati rice, roasted tomatoes and vidalia onions. Also did some weeding when the thighs were cooking on the grill.
So it was a much needed break from the madness of T 2.0.
Also too, fuck Cilizza, Dana Milbank has turned over a new page
And now I am playing with some art supplies.
sab
@sab: I am still mad at Milbank. I decided six years ago that Cilizza is beneath my contempt, so I only even think about him when reminded that he even exists.
columbusqueen
@SiubhanDuinne: i wanna be like you when I grow up. BTW, I think the C-word is a hellava lot more toxic than “bitch,” which I wear proudly when a wingnut flings it.
sab
@schrodingers_cat: Corn with lime is the best way to eat corn. The lime brings out the sweetness of corn.
schrodingers_cat
@sab: Indeed!
Chetan Murthy
@sab: still so damn mad here too! Grrrrrrrrr
Jay
@geg6:
they are eating the
Checks
they are eating the
Balances
TheOtherHank
Senator Padilla (my senator, btw) has voted for quite of a few of Trump’s nominees, voted for the Crypto bill twice, and last night played in the Dems vs Reps baseball game. Today he gets thrown to the ground and handcuffed by Sec’y Noem’s goons. I wonder if he learned anything today about how collegiality works in DC these days.
I’ve been urging him and Schiff (another one who voted for the Crypto bill twice and for a bunch of Trump’s nominees) to start withholding unanimous consent and making quorum calls, etc. Maybe they’ll actually start acting like the opposition now.
O. Felix Culpa
I think this may end up not being the power play that the MAGA goons thought it was.
sab
@columbusqueen: My husband asked me how I rank those two words. C… is at the top of my do not ever use list. B is way down, well below the n… word. N… is number two on my list, or maybe one with c.. as two. B… is way down
Years ago when I was driving with my two older siblings my brother called me the c word, and my sister agreed with me that we should stop the car and kick him out. In upstate New York on our way home to Ohio. Fortunately my parents in another car with the baby sibling saw him stranded by the side of the road.
Spanky
If anyone is still looking for what to put on a sign for No Kings Day, it would still be good to remind people that
TRUMP
is still
PUTIN’S
BITCH
Marcopolo
Bought 3 smallish American flags on sticks today for at the local hardware store for Saturday’s protest. Told the kid who rang me out they were for a protest this weekend, that I had Canadian flags but those were for a different protest message and without prompting he said, “yeah & fucking Greenland” and shook his head. Then apologized for cursing. Made me smile—at least that kid is all right.
Also, here in MO our R gov just activated our National Guard seemingly in response to pop up anti-ICE protests in St Louis yesterday (there were 2) and the Sat activities. Last I checked, in addition to the big protest downtown there are protests planned at Congresswoman Ann Wagner’s office, a highway interchange near there, a separate St Louis County City, a city across the Missouri from St Louis, and also in Union & Gray Summit MO (an hour or 90 minutes out of town). And then more further afield across the state. Good to see!
I will be at the big one downtown with 7 friends. Maybe in the rain, lol. That would make sense. Most of my protest activity this year has been pretty wet.
For everyone else who’ll be out Sat have fun & stay safe!
Edited to add: nice cut John.
O. Felix Culpa
I saw a bumper sticker yesterday that read: Pro libraries, Anti-fascist.
You could do any number of substitutions for libraries, such as pro America, pro liberty, etc. Personally, I’d stick with anti-fascist, but let a thousand resistance flowers bloom.
different-church-lady
Nice haircut.
sab
@different-church-lady: Nice haircut, but he looks sunburned.
TheOtherHank
@O. Felix Culpa:
I’m pretty pleased with the Nazi Punks, Fuck Off! bumper sticker on the back of my car
Melancholy Jaques
This is a great opportunity for Democratic senators to improve their standing with their voters, with the general public, and with themselves: cite this outrage and refuse to do anything to cooperate with Republicans. And I mean anything. They cannot do too much, I get that, but whatever they can, the must do. And demand that the senate censure Noem or demand her resignation. No stern letters, no calling on anyone. Just refuse any any any any any cooperation.
sab
@Spanky: Cole uses tw*t so I have given up on that fight. With an a. With an i it is harmless.
zhena gogolia
@Marcopolo: I got such a nice reception from the kids at our local hardware store. “Good for you.” “It’s necessary.” “Stay safe.”
I’m not sure I’m going — it’s a really high bar for me. I hate crowds and I hate standing around, and so does my knee. But something different is going on this time.
At the very least I’m going to put signs in my yard. “Liberty and Justice for ALL” (got that one here) and “History Has Its Eyes on You” (inspired by Hamilton number at the Tonys).
Jackie
@columbusqueen:
And “Nasty.” I know I’ve struck a wingnut’s nerve when I’m called that! ;-D
Ohio Mom
@geg6: I used to have a handful of little flags, back in the first Trump administration. I gave them to bored kids who were dragged to the demonstration by their parents modeling good citizenship. I’m down to one medium-small flag and I’ll be bringing it along on Saturday as well.
sab
OT but my new to me cats from last summer are the best cats ever. I love the other five, but the new guys are very special.
O. Felix Culpa
@TheOtherHank: Lol. That is definitely a special kind of resistance flower. 😁
They Call Me Noni
@geg6:
@Spanky: a
Ruckus
@Nix Besser:
I had Lasik a number of years ago and just recently I’m back wearing glasses again. But now I have medium and far distance glasses. And reading glasses. Vision is better than it has been for most of my life but I’m still back with glasses. Oh well at least I made it into old before I had to start back as 4 eyes – AGAIN. I think I was destined to be 4 eyes most of my life. At least I didn’t/don’t have Coke bottle lenses.
So I don’t recommend Lasik whole heartedly but then a lot of people seem to do very well with it, so who knows. My experience with it wasn’t bad, it’s just that the correction for some doesn’t last all that long. And it’s possible they’ve improved it since I had mine. And I didn’t have to wear glasses for my entire life so that’s at least something……
The Audacity of Krope
Cilizza?
persistentillusion
@sab: Whenever called a bitch, I always respond – “Huh, you saying that like it’s a bad thing.” Pretty much leaves them either flatfooted or embarassed.
They Call Me Noni
@schrodingers_cat: You have had a most excellent day.
Jackie
@sab:
Twit is fine. When Cole says tw*t I want to slug him. It’s just a degree below the “C”word IMO. Both are off limits in my book.
Ohio Mom
@sab: Yes, Cole is too sunburned for his future skin’s sake, and also he looks worried. But who isn’t?
John Cole
@Nix Besser:No lasik for me, thank you. Wearing glasses doesn’t bother me and where I am moving permanently one day you wear sunglasses year round, so no biggee.
Sneaux23
Israel strikes Iran
Jackie
@Ohio Mom:
Isn’t that his normal resting face?
Gloria DryGarden
There are Congress people who make a scene, but Padilla today wasnt an example of scene making.
thinking of boebert, and Marjorie t green, for scene making, and obstruction.
The lies being told, and promoted, and circulated about all this Ice and LA. business really bugs me
John Cole
@Jackie: look, I am sorry, but in my defense I had multiple brits and canadians and an australian as roommates and fraternity brothers over the years and ffs, they literally say tw*t on monty python and that was the 70’s. And I crosstrained with Brits for a month and their use of the c word surprised even me. Not to mention the blokes in the UN compound in Kuwait. They would have made Redd Foxx blush.
sab
@persistentillusion: My girl pitbull agrees with you.
Ohio Mom
@zhena gogolia: My back hates standing so I mill through the crowd, reading the signs and complimenting the people holding them on their handiwork. But I don’t know if strolling is easier on your knee than standing.
AnthroBabe
John, I was thisclose to reactivating my twitter for that Cillizza tweet. Fucking bellend. And yes, harridan is indeed sexist just like hysterical. Just call them all fascist assholes -we all got one but diarrhea spews out of theirs 24/7. My lord I am so angry
They Call Me Noni
@columbusqueen: Same here. Spent the last 25 years of my career in corporate America and was called a bitch several times that I heard and, I am sure, dozens more that were out of earshot. My attitude was “I’ll show you you bitch” and then did. Badge of honor of sorts.
MattF
An attack has been launched against Iran, presumably from Israel, with ‘massive explosions’ in Teheran.
Ruckus
@Sister Golden Bear:
Newsom wasn’t my first choice but he’s not a bad governor and is a democrat so GO Newsom. And he’s far, far, far, far better than some states have or the current WH occupant.
But then a loaf of 4 week old, stale, moldy bread would be better than shitforbrains.
Ruckus
@Spanky:
All of the above….
dm
Speaking of Andor, local theater is showing The Empire Strikes Back for Father’s Day.
Baud
Ruckus
@SiubhanDuinne:
I do like your style.
The Audacity of Krope
Whenever called a bitch, I let it roll off because it’s almost certainly a good friend saying it. Can get a little exciting when it’s an intimate partner.
But, then, things are a little different for me.
Jay
@MagdaInBlack:
It’s a “tactic”.
In Blue States and Sanctuary Cities they go in like “Call of Duty”.
A). They know they will encounter community resistance,
B). They know they will provoke the community,
C). They are trying to intimidate the community.
They know that in Red States, in many cases, the community won’t give a shit, even the business’s won’t, because for decades, “there is always more from where they came from”.
“They” are just starting to enter the FO stages.
Chetan Murthy
There are several other words that work well: dickhead, dickweed, dingleberry, shitbird
BarcaChicago
What the fuck Netanyahu. Just madness.
Ruckus
@TheOtherHank:
They may be the opposition in everything but claimed party. Or there may be some reason they think screwing us over is normal and OK. Or they bought the bill of goods for some future voting payback. Or they could be the opposition hiding in plain sight.
Matt McIrvin
The troll here was a nym I’d recognized causing trouble here before.
I don’t know what’s up but it seems like some old sporadic trolls and some nyms we haven’t seen before are suddenly popping up to do “you all suck” comments for no apparent reason. Maybe this blog got linked somewhere.
different-church-lady
@The Audacity of Krope: [UPDATES SPREADSHEET]
The Audacity of Krope
@BarcaChicago: Netanyahu left “what the fuck” back in the dust decades ago.
geg6
@columbusqueen:
I have a great lightweight hoodie my sister got me. It says “BE KIND” in large white letters. In smaller fond underneath it says “of a bitch.” I get so many compliments on it from other women and youngs of all sexes. Depending on the weather, I may wear it Saturday.
The Audacity of Krope
@different-church-lady: ?
Jackie
Pete Buttigieg reacted to Sen. Alex Padilla being assaulted by saying:
I unashamedly love Pete.
RaflW
I have a fever and other crud (so far neg. on the ‘rona test), so I’m pretty doubtful for Saturday. Which is a big bummer.
Jackie
@John Cole: Well now you know how most American females feel about it.
RaflW
@BarcaChicago: Trump is showing his weakness by resorting to such overt violence so early in his term. And he’s been trying to tap the brakes on Bibi attacking Iran.
So, yeah, Israel choosing now to get us closer to a new regional (or worse) war makes sadistic, terrible sense.
sab
@Jackie: I have a Pete Explorers t-shirt from his early presidential run that I am so proud of owning.
MagdaInBlack
@Jay: I kind of figured that. The contrast was just stunning. They spoke Spanish, they were not the least bit rough with people.
And if they showed that footage, they would see them arresting moms and dads just trying to make a living and feed their family. Can’t have that.
Also too, I have a story for you. I had a childhood memory of being somewhere in B.C. and seeing remnants of wooden irrigation flumes on the sides of the hills and a side marker talking about “Garden of Eden” involving an orchard development, pre WW1. I know I could have asked you, but I like following trails on line, and I found it: Walhachin. =-)
dnfree
@columbusqueen: When I was young (1950s-1960s), “bitch” was not a swear word; it was a mild derogatory description, like calling someone a jerk. Once in the 1980s I referred to someone as a bitch and my kids were shocked. It is the only word I know of that went from being a mild insult to being a forbidden word. Lots of other words (like “bastard”, for instance) went from forbidden to okay. Maybe the women’s rights movement changed it.
geg6
@Jackie:
C word is right out for me. But I’m fine with tw*t. When I say it, I say it like my British immigrant grandmother might have said it. With just the right amount of Limey disdain. It’s the best word for some Karen’s.
Ruckus
@sab:
My oldest sister stabbed me with a fork at the dinner table one night when she didn’t like my response to her telling me to get my arm off the table. She was 18 and I was 12. My response to being stabbed was to chase her upstairs and almost put my fist through her bedroom door that she got closed and locked just in time. We actually became pretty decent friends after that. Not the next day mind you but not in near as long a time as one might imagine. Respect sometimes has to be earned.
The Audacity of Krope
@dnfree: “Bitch” is a major flashpoint between my aunt, who hates it, and my sister, who may have it as her favorite word.
geg6
@MattF:
Jesus fucking Christ. I hope they take Bibi out, along with his disgusting henchmen.
Jay
@MagdaInBlack:
Walhachin is an “interesting” history. Some of the apple trees still survive, but they are untended and feral, so the fruit is no good. On the floodplains below on the Thompson River, a settler’s asparagus escaped and has gone wild.
TONYG
This afternoon I listened to NPR interviewing some idiot (I didn’t catch the guy’s name) who is Kristi-the-Nazi-babe’s second-in-command at DHS. To their credit, NPR tried to get the guy to give some straight answers, but to no avail. The guy justified the handcuffing of Senator Padilla by claiming that the DHS thugs “felt” that the senator was acting in a threatening manner. So I guess that’s the philosophy of DHS (and, by extension, the entire federal government under Trump) now — If you’re making the armed men nervous they can handcuff you, and no further evidence is necessary. That’s nice to know.
dww44
@Jackie: endorsed!
Kelly
Mrs. Kelly reading the news on the NYC Mayor’s race. Neither of us follow NYC politics in much detail. It’s a long way from the western Cascade foothills. “Who is Cuomo and why is he ahead?” I explain name recognition due to his dad his governorship, harassment scandal and resignation. She says “he looks like the guy that sold her the stolen car”. I didn’t know this story. She bought a car from a small lot in Salem. A few days later a couple Salem cops pull her over. Some tense questioning until she says where she bought it. They knew the guy and had been tracking him and some accomplices. They took the car but amazingly got her money back.
Jackie
@sab: That’s cool! I’m jealous! :-D
MagdaInBlack
@MattF: Listening to reports about that now.
sab
@Ruckus: Yikes.
I love my brother but he never fails to annoy me. I am glad my parents bought him home.
ETA When we moved one town north in Florida our new parish priest came to call, and when Mom opened the door my brother was chasing me with a knife in the background.
Harrison Wesley
@RaflW: Yeah, I think the balloon has gone up. To quote America’s greatest philosopher of eschatology: “Eh-da-eh-da-eh dat’s all, folks!”
MagdaInBlack
@Jay: I found a series on it, so I have reading material =-)
https://www.ashcroftcachecreekjournal.com/our-town/golden-country-past-present-and-beyond-ghosts-of-walhachin-part-three-5829417
BlueGuitarist
@zhena gogolia:
I appreciated
“I hate crowds but hate fascism more”
Which seemed like an update from the 2017
”so bad even the introverts are here”
Jackie
@The Audacity of Krope:
When my daughter was going through her terrible teens we had some major, major disagreements. Swearing and name calling was forbidden – except we agreed we could say “witch.” LOL
Now, of course we’re best of friends, recognizing that we’re actually two peas in a pod. We still occasionally say “quit being a witch” to each other, then laugh. :-)
Kelly
@Ohio Mom: My ankles and feet hate standing. I enjoy walking 6 to 8 miles. Standing for 15 minutes is painful.
The Audacity of Krope
@Jackie: That’s the thing, though. My sister (and my friends) don’t use “bitch” as an insult, but a term of endearment.
Ruckus
@Ohio Mom:
As an old, over 3/4 of a century…. I find that as one gets into oldfartitus, anything/everything can bother you. I think that if you are getting close to old, or past close, moving around using the joints is far, far better than not. Now abusing them is NOT GOOD. But using them is. I walk, a hell of a lot slower than I used to, several miles a week. My weight is good, my joints work OK, I sleep OK. I highly recommend that this getting old bit as being better than not getting there. But one does have to respect the being old part of the process.
They Call Me Noni
@geg6: Perfect attire!
Melancholy Jaques
Are we going to have a thread on Saturday for reports from the front lines, photos, and stuff?
MagdaInBlack
@The Audacity of Krope: Same.
sab
@Jackie: When I got married my husband had a teen girl. Yikes. It took her twenty years to accept me. Now she wants me to be her mom.
Horrible teen. Amazing mother. Who knew she could make that transition.
They Call Me Noni
@geg6: Everything sounds better with a British accent. I mean, just listen to how Adele does it, like poetry! And non-one takes offense.
They Call Me Noni
@TONYG: So now they are totally operating on vibes?
They Call Me Noni
@sab: I’m picturing that scenario and it is hilarious!! Sorry, I just had to laugh.
TONYG
@Kelly: I’ve lived in the NYC Metropolitan Area for almost all of my life. To anyone who thinks that NYC voters are intelligent people, I offer Eric Adams, Andrew Cuomo and, of course, Rudy Giuliani as evidence to the contrary. I rest my case.
dm
@BarcaChicago: Gosh, the Trumpalos must be getting close to a nuclear deal with Iran.
sab
@They Call Me Noni: It wasn’t funny. It was very hurtful. At one point I was so hurt and angry that I threw away every gift she had ever given me, and for a year my husband wasn’t allowed to mention her in my hearing.
And I am not a spiteful person. But she was, back then.
What precipitated the argument was I picked up the baby when mom was filming the older sister in a school play. I thought the baby might fall on her head on the concrete floor. Her mom was all how dare I touch her child. At that point I gave up on even trying to have a relationship.
bbleh
MEANwhile, since there’s nothing interesting going on today [eyeroll], a senior District judge has just ruled that the TACO guy exceeded both statutory and Constitutional authority in commandeering the CA National Guard and ordered return of control to the CA Governor “forthwith,” ruling stayed until noon tomorrow.
O. Felix Culpa
@sab: I think she was talking about the scene with the new priest and you being chased by your brother with a knife.
Sally
@Sister Golden Bear: We do want to liberate the American people from the fascist and burdensome leadership that the president and his cabinet have placed on this country.
MazeDancer
At least Judge Breyer liberated the Guard from Trump. Hope Gavin sends them home.
O. Felix Culpa
@Sally:
QFT.
sab
@O. Felix Culpa: That was hilarious. Mom was so embarrassed.
Ruckus
@Jackie:
A lot of the time men are around other men. Often at work or play. One rotten apple can rot a lot more without even trying. And many know it’s wrong but it’s what a lot of males do because they think it makes them stronger. Of course it doesn’t but then a lot of humans really only think of themselves or worse think of themselves as the greatest human on the planet. I’d say, as a former mental health counselor, that pompous arrogance is still considered by many males as the norm. They are wrong of course but then they aren’t the only ones that do this, the other half of society is not immune to holding this concept but it does seem to show up a lot less often. And it’s often true that many humans that hold this view end up finding out the hard way but then they mostly asked for it. And yes I do find that walking away is the best answer, but there are occasions……
O. Felix Culpa
@sab: Yes, it made me laugh too. Your poor mom.
YY_Sima Qian
@MattF:
@geg6:
This ahead of the last ditch US-Iran negotiations scheduled for Sunday in Muscat, after the Trump Administration told Israel not to strike before Sunday, after Israeli officials told US press that Israel attacks might come as early as Sunday if Iran does not concede to zero enrichment.
Anything to keep Bibi out of jail, I guess. Bibi clearly expects the US to intervene & bail Israel out of any blow back. We’ll see if MAGA can keep the US from getting sucked into yet another ME quagmire, this time against a much bigger adversary.
We are left to hope that the strikes did not do too much damage, & the Iranian regime chooses to absorb the loss & stop at tit-for-tat counterstrikes w/ missiles & drones. However, Bibi’s warmongering in all directions will bankrupt the Israeli economy & tear apart the polity.
Meanwhile, Xi is sitting in Zhongnanhai knowingly nodding & muttering:”Great changes unseen in a hundred years.” (The PRC strongly prefers stability & predictability, the kind of external environment most conducive to what the CPC regime sees as its inexorable rise. However, one can be sure the PRC will seek to opportunistically take advantage whatever happens, while castigating the US as the [at once] declining, desperate, aloof, negligent, exploitative & malicious hegemon.)
YY_Sima Qian
@YY_Sima Qian: I shudder to contemplate what the world may look like at the end of 2025.
Betty
@TheOtherHank: I understand votes by Dems is usually based on donor contributions from that sector.
Jackie
@The Audacity of Krope: No way I was giving my teenager permission to say bitch. She would have used it against every adult woman who pissed her off – including teachers. She understood it was taboo; giving her permission to call ME a witch when she thought it was warranted, also served to remind her that calling her teacher(s) a bitch would NOT go in her favor. She was welcome to vent to me privately about how she felt about certain teachers, and sometimes it was merited. But, she had to bite her tongue when back talking teachers. She was a strong willed feisty teenager lol. And, now she’s dealing with her own chip off the block. She bitches to me. I laugh. Then she begrudgingly laughs and asks me to remove the “I hope you have one just like you” curse.
Timill
@YY_Sima Qian: Flat, black, and glows in the dark? :-(
sab
@O. Felix Culpa: Later that year we were confirmed in the church. It turned out we hadn’t yet been baptized. So the priest was thrilled. He was baptizing actual heathens.
My parents missed a lot of the ritual duties. But we were always current on our vaccinations.
bbleh
@YY_Sima Qian: per a recent comment, I think anybody who counts on the TACO guy to do (or not do) ANYTHING, even something he’s said he’d do/not do (haha as if) or something one thinks is obviously in/against his interest, is a fool. He’s a loose cannon, and the seas are pretty rough these days.
cain
@YY_Sima Qian:
me too.
BTW, I got the sad news that my entire division got sacked and that while it isnt 100% certain that I will lose my job – I’m feeling like it’s gone. Such as it is.
But it’s my opportunity to find jobs in the EU and watch all this shit unfurl from a place where ICE isn’t going to exile me or put me in gitmo for the temerity for being an immigrant.
sab
@YY_Sima Qian: Yikes, and you are in China, which is supposed to win in all this chaos.
cain
Anybody heard Ed Sheehan’s “Sapphire”? Really love the collaboration with indian artists. Just so cool.
Jackie
@sab:
I think horrible teens often make the best parents. They know why they were horrible and make adjustments to hopefully make sure their kids won’t go through the same.
sab
@bbleh: My thoughts exactly.
BlueGuitarist
@MazeDancer:
just reading about Judge Breyer (Stephen’s brother) decision
Headline: “Judge: Trump illegally deployed National Guard to help with LA protests, must return control”
https://abc7news.com/post/san-francisco-federal-judge-weighs-trumps-use-national-guard-marines-la/16735792/
Steve LaBonne
@YY_Sima Qian: Until now, I have never wished that I were 79 rather than 69. I dread the prospect of living through what’s coming.
YY_Sima Qian
@Timill: Well, I am not that dark, yet. But a small part of me does fear this will end w/ Jerusalem, Tel Avi, Tehran & Qom under mushroom clouds. What w/ both Bibi & Khamenei desperate to cling to power & not interested in their respective countries’ development, Israel thinking it can act like the U.S. during the height of the GWOT, & Iran getting pushed into a corner.
Why would Iran not go for nukes now?
Ruckus
@sab:
We never had chasing with weapons but that time was also when I had stopped growing and was short for my age. I had about a 5/6 yr period where I didn’t grow at all and was under 5 ft tall. I thought I was never going to be even normal height. At one point I was in the running for smallest kid in school. As a freshman in an all boys HS we had an assembly where the smallest kid in each shop was sent up on stage and my class chose me. I told them “I stand up I’m walking out the back door and flipping off all of you and father Schaffer.” They chose someone else. Later on I started growing again and gained 10-11 inches. BTW I HATED that school – just in case you might have wondered
I may have told this story here prior.
sab
@Jackie: I don’t know, but she is an amazing mother.
dnfree
@Steve LaBonne: Well, I’m 79 and I suggest not wishing away 10 years of your life!
Ruckus
@dnfree:
Not far behind you and agree.
Getting well into old may not be the most fun but it seems to be far, far better than not.
Geminid
@YY_Sima Qian: It sounds like this was a full-scale attack by Israel, targeting Iran’s nuclear facilties and aur defense, as well as IRGC and scientific leader in their homes an hour before dawn. So I expect Iran will do as it has said, and launch a large-scale counterstrike.
This week, White House envoy Steve Witkoff briefed Republican Senators on the potential dimensions of the counterstrike, as reported by Axios’s Barak Ravid in an article titled, “U.S. fears Iranian response to Israeli strike could trigger mass casualty event.”
(I botched the link but will try again in a reply to this comment. The article is easily found though and has some good detail).
I guess it’s possible Iran won’t go all out, and instead concentrate on military targets, especially Israel’s own nuclear facilities at Dimona, maybe with some attacks on sites sheltering Israeli leadership. I think we’ll know in a few hours, because the Iranians were ready for this attack even if the exact timing might have been a surprise.
Steve LaBonne
@dnfree: I’m really trying not to, but Jesus Christ the world has gone completely insane.
YY_Sima Qian
@bbleh: That’s a big part of the reason I would have voted for Biden’s reanimated corpse over Trump, despite my vociferous criticism of the formers’ foreign policies on a range of issues.
YY_Sima Qian
@cain: I am sorry to hear that! & best wished for the next chapter in your life.
I was laid off twice w/in the 1st 2 years of my career. I would not wish that on anyone, but I think the experience benefitted me longer term. What doesn’t kill…
YY_Sima Qian
@sab: There is no place that will be untouched by the “great changes unseen in a century”.
I do believe the PRC is among the best placed to navigate through these turbulent times (not the least the inevitable changes wrought by AGW), but that assumes there will be no excessive foolishness & malice wrt Taiwan.
Geminid
@Geminid: A link to Barak Ravid’s Axios article, “U.S. fears Iran’s response to Israeli strike could be mass casualty event”:
https://www.axios.com/2025/06/12/israel-strike-iran-response-witkof
This link works.
opiejeanne
@BlueGuitarist: I think it was Hegseth sneering at the “local judge” making this decision. They have already filed to stay the order.
I’m betting Trump will ignore the court order regardless of the outcome.
Lyrebird
Bless you John Cole!
YY_Sima Qian
@Geminid: Well, Mike Huckabee kind of gave away Israeli intentions, 40 min before the strike, by tweeting “Pray for peace in Jerusalem”.
Rubio’s response on X has been surprising circumspect, likely hoping to avoid Iranian retaliation against US personnel & interests in the region. But that requires the US not joining in or facilitating continued Israeli strikes, as Bib has promised a sustained campaign, “for as long as it takes” to dismantle the Iranian nuclear program. Israel is incapable of doing so w/o sustained US support, if not US participation (it’s tough even w/ all of that).
George
A serious question: Is Cillizza just stupid or is he malicious? As with anyone else who hums the “both sides” tune, at this point there is no other possible answer. In the face of all the evidence we’ve seen over the past decade and longer, those people are either stupid beyond belief, or they are willful allies to fascists. Jen Rubin and Bill Kristol and others have sanity at least.
Mr. Bemused Senior
@George: Jennifer Rubin has been great for a long time now. I read her in the WaPo before the election and she was eloquent in her flaying of Trump supporters.
Bill Kristol I ignore.
Jackie
@Mr. Bemused Senior: Jennifer Rubin had a John Cole moment, and I believe she’s joined the “dark side” and is voting Democratic.
There have been several conversions of late. Their first sentence is usually “I did not leave the Republican Party; they left me.”
I say welcome! We’ve always been here, and I’m happy you’ve joined with us in solidarity against a wannabe king!
Mr. Bemused Senior
I think you mean she has left the dark side. 😁
prostratedragon
@cain: Sorry to hear that. Hope you get enough reprieve to keep getting paid till you can make other arrangements.
Scout211
I’m not sure if this has been posted yet:
Geminid
@YY_Sima Qian: The U.S. has shipped a huge amount weaponry to Israel, probably enough already for it sustain a long campaign. I think Israel has the neccesary refueling tankers.
But Israel still can’t execute an extensive enough campaign from 700 miles way to suppress Iran’s missile counterstrike capability. Iran has hundreds of missiles that can reach Israel, tucked away in bunkers and tunnels all over a big country.
The U.S. pounded the Houthis for 50 days from two aircraft carriers with some B-2 bomber strikes thrown in, and the Houthis were still launching a couple missiles a week at Israel. This war could go for weeks if not longer.
But I think whether the U.S. gets involved in the shooting part is up to Iran. The Iranians have already said they would attack U.S. bases in the Middle East if Israel attacks their nuclear program. They’ve also provided missiles and drones to proxy militia in Iraq who’ve made similar threats. These attempts at deterrence have clearly failed.
If Iran attacks U.S. bases directly or through proxies, I expect the U.S. will shoot back, and a lot harder. So the Iranian regime has an important decision to make here, because they have a lot more to lose if they bring the US into this war.
Mr. Bemused Senior
I met Kevin Phillips [yes, that Kevin Phillips] back in 2003. He likened the Iraq invasion to throwing a stick of dynamite into a room full of gasoline tanks. Here we go again.
Jackie
@Mr. Bemused Senior: tomato/tamato 😂
Several consider we’re the wrong side vs the wingnut right side ;-D
Jackie
@Scout211:
Is there a reason for not including the Marines?
Mr. Bemused Senior
@Jackie: perhaps because the Governor of California has no authority over the Marines? [ETA I’m not a lawyer but I have hung out with a bunch of them.]
Scout211
@Jackie: From the link:
They Call Me Noni
@O. Felix Culpa: I was. Thank you. I’m just now back on BJ and catching up with this thread.
Jackie
@Scout211: Ahhh, thank you.
There’s just too much going on too fast to keep up. I’m juggling grandkiddos along with all the fast breaking news. OY!
Ruckus
@Steve LaBonne:
What did you expect we (OK others) hired a dipshit to be president, who proved the first time that he’s not even close to qualified for the job and now he’s an even older old fart, with all the smoothness and control of a runaway bulldozer and with far less positive humanity within a lot of miles of him. And he had just over zero (less than 1%) the last time.
Ruckus
@Mr. Bemused Senior:
Bill Kristol I ignore.
Hard to ignore that much stench….. But for some, as we get old we lose a bit of the sense of smell, which does make things like this a lot easier.
columbusqueen
@John Cole: THe limey dickweeds can go fuck themselves, thank you very much. And so can that worthless little quisling Jared Golden.