Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

if you can’t see it, then you are useless in the fight to stop it.

You are so fucked. Still, I wish you the best of luck.

Nothing worth doing is easy.

Today in our ongoing national embarrassment…

This must be what justice looks like, not vengeful, just peaceful exuberance.

Celebrate the fucking wins.

The words do not have to be perfect.

I’m more christian than these people and i’m an atheist.

Putting aside our relentless self-interest because the moral imperative is crystal clear.

Republicans are the party of chaos and catastrophe.

Stay strong, because they are weak.

Today’s gop: why go just far enough when too far is right there?

Republicans do not pay their debts.

These days, even the boring Republicans are nuts.

“The difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits.”

“But what about the lurkers?”

People identifying as christian while ignoring christ and his teachings is a strange thing indeed.

Too often we hand the biggest microphones to the cynics and the critics who delight in declaring failure.

If you can’t control your emotions, someone else will.

The next time the wall street journal editorial board speaks the truth will be the first.

The worst democrat is better than the best republican.

Nancy smash is sick of your bullshit.

Shallow, uninformed, and lacking identity

Thanks to your bullshit, we are now under siege.

You are here: Home / John Cole Presents "This Fucking Old House" / Tuesday Night Open Thread

Reader Interactions

111Comments

  2. 2.

    sab

    Homemaee pizza for watching the allstar game. Mildly traumatic  day (you go cat girl, Meg! ) so after two slices of homemade pizza I am to bed. Hopefully guest will taie home a pizza, Joy of Cooking recipe makes three medium pizzas.

  3. 3.

    Jackie

    LMAO!

    President Trump wants to give IQ tests to Democratic representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Jasmine Crockett to “see who comes out best,” the Daily Beast reports.

    Said Trump: “AOC — look. I think she’s very nice. But she’s very low IQ, and we really don’t need low IQ. Between her and Crockett, we’re gonna give ’em both an IQ test to see who comes out best. I took a real test at Walter Reed medical center and I aced it. Now it’s time for them.”

    FFOTUS’s IQ ain’t too good if he thinks the cognitive test he took is the same as an IQ test!

    I hope AOC and Crockett challenge him to a “real” IQ test LOLOL!

  4. 4.

    Dorothy A. Winsor

    I went to a postcard writing party today. The cards were going to Virginia. They were part of some sort of message testing, and we were told to replicate the text exactly. It was good to be among friends. Also, there were refreshments. :-)

  5. 5.

    satby

    Another high temp day and after a couple hours outside I laid down for “just a minute” and napped for 2 hours. Siestas on hot days make so much sense to me now.

  6. 6.

    RevRick

    It’s a stressful time at our house. I’m due (?) to get more stitches removed from the repair on my right thumb following MOHS surgery on Friday. The long term effects are unknown. Meanwhile, MrsRev has an appointment with a urologist tomorrow following the discovery of a 5+ centimeter renal cyst from an MRI taken to see what was going on with her lower back. Normally, renal cysts are fairly benign, but those of this size are described as complex, which means worrisome.

  7. 7.

    Kristine

    Spotted a northern flicker the other day. Pretty birds.

    My favorites this summer are the wood thrushes. They stay in the nearby woods so I never see them, but I hear them sing in the morning and at dusk, and sometimes during the day. Beautiful three-part song.

    I have three apples in a dish on the dining area table that I need to do something with because they’re starting to dry out. Their individual IQs are higher than Trump’s.

  9. 9.

    RevRick

    @Jackie: Unfortunately, there is no scientific test for stupidity, which the GOP at all levels of government has a lock on.

  11. 11.

    frosty

    @Dorothy A. Winsor: Who are you getting addresses from? When Stone Maven Designs had my preferred card back in stock I bought 1,000 and it’s time to start writing.

    Refreshments are always good!

  12. 12.

    frosty

    @RevRick: “unknown” and “complex” aren’t words you want associated with health issues. Best wishes and crossed fingers for you both.

  13. 13.

    NotMax

    Assholus maximus.

    Five months into its unprecedented dismantling of foreign-aid programs, the Trump administration has given the order to incinerate food instead of sending it to people abroad who need it. Nearly 500 metric tons of emergency food—enough to feed about 1.5 million children for a week—are set to expire tomorrow, according to current and former government employees with direct knowledge of the rations. Within weeks, two of those sources told me, the food, meant for children in Afghanistan and Pakistan, will be ash.… Souirce

  14. 14.

    ExPatExDem

    I see that Andrew Cuomo remains doggedly determined to inflict himself on NYC regardless of what the people want.

    Seeing him lose a second time will be extra gratifying.

  15. 15.

    Chetan Murthy

    John,

    I’ve read reviews that The Old Guard 2 is …. not so great.  Once you watch it,  can you give your assessment?  Doesn’t need to be detailed — just a thumbs-up or -down would already be useful.  I haven’t watched either film (yet).

  20. 20.

    O. Felix Culpa

    Our internet has been down for over 24 hours. First world problem,  I know,  but I was looking forward to watching Ballard. Instead,  I might have to read an actual book!

  23. 23.

    different-church-lady

    Northern Flicker

    WIK WIK WIK WIK WIK WIK WIK WIK WIK WIK WIK WIK WIK WIK WIK WIK…

  26. 26.

    Old Dan and Little Ann

    I have been firing up my Bird app wherever I go in recent weeks. I went to visit my godfather today with my dad. He lives just outside the little town of Sodus, New York. Within 30 seconds of being in his backyard, there were five different birds that popped up.

  27. 27.

    Dan B

    We have a resident Flicker.  Thus year it’s without a mate so we see it less.  I believe it’s searching far and wide.

  28. 28.

    Eolirin

    @RevRick: Winning the Democratic primary guaranteed a Mamdani win tbh.

    Cuomo will probably do better than the typical cycle’s Republican.

  29. 29.

    Benno

    @Chetan Murthy: Old Guard 2 was…not great. Logically suspect, which would have been acceptable for a movie of that sort if the fight choreography was better. I enjoyed Ballerina (the new John Wick spin off) more, and it was terrible.

  31. 31.

    Kristine

    @NotMax:

    Within weeks, two of those sources told me, the food, meant for children in Afghanistan and Pakistan, will be ash.…

    I was never the world’s best Catholic, but I recall learning that actions like this were regarded as truly grievous sins.

    You’d think all those recent converts would know this and maybe even mention it.

  36. 36.

    Suzanne

    So I am trying to be better about upper body strength work, so I bought a cheap weighted vest that is 10% of my body weight. I have been wearing it when I walk my dog, and I am making sure to do a lot of uphills with it. I want to try doing yoga with it to see if it can help me be even more bendy. Mr. Suzanne thinks that is insane.

    And I am also wishing I bought an adjustable one, because I’ve only been using it for a couple of weeks, but it already seems easier.

  39. 39.

    Chetan Murthy

    @Suzanne: I’m going to guess that this won’t be to your liking since you’re a runner, but ….. I see a ton of women in the pool, swimming like the dickens.  Older women, younger women, all faster than me!  Swimming is a great upper body workout!

  41. 41.

    Suzanne

    @Chetan Murthy: I love to swim! I just find it harder to fit into the workday, but I do love it and do it as much as I can.

    ETA: I like swimming much more than weightlifting.

  42. 42.

    Eolirin

    I am drowning, but I love you all.

    @Suzanne: Broadly speaking, if you want to get more bendy you want to avoid putting tension in the body and learn how to get your fascia to lengthen, move and stretch, without needing to engage muscles. Weight training generally works counter to accomplishing that. Not that this is taught very well in most english speaking yoga contexts. Qigong and Taichi instruction usually does a better job of it, though quality English speaking instructors are still hard to find.

  44. 44.

    Suzanne

    @Eolirin: There’s some specific ways to use weights to stretch more deeply, such as using a kettlebell to get deeper into a squat. But yes, one of the reasons I don’t love lifting is because it makes my muscles tighter as a rule, and I looooove the stretchy feeling,

    I did try a pancake straddle with the weighted vest on, and the added weight did deepen the whole endeavor, So we’ll see how it goes.

  49. 49.

    Chetan Murthy

    @Eolirin: @Suzanne: More bendy.  More bendy.   OK, so maybe the only real answer you can give is: just do the stretching exercises you were taught ‘way back when, and do ’em every day, yanno!

    But maybe you have a different answer, so I’ll go ahead and ask: I haven’t been able to touch my toes in ages. Maybe a couple of decades.  Back in grad school, I used to be much more bendy — did taekwondo, and stretches weren’t a problem at all.

    I wonder how to get more bendy, starting from “stiff as a board”.  [ok, I’m not stuff as a board — I can get to within maybe a couple of inches of touching my toes]

    Thoughts?

  50. 50.

    A woman from anywhere (formerly Mohagan)

    @Princess: they are really pretty birds, although I rarely see anything of them except a white butt flying away LOL ( that’s my main field key)

  51. 51.

    Suzanne

    @Chetan Murthy: Go try a one-hour yoga class, hot if possible, and do some basic sun salutations. Favorite poses for me to feel looser, especially during the workday are triangle, Buddha squat, wide-leg forward fold, balancing half-moon, lizard, and frog. But probably any poses will help.

    ETA: And do the sun salutations/vinyasa flow most days. Mr. Suzanne has been doing it in the mornings, and he says he is noticing a difference.

  53. 53.

    Chetan Murthy

    @Suzanne: @A woman from anywhere (formerly Mohagan): hmmm …. I’ve never thought about that, b/c I literally can’t touch my toes, can’t sit cross-legged, etc, etc, etc.  I’m hopelessly inflexible in my lower body.  But I guess you have a point there: a way to start might be to go to beginner yoga classes and see if that helps.  Thank you!

  54. 54.

    YY_Sima Qian

    @Chetan Murthy: Old Guard 1 was quite enjoyable, Old Guard 2 less so (a shame, given the talent involved), but I didn’t feel it was a waste of 2 hours’ time, either. IMHO, of course. Definitely not at the level of the John Wick series.

  60. 60.

    Eolirin

    @Chetan Murthy: Well, the way I approach it is very much informed by Qigong practices, as that’s been where I’ve put most of my focus over the last decade or so. The early stages involve a lot of standing in very specific ways and systematically releasing tension in the body so that gravity pulls the soft tissues down progressively more as you release tension more, and then form work designed to open joints and pull and twist the soft tissues to progressively deeper layers. The particular systems I’ve been using are designed to be very soft, so you limit movement to about 70% of what your body can handle before moving into tension. There are other more forceful systems though. Those can give you faster results but also have greater risks of harm.

    When you get enough sensitivity through training this stuff you can get the body to move in some pretty weird feeling ways; the body can feel like it’s moving without you moving it. You control the soft tissue and joints more directly so there’s very minimal muscle engagement.

    But if you’re not naturally very in tune with your body live instruction is pretty much a necessity. It’s very difficult to figure out how to do the internal components without being able to feel it, and that initially can require facilitation from someone else until it clicks for you.

    Qigong is usually, but not always, gentler than yoga. The softer practices in particular are far less likely to run the risk of any kind of injury. But it requires deeper awareness to get the full effect as well

    Authentically taught Taichi is based on the same principles.

  62. 62.

    catclub

    @RevRick: ​
     

    there is no scientific test for stupidity,

    There are no stupid questions, the good teachers say.
    …. but there are lots of inquisitive idiots.

  63. 63.

    Martin

    Really interesting study.

    Author finds that sexuality has a big impact in the gender education gap in higher education. Gay men dramatically overperform straight men in attendance and achievement and gay women somewhat underperform straight women.

    Putting aside the causes for the disparity by gender, it provides strong evidence that this is a purely cultural phenomenon which was our conclusion when we were studying it. It also disproves bias on the part of the universities because sexuality isn’t a part of any college application I’ve ever seen. Not only do gay men go to college at higher rates than straight men, they go at higher rates than straight women. They don’t just close the gap, they more than overcome it.

    I had attributed the gap less to gender differences in interest to attend, but to an increasingly strong mismatch between the men who applied and how competitive they were. That is, we didn’t have a huge shortage of men applying, but an increasing share of those applying were not competitive, so they weren’t getting admitted. The interest to attend was largely there, but they overestimated (badly) their prospects, and so the admitted student population was MUCH more biased toward women because the women were much better attenuated to how competitive they were to getting admitted.

    Independent of this we did have a gender disparity in achievement as women consistently overachieved relative to men. It wasn’t a massive disparity, but it was consistent. When we factored for failure to achieve due to behavioral issues, that disparity only grew (guys do a lot of dumb shit and get kicked out of school – women hardly ever).

    I need to read the paper a few more times, and I’ll look for some followup studies, but I don’t have any particular sense for why this dynamic is. One hint offered by the author is that the status cost of being gay in the male community is very different from the status cost in the female community, and I suspect that’s a good thread to pull on. There are also generational disparities and racial ones, which aren’t surprising but older gay women outperforming younger gay women kind of is.

    Anyway, I found this very encouraging. Anything to help us decipher our current moment is helpful.

  64. 64.

    catclub

    @p.a.: As bad as a timeshare meeting?

    I suspect it depends on your views on annuity salespeople.

     

    It is possible they are simply fishing for clients for money management.  So less hard sell on the annuity.

  76. 76.

    Jackie

    Shouldn’t have happened at ALL:

    The military presence in the Los Angeles area is being reduced by almost half. The Pentagon Tuesday confirmed that 2,000 National Guard members are being withdrawn from their mission in the city.

    L.A. Mayor Karen Bass called the troops’ withdrawal an important victory.

    “This happened because the people of Los Angeles stood united and stood strong. We organized peaceful protests, we came together at rallies, we took the Trump administration to court – all of this led to today’s retreat,” she said in a statement, adding that “We will not stop making our voices heard until this ends, not just here in LA, but throughout our country.”

    Both city and state leaders pushed back against the deployments, accusing the Trump administration of overstepping its authority.
    That led to a legal showdown between California and the federal government, which is still playing out in the courts.

    Last month, an appeals court temporarily sided with Trump by deciding troops can remain in L.A. while the case is under review.

    “For more than a month, the National Guard has been pulled away from their families, communities and civilian work to serve as political pawns for the President in Los Angeles,” Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office said in a statement to Eyewitness News.

    “While nearly 2,000 of them are starting to demobilize, the remaining guardsmembers continue without a mission, without direction and without any hopes of returning to help their communities.
    “We call on Trump and the Department of Defense to end this theater and send everyone home now.”

    abc7.com/post/2000-national-guardsmen-being-withdrawn-los-angeles-mission-pentagon-confirms/17136710…

    Get the remaining NG pawns OUT.

  79. 79.

    dww44

    john, Northern Flickers are among my most favorite, although they only show up in my yard in February. Supposedly around all year but they only ever show up in late winter.

  81. 81.

    narya

    @Chetan Murthy: yoga or Pilates. For yoga, look for an older teacher, preferably one who teaches “hatha” or “iyengar,” as they’re more likely to accommodate your current state; for Pilates, look for Pilates Method Alliance certification or someone who discusses the lineage of their teachers rather than someone who took some classes. And what everyone else said, too.

  82. 82.

    Chetan Murthy

    @Chacal Charles Calthrop: I think we (me and my neighbors) have somewhat given up on trying to get him to behave better around me.  Apparently the poor pup was mistreated by his previous owner (a -man-) and …. hence he tends to act out toward all males.  Including one of my neighbors who is a man.  So ….. well, we’ve adapted: they leave a compost bin at the front of the property where I can reach it without having to interact with the pup, and I let ’em know when I need to do laundry so they can keep him in.

    I feel sad for the poor guy: his previous life can’t have been fun.  But we have a workable modus vivendi so we can all live together.  Maybe someday I’ll take with my neighbors and we can try again, but for now, I’m OK with the current arrangement.

  84. 84.

    Martin

    @RevRick: I’m suspicious of this. Ackman dumped Cuomo after his loss and backed Adams. Where’s Cuomo’s support coming from? I fucking hope it’s not the DNC.

  86. 86.

    prostratedragon

    The foreign academics’ lawsuit against the feds for political deportations is bearing fruit:

    NEW: The agents who executed the arrests of pro-Palestinian students like mahmoud Khalil testified Tuesday that the orders they received were unusual and described by their superiors as urgent.

    w/ @joshgerstein

    politico.com/news/2025/07/15/pro-palestinian-academics-deportations-trial-00454324

    Each of the arrests discussed Tuesday took place based on determinations by Secretary of State Marco Rubio that the presence of the foreign academics in the U.S. undermined U.S. foreign policy interests. They included Khalil, Öztürk, Georgetown University researcher Badar Khan Suri and Columbia University student Mohsen Mahdawi. Subsequent to their arrests, all four were ordered released from custody by federal judges who found Rubio’s orders appeared to have violated their constitutional rights.

    The agents said they couldn’t recall similar requests in the past and that, prior to President Donald Trump’s return to the White House in January, their division — Homeland Security Investigations — rarely took part in immigration enforcement.

  87. 87.

    hitchhiker

    @p.a.: We went to a Medicare planning session back when I was about to turn 65, but I haven’t been to a retirement thing.

    They’re probably looking for people with enough funds to make it worth their while to manage — I think it’s like a million dollars, not including real estate.

    If I had that kind of jack, I’d probably also have friends who could recommend someone and not have to depend on people with a dog and pony show.

  88. 88.

    Melancholy Jaques

    @Martin:

    Does the DNC do mayors’ races? My understanding was that the DNC does the convention and little else.

  90. 90.

    Sister Golden Bear

    @Martin:

    One hint offered by the author is that the status cost of being gay in the male community is very different from the status cost in the female community, and I suspect that’s a good thread to pull on

    The “best little boy in the world syndrome” among gay men has been well-known for years, see Pete Buttigieg as a poster child.

    Admittedly this comes from Pyschology Today, not the most scientific of sources, but it does summarize the theory, and at least this study found evidence for it.

    Growing up in unwelcoming places and hiding an essential part of oneself for an extended period of time is bound to come at a cost. We proposed that this cost is having to invest one’s self-worth in life domains that can be controlled and guaranteed, at least more so than family support, peer approval, or God’s love. We also proposed a further cost, namely that the greater the degree to which young gay men invest in these achievement-related domains, the greater the lengths they would go to assure success in them, even if in unhealthy ways, such as isolating oneself, eating too much or too little, or lying and getting into arguments with others.

    Our research showed that young gay men strategically invest their self-worth in those areas in which they can succeed, namely academics, appearance, and competition, more so than straight men. Essentially, it seems as if young gay men go to great lengths to prove their worth to others in those domains. This is particularly likely for those who concealed their sexual orientation for long periods of time when growing up and for those who grew up in more stigmatizing states.

    If you want to explore that thread, I’m sure there’s other research on it.

  91. 91.

    Martin

    @Melancholy Jaques: I’m not sure. I know the city Democratic Party endorsed Mamdani, but I’m not sure where the state and national party stand. It’s a big enough race to garner that kind of attention.

    I’m suspicious because Democrats still aren’t signaling they know how to process the loss in 2024.

  92. 92.

    Sister Golden Bear

    @p.a.: Haven’t done one of those, but I did do a retirement financial planning class offered through my local adult ed.

    The planner who taught it obviously hoped to pick up some clients from it, but it was a legit class (he’d been teaching it for 20 years) and not sales-y at all.

  93. 93.

    Sister Golden Bear

    @Martin:

    There are also generational disparities and racial ones, which aren’t surprising but older gay women outperforming younger gay women kind of is.

    FWIW, I’m not aware of a “best little girl in the world syndrome” trope, nor research on it. But my personal speculation is that there was a similar dynamic with older gay women, but as anti-lesbian sentiment has eased more than anti-gay sentiments, that would be one reason younger gay women feel less need to “invest their self-worth in those areas in which they can succeed, namely academics.” Another factor is greater range of jobs available to women now. Back in the day, if a woman wanted to be something other than a secretary, nurse or teacher, she’d have to be damn good to succeed in business. And even if she was, the opportunities were still limited. Back in 2001, I worked at a company with amazingly competent admin assistants in their 50s and 60s—because they was one of the few jobs they could get when they entered the business world. Younger women these days who are similarly competent and ambitious aim for becoming managers and executives.* Working backwards, these older gay women undoubtedly realized that academic success was a way to improve their odds.

    *For less ambitious women (straight or gay) there’s a lot more jobs now where they can have satisfying careers without having to be hyper-competent, so outstanding academics aren’t as critical for jumpstarting careers.

  94. 94.

    Greg Ferguson

    Night rain in Tucson – hope the post works. It’s very pretty. Monsoon, and all that; the scent of water is wonderful.

  97. 97.

    Hungry Joe

    @Chetan Murthy: The Old Guard was guilty-pleasure fun: Ultimately silly but it believed in itself, and that made the difference. The Old Guard 2 I found pointless and dull — even the fight scenes. And so many people just casually slaughtered; it got to me after a while.

  100. 100.

    Geminid

    Pima County Supervisor Adelita Grijalva won yesterday’s AZ07 primary with 62% of the vote. Social media strategist Deja Foxx was second with 19% and former state Rep. Daniel Hernandez came in third with 14%.

    Ms. Grijalva advances to the September 23 special election to fill the seat held by her late father Raul Grijalva, who died in March. She is expected to win easily

    The 7th Congressional district is in southeastern Arizona and includes south Tuscon.

  103. 103.

    Geminid

    This is a good article on the Democratic Socialists of America, written by Patrick Hagen and published by the excellent New Lines Magazine on May 19. It’s long, with a lot of detail and background.

    The Left Wing Activists Who Want to Change American Politics

    The Democratic Socialists of America are trying to capitalize on discontent with Trump, but the organization faces major challenges.

    share.google/pEvnCHUdRtm4NU3YC

    I thought the reporter exaggerated the role the DSA played in the IRA and its clean energy provisions, and maybe the New York DSA chapter’s influence in the controversy over the proposed Amazon headquarters in Brooklyn.

    The contemporaneous reporting and historical material seem fairly solid though.

  104. 104.

    hobbitdreams

    as women consistently overachieved relative to men

    Interesting and curiously common framing. As compared to, say, “as men consistently underachieved relative to women.” Why is that, do you suppose?

  106. 106.

    Geminid

    @Geminid: Speaking of Zohran Mamdani, this morning’s Politico Playbook said he is visiting Washington today:

    Zohran in DC: Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee for mayor of New York City, arrives in Washington this morning for a breakfast event hosted by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY). He will also meet with Senator Bernie Sanders. His long awaited meeting wil Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who is holding out on an endorsement, will come on Friday back in NYC.

    Also coming soon: Mamdani “plans to clarify his stance on the phrase ‘globalize the Intifada’ as early as this week,” Politico’s Emily Ngo and Joe Amifa report [Link].

    I saw some hilarious video yesterday of New York Mayor Eric Adams criticizing Mamdani’s posture on the slogan. He repeatedly tried and failed to pronounce “Intifada.” The reporter interviewing him had to help him out.

  107. 107.

    hobbitdreams

    @Professor Bigfoot: LOL. I was thinking more about the framing, which strikes me as a gender-based application of Murc’s Law, namely that only women have agency.

    But your second question works too. :)

  111. 111.

    Kayla Rudbek

    @Martin: straight men not being willing to listen to women teachers in high school and so not getting good enough grades for college would be one of my guesses for cause.

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