Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Whoever he was, that guy was nuts.

My right to basic bodily autonomy is not on the table. that’s the new deal.

Pessimism assures that nothing of any importance will change.

When your entire life is steeped in white supremacy, equality feels like discrimination.

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Only Democrats have agency, apparently.

If America since Jan 2025 hasn’t broken your heart, you haven’t loved her enough.

They want us to be overwhelmed and exhausted. Focus. Resist. Oppose.

Since we are repeating ourselves, let me just say fuck that.

The words do not have to be perfect.

Disappointing to see gov. newsom with his finger to the wind.

We are aware of all internet traditions.

We’re watching the self-immolation of the leading world power on a level unprecedented in human history.

Too little, too late, ftfnyt. fuck all the way off.

The fight for our country is always worth it. ~Kamala Harris

There is no right way to do the wrong thing.

“Until such time as the world ends, we will act as though it intends to spin on.”

If you cannot answer whether trump lost the 2020 election, you are unfit for office.

I’d like to think you all would remain faithful to me if i ever tried to have some of you killed.

Accused of treason; bitches about the ratings. I am in awe.

Tick tock motherfuckers!

Beware of advice from anyone for whom Democrats are “they” and not “we.”

T R E 4 5 O N

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

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War for Ukraine Day 629: A Brief(ish) Tuesday Night Update

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Graphic by NEIVANMADE of a Russian bomb with a "Z" symbol on it crashing through the roof of the Ukrainian Postal Service delivery hub. "Everyone Is a Target" and "Stop Russia" are written in the space between the destroyed roof and the fins of the bomb.

(Image by NEIVANMADE)

The House managed to pass this whacked out two part continuing resolution that keeps part of the government open until the middle of January and the rest open until the beginning of February. I am amazed it passed. Anyhow, the House GOP majority now has two different hostages to ransom or kill at the beginning of 2024. What did not pass was any supplemental funding for Ukraine or Israel. Soon the remaining $1 billion from the last Ukraine aid bill will run out and with it the Biden administration’s ability to resource Ukraine’s defense against Putin’s genocidal re-invasion.

Here is President Zelenskyy’s address from earlier today. Video below, English transcript after the jump. (emphasis mine)

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Tuesday Night Open Thread: Government Shutdown Temporarily Averted

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Baby steps, because the Republican Party is full of angry babies. Per CBS News:

The House on Tuesday passed a two-step plan from Speaker Mike Johnson to fund federal agencies into the new year, sending the legislation to the Senate days before the approaching deadline to avert a government shutdown.

The short-term measure cleared the House in a 336 to 95 vote. Known as a continuing resolution, it received substantial support from House Democrats, who helped ensure its passage over the objections of dozens of Republicans. The bill is the first major piece of legislation the House has approved since Johnson became speaker.

The plan, which Johnson unveiled Saturday, extends federal funding at current levels for one group of agencies and programs through Jan. 19, and a second batch through Feb. 2. Johnson argued the extension will allow lawmakers to avoid a massive end-of-year spending bill while negotiations over spending levels continue…

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Capitol Hill Fight Club (Open Thread)

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No elected official has thrashed a colleague with a cane on Capitol Hill lately, but things are getting spicy in a way that feels very late-1850s. Today there was alleged Repub-on-Repub violence on the House side, and a fistfight almost broke out during a Senate hearing between Teamsters president Sean O’Brien and Repub Senator Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma.

Committee chair Bernie Sanders broke it up — his propensity for shouting coming in handy for once:

I was briefly a Teamster and I despise the Republican Party, so I’m definitely biased. But it sounds like Mullin was being a whiny-ass snowflake who inappropriately brought months-old Twitter trash talk into the hearing, which isn’t a shocker since he’s a member of the party of perpetually aggrieved and obnoxious wankers. An account of how it erupted from NBC News:

The exchange occurred when Mullin, a former MMA fighter, recalled an interaction he had with O’Brien in June on Twitter, now known as X.

At the time, they discussed engaging in an MMA fight for charity after they had gotten into a heated back-and-forth at a previous congressional hearing.

Mullin read aloud O’Brien’s original tweet during the hearing Tuesday, which said: “Greedy CEO who pretends like he’s self made. In reality, just a clown & fraud. Always has been, always will be. Quit the tough guy act in these senate hearings. You know where to find me. Anyplace, Anytime cowboy.”

The tweet also said “#LittleManSyndrome” and showed a photo of Mullin at a debate where he was standing on a pedestal at a podium.

After Sanders gaveled them into silence, the hearing went on, and NBC says the two agreed to have a coffee together. (Hopefully not at a shop with a large plate glass window.)

On the House side, former speaker Kevin McCarthy allegedly elbowed one of the GOP colleagues who deposed him in the kidneys: (WaPo)

…Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.) came up behind Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and began yelling in his ear, accusing him of elbowing him in the back as they passed each other in a crowded hallway…

The episode between Burchett and McCarthy was not captured on video but was witnessed by numerous reporters.

“Hey Kevin, why did you walk behind me and elbow me in the back?” Burchett asked as The Washington Post interviewed McCarthy. “You have no guts.”

“I didn’t do that,” McCarthy replied. As Burchett continued to yell, McCarthy laughed and said, “Oh my God.”

Burchett was among eight Republicans who voted to oust McCarthy as House speaker, a rebuke the California lawmaker has bitterly noted, publicly and privately.

“You are so pathetic,” Burchett said before slowing his steps to no longer be directly behind McCarthy.

“Thank you, Tim,” McCarthy said.

Afterward on CNN, Burchett said: “I got elbowed in the back and it kind of caught me off guard cause it was a clean shot to the kidneys.”

Great job, everybody!

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Afternoon Open Thread: The Future Is Here

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I have no idea what chance he has, but the Democrats need to get behind him and others like him, because they are the future of the party.

And here is my seasonal plea to mulch not rake your leaves:

I get discouraged this time of year because there are a lot of black plastic bags lined up on the streets, filled with raked leaves for the city to pick up. At the very least, I wish the city would NOT pick up leaves in plastic bags and require them to be in paper leaf bags.

Meanwhile at my house – the grassy areas get mulched and the gardens get to keep their leaves as natural habitats for beneficials, protection for plants against harsh winter temps and generally nice to look at.

Before:

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War for Ukraine Day 628: The Ukrainians Move Against the Black PSYOP

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(Crest of the Security Service of Ukraine)

The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) has moved against the Russian funded Ukrainian network that was attempting to sell dirt to Rudy Giuliani. The SBU has begun charging members of this network with treason!

The Security Service and the DBR gathered evidence of a state betrayal by the People’s Deputy of Ukraine, who carried out information and subversive activities in favor of the rf.

According to the investigation, he had a call sign «Pinocchio» and was part of a criminal organization that formed the main department of the GRU of the Russian armed forces ( known as the GRU).

The main task of this organization – to shake the socio-political situation in Ukraine and discredit our state in the international arena. For this, the members of the group received money from military intelligence rf.

According to available data, network funding reached more than $ 10 million.

Within the pre-trial investigation, it is documented that the figure skater spread fakes about the supreme military-political leadership of our state. One example of misinformation work – the spread of fakes about the alleged interference of Ukrainian high-ranking officials in the 2019 US presidential election.

For « dispersal» pro-Russian narratives, he participated in the relevant press conferences.

It is established that the criminal organization was created by the Deputy Chief of the Russian GRU Vladimir Aleksiev as an agent network operating in the capital of Ukraine.

The operational leadership of the enemy group from the territory of the rf was carried out by his deputy – Alexei Savin.

According to the investigation, in addition to the People’s Deputy, the enemy group included exnardep Andriy Derkach, who fled abroad on the eve of a full-scale invasion.

This agency network also included former prosecutor Konstantin Kulik. He had a call sign «Bird » and is currently hiding from justice abroad. During the information sabotage against our state, Kulyk publicly engaged in pseudo-legal « justification of » fakes in favor of the Kremlin.

The subversive activities of the criminal organization in Kyiv were coordinated by the exponent of Derkach, a former employee of the game of the time of Srsr Igor Kolesnikov, who on the materials of the SBU has already been convicted and is serving a sentence for treason.

Currently, on the basis of the evidence gathered, the Prosecutor General of Ukraine informed a member of the criminal organization – MP – about the suspicion under two articles of the Criminal Code of Ukraine:

  • part 1 article 111 (state betrayal);
  • part 1 article 255 ( creation, leadership of a criminal community or criminal organization, as well as participation in it).

Here’s analysis from Pwnallthethings from the Skyview app as BlueSky posts don’t embed here:

Pwnallthethings1h

Oh, this is a big deal:

Statement today from Ukraine’s SBU. It’s charging former Ukrainian lawmaker Derkach and former Ukrainian prosecutor Kulyk with treason against Ukraine ssu.gov.ua/novyny/za-ma…

The allegation here is that they were part of a network ultimately working for Russia’s GRU intelligence agency, and funded by them to the tune of about $10m or so.

Now why would you care? Bear with me on this

One of the allegations is what that group was tasked with. Specifically: “disinformation [namely] spreading fakes about the alleged interference of Ukrainian high-ranking officials in 2019 to influence the [2020] US presidential elections”

They’re talking about Guiliani’s 2019 meeting with Derkach abcnews.go.com/Politics/rud…

Giuliani in Ukraine with conservative news outlet in effort to discredit impeachment probeRudy Giuliani traveled to Ukraine this week as part of his ongoing effort to promote theories of Ukrainian election meddling as part of a conservative documentary series.abcnews.go.com

Giuliani is not named, and he is not accused of crimes by UA. But it is, in effect, Ukraine saying that it not only believes–but can and intends to prove–that Giuliani’s 2019 allegations about corrupt payments to Hunter Biden in 2019 were forgeries made by, and laundered to him, by Russia’s GRU.

It seems like the Ukrainians are closing in on the Black PSYOP we began discussing her back in October 2019. Now we wait to see if Ukraine indicts anyone on the US end of this op: Giuliani, Mac Isaac, Bannon, Guo, etc.

Here is President Zelenskyy’s address from earlier today. Video below, English transcript after the jump.

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Monday Evening Open Thread: ‘Having Rights, Still Popular!

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Didn’t get a chance to post this last week, but it’s still relevant. Alexandra Petri, national treasure, at the Washington Post — “Having rights still bewilderingly popular”:

Tuesday’s election results suggest that the Republican legislative strategy of “taking people’s rights away for no clear reason” was not an overwhelming success at the ballot box. Potential Childbearing Vessels on Legs contumaciously insist on continuing to see themselves as fully realized people deserving of the protection of the law, and, unfortunately, they can still vote, and some of them even have friends who vote with them.

Given the options of “people have constitutionally protected rights over their own bodies and the course of their own lives” or “people can potentially see those rights whisked away at any time without warning,” Ohio voters overwhelmingly preferred the first thing. Given the option of creating a Republican majority in their state legislature that could permit their governor to sign a 15-week abortion ban into law, Virginia voters refused, apparently indifferent to the fact that the governor would be wearing a fleece vest and speaking in soft tones when he did so!…

It has been suggested that this is why voting is such a flawed method for determining what ought to happen, and some people are working so hard to do away with it. “Let Dave decide everything on everyone else’s behalf,” while popular with Dave, tends not to be popular with everyone else. And the thing is, as Justice Samuel Alito noted in his Dobbs decision, “Women are not without electoral or political power.”

Tuesday’s election suggests that people being treated like people, rather than not, is still inexplicably popular. Who can say how long this fad will last? If through 2024, there might be more problems!

Speaking of the soothing power of sweater vests:

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2024 Pet Calendar – Please Find Your Pets

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Since both calendars were designed and ready for 2023, we are going to make the 2024 calendars using those designs, with covers updated for 2024.

Please check for your pets.   Let us know in the comments if:

  1. all is good
  2. if we need to add a heart
  3. or if you no longer want your pet in the calendar

If there is a change to be made, let us know which calendar, your pet’s name, and what change you need.

BJ Pet Calendar 2023 – A  (soon to be 2024)

BJ Pet Calendar 2023 – B  (soon to be 2024)

Questions?

 

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