Friday, April 08, 2016

Friday Stuff

John Oliver does it again, as he did earlier this week, on the subject of congressional fundraising here – nice for the DCCC’s Steve Israel to feel like he can take a victory lap or two since he’s stepping down, but along with that traitor DWS, they have a pretty sorry record of losing congressional mid-term elections (and yes, I know lazy Democrats who only vote off-cycle if they accidentally wander into a voting booth are partly to blame too, but here’s something I’ve noticed…does anybody point out any more how badly team “D” is getting creamed when it comes to social networking and viral videos? Try finding something current at the Dem “Rapid” Response YouTube channel…a lot more to do online for campaigns than just to send scare Emails and try to turn us upside down and shake loose change out of our pockets)…



…and it sounds like Cenk and The Young Turks are taking a bow or two also over 200 million views in a month, which I have to admit is pretty cool – good for them (mildly NSFW)…



…and Lord knows Andrew Cuomo has issues, but kudos to him and the Empire State for passing and signing into law the most progressive family leave policy in the country, as Kyle Kulinski tells us (definitely NSFW - wonder if Steve Israel is listening?)…



...and Thom Hartmann brings us Economic and Labor News for the week...



…and for a bonus installment of “This Day In Doomsy History,” we’re going to journey back to 4/9/11 to commemorate once more the passing of film director Sidney Lumet, who brought us “Network” by Paddy Chayefsky, a movie with enough brains for about five other movies – the “mad as hell” scene is what everyone quite rightly remembers the most, but to me, this is the one that endures all the more (and yes, mildly NSFW also)…



…and speaking of milestones, happy 88th birthday tomorrow to the funniest math professor of all time.

Thursday, April 07, 2016

Thursday Stuff

Kudos to Seth Meyers for stating the obvious here about a woman's right to control her own body (and for making the point about the stuff going on in state legislatures across this country - here)...



...and here are some protesters trying to speak truth to duuuh! (in light of the Meyers clip)...



…and yeah, the video is satire, but unfortunately, this somewhat related development is reality – yep, time for the latest installment of “This Day In Doomsy History” from 4/2/08…



...and former Clinton Labor Secretary Robert Reich explains the importance of passing a new Voting Rights Act and opposing voter ID here, which is just the same old Democratic and minority voter discrimination in a brand new wrapper (still timely in light of the remembrance of Dr. King's slaying this week)...



…and RIP Merle Haggard (love the look he gives to the drummer - going over the line when it comes to country music to mark the occasion)…



…and I always thought this was a pretty cool tribute song, so here it is.

Wednesday, April 06, 2016

Wednesday Stuff

Congratulations to the Villanova men’s basketball team on winning the NCAA championship (here)…



…and with their Tuesday primary still in mind, Rev. Al shines a spotlight on Wisconsin’s particularly awful voter ID law (and it looks like that U.S. House idiot Glenn Grothman gave away the con here)…



...and I know April 4th was a few days ago, but kudos to Lawrence O’Donnell for this clip that reminds us of the significance of that day; anyone who helps keep history alive like this is doing a service for us all…



…and yeah, this is definitely a positive development, but I think it’s scary that a case like this was even heard at all (figures that an idea having to do with crappy governance would come from Texas – more on Edward Blum is here)…



...and I thought this was an interesting clip on a report by economist Didier Jacobs claiming that about three-quarters of the "one percent" don't merit their wealth (more on Jacobs is here)...



…and here’s some great new music from a guy who’s currently on tour; coming to PA in late May I believe but not to these parts, sadly...c'est dommage.

Tuesday, April 05, 2016

Tuesday Stuff

Former spokesperson for Trump’s Superpac Stephanie Cegielski explains to Alex Witt why she turned away from “The Donald” (I give her credit for going on the record, though I don’t totally buy her explanation at the end about why everything had to shut down…always easy to blame allegedly disgruntled people for candidate shortcomings - oh, and yeah, to be fair, Trump has "energized" a lot of voters, but as noted here, HRC has received about 9 million votes so far, 1 million more than "Fergus Laing")…



Update 4/10/16: To be fair, though, it looks like this Trump supporter is "energized" (h/t Dave Weigel and Chris Hayes via that Twitter thingie)...

…and with the prior clip in mind, this video goes out to anyone who opposes the nomination of “The Donald” because you’re worried about the survival of the two-party system in this country, or something - the “party of Lincoln” decided to hang this metaphorical millstone around their own necks, and we shouldn’t do a damn thing to help them get rid of it (mildly NSFW)…



...and Chris Hayes looks at how the RNC doesn't officially hold a vote in North Dakota, but they have some caucus-ish system where delegates can be named and choose candidates for themselves apparently - imagine the outcry if the Dems tried something like this (and from the same bunch who complained about the "sausage-making" of health care reform - in response, what the hell do you call this? And Alex Jones is way too damn funny, by the way.)...



…and I made a reference to RT above, but he also recently celebrated a birthday – hope a splendid time was had by all.

Monday, April 04, 2016

Monday Stuff

Gee, ya’ think maybe “The Donald” and “Calgary” Cruz should take a look at this? Not that it would matter a whit to them, I guess, since they’re extremists in their own right (here)…



...and I hope some of you out there are ready for a history lesson, because I definitely have one for you that you shouldn't miss (here)...



...and hey, maybe we ought to do something about this climate change thing (have some falafel, Billo)...



…and here is another one of my once-a-year songs; in consideration of the first clip here, it has to do with a man who ultimately gave his life for peace.