“It's called the American dream because you have to be asleep to believe it.” – George Carlin
Monday, February 10, 2025
Monday Stuff
Jesse Dollemore tells us of Combover Caligula instructing his female minion Pam Bondi to criminally prosecute employers following some sort of DEI policy to hire minorities (I would say #47 is racist, but that should be patently obvious by now)...can’t hardly wait for the good ol’ days of Plessy v. Ferguson, which was decided in 1896 (and yes, that’s definitely a bad joke I’ll admit)...to me, this actually illustrates the difference between the way Dems and Repugs approach politics; Dems, rightly, will go back and forth discussing and considering different opinions on an issue and come up with a consensus, whereas Repugs will take the most minute excuse possible and kick the metaphorical door wide open if it means cramming their agenda down our throats – in this example, the typically wrongheaded SCOTUS Harvard decision from ’23 is used as a pretext for the jackbooted racial thuggery of Our Ochre Abomination (slightly NSFW/H).
And by the way, I’m glad Jesse ended this clip by getting after the Dems and telling them to act like an actual opposition party. With that in mind, I want to say something.
I’m keeping an open mind when it comes to Ken Martin, who won election as the new head of the DNC, and I was curious to hear what he had to say about the biggest issues we face and what the Dems plan to do in response. Well, I received an Email from him yesterday with a sentence noting that he was recently the head of the Minnesota Democratic Farm Labor party...and then he goes right to the pitch of “orange man bad, we need to build up the party infrastructure, give us money.” So basically, he sent me an Email that was boilerplate from what I’ve received from Jaime Harrison, Tom Perez, etc.
Here is my question in response...DID YOU LEARN A SINGLE GODDAMN THING FROM THE ELECTION LAST YEAR???!!!
I’m going to point out for probably the fiftieth time at least that PEOPLE WILL NOT VOTE FOR YOU IF THEY DON’T KNOW WHAT YOUR POLCIES ARE OR WHAT YOU PROPOSE TO HELP THEM!!! Gee, maybe Martin’s introductory Email could have been about how the Dems will always support women’s health care, trying to move to a renewable green energy economy (and good luck with THAT until 2028 at least), the right of workers to unionize, common sense gun laws, immigration reform for real including protecting birthright citizenship, student debt relief, LGBTQ rights, investment in infrastructure, and on and on. And yes, these positions are supported by the vast majority of this country (I would also add Palestinian human rights, but that’s just me I guess). And if you want to attack Trump, talk about fighting King Elon and DOGE (which, again, is illegally subverting the “power of the purse” given to our legislature according to the Constitution), protecting USAID for those around the world who need it (and our farmers who receive income from it), ensuring that Medicare/Medicaid and Social Security aren’t messed with by the “Xitter king” and his flunkies, etc.
So basically, Martin should take another shot at introducing himself and letting us know why we should care. If he actually were to do that the right way, you just never know what kind of positive impact that might achieve. Of course, if he does it the wrong way...
Here is the Dollemore clip...
...and Brian Tyler Cohen tells us that it looks like “couch boy” put his foot in it by defending (sort of) one of King Elon I’s sycophants espousing (Asian) Indian-American prejudice, when – whoops! – Vance’s wife is of Indian descent, which puts Vance’s kids in the same category...”the grass cheering on the lawnmower” indeed...and GREAT point by Cohen that, with USAID either greatly diminished or gone completely, China is indeed going to fill that void; of course, Bronze Beelzebub is completely incapable of learning ANYTHING, particularly the lesson that soft power, which China wields with expert precision, is what wins the day, as opposed to bluster and xenophobia...also well done by Cohen to defend the CFPB...
...and Lawrence O’Donnell recalls Dietrich Bonhoffer’s quote that “against stupidity, we are defenseless”; I’m not sure I’d go THAT far, but Bonhoffer’s argument is solid...and God almighty, how bad off do we have to be for David Brooks to actually make sense...I was wondering where O’Donnell was going by conjuring up The Sainted Ronnie R, but what O’Donnell said about #40 and Medicare was spot-on...and oh yeah, I’d almost forgotten how the Gropenfuhrer utterly punted on infrastructure during his first sorry term, and the actual infrastructure that IS being built is owed to Democrats (gee, ya’ think we could have done a better job getting that message out in the campaign last year, DNC and new chair the aforementioned Ken Martin??)...O’Donnell wraps this up with the completely-called-for indictment of our beyond useless corporate media, in particular the White House press corps, in not holding Our Treasonous Orange Pustule to account on the gutting of USAID and the potential of mass starvation in Sudan...
...and David Doel tells us that the government of Ontario, Canada (and Doug Ford – definitely not a lib) is in the process of cancelling a $100 million deal with Starlink, one of King Elmo’s companies...good point to note that Cantaloupe Capone did this tariffs thing once before and backed down; hmmm...wonder why our glorious fourth estate in this country gave that the “memory hole” treatment? Don’t want to offend Dear Leader I guess...video also goes over some of Ford’s bad deals with US companies, to be fair...good background also on why awarding Starlink that much dough to begin with was an idiotic idea in the first place...and yeah, that rate of $160 an hour for hiring nurses is beyond absurd since nurses don’t actually get comped anywhere near that amount of dough (at least, not in the states – have to admit that I don’t know what the wage scale is for our neighbors to the north)...
...and Tennessee Brando provides an example of The Roger Ailes BS Factory doing what it does best...only Fix Noise could spin the attempt by Dem legislators to hold King Elon I accountable for trying to gut the Department of Education intro a headline of “Dems Ambush Education Dept. Amid Musk Meltdown” (well, other wingnut media sites could be comparably bad, I’ll admit)...and kudos to the Dem Tennessee lawmakers for introducing the “Stop Elon Act” to keep “DOGE Boy” out of the federal payments system (slightly NSFW/H)...
...and for the second time in seven years, I can legitimately add this tune – WAY TO GO BIRDS!!! FLY EAGLES FLY!!!
Saturday, February 08, 2025
Saturday Stuff
Rachel Maddow lets us know here that one of King Elon’s DOGE minions gaining access to the Treasury Department payment system (who ended up resigning) advocated for racism and eugenics...and another one of these life forms, going by the moniker “Big Balls,” was ALSO vouched for by Trumpist Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent...are there any actual adults in this administration I wonder?...and some of these life forms are trying to be in charge of air traffic control and our nuclear capability...dear God in Heaven...
...and Brian Tyler Cohen with Marc Elias discuss Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly blocking King Elon and DOGE from trying to access our private records...and I realize there is so much crap moving so fast that it’s hard to keep track of all of it; heckuva job, all you numbskulls who helped get Musk/Trump elected...and it’s not hard to imagine that Trumpist DOJ lawyers are going to try and imitate the tactics from Combover Caligula as a defendant in his various legal cases, and that indeed is to stall and try and “play” the courts...typical criminal behavior...
...and Seth Meyers takes “A Closer Look” at some of the madness that has transpired with King Elon and Mango Mussolini...and yeah, inasmuch as there is a plan of some kind, it is for our ruling cabal of grifters and frauds to keep people so confused that nobody knows exactly what the f*ck is going on (some of this echoes prior videos, but I think it’s important enough to repeat...and after watching that clip of Schumer at the end, I feel like I need a drink...more on that subject shortly)...
...and Sam and Emma of The Majority Report wonder if Bronzer Beelzebub accidentally admitted that Israel killed 500K Palestinians (Emma V. points this out at about 11:20)...it looks like #47 wants to completely pave over Gaza at this point and have the US take over, even though that’s illegal as hell of course...and yeah, check out the great big sh*t-eating grin on the face of our “ally” “Bibi” (also noted by Emma) as Our Ochre Abomination joyfully discusses the ongoing genocide in that war criminal Netanyahu’s backyard...and I grant Emma’s point about Peter Douchebag being the one asking the sort-of hard question, but to be fair, it’s not like Cantaloupe Capone is going to acknowledge an “unfriendly” reporter either...and yeah, here comes the “many people” lying tell again...and “the riviera of the middle east”?? We have a certifiable lunatic in charge, people (and how was Harris/Walz somehow worse than this?)...OK, so let’s just play “devil’s advocate” here and pretend that Trump and Netanyahu somehow build up some kind of playground for the rich in a completely-ethnically-cleansed Gaza; does anybody have any freaking idea what kind of a military presence will be needed to keep it from being utterly bombed into oblivion by jihadists??!!...
...and Leeja Miller wonders Why Dems Aren’t Doing Anything in response to this madness; actually, they are, but there’s much more they could be doing, as noted in the video (and God, is Schumer ever intolerable!)...and I guess ads for “Me Undies” is logical given Jesse Dollemore’s ads for Sheath men’s briefs...glad Miller revisited the utterly horrible Laken Riley law, which was indeed passed with bipartisan support; waaay too damn many cowardly Dems caved on this, and if anybody thinks our ruling regime is going to stop at denying due process rights to immigrants, then you must have been living under a rock for the last year or so...and I’m glad Senate Democrats are acting like they’re going to pay attention to social media AT LONG FREAKING LAST, but if they don’t come up with messaging based on ACTUAL FREAKING POLICY, then they might as well be shouting into tin cans attached by string...actually, if the Dems want tips on posting on social media, they should contact Jennifer Granholm, who was pretty active on Linkedin as Biden’s DOE Secretary – I thought she did a good job with her posts – they should also contact John Fetterman; yeah, I know what he’s turned into, but the social media person running his campaign was pretty sharp...terrific suggestions here for truly gumming up “the world’s greatest deliberative body” also (if that numb nuts Tommy Tuberville can do this to our military over abortion, then we can sure as hell do it to try and preserve our democracy)...lots of good reasons to bookmark “Indivisible,” some of which Miller notes here...and related to this, I would say that Ken Martin has his work cut out for him as noted here, and a positive update is here...here also (NSFW/H a bit)...
...and I started the week with a newer tune, so I think it makes sense to end with another newer number.
Friday, February 07, 2025
Friday Stuff
Chris Hayes discusses FBI agents suing the DOJ of Our Treasonous Orange Pestilence over potential acts of retribution in response to the 1/6 investigation, including revealing sensitive personal information of agents and others in law enforcement as well as terminations (gee, I thought Repugs were the "law and order" party; more fool me I guess)...Hayes talks with Dem U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (who is one of the FEW Dems standing up during this madness...and I’m sure Whitehouse is spot-on about Trumpette Pam Bondi, tragically)...
...and Rachel Maddow lets us know about some flunky for King Elmo I trying to diss GSA employees in a video conference, hastening the whole “spoon emoji” thing (too funny)...Maddow also tells us how the dismantling of USAID is crushing farmers in red state Kansas, with about 52K jobs lost...anybody out there tired of all the winning yet??!!...also, a new Ebola epidemic is breaking out in Uganda, and USAID would be helping, but – oopsie! – President Elon and Little Marco say, “naaah”...and nice work on all of the demonstrations for USAID...
...and John of The Damage Report tells us about King Elon I trying to take over the FAA, and Susan Collins is “concerned,” as if that will amount to anything more than the equivalent of a bucket of snot...somehow, though, Collins is better than Thom Tillis, who apparently doesn’t have a clue about performing the job he was elected for...and yeah, all of this DOGE garbage does indeed sound like 1/6/21, but from a technology perspective...God, trying to unwind all of this, assuming that’s even possible, could take decades!! (and yes, this is indeed more insanity tied to Project 2025 as Francesca points out)...
...and Belle tells us that there was a sign of life from the “D” team in response to the ongoing madness from our ruling regime; the Senate pulled an “all-nighter” to oppose the nomination of Russell Vought, the individual behind Project 2025, as head of OMB (even though Dems unanimously opposed Vought, he was still confirmed)...yeah, #47 allegedly didn’t know about P2025...which is why 37 of his disastrous E.O.s came right from that wretched document...Belle at first gets Vought's name wrong, but she corrected herself...
...and with all of the insane garbage going on in our world, I wanted to try and provide an update that's actually positive (very slightly NSFW/H)...
This is beautiful. This is what it'all about — love, kindness, tolerance and inclusiveness. π₯°ππ pic.twitter.com/mGmBwaPgro
— Bill Madden (@maddenifico) January 31, 2025
...and this tune reached #1 on the U.S. pop charts on this day in 1970 (and the whole attempt at subliminal ads is a hoot, I must say).
Wednesday, February 05, 2025
Wednesday Stuff
Leeja Miller gives us a clip on the chaos from King Elon I as of yesterday...good point to note that the crazy nonsense from Mango Mussolini is rooted in lawful procedures and processes, including executive orders of course, notwithstanding the perverse way in which those procedures and processes are applied...the biggest E.O. of course was the one that created DOGE, as well as the attack on USAID, and going after that organization had to warm to coal-black hearts of other dictators everywhere including Vlad The Butcher, seeing as how USAID specialized in humanitarian relief efforts (and the madness created by Apartheid Clyde does indeed mirror how he wrecked Xitter)...and yeah, what a “profile in pudding” Little Marco Rubio turned out to be as alleged Secretary of State, though seriously, could we have expected any different...and the South Africa connection to King Elon and the gutting of USAID is something I didn’t realize until I watched this; yeah, it’s just Miller’s theory, but it makes sense to me...and King Elmo going after the GSA is another dangerous front on the undeclared war against the efficient operation of our government (and OF COUURRSE the Unitary Executive Theory is BAAACK, along with the “impoundment power,” abused by Tricky Dick)...Miller points out what helps keep her sane, and what I hang onto is the fact that we still have a Constitution, thank God; if these rich f*cks manage to put together their “Article V” convention and tear it up, rewriting it to benefit themselves, then it really is time to GTFO (NSFW/H)...
...and Yasmin Khan of Rebel HQ informs us that Combover Caligula’s FCC Chair Brendan Carr apparently wants to investigate PBS and NPR...sure, why not – another ridiculous waste of taxpayer dollars...and about attacking the DOE, “you really have to be quite uneducated to not value education” indeed...
...and Jesse Dollemore tells us about jackbooted thug and DHS head Tom Homan threatening to arrest and prosecute NJ governor Phil Murphy...and yeah, Homan is indeed a mush mouth (and Jesse is being disturbingly graphic I’ll admit, but I don’t think he’s wrong by much as far as this bunch is concerned)...and I DEFINITELY don’t take anything this administration says at face value either...
...and I now give you the latest installment of “This Day In Doomsy History” (more or less) from 2/2/17...the last time the “party of Lincoln” had complete control of our government, they tried to get a nationwide “Right To (No) Work” bill passed, as Kyle Kulinski tells us, and I’m sure it’s only a matter of time before those assclowns try something like that again...more on why RTW is terrible is here (NSFW/H at end)...
...and on the subject of fighting back, kudos to Dem U.S. House Rep Melanie Stansbury of New Mexico for this...
...and Farron Cousins of Ring of Fire lets us know that Cantaloupe Capone was apparently informed in no uncertain terms that our dirty energy companies in this country that exacerbate climate change aren’t going to “drill baby, drill” any time soon, despite whatever bleatings he may have concocted during the campaign last year...sooo, naturally, prices aren’t going to come down either (again, they WERE coming down under #46, but that’s pretty much dust in the wind at this point, sadly)...
...and if anybody out there had any notion that our ruling bunch of grifters and frauds had A FREAKING CLUE about what they’re doing and the damage they were inflicting, well, you can pretty much rest assured that they’re all dumb as rocks...this Rachel Maddow segment to that effect is brought to us by Anthony Vincent Gallo of Occupy Democrats...
...and RIP saxophonist Gene “Daddy G” Barge, immortalized in this huge AM radio hit from back in the day.
Tuesday, February 04, 2025
Tuesday Stuff
Farron Cousins discusses Kristi (“Unsafe At Any Speed” – and no, I’m not going to stop linking to that clip) Noem, #47’s new DHS Secretary, going to NYC to round up the “dirtbags”...as Cousins says, we’re talking about human beings, and the way this ruling regime operates, I’m sure people will be included who work jobs and contribute to our economy, and it wouldn’t shock me if they ended up gathering some homeless veterans also, since there are plenty of them, tragically...and nice touch for Noem to be late for her own swearing-in...
...and I know I alluded to this yesterday, but David Shuster of Rebel HQ tells us about the Gropenfuhrer backing down on his tariffs with the DJIA tanking, and, again, first not saying he wanted concessions from Mexico and then claiming he got concessions from Mexico; welcome to government by chaos, all you idiots who supported him or, at a minimum, did NOTHING to help Harris/Walz last year...and if anybody out there thinks that Kevin (“Human Capital Stock”) Hassett is telling us the truth, then I have a bridge to one of the five New York boroughs to sell to you...
Update: More of the same - ugh...
...meanwhile, “across the pond,” Jonathan Pie tells us that, basically, they’re looking at a lot of BS also when it comes to government not providing for its citizens (maybe there was no dough for Labour to do anything, but they’re in charge, so...)...somehow, water has gotten more expensive, forcing the utility over there to raise rates (and no, I’m not gloating, since the whole “reward the shareholders and give it to the customers in the neck” thing is pretty much “another day at the office” over here too)...and yeah, The Sainted Ronnie R and “man in a frock” Maggie Thatcher were pretty much two peas in the same sorry pod who got this whole mess started...the Thatcher quote came from the late MP and acclaimed actress Glenda Jackson, for the record (NSFW/H)...
...and I’ve got a couple of items here that I meant to get to sooner, but they got more or less pushed aside for other newsworthy items...first, given the air tragedy in D.C. last week, Lawrence O’Donnell recalls a prior air disaster from ‘82, and I think it’s worth it to echo O’Donnell’s point about how, in the past, the first instinct from our government was sympathy and not blame, even though, as O’Donnell rightly notes, The Sainted Ronnie R fired over 11K air traffic controllers and broke up PATCO on 8/5/81 (and yeah, that sure was stoo-pid all right), and arguably led to the deadly accident O’Donnell mentions...in the past, our prior federal politicians knew to shut up before all the facts were discovered (unlike Mango Mussolini of course)...and nice work for O’Donnell to remind us about Lenny Skutnik; yeah, #40, being a good actor, often had the knack for deflecting and inspiring, but in this case (notwithstanding his horrible union busting), it was the right call (and I’m withholding any comment on what happened in Northeast Philadelphia with that medical jet crash because there’s still a lot we don’t know about that)...
...and the second item was the sentencing of former Dem U.S. Senator Bob (“Gold Bar”) Menendez to 11 years in prison last week...and yeah, you could argue that the disgraced former senator is indeed looking for a pardon from Our Ochre Abomination...way too damn funny (and I give Jesse credit for making the best of his ads for Sheath briefs – everybody has to pay the bills I guess)...
...and I haven’t had a clip from Tennessee Brando for a little while, and fortunately, I came across this item...a knife shop owner in Texas refuses to repair a “Hitler Youth” knife, though he offered to “de-Nazify” the weapon...and to be honest, I don’t care about the politics of the knife shop owner either – there’s doing the right, decent thing and then there is acting like a total POS, and the knife shop owner chose the former as far as I’m concerned...and I think it’s also called for to link all of this extremist crap right back to King Elon I...I definitely share Brando’s sentiments about “de-Nazifying” your personal relationships also, as it were (mildly NSFW/H)...
...and in the midst of all of this madness, kudos to Bernie Sanders for setting the right tone once again...
...and as noted here, on this day in 1999, Haitian immigrant Amadou Diallo was executed, shot 41 times by NYC police; the cops loved Springsteen until he recorded this tune – too f*cking bad.
Monday, February 03, 2025
Monday Stuff
This CBC report informs us that, at a recent NHL Ottawa Senators home game against the Minnesota Wild, the American national anthem was met with scattered boos when it was played before the home crowd, in reaction to the ridiculous tariffs by Bronzer Beelzebub (I think this also happened at a Toronto Raptors basketball game)...good job by one of the commentators to recall how far back our alliance goes, particularly in the wake of 9/11 and how Canada joined in fighting Afghanistan in accordance with Article 5 of our NATO agreement (an attack against one member country is an attack against all)...as far as I’m concerned with #47, all roads lead back to Putin; the goal of our ruling regime is to undermine this country every way possible and create chaos, which is exactly what the “Moscow munchkin” wants (and this is one of the best columns I've seen yet on our current mess from Timothy Snyder)...
...and Brian Tyler Cohen informs us that, gee, whaddaya know? It looks like Canada had already figured out how to apply their own retaliatory tariffs against red states in the event that #47 started his beyond stoo-pid tariff war, which of course he did...Mexico also followed suit because they’re not idiots, including President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo (great job by still-Canadian PM Justin Trudeau in particular to recall the JFK quote)...
Update 1: And by the way, according to this (but mainly this), I just want to try and understand the sequence of events:
Have I got this about right?Trump does something typically dumb (in this case, antagonize our biggest trade partners with his idiotic tariffs)...also, Goldman Sachs informs us of a lot of “short” stock market transactions betting against our performance (Dow goes down about 700 points). Mexico, one of those partners, agrees to some token gesture to get their tariff lifted (in this case, a promise to send 10,000 troops to the border apparently). Trump lifts the Mexico tariffs and the market rebounds after everybody who “shorted” their U.S. market holdings has made their money. Trump takes a victory lap ad nauseum for the next few news cycles.
Update 2: Oh, so our bulbous orange demogogue got a promise from Canada to reduce fentanyl (here)?
God, four years of this bullsh*t...
...and Kyle Kulinski brings us a video of a woman breaking down when she learned that Our Ochre Abomination cut off her benefits (and no, apparently she wasn’t a MAGA supporter)...and yeah, as Kyle says, the “wet dream” of wingnuts is indeed to destroy the social safety net, which is relied on by millions regardless of political affiliation...on a wholly other matter, I think Salem is one cute cat (NSFW/H)...
...and Lawrence O’Donnell discusses the effort of Caroline Kennedy to oppose her cousin “Brain Worms” RFK Jr., nominated to head HHS, with the former bravely speaking out against her cousin...and good job by Lawrence to take the WH press corps to task for treating Trumpette spokes-liar Karoline Leavitt like she was a piece of porcelain, as opposed to Steve Douchebag of Fix Noise yelling and propagandizing at Biden spokespeople...
...and Mike Figueredo of The Humanist Report starts this clip by talking about pals of Elon Musk facing reprisals for the Nazi salute, including Laura Smith of our beloved commonwealth of PA, along with Michigan priest Calvin Robinson (and yes, I know that was once called the Bellamy Salute prior to WWII and was included with the Pledge of Allegiance, but I would say that the horrific events of that world crisis have changed the context at the very least)...Figueredo takes this in the direction of defending gay/trans people and other marginalized groups, which is apropos unfortunately since Musk and his cohorts are giving cover for those attacks by embracing Nazi symbolism and actual practice...Figueredo is also right about late-stage capitalism, though I wish he wasn’t...I also agree with Figueredo’s assessment that blaming “otherized” groups used to be more subtle in the past, but now you’ve got Marjorie Traitor Greene and her ilk flaunting it all over the place...and I would vote against RFK Jr. just to spite this Nicole Shanahan b*tch, though there are plenty of other reasons to oppose him also, as noted in the prior video from O’Donnell...NSFW/H...
...and I would say that this newer tune offers some food for thought - hope you agree.
Friday, January 31, 2025
Friday Stuff
Former Clinton Labor Secretary Robert Reich reminds us that Mango Mussolini will try to take credit for the Biden economy, because of course...can’t tell you how exasperating it is to view all of this data and know that Biden still lost; tells you how insidious and omnipresent right-wing BS is in our media and what passes for political discourse...also, I would blame the absolute, cruel failure to give Biden credit for anything whatsoever on the economy, which depressed turnout and aided in registering Republican voters, which was off the charts last year in our beloved commonwealth, sadly...if you want to take #46 to task for Israel, fine, but that’s another discussion (and I’ve already spent a lot of time haranguing the Dems for finding a way to lose to our bulbous orange demagogue, so I’ll hold off on that for now)...
..and Jesse Dollemore gives us the latest on the utterly terrible D.C. helicopter/plane crash, which killed 67 people...I still can’t believe that we’re going to be looking at four more years of preposterous bullsh*t from this utterly lazy POS – yeah, Big Orange Cheetoh, the FAA was recruiting mentally disabled people or whatever under Biden, which is why THERE WERE EXACTLY NO HORRIBLE INCIDENTS OF THIS TYPE UNDER YOUR PREDECESSOR!!!...and yeah, if you have “common sense,” then I’m a freaking summa cum laude Ph.D. (and I definitely am NOT, for the record)...and this clueless meat sack said he wanted to rebuild the FAA, but he lost the election?? God, I’m already done with this ochre turd!! (slightly NSFW/H).
And by the way, as an astute YouTube commenter noted:
January 20 – Trump fires the head of the Federal Aviation Administration, the department in charge of flight safetyHere is the Dollemore clip...
January 21 – Trump freezes hiring for air traffic controllers
January 22 – Trump disbands the Aviation Safety Advisory Committee
January 28 – Trump sends out a buyout/retirement demand to existing employees, removing experienced safety staff
January 29 – First American mid-air collision in 16 years.
...and David Doel gives us more on issues with the FAA that led to this tragedy...and yes, this goes back to Biden and before, but really, it’s the fault of Congressional underfunding...and good job by Doel to point out YET AGAIN how our corporate media gives Our Treasonous Orange Pestilence cover, this time over #47’s ridiculous DEI charge...and I almost feel like I need to apologize for including more clips from this lying orange abomination (this report echoes info in the above list I know)...and suuure, privatization is supposedly the answer for air traffic controllers, right? Dear God (and that story about the San Carlos airport should be front page news everywhere)...again, if standards for air traffic controllers were allegedly so low under Obama and Biden, then HOW COME THERE WERE NO AIR DISASTERS UNTIL #47 CAME ALONG???!!! (NSFW/H)...
...given all this, what do we have in response from the “opposition” party? Well, Sam of The Majority Report gives us the latest on that (and by the way, “leader” Jeffries in the U.S. House, I was always taught that God helps those who help themselves)...and I don’t want to get started on Schumer, though part of me wants to...how about a little “fire in the belly,” Chuck?? And yeah, leading with “We didn’t defund the police”?? WHY ARE YOU STILL ECHOING BS REPUG TALKING POINTS???!!! TIME TO GO ON OFFENSE, YOU FREAKING COWARD!! At least J.B. Pritzker in Illinois is doing what he’s supposed to (NSFW/H also, though Sam’s outrage is commendable IMO)....
Update 2/1/25: I think it’s appropriate to call out Dems when they don’t stand up the way they should, but to be fair, there were those on the “D” team in the Senate who definitely did the right thing in recent hearings for #47’s garbage Cabinet nominees as noted here.
...and Farron Cousins of Ring of Fire tells us here about how, basically, the world is laughing at Cantaloupe Capone, still over his first administration (Cousins recorded this before the deadly air crash, it should be noted)...can’t possibly imagine what will be the result of this next ruinous term (and yeah, I also can’t imagine the tidal wave of garbage from Combover Caligula that has managed to get the “memory hole” treatment, and it is indeed curious that this is coming out only now as Cousins says...good to get in a plug for Ground News - media literacy should be taught in every school in this nation)...
...and RIP Marianne Faithfull, a true rock n’ roll survivor who was once linked romantically with Mick Jagger (I always thought the Rolling Stones tune “Wild Horses” was about Jagger and Faithfull, but apparently, I was wrong about that...it happens, what can I say?).
Update: For any resident of Northeast Philadelphia impacted by the plane disaster near Northeast Philadelphia Airport who may be in need of shelter, contact Samuel Fels High School; they are providing temporary assistance. Their number is 215-400-7100.
Thursday, January 30, 2025
Thursday Stuff
(I know we’re still finding out more about the DC plane/helicopter crash, which is terrible, and our hearts go out to the victims and their families of course...oh, and how about if we remember this while we’re at it? In other words, if this had happened under Biden, our fourth estate would be screaming for impeachment by now.)
Update 1: As predictable as flatulence after indigestion (here).
Update 2: I would say that our former transportation secretary would have insight into this (here).
Chris Hayes gives us a rundown here on the confusion caused by Dear Orange Leader and his cruel and idiotic spending freeze, which of course caused widespread confusion...yep, all of this madness (cutting funding for Meals on Wheels and veterans suicide prevention, for example) is indeed right out of Project 2025 as Hayes rightly says; this is Mango Mussolini trying to inflict maximum pain and hardship in an effort to make our entire government, to say nothing of our lapdog media and legal institutions, bend to his twisted, corrupt will...I know I linked to the HuffPo article about this yesterday...
...and Brian Tyler Cohen gives us an update on the spending freeze, with Jessica Tarlov of Fix Noise giving a reality check to those cackling hyenas on her network...and yeah, this Karoline Leavitt person sends out a tweet causing still more confusion, leading to a judge ruling to unblock the OMB freeze (do we all have whiplash yet from this insanity?)...I know I’ve criticized Dems for being pretty supine while all of this chaos is raging, but someone else who deserves credit for standing up IMO is AOC, and I didn’t want that to go unmentioned...
...and Jesse Dollemore informs us of a brand new lie from this seedy bunch of grifters running the executive branch (in the person of the aformentioned Trumpette Karoline Leavitt), and that has to do with $50 million of condoms to Gaza...seriously (great job by Jesse to not just debunk this latest nonsense, but also to talk about how lies from Trumpworld get propagated by the wingnut echo chamber, and leave it to “the old gray lady” to say, “oh, Leavitt was resolute in her talking points,” or some such nonsense, as if that justifies this madness...mildly NSFW/H)...
...and I don’t have much to add to this man’s incredibly (but appropriate IMO) NSFW/H commentary...
This gentleman is spot-fucking-on. π―π―π―π pic.twitter.com/uFXUARQWuN
— Bill Madden (@maddenifico) January 30, 2025
...and I guess all of the Gropenfuhrer’s goofball Cabinet nominees have been confirmed by now, sadly, except “Brain Worms” RFK Jr. and “Tokyo Rose” Gabbard, but that doesn’t mean that it’s too late to push back against them anyway, as The Lincoln Project reminds us (and I'll cut Lincoln a little slack on the "competent mainstream conservatives" bit for now)...
...and I also guess this is another one of those songs I’m in the mood to hear at times like these (echoing the Lincoln Project clip) – I would ask the title of this tune to Trump supporters if I thought they were capable of coming up with an intelligent answer.
Wednesday, January 29, 2025
Wednesday Stuff
Emma V. and Matt Lech of The Majority Report inform us that Daily Wire nematode Michael Knowles wants to celebrate Trump’s mass deportations because he’s a sick, twisted SOB...I have to admit that I’ve never heard of anybody smiling and laughing when discussing the “trail of tears” before...and by the way, about that, who were the emigres? WE WERE! THE NATIVE AMERICANS WERE ALREADY HERE!!! (and yes, there I go with the ”all caps” again I know)...interesting, but sad, history, mentioning also the “Palmer raids,” “Operation Wetback” and Japanese internment during World War II (very mildly NSFW/H)...
Update 1/30/25: Uh huh.
...and changing the mood a bit here, Seth Meyers brings us up to speed on the Gropenfuhrer and his little hissy fit with Denmark/Colombia and purging the government watchdogs...and gosh, I never knew that trees were “wet” (#facepalm)...
....and as far as some of #47’s idiotic ramblings about the California wildfires are concerned, “people who actually live in trees” could not be reached for comment. #sadattemptathumoriknow
Here is the Meyers clip...
...and someone named Allan Piper brings us a list of Trump’s broken “day one” promises (hmmm...wonder if our utterly bought-and-paid-for courtier media would try putting together a report like this? And yes, I think I already know the answer)...I know it’s hard to wade through all of the nonsense from this numbskull (referring to #47 of course), but I honestly don’t think he has the authority to ban “sanctuary cities,” though that won’t stop him from trying of course...
Time for a Mad King Don broken promise summary and we’re only 3 days in. pic.twitter.com/zWh6xZlYrq
— ππ―π²π±π₯ πππ±π±π’π―π° (@politicsusa46) January 22, 2025
...and echoing the Meyers clip a bit, Brian Tyler Cohen tells us about Trump getting put in his place by a Danish politician...I didn’t know that Lisa Murkowski co-authored the statement about Greenland, but it makes sense; I’ve had lots of disagreements with Murkowski, but she comes from a family of political fighters and she’s nobody’s fool, unlike #47...and yeah, all of Cantaloupe Capone’s chaos is a distraction for the benefit mainly of our lapdog corporate media and his lemming followers while he rewards himself and the “pay no price, bear no burden” bunch...
Oh, and by the way, this may be a good time for a public service announcement.
I vaguely recall hearing about an alleged opposition political party in this country that has a storied history of standing up for the majority of people by providing relative income and health security in old age, support of human rights, investments in 21st-century technology, ensuring women’s right to bodily autonomy, advocating for common sense gun laws, paying some degree of attention to the climate crisis, trying to enact a measure of student loan relief...you know, stuff like that. I think the first letter of that party is a “D,” I believe. I think it’s necessary to remind people of the existence of this party because they sure have been freaking quiet lately (with the commendable exceptions of Rashida Tlaib and Jasmine Crockett). Gee, it sure would be nice if they would say or try to do something to push back against all of this insanity, wouldn’t it (here)?
(OK, to be fair, this is progress, but I have to admit that I don’t know what’s worse: Fetterman siding with the Repugs against the ICC to burnish the PA senator’s “everything Israel does is right” bona fides, or the fact that Manchinema may actually have been right after all to preserve the filibuster.)
Update 2/6/25: And yeah, I think this says it (and that is an absolutely STAGGERING disapproval number from Hispanics).
...and well, at least SOMEBODY ELSE is showing a spine (and in our corporate media no less), and as luck would have it, he’s likely going to be leaving us for at least a little while, and that’s Jim Acosta of CNN, who decided that enough was enough (you can also include Professor Krugman, and I realize I didn’t mention anything about him washing his hands, you might say, of “the old gray lady”)...as we learn from here, Acosta was basically assigned to the graveyard shift for his anti-Trump advocacy, and in response, he walked (Ben Meiselas of the Meidas Touch Network tells us about it)...
...and I’ve kind of punted on this clip over the last few days from VoteVets, reminding a certain orange *preznit to do right by the Afghan interpreters who helped our troops during the war and who, as a result, risked their lives and continue to face reprisal in their war-torn country...
...and Monday marked Holocaust Remembrance Day, the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz by the Allies during World War II...sorry I neglected to mention that earlier (here)...an elderly lady recalls the horrors of the Nazis from her experience...she also discusses details getting published in the media based on eyewitness accounts of escaping survivors near the end of that war...I don’t really have anything to add except to take note of this tragic lesson of history (more here)...
...and yesterday 1/28 marked the 40th anniversary of the recording of “We Are The World,” which raised about $80 million for African famine relief...maybe it was all a little “self congratulatory” I’ll admit, but I think we should take to heart the overall positive accomplishment of the whole thing (as opposed to now I suppose, where online trolls would be tempted to utterly denigrate such an effort if it took place today...I’d love to be wrong about that).
Tuesday, January 28, 2025
Tuesday Stuff
John Iadarola and Yasmin Khan of The Damage Report tell us about Bo-Bo Boebert defending pardons for the 1/6 insurrectionists and offering them tours because of course (I think they proved already that they know where the building entrances are, seeing as how they tried to utterly destroy them...and rest assured that, even though those life forms in Colorado sent her back to Congress, that doesn’t mean I’ll stop referring to Boebert's past misdeeds)...and boy, is John’s question at the end spot-on (and I thought Yasmin Khan provided some pretty clear-eyed commentary also, especially about cops having “qualified immunity”...if she and her fiancΓ©e are still trying to get out of Texas, I wish them good luck)...
...and if I say something about that vaping, groping harpie from Colorado, then I guess I’m almost legally obligated to include something about Marjorie Trailer Trash Greene...Richard Ojeda informs us that Dem congresswoman Rashida Tlaib went after that biological mistake from the peach state, and unsurprisingly, the issue was immigrants (and yep, I had a feeling this was over that horrible Laken Riley bill that Bri-Fi and WAY TOO MANY GODDAMN CHICKEN DEMS supported, and I was right...I got into that here)...”it’s not about justice, it’s about power” indeed, along with pointing out that Our Lord didn’t preach “blessed are the snitches” as Ojeda rightly says...and by the way, does it even do any good any more to note that Bronzer Beelzebub and his pals killed the Lankford/Murphy bill in the Senate that gave the “R” team everything they wanted on this issue? (Ojeda has had a lot of good commentaries, but this may be his best IMO)...
...and Ojeda talks about creeping authoritarianism (actually, at this point, it may be at a full gallop, tragically), and Thom Hartmann does here also, informing us that “seize the media first” is pretty much right out of the authoritarian playbook...didn’t know that half the country gets their news from social media, but I guess I shouldn’t be surprised (explains even more how badly the Dems fell down on that in the last election)...and yep, I also think we need a new phrase to go after these one percent bastards; I mean, we need a lot more than that, but that’s a start anyway (and I think calling them “the morbidly rich” works also)...have to admit that I didn’t know about the “two Santa Claus” theory from The Sainted Ronnie R...
...and in keeping with the dictatorial theme of Dear Orange Leader, Jesse Dollemore brings us the tale of Trumpist lickspittles basically interrogating applicants for administration jobs about when their supposed “MAGA revelation” took place...yep, anybody paying attention to this stuff surely knows at this point what Jesse is emphasizing; namely, that #47 has always wanted nothing but to be a dictator and to make sure those catering to him align with his interests and definitely not what is best for the country...
...and I guess we should take whatever humor we can get when we can get it; Ronny Chieng of The Daily Show lets us know about Our Ochre Abomination trying to end birthright citizenship and getting slapped down by that “bleeding heart” Reaganite judge...
...and as we rearrange the deck chairs while in the path of the proverbial iceberg, I thought it would be worthwhile to enjoy a newer tune while we still can (very slightly NSFW/H for a second).
Monday, January 27, 2025
Monday Stuff
Brian Tyler Cohen and election lawyer Marc Elias talk about Our Ochre Abomination firing 17 inspectors general (or more, tragically), and as Elias points out, what Trump did is illegal of course for reasons Elias notes, though I’m sure Cantaloupe Capone will appeal this to the SCOTUS, who will just say “no prob” and that will be it – love to be wrong...didn’t think about a connection to Pete Hegseth, but sadly, that makes sense (as well as the utter cowardice of the “party of Lincoln” in response)...oh, and on the subject of cowardice, yep, our legacy media is culpable as Cohen says, but more food for thought on that (namely, the near-total absence of protest from the “D” team) is here...and yes, I get Elias’s point that the Dems don’t have power, but that doesn’t mean they have to be silent either...they lose votes not because people actually like Republicans, but because they don’t have a clue about what Dems stand for BECAUSE THEY’RE MISSING IN ACTION AT TIMES LIKE THESE!...
...and Sam and Emma of The Majority Report discuss a recent column by someone named Hamilton Nolan who employes the term “gangster style fascism,” which I believe is completely apt unfortunately; yeah, Dems will get pilloried in attack ads in response when it comes time to run for re-election, BUT THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN ANYWAY REGARDLESS OF WHAT YOU DO!!!...I’m presenting the clip of Bishop Budde’s wonderful words again, and it’s important indeed to note the reaction of the couch f*cker and his wife (and I think I mentioned the idiocy with that asshat Mike Collins before also)...the real “chef’s kiss” as far as yours truly is concerned was that typically juvenile post on Truth Septic...and boy, did I get flashbacks to growing up R.C. myself when I heard the phrase “we’ll talk about it in the car on the way home”...
...and Chris Hayes discusses Bronzer Beelzebub going to CA to meet Gavin Newsom over the LA wildfires...#47 wants to kill FEMA of course, which is right out of Project 2025 (Hayes speaks with Dem U.S. House Rep Robert Garcia, who echoes the fact that Project 2025 is indeed here)...and also, by the way, #47 made noises about trying to withhold aid from California if that state didn’t put voter ID in place – hmmm, trying to withhold aid to seek political favors...why does that ring a bell? Oh yeah...it’s because THAT’S WHAT HE TRIED TO DO WITH ZELENSKYY IN UKRAINE! WHICH WAS THE REASON FOR THE FIRST DAMN IMPEACHMENT!!! (and sorry about going crazy with the all caps, but I think it's warranted)...
...and on the one hand, I’m sorry for this lady, but on the other hand, WERE YOU F*CKING ASLEEP WHEN PEOPLE LIKE YOURS TRULY WERE WARNING ABOUT WHAT A THREAT THIS GUY WAS???!! (sorry – there I go with the “all caps” again)...
“Us Latinos voted for Trump and thought he would keep his word. Now we’re afraid to go to work” pic.twitter.com/n3enS0IhgN
— chris evans (@notcapnamerica) January 25, 2025
...and a response to the above clip is here...
IMPORTANT INFORMATION.
— ππ―π²π±π₯ πππ±π±π’π―π° (@politicsusa46) January 25, 2025
If you know an undocumented immigrant who is currently living in fear, please be sure to pass on this important information. pic.twitter.com/iQ76GXMmMW
...and this song has been on my mind recently, probably for reasons that are painfully obvious.
Friday, January 24, 2025
Friday Stuff
Kyle Kulinski tells us about Our Treasonous Orange Pestilence having a good chuckle when he’s asked about scamming his sheep-like followers over some inaugural “meme coin”...and yeah, our institutions of power, you might say (though now they’re pretty powerless IMO) continue to do their best to normalize this grift (NSFW/H)...
...and Mike Figueredo of The Humanist Report brings us the tale of Flori-DUUH! and CA farmer Tony DiMare, who is worried NOW about losing immigrants to pick his crops (where the $#@! were you last year when it mattered, ace?)...and boy, is Krystal Ball ever right about AI being MUCH MORE of a threat to your job than any immigrant could ever be (and more fool the idiots who fell for Bronzer Beelzebub’s con on that)...like many of you I’m sure, I’ve witnessed some utter horror stories on Linkedin about people applying for hundreds of jobs but getting turned down because of how an AI program is used to disqualify them...the “brain drain” this country is going to experience is going to be incalculable and beyond devastating to our economy and way of life...also didn’t know about #47 shutting down the CBP1 app to help those trying to emigrate here legally, but should we really be surprised at this point? Additionally, good job by Figueredo to tie this back to the awful Laken Riley bill, supported by 10 U.S. Senate alleged Democrats (and no disrespect to Figueredo, but it’s truly naΓ―ve of him to expect Chuck Schumer to have a spine on this issue or anything else); terrific analysis of this garbage bill by Mark Joseph Stern in particular (also NSFW/H)...
...and I think Dem U.S. Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut has been pretty steadfast in warning us about Cantaloupe Capone, and I reluctantly have to admit in fairness that Nicolle Wallace has been that way also...
We are witnessing the unraveling of American democracy by a morally bankrupt authoritarian who believes he is above the law. π³π pic.twitter.com/vAvwNsOqc2
— Bill Madden (@maddenifico) January 23, 2025
...and Brittany Page, sitting in for David Pakman, lets us know here that those pardoned by the Gropenfuhrer for the 1/6 insurrection are apparently planning to act like #47’s personal mob, at least hinting at more violence (including Enrique Tarrio of the Proud Boys, and the “QAnon Shaman” Jacob Chansley, who now wants to “buy some mother f***ing guns”), which was predicted by – oh, I don’t know – exactly EVERYONE IN THIS COUNTRY WHO WAS PAYING ATTENTION TO THIS STUFF!!!...
...and Jesse Dollemore lets us know that that allegedly “godly” man “MAGA Mike” Johnson has what you could charitably call a dismissive attitude towards the pardons/sentence commutations handed down to the 1/6 treasonous insurrectionists by Our Ochre Abomination (and yeah, the lying comes as easily as breathing to life forms like Johnson)...
...and David Doel brings us a clip of AOC and Jon Stewart discussing our current predicament (and why this time is different) and what to do about it...yeah, I’m so glad Mango Mussoliini is trying so hard to address the cost of eggs and gas while he gives $500 billion to developing an AI capability...and yes, as sickening as it is, the whole “cultural acceptance” angle now is truly gut-churning (and by the way, I don’t think it’s over the top to say that Snoop Dogg is officially dead to me now)...and GREAT point from Stewart about us needing to bend the proverbial arc of the moral universe that is SUPPOSED to bend towards justice, along with pointing out that, indeed, ways emerge and moments emerge...I always thought that Dubya was electorally invincible and so was his party, but then along came Katrina...and boy, is Doel ever right to point out that right now is the time for collective action (briefly NSFW/H as well)...
...and speaking of eggs, here's an incredibly NSFW/H commentary on the subject...
WARNING ⚠️ Expletives abound, but ItsLuke, caught my attention. So deep breath and here we go.
— ππ―π²π±π₯ πππ±π±π’π―π° (@politicsusa46) January 23, 2025
I can see he’s going to be a regular feature at Truth Matters π€£π€£ pic.twitter.com/DhwZfcQutK
...and RIP Garth Hudson, the last surviving member of The Band.
Thursday, January 23, 2025
Thursday Stuff
Rachel Maddow notifies us pretty much of the start of #47 and “Authoritarianism 101” (pardoning the miscreants responsible for 1/6/21)... it is indeed incredibly unsettling to see how this parallels the behavior of other strongmen around the world as Maddow says...but it’s not like we weren’t freaking warned, people! Why the f*ck do you think people like yours truly were yelling about this stuff last year??!! And boy, is Maddow ever right at the end...and gee, it looks like this got the attention of “The Thin (Skinned) Blue Line,” which, to me, prompts the question...WHAT THE HELL DID YOU EXPECT WHEN YOU ENDORSED HIM??!! WERE YOU ASLEEP WHEN #47 CAMPAIGNED ON RELEASING THESE CRIMINALS??!! (here)
...and Sam of The Majority Report lets us know about the Nazi salute from King Elon I to #47's inauguration crowd; I agree with Sam that this was Musk’s attempt at trolling people, though of course it rightly earned Musk even more condemnation than he’s received already...nice job by Sam to recall the Gilbert Gottfried story about Kurt Waldheim and the salute...also, Musk must’ve gotten the message about how much of a money pit “X” has turned into, because he’s been posting on it much more over the last couple of weeks than I can ever recall (trying to breathe life back into the entity he’s pretty much destroyed)...
...and speaking of these misfit twins Combover Caligula and Elmo, our *preznit appeared to admit that Musk rigged the election in PA, with #47 running his orange yam mouth about “those vote-counting computers” (hmm...wonder if that affected Casey/McCormick also?)..and listen, I don’t have proof of wrongdoing either, though I wish I did; I would only add that, given that our election infrastructure in this country is so easily hackable, I wouldn’t be surprised by ANYTHING that proved that the counts were played with by bad actors like Musk (Farron Cousins tells us about it)...
...and Lawrence O’Donnell discusses “The Trump Standard” when it comes to White House press briefings (looks like the White House press secretary has gone AWOL already)...and boy, is Lawrence right about the great job Jen Psaki did and also how badly Karine Jean-Pierre was beaten up (and sometime justifiably, I’ll admit, but not much)...
...and Jesse Dollemore tells us that Mike Collins of Georgia (you can guess the political party) wants to deport Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde, who told Trump to be kind to migrants, LGBTQ individuals, etc. at a national prayer service for the stinking inauguration (and #47’s perturbed puss was one thing, but the next time anybody gets the urge to feel sympathy for Melania, just show that pic of her disgust also)...yeah, let’s kick people who have compassion out of our country, just like Republican Jesus would do, right?...utterly vile individuals who we’ll be saddled with for at least the next four years..heckuva job, everyone who voted for this treasonous asshat and also DID NOT ONE DAMN THING TO HELP HARRIS/WALZ...
Update 1: Such a godly man....not! (here).
Update 2: Nail. Hammer. Head.
...and this tune hit #1 on the British pop charts in 1965 (and she’s still with us, hopefully enjoying a comfortable retirement – always respected Petula Clark for this in particular).