Monday Stuff

Um, yep (from here)...

I know, I know it’s tiresome by now, but it bears repeating (“Somewhere between stupid and scary” indeed – and I honestly don’t know how someone can pretend to be surprised by now)…



…and hmmm, secret plan, secret plan – why does that ring a bell (of course, to imagine any equivalency between Trump and Nixon is laughable; the latter was a demonic figure in our politics to be sure, but among other things, he was a self-made man for better or worse, which “The Donald” will never be)…



...and Tara Setmayer lost me in the last minute or so yakking about HRC and the damn Emails again (Who died as a result, and spare me on the "Benghazi Four"? What wars were started? What laws were broken? Bueller??), but otherwise, I thought this was a pretty good exchange about Matt Lauer's utterly wretched performance last week (maybe David Zurawik's finest commentary, and it's shocking that I'm saying that, but credit where it's due)...



...and Cenk and the gang tell us about the latest folk to get scammed by The Big Orange Cheetoh - luckily they didn't appear to lose any $$ (oh, and by the way, I hope HRC pays attention to the second half of this ad, especially the very end…Kyle of Secular Talk said, “go to the left,” which are the truest words I’ve yet heard in this election)…



…and kudos to former Seattle Seahawks player Nate Boyer, interviewed here by Tamron Hall about the national anthem protests over this weekend; as I said, I personally don’t agree with Colin Kaepernick on taking the knee during the anthem, but he does have the right to do what he’s doing, the last I checked (and what else could we expect but idiocy from “Fergus Laing,” and this lunatic also)…



…and yeah, I think this great new song pretty much covers it.

Sunday Stuff

Yeah, I know – don’t politicize this day; well, after 15 years, I think it’s time to do so a little bit (and remind me once again why the NFL decided to have opening day today?)…



…and the renewal of the Zadroga Act was eventually passed, but it never should have come to this (re: what Jon Stewart portrayed in the video)…



…and I offer the following two videos without further comment.

Friday Stuff

(By the way, @chrislhayes conducted a great interview last night with a surrogate of the 2012 presidential campaign of Willard Mitt Romney about how Trump is supposedly not representative of the Repug Party – I don’t totally buy that of course, but it was still a good interview…no shot of finding it at MSNBC’s horrible web site of course.)

On to the videos...Matt Lauer should be forced to watch the following clip in a non-stop loop for an hour (here); I would argue that the very idea of having “Today” show host Lauer host a presidential candidates debate ensured a mediocre-at-best performance; meanwhile, kudos to Shep Smith once again, dragging Fix Noise correspondent Carl Cameron, among others, into the cold light of day…



…and speaking of Lauer, I thought his stupidity was on display also here in what I also thought was a great answer by HRC to a question about Iran’s nukes – good catch by Sam Seder…

…oh, and speaking of which, remember when “Deadeye Dick” Cheney said the Iran nuke deal was “madness” here? Well, K.O. responded better here than anyone else as far as I’m concerned…yes, time once more for “This Day In Doomsy History” from 9/8/15 (pretty much going “around the block” for this one - and by the way, when it comes to Bushco and GITMO, let's not forget this)…



Update 9/11/16: The more things change... (here).

…and kudos to the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe for continuing to fight the Dakota Access pipeline (more here)…



…and let’s see now, I knew about Florida AG Pam Bondi dumping the Trump U investigation after the campaign donation from “Fergus Laing,” and I knew about the little fundraiser he threw for her, but I didn’t know about the lawsuit between Bondi and the Katrina victim whose dog Bondi wouldn’t give up (here) – a “rising conservative star” indeed…



…and happy belated 70th birthday to Dean Daughtry of the Atlanta Rhythm Section.

Thursday Stuff

I wish I could share the faith that Number 44 shows here in our voters and the Democratic process, but I'm still skeptical on that - I would be more of a believer on that if "The Donald" had been properly called out long ago the way he should have been called out; I'm glad President Obama said this of course, though I wish he had done a better job of holding our corporate media to account here, including this toady (Lauer I mean, whose performance last night was apparently a festival of suck, which I guess shouldn't be surprising)...



…and Seth Meyers takes a look at the latest nonsense with “The Donald” and his Pam Bondi payoff (including this – and I’m sorry, but the stuff with HRC pales by comparison; the Repugs have had all this time to make a legitimate case against her, and all they’ve got is a parade of supposition)…



…and yeah, as I said, I think Colin Kaepernick should stand for the anthem, but once again, he definitely has a point (NSFW)…



...and do you want to hear a slow, torchy Thursday ballad? I hope so, because here it comes.

Wednesday Stuff

I think this is exactly what "The Donald" deserves, at a minimum (here)...


Sacrifice - Hillary Clinton by DailyPolitics

...and by the way, this is how a president is supposed to act - kudos to Number 44 for this...



...also, Lawrence O’Donnell speaks here with David Cay Johnston on the Trump University scam going on in Florida (here - and gosh, could Florida AG Pam Bondi feign outrage any better?)…



…and here’s a heck of a post-Labor Day story; kudos to the Indian workforce responsible for this – all the best…



…and I give you a couple of major music milestones – happy 65th (!) birthday to Chrissie Hynde of The Pretenders of course (with a tune that was allegedly a shot at this guy)…



…and Buddy Holly would have been 80 today.

Tuesday Stuff

Yeah, when “Fergus Laing” says that he wants to be Mr. “Unpredictable,” I have a two-word response: Mission Accomplished…



...and hey, idiots of our corporate Beltway courtier media (here) - want to find out about a REAL scandal (here and here)? Watch this clip about how investigations were ongoing into Trump “University” in Texas and Florida before Trump gave donations to Texas AG Ken Paxton and Florida AG Pam Bondi – problem solved!...



...and I would say that it's time to pass the popcorn (too funny - NSFW)...



Update 9/13/16: And for the benefit of anyone who actually cares, Levin eventually caved (here).

...and gee, maybe we ought to rethink this whole fracking thing, huh? (here)...



…and this is the most benign treatment from our media, that, as far as I’m concerned, Phyllis Schlafly deserves (she actually deserves far worse than this – typically solid reporting by Rachel Maddow...we hear about Schlafly at about 8:00)…



...and Freddie Mercury would have turned 70 yesterday.

Monday Stuff

Ed Schultz speaks with Leo Gerard, head of the Steelworkers Union, about the threat of the so-called “Right to Work” movement, which is really a euphemism for “right not to get paid a livable wage”…



…and sticking with Ed, he speaks with John Nichols of The Nation about the labor movement overall in this country…



…and John Oliver brings us Labor Day observations as only he can (hey History Channel, thanks for being jerks and yanking the video that was here previously…yeah, I make SO MUCH MONEY doing this, don’t I?)…



…and this is one of my favorite songs about working – not very upbeat I know, but well done by JT.

Saturday Stuff

When it comes to The Big Orange Cheetoh and the “alt-right” (still hate that phase because it’s way too tame), if it walks like a goose-stepping duck, talks like a goose-stepping duck, and quacks like a goose-stepping duck, what you’ve got is a goose-stepping duck (here, and his remark about pretending to respect women, gays and minorities is typically laughable)…



…and do you want to know why I think our corporate media is, collectively, a gaggle of compromised idiots? As far as I’m concerned, this entire CNN clip is about nothing…ZOMG HILLZ IS SOOOO UNTRUSTWORTHY! SHE ACTUALLY GAVE “ACCESS” TO SPECIAL INTERESTS!!! HOW COULD SHE GOVERN!!!! And Matt Bai is the biggest twit on that panel (by the way, some actual context on the supposedly oh-so-godawful Clinton Foundation is here)…



Update 9/6/16: Uh, yep.

Update 9/7/16: ZOMG!! READ THIS "SCANDALOUS" HILLARY CLINTON EMAIL ALREADY!! READ IT!!! (smirk)

…and I need to catch up on my tunes, so here’s a recent one that I liked…



…and RIP Fred Hellerman, the last surviving member of The Weavers, who just left us.

Friday Stuff

For the benefit of anyone who actually cares, here are a few “hot takes” from yours truly:

On the one hand, I definitely applaud the stand taken by San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick on the issue of police violence against African Americans (including the socks, which I’m sure the oh-so-august-in-their-imaginations NFL will find a way to ban - here). To me, though, when the national anthem is played, you stand your ass up. If you don’t, you’re also partly disrespecting our military and their sacrifice (and hey, if you want to raise your fist like these guys, have at it). That's my story and I'm sticking to it (and I think it's hilarious that controversy surrounds a Chip Kelly-coached football team once more).

Update 9/3/16: OK, now the Santa Clara, CA cops just lost me with this – awww, did that mean football player hurt your widdle fee fees with his cartoon socks? Stop your whining and do your damn jobs!

Also, I for one like tacos (here - ha and ha).

I give you the latest antics from Governor Bully (here)…

Trenton, NJ – Governor Chris Christie demanded today that the Senate “do its job” and act on seven judicial vacancies that are jeopardizing the efficient delivery of justice to citizens in Mercer County, where the reassignment of a Superior Court judge this week underscored the emergent need for a full complement of judges in the vicinage.

In May, Governor Christie nominated seven qualified candidates, both Democrats and Republicans, to fill the Mercer County vacancies, but the Democrat-controlled Senate has failed to schedule them for a review and confirmation.

As noted here, Judge Merrick Garland now holds the record for the longest wait for a Senate confirmation hearing (oh, and both chambers of Congress are run by Repugs, in case we had somehow forgotten.)

Oh, and by the way, you big, fat oaf, I could care less about your budget problems, but because you can’t manage numbers correctly, now you’ve apparently ended a 39-year reciprocal tax agreement between your state and the commonwealth of PA, as noted here (and yes, I work in NJ, so this matters to me personally...Update: Steve Santarsiero posted on his Facebook page that he'll meet with PA Guv Tom Wolf to see what we can do to prevent this from taking effect, if anything).

For anybody out there reading who is as mad as I am over this, the best response is to click here and support Steve for the U.S. House, who fought tooth and nail to try and prevent this.

Now back to the videos – RIP Philly guy Jon Polito, who, in addition to appearing in movies by the Coen Brothers and the cultish TV series “Crime Story” (which definitely was a fave for your humble narrator back in the day), also turned in a great supporting performance in “The Freshman,” starring Matthew Broderick and Marlon Brando, which, to me, was a genuinely clever and funny movie (what follows is a clip with Polito in a typical darkly funny role)…



..and as Atrios would say, we do so love our children (more here and here)…



...and this tells us about the dangers of lead poisoning and a link to crime (uh, yep)...



...and I honestly hope Shep Smith doesn't get any grief from his odious employer for telling the truth like this, going off-script once again - kudos once more (here)...



…and speaking of voting, if there’s any truth to this, then heads should roll among the corporatist frauds at the Democratic National Committee (NSFW)…



…and oh, aren’t our dear good “friends” the Saudis helping us ever so much on the War on Terra! Terra! Terra!, which is still being fought of course by killing many innocent civilians and radicalizing their families and friends better than al Qaeda or ISIS ever could (and kudos to Dem U.S. House Rep Ted Lieu for this)…



…and wow, when Bushie Jim (The Dow Will Hit 36,000!!) Glassman comes out for HRC, then that’s kind of a “well, spank my butt and call me Charlie” moment – I remember this guy facing off with The Eternal George Carlin on “Real Time” once…tried some verbal sleight of hand, but as you might expect, Carlin was having none of it…



…and as we bid farewell to summer (sniff), what better way to do it with a little “Friday with Frank.”

Thursday Stuff

I thought this was a fascinating history lesson from Rachel Maddow about what has led to anti-immigrant hysteria in this country dating back almost a couple of hundred years (and probably before then, to be honest – sorry for inflicting so much of The Big Orange Cheetoh on you in this clip, but I think it’s necessary)…



…and I think the prior clip definitely puts this in the proper perspective…



…and I’ve been meaning to get to this report for a little while now on education in Finland versus this country, so here it is…



…and I’m not totally sure what to make of this story; but here it is anyway – I think the goal of keeping Canada’s heath care public should be foremost, but even though it could turn into the thin edge of the proverbial wedge (I don’t understand how someone would not be able to obtain coverage, but I’m hardly an expert on this topic), maybe a “private option,” if you will, should be allowed in extreme circumstances…thinking…



…and apparently Repug U.S. House Rep Mr.-Puppy-Dog-Eyes-With-The-Shiv dropped into our area last night to try and prop up “Mikey Part 2” (here) – if that isn’t a reason to help Steve in his PA-08 contest, I don’t know what is (here...and yes, background checks weren't enacted for the zillionth time, we know already, blah blah blah)…



…and believe it or not, I still have some summer songs to get to; hopefully this one and a final one tomorrow.

Wednesday Stuff

Normally I wouldn’t give Joe Scar the time of day, but I thought Eugene Robinson made some good points here in response to the typically idiotic claim from the Trump campaign that the Democrats have left African American voters behind...not saying Dems are perfect on this under any stretch of the imagination, but who was responsible for the Civil Rights Act of 1964? The Voting Rights Act of 1965? Fair housing and anti-discrimination laws? The Earned Income Tax Credit (which had bipartisan support when first passed in 1975 and was expanded under both Reagan and Clinton, but has since become anathema to “movement” conservatives)? And by the way, I'm almost not phased by the Trump supporter's depiction of HRC in blackface - almost numb to the despicable behavior from his campaign by now - almost...



(and speaking of "Fergus Laing," I give you this bit of comedy gold from Lewis Black)...

...and staying with The Big Orange Cheetoh, Kyle tells us that a Pew study reports that 75 percent of Trump supporters polled favor common sense gun restrictions including universal background checks (not quite 100 percent with Kyle on the terror watch list, but I think he's pretty close; the last 2 minutes of this should be memorized by every Dem pol and operative anywhere in this country - not as big a fan of Alan Grayson as I used to be, though...NSFW)…



...and I thought this was a neat bit of advocacy…



...and Lee Camp brings us up to date on what Chucky and Davey Koch are up to (NSFW also)...



…and I’m a little late with this installment of “This Day In Doomsy History” from 8/28/11 I know, but this is a reminder that FDR (quite rightly, IMHO) considered it “our plain duty” to support Social Security, something to remember in light of this…



…and I had this tune in mind for the latest exploits of the “Trumpster Fire” (#fail)…here’s how I see it; Nieto of Mexico meets with Trump and somehow gets the upper hand, which, to be honest, I don’t think is likely, and then he looks like a strong leader…however, in the more-likely event that Trump manufactures something that manages to make it look like HE won the day (with Mrs. Greenspan, Joe Scar and the rest of our corporate Beltway courtier media gushing over it), then Nieto can yell that Trump is the “ugly American,” which he is anyway of course…basically a win-win for an unpopular head of a country.

Tuesday Stuff

I thought this was an interesting historical nugget from Rachel Maddow about the last time we went to “Defcon 3” and why that happened in 1973 (and I don’t know anything about HRC’s intelligence briefing, by the way)…



…and the Murdoch Street Journal is going to report this story in such a manner as to totally absolve Apple CEO Tim Cook of course of the scandalously low tax rate his company pays and blame the country of Ireland for allowing it, which I guess is partly justified; as far as I’m concerned, Cook is just another member of the “masters of mankind,” as Adam Smith once called them, who of course see grandiose visions only for themselves at the exclusion of everyone else (and yes, I recently saw this, which was well-done though depressing – not an excuse for inaction, though)…



...also, I give you the following from here (there are people who I respect claiming that "No Corporate Tax" Pat Toomey is somehow a moderate on the issue of guns - these people are utterly wrong...to help, click here - sad that the commercial is as long as the ad, by the way)...



…and The Fab Four played their last live concert in San Francisco, as noted here (not counting “Let It Be” on the roof, of course) 50 years ago yesterday (and the tune that follows is from Revolver, which was released at about the same time).

Monday Stuff

Trying to find a funny film moment with Gene Wilder? You might as well try to find a spec of sand on a beach (“How about a little applause?” indeed – RIP)…



…and gee, it looks like every still-living member of the Council of Economic Advisors (serving, as Rachel Maddow points out here, every president back to Nixon), has a simple message for “The Donald” – YOU’RE FIRED (sorry, too easy)…



…and I thought this was a particularly good “Rewrite” segment from Lawrence O’Donnell on the Protests at Standing Rock (about another goddamn oil pipeline in North Dakota)…



…and boy, do I hate it when a Democrat gives the party a bad name (here), allowing the bottom-feeders to pile on as well (here - the song title applies on a couple of levels of course).

Friday Stuff

Scary? Hell yeah. An excuse not to participate in this election or (certainly) not to vote for HRC? NO FREAKING WAY…



…and not that I expect a numbskull like Billo The Clown to get this, but if he knew anything whatsoever about Elvis Presley, he would know that Presley was extremely respectful of African Americans and their musical heritage, so you can’t assume that he automatically would’ve opposed BLM (wasting too much energy trying to bring logic to Bill Orally’s idiocy, I’ll admit)…



…and John Oliver gave Paul LePage the treatment he deserved here, in light of this (NSFW)…



…and Kyle tells us that Baby Trump blames stagnant wages on Syrian refugees…seriously? (NSFW once more)...



…and as long as Kyle K. mentioned “Fergus Laing” a bit in that prior segment, I should also include this from Chris Hayes about Julia Ioffe, a target of “alt-right,” which, to me, is waay too polite of a term to describe what these vermin truly are…

…and yet another key member of the legendary 2008 Phillies world championship roster recently departed (here), perhaps the most underrated player of the whole team…“Chooch” was a gem, though I would put him slightly behind Bob Boone and slightly ahead of Darren Daulton among all-time catching greats in Phils’ history…here is a tune in his honor (Foo Fighters twice in one week, for what it's worth).

Thursday Stuff

Don't hold back, Charles - tell us what you REALLY think...



...and “what the hell do you have to lose?” (here) – an awful lot, as it turns out (here - and yes, I think it says a lot that his supporters believe this crap in such large numbers)…



…and yeah, boy, the Clintons sure gave Mylan Pharmaceuticals unprecedented “access” for its donation to the Clinton Foundation, didn’t they? Maybe that’s why HRC is quite rightly blasting them over their price gouging on the EpiPen (and when you got “pharma bro” defending you, you’ve got a problem)…



…and RIP Rudy Van Gelder, jazz engineer extraordinaire – here is one of his signature masterpieces.

Wednesday Stuff

Wow, absolutely awesome stuff here from Paul Begala on the alleged “Clinton News Network” (what a joke) here (and speaking of jokes, let’s find a dictionary to look up the meaning of the phrase “conflict of interest”)…



...and once more, Nail. Hammer. Head. (here)...



…and Kyle K. tells us that the Feds are going to phase out private prisons, which never should have been a "thing" in the first place (NSFW)…



…and yesterday marked the 50th anniversary of the first picture of Earth from the moon taken by Lunar Orbiter 1 (the crescent of our planet was photographed when the spacecraft was on its sixteenth orbit and about to pass behind the moon, which I’ll admit is a barely plausible excuse to put up this cool video).

Tuesday Stuff

"What I say is what I say" - it sure is (here)...



...and David Pakman reports that African American voters end up waiting twice as long in lines to vote as whites (no duuh! - important stuff though)...



...and Rev. Al tells us here that Flint isn’t the only city in this country dealing with lead contamination (speaking with Indiana State Senator Lonnie Randolph…and based on this, there are issues in lots of other cities including Philly - ugh)…



…and kudos to Krist Novoselic of The Foo Fighters for this.

Monday Stuff

“Why” indeed (here)…



…and oh yes, if it’s a day of the week with a “y” in it (especially if it's summer), then it’s time for some wingnut somewhere to pillory Martha’s Vineyard, a place they’ll never visit and never truly understand either – more to the point, though, Joy Reid (who has been kicking butt and taking names lately) conducts what I thought was a great interview with Howard Dean about the “Trumpster Fire” appearance is flood-ravaged Louisiana recently…



…and here is more first-class reporting from Rachel Maddow (good to see her return to form) on the truly batshit wingnuttery that is the actual, honest-to-goodness basis for the political campaign of “Fergus Laing,” in particular the stuff involving longtime anti-immigrant nutjob John Tanton…



…and this trivializes all of the political crap, I know (trivial as it is to begin with) – all the best to Gord Downie of The Tragically Hip including all prayers and good wishes.

Friday Stuff

Happy 70th Birthday, Bubba…



…and a happy belated 80th to movie icon and environmentalist extraordinaire Robert Redford…



...and not only is this incredibly NSFW clip from John Oliver laugh-out-loud funny, but it also makes fun of true cretins who desperately need to be made fun of, namely the API (I couldn’t stand that coffee shop ad, just to let you know)…



…and I give Joy Reid credit for holding this Trump campaign nematode to account here, even though this person did manage to sneak in a few uncontested BS right-wing talking points, particularly about Number 44 and Iran (here) – Steve Cortes can try doing all the verbal back flips that he wants, but what he’s really saying is that “Fergus Laing” is running what I believe is the highest-profile right-wing nationalist presidential campaign this country has ever seen…



…and it looks like the UK, to its credit, is leaving this country behind when it comes to green jobs, as Thom Hartmann explains…



…and I’m not commenting on the merits of trying to blow ISIS to smithereens, as they say, but I would only point out that, when we do stuff like that, there are often unintended consequences…wouldn’t it have been nice if our media had actually tried to cover that, to say nothing of a sane opposition major political party articulating reasonable concerns?...



…and happy World Humanitarian Day (here)…



…and I’ve had this book on my night stand for a little while now – hopefully I’ll start it before the year ends.

Thursday Stuff

I think we need to recall the clip from here, particularly since this Steve Bannon person from the Dead Breitbart site is in charge now of the "Donald Drumpf" campaign (I don’t recall who the guy was with Jimmy Dore, but it was nice to see a Dem who actually served give it back to this deceased coward, which Breitbart ultimately was as far as I’m concerned – NSFW)…



…and I thought this was an interesting segment on what started the tradition of presidential candidates receiving intelligence briefings (didn’t see the follow-up segment) – I would tell Trump just about nothing, but if I did say anything, I’d make sure it was bogus so, when he tweets it (and you KNOW he will), it won’t do any damage (maybe it should go kinda like this)…



…and by the way, just because Bernie Sanders isn’t the Democratic Party standard bearer doesn’t mean he still doesn’t have a role to play, and this tells us how he plans to re-introduce the public option in response to the latest bullshit from AETNA (NSFW also - more here)…

…and go grab a fistful of valium and lay down somewhere, Rudy, for God’s sake (and get a load of this as an excuse)…



…and reliable sources tell me that U.S. House Rep Mr.-Puppy-Dog-Eyes-With-The-Shiv is coming to PA-08 in an effort to prop up “Mikey Part 2” this fall; I think the best we can do in response is click here to help Steve however we can (and yes, I need to point out for the eleventy bazillionith time that background checks weren't enacted even though they should have been, and Steve worked like hell on that)…



…and I’m winding down with the summer tunes – can’t forget this also (and James gets a little rude, so please don't be shocked).

Wednesday Stuff

(I also posted here.)

Food for thought...the next time you hear people bitch about how awful Philly sports fans are (they booed Santa Claus!!! And yeah, we’ve had our moments – so what?), show them this clip – Chase Utley, now of the Dodgers (don’t get me started on “the slide”), returned to Citizens Bank Park last night, hit two home runs against the Phils (the second a grand slam – a “four bagger” was also Utley’s first major league hit against CO in ’03, by the way)…and he got not one but two “curtain calls” from the fans in response – you win in this town and they’ll love you forever…



…and returning to stuff more in my line, it looks like "The Donald" did it again on race in a recent speech in Milwaukee, and fortunately, Van Jones stood up and responded here (and, for the record, I should point out that I will never give a crap about anything Ana Navarro has to say ever again)...



...and Rev. Al talks to Georgetown Law Center Professor (and former Federal prosecutor) Paul Butler about President Obama’s efforts to help combat policing abuses of African Americans in this country (and yes, I think that’s an appropriate description of what’s going on)…



…and I seriously hope that this clip isn’t the reason why Larry Wilmore was cancelled (here) – would be pretty damn pathetic if that were true…



…and I honestly think that more people than we realize go into politics to try and change things for the better (of course, how that turns out is often another story), and I think, if nothing else, this gives us a glimpse of the path that the Democratic Party’s nominee for president has taken to get to this point (and yeah, I pretty much believe all of this – if somehow any of this ends up proven wrong, I’ll make note of that)…



…and kudos to Natalie Maines for reminding us here of the double standard of those cheering for “Fergus Laing,” many of whom once agreed with the “shut up and sing” sentiment noted in this song.

Tuesday Stuff

By the way, Rachel, PA is a “commonwealth” (once again, I hark back to the “Big Dog” intervening in the 2012 Democratic primary for AG on behalf of Kane and against Patrick Murphy for the latter’s decision to support Obama for president; not going to hold this against Hillary now, though, because, IMHO, Bill Maher – can I drop MORE names? – is right when he says that you can’t run on “boutique” issues in an Armageddon election)…



…and speak of the devil, the Big Orange Cheetoh can answer the questions on his tax returns all right - will he (here)? We'll see (and it’s pretty sad when Former Gov. “Hike The Appalachian Trail” looks like a paragon of virtue here - and talk about sordid birds of a feather here)...



...and with the prior clip in mind, Cenk gets into all of the Ukraine/Paul Manafort stuff as reported by “the old gray lady”…



Update 8/19/16: If you can’t take the heat, might as well get out of Trump’s kitchen, comrade (here).

…and I know I touched on this last week when I said something about MSNBC’s coverage, but I’m glad Brian Stelter of CNN decided to take a bit harder of a look at the latest nonsense from Sean Inanity and his odious fellow travelers about alleged health issues plaguing HRC here (and I think this is one hell of a response)…



…and good job by Planned Parenthood here, giving “No Corporate Tax” Pat Toomey exactly what he deserves (more here, and to help Katie McGinty, click here)…



…and here’s a tune that, sadly, is topical once more (more here - to help if you can, please click here).



Update 8/17/16: I don't know the first thing about her music, but kudos anyway for this.

Monday Stuff

This is the crap you get when you vote for Repugs, my fellow prisoners – and in case you hadn’t guessed yet, I should point out that Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner is a thoroughly unconscionable liar (here)…



...and Cenk helps lift the veil and explain more seedy goings-on at Fix Noise (here)...



…and kudos to Jimmy Dore for unearthing this foul nugget from Sen. Mr. Elaine Chao; I have a little more faith in HRC than Jimmy does, but we’ll see of course…



…and happy belated 75th birthday to David Crosby; I know there are dustups going on right now with Nash and Young but I’m staying out of that – just appreciating his music, that’s all.

Friday Stuff

I couldn’t let the week come to a close without noting the passage of Captain Noah, a beloved kids' show host in these parts from too long ago of a time – he was one of a group that included Pixanne, Gene London, Sally Starr, Chief Halftown, and a bunch of others; there was once a time when they held court on weekday and Saturday mornings, and they basically were surrogate parents to an entire generation of baby boomers, and when I say surrogate parents, I mean that as a compliment…can’t put a number on how much all of that stuff means before someone else quite correctly pointed out that “it takes a village”…RIP…



…and returning to the present day, Rev. Al recently spoke with Cheryl Lankford, a Gold Star widow whose husband was killed in Iraq and who is currently suing “The Donald” (others have joined her suit) in response to the Repug presidential candidate’s “Trump University” scam…



...and yeah, here we go with The Big Orange Cheetoh again, but I can’t resist the opportunity to feature both David Cay Johnston and Charlie Pierce at the same time, all including Lawrence O'Donnell making good points as usual…

...and such classy supporters, of course...

...and when it comes to "Fergus Laing," I give you another lesson in “the art of the deal” – give me a break (didn’t see the follow-up clip)…



…and maybe this is how true change starts to happen (and don’t laugh when I tell you that the Dems actually tried to clean up the student loan mess – well, somewhat – at least when it comes to subsidized student loans, as noted here)…



…and this may be the most important 6:24 you’ve seen and/or heard in a long time, and it comes to us courtesy of Thom Hartmann, which really isn’t surprising (and to illustrate his point, I should note that Chris Hayes had a really good interview last night with an economist about what Hillary Clinton is proposing - you think there's a snowball's chance that that video can be found on MSNBC's still-utterly-wretched web site? No way in hell...but ample time was devoted on "All In" tonight to the supposedly burning issue of whether or not Hillary Clinton is trying to hide a stroke, purported by Sean Hannity and Alex Jones of course; for the latter, reality itself is a "false flag")...



…and this is just a reminder to folk in PA-08 that Steve still needs our help (and yes, for the umpteenth time, background checks on private gun sales weren’t enacted, but not because Steve didn’t fight like hell for them) – to do what you can, click here (and I thought this was interesting)..



…and happy belated 62nd (!) birthday to Joe Jackson.

Thursday Stuff

Yep, all it takes is one all right (I think Cenk from yesterday is absolutely right; the Big Orange Cheetoh is pretty much desperate at this point and looking for an escape hatch, for the right price of course)…



…and I gotta tell ya’ that I saw this item about Joe Scar telling Mika not to bother her pretty little head, you wimpy little Democrat you, while daddy here tells her all about how the Repug Party will be “serious,” and what put me off wasn’t even his attempt at “mansplaining” (bad as that was), but the notion that, somehow, the “party of Lincoln” belongs to Scarborough, a charter member of our thoroughly-bought-and-paid-for Beltway corporate media; the sense of self-entitlement from “Morning Jo(ke)” on display here is almost nauseating.

I hate to break the news to Scarborough, but this is truly the face (ahem…) of Not Your Father’s Republican Party (h/t Wonkette).

And I think this pic is a perfect complement to Kyle’s related NSFW commentary here (the ACORN stuff is truly hilarious)…

…and in case “Governor Bully” thinks the Bridge stuff is going to go away – heh heh (here - NSFW)…



…and I hope you’re in the mood to rock out in the middle of a thunderstorm (at least around here for the moment).

Wednesday Stuff

Kudos to Cenk for bringing the outrage against the “Trumpster fire,” and kudos for focusing on his single-digit-IQ’d followers also ("red shirt guy" would decry what Trump said later)…



…and I would say that the rules of logic and common sense never have applied to the “Donald Drumpf” campaign, and I would also say that this proves it (Rachel was quite rightly laughing a few days ago, but I don't think anyone is laughing now)…



…and I know I recently featured a “Special Comment” from Keith Olbermann last week as part of “This Day In Doomsy History,” but here is another one from 8/10/09 featuring Caribou Barbie and her “death panel” lie about health care reform, which was working its way through Congress at that time of course; another high-profile Repug inflicting stupidity on our discourse, not unlike “Fergus Laing” and his recent language (some reality on the Affordable Care Law is here)…

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…and here’s something a little upbeat to try and shake off the recent unpleasantness in the news.

More Tuesday Stuff

OK, now this lunatic needs to be put in a straight jacket and locked in a rubber room (and take the key and flush it down the toilet – here and here)…



…because, apparently, something like this is what he has in mind if Hillary Clinton wins in November…



…and until today, I would say that this was the lowest of the low of the Trump campaign…



...and at a certain point, all I can do is just ask this question.

Tuesday Stuff

I agree with Seth Meyers in that everybody should stand back from the “Trumpster fire,” though I'd say Hillary thus far is doing a good job of using this stuff to keep The Big Orange Cheetoh off-balance (here) - and Meyers is definitely right about people being more interested in the sideshow than the show…I would take it a bit further and tell people to wake the #$@! up, but if he did, I’m sure his audience would disappear)...



...and by the way, the Repug presidential hopeful is getting trounced when it comes to the millennial vote (I'm more concerned about the Stein/Johnson numbers, actually - I think expecting a high-profile Repug to endorse Gary Johnson is "pie in the sky" at this point, but stranger things have happened)..



...also, I'm not sure that I agree with Kyle here that prostitution should be legal, but I think that, otherwise, he makes some good points in this commentary on China's typical repression of dissent…



…and whaddaya say we enjoy the last few weeks of the season we have left, OK?

Monday Stuff

This is genius stuff by John Oliver on newspapers (and funny too, by the way - NSFW), even if it is depressing in its utterly real depiction of what’s going on with “the fourth estate.”

I know he’s right about supporting local news organizations, but let me just tell you my little tale on this for what it’s worth, OK?

Currently, we subscribe to the Bucks County Courier Times in these parts; I say “currently” because that is always subject to household budgeting decisions (and by the way, the fact that we subscribe to a newspaper doesn’t make us special, I hasten to add). It is also subject to my ever-shrinking tolerance for putting up with the never-ending and utter bilious conservative garbage that composes the vast majority of the Op-Ed page of that newspaper.

When was the last time the Courier Times published Gene Lyons? David Sirota? Joe Conason? Connie Schultz? Froma Harrop? Cynthia Tucker? Not a clue – couldn’t tell you.

George Will? Charles Krauthammer? Cal Thomas (and assorted other whack jobs)? That’s easy – too many times to mention.

And by the way, I know the paper is going to publish conservative content. As much as I detest these people because what they say bears absolutely no resemblance to my day-to-day reality (and because they are SO UTTERLY WRONG on the issues that matter most to my family), I still realize that their voices deserve to be heard also. However, the notion of editorial balance in that paper is a choice between “glibertarian,” right wing and ultra right wing (with Eugene Robinson thrown in once and awhile, along with “liberal” Richard Cohen).

Bottom line: I can see myself one day cancelling our subscription. And yes, that will hurt the efforts of the paper’s beat reporters, who do genuinely good work. And I’m sorry about that.

However, the Courier Times (among many other news organizations) has made the calculated decision to cater its editorial content to elderly white conservatives first and foremost. And in that regard, they are hastening their own extinction (there ARE other audiences, by the way).

And for that reason, I do not understand why I should feel any responsibility for what will likely be their demise one day…



…and yeah, I would say that Bill Maher is spot-on here (NSFW also)…



…and speaking of The Big Orange Cheetoh, kudos to Stephen Colbert and particularly that guy in drag (here – what a creep; “The Donald” I mean of course)…



…and these guys are coming to the TLA in these parts in early October – should be a rockin’ good time.

Friday Stuff

I guess “Donald Drumpf” would consider a boot across someone’s throat to be “safe” too (here)…



…and apparently we need to update this ad based on this…



…and by the way, I’m not kidding (and the stuff about Nixon is truly chilling)…



…and I wonder if we should start calling him “Donald Trumpovich” (here - more here)…



…and I know some of this stuff on "Fergus Laing" has been done to death already, but I liked the comment from Seth Meyers in particular about Twitter here…



…and it shouldn’t be necessary to run this ad since women should be on a par with men when it comes to equal pay, among other measures, but it is (to help, click here – I’m going to miss Barbara Mikulski)…



…and this is just a reminder to PA-08 folk that we can’t forget to help Steve Santarsiero in his fight to prevent “Mikey Part 2” this fall – to help, click here (and yes, it's true background checks weren't enacted, but not because Steve didn't give it a hell of an effort)…



…and I guess, given the earlier videos in particular, you can call this a theme for a “Trumpocalypse” that we have to make sure never happens.

More Thursday Stuff

Why indeed (more here)…



…a question that should be posed to this fraud from our own beloved commonwealth also (to do something about "No Corporate Tax" Toomey, click here...and let's not forget this too)…



…and I am sooo glad someone brought back this clip about how "Donald Drumpf" VP candidate Mike Pence once compared Iraq to an Indiana open market, or something (here, and I got a kick out of this too)...



Update 1 8/14/16: I would say that this fits the sorry "Pence profile" also.

Update 2 8/14/16: OUCH!

…and yeah, I think this song fits given everything in the news lately.

Thursday Stuff

(I also posted here.)

To me, this clip proves that all of the stuff with “Fergus Laing” is waay too far inside the proverbial looking glass to just write it off as partisan politics…



…and dare I hope that this is the beginning of the end of voter ID laws?...



…and as long as we’re talking about legal stuff, I should note that this may be the best commentary on holding hearings for the nomination of (and eventually confirming) Judge Merrick Garland to the U.S. Supreme Court that I've heard yet…



…and a belated happy 90th birthday to Tony Bennett.

Wednesday Stuff

Note to HRC – this particularly abysmal Gallup number for Trump is golden, but there’s a long way to go in this election; it still has to be won…



…and yet another funny commentary on the most recent election stuff from Samantha Bee has an appropriately hard edge at the very end (here)…



…and I’m not sure exactly how Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley got out of his most recent infidelity scandal, but I guess he did somehow…and who knows, he might get out of this too…



…and yeah, I think it’s time to dial up some sweet jammin’ blues – enjoy.

Tuesday Stuff

No, I haven’t forgotten about “This Day In Doomsy History”; the latest installment below is from 8/2/11, in which K.O. delivers a truly epic “Special Comment” on that stinking debt deal between Number 44 and “Man Tan” Boehner, who was then Speaker of the House, which brought us the beginning of the wretched austerity we, and a good part of the world, still live under…


Update 8/12/16: And here is why that still matters.

…and by the way, let’s not forget about the antics of Fix Noise head Roger Ailes (“alleged,” let’s not forget, though it’s telling that, as Chris Hayes and Gabriel Sherman tell us, the stories of these women are pretty similar even though they, in all likelihood, have never communicated with each other…a related post is here)…



…and I don’t know how the hell the miserable ingrates shown at this rally for Repug VP nominee Mike Pence can boo and throw catcalls at the military mother asking about “Donald Drumpf” and his attack on the Khans, and then applaud themselves with Pence making the utterly saccharine and disgusting remark about “honoring their service” in regard to our veterans (and here is more garbage from Pence on this – by the way, as nearly as I can tell, Pence never served, though his son serves in the Marines…also, as Think Progress tells us, Humayun Khan was killed in 2004, while Former President Highest Disapproval Rating In Gallup Poll History was still taking up space in An Oval Office, as opposed to Number 44…”that’s what freedom looks like,” huh? Shouting down someone who disagrees with you? Well, I guess that’s how it looks to YOU)…



…and a hat tip goes out to Dan Reed of WXPN in these parts for the reminder that “The Concert for Bangladesh” took place 45 years ago yesterday, which, to my knowledge, was the first of the all-star shows of its type for various worthy causes, including “Farm Aid” and “The Concert for New York City” after 9/11 – as the Wikipedia article tells us, the money raised from the two shows was eventually distributed to those who needed it by 1981, and if you want to blame anyone for the holdup, blame former Beatle manager Allen Klein…George Harrison would also advise Bob Geldof on financial matters for “Live Aid” in 1985 to prevent the same mistake.

Monday Stuff

Geez oh man, it’s looks like that “Indian-sounding” Fareed Zakaria brought his potty mouth to the party here – kudos (and when it comes to racist, sexist, and other types of garbage spewing from the mouth of the presidential nominee of the “party of Lincoln,” it’s a feature, not a bug, you might say)…



…and yeah, what John Oliver says here too – NSFW (I just hope HRC doesn’t get caught up in this stuff too and realize that she’d got to go out and win this election)…



...and here is more from Donald "A Little Ride" Drumpf (hard to catalog all the refuse he spews, I'll admit - and by the way, here is a bit of reality on this subject - not saying our military hasn’t gotten its act together on this, but we’d all be best served by the proper context)...



…and I don’t know if this tune is apolitical or not, but I think it rocks, with maybe more than a bit of a message to the subject of these videos.

Sunday Stuff

I’ve got some leftovers from the prior week I still need to get to, so here they come – among other things, last week was a really bad one for voter ID laws, as noted here, which is truly good news…



…and the Rev. Dr. William Barber really “brought the heat” at the DNC, as it were, reminding us of what Democrats are supposed to be all about (and no disrespect to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who I’m sure was good too, but how on earth do you top that?)…



…as did former Dem Michigan Mayor Jennifer Granholm here – I’m sure a lot of people got the Carly Simon reference, but I’m sure many others were scratching their heads over it too (didn't know Granholm packed that kind of ooomph - learn something new every day)...



…and I absolutely can’t forget about this summer tune, now can I?