Even though I’m Roman Catholic, there’s a reason why I don’t think it’s appropriate to try and cram my beliefs down anybody’s metaphorical throat; this “prayer” by Repug PA House Rep Stephanie Borowicz would be merely awful if it weren’t for the fact that it came on the day that Movita Johnson-Harrell, PA’s first Muslim-American woman legislator, was sworn into office, which, as far as I’m concerned, make Borowicz’s remarks a slap in the face at Ms. Johnson-Harrell (here)…”Pennsyltucky” strikes again (the "prayer" came before the swearing-in, by the way)…
…and I thought this was a good take on the potential for obstruction of justice in the Mueller Report by Farron Cousins, and as far as I’m concerned, the jury on that is still out on that because WE HAVEN’T SEEN THE WHOLE DAMN REPORT AND I DON’T TRUST WILLIAM BARR (and I think it should be noted that Cousins is a lawyer…oh, and by the way, Dems, can we now give Nancy Pelosi a little credit for downplaying impeachment talk about the Gropenfuhrer? Wouldn’t she look pretty damn silly right about now if she’d plowed full steam ahead on that before the report was out?)…
…and any death for any reason is awful, but this is particularly bad (as is this) – what I wouldn’t give to see one of these gun-humpers have to deal with an active shooter drill; of course, they’d probably try to be “a good guy with a gun” and shoot a teacher or police officer instead…
…and I’m sorry that I’m in a particularly sour mood today – with the first clip in mind in particular, I felt like hearing this song.
OK, so now we have a bit of a look at what is contained in the Mueller Report about alleged collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia in the 2016 election (I think it was actual and not, in fact, merely alleged, but I realize that the Mueller Report didn’t find the proverbial “smoking gun”).
Now before we get into too many histrionics over this, I believe we should consider the following:
Attorney General William Barr is a Repug “fixer” from the days of Iran-Contra, and he was nominated for this job exactly because the Trumpsters saw this coming down the road and wanted Barr to sanitize this mess for them.
Generalissimo Trump wasn’t even deposed by Mueller as part of the investigation (not trying to impugn Mueller, but just stating a fact).
We haven’t seen the whole damn report yet, just Barr’s summary of it.
This is in no way whatsoever the end of Trump’s legal woes.
Also, I would add that Mueller (it seemed to me) was looking more for the in-all-likelihood financial illegality between Trump, Russia and other actors/entities in Trump’s business dealings, and I have a feeling that that is what is largely in this report. And I’ve included the clip below from Ari Melber on this for two reasons: 1) Melber is a lawyer, and 2) He makes the important point that Mueller apparently believed that the resolution for any potential “high crimes and misdemeanors,” should they be found, was in the U.S. House through impeachment as opposed to indicting Trump, which is about right as far as I’m concerned.
With that being said, I should note that we should expect nothing but the typical corporate media caterwauling about Trump supposedly taking a victory lap over this, as utterly preposterous as that is. And Glenn Greenwald unleashed a truly petulant tweetstorm after Barr produced his interpretation of the Mueller report, attacking MSNBC for their fixation on Trump and Russia.
Were they fixated on this in their reporting? Yes. For ratings? Uh huh (Chris Hayes was honest enough to admit that he wanted to do more reporting in climate change, but as nearly as he could tell, viewers would tune him out). However, I personally believed this story was important enough to merit that kind of treatment. And I believe it still is.
However, I have to admit that I was shocked by some of the lefty push-back on this also (the reason for the Bozo pic). Kyle Kulinski also attacked the typical corporate media suspects with initials for names, saying he was right and they were wrong (even though the most ridiculous pontificating I’ve yet seen on this is contained in this tweet). Um, the whole damn report hasn’t even come out yet! If you want to be mad for the over-reporting on this versus actual policy issues that impact our lives more directly, then fine, I get that. But please don’t do Fix Noise’s work for them, OK? Their platform is plenty big enough for them to do that on their own.
Anyway, here is the Melber clip…
Update 3/26/19: Yep, I think Greenwald has pretty much devolved into self-parody here.
…oh, and in case anybody out there thinks I’m nothing but a shill for the Democrats, I give you this, which is truly deflating and cause to worry for 2020…between shooting ourselves in the foot with a Howitzer like this and Trump having the power of incumbency on his side, I remain genuinely concerned that the Democrats, as a national party, are going to try and win this by bringing a knife to a gun fight, as it were, and if so, we know what will happen (The DCCC remains an utterly useless organization as far as I’m concerned)…
…and I think these are some important words from the guy who went after Tucker Carlson (everyone running the DCCC should be tied to a chair and forced to listen)…
…and happy 72nd birthday to Elton John, with a bit of a Russian-flavored tune for the occasion.
It’s nice to see that Former President Highest Disapproval Rating In Gallup Poll History is giving the recent anniversary of his ruinous war in Iraq the reverence and respect it deserves (here…and yes, that most definitely is snark) – made me recall this clip…
Update: Yeah, I think a lot more could be said on this subject, but Chris Hayes is definitely on the right track here.
…and speaking of clueless Republican presidents, Seth Meyers gives us the latest on our Traitorous, Tiny-Handed Orange Mental Defective, including his “feud” with the ghost of John McCain; the Devin Nunes stuff is hilarious the way Meyers tells it, though I realize this is funny in no way, shape or form…
…and as long as I’m talking about chief executives, this tells us that Jimmy Carter is about to become our oldest-ever living president; I just felt like bringing back this vintage SNL clip for the occasion…
…and supposedly the world’s greatest superpower can somehow only scrounge up $57K for what I would consider to be a legitimate emergency, and that’s the opioid crisis in this country, as AOC points out…
...and Brooke Thomas and Jayar Jackson of “The Damage Report” comment on more typical Fix Noise idiocy from this Katie Pavlich person saying the U.S. should get credit for ending slavery...so many directions you can go with this I realize, but let me just ask this question; do you want to know what Great Britain did about slavery? They passed the Slavery Abolition Act in 1833 (here). And that was it (or just about). No horrible, five four-year war with an utterly abominable list of people killed or wounded and family and property destroyed and enmity to this day between geographic regions of this county – if anybody deserves an “award” for ending it, I think THEY do (oh, and don’t worry about Harris Faulkner – she knows EXACTLY what she’s doing...and by the way, I'm not in favor of reparations - subject for a whole other post I realize, and this is part of the reason why...I'm not saying we can't talk about it, though)…
...and happy 334th birthday to J.S. Bach - time for a bit of culture.
Cenk, John and Tommy Vietor tell us about Louie Gohmert’s reaction to the New Zealand gun massacre (and, by extension, the Republican Party also…yep, as far as I’m concerned, Gohmert remains the stupidest life form in the universe)…
…and Stephanie Ruhle interviews David Enrich of the New York Times, who wrote the story about the Gropenfuhrer and Deutsche Bank, which has a lot to answer for as far as I'm concerned…
…and speaking of money, Mike Malloy brings us another NSFW commentary on the latest Repug bait-and-switch on taxes; we’re about to find out if we got socked also (not optimistic here I have to admit)…
…and with the Ruhle clip in mind…well, don’t look now, but I think I stumbled across the “Trump For President 2020” campaign theme song.
Thom Hartmann gives us a bit of a lesson in semantics, though I think what’s he’s talking about is the meaning of the words “freedom” and “liberty” for most people, as opposed to the Kochs and the one percent (interesting parallel between Warren Harding and a certain Treasonous, Tiny-Handed Lying Orange Traitor I would say)…
…and Sam Seder and the “Majority Report” crew tell us about the wingnut response to the recent gun carnage in New Zealand (here)…I can’t imagine what the hell “Redland Strategies” is, and believe me when I tell you that I don’t care…what a bunch of bullpuckey this guy is pitching, and I don’t mean Sam of course – and I’d sooner expect intelligent political commentary from a slug than I would from Candace Owens, though I’ll admit that there is an intellectual equivalency between the two (and yeah, “disgusting” is one word that surely comes to mind…and the New Zealand PM is putting us to shame with this as far as I’m concerned…good for her - and I think EGG BOY RULES!)…
…and Pap and Farron Cousins tell us how California is being depleted of water because of corporate greed and climate change – makes me want to vomit every time I see a golf course (or a movie or TV show with Tom Selleck, or a Nestle’s candy bar…here and here)…
…and I think a story about water is the perfect segue to this tribute to Dick Dale, King of the Surf Guitar, who, sadly, just left us (performing here with SRV – RIP).
Yeah, it looks like Tucker Carlson’s career is starting to do that big swirl into the hopper, as it were – totally deserved, as Cenk and Ana tell us (this segment proves yet again that conservatives are masters of projection, if little else)…
…and with the prior clip in mind, I give you the latest installment of “This Day In Doomsy History” from 3/14/08 (Fox Attacks Obama, Part 2…“Obama is a ‘half-rican’ anyway”…big wingnut applause line at the time I realize)…
…and Farron Cousins of Ring of Fire tells us that Rupert and company may have actually broken the law by killing the story about Trump having an affair, with the argument that not airing it was an “in kind” compensation of sorts - hmmm…
…and RIP Dem former U.S. Senator and Governor Birch Bayh of Indiana, responsible for Title IX (here) and two Constitutional amendments (never a big fan of his son, but I’ll leave any criticism on that front for another occasion...and I thought this was well said by The Big Dog)…
…and Seth Meyers gives us a “Closer Look” on the college cheating scandal in the headlines and the latest prison sentence for former Trump campaign chair Paul Manafort…
…and I think the weather in these parts is going to turn and get colder and more overcast, but for now everything is sunny and spring-like, so I kind of felt like hearing this neat tune with a bit of a quirky video I’ll admit (and the title definitely fits).
Samantha Bee tells us here about Pfizer and the Sackler family and their role in this country’s opioid epidemic (NSFW – I’m not going to ask how these people sleep at night since these life forms seem to be devoid of any impulse towards human decency or compassion at all, and I certainly am not directing that at the “Full Frontal” host)…
…and Lawrence O’Donnell tells us how Dem New Hampshire U.S. House Rep Katie Porter has stood up again for her constituents, this time on the CFPB (against yet another smirking, Trumpian, unqualified, do-nothing sycophant who was in WAY OVER her head in the hearing O’Donnell described)…
…and Sam Seder and TMR give us a Bernie Sanders flashback from ’89 on climate change as well as the media being swallowed up by conglomerates (and Sam is absolutely right about fixing the ozone layer…I think Michael Brooks and co. kind of push the snark meter here a bit; tongue-in-cheek I know)…
…and Francis Maxwell gives us another “Breakdown” segment about college kids and racism (ugh)…
…and Farron Cousins of “Ring of Fire” tells us how Florida madam “Cindy” Yang (the one involved in the latest shenanigans with New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft) has somehow become a “player” in Republican Party politics all of a sudden (yeah, looks like our corporate media sees this as another snooze-fest…BUT OMIGOD, ILHAN OMAR JUST SAID SOMETHING ELSE!! OUTTA MY WAY – I’M ON DEADLINE!!!)…
…and RIP drummer extraordinaire Hal Blaine of The Wrecking Crew (here) – here is one of his many signature tunes from back in the day.
Wow, is Arkansas State Sen. Stephanie Flowers my new hero for this…
…and it looks like former Trump campaign chair Paul Manafort got pretty much a slap on the wrist of a sentence (here), as former U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade tells Rachel Maddow (make sure you stick around for the last minute of this clip in particular from McQuade)…
…and yeah, “Democrat” Ted Deutch, go whine to Fix Noise and Maria Bartiromo about Dem U.S. House Rep Ilhan Omar, as Cenk and Ana tell us (and I’m sure this will NEVER end because of clowns like Deutch, as Kyle K. pointed out – stuff like this has me genuinely concerned about the prospects of the Dems every actually returning to power and enacting meaningful change that matters if they don’t even have the courage of what are supposed to be their convictions, which Omar has definitely demonstrated IMHO)…
…and to be honest, I didn’t think I’d have time to post anything today, but I did; however, I now have to find another tune for International Women’s Day since I used the one I’d planned already (sorry – boring meta I know)…I guess you could chalk this up to assertive female behavior, among other things (based on that Brad Pitt/Angelina Jolie movie I believe...slightly NSFW).
John Iadarola and Brett Erlich of The Damage Report tell us basically that AOC has no more sh*ts to give, as it were, on the question of the impeachment of Generalissimo Trump - good!…
…and yeah, I want to know all about the supposed anti-gun control group that gave the pearls to these idiot gun-humping lawmakers in New Hampshire…it’s pretty damn obvious what kind of message these clowns are communicating as far as I’m concerned; as the Now This video from this link tells us, the best way to respond is to run for office against these asshats…
…and Hasan Piker brings us another “Breakdown” segment with more on Stephon Clark (and yes, apparently he vandalized the truck windows, which was uncalled for, even though we’ll never know for certain because THE COPS SHOT HIM EIGHT TIMES. SIX TIMES IN THE BACK, WHILE HE HELD UP HIS CELL PHONE!...I think Piker's count may be off...and yes, Clark was apparently overcoming a sordid past to be sure, and he shouldn’t have run when the cops told him to freeze – never a good idea – but again…oh, fuck it...just chalk it up to Life In These United States, Part The Infinity as Charlie Pierce might say)…
…and Lawrence O’Donnell tells us the truth about Our Lying, Treasonous, Tiny-Handed Orange Dictator’s exploding deficit, to say nothing of other Congressional Repugs that allowed this to happen from 2016-2018…
…and Sam Seder of “The Majority Report” blasts Bari Weiss and her version of anti-Semitism – the framing of the question by Meghan McCain on “The View” was bullshit of course…and I know I already commented on the Ilhan Omar 9/11 poster previously (oh, but McCain haz a sad here…boo freaking hoo!...and Kyle Kulinski is exactly right, by the way - expect the Repugs to beat on Ilhan Omar forever now because the Dems shows an iota of squeamishness on the matter, in their eternal, dunderheaded stupidity...and I'm looking at you, Nita Lowey - here)…
…and I know I’ve been late with some milestone-related stuff lately, so I’ll try being early for a change and extend best wishes for International Women’s Day tomorrow.
I know I included some of this AOC stuff before, but I definitely wanted to include this clip because of her linkage to the Gropenfuhrer and his golf courses (and related to that, I give you this…and on another related note, I think this is just way too funny...if I didn't know better, I'd think Lawrence is "hitting the sauce")…
…and I absolutely loved this exchange between Dem U.S. House Rep Katie Porter and Equifax CEO Mark Begor, as Sam Seder tells us; like the prior clip, you can file this under elections having consequences, people…
…and Kyle K. tells us about the 9/11 poster featuring Dem U.S. House Rep Ilhan Omar on display in the West VA House of Delegates; yep, pretty damn disgusting – and if I were to guess, I think this is yet another example of people who apparently didn’t suffer the loss of a family member of friend on that awful day feeling like they can use it once again for propaganda purposes; I largely agree with Kyle, but that being said, I think we can have an intelligent discussion of differing points of view as noted here, but the poster Kyle talks about does not count towards informed dialogue in any way, shape or form, and that’s putting it mildly…and oh yeah, “double standard” much, Gym Jordan? (here – and as far as I’m concerned, this proves Kyle’s point even more)…
…and Reverend Al tells us here that no charges will be filed against Sacramento or Tulsa police in the shootings of Stephon Clark and Terence Crutcher, respectively (here – yeah, I’m sure cops in my ‘hood will appear with guns drawn while I’m out at night talking on my cell phone…uh huh)…
…and Thom Hartmann gives us more comparisons between Generalissimo Trump and Nixon (and on the subject of Trump and cover-ups, I give you this)…
…and from the era predating “Tricky Dick” slightly, I give you this tune; hat tip to Crooks and Liars for reminding me recently (though I’m behind a bit again I know) that Buffalo Springfield released its debut album on March 3, 1966, with this song as its first single (which, amazingly to me, didn’t even break the Billboard Top 100).
Cenk and Ana tell us about the line of questioning from Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in particular on Michael Cohen during his recent testimony before the House Oversight Committee (yep, as usual, AOC zeroes in on what truly matters...and by the way, when it comes to Cohen’s testimony, I don’t think we should lose sight of this)…
…and here is more evidence that elections have consequence, people – in a way that is actually good this time (and as far as the Senate goes, I’m glad Bob Casey was returned from PA last year of course, but when it comes to guns and this, he doesn’t exactly stand tall)…
…and I know TYT alluded to Bernie Sanders earlier, and Kyle K. tells us here about Sanders' answer on early childhood, pre-K nutrition and education in this country, which, as usual, was spot-on…I love Bernie on the issues, and maybe there’s not a lot he can do about this with Repugs in charge of the Senate, but I’d like to see some actual policy proposals to back that up that could lead to actual legislation (Kyle almost got through it without an “F” bomb, but there’s one at the very end…oh well)…
I thought this was a pretty well-thought-out analysis by Cenk and Michael Shure of TYT about Michael Cohen’s testimony yesterday before the House Oversight Committee, proving what, as far as I’m concerned, anyone with a pulse knew all along, namely, that Donald J. Trump is a treasonous, lying criminal…
…and I’m playing catch-up again I know, but Sam Seder comments on a John Wayne Playboy interview from 1971 that recently resurfaced where he claimed that white supremacy is A OK, pilgrim (on this subject, I highly recommend the movie Trumbo, by the way – still shocking to hear from a guy who worked with Woody Strode on at least one movie, by the way…and yeah, Laura Ingraham is just f*cking crazy; I’m not going to try and find any sanity or rationality with her or this Ken doll on her show)…
…and economist J.W. Mason explains how we can pay for the Green New Deal (a very Krugman-esque – and correct, as far as I’m concerned – commentary…there’s a reason why we have a damn prosperous underground economy in this country, people…it’s pretty much out of necessity)…
…and I can’t recall a video where I saw a woman driving a fast car – about damn time…was waiting for her to drive it right at the director, but I thought the video’s ending was better than my idea.
Rachel Maddow tells us more about the Gropenfuhrer and his “bromance” with Kim Jong Un (three guesses who gave advice to Trump on this when our *president* asked, and the first two don’t count)…
…and here is more on the vote against Trump’s emergency declaration in the House (and as for the Senate, I give you this)…
…and Pap and Farron Cousins tells us that, in case we feel an attack of Trump Bottom-Feeder Fatigue coming on (and we’re only human – all of this political sludge is bound to catch up with us at some point), we can’t let down our guard, particularly in the case of new AG William Barr, who is terrible for all of the reasons noted in this clip and probably more…
…and Sam Seder speaks with former CIGNA employee Wendell Potter about the Dems getting squeamish on Medicare for All (talking about Michael Bennet of Colorado for example – he stood tall against Ted Cruz recently, but let’s not forget about the bigger picture also)…
…and Kyle K. tells us that Repug U.S. Senator John Cornyn decided to quote Il Duce – just say, “oops” and get out, Tex…have to admit being a little freaked out by the Mussolini pic (NSFW), and as for Bernie, we’ll see about this…
…and with my modified posting schedule, I have to admit that I’m not always commenting on stuff in as timely a manner as I would like, and here is an example; last Saturday marked the 79th anniversary of Woody Guthrie’s anthem to what this country is supposed to be all about, Generalissimo Trump notwithstanding – this is one of my favorite versions of Guthrie's tune.
You may have heard by now about a certain video that is going absolutely nuts online about Dem CA Sen. Dianne Feinstein meeting with a bunch of school kids about supporting the “Green New Deal” as put forward in the Senate by Feinstein’s fellow Dem Ed Markey of Massachusetts (one link is here.)
Also, it should be noted that there is, apparently, an edited, abbreviated version out there which puts Feinstein in a bad light. Well, if you can get to it, I definitely recommend that you watch all 6 videos in the sequence from here (starting with her greeting to the kids and ending with some words from the teacher…and I’ll have something to say about the teacher shortly).
There are a few different spins I’ve seen and read about concerning Feinstein’s encounter with these kids in a variety of stories. The New York Times said Feinstein “lectured” the kids (here). Markos Moulitsas of Daily Kos tweeted that Feinstein didn’t apologize (also posting, “There’s a reason we supported Kevin DeLeon, sigh,” with DeLeon being a 2018 primary challenger to Feinstein), though diarist dfh1 at his site posted an excellent entry here.
And I know I mentioned the school teacher who also met with Feinstein along with the kids. The only time I actually started to feel angry while watching all 6 videos was at the very end of the last one, when the teacher said that Feinstein was “condescending.”
How was Feinstein “condescending,” exactly? By offering an internship to one of the students? By telling them that she agreed with them, partly for the sake of her 7 grandchildren? By presenting her own legislation on climate change, which, as diarist dfh1 pointed out, is in line with the IPCC recommendations? Oh, and by telling the kids that, since the Democrats aren’t in charge of the Senate, she needs Republican votes to pass legislation to fight climate change, which neither Feinstein nor any other Democrat WILL EVER GET FOR AS LONG AS THEY LIVE?
Oh, I suddenly remember now – she actually told the kids that it might take 10 years to get climate change legislation passed. She also asked one of the students who said she voted for Feinstein her age, and when she told Feinstein, the senator correctly pointed out that she was too young to vote for her. And I guess Feinstein was supposed to shower each individual child with gratitude when the kids presented their petition.
You mean Feinstein didn't provide immediate gratification? Gosh, how "condescending" indeed!
I know the kids are right. Believe me. And somehow I’m sure Feinstein knows that too. And Think Progress pointed out that Feinstein swore off campaign contributions from oil companies and she went back on that, so yes, hold her to account.
And 10 years, which Feinstein said in the clip is how long it could take to pass a bill to fight this, is waaay too long – it needs to happen yesterday I know.
BUT SHE ISN’T THE DAMN ENEMY!!!
Do you want to know who IS the enemy? I’ll give you a hint. The head of their party in the White House just appointed this utterly empty vessel (and married to a coal company executive - of course) as our U.N. ambassador, who said she believes “both sides” when it comes to climate science.
And just to show how ridiculous this is, Ben Shapiro and Erick Erickson, of all people, have jumped to Feinstein’s defense (I’m not going to link to their nonsense and give them any traffic – you can find it). Great job to play into the hands of the wingnuts, “Sunrise Foundation”! I can guarantee you that these two nitwits WILL NEVER CARE ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE EITHER! However, they care VERY MUCH about sewing division in the Democratic ranks, which they plainly see a chance to do here.
Maybe this “Sunrise Foundation” ought to focus its efforts on the people who really want to hasten our extinction by superheating this planet, and that would be everyone standing in the way of the Green New Deal – basically, every Republican politician and members of that political constituency.
Maybe this “Sunrise Foundation” (ostensibly run by adults I believe) ought to realize that, while the Dems happily won the House last year, the Repugs actually gained in the Senate (which is still unbelievable to me, but it tells me just how much of an uphill battle we have to fight on this stuff). And that admittedly makes the fight for common sense climate change legislation only harder.
This is part of the admittedly tiresome game of realpolitik, people. And I realize the kids aren’t going to know that (and God bless them for trying regardless).
But I honestly expected that Markos Moulitsas and the goddamn New York Times would know better!
…and on a wholly other matter (re, our relationship with the Saudis, which is definitely too cozy for my liking), I give you this – NSFW (and Kyle may be correct about the Mueller report, by the way...and he sure as hell is right about the urgency on the Saudi stuff)…
…and this tune goes out to Shapiro and Erickson on the Feinstein thing (could probably apply to a few others too).
Kyle Kulinski tells us about the 11-year-old in Lakeland, FL arrested because he didn’t stand for the Pledge of Allegiance (I'm OK with Kyle on this, though I think it’s possible for 11-year-olds to have political opinions…and yeah, the substitute teacher screwed the proverbial pooch here IMHO – NSFW…by the way, the pic shows how the Pledge used to be recited in this country prior to WWII featuring what was once referred to as the "Bellamy Salute,” though it was abandoned for obvious reasons)…
…and that to me is the perfect segue to this clip on the short documentary subject “A Night At The Garden,” which took place 80 years ago yesterday (filmmaker Marshall Curry is interviewed…and I think this, sadly, is what I would call a similar cautionary lesson)…
Update 2/22/19: And as long as we're harking back to those goose-stepping bygone days, I should probably present this also about yet another Trumpian goofball.
Update 3/2/19: And you just KNOW she had to join the party too, right? (here)
…and on the subject of kids objecting to repressive authority, Francis Maxwell of “The Breakdown” tells us about 15-year-old Claudette Colvin, the first person to challenge Montgomery, AL’s bus boycott, before Rosa Parks (apropos to recall anytime, but especially during Black History Month)…
…and Sam Seder of “The Majority Report” talks with Eric Blanc of Jacobin…not sure what that is (re, the Denver teacher strike, and potentially other teacher strikes also, fighting against privatization and “corporate education reform”…yes, on paper, merit pay sounds good, but not when it’s tied to some BS metric like standardized test performance…interesting to look at this as a push-back against the Janus decision, but yeah, that seems to fit, with Oakland, CA apparently next on the list)…
...and happy 70th birthday to Jerry Harrison of Talking Heads...
Lawrence O’Donnell tells us that it is apparently DNI Dan Coats’s time in the barrel, as it were, for acting like an adult in the matter of North Korea’s nukes…
…and Seth Meyers gives us another humorous take, this time on Generalissimo Trump’s “national emergency”…
…and there are so many reasons why I utterly despise movement conservative Republicans (and the Gropenfuhrer is one without a doubt, though, as a Russian stooge, he’s too dumb and compromised to realize it), but maybe the biggest reason of all is their utterly ruinous policies concerning our environment – the following clip is just the latest example (and no, I’m not saying Democrats are completely innocent either on this score…more here)…
…and as Hasan Piker points out (in particular, in the case of rapper 21 Savage), ICE is not only cruel and malicious, but incompetent also…
…and I wouldn’t be shopping at Bloomingdale’s anyway, but I DEFINITELY won’t be after this – all the same, interesting take by Kyle I must say; still thinking about it (NSFW)…
…and here’s a great new Tedeschi Trucks Band tune.
I think it genuinely requires talent to weave comedy gold from the utter idiocy inflicted on us by the Gropenfuhrer, as Seth Meyers manages to do once more in this clip…
…and it’s been a year since the gun carnage at Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School (more here, here, and here...and I'm sorry, but despite what Kyle says in the clip, there's no place for an AR-15 in civilian use as far as I'm concerned)…
…and Brooke Thomas, Mark Thompson and Ben Mankiewicz talk about the latest Repug idiot attacking the LGBTQ community, Eric Porterfield of West Virginia by name (now watch him get re-elected, the next time he runs…love to be wrong)…
…and I thought this was a good commentary from WaPo reporter Eugene Scott about the dustup over the entirely true remarks from Dem U.S. House Rep Ilhan Omar about Israel’s occupation of the West Bank, with, predictably, politicians from both parties tripping over themselves to placate our aggrieved “ally” (here, and this, when it comes to The Big Orange Cheetoh, is merely to laugh…and when it comes to McCarthy, let’s not forget this – and kudos to Omar for this also…the next few clips are tied a bit to the issue of censorship)…
…and I now give you the latest installment of “This Day In Doomsy History” (more or less) from 2/11/14, with Rod Serling talking with Mike Wallace many moons ago about censorship concerning, among other things, the portrayal of Lassie giving birth on TV…never a shortage when it comes to “values voter” outrage in this country (I originally noted that this clip came from Anthony Cumia on Youtube, and at the time I neglected to realize that he was one half of the radio-comedy team “Opie and Anthony,” who were once fired because they broadcast a comedian describing a couple having simulated sex in a vestibule of St. Patrick’s Cathedral while Mass was going on…yes, maybe a case of “’values’ for me but not for thee,” but as a Roman Catholic, I definitely think that went way too far)…
…and speaking of faith, on this day in history (well, yesterday actually), the astronomer and mathematician Galileo Galilei faced charges of heresy from the Catholic Church for advocating Copernican theory, namely, that the earth revolves around the sun as opposed to the other way around; he was put under arrest by Pope Urban VIII in 1633 and was sentenced to live out the rest of his life in his villa near Florence where he died in 1642 (the Church made an official “oops, our bad” announcement about it in 1992…and I’ll bet you didn’t think there was a song for all of this…well…)…
…and given the significance of this day on the calendar, I thought I’d present this (I’m pretty sure the Utopia tune was “Love In Action”)…
…and for the opposing point of view, I give you this :-).
I thought this was a particularly good “New Rule” from Bill Maher about “both sides” in response to Howard Schultz and his vanity campaign for prez (hey, Starbucks guy, you want to help for real? Try supporting a rock-solid Dem national and local party infrastructure with donations. But of course, that won’t get you any headlines, you self-aggrandizing tool…and speaking of self-aggrandizing tools, why the hell does Maher continue to let wingnut nematode Jack Kingston onto his show??!!)…
…and Farron Cousins tells us that conservative lawmakers in AZ think porn is the biggest threat we face and want to declare it a public health crisis – maybe some of these numbskulls need to come out of the sun once in awhile…
…and gosh almighty, THEY FORGOT TO MENTION MEEEE!!! (sniff - just for fun)…
…and I don’t know if these guys will be touring to our area soon, but I’ll be checking for sure.
I thought this was a great commentary from Lawrence O’Donnell in response to a certain lying orange treasonous lunatic and his remark about “socialism” at the State of the Union the other night (kudos for remembering Frances Perkins, and I think the tie-in to the NFL is absolutely brilliant…and yes, I’d say the same thing if Lawrence had mentioned the Eagles)…
…and Francis Maxwell tells us of still more mass shootings in this country (oh, but let the wingnuts scream over a shaving cream ad instead...I think I said something once before about Gillette's message, which to me is spot-on)…
…and returning to the Super Bowl, Kyle tells us about a rejected medical marijuana ad (legalization for recreational use is still a slippery slope as far as I’m concerned, but medical pot and decriminalization should be the law of the land, and the Dems would run on that if they had any brains, one of the few issues to me where Bill Maher is 100 percent correct IMHO…NSFW)…
…and Michelle Lujan Grisham, Dem guv of New Mexico, is my new hero for this, telling the Gropenfuhrer what he can do with his wall…Cenk, Ana and Emma Vigeland explain…
…and I’m sure this clip shows why AOC scares the hell out of the wingnuts, and probably a few Dems too – good! (and we can thank this for the scenarios she described to the panel)…
…and I know I just had a Beatles tune here recently, but here’s another one, which I believe was their first Number 1 hit in this country, to commemorate the 55th anniversary of their landing in NYC to perform on the Ed Sullivan Show, which was yesterday – I crave your sympathy and understanding for another Boomer indulgence here.
Ali Velshi, sitting in for Rachel Maddow, tells us here about prosecutors in the SDNY deciding to subpoena the records of the Gropenfuhrer’s inauguration – about damn time…
…and yeah, I don’t see how Ralph Northam ends up lasting as VA governor (at least, not as a Dem), for whatever my opinion is worth on this…the thing that gets me about this is that Breitbart actually got a “get” here – the proverbial stopped clock that is right no more than twice a day – and apparently this whole thing was wingnut payback against Northam for the governor’s entirely accurate IMHO comments about third-trimester abortions (here...sorry to provide click bait to a wingnut site, but I can't link to the WaPo any more)…that doesn’t happen unless something has gone terribly, horribly wrong with the pregnancy, which of course makes conservatives lose what’s left of their minds to contemplate real-world impact on their beliefs…
…and Cenk and Ana tell us about that nitwit Tomi Lahren saying that Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez apparently hasn’t accomplished much, or something…
…and yeah, there goes that AOC not accomplishing much again according to Lahren – just standing up to Big Pharma, that’s all, with Ro Khanna…
…and Amadou Diallo was shot to death 20 years ago yesterday (the cops used to love Bruce, but not so much after this; c’est dommage, even though the song really isn’t anti-police – and by the way, there were a few mass shootings last week that barely registered on the radar of our corporate media as noted here)……
...and I just felt like hearing something a little upbeat and positive, so here it is.
I long for the day to return when our head of state actually knows how to spell, as Trevor Noah tells us…
…and this New York Times video tells us that the regime of the Gropenfuhrer is making it more dangerous for migrants from Mexico trying to get into this country legally or maybe otherwise (stepping up the process of “metering”)…
…and Francis Maxwell tells us about the attack on the actor Jussie Smollett in Chicago (and yeah, these animals were yapping about “MAGA country” or something as noted here - OK, so Generalissimo Trump finally said something about it here...have to play it straight even though he doesn't of course)…
Update 2/21/19: Ugh - what in God's name motivates people to do this stuff (here)?
…and Farron Cousins tells us that Chucky and Davey Koch now apparently haz a sad because people are mad at them…GMAFB!...
Seth Meyers gives us a wrapup on Roger Stone’s indictment (a little behind the news curve I’ll admit, but funny stuff)…
…and Kyle tells us about Howard Schultz supposedly entering the 2020 race for president, and no, I can’t believe we’re even talking about that either (very NSFW…definitely don’t share Kyle’s enthusiasm for Tulsi Gabbard of course, nor for even mentioning Jill Stein or Gary Johnson…”donut Twitter??” And I have to admit that I’ve never heard of “rank choice voting”)…
…and yesterday marked the 55th anniversary of the release of “Dr. Strangelove” (and man oh man, was the DoD mad at Stanley Kubrick for his meticulous depiction of a nuclear air strike, which God willing will exist only in movies from now until the end of time)…
…and I have to admit that I had this tune in mind after watching Kyle’s segment.
Maybe I should be jumping up and down and saying, “Woo Hoo! Wow, Nancy Pelosi sure is Queen Of The Beltway Now, Huh??(!!)”
Well, yeah – it’s great that the shutdown is over, though it sickens me that it’s only for three weeks and we could end up playing this whole stoo-pid game again before long (love to be wrong on that). What matters to me (and I’m sure a bunch of others too) is that hard-working Americans are back on the job providing important services for us that we need and supporting themselves and/or their families again (and hopefully nobody died, was severely hurt, got terribly ill or was evicted from where they live while the shutdown lasted). And I give Nancy Pelosi enough credit to recognize that.
If anybody “won,” it’s the government workers. Everything else to me is Beltway/corporate media/”Drudgico” kabuki and nothing more (and who gives a damn about Ann Coulter? What, did this year suddenly morph into 1994 all of a sudden? I guess I missed that memo).
Though, to be fair, I think we should summarize the nonsense that just took place:
U.S. Senate Republicans vote Yes on a bill with no wall funding – goes to U.S. House still under Repug control, and that disgusting bastard Mr.-Puppy-Dog-Eyes-With-The-Shiv doesn’t even schedule a vote (because he knew it would have passed, but he wanted a cudgel to beat the Dems with as opposed to actually solving a problem).
U.S. Senate Republicans vote again on the same bill and say No – goes to the U.S. House now under Dem control, and they try to get the Dems and Pelosi to support a bill with wall funding to get the Dems to own that goddamn wall, and the House Dems stand tall (and let’s not underestimate how important that was, by the way – good luck if the Senate under Schumer had been put in a position like that).
Now realizing they’ve hopelessly lost the battle for public opinion on this, U.S. Senate Republicans vote AGAIN on the SAME BILL without wall funding and vote YES, and House Dems follow suit and Generalissimo Trump signs off.
With that admitting boring preface out of the way, I thought this was good commentary from the TYT folks…
…and I have to admit that I haven’t given a lot of thought to Dem U.S. Senator Michael Bennet of Colorado, but boy, did he stand up tall against “Tail Gunner Ted” here (more like this – LOTS more!)…
…and it’s pretty damn hilarious to hear the Gropenfuhrer supposedly caring about the “radical left” of the Democratic Party, as Kyle K. tells us (mildly NSFW)…
On the shutdown…as far as I’m concerned, Joy Ann Reid can go to the head of the proverbial class for this (punish EVERY REPUBLICAN for this, people!!! And here is more Privileged Republican Entitlement on display – here also)…
…and even with my limited posting, don’t think I’ve given up on “This Day In Doomsy History” (more or less)– this latest installment is from 1/23/13, in which Dem U.S. Congressman Jim McDermott talked about how ridiculous it was to be debating the debt ceiling (and no, I don’t like debt either, but sometimes you need a reasonable amount of it, and I’ll defer to people like Dean Baker, Brad DeLong and Prof. Krugman on the details), but as far as I’m concerned, this commentary might as well apply to the shutdown also – of course, if you want to cut spending for real, we could talk about sane tax policy and defense budgeting…
…which I’m sure Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez, for one, is more than willing to do, even though, according to Aaron Sorkin, she and others of the freshman Dem class in the U.S. House need to stop acting like kids, or something (Cenk and Ana of TYT explain…GREAT MLK context!)…
…and with the prior clip in mind, “The Majority Report” tells us that The Rev. Dr. William Barber recently spoke in front of Tennessee politicians and let fly (I thought the line about preachers telling their congregation to tithe but not protesting with them for a living wage was particularly good – and yeah, watching that putz Bill Lee just sit there spoke volumes all by itself)…
…and I realize the shutdown has pushed the Russia/Trump stuff off the front pages for now, which I’m sure was completely by design; Seth Meyers reminds us here with the latest on former “fixer” for the Gropenfuhrer Michael Cohen, along with the latest verbal gymnastics from Rudy 91u1iani…
…and every times I press the Publish button on one of these posts, I quietly utter to myself the title of this song.
Joy Reid speaks with Indian tribal elder and Marine Corps Vet Nathan Phillips (who served in Vietnam) about the recent confrontation in D.C. with high school kids who, allegedly, came from a “Catholic” school in Covington, KY (to say this video has gone viral is an understatement)…I’m curious now to find out about this “Black Hebrew Israelites” business; according to Phillips, it actually sounds like he and his group of Native Americans were trying to intercede against this band of stupid little pukes (and I don’t mean the 4 Black Hebrew Israelites…more here)…
…and Kyle K. tells us about government workers turning to GoFundMe pages to get money so they and their families can survive (NSFW...not sure how I can add to Kyle's quite justifiable outrage and disgust) – more here…
…and Thom Hartmann tells us about the book “The Inner Level,” by Richard Wilkinson and Kate Pickett which basically argues that more just societies enable people to live longer, better lives (and I always thought Boris Johnson was a bit of a buffoon, though he certainly was smart enough to worm his way into positions of power in the UK – still, I’d like to send him a box of cornflakes with a message on it to go f*ck himself)…
…and here’s a tune we all know in remembrance of the man whose accomplishments we recognize and celebrate on this day (more here).
