Friday Stuff

(As far as I'm concerned, Generalissimo Trump should be voted out of office for this image alone. It's not just the White House for Republicans. It's not the White House for Democrats. It's not the White House for Independents. It's the White House for EVERYONE!)

I might as well get the bad news out of the way first, though, and that is this clip from Ana and John of TYT.

I hope to God that the alleged geniuses at the DNC pay attention to this; if Biden/Harris think they’re going to win running on empty platitudes, they (and the rest of us) are going to be in for a rude shock on November 4th.

That gang of Trump supporters won’t budge (that usual 30 percent or so, and I’ll never understand how these people sleep at night, but somehow they do...I’m looking at you, Wrightstown and Buckingham, PA in these parts...I’m sure those obnoxious Trump/Pence signs will appear all around your McMansions any day now), and unless Biden/Harris figure out a way to build a coalition of younger and older voters and independents...well, we're just not going to win, unfortunately (to say nothing of this, which is a whole other discussion). You’ve got to make the case to the voters of this country that their lives will be materially better with Democrats in the White House. And oh yeah, Our Orange Pustule also has the power of incumbency on his side, so he can set the agenda, which, sadly in this case, is a formidable weapon.

The climate crisis (and a video on that will appear shortly) should be enough. It isn’t. Our horrific support of the genocide in Yemen should be enough. It isn’t. Kids separated from their families (and no, lying wingnuts, they weren’t separated under Obama) and kept in cages on our border should be enough. It isn’t. Hurricane Maria’s devastation in Puerto Rico should be enough. It isn’t. North Korea and that country’s nuclear threat should be enough. It isn’t. And oh yeah, this (including racial intolerance in our criminal justice system) should be enough. It isn’t. Also, Russians targeting our military for assassination should be enough also (you would think, right?). It isn't. And as far as I'm concerned, trying to start a war with Iran for reasons that made the Gulf of Tonkin resolution look like a model of statesmanship (as well as arbitrarily killing an Iranian military mastermind, even though he was one of the very worst of international actors) should be still more reasons. They aren't.

And oh yeah, you would also think the threat of a 6-3 conservative Supreme Court majority instead of the current 5-4 ratio would be scary enough (I wish RBG would live forever, but she won't), along with the prospect of 45 trying to destroy Social Security by eliminating the payroll tax. See refrain above.

The disastrous non-response of our ruling federal regime to the COVID-19 pandemic should be enough. Well, we’re finding out that that isn’t either. Will the worst economic contraction since The Great Depression be enough? I don’t know the answer to that. And despite what they may say publicly, the DNC and the Biden camp don’t know either (and as I said above, the picture at the top of this post should be enough...yeah, well, the refrain in this post applies to that too).

Stand by for people to attack Moore, who was right about Trump in 2916, for actually taking the threat of Trump seriously, once again. Somehow the same people who call Trump an unprecedented existential threat think it’s bad to mobilize against said threat. https://t.co/ihngoAgWFt

— Katie Halper (@kthalps) August 28, 2020

Update 1 8/29/20: In my Trumpian offense list, I somehow forgot to include Louis DeJoy's efforts to wreck the Post Office, a 240-year-old institution that has served this country admirably from its efforts by committed employees to make sure mail gets delivered on time, as well as Betsy DeVos's complete and total war on public education in this country. And no, I don't believe that will be enough by itself for a Biden/Harris win also.

Update 9/2/20: I also forgot about what our *president is trying to do with the census (here).

So with that admittedly depressing preamble out of the way (along with what Michael Moore just tweeted – the battleground states are very much in play, people), here’s the TYT clip...



Update: And by the way, A LOT more like this...

Daniel Dale is the fact check master and him pointing out all of the lies told by a lying criminal fascist at the GOP hate rally is perfection.pic.twitter.com/B8fn9VKvnC

— Ricky Davila (@TheRickyDavila) August 28, 2020

...and Robert Reich gives us Trump’s 40 broken promises (though, to be fair, the stuff about suing his accusers after he leaves office is still TBD, though that’s a minor point by comparison)...



Update 2 8/29/20: And here is another way to help (speaking of Reich).

...and yeah, “The results sure do speak for themselves,” don’t they, cupcake?...



...and my deepest respect and condolences go to Bill Owens over the loss of his son Ryan – yeah, this is yet another reason not to re-elect the Gropenfuhrer...



...and the Lincoln Project reminds us how Our Orange Pestilence gets played yet again by a leader of another country...



...and I would consider this to be appropraitely scary too...



...and I'll try making the last political clip here a little more upbeat...



...and tomorow marks what would have been the 100th birthday of jazz legend Charlie Parker.

Thursday Stuff

 

I just want to make sure I have this straight...so Jacob Blake goes to his vehicle where his three kids are in the back seat (admittedly, he should have stopped for the cops), then gets shot seven times and ends up paralyzed and he’s the “bad guy” as far as the wingnuts are concerned, but on the other hand, this 17-year-old named Kyle Rittenhouse is apparently driven from Illinois to Wisconsin with an assault weapon (and why the hell does a 17-year-old have a weapon like that?), and he then shoots 2 people who end up dead (don’t want to say anything to prejudice his trial), then walks around with hands raised, and the cops leave him alone, and is then driven home to Illinois, but somehow he’s the “good” guy (here). Is that about right?

What country am I living in again? And oh yeah, apparently this kid was at a Trump rally (here) - big surprise...



...and I would call this a logical response to this insanity...



...and don't think by including this clip that I'm somehow getting a little squishy on The Swanson TV Dinner Heir (particularly in light of this)...



...and I now give you the latest installment of “This Day In Doomsy History” from 8/27/09...that lunatic Glenn Beck (who was too crazy for even Fix Noise), a self-described “Christian,” makes an alleged joke in this video about poisoning a drink he gave to someone pretending to be Dem U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (Beck wasn't included in the prior Carlson video, but he might as well have been)…



...and this Meidas Touch video has a simple message – to end the misery (damn straight)...



...and given the lead news story, I think it's time for this video again.

Wednesday Stuff

 

Jayar Jackson of “The Young Turks” dissects the recent speech from Repug U.S. Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina, along with Cenk (always running that game of trying to sound palatable somehow in between the crazy nonsense - by the way, to help TYT, click here...tyt dot com slash go)...



...and Thom Hartmann gives us yet another timely history lesson on the GOP stoking fear from Nixon to Reagan to Our Treasonous Orange Pustule...and yeah, don’t think 45 and his gang of miscreants and lowlifes aren’t going to try and use the economic crisis from the COVID-19 pandemic to try and get rid of the payroll tax and thus “knee cap” Social Security (here), which, as Thom says, is something the “party of Lincoln” has been trying to accomplish for about, oh, the last 70 years or so...



...and Sam and Jamie of “The Majoirty Report” tell us about Mango Mussolini’s latest attempt to fear monger to suburban women voters (“Who doesn’t love a fig leaf?” – there are so many other ways this idiotic lummox could have riled up his beloved base on this issue to give himself and his party cover, but as noted in the video, he’s too dumb fortunately to even know how to do that...I wish I had a nickel for every time I heard Republicans get the vapors about Section 8 housing when I was growing up in the Philly suburbs)...



...oh, but the Gropenfuhrer hires “the best people”...uh huh, suuuure...



...and I suppose one of those “best people” would be Kellyanne Conjob...I hope everything works out with her family, but otherwise, this harlequin gets not one spec of sympathy from me...in addition to all the Trumpian crap we’ve had to endure from her, I saw her act on “Real Time with Bill Maher” enough to become just about physically nauseated...



...and I know I’m a little late on this clip of Postmaster General Louis DeJoy quite rightly getting interrogated from Dem U.S. House Rep Stephen Lynch, who of course, being the liar he is (DeJoy I mean) casually disregards what Lynch says (pretty much trying to run out the clock on Lynch’s allotted five minutes – and I wonder why that is exactly? Why shouldn’t DeJoy have been grilled for longer than that? Since they’re in the majority, don’t the Dems make up the rules on stuff like this?)...



...and yeah, it looks like Our Tiny-Handed Russian Operative in An Oval Office is building his damn wall after all...



...and yeah, I guess this pretty much says it, right?

Tuesday Stuff

This might be the best (and scariest) video I’ve yet seen of what you might call the “rabid underbelly” of Trumpism, on full display to the world this week unfortunately (YouTube flagged this clip as “inappropriate or offensive” – sorry you're so offended by the actual truth)…



...though, as John and Francesca Fiorentini of "The Damage Report" tell us, the goal, if you want to call it that, of this Republican convention will be to install Dear Leader as the nominee and probably accomplish not much else ("Uday and Qusay" - funny)...



…and with all of the garbage people inhabiting this administration (Pence, Giuliani, Mnuchin, Kushner, Ivanka, McEnany, DeJoy), it’s not hard to lose sight of Betsy DeVos, but she’s right up there on this list of miscreants too (and trying to unseat Gary Peters too by supporting this guy - to help Peters, click here)…



...and Paul Romer is my latest hero du jour for this exchange with that guttersnipe Stuart Varney (right out of the Roger Ailes playbook - keep interrupting the guy when he's trying to make a point...Varney is such a POS...and by the way, here is a lie from Larry Kudlow and here is a lie from Stephen Moore - could probably have found many others, but life is short)...



Update: And here is another Kudlow lie.

...and apparently, police shooting dogs is an actual thing in Detroit (a disturbing clip)…just no words at a certain point; the giveaway for me is the reaction of the woman in the video like “here we go again” (glad David Doel brings a little more clarity to the “Defund the Police” slogan, which I still don’t like, though I agree with the goal behind it)…



...and happy 66th birthday to The Living Elvis.

Monday Stuff

(By the way, I know the Kenosha, Wisconsin shooting of Jacob Blake is quite rightly the lead story today...I for sure don't have any particularly brilliant "hot take" to share except 1) Why didn't this guy stop when police had guns drawn? 2) Why didn't one of the cops on the scene block him when he tried to get something out of the vehicle? and 3) WHY THE HELL WAS HE SHOT SEVEN FREAKING TIMES??!! And yes, I realize there will be MUCH MORE to come on this.)

Update 8/25/20: Well, when somebody gets shot seven times, this, tragically, is a logical result (and I don't want to hear this shit "But there was a warrant.").

Returning to this week's Repug National Hate Fest...as you watch an assorted gaggle of Republicans pay homage to the Gropenfuhrer this week, I would ask that you keep the following video in mind (here)…



…and Brian Tyler Cohen tells us about a formerly-secret phone call between 45’s niece Mary Trump and his sister, Maryanne Trump Barry (didn’t know about the Fordham stuff, though I’m sure it’s a good school and I don’t mean to impugn the institution here)…



...and speaking of Mango Mussolini's family, I thought this was a pretty good mashup of Uday Trump Jr.'s BS and some of what has transpired to date...



Update: Typical criminal behavior (here)...

…and Farron Cousins tells us that there are some particularly cowardly U.S. House Republicans getting ready to toss Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy under the bus…”yeah, we’re going to leak this to the WaPo, but sssshhhh” (wonder if that group includes this guy?)….



…and as long as I’m commenting on this year’s Teahadists/MAGA heads/whatever, I thought I’d add this clip of legendary CBS newsman Edward R. Murrow speaking out against Sen. Joseph McCarthy because of Murrow’s tag line at the very end (“The fault, dear Brutus,” which I considered in response to this)…yes, Murrow was speaking out against McCarthy’s efforts to vilify people for alleged Communist sympathies, and that may seem a bit of out context, but I think it’s apropos because, based on the results of the poll I linked to, there are people who need to get their heads together, you might say, in considering the “party of Lincoln” and its response to the COVID pandemic in this country, in the same manner as they needed to reframe themselves a bit in response to McCarthy’s antics, which ruined lives and careers…



…and given that I’ve spent a lot of time here responding to the “R” party, I think I should devote a little time to the “D” party now also… Jon Capehart talks with The Rev. William Barber about the Dems addressing the needs of the working poor in the US, which, I would venture to say, encompasses most of this country (I know the John Lewis Voting Rights Act is stuck on the desk of The Grim Reaper in the Senate, and here is a list of other legislation currently in the same circumstance…God, I wish the Dems would beat this drum, as it were, over and over and over)…



…and David Doel tells us how Nancy Pelosi’s endorsement of Joe Kennedy apparently backfired – ridiculous to think about all of the money set on fire for this stupid campaign from Kennedy that could be put to MUCH BETTER use for other contests (every time I see the face of Cheri Bustos, I’m tempted to punch my monitor…the last minute and a half of this segment is REALLY important)…



…and I feel duly obligated to include this song as part of my summer selections.

Sunday Stuff

 

I most definitely do not share the same political allegiance as the good folks portrayed in this clip (aside from the top of the electoral ticket I mean), but I personally want to thank all of them for speaking up on behalf of Joe Biden as they’ve done in this video (I'd like for all of us to keep this clip in mind as the rhetoric is unleashed this week at the Repug National Hatefest, which I'm sure will be more bilious and contemptible than we can imagine)…



…and there was once a time on this site when I had the bandwidth to focus on international events, but I rarely have that now…all the same, I wanted to include this CBC News report on Alexei Navalny, who, potentially, was another poisoning victim at the hands of Our Former Ol’ Buddy Vlad Putin (something else for Number 45 not to inquire about when he interacts yet again with the monster pulling his puppet strings...more here)...



…and I’ll tell you straight up that if you want to find out more on this little dustup between Wingnut Wonder Boy Ben Shapiro and Cardi B, this is not the site to learn about that (though more is here...kind of gross I'll admit, but hey, whatever)…the only reason why I’m even mentioning it at all is because I thought this little number was pretty funny (best parody since Dubstep took apart Billo over his on-camera meltdown)…

…OK, now that I’m actually paying attention to this (which I wouldn’t if it weren’t for this hilarious parody in the clip below), this whole thing reminds me of the ’04 Super Bowl halftime insanity with Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake and OMIGOD WHITE BREAD AMERICA SAW A TIT AND NOW WE’RE LOSING OUR MINDS!!! (and yeah, I always thought that was completely staged by the Repugs to stoke their beloved “base” yet again for no good reason)…



...and I don't think there is one thing that is controversial about this summer selection.

Saturday Stuff

 

I would call this a pretty well-done response to Our Traitorous Orange Pestilence on his latest outburst at Goodyear workers in Ohio over not allowing MAGA gear, or something…



…and on the subject of the Democratic nominee for president – yes, once more let me point out that I KNOW these people are yesterday’s and probably tomorrow’s Republicans, but they keep churning out good ads…



...and John I. and Brett Erlich of “The Damage Report” tell us about some tepid approval for Biden from The Roger Ailes BS Factory (Chris Wallace is a bit of an exception I’ll admit)…



…and David Pakman gives us some embarrassing numbers on Trump’s handling of coronavirus, for 45 I mean (and I use the term “handling” loosely) along with some clear-eyed commentary about the life forms who, despite it all, still support this clown (last 2 minutes of this video are promos)…



…and this is kind of a long-winded setup by Sam on Trump’s supposedly brilliant idea to make Jeff Bezos of Amazon pay for the U.S. Post Office (I think Jamie nailed it; “enact a wealth tax to own the libs”)…



…and Nicolle Wallace tells us about the latest Trumpian grifter, Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, and his Senate testimony yesterday (I think DeJoy is just straight-up lying, and leave it to the Senate Dems to cut through the BS – why the hell should ANYBODY believe a word from any liar in this ruling regime of frauds and criminals?...Wallace speaks with Ronald Stroman, former Deputy Postmaster General - the last minute of this is enraging, and I’m not trying to attack Wallace or Stroman when I say that)…



...and I definitely believe the prior clip is a motivation to follow up in accordance with this one...



...and I can't remember the last time I put up a real rockin' tune (another one is coming up in a few days), so I'd like to address that here (something kind of apropos for a summer Saturday night, though I don't encourage violence I wish to emphasize).

Friday Stuff

David Doel gives us an update on our regularly scheduled plague and Wonder Boy Jared’s response when questioned by Wolf Blitzer on our COVID-19 casualties; great point by Doel about the media focusing on deaths, which is understandable, but not so much on the debilitating effects of the virus upon survivors (tempting to lose the capacity for outrage after all of the ruin inflicted by the Trump Regime, though we have to fight that even though it is exhausting at times…makes me want to spit on the “fundies” and everyone else who supports these criminals as justification for their own hatred)…



…and I know I touched on Mango Mussolini and the Ohio/Goodyear stuff yesterday, but I don’t think it’s harmful to do so again here (and once again, I know these people are yesterday’s and probably tomorrow’s Republicans, but these ads are good)…



…and Cenk and Ana bring us a wrapup of the 2020 Dem Convention; I’m glad Biden seemed to do well in his speech, but I’ll be taking a closer look at the platform over the coming days, since that’s more germane to what’s going on now as opposed to loud, upbeat noises, balloons, etc…as far as I’m concerned (along with many others), 45 is an existential threat to our entire system of government and thus our country as a whole, and the messaging from the Dems should reflect that, and I know it didn’t for the most part…still, though, it was apparently a good show overall…



…and I thought this was a pretty good Meidas Touch video encompassing all of the criminal history of the Trump regime, including the most recent charges against Steve Bannon…



…and Thom H. speaks with Rick Perlstein, whose new book is “Reagan Land”…sync is off again here…didn’t know that about George Will and the ’80 debate between Reagan and Carter, with Will helping Reagan with the stolen Carter briefing book, but it definitely fits the profile…easy on the “loaves and fishes” remark there, OK? And wow, Edmund Burke exposed conservatism that long ago – learn something new every day…



…and this Now This clip features Jainey K. Bavishi, Director of the NYC Office of Resiliency, on the impact of climate change in that area; sounds to me like the “Office of Resiliency” on this should be a cabinet-level position in the federal government…



…and I know there was a recent, comparative blip in the news about an alleged peace deal between Israel and the UAE, but Kyle (bringing us a clip from Ali Velshi) tells us that it pretty much kissed off the Palestinians; yeah, I’m sure this is something else Our Traitorous Orange Pustule will try to crow about, but any deal worth anything has to have something in it for ALL PARTIES, and this most certainly doesn’t…



...and I know I alluded to Stephen Stills yesterday also for that Monday DNC moment for which he was not to blame in any way, so I thought that was a good excuse to feature one of his many great tunes.

Thursday Stuff

 

Looks like Former President Hopey Changey did what he may do best last night, and that was to deliver another epic speech at a political convention, though President Obama did many, many things well during his two terms in office, something we’re reminded of every day as we watch Our Orange Pestilence strut around like the pretender he truly is (this makes up for the Monday weirdness involving Stephen Stills, though I’m not blaming Stills I hasten to emphasize)…



…and if you had any doubts as to why that utter tool Chuck Todd has fallen from favor at The Comcast Network, I think this interview with Maine Independent Sen. Angus King gives you a bit of a clue ("What took you so long?," huh...and oh, by the way, you know all that Russia stuff that the Trump gang kept denying over and over? The stuff from the Special Counsel Robert Mueller investigation? Well, in case anyone still had any doubts at this point…yeah, it all was damn true)…



…and speaking of Generalissimo Trump, Farron Cousins tells us here that 45 called for a boycott of Goodyear because they won’t carry MAGA hats, or something (yeah, great move by Mango Mussolini to try and kiss off Ohio – thanks loads)…



…and returning to our regularly scheduled pandemic, this tells us that young people are bearing the brunt in increasing numbers, partly because of not following mask guidelines, social distancing, etc. (and also partly because adults running educational institutions are idiots)…



...and speaking of the COVID-19 outbreak, this incident happened not far from Le Manse Doomsy – glad to see those two get what they deserved for beating up that poor kid working at Sesame Place who should be commended for doing a good job (here)…



...and here's kind of a newer, spacier tune that hopefully can mellow everything out a bit.

Wednesday Stuff

(And in case you somehow think that this pic is hyperbole, consider that the thread between these two is this guy.)

Farron Cousins tells us that Our Orange Pestilence recently retweeted someone who said that “Democrat” cities should rot; interesting electoral strategy I have to admit (or, as “Tail Gunner Joe” once said, always emphasize the “rat”…more here)…



…and John I. and Francesca of “The Damage Report” tell us about a CNN poll on the presidential election that’s kind of swinging around all over the place; I don’t think it should be ignored either, but we should just keep it in context, as they do in this clip…



…and I now give you the latest installment of “This Day In Doomsy History” (more or less), and we’re taking another short trip back to 8/17/18 this time; Kyle K. tells us just how bad it was for us to pull out of the Iran nuke deal, which led to this most recent U.S. humiliation on the world stage (yeah, that baboon Mike Pompeo wanted to keep the Iran Arms Embargo in place even though it was part of a deal we abrogated…just say “oops” and get out…and don’t think this regime of fools and frauds won't try to ratchet up tensions again before an election, since they have quite literally nothing else to run on… NSFW/H towards the end)...



…and goddamn, this ad is freaking brilliant (harking back to this – William Bogert, the guy featured in the Goldwater ad, died last January)…



…and speaking of confessions, I should let you know that I’m really not paying a lot of attention to the Democratic Convention, but I definitely wanted to include this video from Brian Tyler Cohen about Michelle Obama’s speech on Monday night, if for no other reason than because she pissed off so many of the usual right-wing suspects (here – she should wear that as a badge of honor)…



…and I’m continuing to work my way through my summer tunes list with this number.

Monday Stuff

“No justice, no peace” for Louis DeJoy as far as I’m concerned also; Brian Tyler Cohen explains…



...and I know I've said this before a bunch of times already, and I'll keep saying it as long as I have to - I know this bunch is made up of past-and-I'm-sure-future Republicans, but I wish the Dems had the same instinct for the political jugular that they do (and never, ever stop trying to take down this narcissistic lunatic and ALL of his enablers, including this guy)...



...and on the subject of illegality from Our Orange Pestilence, I give you this once more..



…and here just a reminder in case we’d somehow forgotten about our regularly scheduled plague (here - and it looks like Our Treasonous Orange Pustule is trying to use his "big brain" again here)…



…and Farron Cousins tells us here that Sen. Mr. Elaine Chao is doing his best to cause another recession (to do something about #midnightmoscowmitch at long last, as well as his same-party playmates, click here)…



…and Thom Hartmann claims here that Republicans, on balance, destroy jobs and Dem, on balance, create them (I have to admit, though, that I didn’t know about the ’99-’00 job losses under Clinton… kind of an awkward cut - don't know what question Thom "raised in the first hour"… a little more detail on Thom's claim can be found here, particularly in the second graph, though this doesn't contain the job numbers for Obama's second term, and I think you can pretty much consider anything under 45 to have gone up in smoke by now)...



…and Sam, Jamie and Matt from “The Majority Report” tell us just how stoo-pid Tommy Tuberville is, running for the Alabama U.S. Senate seat currently (and perilously) held by Doug Jones, which is a shame because, from what I see, Jones is doing the best job he can…as far as I’m concerned, this is a particular corn-fed, deep fried version of Trumpism (and drinking a little too much of that Conecuh Ridge Whiskey apparently too), but it’s Trumpism all the same (so many lies about alleged mismanagement of blue states which have been proven wrong over and over and over, blowing off those victimized medically and financially by the pandemic Trump and the Repugs completely bungled, more ridiculous BS about trying to run this country “like a business” – yeah, by the guy who utterly crapped all over the businesses he couldn’t even manage himself, etc. – sickening that the odd are so stacked in favor of this Tuberville clown)…



...and with the USPS featured so prominently in the news (and rightly so), karma is telling me to include this tune.

Saturday Stuff

 

Rachel Maddow reports here on the push-back against Repug hi-roller and Trump enabler Louis DeJoy and his quest to utterly wreck the Post Office…yes, it’s great that making noise worked, and hopefully it will continue to do so, but the ONLY way to fix this for real is not to just get rid of the people responsible for it, but everyone who enabled them also (many of whom are on this list, in particular #midnightmoscowmitch as noted here)…



…and Brian Tyler Cohen tells us about Chris Wallace talking with a Fox News mannequin about the Kamala Harris VP pick...very Repug-centric talking points of course since we’re talking about The Roger Ailes BS Factory, but I think Wallace’s assessment was otherwise pretty good…I wish I could take issue with what he said about Harris and Medicare for All, but I have to admit that he’s right…she’s still an outstanding choice for a host of other reasons, though (and I’m sure that, when she debates Mike Pence’s, he’s going to be “clutching pearls” and reaching for the fainting couch like crazy)…



…and I guess it was totally predictable that “birtherism” would return with the Harris pick, and given a platform by Newsweek, which is utter trash for doing so, as David Pakman tells us…



…and I was remiss earlier in not mentioning that yesterday was the 85th anniversary of the signing of Social Security into law; I thought this video explained it a bit, but you might have to turn up the volume...and how typical of The Sainted Ronnie R to, in essence, cut the benefit and raise the age of eligibility (more on Social Security and the Dem-controlled U.S. House is here – the subcommittee in charge is under the Ways and Means committee; I have a lot of issues with Richard Neal, but we are where we are I know...to help Neal's primary opponent Alex Morse, click here)…



…and John and Francesca Fiorentini explain a recent executive order by the Gropenfuhrer on the eviction crisis…well, sort of…on second thought, naaaah…



…and I’m continuing to work my way down the list of summer tunes with this selection (#1 on this day in 1966).

Friday Stuff

 

Yeah, “It’ll be fixed, it’ll be rigged” all right – more projection from Generalissimo Trump on all the havoc he’s unleashing at the Post Office…



…and continuing with this theme, Trump’s lackey Louis DeJoy is trying to remove mail sorting equipment to screw up the Post Office…and not a word in response from ANYBODY of the “party of Lincoln” (and the reason for the money problems with the Post Office are explained here; of course, a fix was proposed by U.S. House Dems (H.R. 2382), but it’s stuck on the desk of Sen. Grim Reaper of Kentucky…to do something about #midnightmoscowmitch and his same-party pals, click here)…



Update 8/15/20: And speaking of stuff stuck on the desk of Sen. Mr. Elaine Chao, let's not forget this (and I think this about says it)...to do something about it, click here and here.

…and Rachel Maddow covers this also; maybe this is overkill on my part, but I think this story requires it, and why do I feel like the regime of the Gropenfuhrer isn’t going to care about a sternly worded letter from Sen. Amy Klobuchar and other Senate Democrats, well intentioned though that may be? And yes, I realize Dems can’t do much more about this, particularly in the U.S. Senate…and yeah, just “recycle” political mail such as absentee ballot applications if they don’t get delivered, right? What could go wrong?…



…and this gripping New York Times video gives us an insight into what some of the health care workers in “the big apple” are dealing with when it comes to treating COVID patients; maybe I’m not looking in the right places on my teevee, but I don’t see stories like this, so I think I should call them out here…



…and yeah, about COVID-19, this damn sure didn’t need to happen of course…44 warned us, as noted here (along with the aftermath from Our Traitorous Orange Pustule)…



…and returning to the political campaign stuff, John I. and Jayar Jackson tell us more on how Dem U.S. House Rep Ilhan Omar of Minnesota defeated a well-funded primary challenger to keep her seat…



…and Seth Meyers gives us kind of a “turbo” version of the monologue (yeah, it’s a day or so behind the news cycle I know, but still has some stuff worth noting…disgusting that Dr. Fauci has to provide security for his family – I’d love to see all these Trumpian life forms rounded up and carted off to immigration detention facilities on the border where we’re still detaining kids, and let the kids go of course – pretty much what both deserves at this point)…



...and I need something a little upbeat and life-affirming - hope this works for you too.

Wednesday Stuff

 

Eugene Robinson on “Morning Joe” doesn’t go all the way there, referring to the US as an “s-hole” country, but we do know what he means of course, given that we are international pariahs for making a total hash out of responding to the COVID-19 pandemic (here)...



…and I’m not sure about the authenticity of these numbers about LGBTQ voters in 2016 – if this is true, then this is one hell of an outreach failure by those alleged political geniuses at the DNC – but our fellow Americans with diverse gender identification should vote like the rest of us this fall, like our lives depend on it (and I could never imagine how literally true that statement would ever be); also, the Dem ticket needs to address their concerns by fighting garbage like this…



…and speaking of the Biden/Harris ticket, I thought this was some pretty clear-eyed commentary from Cenk and Ana – yes, absolutely support them, get them elected God willing, and then after that, hold their feet to the fire if necessary, and it probably will be.

…also, like you I’m sure, I took a look at the list of speakers for the Dem virtual convention, and I saw the name of Chris Coons – yeah, I get it that he’s from Delaware like Biden, but Chris freaking Coons? Joe Lieberman 2.0? Geez…



…and I’m sorry I'm a little late with this one, but Cori Bush recently took down longtime Dem incumbent William Lacy Clay in a Missouri Dem primary – looks like “the squad” has a new member, which is great news (and once again, that allegedly baad “socialist” Bernie Sanders was right…and I’m sorry, but running on “defund the police” is an electoral loser…I don’t disagree with the sentiment, and I for sure think we need to be smarter about police vs. social spending, but the messaging stinks, and unfortunately that’s the only thing many voters care about…and speaking of “the squad,” this definitely is good news, and conversely, this tells us what direction the “party of Lincoln” is taking)…



…and Kyle K. tells us that cops in San Diego used a 102-year-old statute on “seditious language” as a reason to cite somebody – forward into the past!...



...and RIP Wayne Fontana of the Mindbenders.

Tuesday Stuff

 

Uh oh – looks like Cadet Bone Spurs is tripping over his lies again, this time on VA Choice (a bipartisan bill signed into law in 2014, and not by the Gropenfuhrer of course)…



…and yeah, it looks like Our Russian Operative in An Oval Office totally bungled American history again, as John I. and Emma Vigeland tell us….”oh yeah, there go those libs again with their…facts…and their…data…who do they think they are??!!”…



…and yeah, Repugs, if you think it’s so dangerous to vote absentee by mail, then just don’t bother, OK? (Ana Kasparian discusses with Wonsy Lambre…yeah, I know the numbers are better, but I see all that red on that map and I want to puke…and please watch the “leaning Democrat,” Ana)…



…and given what I think is the great news that Joe Biden has FINALLY made a VP selection (and I think he made a fine choice in Kamala Harris), I thought it would be a good idea to bring back this clip of Harris politely duking it out with Repug U.S. Senate assclown John Cornyn over a typically idiotic crime bill from the “party of Lincoln” (to help the ticket, click here – can’t wait to see Harris go after that alleged human being Mike Pence, he of the utterly dripping holier-than-thou sanctimony...and oh yeah, to do something about Cornyn and some of his other same-party pals, please click here)…



…and I give Thom Hartmann credit (along with his astute caller) for revisting this bit of Democratic history (and speaking of vice presidents…not making assumptions about Harris at this point I wish to emphasize) on FDR’s longtime VP Henry Wallace…I don’t completely agree with everything Oliver Stone posits in this fine series, but he devotes a lot of time to Wallace, and rightly so, and I think Stone’s take on how Wallace got totally jobbed by the Dem bosses in ’44 in favor of Harry Truman is spot-on (Wallace went to Latin America to get their support against the Axis powers in WWII, and Wallace ended up being wildly successful)…would Wallace have dropped the bomb(s)? Kind of interesting historical speculation, something like “would 9/11 have happened if Al Gore were president”…also interesting to speculate on exactly what would have happened if Russia had invaded Japan in WWII – again, an argument to be made that that would have taken place and that’s the real reason why Japan gave up, but I’m sorry – maybe I have a blind spot, but as I said a couple of days ago, we didn’t start the damn war, so I don’t oppose dropping the bombs…



…and it’s certainly warm out enough for another seasonal tune (and kind of a retro one I know), so here goes.

Monday Stuff

I know that at a certain point we’re pretty much restating the obvious with this, especially since we’re now talking about the Gropenfuhrer and his “executive orders” which of course highlight his demented pre-schooler’s notions of how our government works…yeah, payroll tax “relief” is intended pretty much to try and starve Social Security, which Republicans have wanted for about 80 years…and besides, as others smarter than I have noted, what the hell good does payroll tax relief do when you no longer have a job in the first place? (and sure, climate change is such a "hoax," right?)...



…and Rachel Maddow tells us in this clip what Our Orange Pestilence is basically trying to do for the upcoming election 1) Try to wreck the Post Office in anticipation of big numbers of mail-in ballots coming, 2) Run up bogus third-party candidates to try and siphon votes, and 3) Use the latest Russian operative to try and gather dirt on Joe Biden and used Sens. RoJo and Grasshole to propagate it into the congressional record (what country am I living in again?...and related to 1), she discusses the recent "Friday Night Massacre")…



…and Brett Erlich and Ben Dixon of TYT tell us about CNN’s Erin Burnett handing Trumpster Peter Navarro his lunch over the latter's invocation of Dilbert cartoonist Scott Adams in defense of hydroxychloroquine...yeah, I think this breaks the stoo-pid meter (and yeah, I would say that we need yet another investigation into how Navarro got all of these damn pills that don't effectively treat COVID-19, and who paid for them - probably not hard to guess)…



…and I now give you the latest installment of “This Day In Doomsy History” (more or less) from 8/9/16… Sam Seder speaks with his daughter about a 10-year-old boy yelling “take the bitch down,” with the approval of his mother of course, aimed at Hillary Clinton at a Trump rally, back when the lying, rudeness, profanity, racism and misogyny of the Trump gang was still just a disgusting novelty and not a sickening ongoing characteristic of our political culture, yet…



…and Farron Cousins brings us another study telling us that Fix Noise is trying to break our brains – his point about trying to obtain different viewpoints is a good one, and I honestly would go to sites like National Review Online, The Weekly Standard, Townhall, AEI, and the Murdoch Street Journal before the pay wall, but honestly, these people were such utterly shameless liars that I eventually gave up…



...and it's been awhile since I included a "relationship" song from this century, so here goes - hope you like it.

Friday Stuff

David Pakman’s description of the latest gonzo presser from Our Orange Dictator as “weaponized ignorance and aggressive delusion” is maybe the best summary of these nutty encounters with the Fourth Estate that I’ve yet heard – every once in a while, I guess I need to pay attention to these utter train wrecks, and I think Pakman’s commentary is spot on…



…and John and Jayar Jackson talk about the back-and-forth between Capitol Hill and the Gropenfuhrer about some kind of a relief bill…something as close as possible to this is best, but don’t hold your breath…great point towards the end about what it literally our $$ getting paid into this government that people suffering from COVID-related misery need more of at this moment…



Update: I believe Pelosi not necessarily because I trust her that much, but because behavior like this from that "Freedom Caucus" puke Mark Meadows is pretty much par for the wretched course.

…and speaking of folks in need of assistance from our current economic crisis, Farron Cousins tells us that FLA Repug Guv Ron DeSantis basically threw Lex Luthor Scott under the proverbial bus recently – no honor among thieves, obviously…



…and this Now This video discusses a recent Lincoln Project ad about the response to the COVID outbreak from Our Orange Pustule…



…and speaking of The Lincoln Project, this clip gives “Wonder Boy” Jared Kushner the smack he deserves…



…and this great ad from Really American features the ringing voice of clarity and freedom from the recently departed Dem U.S. House Rep and civil rights marcher John Lewis speaking out about the importance of voting, something particularly timely given the recent anniversary of signing the now-gutted-by-the-High-Court-of-Hangin'-Judge-JR Voting Rights Act into law 55 years ago (of course, the John Lewis Voting Rights Act Renewal is one of the MANY bills stuck on the desk of Sen. Mr. Elaine Chao - to do something about that, click here)…



Update: And speaking of elections, I haven't forgotten about the PA-01 contest coming up this year (video after the Purple Heart post...and to help Christina Finello running against Bri-Fi, click here).

The only FBI Special Agent in Congress @RepBrianFitz a specialist in FOREIGN CORRUPTION yet he's 100% SILENT on RUSSIAN BOUNTIES@RepBrianFitz doesn't even possess the basic respect to wear a mask during #COVID19 around our Veterans

He really doesn't care#VoteHimOut#PA01 pic.twitter.com/0iTTFkUE7d

— Melza B (@immelza) August 7, 2020

…and Seth Meyers brings us a wrap-up of recent news from a few days ago (don't see any books this time - and hey, watch it with those “third child” jokes, OK :-)…




…and speaking of anniversaries, yesterday marked the 75th one of the dropping of the “A” bomb on Hiroshima, and Sunday marks the same for Nagasaki (here) – I may end up losing liberal brownie points for saying that, as horrible as that was, I don’t oppose it since we didn’t start the damn war…I DEFINITELY have an issue with everything we did in the aftermath, however, setting off all of the dangerous brinksmanship that led up to the present day…with all of the horrors of our current regime, one that I guess it’s not hard to overlook is the abrogation of all of our treaties (with this definitely in mind), which often happens under Republican administrations, one of the many reasons why they should NEVER be given power, executive, legislative, judicial…you name it…there are a couple of quick “F” blasts in this tune, just so you know.

Wednesday Stuff

The photo in this post is of students from a high school in North Paulding High School in Dallas, GA which recently reopened as you can see. As you can also see, you can count the number of masked students on one hand and probably have fingers left over (with no social distancing either).

Am I blaming the kids? No, particularly when the cases of COVID-19 will likely tick up and they’ll have to close the school all over again.

Am I blaming the adults for opening the school? I sure as hell am.

Like many of you I’m sure, my parents grew up during the Great Depression and World War II. I know people like Tom Brokaw (who my dad always thought was a fake) have made an industry out of mythologizing those of that era as “The Greatest Generation.” And yeah, I think there’s something to that, though I know there are others of that era who thought they were just doing what they were called on to do and shouldn’t be put on a pedestal (my folks definitely leaned towards the latter category).

I’m mentioning this because I always wondered what would happen if and when MY generation was called upon to face some calamitous event affecting the entire country. Would WE pull together out of a sense of national purpose and make the needed sacrifices? Would WE act in the best interests of future generations (a question already answered when it comes to climate change, unfortunately) as well as other world nations, a community to which we most definitely belong by default?

I think our response to the COVID-19 pandemic gives us the answer, sadly (and the end of this video is a punch in the gut, as it should be...yeah, blame the Gropenfuhrer too, but if President Hillary Clinton had told the whole country to mask up, do you honestly believe people wouldn't have still flipped out at Walmart anyway?)…



Update: Ugh...

Update 8/6/20: And apparently the kid who took this picture was suspended (noted near the end here, though it hasn't been confirmed yet) - God, adults can be stoo-pid sometimes!

Update 8/7/20: OK, I guess this is confirmation.

Update 8/8/20: It's about time - suspension never should have happened anyway.

Update 8/9/20: Color me shocked - not (here).

…and oh yeah, speaking of future generations, Our Orange Pestilence continues to wage war against the environment, as noted in this clip…



…and Chris Hayes tells us here that Nevada is automatically sending mail-in ballots to registered voters, and guess how Mango Mussolini reacted (not hard to figure out)…



…and Sam and Jamie of “The Majority Report” continue discussing that topic…I wish the show would mention not just the name of the bill that created this ridiculous unfunded liability for the post office, but also the fact that the current Democratic U.S. House passed H.R. 2382 to fix this mess, which of course is sitting on the desk of The Grim Reaper and not going anywhere as long as Repugs are in charge of either body of Congress – more here…and yeah, let’s not get all gushy about Chris Wallace temporarily pushing back against yet another Trumpian liar, this Jason Miller clown, about how supposedly unreliable the post office is…



…and like you also I’m sure, I’m hearing that Sen. Mr. Elaine Chao may tell the U.S. Senate (including many on this list) to go home later this week with no action on the HEROES Act, so I’m replaying this homemade video – I also saw a poll that has Sen. Grim Reaper leading Amy McGrath by 17 points…if I were McGrath, I would initiate a series of meetings with Charles Booker and find out how to leverage his support with particular policies related to the economy and criminal justice affecting African Americans, and then I would fire everyone on her campaign staff and let Booker’s people run the show…she outspent Booker 2-1 in the primary and still barely won, while his campaign came out of nowhere to challenge her – sounds like one political camp knows what they’re doing and the other doesn’t (and yeah, I’m sure “good ol’ boy” racism/sexism is in play here, but there’s racism and sexism ALL OVER THIS COUNTRY)…



...and I always associate this song with summer - hope it works for you too.

Monday Stuff

OK people, I know you’re smart because you’re reading this (heh), so I’ll make this as clear as I can. The Repugs don’t have a health care plan. They have NEVER had a health care plan. They NEVER WILL HAVE a health care plan. Anything else they say contrary to that is simply more lies…



…and when it comes to health care, I think Kyle is exactly right – this Biden ad is a punch in the gut aimed right at Mango Mussolini, which is exactly what he deserves; that little virus that is killing so damn many of us and making the rest of us sick is an issue that (if you’ll excuse the expression) “Trumps” everything else (and I don't completely share Kyle's rosy outlook for November - when everything is said and done and counted, then I'll get ready for a victory lap, but not one second before)…



…and in the matter of entitlements that we pay into, I never thought I’d give The Gipper credit for anything, but this clip is spot-on (yeah, I know he once made that stoo-pid recording about “socialized medicine,” but his words are entirely correct here – and to do something about Sen. Mr. Elaine Chao and his lies at long last, click here, included on this list)…



…and I know The Lincoln Project is full of yesterday’s (and probably tomorrow’s) Republicans, but for now they continue to do good work, as is apparent in this clip…



…and with all of the COVID-19 stuff and the related economic calamity taking place, it’s easy to forget the brazen lawlessness of Our Orange Pustule in An Oval Office, and I think this homemade clip reminds us of that (a lot of words I know, but they all matter...and let's not forget about this either)…



...and happy 94th birthday to the incomparable Tony Bennett; good luck trying to find just one tune from his collection of legendary hits, but I settled on this (also resisted the most obvious selection for now).