Friday Stuff

This clip from CNN reminds me once more why I generally try to avoid corporate media; Dana Bash hosts a report from Manu Raj about Tangerine Palpatine telling his minions on Capitol Hill not to approve a bipartisan immigration deal; namely, because like the rest of his wretched party, "Diaper Don" wants the issue to run on in the election as opposed to solving the problem, with “The Mittster” giving away the game a bit...I know what Bash means by “this great stuff,” but let’s just say that that’s a highly inapt phrase for this story, OK (with Melanie Zanona and Josh Dawsey, along with the utterly odious Ramesh Ponnuru, who, let’s not forget, is a “senior analyst” with AEI...that line about Biden allegedly not having the will to deal with the border issue is utter horsesh*t...there’s a reason why I don’t have too many clips from “the most trusted name in news,” and as I watch this, I’m remembering that once more...and on this issue, who, pray tell Dana, are “the hard liners on the left?”)...



...and in a bit of a similar vein, this New York Times video suggests that we need to get back to 1980 on immigration...I have an issue with this clip blaming AOC and Michael Bloomberg for “moving away from the center” on immigration at about 6:20...sounds to me like they were expressing basic human decency, and the “center” only moved because the other side went totally batsh*t insane...more disingenuous corporate media framing IMO...this video also con-vee-niently overlooks the demonization of immigrants from wingnut media, Flush Limbore in particular – guess it would be impolite to mention that, huh?...



..and when it comes to Dementia J. Trump trying to win back the White House, I think this video speaks volumes (yes, it’s the Lincoln Project again, yesterday’s Republicans, don’t give them $$$ but it's up to you, blah blah blah)...



...and Thom Hartmann asks “Does the GOP Want to Kill The Poor?” (again, if you have to ask, you probably know the answer already)...sounds like KY is trying to pass a law allowing property owners to murder anybody who happens to stumble onto their front lawns, or something, just like Jesus would do, right? And why am I not one damn bit surprised to see that this hateful garbage came from some “glibertarian think tank” (the “Cicero Institute”)? And good for Thom to present actual facts and data explaining how these damn hedge funds buy up lots of housing, turn them into rental properties, and drive the cost of rents out of sight to the point where homelessness becomes a problem, tied to the 2008 crash (and yeah, The Sainted Ronnie R emptying the mental hospitals, including Byberry in these parts, sure is part of this awful equation also)...



...and I know I shouldn’t be the least bit surprised to find out once more what an utter pissant Jamie Dimon is, but fortunately, Robert Reich reminds us of that once more in this video...



...and Mike Figueredo of The Humanist Report discusses the wingnut hysteria over Maine’s trans refugee bill, which is a direct response to trans criminalization in other states...and I’d heard about the garbage with Chaya Raichik getting that position in Oklahoma to ban books, which is also incredibly disgusting...and Figueredo also includes the clip of Joy Reid calling out this Moms for Liberty fraud...nice work, but she’d better be careful, given what happened to Mehdi Hasan...and Utah wants to sentence trans individuals to six months in jail for using the “wrong” freaking bathroom? WTF??!! And “keep educating and informing” indeed (NSFW/H)...



...and this segment from The Majority Report informs us that the “party of Lincoln” is poised to make anti-abortion laws a lot worse...a lady in Flori-DUUH! named Deborah Dorbert tried to end a potentially deadly pregnancy because of something called Potter’s Syndrome (if it’s something you’ve never heard of, to me that means it’s potentially catastrophic), but she basically was forced to carry the pregnancy to term and birth a baby that apparently died after a few short, agonizing minutes...what country am I living in again?...



...well, maybe like you, I feel like I need a bit of a “palate cleanser” after a story like that, so please allow me to introduce my new favorite tune.

Thursday Stuff

David Doel tells us about millionaires and billionaires telling those gathered at Davos to tax them more (and man, is that Princeton study ever depressing, but I know it’s 100 percent true...not surprised that the U.S. has the most millionaires, and there was a time when I once thought that was a GOOD thing...I don’t think I’d ever heard Abigail Disney before, but dayyum, does she get it)...



...and I’d also never heard of Charlie Shamp and Hank Kunneman before, but Jesse Dollemore gives us the gory details, particularly about Ron (“Tree of Righteousness”) #DeathSantis...



...and John and Sharon Reed of The Damage Report discuss the new “king of late nite,” according to Bill Maher (please) talking about AOC in a sexualized fashion, because of course...she checks just about all of the wingnut checkboxes – beautiful woman of color, intelligent, articulate, and in a position of power for the “D” team, so of course the wingnuts freak the “f” out...how pitiably sad...



...and Farron Cousins takes us inside the latest numbers related to the Gropenfuhrer, i.e., how he fared in the New Hampshire primary vs. Nikki Haley, and he has to realize that he’s screwed, though November is still a long way off... I agree with this analysis, but we can’t sit around and “measure the drapes” either...



...and Robert Reich brings us this video about Biden and the economy...we know “President Manchinema” kneecapped the infrastructure bill, but #46 still managed to do a lot of good stuff with the Inflation Reduction Act and the CHIPS bill...Democrats should be touting this stuff all over the place, but at least it’s good that Reich is doing that here...



Update: More here (once more, I wish Dems generally were MUCH better on social media and took their cue from Bill Pascrell, Jr.).

...and happy belated 85th birthday to Ray Stevens...yeah, I know he went the Branson, MO route you might say, but in his day, he had what I thought were some good tunes, including this one.

Wednesday Stuff

You can consider this to be my periodic reminder of the great unwashed who will cast their ballots for Our Treasonous Orange Former Overlord come hell or high water, and to me, that includes the life form driving the vehicle pictured above (and once more, I’ll say again that I know what The Lincoln Project is, but good on them for continuing to sound the alarm)...



...but for a bit of the reality perspective, I give you another typically well-done analysis from Beau, this time on yesterday’s results in the New Hampshire primary (and as far as those who pulled the lever/checked the box for Combover Caligula...well, come hell or high water, Repugs will fall in line)...



...and the political decline of Our Ochre Abomination has to be hastened no doubt by the quite justifiable attacks aimed at him on social media, as David Shuster explains (and I’m a little leery about pointing out the Gropenfuhrer’s cognitive decline also, though that’s happening too...like many of you I’m sure, I’ve seen family members go through that, and despite the fact that we’re talking about Trump, I’m loathe to point that out I have to admit)...



...and Thom Hartmann discusses scientists warning us about micro-plastics (and nano-plastics, actually...terrific – and I’m not one bit surprised to hear that the House Dems and that allegedly awful Nancy Pelosi passed a bill to try and ban microplastics, but it died in “the world’s greatest deliberative body” from yet another Repug filibuster...more here)...



...and going from the ridiculous to the even-more-ridiculous, Kyle tells us about Oklahoma Repug state senator Dusty Deevers, who is trying to pass a bill banning the viewing of all porn (“how many life sentences would you all be serving?” indeed...sounds like another “solution” in search of a problem...NSFW/H)...



...and I didn’t know that you-know-who had run afoul of The Smiths for copyright infringement (here)...I guess you can just add them to the list of performers/groups with a grievance against Our Treasonous Tiny-Handed Former *Preznit.

Tuesday Stuff

This report from More Perfect Union tells us about the Biden Administration’s efforts to end overdraft fees, with Rohit Chopra of the CFPB...I mean, I have a feeling we’re talking about blue sky and unicorns here, but the effort to cap fees at $3 at a minimum is great news...the cynic in me is saying that this is just an effort to distract from the failure of the current bunch in An Oval Office to slap down our pal “Bibi” the way we should, but I think good behavior should be commended and rewarded also...



...and Jesse Dollemore informs us that Ron #DeathSantis has ended his Repug primary campaign for second place behind Combover Caligula, and he also misquoted Winston Churchill for good measure...nice job by Jesse to put together that little mashup of the guv of Flori-DUUUH! talking smack about the head of his party while at the same time “bending the knee” in his concession...



Update: More here.

...and as long as we’re talking about the Repug primary to find out whether or not Nimarata Randhawa will end up as VP on the ticket, Farron Cousins takes us inside the numbers of Mango Mussolini’s victory in Iowa, which was more pathetic than you think (the 7% non-solution, in terms of total Repugs who voted, and apparently Tangerine Palpatine only got 3% of THAT...and boy, is Farron Cousins ever spot-on when it comes to our corporate media serenading us about doom and gloom for Dems, while EVERYTHING is good news for Republicans)...



Update: It was communicated to me somewhat informally that I wasn't playing nice, you might say, to refer to Nikki Haley by her birth name. I have a ton of issues with Haley on policy, but I wasn’t trying to be unkind to her personally, so I’ll stop doing that.

...and Robert Reich refutes the five biggest Repug lies about immigrants coming over our southwest border...yeah, some of these have been pointed out before, but we need to be vigilant against this garbage (making me recall this)...



...and RIP acclaimed director Norman Jewison, who brought us “In The Heat Of The Night” (clip follows), “Moonstruck,” and a bunch of other memorable films – pretty sure he received an honorary Oscar, though he could have taken home the Best Director statue a few times (and speaking of Tinseltown, it appears that the '24 noms have been handed down; the only movie I saw over the prior year was Oppenheimer, and I’m glad to see that it was rewarded commensurately)...



...and also RIP Mary Weiss, lead singer of the '60 all-girl group The Shangri-Las; here is their biggest hit, which I'm sure we know well by now.

Monday Stuff

Jesse Dollemore discusses Dem U.S. House Rep Dan Goldman’s censure resolution against Repug Elise Stefanik for referring to the life forms who launched the 1/6 treasonous insurrection as “hostages”...yeah, I would say that “masturbatory patriotism” applies to Stefanik and the guttural nematodes of her party (mildly NSFW/H)...



...and speaking of Repug U.S. House idiots, Big Stupid Head Matt Gaetz managed to be both racist AND chauvinist at the same time recently, as Farron Cousins explains – heckuva job...



...and turning to the other chamber of Congress, John and Francesca of The Damage Report tell us that Big Hair Blackburn is BAAAACK, introducing something called the Women’s Right To Know Act...I know you’ll be utterly shocked to find out that this is yet another anti-abortion bill, proving once more that the “party of Lincoln” has learned ABSOLUTELY NOTHING from the 2022 mid-term elections after Dobbs was handed down by The Supremes...



...and this video from Mike Figueredo tells us about Kentucky Repug state pol Nick Wilson, who was recently mocked for sponsoring a bill apparently in favor of incest (and this guy was a winner on “Survivor”...I think Figueredo is correct in that omitting the first cousin language was a weird mistake, but let’s not forget the totality of Wilson’s garbage record either, as noted in the clip...NSFW/H)...



...and Beau talks about a grand jury report focusing on the poor police response to the Uvalde gun massacre (great point by Beau that we really don’t know what the grand jury has been tasked to do, so it would be unrealistic to jump to conclusions, and we probably won’t know for certain what’s going on here until just about when the findings are released...as usual, Beau’s T-shirt is spot-on)...



...and The Beach Boys recorded this number to kick off "Pet Sounds" on this day in 1966 (nothing like a little warm, sunny tune to help with the winter doldrums).

Friday Stuff

Brian Tyler Cohen gives us another clip of Dem U.S. House Rep Jared Moskowitz kicking butt again, this time on the whole OMIGOD THOSE DIRTY DARK-SKINNNED PEOPLE ARE POURING OVER OUR SOUTHWEST BORDER IN THEIR MIGRANT CARAVANS AND CRIMING ALL OVER THE PLACE BS from the “party of Lincoln”...”the problem is more useful than the solution” indeed...



...and Ana and John of TYT discuss this Brittany Pietsch person who made a video of her getting fired from some company called Cloudflare (and no, I’m sure her case isn’t a “one off” either)...I have some related experience in these matters, I should say, as I’m sure a hell of a lot of other people do also; I give her credit for standing up and taking on this BS, but personally, I would not do something like this because potential employers do look at this stuff as Ana notes – not saying that’s fair, but only pointing out the reality...also, GREAT point by John that this HR person’s role is one of the jobs that likely will be eliminated because of AI – doesn’t make me incredibly happy to say that, but I’m sure that’s where that is going (and yeah, this Matthew Prince character is truly a jagoff)...



...and speaking of numbskull behavior, Kyle (not him) lets us know that the “Babylon Bee” recently went full racist on Vivek Ramaswamy...yeah, Vivek was an awful candidate, but as usual, conservatives think punching down is funny...kind of an insipid comment by Kyle to compare Vivek to Mayor Pete, seeing as how Buttigieg has gone onto a pretty prominent role in the Biden Administration...however, I think Kyle is absolutely dead-on in his explanation of why this, and conservative “comedy” generally, is always going to be “hacky”...sick bastards (mildly NSFW/H)...



...and it’s been a looong time since I saw a new clip from Robert Greenwald and Brave New Films, but he has one he just put up about all of the underlings turning on the Gropenfuhrer...if you’re reading this, I know you already know this stuff, but I think it bears repeating...



...and Jesse Dollemore brings us the tale of some wingnut named Lauren Witzke who wants to execute Democrats – yep, par for the wretched course...and I find it utterly hard to believe that Rachel Maddow would ever advocate for executing anybody; that’s the first clue IMO that this is utterly ridiculous (and her host on this program is at least as nutty as she is)...



...and Thom Hartmann asks “Can Democracy Survive The Morbidly Rich?”...great to know that, at least in Poland, they’ve had enough of right-wing garbage and are taking action...



..and RIP Peter Schickele, more frequently known by his persona of “PDQ Bach”...I applaud anyone with a bit of wacky sense of humor trying to push creative boundaries (such as with the “Concerto for Horn and Hardart”...nicely done), but this selection is from the ‘70s movie Silent Running with Bruce Dern, where Schickele composed the score with the help of Joan Baez (as presented in the clip)...



...and given the weather in these parts, this tune sure fits for today – please be careful out there.

Thursday Stuff

Mark Joseph Stern of Slate speaks with Sam and Emma of The Majority Report about Biden trying to do a workaround on abortion bans, focusing on Idaho and arguing that federal law pre-empts state law, which our renegade SCOTUS is going to look at, apparently – God help us...Stern mentions Kate Cox of Texas and alludes to other potential calamitous rulings from our theocrats in robes, though they may indeed deny immunity to “Tangerine Palpatine” (like that new one)...



...and speaking of the High Court of Hangin’ Judge JR, it looks like they may get effectively rid of governmental regulations which are the underpinnings of everything out government does basically to keep us safe (ugh), as Robert Reich explains...



...and I thought this was an interesting commentary from Beau on the need to stay informed...he gets around to Israel/Palestine at about 5:30, and boy is he right about needing to know “the ingredients for peace”...”humans are creatures of habit, even if the habits are horrible” indeed...



...and speaking of people with horrible habits, Farron Cousins (not him) informs us that voters in CO-04 don’t like Bo-Bo Boebert either, which apparently is also true for her current district of CO-03 (04 is the new district where she’s running to try and stay in office), with Bo-Bo getting attacked for behavior in her Repug primary and attacked for policy-related reasons – that is, not doing a damn thing for her CO-03 constituents – by Dems in anticipation of the general election...



...and I thought this item was genuinely amusing; it looks like Billo The Clown is BIG MAD that, after cheering the book bans in Flori-DUUH! under Ron #DeathSantis, it looks like 2 O’Reilly screeds ended up on the banned list (Killing Jesus and Killing Reagan, apparently)...way too funny (NSFW/H)...



...and I guess, given this clip, the update to the slogan by Horace Greeley (you can Google him) would be “go west, young woman,” – nice to see some sun and sky, even if it’s only in a video for now.

Tuesday Stuff

Farron Cousins brings us the tale of Moms for Liberty school board member Keri Blair of Collierville County, Tennessee, who was arrested for repeatedly shoplifting at Target - yep, just add her to the list of miscreants associated with this foul, fetid organization...



...and the takeaway for me from this Beau clip about Iowa (and I don’t know about you, but I got SO SICK OF THE DAMN SATURATION FREAKING COVERAGE!, especially since it was pretty much a given that Our Ochre Abomination was going to walk away with it) is that 10 percent of Iowa voters who claim that they’ll support Nimarata Randhawa have also said that they’d support Biden over #45...that’s a hell of a lot of prospective voters, and do you honestly believe that that WOULDN’T play out across the country also? And I think this bears repeating also...



...and some maniac named D. John Sauer argued in court that Combover Caligula would have immunity if he ordered the assassination of a political rival using SEAL Team 6 – yes, you read that right, and I know I already commented on this, but this includes the audio (David Pakman brings us the gory details...an no, I’m not going to inflict the rantings of the Treasonous Man-Baby Former *Preznit on anybody)...



...and to discuss a matter of actual substance, Robert Reich informs us of who is better on the economy – the party of our current president or the one of his ruinous predecessor...



...and Jesse Dollemore tells us about “diaper Don” Jr. and Matt Walsh blaming African American women for airline problems...stoo-pidity on an almost subterranean level (mildly NSFW/H)...



...and this tune was #1 on the U.S. Top 40 and R&B charts 55 years ago today.

Monday Stuff

Chris Hayes makes what I think is a damn persuasive argument that we’re pretty much already living in the world of the Gropenfuhrer and his argument of using SEAL Team 6 to “take out” political opponents...good for Hayes to point out that threats of physical violence by ANYONE should DEFINITELY NOT be acceptable, whether it’s by Our Treasonous Orange Pustule or ANYBODY ELSE...



...and as a bit of proof to the prior claim, it looks like Ohio state representative Beth Lear is the latest wingnut (ette?) to publicize punishing kids with some made-up rationalization based on her interpretation of the Gospel, complete with drowning as a punishment...John and Brett Erlich of The Damage Report give us the gory details (and I completely agree that quoting the “good book” shouldn’t more or less be a “get out of jail free” card when it comes to violent threats - more here)...



...but we can’t let “the Buckeye State” get all the bigoted “glory,” can we? We need to “share the wealth” with Tennessee too; Jesse Dollemore tells us about some idiot lawmaker in that state named Gino Bulso who has introduced legislation to ban pride flags from classrooms (mildly NSFW/H)...



...and that execrable bottom feeder Matt Walsh says it’s “gay” to buy your Valentine’s Day gift early for your wife/girlfriend (assuming males in his audience HAVE girlfriends), or something (taking a break from terrorizing children’s hospitals for allegedly performing top/bottom surgery on kids, which isn’t a thing)...I think Emma of TMR nails this pretty well (very NSFW/H at the end)...

...and for MLK day, I think it's appropriate to revisit this speech from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. at Barratt Middle School in Philadelphia on October 26. 1967, with the them of “What Is Your Life’s Blueprint?"....



Update 1: An important note is here (here here, and here also).

...and this tune is apropos for the holiday also.



Update 2: And oh yeah, there's this...

Update 3: Well said (also this).

Friday Stuff

Mike Figueredo tells us his “take” that ’24 could be shaping up to be another awful year when it comes to trans rights, explicitly targeting adults (not even bothering to go through the pretense of “protecting kids” any more...and it’s particularly cruel and repellent to basically treat sex offenders better than innocent trans adults as Figueredo explains, and the “chef’s kiss” of BS is finding a way to bring Project 2025 into the picture...and I gave Mike DeWine credit for vetoing that awful Ohio bill earlier, but leave it to a Repug to take something good like that and then utterly destroy it...and more related cruelty is taking place in Indiana and Flori-DUUUH!...NSFW/H)...



...and speaking of pointless performative cruelty...well, we absolutely can’t forget about Texas, now can we...according to this clip, Greg Abbott went onto the Dana Loesch program and said, well, we can’t shoot immigrants, or else Biden would prosecute us for murder, or words to that effect...uuh, yeah, and SO SHOULD ANY OTHER THINKING, FEELING HUMAN BEING WITH A SOUL AND A CONSCIENCE, YOU HOMICIDAL GHOUL!!! John and Brett Erlich discuss...and yeah, I understand the Jon Lovitz quote, but though Biden admittedly has a lot of work in front of him, I don’t see him losing to Our Treasonous Self-Absorbed Delusional Man-Child (but again, there’s lots of time until November and much to do)...GREAT point to remind us that there indeed were plenty of overseas conflicts under Biden’s predecessor, but he was probably wolfing down Cokes and Big Macs while watching Fix Noise instead of manning his post as Commander in Chief while all of it was going on.

And Abbott is allegedly a “Christian”; if he’s supposed to be an avatar of morality, then I’m a nuclear physicist...



Update 1/14/24: More monstrous cruelty from Abbott is here.

...and since it’s Friday, I find that I have some items from the prior week that I’ll admit that I’m a little late on – my bad; here is one of those, with Our Treasonous, Tiny-Handed Orange Pestilence blaming Lincoln’s negotiating skills for The Civil War (and I have a feeling that Mango Mussolini is the only person on the planet who actually believes that), as well as that typically cruel, ridiculous dig at John McCain not being able to lift his arms because he was beaten to a pulp when he was a prisoner of war in Vietnam (and that annoying sniffing of his!)...and yes, to Sam and Emma’s point, if God forbid the “R” party gets power, they will indeed blow up “Obamacare” and replace it with absolutely nothing...



...and as long as we’re talking about former President Fergus Laing, I should include this clip also where David Pakman informs us that top EU official Thierry Breton said that #45 would never help Europe if it were attacked...yeah, we know what Combover Caligula thinks of NATO, so I guess we shouldn’t be completely shocked, should we? And kudos to Pakman for explaining exactly what happened with the Iran nuclear deal; they abided by the terms, but we’re the ones who blew it up...



...and I’m a little delinquent on this also; Ana of TYT discusses a subcontractor for Boeing (Spirit AeroSystems) who apparently failed to address quality control issues which may have led to a defect on the Alaska Airlines plane where the panel blew off in mid-flight – video also notes the reprisals taken by Spriit AeroSystems against employees trying to ensure quality and safety...



...and Thom Hartmann relates a tale or two here of earlier days abroad and how he more or less “greased the palm” of some people out of necessity, drawing an apt IMO comparison to some of the gamesmanship of our gangster, white-collar corpocracy in this country...



...and David Shuster of Rebel HQ tells us about Hunter Biden showing up for James Comer’s ridiculous hearing on...yeah, you guessed it, HUNTER FREAKING BIDEN, who watched Repug idiots like Nancy Mace and Marjorie Traitor Greene make even bigger fools of themselves (and kudos once again to Jamie Raskin and Jared Moskowitz for making short work of these assclowns...I honestly don’t want to know how f’d up you would have to be to even consider voting for Mace or Greene, let alone actually doing it)...



...and here’s something to help us rock into the weekend – hope it’s a good one for all.

Thursday Stuff

I know I’m a little behind on this item considering the anniversary of the insurrection was last Saturday, but I didn’t want this from Elise Stefanik to get swept under the proverbial rug (and once more, I know what The Lincoln Project is, but as long as they do good work, I’ll include their videos...NSFW/H)...



...and Beau of the Fifth Column tells us that the lawyers for Our Ochre Abomination actually argued in court that a president could send SEAL Team 6 to basically kill any political opponents unless he was impeached and convicted by the Senate (of course, these claims got the thrashing they deserved)...#45 is telling us EXACTLY what he’s all about and what he would do if, God forbid, he ever wielded the reins of power once again...



...and I now give you the latest installment of “This Day In Doomsy History” from 1/11/19, which is part of an episode of a TV show from 1958, a western by all appearances, in which a stranger named “Trump” promises to make the townspeople safe by building a wall around their homes (an interesting little curio if nothing else...in some ways, I wish times were as simple now as they were then, or at least as they appeared, and I mean the period in which the show aired, in case there was any doubt)...



...and Farron Cousins brings us this item about aspiring Batman villain Roger Stone getting caught planning assassinations of Jerry Nadler and Eric Swalwell...oh, but just blame AI, huh? Like that doesn’t COMPLETELY FIT THE PROFILE for this execrable bottom feeder, huh?...



...and Mike Figueredo of The Humanist Report tells us about King Elon I briefly banning more lefty Twitter accounts, though they were reinstated (this is yet another example of “Apartheid Clyde” acting like a man-baby, though the stuff about the NLRB unfortunately lines up with the goals of the “shadow docket” SCOTUS, so that is a bit worrisome...NSFW/H)...



...and on this day 60 years ago, the surgeon general’s report came out linking cigarettes to cancer (here)... I guess this a bit of a curio also, from the same era as the Trump TV show.

Tuesday Stuff

John and Trae Crowder of The Damage Report discuss Massachusetts taxing the rich, and they’re using the revenue raised to pay for universal free school meals, updating infrastructure, and tuition-free education for community college students, among other important needs...yeah, what a shame that we can’t manage to do that across the country – if we did, the one percent would probably go kicking and screaming to their bought-and-paid-for SCOTUS about how their rights are being violated...



...and normally I wouldn’t preoccupy myself with the legalese surrounding the Gropenfuhrer, but given how perilously close we are to rulings that could benefit this treasonous criminal, I think it’s important to familiarize ourselves with the arguments that could very well decide whether or not our democracy ceases to exist; Lawrence O’Donnell fills us in (an important update is here – looks like Combover Caligula will have to try another legal “hail Mary” play)...



...and for even more absurdity from the “party of Lincoln,” Farron Cousins brings us the story of “George Santos” saying that he wants to be the director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement in another administration run by “diaper Don,” completely forgetting the likelihood that Santos will be in the slam before that opportunity arises, which hopefully will happen at exactly half past NO FREAKING WAY...



...and David Doel informs us that Mehdi Hasan has left MSNBC completely...I definitely agree with Doel’s opinion that Hasan dared to practice actual journalism (especially against Israel’s Mark Regev) and that’s what led to him being “on the outs”...my opinion (and I have no evidence to substantiate it of course) is that Hasan knew he was going to be under a microscope for every little thing he said and did even without his own show, and he probably felt like that wasn’t worth it (I also agree with Doel about Symone Sanders-Townsend and especially Michael Steele...part of me think that the typical corporate media audience for, say, CNN and MSNBC kind of frowns on the occasionally confrontational journalism that we need to be informed...love to be wrong about that)...



...and this video from More Perfect Union tells us more about why abortion clinics are closing, namely, that fewer private health care plans are covering the procedure, along with the fact that fewer sates are covering it through Medicaid (with Brooke Shuman, focusing on a clinic in Bristol, Virginia – abortion is still legal in VA but banned in Tennessee, which is on the border)...important to note the switch from abortions provided in hospitals vs. standalone clinics after Roe, and how the anti-abortion protests accelerated after the switch to clinics...also important to note the rise of so-called “TRAP laws,” having to do with building requirements (e.g., size of doorways), certifications for providers as well as hospital admitting privileges, all of which are totally unnecessary and irrelevant when It comes to providing abortion care...novel approach by the Knoxville, TN Planned Parenthood clinic to operate out of a mobile vehicle, though that shouldn’t be necessary of course...



...and happy 80th birthday to the incomparable Jimmy Page.

Monday Stuff

No, I definitely did not forget that last Saturday was the 3rd anniversary of the insurrection on the grounds of the U.S. Capitol building, encouraged by Our Treasonous Orange Pestilence (Katy Tur speaks with Capitol Police Ofc. Michael Fanone)...



...and Jesse Dollemore tells us about Repug governor of Flori-DUUH! Ron #DeathSantis giving a smug and disgusting answer when asked about the latest school shooting in this country, in Iowa this time (mildly NSFW/H)...



...and that’s probably an appropriate segue into this item about now-former NRA head Wayne LaPierre (here)...hard to measure all of the utter ruin he has inflicted on our lives (clip with Joy Reid is a couple of years old)...



...and I’m probably overloading things a bit here with all of this “Christian nationalist” BS, and apologies for inflicting all of this, but these wackadoodles need to be called out...Chris Williamson tells us more...



...and Mike Papantonio and Farron Cousins discuss what is likely to be all of this “deep fake” AI stuff coming for the elections – I hope it isn’t a “tsunami,” but it may well be (another reason to get out front on the messaging RIGHT FREAKING NOW!, “DARK BRANDON”!!)...



...and RIP David Soul – “Starsky and Hutch” was pretty much regular viewing for yours truly way back when...I saw the movie a couple of years ago, and I guess it was a cute “homage”...and I know this is a sappy, saccharine tune, but I like it, so here it is.

Friday Stuff

Kyle Kulinski informs us here that Missouri has basically legalized kids possessing guns, with the state house voting against a bill to keep minors from open carrying on public land without adult supervision...good for Kyle to point out that, when the Second Amendment was written, the weapon of choice was a FREAKING MUSKET! Of course, the ammo-sexuals in this country want everyone to have weapons of death and oppose a national “red flag” law as Kyle says (about 35K gun deaths a year in this country – ugh!...NSFW/H)...



Update: And in a related item, I know there will be more to say about this.

...and Chris Hayes calls out Our Treasonous Former preznit on his “are you better off now than you were five years ago” BS; I guess this pretty much means that the presidential contest is underway...actually, I have to say that I am better off, by all objective metrics (and of course, that’s a riff on The Sainted Ronnie R’s “four years ago” tag line as Hayes explains)...



...and in a bit of a related item, senor economic advisor Jared Bernstein went on Fix Noise (where everything is slanted against “team D,” of course) and gave a pretty good endorsement of Biden’s record on the economy...David Pakman tells us more...



...and speaking of Our Ochre Abomination, Brian Tyler Cohen tells us about all of the countries who paid off #45; Jared Moskowitz and Jamie Raskin also appear (mildly NSFW/H – more here, and let's not forget this too)...



...and it’s taken me a few days to get around to this, but I’m glad I did; Robert Reich gives us seven pieces of advice to help persuade folks to vote for Biden this fall (as opposed to you-know-who of course)...



...and this video from More Perfect Union tells us about the life saving drug marketed by Merck (apparently, it trains the cells in your body to fight cancer) which they didn’t even manufacture on their own, but significant taxpayer assistance went into it, but now the drug is priced beyond anyone’s reach...ought to be a special kind of hell for people engaging in this sort of thing...



...and when it comes to bad behavior in the pharma sector, Sam and Emma of The Majority Report tell us that it looks like the Sackler family could be on the hook for $6 billion, but they may be protected from personal prosecution – hopefully not, but we’ll see (more here)...and I didn’t know that 36 states had anti-BDS laws (you can’t get a state contract if you support BDS, which is garbage IMO...with Ian Millhiser, who is someone whose legal opinion I respect because he does his homework...I would agree with him on his example of a school lunch person having an opinion on Israel/Palestine if it weren’t for the fact that The Supremes are constantly ignoring precedent they don’t like and making up new bogus law as they go along)...



...and Sonny Bono died 26 years ago today in a skiing accident; can’t think of a context in which this song doesn’t apply.

Thursday Stuff

Jesse Dollemore brings us this item timed for the release of the Jeffrey Epstein docs yesterday in accordance with a court order (here)...it seems that former great quarterback and aging football knucklehead Aaron Rodgers has alleged that Jimmy Kimmel was named in the docs, resulting in threats to Kimmel’s family; I’m sure Kimmel has already been on the phone to his lawyer...Rodgers should be forced to fork over a ton of dough at a minimum...meanwhile, it looks like this Pat McAfee person is trying to get out of the potential legal mess before it all starts (here – mildly NSFW/H)...



...and on the subject of the Epstein docs, Mike Figueredo tells us that Marjorie Traitor Greene went after Bill Clinton recently but defended Mango Mussolini, with both on the list...and by the way, I share Figueredo’s sentiments on this; follow the evidence wherever it goes, and I don’t care if the person found to be liable is on the “D” team or the “R” team...if they’re guilty, they should be punished in accordance with the law (NSFW/H)...



...and sticking with the subject of congressional wingnuttia, David Shuster of Rebel HQ (definitely not him) tells us that Bo-Bo Boebert is blaming Barbra Streisand and Ryan Reynolds for giving up in CO-03 and running in CO-04 instead (which, accidentally pretty much, shines a spotlight on the comparative big money dollars from conservatives which definitely exceeds what these two have donated...clip goes back over prior stoo-pidity from Boebert and also teases a segment on “diaper Don,” which seems to be a recurring theme any more)...



...and Farron Cousins relates to us that a Fix Noise reporter blasted some knucklehead on Twitter/X/whatever for lying about “migrant caravans”...the OMIGOD HERE THEY COME! ultra-scary video came from (wait for it)...Colombia!...



...and Ana and Cenk of TYT discuss the departure of Harvard president Claudine Gay from her role (I’m glad Cenk didn’t lose his damn mind this time)...maybe Gay’s response to the question about antisemitism at Harvard was couched in bureaucratic-ese a little more than it should have been, but she was essentially right...Elise Stefanik was looking for a scalp and some prime time coverage on Fix Noise, and that’s about it – as usual, this dustup is about butt-hurt wingnuts and giving them nice fee fees, fairness and anything approximating perspective be damned (Cenk kind of monopolized this segment, but he’s essentially right, particularly about the character assassination stuff, and he’s also spot-on about “cancel culture 101”; that donor giving all those millions told the school administration that he wanted Gay out, and that was it)...



...and David Pakman tells us about Kentucky clerk Kim Davis (remember her?), who now is forced to pay a total of about $360K for denying a gay couple a marriage license (including legal fees...on top of the $100K in damages...I’m sure she’ll go crying to Fix Noise over this shortly, if she hasn’t already...more here)...



...and Beau discusses Repug U.S. House Rep Bill Johnson of Ohio resigning on 1/21...I didn’t realize that the “party of Lincoln” pretty much has only a two-seat majority at this point...can’t think of a word to describe how contemptible it is that 2 from that side can’t switch to independent, and then we’d have to have a coalition in that body for real...and yeah, I’m looking at you, @RepBrianFitz...



...and RIP legendary jazz pianist Les McCann; here he is performing his signature hit with saxophonist Eddie Harris.

Wednesday Stuff

Farron Cousins brings us this story concerning Alabama’s U.S. senatorial mistake Tommy Tuberville, who apparently still has a residence in Flori-DUUH! and must be living in his son’s house in the state he allegedly represents...and yeah, apparently that whole military blockade thing didn’t amount to anything either (and in a bit of a related item, condolences to former Dem Senator Doug Jones for this)...



...and apparently the Fix Noise assclowns are big mad about Green Day getting in a dig at MAGA during a New Years Eve performance, as David Doel informs us; umm...what the hell did you think the song “American Idiot” was about anyway? A Biden supporter??...and I agree with Doel about the Dick Clark thing (mildly NSFW/H)...



...and Kyle Kulinski tells us about Repug Ohio guv Mike DeWine vetoing a trans health care ban...good for a change, though the Repugs running that state’s legislature could still override his veto (and I really couldn’t care less about what Marjorie Trailer Park Greene thinks – to the extent that she thinks at all of course – about “MAGA Mike” Johnson, and I also don’t care about what the WaPo thinks were Biden screwups, and I’d heard the “Diaper Don” stuff before now...gross! And yes, to Kyle’s point, DeWine is pretty enlightened on this as opposed to the rest of the troglodytes in his party, but kids aren’t getting top or, especially, bottom surgery)...



...and when it comes to our mental and physical health, it looks like Gallup has been doing polling on COVID since lockdowns and/or living our lives as remotely as possible are both still having an impact in a variety of ways... and yeah, those obesity numbers are really high (John and Mondale Robinson discuss)...



...and Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows is interviewed here on keeping the Gropenfuhrer off that state’s primary ballot for violating Section 3 of the 14th Amendment...sounds like she was duly obligated to look into it, has done her duty and is now leaving it up to Maine’s superior court (Bellows was targeted for a swatting call...I think this Linsey Davis person on ABC is a really dim bulb – yet another reason to basically not give corporate media the time of day)...



...and yesterday marked the 50th anniversary of President Nixon imposing a federal 55 mph speed limit partly because of OPEC cutting the supply of oil and subsequently raising the price of gas; the measure was eventually repealed...brings to mind this tune.

Monday Stuff

It seems that what’s old is new again...John and Aida Rodriguez begin 2024 by telling us about a Massachusetts cop going into a library to act like he’s going to confiscate books that offend his sensibilities somehow...I guess I’m a little surprised that this is happening in a blue state, but I know I shouldn’t be...when a kid grows up and tries to carry out a mass casualty event with a weapon of death because they were radicalized after reading “And Tango Makes Three,” let me know, OK?...



...and I couldn’t quite get to this item from a week or so ago in my ‘hood, more or less, but I should do so now; it seems that one of these “parental rights” idiots named Clarice Schillinger had a beer party for her daughter and a bunch of her friends who were minors (oopsie!), and things got out of hand with incidents of assaults involving Schillinger and other family members (allegedly!)...Ben Gleib, Mondale Robinson and Cenk discuss (more here)...



...and here is an item timed for the recent holiday that’s a little more upbeat; Brittany Page and Jesse Dollemore introduce us here to a guy named Colin McConnell in Detroit, who helped widower Don Wilson, who had just lost his wife at 39, leaving Wilson as the primary caregiver for three young kids...there is good in the world, though I know it’s hard to find sometimes (more here)...



...and author Diane Winston speaks with Sam and Emma on The Majority Report on the media’s support of The Sainted Ronnie R way back when; I forgot about the impact of USA Today, but I think corporate consolidation (including media companies) and the quest for “balance” at the expense of actual reporting had more to do with excusing the excesses of the “party of Lincoln”...and yes, I think it matters to point out how apocalyptic terms reeking of something approximating religiosity first worked their way into our political dialogue (again, under #40); Jerry Falwell does indeed deserve a heaping helping of blame for that as far as I’m concerned...those sentiments have been in our politics probably since this country’s founding, but they were more carefully coded until about the ‘80s when all of that was brought into the open...



...and Thom Hartmann gives us a brief excerpt from the 1960 Kennedy/Nixon debate, with a question focused on racial equality and educational opportunity...I thought Nixon was categorically wrong on a lot of issues, not just in that campaign but during his presidency, but he was also a formidable intellect; however, JFK pretty much “cleaned his clock” on this answer, being in command of this issue and a lot more...and boy, is Thom ever right about the League of Women Voters and debates, and yes, we can thank Poppy Bush in ’92 for putting us on the sorry path to the point where candidates’ debates (Repug debates for sure, and Dem also at times) are carried out like steel cage wrestling matches...



...and speaking of combat, I have a feeling that this year is going to be one big fight, so I might as well set the tone right now.

Sunday Stuff

Beau of the Fifth Column does a bit of a “compare and contrast” exercise with U.S. and Egyptian peace plans over the Israel/Gaza slaughter...and yeah, wondering who the “Palestinian experts” would be is indeed a high hurdle, but as Beau says, this is progress, and it also sounds like, on balance, the Egyptian plan could work out better than the U.S. one...



...and Ana Kasparian of TYT brings us more horror stories from Israel’s incursion into Gaza, including IDF dogs attacking an elderly man in a wheelchair at a hospital, all within the view of kids needing treatment (and sure, they won’t grow up to be terrorists, will they, assuming they live)...as bad as this stuff is, and it is that, I believe we also need to address the sickening Hamas atrocities documented here (and John Fetterman gets a completely deserved shot in this clip also)...



...and when it comes to barbarism, Thom Hartmann tells us that Alabama is threatening to kill Kenneth Eugene Smith with a method deemed to be too cruel for euthanizing animals; sounds like asphyxiation...yes, Smith was a bad guy as Thom points out, but really? As Thom says, at this point, if you’re going to go this route, just crucify him and send a message to the world that we’re no better than, say, Iran...



...and Ben Gleib of Rebel HQ informs us that the usual right-wing creatures are losing what’s left of their minds over a “lesbian Virgin Mary”!! And of course, Fix Noise is ALL OVER IT, PEOPLE...and it looks like the human race was saved by a Times Square Christmas display from the Mormons – trying desperately hard not to sacrifice any brain cells over this...



...and Vox News gives us the top stories of the year that is about to end; I was hoping for something kind of upbeat here, though I guess that’s not possible at the moment...



...and Mike Figueredo gives us the Humanist Report awards for 2023...yeah, I would say “Bibi” being the biggest scumbag is completely deserved, but I honestly don’t know why Biden was a nominee in that category – no disrespect to the MVP winner, who was a fine choice, but I also would have selected Shawn Fain (NSFW/H)...



...and whaddaya say to rockin’ in the New Year a bit with this newer tune?...



...and in accordance with my annual custom, I want to thank anyone who has spent any time at this site over the prior year; I hope some of this has been enlightening and/or informative. I know it’s a broken record to point out that I’m simply not able to author longer-form posts full of content and links, so I rely on other folks (and their video clips basically) who are at least as knowledgeable on the topics in question, and often more so. My goal all along has been to promote informed dialogue and thus a deeper understanding of the most important issues we face and not necessarily to shove my opinion down anybody’s throat. Yes, this site definitely is liberal/progressive, but as far as I’m concerned, that’s because people of our ideological bent live in the reality-based community more do than the other side (or I try to anyway, as much as possible).

As a bit of self-promotion, I just want to note that, if I’m able to keep doing this next June, it will mark the 20th year of this site, believe it or not. I never expected it to last this long, seeing as how I started it to find a way to bitch over George W. Bush and the lowlifes of his regime, and that was my only goal way back when. This really is a week-to-week thing, and I‘m just lucky more than anything else that I’ve been able to keep it going. If anything ends up affecting that in ’24, I’ll let you know as soon as I can.

Most years at this time, I say, “Next year is going to be a big year,” and I’m saying that again now because, yeah, 2024 is going to be a big year. We need to hold the Senate somehow, take the House and hold the White House, and that means ALL OF US getting off the sidelines and doing what we can to elect Democrats, even some who don’t deserve it to be honest (and that doesn’t even take into account the battles for state and local government going on across the country). To me, it’s not hyperbole to say that if we end up giving control to the “party of Lincoln,” this could be the last open election that we actually have (and anybody who thinks that, say, Nikki Haley would govern differently than #45 must be living under a rock). The other side has been creeping towards fascism and authoritarianism for about the last 40 years, and voters looking to reward that either don’t have the intellectual capacity to care about it or are too busy living their lives to properly understand what’s going on (and no, I don’t think that’s an excuse either). This means that ALL OF US need to find a way to engage these folks somehow...and I’m not calling for confrontation by saying that, but only for a patient, peaceful resolve in discussing the issues. Of course, if someone doesn’t want to be bothered but only seeks confrontation, I would just walk away and let them stew in their own rage, since that will eat them up faster than anything we could ever do on our own.

I wish all good things for you in the new year and the ability for all of us to keep up the fight, and though it may seem trite to include this tune given all of the wreckage going on in the world right now, I still believe in its message, and I hope you do too.

Onward!