Monday Stuff

Yes, as David Pakman tells us here, Our Pumpkin Pestilence STILL doesn’t get it when it comes to COVID-19 (and Pakman kind of teases a video at the end about how unprepared we were, and I can just about guarantee you that it has to do with this)…



…and even for Orange Satan in An Oval Office, accusing medical personnel of stealing masks is a disgusting new low even for this piece of shit of a “president,” as Sam Seder tells us…



…of course, if the Gropenfuhrer somehow could muster a particle of humanity or compassion, he’d understand what medical personnel are actually going through, including this ICU nurse…God bless her and everyone who provides the care we need…



…and speaking of someone who’s been though a war, and no doubt is continuing to endure it, I give you this clip of Dr. David Price of Cornell Medical Center…this video is about 57 minutes long, but if you can block out the time to watch it, I definitely recommend it (more important than the other videos in this post)…he tells us how COVID-19 is transmitted and the common-sense steps we can take to protect ourselves and those around us…apparently that numbskull Jesse Watters of Fix Noise featured an abbreviated clip of it, which is positive I guess…



…and The Rational National reminds us that, because of the accompanying recession kick-started by the abject failure of the executive branch of our government, potentially about 3.3 million people in this country now no longer have employer-based health insurance (oh, but just keep pressuring Bernie Sanders to find out when he’s going to drop out and don’t seriously consider Medicare For All, right?).

(“I never think about health care until I need it, and then I get it.” When M4A is reality one blessed day, that should be inscribed everywhere in this country.)

(And as I've said before, movement conservatism in this country was flat on its metaphorical back in 1964, but they organized around a strategy and became dominant. It took them 16 years and the awful election of The Sainted Ronnie R, but they found a way. And it will take that kind of intelligence and determination on our side too.)...



…and because we need a bit of comic relief, I give you this TYT clip of John and Ana talking about the Italian mayors giving it to their countrymen for not practicing social distancing (why the hell are they bleeping in Italian when most of us don't know the language?)…



…and this item is also worth a chuckle...Farron Cousins tells us that, apparently, Judge Jeanine Pirro was hammered in a recent segment…oh, but it was really the teleprompter…riiiiight…



...and happy 75th birthday to the one and only Eric Clapton.

Sunday Stuff

(The pic has to do with this story.)

Brian Tyler Cohen tells us about the Swanson TV Dinner Heir dragging Brit Hume out of his crypt to say that, yes, Hume is apparently prepared to die also in order to revive our economy...and Cohen points out why that is a thoroughly disingenuous argument…



Update 4/4/20: Well said (Boehlert I mean) here.

…and Kyle K. gives us an example of just how great our health care system is, namely, that nurses have to wear trash bags to protect themselves (U-S-A! U-S-A!)…



...and John and Brett Erlich of The Damage Report tell us about AOC calling out U.S. Senate Republicans for their sickening greed, thoroughly beholden to the CEOs who pull their puppet strings, in response to the COVID-19 stimulus bill...



…and since Our Treasonous, Tiny-Handed Orange Dictator in An Oval Office apparently hates this ad so much (here), it looks like it’s time to repeat it…



…and I know I should, at a minimum, say nothing about someone who has died if I can’t say anything good, but I’m going to make an exception in the case of former Oklahoma Repug U.S. Senator Tom Coburn, as noted here (called “Dr. No” for a reason, I should point out).

I’ve been complaining (especially now) about people who profess to hate the federal government being elected to jobs WORKING FOR the federal government, and Coburn might just be Exhibit A in that argument. He NEVER encountered a piece of legislation or some kind of amendment that he couldn’t find fault with, allegedly because he believed it cost too much money. If his objections weren’t financial, then they were ideological, frequently for reasons that were FACTUALLY WRONG as noted in the following clip, having to do with Generalissimo Trump withdrawing this country from the Paris Climate Accord (and as Cenk mentioned, Dubya did the same thing with the Kyoto Protocols). There are lots of other appropriate Coburn anecdotes that you can read from this link (more also from the last bullet here).

There are various reasons to thoroughly despise Tom Coburn. You could argue that, as a medical doctor, he should have had at least a rudimentary understanding of and respect for issues pertaining to science. I mean, you would think that, wouldn’t you?

Here are more reasons to look upon Coburn with nothing but contempt…

He attempted to block a suicide prevention act for our veterans (here).

Coburn also targeted veterans’ disability payments (here).

Coburn also pushed for a so-called “Article V” U.S. Constitutional convention to basically rewrite that document the way he and the one percent have always wanted and throw our government into chaos (the wet dream of Charles Koch and similarly well-heeled scumbags - here).

He also demanded spending cuts at about the same time as his home state was hit by a tornado (here).

He also attempted to shut down the FAA over bike safety funding (or other usages by states of federal funds in a manner Coburn apparently didn't agree with) here.

Coburn also praised Mango Mussolini for his ability to manipulate the press (here).

There is nothing memorable, noteworthy or praiseworthy in the record of alleged accomplishments by Tom Coburn. The only thing to do is to dispose of his earthly remains, and at any future mention of his name, spit in disgust or curse as appropriate, and then move on…



…and I thought this was a peppy little number to listen to as we dance our way to the potential apocalypse.

Friday Stuff

(I saw this message when I was taking my constitutional nearby Le Manse Doomsy, and I thought it bore repeating, particularly in our current context.)

Rachel Maddow interviewed NYU med student Gabrielle Mayer, who, of her class, offered to graduate early in order to help with the COVID-19 pandemic…much gratitude to her and her fellow students who are following her commendable course of action…



…and going from one altruistic extreme completely to the other, John and Ana of TYT tell us about Orange Satan trying to basically reopen the economy by Easter…a typically disgusting and cynical pitch aimed at the “Fundies,” who will no doubt dutifully lap it all up en masse…



…and this Now This clip tells us about our ridiculous sanctions against Iran during COVID-19 making that country’s crisis worse…and I’m sure it’s no surprise that, given that he works for a regime of liars, Pompeo is lying himself in this clip – naive, pin-headed liberal that I am, I cannot help but think to myself that this crisis, calamitous as it is, presents the whole world with an opportunity to work together in some fashion to each other’s benefit to help recover somehow from it and ensure that it never happens again – yes, I know…sunshine, lollipops and rainbows every day…



…and this clip presents Repug U.S. House Rep Thomas Massie in his thoroughly dunderheaded idiocy, questioning former U.S. Senator and Secretary of State John Kerry on the issue of climate change (I’m not saying Kerry shouldn’t be questioned, but only do it like an actual adult) – I know this is history, but given this (Massie trying to hold up the COVID-19 relief bill), it’s safe to say that Massie is giving Louie Gohmert, Steve King, Matt Gaetz and a few others runs for their money as the stupidest individual on Capitol Hill, so say nothing of being the most craven and corrupt (and for sure, Massie made this list - more here)…



…and kudos to Brianna Keilar of CNN for not letting Trumpster Peter Navarro off the hook over the provisioning, or lack thereof, in response to the outbreak, as Brian Tyler Cohen tells us (yeah, blame China and Obama - what a disgusting cabal of frauds and idiots!)…



…and David Doel has quite rightly laid into our thoroughly bought-and-paid-for corporate media over their reporting on the Dem presidential primary, and he’s right, and he can barely contain his disgust again here (Bernie giving it to the U.S. Senate Repugs on Coronavirus relief…yeah, Bernie had better hurry up and drop out, huh…removing my tongue from my cheek)…



...and since it's a day of the week with a "y" in it, it looks like it's time for this video once more (more here)...



...and happy 70th birthday to Tony Banks of Genesis.

Thursday Stuff

(I should note that, sometime probably over the next week or so, I’m going to be scaling back with posting on this site. For now, though, I am able to do what I can, but we’ll see.)

I saw the card that I captured in the pic above in our mail yesterday, and at first, I thought The Onion was trying to solicit for a subscription.

What’s next? “President Trump’s guidelines on nuclear disarmament”? “His guidelines on international diplomacy”?

Looks like it’s time once more, then, for this video (more here)…



…and Thom Hartmann tells us what other countries are doing in response to the outbreak (and speaking of Mnuchin, I give you this - this crowd is more repellent by the day hour, including this wretched excuse for a human being)…



…and I now give you the latest installment of “This Day In Doomsy History” (more or less, from 3/19/10 – kind of off by a bit I know)…with all of the COVID-19 stuff raging, my apologies for neglecting to point out the recent 10th anniversary of the signing of the Affordable Care Act into law (here)…this clip is intended mainly to present the utterly bogus arguments against health care reform, made particularly more odious now given our current calamity (I think the ACA turned out to be better than Arianna Huffington’s pronouncement here, speaking with K.O., but I agree with her point that we need to build on it and expand it, not try to tear it down…and kudos to Rachel Maddow for showing Dick Armey to be what he truly is, and that goes for The Sainted Ronnie R also)…



…and sticking with Maddow, she points out the true insanity of what Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves has done in his state (as noted here, they are dead last when it comes to health care ratings among all 50 states)…



…and Kyle K. tells us about the fight related to the virus in Lake Worth Beach City, FL…and boy, do I get what Kyle is saying about “the wall”…nice work by Omari Hardy to stand up for residents losing their power during a pandemic (more here...what country am I living in again?)…



…and I’m in the mood for kind of a trippy, current video – I hope this will suffice.

Wednesday Stuff (updates)

Cenk and Ana of TYT tells us about the back-and-forth over the COVID-19 bill coming from the Democratic U.S. House and “the world’s greatest deliberative body” under the thumb of Sen. Mr. Elaine Chao (an update is here – a bill featuring something actually closer to sanity passed)…



Update 1: Apparently I spoke too soon - yeah, and there are people who will actually blame Democrats for this.

Update 2: I’m going to relax my rule about profanity on this site for a minute and say that Lindsey Graham is a steaming pile of dog shit for this – to do something about him AT LONG LAST, please click here.

Update 3: Hey, philly.com and the AP! Where is your REPUBLICANS BLOCK CORONAVIRUS AID PACKAGE screaming headline?

You know - kind of like this...

Update 4: Oh, suuure, give the "party of Lincoln" the fluffing it deserves, right? What a joke...

Update 5: What I said about Graham goes for Tom Golisano too (here).

Update 6: And by the way, like you I’m sure, I’m already starting to see the outrage over the Dems potentially caving in the Senate on this bill and its likely giveaway to our corporate “betters” (here). And no, I don't like it one bit either.

But Democrats aren’t in charge of the U.S. Senate, people. Look what happened when voters put Democrats in charge of the U.S. House. They passed about 400 bills that #MIdnightMoscowMitch lit up for kindling (here). And many of them were bipartisan.

You want change for real? Stop whining and bitching and work/donate/speak out to elect Democrats. EVERYWHERE! You can start by clicking here.

…and one day, when we eventually get a handle on the catastrophic medical impact from this virus and are able to provide for everyone infected as much as our means allows, I want it to be recorded for posterity forever that ONE POLITICAL PARTY AND THEIR MEDIA ACOLYTES IN THIS COUNTRY WERE PERFECTLY FINE WITH ALLOWING PEOPLE TO DIE FOR THE SAKE OF PRESERVING THEIR WAY OF LIFE AND THEIR DISGUSTING IDEOLOGY.

And somehow, it will just be expected of us to make peace with these monsters. When in reality, they have made it utterly clear to the entire world that ONCE MORE, THEY ARE PERFECTLY FINE WITH ALLOWING PEOPLE TO DIE IN THE NAME OF MAINTAINING THEIR CAPITALIST CULTURE THAT BENEFITS THEM AT THE EXPENSE OF NEARLY EVERYONE ELSE.

I remember how vilified Dem former U.S. House Rep Alan Grayson was for saying the GOP wanted you to die quickly, when in reality, he was more correct than he ever could have imagined…



...and more garbage from The Roger Ailes BS Factory is noted here (comparing this to Obama's response to Ebola)...



...and I'm not necessarily including this as an automatic endorsement of "Malarkey Joe" (though he has my endorsement by default of course if he ends up getting the nod), but this definitely needs to be pointed out for the record vs. Our Pumpkin Pestillence...



Update 7: So I guess, given this, I should put up this video every day for awhile - maybe I will.

...and Rachel Maddow speaks with Dr. Esther Choo about what's taking place on the front lines with health care providers - Choo is based in Seattle (this report aired on 3/20, so I hope any update would be positive, but given that we're talking about the regime of the Gropenfuhrer, I definitely don't expect that)...



...and this guy tested positive - shit.

Tuesday Stuff

I realize that the phrase “insane press conference” having to do with Generalissimo Trump long since became redundant, but apparently he was particularly crazed yesterday, basically telling everybody to get the hell back to work and hurry up and die to keep the markets from plummeting still further (as if doing that would calm the stock market...Cenk Uygur gives us the gory details, with more to come later today...more here).

Republicans are trying to kill us. Literally. How many more goddamn ways do we still need to point that out?...



Update 3/25/20: Yeah, I would call this an appropriate response.

…and the Rational National tells us about Texas (of course) Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick trying to sacrifice the lives of potentially thousands of people, even millions, to preserve capitalism “for the children”…every time I think these cretins can’t find a new bottom…



…and David Pakman tells us about the crowd selling snake oil, you might say, trying to enhance their wretched profiles from COVID-19 (what a collection of bottom-feeders)…



…and Kyle has more on the Gropenfuhrer getting rid of the pandemic preparedness experts (oh, riiight – they were just standing around doing nothing, so Mango Mussolini gave them their pink slips – uh huh, suuuure)…



…and this clip from Brian Tyler Cohen tells us about a woman at a Dollar Tree store in Florida who bought up all of the paper products (not sure why the store didn’t put a per-customer limit in place and enforce it, but what do I know?)…



Update: To try and do something constructive in the face of this insanity, please click here (and yeah, it's pretty sad when we have to count on "No Corporate Tax" Pat Toomey to do the right thing, but unfortunately, this is where we are).

…and happy belated 90th birthday to Stephen Sondheim – this selection is almost too easy I know.

Sunday Stuff

Rachel Maddow, to her credit, “goes there” on the Gropenfuhrer and the “L” word…he utterly shredded any notion of credibility long ago, as she correctly points out…



…and Brian Tyler Cohen tells us that it’s not only Our Pumpkin Pestilence who has acted like a dangerous fool on this issue in particular, but others in his party also (the Mika and Joe Scar clip comparing Paris vs. Clearwater probably led to this, though DeSantis made the move too late)…



...and this Now This clip features Dr. Peter Hotez testifying about the delays in developing a vaccine for COVID-19...as this clip points out and as NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo, among others, has also noted, our health care system in this country is market-based, attuned to meet current demand...well, normally that's fine, but it doesn't allow for catastrophic situations such as the one we're currently dealing with...and no, I don't have a magical answer to solve that either short of Medicare for All, single payer, and nationalizing our health care system (and I'm not even sure how good of an idea that is), but I'm just pointing out the problem...



…and Farron Cousins tells us here that, according to yet another poll, only 30% of Repugs will pay attention to doctors and others over their warnings on COVID-19 (figures, unfortunately)...mildly NSFW…



...and Thom Hartmann sheds more light on this typically bogus recommendation from "Dr." Trump...



...and RIP Kenny Rogers.

Update 3/23/20: You quite literally have to get to Paragraph 20 in this story accompanying this thoroughly misleading graphic to find out the following:

Democrats are particularly fighting for constraints on the largely Republican-led effort to provide $500 billion for corporations. Democrats call that a “slush fund.”

Democrats won a concession — to provide four months of expanded unemployment benefits, rather than just three as proposed, according to an official granted anonymity to discuss the private talks. The jobless pay also would extend to self-employed and so-called gig workers.

But Republicans complained Democrats were holding out for more labor protections for workers, wanting assurances that corporations taking federal aid will commit to retaining their employees.

Another moment in "journamalism," as Atrios calls it, courtesy of philly.com (where, last I noticed, Christine Flowers still is awarded a paycheck).

Update 3/24/20: Gee, maybe our corporate media should have taken her a little more seriously (here - and yes, I know there was a misstep or two along the way in her campaign, but imagine Warren as the standard-bearer now instead of "Malarkey Joe"...oh, sorry - I forgot that the U.S. Presidency, thus far, is a patriarchy).

Friday Stuff

(I should note that you're probably going to see this graphic a few more times - and on a related note, I also posted here.)

It looks like The Roger Ailes BS Factory collectively "got the memo" on COVID-19, but they did so way too late (and of course, the proper, decent thing for the Foxies to do would be to say they’re sorry for all of their earlier BS attacks, but as others smarter on this stuff than I have said, wingnuts never, EVER apologize)...



Update: And by the way, even though this is now behind the news cycle a little bit, I wanted to make sure that we didn't forget about it (something to keep in mind the next time you hear someone who claims to be knowledgeable about politics say that the Dems and the "party of Lincoln" are the same).

via GIPHY

…and Brian Tyler Cohen tells us about Tucker Carlson doing the right thing, shockingly, though of course he can’t stop referring to it as the “Chinese Coronavirus” (and let’s not get all gaga about the Swanson TV Dinner heir supposedly developing an alleged conscience, since he’ll no doubt continue to grovel on cue at the feet of our Pumpkin Pestilence no matter what happens…also, based on this, let’s not forget RoJo, and Di-Fi doesn’t get a “carve out” here either)…



…and Thom Hartmann, after taking a call, tells us more on How We Got Here with COVID-19 (and good job to trace this back to the right-wing billionaires whose filthy, grubby hands are all over this mess, in terms of the utter failure of a federal government response...and I would agree with this too)…




…and Chris Hayes talks with Dem U.S. Senator Doug Jones of Alabama on what that state is dealing with (and good job to say the Feds should bail out employers who should comp furloughed employees…interesting idea to get companies like ADP involved; THAT is what the federal government is supposed to do at times like this, and that is to coordinate a public/private effort to combat this)…



…and Farron Cousins tells us about Paula White, Kenneth Copeland and these other “prosperity gospel” frauds, telling people to send $$ regardless of their circumstance related to the virus…



…and speaking of “federal government response,” Ana and company on TYT tell us about the proposed $850 billion “stimulus package” from the Gropenfuhrer (typically missing the mark as far as I’m concerned – interesting in light of this)…



…and this clip from The Rational National, though very important, is still genuinely depressing…David Doel is absolutely right about the utter failure of our corporate media in covering Biden vs. Bernie, on Social Security in particular as well as Medicare, which, let’s not forget, are programs WE ALL PAY INTO… yes, we need somebody to replace Mango Mussolini for sure, but let’s have no illusions about “Malarkey Joe” either…



…and given the prior clip (as well as this), I wouldn’t blame the Sanders campaign if this became their official theme song.

Tuesday Stuff

I realize there’s nothing even remotely funny about what Louie Gohmert recently did concerning the COVID-19 bill in the U.S. House (here), but I’m including this clip from Stephen Colbert because we need to keep up our morale, even if it is just to laugh at another imbecile from Texas (as I’ve said before, “Goober” Gohmert is ridiculous enough, but what’s REALLY scary to me are the life forms who actually vote for him)…



…and speaking of Republican idiocy, House Rep Devin Nunes (R-Cow) recently told Maria Bartiromo that people should pretty much ignore this whole COVID-19 thing and go to restaurants anyway (typical)…



…and when we talk about COVID-19, I know that pretty much leads us back to Mango Mussolini’s incompetence, as documented in this clip…



…and I think that Farron Cousins is a little hard on the Democrats here, especially since they got a bill together in the House that the stupidest individual in the entire universe has held up as noted in the first clip (never mind...as C&L tells us in the update, Gohmert caved), as well as the righteous outrage from Sherrod Brown here, but yeah, as a party in unison, I’d like to see some more outrage also (I’m pretty sure I saw something from Elizabeth Warren which, typically, presented some good ideas on paid sick leave and UBI also, which will probably get ignored as per usual...Cotton and Romney are making nice-sounding noises because they can see how bad the polling data currently is for the "party of Lincoln")…



…and Robert Reich has some typically good ideas about what we can do in response to our current public health crisis…



…and I now give you the latest installment of “This Day In Doomsy History” from 3/17/09 (as Reich said, our corporate overlords are going to find a way to exploit this crisis for their benefit, and here’s some recent history on what they’ve already done on that score)…



…and speaking of the "banksters," this Now This clip features Dem U.S. House Rep Katie Porter doing her job again, this time grilling the CEO of Wells Fargo on so-called “gap” overcharges, which sounds like debt insurance the consumer is still being charged for even though the loan was paid off…nice little racket there (yes, there actually is other stuff not related to COVID-19 going on out there)…



…and in tune with the day on the calendar (for the “wearin’ of the green” of course) what do you say to a little old-fashioned escapism given the nutty times in which we currently live?

Monday Stuff

I do know more lies from Mango Mussolini isn’t exactly “man bites dog” stuff, but I think they should be noted for the record on COVID-19 in particular, as Now This does in the following clip…



Update 1: This...

By the end of February, a Berlin start-up had produced 1.4 million tests for coronavirus to ship around the world. The US said no thanks; we can create our own.
But now after numerous failures, the US now has the lowest rate for testing its citizens https://t.co/ulTFDOOlje

— Carol Leonnig (@CarolLeonnig) March 17, 2020

Update 2: Also, this.

…and this New York Times report tells us about the illness’s impact around the world…



…and I have no grounds to question Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams on his numbers, but I seriously hope that Jake Tapper revisits this report and lets us know if Adams ended up telling us the truth on the testing kits that SHOULD be available to everyone, high-risk folks in particular (Sam and the TMR crew discuss…I’m not going to focus on some of Adams’ more idiotic remarks about the Gropenfuhrer supposedly being more healthy though he sleeps less and is years older…WHAAAA??? On second though, maybe I will :-)…



…and David Doel tells us more about that numbskull Matt Gaetz of FLA and his response to the outbreak, including a visit to AF-1 after exposure (womp womp)…



…and Dem U.S. House Rep Gerry Connolly brought the appropriate level of outrage IMO to the discussion, as noted in the clip…



…and this might be a good time to hear a bit of a life-affirming tune, and I think this qualifies.

Friday Stuff

Chris Hayes interviewed Dr. Reed Caldwell of NYU Langone about the Coronavirus (as someone once said, knowledge is good, especially when it comes to this outbreak)…



…and Sam Seder, Michael Brooks and the crew from The Majority Report tell us about Dr. Anthony Fauci trying to straighten out Sean Inanity on this subject (kudos to Fauci for trying, but good luck with that – I heard this referred to as the “boomer flu,” and I don’t think that’s too far off actually)…



…and not to be outdone by her Fix Noise counterpart, Kyle tells us about Trish Regan’s recent rant on this subject, which is utterly bonkers even by the standards of The Roger Ailes BS Factory (I think that deserves to be memorialized in the prior pic)…



Update: Sweet Mother of Abraham Lincoln...I have to admit that I was shocked by this.

…and I pray to God that Katie Porter serves as long as she possibly can in the U.S. House, or the Senate if she so chooses to run – to say we need someone like her, especially now, is an understatement…



…and Brian Tyler Cohen tells us about the recent horrific move by Repug U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander to deny paid sick leave to people who may come down with Coronavirus and would need it the most – monstrous cruelty even by their despicable measure…



…and I now give you the latest installment of “This Day In Doomsy History” (more or less, and keeping with the theme of this post) from 3/10/14, with former Louisiana guv Bobby “Don’t Call Me Piyush” Jindal denying Medicaid expansion to his state’s poorest residents…even though he’s gone, it’s another case of “what’s past is prologue” as far the “party of Lincoln” is concerned based on this…



…and by the way, I haven’t forgotten about this date on the calendar…



…and with all due respect to RT (definitely not the Putin Propaganda Network, usually), I would say that the “storm” is here.

Update 3/15/20: Even thought the Coronavirus is quite rightly the top story, I still think it needs to be pointed out when philly.com (or inquirer.com, whatever it’s called) engages in its typical politicization crap over stories that, though still important, are now of a lesser priority.

As “Tail Gunner Joe” McCarthy once said, always emphasize the “rat.” (more here - and these cretins still give Christine Flowers a paycheck).

I will continue to NOT be a subscriber.

Wednesday Stuff

Well, as long as it looks like “Malarkey Joe” has taken the lead in the Democratic presidential primary, don’t you think it would be a good idea to consider his potential cabinet nominees should he manage to win the whole proverbial enchilada, as it were, in November (a prospect that, sadly, I believe is currently beyond his reach, though I would LOVE to be wrong)? That’s what TYT tells us about here…



…and Rachel Maddow tells us that the tip that older Americans shouldn’t fly was initially spiked by the Trump regime (though, apparently now based on this, a lot of other folks won’t be allowed to fly to this country either – I’m sure, however, given the incompetent bungling of this regime of grifters and frauds, more people than ever will now avoid this country anyway)…



…oh, and by the way, on Covid-19 (and pretty much everything else as far as the Gropenfuhrer is concerned) it is ALL Obama’s fault anyway (Brian Tyler Cohen explains)…



(And I’m a little shocked by this, to be honest, but better to be safe – and at least the Sixers don’t have to worry about trying to win on the road anymore...and maybe it's not "a beautiful day in the neighborhood" after all in light of this.)

…and I know I put up the McCoy Tyner clip a couple of days ago, but I’d like to stay in a Philly music vein for this, which is a story about the effort to save Sigma Sound Studio as a music museum, which I personally think is an awesome idea – the following track is just one of the many memorable tunes produced at that location.

Monday Stuff

Farron Cousins tells us about the Florida Republican who changed voter registrations from Democratic or Independent to Republican – whaddaya know, honest-to-goodness voter fraud for real, and from the party that screams the most about this supposedly being an issue for the other side…shocking I realize…



…and I thought this was an interesting history lesson that, if nothing else, we can use as a response to anybody who says that Bernie Sanders has never done anything in Congress, or words to that effect (trying to re-introduce the “reasonable price” rule on drugs developed with public $$)…



…and as if to put a bit of an exclamation point on that, as it were, I give you this from David Doel (with the Fix Noise audience tuned into what Bernie is saying, as opposed to news mannequin Martha MacCallum)...



...and RIP Philly jazz legend McCoy Tyner.

Friday Stuff

Brian Tyler Cohen tells us about Willard Mitt Romney doing his Rand Paul impression, trying to be enlightened on the whole Joe Biden/Hunter Biden/Burisma stuff (but don’t be in too much of a hurry to give credit to the Utah Republican since, as noted here, Mittens caved anyway)…



…and Dr. Irwin Redlener of Columbia University talks about the level of incompetence coming from the Trump Regime on the Covid-19 outbreak (elections do indeed have consequences)…



…and Thom H. gives us the latest on the “party of Lincoln,” including President Fergus Laing, continuing their war on science as they try to march this country back to the 12th century (I’m sure they’ll recommend leeches to be placed on people’s skin as a remedy next)…



Update 3/7/20: At a certain point, I swear there are just no words...

“Without antagonizing Trump” is literally the most appalling reason not to tell the truth and not to act. What a banana republic we have become. pic.twitter.com/aG4wbmY08j

— Kara Swisher (@karaswisher) March 7, 2020

…and as long as we’re discussing Mango Mussolini, Farron Cousins tells us that Rick Gates of the Trump campaign described to the FBI how Our Pumpkin Pestilence and Sean Inanity coordinated their messaging during the 2016 election…



…and turning to this year’s presidential contest, Michael Brooks of The Majority Report tells us about David Frum going after Bernie and his supporters (yep, another “Never Trumper” showing his true colors, I would say)…



…and David Doel tells us about the latest ads from the Sanders campaign (I think Doel’s analysis here is 100 percent correct – unfortunately, unless the bottom is falling out of the economy, which no one wants to see I’ll admit, it’s going to be hard for older, suburban Democrats to come around to Bernie, though I believe it can happen)…



…and happy 75th birthday to drummer Hugh Grundy of The Zombies…



...and happy upcoming International Women's Day.

Wednesday Stuff

Like you I suppose, I have a few observations about yesterday’s Super Tuesday results, which definitely were surprising:

African American voters are the most reliable Democratic Party voting constituency, and while I haven’t seen all of the “cross tabs,” if you will, I know they stepped up for Biden big time yesterday (and in the event that Biden wins the nomination, that should cement Kamala Harris’s spot as VP on the ticket if she wants it). That's not meant as a judgment - I'm just stating a fact. On the one hand, Biden won a lot of states that will probably go for Trump, sadly, in the general (but again, we’ll see), but on the other hand, credit where it’s due for coming back.

About Bernie…he decried the Democratic Party “establishment” coming after him, and based on the candidates dropping out and supporting Biden, it’s hard to see that he’s wrong. However (and again, preliminarily from what I’ve seen so far), it doesn’t look like he’s building a big enough coalition to win the nomination (and believe me when I tell you that I want to be wrong on that). If he does go down to Biden, then the fatal mistake will be that he and Elizabeth Warren didn’t find a way to team up. And I don’t necessarily mean that Bernie should be at the top of that possible ticket. I saw some good policy ideas coming from Warren, and I think she has a better record on that over Bernie. The two of them could be absolutely dynamite as a combination, but she would never get the VP slot, especially since she wasn’t able to deliver her home state. It’s just pretty unbelievable that there were three serious Democratic women running (four if you count Fox News “Democrat” Tulsi Gabbard), and while I definitely wasn’t a fan of Klobuchar, it looks like all four will be shut out. It gives me a bit of pause to consider that, if this country ever DOES elect a woman as chief executive, it could be a Republican, which would be terrible (not because she’s female, but because she’d belong to the party of Trump, Dubya, Tricky Dick, and The Sainted Ronnie R).

Finally, a lot of us laughed at Generalissimo Trump for going after Biden on the Ukraine thing (“what a maroon…Biden is done”). Well, as wrong as it was to pull that move on Ukraine, what does it tell you about the regime of the Gropenfuhrer that they ended up being right about how formidable Biden would be? I detest everything about Cult 45 of course, but let’s have no illusions about how ahead of the proverbial curve and data driven they are when it comes to trying to inflict four more years (at a minimum) of this pestilence on us.

And with that in mind, I thought this was a pretty smart take from former Obama ’08 campaign manager David Plouffe…



…and David Pakman tells us about how Our Treasonous, Tiny-Handed Orange Russian Stooge is playing down The Virus That Apparently Shall Not Be Named, according to YouTube (unbelievable, though he does let it slip a couple of times; hope he doesn’t end up demonetized for it)…



…and I thought this was a particularly good Inequality Media video from Robert Reich about the awful exploits of Sen. Mr. Elaine Chao…



…and I’m sorry I’m a few days late for this video; it would have been a better selection for last Saturday (NSFW).

Monday Stuff

Brian Stelter of CNN gives Fix Noise the treatment it deserves for trying to turn the Coronavirus into a political weapon here (I know we knew this anyway, but there truly is no bottom for these life forms – also, I saw the headline of an article on the Murdoch Street Journal about how hand sanitizers are flying off the shelves, especially if they have any alcohol component at all, and boy, they aren’t kidding – went to Rite Aid, Walgreens, Target and BJ’s Wholesale, and I found some alcohol disinfectant wipes at BJs, but that’s about the best I could do for now – and if you want to order hand sanitizer with alcohol online, you’ll be paying a minimum of about $20…good luck; Lowe’s had some hand soap without alcohol, which can’t hurt I guess…and yeah, this figures too I suppose, as does this)…



…and Brian Tyler Cohen tells us about the dustup between that insufferable toad Mike Pompeo and Dem U.S. House Rep Ted Lieu over the typically idiotic propagandizing from the Trump regime over the Coronavirus (yeah, Heaven forbid that Pompeo has to answer a difficult question before he heads over to CPAC to spout more blather for the idiot masses)…



…and Thom H. speaks with an ER doc of 28 years with recommendations to combat the virus…



…and it looks like Mayor Pete is dropping out of the Dem primary - I have to admit that I underestimated the guy, and my bad for that, and I still think his campaign was full of platitudes and way short on specifics, but he definitely took the classy way to exit...I would say he has a formidable political future (and I guess at this point it’s only a matter of time before everyone joins Biden to gang up on Bernie – wonder if “cornpone” would approve, or whatever that nonsense was)…



...and I wonder if this had anything to do with Amy Klobuchar also dropping out - just sayin'...



…and while I’m sorry for the family and friends of Jack Welch, don’t expect me to feel any tug of nostalgia whatsoever; he was a rapacious capitalist who helped to codify a brand of corporatism which has been utterly ruinous for this country overall…I was actually able to find a segment with Jimmy Dore that is tolerable, partly because Michael Shure is there also, but since we’re talking about Dore, we’re also talking about some gratuitous “F” blasts also, so be warned…



Update: It was probably about time for this from Matthews, though I'm not celebrating - definitely stepped on a few rakes, as it were, but also did some good work as noted in the prior clip.

…and I thought this was a nice bit where Jimmy Kimmel turned the tables on “Calgary” Cruz (beyond belief how badly those in the second clip did on some pretty basic geography)…



…and I thought this was kind of a catchy, rockabilly-ish tune…neat to see this guy doing the “one-man band” thing.

Saturday Stuff

And what would Life In These United States be like anymore without our almost-weekly mass shooting? This time, it took place in Milwaukee, as noted in the clip (and more on that is here)…



Update 3/5/20: What an utter POS this guy is (here).

…and turning to the most recent South Carolina presidential candidates’ debate, Kyle tells us about Bernie on stage with those other Dem knuckleheads, trying to clarify his remarks on Cuba, which I never had a problem with, to be honest - actually, I LOVE the way Bernie called out the life forms in the audience who razzed him (slightly NSFW)...



…and John tells us about AOC, killing it for the second day in a row, at a meeting of the House Oversight Committee on the absolutely awful voter suppression in GA during the '18 gubernatorial election between Stacey Abrams and Brian Kemp (perpetrated by Kemp himself as Secretary of State, and somehow that was legal)...



…and Jeff Waldorf of TYT Nation tells us about the numbskull MAGA crowd booing Garth Brooks because he recently wore a “Sanders” jersey at a Detroit concert…ummm, it was for Barry Sanders, you assclowns…just say “oops” and get out…



...and Kansas school teacher Amanda Coffman is my new hero (heroine?) for this...



…and sadly, this tune is timely again given the first video of this post.

Friday Stuff

Chris Hayes tells us all about the humanitarian disaster going on in Syria, again (and yeah, Stephen Miller, as someone from your party once said previously in another context, you "built this"...and in addition to the "party of Lincoln," a pox on the Democratic "leadership" for their silence also in response)...



…and Farron Cousins tells us that the Gropenfuhrer has put “Onward Christian Soldiers” Mike Pence in charge of the response to the Coronavirus, who of course is perfect for this regime of grifters and lowlifes since he completely and utterly denies science also (interesting speculation about an attempt to throw Pence under the proverbial bus and drop him from the ticket)...



…and in a related story, Thom Hartmann speaks with Dem U.S. House Rep Mark Pocan of Wisconsin on Mango Mussolini and his minions tripping all over themselves in their attempts to do their jobs on this potential public health calamity (though of course, their notion of "doing their jobs" is markedly different from what I'm sure a reasonably sane person would consider an acceptable standard)...



…and this clip from Brian Tyler Cohen about AOC speaking up for Dems and religion (and how overdue is THAT, I ask myself? Maybe about 30 years??!!) also includes Pence typically obfuscating when George Stephanopoulos asks him a yes or no question a three-year-old could probably answer…



…and sticking with the Trump gang, Robert Reich reminds us that we shouldn’t lose sight of what longtime Repug fixer and AG Bill Barr is doing in support of Generalissimo Trump and his pals…



…and David Doel tells us about suspended ABC journalist David Wright, who apparently committed the unpardonable sin of speaking honestly about his profession – instead of being punished, Wright should be promoted (and for more on the garbage life forms behind Project Veritas, I give you this)…



…and I realize I haven’t put up a video by Seth Meyers for a little while partly because I find it harder to find humor in this stuff, but kudos to him for turning this dross into comedy gold (the subject is our corporate media not quite knowing what to say or do about Bernie Sanders – and as many of us know by now, Chris Matthews apologized for his most recent idiocy...I have a feeling Biden will take South Carolina, but that will end up as an outlier - all Bernie has to do is make a respectable second-place showing, and I think that's totally within reach)…



…and I was intrigued by this story of a proposed national women’s strike in Mexico on March 9th in order to send a clear message of condemnation against gender-based violence – in response (and I know I’ve put up this tune before), I give you Todd from 2016 performing a song about another women’s protest of a fashion (with the former resident from Upper Darby, PA bringing music to people who might not otherwise have access to it in South Bend…hmmm, isn’t there a notable politician from that area too?).

I firmly believe Rundgren will be in the Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame one day, which is long overdue, and that for sure will be an occasion for celebration.

Wednesday Stuff

John I. and Jayar Jackson give us their take on last night’s Democratic candidates’ debate in South Carolina, which apparently was an utter train wreck…



...and uh - yep...

I’ll say it til I’m blue in face....give all debates bsck to League of Women Voters https://t.co/q1KOBOsgOG

— Eric Boehlert (@EricBoehlert) February 26, 2020

…and gee, maybe we ought to do something about this Coronavirus thing (which makes me recall this recent exchange - and how sadly predictable is this?)…



Update 2/27/20: This is humor of course, but with all due respect to Wonkette, I'm definitely not laughing over this, and I don't think they are either.

…and David Pakman gives us the typically wrongheaded take on our recent wild stock market ride from Charles Payne of Fix Noise (who, by the way, was also once responsible for this)…



…and I now give you the latest installment of “This Day In Doomsy History” from 2/26/10, in which the late, great Rep. Louise Slaughter of New York advocated for coverage for pre-existing conditions in the legislation that eventually became the Affordable Care Law – I think many of these same arguments still apply on the subject of Medicare for All…



…and while we're on the subject, I get it when Kyle lays into the Democratic “establishment” on policy the way he does here, in particular concerning Bernie Sanders and M4A, but I still think he needs to tone down that stuff a bit…yeah, being trapped in a ‘90s mindset is no good for now, but he shouldn’t gloss over recent Democratic accomplishments either…you could argue over “Obamacare,” but like you I’m sure, I remember the sausage-making to enact it and propaganda against it and what a battle that was…we should have no illusions of what we’re up against here…single payer and Medicare for All is the way to go, but it will be a pitched battle for some time, which will not be for the squeamish or faint at heart…



…and five years ago yesterday, on what would have been George Harrison's 72nd birthday, a new tree was planted in his memory in Griffith Park in Los Angeles to replace one that was earlier killed by a (wait for it…) “beetle” infestation (truly, you can’t make this up). The new yew tree had been chosen to replace the original, as it was far less susceptible to insects.

So, with that in mind, I now give you this, one of my all-time favorite music videos (a typical Harrison response to this, I would say).

Monday Stuff

Michael Brooks of The Majority Report brings us a clip of Jumaane Williams on MSNBC reminding us how bad Michael Bloomberg really is…



Update 2/25/20: You are sooo toast for this, Mikey.

Update 2/28/20: Why even pretend Bloomberg is a Dem at this point...

“The answer is not to radically downsize or privatize the Postal Service. The answer is not to eliminate good-paying jobs. The answer is not to devastate rural communities by closing post offices."
— @BernieSanders on the future of the postal servicehttps://t.co/Uy5yDkNqN3

— John Nichols (@NicholsUprising) February 28, 2020

...and Brian Tyler Cohen on more Trump insanity against “Obamacare” (and yeah, trying to get Obama impeached after he’s been out of office for three years is a whole other brand of crazy, even for the Gropenfuhrer)…



…and Farron Cousins tells us how Mango Mussolini Trump and his pals are spending about $10 mil to make sure people can’t vote…



…and I guess if there was ever a music video (I thinks that’s what they were once called) emblematic of our Trumpian times, I would say that this is it (NSFW).