Jul 13, 2016
Jason Explains
Mr Chaffetz seems completely flummoxed by the process of Gubmint.
Normal Human: Whatcha doin'?
House Republican: Looking for my keys - I dropped 'em when I was out in the garage.
Normal Human: So, why are you in the kitchen?
House Republican: The light's better in here.
Jul 12, 2016
Our Mr Brooks
Another in the continuing parade of passive-voiced responsibility-ducking bullshit:
Anybody who spends time in the working-class parts of America (and, one presumes, Britain) notices the contagions of drug addiction and suicide, and the feelings of anomie, cynicism, pessimism and resentment.
Part of this pain arises from deindustrialization. Good jobs are hard to find. But hardship is not exactly new to these places. Life in, say, a coal valley was never a bouquet of roses.
What’s also been lost are the social institutions and cultural values that made it possible to have self-respect amid hardship — to say, “I may not make a lot of money, but people can count on me. I’m loyal, tough, hard-working, resilient and part of a good community.”
Today's Tweet
It'd be cooler'n shit if this was all anybody had to worry about.
Great !👏👏👏👏 pic.twitter.com/KRyvF4UfDl— Asghar Nikoorokh (@nikoorokh) July 11, 2016
Jul 11, 2016
Everybody's Doin' It
...so why should I be any different?
This pic is "important", partly because certain Photo Editors have told us it's important, but I think there may be quite a bit more to it than that.
First, if you show up dressed like you're looking for trouble, I have to think maybe you're looking for trouble.
This pic is "important", partly because certain Photo Editors have told us it's important, but I think there may be quite a bit more to it than that.
 |
| 28-year-old Ieshia Evans, Baton Rouge, July 2016 |
Along those lines, the feeling of invulnerability the cops have to get from wearing their Play Date Suits* can cause them to be a lot less likely to avoid trouble - and actually, most people become far more likely to start trouble because of that feeling of invulnerability.
(*available at fine Cop Shop outlets everywhere for as little as $400 each - up to $1000 depending on options. And be sure to identify yourself as Military or Police or Security, because they don't sell this shit to just anybody, y'know)
So, do we need to look any further than what seems obvious here? Do we really have to ask why people get fucked up and fucked over by a police force comprised of officers equipped for urban warfare and trained to deal with American citizens as if they're the enemy?
The shitty little irony is that those cops are convinced they're protecting Ms Evans - nobody seems able to clearly identify exactly what they're protecting her from (which means there's a high probability they're just rationalizing their behavior), but if she's not ridiculously careful, they're gonna protect her to death. In the end, who protects any of us from our protectors?
And ain't that all kinds of pretty fucked up right there?
And ain't that all kinds of pretty fucked up right there?
Jul 10, 2016
Today's Tweet
#TortureReport proves torture doesn't work. Dick Cheney says he'd do it again. For what, fun? (photo by @richardhine) pic.twitter.com/MutNgaFhFv— The Daily Edge (@TheDailyEdge) December 14, 2014
Resistance Is Life
The whole thing from Juan Cole:
We seem to think we can rule the world without actually having to live in it.
Kurdish Women Fighting ISIL Send Solidarity to BlackLivesMatter
“You are among the most radical voices in today’s racist, sexist, capitalist world,” the YPJ wrote to Black Lives Matter.
Fighters from the Kurdish Women’s Defense Units or YPJ, have sent a message of solidarity to the Black Lives Matter movement in the United States.
“To our black sisters and brothers! The people of Kurdistan stand with you!” read the short statement posted Saturday by the group, who has been fighting the incursions of ISIS [Daesh] in northern Syria for close to two years. “Here are the women who fight ISIS in Rojava (northern Syria) – saluting your honorable struggle for freedom, dignity, and resistance!”
The call for Black Lives Matter has become a focal point for discussions around systemic racism and police brutality following the police killings of Michael Brown and Eric Garner in 2014, as well as numerous other incidents since. This past week, police killed Philando Castille and Alton Sterling – both incidents filmed and subsequently shared ober social media – touching off more protests across the United States.
For the women of the YPJ, solidarity and building “world revolution” against racism, sexism and capitalism, go hand in hand.
“As the women in Kurdistan know very well, we need to build our self-defense in all spheres of life. You are among the most radical voices in today’s racist, sexist, capitalist world and the freedom-loving peoples of the world deeply respect and salute your fight! Solidarity is the first step to world revolution!,” the statement continued.
Since the most recent string of high-profile U.S.police shootings of Blackpeople, expressions of solidarity from other communities in the United States as well as groups from around the world have been pouring in – with the radical, communist Kurdish groups being the latest.
“Black Lives Matter! As we say in Kurdish: “Berxwedan jiyan e!” – Resistance is life!,” the YPJgroup concluded.
Via TeleSurI guess I'd worry a little about backlash because of a ringing endorsement from a group that espouses "communism" - if I thought anybody was gonna pay any real attention to it anyway.
We seem to think we can rule the world without actually having to live in it.
You're Gonna Need A Longer List
I guess my only question is - Why are there only 6 items? "Conservatives" are scared of everything.
Nuthin' but a bunch whiny-butt pussies.
hat tip = FB pal VW-E
Today's Tweet
No BS, I wish every white person on Twitter could see this. Maybe it'll help pic.twitter.com/vae574ysG0— Tsunami Sea (@carltonspeight) July 6, 2016
Jul 9, 2016
The Deafening Roar Of Silence
The New Yorker:
The consistent failure of our politics to take reasonable steps to prevent guns from getting into the wrong hands makes it difficult to predict with any confidence that even the slaughter of police officers will alter the frozen politics. But it may have a subtler effect, causing gun owners to reconsider whether the N.R.A. truly has the country’s best interests at heart. More than a hundred million Americans live in households with guns, but many remain largely uninvolved in gun politics. The N.R.A. has between three and five million members, which means it represents only a sliver of American gun owners. Moreover, even among its members, many are unconvinced, I and others have found, by the belligerent rhetoric; they own and love guns for a variety of reasons—from sports to hunting to self-defense—and they overwhelmingly support reasonable steps to prevent innocent people, civilians or police, from being killed by gunfire.
On Friday, after hours of silence, the N.R.A. issued a statement from LaPierre, who had authored the “jack-booted thugs” letter. This time, he expressed “the deep anguish all of us feel for the heroic Dallas law enforcement officers who were killed and wounded, as well as to those who so bravely ran toward danger to defend the city and the people of Dallas.”
The N.R.A.’s explicit call for a more armed society reveals the lie behind its homage to “coexistence.” By directing rage against the government, by preventing politicians from heeding the overwhelming demands of their constituents for broader background checks, by endorsing Donald Trump’s plan for mass deportations and bans on Muslim immigration, the N.R.A. has assembled a volatile case against the idea of coexistence—and then disavows the result when it explodes.
Today's Tweet
Sign of the times.
Since when did foreign countries issue "warnings" when traveling to the United States? How embarrassing! Yet, true. pic.twitter.com/LqdCm3IJuS— Mary (@lovealaska1105) July 9, 2016
Jul 7, 2016
Today's Tweet
— rootwoman123 (@rootwoman123) July 7, 2016
It's like we never have a chance to get past one shitty thing before the next shitty thing happens.
Alton Sterling
Philando Castile
What happens if somebody starts an effort to build a memorial wall in DC to list the names of all the black folk who've been killed by the cops?
Actually, here's a design suggestion: Let's build a memorial that has all the dead white people listed on one wall, and all the dead black people listed on a wall facing that one.
I wonder which one gets all the names, and I wonder which one gets all the attention.
Jul 6, 2016
A Poem
Trumpty Dumpty sat on a wall
Trumpty Dumpty had a great fall
All the king's horses
And all the king's men
Were just glad they didn't have to worry about that bigoted little prick anymore.
Everybody Wants In On The Act
Reuters:
But then of course, I won't argue that Stoopid is somehow new, or that it's not particularly normal.
Anyway - it still looked like this was all about "small arms", so that's not as bad as it could be. But then, Financial Times:
And the only thing worse is when one of the guys who's supposed to know what's going on just shrugs and says, "Oops - oh well, nuthin we can do about it now."
We are so fucked.
The German government has approved several arms export deals with countries in the Middle East, including delivery of 23 Airbus helicopters to Saudi Arabia, according to an Economy Ministry letter seen by Reuters on Monday.On the one hand, there's something odd about being pretty sure that selling weapons to people in the Middle East is a pretty stoopid thing to do; while seeing it happen and starting to think maybe this is just what we do. Like stoopid is the new normal.
But then of course, I won't argue that Stoopid is somehow new, or that it's not particularly normal.
Anyway - it still looked like this was all about "small arms", so that's not as bad as it could be. But then, Financial Times:
The minister cited a €1.6bn contract to sell Leopard 2 battle tanks to Qatar, “which I unfortunately can’t undo”. The deal, which received the government’s green light in 2013, was sharply criticised within Germany because of Qatar’s bombing of Yemen and its alleged support for Islamist groups in the Middle East.I can't shake that queasy feeling whenever I see a tank with a Maltese Cross painted on it, y'know?
And the only thing worse is when one of the guys who's supposed to know what's going on just shrugs and says, "Oops - oh well, nuthin we can do about it now."
We are so fucked.
Today's Tweet
Reince Priebus: We can finally start playing offense!— jj (@TonyWay31) July 6, 2016
Trump: Saddam Hussein was a great leader:
Reince Priebus: pic.twitter.com/7HIWJTIFgX
Jul 4, 2016
Jul 3, 2016
It's Kinda Haunting
Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) had a hard time coming up with a reason why he supports presumptive Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump when pressed by Chuck Todd on “Meet the Press” on Sunday morning.
Cotton, a leading proponent of an aggressive neoconservative foreign policy, was asked by Todd whether he is closer in foreign policy terms to presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton than Trump, who, while promoting a bombastic and confrontational foreign policy for the United States, has also called for the country to pull back from some international conflicts and commitments. Cotton had a hard time mustering up an answer.Paul Ryan has had similar trouble trying to come up with something that wasn't too ridiculous when asked about his endorsement for Trump.
So these guys have had a hard time finding good answers for why they support a Trump candidacy, but not the candidate's policy positions. Not a lot that's brand new in that - this shit can often come down to My Team vs Your Team, and this Trump thing just takes it out the Logical Extreme in a bigger hurry than most.
What really intrigues me is - how come two of the shiniest of the GOP's shiny new stars bear such an uncanny resemblance to Mr Bean with a beard?
Ah, But For Wales
It's a Welsh thing - there's no way for you to understand (hey - you do Ethnic your way, and I'll do it mine)
If only it didn't explain so well what's goin' on with the Trumpkinite Rubes.
Compare And Contrast
Tomorrow, on the day we commemorate the beginning of our experiment in self-government, it may be of some value to look at where we started, and try to gauge the probabilities of where we may be headed.
Here's the bedroom of King George III as it is supposed to have looked in the 18th century:
Here's the bedroom of King George III as it is supposed to have looked in the 18th century:
And now, the bedroom of a certain Populist "Billionaire", masquerading as a champion of the American Workin' Guy:
Questions?
Jul 2, 2016
Today's Tweet
Donald's blatant anti-Semitic tweet----Bad!! pic.twitter.com/VkuUydh8b2— Calyban (@Calybancalyban) July 2, 2016
The Trump Campaign later fixed the graphic, replacing the Star of David with a circle, and then deleting the original tweet.
This of course, accomplishes two things. First, the original tweet got the message out to the people it was supposed to reach, and the controversy amps up the attention.
But the main thing is that now, they have a little plausible deniability. They can claim the original was PhotoShopped to make them look bad because The Left is just that diabolical and they'll stop at nothing to destroy America's Truly Noble Conservatives blah blah blah. And that keeps things rolling with even more free media.
This shit doesn't happen by accident.
Jul 1, 2016
Today's Tweet
At the Jefferson Memorial and this quote should be applied against all #2A arguments. #nra #tcot pic.twitter.com/8gb9GVYX6I— MATTY ICE (@MattyIceAZ) July 1, 2016
Start The Weekend
Whatever your thing is. Whatever you're into. Whatever turns your crank. But let's remember to be just a tiny bit careful too, OK?
Jun 29, 2016
Not For Nothing
via HuffPo:
Still not convinced the Earth is rapidly warming? Consider this: The last time the global monthly temperature was below average was February 1985.
That means if you are 30 years old or younger, there has not been a single month in your entire life that was colder than average.
“It’s a completely different world we’re already living in,” Mark Eakin, coordinator of NOAA’s Coral Reef Watch, told scientists gathered this week for the International Coral Reef Symposium in Honolulu. He added it likely won’t be long before that same age bracket has experienced only above-average temperatures.
“It’s happening that fast,” Eakin said.
Today's Weird Irony
I guess I'm only partly glad to be reminded that Stoopid is not exclusive to USAmerica Inc.
But - that clip also serves as a happy reminder that Monty Python's Life Of Brian continues to inspire some pretty great thinking.
Jun 28, 2016
Something Of A Change
The story at HuffPo is that Trump's flipflops on his immigration "policy" pronouncements (aka: standard ranch stash bullshit) is confusing for his supporters.
Donald Trump has spent the week pedaling backward and forward on his immigration positions, leaving immigration hawks — and some of his biggest boosters — worried about the strength of his support for mass deportations and a blanket ban on Muslim immigrants.
Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio, a prominent Trump supporter and immigration hawk, told HuffPost he was perplexed by Trump’s series of unfolding positions.
“He initially said he wanted to deport the 11 million people,” Arpaio said. “So you’re saying he’s now saying he’s not going to deport everybody who’s been here illegally?”
Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, an influential think tank that calls for stricter immigration laws, said he was similarly concerned.
“His instincts on a lot of these issues are correct. Unfortunately, since he doesn’t know much about the issue, won’t listen to his own advisers, and won’t read his own immigration platform, he ends up veering from one thing to the next,” said Krikorian, who plans to vote for Trump. “This is just another example of Trump’s weakness when it comes to policy.”
But I'm kinda wondering how many of Trump's loyal Base Voters will start to bail on him now that it appears he's trying to polish himself up for the general election. The story and that video clip make it pretty obvious that he's being managed a lot differently now. He's not up there just running his mouth - he's trying to focus a more generally palatable rhetoric on the immigration issue, which is what has put his Knob-Gobbler Chorus Boys into a tizzy. How does a Joe (America's Own Sheriff of Nottingham) Arpaio and that Nazi Heimbach dude stay with him now?
What does that cost him? Standard Operating Procedure says you can expect to lose some support from the wingnuts, but it doesn't matter because you have to appeal to the middle now, and what you lose on the right you'll more than make up for... and those rubes aren't gonna vote for anybody else anyway... and and and ... but how does that not make Trump look like "just another politician"? And how does that not tarnish him big time with all the people who got him this far because he's not just another politician?
What really jumps out at me though is that somebody (Manafort?) has convinced him that if he's going to be more consistent, and better able to stay on message, then he has to use a TelePrompter, and holy fuck, boys and girls, he really sucks at it.
This continues to be something to watch with great interest - like something grotesque and horrific that some teenager caught on video; I can't stop watching it; I can't stop hating that I'm watching it, and I can't stop wanting to see more.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)