Month: January 2019

 
From News Corpse:

Steve Doocy, co-host of Trump’s favorite morning show, Fox and Friends, was dumbstruck by the charges against Stone. But more importantly, he couldn’t understand how anyone would see any hint of collusion in the charges against Stone:

“When you look at the seven counts from the Grand Jury – obstruction of an official investigation, false statements to Congress, and perhaps witness tampering – once again, where is the Russia collusion?”

Where is the collusion? It’s everywhere. It’s in each and every one of the charges Doocy just itemized. The obstruction of justice is specifically related to Stone’s efforts to cover his involvement in conspiring with the Russia-affiliated WikiLeaks to acquire and publish emails stolen from Hillary Clinton and her team. The false statements to Congress were specifically related to his denials of such involvement. And the witness tampering was also connected to his attempts to intimidate his co-conspirators into keeping quiet about these crimes committed on behalf of Trump.

The position of Fox News is remarkably tunnel-blind, even for them.

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From Julian Sanchez:

Yet there were also several indications that the probe may not be as near its conclusion as many observers assume — and that the true target of Friday’s F.B.I. actions was not Mr. Stone himself, but his electronic devices.

Mr. Stone’s early-morning arrest at his Florida home unsurprisingly dominated coverage, but reports also noted that federal agents were “seen carting hard drives and other evidence from Mr. Stone’s apartment in Harlem, and his recording studio in South Florida was also raided.” The F.B.I., in other words, was executing search warrants, not just arrest warrants.

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It seemed as if the shutdown would never end, until it did.

Ordinary people were not being hurt. And then they were.

It was not about officials suddenly opening their eyes. It was about who they saw, all along, as ordinary people.

Continue reading “Why Ordinary People Ended the Shutdown”

• nojo delves into history and discovers a close parallel to the special prosecutor blowing up a story that, if true, would have proven my President is a criminal.
   
• Iron Knee at Political Irony chronicles the controversy as investigators question whether President Trump is disloyal to Russia. Putin seems impatient.
   
• Our favorite Earth-Bound Misfit carefully explains the problem Trump and his wily advisors had in calling the bluff of Nancy Pelosi: Pelosi wasn’t bluffing.
   
• After all that, my President still does not even have a date for the State of the Union. Green Eagle suggests that Nancy Pelosi has provided an important lesson for Democrats.
   
• In fact, Andy Borowitz reports as Nancy Pelosi stands firm, saying no as Ann Coulter demands to deliver the State of the Union address.
   
• To explain why the shutdown went on so long, driftglass links Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross to Jacob Marley’s ghost. Click to find what the Dickens he means.
   
• Dave Dubya confirms a few judgments as he attempts to engage with Trump conservatives.
   
• News Corpse reports on the Fox News freakout, as new Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is compared to Hitler and Stalin for wanting those living in extreme wealth to pay more in taxes.
   
• Libertarian Michael A. LaFerrara makes a strange case for capitalism as Facebook deals with privacy violations. Seems you can’t blame capitalistic greed because we live in a mixed economy. Reminds me of a close friend accusing my church of “organized hypocrisy.” I responded: “That’s not fair! We’re not organized!”
   
• Wisconsin conservative James Wigderson semi-gloats as state Republican leaders are unimpressed with the first State-Of-the-State speech by new Democratic Governor Tony Evers. I dunno. Could it be a case of Republican heartburn? Evers did defeat conservative darling Scott Walker. Kind of reminds me of John F. Kennedy’s reaction when told the Republican National Committee had passed a resolution saying he had pretty much been a failure as President. Responded JFK: “I assume it passed unanimously.”
   
• Max’s Dad isn’t buying the new version of innocent, yet provoked, young Covington students mocking and shouting down the chanting, walking, Native American Vietnam veteran. Video still shows a teen smiling as he boldly attempts to stare down the chanter as he blocks his way.
   
• PZ Myers explains the media backlash on Covington coverage and the tsunami of mea culpa pronouncements.
   
• Jack Jodell at The Saturday Afternoon Post posts a list of “Scumbag Liars We Have Known”, not all of whom are Republicans or conservatives.
   
• This week’s note in Trumpian ‘Alternative Facts’ comes from Real Clear Politics as former ABC news personality Sam Donaldson provides an acerbic analysis of the relationship between Donald Trump and Kellyanne Conway.
   

 
From Ted McLaughlin at jobsanger:

Donald Trump simply doesn’t know how to deal with a strong and smart woman. Throughout his business career, he has had money and an army of lawyers, and he’s been able to bully and intimidate any woman who dared to question him. He thought he could repeat that same misogynistic behavior into the political world, and he is now learning that is just not going to happen. He has come up against a strong woman in Speaker Nancy Pelosi — and she is smarter than him and understands politics better.

Yesterday, He thought he could intimidate Speaker Pelosi. He sent her a letter saying, despite her wishes, he was going to give his State of the Union speech in the House of Representatives on January 29th. How could she disagree, since he was a man (and president of the most powerful nation on Earth).

But Speaker Pelosi wasn’t having any of his bullying.

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From Joe Hagstrom in MadMikesAmerica:

Seeing as how so many confuse my hero Donald Trump’s negotiating technique with haphazard confusion, it is my duty as a loyal conservative Republican to educate these deluded fools.

While the president is always calling for a deal on something or another, his real secret to success is never agreeing to anything. Or agreeing and later denying agreement and demanding more. His wall negotiations, not that there really are any are showing his negotiating genius.

There apparently are some cracks on both sides of the aisle that may convince some of the less ballsy to agree to Trump’s latest offer which really was no offer. His demand for 5.7 billion dollars may well pass the House and Senate though. And Trump will refuse to sign the bill. Instead he will demand another 5 billion or more and keep the government shut down.

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From Infidel753:

From time to time I’ve touched on why I’m skeptical about the “inexorable rise of China” meme which dominates a lot of American thinking about the future — the issue of “zombie” state-owned enterprises which produce little value but are propped up at huge expense to absorb what would otherwise be dangerous numbers of unemployed workers, the likelihood that official figures on economic growth are exaggerated, and the stultifying effect of a totalitarian state upon the open society and free flow of information which are essential to real modernity. But there’s another problem which, while it superficially seems trivial, I believe will be a major factor holding China back. It’s the writing system used by the Chinese language.

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We spent the other evening watching yet another showing of the Ian Fleming thriller with hero James Bond. Sean Connery remains the template, of course.

But I was, as always, most impressed with the lifelong versatility of Robert Shaw. Every new role made this early effort more amazing. It is hard to believe the same actor who later became Nazi Colonel Hessler, mobster Doyle Lonnegan, and crusty old shark hunter Quint so capably portrayed the evil villain trained to kill Bond.

The movie differed from Fleming’s original plot. The cinematic character was an Irish spy employed by an international crime organization dedicated to creating conflict between Western Powers and the Soviet Union.

In Fleming’s book, Shaw’s character was the pretend friend who turned out to be the dangerous agent of Russia, sent to destroy any defense Britain, and ultimately the West, would have against Russian aggression.

Robert Shaw deserved the acclaim he received at the realistic portrayal. Audiences still find it difficult to distinguish between the actor and his subject.

Shaw died in 1978, 38 years too early to witness Mike Pence himself become Vice President of the United States.

 
From Mock Paper Scissors:

…and now I feel the whole, monstrous thing is back in our faces, again. Lord of the Flies was a documentary.

Look, the thing I have learned as a White, Entitled, Male is that I DO NOT get to decide what is racist, classist, or sexist. When someone in those communities tell me that something offends them, I check my privilege and examine my assumptions. It’s taken me a lifetime to get here, but I arrived. It’s good to be here.

See, for me the problem is that I can easily understand how those kids got to where they are, because without pushback I could have been one of them. No one challenges them, they see themselves as future Masters of the Universe. This is the way white boys are socialized, the world is your oyster, and the pearl is ripe for plucking. The only thing holding you back is yourself. Go forth and plunder!

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From The Life and Times of Bruce Gerencser:

Early on, I noticed that many pastors used their position for material gain and upward social status. One of Polly’s young preacher cousins provides a good example of this. One day I called my in-laws and he answered the phone. This is Reverend James Overton. How may I help you? I snickered to myself, and said, Hey Jamie, this is Bruce. Is Mom or Dad there? I thought, Reverend James Overton? Really? I never played the Reverend game. I was comfortable with congregants calling me Bruce or Preacher. I also never asked for the “preacher discount” or special treatment. I had no regard for pastors who weren’t shy about announcing their clerical status, hoping that they would be granted discounts, free meals, or other special considerations.

I never told people out of hand that I was a pastor. Granted, a lot of people knew I was a preacher, but I never told strangers what I did for a living. I wanted to be considered an everyday guy. The reason for this was simple. As soon as I told someone I was a pastor, a snap judgment was made about me. After I stopped pastoring churches in 2005, we looked for a church we could call home. All told, we visited over one hundred churches. (Please see But Our Church is DIFFERENT!) At virtually every church, the first or second question I was asked was “what do you do for a living?” Early on, I would tell people I was a pastor, but I noticed that people treated me differently if I did: reverently, respectfully, with careful distance. One Sunday after visiting yet another new church, I told Polly, I am sick of being asked what I do for a living. I think the next time someone asks me I am going to say, I’m sorry, but I don’t have sex on the first date! Of course, I never did. I was too polite to ever say such a thing.

These days, I NEVER tell someone who doesn’t know me that I was a pastor. I don’t want to have to explain why I am no longer in the ministry. Yes, if someone does a web search on my name he or she will quickly find out I was once a pastor. However, I am not going to volunteer that information. I am not ashamed or embarrassed by my former life as a pastor. I have many fond memories of the years I spent in the ministry, along with a boat load of dark, harmful experiences too. What I want to avoid is being judged by people who don’t know me.

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