Saturday, April 30, 2016

Ones That Weren't Likely to Be Asked, Probably

NYT: Run on a Ticket With Donald Trump? No, Thanks, Many Republicans Say

This is when we get to see the Republican politicians that have GOP blinders on and which are savvy enough to get on the Trump train.


Friday, April 29, 2016

Orange County Democrats Call for Anti-Trump Protest

From the Democratic Party of Orange County Facebook page:


I wonder when the "update" was added. People were blocking the intersection and then became violent with people leaving the rally.



And punch a man and take his hat.

And smash up a police car.

Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression*, and now...

GOP elites are now resigned to Donald Trump as their nominee.

The death of the party as it was. Maybe something better and stronger will arise from it. Maybe not. I don't care, not my party, not my problem. I spent much of my lifetime registered Republican but switched a couple of years ago to Libertarian. I kind of wish I had waited to switch so I could have rage-quit this year over the way they've been acting. Rage quitting would have been more satisfying than disappointment quitting.

* Kübler-Ross stages of grief.

Wednesday, April 27, 2016

Do We Love Indiana!



Skip to 53:30 to see Trump's introduction of Knight and then Bobby Knight's speech.

Tuesday, April 26, 2016

ISIS Offers Marriage Counseling


The terrorists opened a relationship counseling center to try to keep young brides from running away.
ISIS has lured female recruits by promising them a new life in Syria.
And that's certainly what they got. They thought they were getting freedom and excitement. Instead they got servitude and a lack of indoor plumbing.

This Is For You, Daddy

Who's Crazy Now?


I saw this article - Maybe Donald Trump has really lost his mind: What if the GOP frontrunner isn’t crazy, but simply not well? - and Googled the author to see what her background in psychology was, since she felt assured of her opinion enough to write about it like this.

Her degrees are in Spanish and Latin American literature and philosophy. On an "about me" page it says, "she was raised by a strong, bright, and brave mother, who taught her children that “rules were made to be broken” and to question authority." So, I don't know, is she questioning authority here or questioning someone else's right to question the status quo?

If you're wondering whether you should bother reading the article, I'll give you one quote to help decide - "One excellent example was John Oliver’s brilliant piece on Trump that ended by outing that Trump’s name had originally been Drumpf—a truth that was extremely ironic since Trump himself likes to mock others for their names."

If you think an ancestor in the 1600s changing the spelling of their last name is a "gotcha", then this article is for you. If it bothers you to see someone repeat falsehoods while calling the other person a liar, then this article will just smell like desperation.

Monday, April 25, 2016

Bobby and The Donald

Bobby Knight is going to campaign with Trump in Indiana. I guess it doesn't matter now if Cruz and Kasich have a deal or not, the vote in Indiana should be wrapped up by this.

Did Cruz ever have a perfect season? I don't think so. And what was he doing in 1976 when Bobby and Indiana were having a year of 32 wins and zero losses? Probably starting kindergarten, since he would have been 5-years-old, but that's not the point. He wasn't winning basketball games for Indiana and that's what matters.

Sunday, April 24, 2016

Pieces of April



April gave us springtime and the promise of the flowers
And the feeling that we both shared and the love that we called ours
We knew no time for sadness, that's a road we each had crossed
We were living a time meant for us, and even when it would rain
we would laugh it off.
It's a beautiful April day where I am. I think I'll go outside and enjoy it. Or stay inside and take a nap. Decisions, decisions.

Is Hillary Really Crooked?


The NYT asks, "Is Hillary Dishonest?" (because they don't want to use the c-word - crooked).
[W]hen Gallup asks Americans to say the first word that comes to mind when they hear “Hillary Clinton,” the most common response can be summed up as “dishonest/liar/don’t trust her/poor character.” Another common category is “criminal/crooked/thief/belongs in jail.”
The op-ed argues that this is all overblown. She's just pragmatic. She's a politician who thinks and talks the way politicians do. This just goes to show that you can fool all of the people some of the time, and some of the people all of the time, but only the NYT editorial staff can get fooled all of the time.

Trump Risks Breaking Up GOP

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) warned on Sunday that Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump is putting the party at risk of breaking apart.
No.

The party ignoring new (or new to the GOP) voters who are excited by Trump is putting itself at risk. The party ignoring how many people, both Republicans for Trump and Democrats for Sanders, who are attracted to the party outsiders is putting the party at risk.

This obliviousness isn't helping them. The GOP really is determined to take the "Lose with Cruz" route.

Sunday's Rare Donald


Friday, April 22, 2016

VP List

GOP candidates begin making their Vice-President lists.

I was thinking about this a couple of weeks ago. I would have liked to know early on who the candidates thought would be a good choice for VP. I didn't want a list that the candidates would be held to, just an idea of the people each candidate thought would make a good second-in-command. In some ways, that would tell us more about the candidates than their campaign speeches do.

What strengths do the VP choices have? (Telling us what the candidate thinks her/his areas of weakness are and whether they are aware of areas of weakness.) Or maybe they would just look for a VP that can get a different area of the country. Or a different demographic (women, younger people, more rural voters...).

In spite of thinking that I'd like to see the candidates' choices, I haven't given much thought to who I would like those choices to be. Nikki Haley has come out as being for anyone but Trump, but I think it would be very interesting to see if he could bring her around as his VP candidate.

I think Hillary Clinton will go with a man - or maybe just anyone who isn't Elizabeth Warren - I think a popular (among liberals) female would be too threatening to her. Julian Castro is a likely pick. Clinton might pick him in the hopes that he would bring the Hispanic vote.

It's possible that the two final candidates would pick a running mate that had also been trying to become president - Trump picking Kasich, for example. I hope not. One of the reasons I think the VP selection is interesting is because we've seen so much of the presidential candidates that there doesn't seem to be anything new and exciting about them. A VP that isn't already in the running (or was in the running until recently) wouldn't bring the excitement that a new face would. Because Clinton has been around and in politics since forever, I think she needs that newness more than Trump does.

Thursday, April 21, 2016

Cruz Tries to Be Relevant

Another day of The Donald sucking up all of the media attention and another day of Cruz trying to get noticed.

Donald Trump: Transgender people should be able to use whatever bathroom they want.
Ted Cruz tweets: "We shouldn't be facilitating putting little girls alone in a bathroom w/ grown men. That's just a bad, bad, bad idea"

Because not forcing businesses to go to the expense of building a gender-neutral bathroom, or hiring someone to check the genitals of everyone using the bathrooms, or changing the laws - most building codes require two separate restrooms for men and women now - is exactly the same as tossing your young daughter into a den of perverts.

If you're worried about men dressed as women molesting your daughters, why aren't you worried about men molesting your sons in the men's room?

Wednesday, April 20, 2016

Math is Hard


847 + 400 = 1247
553 + 684 = 1237
148 + 1090 = 1238
1930 + 483 = 2413
1223 + 1160 = 2383

CNN got 2 out of 5 right. But don't worry, I'm sure they fact check all of their other stuff much better.

New York! New York!



If I can make it there, I can make it anywhere.

That's Some Head on That Beer

Can't blame her though, how was she supposed to know? Vodka doesn't foam up like that.


Saturday, April 16, 2016

Poor Hillary

Maureen Dowd begins, "It's hard not to feel sorry for Hillary Clinton." And that's where she looses me. It's easy for me to feel no sympathy for the woman, at least not for the problems she's brought on herself.

I also don't feel sorry for her that she's being challenged by a socialist who is clueless on economics and foreign policy. Having to run against an old white guy who acts like he thinks he's Santa Claus with all of his promises of free stuff isn't her fault, but his popularity is the voters' reaction to the party she's been such a big part of for a long time.

Friday, April 15, 2016

Don't Go To Parties Where There's A Lot of Alcohol

Republican presidential hopeful John Kasich today told a female college student concerned about "sexual violence, harassment and rape" that she should not "go to parties where there's a lot of alcohol.
That's good advice for the boys too. That doesn't mean never drink alcohol or never go to parties where alcohol is served, it just means don't go to parties where alcohol is the main focus.

It's not victim blaming. If you go to a party where the goal is to get as blitzed as possible, you are going to be hanging out with immature people. If you want to be treated with respect, immature drunks are not your best bet for company.

Thursday, April 14, 2016

What Would Make Movie Theaters Better?

The answer is not "texting" during movies. The CEO of AMC Entertainment says he's open to making "some theaters texting and mobile device-friendly".

I love my phone as much as anyone but the idea of being around people texting during a movie just makes me think I'd rather see what's on Netflix.

Update: It looks like the answer is "no".


Judge Rules Against Gun Companies

In a major blow to gun companies, a judge in Connecticut on Thursday denied a motion to dismiss a lawsuit brought by 10 families affected by the December 2012 massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School against the maker of the Bushmaster AR-15 rifle used in the shooting.
The families, or, rather, their lawyers, are arguing that it's a military-style weapon that it's a "military-style assault weapon that is unsuited for civilian use".

It's a rifle, not some special military-only weapon. The only people who will end up benefiting from this lawsuit continuing are the lawyers.

What's the Buzz?

Russian jets buzz US Destroyer Donald Cook.


In one of the most aggressive actions in recent memory, Russian warplanes conducted “simulated attacks” on the a U.S. Navy vessel in the Baltic Sea on Tuesday, repeatedly flying within 30 feet of the ship, according to a defense official.

Tuesday, April 12, 2016

Because I Have a Vagina

Update: The video of Hillary's multiple claims that the reason to support her is because she's a woman has been taken down. Is this part of the effort to scrub negative images of her from the internet?


It was all just clips of her "playing the woman card", and would seem (I'm not a lawyer) to come under fair use since it was political speech, so I don't know why it was removed.

******************


 

If that's not a good reason to ignore a long history of lies and failure, I don't know what is.

Alinsky's Rules for Radicals: 1

“Power is not only what you have, but what the enemy thinks you have.” Power is derived from 2 main sources – money and people. “Have-Nots” must build power from flesh and blood.
The government has money. (Ours!) The two main political parties have money. The strength that both Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders have comes from people. Oh, they're spending money, but so did Jeb Bush and a lot of others who've dropped out already. They're both affecting people who are unhappy with the status quo and they're getting these people excited about politics.

Free Speech Wall

Several events for Ohio University’s Greek Week, an annual, weeklong event focused on philanthropy, have been canceled after some Sorority and Fraternity Life members painted “Build the Wall” on an area typically designated for graffiti last week.
 Graffiti is okay, but it has to be sanctioned graffiti.

Richard III and a Wandering Wife

This is an old story - either almost a year and a half, or several hundred years - about evidence of infidelity in Richard III's family.
The instance of female infidelity, or cuckolding, could have occurred anywhere in the numerous generations separating Richard III from the 5th Duke of Beaufort (1744-1803), whose living descendants provided samples of male-line DNA to be compared against that of Richard.
A bored or lonely wife is the most logical explanation, but I like to think of a Sommersby-like reason for it. Obviously this would be very unlikely, nobility are too well-known for this kind of switch, but I like the idea of a mean, abusive man going off to war and a kind, loving one coming home. It's a more interesting story than intentional infidelity.

Monday, April 11, 2016

De Blasio on CPT

“Thanks for the endorsement, Bill,” Mrs. Clinton said to Mr. de Blasio, a former aide to Mrs. Clinton when she was a senator from New York who nonetheless dallied in supporting her. “Took you long enough.”
“Sorry, Hillary,” Mr. de Blasio said. “I was running on C.P. time,” a reference to the stereotype “Colored People Time” that drew some cringes from the audience.
De Blasio said it was a scripted joke where the punchline, that Hillary eventually gave, was "cautious politician time".

What have we learned from this, people? We have learned not to tell jokes with Hillary Clinton because she has no sense of comedic timing.

About Colorado

Some Trump supporters are crying foul after Ted Cruz walked away with all of Colorado's delegates. Sorry, friends, he followed Colorado's rules and did it perfectly fairly (as far as I know at this point.)

This does make it look a bit fishy.


If you don't like how the Colorado Republicans run their party, follow the lead of Bruce Springsteen and Bryan Adams and boycott the state. (Springsteen cancelled a concert in North Carolina and Adams cancelled on in Mississippi.) Don't book trips to Colorado. Don't buy things online from Colorado stores. Don't do business with Colorado-based businesses.

Here's a list of some Colorado-based restaurants and other businesses that may have products available in local stores or may even have an outlet near you:

  • Boston Market
  • Noodles & Company
  • Red Robin
  • Smashburger
  • Qdoba Mexican Grill
  • Quizno's
  • Re/Max International
  • Dish Network
  • Western Union
  • Otterbox
  • Samsonite
  • Celestial Seasonings
  • Jolly Rancher
  • Coors
  • Odell Brewing Company
  • Crocs
  • Waterpik

Granted, a lot of these companies are probably run by Democrats who neither know nor care what the state's Republican party is doing, but do you think that Springsteen asked ticket buyers if they supported the law or not before he decided not to show?

Don't go. Don't buy. Be sure to mention every non-purchase on Twitter or Facebook. If you're actually going so far as to cancel travel plans to Colorado, be sure to tweet the news to the CO GOP and let them know they're the reason.

It's not about what's fair, it's about who's the loudest.

Sunday, April 10, 2016

Asked and Answered

The interview is one of the most successful tricks that politicians and the media plays on voters. A politician will do an interview with a journalist that (secretly or not-so-secretly) supports that candidate. The journalist will ask a tough question that the voters have been wondering about. The politician will give an answer that touches on the subject but doesn't really answer the question. Then, the journalist will move on to a new question, no follow-up on the previous question.

This way, the politician can say that the question has been asked and answered and now we need to move on. Obviously the only people still asking for an answer are from the other party and have an agenda.

Or people who noticed that it wasn't really answered in the first place.

Some politicians are worse about this than others, but have no doubt, any of them will use this if they can. ("If they can" means they have to have a willing journalist participating. This is harder for some politicians than others.)

Dennis Hastert and the Law

People seem to be in agreement that Dennis Hastert did bad, shameful things when he was a wrestling coach. (I don't know why anyone is surprised at any bad news about an Illinois politician.) One could argue that it was his shame that led him to pay one of his victims over a million dollars, but if both parties agreed to this, why should the government care?

Thursday, April 7, 2016

Hillary Demonstrates Leadership...By Wanting Everyone Else to Go First


Voters deserve to see Clinton's Goldman Sachs speech transcripts, says The New York Times.
A televised town hall on Tuesday was at least the fourth candidate forum in which Mrs. Clinton was asked about those speeches. Again, she gave a terrible answer, saying that she would release transcripts “if everybody does it, and that includes the Republicans.”
The Sanders campaign came up with two closed-door speeches he made two decades ago. He made less than $1000 per speech (compared to Clinton's $675,000 for three speeches.)
 By stonewalling on these transcripts Mrs. Clinton plays into the hands of those who say she’s not trustworthy and makes her own rules.
Ya, think?