home

Thursday Open Thread

I'm sorry for my lack of posting. Work and trying to get ready to move has consumed almost all my time.

Here's a new open thread, all topics welcome.

< El Chapo: Gov't. Asks for Life Plus 30 Years | Immigration Raids: Cities Prepare, People Protest >
  • The Online Magazine with Liberal coverage of crime-related political and injustice news

  • Contribute To TalkLeft


  • Display: Sort:
    Crimes Against Humanity (5.00 / 1) (#46)
    by MKS on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 09:35:11 PM EST
    Some time ago, Peter and I discussed here the legal underpinninsg to international law prosecutions for war crimes against civilians, etc.

    Peter did refer to International Common Law. Along these lines, one of the first cases involving the prosecution for war crimes was the trial of the Confederate Commandant of Andersonville. Henry Wirz pleaded for more resources. But overcrowding and lack of resources led to many deaths of Union POWs.

    Wirz was convicted of war crimes and hanged.  This case helped form the foundation of the International Common Law prohibitions against war crimes and of Nurnberg Crimes Against Humanity. So, overcrowding and disease now inflict great harm and in some instances death in the camps of the undocumented along our southern border.

    Are these not Crimes Against Humanity in the classic sense?  According to the Nurnberg Principles and International Common Law?  

    Pence, having (5.00 / 3) (#47)
    by KeysDan on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 10:10:07 PM EST
    made a publicized personal review of the squalid and inhuman conditions at the detention centers and pronouncing no surprises, should place him front and center at The Hague.

    Parent
    (Sigh!) (5.00 / 1) (#57)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Sun Jul 14, 2019 at 05:03:26 AM EST
    "Give me your tired, your poor,
    Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
    The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
    Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
    I lift my lamp beside the golden door!

    "They're now locked in a place you're forbidden to see.
    No doubt, they're all drug dealers, rapists galore,
    MS-13 thugs who are not yet quite three.
    So, yeah, send us your tired, wretched and poor.
    And pray we don't make them drink their own pee."

    :-(

    Parent

    Wanted to share, that I had a very good time (5.00 / 5) (#111)
    by Peter G on Tue Jul 16, 2019 at 08:28:00 PM EST
    in court this afternoon. (My co-counsel got to deliver the argument.)

    We won! Justice at last (5.00 / 5) (#127)
    by Peter G on Wed Jul 24, 2019 at 06:25:38 PM EST
    Your case made The Guardian. (5.00 / 1) (#128)
    by oculus on Wed Jul 24, 2019 at 09:47:39 PM EST
    I am so sick to death (5.00 / 1) (#116)
    by CaptHowdy on Wed Jul 17, 2019 at 07:29:39 AM EST
    Of republican apologists like Mecham and his ilk using Reagan as some paragon of racial sensitivity by quoting over and over and over his "farewell" speech in which he waxed rhapsodic about immigrants.  

    To say this is an example of how progressive he was on race is beyond ridiculous.

    First, race was never really mentioned in the speech.  French, Trurkish, German and Japanese, not Africa, Jamaica, or any brown country.

    Second, The voluminous record of Reagan's racial dog whistling and his shameless exploitation of racial division is everywhere.

    During his 1976 presidential campaign, Ronald Reagan said, "There's a woman in Chicago. She has 80 names, 30 addresses, 12 Social Security cards and is collecting veterans' benefits on four nonexistent deceased husbands. She's got Medicaid, is getting food stamps and welfare under each of her names. Her tax-free cash income alone is over $150,000." The woman Reagan described was ultimately dubbed the "welfare queen" by the Chicago Tribune, a phrase that has widely been linked to the iconic GOP politician. Reagan's infamous story was based on the tale of a real person named Linda Taylor, a black woman from Chicago.

    Reagan has been widely been attributed with racializing the debate over welfare in the U.S. This continues to impact both perceptions and policy regarding welfare, which has had a detrimental impact on communities of color, research shows.

    The country fair "states rights" speech

    It was bitter symbolism for black Americans (though surely not just for black Americans). Countless observers have noted that Reagan took the Republican Party from virtual irrelevance to the ascendancy it now enjoys. The essence of that transformation, we shouldn't forget, is the party's successful wooing of the race-exploiting Southern Democrats formerly known as Dixiecrats. And Reagan's Philadelphia appearance was an important bouquet in that courtship.

    I really hope some who gives enough of a shi+ to write letters lets Joe Scarborough, John Mecham, Mike Barnicle and others of this fact.

    So they will STFU about what a model of racial sensitivity Reagan was.

    Trump was a long construction project.  He did not pop out of no where.  Frankenstein was the doctor, not the monster.

    Yes. (none / 0) (#118)
    by KeysDan on Wed Jul 17, 2019 at 09:38:33 AM EST
    Typically, Trump's racist comments need to be condemned in a bipartisan fashion, as contrived as that has to be, so as to be "valid and legitimate."

    Some of the media is calling Trump's tweets "divisive" and that this is his "divisive" strategy for re-election.  Not racially divisive, or racism is his strategy. And, too, this "divisive" strategy is seen as just that, a strategy--to get his Evangelicals out to vote. Just a smart political move (as contrasted with say, a Democratic strategy to motivate voters with universal healthcare. That strategy gets picked up as socialism, which is, of course, the devil incarnate).

    Parent

    CNN (5.00 / 1) (#121)
    by FlJoe on Wed Jul 17, 2019 at 10:08:56 AM EST
    to their credit is flat out calling it racist.
    Of course they have to pull out the both siderism and repeatedly bring up the vaguely anti-semitic statements by some of the Democrats(as if comments by some freshmen back benchers equal those of POTUS).

    The analysts frame it as a valid and perhaps effective campaign strategy, perhaps, unfortunately it is, but they should spend more time on the deplorability of it all.

    Parent

    Reagan's grand legacy (none / 0) (#120)
    by KeysDan on Wed Jul 17, 2019 at 09:56:16 AM EST
    includes his "strapping young bucks" buying T-Bone steaks with food stamps, and "welfare queens" driving in Cadillacs--as part of his failed 1976 presidential campaign.

    And, his 1980 kick-off at Philadelphia, Mississippi--the site of the 1964 murders of civil rights workers, Andrew Goodman, Mickey Schwerner, and James Chaney. A good place, he was told by local Republicans, to find George Wallace inclined voters. Reagan returned during his 1984 re-election campaign.

    The Mississippi Burning murders were the acts of the KKK. The three civil rights workers were abducted.  Goodman and Schwerner, who were white, were shot once in the heart, Chaney, a black man, was shot three times and castrated.  They were all buried near the fair grounds at which Reagan gave his "states rights" speech, a customary Jim Crow code. The horrible murders did propel the enactment of the Civil Rights laws of 1965, which played into the KKK and other racist's clarion call for---- states rights.

    Parent

    It drives me absolutely crazy (none / 0) (#122)
    by CaptHowdy on Wed Jul 17, 2019 at 10:09:27 AM EST
    They do this because they know no one will call them on it because doing that would simply result it diverting the discussion to the racism of Reagan and off the horrific situation in which we are currently.

    It is a tried and true method to propagate the BIG LIE that gave us Trump.  

    Drives me nuts.

    Parent

    Turning Orange County Blue (none / 0) (#1)
    by MKS on Thu Jul 11, 2019 at 04:14:03 PM EST
    Orange County, California, once known as a bastion of conservative politics, has turned blue.

    Hillary won Orange County by 9 points.  Obama lost it twice.  As did Bill.

    And, in 2018, all House seats in Orange County, or those located largely in Orange County, turned from red to blue.  All the House members from Orange County are Democrats. The GOP lost 5 seats in Orange County alone.

    Now, it appears that party affiliation is now changing too.  The Republicans used to hold at least a 20 point lead in party Registration.  But now the Democrats are gaining ground quickly.  A local paper estimates that the Democrats are gaining one percentage point per month.  And, soon there will be more registered Democrats than Republicans in Orange County.

    Trump did this.

    Orange County is the proverbial white college flight from the GOP.

    Just don't blow it by going bonkers with Medicare for All, etc.

    I don't get (5.00 / 1) (#6)
    by Ga6thDem on Thu Jul 11, 2019 at 05:17:22 PM EST
    the MFA nonsense. This is such an easy fix and too many candidates have turned this into a massive mess. Just let people buy into Medicare or offer it on the exchanges.

    Parent
    Oz the Gweat and Powuhful (none / 0) (#2)
    by CaptHowdy on Thu Jul 11, 2019 at 04:16:32 PM EST
    It about to have a lipsticking the Census pig cewermony in the wowse garden.

    More (5.00 / 1) (#9)
    by FlJoe on Thu Jul 11, 2019 at 06:07:09 PM EST
    weird scenes inside the rose garden
    POTUS leaves without taking questions."Talk to us! The real news!" Then this mess unfolded with Sebastian Gorka yelling at a journalist. Supporter say Gorka could "kick your punk ass."
    Straight out of junior high.

    Parent
    That's what happens when you invite (none / 0) (#17)
    by desertswine on Thu Jul 11, 2019 at 11:58:56 PM EST
    farm animals into your house.  They sh!t on the furniture.

    Parent
    In other political nooze (none / 0) (#3)
    by CaptHowdy on Thu Jul 11, 2019 at 04:19:32 PM EST
    My regular "lunch with a Trumpaloid" friend has ignored two texts.

    I see this as a very good sign.  They are scared.

    Parent

    Oh, they (none / 0) (#7)
    by Ga6thDem on Thu Jul 11, 2019 at 05:21:19 PM EST
    definitely are scared. I'm seeing it on social media. The fact that Trump feels sorry for Acosta instead of the victims says a lot. And now the stories are starting to come out.

    David Frum said that the GOP could have dumped this scandal by dumping Acosta but they have chosen to embrace it. Maybe they are all freaking blackmailing each other and since Acosta worked that deal he has the goods on Trump as a co-conspirator. Lord have mercy anything seems possible.

    Parent

    I'm hoping (none / 0) (#12)
    by CaptHowdy on Thu Jul 11, 2019 at 06:54:15 PM EST
    He gets around to texting me back in the next few day so I can reply `any day but Wed because I have to be home for Mueller time'.

    Parent
    How are we sure (none / 0) (#5)
    by CaptHowdy on Thu Jul 11, 2019 at 04:39:07 PM EST
    Wilbur Ross is actually alive?

    Parent
    I wonder how Barr managed (none / 0) (#15)
    by Peter G on Thu Jul 11, 2019 at 07:31:17 PM EST
    to convince him he had to stop defying the Supreme Court and digging his poor lawyers an even deeper hole in the three court cases.

    Parent
    Hey Peter (none / 0) (#90)
    by CaptHowdy on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 03:49:34 PM EST
    Is the 5th circuit going to kill Obamacare? Or try to.

    Parent
    Seems from the news reports of (5.00 / 4) (#100)
    by Peter G on Tue Jul 16, 2019 at 11:47:19 AM EST
    the oral argument that at least two of the reactionary judges on that 3-judge panel were taking seriously the crackpot district judge decision, which   asserted national jurisdiction and declared the statute entirely unconstitutional. So, I suppose it is possible. The challenge is legally super-weak, so it is no surprise that the Tr*mp "Justice" department changed sides and now is supporting the dumb-ass opinion of the lower court.

    Parent
    Bad Lip Reading (none / 0) (#4)
    by CaptHowdy on Thu Jul 11, 2019 at 04:27:18 PM EST
    I first read that as (none / 0) (#11)
    by leap on Thu Jul 11, 2019 at 06:26:32 PM EST
    Trumpinesia. Something afflicting Ms Pelosi & Mr Schumer.

    Parent
    Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (none / 0) (#8)
    by KeysDan on Thu Jul 11, 2019 at 05:38:08 PM EST
    apparently has nothing to do these days, what with Trump and Ivanka conducting foreign affairs.  So, he moved on a pet project: "The Commission on Unalienable Rights", aka: "Natural Law Commission".

     Pompeo, a right- wing Christian extremist, is concerned that Human Rights has "lost its bearings and become more of an industry than a moral compass."  The task, therefore, is to shrink human rights, since real human rights are clashing with other human rights.

    The organizing principle for the Commision's work is "Natural Law", a Catholic theology adopted by Evangelicals.  This theology, essentially, is to inform the ordering of society--issues such as abortion, feminism, and gay rights.

     Apparently, the State Department has concerns that human rights advocates are coming up with new rights, or extending human rights presently enjoyed by the likes of Pompeo to others. That needs to be looked into.

    The Commission has been formed without the input of the State Departmen's bureau of human rights. The members are, as you might expect, those who are staunchly opposed to gay and trans rights and women's rights.

     The Chairwoman is a real piece of work:  Mary Ann Glendon, a long-term and continuing advisor to the Vatican, and former Ambassador to the Holy See. (and a mentor to Pompeo when he was a student at Harvard Law).

      The 80-year old anti-gay, anti-abortion, anti-contraception Chair, is presently Learned Hand Professor of Law at Harvard.  No early retirement for her. In 1995, as a Vatican representative to the Bejing Conference she contested the use of condoms for family planning as well as in HIV/AIDS prevention.

    In 2002, Ambassador Glendon derided the Boston Globe's Pulitzer for its investigation/coverage of sexual abuse of children by Catholic priests(cf. Spotlight), saying the award was akin to giving the Nobel Peace Prize to Osama bin Laden.  In 2009, Ms. Glendon was the recipient of Notre Dame University's Laetare Medal, but she declined the award due to the University inviting President Obama to its commencement speaker and award him an honorary degree. She opposes feminism because of negative attitudes toward men marriage and motherhood.

    Ms. Glendon's personal life is interesting, having married, as she reports "an African American attorney" in the early 60's shortly after graduating from the University of Chicago. She was divorced after two years, having had a daughter.  She later re-married to a labor attorney and was married until his death.  She notes that her first marriage was a civil ceremony so that that one does not count in the Catholic religion, and her second marriage was her first marriage.  It is as if she is, also, a cannon lawyer.

    Ambassador Glendon, along with her merry band of human rights guys, should really come up with some good stuff, like re-defining human rights for the globe. And, expedite discrimination and bigotry.

    A long way from when Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said "women's rights are human rights and gay rights are human rights."

    Harvard (none / 0) (#10)
    by Ga6thDem on Thu Jul 11, 2019 at 06:21:50 PM EST
    sure has cleaned up her biography on their website. According to Harvard she went on the trip to Beijing with Hillary. I guess she must have been there to undercut her.

    Parent
    I feel bad (none / 0) (#13)
    by CST on Thu Jul 11, 2019 at 07:02:14 PM EST
    For her first daughter.   Can you imagine?

    Parent
    The "natural rights" philosophical ideas (none / 0) (#14)
    by Peter G on Thu Jul 11, 2019 at 07:23:52 PM EST
    that informed the Declaration of Independence, to a much lesser extent the original Constitution, and then again the Bill of Rights, are those of the Enlightenment, not of the Catholic Church.

    Parent
    True, surely little or (5.00 / 1) (#25)
    by KeysDan on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 11:57:02 AM EST
    no Catholic theology in our founding documents, and surely little or no Enlightenment to guide Pompeo's "Natural Law" Commission. It is more a comparison between theism and deism.

    Informing (Catholic and, now Evangelical) "natural law" as theology is St. Thomas Aquinas who posits that natural law is the rational creature's participation in the eternal law.  And, eternal law is God's wisdom inasmuch as it is the directive norm of all movements and actions--society is directed by Divine intervention. And, in the Pompeo Commission's case, human rights are likely to be re-defined through God's wisdom as interpreted through a medieval theological lens.

    Deism, in contrast, is a philosophy that recognizes the existence of God who is responsibility for creation of the universe, God does not interact directly with the subsequently created world. After that Divine act, we are on our own.

    Enlightenment is, in a sense, the religion of nature and reason. The movement opposed barriers to moral improvement and to social justice. We aren't born bad and destined to die bad..or poor. It stood for religious tolerance.  It lead to advocacy of universal education, equality, and separation of church and state.

    It is my understanding that deism influenced our Founding Fathers to embrace liberal political ideals; some, such as Tom Paine, Ben Franklin and James Monroe, were definitely Deists. others, while Christians who remained in their denominations and retained their religious practices, were influenced by Deism.

    In my view, our founding owes much to Judeo-Christian traditions, but it is also greatly indebted to the Enlightenment/Deist influence of the Founders. And, it is also my opinion that the Pompeo's of the world never accepted the liberal underpinnings of the Constitution.

    Parent

    These people make my head hurt. (none / 0) (#37)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 07:29:20 PM EST
    It's been said that the abandonment of mandatory school busing programs in the late 1970s has resulted in an effective re-segregation of out public schools.

    Personally, I think re-segregation has rendered white people even more stupid and ignorant than they were before. Personally as a straight white male, people like Mike Pompeo, et al., constitute a perpetual embarrassment to me. They make me want to apologize to every non-Christianist, person of color and LGBTQ person I see, just so they know that we're not all like that.

    Anyway, we're off to Honolulu later this afternoon to hang out with the grandsons while Elder Daughter and her husband head off to Kauai with friends for the weekend. (They're going on a hike in Waimea Canyon.) We're literally trading places at HNL airport. We get off the plane, we walk out to the curb, they drive up with the kids, we drive off with the kids and they check in for their flight. Then on Sunday, it's the same thing, only in reverse.

    Have a great weekend, everyone. Aloha.

    Parent

    My LTE (none / 0) (#16)
    by Repack Rider on Thu Jul 11, 2019 at 08:03:36 PM EST
    Ran in yesterday's Marin Independent Journal:

    Editor,

    Anyone concerned that there is no citizenship question on the census form should just write their status in.  Problem solved.

    [Repack Rider]



    Judge Napolitano is right again (none / 0) (#18)
    by CaptHowdy on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 08:44:46 AM EST
    Acosta would be gone by Friday

    What is with (none / 0) (#19)
    by Ga6thDem on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 09:32:03 AM EST
    him these days using facts and actual sourcing?

    Parent
    Did you know Acosta was Hispanic (none / 0) (#20)
    by CaptHowdy on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 09:58:50 AM EST
    Oh, and did I mention, he's Hispanic.

    Parent
    And he went to Harvard? (none / 0) (#21)
    by Ga6thDem on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 10:19:46 AM EST
    Isn't that Amazing? A Hispanic that went to Harvard.

    Parent
    Judge Napolitano must (none / 0) (#24)
    by KeysDan on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 11:21:58 AM EST
    not have cottoned to Trump's smarmy reference to his relationship with his "pal" Shep Smith, in response to the judge's un-FOXy assessment that Trump obstructed justice.

    Parent
    Draining the swamp, (none / 0) (#22)
    by KeysDan on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 10:39:27 AM EST
    as "the best people" are locked up or resign.

    Parent
    I do love that he views (none / 0) (#23)
    by CaptHowdy on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 10:43:51 AM EST
    Waiting outside a high school for a child to entice to your den, ma$turbate in front of her and whatever else was a problem only because it was a "distraction" from the FABULOUS Trump economy.

    Parent
    I thought that the Dersh interview on NPR (none / 0) (#70)
    by Peter G on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 09:27:13 AM EST
    this morning (Mon 7/15) was a sadly missed opportunity to explain and support the defense function in distasteful and unpopular criminal cases. He was determined to defend himself, and only said that seeking light punishment was the "job" of the defense lawyer (without explaining the important values to society of doing that job) and went on to say that defense lawyers should then "feel bad" if they do their jobs well. Which I certainly do not agree with.

    Parent
    Some interesting tidbits (none / 0) (#71)
    by CaptHowdy on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 09:47:45 AM EST
    Are coming out of the Epstein hearing happening right now.  

    Parent
    For example (none / 0) (#74)
    by CaptHowdy on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 10:14:15 AM EST
    Among the things found in the safe was an expired passport with Epstein's pic and a different name stating he was a Saudi citizen.

    Parent
    Trump's (none / 0) (#76)
    by KeysDan on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 10:18:31 AM EST
    rants are a strategic distraction from Epstein's pedophilia charges.

    Parent
    Among other things (none / 0) (#80)
    by CaptHowdy on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 10:30:43 AM EST
    It definitely is

    Parent
    Did they get into (none / 0) (#81)
    by jondee on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 10:32:45 AM EST
    what these old old Russian women were doing there?

    Were they planting turnips and raising chickens on his property?

    Parent

    Washer (5.00 / 1) (#84)
    by FlJoe on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 10:49:28 AM EST
    women of course, those Rubles do not launder themselves.

    Parent
    Maybe he was a middleman (none / 0) (#82)
    by jondee on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 10:39:55 AM EST
    for a possible arms-for-knock-off-supporting-ISIS deal with the Saudis.

    That sort of thing would fit the Rethug mo
    to tee.

    Parent

    Democrats Continue Search For The Smoking Gun They (none / 0) (#26)
    by Chuck0 on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 05:56:23 PM EST
    Already Have.

    Headline from Huffpost. And I couldn't agree more. When is Pelosi and the Democratic Party going to get off their collective a$$es and impeach the impostor at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.?

    The Democratic Party needs to stop being so careful and calculating and act. It's the same ol, same ol. The Democrats for too long being afraid of being accused of being unpatriotic, soft on crime, etc. etc. Stop already. You just look weak, weak, weak. Lots of talk, no action. And eventually you cave.

    Stop trying to not offend the other side. They don't care. And I certainly don't. Offend away. Call them deplorable. Call them despicable. They are all of that and more.

    I am starting to believe the US is no more. It will never be the country we grew up learning it was. It will never be the country all of you at TalkLeft want it to be. It's too late. Too much chaos and damage has been wrought. This is no longer my country.

    And (5.00 / 1) (#30)
    by CaptHowdy on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 06:49:12 PM EST
    It (none / 0) (#33)
    by FlJoe on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 07:14:49 PM EST
    will come to pass, guaranteed. Unless of course tRumpism outlasts him, scary thought either way.

    Republicans never pay for failure.

     

    Parent

    He's a bigtime (none / 0) (#35)
    by Ga6thDem on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 07:23:23 PM EST
    Trumper. So you're right. He must not be allowed to rewrite his own history as speaker though the press always enthralled with him for some unknown reason seems to be allowing him to. Ryan is the one that said Trump couldn't be taken off the GOP ballot and overthrown at the convention because it might blow up the party. I would say the party right now is slowly blowing itself up. Ryan is a large part of why we have concentration camps and all.

    Parent
    Not as long as Pelosi (none / 0) (#27)
    by CaptHowdy on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 06:12:48 PM EST
    Is torpedoing the "looney left" for being "4 votes"

    Parent
    Who is NOT a racist (none / 0) (#28)
    by CaptHowdy on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 06:15:29 PM EST
    Donald Trump sez so.

    Parent
    Pelosi is certainly (none / 0) (#41)
    by leap on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 08:38:20 PM EST
    passed her pull-date. And so is Schumer. I am so tired of these whining, trembling, pusillanimous milksops. How can we light them on fire to get them to do something?

    Parent
    As I read (none / 0) (#43)
    by KeysDan on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 08:49:40 PM EST
    Maureen Dowd's column in last Sunday's NYTimes (based on her interview with Speaker Pelosi), a couple of things struck me: why give an interview to Ms. Dowd? Substantive issues were given equal weight to Pelosi's purple blouse and Manolo purple pumps: Pelosi poached food off Dowd's plate during lunch; the Speaker came across, unnecessarily, as arrogant; and she was spoiling for a fight with AOC  et al. when, as the senior leader should have been publicly conciliatory.

    Parent
    Birds of a Feather (none / 0) (#49)
    by jmacWA on Sat Jul 13, 2019 at 05:58:26 AM EST
    Pelosi and Dowd belong together.  I was wondering WHY on earth Pelosi would even give an interview to Dowd, then I remembered back to 2008.  Pelosi was one of the leaders of the Dump Hillary, Praise Obama movement; which in my opinion is one of the reasons we are we we are now.

    I haven't read Dowd in probably 20 years, and at this point I am thinking that it's really way past time for Pelosi to hang it up.  She and hubby HAVE to have enough money by now don't they (or maybe she secretly yearns to be like the Republicans)

    Parent

    Another aspect of this (none / 0) (#29)
    by CaptHowdy on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 06:17:02 PM EST
    Democrats have to stop whining and geremander the shi+ out of every area the possibly can.

    Parent
    They Don't Have the Smoking Gun Yet (none / 0) (#85)
    by RickyJim on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 11:09:01 AM EST
    That would be incontrovertible evidence of financial fraud and tax cheating.  While the evidence for obstruction of justice may hold up in a court of law, it won't get the Senate to convict Trump because of the argument that the criminal intent is not clear: "Why would he obstruct justice if there was no (proven) collusion."

    Parent
    The only reason ... (5.00 / 1) (#86)
    by Yman on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 12:53:51 PM EST
    ... Trump wouldn't be convicted in the Senate is because he's a Republican.  Proof of an underlying crime is not required to establish obstruction of justice as a crime or as an impeachable offense.

    Parent
    Yes, and as the Mueller Report (none / 0) (#87)
    by KeysDan on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 01:22:24 PM EST
    states, definitive conclusions on conspiracy with the Russian government was stymied because of witnesses taking the Fifth, destroying evidence, and falsely testifying.  And, of course, the obstruction.

    Parent
    There will be no conviction in the Senate. (none / 0) (#88)
    by Chuck0 on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 03:16:26 PM EST
    No matter what the charges. If Bone Spurs was shown to be diddling little boys in the Lincoln bedroom, the GOP would look the other way. Probably blame the little boys.

    Parent
    Mike Pence smells pee (none / 0) (#31)
    by CaptHowdy on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 07:03:46 PM EST
    Mother (5.00 / 1) (#32)
    by FlJoe on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 07:08:54 PM EST
    will be displeased. Unclean!

    Parent
    Things wish I did not know (none / 0) (#34)
    by CaptHowdy on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 07:15:33 PM EST
    1.) there is a Korean Dog Meat Association

    2.) 80% of South Koreans had not eaten dog meat in the previous year.

    Intolerance (none / 0) (#40)
    by Abdul Abulbul Amir on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 08:37:24 PM EST
    Intolerance of foreign culture.

    Parent
    If that was a question (5.00 / 1) (#42)
    by CaptHowdy on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 08:44:51 PM EST
    Yes

    Tho it has given me new leverage with my dogs. `You know the Korean family down the street are looking to adopt'

    Parent

    FYI (none / 0) (#44)
    by CaptHowdy on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 08:54:47 PM EST
    20% of the population, which I assume is vastly undercounted because of those who won't admit it to a survey, is something over 10 million.

    That's a lot of dog meat.

    And yes.  I love pork.

    Parent

    I am not so sure (none / 0) (#45)
    by MKS on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 09:14:26 PM EST
    about the leverage part.  I would bet your guys know they have no worries....

    Parent
    Sometimes I get the feeling (none / 0) (#48)
    by CaptHowdy on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 10:46:21 PM EST
    They are waiting to have the last laugh when all they find of me is in dog poop

    57-Year-Old Texas Man Was `Entirely Consumed By His Own Dogs'



    Parent

    More SK (none / 0) (#56)
    by CaptHowdy on Sat Jul 13, 2019 at 04:24:48 PM EST
    Tho more in incredulity than intolerance

    I came across that when I googled "muscular Jesus" to find out where this image came from that is making the rounds today as a result of the trending #ThingsJesusNeverSaid.

    I recommend the search.

    Parent

    So now Lindsay (none / 0) (#36)
    by Ga6thDem on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 07:25:07 PM EST
    is saying that his email was hacked by the Russians. He must not be behaving and Trump is going to release the kompromat. I can't imagine what Lindsay has done though to the Mad King since he seems to me to be a pretty good lapdog.

    Lindsey is now officially (none / 0) (#72)
    by CaptHowdy on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 10:00:41 AM EST
    the Groom of the Stool

    and should start being addressed as such.

    Parent

    MidSommer (none / 0) (#38)
    by CaptHowdy on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 07:44:03 PM EST
    Saw this yesterday.  Holt shi+ I love this movie

    Wet Hot American MidSommer

    Rex Reed (none / 0) (#39)
    by CaptHowdy on Fri Jul 12, 2019 at 07:46:52 PM EST
    Grim, grisly and downright sickening, Midsommar is a feel-bad horror film about suicide, mercy killings, insanity, graphic nudity, religious hysteria, and the kind of grotesque imagery that exists for no other reason than shock value.


    Parent
    Freaked my daughter out (none / 0) (#54)
    by Yman on Sat Jul 13, 2019 at 02:22:22 PM EST
    Even more so than Hereditary. Trying to decide if I should see it.

    Parent
    It it (none / 0) (#55)
    by CaptHowdy on Sat Jul 13, 2019 at 03:41:30 PM EST
    Hereditary squared

    Parent
    Today, July 13, is (none / 0) (#50)
    by KeysDan on Sat Jul 13, 2019 at 10:48:31 AM EST
    "Nathan Bedford Forrest Day" in Tennessee.  Governor Bill Lee (R. TN) signed a proclamation commemorating Nathan Bedford Forrest, Tennessean, the first Grand Wizard of the Klu Klux Klan and a Confederate general.

    Governor Lee's proclamation is in keeping with a Tennessee law that goes way back to 1971, requiring setting aside a day in the former Grand Wizard's honor along other specified days to honor other historical figures.  Governor Lee indicated that he was tasked with signing the proclamation and has not looked to changing the law.

    Saaaaaaa-lute (none / 0) (#53)
    by jondee on Sat Jul 13, 2019 at 12:10:02 PM EST
    Shelby Foote's favorite general.

    The best thing I can think to say about Forrest is he was definately a guy you wanted on your side in a bar fight.

    Parent

    Our projected rainfall (none / 0) (#51)
    by CaptHowdy on Sat Jul 13, 2019 at 11:22:24 AM EST
    Thru Tuesday has been increased from 4-6 to 7-10 inches.

    Glad I live on a hill.

    Glad I took my vacation (none / 0) (#52)
    by Chuck0 on Sat Jul 13, 2019 at 11:28:42 AM EST
    To New Orleans in mid-May.

    Parent
    Racist in Chief (none / 0) (#58)
    by Chuck0 on Sun Jul 14, 2019 at 03:36:25 PM EST
    "Go back to where you came from."

    Absolutely said by every white bigot I ever knew or met. Including my father.

    Three of the four Congress women (none / 0) (#67)
    by fishcamp on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 08:05:43 AM EST
    Trump spoke of came from the United States

    Parent
    Credit Trump (5.00 / 1) (#68)
    by CaptHowdy on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 08:35:12 AM EST
    For saying the quiet stuff out loud.  Chuck is right.  This is not new it is the 21st century version of AMERICA:  LOVE IT OR LEAVE IT

    Parent
    My father had a rubber stamp (none / 0) (#69)
    by Chuck0 on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 08:43:19 AM EST
    that said exactly that. "America. Love it or leave it." He would stamp it on all his outgoing mail.

    Parent
    From a Hillary (none / 0) (#73)
    by KeysDan on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 10:10:10 AM EST
    response:  ".........but he (Trump) is right about one thing, their government is a catastrophe."

    Parent
    From Charles M. Blow, op ed, (none / 0) (#78)
    by KeysDan on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 10:25:45 AM EST
    NYTimes, Monday, July 15, 2019:  "...There can be no more discussion or debate about whether or not Trump is a racist.  He is not.  There can be no more rhetorical juggling about not knowing what's in his heart.  We see what flows out of it."

     "...But, Trump--and many of his supporters and defenders---spew their racism and tell themselves that it is perfectly acceptable when it is read back to them, in much the same way that a dog will eat its own vomit."

    Parent

    oops. Second line from Blow excerpt should be: (5.00 / 1) (#79)
    by KeysDan on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 10:27:51 AM EST
    . "He is."  

    Parent
    The flying Frenchman (none / 0) (#59)
    by CaptHowdy on Sun Jul 14, 2019 at 03:55:58 PM EST
    this is pretty amazing

    Too bad they seem to be marketing it for police and military use.

    flying duck (none / 0) (#60)
    by leap on Sun Jul 14, 2019 at 04:06:32 PM EST
    ka-powww! Go get'im, Bowser!

    Parent
    My thoughts exactly (none / 0) (#61)
    by CaptHowdy on Sun Jul 14, 2019 at 04:12:03 PM EST
    So maybe they will seek "other applications"


    Parent
    Other than the next (none / 0) (#62)
    by CaptHowdy on Sun Jul 14, 2019 at 04:27:25 PM EST
    James Bond movie I mean.

    Parent
    On that subject (none / 0) (#92)
    by CaptHowdy on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 05:12:04 PM EST
    The poor racists were just healing from the Little Mermaid casting when it's announced the next 007 will be a black woman.

    Parent
    Heads must be spinning, (none / 0) (#99)
    by Jack E Lope on Tue Jul 16, 2019 at 09:47:37 AM EST
    ...shifting from racism to misogyny to...both at the same time!  

    But, a little victim-blaming will soothe the advantaged beasts.

    Parent

    Also (none / 0) (#102)
    by CaptHowdy on Tue Jul 16, 2019 at 03:28:34 PM EST
    It's being written by Phoebe Mary Waller-Bridge.  Who gave us Fleabag, and Killing Eve.  Never much of a Bond fan but I'm looking forward to this one.

    I read Daniel Craig was the one who brought Phoebe on.  So good on him.


    Parent

    This week marks the 50th anniversary ... (none / 0) (#63)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Sun Jul 14, 2019 at 06:18:39 PM EST
    ... of the Apollo 11 moon landing. And as tempting as it is to celebrate this landmark feat as a milestone in American technological prowess and ingenuity, I would urge everyone to temper that enthusiasm by remembering that NASA's director in 1969 was Dr. Wernher von Braun, who was formerly known as Untersturmführer von Braun of Nazi Germany's dreaded Waffen SS, and the principal architect of that country's deadly Vergeltungswaffe Zwei ("Retribution Weapon 2," aka the V-2) missile program.

    Let's be real here, and admit that as wonderful as NASA is, our space program's roots are nevertheless firmly anchored in some pretty dubious historical soils, thanks to Americans' innate capacity for hasty improvisation and moral equivocation in the face of opportunity.

    NASA's very existence is due primarily to the fact that at the end of the Second World War, a handful of savvy field officers in the United States Army knew a potential windfall when one dropped into their laps. And so, when Dr. von Braun and about 120 of his colleagues from Heeresversuchsanstalt Peenemünde surrendered to them personally on May 3, 1945, they quickly took it upon themselves to successfully spirit away nearly the entire cadre of German rocket scientists, before our country's Soviet allies could lay their own clutches on them.  

    Aloha.

    Tom Lehrer's song, (5.00 / 2) (#77)
    by Jack E Lope on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 10:18:59 AM EST
    Werner von Braun, from 1965:

    Spoken introduction:
    And what is it that put America in the forefront of
    The nuclear nations? And what is it that will make it
    Possible to spend twenty billion dollars of your money
    To put some clown on the moon? Well, it was good old
    American know-how, that's what, as provided by good
    Old Americans like Dr. Wernher von Braun!

    Gather 'round while I sing you of Wernher von Braun
    A man whose allegiance
    Is ruled by expedience
    Call him a Nazi, he won't even frown
    "Nazi, Schmazi!" says Wernher von Braun

    Don't say that he's hypocritical
    Say rather that he's apolitical
    "Once the rockets are up, who cares where they come down?
    That's not my department!" says Wernher von Braun

    Some have harsh words for this man of renown
    But some think our attitude
    Should be one of gratitude
    Like the widows and cripples in old London town
    Who owe their large pensions to Wernher von Braun

    You too may be a big hero
    Once you've learned to count backwards to zero
    "In German, und Englisch, I know how to count down
    Und I'm learning Chinese!" says Wernher von Braun



    Parent
    He aimed for the stars (none / 0) (#83)
    by jondee on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 10:41:49 AM EST
    and hit London.

    Parent
    The subject of dubious historical facts (none / 0) (#64)
    by CaptHowdy on Sun Jul 14, 2019 at 06:28:26 PM EST
    Might bring up how we won the war in the first place allowing us to "get" them.

    Still......

    Parent

    To the victor belongs the spoils. (none / 0) (#89)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 03:20:10 PM EST
    Dr. von Braun was regularly praised to the high heavens when I was growing up. I only learned about his Nazi past much later, when I was in college.

    Suffice to say that there was enough of the mercenary in von Braun that shifting his allegiance from Germany to the United States after the war -- all in the name of science, of course -- proved to be a relatively simple task. And there was enough real hunger for his work product in our country that we were perfectly willing to overlook his past association with the Third Reich.

    In many respects, that arrangement was the quintessential American quid pro quo.

    :-O

    Parent

    Werner was not a plumber (none / 0) (#65)
    by CaptHowdy on Sun Jul 14, 2019 at 06:30:51 PM EST
    See MAIDEN if you can (none / 0) (#66)
    by Dadler on Sun Jul 14, 2019 at 08:18:36 PM EST
    Tremendous and moving documentary about the first all-female crew to sail the Whitbread around the world yacht race. An astounding story that should be more well known. Peace to all. (MAIDEN trailer - link)

    Peas & Loaves to all.

    "adlerpoems"


    Just saw it Saturday. Highly recommend. (none / 0) (#75)
    by sarcastic unnamed one on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 10:16:26 AM EST
    Had me a tad misty by the end (none / 0) (#93)
    by Dadler on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 06:45:16 PM EST
    Hope all is well in LA, my old TL dude. Peace.

    Parent
    I thought it was depressingly hilarious (none / 0) (#91)
    by CaptHowdy on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 05:08:42 PM EST
    That Trump interpreted Lindsey's admonition to "aim higher" as a suggestion he should save his venom for higher office holders.

    "What am I supposed to do, only criticize senators?"

    Which would have almost have been funny if it was a joke.  But it was not.

    The only literacy he is capable of... (none / 0) (#94)
    by Dadler on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 06:53:31 PM EST
    ...is the grunting language of the bully. A literacy only functional in that bully scheme. And bullies, to be dis-empowered, must be confronted unsparingly. And there's the rub. Punch or be punched. There is no high road, really, with a racist, fascist tyrant. Not in a nation which cannot with any honesty claim to its citizenry that it is currently able to hold a genuinely free and fair national election.

    Parent
    Stephen King just tweeted (5.00 / 1) (#96)
    by CaptHowdy on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 07:47:48 PM EST
    Arm bands are coming.

    You almost have to think they are.  And then I realized, the hats.


    Parent

    Watched HBO's latest documentary (none / 0) (#95)
    by McBain on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 07:40:17 PM EST
    I Love You, Now Die.  I didn't really follow the Michelle Carter trial when it was going on.  I knew she was charged with convincing someone else to commit suicide through text messages but I didn't know the important details.

    After seeing the documentary, I'm not sure manslaughter charges were appropriate.  Anyone else see it?  Some interesting questions were raised, including the effect of depression/anxiety drugs on young people.  

    I watched it the other night. (none / 0) (#125)
    by Chuck0 on Wed Jul 17, 2019 at 12:47:33 PM EST
    I have a hard time with someone being convicted of manslaughter for words. The judge based part of his decision on the fact that Roy got out of the truck and she told him to get back in. The judge claims she had a "duty" at that point to save him or prevent the suicide.

    The US Supreme Court has ruled that police have no duty or obligation to protect anyone. If that's the case, then how should a mere citizen be held to a higher standard?

    I think the case is a indication of how screwed up the upcoming generation has become thanks to social media.

    Parent

    Ilhan Omar (none / 0) (#97)
    by CaptHowdy on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 07:53:31 PM EST
    Is on Rachel.

    I thought she was pretty amazing today.  I loved that she, when asked about hating America, pointed out that Trumps primary campaign message was about all that was so terribly wrong with the country.  All that need to be fixed that only he could fix.

    I really hope the next time he squawks about making America great "again" some tells him he should leave if he doesn't like it the way it is.

    How he did it (none / 0) (#98)
    by CaptHowdy on Mon Jul 15, 2019 at 08:13:54 PM EST
    2019 EMMY nominations are out (none / 0) (#101)
    by CaptHowdy on Tue Jul 16, 2019 at 03:23:00 PM EST
    VOX

    Game of Thrones leads with the most nominations.  4 of the 6 for supporting actress.  I hope they clean up just to own the haters.

    But boy, what a list of nominations.  What a great year for tv.

    I would be very happy if any of at least 4 or 5 of the nominees for best drama win.

    I don't watch a ton of TV (none / 0) (#103)
    by CST on Tue Jul 16, 2019 at 05:04:22 PM EST
    But glad to see Barry and Ozarks up there, although I thought season two of Ozarks was not quite as good as season one,  still excellent though.  Barry is cleaning up in the supporting actor category which IMO is where the show really shines.  You could make a strong case for any of them and the fact that there are 3 is really a credit to the show (plus lead actor and supporting actress).  

    I liked the last GOT season but as with so many ensembles it's hard to pinpoint a real standout from the cast.  If I had to choose one for last season it would  probably be Gwendoline.

    Parent

    I agree (none / 0) (#104)
    by CaptHowdy on Tue Jul 16, 2019 at 05:10:37 PM EST
    But I also love the Stark sisters.  Especially Arya.

    The other loaded category is Movie.

    Also I don't know how many people saw Escape From Dannemora but it was great.  It totally deserves a win in every category its named in.  Especially the two leads and double especially Patrica Arquette

    Parent

    And Limited Series (none / 0) (#105)
    by CaptHowdy on Tue Jul 16, 2019 at 05:12:52 PM EST
    Every nominee deserves to win.  

    Parent
    God, I hope it's not Biden (none / 0) (#106)
    by CaptHowdy on Tue Jul 16, 2019 at 05:37:04 PM EST
    If you missed Micas interview with Biden, lucky you.  I found my self watching it this morning as you might watch a horrible car accident.  There was one particularly chilling moment.  The ever insightful Mica asks him what he would do if during a debate Trump started mocking his age.  Joe explained -

    Joe Biden says that if the president were to make an issue of his age or energy level during a debate, he would challenge him to a push-up contest on the spot.

    'I'd say, "C'mon Donald. C'mon man. How many push-ups do you want to do here, pal?" Biden told 'Morning Joe' co-host Mika Brzezinski in an interview broadcast Tuesday.

    Biden, 76, said he often runs instead of walks along parade routes like the one where he appeared July 4 in Independence, Missouri.

    'I mean, jokingly. ... C'mon. Run with me, man,' he told an invisible Trump, 73.

    That at least broke the spell and I was able to fast forward.  But only after I had a nightmarish vision of this happening.

    Trump would eat this guy and poop him out right on stage.

    God, I really hope it's not Biden.

    I just hope (5.00 / 1) (#107)
    by CST on Tue Jul 16, 2019 at 05:53:54 PM EST
    That when things settle down a bit more people watch the debates. He is definitely his own worst enemy but with 3 strong opponents splitting the not-Biden faction he can definitely take it.

    I just hope the undecideds break clearly for someone because if this is still a strong 4 person race after super Tuesday that's a nightmare scenario for the convention.

    Parent

    Weaponized Clone Ticks (none / 0) (#108)
    by CaptHowdy on Tue Jul 16, 2019 at 06:42:49 PM EST
    John Paul Stevens (none / 0) (#109)
    by CaptHowdy on Tue Jul 16, 2019 at 07:55:32 PM EST
    Has died

    Such a fine judge (none / 0) (#110)
    by Peter G on Tue Jul 16, 2019 at 08:04:09 PM EST
    A sharp intellect that saw through the complexities of every case. And a lovely man with a true sense of justice, in every sense, including simple right and wrong. Who, by the way, was a Republican (of the old school).

    Parent
    From NYTimes, April 9, 2010, (5.00 / 1) (#126)
    by KeysDan on Wed Jul 17, 2019 at 02:33:53 PM EST
    Jeffrey L. Fisher, et al., Memories from his law clerks:

    During William Rehnquist's tenure as Chief Justice, a lawyer was arguing in the court for the first time.  When asked a question by Justice Kennedy, the nervous lawyer started her response with, "Well Judge..".  

    Chief Justice Rehnquist interrupted her. "That's Justice Kennedy." he said.  Shaken, the lawyer continued.  A few minutes later, she responded to Justice Souter by saying, "Yes, Judge." Chief Justice Rehnquist corrected her again. "That's Justice Souter."

    A couple of minutes later, she called Chief Justice Rehnquist himself a judge.  The Chief Justice leaned forward, his deep voice at its sternest, to say: "Counsel is admonished that this court is composed of justices, not judges."

    Before the lawyer could say anything, Justice Stevens interjected: "It's OK, Counsel. The Constitution makes the same mistake."

    Parent

    He will be remembered for his dissents (none / 0) (#112)
    by Peter G on Tue Jul 16, 2019 at 09:32:15 PM EST
    in Citizens United (the campaign finance case) and in Heller (the Second Amendment private gun rights case, in which he eviscerated Scalia's tendentious and self-serving version of the constitutional history). What would anyone nominate as his greatest majority opinions?

    Parent
    Chevron USA v. National Defense Council, 1984, (5.00 / 1) (#123)
    by KeysDan on Wed Jul 17, 2019 at 10:11:37 AM EST
    (Justice Stevens wrote for the Court, unanimous decision), is considered a landmark case. The case involved a dispute over a change in the EPA's interpretation of a permitting provision of the Clean Air Act.

    The Supreme Court decision set forth the legal test for determining whether to grant deference to a government agency's interpretation of a statute which it administers. A decision not well liked by the present "deep state" Trumpist attackers.

    Parent

    Hamdan v. Rumsfeld (2006), in which ... (none / 0) (#114)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Wed Jul 17, 2019 at 01:14:26 AM EST
    ... the majority held that the Bush administration's military commissions to try prisoners at Guantanamo "violate both the Uniform Code of Military Justice and the four Geneva Conventions signed in 1949." Defense argued that SCOTUS had no authority and jurisdiction over the proceedings because they were being held outside the United States. Justice Stevens obviously thought otherwise, and his reasoning prevailed.

    Parent
    Also (none / 0) (#115)
    by CaptHowdy on Wed Jul 17, 2019 at 07:04:13 AM EST
    Bush v Gore

    Parent
    Yes, his dissent in Bush v Gore (none / 0) (#117)
    by Peter G on Wed Jul 17, 2019 at 09:18:34 AM EST
    but I was looking for majority opinions. Donald nominated a good one. For worst JPS dissent I would nominate Texas v Johnson, where Scalia was right and Stevens wrong about First Amendment protection for flag burning. Stevens invoked patriotism as a sort of national religion, allowing his personal feelings as a WWII vet overcome his constitutional principles. But that was a very rare error for him, imho.

    Parent
    Ok (none / 0) (#119)
    by CaptHowdy on Wed Jul 17, 2019 at 09:46:41 AM EST
    Dumb request for a legal blog, but why some of us are here, please explain the difference.

    Yes I could google but I would rather hear yours.

    Parent

    Sorry (5.00 / 1) (#124)
    by CaptHowdy on Wed Jul 17, 2019 at 11:45:44 AM EST
    Replaced minority for majority

    Have caffeine now.

    Never mind.

    Parent

    Ground-breaking South African.. (none / 0) (#113)
    by desertswine on Wed Jul 17, 2019 at 12:12:15 AM EST
    musician Johnny Clegg has died.