Occasional Gnuz

Sorry I’ve been so absent, just too much going on at home and work..

But, here’s the Occasional Gnuz for Twozdae, August 28thish

US court says North Carolina gerrymander is illegal — seeks new congressional map by November
H/T Raw Story
So perhaps there’s hope for this democracy to survive. Courts, judges, the Constitution at work for us as a Nation.

And,
The President Is a White-Nationalist Mob Boss—and His Base Doesn’t Care
H/T The Nation
Nails it. Shut.

Finally,
Trump’s destruction: A neuroscientist explains what happens when a narcissist begins to lose power
H/T Raw Story (Again)
Sorry to scare the living feces out of you, but this is worth digesting.

Open Thread, take the baton hand off and run with it!

RUCerious @TPZoo

The Most Punchable Faces of 2017…and probably 2018, too.

I know, I know, I went for one of the easiest punchable faces with the middle Trump Weirdling — I want to punch him for his bizarrely patterned shirt and shiny textured tie, alone — but I thought we might need one of the more obviously punchable faces for starters.

So, while you’re thinking — seething, fuming, clenching your jaw and/or frothing at the mouth — about the most punchable faces of 2017, see if you can come up with one that’s not so obvious.  Someone who makes us think, “Yeah, that guy!!”  But feel free to post the obvious punchable faces too, because shits and giggles!

2016 — You were a crap year, and you know it.

2017 — You were truly fucked up, and we’re more disappointed/disgusted/discouraged than we thought we’d be right now.

2018 — Two things:  1) Please, I’m begging you, have mercy.  2) Do not take the phrase, “Can things get any worse?” as a fucking CHALLENGE!

Have fun all y’all, and have a safe and HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

 

The Watering Hole, Monday, February 6th, 2017: Don’t Forget RUSSIA

Two recent articles to remind us that at least Senator Ron Wyden has our back when it comes to investigating Vlad the Imputin’s Russians having hacked our election for trump.

First, an excerpt from David Corn’s article at Mother Jones:

Since Trump has moved into the White House, there has been less public chatter in political and media quarters about the Russian hacking that, according to the US intelligence community, was mounted by Putin’s spies as part of an extensive clandestine operation to undermine the US presidential campaign in order to benefit Trump. The same goes for allegations that Trump or his associates interacted with Russian officials or intermediaries during the campaign. After the election, Russia’s deputy foreign minister said “there were contacts” between Trump’s team and Russian officials, and various news reports have noted that the FBI has examined connections between Trump associates and Putin-allied Russians—without offering much detail about these FBI inquiries. Yet in the first, chaos-filled weeks of the Trump presidency, the story of Russian meddling in the election—after blowing up with the disclosure that President Barack Obama and Trump were briefed about private intelligence memos alleging Russia had run a yearslong secret program to cultivate Trump and gather compromising intelligence on him—has seemed to move off the center stage.

Second, a diary by Mark Sumner at Daily Kos adds commentary to the above Mother Jones story:

“Now that the intelligence committees are supposedly on the case—and with the FBI not discussing whatever inquiries it may be holding on this front—the controversy (or scandal!) has been nudged to the back burner. This often happens in Washington: a secret investigation is launched, the story goes dark.”

“Helping cast those shadows is a press that seems to have instant amnesia about anything Russia related, to the extent that Russian forces attacking towns in Ukraine just one day after Trump and Putin had their contents unknown chat, wasn’t enough to push aside Trump’s latest tweets on television ratings. The connections between Putin and Trump, Manafort, Flynn, Page, and others in the regime seldom merits a mention.”

We HAVE to keep this investigation front and center, and demand that our Congresscritters and Senators not only support the search for the truth, but inform we, the people, of that truth, no matter the cost. This is OUR country, OUR democracy, and OUR freedom at stake. We cannot let this issue fade into the background, despite all of the distracting crap continuously popping up in the foreground. There are many fights to fight in this travesty of a presidency, but said presidency’s legitimacy is the biggest fight that we all face.

This is our Open Thread–say whatever you want.

Randy Rainbow weighs in on Alternative Facts

This is how I’d like to see the White House Press Corps respond to this administration’s bullshit artists.

The Weekend Watering Hole, Saturday, January 7th-8th, 2017: Russian Roulette

Here’s some of the most recent articles about the U.S. intelligence agencies’ report on the Russian influence in Trump’s election.

First, here’s a PDF of the report itself.

Next we have relevant articles from yesterday’s Washington Post and the New York Times.

And then a couple of articles on Trump’s post-intelligence-briefing statements, one from the NY Times, and one from this morning’s Raw Story. Apparently Trump took time from his preoccupation with Arnold and The Apprentice to tweet a few idiocies while avoiding the ‘yuge’ Russian elephant in his room.

What will it take for Trump, his minions, and the GOP to finally admit that the chambers in the Russian Roulette revolver aren’t all empty?

This is our Open Thread – join in with whatever you want to talk about.

The Watering Hole, Monday, November 7th, 2016: “Trouble sleeping?”

With the most consequential election of my lifetime now just one day away, a scene from Star Trek: Next Generation’s “Best of Both Worlds” Part 1″ keeps returning to my mind. It takes place before the battle with the Borg, as Captain Picard paces through the Enterprise, and finds Guinan alone in Ten-Forward:

Guinan: “Trouble sleeping?”

Capt. Picard: “It’s something of a tradition, Guinan – Captain touring the ship before a battle.”

Guinan: “Hmm. Before a *hopeless* battle, if I remember the tradition correctly.”

Capt. Picard: “Not necessarily. Nelson toured the HMS Victory before Trafalgar.”

Guinan: “Yes, but Nelson never returned from Trafalgar, did he?”

Capt. Picard: “No, but the battle was won.”

Guinan: “Do you expect this battle to be won?”

Capt. Picard: “We may yet prevail. That’s a… a conceit. But… it’s a healthy one. I wonder if the Emperor Honorius watching the Visigoths coming over the seventh hill truly realized that the Roman Empire was about to fall. This is just another page in history, isn’t it? Will this be the end of *our* civilization? Turn the page.”

I wish that I had the calmness, almost equanimity, with which Captain Picard views the possibility of approaching doom and the likely takeover of the United Federation of Planets by a heartless, merciless “race.” I cannot view a similar fate for our country without a feeling of utter dread.

“We may yet prevail” as Picard says, if by “prevail” one means that Hillary Rodham Clinton wins the Presidency. If that happens, in my humble opinion, we the sane will have only one night, possibly, to feel the relief of dodging a bullet. As long-time students of politics and human nature, particularly ‘American’ human nature, we Critters and Zoosters and other reality-based folks are all too well aware that a final election result which denies Donald Trump the Presidency is just the beginning. There inevitably will be a barrage of ‘bullets’, figuratively at best, to continue to dodge. And it may well “be the end of *our* ‘civilization’.”

Guinan offers hope of a sort:

Guinan: “This isn’t the end.”

Capt. Picard: You say that with remarkable assuredness.”

Guinan: “With experience. When the Borg destroyed my world, my people were scattered throughout the universe. We survived – as will humanity survive. As long as there’s a handful of you to keep the spirit alive, you will prevail – even if it takes a millennium.”

And while Guinan could be right, that “[t]his isn’t the end”, I wish that *our* people were able to scatter throughout the universe. “Humanity” may survive, but will it still be recognizable as “human”?

This is our daily Open Thread–talk me down?

Sunday Roast: Stupid stuff that makes me giggle

There’s a site on the vast interwebs called “Sad and Useless, the most depressive humor site on the internet,” and it has a post where people on the internet rename animals — which totally makes sense, if you think about it.

We’ve already enjoyed the brilliantly renamed Stab Rabbit, so here are a few more:

OMG, it’s our Wayne!!  Everybody wave!  *waving*

I mean seriously, who would actually call this thing an ostrich?  Pure silliness!

Finally, my favorite…Run for your lives!!!!!!!!!!!!!1!!

If you’d like to giggle up even more of a storm, go the site — they have more!!

This is our daily open thread — Make up names for your favorite animals!

The Watering Hole, Tuesday March 15, 2016 – The Ides of March

Today is the Republican Party’s last grate (pun intended) day. Big state primaries with voters in Florida, Illinois, Missouri, North Carolina, and Ohio casting votes. The strategy is to deny Trump the number of delegates needed by having Rubio and Kasich snag favorite son state’s delegates, thus blocking Trump. The pollsters are indicating otherwise, declaring Trump to be leading in all those states. After today you’ll likely see a coalescing around the presumptive nominee by the neo-fascists.

Hillary is also predicted to win all those states, but three are more like Michigan in their composition and Bernie surged from 20 some points behind there to upset all the pollsters including the rather accurate Nate Silver. So for this Ides of March, are there political assassins lurking in the halls?

Open Thread.

The Watering Hole, Tuesday March 1, 2016 – Super Tuesday

We interrupt our regular programs to bring you up to the minute commentary by posters of this blog on the Super Tuesday primary event. As a way of introduction and background, here is a snippet from Raw Story:

Democrat Hillary Clinton aims to build an impregnable lead on “Super Tuesday,” the most consequential day of the presidential nominations calendar, while Republicans struggle to derail their insurgent and controversial front-runner Donald Trump.

With barely 24 hours before the big day, Clinton and Trump are well positioned to secure the lion’s share of the delegate bonanza in the 11 states voting in each party’s primaries.

Trump and Hillary? Let the voters decide.

Follow the money (per NBC News):

 

 

 

The Watering Hole; Friday August 14 2015; The Alien Invasion of Amurka

Aliens. They’re here. Their efforts to assume control of this formerly (as in pre-Obama) great nation are rapidly picking up speed. I have taken here the liberty to present a stack of evidence collected in just the last few DAYS! Hang onto your respective hats.

WND: Illuminati-Controlled Government May Use Jade Helm 15 To Stoke Chaos

Nice to see that World Net Daily continues to remain World NUT Daily.

Larry Pratt: Fund Planned Parenthood With Sales Of ‘The Dr. Mengele Cookbook For Jewish Body Parts’

No need for advice from Mengele on how or where to get human body parts. Our Second Amendment solved that problem a long time ago.

For Pat Robertson, Levitical Laws Apply To Gays But No One Else

I’m guessing the Bible was written specifically FOR Pat Robertson (and those who “think” like him). Makes perfect sense since it makes their lives easier. Y’ know?

Scott Lively: ‘Religious Freedom’ Only Applies To Christians, And That’s Why God’s Punishing Us With Gay Rights

The most bizarre nutcase thesis so far in 2015 (and maybe since the Big Bang, even):

“Well, I don’t actually believe in ‘religious freedom,’ the way that the term is used,” Lively explained. “I know that when you use it and when most people use it, you’re talking about Christianity. We’re not talking about freedom for Islam and freedom for Buddhism and Hinduism as if they’re equal with God.

“The number-one Commandment is ‘You shall have no other gods before me.’ And when we forget that and we start accepting this concept of religious pluralism and we say that Jesus Christ is really no higher an authority in America than Buddha or Mohammed or even Satan, that’s when we have really dropped the ball and we have brought disfavor from God on us.”

Right. OK. Aliens for sure. I get it.

Jim Bakker: America Is Descending Into Cannibalism

Who the hell let this guy out of the slammer, and WHY??

Beck & Boykin: This Is America’s ‘Last Call’ As We’ve Become Worse Than Sodom And Gomorrah

General Boykin has clearly not yet sobered up following his stint in Iraq. As for Beck? He never will. Sober up.

Rafael Cruz: Americans ‘Under Bondage’ Because We Can’t Buy Incandescent Lightbulbs

There’s something about the word “Cruz” that causes my eyes to glass over.

And finally, there’s this little gem, one more from World Nut Daily:

Os Hillman: You Too Can Profit From God’s Coming Judgment

And yes, when he uses the word “profit” he is indeed referring to “profit” as in MORE MONEY to be made thanks to the something-or-other that God apparently mentioned a few thousand years ago. It’s way beyond my ken, but here are the nuts and bolts of it (emphasis on the NUTS):

How can believers take advantage of this season? If we are prepared this could be the greatest wealth transfer we have ever seen in our lifetime, or it can be a devastating time if you are not prepared. Let’s assume a major financial crash might happen as a result of the Shemitah year. What should you do now? Here are some steps I have taken along with many others I know who have taken them. Keep in mind that you must be directed by the Holy Spirit in your own preparation. God told Jeremiah to buy a piece of land when he knew his nation was going to be invaded by Babylon. . . . [Etc.]

Hey, if you can’t make a buck from a disaster . . . !

OK, so that’s enough. The PROOF that aliens have arrived and are rapidly assuming control is everywhere, the evidence incontrovertible. But I knew that. I’ve known it for a long time, actually. And I can prove it with photographic evidence: four of my own pics that are nearly four decades old, plus one that someone else somehow managed to snag (I only hope s/he’s OK, that some benefactor was there to shout “Klaatu Borata Nicto” at exactly the right time).

Touché.

OPEN THREAD