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Thursday Night Open Thread

By Jeralyn, Section Blog Related
Posted on Thu Jun 11, 2009 at 08:49:53 PM EST
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What are you doing or thinking about tonight? Here's an open thread, all topics welcome.

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    Thursday Night Open Thread | 22 comments (22 topical)

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    Obama writes a letter opposing (5.00 / 1) (#1)
    by Anne on Thu Jun 11, 2009 at 08:55:35 PM EST
    Graham-Lieberman (which was incorporated in an amendment offered by Mitch McConnell).

    But don't get too excited just yet.

    Here's the letter, with what I think are the most important parts of it in bold:

    June 11, 2009

    The Honorable David R. Obey
    House of Representatives
    Washington, D.C. 20515

    The Honorable Daniel K. Inouye
    United States Senate
    Washington, D.C. 20510

    Dear Chairman Obey and Chairman Inouye:

    I am writing to urge you to oppose the McConnell Amendment, which is being offered in conference on the supplemental appropriations bill.

    As you know, I have no higher priority than ensuring the safety of our troops in Afghanistan and Iraq. Given the singular importance of providing funding for our troops, it is essential that Congress pass the supplemental appropriations bill.  Passage of the McConnell Amendment would unnecessarily complicate the essential objective of supporting the troops, and would accomplish no substantive purpose.

    On May 13, I announced I would resist the release of additional detainee photos because I did not believe it would add any additional benefit to our understanding of what happened in the past, and that the most direct consequence of releasing hem would be to further inflame anti-American opinion and to put our troops in great danger.  Earlier today, the Second Circuit granted the Government's motion that will stay the earlier court order to release the detainee photos, and we will now move forward with a petition to the Supreme Court to appeal the case.

    I deeply appreciate all you have done to help with the effort to secure funding for the troops, and assure you that I will continue to take every legal and administrative remedy available to me to ensure the DoD detainee photographs are not released.  Should a legislative solution prove necessary, I am committed to working with Congress to enact legislation that achieves the objectives we share.

    I look forward to working with ou on this and other issues affecting the security of our nation.

    Sincerely,

    Barack Obama


    So, he opposes the amendment for now...unless the Supreme Court rules against the government, and then it looks like he will be seeking Congress' help to keep the photos secret.

    We've (none / 0) (#2)
    by cal1942 on Thu Jun 11, 2009 at 09:58:45 PM EST
    come to expect little else.

    Parent
    I am thinking (5.00 / 1) (#7)
    by lilburro on Thu Jun 11, 2009 at 11:47:44 PM EST
    from here in the South, that grits are a mysterious dish.  I have had grits X amount of times and they never taste the same.   What does it take to make amazing grits?  Where are my grits-off cooking shows?  So delicious...I would gladly be a judge!  (Here's looking at you, Bravo!)

    GRITS (5.00 / 1) (#12)
    by Amiss on Fri Jun 12, 2009 at 02:40:54 AM EST
    Girl Raised In The South. Salt must be added as soon as the water begins to boil with the grits and they must be wisked, use quick cooking grits that take about 5 minutes to cook. Lots of butter and pepper are preferred by most, some put sugar in them.

    Parent
    As a fan of the tasty grit (none / 0) (#10)
    by CoralGables on Fri Jun 12, 2009 at 01:39:41 AM EST
    you must also be a fan of the renowned Lewis Grizzard. A wordsmith most famous for his well known sterling southern prose, which incomprehensibly never reached Pulitzer status, compiled under the title, "Don't Sit Under The Grits Tree With Anyone Else But Me".

    Parent
    Big Tent & Derek Fisher (5.00 / 0) (#11)
    by Dadler on Fri Jun 12, 2009 at 02:14:17 AM EST
    Hey, Tent, you still wanna bag on Fish?  

    Number three all-time in three pointers made in the finals.

    More games played in the finals than any active player.

    3-1 Lake Show.


    Yes, that was amazing...n/t (none / 0) (#21)
    by oldpro on Fri Jun 12, 2009 at 08:58:01 AM EST


    Parent
    Hail decimated... (none / 0) (#4)
    by magster on Thu Jun 11, 2009 at 11:20:53 PM EST
    my roses and flower pots today.  

    They showed some farmer on the news in a rural county nearby who lost hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of cabbages that were ready to harvest, so that puts it in perspective.  I can't imagine being a farmer.

    How much hail did the farmer get?! (5.00 / 1) (#9)
    by nycstray on Fri Jun 12, 2009 at 12:10:58 AM EST
    I would have thought cabbage ready to harvest would have been a bit tolerant to hail? I feel for the farmers. This winter I was watching the Florida weather as I was getting some citrus from a farm down there, and I would hear reports of crop loss. The first year I was with the CSA, my farmer lost one crop to Japanese Beatles (iir the bug correctly)

    We've also been having cool crappy weather. Not enough nice days to balance. And the next thing ya know, we'll have nothing but heat {sigh} We have had some spike hot days tossed in, which can mess you up. The local pickle guy had to throw out the pickles he was fermenting because of one of those days. Our local pickle cukes won't hit the farmers market for another couple weeks so I'm debating whether to get some non-local ones for a couple batches while it's still cool . . . or not as I would prob cause a heat wave if I did that, lol!~

    Parent

    Nycstray, PLEASE get those non-local (5.00 / 2) (#18)
    by vml68 on Fri Jun 12, 2009 at 07:52:24 AM EST
    cukes....I have had enough of the grey skies and rain, I'd rather have a heat wave.

    Parent
    I know losing the roses does not compare (5.00 / 1) (#19)
    by vml68 on Fri Jun 12, 2009 at 07:56:55 AM EST
    to what the farmer is suffering but it would still really bum me out if it was me.
    If you lived closer to me, I would happily give you as many flower pots as you want..... I have way too many.

    Parent
    Where are you? (none / 0) (#5)
    by gyrfalcon on Thu Jun 11, 2009 at 11:31:13 PM EST
    Terrible spring weather here in the Northeast this year-- cool, gloomy, overcast.  Seeds simply do not want to germinate in the ground-- unless they're peas, of course, which love the weather.  Big problem for the already hard-hit dairy farmers in my state because the corn they grow to feed their animals won't germinate decently.  I can't get any beans to sprout at all.  At this rate, though, I'll be able to keep planting peas and eating them all summer.

    Being a small farmer is about the most drawn-out, anxiety-laden, nerve-wracking occupation I can think of.  I can't imagine watching hail come down and shred your crops just before you were about to harvest them.  Losing a few perennials is pretty trivial, though certainly painful, compared to watching your family's livelihood disappear in a few hours.

    Parent

    Parker, Colorado (none / 0) (#6)
    by magster on Thu Jun 11, 2009 at 11:37:09 PM EST
    It's a suburb of Denver.  The farmer was about an hour and a half drive north in Weld County.

    Parent
    So sorry. I have seen the damage (none / 0) (#8)
    by Cream City on Thu Jun 11, 2009 at 11:56:55 PM EST
    that hailstorms can do on gardens and on farm fields.  The good news, I guess, is that your hailstorm was not the harbinger -- as hail often can be where I am -- of a tornado, too.

    This year, here in the upper Midwest, we have had our minor hail and some tornadoes, too . . . but we don't have much up to get damaged yet.  It is a historically cold spring, so I'm still waiting for flowers that are usually for weeks by now.  

    And some just never came up, especially vines.  I don't know why they got hit the worst, but I mourn them.  However, I now will remember that the farmers are being hit so much harder there and here.  No way that the corn will be knee-high by the Fourth of July, less than a month from now.

    Parent

    Ouch, I miss Colorado though (none / 0) (#14)
    by Militarytracy on Fri Jun 12, 2009 at 04:29:24 AM EST
    and delicious roses in Colorado, I hope your garden recovers and blooms again.

    Parent
    It may be all talk, (none / 0) (#13)
    by JamesTX on Fri Jun 12, 2009 at 03:56:55 AM EST
    but it sure sounds nice...

    Kerlikowske said he hopes to ditch the chest-thumping military rhetoric at the center of U.S. policy since President Nixon first declared a "war on drugs" 40 years ago.

    "We should stop using the metaphor about the war on drugs," said Kerlikowske, a career police officer who headed the Justice Department's community-policing initiative under President Clinton. "People look at it as a war on them, and frankly we're not at war with the people of this country."
    Sounds like double-speak... (5.00 / 1) (#20)
    by kdog on Fri Jun 12, 2009 at 08:49:47 AM EST
    another change in name only...as long as there are lawyers, guns, money, badges, and cages are involved...its a war.

    Kerlikowske is pissing on our legs and trying to tell us its raining.

    Parent

    Hmmmm.... (none / 0) (#23)
    by Inspector Gadget on Fri Jun 12, 2009 at 11:25:31 AM EST
    If it's a war, would the people in prison for drug crimes have more rights if the declared themselves POWs?


    Parent
    Up in the early morn dark (none / 0) (#15)
    by Militarytracy on Fri Jun 12, 2009 at 04:34:12 AM EST
    Single puppy (never had one until now) having a hard time keeping its mom's milk supply up so we have had to step in as wet nurse.  Has no problem waking us up when hungry though....very loud expressive puppy.  Strange after just taking a seminar on puppy imprinting, temperament development and early socialization.  I wonder how this will affect things?

    I told (5.00 / 1) (#16)
    by Ga6thDem on Fri Jun 12, 2009 at 05:11:35 AM EST
    some of my friends years ago that they should get a puppy before they thought about having children.

    Parent
    John Van de Camp (none / 0) (#17)
    by oculus on Fri Jun 12, 2009 at 06:17:02 AM EST
    Former LA DA and former CA AG writes LAT opinion piece stating death penalty is too expensive for CA.  

    Chastity Bono (none / 0) (#22)
    by Capt Howdy on Fri Jun 12, 2009 at 10:10:52 AM EST
    to become a man.

    LOS ANGELES - Chastity Bono, the child of Cher and Sonny Bono, has started the process of becoming a transgender individual.

    A rep for the gay rights advocate and writer confirmed Bono is undergoing the process to go from female to male.

    Thursday Night Open Thread | 22 comments (22 topical)

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