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Thursday Night Open Thread

By Jeralyn, Section Blog Related
Posted on Thu May 02, 2013 at 08:11:04 PM EST
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For the last few days, I've been following the twitter feeds of the friends of Dzokhar Tsarnaev who insist he is innocent and has been framed and rebuttal articles by conservative bloggers who think they are full of it. I hope to have a post up about this tomorrow.

In the meantime, here's an open thread, all topics welcome.

< More Unauthorized Leaks of Tsarnaev Post-Arrest Statements | Gov't Appeals Tounisi Bail Order, Bail Order Revoked >

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    Thursday Night Open Thread | 70 comments (70 topical)

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    An interview with Gitmo Lawyer Carlos Warner (5.00 / 1) (#1)
    by Mr Natural on Thu May 02, 2013 at 08:24:01 PM EST
    aired on The Story, today on NPR.

    He discusses the genesis of the current hunger strikes, but none of the actual charges against his clients, because the charges remain classified Secret and Top Secret.  

    Apparently the hunger strikes began when responsibility for The Prison Colony was transferred from the Navy to the Army.

    The interview is about sixteen minutes long.  Carlos Warner also explains what being a public defender means to him and his clients.

    Very Quietly (5.00 / 2) (#6)
    by CoralGables on Fri May 03, 2013 at 06:52:25 AM EST
    Rhode Island officially became the 10th state approving marriage equality last night after the Rhode Island House approved it and Lincoln Chafee signed it. The new law goes into effect Aug 1.

    Just shows how far we've come that it barely makes a headline outside of Rhode Island.

    Also very quietly yesterday (5.00 / 1) (#19)
    by CoralGables on Fri May 03, 2013 at 10:48:05 AM EST
    Governor O'Malley signed a bill eliminating Maryland's death penalty and replacing it with life in prison without parole.

    With the addition of Maryland, we are now at 18 states and the District of Columbia that have eliminated the death penalty. (Three of those in the last 26 months)

    Parent

    This is very good news (none / 0) (#47)
    by TeresaInPa on Fri May 03, 2013 at 07:16:29 PM EST
    So is RI making gay marriage legal, but that was all over my face book page due to the prevalence of my gay friends all being activists.

    Parent
    That is so awesome (none / 0) (#57)
    by sj on Fri May 03, 2013 at 09:05:08 PM EST
    You know it was only in 2000 that Howard Dean quietly signed civil unions into law in Vermont.  It was the first state to do so and that signature pretty much guaranteed that I was his advocate in the Colorado caucus process -- even though he was no longer in the race by the time they rolled around.

    Now civil unions is the conservative position.  How cool is that?

    Parent

    The NRA's newest President - Jim Porter (5.00 / 3) (#15)
    by Yman on Fri May 03, 2013 at 10:19:35 AM EST
    1.  Subscribes to the debunked conspiracy theory that "un-American" Eric Holder And Hillary Clinton Tried To "Kill The Second Amendment At The United Nations."

    2.  Calls the Civil War the "War Of Northern Aggression."

    3.  Thinks President Obama wants "European-style socialism."

    Sounds like the perfect guy for the job.

    "War of Northern Aggression" (5.00 / 1) (#16)
    by shoephone on Fri May 03, 2013 at 10:31:16 AM EST
    I think that tells us everything we need to know about this knucklehead. That's a great link you posted. Apparently, Porter does think guns are toys:

    In a May 1, 2011 interview with NRA News at the NRA Convention in Pittsburgh, Porter told host Cam Edwards, "I get a little antsy when we're in there at the actual meeting. I want to get out and go to the store and play with all the toys like everybody else," referring to the firearms displays in the convention's exhibit hall.


    Parent
    NRA: "It's a culture war!" (5.00 / 1) (#59)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Sat May 04, 2013 at 02:40:21 AM EST
    Because that term worked out so very well for these folks and their political allies two decades ago:

    San Francisco Chronicle | May 3, 2013
    NRA official: 'Culture war' more than gun rights - "HOUSTON (AP): The National Rifle Association kicked off its annual convention Friday with a warning to its members they are engaged in a 'culture war' that stretches beyond gun rights, further ramping up emotions surrounding the gun control debate. NRA First Vice President James Porter, a Birmingham, Ala., attorney who will assume the organization's presidency Monday, issued a full-throated challenge to President Barack Obama in the wake of a major victory regarding gun control and called on members to dig in for a long fight that will stretch into the 2014 elections."

    Given this rather strident declaration of a "culture war" by an extremist organization that's gleefully taking aim -- pun intended -- at our own inherent values as American progressives, I'm only too proud to return fire here. Let me therefore state forthrightly my belief that any "culture" which:

    • Considers it acceptable to give a child barely out of toddlerhood a Cricket .22 rifle as a gift; and then
    • Callously sloughs off the subsequent shooting death of a younger sibling by that child as "just one of those crazy accidents";
    is a culture that's rooted firmly in ignorance, steeped in cowardice, awash in emotional depravity, and emblematic of a remarkably cold indifference to the sanctity of human life.

    Such a so-called "culture" deserves extinction. Let the battle be joined.

    Aloha.

    Parent

    I suppose it's only a matter of time ... (none / 0) (#27)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Fri May 03, 2013 at 02:46:23 PM EST
    ... before some Southern congressional wingbat takes it upon himself to promote legislation seeking to rename and reclassify the Library of Congress's vast inventory of material on the Civil War, which the United States War Dept. in 1880 officially named "The War of the Rebellion" for government purposes.

    Parent
    Referring to guns (and mortors, missles, tanks, (none / 0) (#28)
    by sarcastic unnamed one on Fri May 03, 2013 at 02:47:50 PM EST
    etc., etc.) informally as toys is not unusual among people who are involved with them a lot.

    A relative of mine works for the Army at Picatinny Arsenal designing and building arsenal-type "boom-boom" stuff, and they often use such language informally.

    Parent

    That's true, (5.00 / 2) (#56)
    by NYShooter on Fri May 03, 2013 at 08:58:24 PM EST
    even Senators, Congressmen, and Joint Chiefs refer to their trillion dollar killing machines as "toys."

    I don't know, does it make anyone feel any better?

    Parent

    Not comforting. (none / 0) (#62)
    by Dr Molly on Sat May 04, 2013 at 08:29:05 AM EST


    Parent
    That's actually good news for the (5.00 / 1) (#18)
    by brodie on Fri May 03, 2013 at 10:41:34 AM EST
    gun control side, as this guy is not only a Wayne LaPierre extremist, but with the added touch of siding with a racist philosophy.  This will make it doubly embarrassing for some of the more politically moderate types who voted against allowing background checks to continue to toe the NRA line.

    Parent
    NRA: "It's a culture war!" - Part II. (none / 0) (#60)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Sat May 04, 2013 at 03:18:47 AM EST
    Because some things never seem to change, and the so-called "culture" of these folks and their political allies was working out so very well for average Americans 139 years ago (courtesy of the California Digital Archives Collection at UC-Riverside):

    Los Angeles Daily Herald | September 11, 1874
    Boys and Pistols (Page 2, Column 1, Article 3)- "Yesterday at noon a boy sixteen years of age shot himself, or was shot by his brother. It matters not who fired the fatal shot. No criminal act was intended or committed, and the boy is dead. He was a member of the High School of this city and was, we are told, something over the average good boy of Los Angeles. This boy lost his life through the too common habit among boys of carrying deadly weapons. We do not know that this habit can be broken up. We do not know that school teachers have the right, or would exercise it if they had, of searching the pockets of their pupils, but it seems almost a necessity that some such rule be enforced. The hills west of town are not safe for pedestrians after school hours. Nearly every school-boy carries a pistol, and the power of these pistols range from the harmless six-bit auction concern to the deadly Colt's six-shooter. A lady and gentleman walking along Bunker Hill Avenue a few evenings since were astonished by three pistol shots, and the whizzing of the balls over their heads. We are Informed that this sort of thing is very common in that locality, and we would call the attention of the city authorities to the importance of an early discontinuance of the hoodlum custom."

    Nuf ced. Aloha.

    Parent

    Houston airport shooting (5.00 / 2) (#21)
    by Yman on Fri May 03, 2013 at 12:24:00 PM EST
    There's a "very good chance" it was a conspiracy to set up the NRA - so says Glen Beck.

    "The idea that this is happening at the airport with the NRA is too much to believe," Beck told a studio audience in Houston. "If I were a journalist -- let me correct that -- if I were an honest journalist, I would be looking for these connections. Look for the connections of who this man is and any connection he might have to the uber-Left."

    "I believe this man could fall into the category of somebody who has lost his job, is depressed, etc., etc. Somebody comes in off to the side, winds him up, says, `Oh, you should make a statement, you should make a statement.' I believe that's probably -- I shouldn't say that -- I believe it is a very good chance that is what happened."

    Firing up the gang for his big convention speech on Saturday ...

    Now that's... (5.00 / 3) (#22)
    by kdog on Fri May 03, 2013 at 01:58:44 PM EST
    conspira-tainment!

    Got alotta balls accusing others of "winding people up", dude is a professional winder-upper.

    Parent

    I don't know if... (none / 0) (#25)
    by unitron on Fri May 03, 2013 at 02:42:37 PM EST
    ...conspira-tainment is your original work or something you heard elsewhere first, but I'm stealing it either way.

    : - )

    Parent

    I think, but can't swear.... (none / 0) (#29)
    by kdog on Fri May 03, 2013 at 02:52:05 PM EST
    it's an original...but otoh it's all derivative.

    Either way all yours unitron!  

    Parent

    His brand of (none / 0) (#30)
    by CoralGables on Fri May 03, 2013 at 02:55:44 PM EST
    noinfotainment has a dwindling audience which means he has to ramp up the crazy. No easy task for someone that has already maxed out on crazy.

    Parent
    Isn't the dwindling audience/influence... (none / 0) (#33)
    by kdog on Fri May 03, 2013 at 03:02:48 PM EST
    a result of Beck amping up his crazy?  I thought that's why Rupert sh*tcanned him.

    Too crazy for Fox, the home of Hannity...that says it all.

    When I want conspira-tainment, there is only one source...my man Alex Jones.

    Parent

    A regular Elder Coughlin.. (none / 0) (#32)
    by jondee on Fri May 03, 2013 at 03:02:02 PM EST
    preaching to the, unfortunately not insignificant, minority in this country that believes that the government has the Newtown children hidden out somewhere.

    Parent
    And those children are being cared for by (5.00 / 1) (#35)
    by caseyOR on Fri May 03, 2013 at 03:22:40 PM EST
    none other than Elvis himself, aided by Jimmy Hoffa. Does JFK read them their bedtime stories?

    The level of the crazy in this country has reached the stratosphere. I fear for our continued survival.

    Parent

    Well the very thought (none / 0) (#36)
    by jondee on Fri May 03, 2013 at 03:30:56 PM EST
    that they might not be able to keep their AR 15, Uzi, Bushmaster, and front yard deathtrap featuring tapir-feces-smeared punji sticks is enough to push some people right over the edge..

    Parent
    Beck (none / 0) (#45)
    by Slayersrezo on Fri May 03, 2013 at 06:34:27 PM EST
    Is a clown.

    I suppose people must tune into him for the laughs.

    Parent

    Conservat/Republicans must love "clowns" (5.00 / 1) (#48)
    by Yman on Fri May 03, 2013 at 07:25:28 PM EST
    For a "clown" who shouldn't be take seriously, it turns out that Republicans take him very seriously.  Beck had a popular/unpopular rating of 59/14, with 75% of Republicans saying they would vote for him for President over Barack Obama (9%).

    Parent
    "[Tuning] into him for the laughs" ... (5.00 / 3) (#61)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Sat May 04, 2013 at 03:38:15 AM EST
    ... certainly helps to explain why the man is giving the keynote address at this year's NRA Convention. I guess Dennis Miller and P.J. O'Rourke weren't available.

    Parent
    It's Wierd... (none / 0) (#37)
    by ScottW714 on Fri May 03, 2013 at 03:39:24 PM EST
    ...the convention hall they are having this at is downtown bordering on the industrial part.  OK during the day when streets are bustling with office workers, but at night it's sketchy.

    I guess I don't understand why a mostly non-urbanized bunch is having it in a very urbanized area.  They have to know there are some ichy fingers carrying guns in areas with a lot of folks who I imagine represent the people they believe that carrying a gun will protect themselves from.

    Here is form the NRA's website:

    With over 550 exhibitors covering over 400,000 square feet of exhibit hall space, educational seminars, celebrities, and fun filled special events, bring the whole family- there will be something for everyone!

    The 'Stand and Fight Rally' screams fun for the whole family.
    LINK

    Sarah Palin and Co. in my town participating in an event that frightens the hell out of me is a real downer for the weekend.

    Parent

    I'd say have fun with it... (none / 0) (#38)
    by kdog on Fri May 03, 2013 at 03:45:56 PM EST
    like when the GOP held their convention in NYC...but then I remembered this is the NR F*ckin' A and it's in Texas.  "Having fun with it" could get you shot.

    Duck and cover this weekend Bro!

    Parent

    Yeah, and 10,000 Witnesses... (none / 0) (#39)
    by ScottW714 on Fri May 03, 2013 at 04:12:40 PM EST
    ...to back up the claim that shooting me int he back was self defense.  No thanks, for me, that part of town is 100 times safer when the NRA isn't here.

    I would love to to hear how many guns are being checked at the airport and how many idiots forgot that they can't go in the carryon.

    I wonder if the police will be checking for conceal permits from out-of-staters.  Lord knows they have every cop on the force when the NBA All Star game was here. The police presence was heavy, they even broke out the horses.

    I would prefer the GOP convention by a huge margin, that would be fun, like when I used to honk my horn at the Planned Parenthood protesters.  I would see the excitement in their eyes of a fellow supporter, then my giant hand with one finder would appear.  I lived around the corner and thought it at the very least keep them from draggin kids to hold their morbid signs, never did.  Hopefully it made them feel the tiniest bit of the discomfort they dolled out every day to young women, or so I would tell myself.

    Parent

    What's happening to Republicans in Florida (5.00 / 1) (#23)
    by CoralGables on Fri May 03, 2013 at 02:05:13 PM EST
    today they attempt to fix the early voting that they butchered two years ago when the Republican Legislature and Gov. Rick Scott cut early voting from 14 days to eight.

    The House voted 115-1 to pass the fix bill today permitting elections supervisors to return to the old 14 days of early voting instead of 8. It also expands the number of sites where early voting can be held.

    The bill would also move back the presidential primary to comply with national party rules. Maybe they are seeing the polling of republicans around the country and finally smartening up. Can't find yet if they went back to permitting voting on the Sunday before election day which has also been requested.

    Of course it still needs the Senate and the Governor, and the Legislative session ends in about an hour, but it's a welcome occurrence.

    Good. (none / 0) (#24)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Fri May 03, 2013 at 02:36:41 PM EST
    Our legislative session will adjourn later today, as well. After that, my work at the Capitol has ended and I can return to my regular job on Monday. Well, tomorrow morning actually, because some prospective are clients flying in from Kauai to meet with my partner and me.

    Honestly, I can't wait. The internecine sniping this session within our House and Senate Democratic caucuses has been both tiresome and draining -- the Hawaii GOP has been a negligible presence of late -- and it'll be nice to focus again on helping real people with real needs, rather than constantly having to step in between political pipsqueaks with towering egos, who are only seeking daily self-affirmation at one another's expense.

    Parent

    They are running sooo scared. (none / 0) (#67)
    by ruffian on Sat May 04, 2013 at 05:09:32 PM EST
    This is ground zero of the demographic shift - between the oldsters loving their Medicare and SS, and the growing younger more diverse population who happen to like schools and other services...they will be lucky to have a statewide majority in the next election.

    At least I hope that is what is happening.

    Parent

    I'm officially a Bardball Bard (none / 0) (#2)
    by Dadler on Thu May 02, 2013 at 09:49:06 PM EST
    Silly little baseball limerick at Bardball, the baseball doggerel site. My buddy Michael X. Ferraro has several pieces there, check him out too.(link)

    Chopped tonight (none / 0) (#3)
    by Jeralyn on Thu May 02, 2013 at 11:07:16 PM EST
    has a contestant who is a chef from Las Vegas who recently got released from prison after served 35 years on a drug offense. He says he kept up with cooking while reading Gourmet and other magazines and has had a hard time finding a chef position since he got out. (It's a repeat I've never seen. )

    My wife and I love Chopped. (5.00 / 1) (#11)
    by Mr Natural on Fri May 03, 2013 at 09:18:01 AM EST
    "Open your baskets" [and weep.]

    35 years.  I would like to believe that people have no idea how incredibly cruel it is to deprive someone of so much of their single allotment of life.

    Parent

    Was rooting for him (none / 0) (#14)
    by Yman on Fri May 03, 2013 at 09:53:57 AM EST
    He ended up as a runner-up, but the judges made a point of indicating they believed he should be very proud of what he's been able to accomplish.

    Parent
    Sacramento's Mayor KJ blocks the shot. (none / 0) (#4)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Fri May 03, 2013 at 03:19:47 AM EST
    In a stunning turnaround to what once seemed practically a moot point four months ago, the NBA owners' special committee appointed to determine the fate of Sacramento's beloved Kings has voted unanimously, 7-0, to recommend that the league's Board of Governors reject the record $545 million bid by hedge fund billionaire Curtis Hansen and Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer to relocate the franchise up north to Seattle.

    Praise is pouring in from all quarters of the city for Mayor Kevin Johnson, a former NBA All-Star point guard who took on what looked to be an insurmountable task, and used his charisma and connections to put together an investment group of local heavyweights to tender a viable counteroffer to the Hansen-Ballmer bid, convinced the City Council to approve his ambitious plan for downtown revitalization anchored by a new sports arena, and then proceeded to accomplish the impossible by flying to New York and convincing NBA special committee that the Kings belonged in Sacramento and not Seattle.

    As the city's only major league sports team, the Kings are to Sacramento what baseball's Cubs are to the north side of Chicago -- perennial also-rans who've long since captured and held captive the hearts of their die-hard fans, who've stood resolutely and loyally by them through thick and thin, mostly the latter.

    While the final vote of the 30-member NBA Board of Governors (who are the team owners) still awaits, this committee vote was devastating to the Seattle group's attempt to steal the Kings from Sacramento, since only eight votes are needed to block the sale, and Mayor Johnson looks to now have seven of them in his hip pocket. It's the equivalent of a 15-point lead for Sacramento with 45 seconds left in the game.

    Johnson's investor group has announced that it wants to finalize a back-up deal with the Maloofs by May 15, in anticipation that their proposed sale of the Kings to the Hansen-Ballmer group will be rejected by NBA owners.

    Now, it's Milwaukee's turn to be nervous, as rumors mount the Hansen and Ballmer may quickly pivot and attempt to buy and relocate the NBA Bucks to Seattle. That team's lease at the 30=year-old Bradley Center expires after the 2016-17 season.

    But in the meantime, KJ is soaking it all up. Once he secures the Kings' tenure for the foreseeable future and hustles the near-universally despised Maloofs out of town, he'll be all but a shoo-in for re-election as Sacramento mayor next year.

    And thanks to some of the deftest political maneuvering seen in the Golden State's capital in ages, no doubt Mayor Johnson's star is about to rise very quickly in California Democratic political circles. This is, to paraphrase Vice President Joe Biden, "a big f---ing deal."

    And in other NBA news today: (none / 0) (#58)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Fri May 03, 2013 at 09:37:10 PM EST
    Congratulations, kdog! Your Knicks didn't choke, winning their first playoff series in 13 seasons. Next up: Indiana.

    Meanwhile, in our "Family Values" category, filed under Bryant v. Bryant, Kobe's taking his mother to civil court, attempting to stave off her attempt to auction off some of his high school memorabilia, including three high school jerseys and a couple of NBA All-Star rings.

    Parent

    Oh man... (none / 0) (#63)
    by kdog on Sat May 04, 2013 at 09:02:23 AM EST
    what a strange nail-biting Game 6...almost blowing a 26 point lead with 9 minutes left, good grief.  I flip over to the Islander game thinking it's secure, flip back and its a f8ckin' 4 point game!

    Hope we can relax and play looser against Indy, and hope Melo and JR find their stroke again and soon.

    And how 'bout those scrappy Isles, shaking off the embarassing 5-0 loss to the mighty Pens in Game 1 with a gritty 4-3 win.  Home ice is ours, do you believe in miracles?

     

    Parent

    Some book recommendations (none / 0) (#5)
    by ruffian on Fri May 03, 2013 at 06:12:30 AM EST
    Audio: Neal Barofsky's "Bailout" - listening to it in my car and am in danger of road rage. I am only as far as his first month on the job as  Inspector General for TARP. He already has some Geithner stories. He has a great flare for narrative and humor, and explains the financial meltdown clearly, in contrast to the media who kept telling us it was all so complicated.

    Also Audo: My brother sent me Vincent Bugliosi's "Rescuing History" in which he debunks all of the JFK assassination conspiracy theories. And I mean all of them. He is particularly scathing on Oliver Stone. All right Vincent, I am convinced. Oswald acted alone.  He has the most detailed account of the assassination and the following days I have ever seen. Fascinating even just for that.

    Hardback Novel: Ian McEwan's "Sweet Tooth" - intrigue in the early '70's Brit MI5 unit, also dry witty commentary on relationships. With a twist.

    eBook - still reading Kurt Eichenwald's "500 Days". It may take me 500 days to read it. It is excellently written, just sad and infuriating and I can only take small doses.

    Work has kept me too busy to relax with a little TL reading and posting in the afternoons as I used to. I have been reading in the evening though and keeping up with the news the best I can. The mainstream media seems to have rediscovered Gitmo.  Can we make it stop now?

    "Sweet Tooth" is a really good read. (none / 0) (#7)
    by oculus on Fri May 03, 2013 at 06:53:32 AM EST
    I am listening to George Saunders read his short story collection entitled "Tenth of December."  Perverse sense of humor. Very funny.

    Parent
    I have that on Audible - will listen after (none / 0) (#65)
    by ruffian on Sat May 04, 2013 at 05:02:39 PM EST
    the Barofsky.

    Really liked Sweet Tooth - a perfect size for a weekend read - I holed up with it last weekend.

    Just started Martin Amis' 'Lionel Asbo'. Oh boy, this is going to be a ride!

    Parent

    I got the Amis novel from the (none / 0) (#69)
    by oculus on Sun May 05, 2013 at 12:28:05 AM EST
    library twice. Haven't read it yet.

    Parent
    Bailout is a must read (listen?) (none / 0) (#8)
    by DFLer on Fri May 03, 2013 at 07:15:24 AM EST
    even if one only reads the first chapter "Fraud 101"

    Also illuminating was the story of the role of Inspector Generals throughout government

    Parent

    Nice to see you dropping by, ruffian. (none / 0) (#9)
    by caseyOR on Fri May 03, 2013 at 07:17:43 AM EST
    It would be great to see your comments more often, but I'm glad you are working.

    Thank god for the Padres and the Marlins. If it were not for those two teams the Cubs would be in the NL cellar. As it stands the Cubs are at the bottom of their division, but not the entire NL.

    Also, Tom Ricketts threatened to move the team out of Wrigley Field if the city of Chicago doesn't give him what he wants with the Wrigley remodel and upgrade. Yeah right, Tom, you're gonna move the team. Suuuure you are. Ricketts is a bit of blowhard which makes him pretty well matched with Chicago mayor Rahm Emmanuel. Boy, those two deserve each other.

    Parent

    Those Cubs.... (none / 0) (#66)
    by ruffian on Sat May 04, 2013 at 05:06:07 PM EST
    I got notifications on my phone to tell me when they lose every day....at least I am staying in touch.

    I hate to see an owner like that. It does not fit with my sentimental view of the Cubs, which is, after all, all there is to them at this point.  He should be financing his own remodel, with loving care and gratitude to the community. Gees.

    Parent

    Ricketts is financing the remodel himself. That (none / 0) (#68)
    by caseyOR on Sat May 04, 2013 at 09:26:10 PM EST
    family is worth billions. However, he wants concessions from the city on number of night games and signage, including big scoreboards in the outfield which will block some of the rooftop clubs, and closing down the surrounding streets on game day to create a carnival kind of space and some other stuff. Oh, and he wants a break on taxes.

    So, yea! that Ricketts isn't holding the city and the state hostage, ala the White Sox, to get public funding for construction. Still, there is no good reason for him to not pay taxes. The threat to move the team is so much hot air that did not help him with anyone.

    Parent

    Eichenwald's hardcover got here (none / 0) (#10)
    by Militarytracy on Fri May 03, 2013 at 08:03:56 AM EST
    Two days ago....not an easy read but nobody should forget.  Some people will, and hopefully some can remind.  I specifically avoided watching Maddow though (and others because she isn't alone) on the library or reading about her commentary because I have heard that she breaks down the choices theater into the BS that surely it is.  As if there were no other choices other than the three that Dubya is willing to give you. I will do that after I finish the book, so then I only need to be enraged once.

    Parent
    Tracy, check out Doonsebury... (none / 0) (#12)
    by Anne on Fri May 03, 2013 at 09:31:04 AM EST
    "Roland Hedley" is at the library this week, and Trudeau is having a field day with the interactive decider feature...

    Parent
    I hate to admit it, but I'm reading mostly SF (none / 0) (#13)
    by Mr Natural on Fri May 03, 2013 at 09:36:17 AM EST
    these days, far, far off futures where everything is easy or earthly strife is millenia into the rear view mirror.  Iain M. Banks' Culture novels are the best, though reading them again will be colored by his death, which he has revealed will be sometime within the next year from a vicious cancer.


    Parent
    VB was is and always will be (none / 0) (#17)
    by brodie on Fri May 03, 2013 at 10:37:29 AM EST
    a prosecutor, and his doorstop book on the assassination reflects that (so I understand -- I'm certainly not going to waste my time reading 1,600 pgs of what amounts to a flat-earth argument).  It is basically a prosecution brief, yet another in a long series of establishment-backed efforts to prop up the basic findings of the Warren Commission, a report long ago torn to shreds by the critical community.

    Here is a detailed criticism of the book by a well-respected researcher who actually slogged through the entire tome.  Actually, while skewering the substance of the book, this researcher is far nicer to Vince the person than I would be -- I don't find his verbal bullying and ad hom attitude in the least bit likeable.

    Parent

    Started reading Bugliosi's "Outrage", (5.00 / 1) (#20)
    by ExcitableBoy on Fri May 03, 2013 at 11:32:02 AM EST
    his book detailing his belief in OJ's guilt. I didn't like the preachy tone it took, and lost interest in the first few pages, as he listed OJ using his right not to take the stand in his own defense as evidence of his guilt.

    Parent
    Paul Krassner knew detectives (none / 0) (#34)
    by jondee on Fri May 03, 2013 at 03:10:26 PM EST
    involved in the Tate LaBianca investigation who told him Bugliosi buried substantial evidence of pre-homicide "contact" between Manson Family members and some of Polanski's friends and associates.

    Vince's heart seems to be mostly in the right place, but like that other Vince, winning is everything to him.

     

    Parent

    If you click on that link... (none / 0) (#26)
    by unitron on Fri May 03, 2013 at 02:46:17 PM EST
    ...you'll find yourself following other links it provides, which provide yet more links, and suddenly a lot of time will have disappeared from your day.

    You have been warned.

    Parent

    Say wha??? (none / 0) (#31)
    by brodie on Fri May 03, 2013 at 03:00:31 PM EST
    It's a legit link to a legit website well known in the assass'n research community, to an albeit lengthy review of what is a far lengthier bit of writing/scribbling/state propaganda.

    Straight up review, no tricks.

    Yes, no doubt elsewhere on the page there are links to other articles. Go ahead and enlighten yourself further on the case if you're so inclined, or read about the similar conspiracies re MLK and RFK.

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    unitron did not claim (5.00 / 1) (#40)
    by sj on Fri May 03, 2013 at 04:45:15 PM EST
    that the site was not legit.  He claimed that one can easily spend a day following the links that start on that page.  

    Which is true.

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    Hey you're right (none / 0) (#55)
    by brodie on Fri May 03, 2013 at 08:56:11 PM EST
    My misread, sorry unitron.

    No question though there's a lot of material over there. Of course the author of that review started his own assass'n journal 20 yrs ago, pre-Internet, and a lot of his articles from those years you'll now find at the website.  I also think Jim D can't be accused of brevity.

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    I'll check that out...and try not to get sucked in (none / 0) (#64)
    by ruffian on Sat May 04, 2013 at 05:00:28 PM EST
    too far.

    I agree a little of the bullying tone went a long way...I wrote my brother and told him to make VB stop yelling at me in my car.  He did make a convincing case however - will have to look at the rebuttal while his version of the facts is fresh in my mind.

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    found an author on my Nook (none / 0) (#49)
    by TeresaInPa on Fri May 03, 2013 at 07:50:03 PM EST
    2.99 books list...the first book was 2.99, not the others.  But I have now read all her book over the last few months.  They have evolved somewhat.  They are not totally formulaic.  But they are pretty predictable, have satisfying endings about family and romance etc...
    I admire your ability to still read about what is happening in our real lives.  Those books piss me off not only because of what people have done, but because the people who write them often as not had the ability to blow the whistle while it was going on but did not because it would have negatively impacted their lives at the time. I am not saying that is the case with anything you are reading now.  I am just feeling burnt out. So more power to ya!  But I feel like no one does the right thing anymore.  No one does the unselfish thing.

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    From Our "A Man Named Carnival" file: (none / 0) (#41)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Fri May 03, 2013 at 05:13:04 PM EST
    No doubt about it, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-The Belfry) is a serious publicity queen, and one can only hope that he gets exactly what he's asking for. Because while you can say what you will about Joe Biden, he's certainly proven that he's nobody's fool when it comes to a political debate.

    For those of us who are not "elected party (none / 0) (#42)
    by sarcastic unnamed one on Fri May 03, 2013 at 05:18:46 PM EST
    officials," or whatever, what exactly is a "publicity queen?"

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    isn't it obvious? (none / 0) (#43)
    by CoralGables on Fri May 03, 2013 at 05:24:22 PM EST
    btw, took your advice and moved some caterpillars indoors. There weren't five, there were eleven. I've got four inside and one is already a chrysalis and another will be by morning. Had to run to the store and buy what some would call another milkweed plant, but in this case it was just 5 dollars of caterpillar food.

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    Eleven is a lot! (none / 0) (#44)
    by sarcastic unnamed one on Fri May 03, 2013 at 06:32:51 PM EST
    Did you see him transform into the chrysalis? So cool.

    Also you can tell when the chrysalises are getting "ripe" when they get clear and you can see the butterfly inside, ready to emerge.

    They come out with small wrinkled wings and a fat sausage body it takes a while for them to pump the fluid from their body into their wings.

    When they do, it's time for them fly away into the wild blue yonder!

    You are making me nostalgic for when we used to do this when I was a kid.

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    Watched him attach (5.00 / 1) (#46)
    by CoralGables on Fri May 03, 2013 at 07:09:05 PM EST
    curl and go black. Didn't see it go green. Seems impossible for a black yellow and white caterpillar to turn into a green pod, but there it is.

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    So fricken' cool, CG. (none / 0) (#51)
    by caseyOR on Fri May 03, 2013 at 08:13:47 PM EST
    Please keep us posted on the progress of your caterpillar/butterfly.

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    After they hang by their last pair of feet (none / 0) (#70)
    by sarcastic unnamed one on Mon May 06, 2013 at 04:08:42 PM EST
    and curl into a "J," they split their skin and wiggle around, and what emerges from inside the skin is a soft, fat, green "worm."

    That worm has a hook on it where its last pair of suction-cup feet used to be, and it squirms around until that hook is stuck to the button that the those two feet are stuck to.

    Then with a few more squirms it knocks the two feet and the rest of the split skin off the button so it's hanging all by itself.

    Then it hardens into the chrysalis.

    Magical.

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    I remember when my daughter was ... (none / 0) (#53)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Fri May 03, 2013 at 08:41:42 PM EST
    ... about three-and-a-half years old and I showed her a big, beautiful spider's web in the bushes right outside our back door. While we were watching, a fly became entangled in the web and the spider rushed out to snare it and wrap it completely in silk. She was absolutely enthralled by what she saw, and I left her in the backyard.

    A little while later, I noticed her going back and forth between one part of the backyard and where the spider's web was located. I went outside and found the web filled with about 15 insects that were all neatly wrapped, and the spider was sitting in the corner of it, not moving and probably exhausted. Younger Daughter had been busy finding pillbugs and other small ground-dwelling insects, and then throwing them into the web so she could watch the spider snare and wrap its prey.

    At least she didn't have a pet mouse.

    Parent

    Speaking for myself only, I would ... (none / 0) (#50)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Fri May 03, 2013 at 08:12:25 PM EST
    ... define a "publicity queen" (or "publicity hound," if you prefer) as someone who:
    • Is enthralled with his / her own image and voice;
    • Truly believes that no press is bad press;
    • Deliberately courts the media for its own sake, even if he / she really doesn't have anything to say; and
    • You would anger at your own peril, should you somehow ever get between him / her and a television camera.

    Just off the top of my head, current examples of shameless publicity queens in Congress would include Michele Bachmann, Peter King, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, John McCain, Lindsay Graham, John Cornyn, Chuck Schumer, Barbara Boxer and Dick Durbin.

    Were Al D'Amato (who once actually called a press conference in D.C. to announce that he was in love, and to introduce his new girlfriend), Phil Graham, Anthony Weiner and J.D. Hayworth still in the Congress, I'd certainly have to list them, too.

    Non-congressional publicity queens would include Willie Brown (though I'd now categorize him as "recovering"), Sarah Palin, Donald Trump, Ralph Reed and of course, the ubiquitous and always colorful Gloria Allred.

    I purposely excluded Hollywood types, because that list would be practically endless. And I'm sure you can probably think of others as well, both in Congress and in your own state and hometown.

    Aloha.

    Parent

    Boxer? Really? (none / 0) (#52)
    by nycstray on Fri May 03, 2013 at 08:25:23 PM EST


    Parent
    Oh, yeah. (5.00 / 1) (#54)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Fri May 03, 2013 at 08:53:16 PM EST
    Look, I absolutely love Barbara Boxer and think she's great, but let's face it, she's a big publicity queen. Consider her book, "Strangers in the Senate," which you can get online for about a buck, and which one critic derided as "a 256-page campaign brochure in hardcover."

    And as reported by the San Francisco Chronicle, covering the Jan. 1996 inauguration of Mayor Willie Brown:

    "Arriving late at the ceremony, Boxer spurned her assigned front-row seat for an even more visible spot on the stage. The chair she snatched had been set aside for Brown's granddaughter, who spent the ceremony perched on her grandfather's lap."

    LOL! Doesn't get much more shameless than that.

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    Thursday Night Open Thread | 70 comments (70 topical)

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