Enjoy
Tuesday, December 31, 2024
Sure Why Not
It is all above my pay grade, but I do not suspect that Syria being bombed by several countries is a preface to a glorious future of self-determination.
Yes, I know, as always.
Who Wants This
There are a million ways facebook is shit and almost everyone of them has at its root the platform's resistance to letting people share stuff so their friends can see it, which is what one imagines the product is for.
Maybe try returning to that instead of whatever this is?
Connor Hayes, Meta’s vice president of product for generative AI, told the Financial Times last week that the company expects AI bots will “exist on our platforms, kind of in the same way that accounts do.”
I am pretty sure the world is ready for a "facebook, except not shit" and I am surprised no one is doing it.
RIP Aaron Brown
I remember him trying a bit harder than most of his colleagues in the post-9/11 era. Both a low bar and high praise.
Monday, December 30, 2024
Trump And Elon Are Woke Now
It's the holidays and I can't be bothered with trying to figure out what any of it means, if anything.
(this is Trump posting a screenshot of an Elon tweet).
He'll Get Right On That
Pick which side of the "will he pay" bet you are on.
President-elect Donald Trump is not entitled to a new trial in the case in which a jury found him liable for sexual abuse and defamation of the writer E. Jean Carroll, a federal appeals court ruled Monday.
Where's JD
I know it's the holidays - and maybe I am just not paying enough attention - but did the dude just disappear?
Seeming
I don't think that was "seeming."
Mr. Carter’s freelance diplomacy, which at times included outspoken criticism of U.S. policies, could provoke outrage. He angered Clinton in 1994 by thrusting himself into a dispute over U.N. inspections of North Korea’s nuclear facilities. In his book “Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid” (2006), Mr. Carter set off a storm of criticism by seeming to equate Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories with the former apartheid regime in South Africa.It is ommon (and maybe even somewhat appropriate) to downplay the negative actions of prominent public figure in their obituaries, but we can be a bit amused that this is the bad thing they are choosing to downplay.
Sunday, December 29, 2024
Owner of Politico
Important to remember.
The tech entrepreneur and close adviser to Donald Trump Elon Musk has taken a stunning new public step in his support for the far-right German political party Alternative for Germany (AfD), publishing a supportive guest opinion piece for the country’s Welt am Sonntag newspaper that has prompted the commentary editor to resign in protest.
AGI Is When We Get Rich
A definition of artificial general intelligence that makes perfect sense to the suits, so much so that any other type of definition would seem to be insanity to them.
Microsoft and OpenAI have a very specific, internal definition of artificial general intelligence (AGI) based on the startup’s profits, according to a new report from The Information. And by this definition, OpenAI is many years away from reaching it.
The two companies reportedly signed an agreement last year stating OpenAI has only achieved AGI when it develops AI systems that can generate at least $100 billion in profits. That’s far from the rigorous technical and philosophical definition of AGI many expect.
The Protagonist
It's almost 2025 and the NYT is still doing this. Well, ISRAEL SAYS, ...
I remember years ago a Times reporter published something I knew was false, something they had been told by a trusted (to them) source in Congress.
I remember years ago a Times reporter published something I knew was false, something they had been told by a trusted (to them) source in Congress.
Their logic was, basically, this person wouldn't lie to me because if they did I would expose them. Since I would expose them, a kind of nuclear retaliation, they wouldn't lie. Therefore they aren't lying. QED.
I have seen precisely one source get burned for lying. That was, amusingly, Ann Coulter getting busted by Howie Kurtz.
I don't know if the reporter really believed this, but in practice what it means is that there are sources they pretend to trust, and ones they treat with skepticism. True for states, true for politicians, true for lobbyists, true for staffers...
I'm too lazy to check, but I would bet a huge tell in international coverage is which sources get embodied into a state ("Israel" or "United Kingdom") and which are labeled as mere people.
Saturday, December 28, 2024
Ah, Well, Nevertheless
Lefty shitposters were right again.
In private, Biden has also said he should have picked someone other than Merrick Garland as attorney general, complaining about the Justice Department’s slowness under Garland in prosecuting Trump, and its aggressiveness in prosecuting Biden’s son Hunter, according to multiple people familiar with his comments.Ctrl-f gaza finds nothing as usual but genocide architect Jake Sullivan provides this hilarity:
The president has been operating on a time horizon measured in decades, while the political cycle is measured in four years,” Jake Sullivan, Biden’s national security adviser, said in an interview.fucking hell
I Am The Protagonist Of This Story
I really can't fucking believe that in book two of this series I have to fight both Donald and Elon.
Oh My Stars
I am glad we are mostly beyond the era when journalists would pretend to be shocked by swears from people in government or fake government, but perhaps we shouldn't throw all standards out the window.
Cokie Roberts is spinning.
Friday, December 27, 2024
Friday Afternoon
All the worst people fighting with each other is about all we will get to enjoy for a few years (in politics).
MAGA Meltdown
I am still in a bit of holiday mode, but the abbreviated version is that our fake government organization DOGE co-chairs came out in support of H1B visas because most white Americans (the best Americans) are a bunch of stupid shitheads, just like JD Vance said, and the MAGAS, led by General Loomer, are in full revolt and hate Elon now (they always hated Vivek).
The person everyone believes is just Elon with a fake mustache and voice distorter did a "spaces" audio chat and yelled at everyone.
I don't expect this post to make sense. It can only make sense if "catturd2 might need an apology" makes sense to you and I hope it doesn't.
Maybe this will help.
There Can’t Be Famine - Everybody Has Already Been Ethnically Cleansed
I am begging people to understand that this isn't just me being grumpy. There is a rot in the Democratic party that prevents anyone with career concerns from saying anything. Anyone who thinks genocide is bad is being pushed aside.
Lew, the U.S. ambassador, said the famine warning was based on “outdated and inaccurate” data. He pointed to uncertainty over how many of the 65,000-75,000 people remaining in northern Gaza had fled in recent weeks, saying that skewed the findings.If you change the denominator according to our successful campaign of ethnic cleansing, it isn't technically a famine!
There is no quick fix to this, but you can't fight the bad orange man with these people, ones who prefer genocide to missing a boat payment.
Keep On Impeaching
I guess no one has any important Valentine's Day reservations to get to.
South Korea has voted to impeach its acting president Han Duck-soo, two weeks after parliament voted to impeach its President Yoon Suk Yeol.No precise analogies, but our electeds only treated Jan. 6 with the seriousness it deserved for about a week and then quickly moved to "maybe somebody else should do something" mode as that is their happy place.
Thursday, December 26, 2024
And In The Party
Anyone in the broader Democratic-industrial complex who brings up inconvenient facts is being shut out completely. Career ending. I really do want people to understand the kind of people this leaves in place. These are not good people.
As for the idea that the focus should be the bad orange man: 1) Yes I heard that for 14 months and how did that work out? Was it worth it? 2) You face much less sanction within the party for trying to be buddies with Trump (including big donors just looking out for their interests) than for mentioning the 'G' word.
I've Had A Few
"Gaza" appears nowhere here and, look, Biden failed on his own repeatedly expressed promises to achieve a peace deal. A year of promising peace deals! I don't think such deals would have been successes on my terms, but he was a complete failure on his own expressed terms! With nontrivial consequences!
"We" are just going to pretend that this never happened and it is going to be horrifying to see just how successful that is.
The first draft of history being largely bullshit is not new to me, but this does take it to a new level of obscurance.
Wednesday, December 25, 2024
Tuesday, December 24, 2024
Choose Your Fighters
It is almost always the case that people saying that we should trust the plan, that "we [the dems] got this" are wrong, and that people saying they are too timid and that loud public pressure is necessary are correct.
There are a few reasons, but one is that well-connected rich and powerful people and their lobbyists can get all of these people on the phone. The "private" pressure is constant and always leans in the direction of elite impunity.
Who do you think all these powerful people hear from regularly? It isn't people saying it is good to hold other powerful people accountable!
I mean, if you indict one member of Congress for sex trafficking, where will it end? Slippery slope! Some of our faves might be implicated!
Monday, December 23, 2024
...The Institutionalists!
I will let people better equipped to interpret such things provide a fuller interpretation, but if you read the Gaetz report (.pdf) starting at page 3 (as numbered) at Procedural History, it is the kind of Calvinball shit you would expect from the Trump DOJ but it was Garland.
Shortly after DOJ withdrew its deferral request and the Committee reauthorized its review, the Committee sent DOJ a request for information. After three months without a response despite repeated follow up, the Committee submitted FOIA requests to several relevant DOJ offices, which to date have not been adequately processed. The Committee continued to reach out to DOJ throughout 2023, having still not received a substantive response to its request for information. On January 12, 2024, the Committee received its first correspondence from DOJ on the matter. At that time, DOJ provided no substantive response or explanation for its delay; instead, DOJ simply stated that it “do[es] not provide non-public information about law enforcement investigations that do not result in charges.” This “policy” is, however, inconsistent with DOJ’s historical conduct with respect to the Committee and its unique role in upholding the integrity of the House.
Thereafter, the Committee determined to issue a subpoena to DOJ to obtain records relating to its investigation of Representative Gaetz. DOJ did not comply with the subpoena by the date required, but suggested it remained “committed to good-faith engagement with the Committee.” In the spirit of cooperation, the Committee provided a list of specific responsive documents, setting out particularized demands to the subpoena. Among the particularized demands was a request for any exculpatory evidence relating to Representative Gaetz. On March 13, 2024, Committee Members met with the Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legislative Affairs and the Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division of DOJ. The DOJ officials again cited no legal basis for failing to comply with the subpoena. DOJ subsequently requested additional context for the Committee’s demands, which the Committee provided. After further attempts at meaningful accommodation of DOJ’s concerns about the breadth of the Committee’s request, DOJ ultimately provided publicly reported information about the testimony of a deceased individual. To date, DOJ has provided no meaningful evidence or information to the Committee or cited any lawful basis for its responses. The Committee hopes to continue to engage with DOJ on the broader issues raised by its failure to recognize the Committee’s unique mandate. As the Committee has told DOJ, the Committee and DOJ should be partners in their shared mission of upholding the integrity of our government institutions.
Maybe Someone Could Explain
I actually would like a zero bullshit non-ass covering explanation for how our friend Matt avoided prosecution.
If You Are A Star, They Let You Do It (Sex Trafficking)
Sure we know justice is highly imperfect for all the obvious reasons, but it is like they aren't even trying to pretend anymore.
The House Ethics Committee found evidence that former Rep. Matt Gaetz paid tens of thousands of dollars to women for sex or drugs on at least 20 occasions, including paying a 17-year-old girl for sex in 2017, according to a final draft of the panel’s report on the Florida Republican, obtained by CNN.
Responsible coverage of the Gaetz report would add: paying a minor for sex alone is a violation of the federal sex trafficking statute, no transportation or coercion required (and an alleged trafficker not knowing an alleged victim’s age is not considered a defense) www.cbsnews.com/news/matt-ga...
— Melissa Gira Grant (@melissagiragrant.com) December 23, 2024 at 2:07 PM
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Something Positive
We'll take the crumbs on the way out.
Joe Biden commutes sentences of 37 out of 40 federal death row inmatesI do want to cheer for this stuff, but also we shouldn't have to cheer for things we should expect from a D president at this moment.
The clemency action applies to all federal death row inmates except three convicted of terrorism or hate-motivated mass murder
Sunday, December 22, 2024
The Shocking Twist? She's A Republican
Lifetime elder care until you need medical assistance.
We then received a tip from a Granger constituent who shared that the Congresswoman has been residing at a local memory care and assisted living home for some time after having been found wandering lost and confused in her former Cultural District/West 7th neighborhood.
No one noticed for 6 months.
She was Chair of the House Appropriations Committee until not long before she "disappeared."
People ask why these presumably relatively rich members of Congress don't just pay for staff. Even if money isn't an issue, you just can't buy a new loyal staff and management company (the HR department of the House).
Sure the staff aren't legally allowed to take care of your personal stuff but we don't have those "scandals" often anymore..
Hoarders
For me, the entire point of wealth would be to free me from worry. I am not above enjoying the comfort and enjoyment money would provide. I would fly first class and rent nice places when I traveled and have a fancy if not very large home. A nice kitchen. I would go out to nice restaurants more often, though probably not even that often.
My personal lifestyle choices aren’t the point though. I would want it to free me from worry. What is the point of being a rich guy who stares at the line on CNBC all day? What is the point of being a rich guy who has to manage a large staff and worry about personal security?
I am sure those rich guys exist, ones who just enjoy life. They are the ones we never hear about. But the weirdos we do?
Saturday, December 21, 2024
Ctrl-f Gaza
Too fucking late.
As the saying goes, “You don’t know what you got till it’s gone.” It pains me to predict that we are likely to learn the power of America’s example the hard way as Washington turns its back on any pretense of grounding its foreign policy in values or moral commitments.Another era of unreality. I suppose they all are, some.
Sure Why Not
House Transvestigation Chair
Remember her NYT puff piece promoted brand was once pro-LGBT+ Sensible Republican.
So was Trump's, now that I think about it.
Friday, December 20, 2024
Post-Biden
I suppose all the insiders will tell us how they came to support genocide eventually.
And then spend the rest of their lives very occasionally being asked politely to leave restaurants.
Killers and Cowards
Can't say enough bad things about all of them.
To work in DC now is to understand that the genocide in Palestine is not a mistake. The people actually in charge are doing this. Your job is a farce. Your work means nothing. The very top echelons are shredding everything you stood for. You will never afford a house in Washington. If you have a catastrophic health emergency, even you will need to turn to GoFundMe, and every day when you open your phone you see children mangled alive with weapons that you know legally should not be delivered. genocide in Palestine is not a mistake. The people actually in charge are doing this. Your job is a farce. Your work means nothing. The very top echelons are shredding everything you stood for. You will never afford a house in Washington. If you have a catastrophic health emergency, even you will need to turn to GoFundMe, and every day when you open your phone you see children mangled alive with weapons that you know legally should not be delivered.Some are much more responsible than others, of course.
The Circle of Trust
One form of ongoing corruption is the maintenance of Congress as a system of lifetime elder care for ageing and senile Democrats.
One reason to keep younger people down is to make sure that system is maintained and that nobody who might complain gets a leadership position.
The House is a big place. Maybe it doesn't matter much if there are a few dodderers on the backbenches. It does matter if they are in positions of responsibility.
Thursday, December 19, 2024
Masterful Gambit, Sir
As I said before, it's hard not to think that the Gods making Elon Musk the most powerful man in the world hasn't been directed at me, personally, for whatever reason.
With less than 36 hours to go before a deadline that would shut down vast swaths of the federal government and furlough workers, they have no plan, or even a concept of a plan, for what’s next.
They are not negotiating with Democrats, despite needing their support to pass a law. They’re talking amongst themselves.
“We don’t know anything yet,” Rep. Dusty Johnson, R-S.D., an ally of Johnson, R-La., told reporters as he walked into the speaker’s office.
Shorter Tom Friedman
Please, China, build some factories in America and start importing our pop culture or we are fucked. Wait, where are you going, what's wrong with this pitch...
Tom Friedman - The Ayahuasca Years
Amazing stuff.
Damn. I'm actually going to have to read this one.
Our Courageous Journalists
Least surprising development this year.
George Stephanopoulos signed a new deal with ABC News in which the Good Morning America co-host will remain with the network, a news division spokesperson said Wednesday.That implies that contract had nothing to do with the settlement, but of course this was a joint decision whatever the precise timing.
Stephanopoulos signed a multiyear agreement, but no other details were provided. The agreement was said to be unrelated to ABC’s $16 million settlement last week with President-elect Donald Trump, who sued in March over comments that Stephanopoulos made on This Week, the Sunday show which he also hosts. A source said that the new contract was agreed to before the settlement.
Billionaire Manbaby
Not that I imagine everyone actually reads this fine blog, but it has been extremely maddening watching people, for years, treat Elon like some sort of benevolent genius, instead of the ridiculous malevolent fraud that he is.
Even just now, chucklefuck Dems were running around talking about how they couldn't wait to work with Mr. DOGE and his very serious fake government agency. Sure maybe they were just - also incredibly stupidly - thinking they could flatter him, but it all serves to legitimize and empower him.
I have a thick skin here on Al Gore's internet, but there are certain topics about which I have received a bizarre amount of smug condescension over the years for my supposedly wrong takes. Musk tops the list of those!
Nobody listens to Atrios.
Even just now, chucklefuck Dems were running around talking about how they couldn't wait to work with Mr. DOGE and his very serious fake government agency. Sure maybe they were just - also incredibly stupidly - thinking they could flatter him, but it all serves to legitimize and empower him.
I have a thick skin here on Al Gore's internet, but there are certain topics about which I have received a bizarre amount of smug condescension over the years for my supposedly wrong takes. Musk tops the list of those!
Nobody listens to Atrios.
Wednesday, December 18, 2024
An Existential Threat To Democracy
Welp.
Democrats have a plan to take back power in Washington back from Republicans in two years: work with them now.
Democrats, who are already planning their comeback after being swept out of power in Washington last month, have said they'll oppose President-elect Donald Trump and his allies when their values collide but are open to cooperation on a range of issues, including immigration, federal spending and entitlements.
The strategy marks a turnaround from 2017, when "resistance" to Trump was Democrats' rallying cry. But, some lawmakers and operatives said, it also marks a challenge to Republicans for bipartisanship at a time when narrow GOP congressional majorities will likely mandate some level of cooperation.
Mildly Surprising
I wonder if it will happen.
The House Ethics Committee secretly voted earlier this month to release its report into the conduct of former Rep. Matt Gaetz before the end of this Congress, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the matter.
The report is now expected to be made public after the House’s final day of votes this year as lawmakers leave Washington for the holidays, those sources said.
Maybe Someone Should Have Done Something
Letting billionaire manbabies just do what they want does not appease them.
Elon Musk and his rocket company, SpaceX, have repeatedly failed to comply with federal reporting protocols aimed at protecting state secrets, including by not providing some details of his meetings with foreign leaders, according to people with knowledge of the company and internal documents.We'll know better next time.
British Food
More interesting and diverse than people thought.
Now, a recent study published in the Cambridge University journal Antiquity suggests a stunningly grim saga played out at Charterhouse Warren, at far greater scale than previously thought: The bones belong to at least 37 men, women and children who were slaughtered and possibly eaten in a ceremonial feast after their massacre.
All We Need To Do Is Stop Talking
I don't do it every day, but almost every time I check the NYT/WaPo front page promoted columns, there isn't a single one referencing the ever-expanding events in the Middle East. As I have said, I doubt the elite newspaper-chosen opinion havers have much to add to the subject, but it is extremely notable that the preferred mode for most of them is silence on the topic.
Conflict! In the Middle East! Involving Israel with US participation! Normally this would about the most exciting topic possible for many of them. And it was, for awhile, especially with the side plot of wrongthinking antisemitic students daring to protest! Just the perfect US pundit story!
And now...
Conflict! In the Middle East! Involving Israel with US participation! Normally this would about the most exciting topic possible for many of them. And it was, for awhile, especially with the side plot of wrongthinking antisemitic students daring to protest! Just the perfect US pundit story!
And now...
Tuesday, December 17, 2024
Okay Then
Whatchagonnado.
What we're hearing: Connolly's trademark vigor made colleagues comfortable that he can take on the Trump administration despite his age and recent cancer diagnosis, multiple lawmakers told Axios.
"Gerry's a young 74, cancer notwithstanding," said Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.), one of Connolly's top allies.
Droned
Drones are actually pretty fucking creepy. A few days ago I saw one out the window of the head office of Eschaton World Industries. It was pretty high - maybe 4 times the height of the local buildings. Hovering. I get that they're cool and you can take neat videos with them. I'm sure there was nothing nefarious about it. Still a bit creepy!
Bipartisan
Things are extra good when our opponents - existential threats to the nation - bless them.
There is a place for the hard work of compromise, for getting your opponents on board, but the general fetishization of bipartisanship by Democrats is... not helpful!
The Circle Of Trust
When people have been involved in a great crime, they have to push out anyone who objects. The Democratic party is now hostile to anyone who has objected to genocide. To genocide!
The way to rescue that project is not to get mad at me for pointing it out.
The election is over. The bad orange man won. A lot of other very bad people failed to beat him.
The way to rescue that project is not to get mad at me for pointing it out.
The election is over. The bad orange man won. A lot of other very bad people failed to beat him.
Monday, December 16, 2024
TikTok You Don't Stop
I absolutely hate the entire "short video" internet format. It actually enrages me when I am exposed to it. (This is me, enjoy it if you like it). But it's quite obvious the "ban TikTok" was all about The Kids getting wrongthink about Gaza and nothing to do with the claimed reasons.
Well they can ban TikTok and pay some Dem grifter $50 million to run cheerful DNC press releases, or whatever.
(Trump might overturn this, which makes it funnier)
Well they can ban TikTok and pay some Dem grifter $50 million to run cheerful DNC press releases, or whatever.
(Trump might overturn this, which makes it funnier)
Holding To Account
Elite US journalists increasingly see their primary job as holding the public to account - annoying students, disgusting poor people, ungrateful minorities - instead of the powerful. Punching down is good, punching up is bad.
You Could Resign
George Stephanopoulos is 63. He's been paid high 6/low 7 high 7/low 8 (oops) figures for years. He has hosted This Week for 22 years, which is reason enough to move on. He could go out on the high note of showing minimal signs of integrity over this or he could... well.
Embracing Violence
Are we going to get a bunch of thumbsuckers about this, coming from someone actually powerful?
Whatever one thinks of the reactions to the killing of the CEO, they aren't coming from elected Democrats.
Whatever one thinks of the reactions to the killing of the CEO, they aren't coming from elected Democrats.
"Advanced Technology"
I dunno.. if our civil and military monitoring systems in the neighborhood of the busiest air corridor in the country aren't already keeping an eye on things then I guess we should ask why. Though I suspect they are and this is all nonsense.
After weeks of fear and bewilderment about the drones buzzing over parts of New York and New Jersey, elected officials are urging action to identify and stop the mysterious flights.I'm sure the whole story is: perhaps the military was flying a couple of things they don't want to talk about. Once Fox news got on it, everyone started looking up into the sky and thinking planes and stars were scary UFOs. Plus, of course, some people are posting bullshit for clicks and clout and giggles. Then every asshole with a drone started flying their drones to look for the other drones.
“There’s a lot of us who are pretty frustrated right now,” Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said on “Fox News Sunday.”
“’We don’t know’ is not a good enough answer,” he said.
...
Schumer wants the federal government to use a recently declassified radio wave technology in New York and New Jersey. The radio wave detector can be attached to a drone or airplane and can determine whether another flying object is a bird or a drone, read its electronic registration, and follow it back to its landing place. Schumer said state and local authorities do not have the authority to track drones.
Sunday, December 15, 2024
Drone Fever
I am trying not to pollute my beautiful mind with this story, but former Governor Hogan getting freaked out by the constellation Orion is pretty funny.
Last night, beginning at around 9:45 pm, I personally witnessed (and videoed) what appeared to be dozens of large drones in the sky above my residence in Davidsonville, Maryland (25 miles from our nation’s capital). I observed the activity for approximately 45 minutes.
— Governor Larry Hogan (@GovLarryHogan) December 13, 2024
Like… pic.twitter.com/Ipx8ctLmhs
Choose Your Fighters
Everyone understands this isn't about the likelihood of them losing the case.
ABC News has agreed to pay $15m (£12m) to US President-elect Donald Trump to settle a defamation lawsuit after its star anchor falsely said he had been found "liable for rape".
Saturday, December 14, 2024
Oh I Have Mild Flu
One thing that became apparent during Covid, with all the minimizers comparing it to the flu, is that people don't know how bad the flu is. People think that when they have the sniffles that's a "cold" and then when they have an actual cold that's "a mild flu" but the flu is actually a big deal and it kills people.
Even though a record number of kids died from the flu last year, the percentage of children getting flu shots continues to plummet.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Wednesday that as of Nov. 30, just over a third of U.S. kids — 37% — had gotten flu shots, down from 43% at the same time last year.
Seems Bad
Nobody wants this.
The BBC says it has filed a complaint with the US tech giant Apple over AI-generated fake news that was shared on iPhones and attributed to the broadcaster.
Apple Intelligence, which was launched in Britain this week, produces grouped notifications from several information sites that have been generated by artificial intelligence.
One of those suggested that the BBC News website had published an article claiming that Luigi Mangione, who was arrested in the US over the murder of a healthcare executive in New York, had committed suicide.
CELLOS ON THE MOTHERFUCKING PLANE
Mrs. A isn't a pro but she has traveled her cello a few times. There's a good chance the people at the counter don't know what the policy/routine is, and because every airline handles it differently - puts it in the computer differently - booking through codeshares is a problem. Isserlis, another famous cellist, is always complaining on twitter about his travel problems. You'd think "I am a fancy professional cellist going to play at this big concert hall" would overwhelm some resistance, however...
Famed British cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason, who became a household name after performing at the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, has said he had to cancel a concert in Canada after the country’s largest airline denied his pre-booked seat for his cello.Based on our experiences: some airlines code it as a seat with a name like "A. Cello." Some code it as extra cabin baggage. If it's coded as baggage they will bump it for a person. If the computer has done that, and it's a full flight...
...
“First we had delays, then a cancellation, and the day concluded by being denied boarding with the cello – despite having a confirmed seat for it – on a new, final flight into Toronto. After nine anxious hours at the airport, we realised our journey wasn’t going to be possible,” the statement continued.
“We can only dream of a time when all airlines have a standardised, global and carefully considered approach to the carriage of precious instruments that are booked to travel in the cabin,” they added.
I've seen Sheku a couple of times. Talented and charismatic performer.
Impeached
Bye bye, asshole.
South Korea’s parliament voted to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol on Saturday in an extraordinary rebuke that came about after his own ruling party turned on him following his refusal to resign over his short-lived martial law attempt.
It is the second time in less than a decade that a South Korean leader has faced impeachment proceedings in office and means Yoon is suspended from exercising his powers until the decision is finally adjudicated by the country’s Constitutional Court.
Friday, December 13, 2024
Amazing Stuff
I have no idea why people get fed up with politics and vote for people who (usually wrongly, I know) promise to smash the system.
Gov. Kathy Hochul will broker a virtual meeting Tuesday with state law enforcement officials and about 175 corporate representatives to discuss sharing security resources.You don't have to support the murder of CEOs to understand the elite reaction to it is ridiculous.
Stuck In The Middle With You
In the view of DC big brains, "moderates"- potential swing voters - are people who like Joe Scarborough and think David Brooks is often wise. I'm pretty sure they're more likely to think Luigi has a point than pass around the latest Niskanen Center briefing.
I get tired of pointing out what everyone actually does know, but thought Trump would somehow suspend. Good Republicans don't actually exist. Self-identified independent voters are actually embarrassed partisans. Genuine swing voters have brains of mush and, while I am not entirely sure how to reach them, they are more likely to be animated by guillotines than Norms Respecting. Irregular voters need to be inspired.
I get tired of pointing out what everyone actually does know, but thought Trump would somehow suspend. Good Republicans don't actually exist. Self-identified independent voters are actually embarrassed partisans. Genuine swing voters have brains of mush and, while I am not entirely sure how to reach them, they are more likely to be animated by guillotines than Norms Respecting. Irregular voters need to be inspired.
Wow Trump Is Bad, The Latest Thing Is Really Bad, What The Fuck
I am sorry you are all in for years of posts just like that.
The Stupidest Thing Ever Written
I think about this regularly. It is the ultimate expression of the rich bigoted asshole backlash era in your liberal media. My pet theory is Dash Sulzberger* wrote it himself, though I have no evidence of this. I wish someone would leak who did write it!
For all the tolerance and enlightenment that modern society claims, Americans are losing hold of a fundamental right as citizens of a free country: the right to speak their minds and voice their opinions in public without fear of being shamed or shunned.*Dash isn't his real nickname. It's a joke diminutive of Pinch, his father's actual nickname, coined by a former Timeser Regina Schrambling. Ridiculous nepo baby.
Thursday, December 12, 2024
I Am Old
I try to take complaints of ageism seriously, but really I am "only" 52 and my brain is mushifying. I don't mean I have dementia (hopefully not!), but I can see how I am less quick to incorporate new information, less able to react appropriately to stressful situations, and of course much less likely to have any idea what the fuck The Kids are up to these days.
For a variety of reasons (cough boomers cough), many US institutions have failed to provide promotion opportunities for younger people to the extent that "younger people" just about means people who are my age.
I don't think all elderly people need to quit and go away, but my take on Congress is similar to my take on academia: fine, don't retire, keep teaching your students when you are 70, but maybe stop trying to run the place.
For a variety of reasons (cough boomers cough), many US institutions have failed to provide promotion opportunities for younger people to the extent that "younger people" just about means people who are my age.
I don't think all elderly people need to quit and go away, but my take on Congress is similar to my take on academia: fine, don't retire, keep teaching your students when you are 70, but maybe stop trying to run the place.
Ah, Well, Nevertheless
NEWS: Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi is actively working to tank AOC’s bid for the top Dem spot on the House Oversight Comittee, I’m told.
— Melanie Zanona (@MZanona) December 12, 2024
Pelosi has been making calls & campaigning on behalf of Gerry Connolly, who’s running against AOC. More in @PunchbowlNews midday: pic.twitter.com/zYwS628uas
Welp
Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal praises Elon Musk for the second straight day, calling him "the foremost champion of free speech in the tech industry." pic.twitter.com/iu065wPorG
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) December 12, 2024
Amazing Stuff
Mace's original brand (helped by NYT puff pieces) was Sensible Moderate Republican In The Age Of Trump
Nancy Mace's former comms director: "her prop of a sling is a pathetic ploy for attention." 👀
— Ari Drennen (@aridrennen.bsky.social) December 12, 2024 at 6:01 PM
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Generational Shift
It's mostly fine if not always ideal if people stick around in the House for a long time, but the seniority deference system means that nobody gets a "promotion" until they've been there for decades.
I'm sure Connolly belives it's his turn, as it's supposed to be and he's been waiting 16 years!
Ocasio-Cortez, 35, and Rep. Gerry Connolly, 74, have been canvassing the entire Democratic Caucus as they compete for the ranking position on Oversight next year — making calls, meeting with influential blocs in the party and laying out their vision for the high-profile panel. But according to interviews with a dozen members and staffers, Ocasio-Cortez has earned the support of the majority of Democrats on the panel, though it’s the Steering and Policy Committee and the full caucus who ultimately decide. The Oversight panel is stacked with younger, more progressive members who tend to align more with her than Connolly.
I'm sure Connolly belives it's his turn, as it's supposed to be and he's been waiting 16 years!
Surprisingly Blunt From The NYT
Not as many euphemisms as usual.
President-elect Donald J. Trump on Wednesday night chose Kari Lake to lead Voice of America, aiming to put a fierce loyalist who has called journalists “monsters” in charge of a federally funded news outlet that reaches hundreds of millions of people around the globe.
Mr. Trump was accused of using his appointees to try to turn Voice of America, whose aim is to offer unbiased news to audiences around the world, into a pro-Trump propaganda outlet during his first term. In his announcement of Ms. Lake, a local TV news anchor turned election denier who lost races for Senate and governor in Arizona, Mr. Trump hinted that he believed he had found an ally to try to reshape its coverage.
Foreign Policy Guy
I do remain amazed at how little the usual suspect pundits want to talk about what is going on in the Middle East. I used to shorthand that "Gaza" but that has expanded quite a bit since.
They are usually so excited to start drawing lines on the map, but most of them are just silent at the moment.
The election's over. The bad orange man won. Why are they so quiet?
They are usually so excited to start drawing lines on the map, but most of them are just silent at the moment.
The election's over. The bad orange man won. Why are they so quiet?
Wednesday, December 11, 2024
Ah, Well, Nevertheless
Sinema's youngish and will eat out for years on this (not a defense, but at least it makes sense), but Manchin is old and he just can't stop.
BREAKING: Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema have cast decisive votes against Biden's NLRB nominee. This means the Democrats will not secure control of the national labor regulator through 2026. These two Senators effectively handed Trump control of the board when his term begins.
— More Perfect Union (@moreperfectunion.bsky.social) December 11, 2024 at 6:51 PM
More Normal Schedule Returning
I was traveling and dealing with various life tasks over the past week but that is all over now. What'd I miss?
Seniority
Republicans already term limited their committee chairs/ranking members - 3 consecutive max.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., a 35-year-old member of the progressive “squad” who is often mentioned as a future presidential hopeful, is taking on a more senior colleague, Rep. Gerry Connolly, D-Va., 74, who is battling esophageal cancer and was just elected to his ninth term.“If she wins, it’s the end of seniority,” said a House Democrat who has served decades in Congress.
Are Tariffs Good Or Bad
A lot of left leaning people have spent the last couple of months furiously denouncing tariffs and Biden just announced more tariffs on trade from China.
Maybe Biden tariffs are good and Trump tariffs are bad but good luck explaining that.
(My view is, whatever the merits, the trump tariffs won't be as much of a disaster, economically or politically, as many of these critics think.)
Tuesday, December 10, 2024
Speaking Of Norms Violations
There is an international arrest warrant out for this guy. Should be one for both.
Sounds Bad
Some serious norm violations.
There are mounting suspicions that former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun intended to justify the declaration of martial law or a state of united defense by instigating a military conflict with North Korea by ordering strikes on the sites from which the North was launching trash-filled balloons and flying unmanned drones to Pyongyang.
Trump
We are in year 9 or so of this and I admit I still don't understand. I get Trumpism. I get the appeal of a guy sorta like Trump. I don't get the appeal of Trump himself, that anyone can stand to be in the room with him.
Those who know him best include Mag Habs.
Monday, December 09, 2024
Loophole
It's right there in the constitution. You know, a loophole.
Reminder that Hemmer was on CNN for years.
Sunday, December 08, 2024
Baddies
My more serious point is the US (us) does not yet have its story straight and those moments are always slightly comical (black comedy obviously).
The Monkey's Confused
It is good that Assad is gone but the new guys were on our terrorist list and also Israel is bombing them.
Someone give me the daily updated list of baddies and goodies so I can make sure not to engage in any wrongthink.
Tyrant Downfall
All things Syria are above my pay grade but that this seems uncontroversially celebration-worthy.
Is it ok to cheer when people responsible for a lot of deaths are (possibly) killed? Assad had a family after all.
Saturday, December 07, 2024
Just Keep Posting Through It
At some points elites shifted from "sometimes the honorable thing to do is to resign as when you are in charge you are ulitmately responsible even if something isn't precisely your fault" to "just keep posting through, no matter what."
Unless their peers or superiors force them to do otherwise, anyway.
(This is partially a response to the Korean president's party blocking impeachment)
Friday, December 06, 2024
The Future Of The Democratic Party
All the people who said this about Eric Adams are very highly paid advanced politics knowers and and the people who said "lol you clowns" are not.
Easiest Marks In The World
The site filled with Nazis and bots love when I praise its owner. This is peak Democracy.
Got His Number
This Fox guy described Lindey Graham more accurately than any journalist or Democrat ever has.
Thursday, December 05, 2024
Every Cop In The Nation
He said it not me.
Adair, Iowa, had a population of 794. So, it seemed suspicious when its three-person police department asked regulators to buy 90 machine guns, including an M134 Gatling-style minigun capable of shooting up to 6,000 rounds of ammunition every minute.
Federal agents later discovered Adair's police chief, Bradley Wendt, was using his position to acquire weapons and sell them for personal profit. A jury convicted Wendt earlier this year of conspiracy to defraud the United States, lying to federal law enforcement and illegal possession of a machine gun. Wendt is unapologetic and has appealed his conviction.
"If I'm guilty of this, every cop in the nation's going to jail," Wendt told CBS News just days before a federal judge sentenced him to a 5-year prison term. Wendt's crimes appear to be part of a nationwide pattern.
Choose your fighters well
There is no good answer to why are they doing this.
The Biden administration has, for the past year, been in the process of extending contracts for private sector immigration jails across the US and exploring options for expanding detention capacity, a Guardian investigation has found.
Calculus
I know certain facts are impolite and I am not justifying the killing but we all know that the victim here has killed many more people than the shooter.
The words "deny," "defend" and "depose" were discovered by detectives on the shell casings found at the scene where Brian Thompson, the CEO of major insurance group UnitedHealthcare, was gunned down, police sources told ABC News late Wednesday evening.
So Quiet
Related to the previous post, it has been extremely odd just how little the pundits want to talk about either of the two big US-involved military actions. Our DC big brains usually love playing fantasy diplomat and general.
Welp
On one hand - of course. This is generally how wars end. On the other, this gets reported as notable because the pretense has largely been that the only acceptable outcome was Putin dead in a bunker.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Monday stepping up support for Ukraine was essential to put the country in the strongest position for peace talks as he conceded in the clearest terms there could be a negotiated end to the war.
That Ukraine was seen as a noble cause stifled most discussion of just what the hell we expected to happen.
Wednesday, December 04, 2024
Oh No Elmo
I suppose one can be the "Delorean" in a Back to the Future remake.
But news that is subtly worse for Musk's long-term prospects just leaked out of Tesla's Austin factory: Cybertruck production appears to be ramping down. Workers on the vehicle's assembly line have been told that there's no need to report to work for 3 days.
Which I Will Giggle About At My Dubiously Funded NoShow "Think Tank" Job
He will miss it, no doubt.
Asked how Israel's conduct might reflect on his legacy as the top U.S. diplomat, Blinken said his legacy was for people to judge and that he was focusing on getting a ceasefire in his final days in office.
"There will be a time, maybe a lot of time, after the end of this administration for people to judge what we did, whether we did right, whether we did wrong....I don't have time to do that right now," Blinken said.
From W. To Donald
I don't expect Republicans to share my vision of what government should do, but an underappreciated fact about the W. administration was that they had no concept of competence.
I don't think this was a dastardly plan to destroy the government from within. I just think they had no understanding that even evil plans require people who know what they are doing and show up to work.
They were good at manipulating an easily manipulated press. I will give them that.
Sure we know about Brownie and the story of the Heritage flunkies running Iraq was told, but aside from the former these things mostly didn't break through, in part because Republicans are the Daddy Party and Daddy is always competent.
Tuesday, December 03, 2024
STRIKE
Beyond my meager knowledge of Korea, but a big trade union confederation - The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions - has announced a general strike until the president resigns.
Pod Damn America
Good overview from Perry Bacon Jr.
Overall, we have the story of a campaign leadership team that had more than $1 billion and a scandal-plagued, unpopular opponent, lost every swing state and the popular vote (for the first time in 20 years for the Democrats), and then almost entirely absolved itself of any responsibility for the defeat.(bumping since I messed up the time before)
I’m grateful Harris’s staffers did this interview — so everyone can see how badly the Democratic Party needs new political strategists.”
Coup Interrupted
From what I have read, the Korean parliament stormed the barricades of the parliament building, voted to overrule martial law, kicked the military and cops to the curb, and are calling it a coup.
Small Progress
Walker implemented a "no public unions except cop unions" law and it was just struck down.
Global Excitement
Not an expert on all things South Korea, but I know a tiny bit, and the president - who is a real dipshit, like Korean Ron DeSantis - just declared martial law.
SEOUL, Dec 3 (Reuters) - South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol on Tuesday declared martial law in an unannounced late night address broadcast live on YTN television.The opposition crimes are winning elections and then trying to use their power.
Yoon said he had no choice but to resort to such a measure in order to safeguard free and constitutional order, saying opposition parties have taken hostage of the parliamentary process to throw the country into a crisis.
Endowment Seizing
I can get behind this.
Not really, but when (a few, select) universities can already fund their operating budgets in perpetuity from their endowments one does have to ask what they are for, what the institutional interests are.
My concerns are not about the woke mind virus, of course.
My concerns are not about the woke mind virus, of course.
Monday, December 02, 2024
But He Won't
Still kudos to Van Hollen for going where most of his colleagues won't.
Nothing will haunt President Joe Biden’s foreign policy legacy as much as his failed policies in the Middle East. His ineffective approach, coupled with Donald Trump’s election, now sets the stage for an unprecedented deterioration in our efforts to secure a two-state solution and address the root causes of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The president has a chance to correct some of the mistakes he has made both before and during the war in Gaza, but only if he acts quickly and decisively.
Framing it around a concept of a two-state solution which has just provided a way for Dems to pretend and do nothing for decades is silly, but otherwise it's a good piece.
Restated
Biden doesn't have much time left to do some NORM VIOLATIONS for good instead of merely selfish (even if justified) reasons.
Norms
I don't mind that Biden pardoned his son. Without getting deep into it, it was a political prosecution with some inappropriate actions mixed in, even though Hunter obviously did plenty of crimes.
The problem, more broadly, is Biden seeing that his son deserves grace for things he spent his career not granting grace for others. Mr. Empathy is not so empathetic and never was.
Empathy for yourself and yours and is not really empathy.
The problem, more broadly, is Biden seeing that his son deserves grace for things he spent his career not granting grace for others. Mr. Empathy is not so empathetic and never was.
Empathy for yourself and yours and is not really empathy.
Biden has not been generous with the pardon pen.
Maybe another way to put this is: it should be fine that Hunter Biden is pardoned but it is not fine given the other things Biden has done and not done (including repeated denials that this would happen).
And if you're going to violate some NORMS, go wild, man.
And if you're going to violate some NORMS, go wild, man.
Seems Bad
Might even violate some Norms.
A previously undisclosed whistle-blower report on Hegseth’s tenure as the president of Concerned Veterans for America, from 2013 until 2016, describes him as being repeatedly intoxicated while acting in his official capacity—to the point of needing to be carried out of the organization’s events. The detailed seven-page report—which was compiled by multiple former C.V.A. employees and sent to the organization’s senior management in February, 2015—states that, at one point, Hegseth had to be restrained while drunk from joining the dancers on the stage of a Louisiana strip club, where he had brought his team. The report also says that Hegseth, who was married at the time, and other members of his management team sexually pursued the organization’s female staffers, whom they divided into two groups—the “party girls” and the “not party girls.” In addition, the report asserts that, under Hegseth’s leadership, the organization became a hostile workplace that ignored serious accusations of impropriety, including an allegation made by a female employee that another employee on Hegseth’s staff had attempted to sexually assault her at the Louisiana strip club. In a separate letter of complaint, which was sent to the organization in late 2015, a different former employee described Hegseth being at a bar in the early-morning hours of May 29, 2015, while on an official tour through Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, drunkenly chanting “Kill All Muslims! Kill All Muslims!”WOKE norms, anyway.
Sunday, December 01, 2024
The Most Ridiculous Timeline
It is horrifying and scary, but we must occasionally pause to appreciate just how ridiculous "The Second Donald Trump Presidency" actually is.
Foreign Policy Guy
I keep coming back to this, but rejection of the idea that "anybody" cared about Gaza, based on polls, led to people willfully ignoring the wider impression that all that war and chaos might have had on people. Explosions and death are pretty big signals that something is amiss.
People read issue polls selectively, and switch between majority and marginal when useful to their stories, but even aside from that, do we think Foreign Policy Guy has had a steady hand on the world? Should the not-very-engaged voter be flipping through the news and think that Biden has things under control? Where is that peace he kept promising? Does he know what the fuck he is doing?
We've had a couple of years of a lot of war on the teevee without an especially convincing sales job. I don't think it's good that The Right is aligning with Putin, but has there been all that much of an argument on other side other than "all right thinking people know Putin is bad"?
And as for Gaza, you don't have to have been paying to much attention to conclude "Biden is a big liar" or "Biden is getting pantsed weekly by this little shit BiBi," neither of which is especially appealing.
There are plenty of things that are not as self-evident as DC big brains think. And there are things which are self-evident to everybody but DC big brains.
We've had a couple of years of a lot of war on the teevee without an especially convincing sales job. I don't think it's good that The Right is aligning with Putin, but has there been all that much of an argument on other side other than "all right thinking people know Putin is bad"?
And as for Gaza, you don't have to have been paying to much attention to conclude "Biden is a big liar" or "Biden is getting pantsed weekly by this little shit BiBi," neither of which is especially appealing.
There are plenty of things that are not as self-evident as DC big brains think. And there are things which are self-evident to everybody but DC big brains.
Saturday, November 30, 2024
Sounds Bad
But much of our politics can be explained by middle-aged men being stuck on MOOOOMMMM YOU CAN'T TELL ME WHAT TO DOOOO so...
“On behalf of all the women (and I know it’s many) you have abused in some way, I say … get some help and take an honest look at yourself,” Penelope Hegseth wrote, stating that she still loved him.
She also wrote: “I have no respect for any man that belittles, lies, cheats, sleeps around and uses women for his own power and ego. You are that man (and have been for years) and as your mother, it pains me and embarrasses me to say that, but it is the sad, sad truth.”
Friday, November 29, 2024
Dems and Media
Every couple of years, some on the Dem side realize that not investing in various forms of media outlets is causing them some problems. A reason they don't is that even Pod Save America is borderline too spicy for them. Pod Tommy occasionally makes everyone very uncomfortable by bringing up Gaza.
Back in 2008, Yglesias, who was writing for Think Progress, made a post which (lost to the ages - I can't find it) was critical of the organization Third Way. This invited angry phone calls and the obligatory response from... Jennifer Palmieri, last seen trying to claim Woke Staffers ruined their Joe Rogan appearance.
Back in 2008, Yglesias, who was writing for Think Progress, made a post which (lost to the ages - I can't find it) was critical of the organization Third Way. This invited angry phone calls and the obligatory response from... Jennifer Palmieri, last seen trying to claim Woke Staffers ruined their Joe Rogan appearance.
Seems Bad
Send it back to the states, they said, Roe is what prevents us from having civil politics, they said, health exceptions are noble and practical, they said...
Garcia was fifteen weeks into her pregnancy, and, in cases of miscarriage in the second trimester, the safest treatment is a surgical removal or a medical induction of labor. Instead, she was “discharged to home self-care,” as her chart notes. All Garcia could do was wait until she had a natural miscarriage. The thought of it terrified her. What if she hemorrhaged in the middle of the street? Or in the car, picking up her children from school? Her doctor’s only departing instructions were: if you start bleeding or develop a fever, check into the hospital immediately. (The doctor did not respond to requests for comment.)"They" being centrists dipshit pundits.
A mournful silence settled in Garcia’s home. Escareño busied himself, but there were only so many times he could empty the trash or mow the lawn. Garcia spent most of her days lying in bed. In a corner of their bedroom sat purchases she had made for Vanellope: diapers, a snuggly blanket, and now a small urn.
Garcia’s situation was not unique. Across Texas, reports were surfacing of women being sent home to manage miscarriages on their own. In 2021, the state had passed a law known as S.B. 8, banning nearly all abortions after electrical activity is detected in fetal cells, which typically happens around the sixth week of gestation. The law encouraged civilians to sue violators, in exchange for the possibility of a ten-thousand-dollar reward.
The Last Year
Being as generous as I can about the Harris campaign people: the ultimate politician is someone who is extremely good at making people think they agree with them without actually lying. Bill had that. Barack had that. But you can't run that campaign around someone who doesn't have that.
Biden didn't have that and they did not run that campaign in 2020. The question is why, precisely, they jettisoned that campaign approach.
Biden didn't have that and they did not run that campaign in 2020. The question is why, precisely, they jettisoned that campaign approach.
Somehow Our Jedi Mind Tricks Didn’t Work
The stupid fucking voters saw right through our bullshit!
This is what happens when stupid people truly believe everyone else is much more stupid, like a 5-year-old trying to get one over on his parents and throwing a tantrum when they laugh at him.
Actually, I'm wrong. The toddler is throwing a tantrum at his 2-year-old younger sister. These people never punch up.
Thursday, November 28, 2024
The Turkey Discourse
Turkey's fine, it isn't hard to cook well, just rub some salt in it and take it out when it's ready. Nothing fancy required.
Wednesday, November 27, 2024
What Is This Supposed To Achieve
Amazing.
Nov 27 (Reuters) - Ukraine should consider lowering the age of military service for its soldiers to 18 from 25, a senior U.S. administration official said on Wednesday, putting pressure on Kyiv to bolster its fighting forces in the country's war with Russia.
Why Not, Kissinger And Obama Have Them
This is Tommy trying to play on Trump's vanity. Odd he didn't try it with Biden who is just as susceptible.
Holiday Week Blogging Schedule
If senators can go on vacation, then so can I, a bit. Light blogging for the next few days, unless I get angry. You wouldn't like me when I'm angry, though.
Tariffs
I'm not defending Trump's tariffs - they're dumb - but I think liberals are going too much in on the idea that they will destroy the economy, be instantly unpopular, and tank Trump's approval. There's a lot of econobollocks ALL SENSIBLE PEOPLE KNOW TARIFFS ARE BAD and a lot of ignoring of the Biden administration record's on tariffs. Maybe Joe should've removed some when he had the chance.
There's some revenge fantasy here along the lines of, "you were mad about inflation and now you're going to get inflation," but it isn't going to be that simple or obvious.
More generally, the lessons everyone has "learned" (because it serves their purposes, because they are bad at their jobs and they have boat payments to make) is that there's nothing you can do to convince people who are mad about inflation, so they are hoping Inflation II proves their point.
There's some revenge fantasy here along the lines of, "you were mad about inflation and now you're going to get inflation," but it isn't going to be that simple or obvious.
More generally, the lessons everyone has "learned" (because it serves their purposes, because they are bad at their jobs and they have boat payments to make) is that there's nothing you can do to convince people who are mad about inflation, so they are hoping Inflation II proves their point.
Always trying to refight the last battle to prove themselves fucking right.
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