386 thoughts on “Super Tuesday thread (said Wile E. Coyote)”

  1. I should also add that the reference isn’t meant to throw shade on any particular candidate, but on a process that values appearance over substance and ends up pitting regions against each other as exemplars of the ‘true’ United States.

  2. I should also add that the reference isn’t meant to throw shade on any particular candidate, but on a process that values appearance over substance and ends up pitting regions against each other as exemplars of the ‘true’ United States.

  3. A prediction in keeping with the “regional” theme: Sanders and Warren will crush the moderates in CA/CO/UT on Tuesday. We won’t know exactly how bad in CA for a couple of weeks as all the late ballots arrive by mail.

  4. A prediction in keeping with the “regional” theme: Sanders and Warren will crush the moderates in CA/CO/UT on Tuesday. We won’t know exactly how bad in CA for a couple of weeks as all the late ballots arrive by mail.

  5. Well, Steyer has dropped out. With luck, that means his ubiquitous commercials will go away now, rather than afflicting us thru Tuesday. (Now if only Bloomberg would go as well!)
    I undrstand the use of TV spots to establish name recognition. But are any voters actually persuaded by them beyond that? It seem crazy to me. But then, I routinely ignore commercials . . . and somebody must be persuaded by them or else why have they persisted?

  6. Well, Steyer has dropped out. With luck, that means his ubiquitous commercials will go away now, rather than afflicting us thru Tuesday. (Now if only Bloomberg would go as well!)
    I undrstand the use of TV spots to establish name recognition. But are any voters actually persuaded by them beyond that? It seem crazy to me. But then, I routinely ignore commercials . . . and somebody must be persuaded by them or else why have they persisted?

  7. Michael Cain,
    As a Warren supporter, I can only opine that I don’t see her crushing anybody on Super Tuesday.
    The country’s loss in this regard is……in my opinion….substantial.
    I’ve held off mailing in my WA St. ballot until after Tuesday.

  8. Michael Cain,
    As a Warren supporter, I can only opine that I don’t see her crushing anybody on Super Tuesday.
    The country’s loss in this regard is……in my opinion….substantial.
    I’ve held off mailing in my WA St. ballot until after Tuesday.

  11. Hey, moderates! if it comes down to $$$ Bloombuger or Sanders, where do you flee to?
    Call me a cynic:
    1) Evviva Florimont!
    2) Pourqoui ne Trumpe pas?
    3) 3rd party, 3rd party is always right!
    We will hear a lot about how as an ex-GOPster with megatons of money will clearly unite our country. And when the ex-Dem with far less actual dough will wipe the floor with him the blame will be as usual on the leftist dividers and their egotism and unwillingness to compromise for the good of the country.

  12. Hey, moderates! if it comes down to $$$ Bloombuger or Sanders, where do you flee to?
    Call me a cynic:
    1) Evviva Florimont!
    2) Pourqoui ne Trumpe pas?
    3) 3rd party, 3rd party is always right!
    We will hear a lot about how as an ex-GOPster with megatons of money will clearly unite our country. And when the ex-Dem with far less actual dough will wipe the floor with him the blame will be as usual on the leftist dividers and their egotism and unwillingness to compromise for the good of the country.

  13. Meet the new Acting Director of National Intelligence.
    Seriously, why don’t we just sell the f***ing country to the oligarchs and be done with it. Everybody gets their choice of one-time cash buyout, or gets some shares in the new USA LLC.
    I know intelligent, well-informed, savvy people who will look at the Grenell appointment and say, “What, me worry?”. Not one or two, but many. And that tells me that we are basically rogered.
    Successful self-governance requires a critical mass of people who actually give a shit. Trump’s at something like 43% approval rating. He’s at something like 90%-plus in the (R) party.
    I don’t see how anyone can support Trump and simultaneously give a crap about the health of the institutions that make this country a functional self-governing republic. So I’m not seeing the critical mass. 51% is not a sufficient critical mass. 60% is probably not a sufficient critical mass. because anything you try to do has to drag along the other 40% of the country, who either don’t give a crap or who actively hate your guts.
    I don’t see how this ends well. Regardless of who wins Super Tuesday, or even in November. The government of the country is being corrupted from the inside out by a man who is, himself, corrupt from the inside out.
    And about half the country is fine with it. Because, tax cuts, or whatever.
    I don’t see a path to turning that around.

  14. Meet the new Acting Director of National Intelligence.
    Seriously, why don’t we just sell the f***ing country to the oligarchs and be done with it. Everybody gets their choice of one-time cash buyout, or gets some shares in the new USA LLC.
    I know intelligent, well-informed, savvy people who will look at the Grenell appointment and say, “What, me worry?”. Not one or two, but many. And that tells me that we are basically rogered.
    Successful self-governance requires a critical mass of people who actually give a shit. Trump’s at something like 43% approval rating. He’s at something like 90%-plus in the (R) party.
    I don’t see how anyone can support Trump and simultaneously give a crap about the health of the institutions that make this country a functional self-governing republic. So I’m not seeing the critical mass. 51% is not a sufficient critical mass. 60% is probably not a sufficient critical mass. because anything you try to do has to drag along the other 40% of the country, who either don’t give a crap or who actively hate your guts.
    I don’t see how this ends well. Regardless of who wins Super Tuesday, or even in November. The government of the country is being corrupted from the inside out by a man who is, himself, corrupt from the inside out.
    And about half the country is fine with it. Because, tax cuts, or whatever.
    I don’t see a path to turning that around.

  15. Okay, I’ll rephrase. In CA/CO/UT, Sanders wins and Warren finishes second. The moderates are relegated to third and below.

  16. Okay, I’ll rephrase. In CA/CO/UT, Sanders wins and Warren finishes second. The moderates are relegated to third and below.

  17. Add more superdelegates and bribe or somehow remove delegates already pledged to the winners. Then wait for 2024 assuming Jabbabonk will not run again then. Everything is better than creating a precedent of a successful non-centrist. Just think of the megadonors that will turn away in disgust and horror if the holy pledge of centrist moderatism is broken.

  18. Add more superdelegates and bribe or somehow remove delegates already pledged to the winners. Then wait for 2024 assuming Jabbabonk will not run again then. Everything is better than creating a precedent of a successful non-centrist. Just think of the megadonors that will turn away in disgust and horror if the holy pledge of centrist moderatism is broken.

  19. Ultimately, russell, you have been identifying the underlying issue for a few years. Living in a country designed to institutionally create change incrementally with checks and balances along the way has become unacceptable to at least large minority, if not a majority, of Americans.
    On both sides of every issue the other position has been defined as evil, for every one you can name someone on the right can name one.
    Both sides have convinced their followers they are fighting a moral battle,we arent creating the civil war. We are creating the crusades. And yes. Both sides do it, in fact the left is smoother at it.
    For a few years you have been talking about the social contract required to maintain society, that contract is essential to our form of government, the founders made that contract. Every discussion of intent centers on the differences in their discussions, the point should be there understanding that even the most difficult issues require that contract. It requires people of goodwill on each side to reach an accomodation.
    It is important to me that the institution is not destroyed by the current holders of those positions, it is destroyed when we replace them through means outside the social contract.

  20. Ultimately, russell, you have been identifying the underlying issue for a few years. Living in a country designed to institutionally create change incrementally with checks and balances along the way has become unacceptable to at least large minority, if not a majority, of Americans.
    On both sides of every issue the other position has been defined as evil, for every one you can name someone on the right can name one.
    Both sides have convinced their followers they are fighting a moral battle,we arent creating the civil war. We are creating the crusades. And yes. Both sides do it, in fact the left is smoother at it.
    For a few years you have been talking about the social contract required to maintain society, that contract is essential to our form of government, the founders made that contract. Every discussion of intent centers on the differences in their discussions, the point should be there understanding that even the most difficult issues require that contract. It requires people of goodwill on each side to reach an accomodation.
    It is important to me that the institution is not destroyed by the current holders of those positions, it is destroyed when we replace them through means outside the social contract.

  23. Hey, moderates! if it comes down to $$$ Bloombuger or Sanders, where do you flee to?
    i’ve already voted. and it wasn’t for either of them.

  24. Hey, moderates! if it comes down to $$$ Bloombuger or Sanders, where do you flee to?
    i’ve already voted. and it wasn’t for either of them.

  25. I’m not defining the “other position as evil”, I’m identifying Trump as, personally, profoundly and utterly corrupt.
    Contrary to the BS about “deep states” and “trying to overthrow the 2016 election”, nobody is or has been looking to remove Trump through any means outside the Constitution, or in violation of any social contract embodied in that document. Nobody.
    I don’t have a problem with people who hold conservative views. I disagree, more than strongly, with many of those views, but none of this is about conservative policies vs not-conservative policies.
    It is about the POTUS corrupting the institutions of governance, and the (R) party getting his back, without apparent reservation, on each and every occasion.
    This is not a sustainable situation.

  26. I’m not defining the “other position as evil”, I’m identifying Trump as, personally, profoundly and utterly corrupt.
    Contrary to the BS about “deep states” and “trying to overthrow the 2016 election”, nobody is or has been looking to remove Trump through any means outside the Constitution, or in violation of any social contract embodied in that document. Nobody.
    I don’t have a problem with people who hold conservative views. I disagree, more than strongly, with many of those views, but none of this is about conservative policies vs not-conservative policies.
    It is about the POTUS corrupting the institutions of governance, and the (R) party getting his back, without apparent reservation, on each and every occasion.
    This is not a sustainable situation.

  27. And about half the country is fine with it. Because, tax cuts, or whatever.
    I think you’ve missed to motivation for most of that support. It is, quite simply, team spirit — nothing more. That’s actually good (OK, less bad) news.
    Consider how often sports fans turn on a dime when players are traded or a new coach is hired. Even if it’s someone they booed vogorously in the past, suddenly he’s a local hero. Bring in a new and different Republican leader, and the base will change direction every bit as easily. As we have seen with Trump, their supposed ideological positions (and those of their Congressmen) were not actually real beliefs. So that won’t be an impediment.
    Of course, there is the challenge of coming up with such a new and different GOP leader. You may not see one now. But ask yourself, did even your wildest 2012 imaginings include anything like Trump? So, perhaps not totally improbable.

  28. And about half the country is fine with it. Because, tax cuts, or whatever.
    I think you’ve missed to motivation for most of that support. It is, quite simply, team spirit — nothing more. That’s actually good (OK, less bad) news.
    Consider how often sports fans turn on a dime when players are traded or a new coach is hired. Even if it’s someone they booed vogorously in the past, suddenly he’s a local hero. Bring in a new and different Republican leader, and the base will change direction every bit as easily. As we have seen with Trump, their supposed ideological positions (and those of their Congressmen) were not actually real beliefs. So that won’t be an impediment.
    Of course, there is the challenge of coming up with such a new and different GOP leader. You may not see one now. But ask yourself, did even your wildest 2012 imaginings include anything like Trump? So, perhaps not totally improbable.

  29. Team spirit for sure, but also cleek’s law. And as the electorate continues to become less educated about, frex, the constitution, the situation becomes ever more dangerous and worrying.

  30. Team spirit for sure, but also cleek’s law. And as the electorate continues to become less educated about, frex, the constitution, the situation becomes ever more dangerous and worrying.

  31. Why are we at each other’s throats, you ask? Well, here’s one take.
    Revolutions and civil wars don’t always happen when things are at their worst. History can be fickle. True story.

  32. Why are we at each other’s throats, you ask? Well, here’s one take.
    Revolutions and civil wars don’t always happen when things are at their worst. History can be fickle. True story.

  35. I’d love to disagree with Reich. But then I remember the union steward that told all of his guys to show up for that bogus Trump rally at Royal Dutch Shell in PA because he was protecting their union jobs. And the idiot union leaders in NE who complained that M4A would take away the coverage they bargained for.
    As a union member (and local officer) myself, I look at those people and see exactly what Reich is talking about. They are making bad decisions, but the reason for those decisions are clear short-term calculations for people who may not be swayed by better long-term prospects.
    And, yes, the (R/D)NC’s money-centric game has cut the legs out from underneath any populism and led to this impasse.
    Unions should support universal healthcare because offloading that burden and decoupling it from employment frees them up to bargain more fiercely for wages and leaves them less exposed should they be forced to strike (legally or wildcat). And employer provided health insurance is nothing but the losing prospect of slow concessions.
    But we’ve already let things slip to a crisis point, and people in crisis don’t make long-term strategic decisions. They make marginal choices for temporary tactical advantage and do what damage they can.
    Welcome to 2020.

  36. I’d love to disagree with Reich. But then I remember the union steward that told all of his guys to show up for that bogus Trump rally at Royal Dutch Shell in PA because he was protecting their union jobs. And the idiot union leaders in NE who complained that M4A would take away the coverage they bargained for.
    As a union member (and local officer) myself, I look at those people and see exactly what Reich is talking about. They are making bad decisions, but the reason for those decisions are clear short-term calculations for people who may not be swayed by better long-term prospects.
    And, yes, the (R/D)NC’s money-centric game has cut the legs out from underneath any populism and led to this impasse.
    Unions should support universal healthcare because offloading that burden and decoupling it from employment frees them up to bargain more fiercely for wages and leaves them less exposed should they be forced to strike (legally or wildcat). And employer provided health insurance is nothing but the losing prospect of slow concessions.
    But we’ve already let things slip to a crisis point, and people in crisis don’t make long-term strategic decisions. They make marginal choices for temporary tactical advantage and do what damage they can.
    Welcome to 2020.

  39. Some exemplary executions of banksters post-2008 financial crisis would have gone a long way toward fixing the situation we’re in now.
    Obama could have drone-struck Goldman Sachs, but he didn’t. even. try.
    Sad.

  40. Some exemplary executions of banksters post-2008 financial crisis would have gone a long way toward fixing the situation we’re in now.
    Obama could have drone-struck Goldman Sachs, but he didn’t. even. try.
    Sad.

  41. “The fivesome of “Chapo Trap House” are not the only bards of the new American left — there is “Red Scare” and another whose name cannot be printed — but they have led the way for a movement that together generates millions of dollars a year. They are on their way to becoming the socialist’s answer to right-wing shock jock radio. Their primary targets, in evidence at that show in Iowa, are not the Republican Party or even Mr. Trump but rather centrist liberals, whom they see as the major obstacle to a workers’ revolution.
    In blurring occasionally violent humor, jovial community meetups, and radical politics, they are the Tea Party reborn for progressives, and for their fans, the appeal is in a bawdy offensive balance to cautious mainstream liberal politics.”
    The Pied Pipers of the Dirtbag Left Want to Lead Everyone to Bernie Sanders: Many listeners would never repeat what these podcast hosts say. So why do they desperately want to hear from them?

  42. “The fivesome of “Chapo Trap House” are not the only bards of the new American left — there is “Red Scare” and another whose name cannot be printed — but they have led the way for a movement that together generates millions of dollars a year. They are on their way to becoming the socialist’s answer to right-wing shock jock radio. Their primary targets, in evidence at that show in Iowa, are not the Republican Party or even Mr. Trump but rather centrist liberals, whom they see as the major obstacle to a workers’ revolution.
    In blurring occasionally violent humor, jovial community meetups, and radical politics, they are the Tea Party reborn for progressives, and for their fans, the appeal is in a bawdy offensive balance to cautious mainstream liberal politics.”
    The Pied Pipers of the Dirtbag Left Want to Lead Everyone to Bernie Sanders: Many listeners would never repeat what these podcast hosts say. So why do they desperately want to hear from them?

  45. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Buttigieg has dropped out
    Perhaps an offer he could not refuse? A VP slot?
    But good to see the field narrow.
    Sen. Amy goes Wednesday morning?
    We’ll see.

  46. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Buttigieg has dropped out
    Perhaps an offer he could not refuse? A VP slot?
    But good to see the field narrow.
    Sen. Amy goes Wednesday morning?
    We’ll see.

  47. Buttigieg wasn’t my candidate, but I didn’t see the hatred for him. I hope he goes on to good things.
    Amy? I like her too. She’s more conservative than I am, but I’ve thrown staplers. I don’t get what that’s all about. I’d vote for her in a heartbeat against any R.
    I’m voting for Warren on superTuesday. I have a couple of minor strategy-based issues with her, but she’s on the right side in every possible way. What’s not to like? Oh, right, she’s a she.
    Biden? I thought about voting for him just to hammer Bernie, but I have to vote my heart. I’ll fight for him hard in the general!
    Bernie? Yeah. I’ll vote for him in the general. Nuff said. Not going to hate on him ever again.
    Others? Don’t care about whomever.

  48. Buttigieg wasn’t my candidate, but I didn’t see the hatred for him. I hope he goes on to good things.
    Amy? I like her too. She’s more conservative than I am, but I’ve thrown staplers. I don’t get what that’s all about. I’d vote for her in a heartbeat against any R.
    I’m voting for Warren on superTuesday. I have a couple of minor strategy-based issues with her, but she’s on the right side in every possible way. What’s not to like? Oh, right, she’s a she.
    Biden? I thought about voting for him just to hammer Bernie, but I have to vote my heart. I’ll fight for him hard in the general!
    Bernie? Yeah. I’ll vote for him in the general. Nuff said. Not going to hate on him ever again.
    Others? Don’t care about whomever.

  49. Bernie? Yeah. I’ll vote for him in the general. Nuff said. Not going to hate on him ever again.
    Some tuff love advise for Bernie and his more rabid supporters here.
    I endorse this message.
    Who is the enemy? The enemy is the Republican Party.

  50. Bernie? Yeah. I’ll vote for him in the general. Nuff said. Not going to hate on him ever again.
    Some tuff love advise for Bernie and his more rabid supporters here.
    I endorse this message.
    Who is the enemy? The enemy is the Republican Party.

  53. “There are two sides to every question” is a banal truism: if you don’t have at least “two sides” you don’t have a “question”.
    “There are two equally valid sides to every question” is a proposition that Bertrand Russell could have had some fun with. I mean: is that the one question in all of logic on which there cannot be “two sides”?
    Sorry for the digression.
    –TP

  54. “There are two sides to every question” is a banal truism: if you don’t have at least “two sides” you don’t have a “question”.
    “There are two equally valid sides to every question” is a proposition that Bertrand Russell could have had some fun with. I mean: is that the one question in all of logic on which there cannot be “two sides”?
    Sorry for the digression.
    –TP

  61. I’m not sure that’s correct, novakant.
    After all, not so long since, labour was more or less the same kind of coalition.
    In any country with FPTP elections, broad electoral coalitions are essential to regularly challenge for government.
    I favour PR, but I also recognise reality.

  62. I’m not sure that’s correct, novakant.
    After all, not so long since, labour was more or less the same kind of coalition.
    In any country with FPTP elections, broad electoral coalitions are essential to regularly challenge for government.
    I favour PR, but I also recognise reality.

  63. not a very uplifting perspective, mind…
    yes….glum.
    In any country with FPTP elections, broad electoral coalitions are essential to regularly challenge for government.
    Yes, consider the broad coalition that comprises today’s GOP….oh, wait.
    The real stress point may lie elsewhere-an increasingly radicalized GOP that sees its political rivals as essentially illegitimate and availing itself of every anti-democratic means baked into our Constitutional system by our not so wise Founders to maintain power.

  64. not a very uplifting perspective, mind…
    yes….glum.
    In any country with FPTP elections, broad electoral coalitions are essential to regularly challenge for government.
    Yes, consider the broad coalition that comprises today’s GOP….oh, wait.
    The real stress point may lie elsewhere-an increasingly radicalized GOP that sees its political rivals as essentially illegitimate and availing itself of every anti-democratic means baked into our Constitutional system by our not so wise Founders to maintain power.

  65. And now Amy Klobuchar has withdrawn also.
    Apparently the moderates will get a chance to focus on a single candidate. Which will make Sanders’ consistent 35% of the vote less likely to generate “wins”. We may not see it on Super Tuesday, especially because California does so much early vote-by-mail. But will it be enough, soon enough?

  66. And now Amy Klobuchar has withdrawn also.
    Apparently the moderates will get a chance to focus on a single candidate. Which will make Sanders’ consistent 35% of the vote less likely to generate “wins”. We may not see it on Super Tuesday, especially because California does so much early vote-by-mail. But will it be enough, soon enough?

  67. Sen Amy out today….two days ahead of my schedule.
    Does the center want Liz to stay (siphon from The Revolution) or go (pray her potential voters ‘move on’ to Joe)? They can’t seem to make up their minds.
    The wisdom of crowds meets the dustbin of history?
    Say it ain’t so, Joe!
    Pray.

  68. Sen Amy out today….two days ahead of my schedule.
    Does the center want Liz to stay (siphon from The Revolution) or go (pray her potential voters ‘move on’ to Joe)? They can’t seem to make up their minds.
    The wisdom of crowds meets the dustbin of history?
    Say it ain’t so, Joe!
    Pray.

  69. I want Warren to stay in until the end if she can. Either Biden or Sanders could keel over or be forced out by health concerns and Warren would be in a position to pick up their delegates. Would be a better narrative than any where a candidate who dropped out trying to jump back in.

  70. I want Warren to stay in until the end if she can. Either Biden or Sanders could keel over or be forced out by health concerns and Warren would be in a position to pick up their delegates. Would be a better narrative than any where a candidate who dropped out trying to jump back in.

  73. I want Warren to stay in until the end if she can. Either Biden or Sanders could keel over or be forced out by health concerns
    Or both! and Trump could join them.

  74. I want Warren to stay in until the end if she can. Either Biden or Sanders could keel over or be forced out by health concerns
    Or both! and Trump could join them.

  75. Yes, good thinking nous, and as I’ve made clear she’s been my pick all along (which means if history is any guide that she’s never had a chance). But I like bobbyp’s scenario just fine.

  76. Yes, good thinking nous, and as I’ve made clear she’s been my pick all along (which means if history is any guide that she’s never had a chance). But I like bobbyp’s scenario just fine.

  79. Like Marty said, Democrats are smoother in the both sides do it gambit:
    https://www.gq.com/story/chris-matthews-experience
    On the other hand, when liberals rape, Republicans admire and cheer like Kavanaugh frat boys and take the condoms away, because if there anything vermin republicans hate, it’s an unwanted child on food stamps and looking for a fucking job.
    Blow all of it up. Just fucking kill all of it.

  80. Like Marty said, Democrats are smoother in the both sides do it gambit:
    https://www.gq.com/story/chris-matthews-experience
    On the other hand, when liberals rape, Republicans admire and cheer like Kavanaugh frat boys and take the condoms away, because if there anything vermin republicans hate, it’s an unwanted child on food stamps and looking for a fucking job.
    Blow all of it up. Just fucking kill all of it.

  81. Biden had so many mental slips in the last few days that it’s getting actually worrying. Not loose cannon slips but stuff like ‘vote for the other Biden’ or confusing the hosts of the shows he is on. Jabbabobk gets a pass on such stuff but anyone running against him not 100% alert and ‘there’ is a liability.

  82. Biden had so many mental slips in the last few days that it’s getting actually worrying. Not loose cannon slips but stuff like ‘vote for the other Biden’ or confusing the hosts of the shows he is on. Jabbabobk gets a pass on such stuff but anyone running against him not 100% alert and ‘there’ is a liability.

  83. When John McCain was running for president in 2008, his mother (in her 90’s) said “he’s too old for this”.
    Still good advice, applied the current crop of geezers.

  84. When John McCain was running for president in 2008, his mother (in her 90’s) said “he’s too old for this”.
    Still good advice, applied the current crop of geezers.

  87. For those interested in leading economic indicators that might give a clue to worldwide recovery from this recent debacle, you can do worse than tracking the Baltic Dry Index, which tracks shipping activity around the world.
    https://www.bloomberg.com/quote/BDIY:IND
    It has been edging up in recent days after a catastrophic decline.
    On a related note, it was not comforting that the Dow Jones Transport Average far under-performed the rest of the market averages in yesterday’s neck-breaking snap back, ya know, that “volatility to the upside”.
    That sets up the possibility of very negative divergences as the market tries to recover, which at some point will trigger a Dow Theory sell signal.
    The small cap stocks are also lagging, which isn’t unusual at times like these, but bears watching as well.
    The Transports and the smaller cap stocks were lagging in comparison to the Dow and the S&P before this waterfall decline, which in the past has been indicative of the late stages of a bull market.
    Once again, I make no predictions about the market, so if you act somehow on this info, you paid me exactly what I deserve … ZIP.
    Better just to send me checks for no reason whatsoever.

  88. For those interested in leading economic indicators that might give a clue to worldwide recovery from this recent debacle, you can do worse than tracking the Baltic Dry Index, which tracks shipping activity around the world.
    https://www.bloomberg.com/quote/BDIY:IND
    It has been edging up in recent days after a catastrophic decline.
    On a related note, it was not comforting that the Dow Jones Transport Average far under-performed the rest of the market averages in yesterday’s neck-breaking snap back, ya know, that “volatility to the upside”.
    That sets up the possibility of very negative divergences as the market tries to recover, which at some point will trigger a Dow Theory sell signal.
    The small cap stocks are also lagging, which isn’t unusual at times like these, but bears watching as well.
    The Transports and the smaller cap stocks were lagging in comparison to the Dow and the S&P before this waterfall decline, which in the past has been indicative of the late stages of a bull market.
    Once again, I make no predictions about the market, so if you act somehow on this info, you paid me exactly what I deserve … ZIP.
    Better just to send me checks for no reason whatsoever.

  89. “Better just to send me checks for no reason whatsoever.”
    Unlike Wall Street, which operates fully under that principle, I don’t need an MBA to see how your money might become mine.

  90. “Better just to send me checks for no reason whatsoever.”
    Unlike Wall Street, which operates fully under that principle, I don’t need an MBA to see how your money might become mine.

  91. Finally a headline about the market that sums it up:
    https://www.marketwatch.com/articles/dow-jones-industrial-average-drops-200-points-as-coronavuirus-fears-remain-51583246460?siteid=bigcharts&dist=bigcharts
    No one really knows what is going to happen.
    True of every day of market trading since those few traders gathered under the tree in lower Manhattan way back when.
    See, you could now shut down all so-called news coverage .. journalism .. of market action, which has become more than anytime in history merely an extension of the touting fluffers on Wall Street, because now you know.
    No one knows.
    And if you think you know, you are the last one to know.

  92. Finally a headline about the market that sums it up:
    https://www.marketwatch.com/articles/dow-jones-industrial-average-drops-200-points-as-coronavuirus-fears-remain-51583246460?siteid=bigcharts&dist=bigcharts
    No one really knows what is going to happen.
    True of every day of market trading since those few traders gathered under the tree in lower Manhattan way back when.
    See, you could now shut down all so-called news coverage .. journalism .. of market action, which has become more than anytime in history merely an extension of the touting fluffers on Wall Street, because now you know.
    No one knows.
    And if you think you know, you are the last one to know.

  93. Back to what I know. The Republican Party must be destroyed and removed from the face of the Earth:
    https://www.motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2020/03/benghazi-2-0-is-ready-for-opening-day/
    It’s not good enough to be smooth about it.
    Be savage and utterly ruthless.
    It doesn’t matter that both sides do it.
    All that matters is who is the most ruthless motherfucker left standing at the end.
    Otherwise we can join Merrick Garland in whatever he is wasting his time with.

  94. Back to what I know. The Republican Party must be destroyed and removed from the face of the Earth:
    https://www.motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2020/03/benghazi-2-0-is-ready-for-opening-day/
    It’s not good enough to be smooth about it.
    Be savage and utterly ruthless.
    It doesn’t matter that both sides do it.
    All that matters is who is the most ruthless motherfucker left standing at the end.
    Otherwise we can join Merrick Garland in whatever he is wasting his time with.

  95. The Federal Reserve, like every other institution in America, was abolished this morning by a ruthless motherfucker.
    https://bigcharts.marketwatch.com/
    Easy money, the bane of all vermin conservatives when the nigger was handing it out, is now their vaccine for all ills.

  96. The Federal Reserve, like every other institution in America, was abolished this morning by a ruthless motherfucker.
    https://bigcharts.marketwatch.com/
    Easy money, the bane of all vermin conservatives when the nigger was handing it out, is now their vaccine for all ills.

  97. “I must not fear.
    Fear is the mind-killer.
    Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
    I will face my fear.
    I will permit it to pass over me and through me.
    And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path.
    Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.”

  98. “I must not fear.
    Fear is the mind-killer.
    Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
    I will face my fear.
    I will permit it to pass over me and through me.
    And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path.
    Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.”

  99. Noodling around old presidential contests, I came across Wendell Willkie, about whom I knew more or less nothing.
    Interesting guy, and lots of might-have-beens.
    I was quite taken by this quote from his 1943 book One Word…
    …I found this dread of foreign control everywhere. The fact that we are not associated with it in men’s minds has caused people to go much farther in their approval of us than I dared to imagine. I was amazed to discover how keenly the world is aware of the fact that we do not seek—anywhere, in any region—to impose our rule upon others or to exact special privileges … No other Western nation has such a reservoir. Ours must be used to unify the peoples of the earth in the human quest for freedom and justice…

  100. Noodling around old presidential contests, I came across Wendell Willkie, about whom I knew more or less nothing.
    Interesting guy, and lots of might-have-beens.
    I was quite taken by this quote from his 1943 book One Word…
    …I found this dread of foreign control everywhere. The fact that we are not associated with it in men’s minds has caused people to go much farther in their approval of us than I dared to imagine. I was amazed to discover how keenly the world is aware of the fact that we do not seek—anywhere, in any region—to impose our rule upon others or to exact special privileges … No other Western nation has such a reservoir. Ours must be used to unify the peoples of the earth in the human quest for freedom and justice…

  107. The emergency is that the Fed Governors were about to be fired unless they enlisted as loyalists and vote-stealers in Trump’s re-election.

  108. The emergency is that the Fed Governors were about to be fired unless they enlisted as loyalists and vote-stealers in Trump’s re-election.

  111. Every one comes with a year’s supply of Coronavirus vaccine in the glove compartment.
    Try not to share, because, ya know, socialism:
    https://www.marketwatch.com/story/after-coronavirus-curveball-bentley-unveils-new-2-million-car-and-every-single-model-is-already-sold-out-2020-03-03?siteid=bigcharts&dist=bigcharts
    The price of each car went down this morning as borrowing costs delined.
    Everyone else might want to pay a visit to your payday lender for that high interest vaccine loan.

  112. Every one comes with a year’s supply of Coronavirus vaccine in the glove compartment.
    Try not to share, because, ya know, socialism:
    https://www.marketwatch.com/story/after-coronavirus-curveball-bentley-unveils-new-2-million-car-and-every-single-model-is-already-sold-out-2020-03-03?siteid=bigcharts&dist=bigcharts
    The price of each car went down this morning as borrowing costs delined.
    Everyone else might want to pay a visit to your payday lender for that high interest vaccine loan.

  113. Never mind the Russians interfering with US elections. Just as a bunch of septuagenarian candidates for the POTUS are running around meeting crowds and shaking hands, China releaces the Coronavirus.

  114. Never mind the Russians interfering with US elections. Just as a bunch of septuagenarian candidates for the POTUS are running around meeting crowds and shaking hands, China releaces the Coronavirus.

  115. I recall that as the Soviet Union fell they rotated from one septuagenarian conservative grey beard to another in their final flails at saving the country.

  116. I recall that as the Soviet Union fell they rotated from one septuagenarian conservative grey beard to another in their final flails at saving the country.

  117. Donna Brazile forgoes smooth and gets rough:
    https://www.marketwatch.com/story/donna-brazile-has-strong-words-for-rnc-chairwoman-who-said-the-democratic-primary-is-rigged-against-bernie-sanders-2020-03-03?siteid=bigcharts&dist=bigcharts
    I too love that fucking conservatives serve as advisers to the Democratic Party (not that I’m at all happy with that mess myself), with the chief advice being that Democrats need to nominate and run a Republican to attract conservative votes.
    We need two Republican Parties apparently.
    Meanwhile, have any never-trump conservatives ever done ANYTHING, besides lecturing us, inside the republican party to get rid of trump and his filth.
    No, all that has happened is your preferred Republican candidates in 2016 have fallen in the coward’s line behind trump and holding their tiny balls.
    Vote for Weld. Or at least say you will.
    You people have the guns too. But the only time I hear them invoked is against Obamacare and Hillary.
    Never against Trump and his authoritarian gummint.
    Good for Brazile. Fuck off Republicans.
    Trump’s not leaving, no matter the outcome of the election.
    Economist Roubini adds his voice to those who agree Trump will not leave the White House if he loses the election.
    He will summon right wing militias to keep him in power.
    Good, it’s about time we have a reason to butcher all of those cocksuckers and their families.
    ENOUGH.

  118. Donna Brazile forgoes smooth and gets rough:
    https://www.marketwatch.com/story/donna-brazile-has-strong-words-for-rnc-chairwoman-who-said-the-democratic-primary-is-rigged-against-bernie-sanders-2020-03-03?siteid=bigcharts&dist=bigcharts
    I too love that fucking conservatives serve as advisers to the Democratic Party (not that I’m at all happy with that mess myself), with the chief advice being that Democrats need to nominate and run a Republican to attract conservative votes.
    We need two Republican Parties apparently.
    Meanwhile, have any never-trump conservatives ever done ANYTHING, besides lecturing us, inside the republican party to get rid of trump and his filth.
    No, all that has happened is your preferred Republican candidates in 2016 have fallen in the coward’s line behind trump and holding their tiny balls.
    Vote for Weld. Or at least say you will.
    You people have the guns too. But the only time I hear them invoked is against Obamacare and Hillary.
    Never against Trump and his authoritarian gummint.
    Good for Brazile. Fuck off Republicans.
    Trump’s not leaving, no matter the outcome of the election.
    Economist Roubini adds his voice to those who agree Trump will not leave the White House if he loses the election.
    He will summon right wing militias to keep him in power.
    Good, it’s about time we have a reason to butcher all of those cocksuckers and their families.
    ENOUGH.

  121. China releases the coronavirus.
    Which would be more convincing if the virus wasn’t making Xi’s position more precarious.

  122. China releases the coronavirus.
    Which would be more convincing if the virus wasn’t making Xi’s position more precarious.

  125. Vote for Weld. Or at least say you will.
    Will you settle for my saying that I did exactly that? Because I figure that every Republican vote for someone not Trump is another thorn in his shoe. Every little bit helps.

  126. Vote for Weld. Or at least say you will.
    Will you settle for my saying that I did exactly that? Because I figure that every Republican vote for someone not Trump is another thorn in his shoe. Every little bit helps.

  127. As Trump and Bannon (save the bullet we won’t have to use on Limbaugh for that guy) flood the zone with shit, their eviscerated corrupt captured institution flood the zone with cheap money.
    Basically, the Treasury and the Federal Reserve stand ready to nationalize all of the means of production by handing us the money to do it for them.
    Conservatives and Republicans are merely commie pinko filth when it comes to the bottom line.
    The issues are not the issue.
    Someone said that once too.

  128. As Trump and Bannon (save the bullet we won’t have to use on Limbaugh for that guy) flood the zone with shit, their eviscerated corrupt captured institution flood the zone with cheap money.
    Basically, the Treasury and the Federal Reserve stand ready to nationalize all of the means of production by handing us the money to do it for them.
    Conservatives and Republicans are merely commie pinko filth when it comes to the bottom line.
    The issues are not the issue.
    Someone said that once too.

  129. There’re reports that the CCP has ordered people back to work to keep the economy going regardless of what the virus is doing. A measure of people being back at work is how much electricity plants are using. There’re reports that plant managers are turning on all the machines in the plants while employees stay at home.

  130. There’re reports that the CCP has ordered people back to work to keep the economy going regardless of what the virus is doing. A measure of people being back at work is how much electricity plants are using. There’re reports that plant managers are turning on all the machines in the plants while employees stay at home.

  131. Kudlow stands athwart and gets kicked in the nuts again, within a week.
    Usually it takes a week or two longer:
    https://www.cnbc.com/2020/02/25/kudlow-says-hes-not-expecting-the-fed-to-make-a-panic-move-and-cut-interest-rates.html
    I’m old enough (I’ll turn seven next week) to remember Kudlow and the entire cast of fake know-it-alls and their media fluffers excoriate the nigger and his federal reserve for destroying returns for savers and retirees via zero interest rates.
    Compared to these guys, Bernie Sanders is fucking Adam Smith.

  132. Kudlow stands athwart and gets kicked in the nuts again, within a week.
    Usually it takes a week or two longer:
    https://www.cnbc.com/2020/02/25/kudlow-says-hes-not-expecting-the-fed-to-make-a-panic-move-and-cut-interest-rates.html
    I’m old enough (I’ll turn seven next week) to remember Kudlow and the entire cast of fake know-it-alls and their media fluffers excoriate the nigger and his federal reserve for destroying returns for savers and retirees via zero interest rates.
    Compared to these guys, Bernie Sanders is fucking Adam Smith.

  133. “There’re reports that plant managers are turning on all the machines in the plants while employees stay at home.”
    Kind of a preview of our robot future, in which we spend our 24 hours a day of leisure time sniffling and sucking on cough drops.
    When a robot tells you “work will set you free”, remove its batteries.
    Trump is preparing an executive order mandating that all of must spend our free time repeatedly flicking the light switches on and off to keep coal production high and leave our combustion engines running thru the night to save the underwater debt-laden frackers from bankruptcy.
    He’s going to introduce a robotic Milton Friedman to patiently and rationally explain to us on public television why this must be so and all pikers will be blindfolded and thrown out of airplanes off the coast of Chile.

  134. “There’re reports that plant managers are turning on all the machines in the plants while employees stay at home.”
    Kind of a preview of our robot future, in which we spend our 24 hours a day of leisure time sniffling and sucking on cough drops.
    When a robot tells you “work will set you free”, remove its batteries.
    Trump is preparing an executive order mandating that all of must spend our free time repeatedly flicking the light switches on and off to keep coal production high and leave our combustion engines running thru the night to save the underwater debt-laden frackers from bankruptcy.
    He’s going to introduce a robotic Milton Friedman to patiently and rationally explain to us on public television why this must be so and all pikers will be blindfolded and thrown out of airplanes off the coast of Chile.

  139. Ya know, there’s a real nugget of truth in this little essay. As a far out loony left winger who has consistently voted straight Dem ballot since 1972, because “where else you gonna’ go?”, I can relate.

  140. Ya know, there’s a real nugget of truth in this little essay. As a far out loony left winger who has consistently voted straight Dem ballot since 1972, because “where else you gonna’ go?”, I can relate.

  141. When you renew your drivers license in California, the form offers the option to register to vote. Unfortunately, it’s not a check box but a Yes/No question. Most people who are already registered to vote have, understandably, answered No.
    It appears, from what we have been seeing at the polls, that there is a glitch in the system. We’ve seen a bunch of folks who thought they were registered (as in they have been voting for years) but suddenly aren’t on the rolls. If this was Georgia, or one of the similar states, I’d suspect foul play and voter suppression. But as it is, I’m guessing that the DMV system is helpfully removing the registration of anyone who checked No. Oops!
    Ain’t software wonderful?

  142. When you renew your drivers license in California, the form offers the option to register to vote. Unfortunately, it’s not a check box but a Yes/No question. Most people who are already registered to vote have, understandably, answered No.
    It appears, from what we have been seeing at the polls, that there is a glitch in the system. We’ve seen a bunch of folks who thought they were registered (as in they have been voting for years) but suddenly aren’t on the rolls. If this was Georgia, or one of the similar states, I’d suspect foul play and voter suppression. But as it is, I’m guessing that the DMV system is helpfully removing the registration of anyone who checked No. Oops!
    Ain’t software wonderful?

  143. Oops!
    but how can the DMV just reach in to the voter roll database and erase folks? But maybe I just don’t know how these things work. 🙂

  144. Oops!
    but how can the DMV just reach in to the voter roll database and erase folks? But maybe I just don’t know how these things work. 🙂

  145. They’ve got an interface in order to do registrations, of course. Which (if our speculation is correct) also allows unregistrations.

  146. They’ve got an interface in order to do registrations, of course. Which (if our speculation is correct) also allows unregistrations.

  151. A snapshot from California. In the (4) precincts voting at my poling place, Biden outpolled Sanders about 2 to 1. Mind, this is only in-person voting, and most people vote by mail.
    I will be fascinated to see how our numbers compare to the statewide results.

  152. A snapshot from California. In the (4) precincts voting at my poling place, Biden outpolled Sanders about 2 to 1. Mind, this is only in-person voting, and most people vote by mail.
    I will be fascinated to see how our numbers compare to the statewide results.

  157. Apparently, money in politics isn’t a sure thing. Bloomberg isn’t doing so well after spending enough money I could live comfortably on for 10,000 years.

  158. Apparently, money in politics isn’t a sure thing. Bloomberg isn’t doing so well after spending enough money I could live comfortably on for 10,000 years.

  159. Hey, Bloomberg did manage to buy his way to a win today . . . in American Samoa. Thus sparing the Democrats the embarrassment of a Gabbard win.

  160. Hey, Bloomberg did manage to buy his way to a win today . . . in American Samoa. Thus sparing the Democrats the embarrassment of a Gabbard win.

  161. There’re reports that the CCP has ordered people back to work to keep the economy going regardless of what the virus is doing. A measure of people being back at work is how much electricity plants are using. There’re reports that plant managers are turning on all the machines in the plants while employees stay at home.
    One should be careful about letting one’s prejudices drive narratives. I’ve been one who feels that this is pretty serious, but it’s kind of funny, in a sad way, to see it be turned into a yellow peril narrative. If the CCP were forcing people back to work, we would expect that case numbers would be up, but they aren’t. And there would be lots of ways that Chinese could indicate this, and there are people looking at twitter and it would come out if something like this were happening. However…
    https://www.vox.com/2020/3/2/21161067/coronavirus-covid19-china

  162. There’re reports that the CCP has ordered people back to work to keep the economy going regardless of what the virus is doing. A measure of people being back at work is how much electricity plants are using. There’re reports that plant managers are turning on all the machines in the plants while employees stay at home.
    One should be careful about letting one’s prejudices drive narratives. I’ve been one who feels that this is pretty serious, but it’s kind of funny, in a sad way, to see it be turned into a yellow peril narrative. If the CCP were forcing people back to work, we would expect that case numbers would be up, but they aren’t. And there would be lots of ways that Chinese could indicate this, and there are people looking at twitter and it would come out if something like this were happening. However…
    https://www.vox.com/2020/3/2/21161067/coronavirus-covid19-china

  163. I fully expect US companies to follow such a policy of a potentially deadly disease not being an excuse to stay off work (at least those jobs that cannot be done from home). The shareholders are not gonna get infected and the worker bees are not allowed on the executive floor either anyway. And if production suffers, there’ll be a bailout, provided your company is big enough and a reliable donor to the GOPwald party.

  164. I fully expect US companies to follow such a policy of a potentially deadly disease not being an excuse to stay off work (at least those jobs that cannot be done from home). The shareholders are not gonna get infected and the worker bees are not allowed on the executive floor either anyway. And if production suffers, there’ll be a bailout, provided your company is big enough and a reliable donor to the GOPwald party.

  165. As for Super Tuesday, I fear after the results we see, there’ll be open civil war within the party up to, including and likely after the convention.
    Sanders was a longshot anyway but imo Biden is weaker than Hillary was (from the start; but now it got worse with all the recent gaffes).
    Is our only hope corona hitting CPAC hard taking out enough GOP senators?

  166. As for Super Tuesday, I fear after the results we see, there’ll be open civil war within the party up to, including and likely after the convention.
    Sanders was a longshot anyway but imo Biden is weaker than Hillary was (from the start; but now it got worse with all the recent gaffes).
    Is our only hope corona hitting CPAC hard taking out enough GOP senators?

  167. I think you might be wrong, Hartmut.
    There is evidently a reservoir of affection for Biden which took me by surprise. And if the trend continues, Biden may well beat Sanders soundly on delegates come the convention, which is likely to defuse any civil war.
    He would not be my first, or second choice. But against Trump, he’ll do.

  168. I think you might be wrong, Hartmut.
    There is evidently a reservoir of affection for Biden which took me by surprise. And if the trend continues, Biden may well beat Sanders soundly on delegates come the convention, which is likely to defuse any civil war.
    He would not be my first, or second choice. But against Trump, he’ll do.

  169. I’m a Warren fan and I think the Yglesias piece explains things well
    https://www.vox.com/2020/3/3/21162527/what-happened-to-elizabeth-warren
    I also will admit that I want Warren to run and win because Clinton lost, and I would like to see Trump beaten by a woman. I guess I’m bullheaded like that.
    I also have a lot of affection for Biden and I thought that this Atlantic piece about his stutter gets at some of the things I like about him as well as possibly explain some of his missteps
    https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2020/01/joe-biden-stutter-profile/602401/
    On the other hand, Exra Klein’s piece really has me wondering if Biden can treat the Republicans as (I think) they need to be treated
    https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/6/26/18715650/joe-biden-2020-primary-democrat-senator-segregation

  170. I’m a Warren fan and I think the Yglesias piece explains things well
    https://www.vox.com/2020/3/3/21162527/what-happened-to-elizabeth-warren
    I also will admit that I want Warren to run and win because Clinton lost, and I would like to see Trump beaten by a woman. I guess I’m bullheaded like that.
    I also have a lot of affection for Biden and I thought that this Atlantic piece about his stutter gets at some of the things I like about him as well as possibly explain some of his missteps
    https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2020/01/joe-biden-stutter-profile/602401/
    On the other hand, Exra Klein’s piece really has me wondering if Biden can treat the Republicans as (I think) they need to be treated
    https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/6/26/18715650/joe-biden-2020-primary-democrat-senator-segregation

  171. Warren performed as my personal history suggested she would, alas. Following on from Nigel’s comment, if Biden gets the nomination, who do people think will be his VP pick?

  172. Warren performed as my personal history suggested she would, alas. Following on from Nigel’s comment, if Biden gets the nomination, who do people think will be his VP pick?

  173. Very interesting Atlantic piece on Biden’s stuttering, lj. I really hope that is the explanation for the apparent “lapses”. But if it is, the question then becomes whether to tell the American public and hope it helps not hinders his chances, or whether to continue to tough it out and hope Trump’s obvious deficiencies play worse (I have doubts about this latter course, but am equally far from sure about the former).

  174. Very interesting Atlantic piece on Biden’s stuttering, lj. I really hope that is the explanation for the apparent “lapses”. But if it is, the question then becomes whether to tell the American public and hope it helps not hinders his chances, or whether to continue to tough it out and hope Trump’s obvious deficiencies play worse (I have doubts about this latter course, but am equally far from sure about the former).

  175. Someone half his age, I’d hope.
    Klobuchar would be ‘safe’ (from the DNC’s POV). But we will have to be grateful, if they just do not act on their impulse to rub it in that the ‘non-moderates’ lost. In the latter case there will be a landslide since I doubt the ‘left’ will put up with it this time (and they know that they will be blamed in any case).
    So, whateverbeingdamned, don’t gloat, if Biden gets the nomination or create the impression of sabotage, if it is Sanders. Otherwise the lantern pole will get less metaphorical than comfortable.
    As for ‘electability’, national polls are worse than worthless given that a handful of voters in a handful of swing states can outweigh several millions in ‘safe’ states.

  176. Someone half his age, I’d hope.
    Klobuchar would be ‘safe’ (from the DNC’s POV). But we will have to be grateful, if they just do not act on their impulse to rub it in that the ‘non-moderates’ lost. In the latter case there will be a landslide since I doubt the ‘left’ will put up with it this time (and they know that they will be blamed in any case).
    So, whateverbeingdamned, don’t gloat, if Biden gets the nomination or create the impression of sabotage, if it is Sanders. Otherwise the lantern pole will get less metaphorical than comfortable.
    As for ‘electability’, national polls are worse than worthless given that a handful of voters in a handful of swing states can outweigh several millions in ‘safe’ states.

  177. VP? My guess is Kamala Harris possibly, though Biden will have to shore up Latina support, so Julian Castro (or his brother) might be more of a possibility. More likely Julian because he was a presidential candidadate.

  178. VP? My guess is Kamala Harris possibly, though Biden will have to shore up Latina support, so Julian Castro (or his brother) might be more of a possibility. More likely Julian because he was a presidential candidadate.

  179. “Apparently, money in politics isn’t a sure thing. Bloomberg isn’t doing so well after spending enough money I could live comfortably on for 10,000 years.”
    When I returned from my week-long trip, there were four glossy mailers in my mailbox from Bloomberg, delivered in rain, sleet, and snow while I was gone, none from anyone else.
    I may forward them to McKinney to see if the Postal Service is doing its job, but I have a feeling McKinney’s individual mailman must have a room in his house where he hoards all of the mail from his route.
    OK, the question has rarely been whether or not money plays an effective out sized role when spent by a candidate on his own vanity campaign.
    But if Bloomberg took the five million plus he spent on his campaign and funneled it to his legislators to have his will done over and above mine, I’m guessing THAT is where the bang is.
    Steve Forbes could throw all his daddy’s money at his own campaign and get maybe three votes, including his own, but his campaign contributions to far-right politicians to pay them for appointing judges he favors and to encourage them to privatize and gut Medicare and Social Security, and to lower his own taxes do the job.
    So, c’mon, don’t kid a kidder.
    All of the shills and asswipes counting out the big bucks to dirty the linens at Trump’s hotels know what their getting in return.
    Wait, it’s Trump, so probably the shiv is what they get.

  180. “Apparently, money in politics isn’t a sure thing. Bloomberg isn’t doing so well after spending enough money I could live comfortably on for 10,000 years.”
    When I returned from my week-long trip, there were four glossy mailers in my mailbox from Bloomberg, delivered in rain, sleet, and snow while I was gone, none from anyone else.
    I may forward them to McKinney to see if the Postal Service is doing its job, but I have a feeling McKinney’s individual mailman must have a room in his house where he hoards all of the mail from his route.
    OK, the question has rarely been whether or not money plays an effective out sized role when spent by a candidate on his own vanity campaign.
    But if Bloomberg took the five million plus he spent on his campaign and funneled it to his legislators to have his will done over and above mine, I’m guessing THAT is where the bang is.
    Steve Forbes could throw all his daddy’s money at his own campaign and get maybe three votes, including his own, but his campaign contributions to far-right politicians to pay them for appointing judges he favors and to encourage them to privatize and gut Medicare and Social Security, and to lower his own taxes do the job.
    So, c’mon, don’t kid a kidder.
    All of the shills and asswipes counting out the big bucks to dirty the linens at Trump’s hotels know what their getting in return.
    Wait, it’s Trump, so probably the shiv is what they get.

  191. Not to my mind, but it might be politically wise to assuage the Bernies somewhat, so fewer of them defect to trump.
    But if she can’t be President, I want her in the Senate all up in McConnell’s lunch instead of cooling her heels as Vice President.

  192. Not to my mind, but it might be politically wise to assuage the Bernies somewhat, so fewer of them defect to trump.
    But if she can’t be President, I want her in the Senate all up in McConnell’s lunch instead of cooling her heels as Vice President.

  193. Given that Biden’s three biggest liabilities are his age, his mouth, and the entirety of the West, I’d think Harris would help him more than Warren, and Harris’ spot in the Senate is less vulnerable.

  194. Given that Biden’s three biggest liabilities are his age, his mouth, and the entirety of the West, I’d think Harris would help him more than Warren, and Harris’ spot in the Senate is less vulnerable.

  195. I also was wondering about Harris, and (maybe wishful thinking) Warren. But nous’s comment seems pretty sensible (not to mention not surprisingly displaying a great deal of nous).

  196. I also was wondering about Harris, and (maybe wishful thinking) Warren. But nous’s comment seems pretty sensible (not to mention not surprisingly displaying a great deal of nous).

  199. Hey, Bloomberg did manage to buy his way to a win today . . . in American Samoa.
    I think he just bought American Samoa outright.
    🙂
    I fully expect US companies to follow such a policy of a potentially deadly disease not being an excuse to stay off work
    More likely: the policy will be “if you’re sick, stay home”.
    Of course, if you’re sick and stay home, for many positions that also means you won’t get paid, and if you’re out long enough you’ll lose your job. But that’s on you, the worker. It’s not the company’s fault or responsibility.

  200. Hey, Bloomberg did manage to buy his way to a win today . . . in American Samoa.
    I think he just bought American Samoa outright.
    🙂
    I fully expect US companies to follow such a policy of a potentially deadly disease not being an excuse to stay off work
    More likely: the policy will be “if you’re sick, stay home”.
    Of course, if you’re sick and stay home, for many positions that also means you won’t get paid, and if you’re out long enough you’ll lose your job. But that’s on you, the worker. It’s not the company’s fault or responsibility.

  203. I’d say Biden won’t pick a Senator. In general, the chances of taking the Senate are slim enough that someone from a swing-ish state (e.g. Klobuchar) would be a bad idea. And Biden already runs well with blacks, so Harris doesn’t do much for ticket balance.
    Castro might be useful, for shoring up Latino support. Except that Trump is taking care of that already.
    Overall, I’d guess Biden goes with “who do I think would be the best President, should something happen to me?” I don’t know how he’d answer that question. But I expect that’s how he goes. So maybe Warren, in the hopes of persuading the Bernie fans not to sit home and sulk.

  204. I’d say Biden won’t pick a Senator. In general, the chances of taking the Senate are slim enough that someone from a swing-ish state (e.g. Klobuchar) would be a bad idea. And Biden already runs well with blacks, so Harris doesn’t do much for ticket balance.
    Castro might be useful, for shoring up Latino support. Except that Trump is taking care of that already.
    Overall, I’d guess Biden goes with “who do I think would be the best President, should something happen to me?” I don’t know how he’d answer that question. But I expect that’s how he goes. So maybe Warren, in the hopes of persuading the Bernie fans not to sit home and sulk.

  205. I like Abrams, but I don’t think she does anything but shore up the populations in which Biden is already the preferred candidate. And I think Abrams is more valuable in a different role. I’d love to see her take the reins of the DNC or some other D strategy institution and grassroot the shit out of the 50 state thing.

  206. I like Abrams, but I don’t think she does anything but shore up the populations in which Biden is already the preferred candidate. And I think Abrams is more valuable in a different role. I’d love to see her take the reins of the DNC or some other D strategy institution and grassroot the shit out of the 50 state thing.

  207. grassroot the shit out of the 50 state thing.
    ^^^^
    Somebody needs to sit (D) leadership down and make them write this on the board about 1,000 times.
    In 1992, it was the economy, stupid.
    Today, it’s get a meaningful organization on the ground, everywhere. Everywhere. And by “today” I mean “should have been all over this 20 years ago”.
    If you give up on places because they’re “too red”, those places will surely give up on you.

  208. grassroot the shit out of the 50 state thing.
    ^^^^
    Somebody needs to sit (D) leadership down and make them write this on the board about 1,000 times.
    In 1992, it was the economy, stupid.
    Today, it’s get a meaningful organization on the ground, everywhere. Everywhere. And by “today” I mean “should have been all over this 20 years ago”.
    If you give up on places because they’re “too red”, those places will surely give up on you.

  209. If you give up on places because they’re “too red”, those places will surely give up on you.
    Amen. Note that supposedly “deep red” places like Kentucky and Alabama and Louisiana have, in the past few years, managed to elect Democrats to statewide offices. Yes, there were special circumstances and local factors involved in each case. But it does suggest that a simple D after your name is not quite a kiss of death there. If you will only try.
    Maybe a Democrat only has a 20% chance of winning one of those places. But if you compete in 3 of those, you are better than even money to win one of them. (Ain’t statistics fun?!) The Electoral College being how it is these days, a couple states like that could make a critical difference.
    And not just for the Presidency. The same calculus applies to winning control of the Senate. And who knows, a few years with a Democratic Senator or Governor, and the discovery that the world didn’t end after all? “Deep red” might turn out to be shallower than you thought.

  210. If you give up on places because they’re “too red”, those places will surely give up on you.
    Amen. Note that supposedly “deep red” places like Kentucky and Alabama and Louisiana have, in the past few years, managed to elect Democrats to statewide offices. Yes, there were special circumstances and local factors involved in each case. But it does suggest that a simple D after your name is not quite a kiss of death there. If you will only try.
    Maybe a Democrat only has a 20% chance of winning one of those places. But if you compete in 3 of those, you are better than even money to win one of them. (Ain’t statistics fun?!) The Electoral College being how it is these days, a couple states like that could make a critical difference.
    And not just for the Presidency. The same calculus applies to winning control of the Senate. And who knows, a few years with a Democratic Senator or Governor, and the discovery that the world didn’t end after all? “Deep red” might turn out to be shallower than you thought.

  213. There is simple NO excuse for allowing a R to run unopposed.
    On the evidence of history, the great majority of them have enormous scandals lurking in their closets, and there’s just no telling when one of those scandals breaks loose and destroys a R candidate.

  214. There is simple NO excuse for allowing a R to run unopposed.
    On the evidence of history, the great majority of them have enormous scandals lurking in their closets, and there’s just no telling when one of those scandals breaks loose and destroys a R candidate.

  217. I’d love to see her take the reins of the DNC or some other D strategy institution and grassroot the shit out of the 50 state thing.
    She’d likely be brilliant at that role… but I suspect a core of ambition in her that wants to go further, faster.
    And I think she’d bring a great deal to the ticket. I think people can do too much calculating about which state / what sex / what colour etc. Some candidates’ character goes well beyond reductive labels.

  218. I’d love to see her take the reins of the DNC or some other D strategy institution and grassroot the shit out of the 50 state thing.
    She’d likely be brilliant at that role… but I suspect a core of ambition in her that wants to go further, faster.
    And I think she’d bring a great deal to the ticket. I think people can do too much calculating about which state / what sex / what colour etc. Some candidates’ character goes well beyond reductive labels.

  219. Steal elections by keeping citizens from voting
    But here’s the thing. There were also lines, hours long, in Los Angeles. Democratic run city in a state where Republicans are utterly powerless in state government. Yet there were still long lines at some polling places.
    So maybe, just maybe, we just aren’t very good at running elections.*
    * I should perhaps note that, at the polling place I was working, the longest our lines got was a queue of 8. Which only happened because we had the voter rolls split into 3 alphabetical chunks to try to keep lines short . . . and all 8 people who arrived at the same time happened to be in the same third of the alphabet.
    It might be worth looking seriously at how (not who but how) things get done right or wrong in different places.

  220. Steal elections by keeping citizens from voting
    But here’s the thing. There were also lines, hours long, in Los Angeles. Democratic run city in a state where Republicans are utterly powerless in state government. Yet there were still long lines at some polling places.
    So maybe, just maybe, we just aren’t very good at running elections.*
    * I should perhaps note that, at the polling place I was working, the longest our lines got was a queue of 8. Which only happened because we had the voter rolls split into 3 alphabetical chunks to try to keep lines short . . . and all 8 people who arrived at the same time happened to be in the same third of the alphabet.
    It might be worth looking seriously at how (not who but how) things get done right or wrong in different places.

  221. Well, wj, in Orange County they made it so that anyone could vote at any polling place and they let people drop off mail-in ballots. And there were lots of polling places well staffed with volunteers. In Irvine the lines looked short. In Santa Ana, where we went to speak with our accountant, the lines were a bit longer, but that was late afternoon and the neighborhoods were more linguistically diverse (and more logistically challenging as a result).
    But OC is well funded.
    I don’t think LA county has quite the same wealth of resources and they have greater challenges still WRT language and forms of ID. We could probably make things easier on LA county if the wealth was shared a bit more, but that would make the OC NIMBYs’ heads explode.
    I note from the article that in Texas the pattern was to shut down polling places in the very neighborhoods that create the largest challenges. No bueno. So suspicion is warranted in TX.

  222. Well, wj, in Orange County they made it so that anyone could vote at any polling place and they let people drop off mail-in ballots. And there were lots of polling places well staffed with volunteers. In Irvine the lines looked short. In Santa Ana, where we went to speak with our accountant, the lines were a bit longer, but that was late afternoon and the neighborhoods were more linguistically diverse (and more logistically challenging as a result).
    But OC is well funded.
    I don’t think LA county has quite the same wealth of resources and they have greater challenges still WRT language and forms of ID. We could probably make things easier on LA county if the wealth was shared a bit more, but that would make the OC NIMBYs’ heads explode.
    I note from the article that in Texas the pattern was to shut down polling places in the very neighborhoods that create the largest challenges. No bueno. So suspicion is warranted in TX.

  223. Transparent incompetence and inefficiency in California and malign targeted racism from the deep state in Texas are not both sides do it.

  224. Transparent incompetence and inefficiency in California and malign targeted racism from the deep state in Texas are not both sides do it.

  225. they let people drop off mail-in ballots. And there were lots of polling places well staffed with volunteers.
    Contra Costa County also lets people drop off mail-in ballots at the polls. And we got a fair amount of that.
    Actually, the biggest challenge we had was people coming in who had filled out their mail-in ballot, but wanted to rip it up and vote in person instead (which is allowed, just takes some paperwork). Because the person that they had initially voted for had just dropped out.
    We, too, had enough staff. (Although the “volunteers” actually do get paid. Not much, especially for a 15-16 hour day, but definitely paid.) Perhaps because we had done a lot of consolidation of polling places — typically 4 precincts combined into a single polling location. Meaning there were lots more poll workers available to staff each one. (Also meaning we had 4 sets of 8 ballot types each. Fun!)
    As with lines, I just note that consolidating polling places isn’t necessarily evidence of malign intent. Not that it can’t be done for ill intentions — and has definitely been done for that purpose in some places. Just that the mere fact that it was done isn’t sufficient to prove it. Gotta have additional evidence regarding why.

  226. they let people drop off mail-in ballots. And there were lots of polling places well staffed with volunteers.
    Contra Costa County also lets people drop off mail-in ballots at the polls. And we got a fair amount of that.
    Actually, the biggest challenge we had was people coming in who had filled out their mail-in ballot, but wanted to rip it up and vote in person instead (which is allowed, just takes some paperwork). Because the person that they had initially voted for had just dropped out.
    We, too, had enough staff. (Although the “volunteers” actually do get paid. Not much, especially for a 15-16 hour day, but definitely paid.) Perhaps because we had done a lot of consolidation of polling places — typically 4 precincts combined into a single polling location. Meaning there were lots more poll workers available to staff each one. (Also meaning we had 4 sets of 8 ballot types each. Fun!)
    As with lines, I just note that consolidating polling places isn’t necessarily evidence of malign intent. Not that it can’t be done for ill intentions — and has definitely been done for that purpose in some places. Just that the mere fact that it was done isn’t sufficient to prove it. Gotta have additional evidence regarding why.

  227. In my “streetcar suburb” of Boston, you walk into the voting room and check in at a table usually staffed by two elderly ladies. Each has a book before her. Each book is half the voter roll, organized by street name.
    “What street?” they ask. “Main Street,” I answer. The lady who has the “M”s in her book flips to the Main Street page and asks “What number?”
    I tell her. She looks down the list to the number and asks “Are you Tony P.?” When I answer “Yes” she checks off the box next to my name and hands me a ballot.
    (In a primary, she first asks “Which ballot?” That’s because I am “Unenrolled” like (almost?) everybody in town. This go-round there were 4 ballots to choose from: Dem, Rep, Lib, and Green.)
    The ballot is large-format stiff paper of the machine-readable fill-in-the-oval type. Black Sharpies are provided at the partitioned tables where I fill in the ovals. There’s always a write-in space with its own oval as well. When there are ballot questions to vote on, there is a short paragraph before the ovals, explaining the question. No matter how many races and questions there are in a given election, the ballot is never more than one piece of paper, printed on both sides if need be.
    I take my filled in ballot to the check-out table, where a similar pair of usually elderly ladies go through the same routine of looking up my street, number, and name, and checking the box in their book.
    The optical scanner is beside them, usually attended by a typically younger person. I insert my ballot (which side up doesn’t matter), the machine swallows it, its little counter display clicks up one number, I get handed an “I voted” sticker, and I’m done.
    I thank the poll workers for their service (seriously) and walk back to my house.
    Never in 25 years living and voting where I do have I been asked for ID of any sort. Never have I been told “Whoa! Somebody already voted in your name.” Never has it taken me more than 10 minutes to vote.
    Any place that does voting differently is doing it wrong.
    –TP

  228. In my “streetcar suburb” of Boston, you walk into the voting room and check in at a table usually staffed by two elderly ladies. Each has a book before her. Each book is half the voter roll, organized by street name.
    “What street?” they ask. “Main Street,” I answer. The lady who has the “M”s in her book flips to the Main Street page and asks “What number?”
    I tell her. She looks down the list to the number and asks “Are you Tony P.?” When I answer “Yes” she checks off the box next to my name and hands me a ballot.
    (In a primary, she first asks “Which ballot?” That’s because I am “Unenrolled” like (almost?) everybody in town. This go-round there were 4 ballots to choose from: Dem, Rep, Lib, and Green.)
    The ballot is large-format stiff paper of the machine-readable fill-in-the-oval type. Black Sharpies are provided at the partitioned tables where I fill in the ovals. There’s always a write-in space with its own oval as well. When there are ballot questions to vote on, there is a short paragraph before the ovals, explaining the question. No matter how many races and questions there are in a given election, the ballot is never more than one piece of paper, printed on both sides if need be.
    I take my filled in ballot to the check-out table, where a similar pair of usually elderly ladies go through the same routine of looking up my street, number, and name, and checking the box in their book.
    The optical scanner is beside them, usually attended by a typically younger person. I insert my ballot (which side up doesn’t matter), the machine swallows it, its little counter display clicks up one number, I get handed an “I voted” sticker, and I’m done.
    I thank the poll workers for their service (seriously) and walk back to my house.
    Never in 25 years living and voting where I do have I been asked for ID of any sort. Never have I been told “Whoa! Somebody already voted in your name.” Never has it taken me more than 10 minutes to vote.
    Any place that does voting differently is doing it wrong.
    –TP

  229. Any place that does voting differently is doing it wrong.
    Allow me to take exception to that.
    Our polling places start with a table where there are (typically 3) pairs of poll workers. Each pair has two alphabetical lists of names, covering part of the alphabet. First, you give your name, you are asked to confirm the address (because there can, after all, be multiple people with the same name, not to mention that your name might have gotten mis-heard), and you sign next to your name.** You get a tag for which ballot you get. The second person draws a line thru your name on her list. That second list list gets posted outside every two hours, so poll watchers for a candidate or cause can check if their people have shown up to vote yet.
    The tag notes which precinct you are in and which ballot you get. Choices are typically Rep, Dem, Lib, AIP, Green, Peace&Freedom, and “No Party Preference”. This time, we also had an additional ballot type for NPP folks who wanted to vote in the Democratic primary. (Libertarians and AIP also allowed that. But the Dems were avoiding having NPP folks vote for their Central Committee, so they had an entirely separate ballot for that.)
    A second table gives you the ballot which matches your tag. Ballots are letter size pages; three pages this time. Perhaps ours are longer because everything is printed in English, Spanish, and Chinese. (There are also “ballot marking” voting machines which will allow you to vote in Hindi, Japanese, Khmer, Korean, Tagalog, Thai and Vietnamese. Some counties also provide Panjabi (Punjabi), Hmong, Syriac, Armenian, Persian, and Arabic.)
    Then you have a bunch of “booths”, with pens, where you can vote. (Virus concerns led some people to bring their own pens. Which is OK.) After marking the ballot, you feed it into the scanner and get your “I have voted” sticker.
    Like at Tony’s polls, we don’t ask for IDs; never have. In fact, we are supposed to decline if IDs are offered. But in reality we sometimes look in order to figure out what the name is and how it is spelled. Especially for those with limited English, that’s a real help.
    I submit that we are NOT doing it wrong. Just different. Maybe even better.
    ** This is the point at which you may get split off. Maybe you aren’t on the list because you voted by mail. (Or, at least, were sent a vote-by-mail ballot.) Or maybe there’s some other problem. In any case, you get sent to a different table where they can take the time to figure out what the problem is and how to get past it. (We had one gal show up who was not only in the wrong polling place, but in the wrong county. She had to be told to go to where she was registered.)

  230. Any place that does voting differently is doing it wrong.
    Allow me to take exception to that.
    Our polling places start with a table where there are (typically 3) pairs of poll workers. Each pair has two alphabetical lists of names, covering part of the alphabet. First, you give your name, you are asked to confirm the address (because there can, after all, be multiple people with the same name, not to mention that your name might have gotten mis-heard), and you sign next to your name.** You get a tag for which ballot you get. The second person draws a line thru your name on her list. That second list list gets posted outside every two hours, so poll watchers for a candidate or cause can check if their people have shown up to vote yet.
    The tag notes which precinct you are in and which ballot you get. Choices are typically Rep, Dem, Lib, AIP, Green, Peace&Freedom, and “No Party Preference”. This time, we also had an additional ballot type for NPP folks who wanted to vote in the Democratic primary. (Libertarians and AIP also allowed that. But the Dems were avoiding having NPP folks vote for their Central Committee, so they had an entirely separate ballot for that.)
    A second table gives you the ballot which matches your tag. Ballots are letter size pages; three pages this time. Perhaps ours are longer because everything is printed in English, Spanish, and Chinese. (There are also “ballot marking” voting machines which will allow you to vote in Hindi, Japanese, Khmer, Korean, Tagalog, Thai and Vietnamese. Some counties also provide Panjabi (Punjabi), Hmong, Syriac, Armenian, Persian, and Arabic.)
    Then you have a bunch of “booths”, with pens, where you can vote. (Virus concerns led some people to bring their own pens. Which is OK.) After marking the ballot, you feed it into the scanner and get your “I have voted” sticker.
    Like at Tony’s polls, we don’t ask for IDs; never have. In fact, we are supposed to decline if IDs are offered. But in reality we sometimes look in order to figure out what the name is and how it is spelled. Especially for those with limited English, that’s a real help.
    I submit that we are NOT doing it wrong. Just different. Maybe even better.
    ** This is the point at which you may get split off. Maybe you aren’t on the list because you voted by mail. (Or, at least, were sent a vote-by-mail ballot.) Or maybe there’s some other problem. In any case, you get sent to a different table where they can take the time to figure out what the problem is and how to get past it. (We had one gal show up who was not only in the wrong polling place, but in the wrong county. She had to be told to go to where she was registered.)

  231. what Tony P describes is how it’s done in NC.
    the GOP wants to add an ID check, but the courts keep slapping them back.

  232. what Tony P describes is how it’s done in NC.
    the GOP wants to add an ID check, but the courts keep slapping them back.

  235. Unsurprisingly, my voting experience exactly matched Tony’s, except the poll worker knew my name.
    I will note that, at 8:00 AM, there were many more voters than usual, and I actually had to wait, maybe three minutes, to vote.
    The country desperately needs some kind of voting equity legislation that requires that states, counties, whoever is in charge, meet standards of distance one has to travel to vote and, even more important, a reasonable standard for wait times – something like 95% of voters get in within 15 minutes. Making people wait hours can only be explained by malice.

  236. Unsurprisingly, my voting experience exactly matched Tony’s, except the poll worker knew my name.
    I will note that, at 8:00 AM, there were many more voters than usual, and I actually had to wait, maybe three minutes, to vote.
    The country desperately needs some kind of voting equity legislation that requires that states, counties, whoever is in charge, meet standards of distance one has to travel to vote and, even more important, a reasonable standard for wait times – something like 95% of voters get in within 15 minutes. Making people wait hours can only be explained by malice.

  237. i was the only voter there, when i voted (8:30AM on a Thursday).
    but, Dem turnout in NC was up 17% over 2016 anyway.

  238. i was the only voter there, when i voted (8:30AM on a Thursday).
    but, Dem turnout in NC was up 17% over 2016 anyway.

  239. Making people wait hours can only be explained by malice.
    “only”? I think you underestimate the frequency of incompetence. (Where would be the malice driving hours-long lines in LA? why inconvenience their own partisans?)

  240. Making people wait hours can only be explained by malice.
    “only”? I think you underestimate the frequency of incompetence. (Where would be the malice driving hours-long lines in LA? why inconvenience their own partisans?)

  241. byomtov, that would of course be a blatant violation of sacred states rights (and SCOTUS will throw in some random extra amendments to give it veneer when declaring it an abomination unto the founders). Provided of course it passes in Congress first, a chance low enough to hit the inner earth core.

  242. byomtov, that would of course be a blatant violation of sacred states rights (and SCOTUS will throw in some random extra amendments to give it veneer when declaring it an abomination unto the founders). Provided of course it passes in Congress first, a chance low enough to hit the inner earth core.

  243. My town of a bit more than 20k people has 7 polling places. I’ve waited at most 20 minutes during general presidential elections. Virtually no wait during primaries or midterms.
    Similar to others’ stories, they look up my name and I sign the book. Appearing to be male, of the right age, and having a signature that looks like the one on record is enough to get me a ticket for one of the voting booths.

  244. My town of a bit more than 20k people has 7 polling places. I’ve waited at most 20 minutes during general presidential elections. Virtually no wait during primaries or midterms.
    Similar to others’ stories, they look up my name and I sign the book. Appearing to be male, of the right age, and having a signature that looks like the one on record is enough to get me a ticket for one of the voting booths.

  245. I guess the other thing that gets me a ticket for one of the voting booths is that no one in the room says, “I know hairshirthedonist! You’re not him!” A risk for someone pretending to me, not knowing if I’ve already voted, and who might not be a world class signature forger.

  246. I guess the other thing that gets me a ticket for one of the voting booths is that no one in the room says, “I know hairshirthedonist! You’re not him!” A risk for someone pretending to me, not knowing if I’ve already voted, and who might not be a world class signature forger.

  249. I think you underestimate the frequency of incompetence.
    Somewhat, Guess, but mostly it’s malice. Incidentally, one feature of my ideal voting legislation would be establishment of some sort of agency to assist localities in planning for elections, including calculations of polling places needed, electronic security, etc.
    It’s sort of silly for everyone to have to figure all this out by themselves.

  250. I think you underestimate the frequency of incompetence.
    Somewhat, Guess, but mostly it’s malice. Incidentally, one feature of my ideal voting legislation would be establishment of some sort of agency to assist localities in planning for elections, including calculations of polling places needed, electronic security, etc.
    It’s sort of silly for everyone to have to figure all this out by themselves.

  251. It’s sort of silly for everyone to have to figure all this out by themselves.
    Agreed. It would also be desirable if, once there is some kind of standard way to figure out what is needed, there was state support for those counties which have per capita requirements well above the state norm for costs.

  252. It’s sort of silly for everyone to have to figure all this out by themselves.
    Agreed. It would also be desirable if, once there is some kind of standard way to figure out what is needed, there was state support for those counties which have per capita requirements well above the state norm for costs.

  253. Any place that does voting differently is doing it wrong.
    Without offering any comment or judgement about how other places do it. I’ll just note that what Tony P describes is exactly my experience. Most likely it’s standard in MA.
    I’ve been up here almost 40 years now, never been an issue. In an out in 10 minutes, tops.

  254. Any place that does voting differently is doing it wrong.
    Without offering any comment or judgement about how other places do it. I’ll just note that what Tony P describes is exactly my experience. Most likely it’s standard in MA.
    I’ve been up here almost 40 years now, never been an issue. In an out in 10 minutes, tops.

  255. I should, perhaps, have noted that I’ve never spent more than 4 minutes getting processed. If it takes me longer to voter than 10 minutes, it’s all about how many races (including propositions, which California tends to generate a lot of) are on the ballot on a particular occasion.
    I see news reports from elsewhere in California (e.g. Los Angeles and San Jose this time) with long lines. But I’ve never encountered them personally.

  256. I should, perhaps, have noted that I’ve never spent more than 4 minutes getting processed. If it takes me longer to voter than 10 minutes, it’s all about how many races (including propositions, which California tends to generate a lot of) are on the ballot on a particular occasion.
    I see news reports from elsewhere in California (e.g. Los Angeles and San Jose this time) with long lines. But I’ve never encountered them personally.

  257. The local CA Secretary of State office is quite near our house so I routinely go there to drop off mail-in ballots. This time I made a mistake (forgot to tear off the receipt) so I voted there. The new systems are quite nice, a large portrait-mode touch screen and it prints out a human readable sheet of paper which you then deposit in a slot after checking it.
    Oh, almost no waiting. I think they can handle quite a bit of traffic.

  258. The local CA Secretary of State office is quite near our house so I routinely go there to drop off mail-in ballots. This time I made a mistake (forgot to tear off the receipt) so I voted there. The new systems are quite nice, a large portrait-mode touch screen and it prints out a human readable sheet of paper which you then deposit in a slot after checking it.
    Oh, almost no waiting. I think they can handle quite a bit of traffic.

  263. …….. was Rick Santelli the bartender?
    In which case the Jew and the Catholic and the Hindu are now dead, because the first thing you do is shoot the bartender point blank dead, because his very sputum contains concentrated levels of the Coronavirus and a cup of hot tax cut tea is merely a symptom of a larger deadly contagion.

  264. …….. was Rick Santelli the bartender?
    In which case the Jew and the Catholic and the Hindu are now dead, because the first thing you do is shoot the bartender point blank dead, because his very sputum contains concentrated levels of the Coronavirus and a cup of hot tax cut tea is merely a symptom of a larger deadly contagion.

  265. https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-factcheck-trump-dowjones-tweet/false-claim-in-2015-trump-tweeted-that-if-dow-joans-plunges-us-president-should-be-shot-out-of-a-cannon-idUSKBN20P340
    A fake tweet that turns out to be fake AND true in postmodernist, deconstructionist America.
    Them ain’t sun spots. Those blips of incineration are Trump, Kudlow, and the rest of their ratfucker carcasses being shot out of cannons and into the sun four times over the past week.
    Saves on bullets, plus the punishment is suitably North Korean.
    Infected white republicans are spreading the virus. They aren’t being stopped and quarantined as they arrive from abroad by our ever-vigilant border fucks, because if the virus is not contained in a brown body that talks funny, then we are to go …. to the mall and shop our way out of this.
    It is often said that the Black Death and other plagues were stopped in their tracks by Lululemon and Domino’s Pizza’s quarterly sales goals.
    I predict within a month China and many other better run countries in which gummint is at least provisionally functional because the people who run it don’t hate it with all their malignant might, will begin preventing Americans from crossing their borders because of our infection rates.
    The world is better off without us.
    The only reason American business people travel anyway is to undercut American labor and regulation, unless of course they are reneging on every fucking deal we’ve made with other governments because now we’ve changed our minds on account of some new-found fake patriotism.

  266. https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-factcheck-trump-dowjones-tweet/false-claim-in-2015-trump-tweeted-that-if-dow-joans-plunges-us-president-should-be-shot-out-of-a-cannon-idUSKBN20P340
    A fake tweet that turns out to be fake AND true in postmodernist, deconstructionist America.
    Them ain’t sun spots. Those blips of incineration are Trump, Kudlow, and the rest of their ratfucker carcasses being shot out of cannons and into the sun four times over the past week.
    Saves on bullets, plus the punishment is suitably North Korean.
    Infected white republicans are spreading the virus. They aren’t being stopped and quarantined as they arrive from abroad by our ever-vigilant border fucks, because if the virus is not contained in a brown body that talks funny, then we are to go …. to the mall and shop our way out of this.
    It is often said that the Black Death and other plagues were stopped in their tracks by Lululemon and Domino’s Pizza’s quarterly sales goals.
    I predict within a month China and many other better run countries in which gummint is at least provisionally functional because the people who run it don’t hate it with all their malignant might, will begin preventing Americans from crossing their borders because of our infection rates.
    The world is better off without us.
    The only reason American business people travel anyway is to undercut American labor and regulation, unless of course they are reneging on every fucking deal we’ve made with other governments because now we’ve changed our minds on account of some new-found fake patriotism.

  271. Making forecasts (by 538 or anybody else) after just a couple of primaries is the equivalent of forecasting a baseball player’s season batting average based on his first couple of at-bats. Yeah, you might learn something from them, but projecting a full season from them is daft.

  272. Making forecasts (by 538 or anybody else) after just a couple of primaries is the equivalent of forecasting a baseball player’s season batting average based on his first couple of at-bats. Yeah, you might learn something from them, but projecting a full season from them is daft.

  275. I know you guys aren’t all into jazz, but I’m going to impose upon you all to note the passing of McCoy Tyner.
    The last surviving member of the John Coltrane quartet, Tyner was a truly colossal figure in jazz. He was that rarest of things, an original voice. He redefined the language of the music and of his instrument.
    Politics is important, because it affects so many lives. Art and beauty and the deep love and devotion that they demand, even more so, because they do more than merely sustain life, they give it meaning and grace.
    The great ones are leaving us. Their passing deserves notice.
    RIP McCoy Tyner.

  276. I know you guys aren’t all into jazz, but I’m going to impose upon you all to note the passing of McCoy Tyner.
    The last surviving member of the John Coltrane quartet, Tyner was a truly colossal figure in jazz. He was that rarest of things, an original voice. He redefined the language of the music and of his instrument.
    Politics is important, because it affects so many lives. Art and beauty and the deep love and devotion that they demand, even more so, because they do more than merely sustain life, they give it meaning and grace.
    The great ones are leaving us. Their passing deserves notice.
    RIP McCoy Tyner.

  277. The passing of great ones does deserve notice. But we must console ourselves with the awareness that there have long been great ones, who have passed.
    Our hope is that great ones continue to come along. Whether or not we have the wit to recognize all of them early on. Which leaves me wondering what current great talent I am missing even now.

  278. The passing of great ones does deserve notice. But we must console ourselves with the awareness that there have long been great ones, who have passed.
    Our hope is that great ones continue to come along. Whether or not we have the wit to recognize all of them early on. Which leaves me wondering what current great talent I am missing even now.

  279. Politics is important, because it affects so many lives. Art and beauty and the deep love and devotion that they demand, even more so, because they do more than merely sustain life, they give it meaning and grace.
    Very beautifully said. I knew nothing of him, but because of what you say I will search him out, and give honour to his memory.

  280. Politics is important, because it affects so many lives. Art and beauty and the deep love and devotion that they demand, even more so, because they do more than merely sustain life, they give it meaning and grace.
    Very beautifully said. I knew nothing of him, but because of what you say I will search him out, and give honour to his memory.

  283. I’m with russell on the passing of Tyner. What a musical legacy.
    WRT the primaries, what structural obstacles would need to be overcome for the Democrats to change their primaries to a ranked list format? Could that even be done, or would the individual states have to approve such things? Seems like having a ranked list that could be updated or re-run as candidates drop out would eliminate the need for so much strategic voting and the need to pre-estimate electability. Could also give greater insight into policy decision for the party platform.
    And, hey…after 30 years as an independent, I just re-registered as a Democrat because there really is no serious alternative.

  284. I’m with russell on the passing of Tyner. What a musical legacy.
    WRT the primaries, what structural obstacles would need to be overcome for the Democrats to change their primaries to a ranked list format? Could that even be done, or would the individual states have to approve such things? Seems like having a ranked list that could be updated or re-run as candidates drop out would eliminate the need for so much strategic voting and the need to pre-estimate electability. Could also give greater insight into policy decision for the party platform.
    And, hey…after 30 years as an independent, I just re-registered as a Democrat because there really is no serious alternative.

  285. Regarding ranked choice voting, it would require two major (I think) changes. First, the ballots would have to be redesigned to give some way to indicate (with a fill-in-the-bubble format!) what rank each candidate had. Second, the software would have to be revised to look at rankings. And provide some way to skip past the rankings of anybody who had dropped out. Or however the rankings were used.
    The parties might be able to do that for their Presidential primaries. But for other offices, it would require action by the individual states. I say that because I watched California shift its primaries to “top two” rather than party-based. Not so much as a “by your leave” to the parties — not the major parties; not the minor parties. So a) the individual states could decide to do it, and b) it isn’t clear that the parties could force them to do it for races beyond the presidential primaries.
    Both shifts would provide fertile ground for screwups. At least for a few iterations while the bugs were worked out. One also wonders just how the decision would be taken to ignore some candidates initial votes, and give those votes to number 2 choices. Statements from the candidates? Notarized? Email acceptable? Tweets? Checks against spoofed statements? Lots of fun decisions required.

  286. Regarding ranked choice voting, it would require two major (I think) changes. First, the ballots would have to be redesigned to give some way to indicate (with a fill-in-the-bubble format!) what rank each candidate had. Second, the software would have to be revised to look at rankings. And provide some way to skip past the rankings of anybody who had dropped out. Or however the rankings were used.
    The parties might be able to do that for their Presidential primaries. But for other offices, it would require action by the individual states. I say that because I watched California shift its primaries to “top two” rather than party-based. Not so much as a “by your leave” to the parties — not the major parties; not the minor parties. So a) the individual states could decide to do it, and b) it isn’t clear that the parties could force them to do it for races beyond the presidential primaries.
    Both shifts would provide fertile ground for screwups. At least for a few iterations while the bugs were worked out. One also wonders just how the decision would be taken to ignore some candidates initial votes, and give those votes to number 2 choices. Statements from the candidates? Notarized? Email acceptable? Tweets? Checks against spoofed statements? Lots of fun decisions required.

  291. Apparently, Mulvaney is going to become an envoy to Northern Ireland. I’d like to think that gets him out of OMB, but since Trump probably doesn’t want OBM to do anything anyway that may not happen.

  292. Apparently, Mulvaney is going to become an envoy to Northern Ireland. I’d like to think that gets him out of OMB, but since Trump probably doesn’t want OBM to do anything anyway that may not happen.

  293. Holy, moley. Sanders is even losing the soviet of Washington (state). Not good for we lefties (of all stripes). Bernie has retreated to Vermont. I feel he should think long and hard about winding it up. Rank and file Dems have pretty much made their case. They do not want to argue policy. They want to humiliate Trump.
    Give them their due.
    Bernie should think about bowing out and supporting the Dem ticket led by (bobbyp has a little bit of spit coming up in the throat) Biden. Let’s hope he can name a better VP candidate than Tim fucking Cain (Stacey!)
    Like they say. A ham sandwich would be better than the orange thug.
    Politics can hand you bitter pills. Let’s take our medicine and move on.
    Yours for the dictatorship of the proletariat, the expropriation of the expropriators, one big union-one big strike, and power to the people. 🙂

  294. Holy, moley. Sanders is even losing the soviet of Washington (state). Not good for we lefties (of all stripes). Bernie has retreated to Vermont. I feel he should think long and hard about winding it up. Rank and file Dems have pretty much made their case. They do not want to argue policy. They want to humiliate Trump.
    Give them their due.
    Bernie should think about bowing out and supporting the Dem ticket led by (bobbyp has a little bit of spit coming up in the throat) Biden. Let’s hope he can name a better VP candidate than Tim fucking Cain (Stacey!)
    Like they say. A ham sandwich would be better than the orange thug.
    Politics can hand you bitter pills. Let’s take our medicine and move on.
    Yours for the dictatorship of the proletariat, the expropriation of the expropriators, one big union-one big strike, and power to the people. 🙂

  295. I for one welcome our confabulating geezer overlord.
    Not the orange one, the other one.
    His name is not Trump, I’m good with it.

  296. I for one welcome our confabulating geezer overlord.
    Not the orange one, the other one.
    His name is not Trump, I’m good with it.

  297. He too will save you from Medicare for All, Republicans, at least he considers vetoing it, should it by some incredible chain of events land on his desk).All of that on top of his constant stance of ‘we must find common ground with the GOP and cut entitlements’.
    Yes, Joe would be an improvement over Jabbabonk but he seems to be hellbent to drive away as many voters as he can.
    That’s not the kind of ‘honesty’ we need at the moment.

  298. He too will save you from Medicare for All, Republicans, at least he considers vetoing it, should it by some incredible chain of events land on his desk).All of that on top of his constant stance of ‘we must find common ground with the GOP and cut entitlements’.
    Yes, Joe would be an improvement over Jabbabonk but he seems to be hellbent to drive away as many voters as he can.
    That’s not the kind of ‘honesty’ we need at the moment.

  299. Bernie should think about bowing out…
    nothing in his history suggests that he will.
    he’ll probably choose to scorch the earth for many more months, because there’s nothing he likes more than being seen waving his fist at The Man.

  300. Bernie should think about bowing out…
    nothing in his history suggests that he will.
    he’ll probably choose to scorch the earth for many more months, because there’s nothing he likes more than being seen waving his fist at The Man.

  301. I guess harmut is referring to the ‘you’re full of sh*t’ video? I don’t know, I hope that he might be encapsulating some shared feeling. At least that is what I hope.

  302. I guess harmut is referring to the ‘you’re full of sh*t’ video? I don’t know, I hope that he might be encapsulating some shared feeling. At least that is what I hope.

  303. he seems to be hellbent to drive away as many voters as he can.
    The thing is, he’s in the lead now because more people voted for him.
    Will he peel away some of Trump’s support? I have no idea. I don’t think anybody does.
    Not my first or probably second chouce, but I’ll vote for him with no hesitation. “Not Jababonk” carries a lot of weight this year.

  304. he seems to be hellbent to drive away as many voters as he can.
    The thing is, he’s in the lead now because more people voted for him.
    Will he peel away some of Trump’s support? I have no idea. I don’t think anybody does.
    Not my first or probably second chouce, but I’ll vote for him with no hesitation. “Not Jababonk” carries a lot of weight this year.

  305. Even if Bernie threw in the towel today, that wouldn’t solve Biden’s main problem: his lack of support among “young” people (18-39) is staggering.
    And, yes, he cannot bank on them coming around in the end anyway – he actually needs to convince them, or they might, gasp, not vote for him.

  306. Even if Bernie threw in the towel today, that wouldn’t solve Biden’s main problem: his lack of support among “young” people (18-39) is staggering.
    And, yes, he cannot bank on them coming around in the end anyway – he actually needs to convince them, or they might, gasp, not vote for him.

  309. His name is not Trump, I’m good with it.
    russell, I suspect your standards are higher than that. For example, suppose the alternative was (God forbid!) Stephan Miller. At least as nasty, and less incompetent.
    Never say “It couldn’t be worse”. Because that seems to inspire the universe to prove you wrong.

  310. His name is not Trump, I’m good with it.
    russell, I suspect your standards are higher than that. For example, suppose the alternative was (God forbid!) Stephan Miller. At least as nasty, and less incompetent.
    Never say “It couldn’t be worse”. Because that seems to inspire the universe to prove you wrong.

  311. lj, nope. I got that video only after my post.
    That may drive some voters away, but I fully agree with him there. The situation looks to me like a deliberate provocation.
    What I referred to was Biden’s latest interview with Lawrence O’Donnell where he was explict about potentially vetoing Medicare for All.
    And he’s been on the recoed for years to be willing to ‘reform’ (=cut) ‘entitlements’ and appealing to the GOPsters on that potential ‘common ground’.
    Can’t we get Biden into a situation where he hits Moscow Mitch right into the face in front of the cameras? That would actually draw voters (and maybe even some Republicans).

  312. lj, nope. I got that video only after my post.
    That may drive some voters away, but I fully agree with him there. The situation looks to me like a deliberate provocation.
    What I referred to was Biden’s latest interview with Lawrence O’Donnell where he was explict about potentially vetoing Medicare for All.
    And he’s been on the recoed for years to be willing to ‘reform’ (=cut) ‘entitlements’ and appealing to the GOPsters on that potential ‘common ground’.
    Can’t we get Biden into a situation where he hits Moscow Mitch right into the face in front of the cameras? That would actually draw voters (and maybe even some Republicans).

  313. The guy who confronted Biden WAS and IS full of shit.
    He can take his gun nut vote and insert it up Trump’s butt in November.
    Biden let him have it in fucking English, which the jackass he was talking to probably believes should be mandated as the national language, capiche?
    Good for Biden.
    It’s really too bad Biden and Sanders don’t carry a gun to wave around in asshole pigfucker republican faces at opportune times like that one.
    I have no doubt there was some conservative fuck in that crowd carrying a concealed weapon and he fingered it when Biden spoke, thinking the worst.
    As for the youth vote, novakant, I’m not sure we know what’s what:
    https://www.lawyersgunsmoneyblog.com/2020/03/bernie-sanders-and-the-failure-of-the-youth-vote-strategy
    I also understand young blacks turned out for Biden in some of the southern states, but I believe very little.
    I voted for Warren in my primary, because I like a little hot mustard on my ham sandwich.
    Screw the ham sandwich, anyway. I’ll vote for a portrait of a crayon drawing of a sandwich over the fucking evil Coronavirus vectors now contaminating the White House.

  314. The guy who confronted Biden WAS and IS full of shit.
    He can take his gun nut vote and insert it up Trump’s butt in November.
    Biden let him have it in fucking English, which the jackass he was talking to probably believes should be mandated as the national language, capiche?
    Good for Biden.
    It’s really too bad Biden and Sanders don’t carry a gun to wave around in asshole pigfucker republican faces at opportune times like that one.
    I have no doubt there was some conservative fuck in that crowd carrying a concealed weapon and he fingered it when Biden spoke, thinking the worst.
    As for the youth vote, novakant, I’m not sure we know what’s what:
    https://www.lawyersgunsmoneyblog.com/2020/03/bernie-sanders-and-the-failure-of-the-youth-vote-strategy
    I also understand young blacks turned out for Biden in some of the southern states, but I believe very little.
    I voted for Warren in my primary, because I like a little hot mustard on my ham sandwich.
    Screw the ham sandwich, anyway. I’ll vote for a portrait of a crayon drawing of a sandwich over the fucking evil Coronavirus vectors now contaminating the White House.

  315. Thanks Hartmut, I googled for it, but didn’t find it, but I’m guessing it is this?
    https://www.commondreams.org/news/2020/03/10/hiding-behind-false-and-misleading-claims-biden-refuses-commit-signing-medicare-all
    I personally don’t think he would veto it if it came thru, I thnk he knows that if he said he were for it, he’d 1) get shit on because he shifted his position, 2)he’d have every Republican running on that against him, making it harder to tie Trump around their necks 3) and the chances of it getting through a Republican controlled Senate are less than zero. So it’s better to stick to his position as it defines him as different than Bernie, but I think it is assuming that this is a promise to veto when it is going to depend on lot on how it moves thru congress. I suppose in these times, that is a glass half full viewpoint…

  316. Thanks Hartmut, I googled for it, but didn’t find it, but I’m guessing it is this?
    https://www.commondreams.org/news/2020/03/10/hiding-behind-false-and-misleading-claims-biden-refuses-commit-signing-medicare-all
    I personally don’t think he would veto it if it came thru, I thnk he knows that if he said he were for it, he’d 1) get shit on because he shifted his position, 2)he’d have every Republican running on that against him, making it harder to tie Trump around their necks 3) and the chances of it getting through a Republican controlled Senate are less than zero. So it’s better to stick to his position as it defines him as different than Bernie, but I think it is assuming that this is a promise to veto when it is going to depend on lot on how it moves thru congress. I suppose in these times, that is a glass half full viewpoint…

  317. There is a world of difference between committing to pushing for MediCare for All, and being willing to sign such a bill if Congress, on its own, manages to pass one. That’s willing IF it doesn’t have too many poison pills embedded. In particular, it will be critical what kind of transition process is included. As so often with government programs, the devil is in the details.
    My sense is that Biden is closer to the latter than to flat out committed to veto any such bill — whether he feels moved to make an announcement to that effect or not.

  318. There is a world of difference between committing to pushing for MediCare for All, and being willing to sign such a bill if Congress, on its own, manages to pass one. That’s willing IF it doesn’t have too many poison pills embedded. In particular, it will be critical what kind of transition process is included. As so often with government programs, the devil is in the details.
    My sense is that Biden is closer to the latter than to flat out committed to veto any such bill — whether he feels moved to make an announcement to that effect or not.

  319. McConnell again pledged the other day to block everything and all proposed initiatives and judge nominations by a Democratic President in 2021, if in fact Trump leaves peaceably, which he will fucking not.
    That’s not what the Founders had in mind by checks and balances.
    Just as with McConnell’s pledge in 2009 to stymie all the nigger proposed and his blocking of fair hearings for Merrick Garland, it’s the overthrow of popular elected government … my vote.
    Kill the conservative movement.

  320. McConnell again pledged the other day to block everything and all proposed initiatives and judge nominations by a Democratic President in 2021, if in fact Trump leaves peaceably, which he will fucking not.
    That’s not what the Founders had in mind by checks and balances.
    Just as with McConnell’s pledge in 2009 to stymie all the nigger proposed and his blocking of fair hearings for Merrick Garland, it’s the overthrow of popular elected government … my vote.
    Kill the conservative movement.

  321. wj, even assuming you’re right about Biden’s actual position, the nuance is not going to get through to the voters. There is a huge difference in impression between ‘Biden conditionally supports M4A’ and (the message that will currently be received) ‘Biden says he may veto M4A’ (the ‘may’ will be read by many as ‘will’). And the appeal to bipartisanship with the current GOP is pure poison electorally (except in the eyes of the Beltway punditry).

  322. wj, even assuming you’re right about Biden’s actual position, the nuance is not going to get through to the voters. There is a huge difference in impression between ‘Biden conditionally supports M4A’ and (the message that will currently be received) ‘Biden says he may veto M4A’ (the ‘may’ will be read by many as ‘will’). And the appeal to bipartisanship with the current GOP is pure poison electorally (except in the eyes of the Beltway punditry).

  325. https://www.thedailybeast.com/most-americans-will-likely-be-exposed-to-coronavirus-republicans-told?via=newsletter&source=DDMorning
    If a single republican stands before a microphone and tell us that we are all in this together, fuck them, it’s too late for togetherness.
    Get the fuck away from me.
    STFU.
    I’m not in anything with them, unless it’s a shooting war.
    By way of rueful hilarity, Dreher does all but call Trump Christians “woke” and “politically correct”, which is you follow Dreher is something for which I don’t know the word for.
    https://www.theamericanconservative.com/dreher/christ-coronavirus/
    If Christ reappeared this minute, we’d quarantine him for two weeks before crucifying him again.
    Get a load of the preacher in the embedded video eating a bat along with quaffing a Corona.
    This morning, a headline somewhere among the stock market fluffer press, which is all of it, said “volatility” returned to the markets this morning.
    In other words (we’re going to need OTHER words soon, because the ones we have are no longer descriptive), when it drops 1000 points, it’s volatile, but if it goes UP 1000 points, THAT’s a respite from volatility, even though it dropped 1000 points the day before too.
    Americans are self-delusional happy talking bullshitters of the first water.
    It’s too late to muck out the stables where I keep my well-beaten horses.
    Better to nuke from space.

  326. https://www.thedailybeast.com/most-americans-will-likely-be-exposed-to-coronavirus-republicans-told?via=newsletter&source=DDMorning
    If a single republican stands before a microphone and tell us that we are all in this together, fuck them, it’s too late for togetherness.
    Get the fuck away from me.
    STFU.
    I’m not in anything with them, unless it’s a shooting war.
    By way of rueful hilarity, Dreher does all but call Trump Christians “woke” and “politically correct”, which is you follow Dreher is something for which I don’t know the word for.
    https://www.theamericanconservative.com/dreher/christ-coronavirus/
    If Christ reappeared this minute, we’d quarantine him for two weeks before crucifying him again.
    Get a load of the preacher in the embedded video eating a bat along with quaffing a Corona.
    This morning, a headline somewhere among the stock market fluffer press, which is all of it, said “volatility” returned to the markets this morning.
    In other words (we’re going to need OTHER words soon, because the ones we have are no longer descriptive), when it drops 1000 points, it’s volatile, but if it goes UP 1000 points, THAT’s a respite from volatility, even though it dropped 1000 points the day before too.
    Americans are self-delusional happy talking bullshitters of the first water.
    It’s too late to muck out the stables where I keep my well-beaten horses.
    Better to nuke from space.

  327. Sanders should stay in at least long enough to see how well Biden can handle one-on-one debate(s). Vetting, you know.

  328. Sanders should stay in at least long enough to see how well Biden can handle one-on-one debate(s). Vetting, you know.

  331. https://www.motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2020/03/trump-has-ordered-coronavirus-meetings-to-be-classified/
    Where are the right wing conservative republican militias with their military-grade weaponry to interdict this authoritarian gummint tyranny?
    No spotted owls, niggers, kikes, fags, feminazis, pinkos, commies, socialists, transgenders, libruls, teachers, bureaucrats, professors, wetbacks, immigrants, foreigners, redskins, confederate statue removers, BLMs, park rangers, retards, meth addicts to butcher and slaughter in the White House.
    Pussy subhuman vermin.

  332. https://www.motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2020/03/trump-has-ordered-coronavirus-meetings-to-be-classified/
    Where are the right wing conservative republican militias with their military-grade weaponry to interdict this authoritarian gummint tyranny?
    No spotted owls, niggers, kikes, fags, feminazis, pinkos, commies, socialists, transgenders, libruls, teachers, bureaucrats, professors, wetbacks, immigrants, foreigners, redskins, confederate statue removers, BLMs, park rangers, retards, meth addicts to butcher and slaughter in the White House.
    Pussy subhuman vermin.

  333. Trump resigning to let someone competent handle covid-19 is about as likely as Trump inventing a miracle cure for it. But I suppose it gave the author pleasure to write this fantasy.

  334. Trump resigning to let someone competent handle covid-19 is about as likely as Trump inventing a miracle cure for it. But I suppose it gave the author pleasure to write this fantasy.

  335. Pussy subhuman vermin.
    Perhaps the term you are after is “paper tiger”. Which would actually be a good thing, all things consdiered….

  336. Pussy subhuman vermin.
    Perhaps the term you are after is “paper tiger”. Which would actually be a good thing, all things consdiered….

  337. Trump, Nunes, Gaetz, Collins, Kudlow, Cruz, Gohmert, Schlapp, and assorted other fascists, key ones in the military, have already been immunized against the virus and are hoarding the secret vaccine from the population, the better to cancel the elections and seize absolute power and murder their enemies.
    You say it can’t be?
    How the fuck do you know?
    There is no truth and I’ve been right about the trajectory of conservative movement goals since way before Tacitus and Moe Lane studied their nails in feigned vermin conservative tiresomeness at Gary Farber’s relentless facticity.
    Whaddaya gonna do, conservatives, call the fucking gummint?
    To do what? Protect your diseased asses?
    Stay sharp. Razor sharp.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1DgUzddD-BA

  338. Trump, Nunes, Gaetz, Collins, Kudlow, Cruz, Gohmert, Schlapp, and assorted other fascists, key ones in the military, have already been immunized against the virus and are hoarding the secret vaccine from the population, the better to cancel the elections and seize absolute power and murder their enemies.
    You say it can’t be?
    How the fuck do you know?
    There is no truth and I’ve been right about the trajectory of conservative movement goals since way before Tacitus and Moe Lane studied their nails in feigned vermin conservative tiresomeness at Gary Farber’s relentless facticity.
    Whaddaya gonna do, conservatives, call the fucking gummint?
    To do what? Protect your diseased asses?
    Stay sharp. Razor sharp.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1DgUzddD-BA

  341. “paper tiger”
    No, I’ll stick with my terminology.
    Those filth would have to look up the meaning of “paper tiger”.
    Best to speak plain English.

  342. “paper tiger”
    No, I’ll stick with my terminology.
    Those filth would have to look up the meaning of “paper tiger”.
    Best to speak plain English.

  349. The similarities of Boeing’s grotesque, and ultimately murderous mismanagement of the 737 MAX design and manufacturing (bottom-line only loving MBAs ignoring and gagging the “elitists” among the Boeing engineers and scientists) and the subsequent lying, cheating, goddamned fucking cover up of all that went before could be characterized by historians looking back on the debacle of conservative business-profits-are-the-only-damn-thing-that-count and-God-agrees as one screaming canary in the coal mine that signaled how the same American vermin ilk would mismanage this current debacle.
    https://bigcharts.marketwatch.com/quickchart/quickchart.asp?symb=BA&insttype=Stock&freq=2&show=
    Beautiful two years long head and shoulder top on that stock chart and the carnage in it is nowhere near done.
    Extreme social distancing is in order for the cocksuckers who have done this to us for the past 45 years.
    We can save money by not holding trials and move directly to the firing squads.

  350. The similarities of Boeing’s grotesque, and ultimately murderous mismanagement of the 737 MAX design and manufacturing (bottom-line only loving MBAs ignoring and gagging the “elitists” among the Boeing engineers and scientists) and the subsequent lying, cheating, goddamned fucking cover up of all that went before could be characterized by historians looking back on the debacle of conservative business-profits-are-the-only-damn-thing-that-count and-God-agrees as one screaming canary in the coal mine that signaled how the same American vermin ilk would mismanage this current debacle.
    https://bigcharts.marketwatch.com/quickchart/quickchart.asp?symb=BA&insttype=Stock&freq=2&show=
    Beautiful two years long head and shoulder top on that stock chart and the carnage in it is nowhere near done.
    Extreme social distancing is in order for the cocksuckers who have done this to us for the past 45 years.
    We can save money by not holding trials and move directly to the firing squads.

  351. Trump saw this today and at his 8 pm shitfest tonight will order all American workplaces to duplicate ARAMCO’s treatment of their workers throughout this country.
    https://www.marketwatch.com/story/saudi-aramco-apologizes-after-being-called-out-for-utterly-shameful-and-inhumane-behavior-toward-worker-2020-03-11?siteid=bigcharts&dist=bigcharts
    To trump and conservatives, all of us are Khashoggi.
    To them, it’s just a matter of how to dispose of the hacked-up evidence.

  352. Trump saw this today and at his 8 pm shitfest tonight will order all American workplaces to duplicate ARAMCO’s treatment of their workers throughout this country.
    https://www.marketwatch.com/story/saudi-aramco-apologizes-after-being-called-out-for-utterly-shameful-and-inhumane-behavior-toward-worker-2020-03-11?siteid=bigcharts&dist=bigcharts
    To trump and conservatives, all of us are Khashoggi.
    To them, it’s just a matter of how to dispose of the hacked-up evidence.

  353. This is why I remain an active member in the Democratic Party and not a member of a pure sect of marxist-leninists meeting in somebody’s basement plotting the revolution. Baring some really big exogenous change, the pure Left will continue to be politically irrelevant in this country.
    Our job it to keep pushing the “middle” of the Democratic Party to the left.
    I know it’s thankless, and we have to put up with hippie punchers like Johnny Chait, but we simply have to endure and keep the pressure on.
    We need to make our politics the “center”. It can be done, especially by working hard at the state and local level.
    See ya’ in 2024. Good luck, Joe.

  354. This is why I remain an active member in the Democratic Party and not a member of a pure sect of marxist-leninists meeting in somebody’s basement plotting the revolution. Baring some really big exogenous change, the pure Left will continue to be politically irrelevant in this country.
    Our job it to keep pushing the “middle” of the Democratic Party to the left.
    I know it’s thankless, and we have to put up with hippie punchers like Johnny Chait, but we simply have to endure and keep the pressure on.
    We need to make our politics the “center”. It can be done, especially by working hard at the state and local level.
    See ya’ in 2024. Good luck, Joe.

  355. I’ve always wondered what the name of the official is?
    https://www.marketwatch.com/articles/dow-jones-industrial-average-enters-bear-market-territory-during-wednesday-trading-51583955108?siteid=bigcharts&dist=bigcharts
    Is it the same guy who said a month ago that the only direction was up?
    Probably the guy who was recommending screaming buy recommendations on $200 stocks with an upside price target of $150.
    When I saw that happening, I should have cashed in and moved to Tibet, but the stock market mob is the only crowd Americans think should be listened to, other than the God mob that invented the virus.

  356. I’ve always wondered what the name of the official is?
    https://www.marketwatch.com/articles/dow-jones-industrial-average-enters-bear-market-territory-during-wednesday-trading-51583955108?siteid=bigcharts&dist=bigcharts
    Is it the same guy who said a month ago that the only direction was up?
    Probably the guy who was recommending screaming buy recommendations on $200 stocks with an upside price target of $150.
    When I saw that happening, I should have cashed in and moved to Tibet, but the stock market mob is the only crowd Americans think should be listened to, other than the God mob that invented the virus.

  359. I should have cashed in and moved to Tibet
    Possibly a better choice than Xinjiang. But only because China has been hammering the Tibetans longer.
    If you really need somewhere remote to hide out, go for Patagonia. Better national government (no matter which side you go for) — not necessarily good, but definitely out of comparison better.

  360. I should have cashed in and moved to Tibet
    Possibly a better choice than Xinjiang. But only because China has been hammering the Tibetans longer.
    If you really need somewhere remote to hide out, go for Patagonia. Better national government (no matter which side you go for) — not necessarily good, but definitely out of comparison better.

  361. It’s going to be like in the old days of fake studio wrestling in Pittsburgh when there was an old lady with two teeth screaming for blood sitting next to a fat guy with a cigar on a bench next to the ring and behind them and to all sides was a chintzy painted backdrop of a huge crowd.
    Finally, we return to real fakeness, instead of the fake reality we have now.
    Them was the days, when America was great and you didn’t need a dumb expensive hat made in Wuhan to say so and you could count on the pure heartfelt inauthenticity of the bullshit coming your way, unlike now when the liars and cheats you pay $50 for a seat believe their own crap and call you unAmerican if don’t look askance.
    Am I repeating myself, or is America stocked to the gunwales with bullshit?
    Has Bannon flooded the zone so irrevocably with shit that the only thing for it is shoot him in the head and abandon ship.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_PKhxiL2yTc
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6s9x0rHmrzQ
    It doesn’t matter. They’ll kill anyone who speaks the truth:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37nkErzdTOA&t=8s

  362. It’s going to be like in the old days of fake studio wrestling in Pittsburgh when there was an old lady with two teeth screaming for blood sitting next to a fat guy with a cigar on a bench next to the ring and behind them and to all sides was a chintzy painted backdrop of a huge crowd.
    Finally, we return to real fakeness, instead of the fake reality we have now.
    Them was the days, when America was great and you didn’t need a dumb expensive hat made in Wuhan to say so and you could count on the pure heartfelt inauthenticity of the bullshit coming your way, unlike now when the liars and cheats you pay $50 for a seat believe their own crap and call you unAmerican if don’t look askance.
    Am I repeating myself, or is America stocked to the gunwales with bullshit?
    Has Bannon flooded the zone so irrevocably with shit that the only thing for it is shoot him in the head and abandon ship.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_PKhxiL2yTc
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6s9x0rHmrzQ
    It doesn’t matter. They’ll kill anyone who speaks the truth:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37nkErzdTOA&t=8s

  363. “Possibly a better choice than …”
    wj, you should start a soothing practical advice column for the lunatics in psych wards.

  364. “Possibly a better choice than …”
    wj, you should start a soothing practical advice column for the lunatics in psych wards.

  373. This brings to mind a scene from Smiley’s People.
    George is meeting with Karla’s daughter, the conversation turns to secrets, and she says “my secret is called ‘Tatiana.'”
    George: “Tatiana,” that’s a good name, “Tatiana.” How did you come by that?
    Alexandra: Oh, it’s forbidden to talk about it. If you talk about it nobody will believe you, but they put you in a clinic.
    George: But you are in a clinic already.

  374. This brings to mind a scene from Smiley’s People.
    George is meeting with Karla’s daughter, the conversation turns to secrets, and she says “my secret is called ‘Tatiana.'”
    George: “Tatiana,” that’s a good name, “Tatiana.” How did you come by that?
    Alexandra: Oh, it’s forbidden to talk about it. If you talk about it nobody will believe you, but they put you in a clinic.
    George: But you are in a clinic already.

  381. Please take a straight jacket and call me in the morning.
    I have to note that it is strait, not straight. We may be in the end times, but that’s no excuse for spelling mistakes.

  382. Please take a straight jacket and call me in the morning.
    I have to note that it is strait, not straight. We may be in the end times, but that’s no excuse for spelling mistakes.

  383. A priest, a minister, and a rabbit walk into a bar.
    Bartender: “What’s a rabbit doing with a priest and a minister?”
    Rabbit: “I think I’m a typo.”

  384. A priest, a minister, and a rabbit walk into a bar.
    Bartender: “What’s a rabbit doing with a priest and a minister?”
    Rabbit: “I think I’m a typo.”

  385. I meant the jackets straight republicans will wear in their caskets.
    Red, white, blue plaid with a gun bulge.
    Dreher mandates the jackets in the dress code for Benedict Option enclaves.

  386. I meant the jackets straight republicans will wear in their caskets.
    Red, white, blue plaid with a gun bulge.
    Dreher mandates the jackets in the dress code for Benedict Option enclaves.

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