"This was the voice of moderation until 13 Sept, 2025"
by JanieM From an article about the new head of the border patrol in Maine: New border patrol chief explains why he uses #BuildTheWall and what his plans are for Maine Jason Owens wants to increase transportation checks and the U.S. Border Patrol’s visibility in Maine and takes over amid a national debate on immigration. … Read more
by wj While we have (understandably) been focused on the tragedies of the past week here, interesting things have been happening in the rest of the world as well. In Russia, there continue to be protests in spite of heavy police actions against them. A case could be made that Putin is getting progressively more … Read more
by JanieM This thread is in memory of people who died of senseless gun violence. Anyone is welcome to add names and stories, whether from recent events or past years. Stories of the wounded are welcome as well; those people are going to have a hard road ahead. No politics, no policy discussion please. I … Read more
by JanieM A “disgruntled employee” killed two Walmart colleagues and wounded a responding police officer Tuesday in far northwest Mississippi, authorities said. RIP: Anthony Brown, of Olive Branch Brandon Gales, of Hernando Both men were managers at the store, family members said. ***** The Gilroy festival victims: Stephen Romero, 6, of San Jose Keyla Salazar, … Read more
by Ugh The latest language eruptions* from our Dear Leader have me wondering just how much more insane things will be a year from now when we are 3 months from the election. "None more insane" you might say, and be correct except for the ensuing 90 days. The good news doesn't stop there, as … Read more
by Doctor Science I was twelve. It was the day we arrived back to our house in Illinois after a year in Dijon, France, where my father had an exchange professorship. We rode down the familiar streets, but it was almost like a dream or a Twilight Zone episode, because there was almost zero traffic. … Read more
by Ugh Four score and seven years ago our [white] fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all [white] men are created equal. Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, … Read more
by Ugh Let's do this. For some reason the game is at 11am Eastern instead of 3pm like the semifinals, but whatever. Need to by me a Rapinoe jersey and walk around by the White House with it on if they win. Separately – go Coco! And really, All England Club, this "no middle Sunday … Read more
by Ugh So I've said before the nation rooting order for anyone watching the (male) World Cup should be: Your home country Any nation from Africa Any nation outside of South America & Europe Brazil….121,212,312. Germany (no offense Hartmut!) This gets more complicated for the Women's World Cup as the primary reason for rule 3 … Read more
by Ugh It's SCOTUS Armageddon this week, where we learn if we can keep it. Good on ya', CJ Roberts (probably the incorrect turn of phrase). USWNT won today, although likely didn't deserve it. Nevertheless, woo! I watched Brightburn and it needs a sequel (in fact the concurrent credits scenes are some of the most … Read more
by wj I have been reading, with some bemusement, the calls from several (most? all?) of the Democratic candidates for free college for all. I’m bemused because I just don’t see this as a Federal issue. An issue nationwide, to be sure, but that’s not really the same thing. Let me be clear, I absolutely … Read more
by JanieM I’m reading a book called “How to Do Nothing: Resisting the Attention Economy,” by Jenny Odell. Perhaps ironically, it was brought to my attention via the weekly email newsletter from hello hello books in Rockland, Maine, which is owned by one of our old babysitters. I’m only a little way into the book, … Read more
by Doctor Science The Scripps National Spelling Bee Thursday night ended in an 8-way tie, when the competition ran out of sufficiently challenging words. “We’re throwing the dictionary at you. And so far, you are showing this dictionary who is boss,” they told the contestants. The eight final-round words were: auslaut, erysipelas, bougainvillea, aiguillette, pendeloque, … Read more
by Ugh The GoT finale was okay and overly-criticized. Uber IPO: Ha ha (he says, as he needs to submit receipts for Ubers taken on his last work trip…). I still haven't seen Avengers: Endgame. I don't understand the group of lawyers (and others) who are dedicated to preserving/expanding/keeping the supremacy of the Executive/Presidential power. … Read more
by wj No, this is not about the contempt for others, or contempt for the law, that seem inherent in the personality of certain public figures. At least not directly. Rather, it is about Contempt of Congress and how it plays out. As you may be aware, the House Judiciary Committee is in the process … Read more
by wj My eye hit this article, and . . . words fail me. President Trump ordered major changes to U.S. asylum policies in a White House memo released Monday night, including measures that would charge fees to those applying for humanitarian refuge in the United States. How can anyone think that refugees and others … Read more
by Doctor Science There’s a lot of good stuff in The Retreat of the Elephants: An Environmental History of China by Mark Elvin, which I just finished reading, but I want to pull out one especially notable passage: Elvin’s translation of a first-hand description of a dragon. Part of the 1244 C.E. scroll Nine Dragons, … Read more
by liberal japonicus
The title is not a meditation on political systems and my opinions, it is a bit more literal. Where I’m at is South Korea, where I’ll be a for a year. So, below the fold, an open thread-y set of observations and unbridled speculation. For those who find some of this unbelievable, please ask probing questions and for those who have some experience in Korea, please chime in.
by wj Apologies all. I should have gotten this up before the release. But here it is now. (Feel free to repost your comments here.)
by Doctor Science Notre Dame de Paris, one of the greatest artworks and religious monuments of European culture, is in flames as I write. None of my words are adequate. In the first campaign of the web D&D series Critical Role, Percy (a human aristocrat and fighter) is asked by an elf how long he’ll … Read more
by wj There’s something to be said for us not losing track that there are great things happening in the world beyond politics. Like this one: Image of a Black Hole I admit that my first thought was :How can they take a picture of something that absorbs all light and reflects nothing?!?!?” But, of … Read more
by Ugh Poor now former DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen quit yesterday (or, rather, was shoved out the door) as it seems that, despite separating thousands of children from their parents at the border and then admitting it might take two years to reunite them all (which, really, if you were 2 when you were separated … Read more
by wj We are overdue for a new open thread. Unfortunately, inspiration is failing me this morning, so I’m going to fall back on something which is probably irrelevant to almost everyone else here: the California Department of Motor Vehicles. For those of you who are not aware, the DMV can be described (if ones … Read more
by liberal japonicus After the 17 0ct 2017 Las Vegas shooting, prompted by JanieM, I dropped in the comments to post the names of the victims and a link saying something about them. That finished up about a month later with this post collecting those names and links. I had briefly entertained the idea of … Read more
by Ugh Warning: some free form thoughts on online social media platforms, tax policy and tax avoidance. Individual countries around the world have begun enacting specialized tax regimes targeted at "digital" businesses. These include things like digital services taxes, digital advertising taxes, a tax on digital transactions, and various other taxes aimed at the usual … Read more
by russell They want all the cookies. They want to cut taxes, especially on the wealthy. And they want to either annihilate or privatize any and all outflows of public money to…. the public. Deficits don't matter, said Reagan, according to Cheney. But, actually they do matter. They give (R)'s their pretext for taking stuff … Read more
by russell "it was the fashion at the time". surely, seizing upon opportunities to point and laugh at the youngsters is among the foremost signs of incipient geezerhood. nonetheless, I am willing to say that I found this hilarious. now all of you fluffy-bearded, beanie-wearing, flannel-shirted lumberjack wanna-be's get offa my lawn! open thread y'all.
by russell The various controversies and plots and sub-plots and schemes and counter-schemes that seem to swarm around Donald Trump and his administration are, admittedly, hard to keep track of. So much winning! But there is a core issue that seems, to me, utterly unambiguous. And, it's also the issue that Trump himself and his … Read more
by wj I’d been thinking about a post on the topic. Both the more usual (relatively speaking) position on concerning blacks for slavery, and Senator Warren’s recent comment regarding Native Americans. Then 538 came along and gave me a hook to hang it on: https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/what-americans-think-about-reparations-and-other-race-related-questions/ The first, obvious, and generally ignored question is: who qualifies? … Read more
by liberal japonicus
Of course, right after Russell posts, I get an article that pushes me to post. Never fails.
We’ve never had a discussion about the whole kneeling during the anthem thing, partly because sports isn’t really a big thing here, in part because (I hope) the commentariat recognizes that it is a symbolic discussion that resists attempts at rational discussion. But the article above has me think of some of the functional reasons why this would start within football, and why it would happen at a basketball game at Ole Miss, as well as analyze some of my misconceptions. More after the break.
by russell This popped up on my FB feed, courtesy of a friend who is an architectural engineer. It's a breakdown of how land is used in the lower 48. I have no point to make about it, I just found it fascinating. Some interesting (to me, anyway) points: urban areas – 3.6% of land … Read more
by wj These musings about the American approach to security are not actually motivated by this week’s activities around Trump’s fantasy wall and its supporters. Although there are some obvious implications. Rather, they stem from the trip I took last week to Brussels. Specifically, about my observations concerning airport security in Europe, as opposed to … Read more
by JanieM The summer after my sophomore year in high school I bought the junior math textbook, taught myself Algebra II and Trig, and asked if I could take senior math that year. The principal – let’s call him Father S – was reluctant to allow it, but my math teacher, Mrs. W, was supportive. … Read more
by liberal japonicus Via this Vox article, an interesting New Yorker article about Dan Mallory. Wondering about the takeaway of the Vox article: does the personal deception done by Mallory stand as evidence of the rot in the publishing industry? Be interested to hear what everything thinks.
by JanieM Unlike Doctor Science, I’m not back from outer space. But here’s something to snack on. 1. Foreign Affairs has a series of essays responding to a Francis Fukuyama piece about identity politics. The Stacey Abrams essay includes this sentence: The marginalized did not create identity politics: their identities have been forced on them … Read more