A.M. Links: 3 Days Until Trump's Inauguration, Democrats Plan Boycott, Trump's Approval Ratings at Historic Low

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  Gage Skidmore

  New poll: Donald Trump will enter the White House with an approval rating of just 40 percent, an historic low among recent presidents.

• A group of House Democrats say they will boycott Donald Trump's inauguration this Friday.
• "Prime Minister Theresa May on Tuesday said the U.K. intends to leave the European Union's single market, delivering more clarity on her approach to Britain's future economic relationship with the bloc."
• "Chinese President Xi Jinping offered a vigorous defense of globalization and free trade in a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Tuesday, which underscored Beijing's desire to play a greater global role as the United States turns inward."
• Noor Salman, the widow of Orlando nightclub shooter Omar Mateen, has been arrested on federal charges including abetting her husband's material support of ISIS.
• A suspect has confessed to carrying out the New Year's Day attack on a nightclub in Istanbul, Turkey.

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Comments

[Fist of Etiquette]

Donald Trump will enter the White House with an approval rating of just 40 percent, an historic low among recent presidents.

Fake.

[DJF]

Nowhere to go but up, unless its down

[Juvenile Bluster]

Morning, Fist.

This weekend I was introduced to the absolute joy to read that is the official twitter account of the Socialist Party of Great Britain. Included are such gems as Venezuela, the USSR and Mao's China were capitalist countries and a true socialist country would have no leaders.

[Fist of Etiquette]

No one ever accused commies of understanding human nature.

[CatoTheChipper]

Au contraire. The commies understand the necessity of creating a new socialist man.

Libertarians and conservatives are content to accept human nature as it is.

[UnCivilServant]

When your plan includes the requirement of "change human nature" you might want to invest in a new plan.

[Bobarian (Would Chip Her)]

a true socialist country would have no leaders.

So... no people at all?

[Zero Sum Game]

So... no people at all?

Every time they get into power, that's exactly what happens to the population, so that seems to be the plan.

[Gadfly]

a true socialist country would have no leaders.

So, by their own admission, no one should ever vote for a socialist, as anyone who seeks office (ie leadership) under the socialist banner is not a true socialist. I think I'm fine with that.

[Rhywun]

Don't worry, they know what to do with those who won't change.

[Dog Star]

"Invest" You mean like "steal," right? Newspeak is hard to follow.

[Rufus The Monocled]

So now....they're anarchists?

I can't follow them anymore.

[American Memer]

One kid I went to high school with that had very left-wing politics said something along the lines of "I call myself an anarcho-socialist because I like how evil it sounds."

But yeah, very early communism was supposed to look less like Stalin, Mao, and Chavez and more like... the anti-Spirals? I dunno, I don't get those guys either.

[Citizen X]

Feudalism was supposed to lead to mercantilism, which created the conditions for capitalism. Capitalism would create vast amounts of wealth and technological innovation, which would be seized and redistributed fairly by a socialist state. Once that happened, the state was supposed to wither away into communism, leaving everybody free and equal and sharing all the wealth and technology.

What Marx got wrong is that socialist states fight very hard not to wither away, and when they do, they get replaced by, essentially, feudalism again.

[C. S. P. Schofield]

Marx constructed a 'theory" (read 'fever dream') based on the common misunderstanding of the theory of Evolution; that it is directional. In other worlds, he hijacked a theory that he didn't understand from Biology, and applied it to economics in order to make his bullshit 'scientific'. Marxism is utter hogwash. It has always been utter hogwash. It is an excuse for disaffected intellectuals who think they should be running things.

[Rufus The Monocled]

Pre-cursor to the climate change cult?!

[BigW]

Bingo!!!

If Communism/Socialism didn't require a strongman leader, the left wouldn't like it one bit...

[John Titor]

It's especially funny to see socialists who claim to want the Worker's Paradise, then turn around and be sycophants to statist leaders, because they validate exactly why the leaderless anarchist state won't happen.

[Not a True MJG]

What's strange is that, early on, Marx seemed to understand that the state was its own organization with its own interests that might be opposed to [insert class here]. I recall seeing a few passages of his where he says the state can be an enemy with anti-social goals, but he forgot all that and started seeing the state as a mere tool subject to deterministic forces of the era. When it comes time to wither away, it damn will wither away. History demands it!

[Dog Star]

"History demands it!?

And it's got an arc, dammit!

[Dog Star]

" --not-- ?

Dammit.

[KDN]

Marx always figured on a classless, anarchist society after the dictatorship of the proletariat had run its course. One problem is that those in charge of the dictatorship never want to create the conditions necessary for it to end since that would mean surrendering their own political power.

[John Titor]

End result of Marxism is supposed to be a wonderful anarchy where everyone's equal and everything's perfect. The super-statist system is actually supposed to be the mid-point where the wonderful state managers redistribute the wealth and make everyone equal, so there's no need for them anymore and they just disappear. So they can magically justify any horror of historical socialist countries as being "them doing it wrong" rather than recognizing their system grants a justification for tyranny and is antithetical to human nature. Of course, they also reject human nature and think we can be turned into their new Soviet Man, ignoring the fact that in order to do so would require a tyrannical imposition of new values (and it's not like it would work, anyway). At least Lenin recognized that the road to his Marxist utopia would be paved with bodies, modern socialists want to pretend that you can just convince people to reject human nature.

[Bill Dalasio]

Remember, Marx was a socialist before he was a Marxist. The entire scheme was a means of justifying the end result. As such, logic doesn't exactly have to enter into the equation.

[Chip Woodier]

Hmmm. One word comments on a cut-n-paste link is technically within the rules, but let's see what the judges say.

[Rich]

Totality of circumstances -- Approved.

[BigW]

Also acceptable would have been:

Sad!

[Fist of Etiquette]

Brevity is the soul of firsties.

[Rufus The Monocled]

Hello.

"New poll:"

Yeah, right.

/Wayne's World

[Brochetta's magic (((pants)))]

Mike Myers...just another awful thing that came from Canada.

[Rufus The Monocled]

/Austin Powers smile.

[Bobarian (Would Chip Her)]

To go with the Austin Powers teeth?

[John Titor]

Hey now, pre-Love Guru and Cat-In-The-Hat Mike Myers is fine, post-Mike Myers I totally understand.

[Not a True MJG]

An exception is made for the few minutes in Inglourious Basterds.

[Not a True MJG]

I agree.

Not.

[C. S. P. Schofield]

This Approval Rating business. Just why are we supposed to take it seriously? Who is taking the poll? The same bunch of nitwits who predicted a Hillary landslide? The media morons who could get a RISE in public confidence if they admitted they were Democrat partisans?

Why are we listening to these people?

[Zeb]

Why are we listening to these people?

I dunno. Entertainment, I guess.

[Drake]

It really is manufactured fake news. A survey of people willing to pick up a call on land-line telephone from an unknown number and talk to a stranger.

All Trump has done so far is pick Cabinet members. Since I think his picks are a vast improvement over the current losers and better than the political hacks a Rubio or Bush would have picked, my approval rating of Trump has gone up.

[BigW]

I'm sure the poll question is something like: "Trump is an awful horrible, no good, racist and sexist and if you approve of him then you are too. Do you approve of Donald Trump?"

[Fist of Etiquette]

A group of House Democrats say they will boycott Donald Trump's inauguration this Friday.

Okay.

[EDG reppin LBC]

Good for them. Get feisty. I like it.

[John DeWitt]

Rage is all the rage these days.

[UnCivilServant]

You seem to not be putting as much effort into your commenting these days.

Something the matter?

[Rich]

Right on! It's a free country!

[DJF]

I am boycotting this inauguration like I do every inauguration.

[Swiss Servator]

Indeed, I am continuing my personal streak of 0 for all of them.

[waffles]

I was planning on streaming it while spamming incendiary racism on YouTube.

[Princess Trigger]

I'm refusing to sing at this inauguration.
Or play the piano.
or attend.

NOW WHERE'S MY VIRTUE TROPHY?

[A Cynic's Guide to Zen]

It was inside you all along!

[UnCivilServant]

The surgeon says he's sorry though.

[The Fusionist]

You guys are always finishing each others' sentences, like Charles Darney and Sydney Carton.

[Chip Woodier]

Serves them right if Trump boycotts them right back.

[straffinrun]

"Not you. Not you. You're being rude."

[CatoTheChipper]

I boycott inaugurations when my candidate doesn't win. As a Libertarian, I don't plan on ever attending an inauguration.

[Bobarian (Would Chip Her)]

Sounds like a solid plan.

[The Last American Hero]

Several of those people aren't white. Does that make them racist? Because I'm pretty sure a Republican boycotting Obama's coronation ceremony would be called racist.

[Zeb]

Yeah, that'll show him.

[Mantis Toboggan, Jr.]

Donald Trump will enter the White House with an approval rating of just 40 percent, an historic low among recent presidents.

And he's going to get creamed on Election Day.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Not if Putin has anything to do with it.

[DJF]

I voted for Putin for President but all I got was Trump.

[straffinrun]

It's a bromance. Don't you mean if Putin has anything to do with it

[Fist of Etiquette]

Now I... I'm not sure.

[Rich]

"Illegitimate!"

[BigW]

I'm beginning to believe that the only day Trump could have won the election was Nov 8, 2016. I think he'd have lost on ANY other day. Or at least that's how the Dems are portraying it.....

[Fist of Etiquette]

...which underscored Beijing's desire to play a greater global role as the United States turns inward.

Someone's looking to make China great again.

[UnCivilServant]

tall order, it's been centuries.

[Bobarian (Would Chip Her)]

According to a movie commercial I saw this week-end, Matt Damon is going to fix that.

[R C Dean]

Who the fuck casts Matt Damon in a movie about historical China? I mean, its not like China doesn't have a huge movie industry of its own to pull actors from.

[bacon-magic]

Who? China.

[Gadfly]

Who? China.

To expand on this, one of the producers of the film is the China Film Group, a government owned company, and it's directed by a Chinese citizen. So I guess they chose a western actor in order to get the film to appeal to foreigners.

[Dick N. Bimbose (n?e Cooper)]

They apparently had Damon in mind during the development.

[Mickey Rat]

Historical is a relative term. The trailers seem to imply that the Great Wall was built to keep out a supernatural evil army, not slow the Mongols down.

[Ska]

If Tom Cruise could be a civil war vet samurai, Matt Damon can be a whatever the fuck Chinaman.

[Citizen X]

From the trailers, he looks like a Zerg-fighting... also, dude, "Chinaman" is not the preferred nomenclature. "Asian-American," please.

[Mantis Toboggan, Jr.]

China.

[Princess Trigger]

Lo Pan: Magic... The darkest magic. My soul swims in it... Scattered across time, trapped in the world of formlessness...

[Paulpemb]

"Chinese President Xi Jinping offered a vigorous defense of globalization and free trade in a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Tuesday"

I presume that Presiden Xi is going to demonstrate his newfound commitment to globalism and free trade by eliminating China's tariffs on imports from the U.S., right?

[Gadfly]

Non-western leaders for the most part seem to be smart enough to realize that western leaders put too much meaning on words and not enough on actions. I fully expect China's mercantilist economic policies to continue while they sing the praises of free trade on the world stage.

[Mantis Toboggan, Jr.]

A group of House Democrats say they will boycott Donald Trump's inauguration this Friday.

"It's a peaceful transition as long as no one actually dies."

[Drake]

They are in a weird place. The far left really seems to want violence. On the other hand, they have no actual capabilities to commit violence. It leaves them in a horrible quandary.

[Deven]

Eh. They do not have the ability to cause violence on a massive scale, as they'd be smacked down immediately.

At this point, I won't be surprised if they start using terrorist tactics. It is really kind of scary how enraged they actually are if you check out the comment sections of their favorite places.

[Number.6]

Let me point you toward recent Project Veritas footage.

[Not a True MJG]

Meh. Their presence is not needed. No one's presence is needed, other than Trump and Roberts. The whole thing could and should be done in a broom closet.

[Lord Humungus]

Are You Sure You're Not Racist?
"It's easy to point at a skinhead and call him a racist. It's harder to realize that you're one too"

Here is the grievous mistake I had made for the majority of my life: I assumed that racism is synonymous with bias. Yet you could take every white supremacist and ship him off to Mars and you'd still have racism in the world. That's because racism is systemic and institutional, but it is both perpetuated and dismantled in individual acts. Racism is the white lady standing in line at the bus stop who moves her purse to the opposite side when a black man comes to wait beside her. It's the fact that if you're black and convicted of a crime, justice may not be so just: although African Americans are not even 13% of the U.S. population they are 37% of those arrested for drug offenses; black drug defendants are 20% more likely to be sentenced to prison than white defendants. It's the realization that although people of color can likely name three shampoos that white people use, the reverse is rarely true.

It's easy to see the headwinds of racism ? the obstacles that make it harder for people of color to achieve success. It's more challenging to see the tailwinds of racism ? the ways that being white makes it easier to achieve success.

[Lord Humungus]

btw, not all skinheads are racist, so nice othering there

[BearOdinson]

THIS^ I shave my head, am a Germanic Neo-pagan. But my wife and kids are Jewish, and I don't give a rat's ass what color a person's skin is.

[Suthenboy]

"I shave my head"

I am imagining spectacular facial hair.

[thrakkorzog]

I started shaving my head back in college as a way to save money. And I immediately started getting more attention from the ladies. And it's one less hassle to deal with in the morning.

[bacon-magic]

With a Nordic axe that has been all gussied up. (Wish I had one...looks out window at fjord)

[R C Dean]

Euphemism recognized.

[A Cynic's Guide to Zen]

Jewish is an ethnicity? Good lord.

[MikeT1986]

I'm guessing Ashkenazi is probably more accurate, but most people have no idea what that is. Since jews tend to come from their own ethnolinguistic sub-groupings with different phenotypes and cultural history, yeah Ethnicity is a decent description in most cases.

[A Cynic's Guide to Zen]

This is why we have such a thing as "Islamophobia," in case you were curious.

[Dick N. Bimbose (n?e Cooper)]

Gettin' tribal!

[John Titor]

Bear doesn't have a problem with black people, but if you're a monk minding your own business he will steal your lunch money and crucifix. Then axe you in the head.

[Enough About Palin]

I often sport a shaved head in the summer, am Germanic, wear camo six-pocket army pants, Doc Martins and walk a purebred German Shepherd, yet my black neighbors don't believe I am racist. They even share their bbq with me. Yum!

[Dick N. Bimbose (n?e Cooper)]

You just appropriated some delicious culture.

[Juvenile Bluster]

Wasn't the original skinhead movement expressly anti-racist?

[Citizen X]

There's skinhead Neo-Nazis, and there's skinhead punks. The two groups may have some overlap but they are far from synonymous.

[straffinrun]

I just had lice. But I rolled with it and had my classmates draw a chalk swastika on my head.

[Michael]

No, it was just a cultural thing that grew out of another cultural thing - namely the mods in the sixties. A lot of the original skins in England were quite virulently racist against Pakistanis. The Nazi skins came to be later during the eighties which in turn spawned the opposition "anti-racist" variety.

[Lord Humungus]

Original skinheads were heavily into Jamaican ska.

And then later there were the trads (traditional) skins, the nazi skinheads, the RACs, and then even a communist offshoot. It's really complicated.

*I learned a lot of this from my punk rock days and talking to skinheads, who made good door security for shows.

[KDN]

Coincidentally, I jaunted through Wikipedia on this subject over the weekend and came to the conclusion that my personal style loosely aligns with the hard mod / trad skinhead. I'm not sure how I got there, but I'm not exactly concerned about it.

[Lord Humungus]

the ska era
Skinhead Moonstop

[l0b0t the deplorable]

Thank you so very much for this treat. I haven't listened to this in decades and now I've been able to spend a leisurely morning grooving to some great music.

[Number.6]

The UK skinhead tradition goes back before ska went mainstream, and fwiw, tended toward a kind of 'bonehead tribalism' that didn't care whether you were a "paki" or not - if you were a youth on their turf, you had to pay homage.

In practice (certainly in my part of South London) - it turned into an ideologically lazy, racist movement that suited the lifestyle of aimless mainly-white youth who had little to no expectation of advancement. Most of the skinheads I knew didn't seem to be particularly interested in music per se until the Sex Pistols surfaced, and they tended to be at best apathetic towards what was left of the parka-wearing Mods.

[Mickey Rat]

Do any of these groups have much in common besides shaving their heads?

[Number.6]

Well, they're all vilified in the media, there's that ....

[Azathoth!!]

a skinhead is a skinhead.

if it calls itself 'this or that kinda skinhead'--unless its a crew name-- it's not a skinhead. it's some useless bag of meat using the idea of skinheads to push it's own personal brand of political bullshit.

[Azathoth!!]

no.

It wasn't anything political

[EDG reppin LBC]

All the racist stuff she is citing is perpetrated by the government. Is she saying government is racist? That's racist!

[Chip Woodier]

Racism is only a problem when a government policy is involved.

[Not a True MJG]

The Nazis in Breaking Bad seemed to be the only people without shaved heads.

[Citizen X]

It's the realization that although people of color can likely name three shampoos that white people use, the reverse is rarely true.

Oh my god, the horror.

[Rich]

LOL

[Citizen X]

"Johnson & Johnson No More Tears! It's all i use!"

[lap83]

Jackson & Jefferson

[Bobarian (Would Chip Her)]

There May Be Tears?

[thrakkorzog]

Possibly evan a trail of them.

[Brochetta's magic (((pants)))]

Black people think white people all love mayonnaise and look like Ben Affleck from what I've experienced.

[Citizen X]

"Now. Who wants a glass of milk?"

[Ceci n'est pas un woodchipper]

...so when I ask for mayo when I get fries it's like a black person ordering fried chicken? Hmm.

[Dick N. Bimbose (n?e Cooper)]

God damn Camry drivers!

[UnCivilServant]

I can't name three "white" shampoos. I had to think to even remember the name on the bottle I currently own.

[Chip Woodier]

Do you ever accidentally buy "black" shampoo?

[UnCivilServant]

I don't even know what that means.

My educated guess was specifically branded formulations claiming to cater to the follicular needs of certain hair textures predominant in that ethnic group.

[bacon-magic]

Head & Shoulders
Suave
White Rain

[UnCivilServant]

Head & Shoulders

So Dandruff is a white ailment and other races can't benefit from selenium-based scalp medication?

[Number.6]

My office partner's black jacket demonstrates that even Jamaicans get dandruff. Wicked dandruff at that.

[Mr. Dyslexic]

Don't go getting all Ashee on us now.

[bacon-magic]

No, the shampoo is white. Or, if you're really racist, it refers to the privilege meter.

[CPRM]

We know Troy Polamalu steals Head & Shoulders from white guys. So not just white people get dandruff.

[R C Dean]

Mane & Tail.

Seriously. My niece, who has incredibly long, thick, wavy red hair, uses it.

[PBR Streetgang]

Each of these 3 could double as adult film titles.

[But Enough About Me]

I can't even name one shampoo *I* use. Oh wait, yes I can: "whatever's cheapest."

[Mantis Toboggan, Jr.]

I use Racist & Racist brand shampoo. Their slogan "A Little R & R Makes Life Better!" is what hooked me; what kept me was the pleasant aroma, the healthy scalp, and their commitment to ridding our great country of undesirable dirt people.

[Number.6]

Just the shampoo, or the hair straightener too?

[commodious]

It straightens, but only to the right.

[Dick N. Bimbose (n?e Cooper)]

I've been using FUCK WHITEY shampoo for years.

/self-loathing

[Jerryskids]

Here is the grievous mistake I had made for the majority of my life: I assumed that racism is synonymous with bias.

Maybe you should stop to consider that if you've been mistaken about this assumption all your life there might be other similar mistaken assumptions you've never thought to examine. For example, I'll bet you assume you're not an idiot, don't you? And yet, the idea that the statement "everyone is an x if the definition of x is sufficiently broad such that everyone is an x" is an eye-openingly brilliant flash of insight rather than a trivially true tautology is a warning sign of idiocy. Unfortunately, you have to not be an idiot to recognize the idiocy.

[American Memer]

And yet, the idea that the statement "everyone is an x if the definition of x is sufficiently broad such that everyone is an x" is an eye-openingly brilliant flash of insight rather than a trivially true tautology is a warning sign of idiocy.

I'm screwed.

[straffinrun]

My shampoo is called "Tautology." Rinse, lather, repeat.

[The Fusionist]

"if you've been mistaken about this assumption all your life there might be other similar mistaken assumptions you've never thought to examine. For example, I'll bet you assume you're not an idiot, don't you?"

Heh heh.

[Ceci n'est pas un woodchipper]

And yet she, a complete stranger, was able to name at least one thing I could not care less about. So really, we're not so different after all, and that's nice.

[The Fusionist]

We're not so different, you and I

[Zeb]

I can't even name the brand of shampoo that I use.

[commodious]

This sort of thing came up with an ex, although it started in the context of ethnic food aisles at the store and why shouldn't those products be sorted by category rather than bunched together? IOW oyster sauce and fish paste should be placed with condiments, the half-dozen or so egg noodle brands should be kept with the pastas, green chilis and jalapenos and hominy with the canned goods, etc. (I like that, here in the southwest at least, "ethnic" means either Mexican or the entirety of Asia.) I don't think she used the word racist to describe it, but I can imagine culinary segregation wasn't far from her lips.

And my thinking at the time was: who gives a fuck? There is no "white America" in the sense that we all share a cultural heritage or experience. "White America" is shorthand for "people we can't classify in another other way." And wouldn't you know it, that's most of the country. So you end up with ethnically neutral stores with layouts peddling to the lowest common denominator, e.g. people who want their breads in the bread aisle, jellies and jams together, their milk to be pasteurized and cheap, and yes, unusual "ethnic" products they use maybe once or twice a month put in aisles or stands where they're easy to find.

[UnCivilServant]

Funnily, the 'Ethnic' aisle at my local supermarket was replaced with an 'international' aisle that includes England and Germany. Sometimes I wonder if there's a difference between the sourkraut in the jar there, the cans in the canned food section and the bags in whichever aisle they're in.

[Number.6]

+1 StopAndShopism.

In my local store, they have 'English' and 'Irish' on distinct shelves. So, 'tea' can be found in 2 international sections, the expected location, and in the organic section.

[Citizen X]

The local Harris Teeter's Ethnic aisle has a Scottish section. Oddly, and perhaps fortunately, it's all candy.

[Number.6]

Just say no to Scotch Pies and deep fried Mars Bars (==Milky Way)

[SimonD]

Sometimes I wonder if there's a difference between the sourkraut in the jar there, the cans in the canned food section and the bags in whichever aisle they're in.

Besides the price? The 'international' stuff is likely imported.

Our store does the same thing. It even has a 'GASP' Jewish section (even though it doesn't explicitly call it Jewish. I think it uses the word 'Kosher'.

I would assume that ethnic foods are bunched together because they've done market research that indicates the customers like it that way.

[commodious]

(((International)))

[Zeb]

There is no "white America" in the sense that we all share a cultural heritage or experience.

And people who see everything through the lens of identity politics can't seem to comprehend this. There really is no white identity outside of the few actual "white nationalists" who also see everything in terms of identity politics.

[Gadfly]

And people who see everything through the lens of identity politics can't seem to comprehend this.

That's because they make the same error for other groups as well. From what I can tell "Asian America" is as heterogeneous as "white America" and "Latino America" has far less of a common identity than activists/media pretend.

[A Thinking Mind]

This. People make a big mistake when they lump Chinese Americans and Korean Americans into the same identity group. They don't lump each other into the same group with a shared worldview, they're very aware of the distinction. Individuals might have a lot of similar opinions, as is the same across any ethnic/social classes, but the groups are distinct.

[Dick N. Bimbose (n?e Cooper)]

Our ethnic foods aisles have BRITISH and GERMAN foods as well.

[Bobarian (Would Chip Her)]

As a skinhead, I save a lot of money on not using shampoo.

[John Titor]

If I can only name one shampoo, the one I use, does that make me racist against everyone?

[Bobarian (Would Chip Her)]

Sure, if you wanna blame the shampoo.

Whatever makes you feel better.

[John DeWitt]

Nothing says political unity like identity politics.

[Rufus The Monocled]

'I....just paid the black clerk...with two toonies and three loonies as opposed to a solid five dollar bill. I'm not sure, but blue may be racist and an insult to some sects of the black community. I wonder if I'm racist.'

[UnCivilServant]

Well, if Canukistanis didn't keep issuing coinage in place of proper bill demoniminations...

Seriously I prefer bills to coins. Coins are heavy, they refuse to remain sorted and they take more time and effort to work with. Bills are light, stay in the order I put them in and can sit in my pocket without causing problems.

[Rufus The Monocled]

Yeh but they're so awesome to slam down demanding stuff!

'PACK OF EX-LAX. NOW!" /slam.

[Volren]

I used to think this, but now anytime I go to the States I get annoyed by all the dollar bills stuffing my wallet. I'm used to only having denominations that can actually buy something in mine.

[UnCivilServant]

This is easily fixed by instead of handing over the smallest number of bills handing over the combination of bills that gets the simplest change back. ie, $12 for a $7 expense to get a 5 instead of three more ones. It's not that hard a habit. Easier than lugging unsorted coinage around.

[Number.6]

You'd better hope that the person running the cash register isn't a drooling imbecile then.

I gave up handing people 12.25 to pay for something costing 7.20 because *math is hard* - even with a cash register.

[UnCivilServant]

It must be our absurd minimum wage and poor job prospects putting overqualified people in cashiers positions around here...

[Number.6]

Interestingly, the most consistently bad cash register jockeys are the ones in places like Starbucks and The Gap. The kind that want to have a conversation with us about our latent bigotry.

Auntie Flo down at the A&P and Bill at Walgreen's tend to be much better.

[Gadfly]

You'd better hope that the person running the cash register isn't a drooling imbecile then.

I gave up handing people 12.25 to pay for something costing 7.20 because *math is hard* - even with a cash register.

Considering cash registers do the math for the cashiers, you must be running into quite the imbeciles if they can't comprehend that a change readout of $5.05 means one $5 bill and a nickel.

[Number.6]

Just handing them the money is what triggers them.

If they get past that point - i.e. they don't stare at the quarter and give it back to you *before* they enter 12.25 on the register - you sometimes get that eyebrows-raised "ah HAH!" moment.

[commodious]

There is something neat about plonking down a couple coins for your purchase.

[CPRM]

My brother once repaid me for a sword I had bought for him with a cloth bag filled with gold sacagea coins. Felt like a very medieval transaction.

[commodious]

A couple years ago I worked in a cash vault processing bulk commercial deposits, so tons of cash and coins. Our coin guys made decent cash finding silver, sometimes pretty rare old quarters and such. Then we had a guy who would come by and take our nominally worthless mutilated coin off our hands to look for rarities. All seems very dated in retrospect.

[BearOdinson]

Go on.......
/while sharpening axe

[Dick N. Bimbose (n?e Cooper)]

Gay.

[Rich]

Are You Sure You're Not Racist?

Decisiveness is RACIST!

[Free Society]

Racism is the white lady standing in line at the bus stop who moves her purse to the opposite side when a black man comes to wait beside her

That's just seeing patterns and rationally responding to those patterns. Right or wrong as she may be about the applicability of her response to said pattern.

It's the realization that although people of color can likely name three shampoos that white people use, the reverse is rarely true.

Uhhhhhhh what?

It's easy to see the headwinds of racism ? the obstacles that make it harder for people of color to achieve success.

So then the Democrat Party, welfare statism and the "people of color's" own culture are terribly racist.

[Zeb]

That's just seeing patterns and rationally responding to those patterns.

It's also something that she just made up. I bet the hypothetical lady at the busstop would be less likely to move her purse (or maybe she just moved it to be polite and not take up unnecessary space) if a black guy in business attire sat next to her. And probably would move it if a white dude dressed like a thug sat down.

[Free Society]

Exactly. There's more at play even in a dumb person's risk analysis, than just skin color. But you know, "white people are so racist" is much easier to write about and gets way more clicks.

[John Titor]

I tended to fill the 'white dude who looks like a criminal' quota for most of my early twenties. There was a pretty consistent response of people eyeing you suspiciously, moving bags, pretending you didn't exist on the bus so you wouldn't sit next to them. Now I dress better, stopped being a skinhead, shaved my facial hair and it's like night and freaking day.

[Zeb]

I bet you got followed around by store security and stuff like that as well. People look at young men of all races, especially those that look a little funny, with suspicion.

[CPRM]

I went into a Rolex store once in my late teens, with blue hair and baggy jeans. The employees were all eyeing me. I went up to the counter, no one came to help, until I put my hands on the counter revealing that I was wearing a Rolex (it was fake, but a good fake). Next thing I know the sales staff was very friendly to me.

[Suthenboy]

All _____ people are _____.

Fill in the blanks with any words of your choosing and it is still the definition of bigotry.

*Is that white lady going to move her purse so that the black man has more room on the bench to sit? Maybe she is just being polite.

Is she going to react the same to a early 20-something black man wearing sweat pants and a hoody pulled down over his face as she would to a middle aged black man wearing a nice suit?

Progs are so full of shit.

[UnCivilServant]

All _dead_ people are _quiet_.

...I'm an anti-deadite!

*sobs*

[Ceci n'est pas un woodchipper]

I wonder how many of these people make a point of sitting right next to young "urban" black men and leaving their purses in conspicuous places specifically to prove how not racist they are. Then I wonder how many of them cross the street when they see a bunch of young "urban" white men.

[commodious]

Young urban white men can be pretty intimidating.

[Bobarian (Would Chip Her)]

What about these guys?

[Dick N. Bimbose (n?e Cooper)]

All MY people are DOPE.

[Jerryskids]

Racism is the white lady standing in line at the bus stop who moves her purse to the opposite side when a black man comes to wait beside her.

No it isn't, fucko. Words have meanings, and "racism" is the belief in the innate superiority of one race over another.

What you just described is what we call "situational awareness". I'll bet you a fat dollar that white lady standing at the bus stop nervous about the black guy ain't a society matron in one of the better up-scale suburban neighborhoods of our fair country, she's a poor woman in a shitty urban neighborhood, a place where muggings and purse-snatchings aren't exactly uncommon. So maybe she's guilty of prejudice, but prejudice is a form of reasoning which allows human beings to anticipate rather than merely react. Prejudice may make you misjudge a situation, but it's better than having no judgment at all. As they say, it's good to be open-minded, but not so open-minded your brains fall out.

[Tyler.C]

It's funny how moving a purse is 'racist' but give l giving the guy watching his kids at the park dirty looks is not sexist.

[C. S. P. Schofield]

Racism is instinctual. It is the core "not part of the tribe" reaction that all social apes have built in. Calling it 'institutional' is an excuse to tear down institutions, which predictably won't help. they way to ameliorate racism is to de-emphasise color and ethnicity, finding ways to share social artifacts like music, celebration, and so forth. Make the 'foreign' part of the tribe. This, naturally, is what the Liberal Progressive Democrats do their level best to avoid with their identity politics and their '____ Studies' sources. They need to keep all the little minorities separate and dependent, because nobody confident of social acceptance is going to put up with their bushwa.

[Number.6]

So, your proposed antidote to racism just happens to be cultural appropriation?

You really are a cishetero shitlord, aren't you?

[John Titor]

Make the 'foreign' part of the tribe.

Or you're already part of the tribe, and just don't know it. I had a weird experience in university where I felt completely out of touch with the more wealthy and urban students I was going to school with, but openly associated myself with the Nigerian and Cameroonian immigrants I was working with in industrial environments. And it was entirely based on the fact that the students held values that I didn't or thought were just odd, while the immigrants I worked with shared similar values to me (on a side note, there was surprising amount of quasi-libertarian thought, because most of these guys were well aware that their governments were garbage and untrustworthy).

[commodious]

In other words you were appropriating those immigrants' poverty cultures and denying your privilege as a member of the wealthy white urbanites. Problematic!

[John Titor]

I was on a scholarship after living in a poor religious rural community where the cops were extremely corrupt and the local government entirely untrustworthy. I wonder why I felt a kinship to people from developing countries.

[Zeb]

Yeah, pretty much. Identity politics just serves to keep people divided into tribes, which only perpetuates racism. Making everything about race and looking for racism in every little thing that people do is counterproductive at best if what you want to do is eliminate racism.

[A Thinking Mind]

It does feel like the goal of Progressivism, doesn't it? It's like they woke up one day and noticed how far racial relations had progressed, and how African American culture had been assimilated into a broader culture, and started saying, "But wait, we need racial conflict! Why aren't you identifying according to your skin color?"

And then it started to become cultural appropriation to spend your money on hip hop albums or to wear your hair in cornrows or attend African Art exhibits. All of which does more to remind white people that they're white, even though many of us wouldn't automatically identify that way.

[Chipwooder]

She eagerly admits to reading things written by Melissa Harris-Perry, which automatically confirms that she's a dimwitted simpleton.

[R C Dean]

Racism is the white lady standing in line at the bus stop who moves her purse to the opposite side when a black man comes to wait beside her.

Assumes facts not in evidence, namely, what she does when a white man comes to wait beside her. Anecdotally, this is common behavior regardless of any pigmentation variations.

[Tyler.C]

Exactly, if anything it's sexism. But even then if call it prudence.

[Suell]

Racism is an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us and penetrates us; it binds the galaxy together." ? Old white dude in a robe

[BigW]

If the solution to "systemic racism" is "systemic racism" your philosophy might just be complete horseshit.

[Citizen X]

A group of House Democrats say they will boycott Donald Trump's inauguration this Friday.

Stay classy, Dems.

[Fist of Etiquette]

The icing on the cake would be if they attended some alternate, safe space event.

[Swiss Servator]

Nancy Pelosi in a corner in a bean bag chair with a coloring book.

[Citizen X]

That is the worst masturbation euphemisms i have ever read.

[Colossal Douchebag]

Kind of a giveaway with the bean bag chair in there

[CatoTheChipper]

If they were clever, the Dems would have scheduled an alternate, safe space event with lots of celebrities. They could sing "I Will Survive" and speechify about being the vilified minority between accusations of the Russians of hacking democracy and Trump's many real and imagined foibles.

CNN could provide beginning to end coverage. It would have been a ratings bonanza for CNN since it would attract the Trump haters who will either be tuning out on January 20 while they mourn the end of their Beloved Leader's reign or in the streets to protest the inauguration of the petulant fascist vulgarian. Trumpetistas, of course, will be tuned to FOX News.

As for myself, a particular song by The Who seems appropriate for January 20.

[Mantis Toboggan, Jr.]

This one?

[UnCivilServant]

Pinball Wizard?

[Number.6]

Nancy Pelosi as the Acid Queen.

Ugh.

John Podesta or Joe Biden as Uncle Ernie.

Totes.

[Jerryskids]

Meet the new boss, same as the old boss.

[Swiss Servator]

I would have changed that to "meet the new boss, as bad as the old boss" to encompass the many different ways they can suck.

[The Fusionist]

Meet the new boss, he'll find new and creative ways to be bad, compared to the boring badness of the old boss.

[thrakkorzog]

Another One Bites the Dust.

[Fist of Etiquette]

CNN is never not going to cover Trump. He's great television. And he just might slip up and say that one thing that will finally be his undoing!

[Fist of Etiquette]

A suspect has confessed to carrying out the New Year's Day attack on a nightclub in Istanbul, Turkey.

This is the first I'm hearing of any NYD nightclub atta- Oh, yes, forgot. Turkey.

[John DeWitt]

Attacks really don't count if they occur in in SW Asia. That's like following murders in Chicago or a team in baseball: just look at the aggregate to get an idea of what's going on.

[R C Dean]

A suspect has confessed to carrying out the New Year's Day attack on a nightclub in Istanbul, Turkey.

And promptly died of an undiagnosed heart condition?

[The Fusionist]

No, silly, shot trying to escape.

[The Fusionist]

Or maybe a hunger strike.

[Number.6]

'Fell sown the stairs while we were conducting him to his cell' was a common one I heard.

[Lord Humungus]

Jersey monitors threat from toxic sea lettuce fumes

Authorities in the Channel Islands are looking at ways to protect residents and visitors from toxic beach gases after the death of a jogger in France that has been linked to the fumes from rotting seaweed.

The government of Jersey said on Monday it was considering the installation of devices to check gas levels from deposits of sea lettuce. Warning signs could also be erected on affected coastlines to tell people of the potential danger posed by rotting green algae.

Jean-Ren? Auffray collapsed while jogging at a river estuary in Brittany, about 50 miles south-west of Jersey. French authorities concluded he died of a heart attack. But they are exploring the theory that he may have been overcome by sea lettuce fumes, following pressure from environment experts.

[Citizen X]

[Crusty walks along the beach, takes in a whiff of rotting sea-life]

"Whoo! Good morning, ladies!"

[UnCivilServant]

You know when I read "Jersey" and "Toxic Fumes" I assume the state that even New York can look down upon, not the channel island.

[Raven Nation]

What an atrocious piece of reporting: 1st paragraph, "after the death of a jogger in France that has been linked to the fumes" Third para, "French authorities concluded he died of a heart attack."

[Free Society]

French authorities concluded he died of a heart attack. But they are exploring the theory that he may have been overcome by sea lettuce fumes, following pressure from environment experts.

So he died of a heart attack then.

[Number.6]

So now, we have "environmental experts" declaring war on (presumably) free-range plants?

Maybe these sea lettuce are an invasive species or something.

[Free Society]

Yeah that is weird. If it really was the sea lettuce and if those plants are not "invasive", you'd think the environmental technocrats would be saying that the jogger got what he deserved.

[Rich]

[Infrastructure Eddie] Noel said it was unreasonable to connect Auffray's death with the sea lettuce at St Aubin's Bay and doing so could harm tourism on the island.

Eddie, the Voice or Reason.

[Rich]

*of*

*** gets coffee ***

[Rich]

She faces federal charges that include obstruction of justice and aiding and abetting her husband's material support to ISIS.

[Rufus The Monocled]

Wouldn't it be something if terrorist women were hot?

[Rich]

Well, they're hot shortly after the bomb goes off.

[A Cynic's Guide to Zen]

Nano-sexy.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Noor Salman, the widow of Orlando nightclub shooter Omar Mateen, has been arrested on federal charges including abetting her husband's material support of ISIS.

And for turning him gay.

[straffinrun]

Fishermen are arseholes

I used to trick animals on to sharpened hooks. Sometimes, I'd use two or three just to make sure they couldn't get away.

The hooks would cut their mouths open and, more often than you'd think, pierce them somewhere on the face, even in the eyes. I didn't even do it to eat. Like millions of others, I did it for "fun".

If I had done these things to a dog or a cat, people would want me in jail. But here I am, talking about fish. "Fish have no pain receptors", they say. "Don't worry, they're too stupid to understand."

[Grand Moff Serious Man]

I've never trusted that Gorton's fisherman.

[Rich]

LOL

[Citizen X]

He's not as much of a dick as the John West fisherman, at least.

[The Last American Hero]

I was hoping for a Primus link.

[Rufus The Monocled]

I never liked the look of Captain High Liner. The way he'd stare at me in the frozen aisle was discomforting.

[BearOdinson]

Have these morons ever seen a shark feeding frenzy? Or about orca pods playing with baby seals before eating them.

Fucking nature is a cold and heartless bitch.

[Swiss Servator]

"Nature red in tooth and claw"

[Suthenboy]

But Bear, man is not part of nature. Anything we do is unnatural.

[UnCivilServant]

Anything we do is unnatural

Like worrying about the fate of our food and how much pain it's in.

[Pope Jimbo]

I signed a buddy up for an "info packet" from the old PETA site fishinghurts.com as a joke. One of the things in the packet they sent him was a bumper sticker. He put it on his tackle box.

[Pope Jimbo]

Most of the time people laugh at the sticker. I have personally seen him get in trouble with liberals for it though. My friend and I have fished at the Stone Arch Bridge in Mpls for years. When we first started it was an abandoned railway bed and the river was pretty wild. Since then it has been cleaned up a lot and the bridge was opened as a pedestrian bridge. The result is that a private fishing spot is now somewhere you get an audience when you fish.

We still go there a few times a year because it is a great place to bring kids. Lots of places to run around on shore and lots of carp to catch. The kids also love catching fish while a bunch of people watch from the bridge above.

After one of these afternoons we were walking up the stairs to where we park and some people came over to talk to us about the carp we had been catching (we throw them back). Most people were great, but one couple wanted to tell us that they thought that the way the boys would throw the fish as far as they could was just mean and we should teach them to gently release them in the water. Then they noticed my buddy's "Fishing Hurts" sticker on his tackle box and got really mad. They said it was proof that we were just cruel bastards who didn't care about the fish.

The kids got an extra lesson that day. The lesson on how it is perfectly fine to abandon Minnesoda Nice and tell busy bodies to fuck off. That there is no need to remain polite or choose your words with care.

[straffinrun]

You should change it to Phishing hurts with a pic of Podesta on it.

[Swiss Servator]

*loud applause*

[R C Dean]

Meh. Treble hooks are for the weak.

[Grand Moff Serious Man]

Donald Trump will enter the White House with an approval rating of just 40 percent, an historic low among recent presidents.

And yet according to another poll a majority of Americans think he'll do a good job on the economy and national security.

It's almost like these polls exists solely to give journalists, bloggers and pundits writing material and don't actually mean anything.

[DJF]

Shhhhhhh. That is suppose to be a secret.

[straffinrun]

"40 approval"? "Compared to ...." was not included in the question I'm guessing.

[Lord Humungus]

'As many sexual partners as they can get': Dating apps fuelling rise in casual sex

Dr Wendell Rosevear, a long-time sexual health campaigner, told news.com.au people have seized on internet dating, and dating apps such as Tinder and Grindr, to have frequent, often anonymous encounters.

He said the behaviour is borne, ironically, from increasing social isolation.

Far from the obvious assumption that people having sex with multiple partners each day were sex workers, Dr Rosevear said most were 'regular' men and women, who are isolated at home and use the internet to arrange multiple sexual encounters to fill the void of intimacy that their lack of social interactions created.

[Grand Moff Serious Man]

Dr Rosevear said most were 'regular' men and women, who are isolated at home and use the internet to arrange multiple sexual encounters to fill the void of intimacy that their lack of social interactions created.

Or maybe college aged young adults have seized upon a cheaper, more efficient way of having casual sex than going to the bar or club.

In any case I think it's bad to group Tindr with Grindr since gay men have entirely different prospects of success than hetero men.

[Kurmudgeonly Kristen]

I think Dr. Wendell, and his disco shirt, is projecting. Women who have one iota of a sense of personal safety don't meet-n-fuck like that. There is always a public get-to-know-you first. And literally he doesn't present any data. I bet he just went on Tinder and counted the number of people who had "casual sex" listed as a possibility on the profile.

[Grand Moff Serious Man]

You mean life isn't a Cinemax late nigh movie?

[DrZaius]

But no (real) girls have "casual sex" listed on their profile. In fact, "no hookups" is the common thing they seem to scream from the hilltops. That and they just love to fucking travel and are fluent in sarcasm. And love dogs.

[Lord Humungus]

You know who else loved to travel... and dogs...

[Chip Woodier]

Jack London?

[Swiss Servator]

Nice.

[commodious]

Richard Adams?

[Citizen X]

Gary Paulsen?

[Number.6]

James Herriot?

[The Fusionist]

Eskimos?

[Monty Crisco]

Nailed it. Especially the fucking travel. I always hear a voice in my head as I read those profiles , "I'm looking for a man to PAY for my travel...."

I guess I'm a cynic....

[DrZaius]

There's at least one self aware girl out there because her profile said "oh, you like to travel? Of course you like to travel, it's called vacation". And you at most get three weeks a year for that if you're not old maid hag age yet. And where the hell do you get the money to travel unless you are totally ignoring savings. I know how much a week of skiing costs.

And knowing what I know about myself and friends where the hell are people even finding the time to come up with these ridiculous lists of things they do? Your life most likely involves waking up, getting ready for work, going to work, coming home from work, vegging out, pretending you'll start eating salad tomorrow, and sleeping. Add of course, walking the stupid fucking dog you love.

[Michael]

+1 Oxford comma

[waffles]

I tried Grindr but it was a total sausage-fest.

[Swiss Servator]

*narrows gaze*

[Monty Crisco]

lmfao......

Actually, I have a friend who is on grindr and his social schedule has picked up so much that he's hardly able to sit down!

/hat tip to Jimmy Carr

[commodious]

+1 hooting overlong pedo laugh

[Rich]

a long-time sexual health campaigner

Shouldn't that be in quotes?

[Monty Crisco]

Should we trash cash?

http://hotair.com/headlines/ar.....rash-cash/

I will say this about reason?. It has REALLY made me more of a skeptic than I would have been otherwise, and a big part of that is the commentariat.

Also, I hated the MSM for a while since the inception of my "awakening" but assholes like the statist that wrote this article are a big reason while Trump will win a second term?

After writing approvingly of Modi further paupering his people that had done nothing more than conduct transactions in cash, he writes:

Where is all this money? The short and very disconcerting answer is that, in Rogoff's words, "treasuries and central banks simply do not know" where this money is.

OMG!!! THEY DON'T KNOW!!! SOMETHING HAS ESCAPED THE PANOPTICON OF THE GOVERNMENTS OF THE WORLD!!!!

Just the assumption that the governments should have total control of our money makes me want to vomit?

[waffles]

Bitcoin is still alive and doing things.

[Raven Nation]

I'm sure part of it is not just control for control's sake but also, "if we could track ALL the money, our predictions would be correct."

[Free Society]

I say let them ban cash. And then watch as fiat currency loses all of it's remaining appeal to businesses that will start to prefer crypto-currencies and hard currencies to the now less convenient fiat money.

[Suthenboy]

"treasuries and central banks simply do not know" where this money is."

Uh huh. I can take a guess.

[R C Dean]

Sure they do.

Its in the possession of private citizens.

[Bobarian (Would Chip Her)]

And that just drives them nuts.

[Rhywun]

It is eye-opening to realize that nearly every single thing the government says is a complete lie, nearly everything they do is unconstitutional and a complete failure even at its stated goals, etc etc. When you start with that assumption, a lot of things start making sense.

[Colossal Douchebag]

You should have started listening to George Carlin sooner.

[Mainer2]

Using the word "wonkish" = instant loss of credibility.

[Shirley Knott]

It's a sad commentary that in 2017 the Chinese President is more in favor of free markets and globalization than the presidents or prime ministers of any of the 'Western nations'.

[UnCivilServant]

"Free Market" and "Globalization" are not synonyms. He can start his "Free Market" urges at home, no one's stopping him (over here)

[John DeWitt]

"Western Nations"...finally, someone is calling them out. How can there be a "western" area on a fucking sphere? There's always something else to the west...

[The Last American Hero]

So there's no Peak Oil and no Peak Food and now you're telling me if I go to Hawaii I'm not getting close to Peak West?

[thrakkorzog]

Do you see my hat? What kind of hat is it?

[Rhywun]

I would take anything the Chinese president says with a mountain-sized grain of salt.

[Mainer2]

Shirley you can't be serious.

[John Titor]

I wouldn't put a lot of trust in Xi Jinping, this is the guy who's 'anti-corruption' campaign is actually a way to target all his political opponents (who are admittedly corrupt, but it's not like he's targeting friendly, corrupt CCP members). Jinping will do anything to solidify China's legitimacy on the world stage, especially since people are calling out China as a currency manipulator more and more lately.

[Suell]

He actually said he was a big fan of flea markets.

[ant1sthenes]

Commies have always been in favor of globalization. And free trade is not the same as free markets, more the opposite.

[Lord Humungus]

'Compelling' video of 'bigfoot family' at Yellowstone divides web

A so-called "bigfoot family" has been caught on camera walking around Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming.

The footage, which was filmed on Christmas Day, is a cellphone recording of a live camera feed near the Old Faithful geyser at the famous park, resulting in some very pixelated footage.

Although the video begins with two of the mysterious figures sitting down, they're then joined by four others.

"My biggest fear is that because of the poor quality nobody will watch it or think it could be important," YouTuber Bahinko wrote in the video's description.

"Sure the video is awful and blurry but look at it a couple of times and you realize it is still good enough to make out what is happening. You can see them interacting with each other using hand gestures pointing out things in the distance and even patting one another on the back."

[Brochetta's magic (((pants)))]

With all the technology today, it's odd how everyone who takes a picture of some crypto beast ends up with the worst possible quality.

[DJF]

The same with UFO's

[????? ????]

A clear picture of a crypto beast

[Swiss Servator]

STEVE SMITH TRY TO TAKE FAMILY ON VACATION AND CANNOT GET ONE MOMENT REST. GO RAPE CAMERA PEOPLE NOW.

[Pope Jimbo]

STEVE DOESN'T GET A MOMENT'S REST BECAUSE HE EXPLODES EVERY 44 MINUTES!

[Bobarian (Would Chip Her)]

OLDE FAITHFUL!

[Suthenboy]

"very pixelated footage"

It's not the camera. When are people going to realize that we cant get clear images of bigfoot because bigfoot is the one that is blurry?

[thrakkorzog]

Been listening to Mitch Hedburg recently?

[commodious]

It's disgusting the way we other and exoticize Hirsute-Americans.

[Dick N. Bimbose (n?e Cooper)]

It's not the photographer's fault!

[Brochetta's magic (((pants)))]

Obama more than doubled the debt, Reason.

[Juvenile Bluster]

Given that they posted an article saying exactly that an hour and a half ago, is there something I'm not getting here?

[Brochetta's magic (((pants)))]

Reason stated that debt has "nearly" doubled. No. It's more than doubled. It stands at nearly $20 trillion today.

[DJF]

Don't worry, Trump has lots of experience with bankrupsy

[The Last American Hero]

How you rack up more debt in 8 years than we did in the previous 225 and get any sort of kudos on the economy is a mystery to me.

[A Cynic's Guide to Zen]

Racist.

[Bee Tagger]

A group of House Democrats say they will boycott Donald Trump's inauguration this Friday.

I should start calling it a boycott anytime i decide to not do something I don't want to do. Sounds much nobler.

[EDG reppin LBC]

I boycotted taking a shower on Sunday.

[Lord Humungus]

You mean fat...

Study uncovers hidden epidemic of eating disorders in middle-aged women

Tens of thousands of middle aged women are suffering from eating disorders in a hidden crisis brought on by divorce, financial problems and bereavement in mid-life, new figures suggest.

It was traditionally thought that eating disorders were most common among the young, but new research from University College London suggests around three per cent of women in their 40s and 50s have a recent eating problem.

In contrast, around one in 100 women between 15 and 30 have been diagnosed with an eating condition, such as anorexia, bulimia or binge eating, although many more may be suffering in silence.

[DJF]

Ok, I believed everything up to thispoint "more may be suffering in silence"

[Monty Crisco]

IT'S A PUBLIC HEALTH CRISIS!!! IT'S AT EPIDEMIC LEVELS!!! LEGISLATION IS NEEDED!!! GIVE UP YOUR FREEDOM FOR A MADE UP CRISIS!!!

[Suthenboy]

Didn't some totalitarian puke in England recently suggest that this crisis demands that the UK start rationing food?

[The Last American Hero]

Of course they are silent, it's hard to talk with your mouth stuffed with food.

[Free Society]

although many more may be suffering in silence.

*sheds single tear*

[Suthenboy]

Hidden?

I don't think Sarah gets out much.

[Bee Tagger]

New poll: Donald Trump will enter the White House with an approval rating of just 40 percent, an historic low among recent presidents.

What's the approval rating for using an historic?

[Rich]

"It's got a fucking *H*!"

/Eddie Izzard

[John DeWitt]

But do you have a flag?

[UnCivilServant]

I disapprove.

[Citizen X]

Surprise, surprise.

[Mantis Toboggan, Jr.]

But "ahistoric" is a word. If the article "a" is used instead of "an", it leads to confusion when spoken aloud.

That's the best argument for "an" that I can see.

[American Memer]

I think it's actually an accent-related thing. If you pronounce it 'istoric then an historic is pretty logical.

However, if you come from a place that knows how to speak English...

[Zero Sum Game]

I wonder how people with those accents laugh.

Hahaha!

So, for them it has to be:

ah-ah-ah!

Fucking vampires. I bet they're just sitting around counting stuff too.

[Mainer2]

Vun!....vun bat in the belfry.
Two!...two bats in the belfry.

ah-ah-ah (thunderclap)

[Not a True MJG]

I pronounce it an his-toric. Because it sounds sophisticated.

[Rich]

Trump will enter the White House with an approval rating of just 40 percent, an historic low among recent presidents.

You say that like it's a *bad* thing.

[Lord Humungus]

'Never Trump' national-security Republicans fear they have been blacklisted

They are some of the biggest names in the Republican national security firmament, veterans of past GOP administrations who say, if called upon by President-elect Donald Trump, they stand ready to serve their country again.

But their phones aren't ringing. Their entreaties to Trump Tower in New York have mostly gone unanswered. In Trump world, these establishment all-stars say they are "PNG" ? personae non gratae.

Their transgression was signing one or both of two public "Never Trump" letters during the campaign, declaring they would not vote for Trump and calling his candidacy a danger to the nation.

One letter, with 122 names, was published by War on the Rocks, a website devoted to national security commentary, during the primary season in March. The other, with 50 names, including some repeat signatories, was published by the New York Times during the general-election campaign in August.

[Brochetta's magic (((pants)))]

All-stars? What planet do these people live on where the last 16+ years of American foreign policy has been anything but a disaster?

[DJF]

Heh, heh, heh, they got paid so it was not a total disaster to them.

[John DeWitt]

But it could have been so much worse.

[CatoTheChipper]

disaster = dis + astro = ill-starred http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=disaster

Obviously, "all-starred" a typo that should have read "ill-starred."

[Number.6]

They use the same people to proofread that the Daily Mail does.

[BearOdinson]

I love it. The WaPo complaining that warhawk and national security state Republicans are being "blacklisted" by Trump.

The DERP! It BURNS!

[Mickey Rat]

They are not part of the faction WaPo normally favors , but they are still Top Men of the sort who should run our affairs. Sidelining them is as painful as keeping Romo on the bench.

[Steve G]

Open letters have consequences

[thrakkorzog]

I have a personal policy to never talk trash about a friend's ex. Because what always happened was that once someone broke up I would say, "Oh thank God,that person was such an asshole. You're so much better off without them."

Then a month later they would start dating their Ex again, and I was the one looking like an asshole for talking trash about their significant other.

So I learned to just keep my mouth shut. I would think our best and brightest might have figured out something similar about trash talking their possible future boss.

[Number.6]

It's disturbing that you think that these people are capable of probity, introspection and forethought.

[The Fusionist]

But their phones aren't ringing.

so sad

[Mickey Rat]

They took a stand and it did not work out for the side they favored. Accept the snubbing as a badge of honor and shut up about it.

[one true athena]

I do love the use of "entreaties". It makes it sound like they're all gathered on the sidewalk outside, like some sort of extra pathetic paparazzi.

[Rufus The Monocled]

THREE DAYS TO INSULAR ARMAGEDDON!

CLIMATE CHANGE WILL CHANGE HARD AND WORSE!

[waffles]

That just means Canadian spring will arrive in April instead of May.

[Citizen X]

Canadian spring is the last three days that the pond is frozen solid enough to play hockey on.

[But Enough About Me]

I could live with that. Bring it.

[Bee Tagger]

Chinese President Xi Jinping offered a vigorous defense of globalization and free trade in a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Tuesday,

Yeah, we'll sea how much that's worth.

[Swiss Servator]

I do believe I have spotted something that was done.

[Lord Humungus]

Gambler Phil Ivey Can't Get His Millions Because Casinos Are Too Big To Fail

Phil Ivey, a professional poker player who has won several major tournaments, has in the last few years turned his attention to baccarat. He has been wildly successful, winning $9.6 million from casinos in 2012.

It's somewhat surprising that he could make the transition from one game to the other, but a professional gambler being good at gambling is not the craziest idea. Where the story gets twisted is when casinos, most prominently the Borgata in Atlantic City, refused to give Ivey what he had won. Instead of paying him, they sued him.

[BearOdinson]

It was better when the mob openly ran the casinos.

I read the article, and the fact that the judge agreed with the casino is demonstrative of the rigged game (no pun intended) that is gambling in New Jersey.

[Monty Crisco]

Yeah, the guy WHO IS A WELL KNOWN PROFESSIONAL GAMBLER offered a set of terms to the casino, they took him up on it and signed a contract and then just.....decided to renege on it....And the judge said it was okay...

Hmmmmm.......

[Rhywun]

It was better when the mob openly ran the casinos.

They knew how to take care of cheaters.

[Greg Loves His Woodchipper]

Kenny Uston has been dead for almost 30 years and Atlantic City is still fucking gamblers over. I'm not surprised, but it's a little disappointing.

[DJF]

Casinos are in the business of making money not losing money. If you win money then you are not following their business model.

[Steve G]

Is it even the house's money?

[Suthenboy]

My grandfather on casinos : "If you had a chance of winning they wouldn't be there."

[Lachowsky]

If you want to see what a building where money is handed out, go to your local welfare office.

[KDN]

This isn't the first time Ivey's done this scheme, for lack of a better word, and it's not the first time the casino has refused to pay on the grounds that he cheated the house. The casinos liken it to card counting, and I don't really disagree (whether that should be considered cheating is a different matter entirely, but it is considered cheating).

[Bobarian (Would Chip Her)]

Card counting isn't really cheating, but casinos can and will kick you out for doing it.

Ivey was cheating. Being able to 'read' the back of the cards removes the gambling aspect. Fuck him.

[thrakkorzog]

The casino screwed up.

If I'm at the craps table and figure out out the dice are weighted to roll fours then I am going to start betting accordingly. And it's on the casino to make sure that isn't an option.

[KDN]

Yeah, that sums up my feeling. Especially when it's Phil Ivey, a famous gambler who has cheated before in this exact way.

Protip: if Phil Ivey comes to your casino demanding to play baccarat with a specific deck, don't fucking let him.

[Mickey Rat]

It was a marked deck. He was clever in getting the casino staff to be his accomplices in creating a marked deck without him having to do so much as touch the cards, but he was cheating.

[Number.6]

It was always my understanding that a casino could call for a deck change whenever it pleased. So, if monitoring identified there was *something* fishy going on, they should have been able to change dealer and deck within a hand or two.

[Rufus The Monocled]

"Chinese President Xi Jinping offered a vigorous defense of globalization and free trade in a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Tuesday, which underscored Beijing's desire to play a greater global role as the United States turns inward."

That's, erm, quite a bit of projection and a lack of self-awareness right there.

[Rufus The Monocled]

"Noor Salman, the widow of Orlando nightclub shooter Omar Mateen, has been arrested on federal charges including abetting her husband's material support of ISIS."

Did Newman answer the door?

[Grand Moff Serious Man]

"What took you so long?"

A line that was, I believe, said by David Berkowitz when they finally came to arrest him.

[Rich]

"I have a dream."

[Rufus The Monocled]

'I had a dream and it was a dog gone good one! It came to life and I made it happen! I did it all. I saved it all! I have another dream'.

/Obama.

[Dick N. Bimbose (n?e Cooper)]

MLK's speech had a rather bizarre first draft.

[The Late P Brooks]

New poll: Donald Trump will enter the White House with an approval rating of just 40 percent, an historic low among recent presidents.

Grounds for impeachment!

[John DeWitt]

Somebody took the 4-1.

[Lord Humungus]

Kevin Williamson: The Worst Perversion

Yes, there were Obama-administration scandals. Many, in fact.

Under the Obama administration's watch, the Internal Revenue Service and other federal agencies from the BATF to the NLRB were illegally used to target and harass the president's political enemies. The IRS targeting scandal was the most high-profile of these, but others are just as worrisome. Federal investigations and congressional oversight were obstructed, and investigators were lied to outright ? a serious crime. The administration protected the wrongdoers and saw to it that they retired with generous federal pensions rather than serving federal sentences for their crimes.

The Obama administration oversaw the illegal sale of arms to Mexican traffickers for purposes that to this date have not been adequately explained, and those guns have been used to murder American law-enforcement officers.

more in ze link

[Brochetta's magic (((pants)))]

I, for one, look forward to the days when a President using an embassy in one country he illegally intervened in to illegally ship arms to another country he is illegally intervening gets an American ambassador killed is a scandal again.

[John DeWitt]

Well, happy days are here again. TEAM RED is in office now, so those are all qualified scandals again.

[Swiss Servator]

EVERYTHING will be a scandal.

[Paulpemb]

Our scandals will be the biggest, most luxurious scandals you've ever seen. You've never seen scandals like the ones we're going to have.

[The Last American Hero]

Reagan died, dude. And he ain't comin' back.

[Swiss Servator]

*quietly shelves Zombie Creation Handbook*

[commodious]

Nixon's shocking personal perversion was his taste for cottage cheese with ketchup.

WTF?

[Number.6]

I could forgive him the Watergate break-in and cover-up, but this is just too much.

THE MAN WAS A MONSTER!

[commodious]

I will admit one thing: I have eaten cottage cheese with dill pickles. But ketchup and cottage cheese is just too close to the ketchup and egg poverty sandwiches mom used to make us, and the thought still makes me gag. Even though ketchup is not terribly different from say cholula, and I'll eat eggs and cholula all day long. But ketchup and eggs on Bimbo bread... *retch*

[Pope Jimbo]

Speaking of reconciliation, the city of Minneapolis is getting ready to pump a half million dollars into a plan to build a public art space around Calhoun lake to honor the original Dakota tribe and history.

There has been a controversy for a while now because Calhoun lake was named after John C. Calhoun slavery defender. Activists have gotten their foot into the door and the lake will now be called both Lake Calhoun and Bde Maka Ska.

Of course, someone has already made sure that the people running this boondoggle know that only the right people can create this art.

Taylor Rose Payer, a member of the Turtle Mountain Anishinabe, sees the juxtaposition of the ancient name with public art as a promising start, but she wants to see Dakota artists tapped to lead the project design.

Notice that it isn't even Native Americans who are eligible. Only Dakota artists need apply. Which will be fun because most of them were pushed out of the state by the Ojibwe tribes (who are now the biggest tribe in the state).

[straffinrun]

Stopping medication leaves sufferers "constantly sore, sensitive to pain, depressed, fatigued but unable to sleep," according to Siegel.

Is that Heroin addiction or Hillary addiction?

[Pope Jimbo]

Straffin, I'm so flattered that you like me so much that you post your comments as a reply to my posts even though they are meant for another post.

[straffinrun]

My comment stands. It fits for Native Americans, too.

[Dick N. Bimbose (n?e Cooper)]

I'm ashamed to admit John C. Calhoun Slavery Defender was my favorite comic book growing up.

[Lord Humungus]

The DEA Is to Blame for America's Opioid Overdose Epidemic

Heroin overdose rates doubled in 28 states between 2010 and 2012, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. A record-breaking 28,000 Americans died of opioid overdoses in 2014. In 2000, the age-adjusted drug overdose death rate was 6.2 per 100,000 persons. By 2014, it had increased to 9, according to the CDC.

What happened?

The truth is that many of those deaths are completely preventable and result not from painkillers, but from the Drug Enforcement Administration's war on painkillers.

This week, the Senate is likely to pass the 21st Century Cures Act. Among other things, it allocates $1 billion to help states "combat heroin and painkiller addiction and recovery." Policymakers would be wise to make sure that states don't use that $1 billion to make the problem worse.

[Rich]

war on painkillers

Nice band name.

[EDG reppin LBC]

Combat Heroin

Better band name

[Dick N. Bimbose (n?e Cooper)]

There is a band named "The War on Drugs"

[commodious]

The CDC suspects that many, if not most, of the people who died of opioid overdoses in 2014 were taking black-market fentanyl. Many drug dealers add fentanyl to heroin without letting users know.

MARKET FAILURE!

[Lord Humungus]

Amen!

Naked man arrested after crashing car into house, punching trooper, telling cops he's Jesus

The suspect, whose name has not yet been released, is accused of crashing into the home along Route 119 near the city of Connellsville border with Dunbar Township. It happened around 8 a.m. on Friday.

Homeowner Laura Felgar was inside at the time and felt the house vibrate.

"As I came outside, I saw the car in my house -- in my basement," Felgar said. "I didn't see the driver. I heard him yelling. Within the first 30 seconds (of me) getting outside, he was already out the window and gone around the front of the house."

Witnesses said the man stripped naked as he ran down Route 119. State troopers stopped him in the parking lot of Excursions Salon. Investigators said he punched a trooper and told them that his name was Jesus Christ.
WTAE-TV

The suspect was taken to Highlands Hospital and later transferred to Allegheny General Hospital for evaluation and treatment. Troopers said he will be charged.

[Juvenile Bluster]

Ah, Pennsyltucky.

[UnCivilServant]

The suspect, whose name has not yet been released

He told you, it's Jesus. What's with this anti-hispanic bigotry?

[The Last American Hero]

He's white-hispanic.

[BearOdinson]

What's will all this day of rest bullshit. You don't fuck wit de Jesus!

[straffinrun]

We'll have to wait and see if he makes bail in 3 days.

[Swiss Servator]

*narrows faith*

[EDG reppin LBC]

The Faith https://youtu.be/3ChtYWDIQPs

[Dick N. Bimbose (n?e Cooper)]

I LOVE EVERY COMMENTER HERE.

Just needed to say that.

[The Late P Brooks]

A group of House Democrats say they will boycott Donald Trump's inauguration this Friday.

Party of losers. Will they be holding a teary circle jerk on the Mall, and bury Lady Liberty in effigy?

[Citizen X]

Tears make terrible lubricant.

[End Child Unemployment]

Even prog tears?

[Monty Crisco]

As the Army taught us, blood is the FAR superior lubricant when you take it up the ass....

BOHICA!!!

[Bobarian (Would Chip Her)]

BOHICA == Bend Over, Here It Comes Again.

[Lord Humungus]

The Biggest Threat to the Media is the Media Itself

Many Democrats and journalists are worried that Donald Trump is an authoritarian-in-waiting who will make his bid to consolidate power by cracking down on Democratic institutions, beginning with the press. And maybe they're right.

But Trump has a much easier path to gelding his newsroom critics: Driving them into fits of hysteria so that they torch their own credibility and the public starts shrugging off future efforts to hold him accountable. As the New York Times' Jim Rutenberg highlights, this process is already taking place:

[Citizen X]

So... it's Trump's fault that media outlets lie? Does the man have no limits?

[Monty Crisco]

Jim Rutenberg was the man who made - in a NYT editorial- the plaintive plea to ALL media outlets to abandon any objectivity in their coverage of Trump and be OPENLY BIASED. And he is a position of CONSIDERABLE authority at the NYT. If ANYONE bears a significant share for the loss of credibility of the American media.... it's Jim Rutenberg.

[Free Society]

A group of House Democrats say they will boycott Donald Trump's inauguration this Friday.

SO BRAVE

[SugarFree]

"Why can't I have two First Ladies?" Donald moaned, locked in the President's Shitter. It was just the bathroom in his Trump Tower office, but he had renamed it days ago. The President's toilet, the President's toilet paper, the President's liquid hand soap; he had an assistant go around and put labels on all his stuff the day after the election. Donald wanted everything to be nice and clear in case anyone had any questions.

"Because you can't, Donald," the hair told him, "It's just not done."

"Mine is a transformative Presidency," Donald insisted. The hat chuckled at that. He was hanging off the handle of the President's Bidet.

"You said I was going to change everything," Donald said accusingly at the hat.

"You need to be focusing on the Inauguration and the Cabinet confirmation hearings," the hair said.

"My Inauguration will be perfect. It will be the classiest Inauguration anyone has ever seen. It will make all other Inaugurations look like a small town Kansas pet shelter dog show," Donald said.

"There are a lot of Democrats vowing to boycott it, Donald," the hair reminded him.

"Fake news," the man grumbled, "It's all fake news."

[SugarFree]

There was a soft knock on the door and a woman called his name.

"Go away, Kellyanne!" Donald yelled, "It's all fake news!"

"The confirmations aren't going well. They are all going to get in, of course. Even Ben Carson. Christ, what an asshole," the hair said.

"Ben is a good man. A Christian man. He'll be the best HUD ever. Ever. Right?" Donald asked.

"Sure, Donald. Sure," the hat said.

"Nazi Germany had confirmation hearings," Donald said. "Where's my Twitter? I need my Twitter! Kellyanne!"

"Two First Ladies?" the hair asked, desperate to derail Donald's train of thought.

"Yes. Two. Melania and Ivanka are both my ladies. I want them to both be first," Donald demanded.

"What about Tiffany?" the hair asked.

"She's like, maybe, fourth or fifth," Donald muttered.

"She's weird looking," the hat observed," like someone jammed a corn cob up a pug's butthole."

[Juvenile Bluster]

Is this going to be the short film that airs before the Warty Hugeman epic?

[Rich]

The suspense is killing me, SF!

[Swiss Servator]

The hat chuckled at that. He was hanging off the handle of the President's Bidet.

*prolonged applause*

[DJF]

"""President's Shitter."""

No, no, no. Its obvious that it has always been called "Trumps Shitter"

[Swiss Servator]

Nah, had to change the name because it now plays "Hail to the Chief" when you flush.

[Suthenboy]

New poll: Hillary to win in a landslide.

Democrat party is a party of obstructionists.

Brits demand more say in their own affairs.

China demands more say in other country's affairs.

Self-hating gay nightclub shooter was married to a homophobe.

Suspect in Turkey shoot is a TEA party extremist.

[DJF]

I nominate you for "Reason Headline Writer"

[BearOdinson]

I am going to go with #6 is the "Not"

[Number.6]

Don't you 'not' me, dude.

[Swiss Servator]

No?

[Dick N. Bimbose (n?e Cooper)]

WHO IS NUMBER ONE?

(Fist. Fist is number one.)

[The Late P Brooks]

Where is all this money? The short and very disconcerting answer is that, in Rogoff's words, "treasuries and central banks simply do not know" where this money is.

Rogoff and Larry Summers and the rest of the anti-cash control freaks should be beaten senseless with a leather bag filled with gold dubloons.

[Rich]

A group of House Democrats say they will boycott Donald Trump's inauguration this Friday.

SEXIST!

[spqr2008]

Server Squirrelz!
"CyberSquirrel1 project shows fuzzy-tailed intruders cause more damage than "cyber" does."

[OldMexican Blankety Blank]

New poll: Donald Trump will enter the White House with an approval rating of just 40 percent, an historic low among recent presidents.

We're moving on up! ?

A group of House Democrats say they will boycott Donald Trump's inauguration this Friday.

The less the merrier!

"Chinese President Xi Jinping offered a vigorous defense of globalization and free trade in a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Tuesday, which underscored Beijing's desire to play a greater global role as the United States turns inward."

Quite a change since the days of admiral Zheng He! And Commodore Perry!

A suspect has confessed to carrying out the New Year's Day attack on a nightclub in Istanbul, Turkey.

"That Interrogation Method training we received from those Mexican Federales is really paying off, Selim!"

[SugarFree]

Connecticut Politician Arrested for Pinching Woman's Genitals

Connecticut's Christopher von Keyserling, who is chair of the Representative Town Meeting in Greenwich, was arrested and charged with fourth-degree sexual assault for pinching the genitals of a woman he had a political argument with.

According to the Westport Daily Voice, the 71-year-old Republican declared during their conversation, "I love this new world, I no longer have to be politically correct." After some increasingly angry words were exchanged, von Keyserling followed the woman into her office, demanding to talk to her co-worker. The co-worker entered the office, refused to talk with him, and left in short order, and as the first woman turned to do the same, von Keyserling "reached in from behind to place his hand between her legs and pinch her in the groin area, according to the police arrest warrant."

[Mantis Toboggan, Jr.]

They only let you do it if you're a star, von Keyserling.

There was no picture of him in the article, so I had to Google him.

[Suthenboy]

Without digging into this I have to wonder if it really happened. It is pretty conveniently like what pinkos said would be happening if pussy grabbing Trump won.

By not underestimating the mendacity of team blue nor the stupidity of team red I just end up scratching my head.

[Calidissident]

According to this article, the police said that the woman's story is backed up by video footage. If that is true then it looks pretty clear-cut. It's true that this does sound like a too-good-to-be-true story for progressives, but that doesn't mean there aren't some assholes out there that do this kind of stuff.

http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyl.....ts8ok.html

[Number.6]

Well, I'd want to see the crotchcam footage before I judge.

[Calidissident]

That's fair, hence the "If that is true" qualifier. Police have certainly lied before, but I would be far from shocked if this guy is actually guilty.

[Crusty Juggler]

Squeezin' vag is okay in Trump's world.

[Ken Shultz]

Sounds kinda made up.

An old Republican gets accused by a progressive of doing exactly what Trump said on audio?

That's how progressive minds work. If Trump allegedly did something, they think him winning means Republicans are both condoning and want to do that thing themselves.

It will be interesting to see what happens if and when he's prosecuted. Everyone's innocent until proven guilty--unless you're accused of being a Trump supporter, I guess. Then you're presumed to be a pussy grabber because a progressive accuses you.

Did you know the Clinton campaign paid operatives to instigate violence at Trump events? At least, that's what they said on video.

[Dick N. Bimbose (n?e Cooper)]

the groin area

So, not the genitalia then?

[brady949]

Well, at least with "hard Brexit," UK has decided to go down in flames with us.

[Ken Shultz]

"A group of House Democrats say they will boycott Donald Trump's inauguration this Friday."

That is really going to hurt Trump's feelings.

It makes me want to cry just thinking abut it.

Did they say whether or not they'd invite him to their birthday parties?

[sloopyinTEXAS]

A suspect has confessed to carrying out the New Year's Day attack on a nightclub in Istanbul, Turkey.

Abdulgadir, have you ever been in a Turkish prison?

[Kurmudgeonly Kristen]

I wonder if he likes gladiator movies?

[spqr2008]

Server Squirrelz and Real Squirrels Unite!
CyberSquirrel1 project shows fuzzy-tailed intruders cause more damage than "cyber" does.

[Kurmudgeonly Kristen]

My newest special interest has been human evolution. So I've watched hours and hours and hours of documentaries on the subject and did a little reading. And after all that, it makes me hate SJWs even more, since race pretty much means zilch in the context of human history. It further solidifies my view that SJWs and religious zealots are the same thing. Both are anti-science fuckwads.

[SugarFree]

If you are interested in fiction on the subject, The Neanderthal Parallax is a fun trilogy by Robert J. Sawyer. The science is a bit dated based on recent discoveries, but it's a good read.

[Swiss Servator]

Just ask Pro L' to remember what happened.

[Ken Shultz]

"It further solidifies my view that SJWs and religious zealots are the same thing. Both are anti-science fuckwads."

Certainly, beware anyone who eschews uncertainty--and that seems to be common feature of both religious zealots and SJWs.

Haven't the stupidest things in history all been done by people who were sure they were right?

[bacon-magic]

I heard Mike Rowe has a series coming out on evolution...
*waits patiently with hook ready to set

[Kurmudgeonly Kristen]

Will he be personally demonstrating the remarkable changes to the human body over the millennia?

[Bobarian (Would Chip Her)]

Man, I can practically hear you panting.

[Kurmudgeonly Kristen]

Just like y'all when reason posts a lobster girl pic!

[Number.6]

Particularly the early evolutionary developments leading to Homo Erectus, I guess

[Colossal Douchebag]

Sponsored by Viagra

[The Late P Brooks]

My newest special interest has been human evolution

It's cultural appropriation, all the way down.

[Citizen X]

I know nobody read it because it was posted on Saturday, but Nicholas Pell's takedown of Hamilton was awesome.

[Zeb]

Huh. I knew the guy who wrote Hamilton in college. Weird.

From what I've heard of it, Hamilton does what most Broadway musicals do. Take a genre of music and make it shitty and boring. But the comparison to an elementary school parents' night performance is pretty great.

[Kurmudgeonly Kristen]

That hipster 'stache, tho.

[Not a True MJG]

More like awe-full-of-it.

[Citizen X]

Fan of musical theatre, huh?

[Stormy Dragon]

People who curse a lot are more honest than people who don't:

Frankly, Do We Give a Damn? Study Finds Link Between Profanity and Honesty

[Zeb]

I've always thought there was something untrustworthy about people who won't say "fuck".

[commodious]

Ef that.

[Ken Shultz]

Yeah, maybe they're lying to themselves, thinking that the people they're talking to are better than they really are.

[Ken Shultz]

Story from the LA Times about Latinos that voted for Trump.

"Many Latinos who voted for Trump believed America was going in the wrong direction and that Trump was the man to fix it. They were well aware of his strong rhetoric against immigrants here illegally, as well as his talk of mass deportations and building a wall at the border.

Some, like Corona, said they simply did not believe that Trump has the power to expel millions of people in the country on a scale to match the rhetoric that stirred his supporters. Others said they would support his tough approach."

. . .

This election season, when Trump called those immigrants crossing from Mexico "drug dealers" and "rapists,'" Pacheco took it personally. He thought of his father and his grandfather, who crossed over from Mexico decades ago.

Still, Pacheco voted for Trump, believing that the candidate represented the bulk of the values he believed in. And, in the end, he said he didn't believe Trump would insist on carrying out some of his campaign promises, like building a massive wall along the border and making Mexico pay for it.

http://www.latimes.com/local/l.....story.html

[Ken Shultz]

The article goes on to say that about a third of Latinos consider themselves conservative and some 28% of the Latino vote may have been for Trump.

I don't believe Trump will deport 11 million illegal aliens either, and I'm skeptical that he'll be able to build the wall.

It's interesting that they keep coming across Latinos who don't buy into the progressive scaremongering campaign. I guess they're just like everybody else--they're skeptical of the media, too. From people who are dismissive of the sexual assault allegations against Trump to pro-Trump Latinos, I suspect Trump support closely tracks how little people trust the media.

[Rhywun]

I don't believe he intended to say they're all rapists, either - but don't tell that to the Left.

[Kurmudgeonly Kristen]

All I see are dozens of handbags.

[Ken Shultz]

You'd probably make mittens out of sea otters, too, you fiend.

[AndyH]

After he takes office Trump should announce that he will not sign any bill that is sponsored or co-sponsored by any Congressman or Senator who boycotted the inauguration.

[UnCivilServant]

Fish are farmable. We'll have plenty to eat.

[KDN]

That's a true tragedy of the commons situation. Property rights re: fish stocks are an enormous need.

[Kurmudgeonly Kristen]

And those oysters that I pry open and eat live are pretty fucking good for the water, too. Nom nom.

[Bobarian (Would Chip Her)]

This one. You philistines!

[Citizen X]

I can't eat raw oysters. I live near the Chesapeake Bay, and i've seen what's in the Bay that they filter out of it.

[UnCivilServant]

Technically before sale they're supposed to keep the live oysters in clean water until they expell what's left in their system.

But since they've grown up filter feeding from the bay, that may not help any.

[Citizen X]

If it's true that you are what you eat, then the oysters around here are nothing but poo and used syringes.