Listen to CIA Spooks Applaud Trump for Baselessly Accusing 'The Media' of Lying About Inauguration Crowds

We shouldn't be surprised that Trump the president is no different from Trump the candidate, but come on.

Newly inaugurated President Donald Trump continued his celebratory weekend by stopping by the Central Intelligence Agency on Saturday afternoon to give a stream-of-consciousness-style address praising the nation's spies, regurgitating campaign moments, (once again) arguing that America should have seized Iraqi oil after the 2003 invasion, and bemoaning how America supposedly "never wins anything anymore."

The weirdest part of the whole thing, though, was the loud ovation given by CIA staffers after Trump blasted the media as being "among the most dishonest human beings on Earth."

Listen to the moment, which happens just after the 10:30 mark:

Apparently feeding off the applause, Trump doubled down and claimed, without any evidence at all, that the media had covered up the size of the crowd at his inauguration. He claimed to have seen a report this morning claiming turnout of 250,000 for his speech, but the president said that could not have been true because he saw people lined up "all the way back to the Washington monument" when he spoke.

"That's not bad, but it's a lie," he said. "We caught them. We caught them in a beauty and I'm sure they're going to pay a big price."

Is this really where we are right now? Day One of the new administration and the president feels like the most pressing issue in the country is whether or not the media accurately reported on the number of people who showed up to hear him speak yesterday?

Trump showed during the campaign that he's a man fascinated with the size of, well, many things. At his rallies, he never failed to note the size of the crowd and would frequently ask the cameras to pan around the room to capture it. This became a sort of self-fulfilling promise. Like his poll numbers, the size of his crowds were taken as an indication that he was doing well, and doing well was all that mattered.

I guess we shouldn't be surprised that Trump the president is no different from Trump the candidate, but come on. This is the behavior of a child upset because his classmates failed to attend his birthday party. It's certainly not the behavior of a president who, in Friday's address, promised "the time for empty talk is over; now arrives the hour of action."

It's not just Trump. His press secretary, Sean Spicer, held a briefing on Saturday evening to similarly blast the media over the inaugural attendance figures. As Robby Soave notes, the whole incident is "deeply symptomatic of the president's commitment to self-aggrandizement" and his inability to accept even the most venial slights.

Trump claiming, without any supporting evidence, that the media is lying about him is nothing new. Neither is his vague threats about making the media "pay a big price," as he put it on Saturday at the CIA. He cut off some outlets from covering his campaign when he didn't like what they said about him, but now that he's the president such threats have to be seen in a different light. Coming from a man who said he wanted "to open up" libel laws in order to allow public figures like himself to sue media outlets over negative press, these moments have to be seen for what they are: outright attacks on the First Amendment, coming just a day after Trump swore an oath to uphold and defend the Constitution.

The pivot is coming tomorrow, I'm sure.

Comments

[Coach Feratu]

Do we have, at this point, any evidence offered by the media for the size of the crowd beyond a Buzzfeed-level aerial photo shot at a dubious time during the inauguration?

[The Fusionist]

The point is, the media didn't *lie* - if it turns out they were wrong, it was an honest mistake, OK?

[JimmyJohn1980]

So cameras lie now?

[wareagle]

if you pretend they don't have time stamps, then yes, cameras lie. That this has become a thing speaks poorly of the political and media classes.

[Chip Your Pets]

Surprisingly, they chose not to post pictures comparing the status of the storefront windows in Franklin Square on Inauguration Day 2009 vs 2017.

[JimmyJohn1980]

The "Buzzfeed-level aerial" that you speak of came from a permanent fixed camera mounted atop the Washington Monument.

Are you seriously accusing a camera on the Washington Monument of having a liberal bias?

[Threedoor]

It is in DC

[Sumio Mondo, Jr.]

What time was each picture taken?

[Kivlor]

I'm late to the thread, but this was "pro-Trump" CNN's picture.

http://www.cnn.com/interactive.....gigapixel/

[Chip Your Pets]

That angle is misleading. You can see from the picture above that they separate the attendees into segments, which would make it look like the entire length of the Mall is full even if it's only half full.

[Austrian Anarchy]

The point is not about how many were in the crowds, the point how the media felt about the crowds. Now we can move on.

Nooses not racist anymore.

[american sociaIist]

The media is complaining about trump saying media is dishonest.

Not a trump fan but the media being hysterical and dishonest and damaging credibility is their own fault.

You dont get to be dishonest and then whine when called out on it.

[Chip Chipperson]

And that's exactly Trump's point with all of this. It's amazing to me that they haven't caught on to this yet, and keep falling into the same exact trap he sets for them over and over and over again.

He knows that he can say something deliberately petty and most of the country will just shrug and laugh about it, but the media will spin up into frenzy mode and end up looking utterly ridiculous as they accuse him of Watergate-level malfeasance. He comes out on top every single time.

They love to call him a simpleton but he plays them like a fiddle and they seem utterly powerless to stop it.

[Praveen R.]

So you have no problem with a president who lies on an old soviet union style scale. He is putting those commie propaganda artists to shame with his blatant lies. And he doesn't even care.

[Sumio Mondo, Jr.]

So you have no problem with a president who lies on an old soviet union style scale.

What the fuck are you on about?

[BakedPenguin]

Most people here don't like Trump. I sure don't. However, the lefty insanity surrounding him is worse. The left and the press enabled the last POS POTUS with all his lies for 8 years. They deserve Trump.

[Rich]

Well said.

[Austrian Anarchy]

Bravo.

[Praveen R.]

I sure didnt see Obama lie about something this obvious. I am used to lies about war and exaggerations about what a policy woud produce. That is something I am used from more than one President. But have you really seen this kind of lying from a President? It's like he can say 2+2 = 6 and someone corrects him and then he willl say he caught them in a lie and call us liars for saying it is 4 and one of his spokesman will term it as alternative facts. Don;t let your hatred of a liberal president blind you to the amount of lying that is going on right now. And I highly doubt that Trump intends to limit this kind of lying only to trivial issues like crowd size. You do realize his background of stiffing contractors where he would flat out lie about their quality , yet he would still let them produce more stuff for him only to stiff them later. Yeah, you show me examples of that kind of deceit from obama or Bush or Reagan.

[WTF]

"If you like your plan, you can keep your plan."
"Not a smidgen of corruption."

And many more.

[Greg F]

So you have no problem with a president who lies on an old soviet union style scale.

Obama isn't the president anymore.

[Praveen R.]

Once again, you are better off going to freep.com if that is your response to a current President lying. I have taken Hillary to task for her lies about hot sauce or Obama for misrepresenting health care costs going down. This is about Trump lying, not obama . Funny that you can't bring yourself to criticize Trump ,and find a way to still bash Obama.

[Deven]

About crowds?

WGAF?

I haven't paid much attention to this whole thing, but I can guarantee you the media misrepresented the crowds, even if Trump overestimated them. The King bust was an outright lie, however. They're using the crowds thing to cover for themselves on that, because it isn't as easily provable.

Also, screw the sycophantic lap-dog media.

[Suthenboy]

*checks handle on comment three times*

Holy shit, AmSoc said something honest and accurate.

*checks handle again*

It has to be a sock that forgot to change.

[Mike Schmidt]

Indeed it is. That is amsock

[The Fusionist]

Yes, Trump is thin-skinned and belligerent and responds to every single insult and slight - apparently that's worked for him so far. How far can he take it, I don't know.

[The Fusionist]

If he'd done what hippie moms recommend and been nice and shrugged off every attack, I doubt he'd be President. Maybe he'd be an assistant manager somewhere taking crap for his boss's mistakes and tugging his forelock.

[Chip Your Pets]

So did Obama, he just got fewer of them from the MSM.

[Number 2]

Obama had surrogates do it for him. I still remember Oprah Winfrey announcing that no President in living memory had been treated with less respect than Obama.

[Austrian Anarchy]

But Trump wasn't president yet.

[MWG]

The road to serfdom will be tedious.

[SIV]

This pants-shitting TDS must really bring in the clicks.

[Password: pode$ta]

Yup.

[Playa Manhattan.]

Fuck. We're almost infested with Canadians.

[SIV]

I can hardly comment, the stench of maple syrup is so thick.

[Jerryskids]

It sure does bring out the Trumpalos defending any slight on the merits of their tiny-handed Cheeto Jesus, I'll tell you that.

There's any number of reasons Trump would have smaller crowds than Obama, starting with the fact that the average Trump supporter is more likely to have a job he's required to be at rather than hanging around at some public spectacle in the middle of a workday, but is that good enough? Of course not, Trump has to claim that his inauguration drew a larger crowd than any inauguration in history.

That's the shit that gets old pretty goddamn fast, the constant fucking lying about how he's the greatest and the best at every goddamn thing imaginable. Not that he's good at everything or among the best - the best. At abso-fucking-lutely everything.

[Jerryskids]

The sorts of people that, no matter what, they're always telling you how much better every goddamn thing they touch is the finest and the best and most people don't know it, the sorts of people who, when you tell them you bought a new TV, they immediately tell you what a piece of shit it is and how you got ripped off and what you shoud have done is asked their advice because the TV they just bought is much better but most people are stupid enough to buy the TV you just bought, are the sorts of people you avoid like the goddamn plague because they're fucking obnoxious assholes. And we all know some obnoxious asshole just like that in every group we belong to. If you don't know an obnoxious asshole just like that, well, guess what, you're the obnoxious asshole of the group.

[Zeb]

I think that's a pretty fair analysis of Trump's personality.

[cavalier973]

I'm the game "Tropico", the player must pick two flaws. One of the available flaws is "The Great Scmoozola". Trump took this flaw twice.

[cavalier973]

Well, now that I've looked through the list of flaws, I might choose "Compulsive Liar" and "Pompous", were I going to play as El Presidente Donaldo Trump. "Womanizer" would also fit.

For traits, I'd pick "Hardworking" and "Entrepreneurial", Background would be "Developer", of course. Rise to power, "Elected for Family Values". Heh, heh.

[BakedPenguin]

Tropico is a great illustration of our current and past Presidents.

[BakedPenguin]

I think he only took Great Schmoozola once. He also got Tourette's Syndrome. Hillary got Compulsive Liar and Short Tempered. Probably a couple more, too.

[cavalier973]

Hillary would be kleptomaniac and compulsive liar, I think.

[cavalier973]

Hillary's rise to power would be "Heir Apparent", and, now that I think about it, Trump's rise to power should be "Installed by the "KGB".

>:)

[SIV]

tiny-handed Cheeto Jesus

Shouldn't you be marching with the other women?

[DenverJ]

Great band name

[Eman]

For a terrible band.

[Eman]

For a terrible band.

[commodious is fated to pretend]

Trump's an idiot, dude. You don't have to hate him for it, you can even celebrate that he's made it work, but don't slobber his cock trying to deny it.

[american sociaIist]

I agree but did he really call biggest ever? How did tv compare as the article makes claim sound as crowd and tv

[[e-mail]]

Well he's the wrong color too (white under the cheeto dust)

[american sociaIist]

The media has clearly entitlement issues

[american socialist]

Forget the size of the crowds for a second and wonder at the almost exclusively White crowd of redneck weirdos that attended the Trump inaugeration and then look at the people attending the women's march. In my upper-middle class neighborhood the crowd going to the march.looked as American as apple pie. It wasn't angry fat White guys, thank God.

[american sociaIist]

This is an example of my previous trolling. The womens march was a bunch of upper middle class women who had nothing better to do

My cousin for one

[EDG reppin LBC]

You ok bro?

[darius404]

There's two. one with an "eye" in the middle and one with an "ell" in the middle. Capital i and lowercase L look the same in this font.

[Ted S.]

They're both fucking irritating, though.

[EDG reppin LBC]

Ooooohhhhh okay. I see. A profit deal, ehhhh?

[SQWRLZ://cdn.panopticon.gov]

I think there's 2 "Tony"s too...
I'm scared.

[commodious is fated to pretend]

There's four now. One with the capital I in lieu of the l, one with the underscore, this one misspelling socialist, and the original. It's getting Rick & Morty up in this.

[commodious is fated to pretend]

It's not misspelled. Shit, I don't know. Listen BWRAAP Morty, just shoot all the *BWRAP* amsocs you see. There's no time to explain. GO.

[EDG reppin LBC]

Accurate. A+

[Charles Easterly]

EDG reppin LBC,

You ok bro?

If I understand things correctly, american socialist recently claimed to have impregnated his wife and, given the proximate realization of progeny, experienced a trollish drawback of sorts.

Perhaps he may name the child Epiphany.

[Playa Manhattan.]

Nope. Troll being spoofed.

[Mike Schmidt]

And not very well

[Daily Beatings]

The womens march was a bunch of upper middle class women ...

So it was angry fat white gals instead?

[Hyperion]

The media lying? Surely this is baseless claims. No need to even check. /BLOP BLOOP BOINK DERP!

[Chip Your Pets]

Is this really where we are right now? Day One of the new administration and the president feels like the most pressing issue in the country is whether or not the media accurately reported on the number of people who showed up to hear him speak yesterday?

To be fair, the MSM were the ones who chose to make a big deal out of the number of people who showed up to hear him speak yesterday. So if you have a beef with it being in the news, it's not Trump you have a beef with.

One wonders what Obama's crowd size would have been if his opponents were setting cars on fire, breaking windows, attacking people with flagpoles, blocking security checkpoints, and making threats against any celebrities who showed up in 2009.

[DOOMco]

Shhhh dont be silly

[Deven]

And actively blocking others from participating.

If GJ had won, and people were acting like that in DC, I wouldn't have shown up either.

[Charles Easterly]

I watched the entire speech by means of the link provided by Eric Bohem in his article.

I recommend viewing it mainly to arrive at your own opinion with regards to any value contained therein and the claims made by Bohem.

Otherwise I think it is likely a waste of your time.

[darius404]

So the speech, like all presidential speeches, is just a waste of time?

[Eman]

Fake news!

[american sociaIist]

This is what i have learned. I cant trust anything media says about what trump said. I have to see it myself and listen

Perfect example when they were freaking out about trump said regarding ptsd

[buybuydandavis]

I cant trust anything media says about what trump said. I have to see it myself and listen

Corollary: the mix of paraphrase and one word quotes are a tell for bullshit.

[westernsloper]

arrive at your own opinion with regards to any value contained therein and the claims made by Bohem

It was a typical Trump blathering. Now we have another president talking about himself, but not in the way the media finds tasteful. I found the amount of applause at the minute mark Bohem found so frightening to be less disturbing, and less applause for that matter, than the applause when Trump was saying the CIA has not had enough support and then got into his ISIS schpeal. I am all for ridding the world of ISIS, but all I could think was, "how many drones do the CIA control?" Most of them if I am not mistaken. Thanks Barack!

[Charles Easterly]

westernsloper,

Regardless of whether or not you watched the whole speech, I am glad that you watched at least that far.

Presumably the primary audience for the speech are members of the CIA, and indirectly members of "Intelligence", the military, and law enforcement.

[westernsloper]

I did watch the whole thing Charles. I just find the possibility of Trump giving more power to the CIA a bit more of a big deal than him calling the press dishonest. I think the leaked Podesta emails have shown that much of the press is dishonest.

[Charles Easterly]

I'm glad I checked back, westernsloper.

...I found the amount of applause at the minute mark Bohem found so frightening to be less disturbing, and less applause for that matter, than the applause when Trump was saying the CIA has not had enough support .... In this we were largely in agreement. Evidently I did not express myself well.

[Brochetta(MEDIOCRE_NEGRO)ward]

Is Brochetta(MEDIOCRE_NEGRO)ward going to have to choke a bitch?

[Brochetta(MEDIOCRE_NEGRO)ward]

Trump claiming, without any supporting evidence, that the media is lying about him is nothing new.

The media attempting to discredit the legitimacy of Trump's election victory without evidence and while employing outright lies is nothing new, either.

[Hyperion]

I can only hope that these leftards somehow force Trump to be more libertarian. Useful idiots need to be useful. Now carry our water for us, you fucking tards.

[buybuydandavis]

Trump plans to eliminate the NEA.

I've heard insanely fantastic things about potential FDA picks. Huge potential rollbacks of FDA power. If it happens, it will be the biggest libertarian reform in my adult life.

[PapayaSF]

+100

[Deven]

The FDA is the most evil organization this country has ever created. They've probably caused more deaths than our military has in 240 years.

[Password: pode$ta]

Thank God we got two posts on this topic.

I wasn't sure what to think after Soave's. But if there are two articles on it, it must be important and true.

[Hyperion]

Look, Trump is Hitler. No, worse. Never mind that he has served one day in public office so far and hasn't done jack fucking shit. He's HITLER! BECAUSE I SAID SO! FEEL MUH EMOTIONS, FEEL IT!

[DOOMco]

UGH. He's bombing 7 countries! No one has rights anymore, except white men.

[Chip Your Pets]

Two articles that contradict each other, even better.

[AddictionMyth]

He's testing them to see if they will support him in his drive to shut down the press. They know he's testing them so they respond enthusiastically to indulge him. The question is how much they mean it. They know in this era of scrutiny and transparency there is only so much they can get away with.

[Hyperion]

The future of news, shreeky, will be guys like you and I, for better or worse, banging out opinions on our keyboards. The dinosaur media is dead and nothing is bringing them back. They have just as much chance of coming back as the horse has of replacing the automobile, as much as the abacus has of replacing computers.

You didn't understand any of that, did you? Now go kneel before your graven images of Obama and bathe in blissful ignorance.

[AddictionMyth]

You forgot to call me 'liar', hype. You feeling ok?

[Hyperion]

Not sure I've ever called you a liar, shreek. You're just honestly wrong most of the time, or on hard drugs and not knowing what you're talking about. I feel sorry for you at times, even though you're a dick most of the time.

I know you post as Butthead, AD, and dajall, and that your a proggy troll. Do you really think anyone isn't aware of that, lol?

[AddictionMyth]

I'm consistently libertarian on all issues, which is why I comment here. Which begs the question - what are you doing here, hype?

[Hyperion]

Yeah, we know, shreek. You scored higher than Ron Paul on the libertarian test, but your head couldn't be dislodged from Obama's arse for the last 8 years, lol.

[DesigNate]

You're only about 8% libertarian.

[Dog Star]

Bullshit! The only libertarian part of you trickled down the crack of your mama's ass and ended up as a brown stain on the mattress!

(Props to Gunny R. Lee Ermey)

[BakedPenguin]

IIRC, he was an actual Top Sargeant they brought in as a consultant. He was so good they just gave him the role.

[Dog Star]

That's right. The guy who was originally cast in the role wound up in a smaller role as the crazy Huey door gunner, who when asked how he could indiscriminately shoot women and children said, "It's easy. You just don't lead 'em as much!"

[Chip Your Pets]

Well, it turns out that one of the arguments for Trump has fallen flat on its face -- that the media would return to investigative reporting on the important issues facing the American people.

Nope, they're going to be talking about crowd size level issues.

[AddictionMyth]

When the next terrorist attack is traced back to FBI radicalization - it will be very interesting to see how the newly energized anti-Trump movement responds. I've found that even peace movements hide a blood lust.

[Hyperion]

Shreeky, shreeky... You're not logged in as dajall. Do I have to watch you all of the time?

[AddictionMyth]

Yesh.

[Shinin' Pete]

The weirdest part of the whole thing, though, was the loud ovation given by CIA staffers after Trump blasted the media as being "among the most dishonest human beings on Earth."

I don't see anything weird about it. That would be an applause line in front of any audience I can think of. Except maybe the media.

[PapayaSF]

LOL

[Ken Shultz]

"Day One of the new administration and the president feels like the most pressing issue in the country is whether or not the media accurately reported on the number of people who showed up to hear him speak yesterday?

Did he say that the most pressing issue in the country was whether the media accurately reported on the number of people who showed up to hear him speak?

Maybe this is the kind of thing that makes people distrust the media.

I suppose I could try that, too.

Here:

Donald Trump effectively rescinds the individual mandate through an executive order today, but Eric Boehm thinks the most important thing happening in the country is Trump's offhand remarks in a speech to the CIA!

Actually, Eric Boehm didn't say that.

And I don't believe Donald Trump said that the most important issue facing the country today is how many people showed up to hear his inauguration speech in person, either.

[Hyperion]

The ACA is a huge fuck you to the middle class. Anyone in that situation completely understands this. The poorest, who are the ones supposed to be benefiting from the ACA have gained nothing. They were on medicaid before, and they're still on medicaid. The wealthy are also completely unaffected by this as they already had concierge healthcare and can afford healthcare without insurance.

Fuck the ACA, the worse of a death it dies, the better. And a fucking pox on everyone who is responsible for it.

[Ken Shultz]

The individual mandate is certainly, fundamentally unlibertarian.

[american sociaIist]

you know its bad when you can only claim credit for people checking the box going from15 percent to 8 percent uninsured

[westernsloper]

The poorest, who are the ones supposed to be benefiting from the ACA have gained nothing. They were on medicaid before, and they're still on medicaid.

This is not technically true from what I understand. Many who qualified did not know it or did not care, but after the press the ACA received, they signed up. Go big government!!! People getting by without the government had no idea they needed it.

[Chip Your Pets]

But that means they won't be affected when 0-care is repealed also....

[BigT]

Bingo! Despite what you read in the NYT.

[buybuydandavis]

Is this really where we are right now? Day One of the new administration and the president feels like the most pressing issue in the country is whether or not the media accurately reported on the number of people who showed up to hear him speak yesterday?

I think it's rather important to point out that the MSM is fundamentally a dishonest propaganda arm of the Left.

[Ken Shultz]

"Day One of the new administration and the president feels like the most pressing issue in the country is whether or not the media accurately reported on the number of people who showed up to hear him speak yesterday?"

Did he or did he not say that this was the most pressing issue in the country?

If he didn't say it, then I wouldn't call that dishonest.

I'd call it a straw man. It might be simple projection.

Sometimes people see what they expect to see.

[Chip Your Pets]

Are you implying that the White House press secretary's statements are not ipso facto the most important issues of the day?

[creech]

" the MSM is fundamentally a dishonest propaganda arm of the Left."
Ya think? About a year ago, my local Journal American newspaper dropped Stossel's column and brought in more lefties like the Roberts and Millbank. Also started running more lefty letters. On Inauguration Day on Friday, the two opinion columns were nasty anti-Trump screeds. To top it off, they continually editorialize against greedy capitalists, etc. and my latest subscription bill went up 13%. I didn't vote for Trump, nor do I think his middle school" so's your ma" insults are becoming of the chief executive, but the MSM has decided Trump will be ridiculed and lied about for the next four years.

[mtrueman]

"About a year ago, my local Journal American newspaper dropped Stossel's column and brought in more lefties like the Roberts and Millbank. "

Stossel has no more right to space in your paper than I do. I'm sure his feelings were hurt when they dropped him, but the good folks at your local journal American newspaper have a business to run and they have to put matters like this aside.

[Pat (PM)]

Stossel has no more right to space in your paper than I do.

I'll take "Things Nobody Ever Said" for 800

In other headlines:

"Deranged 9/11 Truther and compulsive liar tells porkies while corpse-fucking a thread at Reason.com"

[mtrueman]

There ought to be a law.

[BakedPenguin]

You should have unsubscribed. And told them why when they called.

"Respect the 'stache!"

[GILMORE?]

iowahawk, as always =

David Burge
@iowahawkblog

"We're protesting fascism"
- people dressed in all-black uniforms smashing windows and starting fires

I would (in a 140+ character world) have added,

"...who were angered at the possibility that the Government would abandon attempts to directly-control various economic sectors"

[Cloudbuster]

Most people won't get the irony, because the left has debased the term "fascism" to mean little more than "bad things."

[Password: pode$ta]

Ware muh thred gon?

[SQWRLZ://cdn.panopticon.gov]

I couldn't watch the whole thing. He was embarrassingly unprepared.
Especially seeing as the intelligence community sees elected politicians as the "seasonal help" anyway (from what I've seen in spy movies).

[GILMORE?]

seeing as the intelligence community sees elected politicians as the "seasonal help" anyway

ah, no.

esp not the ones on the intel committees. they're more like the Crazy-Rich Temperamental Uncle whose ego you have to constantly stroke to ensure he keeps letting you run wild on his expense account.

the president they can be semi-standoffish with, but not congress. they need that money.

[SQWRLZ://cdn.panopticon.gov]

"Politicians" was a wide brush, I did mean the Prez (and his underlings).
I concede that they do need a sad puppy to get moneyz and a patsy to take a beatin' in front of committees.

[american sociaIist]

So if trump is this horrible guy...robby wouldnt you have him worry about crowds instead of you know doing anything?

[DenverJ]

You know who else worried about crowds?

[BigT]

The Rolling Stones at Altamont?

[Mike Schmidt]

+1 You Can't Always Get What You Want

[SQWRLZ://cdn.panopticon.gov]

Howard Hughes?

[The Fusionist]

People with claustrophobia?

[DenverJ]

That's confined spaces. Fear of crowd is called "Enochlophobia" or "Demophobia". If you'd like to see it in action, take me to a crowded nightclub.

[The Fusionist]

I stand corrected.

[westernsloper]

Enochlophobia? C'mon now. Who doesn't like enchiladas? So many options.

[DenverJ]

Onions and red sauce = heart burn
Tacos or carne asada or GTFO

[westernsloper]

If it is on the menu at a new restaurant I visit, I often have to get carne asada just to see if it is the best carne asada. It is usually my go to.

[Mike Schmidt]

People with Enochlophobia?

[Dog Star]

Greta Garbo?

[SQWRLZ://cdn.panopticon.gov]

I vant to be alone...

[BigT]

"outright attacks on the First Amendment, "

Um..calling reporters liars is exercising, not attacking, free speech.

Call me when Trump indicts them, or jails them, or sets the IRS on them. Otherwise, whine elsewhere.

[mtrueman]

"Otherwise, whine elsewhere."

Yes, because there are limits, even to free speech.

[Pat (PM)]

Lying about free speech is free speech, but that doesn't mean it's not lies.

For example, Loose Change, the 9/11 Truther conspiracy theory video, is free speech, even though it is full of blatant lies and falsehoods. Failing to screen the film, or telling the sad sacks who believe in the outrageous lies and falsehoods it contains to fuck off with their lies and falsehoods, is not an assault on free speech.

[mtrueman]

Do go on. And don't let me interrupt you.

[Sevo]

mtrueman|1.22.17 @ 11:24AM|#
"Do go on. And don't let me interrupt you."

Why should he? He's already shown you don't know what you're posting about.

[mtrueman]

"Why should he?"

Because I don't think he's made it clear just how much he resents the whining.

[BakedPenguin]

Call me when Trump indicts them, or jails them, or sets the IRS on them. Otherwise, whine elsewhere.

C'mon. What president would do that?

[Cyto]

Pbbbt. I bet Trump would even wire tap reporters. That guy knows no shame.

[The Fusionist]

Wait, wasn't there a women's-march thread just now?

Don't gaslight me...am I remembering it correctly?

[Password: pode$ta]

I think they just wanted us to read this one again.

[Raven Nation]

Yes. Yes there was. It's also disappeared from the main page.

[The Fusionist]

Did someone threaten to sue or something?

[westernsloper]

It wasn't my fault. I deleted every disgusting thing I typed before hitting submit. I am still kind of sober.

[westernsloper]

I am pretty sure it was the Russians. What happened?

[BigW]

I don't care. The God Damned Progressives lost and I am sick to death of their fucking whining. And from the fucking projection its pretty fucking clear they were planning to kick the shit out of anyone that didn't virtue signal correctly....

[mtrueman]

A golden showers theme for his re-election bash in 2020 should outshine any protests that coincide and draw a bigger crowd. Trump will not make the same mistake twice.

[The Fusionist]

When it comes to golden showers, the Olympian gods set a bad example -

"...Zeus had seen Danae and had grown fond of her; so, during the night, he appeared to her in the form of golden rain and impregnated her. She gave birth to a baby, which she named Perseus."

Nasty.

[DenverJ]

"nasty woman"

[The Fusionist]

What did *she* do?

[SQWRLZ://cdn.panopticon.gov]

Nasty Girl

[Sevo]

mtrueman|1.21.17 @ 10:44PM|#
"A golden showers theme for his re-election bash in 2020 should outshine any protests that coincide and draw a bigger crowd. Trump will not make the same mistake twice."

You are one of the most compelling arguments fro abortion; your mom should have had one.

[mtrueman]

"You are one of the most compelling arguments"

This is what you call a compelling argument? And don't worry. You needn't answer the question.

[Sevo]

mtrueman|1.21.17 @ 11:09PM|#
"This is what you call a compelling argument?"

YOU are the compelling argument, but I know you find reading HARD!

[mtrueman]

And you know your compulsions better than anyone else, I assume.

[Sevo]

Took you 12 hours to come up with that lame bullshit?
Dumber than I thought...

[mtrueman]

But compelling, right?

[Pompey:? Class Mothersmucker]

Bro I found that YouTube video you wouldn't stop bothering me about for weeks. Now please go away.

[Diane Reynolds (Paul.)]

Who's investigating the case of the Disappeared post?

[Cdr Lytton]

Which one went down the memory hole?

[Diane Reynolds (Paul.)]

The 'what we sore at the weaker sex march'.

[Sevo]

"The 'what we sore at the weaker sex march'."

That's GOOD!

[The Fusionist]

The video of the women's march, but don't worry, they've got two of their best detectives on the case.

[BakedPenguin]

I believe you can still get it from the URL.

It'll be interesting to see if this comment gets disappeared.

[DenverJ]

What comment??

[BakedPenguin]

Um... nevermind

[Praveen R.]

first of all, crowd estimates are prone to hyperbole regardless of the PResident. I doubt there were 1.8M people attending Obama's inauguration. However, I am amazed how most of the comments for this article resemble some freeper site than reason.com. Is it unreasonable to critcize a President who is so insecure about the crowds that attend his inauguration that he rants about it???? And it's the media that is obsessed? Of course, the media will report on the crowds. Hell, they even go to great lengths to compare Melania's dress with Jackie Os. This would not have been major news if Trump didn't feed it and not only feed it, but feed it with outright lies and then have the audacity to call out the media for his lies.

[westernsloper]

Sorry for my ignorance, but what is a freeper site?

[The Fusionist]

It's down now, but there is a right-wing site called Free Republic, and the commenters are right-wing, also.

Hence, "why don't you post on Free Republic?"

[Pompey:? Class Mothersmucker]

You see, everyone here masturbates furiously and refreshes freerepublic incessantly.

[The Fusionist]

Nonsense, I don't read Free Republic.

[commodious is fated to pretend]

I saw what you did there, and averted my eyes.

[Rufus The Monocled]

http://www.urbandictionary.com.....rm=Freeper

[westernsloper]

A knuckle dragging, mouth breathing, foam at the mouth, rabid dog, conservative nutcase who spends time between killing small animals posting on the Conservative Republican Porn site freerepublic.com.

Thank you Rufus. You are much more help than the other mouth breathers who replied. I admit I did kill some small animals today. Well, I did not kill them exactly, but I cooked them.

[Password: pode$ta]

Do you want more of this?

[The Fusionist]

The focus-group audience thought that was a serious discussion of relevant issues

[Password: pode$ta]

lol

I'd have linked to the Shikha article that had to be retracted because it was based on a spoof Twitter account but... it was retracted.

[Rufus The Monocled]

What in the hell?

It's like the progressive virus has spread to Reason.

WHAT IS THE ANTIDOTE?!

[Pompey:? Class Mothersmucker]

Ask and you shall receive.

[The Fusionist]

More articles by Nicholas Pell

controversial author of

[The Fusionist]

this article.

Please allow him to introduce himself.

[The Fusionist]

The Reason Foundation needs to give this guy a grant, but I don't know what they'd call it.

[Password: pode$ta]

Pell Grant

[The Fusionist]

I love the call and response.

[Free Society]

The logo is further proof, not that we needed any, that when it comes to running for president, neither Trump nor anyone he works with knows dick about dick.

~Suderman

[GILMORE?]

That's why i come here = the sharp, insightful, unbiased political analysis.

[Sevo]

"However, I am amazed how most of the comments for this article resemble some freeper site than reason.com. Is it unreasonable to critcize a President who is so insecure about the crowds that attend his inauguration that he rants about it????"

Well!!!!
I agree. Regardless of the left's whining to the extent that they make me wish I'd voted for the blowhard, Trump's just one more in a long line of POTUS who has learned to promise 'way more than he'll deliver.

[John Titor]

Comments like "these moments have to be seen for what they are: outright attacks on the First Amendment, coming just a day after Trump swore an oath to uphold and defend the Constitution." are disingenuous and dishonest. Yes, Trump has and will have a hostile relation with the media, and for good reason. The entire election and a lot of its fallout validated his claim that many of them are 'the most dishonest people on earth". So frankly, it's a little rich for the media to be whining about the President's dishonesty (including Reason, a site that should have better quality control on its articles but continues to produce garbage like most of Soave's non-university work).

Yes, Trump criticized the media for inaccuracy, and was likely incorrect or lying himself. Yes, Trump has spewed idiotic statements involving libel. But you can't go "therefore, I can say his criticism of the media is an attack on the First Amendment." by throwing the two together. It's idiotic crap like that that makes this a fight between two dishonest sources, Trump and the media, not a fight where either of them actually have a decent point.

[John Titor]

In short, if you want to scream "ATTACK ON THE FIRST AMENDMENT" when Trump says the media is dishonest, you better be damn sure the media isn't actually dishonest. Because then it just makes you look like a piece of shit trying to provide cover for your caste.

[Rufus The Monocled]

They threw the first punch. Clearly.

And Reason is having a hard time finding its voice it seems.

[GILMORE?]

I am amazed how most of the comments for this article resemble some freeper site than reason.com

No, you're not. you came here just to pretend to be shocked we're not all sipping cosmopolitans and talking about how much we should really be sympathizing with the people burning garbage cans and smashing windows to "protest" a democratic election.

its lame and someone does it every weekend.

[Sevo]

Can't disagree re: the trolling, but I'm surprised at the defense of the blowhard.

[BakedPenguin]

He is a blowhard idiot. However, is it too much to ask to wait for him to actually do something wrong before talking about what a scumbag he is?

[Sevo]

"However, is it too much to ask to wait for him to actually do something wrong before talking about what a scumbag he is?"

Certainly not, but his whinging about reporting the audience size for his show is something he DID do.
So someone whinging about that is doing exactly as you (and I) desire; gripe about what he's done, not what he's said he will/might do.

[BakedPenguin]

Just as a note - in 2009, I had some hope that Obama would follow through (or at least attempt to) on all of the civil libertarian promises he made. I waited until it was obvious that they were bullshit before I started calling him a scumbag.

That the same people who enabled him to do this are now in a pant-wetting frenzy does give me some schadenfreude.

[GILMORE?]

what, the trump speech? haven't even seen it. nothing he says in public to intel people matters, imo. i'm more interested in the coming weeks when they really start firing people in earnest.

[Sevo]

GILMORE?|1.22.17 @ 12:10AM|#
"what, the trump speech? haven't even seen it."

Nor did I.
I was addressing your comment to the troll and the defense of Trump.

[GILMORE?]

was i defending trump? i wasn't aware. my point about not watching the speech was because i don't think what he says matters. i'm not sure saying 'what he says means nothing' constitutes a defense in your book. it just seems the realistic view to me.

[Sevo]

GILMORE?|1.22.17 @ 12:30AM|#
"was i defending trump?"
No.
Forget it.

[Praveen R.]

Actually I have bashed Hillary more than once on these pages. I have even criticized Obamacare's overblown promises and teacher unions on these blogs. How many times have you bashed conservatives (calling them RINOs dont count).

[Bra Ket]

So instead of having a sycophantic press to do the aggrandizing and counter-punching for him like the last guy, Trump is covering it all by himself. That's efficiency.

[DenverJ]

Make Trump Great Again!

[Rufus The Monocled]

SNL writer writers deranged tweet; deletes it:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/new.....sage-field

Example of Trump draining the swamp.

[Password: pode$ta]

Flashback.

[Rufus The Monocled]

Molyneux is losing it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1Y7V2fQKTU

I have to agree. They're beyond mentally retarded in there nihilism the left.

And people used to argue we should 'compromise' and work with the left.

How? They can't be pleased or appeased.

[Password: pode$ta]

His Twitter feed today is priceless.

[Free Society]

He hit the nail on the head where he said "It takes what looks like half a phalanx of riot police to give a speech about freedom at a university today."

I don't think he's wrong to lose his shit. The Marxists are in full bloom and Stefan has sort of immersed himself in the war of words to fight them. I find it relatable.

[Rufus The Monocled]

I'm angered by it as well.

It just feels it threatens to overwhelm 'reason'.

[Free Society]

Reason is a fragile thing. It would be difficult to list all of the ways to state "_______ is the death of reason."

[Hyperion]

There can be no compromise with the left. They are the mortal enemies of libertarians. The GOP has been 'compromising' with them for decades and you see how that went? Compromising with the left means giving them everything they want.

[Praveen R.]

SNL has become a joke. There is a lot of room for good takedowns of Trump. But I felt like they missed the mark so much with lazy parodies. I thought the Hillary singing Hallelujah part was ridiculous and it ruined what was in general a good portrayal of Hillary over the last season by McKinnon. SNL sucked Guiliani's dick in the past. And now, they are sucking Hillary's.

[Sevo]

So the Chron decided to interview some of the marchers to discover the motivations driving them to spend a day signaling to all their buddies how evolved they are. And the results range from "downright stupid" to "I protested Bush's wars but not Obo's", to "ignorant of history" and/or "ignorant of how the US government works until that lying POS who just left showed up in the WH".

Reasons for marching: I am protesting Trump. I do not recognize him as my president and never will. Everything we're hearing is insane about collusion with the Russian government. The next four years years will be about protesting Trump every step of the way.

Reasons for marching: I am fearful that the little bit of progress that we've made over the past 50 years is going to be ended in a very short period of time. I worry about a woman's right to choose, LGBTQ rights, health care for more people, the environmental progress we've made haltingly is going to be reversed very quickly.

Reasons for marching: I was a major protester during the Iraq war, but now I feel a little out of practice. I wanted to show my displeasure at the election of Donald Trump, and I wanted to do so at a gathering with the most impact.

Reasons for marching/key issues: I don't think he (Donald Trump) thinks people are equal. I've never been one for protests or marches, but after he was elected I got worried.

[Sevo]

More:
Reasons for marching: While I live in a place that's open and tries to be equal to everyone, not everyone is that lucky. I think it's important not just to stand up for yourself but also for people who don't have the power to stand up for themselves.

Reasons for marching: As a female artist, I think we play a large part in the community by being a voice.

Reasons for marching: Trump is against everything I stand for. I never liked him because he resisted and denied Obama's presidency from the beginning: When he said he was going to run and said Mexicans were drug dealers and rapists, I thought it would be shut down then.

Reasons for marching: I want to support all my female friends in this process of fighting against biogotry, misogny, racism and people against the LGBT community.

Reasons for marching: After the election, I said, "I've got to do something." I'm in shock that this has even come to be. My generation created this ? we're responsible, so I need to be part of the change. I can't sit by.

http://www.sfchronicle.com/sty.....349bcb5d2c

[Password: pode$ta]

Reasons for marching/key issues: I'm concerned about all the hard-won rights women now have being taken away, specifically affordable health care through Planned Parenthood and the ACA, Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security.

!

[Password: pode$ta]

Reasons for marching: I'm marching because we need to raise our voices and stomp on our oppressors. I'm marching because activism is not only an event, it's a lifestyle.

!!

[Sevo]

Yep, you can pick and choose among that pile of bullshit for giggles.
Did the respondents understand their comments would be read by adults? When they read them tomorrow morning, will they have the sense to be embarrassed?

[Praveen R.]

I don't begrudge the marchers. I understand the need for celeb power. But people like Madonna just come across as tone deaf. You have Cher who has been over the top in her hate trump campaign earlier in the year. The same Cher who probably saw a lot of abuses in Hollywood and did nothing about it.

[Password: pode$ta]

I don't begrudge the marchers.
Fine.
I understand the need for celeb power.
That's incredibly stupid.
But people like Madonna just come across as tone deaf.
True.
You have Cher who has been over the top in her hate trump campaign earlier in the year.
True.
The same Cher who probably saw a lot of abuses in Hollywood and did nothing about it.
No idea what that means.

Overall, I give this a 4/10 for coherence.

[Password: pode$ta]

No. I retract that. I give it a 2.5/10 for coherence.

[GILMORE?]

Movie recommendation =

The Pervert's Guide to Ideology

its really more of a doco/"show" than a movie. but its about movies. or, rather, its about this Slovenian guy Zizek rambling on about his very-po-mo interpretations of the significance of a variety of hollywood movies.

part thoughtful, part hilarious, part po-mo horseshit... but worth watching just as a different way of viewing a number of movies you may have already seen.

I'm vaguely familiar with his work via my slovenian pool-buddy/supermodel friend. not a fan of his ideas, but i liked him in this movie, partly because he's really goofy and intense and not a typical 'film critic'.

[Password: pode$ta]

An ex-coworker posted on Facebag how wonderful it is that women marched on "all 7 continents."

Uhhhhh. That's impressive, I guess...

[Sumio Mondo, Jr.]

That'll show those goddamn penguins!

[Password: pode$ta]

If a feminist marches in Antarctica and no-one is around to laugh at her, did she make a sound?

[???????????]

That old question made more sense before the invention and use of total world surveillance technology.

[BakedPenguin]

*kicks pebble*

[Rufus The Monocled]

Wait. In Muslim countries too?

Huh.

[The Fusionist]

AMERICAN: "Thanks to my country's First Amendment, I can march down the street in Washington, D.C. shouting 'Donald Trump is an Islamophobe!'"

Citizen of Muslim country: "So what? In my country, we don't need a First Amendment, we're perfectly free to march down the street shouting 'Donald Trump is an Islamophobe!'"

[__Warren__]

Limey cops taser their race relations advisor.....in the FACE.

[PapayaSF]

She was probably frightened by his hair.

[Lee Genes]

Had that been in the US, they would have shot him, the bystanders, his family inside the building, etc.....

[Free Society]

Had that been in the US, Black Lives Matter would start a riot and the media would insist on calling them righteous protesters.

[Praveen R.]

Yeah, and in other news Ricky Williams stopped and frisked for being black.I dont blame the cops for investigating becuase they have to answer the call. What I don't understand is why couldn't the cops be more polite about frisking a suspect when there is no proof at all that he did something wrong. He was no threat to run. If you read some of the closing comments from the cop "I know more about what is going on here than you know"(loosely paraphrasing) do nothing ot solve the crime, but just insult the person you are frisking. At that point the cop made that statement, it was getting to be clear it was a false alarm. You do not wait until Ricky Williams makes a statement to radio and then come up with a pandering statement to a superstar(Oh you are welcom to stay at my place).

GTFO and don;t tell me BLM doesn't matter. Every protest movement will have their share of unruly folk. BLM is no exception. Hell, I am sure when we fought the British, we had our own share of idiots joining the good cause.

[John Titor]

GTFO and don;t tell me BLM doesn't matter. Every protest movement will have their share of unruly folk. BLM is no exception.

Fine, BLM does matter. If your goal is to delegitimize police reform and make police approval ratings shoot up.

[Robert]

The dog at least.

[esteve7]

/ Media Lies (through omission, cherrypicking, etc)
/ Trump calls out media on their BS

OMG TRUMP IS SO THIN SKINNED!!!

[Mr Lizard]

Good morning stoopid mammals...anyone else feeling restless?

[Libertarian]

Shouldn't you be hibernating or something?

[The Fusionist]

Global warming.

[The Fusionist]

ALTERNATE JOKE: They unfroze him and woke him up

[Cyto]

I think this "adversarial relationship" think is an intentional strategy by Trump. The alternative would be to pretend that they are all professionals and doing a great job and wine and dine them as they spin, spin, spin for the DNC.

If you watch any of the post-election TV compilations you can see that the TV press and the print writers who made TV appearances were pretty much universally devastated that Hillary lost. They used language like "the whole world is crying" repeatedly. The entire election coverage was about just how terrible it was for Hillary and her supporters for about 3 or 4 days.

So he isn't wrong in his analysis that there was never going to be an opportunity to win them over. Not even winning them over enough to get "fair" coverage - let alone the sycophantic protection that Obama enjoyed.

So why not go all-in on the adversarial relationship. That way any negative reporting they want to do will be scrutinized and doubted.

Also, he has proven that he can misdirect the entire press corps with a tweet. They were getting some traction with the "divestment" stuff, and he tweets out that we should deport flag burners. Aaaaand.... debate over. Nobody remembers the "conflict of interest" story and everyone runs off to write about how horrible Trump is on the 1st amendment.

[Cyto]

I don't really get much of anything about Trump or how he's able to gain supporters, but you have to be half-blind to be unable to see that his blustery tweets have a strategy behind them. Some of it is his innate narcissism that won't let him absorb an insult without going full-tard ad-homenim. (like when Penn Jillett said he liked Trump just fine, but he wouldn't vote for him.... Trump tweets out that Penn sux and his show on Broadway is terrible. Nothing to gain there, so it seems to be a knee-jerk reaction if insulted.)

He has been able to spin people into what is basically name-calling flame wars instead of having substantive conversations. In this world "team" wins out over policy or intellectual arguments. And in a tribal dispute, the guy who blusters the loudest wins. We've seen this with team D for a long time now, with their blowhards smirking and insulting their opponents with feigned superiority, garnering intense loyalty from faux-intellectual kids.

Now, if his critics have half a brain they'll figure out how to use this against him. All they need to do is aim an insult in the right direction and he'll come out and say Jesus was over-rated. It shouldn't be that hard to figure out how to play his narcissism.

[Lee Genes]

It's going to be a long four years.

[Swiss Servator]

Yup.

*checks cellar for beer, wine and whisky stocks*

[???????????]

I don't know who among you listened to Trump's talk to the CIA employees and their responses to those words. It's hard to tell reading some of your comments because those comments immediately and predictably change the subject from the article. Anyway, I watched it and it sent chills down my spine knowing that people like those have the power of life and death over us all. Believe me ,the old "But, but Obama was just as bad -- left a loaded gun" argument doesn't quite cover it when you have Trump out there repeating over and over again that in his world Obama was soft with presidential power, too deferential to due process and human rights. So there you go maybe you believe Trump is just another Obama but the man who matters doesn't believe that story and he's the one who decides which story animates the killing machine. The machine that kicks in your door. We are fucked. America is fucked.

[Lurk Diggler]

I like irrational screeds to include more Hitler references. Please edit and resubmit.

[???????????]

I was disturbed by the speech and the way it garnered an enthusiastic response.

Many comments here are not related to the article.

Trump believes Obama was soft with presidential power ("held the CIA and military back" his words).

Trump's beliefs decide in large measure how the greatest killing machine ever assembled will conduct itself.

It concerns me that Trump has this power because Trump believes that military/CIA power has been restrained under Obama and he intends to let it loose.

Where's the irrational asshole?

[Libertarian]

Well said.

[John Titor]

Trump believes Obama was soft with presidential power ("held the CIA and military back" his words).

Does he actually believe this, or does he have a history of being a loudmouthed blowhard who belittles other people?

Nope, can't wait to see what actually happens, just need to start stamping my feet and screaming "America is fucked".

[Lurk Diggler]

Trump believes the DOD and affiliates have been engaged on stopping the war on women and bringing transsexuals into the ranks for whatever reason.

He's correct that while engaged in fighting Obama's hobbyhorse progressive bulkshit they have had their hands tied. You are not correct that disengaging them from that line of bullshit will bring interference to Americans.

[Pompey:? Class Mothersmucker]

I know a guy that got "????????" tattooed across the full of his back. Maybe you should change your handle to "????????."

Requisite English filler text. Requisite English filler text.

[John Titor]

More like ????.

Requisite English filler text. Requisite English filler text.

[Ted S.]

I would have said ????? myself. I suppose that ??? might be appropriate too, although the former is probably more insulting. (Note that I said "the former" rather than repeat the word because of the server squirrels' hissy-fit over non-ASCII characters. It should at the very least only be against non-ISO-8859-15 characters, to allow for Western European languages.)

[BakedPenguin]

?????a? I can't recall having issues with non-ASCII text.

[John Titor]

Anyway, I watched it and it sent chills down my spine knowing that people like those have the power of life and death over us all.

I continue to fail to understand why you, or anyone else, should be taken seriously when they open with statements like "I'm an overemotional coward" and then attempt to make themselves out to be the rational one. Yes Chicken Little, the sky is falling.

[???????????]

OT: The size of the gathering proved challenging. The audio from sound system did not reach everyone in the massive crowd, and far more portable toilets were needed. When the toilets behind the stage broke down, security instructed women to use cups and ushered them into a box truck for privacy.
"I'm afraid to shake anyone's hand," one woman joked.

[Pompey:? Class Mothersmucker]

WTF is going on? How do I keep up with the discussion if you're going to change the topic?

[GILMORE?]

His comments are not about the article.

The unstoppable machine of death is in the hands of a reality TV star.

why are you not weeping and wringing your hands?

It is because you are all conservatives.

[Pompey:? Class Mothersmucker]

This is the worst chat room ever.

[AlmightyJB]

Pretty smart of Trump to have his security collect all of their DNA for the dissenter database.

[Grand Moff Serious Man]

I think it's very concerning if the White House has a compulsive need to lie about something as inconsequential as the size of an inauguration crowd.

All Spicer had to say was "We had a great turnout yesterday and if it wasn't as big as President Obama's two inaugurations it's simply because our movement isn't based among the Coastal Elite, it's far-flung across this great country of ours."

But no, they had to tell a big lie because they're milking the feud with the media for all its worth because that's how they placate their base.

[Pompey:? Class Mothersmucker]

The lying and inconsequentiality is pretty much unsurprising and in character.

[Suthenboy]

"Day One of the new administration and the president feels like the most pressing issue in the country is whether or not the media accurately reported on the number of people who showed up to hear him speak yesterday?"

It doesnt matter what you lie about, if you get caught lying you are a liar. Big lie, little lie, it doesnt matter.

[Password: pode$ta]

he president feels like the most pressing issue in the country is whether or not the media accurately reported on the number of people who showed up to hear him speak yesterday

Besides the massive exaggeration, how about reporting on what he actually does?

[Praveen R.]

The only lie in the media that day was the idiot Time writer who lied about MLK bust being removed. Trump and his people flat out are lying about the size and are the only ones making a big deal about it when you judge it by the tone and urgency they address the issue.

[Rhywun]

Oh God please make this happen.

[Libertarian]

If I were a betting man, I'd say Madonna has grabbed a lot more over the years than even Trump.

[AlmightyJB]

End of the World Day 3.

[Libertarian]

The EOTWAWKI sure is getting dragged out, isn't it? After spending a couple days this past week with Leftists I think it's going to end with a whimper, not a bang, as Leftists die from ulcers caused by anxiety.

[Rhywun]

spending a couple days this past week with Leftists

Courage.

I'm lying low for awhile.

[Libertarian]

Since we libertarians don't have a dog in this fight I think we'd be better off ignoring politics altogether. Maybe check the headlines once a month just for giggles.

[Rhywun]

Oh, I can't do that.... Just meaning I feel the need to avoid certain social situations until (!) this madness dies down.

[Libertarian]

Understood. I guess I enjoy political banter as much as the next guy, but I admire those libertarians (and others, too) who are perfectly content to go about their business in the private sector without caring about political arguments or politicians.

[Rhywun]

Yeah. I avoid all discussion of politics out in the real world, because I like to keep my sanity. Lately that's all anyone seems to want to talk about.

[Swiss Servator]

I know exactly what you mean. I can't even avoid the #$% topic on sports talk radio - suddenly half the shows have to start making snooty little remarks. SHUT AND TELL ME ABOUT THE BLACKHAWKS SOLUTIONS AT FORWARD!

[Ted S.]

Maybe there are no solutions for the Hawks of Color at forward.

[AlmightyJB]

So last night I hear that there is a shooting at a local movie theater (not the hood). Someone from our block watch a pic of the mass of cops and ambulances on site. I watch our local news last night and they are all 15 minutes of Trumpagedden, weather, sports, done. Not a damn thing on the shooting. Why do I need ro watch local news anymore? I can get that shit 24/7 everywhere else.

[The Elite Elite]

Like the popular vote, why does anyone give a rat's ass about the inauguration attendance size? It's fucking pointless. Majority does not equal correct.

[Rhywun]

It's a dick-measuring contest. Someone has to "win", damn it.

[John Titor]

Pretty much, and of course Trump has to scream "I HAVE THE BIGGEST COCK EVER DAMMIT, ALL THOSE WOMEN LIED". I think part of the reason this has so little effect on me is it's so goddamn predictable. We're probably going to get four years of this garbage, and it will be probably just be hilariously petty, not the end of the world.

[Tonio]

Random sign from derpbook feed: "ANTI-FASCIST TRUCKERS AGAINST the TRUMP train."

Apparently the AFT are the latest darlings of the SJW scene, being authentically working-class and all.

[Rhywun]

Are they wearing trucker hats?

[EDG reppin LBC]

Commie Teamster Union Agitators Against Trump

[LoneWaco]

What I Saw At The Women's March:

pretty much exactly what you'd expect to see.

[Bill Dalasio]

It strikes me that Donald Trump attacks the media because it works for him. And the thing is Donald Trump didn't create the public' disdain for the media. It was there when he arrived. He's just taking advantage of it. The press itself created the ill will through years of essentially acting like Democratic activists with bylines. The media's decision to cry foul when he's treating them as the opponents they are only reinforces the perception that they're not neutral or particularly honest.

[AlmightyJB]

I think that is exactly right. And they just keep digging.

[John Titor]

Pretty much. When Trump says "among the most dishonest human beings on Earth" the rational response is to go "Yep." When he continues on and spews idiocy about inauguration crowds, the response outside of the diehard fans is eye-rolling, but there's always the "well, he's not wrong" element of the primary statement. This is a bed the media made, now they have to sleep in it.

[Palin's Buttplug]

SNL tribute to President Obama.

http://media.crooksandliars.co.....4_high.mp4

(and now we have a white trash POTUS)

[Rufus The Monocled]

Holy Jesus Mother of...Holy fucken crap.

It's a cult.

[Rhywun]

I'm not clicking on some random mp4. What is that?

[EDG reppin LBC]

Girls serenading "To Sir, With Love" to a portrait of Block Yomamma.

[Rhywun]

Pass.

[Rufus The Monocled]

I have no words.

Lorne Michaels is just returning the favor for getting a Medal of Freedom.

Man oh man. You can but just shake your head.

[Rufus The Monocled]

I still would like to know why he and Ellen got one.

[Playa Manhattan.]

With the exception of the astronaut, every Medal of Freedom recipient was a campaign donor.

[DOOMco]

wait, really?

[Playa Manhattan.]

http://freebeacon.com/politics.....upporters/

[DOOMco]

I figured it was bad, but not that bad.

[John Titor]

They could have saved money and just had a forty second clip of Lorne Michaels masturbating to a picture of Obama.

[EDG reppin LBC]

That was so edgy and cool.

[Libertarian]

Ha! When a 40 year old TV show thinks it's avant garde but is more "rear guard", well, interesting times, I guess.

[Ted S.]

As opposed to the black trash that just left?

[Rufus The Monocled]

Kill the white people:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhaKVu7a-xw

[EdWuncler]

OT: Yesterday I was having a discussion with an acquaintance of mine about the election and Donald Trump. While he does refer to himself as a Progressive, he is probably one of the most rational Progressives I've ever met and I enjoy talking politics with him even when we both disagree with each other. Anyway, he considers Donald Trump an existential threat to this country and I responded that I view him and those before him as threats to this country. My reasoning was that we are a little less freer after each Presidential administration leaves the White House.

He freaked out at me and called my view irresponsible and that Donald Trump should be removed out of office by any means necessary because he is a threat to all of us. I was taken aback and tried to clarify that I didn't support the man at all but understood why people voted for him. And also, the former President's expansion of Executive power has given Trump the perfect cover to abuse his power.

I think after every election, the losing side is sad or angry that their guy didn't win but then people usually get back on with their lives. But this election is unprecedented because I have seen people who are usually rational, lose all their ability to reason when it comes to Trump. And not only that but going after people who do not have a burning intense hatred of Trump despite them being indifferent towards or being against his polices.

It's absolutely absurd.

[Rufus The Monocled]

I'm steering clear of progs from now on. They're just out of their fucken minds.

I hear they've taken to handing out copies of the Constitution (I forget where). After eight years of pummelling it as written by dead white men and being outdated and needing to amend parts of it and overall just shitting on it, now it suddenly matters to them.

I'm not a violent guy but they deserve a good sound punch to the face for their hypocrisy.

[John Titor]

There's a desperation to the prog response that is actively damaging them. Everything from the absurd "Trump is Hitler" statements, to the complete demonization of everyone who isn't freaking out, to these pathetic attempts at 'connecting' with people they treated with utter scorn. They're actively delegitimizing themselves. We can only hope that this causes some long-term damage to their movement, especially amongst young people growing up in this environment (I've noticed a lot of whining articles from people who grew up during the Obama years being overly sycophantic. At least that won't be the case with the Trump administration).

[Rhywun]

There was a lot of this during the W years of course but wow nowhere near the level we're seeing now.

[John Titor]

The Bush freakouts were hyperbolic, but they were also framed in an environment where people could actually recognize that America was fundamentally shifting towards more of a police state. After everyone cooled down from the immediate and understandable patriotism after 9/11, they saw the Patriot Act and the surveillance state. Things like TSA security lines actually affected people, so there was far less doubt when the progressives bellowed fascism. Now, they've spent eight years normalizing those conditions, and suddenly start freaking out before their Great Satan has even done anything. I'm hoping, or at least think it's likely, that this is going to severely damage the progressive cause outside of their pre-existing base.

[Rhywun]

they saw the Patriot Act and the surveillance state

And most people didn't give a shit. It was all hurr durr he's so dumb Bushitler McChimperton, and I have little doubt than any actual horrors that Trump comes up with will be swept under the rug in the same manner.

[John Titor]

It was all hurr durr he's so dumb Bushitler McChimperton,

Yes, that was a theme amongst the insecure people who make up Bill Maher's audience, I'm talking more about the general population's view of the progressive idiocy. At least in the Bush years they could go "look at these TSA lines, look at Iraq, look at government surveillance, he's totally HITLER" and people might think they actually had a point. Now they've defended or ignored those abuses for eight years and want people to take them just as seriously, while they hyperventilate even more? Good luck with that.

[Not a True MJG]

I really did think things were cooling down, two months after the election, but inauguration gave them a second-wind of crazy. I've given up on some of my other online hangouts, because the hysteria is pervasive and depressing. Fortunately and surprisingly, the progs in my day-to-day life are kinda good humored about it now, optimistic about resisting rather than whining and blowing everything out of proportion; it's actually my Republican parents that are the most vocal and annoying nowadays.

[EdWuncler]

It's rich that they are handing out copies of the Constitution when for the last eight years, they cheered on a guy who shat all over it.

[John Titor]

that Donald Trump should be removed out of office by any means necessary because he is a threat to all of us.

The Secret Service gig is probably going to suck for the next four years thanks to statements like this. If I were Secret Service I'd be paranoid as hell right now with all the open threats being thrown around.

[GILMORE?]

I responded that I view him and those before him as threats to this country.

Exactly.

You try and explain to progressives that, from a libertarian perspective, we've been witnessing the steady erosion of liberties and the expansion of government authority into every area of life for DECADES now... and they still don't get it.

Every single administration of my lifetime has chipped away at fundamental liberties, and inserted new forms of 'policing' in places where previously people were free to rule themselves.

You think Madonna being investigated for "talking about bombing the White House" is some new thing that never happened before? Its only happening because this is the type of world they let Trump inherit.

Its like "member when Bush signed the Patriot Act? and you were upset for like 2 seconds.... but then Obama got elected, and you forgot about it completely?"

(same w/ NSA Surveillance, Drone Warfare, Executive actions, using DoJ to intimidate the press, using IRS to go after political opposition, etc etc)

The line i've used with people (mostly unsuccessfully) is

"it shouldn't matter who gets elected = the US Govt is designed with checks & balances and limitations on power so that any schmoo can get elected and not do all that much damage."

but - whoops! - all the people complaining *now* were cheer-leading the erosion of all those things in the name of "progress"

[EdWuncler]

It's been hard having decent conversations with my progressive friends because they have become obsessed about Trump.

I think the worst thing that can happen to them is not Trump fulfilling all of his campaign promises, but him not being as dangerous as they made him out to be because if he isn't a danger, they know that they will lose more legitimacy in the eyes of the average voter. They need an enemy and since railing on the Koch Brothers don't work, or ripping the evil banksters have become passe, they have Trump in their sights. What makes the Left tick aren't their policies but who do they have to hate. That's their whole ideology: hatred for those who think and act differently.

[Rufus The Monocled]

Like they became retardedly obsessive with Sarah Palin? I was told she had enough power to set back women's lib decades. Oh well. Didn't happen; like Gore saying England would sink because of climate change.

I'm convinced this is how reasoned people must have felt in the low Middle-Ages surrounded by superstition and irrationalism.

Is Madonna being investigated? I don't think De Niro was for threatening to punch Trump. Hey, they're celebrities right? JUST JOKING! IT'S ACTING! TA-DA!

[EdWuncler]

As he was ranting against me, a couple of my friends (who are also liberals) came to my defense and said that his attack against me was unfair.

I feel for people like him. I hate 98.9 percent of politicians and think that politics in general are bullshit, but I never let it consume me to the point where I am miserable and attacking individuals. It's also kind of scary how people are easily whipped up into frenzy and attack others for thinking differently. If anything else, it has convinced to make sure that these sorts never gain power and to never ever compromise with them.

[AlmightyJB]

I was out Friday night and a buddy and his girlfriend showed up. She's a socialist. My buddy ask what I thought about the days events. I said something to the effect that Trump's a two year old as is everyone who is protesting him. I was a little surprised to hear her agree with me and go on to say that nothing was really going to change. She's pretty down to earth though, just misguided by her feelings.

[Not a True MJG]

I was taken aback and tried to clarify that I didn't support the man at all but understood why people voted for him.

Maybe this doesn't apply to your friend, but it is annoying how many progressives pull a Tony with the "you only have 2 options on election day" argument, and then turn around and act like every Trump voter is wearing a MAGA hat and is eager to start interning Muslims. A lot of progressives still can't accept that Clinton was a terrible candidate, and that there were plenty of sensible, moderate reasons to pull the lever for Trump and not Clinton.

I've tried several times to get a partisan to explain to me why a coal worker in PA should vote for Clinton. As with so much of the protests yesterday, it ultimately comes down to, "he's vulgar!"

[AlmightyJB]

I can't stand the fact that having to defend the truth against the left's non-stop shameless lying puts me in the position of defending Trump whom I have zero use for. Please stop.

[EdWuncler]

Me too. I'm like, "Fuck, why are you making me defend this asshole?" But I also can't stand lying and will fight for the rights of anyone, even if they are an asshole.

[AlmightyJB]

That's what rights are for. If rights don't protect assholes, they're meaningless.

[BakedPenguin]

This. Ever so much.

[Ted S.]

And Hillary isn't vulgar?

[AlmightyJB]

Not sure I can watch 40 minutes of it, but Sargon starting out pretty funny

https://youtu.be/ajppWvtW2I4

[Rhywun]

The next 2 upcoming stories on my local cable news:

"SNL's take on the inauguration"
"Hamilton party"

Sigh.

*waiting for hockey*

[GILMORE?]

there's such a thing as "local cable news"?

i had no idea.

(*insert standard disclaimer - "i don't even own a TV")

i hope you don't mean NY1. that doesn't count. is there a brooklyn cable news i was unaware of?

[Rhywun]

Sure I mean NY1. It's local.

But yes, there is also a Brooklyn cable news channel. I haven't watched it, but I assume it's as lefty an outfit as NY1.

[GILMORE?]

I used to get NYT on a TV that had an *antennae*. It wasn't so much "Cable" as it is a Public Access channel.

i'm being awfully technical and you are right to probably tell me to STFU

[GILMORE?]

NYT =NY1

[Rhywun]

NY1 has always been a Time Warner cable channel. Not sure what you're thinking of.

[GILMORE?]

well it was available on a tv with a knob for ~10 years
(*which admittedly was plugged into a building antennae, which may have been getting some basic-cable channels coming though on the UHF part of the knob, which is how we got it)

[Robert]

MATV = Master Antenna TeleVision -- with some converted channels supplied in the broadcast bands. For some years an apt. bldg.'s NTSC chan. 3 leaked HBO to my old Bronx neighborhood. Better signal after rain, indicating some outdoor fault causing VHF leakage.

[Ted S.]

I think some the cable conglomerates have "news" divisions that make news-like programs to go on the local access channels. I have DirecTV which doesn't have such a thing, but when I've been in hotels that have cable rather than satellite, I've seen programs that have mostly human interest-type stuff plus localized weather and sports. The bigger markets like New York have some full-fledged cable news outlets.

[Ted S.]

Looking forward to Lundqvist getting his ass kicked in the playoffs again.

[Rhywun]

He needs to be put out of his misery.

[Ted S.]

If the Devils had played over in monosodium glutamate, that style of hockey would never have been called boring. (And Pat Burns would have been in the Hall of Fame while he was still alive.)

[Crusty Juggler]

When those who parody do this, we are beyond parody.

Lulu and Sidney Poitier are rolling over in their respective graves.

TW: You will be triggered.

[Crusty Juggler]

Unless it's some sort of meta thing. Ugh.

[AlmightyJB]

Cecily Strong grew up wanting to be Monika Lewinsky.

[Crusty Juggler]

Kim Jong Il would be proud.

[Rhywun]

Ugh, I bet there are people with pictures of him on their wall at home.

[Ted S.]

I'd assume if you don't have a photo of him on your wall at home in North Korea, it would be off to the gulag with you.

[BakedPenguin]

From some of the docs I've seen, it's typically the scum trifecta. but these are also the apartments they choose to show to the West, so...

[Rhywun]

Yes.

I actually meant Obama.

[BakedPenguin]

Same difference.

[Chip Your Pets]

Crummy pictures? Only if they're pikers.

My sister has a 4-foot statue of him in her house, right when you walk in the front door.

[Rufus The Monocled]

WOMEN!!

http://twitchy.com/samj-3930/2.....e-country/

[Rhywun]

I am shocked.

[SimonD]

It's a shame some enterprising journalist didn't take pictures of the area on Friday night after the Inauguration, and compared and contrasted them with pictures of the same places on Saturday Night after the Wymyn's March.

That was an opportunity squandered.

[Chip Your Pets]

At least they didn't leave their used tampons like they do at my house.

[BigT]

You must have an impressive collection. Does Crusty know this?

[The Late P Brooks]

Obama was better.

Trump's unlegitimacy is proven.

Let the impeachment commence!

[Rufus The Monocled]

The new thing I'm being told: Watch, inside six months he'll be impeached.

Though I wonder by who since the GOP rule the country now. Unless they want to go all 'E tu, Brute?'

[Rhywun]

I think the odds are better for an assassination at this point.

[AlmightyJB]

I know that the left are mentally challanged but purposely creating a Mike Pence presidency?

[Bill Dalasio]

but purposely creating a Mike Pence presidency?

A Mike Pence presidency with a bloody shirt to wave as a shield.

[SIV]

The CIA could work with Mike Pence.

[The Late P Brooks]

He freaked out at me and called my view irresponsible and that Donald Trump should be removed out of office by any means necessary because he is a threat to all of us.

There was a time (2 or 3 weeks ago) when saying something like that could earn you an interview with the Secret Service.

[Rhywun]

Madonna will soon find out if threatening to blow up the White House counts.

[BakedPenguin]

"What officer? No, I never said 'up'!"

[Crusty Juggler]

Moynihan reviews a book about cigarettes for the WSJ. As far as book reviews goes, it's pretty good. The comments, however, pretty much demonstrate why everyone* is a dirty asshole.

*Yes, that means you, asshole.

[Ted S.]

Everyone but me.

[geo1113]

Clean asshole?

[Ted S.]

I wouldn't mind having a bidet in my bathroom.

[GILMORE?]

good review. some interesting lines.

I smoked noncommittally for many years. "Social-smoker", as they say. Sometimes when i was very-social, i smoked a lot. I was in a pool-league from like 2006-2012, and got into rollies, which have a strange combination of encouraging you to smoke (since you're carrying around a bag of tobacco), but also dissuading you because every one required a small degree of effort to actually twist up. my rolling skills got pretty ace, and i got picky about the filter-sizes and types (some would get damp and clog, others would shrink as you smoked and fall out, and so on) But being able to quickly make one perfectly dense, perfectly round, w/ a solidly-fitted-filter... was a pleasure in itself.

when i stopped playing pool 3-4 nights a week, i basically stopped smoking without even noticing. i think i got a pack once a week for a while, then just stopped that. I went out for drinks with a few buddies 2 months ago, and bummed a smoke and was shocked at how much different (and less pleasant) it seemed. I still enjoy cigars and get a few every other month. but its really not the same thing.

the comments on that piece are hideous. you'd think at least one person might have digested his point about the fashionability of knee-jerk social-scolding... but no.

[Pompey:? Class Mothersmucker]

Picked this up some time ago from a history store going out of business. Recommend.

[GILMORE?]

a history store

"yeah, i'd like 4 pounds of Roman Empire, a quart of Ming Dynasty, and could you just throw in a few Crusades on the side? one of the smaller ones."

[Pompey:? Class Mothersmucker]

That's pretty much it. Books and other history-related goods & knick-knacks. Went tits up.

[DOOMco]

It's a strip club now?I can't wait to bear bait

[The Late P Brooks]

Apparently the outgoing CIA director said a bunch of bad stuff about Trump. I have no idea what. Another patriotic American finds his voice.

We're all Nathan Hale, now.

[GILMORE?]

the outgoing CIA director said a bunch of bad stuff about Trump

He's just being Obama's attack dog, saying all the shit that people in his admin want to have said, but allowing Obo the opportunity to be saintly and above it all.

anyone with a brain should find this stuff concerning mainly in how it signals (like w. the DoJ, the IRS, the DoE, EPA, BLM, etc) how deeply agencies have become political weapons.

fuck whether "Trump" is a problem or not. The hypocrisy of having political appointees declaring themselves spokesman for entire agencies and pretending to be non-partisan (while making very partisan attacks) would be far more apparent if the news-media weren't fully committed to aiding and abetting the message-sending.

if it were the other way around, CNN would be glad to discredit Brennan's GOP-counterpart as "shamelessly exploiting his agency as political tool"... but when its Team Blue, why, he's just a noble public servant taking umbrage that anyone would dare besmirch their stellar reputation.

[Chip Your Pets]

Brennan is a hack for sure. But Trump screwed up by attacking the entire intel community in response to Brennan's baloney.

A smart response would have been to drive a wedge between the career professional rank-and-file, who Trump will have to deal with, and the Obama puppets in the leadership, who he will immediately dispose of, by criticizing the latter while exempting the former.

[GILMORE?]

Trump screwed up by __________

its amazing how people said this throughout 2016 and still seem to think they were correct in all those earlier pronouncements.

people cling to this idea that they're the ones who "get it", and that Trump is still the Rube.

stupidity/insanity has a very close relationship with ego+stubbornness.

[Chip Your Pets]

By that logic, nothing Obama did was ever stupid, since his electoral achievements are far greater than Trump's.

Trump beat a Balkanized GOP primary field with help from Democrats crossing over to vote for the weakest candidate. He then faced one of the most disliked presidential candidates in history in the general, who suffered multiple major scandals during the campaign. He still lost the popular vote by a historically large 2% margin, winning in the EC only due to razor-thin victory margins in three large states.

Not questioning the legitimacy of his election -- those are the rules of the game. The Indians can't complain that they really beat the Cubs in the World Series because they scored more runs over the 7 games.

However, to act as if Trump is a political genius with widespread popular support is lunacy. He's a clownish blusterer who is good at getting attention and decent at telling people what they want to hear, but the greatest contributor to his meager success is that he happened to be in the right place at the right time.

[GILMORE?]

nothing Obama did was ever stupid, since his electoral achievements are far greater than Trump's.

I don't think you understand what i actually said.

I also don't think you actually understand what you're calling "achievements"

All presidents jawbone. Trump's style of jawboning strikes you as immature, arrogant, blustering, unrefined etc. but all you are really saying is that you don't like his style, not that his style really "doesn't work" or that its somehow more or less effective that the media-enabled 'lying through his teeth' that Obama was able to use.

i am not making any claims about trump. I'm just pointing out that your pronouncement, and many pronouncements like it, keep being proven entirely wrong over and over again. and the same people who keep being wrong keep making excuses and saying its all just "luck and circumstances" that keep producing the opposite of their predictions.

its funny to watch, at least.

[Chip Your Pets]

i am not making any claims about trump.

Yes, you are. You're claiming that the things people say he screwed up were not really screwed up, and offering as proof of this claim that he barely won a couple of elections against weak opponents.

And you're wrong. Success does not imply that you didn't make any, or even a lot of, mistakes along the way. And it certainly doesn't imply that what you're doing now isn't a mistake.

[GILMORE?]

You're claiming that the things people say he screwed up were not really screwed up, and offering as proof of this claim that he barely won a couple of elections against weak opponents

no, i didn't actually say that.

I said the people who pretend to know better, don't. don't blame your inability to comprehend on others.

[Chip Your Pets]

I said the people who pretend to know better, don't.

Sigh. What is your evidence for this claim?

It appears your evidence is that Trump won the election. But that doesn't actually prove that the people who criticized his tactics were wrong.

[GILMORE?]

It appears your evidence is that Trump won the election

Or that everyone who did things the "Smart" way kept losing.

You're the one choosing to fixate on the former. I'm not going to repeat myself over and over, thanks.

[Chip Your Pets]

Let me put it this way: if Clinton had won WI, PA, and MI (each of which she lost by 1% or less), would Trump's blusterous statements and tactics during the campaign suddenly turn into mistakes, while criticism of Clinton's campaign would suddenly become illegitimate because she won in the end?

How could the future influence the past in such a way?

[GILMORE?]

nothing would change, everything i'm saying would still be the case

the fact that Jeb bush - the perceived shoo-in in 2015 - came in dead last despite the highest spending by a large margin - should have been a very-strong-hint to the pretend-experts on what constitutes "political smarts" that they had their heads completely up their ass.

[Chip Your Pets]

nothing would change, everything i'm saying would still be the case

Baloney. You're basing your claim on the fact that Trump won!

[GILMORE?]

No, i'm basing it on the fact that political "experts" are not even particularly good at after-the-fact explanations, much less predictive pronouncements.

You want this to be about trump. my point is about punditry. I don't think the opinions of all the people @ CNN all put together are worth the price of a cup of coffee. Similarly, I don't think you would know Trump's "screw ups" from his "deftly executed public-opinion-molding" if your life depended on it.

I'm not suggesting i'm some great seer myself. I'm just pointing out that the value of stock-analysis (something i do have a little experience in) is only ever as good as a person's "last call". The same is true for politics.

I think the only value most people's analytical judgements provide is an opportunity to examine what sorts of unstated-presumptions keep producing the same type of errors. And that's exactly why i think you don't understand why my point isn't actually about trump.

[The Late P Brooks]

I think the odds are better for an assassination at this point.

I have to confess, I experience a twinge of dread every time I pick up my phone to check the news.

[AlmightyJB]

Media reaction

https://youtu.be/PHQLQ1Rc_Js

[The Late P Brooks]

The new "gotcha" from our media thought leaders is to refer to Trump's cabinet as the "swamp cabinet" because... you know... it's clever and funny because Trump promised to drain the swamp, and then he appointed rich people to the cabinet. Haha, so woke.

What they decline to recognize is that the swamp reference has to do with people who have devoted their entire lives (like that Clinton woman) to suckling at the teat of government while promoting their own interests and agendas, not how much money they have in the bank.

[Derpetologist]

Still no new thread? That's lame.

Weekend Derp Grab Bag

File under: ugh, *Canada*

'Moby Dick's' Restaurant Blocked From Opening Because Name Is Deemed Insulting

File under: jumping on a rake with both feet

Mother sues to stop Bible classes in West Virginia schools

The woman, identified as "Jane Doe" in the federal lawsuit backed by the Freedom From Religion Foundation, says her child will be forced either to take these weekly classes at her Mercer County elementary school or face ostracism as one of the few children who don't.

[AlmightyJB]

So people in Vancouver have tiny penises?

[AlmightyJB]

I've heard the school argument before. In a lot of smaller towns especially, schools are often used for secondary purposes such as meeting places for other groups. Inevitably, any time a religous organiztion uses the schools somone bitches.

[Rhywun]

I would bitch if these classes were during ordinary school hours - the article just says it's "voluntary" so who knows.

[AlmightyJB]

Sounded like the school was paid for the space so why not, if not being used. My thing is that whatever deal they have with the Bible class should be open to other social events and vice versa, schedule permitting. It is a public building.

[Rhywun]

The problem isn't letting the school host Bible classes - the problem is forcing all students to take it (or whatever "alternative" they dream up).

[GILMORE?]

^this

also =

In Widmar v. Vincent (1981), the U.S. Supreme Court considered the constitutionality of a state university regulation that prohibited the use of campus facilities by religious student groups. The Court rejected the university's contention that it could not provide facilities to religious groups without offering prohibited support to religion, holding that such a regulation violated the students' rights to free speech and free exercise of religion. Widmar stands out as significant, because it ensured that religious groups would have the same level of access to public facilities as nonreligious groups in both higher education and K?12 schools.

The "Equal Access Act" later clarified the issue =

The Act provides that if a school receives federal aid and has a "limited open forum," or at least one student-led non-curriculum club that meets outside of class time, it must allow additional such clubs to be organized, and must give them equal access to meeting spaces and school publications. ...

It was ruled constitutional by the Supreme Court in 1990 in the case Westside Community Schools v. Mergens, and the school was ordered to allow a student Christian group to meet.[3]

[AlmightyJB]

Agreed

[Lurk Diggler]

Meh, lots of schools have activities at the facility. I don't see anything saying it's mandatory. If schools are to be financed with property taxes, then the majority of the people paying for it define what the school can teach. If profs get fed up enough they'll support vouchers.

So nothing prohibits this from being mandatory, let alone non-mandatory.

[Chip Your Pets]

her child will be forced either to take these weekly classes at her Mercer County elementary school or face ostracism as one of the few children who don't.

Wouldn't that still be true if the Bible classes were held at a nearby church?

[GILMORE?]

yes.

the statement "her child will be forced" is followed by the description of a person being "provided a choice"

albeit a choice which the author suggests (gasp) might have less-then-pleasant social-consequences. Ergo, the implication being that schools should bar all choices which result in unpleasant social consequences. Its completely retarded.

[The Late P Brooks]

The weirdest part of the whole thing, though, was the loud ovation given by CIA staffers after Trump blasted the media as being "among the most dishonest human beings on Earth."

Maybe you should get out more, instead of hanging around with Suderman and his ilk.

[Sevo]

One more 'celebrity' schooling the great unwashed:

"Shia LaBeouf debuts a 4-year anti-Trump live stream"
http://www.sfgate.com/technolo.....873190.php

Who?

[BakedPenguin]

Apparently, some French Islamist who likes beef.

[Chip Your Pets]

Han Solo's son in a different ill-conceived sequel.

[PapayaSF]

The easiest art is bad conceptual art.

[OneOut]

And here is this asshole bullying a much smaller and younger looking Trump supporter.

He is so brave and woke.

https://twitter.com/(take this space out)MisterMetokur/status/823261320669757440

I wish someone there had the courage to rip his throat out.

He would deserve it.

[Derpetologist]

OT: I found out what my assignment will be after I finish training. This song describes my mood:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GCmONrFBTRY

I graduate from DLI in August, then a few more months of other training after that.

[DOOMco]

Congratulations derp!

[GILMORE?]

congrats. I hope you posting to Mogadishu is everything you hope for.

[PapayaSF]

So when are you available for another SF meetup?

[The Fusionist]

I suppose he'll be around as soon as that city is put under martial law.

/ha ha, just kidding

[Derpetologist]

Germany rejecting "almost all" applications for asylum from Christian refugees

[PapayaSF]

It's idiotic to the point that the only remaining explanation is malice.

[Chip Your Pets]

Let's be fair. According to the pastor in the article, it's the fault of the Muslim translators at their asylum hearings, who frame what the applicants say as indicating that they fabricated a conversion to Christianity. That is not the German govt's fault. If a person did fabricate a conversion to try to get asylum, their application should be rejected.

[R C Dean]

"Muslim translators". I think I see the problem . . . .

[OneOut]

Who hired the translators ?

[The Late P Brooks]

Is this really where we are right now? Day One of the new administration and the president feels like the most pressing issue in the country is whether or not the media accurately reported on the number of people who showed up to hear him speak yesterday?

You're just as dishonest as that useless little fuck Soave. Many, many members of the media leapt at an opportunity to beat their little tin drums about Donald Trump's "illegitimacy" and what they perceive to be his grotesque incompetence in comparison to their idol, Obama, and his anointed successor, Hillary. They, and you, deserve a giant "Fuck you" from the Office of the President.

Maybe you should write a 2500 word post sniping at Betsy DeVos for not attending public school. That'll show her.,

[Chip Your Pets]

I'm really sick of complaining. It's time for us to vote with our clicks. Is there some alternative to Reason for liberty-minded folk right now? Zerohedge and Lew Rockwell are plenty anti-establishment, but far too conspiracy-theoretical and actual-racist for my tastes.

[anticollective]

These days I spend most of my time on the_donald subreddit. It is at least 75% libertarians in the Ron/Rand Paul mode. It is very disappointing that Reason/CATO has apparently decided to abandon this large group of libertarians in favor of trying to suck up to leftists who hate freedom. It is pathetic.

[Chip Your Pets]

Isn't that an explicitly pro-Trump community? That's not what I'm looking for.

[Somalian Road Corporation]

Yeah, it is. There's r/libertarian and r/shitstatistssay but I'm sorry to say that r/libertarian, while still being mostly reasonable, has been heavily co-opted by buttplug-style concern trolls pushing authoritarian bullshit while trying to pretend that they're the "real libertarians".

[RAHeinlein]

I'm here for the comments and voted with my pocketbook (no donation this year). I actually enjoy some of the Reason Foundation reports and transportation/pension studies are excellent.

[Chip Your Pets]

We may have to start a fork. Who is with me?

[Trshmnstr, Grump Apprentice]

I'm here for the comments

Same here. There are a handful of writers whose work I will still read, but I spend 95% of the time in the comments. Most of the time I don't make it more than 1 paragraph into the article.

The commenters are completely worth enduring the minefield of shoddy articles.

[Somalian Road Corporation]

I used to read almost every Reason article and I also didn't donate this year. It's a shame to see this publication degrade into even more cosmotarian cocktail party horseshit. You'd think that the last eight years of the Obama administration would have clued some folks into the fact that attempting to win over people who only value principals instead of principles is unwise because they'll betray you without a second thought, but I guess the faded Bush-era dreams of a left-libertarian alliance live on.

[Robert]

It's time for us to vote with our clicks.

I read that at 1st as "dicks". Easy w this font.

[Somalian Road Corporation]

Yeah, if I want to read hysterical pantshitting conflating Trump not wanting to let the legacy media play the Lucy and Charlie Brown football game with him with some sort of attack on the institution of media itself, there's 99% of the rest of the Internet I can go to.

Can we damn Trump for his vices, rather than his virtues, please?

[The Late P Brooks]

"What if they had an inauguration, and nobody came?" eh, Eric?

Hahahahahahaha. So clever, so droll. You can have that one, gratis. Just be sure to share it with Soave.

[Derpetologist]

"Mediocre Negros" Support Trump Says CNN Contributor
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZQ8fNtHlq4

New York governor requires insurance companies to cover contraception

[Hyperion]

So, how many people were there? Isn't it common knowledge that the leftist media exaggerate crowds at leftist events and do the opposite for crowds at right wing events? It's not like this is something new. So what's the deal? Did they lie or not?

[Chip Your Pets]

Right now the lead "in the news" item on the front page of Wikipedia is "Millions of people worldwide join the Women's March (pictured) in response to Donald Trump's inauguration as President of the United States".

Of course, they're adding in every gathering of more than 2 women somewhere in the world to get "millions". It's like saying there was a 200-megaton explosion worldwide, because that's what you get when you add up the energy output of all the automobile engines in operation around the world at any one time.

Sorry Jimbo, I'm never donating another cent to your encyclopropaganda.

[Somalian Road Corporation]

If you really want to get cranky and have some time to burn, check out the alltime top posts on WikiInAction.

[DOOMco]

My friends back home were sharing pictures of the protest in Montpelier. It claimed 20,000 people. It looks more like 5k. I started counting.

[Derpetologist]

Today's derp challenge:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sE6RusDAjOY

If you can make it to the halfway point, I'll be very impressed.

Things get really 'tarded around 3:08 in this video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_CpzGFmt-1M

[PapayaSF]

I bailed on the first one after a minute. The... person with the Donald Duck voice was too much.

[Derpetologist]

Get your shocked faces ready:
Malia Obama Just Landed A Dream Hollywood Internship

[Chip Your Pets]

It serves as an inspiration for all the teenagers out there, that a minimum wage job can lead to a great opportunity like this.

[Rhywun]

they would like their daughters to have some experience in minimum wage jobs

Not because they want them to have real-world experience, but as propaganda tools. JFC good riddance.

[Chip Your Pets]

Exactly. Having a minimum wage job with your expenses taken care of by your multi-millionaire daddy is a little different from having to live off of a minimum wage job as your sole income.

[Ted S.]

More, less, or equally undeserving compared to Jenna Bush Hager?

[PapayaSF]

White privilege at 1/4 strength is still a powerful thing.

[Derpetologist]

A heavy metal band where they all dress like Ned Flanders
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2BEvh6HSQc0

[PapayaSF]

Great name and look, but the music, meh....

[OneOut]

but the music, meh...

How can anyone tell ?

[Rhywun]

The fact that they misspelled Okely Dokely isn't helping.

[Domestic Dissident]

Out of curiosity, are we going to see that Nicholas Pell fellow here at Reason again, or has he been blackballed already?

After a week of almost nothing but the whiny-ass cosmos, I could use a bit of Nicholas Pell to change things up just a bit.

[Pompey:? Class Mothersmucker]

Out of curiosity, are we going to see that Nickolas Smell fellow here at TReason again, or has he been blackballed already?

After a week of almost nothing but the whiny-ass cosmos, I could use a bit of Hickolas Fell to change things up just a bit.

[Crusty Juggler]

Dickless Hell.

[Pompey:? Class Mothersmucker]

Pickles Dell

[DOOMco]

Wrinkles fell.

[Rhywun]

Rickles' Prell

[Ted S.]

You mean whiny ass-cosmos, of course.

[esteve7]

haha, ass cosmos

[DOOMco]

While I'm glad people are protesting, I'm having a hard time believing any of it comes from principles. Obama was at war every day he was potus. He expanded those wars. He didn't close gitmo. He deported 2.5 million people. He had reporters wiretapped and followed. He prosecuted more people under the espionage act than all previous presidents combined. His administration blocked FOIA requests in record numbers. He raided more medical Marijuana dispensaries than Bush. He was not for gay marriage at the start of his presidency. He laughed when someone asked him to reschedule pot, while someone was being thrown in a cage for smoking it.
But alas, principals are stronger than principles.

Imagine if all that energy had gone to your local homeless shelter, food shelf, womans shelter, planned parenthood, fire station, or church.

Should i post this.

[westernsloper]

During the lead up to the election, I pointed out much of what you did there to some long time friends on facebook that I no longer live by. These are codepinkish anti war types who would have enjoyed marching in the streets with W's balls on a pike if they could have. The group of them constantly posted praise for Obama almost to cultish levels. I finally spoke up, and asked WTF? Are you even paying attention? I have not heard from them since. It kind of cracked me up. I have no doubt they were at some march somewhere yesterday, and they all have a Barack and Michelle shrine somewhere in their homes.

[DOOMco]

That sounds so familiar. I point it out and get ignored. Sometimes people will hand wave. But its the hypocrisy that drives me crazy. I would respect them if they could just say it.
I already find much of both parties to be amoral. They seem to enjoy being on a team.

[wareagle]

I'm starting to think that responding to the trivial is Trump's way of creating a distraction. While the focus is on non-issues like crowd size, other things happen below the radar.

[one true athena]

Local news just promised me a segment about "how same-sex parents are planning to deal with the Trump presidency". I'm going to guess the answer isn't "Keep calm and carry on".

[DOOMco]

Well, the laws now clearly state that we are all to round up the gayz near us. We have immunity to any possible crime if the victim is of a minority group. We actually get "trump points" now. Double points for gays and women.
Of course, trump hasn't explained what these points are for. He did promise that we'd all love it.

[Chip Your Pets]

You know who else rounded up the gays near them....

[__Warren__]

Jesse?

[Uncle Jay]

RE: We shouldn't be surprised that Trump the president is no different from Trump the candidate, but come on.

I'm willing to wager your paycheck that Trump the president is the same as Trump the candidate.
Any takers?

[Chip Your Pets]

He can't be, since he actually has to have policies now.

[Hyperion]

Ok. I'm expecting just the opposite. But what if Trump were to just end the war on drugs, tomorrow? The left would absolutely go nuts. And I mean nuttier than they already have. We would see the entire left turn into the biggest drug warriors ever. They would put SoCons and Neocons to shame on that account.

Same effect if Trump would bring home all the troops and go totally pacifist. The left would have a raging war boner to end all war boners.

You want to really troll them, Trump? Go all libertarian on them, they might commit mass suicide.

[Derp-o-Matic 5000]

They're already beating the war drums against Russia and China. Their warboners are throbbing and need release.

[DOOMco]

It is a little silly, we've been bombing 7 countries for a while now.

[The Late P Brooks]

I'm having a hard time believing any of it comes from principles. Obama was at war every day he was potus. He expanded those wars.

No kidding. But now, suddenly, Trump is being held up as some sort of bloodthirsty warmongering boob who will destroy the peace and tranquility wrought by Obama's gentle healing touch.

[Hyperion]

"Trump is being held up as some sort of bloodthirsty warmongering boob who will destroy the peace and tranquility"

Someone got Hillary mixed up with Trump. Maybe it's that stupid Trumpilly picture Reason used for half of it's Trump hit pieces for the last year or so.

[DOOMco]

Yep. Im kind of disgusted by my friends. I know sarc gave us the principals vs principles bit, but god damn. I wish they could just admit they dont care when Obama did it

[Somalian Road Corporation]

One of the things that made Obama so bulletproof was that the people who voted for and supported him thought that they themselves were better people for doing so. Giving an honest evaluation of Obama would mean a reevaluation of themselves.

[Hyperion]

This Trumpocalypse thing is just boring so far. Is anything exciting going to happen? I mean we were promised apocalyptic shit and all I see is fugly women acting stupid and trashing up the streets. Where's the apocalyptic shit? Is Trump going to put them winimz back in chains or what? Wasn't this supposed to have already happened? Have you seen, there are colored folks walking around like nothing has happened. There's no nuclear explosions. I didn't see a single dead chillin in the street today. Fuck you Trumpocalypse, you're boring!

[PapayaSF]

Didn't you hear?? Trump reversed a scheduled 0.25 percent cut in FHA mortgage insurance premiums!! The headline: On His First Day in Office, Trump Raises Taxes on Middle-Class Homebuyers

[Hyperion]

The middle class don't typically take out FHA loans on account of having good credit and all that.

FHA loans are a fucking pain in the ass to deal with. I sold a home once to an FHA buyer. Holy fucking batshit, what a hassle.

.25%?, meh, if you even notice that, you can't afford a loan.

[Rhywun]

LOL guessing there will be a lot of tortured headlines going forward.

[DesigNate]

I saw a similar Time headline from one of Facebook friends. Hilariously most of the comments on the actual time article were real estate agents correcting their shitty reporting.

[BigT]

"This Trumpocalypse thing is just boring so far. Is anything exciting going to happen?"

You missed the Pussy March?

Pussy, pussy, all around. And not a one to grab.

[The Late P Brooks]

I'm starting to think that responding to the trivial is Trump's way of creating a distraction.

Chuck Todd wasted half of his show this morning quibbling with Kelly Ann Conway about the size of the crowd instead of tax rates or defense acquisition policy. Talk about taking the bait.

[Chip Your Pets]

It's not really a new strategy for dealing with media. It's in Wag the Dog for goodness sake.

What's new is the media making a story out of somebody else mentioning something they don't think should be a story.

[Derp-o-Matic 5000]

So did George Stephanopoulos. It's pathetic that they still fall for it.

[PapayaSF]

So it looks like the autists on /pol/ figured out the identity of the guy who sucker-punched Richard Spencer. Not sure it would be cool to post his name and the collage image floating around, but it's hilarious. They found pics of him being a slave to his dominatrix, with his head framed by a toilet seat, etc.

[The Late P Brooks]

Is anything exciting going to happen?

We'll be in a shootin' war with the Chinks in a matter of days. Hell, Chucky signed off this morning with, "We'll be back next Sunday... MAYBE!"

[Derp-o-Matic 5000]

You media types would do a better job achieving your stated goal of serving as a "check" on Trump if you did something besides constantly whining about how he hurt your feelings.

No one outside of your bubble has any sympathy. Your approval rating is currently lower than that of Congress. This isn't helping your cause.

[Hyperion]

Trump already has the media exactly where he wants them. He knows it, they know it. So what will they do? Passive aggressive shit, like antagonizing foolish 'protesters' to go out in the streets and get their heads bashed by the cops.

The media as it has been for decades, is done. They're irrelevant dinosaurs and they will just continue to fade until they for all intents and purposes, disappear.

[Chip Your Pets]

It's interesting.

How MSNBC and CNBC can continue to exist baffles me. TV ads are harder than ever to monetize, and their ratings are in the crapper anyway. The NYT and WaPo subscriber bases are shrinking like crazy. At this point I have to assume that the MSM news organizations are getting money under the table from wealthy Democrats and/or Democrat governments.

[Hyperion]

How else would they be able to continue to exist? Like you said, their usual sources of revenue, that they've relied on for a very long time, are drying up. All that leaves are political parties who want to sway elections in their favor. They just failed at that in spectacular fashion and now they have less influence on people than ever before. It looks very grim for them.

[mtrueman]

"At this point I have to assume that the MSM news organizations are getting money under the table from wealthy Democrats and/or Democrat governments."

They got over a billion for Clinton's campaign over the past year or so. It was all out in the open and stamped with the Libertarian seal of approval.

[Hyperion]

"stamped with the Libertarian seal of approval"

I'm gonna have to assume that you're retarded at this point.

[Chip Your Pets]

I assume it's a dig at Reason's support of Citizens United.

Of course whatever the public positions of the parties, CU has benefitted the Dems enormously and the GOP barely at all.

[DOOMco]

Hillary Clinton had a billion dollars spent on this election, iirc.

[Chip Your Pets]

Yep. For-profit corporations in the freer parts of the economy are never going to contribute significantly to political campaigns for fear of pissing off large numbers of their customers.

Meaning that the end result of CU is that unions, government contractors, nonprofits, and for-profits in heavily regulated sectors are now allowed to contribute. Every one of those orgs wants more government, even if it comes from Republicans. Yay libertarian moment.

[Derp-o-Matic 5000]

I assume it's a dig at Reason's support of Citizens United

So, yes, he's retarded on that point.

[Chip Your Pets]

I don't know about that. Citizens United has been a net negative for liberty, and the much-ballyhooed philosophy behind it is full of holes.

Lysander Spooner would not have liked the decision, for example. He correctly saw corporations as creatures of the state, and would have been horrified to see them granted constitutional rights co-equal to people.

[Derp-o-Matic 5000]

Corporations are legal shorthand for a group of people pooling their assets and conducting their affairs under one name/banner/logo. You don't lose your freedom of speech simply because you are acting in coordination with other people.

[Chip Your Pets]

You don't lose your freedom of speech simply because you are acting in coordination with other people.

No, but maybe you should if you are accepting the special govt privilege of limited liability for the thing you create from pooling said resources.

It is only reasonable that with limited responsibility should come limited freedom.

[Derp-o-Matic 5000]

"Make no law," what does it mean?

[Derp-o-Matic 5000]

Never mind that enforcing such a law would require letting the government determine what is and is not acceptable political speech. Take a look at this "fake news" panic and the obsession with fact-checkers who can't even distinguish between fact and opinion, and tell me you trust these people take exercise such power fairly and judiciously.

[Chip Your Pets]

The prohibited speech was actually pretty clearly defined -- referring to a candidate for public office in a way that indicates support or opposition.

[DOOMco]

"Make no law," what does it mean?
Common sense regulations?

[Chip Your Pets]

So perjury and death threats are protected by 1A as well?

The BOR writers were extremely sloppy with their language, because (a) they never expected the amendments to be applied to state and local govts, (b) they never expected the amendments to be applied to the federal govt due to the enumerated powers doctrine already restricting the fedgov's power, and (c) they didn't realize there would ever be such a thing as judicial review anyway.

You cannot take the amendments literally if you want to have a functioning society.

[Derp-o-Matic 5000]

Perjury, fraud, and death threats were always illegal under the common law and not included in the freedom of speech.

I'm not even going to bother with your ridiculous statement about judicial review

[Chip Your Pets]

Perjury, fraud, and death threats were always illegal under the common law and not included in the freedom of speech.

LOL. So that's the standard? Anything that was part of the common law in 1789 gets an exemption from the Bill of Rights?

You realize that pornography, sedition, and many other speech varieties were also illegal then?

I'm not even going to bother with your ridiculous statement about judicial review

Seriously? You disagree that JR was an innovation which appeared 14 years after the Bill of Rights?

[Derp-o-Matic 5000]

Judicial review is the logical consequence of having a constitution and a three-branch government. If congress passes a law that is in conflict with the Constitution (as they frequently do) and it is impossible to simultaneously comply with both the constitution and the law, then you must choose which to follow. Which do you choose? It has to be the constitution, the fundamental law of the land. Otherwise, Congress can effectively amend the Constitution with a simple majority vote, rather than the mechanisms set forth in article five.

[DesigNate]

I nominate you to explain to the NYT that they are no longer allowed to publish political opinion pieces 90 days before an election.

[Chip Your Pets]

Publishing political opinion pieces was never illegal under McCain-Feingold.

Only supporting or opposing candidates.

[Derp-o-Matic 5000]

I think you should vote for candidates against the war in Libya. Obama is for the war in Libya.

vs

Vote for Johnson over Obama because Obama is for the war in Libya.

This is seriously the hair-splitting you want government bureaucrats making?

[Lurk Diggler]

Your governement argued in front of the Supreme Court that if a corporation published an opinion peice (like CU did) then they violated the legislation. That was what Citizens United was about.

[Lurk Diggler]

Another word The NY Times does the same thing. Which is why SCOTUS had to either shut down the legislation or agree virtually every media entity violated the legislation. How do you not know this shit?

[OneOut]

Chippy you certainly seem to have deep insight into what the Founding Fathers really thought vs. what they told us they thought.

[OneOut]

Are you saying that unions should have their political voice taken away ?

[Sevo]

"I'm gonna have to assume that you're retarded at this point."

Either that or so desperate for attention to post crap like this. Regardless, you might just ass well toss those letter magnets on the fridge as read anything trueman post.

[Derp-o-Matic 5000]

Aside from that "Librarian seal of approval" bit (why wouldn't libertarians approve of individuals spending their own money on political speech, even if that speech is ill-informed emotional screeds?), You make an important point.

Despite the anti-Citizens United rhetoric, the media is the primary beneficiary of the ludicrous amount of political spending. They made a fortune off of JEB! and Hillary. Trump won despite spending hardly anything. It's interesting how this is being overlooked in all of the post election analysis.

[Chip Your Pets]

Trump may not have paid them much directly, but he did resuscitate their ratings somewhat.

[Derp-o-Matic 5000]

Indeed, but all of the left's tirades about money in politics are about actual spending. Trump (and David Brat a few years ago) demonstrated that the problem is grossly overstated.

[Pompey:? Class Mothersmucker]

Derp.

[Derp-o-Matic 5000]

Well, WaPo has Jeff Bezos as its sugar daddy. He didn't clean house when he arrived, so i can only conclude that he intends to finance this idiocy in perpetuity.

[Hyperion]

Bezos is a guy who I have never heard mention politics. Maybe he has, I just haven't heard about it.

[Chip Your Pets]

I've never heard him talk about defecation either, but it's clear he's involved in it.

[Derp-o-Matic 5000]

Perhaps not, but he owns WaPo. Unless Dana Milibank's contract is airtight, it would appear Bezos wants him to keep writing.

[SimonD]

Well, MSNBC and CNBC don't make their money from ads anymore. They make most of their money upfront for being on cable systems (and since they are owned by NBC, and NBC is owned by Comcast, they are on every cable box). Ratings don't matter anymore.

The NYT has been laying off people (and renting own entire floors of its building that USED to house reporters, etc.). The WaPo found a sugar daddy in Bezos. The Wall Street Journal and the L.A. Times have been recently sold. The industry is slowly collapsing, and will continue to do so without a change in direction.

[SimonD]

(and renting OUT entire floors of its building)

...sorry, not enough beer yet today. I'm too sober to type properly.

[Chip Your Pets]

That's the part I don't get. The money has to come from somewhere.

The only reason Comcast would favor NBC would be that it's cheaper to get content from them, as they're in-house. But that would mean even less money for the NBC products. Comcast is a monopoly where it exists, but they're getting serious competition from the dish and fiber companies, as well as people getting TV thru the internet. They can only raise prices so much, and I can't imagine they would do so to keep channels in the lineup that customers don't want.

And of course Comcast isn't the entire cable market.

[SimonD]

The fees get folded into subscribers' bills. Just as an example (I don't know how much money is involved), one dollar of every person's cable bill goes to MSNBC and another one to CNBC in exchange for them being on the cable boxes.

The other cable companies have to add those networks as well, because Comcast includes them as a package deal with NBC and USA, and two or three other networks probably (and they can just pass the costs along to subscribers). So now their customers are paying a buck per month for those networks as well.

It adds up quickly.

[Chip Your Pets]

The other cable companies have to add those networks as well, because Comcast includes them as a package deal with NBC and USA, and two or three other networks probably (and they can just pass the costs along to subscribers).

Yeah I get it, but if the other providers don't want MSNBC or CNBC, Comcast could presumably negotiate getting less money overall but more money per channel for the channels that customers actually want. Then they could stop spending money producing the content on the two unwanted channels, and come out way ahead on the deal.

[Trshmnstr, Grump Apprentice]

Relevant info, including a 2009 wholesale cost chart for each channel

[C. Anacreon]

Sloopy, EDG, etc...

I know it's an off-year for your Buckeyes in basketball, but even so, amazing to finally break the 35-year loss streak in Columbus for our Northwestern team just now.

Northwestern now 16-4, 5-2 in the Big Ten. Dare we whisper that we finally make the NCAA tourney this year for the first time ever?

Great few months for long-suffering teams from the north side of Chicago.

[BigT]

Congrats! And good luck!

[westernsloper]

Did they check for Brady's finger prints?

CHEATER!!

[DOOMco]

Goats can't pull alarms.

[Chip Your Pets]

Did somebody pull a fire alarm at the Packers hotel too? Mein Gott they're getting drubbed.

[Chip Your Pets]

Today on Meet the Left, Kellyanne Conway cleans up the mess that Spicer made.

All of a sudden NBC News and Chuck Todd is so focused on covering crowd control, because we were mocked daily for talking about the historic significance of the size of the crowds at our rallies during the campaign... on great days were ignored, and on most days we were mocked.

[Chip Your Pets]

It's especially funny that Conway keeps bringing up substantive issues, while Chuck Todd desperately tries to insist that she answer his stupid question about Spicer's stupid statement.

I never knew the press secretary was such an important part of the government. The press had such high standards for the Ernest Goes To the Podium guy that Obama sent out there.

[John]

Trump has figured out that what infuriates the media more than anything else is to attack their egos. They can't take that and go insane no matter how foolish it makes them look.

[Derp-o-Matic 5000]

This

[Sevo]

"SF prepares to count its homeless, braces for cuts under Trump"
[...]
"Just six days into Donald Trump's presidency, hundreds of volunteers and officials will fan out across San Francisco to take a count of the city's homeless population, hoping to get the most accurate tally possible ? and qualify the city for the most federal money possible."

I'm betting that not one of the bums ever sent a 'thank you' note to you taxpayers beyond the city limits. I know *I* never got one, even living here.

[Chip Your Pets]

I'm genuinely confused. Why didn't they do this under Obama?

[BigT]

These are Obamas homeless. It will provide a good baseline to see how the number changes under Trump.

[John]

When the number comes out, I don't think they will be called "Obama's homeless". The homeless problem is the comet of the political world that only appears when a Republican takes the office.

[Chip Your Pets]

If the numbers of homeless decrease over the next 4 years, it will be because Trump's policies killed them off.

[John]

They have been sent underground.

[OneOut]

"If the numbers of homeless decrease over the next 4 years, it will be because Trump's policies killed them off."

Obama loves the homeless so much he created more of them ?

[Sevo]

So long as SF gets your money to pay them to be here, they will increase, regardless of the lies from the local poverty-complex.
There is a lot of money to be made 'serving' the bums.

[John]

Making life pleasant for bums attracts more of them. Who knew?

[Chip Your Pets]

Not Reason, considering they defend "charitable" mass feedings that attract the homeless into city parks.

There was a time when they understood better, though.

[__Warren__]

Say, mister. Will you stake a fellow American to a meal?

[Rhywun]

There is a lot of money to be made 'serving' the bums.

$1.6 billion in NYC.

[John]

http://www.mediaite.com/online.....ent-obama/

This might be the saddest thing of the entire weekend. This is what happens when you stop keeping score at pee wee soccer games for 20 years.

[Rhywun]

LOL. Can you imagine the likes of Bill Murray and Chevy Chase pulling this stunt? Regardless of their personal politics.

[John]

So I finished working the inauguration today. Saw the entire thing first hand. America today can be summed up as the cast of Portlandia versus the case of Duck Dynasty.

[DOOMco]

that does sound funny.

[John]

Fortunately for the Portlandia people the Duck Dynasty people didn't bring their shotguns.

[PapayaSF]

I expected more antifa vs. biker mayhem.

[__Warren__]

Me too. Where were the beatdowns?

[__Warren__]

So I spent some time inaugurating myself and I gotta tell ya, it's very relaxing!

[PapayaSF]

Based Ron Paul.

[BakedPenguin]

Succinct and well said.

[Rhywun]

+1

[Rhywun]

"The left remained silent while the Obama administration spent two full terms at war."

That alone should be enough to just shut them the hell up.

But if this weekend was any indication, one might think that the only thing the left gives a shit about is abortion. And they are so stupid that they don't see that Trump is actually uninterested in that issue.

[BakedPenguin]

IIRC, he said at some point that he was pro-life, which is all they need. He never said he was going to do anything about it.

What I don't get are the people who claim he's going after gays and blacks. He said nothing that I can remember about the latter, and he actually waved a rainbow flag at one of his rallies.

But they've been rehearsing their script, and they're not good at improvisation.

[Rhywun]

I thought he was pro-choice at some point, and likely just said he was pro-life to court votes. Either way I don't think he mentioned it again during the campaign. But the R after his name is enough for most people anyway.

[Trshmnstr, Grump Apprentice]

You could run an unrepentant Bernie Sanders as the Republican presidential candidate, and the left would run the same exact smear campaign. They haven't learned their lesson: people tend to take it personally when you repeatedly, condescendingly, and uncompromisingly call them bigots.

[Agile Cyborg]

Applause of this flavor bereft of spooks is far fucking more laudable.

[__Warren__]

So the Falcons score to get to 23-0 and then kick the XP. Why not go for two to make it a four score game? Even if you miss you still have a three score game, which to pull even would require GB to convert two two-pointers themselves.

[DOOMco]

That feels like a Carroll or Andy Reid move.

[Chip Your Pets]

That would be running up the score. They probably don't want Matt Ryan's head to be knocked off by the Packers in the 3rd quarter.

[__Warren__]

There is no "running up the score" against Aaron Rodgers. You need every point.

Doesn't matter now, anyway. It's four scores after that catch n' run.

[Chip Your Pets]

LOL. Erin is over the hill.

[DOOMco]

well, that didn't take long

[__Warren__]

Matty just iced the Pack.

[DOOMco]

Pretty much.

[__Warren__]

That was not roughness. Jesus Christ.

[__Warren__]

Okay, they changed it.

[TheZenomeProject]

Looks like we have Trump's 1st move as POTUS: a US embassy move from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Say what you want, but this is a buzzkill for all of those people calling him "anti-semitic" during the inauguration.

[Chip Your Pets]

Palestinians are Semites too.

[PapayaSF]

Only technically true. Nobody thinks "anti-Semitism" means "anti-Palestinian," just as nobody thinks "Anti-American" means "anti-Mexican."

[TheZenomeProject]

If you really want to stretch it, there are lots of people in Lebanon and Syria with Semitic blood, too, but the term was never really used to describe those folks.

On a side note, David Duke and Richard Spencer become Democrats in 3, 2, 1...will the SPLC call the alt-Left a hate group, too?

[John Titor]

I've been seeing the term 'alt-left' crop up already on lefty sites to describe the social justice crowd by more self-aware leftists. Unfortunately for them, it doesn't really work, as the alt-right exists because they were rejected by mainstream conservatism (or they rejected the mainstream themselves) while the 'alt-left' has been tolerated and nurtured by the left wing for years.

The alt-right's position on Israel is flexible though, I'm not sure what Spencer's position is, but a bunch of them see Israel as the perfect place to ship all the Jews so they don't cause (((problems))) over here.

[Rhywun]

So, (((Liberia))).

[TheZenomeProject]

The alt-right is essentially Marcus Garvey for white people. They want African-Americans, Hispanics, Asians, Europeans, etc. to create and live in their own ethnostates. I'm sure that some of them would look at Israel as a solution to their loony "Jewish Question", but I'm guessing many of them are Stormers that believe in the NWO and wouldn't want to concentrate Jewish power hahaha.

[PapayaSF]

I think that's too strong. While the alt-right can be said to stick up for white culture and majority white countries, I don't think many are advocating for partitioning or ethnic cleansing. They'd just be happy (as I would) to stop mass immigration and various policies like affirmative action.

[GILMORE?]

I don't think many are advocating for partitioning or ethnic cleansing

as a recent discussion showed, you don't need "many" to find "some"

[TheZenomeProject]

as a recent discussion showed, you don't need "many" to find "some"

This. I don't think that many on the alt-right believe in ethnic cleansing, however. More like ethnic separatism, where white people establish their own state somewhere with open land/resources, sort of like the libertarian's Free State Project in NH.

[PapayaSF]

This is what I was responding to:

The alt-right is essentially Marcus Garvey for white people. They want African-Americans, Hispanics, Asians, Europeans, etc. to create and live in their own ethnostates.

No doubt some believe that, but that's not "essentially" what the alt-right is, any more than "black pride" was "essentially" the same as Marcus Garvey.

Part of the issue here is the word "create." Europe and to some extent the USA are already "ethnostates" in the sense of having majority white populations. The alt-right does not want that changed, while leftists and globalists and many immigrants do. So "preserve" would be better than "create" if you are trying to describe a majority position of the alt-right.

[John Titor]

as a recent discussion showed, you don't need "many" to find "some"

Indeed. The alt-right, being a coalition of different interests and 'tones' of white nationalism, have some legit Nazis and Hitler apologists in their ranks (at least significantly enough that you see other alt-righters complain about them). Partitioning is also more common, with plenty of thought experiments about carving out the whites-only communities and what-not. But it also can be said that there's a bit of a divide between the writers on alt-right blogs, the general 'alt right community' and the shitbag teenagers who think the Jews control everything. The vocal 'murder *insert group here*' comments tend to come from the latter two, and Poe's Law is always a possibility.

[Chip Your Pets]

At least the Palestinians don't pollute our soda shelves with their pancake syrup dreck.

[Heroic Mulatto]

Don't you see?

This is all a ploy to enrage the Arab world so much that they launch a full on attack at Israel.

n-th dimensional chess.

[__Warren__]

Is this the last thread Trump will allow Reason to post?

[__Warren__]

Did the free-market kill coal?

[Hyperion]

I bought a house once, built in the 1860s, that had an old coal stove in the basement. That thing must have weighed a ton. There was also an old fuel oil furnace down there. The house was in pretty bad shape, but I paid like 15 grand for it in the 90s and spent about a decade completely remodeling it, did almost all the work myself. One of the most interesting things I did is that the house had plaster walls and ceilings and I didn't tear those out, I fixed them. They had all sorts of cracks and other imperfections. I used a tool to dig out all the cracks and whatever and then filled them with plaster and sanded. It looked beautiful when I was done, but the funny thing is that I looked like a fucking coal miner after a day in the mines after doing the ceiling. Coal dust, lol. The people who lived there with the coal furnace, probably died of black lung.

[PapayaSF]

I remember a Reason article from w-a-a-a-y back, arguing that black lung was not caused by simply working in coal mines, but only (mainly?) afflicted cigarette smokers who worked in coal mines.

[Hyperion]

I remember back when I was a kid, we had relatives working in the coal mines in Eastern KY. We used to visit there occasionally and I heard my parents and relatives talking about family members dying from black lung. Funny that no one who didn't work in the coal mines ever died of that, that I ever heard of anyway.

I seriously would be black after working on the ceiling in that house. I was wearing dust masks, so only most of my face would be coal black. Like black face, lol. How the hell could anyone breathe that shit all day without severe health consequences?

[Trshmnstr, Grump Apprentice]

How hard was getting all the fuel oil heating stuff out and making everything look decent? I have an old boiler and tank sitting in/next to the basement and I have water pipes running to a bunch of unused baseboard heaters. I'd start yanking it out myself but I'm afraid of screwing up the floors and walls.

[DOOMco]

Moving big things like that is not hard if you have the right tools, you can probably rent cheap. Slow is the way to go.
You could talk to a moving company that deals with safes.

[Hyperion]

The basement originally had a brick floor. That was all but gone. I had some friends over and we broke down the iron coal furnace with a torch and took it out in pieces. It was huge. The fuel oil tank was easy as it wasn't heavy so we just took it out and cut and sealed off the line. I assume there was a fuel tank buried somewhere out back. I stripped everything out of there and we dug about a foot deep out of the old floor and then poured concrete on the floor and finished it. The walls of the house were all brick, two layers of brick. Then I put a new gas furnace in the basement and a washer and dryer hook up down there. It was a lot of work, but very rewarding. I made a lot of money selling that place since I did most of the work myself. I tore out all of the old pipes and replaced them with copper and plastic. Believe it or not, the house also had this weird old wiring with two separate wires. I tore all of that out and replaced it with help from an electrician friend and we put in a new electrical box and all that, replaced everything. It was pretty much a gut and replace on everything. Except like I said, I kept the original plaster walls and fixed them. The ones on the outside walls were directly over brick which influenced my decision about that. But it worked well.

[Trshmnstr, Grump Apprentice]

I wish I had the determination to do that level of a remodel. I would love to strip a house down to the studs, reconfigure it, and finish it out exactly the way I want.

[Sumio Mondo, Jr.]

You lifted that entire passage from Look Homeward, Angel.

[kbolino]

I tore all of that out and replaced it with help from an electrician friend and we put in a new electrical box and all that, replaced everything. It was pretty much a gut and replace on everything.

It's called knob and tube and you probably should have left it alone unless it was in really bad shape. That stuff already lasted 100 years and would last 100 more, unlike the Romex you replaced it with. Although it is a bitch to work with.

[kbolino]

Meant to quote this sentence as well: "Believe it or not, the house also had this weird old wiring with two separate wires"

[Domestic Dissident]

I've got to give some props to ol' Jimmy Carter. The dude is 92, and yet he's clearly in better health and has more energy and stamina than poor Sick Hildog. He'll probably show up to attend her funeral in the next year or two.

[Hyperion]

Carter's not evil, he's just stupid. The evil is eating Hillary alive, it's very ugly to behold.

[__Warren__]

During the autopsy it will be discovered that she's 90% carnivorous worms.

[PapayaSF]

I am surprised that she hasn't had an extended stay at some spa or health clinic or something, since the election.

[__Warren__]

Imagine being the spa attendant tasked to skim the hot tub after Her visit.

[Rufus The Monocled]

Politically naive I say.

He's an engineer and farmer with a good heart.

How stupid can he be?

[Hyperion]

Stupid enough to believe in socialism.

[Rufus The Monocled]

I concede.

[Pompey:? Class Mothersmucker]

I've got to give some props to ol' Skinny Farter. The dude is 92, and yet he's clearly in better health and has more energy and stamina than poor Flick Pilldog. He'll probably show up to attend her funeral in the next year or two.

[Hyperion]

More than 500 comments. That's a lot of closet Trumpets we got here. Shreek, he's the biggest closet Trumpet of all.

[BakedPenguin]

So it looks like H&R is going to go a whole day without a new post.

I blame Trump.

[Pan Zagloba]

Since Sunday is usually a Dalmia reprint or fresh Richman derp, 2017 shows improvement!

[John Titor]

Say what you will about Richman, when he's not writing pants-on-head-retarded foreign policy or Trump articles, his more general discussions about libertarian perspectives on history or whatever are at least interesting, which is better than, say, Soave writing anything outside of the university beat.

[Heroic Mulatto]

Or Soave writing anything inside the university beat.

[John Titor]

I'm being generous because arguing against university social justice idiocy is like shooting fish in a barrel, you can be mediocre as hell and still succeed at getting a more coherent point across than them.

[Rufus The Monocled]

You guys are angry tonight.

You should, erm, protest.

[__Warren__]

At least when we protest we don't have to do it in two languages.

[Hyperion]

The Trumpocalypse is fairly uneventful thus far, they don't have much material.

[Derp-o-Matic 5000]

I was in Florida for a conference all week, returned to DC today. I was disappointed to find that it's not just a smoldering crater.

Worst Trumpocalypse ever.

[Hyperion]

Yeah. I was thinking that if the crater is big enough, I could take water taxi down to fish for some mutant river monsters. Damnit, this Trumpocalypse really is lame. No three eyed nuclear powered fishies or anything. Is there someplace to request a refund?

[DOOMco]

Clinton Foundation?

[Hyperion]

I hear that they're out of money and aren't giving any refunds.

[Domestic Dissident]

It's hard to even see the screen or the keyboard when you've been crying the entire weekend like most of the D.C. Reasonoids have been.

[SIV]

Reason put on their pussy hats and marched with the rest of the "resistance".

[__Warren__]

Fuck you AMC! The Walking Dead sucks.

[PapayaSF]

Turns out one of the Women's March speakers is an ex-con who participated in a brutal kidnapping and torture-murder. Nice.

Another organizer is a fan of sharia law and has connections with Hamas.

[Libertarian]

Love trumps hate. Apparently, vaginas trump kidnapping.

[__Warren__]

It's not called a "snatch" for nothing!

[Trshmnstr, Grump Apprentice]

*attempts to narrow gaze without giggling*

[Hyperion]

The left sympathize with Sharia law supporters. Think about it, they're more alike than they are different.

[Derp-o-Matic 5000]

Sharia law is the one where you can stone a woman to death for adultery, right?

Yeah, Trump is totally worse.

[Rufus The Monocled]

Outstanding.

But FAKE NEWS.

[Libertarian]

Good news, everyone.

http://www.targetliberty.com/2.....-news.html

"Fox News has just announced that Nigel Farage will be joining the network to provide political analysis on its main news channel and its business network."

[Hyperion]

I heard about that yesterday. Was telling the wife this is great stuff. I love that guy, he's better than anyone currently on Fox, especially since Stossel is gone.

[__Warren__]

That's Brent Hundley's music!

[Heroic Mulatto]

Six-Sided Mirror: White People

[westernsloper]

What is that? Instructional video for Thai's to understand farang's? That is the only word I recognized other than a good guess at the language.

[Sumio Mondo, Jr.]

I don't know, but it needs more twerking.

[Heroic Mulatto]

Instructional video for Thai's to understand farang's?

Think more 'nature documentary'.

[westernsloper]

White folk be like cats? That did not help at all. Lacking on twerking as well.

[Sumio Mondo, Jr.]

On a kickoff, if you kick it out of bounds, it's a penalty. On a punt, if you kick it out of bounds, the officials have to make their best guess as to where the ball went out.

That's bullshit. Either penalize both situations (my preference), or penalize neither.

[Chip Your Pets]

They're totally different plays with different rules. One is a play from scrimmage, the other is not. One can be faked, the other cannot. One allows the kicking team to take possession without the receiving team touching it, the other does not.

[Hyperion]

Yeah, this, but why are we talking about the foozball?

[Hyperion]

Oh, and I might add, if you're Tom Brady, there's a special rule. It's called the tuck rule and no one's ever heard of it before. But it can get you to the Superbowl.

[__Warren__]

Let. It. Go. Nobody gave a shit about Brady then, they wouldn't do anything for him.

[Hyperion]

I've let it go. It was pure bullshit, you know that. Brady is a great QB and is lucky enough to have been part of a great organization. He's fallen out of favor now. It happens.

[OneOut]

Not with me.

I'm a dyed in the wool Cowboy fan and I love Brady and Bellicheck.

They are masters at their craft.

[Lurk Diggler]

It was called before. That season it was called in a game the Patriots played for the opposing Qb. The NFL didn't get rid of that rule until a few years ago.

[Sumio Mondo, Jr.]

Are you saying holding can be legal on certain plays, but not on others?

[Hyperion]

What the hell are you even talking about?

[Sumio Mondo, Jr.]

Tulpa said that the two kicks should be treated differently because they are two different types of plays. My point is that holding exists on offense, defense, and special teams - why can't kicks and punts be treated the same even though they are two different types of plays?

[Derpetologist]

file under: sabre rattling

B-2 bombers kill nearly 100 ISIS terrorists in Libya

The strikes used strategic nuclear-capable bombers as opposed to more conventional jets stationed in England in order to "send a strategic message" to other adversaries such as Russia and China, a source told Fox News.

Carter said the bombers were the most capable tools for this mission even though other available airpower was closer to North Africa. Previous strikes in Libya used drones and F-15s from a U.S. Air Force base in England, and two Navy guided-missile destroyers were off the coast of Libya armed with Tomahawk cruise missiles.

[straffinrun]

Maybe already posted, but this lady gets booted from plane for lecturing Trump supporter. Should've booted her after take off.

[Hyperion]

The husband is a neutered pussy. Every time from now on when I start to think that my life is bad, I will conjure up the image of that poor emasculated pussy and thank all the invisible sky gods for how good I really have it.

[Libertarian]

I pictured him asking the flight attendant if he had to get off too. Not sure he's a pussy -- he probably knew that at a certain point, trying to reason with her would be fruitless.

[Trshmnstr, Grump Apprentice]

lecturing? Let's call it what it really is: verbal abuse.

[GILMORE?]

Did you come here to cheer or to protest?"

"I came here to celebrate democracy ma'am"

... I knew this was going to be a long flight at this point. She then proceeded with: (somewhat paraphrased as my memory allows)

Her: "You put a crazed man in charge of the nuclear codes! You should be ashamed!"

Me: 'Well we're all entitled to our opinions here ma'am."

Her: "And I'm entitled to get drunk and puke in your lap! I'm going to throw up right in your lap! You make me sick! Don't talk to me! Don't look at me! Don't you dare even put your arm on that rest. You disgust me! You should be ashamed of yourself! You put a maniac's finger on the button" (assuming she's means nukes). You are a bigot. You should get off this plane!"

Me: "ma'am, by definition, bigotry is disparaging someone prior to knowing them simply by their beliefs and opinions. Thank you for being the very thing you preach against."

She the proceeded with other various rantings such as my lack of critical thinking and other insults.

The person who I was more interested was the thumb sucking husband silently letting his wife go bananas and get them both kicked off the plane. I'm sure he was like "yes dear, you were totally in the right and they were all wrong" as they waited for their next flight.

i recall having a customer like that when i was waiting tables in college. Hubby just looked at me and shrugged. "don't blame me"

[DOOMco]

When I think of adulting, I think of accosting random strangers in public.

[GILMORE?]

adulting,

sounds like a sex thing

[DOOMco]

I was thinking Vincent.

[Hyperion]

Advice for guys. Don't engage in a heterosexual relationship with anyone having a higher testosterone count than your own. In this case, I assume that's anything over zero. What a fucking pussy.

[Trshmnstr, Grump Apprentice]

Don't engage in a heterosexual relationship with anyone having a higher testosterone count than your own.

[Ignoring the joke]Eh, I don't really associate a hysterical near-panic reaction as masculine. My experience with women is that irrationally berating somebody comes right before completely mentally shutting down and turning into a blubbering, ineffective mess. [/ignoring the joke]

i recall having a customer like that when i was waiting tables in college. Hubby just looked at me and shrugged. "don't blame me"

That kinda pisses me off. It's just like the parents who don't deal with their screaming kid in a sit down restaurant for 30 minutes, and then knowingly shrug at all the pissed off people when they leave. Your family is a reflection of you, and when your family acts like shit, I assume that you're just as much a shithead as they are. If you aren't, then you're falling down on the job, as it's your responsibility to get them to act respectably in public.

[straffinrun]

I honestly thought that was another womyn.

[Derp-o-Matic 5000]

The Tolerant Left on full display. So much tolerance going on, it's unbelievable.

[westernsloper]

That guy shows some serious restraint. I am not sure if I would have not told her to fuck off.

[__Warren__]

Nobody looks as disappointing as live-action Gaston!

[DOOMco]

Mall shooting.

[Trshmnstr, Grump Apprentice]

Thank God for that concealed carrier who put some lead into one of the thugs. Too bad he couldn't plug the second one. Thoughts and condolences to the Good Samaritan.

[Libertarian]

"Thoughts and condolences to the Good Samaritan."

Absolutely. But good god, did he know it was an armed robbery when he interceded?

[Trshmnstr, Grump Apprentice]

I'm guessing not. You'd have to be pretty nuts to intervene knowing full well that they're gonna shoot you.

I've heard people say that most armed robbers and burglars don't really want to add murder to their rap sheet, but I don't buy it. You don't carry a weapon without at least contemplating the need to use it.

[DOOMco]

I'm sure it can go places the robber was not intending very quickly, too. They still have the gun though.

[Hyperion]

Don't take no weapons to a gunfight. The guy with the gun has the right idea and it worked. I feel bad for the guy killed, but WTF are you thinking confronting armed robbers with no weapon?

[straffinrun]

The second suspect fled the scene, shooting as he ran. He is still on the run.

The old Parthian shot. Against the death penalty, but shit like that makes me rethink my position.

[Trshmnstr, Grump Apprentice]

I'm all for "relaxing" the rules of engagement when somebody has shown themselves to be armed and willing to shoot at members of the public. That's the one time when I don't give a shit if the cops have an itchy trigger finger.

That's as close to death penalty as I dare tread.

[The Fusionist]

I don't think it's the death penalty to

(a) capture a suspect and bring him to trial and

(b) overcome his resistance if he refuses to submit to (a) or threatens to shoot people.

[The Fusionist]

Specifically, I'd say that everyone has their right to their day in court, but someone who has to be taken down because he's endangering lives and won't surrender - that person has *waived* their right to a trial and has chosen instead to submit to the arbitrament of force.

[SIV]

"pants shitting"

I LEARNED IT FROM WATCHING YOU, DAD!

[Rufus The Monocled]

The way I interpret that joke is it validates they're a bunch of big stupid babies.

[Ted S.]

And the guy linked to Mrs. Robby.

[The Fusionist]

So the What We Saw at the Women's March story is back, at least it's under top stories, but it's not at H&R.

[Trshmnstr, Grump Apprentice]

Thanks for the heads up!

[straffinrun]

My favorite sign from the March. I'm going to have to take her word on that.

[straffinrun]

Ooooh, found another good one.

[straffinrun]

Oops.

[Trshmnstr, Grump Apprentice]

I didn't realize that Womxyzn's march was a march against FDR!

[The Fusionist]

She voted for Hillary...because a Democrat locked up American citizens based on race?

[straffinrun]

Not sure, but IIRC they interred men in those camps, too. Let's just include every single legitimate victim of state oppression with our first world version of oppression and *presto* American women are the same as prisoners.

[The Fusionist]

I think the idea here is that excluding Muslim immigrants for a limited period is the same as locking up citizens along with alien enemies during WWII.

[Mike Schmidt]

So he progressives god, FDR, locked up the dead-looking old lady 70+ years ago and that is Trump's fault?

[See Double You]

Maybe she's just an epic troll.

[Heroic Mulatto]

George Takei has really let himself go.

[Libertarian]

Okay, folks. We're done here. Turn out the lights. Tomorrow is Monday and we'll start with a brickbat, okay?

[Mr Lizard]

Good evening stooooopid mammals, what have you been getting on about.

BTW I should let you know, Your Future Reptilian Overlords look forward to the Tom Brady mammal being victorious in the match

[__Warren__]

He may well be but the F.R.O. can go fuck themselves with an icicle.

[Mr Lizard]

And the mammal named Blount has finally found his legs!

And Your Future Reptillian Overlords welcome you to attempt such frozen sexual overtures...

[Mr Lizard]

It would appear your frozen phalic has gone a bit mushy...

[Trshmnstr, Grump Apprentice]

Having a vag is biology, not politics

I thought I heard the women chanting 'Menstrual brew' which had me wondering exactly what this lot were on. But listening more closely it turned out to be 'Pence Sucks Too.'

I was grateful for the clarity. I thought it was just Trump they hated. But it turns out it is all men. Apart from the ones who are transitioning to women.

'What do we want? Equality'. 'When do we want it?' 'NOW'.

I wondered what in their world was not equal, but I guess if you have a massive chip on one shoulder the world is probably a bit askew.

[westernsloper]

Feminism has to be better than this. Better than posters telling me your vagina is tough. Or 'this pussy grabs back'. So what? Mine can stash a 24 oz can of Coors Light. Sideways.

Wow! Respect.

[BigT]

Wendy O Williams is alive?

[Libertarian]

Twenty minutes without a post. Is there a game on tonight?

[Trshmnstr, Grump Apprentice]

Yup. I haven't gotten all the parts for mounting my TV antenna or else I'd be watching it too.

[The Fusionist]

Again, I'm confident Reason will be on hand for the March for Life on January 27.

[The Fusionist]

Although looking at some pictures of previous marches, it seems that women keep slipping into the march. They must have taken a wrong turn somewhere, because what are they doing at a misogynist event which glorifies the oppression of women?

[Trshmnstr, Grump Apprentice]

Are you going to the MfL?

[The Fusionist]

Alas, for various reasons I can't do this year what I did in a couple earlier years.

So, no.

[Trshmnstr, Grump Apprentice]

No worries, I was just curious. Now that I've moved to NoVa, I'm tempted to go to the stuff that happens in DC. I'm not much of a protest/rally/march person, but I may end up hopping the Metro downtown to check it out.

[The Fusionist]

I have...whatever that thing is where crowds make you nervous...but I will say that those particular crowds were a sight for sore eyes. Well dressed, as a rule, sometimes literally as a rule in the case of the nuns - but mostly lay persons of various religious backgounds expressing their concerns without window-smashing or trash-burning.

[Derp-o-Matic 5000]

March for Life is nearly always well behaved and respectful, but they still make Metro a pain in the ass.

[The Fusionist]

From prior marches, I can say I saw plenty of women, but none of them dressed up as giant genitalia. I guess they just weren't very woke.

[Heroic Mulatto]

No, but I'm going to the MiLf.

[The Fusionist]

...

[straffinrun]

Reminds of Mickey Rourke in Diner.

[Libertarian]

"Pro-life women banned from anti-Trump Women's March on Washington"

http://www.washingtontimes.com.....arch-wash/

[Pompey:? Class Mothersmucker]

*jazz hands*

[Rufus The Monocled]

Jesus, listened to the opening of the Chart/Welch debate. WTF is Chait smoking? Obama 'decreased' income of the wealthy by 5% and this is a good thing? The American health system is the cruelest?

Clown.

[The Fusionist]

Two other takeaways:

-The IRS didn't single out conservative groups for harassment.

-Civil forfeiture is a state issue which Obama couldn't have done much about.

I enjoy giving Reason staffers grief, but Welch was good in counteracting the narrative.

[Hyperion]

The Patriots are destroying the Steelers. I don't really know how this can't be racism, because the Patriots are the whitest football team I've seen in 50 years. Edelman is a fucking monster. Is there anyway these guys can be charged with hate crimes?

[Libertarian]

This is 2017 and anything is possible. QUIT GIVING THE LEFT IDEAS!

[The Fusionist]

Are they going to inflate the hate-crime statistics?

[Libertarian]

Yes, the statistics are spiraling out of control.

[westernsloper]

I'm pretty sure Brady would deflate them. But just a little bit.

[The Fusionist]

The important point is people get to air...their grievances.

[The Fusionist]

can't help myself

[westernsloper]

Nice.

[CZmacure]

I come to Reason comments on the weekend in part because I am unlikely to be spoilered on sports that I plan to watch on DVR. Especially NFL, which you'd have to be a masochist to watch live.

In sum : I don't appreciate the spoilers. 😀

[Hyperion]

36-9 bro, sorry. Don't come here to not get sports spoilers.

[Mr Lizard]

Your Future Reptilian Overlords are pleased at the performance of the Brady mammal and his pale underlings. Perhaps one day we shall be able to discern the differences amongst you without the benefit of a 'yards after catch' stat

[Rufus The Monocled]

Whiter than the Packers?

That coulda been the Racist Bowl.

[Sevo]

"Whiter than the Packers?"

I've noticed that too; there's a serious case of white in that town.

[Hyperion]

The Hate Bowl.

[Sevo]

Damn Russkis. First, the elections and now something important!

"United Airlines flights delayed due to computer issue"
http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/.....875813.php

[Sevo]

Related:

"Bill would require teaching of California students about Russian interference for Trump
[...]
"Unwilling to wait for history to become, well, history, a Marin County legislator wants to make sure state schools teach students about Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, requiring the topic in history classes."
http://www.sfgate.com/educatio.....863903.php

And for a text, they'll get Van Jones to write something up.

[The Fusionist]

Do state curricular standards require students to learn how the Soviets had commie spies and agents of influence in the government under FDR?

[GILMORE?]

The facts on Trump are not flattering so they are aggressively re-writing history as fast and as flagrantly as they can. Bagdad Bob is now our President. Organized forgetting, as in the fake story that "bad intelligence" not the Bush-Cheney disinformation campaign led us in to invade Iraq, usually ends in violence, death and destruction. So whatever kind of campaign to record and remember what is really happening is a good idea that will save lives.

I tried to like this comment but i would be required to register. (Sadface)

[The Fusionist]

Ironically like?

[GILMORE?]

i think California SHOULD pass the measure.

the solution to the Progressive Menace is to give them everything they want. ASAP

[The Fusionist]

Funny, progs never try to defeat *their* opponents by enacting their opponents' agenda...

[Sevo]

GILMORE?|1.22.17 @ 9:48PM|#
"i think California SHOULD pass the measure."

Absolutely agreed.
CA curriculum would then be seen as politically-driven bullshit.

[Sevo]

Papaya's in there fighting the good fight.

[PapayaSF]

Thanks, I hope you're up voting me!

[Trshmnstr, Grump Apprentice]

When can we start seriously talking about letting those goons #CalExit? It'll benefit us so much in the long run to let them conduct their statist experiments in "peace."

[Pompey:? Class Mothersmucker]

lol, great, that looks so much less idiotic than young earth creationist bullshit doesn't it?

[westernsloper]

In rare cases, the state legislature has required topics to be included in curriculum. A bill signed by Gov. Jerry Brown in September, for example, requires that financial literacy be taught in six grade levels.

Did they use California state government as an example?

[GILMORE?]

FTFY

A bill signed by Gov. Jerry Brown in September, for example, requires that financial literacy be taught at a six grade level

[Rufus The Monocled]

There's only one way to deal with Russians.

/whistles to Phil Esposito and Bobby Clarke.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zo_IKdOLnrs

[BigT]

Like the preacher says:

"Jesus saves!!"

...

...and Espo scores on the rebound!

[GILMORE?]

I wonder how many people type these words in the other way around and end up here, largely disappointed

The Trailer. Because i know you're curious. The soundtrack really didn't live up to my expectations, as it usually the case with 'awesome titles'

[John Titor]

Random movie nerd on the internet says it sucks.

[The Fusionist]

Let me find my shocked face.

[John Titor]

Hey now, you never know where you're going to find something so stupid it becomes the next Samurai Cop or The Room.

[The Fusionist]

Of course I know where to go...to those awful shows and movies which get panned in Reason...

[GILMORE?]

ah, but does he mention the minutes of ecstasy he experienced *imagining* what the film might contain? sometimes a tease is its own reward.

[GILMORE?]

in other, related, 'disappointing film titles'

[The Fusionist]

The Big Sleep was a disappointment, I actually stayed awake for the whole thing.

[The Fusionist]

Ha ha just kidding

[The Fusionist]

Prolifers play world's smallest violin as lefty march only gets major coverage from two of three networks:

Fox News downplays Women's March on Washington

"As the day wore on and millions marched and rallied around the country, commentators at MSNBC and CNN repeatedly expressed surprise at the number of people involved and invited a wide range of conversation about what such an event could mean for the country.

"For hours, cameras swooped from on high to capture the sprawling crowds in Washington and other cities while coverage of high-profile speakers including Gloria Steinem, Michael Moore and Sen. Elizabeth Warren was interspersed with conversations about issues of inclusion ? the march's stated platform in favor of abortion rights left many women feeling uninvited ? the apathy of voters in the recent election, and whether it was fair to demonstrate against a president who had just taken office.

"Not so much on Fox. Jennifer Griffin reported from the scene and did lead with live coverage a few times in the afternoon ? playing big Madonna's use of profanity from the stage and her statement that she had thought about blowing up the White House ? but it was a far cry from minute-by-minute analysis of a huge news event."

[GILMORE?]

As the day wore on and millions marched and rallied around the country, commentators at MSNBC and CNN repeatedly expressed surprise at the number of people involved and invited a wide range of conversation about what such an event could mean for the country...... Not so much on Fox.

HURR DURR, MSNBC GOOD, FOX BAD, YAY FEMALE, VOTE BLUE

[GILMORE?]

When media orgs start reporting on how other media orgs, like, totally sux? As though that's some sort of newsworthy topic?

Its reminiscent of the things people say when they've just had their ass kicked in a fight, and the victor decides to stop pummeling the loser....

...where the bleeding, winded, balls-stomped, person whines from the ground... "...yeah, walk away, you fucking pussy, your mom hits harder, yeah, go get your friends, i'll take you all as soon as... catch breath..."

[Trshmnstr, Grump Apprentice]

Occasionally I play this fun game on derpbook. It's called "refollow all of your unfollowed friends when something political is dominating the news cycle and unfriend them as they irritate you." I'm playing another round right now. Once my friend list count drops below 25, I'll delete my account. I've still got a way to go for that, but it's a fun game to play.

[DOOMco]

Good luck!

[The Fusionist]

Their free expression won't be cut off!

"A rather unconventional protest is being staged on Route 1 in Foxborough, Mass., nearby Gillette Stadium before the AFC Championship Game between the New England Patriots and Pittsburgh Steelers.

"The unusual demonstration, which was spotted by Marc Bertrand for 98.5 The Sports Hub in Boston, is in opposition to circumcisions, one of the world's most widely performed medical procedures.

"One of the protesters chose a rather graphic method to get his point across, as you can see in Bertrand's photo below."

[Sevo]

I guess their suit against the hag is still pending:

"The Latest: Watchdog group says it will sue President Trump"
[...]
"A legal watchdog group says it will file a lawsuit alleging that President Donald Trump is violating the Constitution by allowing his businesses to accept payments from foreign governments.
The group says he is violating a clause in the Constitution that prohibits his businesses from receiving anything of value from foreign governments."
http://www.sfgate.com/news/pol.....875081.php

[The Fusionist]

"Director Spike Lee has revealed he was considering using a song by Grammy winner Chrisette Michele in an upcoming project but has decided not to following her decision to perform at the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump."

[commodious is fated to pretend]

So, a basic Hollywood cunt. Rooting for Spike Lee in my 2017 death pool.

[The Fusionist]

Hold on, we can't dismiss a Hollywood figure just because he's an asshole, that's a common attribute, but *some* of them (an ever-decreasing number) make good movies.

[The Fusionist]

"What we have seen in Washington this week is not a rational or lawful exercise of freedom of speech but a violent temper tantrum by those who will accept no governance other than their own rule, regardless of the expressed will of the electorate. That will be a lesson voters should learn and consider for the next election ? and beyond."

[Ken Shultz]

Somebody should dig up all the shit progressive journalists wrote about the Bundy protest in Oregon and compare it to what they wrote about the "protestors" this weekend.

[straffinrun]

Dennis Prager on The Rubin Report. He understands the danger of govt intervention in the private economy, but seems to ignore the danger of military interventionism. My brother is a big fan of his, so I try to give Prager a read or listen. Tough.

[Ken Shultz]

Also, the next time someone tells me that Trump didn't win the popular vote, I'm going to point out that Hillary didn't win the popular vote either--she only got 48%.

A majority of the voters voted against Hillary, too.

[straffinrun]

The 1960 Yankees were the legitimate champs.

[Ken Shultz]

Presidents have been losing the popular vote but winning in the electoral college since the 1800s.

"Because Hillary lost" isn't a good reason to change anything.

[Sevo]

"Because Hillary lost" isn't a good reason to change anything."

But it seems to be a wonderful reason for lefties to whine; they proved it over the weekend.
Not a single one had a beef with any action Trump has taken; *every one* whined that he might do something they don't like.
Tiresome.

[Rufus The Monocled]

Chait has no idea what Keynesian spending is. His economic musings are sophomoric at best.

[GILMORE?]

was that provoked by something, or is that like a severely delayed reaction to matt's debate?

[Rufus The Monocled]

Latter. Catching up.

[Rufus The Monocled]

His derp his fast and furious.

[Rufus The Monocled]

Decent/interesting point/take on 'race to the top' in education.

[Rufus The Monocled]

For Chait that is.

[GILMORE?]

as i mentioned in the comments there, Chaits entire intellectual M.O. seems to be to recite from memory as many stats from Brookings Institution /CAP white papers as he can. He doesn't ever one seem to reflect on whether any even mildly-complicating statistics exist.

Its all, "what is the most aggressive (albeit misleading) headline claim that can be supported by this (unbelievably flimsy and cherry picked) #"? Wash, rinse, repeat.

[Rufus The Monocled]

I liked the part where he claimed conservative groups weren't targeted by the IRS and the crowd laughing him off.

[GILMORE?]

the problem with Chait's type is that they dissimulate so often and about everything that they will go to absurd lengths to defend every single bullshit claim - no matter how implausible or absurd - out of fear that if they lose on one that the whole house of cards will come falling down.

[Ken Shultz]

One other thing, is Trump supposed to be a big pro-life guy or something?

What's it about Trump winning that has these people all stirred up about abortion?

They're just on autopilot, right? It's a "Let's everybody freak out" kinda moment?

There's no rhyme or reason to it.

You'd think Trump was a pro-free trade, evangelical or something.

They're just using him as a whipping boy. They can't lash out at the white, blue collar, middle class, so they're lashing out at Trump.

[The Fusionist]

He has a list of people from whom he says he'll pick Supreme Court Justices. Pro-abortionists fear (and prolifers hope) that Trump will keep that promise in filling vacancies, since the judges on the list are at minimum hostile to the kind of progressive jurisprudence which created Roe v. Wade.

[The Fusionist]

"They can't lash out at the white, blue collar, middle class"

Well, they're sure trying.

[eatapc]

As it turns out, Trump brought along "clappers" to cue the audience and get the clapping started. http://bit.ly/2jTcZpr