Open Thread

What’s on your mind?

Comments

[grb]

Countdown!

https://logwork.com/countdown-ikrn

[Dr. Ed 2]

The FBI is rating/has raided the Fulton County/Atlanta elections office, under the auspices of a judicial warrant reportedly issued relative to 2020 election fraud.

QED, a judge has to have determined that that is probably caused to believe that’s such fraud exist, right?

QED, there has to be at least legitimate smoke there, right?

QED, so much for “election denying”…..

It’s 3° outside right now, so much for a “global warming“ as well….

[grb]

QED : Ed is grasping at straws!
QED : Trump's "stolen election" bullshit is hopeless nonsense going nowhere at a nothing pace.
QED : Only idiots think winter disproves climate change.

[Dr. Ed 2]

Initially, it was global cooling in the coming ice age, which was independent of preceded the fears of the nuclear winter. How we would all be wearing gas masks by 1980.

Then it was global warming, and Al Gore proclaiming that the planet “has a fever“. Miami was supposed to be underwater before the third of the century, and that was 26 years ago.

With both of those having failed, when I was supposed to believe in climate “change“ — they can’t make up their mind what it is so we’re just gonna say the climate is changing because of humanity.

Forget the fact that we have radically varying amount of energy coming from an ongoing hydrogen bomb 93,000,000 miles away, forget the fact the Earth wobbles on its orbit and does other funky things because of the gravitational fields from everything from asteroids to random stars, forget they’re very real possibility that we may be facing a magnetic polar inversion, we’re supposed to blindly accept that this is all being done by CO2.

Bullshite.

Make up your mind as to which lie you want us to believe in…

[Frank Drackman]

Danny Fahrenheit didn't invent his Thermometer until the 1720's so how do we even know what the temperature was before that? Anders Celsius didn't invent his system (which wasn't a thermometer, just a different way of describing temperature) until the 1740's.
And in all of the written records of the Battle of Gettysburg, not one mention of the actual Temperature, other than it was hot (July, who'd a thunk it??)
Took 80 years for Scientists to realize the Human Chromosome number was 46, not 48 (OK Queenie, make your "Extra Chromosomes" Crack)
Some guy in the 1880's said it was 48, people kept only finding 46, but just assumed they missed 2, until Joey "Yellow Peril" Tjio said enough of the Bullshit, lets go to the Wikipedia!!!!
Joe Hin Tjio (/ˈtʃiːoʊ/; 2 November 1919 – 27 November 2001), was an Indonesian-born American cytogeneticist. He was renowned as the first person to recognize that the normal number of human chromosomes is 23. He discovered this on 22 December 1955 at the Institute of Genetics of the University of Lund in Sweden, where he was a visiting scientist.
OK, Wikipedia's not exactly correct
it's 23 PAIRS of Chromosomes (Again Queenie, take your shot)

Frank

[Mr. Bumble]

As Ronnie the Great said;
Trust but verify.

[Krayt]

There are other indicators of temperature in tree rings, ice core composition, and so on. We can map these directly to proper, known temperature measurements, and then have reasonable assurance of accuracy projecting back at least hundreds of years.

[grb]

Dr. Ed 2 : "QED, so much for “election denying”

Question for you Ed: Why on earth would you believe Trump's "stolen election" bullshit when Trump himself has never come up with a coherent or consistent "theory" on how the steal took place?

Of course he's always creating a lot of noise on how the election was fraudulent, but only as you'd expect from a lifelong criminal conman. Every audience gets a different huckster pitch. Each time Trump speaks on the subject, it's a hustler's improvision of the moment. One minute it's Venezuela and vote machines. The next minute it's fraudulent ballots. Since it's nothing but a con, Trump never bothers to produce one theory beyond a single day's span. It's like that Georgia call, where he just kept throwing stuff against the wall - discredited accusation followed by ludicrous conspiracy followed by half-ass nonsense - the assumption being Raffensperger only wanted an empty excuse to change voter tallies, not that he needed a persuasive case.

All disagreements aside, that's not the way you would have approached things if you, Ed, honestly thought you were cheated of an election. You would have nailed down the ways and means as you saw it, making damn sure your theory was established, laid-out and there for everyone to see.

But Trump's only a sleazy scam artist. I expect it's a point of pride with him that every audience gets a new improvised pitch. Think of a classical violinist improvising on his fiddle. That's Trump, only with lying....

[OpinionsVary]

According to his latest Truth Social post, it was coordinated by China, who arranged for money sent to Iran to actually go to Italy (via the Dubai embassy), where the Italians used military satellites and CIA developed tools to hack voting machines and flip votes.

https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/115976083051639204

I wish I could say this was a joke but he really did just repost this.

[grb]

That's today's version. Yesterday's was something else and tomorrow's will be completely different. Trump has a conman's belief the rubes react best to variety & never notice the spiel changes daily.

Damn if I know how anyone can pretend to take that seriously.

[Kazinski]

Ed, you would be surprised what judges would sign without knowing or caring what it was or why it was needed.

You probably won't believe this but I heard the chief judge in DC signed of to subpoena months of the phone records of the Speaker of the House (2rd in line for the Presidency), and at least a dozen other members of Congress, and gag orders for the carriers too, without asking any questions. And didn't blink when told that the reason the gag order was needed for the Speaker of the House was because he was a flight risk.

So no, I don't think issuing the warrant provides any factual information, it was probably just justified based on the fact the count wasn't properly certified, so there were some laws broken there, but no proof of any fraud.

[not guilty]

QED, a judge has to have determined that that is probably caused [sic] to believe that’s such fraud exist, right?

QED, there has to be at least legitimate smoke there, right?

The issuance of a warrant for the premises means that a judge -- in this case most likely a United States Magistrate -- has found probable cause to believe that evidence related to a crime will presently be found on the subject premises. It does not indicate whether such evidence will be inculpatory, exculpatory or neutral -- although law enforcement would of course be more inclined to look for inculpatory evidence.

I do wonder what crime(s) occurring at such time as can still be timely prosecuted -- that is, occurring during the past five years -- are under investigation.

[LexAquilia]

I will tell you what I think, no trolling.
Tulsi Gabbard was there. That suggests it's about national security. Tulsi has recently said they've uncovered a plot to overthrow the US Government.

I think they are on the trail of a bigger, wider, plot involving the 2020 election.

[Kazinski]

I have reached to point where I can't stand any more to watch the day by day disintegration of the country, and the wilful and intentional desecration of its cultural patrimony by its supposed stewards.

I really feel hopeless about changing anything, I did my best by voting for Trump, but he too is sitting by powerless and is making no real effort to change things, and reverse the decline.

So I have decided to self deport, I have a one way ticket overseas, and no plans about when or whether to come back.

This may seem like an overreaction but I will not stay in a country that chooses to let Bad Bunny ruin OUR, not his, not Roger Goodell's Super Bowl halftime show.

I am not going to disclose where I am going, other than I will be 100% sure the Superbowl will not be televised, and I would get blank stare if I tried to describe football to them anyway. It wouldn't surprise me to find out Mike Tomlin was already there, or someplace similar.

[grb]

Kazinski : "....country that chooses to let Bad Bunny ... (whiny drivel)"

I've not made mention of it, but one of the most grotesque comments ever made came from Stephen Miller during the holidays. That mentally-ill basket-case loon said this:

"Watched the Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra Family Christmas with my kids. Imagine watching that and thinking America needed infinity migrants from the third world."

You need a whole ward of psychiatrists with trim little beards to untangle that! Exactly how did Dean and Frank freeze American cultural accomplishment back in the mid-1960s? In what way do immigrants interfere with white people's appreciation of a sodden crooner and/or Ol' Blue Eyes? Does Miller exist on the same planet as normal humans?

Probably not. The most recent thing from that whack-job joke was his insistence only William Shatner could save the latest iteration of Star Trek from being "woke". As if Kirk's TV series wasn't the most "woke" show ever seen during American prime time! Apparently Miller's brain sickness precludes him from seeing that.

I return back to you, Kazinski, by noting you're as hysterical a whining snowflake clown as the great Stephen Miller! Seems you're up to making the same comic spectacle of yourself as that ass. There was a recent NYT article on Groypers that insisted they pass around images typical of a mid-century detergent ad, with its 50s or 60s dads, and its 50s or 60s moms with their beehive hairdos. Per the article, these blithering halfwits then mutter (with theatrical high-tragedy), "look what's been stolen from us..."

I gotta admit I was skeptical. No one could possibly be that worthlessly pointlessly needlessly dumb. But reading your plaintive whine above, Kazinski, I now admit it's possible indeed.

[MarkJawz]

Miller is right. America was a happy, stable place when 90% of the population was white. There was no reason, culturally or financially, to open America's doors to tens of millions of illiterate third world peasants.

[grb]

1. They say the term "retard" is offensive & should rarely be used.

2. Does anyone want to tell this retard America was never 90% white?

[hobie]

I mean...duh!...redskins!

[grb]

Take South Carolina as an example: By the beginning of the 1700s, its population was already majority black. At the middle of the century, that number had grown to 66%. There was never a time anywhere close to the fantasies in MarkJawz's mind (assuming he has one).

[Frank Drackman]

The 1820 United States census was the fourth census conducted in the United States. It was conducted on August 7, 1820. The 1820 census included six new states: Louisiana, Indiana, Mississippi, Illinois, Alabama and Maine. There has been a district wide loss of 1820 census records for Arkansas Territory, Missouri Territory, and New Jersey.

The total population was determined to be 9,638,453, of which 1,538,022 were slaves. The center of population was about 120 miles (193 km) west-northwest of Washington in Hardy County, Virginia (now in West Virginia).

That would make 1820 Amurica 84% "White"
I'm not counting the Injuns, they weren't Citizens, and it weakens my argument.

Frank

[hobie]

I don't think any non-white was counted as a citizen then.

[Mr. Bumble]

See this for 1940 and watch the change since then.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/33/US_Race_by_Hispanic_origin_demographics_from_1940_to_2020.gif/220px-US_Race_by_Hispanic_origin_demographics_from_1940_to_2020.gif

[MarkJawz]

Yes. It was all a result of the 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act, which dispensed with decades of prioritizing cultural stability with putting everyone in the world on equal footing.

It's absurd that a Somali Muslim has an equal chance of immigrating to the United States as a British Protestant.

[MarkJawz]

https://www.census.gov/library/publications/1961/dec/pc-s1-10.html

You're an idiot.

[ThePublius]

Well, according to the 1950 census it was then 89.3% white. So, close enough. Now who's the retard?

[Frank Drackman]

Well there were those Barges to tote and Bales to lift.

[not guilty]

"Miller is right. America was a happy, stable place when 90% of the population was white. There was no reason, culturally or financially, to open America's doors to tens of millions of illiterate third world peasants."

I am on the fence as to whether "MarkJawz" is or is not a parody account intended to lampoon bigots and MAGAts. (Sorry if I am being redundant there,)

If not, I wonder what Native American tribe the commenter is descended from.

[Kazinski]

I don't know why I don't have as much right to spew out a load of whiny drivel as Rosie O'Donnel or Ellen Degeneris, or Robert Di Nero do.

And I am also confident that no one cares every bit as much about my reasons for self deporting as they don't care about other whiny drivelers reasons for self deporting.

[Armchair]

But where you going to self-deport to? America isn't perfect. But it's better than just about everywhere else.

[hobie]

This is our chance to 'Where's Waldo' with Kazinski. Except we have to figure out what country he's gonna be in. His post indicates that even one Latino can ruin the Super Bowl, so that rules out the Western Hemisphere. Africa's a nonstarter. Europe is all censorship and is completely taken over by Muslims; Scandinavia socialist.

Plus with MAGA's sudden tolerance for child sex trafficking - and with Q-anon being flush with it - I'm gonna guess Laos/Vietnam/Thailand.

[Kazinski]

Nope.

[Commenter_XY]

I really feel hopeless...

Kaz, even a diminished America is vastly superior to the rest of the world. There is no place like here. Give more thought to this.

[Kazinski]

Its a big world out there XY, and I like it, even if its different.

[Brett Bellmore]

Eh, on average the rest of the world sucks, but there are plenty of places out there that are quite nice if you have resources to live above average, and don't poke your nose into local politics.

Kaz, try visiting El Nido in Palawan, Philippines. It's cheap to stay there, the beaches are incredible, as is the scenery above and below water. (I went there for scuba with my son.) That's actually the view from the dive resort we stayed at.

The girls are cute, too, if you're single.

[grb]

Any good wrecks? I'm partial to diving shipwrecks myself. Of course one of the premier spots for that is Truk Lagoon, where a sizable portion of the Japanese fleet was sunk.

[MarkJawz]

What is the issue with local politics?

[hobie]

[checks watch]

"Aww geeze, America's falling apart again. Must be Thursday in MAGA land."

[not guilty]

"So I have decided to self deport, I have a one way ticket overseas, and no plans about when or whether to come back."

As the late Lewis Grizzard said of Yankees who move to the South and kvetch about how much better things were where they came from -- Delta is ready when you are!

[ThePublius]

If I self deported, as Kaz puts it (why not just 'move?') I would go to either Italy or Ireland, with a preference for the former. I have my Irish citizenship and therefore an EU passport, so no prob traveling or even working there ('though I'm retired and can't imagine working again).

Some small towns in Italy had programs where if you agreed to fix them up, they'd sell you a house for €1. I like Italy, and in my retirement I'd focus on language, of course, and food and art, especially oil painting.

But, Kaz, how can you move so quickly? Don't you have 'stuff,' like a house, and one full of possessions, a car, etc.? How would you divest yourself of all of this so quickly? I know that in my case, with all of my hobbies and possessions, it would take at least a year.

[grb]

Sigh. Yesterday's thread ended with endless back & forth over the attack on Omar. By then her assailant was identified as a lifelong rightwing crank and Trump supporter. But some of this forum's righties still kept insisting it was all a secret scheme by the congresswoman. They just love lying so much.

So we open today with Ed (enuff said), Kazinski's jokey high theatrics, and whatever the hell MarkJawz is. And looking out to the world at large, our president is still a halfwit buffoon, he's still declared war on American communities to entertain his ghoulish base, and either Iceland or Greenland lurks somewhere in what's left of his brain.

We have a cosplay barbie doll running DHS, a head of DOJ who got the job because (a) the pedophile couldn't cut it and (b) Trump had already successfully bribed Bondi in the past. Our DOD is a TV talking head. Our HHS is an absolute freak. The FBI head is a petty hustler who was running scams right up until he was named head of the country's premier law enforcement agency.

Is America's Right Wing a mental disease?

[Kazinski]

Didn't seem plausible that someone, with a full deck at least, could be convinced to stage an attack on a Congresswoman, when he is going to end up in jail for decades.

And I'm not joking, I will be gone before SB kickoff.

[grb]

Kazinski : "....could be convinced to stage an attack"

Per the assailant's brother (in an interview with The Independent), Kazmierczak had an angry obsession with black folk in general and Somalis in particular. Per his mother, he had mental health issues. Per his neighbor, he was prone to long rightwing rants and hated Omar.

William-of-Ockham-wise, when does your tin-foil-hat gibberish become superfluous, Kazinski?

[grb]

(Apologies to Kazinski. I initially read his Omar comment as suggesting the assailant could be convinced as part of a secret scheme. He actually said the exact opposite)

[grb]

Kazinski : "And I'm not joking, I will be gone before SB kickoff."

If it helps to lure you back, I'll petition the Super Bowl to have Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra perform at next year's halftime show.

[hobie]

Should we tell Kaz that modern televisions have a mute function?

[Frank Drackman]

There's also the option of oh, some 500 channels.
While stranded in LA (Louisiana, not LA) a few months ago (Those also serve who pass Gas for our Veterans) the best Hotel was one of these old time "Motor Courts" every room was smoking (for me, a feature, not a bug) Elevator didn't work, 90% of the guests were Truckers (and Trucker Groupies).
BUT,
50 inch Flatscreen, I know, not a big deal anymore,
500+ channels, including one that ran nothing but Leave it to Beaver episodes, (in Sequence) with 235 episodes I didn't come out for 5 days.
OK, except to pass Gas.

Frank

[hobie]

My favorite part was when Omar dragged herself off the ground and mouthed 'Fight! Fight! Fight!'. There's a photo of it circulating...looks like Iwo Jima.

[Frank Drackman]

Dude should have just grabbed the end of her Turban and ran, or threw a shoe at her like that Iraqi guy did with "W" (wasn't so funny when he got executed) or maybe a Pie, make it like a 3 Stooges Bit.
Back when he was still occasionally funny Howard Stern pondered why Ill-hand wore the Turban 24-7, he wasn't buying the Moose-lem story, saying she's probably bald like Will Smith's wife, or has one of those malformed heads babies get from difficult childbirth.(she was born in Somalia)
I do buy the "Moose-lem bit", with some relaxer like Michelle O uses, a few drinks, I think "Progress could be made"

Frank

[Riva]

Sigh. Whatever the motivations, the actions of this lunatic have nothing to do with President Trump or any supporter of President Trump. Logic is hard I guess.

[Mr. Bumble]

Francisco Franco, Renee Good and Alex Pretti are still dead.
H/T Chevy Chase.

[Frank Drackman]

Saw the new Video of Nurse Pretti kicking out the taillight of an ICE vehicle and spitting at an Officer.
Guy just needed to get laid.
Pretti I mean, those ICE guys make out like Wilt Chamberlain with a Lobby of Pan Am Stewardesses, especially the ones with Dogs.

Frank

[Frank Drackman]

Bill Belichik's on to Cincinnati

[Mr. Bumble]

I thought alcohol was haram. Has a fatwat (or whatever the Mooslems call a hit) been placed on Omar for owning a winery?

[ThePublius]

Yes.

"Yes, alcohol is considered haram (forbidden) in Islam. The Quran defines alcohol as "the work of Satan," and Muslims are instructed to avoid it entirely due to its intoxicating nature. Both consumption and, in many interpretations, association with alcohol (serving, selling, buying) are prohibited."

The reason it's O.K. with Omar is that there really isn't a winery, it's a fraud, a scam.

[Frank Drackman]

Sending Holman to Minneapolis reminds me of my Youth Baseball days, other team would have this shitty pitcher, throwing slop, I couldn't wait to get to the Plate.
Of course I usually batted 9th, and they'd pull the guy right before my turn.
New Pitcher would be one of the Outfielders, maybe the Shortstop or 3rd Baseman, not a regular Pitcher but good arm and could throw smoke.
And a bit wild.
You'd have to stand there while he took his warm up pitches, with a few going high into the Backstop just to let you know how things were.
Pretty nice when Tom Holman's the "Nice Cop"

Frank

[MarkJawz]

Ultimately, there is no way you can deport tens of millions of people without being somewhat cruel. That's why Trump's ICE is justified.

[Frank Drackman]

You've gotta be cruel to be kind in the right measure
Cruel to be kind, it's a very good sign
Cruel to be kind means that I love you, baby (no Homo)
Oh Oh, (OK maybe a little Homo)
You've gotta be cruel to be kind

[Armchair]

So, I had an interesting conversation with a liberal. He seemingly supported shutting down the government over ICE. And I pointed out that, you know, ICE is funded (as part of the OBBA)...they won't actually stop working if you shut down the government. But you will shut down the courts that are needed to get the detainees out of jail. Shutting down the government is actively detrimental to helping immigrants.

And his response was that it was "symbolism". And it clicked for me. It wasn't about helping the immigrants. It was about "looking like" you were helping the immigrants. And it explained a lot.

You see the same thing with the sanctuary city policies. If you actually care about the immigrants, releasing child molestors and rapists back into the immigrant community seems to be a poor idea. But if you just want to "look like" you're supporting the immigrants, absolutely! No ICE in the jails, ever! Even if they're picking up rapists who would be released to the immigrant community! Again...image over actual results.

You saw it again with "Defund the police". It was a dumb idea...more police were requested by the minority communities, not less. But liberals wanted to "look supportive"....so Defund away!

Much of the politicking is the same. It's more about "looking supportive" that about getting actual results. A compromise on immigration that delivers real results? That looks like you don't support immigration. Better to take a radical hard line (and get nothing)...because it looks better. Even if it's actually worse.

Something to consider.

[Swede425]

Remember the last time they shut down the government?
It was horrible! It impacted every aspect of my life and it was all I could think about 24/7!
Like how they rioted in Minneapolis last time?
I really hated that. I sure hope they don't do that again.
Some people did something. Whatever.

[Armchair]

Is California killing itself with its wealth tax?

Maybe yes... See, California is currently a very top heavy state, with the rich paying much of the taxes. But the wealth tax proposal is threatening to have many of the uber-rich...if not all of them...leave.

"Three men I spoke with in the largest billionaire Signal chat said they ran an informal poll, and 70% of the chat (around 60 people, not all of whom were billionaires) indicated they would leave the state if the ballot proposition passes. According to that same poll, around 15% have already left the state."

"I’ve spoken with around 10% of billionaires in the state myself. Of the 21 men I interviewed, 20 would have been impacted by the ballot measure. All 20 of them, including the Democrats, as well as several of the most committed diehard proponents of revitalizing San Francisco, are now developing an exit plan. (Three have already left.)"

https://nypost.com/2026/01/27/opinion/tech-elite-will-flee-california-over-wealth-seizure-ballot-measure/

Problem is...it gets worse. It's not just the uber-rich. They take their employees and companies with them. And then...you get the network effects. Even if an uber-rich wants to stay, the network that kept them there is gone.

Through happenstance, Silicon Valley just happened to pop up in California. A network of closely aligned businesses and individuals that prompted the computer then the internet boom. It didn't have to happen in California....there's no intrinsic geographic reason why it needs to be there. But once it did, the network effects keep it going. Tech supports nearby tech. But what happens when all the big boys move out due to wealth taxes? What happens when the start ups move on as soon as it becomes clear the state is going to seize 5% of their company or more?

It kills the network. Silicon Valley dies. Like Detroit as an auto hub did. And you're left with an overly large government without the tax base to support it.

[Frank Drackman]

Average home price in California, $750K
and that's not really accurate, because the house you pay $750K for in California looks about like the hovel I lived in during Med Screw-el that I paid $150 monthly rent. ($400 in todays Shekels)
It was former military housing, so no Central Air, windows were sliding like on a Trailer, No Insulation because they didn't want to tear out the Asbestos, Good in that it was on Campus, Bad in that it was on Campus. No HOA so you could do cool things like park your Motorcycle in the Living Room. Mostly Grad students living there, 3 bedrooms so many were rented out to whoever had the $$$, and a number of Po' Black Fambilies who were "Grandfathered" in when the Screw-el bought the land.
It's since been torn down, mostly Fraternity Houses now, there's a lesson there but I don't know what it is.

Frank

[Mr. Bumble]

Seems like Pretti Boy Alex has become the new Saint Floyd George.
https://x.com/NormEisen/status/2016492606117609787