Saturday, June 13, 2026

Temper Tantrum Presidentiale

The letters were removed at 3:10 AM Saturday morning.
FOOTAGE OF THE LETTERS BEING REMOVED

The irony of the Trump administration claiming to be the most transparent in history is never lost on me. Kennedy Center Workers used a tarp so cameras couldn’t see the removal.

It’s like playing hide-and-seek with a toddler: if they can’t see you, they think you can’t see them.

A huge thank you to @RepBeatty . This would not have been possible without her persistence and hard work.
ETTD. Including MAGA.
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Threatening Me With A Good Time

Trump’s lawyers invoked a federal court rule that allows plaintiffs in a case to drop it early in the litigation without explanation or substantive involvement by the judge. On the same day the suit was dismissed, the settlement — which included the “Anti-Weaponization Fund” and sweeping protection from IRS audits for Trump’s family and businesses — was announced by the Justice Department.

U.S. District Court Judge Kathleen Williams closed out Trump’s lawsuit last month in response to Trump’s request to drop it.

However, 35 former federal judges subsequently urged Williams to reopen the case, arguing that the court had been defrauded by a lawsuit that was a sham from the outset.

Williams, an Obama appointee, called the former judges’ allegations “grievous” and ordered Trump’s attorneys to respond to them in writing. She did not order any response from government lawyers, who never formally appeared in the litigation.

The filing Friday from Trump’s legal team urged Williams to abandon her nascent inquiry, saying that once the case was dismissed, her role in the matter had ended. No matter the validity of the subsequent settlement with the Justice Department, Trump’s lawyers said, the court has no business superintending its terms. The former judges had no role in the case, and certainly no power to revive a lawsuit that had already been dismissed, they argued.

“Settlement is not evidence of collusion, which did not exist,” Trump’s attorneys contended, “it is evidence of a rational litigation decision.”

Just prior to the settlement, Williams had raised questions about whether the parties to the case were truly adverse since Trump had ultimate control over both the attorneys representing him and the U.S. government. However, the submission Friday stresses that two of Trump’s sons and the Trump Organization were plaintiffs in the case alongside the president.

The filing by Trump’s attorneys suggests that if Williams formally reopens the case, Trump will immediately ask the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals to shut it down.
There are legitimate fact questions of collusion leading to a fraud on the court. That is a matter I believe the court is empowered to investigate under its contempt powers. 

I’d be interested to see the 11th Circuit weigh in on that.

The Judgement Act in its plain language (I haven’t studied the jurisprudence of it) says the fund is for settlement of litigation. But if this wasn’t legitimate legislation, whither then the settlement?

Trump’s lawyers say there was no collusion. Prove it.

As Jack Nicholson said in “Batman:” “Co-mahnce au fest-ivahl!”
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Force Majeur

Git ‘er done. Background: The tarp was to keep people from livestreaming the removal of Trump’s name. Apparently they weren’t working behind the tarp to remove it after all.

Trump throwing a temper tantrum to the last minute.
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I Honestly Think These Guys Have Their Own Version Of The Jefferson Bible

“It’s James Talarico who decided to bring the Bible into this election. And let me tell you, that’s not a Bible I’ve ever read. I’ve never seen so much blasphemy from anyone running for office,” Patrick said to an uproar of applause. “Let me tell you what, I’m going to pray for that guy, because when he loses the Senate race, if he campaigns against God as he’s been doing, he’s going to Hell, for sure. That’s what we’re up against. That’s the darkness. That’s the light. That’s why we must be one.”
A version that leaves out every reference to the poor and God’s justice in both the Hebrew Scriptures and the New Testament. 

That’s the only explanation, even though that would leave a very slim Bible.
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I See The Ceasefire And Peace Agreement Is Coming Along

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Friday, June 12, 2026

What It Means To Be A Real…

@JamesTalarico :

There's been a lot of talk in this race about what it means to be a real man.

Recently on the campaign trail I told the story of my adoptive dad, Mark Talarico. Every Saturday morning, he would mow our lawn, and then without anyone asking him to, he would go next door and mow our neighbor's lawn because she was a widow. My dad never talked about it — he just did it, because that's what a man does.

A man takes responsibility, upholds his commitments to his family and his neighbors, and does what's right, even when no one is watching.

Here's what real men don't do. They don't lie and cheat their way through life, sell their soul to the highest bidder, or steal from other people in order to enrich themselves. Real men serve others. Weak men serve themselves.

I welcome this debate about what it means to be a man, and I don't think Ken Paxton or Ted Cruz are in a position to tell anybody what a real man is
I didn’t realize Lite Guv Dan Patrick sat at the right hand of God the Father Almighty, and was given charge to separate the sheep from the goats (Matthew 25:31-46). I guess I missed the memo. One of the actual lessons of the Crucifixion.
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In The Next Few Days; Or The Next Few After That

I'm seeing a lot of fake information about a potential deal to reopen the Strait and end Iran's nuclear weapons program. First, the Iranians are not receiving any cash, and no funds are being released for simply signing a deal or attending a meeting. The deal is structured to ensure that the US and its allies concerns are prioritized, and that if the Islamic Republic of Iran meets its obligations, then economic benefits will flow to them and to the entire region. This deal has the potential to remake the region and lead to lasting peace.

I've noticed a couple of bizarre things in the reporting over the last few hours. First, people who (rightly) said Donald Trump was a historic president a month ago now criticizing a deal based on unconfirmed media reports. Second, people who say you can't trust a word said by the IRGC who apparently believe anonymously sourced social media posts.

The president is going to get us a good outcome, one way or the other.
Which one is the "other"?
3/1: "four to five weeks"
3/9: "very soon"
3/16: "won't be long"
3/23: "very good and productive conversations"
3/26: talks to end the war are “going very well"
3/29: "I think we'll make a deal with them, pretty sure"
4/1: “very shortly”
4/6: "They’ve made a proposal, and it’s a significant proposal."
4/8: ""A big day for World Peace!"
5/18: "we’ve had very big discussions with Iran"
5/23: "will be announced shortly."
6/1: "rapid pace"
6/11: "next few days"
Vietnam? Is that what he means?
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How It’s Going

🤔
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If Trump Hadn’t Bragged About It

Nobody would have noticed.
The president has characterized the century-old pool as “filthy” and “dirty,” claiming that the pool would look “far more beautiful, more beautiful than it did in 1922” iupon renovation.
It’s not a new problem:
The pool was last renovated in 2012, when an ozone water filtration system was installed for the first time as part of President Barack Obama’s two-year, $34 million restoration project.

Ozone works by neutralizing nutrients required by algae to grow. Two months following the 2012 renovation, NPS officials decided to drain the pool again and double its ozone level to eradicate the large clumps of algae forming in the pool.
Stagnant water makes for a fine reflecting pool. It also breeds algae.
As part of the project, NPS also invested in a new nanobubbler filtration system, while a dedicated crew will also maintain the grounds from wildlife.
But it’s alright. Remain calm. All is well.
An Interior Department spokesperson said that the current algae is “residual” from supply lines that sat dormant for eight weeks during construction. The residue is part of the normal startup process, the spokesperson said.
In the meantime:
Thin layers of algae floated on the World War II Memorial side of the pool Friday morning, even after workers were seen cleaning out algae from the bottom of the pool Wednesday.
I dunno man. Algae that can survive without sunlight for photosynthesis (in the pipes, underground) is some kind of mutant ninja algae, man. 🥷 
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Setting The Tables On Fire 🔥

Hunter Biden on Graham Platner: I always say to people: show me your phone. Give me access to your iCloud. Let’s go through it and pull everything we can find that’s inappropriate.

And if that’s the standard by which we’re going to judge people, particularly people in elected office, then I don’t think we’re going to have many people in elected office.

And so, as it relates to Graham Platner, I focus on this: I have not heard anything, in any way, that would lead me to believe he is an abusive, misogynistic, anti-Semitic, or racist person.

I have heard this from Graham Platner: that he thinks we should all have free health care.

I have also heard this from Graham Platner: that he thinks we have to radically change our politics.

I have heard this from Graham Platner: that working people are getting fucking screwed.
The only people who want universal healthcare are the people on Medicare; or Medicaid. Or Obamacare. Or crappy but expensive health insurance through their employer with deductibles so high they never get coverage anyway.

I’m on Medicare, and I regularly get refunds (small, to be sure; but then I don’t pay much, either) either from Medicare, or directly from the provider. It’s n all the years on private, employee provided health insurance (for which the premiums were much higher), neither the Lovely Wife nor I, ever met our annual deductibles. If we hadn’t spent the money on insurance, we’d probably have been better off. 

Unless we needed a hospital. 
 
Screw private health insurance. Medicare for all, baybee!
Drat! They’re on to us!
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Yesterday

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To-MAY-to, To-MAH-to

Does he think he’s been eating live scallops?

Does this sound familiar? A prosecutor misleads a grand jury, and then redacts the transcripts to cover her actions. No, not the Broadview Six case; same prosecutor, different case. A case involving the Loretto Hospital.
The case involving Khan and Chaudhry “arises out of a single, widespread scheme to submit more than $800 million in false claims to the United States Health Resources and Services Administration … for reimbursement of COVID-19 testing of uninsured individuals,” Mecklenburg wrote earlier this year.

The scheme lasted from June 2021 through March 2022, “when the government program ran out of money,” she added.
A serious fraud case, IOW. Which has now been dismissed by the government, with prejudice, because the former prosecutor on the case was also the Broadview Six prosecutor.  Her cases are being examined, and a pattern is emerging.
The allegations included Mecklenburg improperly putting her credibility on the line to support criminal charges, wrongly dismissing grand jurors from the proceedings, and having conversations with grand jurors outside the grand jury room.
The grand jury transcripts were redacted in both cases to cover the prosecutor’s tracks. The actions with the grand juries were the same.  And now the outcome of the cases is the same.

This is the DOJ Todd Blanche is overseeing. He will say it’s Bondi’s fault, but he was working under Bondi and should have known this was happening, or revealed it when he learned. If he didn’t learn, why didn’t he? And how many other cases have to be dismissed because of gross prosecutorial misconduct? How much suspicion of this DOJ should the courts and the public have, until the DOJ can prove itself trustworthy again?

Quis custodiet ipsos custodes? My guess is, in the DOJ, a lot of people between the AG and the prosecutors, do. What about them? Why are they letting this happen?

This is third-world shit that is being thwarted only because of the courts. Blanche no more deserves to be AG than Trump deserves to be POTUS. But Blanche can be more easily blocked from office.
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Thursday, June 11, 2026

Turning

Talarico: We've heard from a lot of Cornyn supporters who are joining this movement that we're building. This is a movement that's a lot bigger than any one political party. It's a lot bigger than any one politician. This is really about all of us coming together to defeat the most corrupt politician in America, so that then we can defeat this corrupt system.
Tables
Talarico: Ken Paxton's own party impeached him. His own staff reported him to the FBI, and now his own defense attorney is endorsing our campaign. Those closest to Ken Paxton know that he's unfit for office.

Since taking office, Ken Paxton has become a multimillionaire while our pay has remained stagnant. He now owns 11 homes while most Texans can't afford one.
Over
Talarico: There's been a lot of talk in this race about what it means to be a real man. Here's what real men don't do. They don't lie and cheat their way through life. They don't sell their soul to the highest bidder. They don't steal from other people in order to enrich themselves. Real men serve others, weak men serve themselves. And so I welcome this debate about what it means to be a man.

And I don't think Ken Paxton or Ted Cruz are in a position to tell anybody what a real man is.
Talarico: The fact that politicians, including Ted Cruz, are throwing embarrassing, cheap nicknames at their political opponents instead of focusing on improving Texans’ lives—that is that's everything that's wrong with our politics.

It looks a lot more like professional wrestling, right? You've got these old guys lathered up in their fake tan, throwing cheesy nicknames at each other. And those nicknames, they don't lower the cost of groceries.
Although I’m not sure he should be picking on professional wrestling. We put a man on the moon, ya know. 🌝
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Suddenly I Understand…

According to U.S. President Donald J. Trump, an agreement between Iran and the U.S. will be signed in Europe, in an unspecified nation, this weekend. He added that he will not be able to attend and White House Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff and/or U.S. Vice President JD Vance will likely go to the meeting.
This ☝️ and this👇 It’s because of this: By the way: Trump is full of shit. There is no agreement, and Iran is not desperate to make a deal. Trump is.
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Wait!

Is Platner in the Epstein files, too?
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Trump Is A VERY Unreliable Narrator

According to U.S. President Donald J. Trump, an agreement between Iran and the U.S. will be signed in Europe, in an unspecified nation, this weekend. He added that he will not be able to attend and White House Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff and/or U.S. Vice President JD Vance will likely go to the meeting.

 Yeah, about that:

(Trump announced Israel had signed off on it.) We know that story of the boy who cried “WOLF!” We know the boy was lying. What do we call the history of the President who cried “DEAL!”? It’s not that I believe the Iranians, but I do know that Trump is SUCH a liar and a fabulist. And the more he fails, the worse he lies and imagines reality is not what it is. There is no spoon. And there is no deal.
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“No Damn Cat, And No Damn Cradle”

"We”? You don’t have Congress in your pocket anymore, little man.
Trump: The complainers didn't build the country. Guys like me built the country. I watch all these, ingrates, they're always complaining. They didn't build anything. All these people came in for Somalia. Ilhan Omar is corrupt and most of the people that came in are corrupt and the whole voting system is corrupt in Minnesota
But Platner wrote naughty text messages! And besides, he’s a Democrat!

I’m trying to get to his comments on McConnell and Murkowski. Apparently it’s gonna be a hard slog. And people are worried about Graham Platner, or think James Talarico is “dangerous.” Grandpa falling asleep at the dinner table at Thanksgiving makes more sense.
The whole world didn’t hear about that one, Grandpa. (Grandpa needs his nap now.)

Now we find out why: a) he won’t be missing “Fight Club” this weekend, and b) why he left Iran out of the list of countries who had agreed to “the deal.”
Wait for it.... And there it is; or, rather, isn’t. To quote Kurt Vonnegut: “No damn cat, and no damn cradle!” Very good, Grandpa! You remember some numbers! (Turn out the lights, Grandpa. Sun’s going down. Time for bed.)
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Indeed It Does….


🎶 Spinnin’ wheel got to go ‘round 🎶
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Wearing Your Virtue On Your Sleeve*

No, I don't think the average US consumer will pay 150% more for MiUSA goods. A few things:

First, consumers are practical. They will not pay more just because something was made in the US, but they may pay more if the upcharge comes with an increase in quality. There's no reason to believe that MiUSA clothing is inherently better than clothing made abroad. In fact, sometimes it's worse.

Second, you can look around you. Look at the vociferous MAGA influencers who criticize corporations for offshoring their manufacturing, while at the same time getting their merch made abroad. They could get their merch made right here in the US from fiber to finish — it literally only takes a few clicks of a button — but they won't. I know because I've offered my services to help them reshore their manufacturing, and not a single one has accepted.

Third, look at consumers. Consumers don't want to pay a lot of money for clothes because Western society has long discounted the cultural significance of clothing. Fashion is commonly considered too vain, too mercantile, and too superficial. Just look at how many people loudly posture about how much they either dislike or don't care about clothes. This is a form of virtue signaling to show that you're smarter and more substantive than other people. Thus, it's unreasonable to expect this sort of person to pay a lot of money for clothes — they take pride in not valuing them.

If you want to reinvigorate US garment manufacturing, you can't envision a future in which thousands of Americans make crappy t-shirts and jeans that eventually retail for $25 and $75, with such items sold to US consumers who are likely to be bitter about having fewer options and higher prices. This is not a sensible strategy for either employment or wage growth, as those jobs will eventually be replaced by robots anyway.

IMO, you'd be better off moving upstream into luxury goods and exporting them to the global market. Just as the average Italian doesn't wear luxury Italian suits and the average French person doesn't carry saddle-stitched bags, you don't have to count on Americans wearing Alden shoes and Rochester Tailored Clothing suits. Instead, you can access the larger global market.

This strategy protects the worker. We already live in a world where a machine can pad-stitch a suit. Whether this industrially produced garment is up to snuff to benchmade tailoring is up for debate, but no one can argue that the average consumer can tell the difference between machine and handwork. Yet, those who have the means are willing to pay for the handwork. Why? Because at that tier of clothing, handwork adds a sense of romance — human labor adds something that a machine can never replace. This higher-skilled work also comes with higher wage growth. The US doesn't have an employment problem; it has a wage growth problem.

Instead of erecting tariffs that increase the cost of European leathers, British and Italian wools, and Mongolian cashmere (inputs we need to make high-quality clothes), you can tax the rich and use the money to train Americans in crafts-based, high-end luxury sectors. Then you can export these goods to the global market. But doing so requires government spending (in training and education), lower trade barriers (so you can access other markets and get cheaper inputs), and improved relationships with other countries (such as not insulting Canadians, prompting them to boycott our goods).

The primary MiUSA customer has always been a fashion customer, not someone buying something out of patriotism. I'm reminded of an interview I did long ago with someone who owned a custom button-up shirt company. He had his shirt manufactured at the Garland factory in North Carolina, which is now unfortunately closed. He recalled standing on the factory floor and watching his shirts roll off the same assembly line as some of Thom Browne's Brooks Brothers Black Fleece shirts, which retailed for about twice his prices. His company primarily served people who said they "love" supporting US manufacturing, but behind the scenes, they were often complainers, time wasters, and people with a high return rate. Meanwhile, the fashion customer thinks nothing of spending $300 for a button-up shirt because it has a fashionable label on it. This is the kind of customer you want to pursue, not the supposed "patriots."

The strategy was always doomed from the start because the most vociferous proponents hold all three positions at once:

— wants to virtue signal about supporting US manufacturing
— is against increasing the minimum wage
— buys foreign imports because they're cheap and see thrift as a moral virtue
I’ve mentioned before that I wear Levi’s and button down shirts. Yes, Levi’s retail for $75, and I could buy more expensive jeans which would probably wear about as well.  Maybe better; who knows? I know what size I need, and I buy them on sale, or at Levi’s outlet stores. No virtue signaling here. I’m retired, I don’t need to wear “nice clothes.” And if I don’t have to pay retail, I won’t. Most of the shirts in my closet were bought at a discount. I admit it; I’m cheap. I suppose that’s a kind of virtue signaling. (Yes, I am guilty.) But I connect with the Italians  and the French he mentions; the ones who don’t buy luxury goods.

I would rather my Levi’s were still made in the town where I grew up. But let’s be honest, garment manufacturing is just a small step up from sweatshops as it is. The only way to bring that back to America is to unwind everything done since the New Deal. Which is probably what Project 2025 still hopes to do, tbh.

It’s a funny thing, to think about “virtue signaling” with your clothes.  It’s kind of like thinking your status is displayed by what’s on your wrist….


*”…for daws to peck at.” “Othello,” Act I, sc. 1, Iago to Roderigo. Though Iago was speaking of his heart but, to him, same difference.
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Panem et Circenses

(Except there ain’t no bread, and the circus is the clowns in the White House.)

I still don’t know what the fucking “claw” is; and I don’t want to know.
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Kristi Noem Still Wants To Know If You Miss Her Yet

Will the DOJ explain the First Amendment to him? Or will the courts have to do that? Same question as above, but who’s going to explain immigration law v. criminal law to him? (People lawfully subject to deportation are not necessarily subject to criminal penalties. Nor are the people who “harbor and abet” them by hiring them. Otherwise every company in America that hired “illegal aliens” would face prosecution. And I don’t remember ICE rounding up the farmers when they raided the fields to catch farm workers.) Is he threatening to pull CBP agents from “blue” airports again? He just got another $70 billion. Maybe he can spare some change for training ICE agents in crowd control.

“Antifa”? Are they wearing matching t-shirts or something? Why don’t you call ‘em “commies” and “outside agitators”?
Or until the next Congress in January. What one Congress does, the next Congress can always undo. Especially in the area of government spending.
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What Are We Doing Here?

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has announced that its Missile Forces carried out an attack earlier on Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan using 12 medium-range ballistic missiles, as retaliation for last night’s wave of U.S. strikes against Iran, with the attack claimed to have targeted F-35s, F-16s, and F-15s as well as a control center at Salti Air Base.
Yeah, he’s being held back by the American public. And we’re two weeks into the fourth month. Is it over in two weeks? Which we will make in 2-3 days? Also: this is George III’s revenge on the colonies for calling him “mad.” The loss of life is just a number in an equation. The bigger number is the money he imagines making. Only that number is real to him. He’s been saying that for 100 days. And bragging about how expensive your weapons are is not the flex he thinks it is. Been saying that, too. Saying it doesn’t make it so.
Trump: "The United States will be hitting Iran (Whose Navy, Air Force, Radar, Anti Aircraft, and all other forms of Defense, together with most of its offensive capability, are GONE!), VERY HARD TONIGHT. At some point in the not too distant future, we will be taking Kharg Island, and other oil infrastructure points, and assume total control of their Oil and Gas Markets, much like we have with Venezuela, which is working out brilliantly for both Venezuela and the United States of America. Thank you for your attention to this matter! President DONALD J. TRUMP"
Sure we will. And unicorns will shit rainbows, and gas will come down to $0.10 a gallon, and food will be free because it grows on trees! (Nobody tell him the major oil companies are not investing labor and material in Venezuela because the dangers that existed there before, still exist there. Grandpa doesn’t like to be awakened from his dreams.)
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🎶 Spinning Wheel, spinning ‘round 🎶

So, the same way J. Edgar used it. “Most Wanted” was never an empirical category, it was always a publicity stunt. Why advertise criminals you can’t catch? Surely the murder of Savanna Guthrie’s mother was “most wanted.” But Patel washed his hands of the case, and blamed local officials for taking too long to call in the FBI. Besides, a suspect was never identified, so he could never make the list. Speaking of “most wanted.”

We’re also still on this:
The 79-year-old president was asked Wednesday about inflation shooting up 4.2 percent last month, and he declared, "I love the inflation," and his former White House communications director from early in his first term tried to clean up a statement that seems tailor-made for Democratic campaign ads.

"It's absolutely going to be a big, fat campaign ad for Democrats," said Mike Dubke. "They are going to use it. I think what the president, in context, he was basically quoting [a 1968 song by] Blood, Sweat and Tears, 'What Goes Up Must Come Down.' I think that he's assuming that once we cease hostilities with Iran and oil prices come down, that the momentum going into the midterm elections is going to create a situation where people feel good about the economy."
Because no one can admit the President is losing control of his faculties (at least), we are supposed to believe he’s referencing a song from  1968 no one’s ever heard him mention before? And that’s better?


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Wednesday, June 10, 2026

🤷‍♂️

Why? D’you get off to ‘em? It’s a Republican thing, right?
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Didja Notice?

U.S. President Donald J. Trump spoke from the Situation Room earlier with Fox News’ Trey Yingst, telling him that 49 BGM-109 Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles (TLAM) have so far been fired at targets in Iran, along with strikes by fighter aircraft, with some strikes occurring only miles from the Iranian capital of Tehran. President Trump added that he spoke directly with Iranian officials tonight who asked him to stop bombing, stating that the strikes will stop soon and if they don't sign the agreement, “we'll bomb the shit out of them.”
Why don’t I believe him? Maybe because he’s been saying this for 100 days now? Maybe because... What will this accomplish? What has it ever accomplished? Well, of course they did. But I still don’t believe Trump.

 Same old same old. Trump declares Iran’s military is vanquished, again.  Iran has no choice but to make a deal. Trump declares a deal is possible by the end of this week. Or next week. Or the week after that.

Oh, and that the Strait is open. And we never get a clear idea just what our bombing campaign was, or what did.
That gives them an excuse to come to a quick end. See?
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“Affordability Is A Hoax”

What are the odds Trump doesn’t know what the reported inflation rate is? Grand Old Party of Irresponsibility.
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Not Since 2024!

🤦‍♂️
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Tuesday, June 09, 2026

Demographically Speaking…

... in Texas, “minority” means white. 

But, of course, Comer means “non-white.” Especially when they elect Democrats.

It’s alright, though. The Sinister Six have determined the real racism in America is against white people. 
“Teacher, who sinned, that Dr. Oz was born so stupid?” "Shit happens." Pretty much why Paxton was impeached. Yeah, there is a reason why he’s not out in public today.
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The House Is Supposedly Inquiring Into The Indictment Against SPLC

The one DOJ superseded because it was so bad. “Bad” as in FUBAR. But the relevant question is; what does SPLC’s judgment about TPUSA (clue phone calling: only MAGA cares about TPUSA, if anyone does. Charlie Kirk is dead and gone.) have to do with the criminal charges brought by DOJ? The ones likely to be dismissed soon, if past Trump DOJ indictments are any guide.

I mean, it’s pretty much a First Amendment issue. And there isn’t a question before the House of funding SPLC, is there?
Yeah, it’s not just lame duck Chip Roy. Most of the GOP members don’t seem to know what they’re doing there.
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Ironically…

...support for Paramount, CBS, TikTok, Warner Brothers, and CNN are all collapsing, too. Oh, I don’t mean they’re about to dry up and blow away. But Ellison is not exactly capturing the bleeding edge of the communication business. I’m sure people are paying for Paramount streaming now; but even Disney and Amazon are having trouble attracting subscribers. CBS was the old folk’s home network long ago, and isn’t turning that reputation around anytime soon.  Tik Tok I don’t know about, but Warner is the fabulous invalid that won’t die, and saw its best days decades ago.  CNN? Isn’t cable dead yet? Does anybody want to pay to stream that?

Even streaming services have gone to providing discounts through other service providers, like cell phone companies. It’s what’s keeping most of them alive. I remember when “premium cable channels” were the sinecure of the future. Where are they now?

There’s a reason some cell phone companies advertise dirt cheap rates: you don’t get to add several streaming services at that rate. And if you don’t want to pay for them, how does that benefit Paramount or CNN or CBS? I still have a TV antenna (I’m old, I remember those days). The Golden Child and her husband don’t. I’m pretty sure they don’t watch Paramount, CBS, or CNN. Or Warner, for that matter.

As I say, those legacy brands aren’t going to disappear tomorrow. But they aren’t exactly Google or Apple, striding confidently into a future they are helping create. CBS News once ruled; but then Cronkite retired. CNN dominated; then FoxNews came along. My parents were the last people I knew dedicated to cable TV come hell or high water. Nowadays the biggest customers seem to be bars and restaurants with lots of big TeeVees; and then it’s only sports channels. I hardly stumble across even FoxNews in public anymore. If Ellison was investing in podcasts, he might have something. If he caught one that was influential for more than 15 minutes. But all I can see is, he’s investing in the past.

And nobody lives there anymore; or at least, not for very long. (Honestly, the whinging Gen Xers and Millennials constantly blaming the Boomers for the world they are now adults in are more mired in the past than anyone I know. They seem to think they were guaranteed a world comfortable and convenient to grow up in. I lived through all the financial turmoil that followed the post war boom like a plague of locusts, what seemed like a permanent cycle of boom and bust (mostly bust), the world post-Boomers still don’t think existed before they came along. I wasn’t handed everything on a platter, either; and the country wasn’t a meritorious democracy where everyone held hands and sang “Kum bah yah.” Most of what you’re complaining about now is a result of history, not personal inconvenience to you. Get over yourselves and take responsibility for what you’re doing. The rest of us had to.)

(Yes, I am a prickly old man. What of it?)
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It Can Always Get Stupider

I promise not to ask Santa Claus for anything else for Xmas.

(“Competitive House races?” A fuck up this big would make every race in America competitive!)
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