Open Thread – Chocolate
OK, this has been the worst beginning of a decade I can remember. Which is why I’m now going back to the position that says “the decade does not officially begin until the END of 2010.” It will give me hope that the real technical beginning of the decade is going to be awesome.
We’ve seen the heartbreaking devastation in Haiti, the election of Scott Brown to the vacant senate seat left by Ted Kennedy, the horrendous decision from the supreme court in Citizens United v. FEC, and Air America has declared bankruptcy. And it’s still January.
Basically, we all need chocolate.
So I thought I’d share one of the coolest little spots in Anchorage, on the corner of 36th and the Old Seward Highway. It’s full of chocolate – edible, drinkable, white, milk, dark, with stuff or without. In bars, wafers, steaming mugs, round nuggets, dusted, sprinkled, and even topped with anchovies. I have a feeling they will be doing lots of business this week with their progressive clientelle.
I stopped in a couple weeks ago for a pumpkin truffle and a cup of drinking chocolate. Rapture.
Yup, those are anchovies. At this point, I’ll take any chocolate. Even if it’s staring at me.
Ok, I’ll have a bite, but I’m still fed up.
Pass me a boatload of that chocolate. My yearly case of the winter doldrums had barely set in good when Brown won, SCOTUS made a mockery of the constitution, my basketball team (who were the NCAA champs last year) are playing dreadfully, and SP still keeps raking in the dough.
Until today, I thought the worse decision made by the supreme court was the Bush v. Gore case. The convservative court has reached an all time low. Credit for this supreme court decision rests squarely on Ronald Reagan and the Bushes. Just when you thought we had seen the worst from GWB, we get hit with this.
Does this mean the court will overturn Roe v Wade, Brown v The Board of Education, Engel v Vitale? This is a sad day for all Americans, not just progressives, but it will effect us the most in the beginning.
While not the best video, I think this song by Jimmy Buffett pretty sums up my feelings:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=toi1F6unKHo&feature=related
On second thought keep the chocolate and just pass the Jameson’s.
not a huge chocolate eater but i love to drink hot chocolate…looks like a great place
Pearl – thanks mucho for the JB link! Haven’t heard him for a while and this song says it all about the current political situation, except he would have a lot more fodder if he up-dated it! Think we could entice him to do a spoof on SP? Wouldn’t that be great?
Gotta go get some coffee – chocolate just won’t cut it this early!
Maybe I’ll put some of that Godiva chocolate liquor someone gave me for Christmas, just to make AKM happy!
Time to get the movie “Chocolat” out again. Need Chocolate for the soul!
This has definitely been a bad month. (sigh) I wonder, if I tried hibernating like the bears, might I find a more compatible year when I woke in the spring?
On second thought, I’ll take the chocolate, if you don’t mind, especially since they have Vosges bars (heaven to eat). But please save the anchovies for my pizza.
I needed that! Now that I’m all sugared up, I’m ready to roll of my sleeves and to borrow a tea party slogan (but for the opposite purpose for which they use it) it’s time to take my country back.
I’m so tired of all the nay-sayers who supported Obama’s election but now spend most of their time criticizing his efforts to unify this country. I remember the jubilation the majority of the country felt a year ago. These are difficult times but he did not make them that way and it will take a long time to right the wrongs. Let’s get behind the man we proudly elected and let our voices be heard.
What Pearl said.
Chocolate Vosges rocks!! Right up there with Recchiutti for creative flavor combinations.
OMG I am with you….yes send the chocolates…and the Jameson…Pearl keeps us with good tunes…and now
IT IS TIME TO TAKE OUR COUNTRY BACK…..
Here she goes again…from media matters:
“Palin Promotes Beck’s Documentary Linking Progressives to Atrocities of Communism”
http://mediamatters.org/blog/201001220001
Who ever has some information that will shut this vile woman up, please hurry!
What? No Chocolate Moose photo ??
Re: being off to a bad start –
I had some good thoughts to start the morning but they’ve become lost in a pre-coffee fog at the moment. Had to do with hope and deconstruction of the old ways and dross rising to the surface to be skimmed and being aware and awake enough to do the good work. Right now though all I’m getting is ” blah yada yippity blah get some coffee”.
Off I go ! ( oh – by the by – the staring anchovies ….. creepy! )
Sorry AMK, chocolate wont help my depression – but thanks for trying. Now, more than ever, explains why Bush ushered in those last 3 (?) justices. Funny, I could of swore they all take an oath to rule in non-partisan fashion. Not left, not right, but for THE PEOPLE. As one article stated, this will go down in the history as the day Democracy died.
Well, for those of you that haven’t, go to these 2 sites and join up. It’s gonna take a BIG movement to fight this thing. I’m not giving up yet…depressing as it is.
MOVE TO AMEND
Campaign to Legalize Democracy
http://movetoamend.org/we-corporations
FREE SPEECH for PEOPLE dot org
http://freespeechforpeople.org/
Spread links around too.
Peace.
If anyone thought that the corporate campaign spending decision was fair and balanced (which I know you don’t), just read the jubilant remarks from the right:
http://www.frumforum.com/the-gops-supreme-court-epic-win
Seems like a terrific place… kind of reminds me of East Coast elite shops
I’ll take a dozen, hold the anchovies.
Wish we could impeach those justices that said they would rule for “The People”.
Living on Chocolate at this point.
#2 Pearl: love the song!
I’ve been thinking about starting a blog for some time now, and this SC decision has given me a great cause celebre ([sp]?). It was several elections ago I got fed up with the TV ads and realized no thinking person should vote for a particular candidate just because of something negative they saw on TV regarding that person’s opponent (whether paid for by that person’s campaign or not).
I will definitely be using this this semester with my college students, who are supposedly being taught to use critical thinking skills, about how important it is and will be for the future of their country, that they use their brains in every upcoming election, that they do their research and not be lazy, that they not accept the brainwashing, and that they speak out and spread the word when they see the lies and the brainwashing.
As they said over at factcheck.org – Supreme Court decision = Keep factcheck.org busy.
But really, it is up to every one of us now to become factcheck.orgs!
I think that little one on the left is smiling. I just can’t take this.
I like the Margarita truffle myself.
AKM -
Brilliant suggestion !! I’m gonna kick off my day with some of this:
http://www.mariniscandies.com/product/BACON-01/ChocolateCoveredBacon.aspx
#7 @OMG – what you said with chocolate on top!
If you don’t mind, I’m going to “borrow” your post for my Facebook status!
There’s a saying my mom used to use which she said came from horse racing – bad start, good finish.
I’ve decided Scott Brown is the male Sarah Palin. I read some of his voting record from 2003-2004 and he is very soft on women’s issues, immigration, Johnny-on-the-spot to lower taxes, etc. etc. etc. In other words, he toe’s the Republican line pretty much all the time. I think his shiny veneer is pretty thin. He totally lost me when he pimped his daughters. I’m sure he thought he was being “cute” and “clever”, but I found it rather disgusting. Blech.
AKM, I like the way you think. Chocolate for everyone!
I had to go without chocolate for two days earlier this month (no coffee or tea either, even decaf, nothing with even a trace of caffeine) for a medical test and I thought it was the end of the world.
Usually I have a small piece of very dark – e.g. 80% – in the afternoon. Yesterday I ate half a bar. And thought that maybe JK Rowling was on to something about chocolate being an antidote to the effects of Dementors…
Also went to my garden and pulled weeds and admired my poppies which are still just pretty rosettes scattered all around, and my two inch high sweet peas, and disposed of the rapini that got frozen to mush during our recent cold snap. A few tiny heads of butter lettuce had somehow made it through. We’ll plant more, and put in some carrots, get ready to put the potatoes in, and start fantasizing about our future tomato crop. Signs of spring here in Texas…
Too early in the day (gasp) for eating chocolate, but AKM, your visuals are a delight! I too share in the disappointment, anger, and grief at some of these current events. Yet, I can come visit the Mudflats and then leave knowing that there are wonderful, passionate, human beings with a sense of humor and beauty, who give a dam (sic) about making the world a better place.
Thanks AKM and nice try – but
Mass. doesn’t change things in the Senate much as the spineless Dims couldn’t even get their biggest party platform measures passed with 10 extra members. So what difference does it make that there are not only 9 extra.
The killer is the supremes. For those of us who have been screaming since the Nixon era that electing Republicans President would eventually produce a SCOTUS that would undo progressive gains of the past 150 years.
That was what conservatives promised and they have now delivered. Don’t look for it to get better for decades if at all.
When the spineless Dims had the chance to nominate, and remember two aging conservative held off retirement under dims so that a repug could replace them, they nominated moderates were were already right of center.
The Repugs will wake up – eventually – and realize that their coup has made them just as powerless as it will make the dims.
Just look at how the RepoTaliban are struggling aginst their own internal insurgancy by the Tea bagging rabble and imagine them trying to get control back from Exxon.
Got the video of Barney Frank on Rachel replay this am and it does seem like there are a few things that can be attempted. But the supremes can just delclare those laws unconstutional based yesterday’s precident.
It would take more than a chocolate fix to brighten up this death blow to the entire electorate of the US.
1 Irishgirl Says:
January 22nd, 2010 at 1:55 AM
Ok, I’ll have a bite, but I’m still fed up.
If that was an intended pun. I agree.
I just read in Huffington Post that the U.S. Census launch will take place in Alaska on Monday, in the remote village of Noorvik.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/huff-wires/20100122/us-alaska-census-launch/
Too early for chocolate?!!! I have several Dutch friends, and have learned about a standard breakfast item there – chocolate sprinkles on toast. Amazingly those friends of mine are all skinny as beanpoles. Maybe there is something to starting the day off right.
On the other hand I had a relative who lived in Switzerland for a year or so and there it was Nutella every morning, which apparently had exactly the effect on their waistlines that you would expect.
Over at TPM they’ve printed an email from a Senate staffer who gives their view of what’s going on with the Dems
http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/2010/01/relieved.php#more?ref=fpblg
**** I simply can’t answer the fundamental question: “what do Democrats stand for?” Voters don’t know, and we can’t make the case, so they’re reacting exactly as you’d expect (just as they did in 1994, 2000, and 2004). We either find the voice to answer that question and exercise the strongest majority and voter mandate we’ve had since Watergate, or we suffer a bloodbath in November. History shows we’re likely to choose the latter.****
Wish I could teleport. That place looks soul soothing.
The 1886 SCOTUS decision was bad enough (gave corporations the rights of persons because of an activist court reporter!), but this one is the worst since Bush v. Gore — I read a book on how the justices who stole the election for Shrub should be impeached, and thought it might turn into a movement with some legs. Then came 9/11, and the Dems, with few exceptions, practically joined the repubs. Every day, I’m glad I never had children. However, many of us do have kids, and they deserve a future. I miss Paul Wellstone, and am glad that after the disastrous Norm Coleman, Al Franken has his seat in the Senate now (Wellstone was one of the handful who voted against granting Shrub the powers that led to the invasion of Iraq; he died in a plane crash on his way to a memorial service).
Chocolate sounds about right. I’ll put some cacao powder (raw, ground beans) into my smoothie, along with some other superfoods (cranberries, acai, maca). The chocolate place in Anchorage looks very cool (hold the anchovies on mine, I’m vegan). Reminds me of a place in NYC (on University Place), but I never ate or drank there; unfortunately, all their chocolate treats — even the dark — contain dairy, & I abstain. Hmmm, maybe it’s time to visit the chocolate & wine bar, I hear the food’s good. No, OTOH, at times like these I need my wits about me. I’ll stick to the cacao in the smoothie.
The Rs had the nerve to accuse Sonia Sotomayor of judicial “activism” yet Steele called yesterday’s decision a triumph for free speech. Reminds me of the song the British army played as they were leaving their former colony: The World Turned Upside Down.
Don’t let this madness turn you apathetic. Sign petitions, write to your legislators, and do everything in your power to create the world we want. Health and peace to all.
..methinks the diversity of the Democratic Party is a blessing and a curse at the same time, while the single mind/membership of the Repubs becomes a long term strength.. once the Repubs become the majority, they’re all in lock step together to get their agenda passed..while the diversity of the Dems keeps them from accomplishing anything of major import.. they seem to lose it when hammering out the details… health care is a prime example..all agree it needs to be done, but they fail as a group to get the basic points done first…. some want it ALL, and won’t settle for less, … some want ONLY the less, and won’t budge… hence the logjam.. in the meantime, the repubs are willing to wait and use the system to their advantage, because THEY are playing for results, while the Dems play by the intent of the rules, and not for the final results… easy example…Franken confirmation vs Brown.. Repub delaying tactic has had an impact on Health Care, but Dems won’t play that game.. end result- Repubs win, Dems ( and the people) lose.
Please join the Facebook group for Continued Support of Roe v. Wade. The anti-abortion Virtual March for Life has a little over 65,000 members “walking”. Considering there are over 154 million women in the United States, I don’t consider that an overwhelming outpouring of “voice”.
However – there are women are ACTUALLY marching in Washington, DC, older women who marched in support of pro-choice rights for women back when Roe v. Wade was being argued in the SCOTUS. WHERE are the young women for whom we advocated and fought way back then?
Wherever you stand on the issue of abortion, please consider that we have the inalienable human right to make our own CHOICES. After yesterday, more than ever, we need to be proactive!
I feel ya, AKM….
I often heard it said. “It’s always darkest, just before dawn.”
Don’t lose Hope…and thanks for the cholatey goodness, even for the little critters suspended therein. Yikes!
Have a pleasant weekend everyone.
I’ve always held the position that a decade ends with a zero. AKM, I need to borrow your time-machine to illustrate, k? Just a quick trip to the beginning of time and back again, no side-trips (promise!) and I’ll top off the tank when I’m done.
(*Insert theremin music, beeps, clicks and whatnot for atmosphere*)
Ok, so here we are at the beginning of time. Point ’0′, if you will. (For the sake of illustration, it is NOT a leap year. Excuse me? Oh, shut up. ‘Cuz I have the chalk and I say so, THAT’s how I know, mmkay?
(*clears throat*) 365 days from now, a unit called ‘one year’ will be complete (*sets dial to “One Second Shy of One Full Year Later” and hops time-machine forward to 12/31*) Jan 1 – Dec 31 equals ____ … Anyone? Anyone? 1 year.
Ten of these units is one decade (*hops time-machine forward nine more times*) Ok, pop-quiz time. Who can tell me what the date is? Anyone know what the answer is? Anyone? Anyone…?
It’s 12/31/10, unless you’re in one of those countries where the day is listed first, then the answer would be 31/12/10. Regardless, we now know that the last day of the first decade occurred in the last month of the year 10. Any questions? Anyone? Anyone…?
Ok, class dismissed, but before you go…! Does anyone know where the nearest Gigawatt Station is? Anyone? Anyone….? Beuller….?
(*sigh*)
_____
Usually, I make it a point to NOT ‘wish time away’, but this decade needs to be over.
mmmm….chocolate!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wF9fLmOULA
Our office rules:
“no talking about food before 11AM”,
“no talking about popcorn ’til after 3PM”,
“NEVER talking about chocolate”.
But dancing anchovies with a side of choc… that transcends rules. Are these items sold in the lower 48? I will report back by end of day.
OMG – Thanks for the link. I was struck by Frum’s candor in his opening paragraph: “[SCOTUS decision] gives Republicans an unexpected and possibly transformative gift in the lead up to the 2010 mid-terms…. that is if Republicans are smart enough to recognize it as such and take advantage.”
Somehow I think the Repubs will pick up on it – it is, after all, right up their alley. The Court’s ruling yesterday struck down government regulations that were interfering with the Free Market by placing restrictions on the amount political whores could charge for their services. Now that the price of politicians is free from Big Gov’t interference and will be established in the Free Market, can it be any wonder that conservatives are doubly jubilant?
————————-
Rachel had Rep Barney Franks (D-MA) on last night. As Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, he is of the opinion that corporations can be reined in through modifications to the corporate laws that establish the legal framework for corporations, and they are already working on it.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26315908/#34985795
I am an absolute minority in this rural part of southwestern KY. Not only is it a very red area, but it is dominated by Evangelicals to the point where they are an exceptionally strong influence (if not outright control) our city council and county fiscal court. No matter what activities are planned for youth or adult, the religious factors are there. The whites run everything despite the ratio of minorities being the higher percentage of the population.
City/county leaders close their eyes to the high rate of school drop-outs, teen pregnancies, and drug use. This county is well-known for its meth labs but law enforcement either isn’t able or willing, to get the situation under control. Crime is escalating, but the churches do nothing for those who most need the help. A poor and hungry teenager who has a crappy home life and dire prospects for a decent future, is not going to willingly show up for a teen prayer session that has a dress code. Instead of the church paying for the teens to have weekend getaways at a bible camp, they could be spending that money on training programs or part-time jobs for the disadvantaged youth.
We are continually advised to write our congress-critters to express our thoughts and wishes. Sadly, I don’t think many listen. I’ve been writing Mitch McConnell for years and years, and although I always get a response, not one letter has ever agreed that my viewpoint is worth considering. He has his agenda and will not veer from it, despite what constituents might want. It becomes a futile exercise to continue to write, knowing that he won’t change. He is so deeply entrenched that he won’t be out of office until he’s taken out for his funeral.
Those of us on the left try to be pro-active and involved, and we try to do it in an educated and civil manner………..and it seems to get us nowhere! Maybe we need to take a page from the righties playbook and get mouthy and obnoxious and then we might get a little attention.
Good grief, I need some chocolate to get me out of this funk!
The Tea Party Movement and Progressives/Liberals had better find a position of unity and get together to save our Democracy. It is clear the GOP is willing to sell out our country to the highest bidder. Politics makes strange bedfellows, as they say.
And spike the cocoa… it’s gonna be a hard winter.
I had an interesting thought this morning that I thought I’d share.
As upsetting as the Supreme Court decision is, I thought, hmm, if Obama can pull off a Constitutional Ammendment to protect Democracy from Corporations and give the vote back to the people, this will be a significant moment in history, one that will (historically) override the healthcare debate, the finacial crisis, etc. Like Lincoln and Emancipation, he would be remembered as the man who saved Democracy as we know it.
The first African American President saves the Union. That thought -thinking in a long term manner, made me feel quite a bit better.
GoBama!
Here is some gossip to go with the chocolate. Bristol wants $$ from Levi.
http://www.tmz.com/2010/01/22/bristol-palin-levi-johnston-child-support-payments-sarah-palin-tripp/
I need to get ready for my day of volunteering at the food bank. But thanks for the reminder that a little chocolate goes a long way towards improving my outlook. I’m not sure I could handle anything on top of my chocolate looking back at me though.
Yum. Send some caramels covered in dark chocolate sprinkled with sea salt, please.
While amending the Constitution sounds like a wonderful idea in theory, in practice it is very difficult to do. I would like someone/anyone to work on revising the campaign/lobbying laws with the goal of complete transparency. Political donations and money from lobbyists are like city rats; very adaptable and will always find a way to get in. So, why not make every elected official who receives and any lobbyist/lobbying firm, corporation, union and any other entity that donates money and/or in-kind service be required to continually publicize their activity? I would prefer monthly public updates, as well as a “last page” on political ads big enough to read and/or on screen long enough- list the organization and its officers, so the public can see who is behind these, especially attack ads.
Shine the light on them all- if corporations or any other entity wants to monetarily influence elections and the political process, they should be required to step up and say who they really are, and where their money comes from. No more hiding.
Chocolate and anchovies? Bleech.
I read about chocolate and sea salt and can’t bring myself to seek that out.
I’m an old fashioned ganache truffle person myself. With hazelnut praline on occasion.
A chocolate bar. Sounds heavenly. And like a place I would hang out as I don’t drink coffee or spirits. (Just don’t like the taste)
Mona Lisa, I REJECT your argument! (In good fun, of course)
The calendar has *always* been for the convenience of those who are alive to use it. And how that calendar is structures, and what a year is and when it starts, has been changed and changed over and again. Days used to start at sundown (and still do for many religious purposes.) Years used to start in March, or in September, or whenever king wanted it to. Historically not everyone has been on the the same page, literally. The adoption of the Gregorian calendar took place at different times in various countries over the course of a few hundred years, and necessitated simply doing away with a long stretch of dates (10-14 days) in order to sync the calendar back up with the seasons. Which is why the October Revolution took place in November.
We always lump time in “chunks” that are smaller the closer we are to them. Hours, days, weeks, months, years, and yes, decades, and centuries. We talk about the age of newborns in terms of days, and then weeks, we give the age of toddlers in months. After that it’s years, and for adults we often put it in terms of decades – we talk about being in one’s fifties, or sixties. It really doesn’t matter much whether we include the year 10 A.D. in the first decade or the second, because way out here in 2010 we’re most likely to just lump both into the First Century anyway.
The reason decades are a useful chuck of time for us is because we use a base ten number system. It’s natural to use those “odometer roll” points as significant markers of time – we make a big deal about turning 40 because it’s a roll number. So the emotionally satisfying, natural way to look at decades in modern times, which is when we want to use them anyway, is to let them roll when the tens digit rolls.
Since we’ve had months and years that were quite a bit shorter than the standard. I have no problem defining that first decade as a short one – nine years – and moving on.
AKM we are in a battle with some mean, destructive and violent people that lost power. It is going to be a long battle that is how we have to think about this game. We have to be aware like a hawk, take right actions like a monk and believe and have confidence in victory. It won’t be easy but We Can Do It!!!!
Peral thank you for the great song by Jimmy Buffet.
I am reading the book “In The Face of Fear” Buddhist Wisdom in Challenging Times. There is a chapter on “How to Rule” by Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche.
The last paragraph says it all.
“If you want to solve the world’s problems , you have to put your own household, your own individual life, in order first. That is somewhat of a paradox. People have a genuine desire to go beyond their individual, cramped lives to benefit the world. But if you do not start at home, then you have no hope of helping the world. So the first step in learning how to rule is learning to rule your household, your immediate world. There is no doubt that , if you do so, then the next step will come naturally. If you fail to do so, then your contribution to this world will be further chaos.”
I am positive that the judges that made these decisions do not know how to rule their own lives or their families. I also believe it all comes back at you. These decisions and actions will haunt them.
We have to continually be on our feet, eyes wide open knowning that the enemy is ready to destroy. Be prepared to take action again and again and fight the good fight.
“Here, eat this. It’s chocolate. It’ll help.”
– Prof. Remus J. Lupin in “The Prisoner of Azkaban” by J. Rowling
I am now inspired to make the trek into Old Bisbee to the chocolate shop run by winter visitors from Homer. A nice piece of dark, with an insert of chiltepin chile should work wonders.
Is it just my perception, or do others also feel that TMZ is in the Palin’s court? Each of the recent articles are very derogatory towards Levi, yet quite nice to Bristol.
This latest headline refers to him as a deadbeat……..seeing as he has paid her over $10,000 in the last year, I don’t see how that qualifies as deadbeat. Lots of people are living on that (or less) in a year! I understand the 20% up to $105,000 that Alaska law mandates, but there is no way it could cost Bristol nearly $2,000 per month to support a child, even with the higher cost of everything in AK. Hopefully, a large chunk of the child support will go into a trust fund for the child……..controlled by an impartial person appointed by the courts, or with Levi (or his representative) also having a say in its disposition.
Totally off topic but….!!
If your like me, this crappy bill Democrats are trying to pass as Healthcare is not even close to what I want – or America NEEDS. What we DO need the right to choose, without a mandate.
But agree or not, look what I just found at FDL.
They have a new system up, giving people the ability to input their ‘call reports’ to their elected officials so everyone can see them appear in real time.
Interesting READ of who and what represenatives (from all over) plan to do on this bill. I haven’t called my Rep. yet but plan to later today.
Check it out:
Call Reports in Real Time:
No Public Option, No Mandate.
http://firedoglake.com/call-reports/?form=4
(sorry if already posted)
Oh, thank god; I thought it was just me in a miserable funk. I honestly laid in bed last night counting all the things I was miseable about: SCOTUS decision, Haiti,Brown, Palin, healthcare, even Leno vs. O’Brien (might as well throw that in there). It just seems like everything is headed for the crapper. Maybe the Mayans were right about 2012. And on top of it all I got a traffic ticket yesterday…my first. That really was the icing on the cake of my day. But thanks AKM for making me realize I am not alone. And the pictures of chocolate remind me of the very best I had in Mexico City. I never drink hot chocolate, but there it was heavenly. Thanks, too, for making me interrupt my funk with some wonderful memories of a great trip. That’s even better than the chocolate itself.
Finding myself in need of a little lift yesterday afternoon, I visited the local market and picked up a slice of chocolate cake and bottle of vino.
In line, I noticed that the woman before me (my age…old) was purchasing only chocolate ice cream and also a bottle of wine. Looking behind me I saw an (even OLDER) gentlement holding his entire purchase of wine and a box of cookies. Conicidence?
I am having a spectacular visual migraine aura right now – which is making me very happy because I get either the aura OR the headache/vomiting, but so never so far (knock on wood) one followed by the other.
Soon as it clears I’m calling my congressman (again). I’m in the GET IT DONE NOW camp.
Ah, they have Vosges chocolates there! The bacon chocolate is unusual but really good if you like sweet and salty.
ghostbuster…you have my sympathies. I get the same, only recently have I had visual migraines. bizarre. get more sleep, drink more water. I learned that white wine is a trigger and avoid it.
Other than that. Thanks AKM. So much for my resolution to lay off the chocolate! I’ve been hiding in my studio not listening to or watching the news. Can’t even handle Rachel anymore. Keith Olberman’s special comment on the Supreme court decision was enough to bring to the final conclusion that we are screwed. I had to go get Ben Franklin’s comments to the Continental congress. He foresaw it all. And here we are.
“In these sentiments, Sir, I agree to this Constitution with all its faults, if they are such; because I think a general Government necessary for us, and there is no form of Government but what may be a blessing to the people if well administered, and believe farther that this is likely to be well administered for a course of years, and can only end in Despotism, as other forms have done before it, when the people shall become so corrupted as to need despotic Government, being incapable of any other. I doubt too whether any other Convention we can obtain, may be able to make a better Constitution.”
Yum Chocolate !
FYI: Sarah and Bristol will be on the Oprah show today @ 4:00PM central time.
What the Funk is Oprah doing giving these Grifter’s a platform for. This stinks !
First, Pat in WA, love your new avatar – very pretty, like you.
Second, to all CA’s out there – will it be ‘gasp’ Whitman for GOP and Brown (again) for DEMs? What a nightmare scenario I think. Am I wrong?
It must be something to want to take on the problems in CA and expect to be successful. It must simply be the need for power, not for leading.
Wow, that it negative thinking, eh? I really need to get out of the blue funk caused by the SCOTUS decision yesterday. That one really has me reeling!
As I mentioned, I’m re-reading Thomas Frank’s What’s The Matter With Kansas, and this blogger has something today that mirrors an observation of my own:
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http://simplyleftbehind.blogspot.com/2010/01/rage-with-machine.html
“The right wingers I’ve encountered, the really angry, nasty ones, tend to be people who have already got some (the usual way of phrasing this is “I got mine, Jack!”).
There’s a fear underlying this, as well. When you feel you deserve a fair shake and get angry when things don’t seem to be going your way, that’s about loss. If not a material loss, then one of self-esteem and prestige. Those who have get more easily, mostly because they have already and other people feed into that.”
—————————–
Remember all those well-stuffed teabaggers?
A petition for fair elections site sent from BarackObama.com:
http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/fairelections/
Air America by the wayside, also – too. Now we need more smart bloggers!
It will get better!
I think it may be time for a *FIRED UP AND READY TO GO!* I don’t think I’ve ever seen a more depressed bunch of mudpups.
@Marnie….completely unintended.
The pissin’ contest is ON. Rex is talking. Can’t wait to hear sarah and Bristol on Oprah later today.
*********************************************************************
Attorney Rex Butler tells TMZ, Levi has told Bristol on several occasions he wanted her to come to his house to pick up checks for Tripp’s support. Butler says Levi also told her “it would be nice” if she brought Tripp along when she picked up the checks, because Levi wanted to spend time with his son. Butler says on each occasion Bristol was a no-show.
Butler says Bristol is partly to blame for the fact that she hasn’t gotten the support she wants. Butler tells TMZ on one occasion Levi was prepared to hand over $3,000 … but Bristol never showed.
As for why Levi didn’t just put the check in the mail … Butler says, “Why should he have to do that. He’s not dangerous to her.”
As we first reported, Bristol filed legal docs late Thursday asking for $1,750 a month in child support from Levi, claiming he’s only paid $4,400 since Tripp was born. Levi’s manager says the Playgirl model has forked over more than $10K.
Butler would not tell us how much Levi made in 2009, but says it’s significantly less than $250,000.
And, Butler says, Bristol’s been driving around in a $60,000 Cadillac Escalade that he believes Sarah Palin bought … and he thinks Sarah is controlling Bristol and is behind the latest legal move.
http://www.tmz.com/2010/01/22/levi-johnston-bristol-palin-sarah-palin-tripp-child-support-court-custody/
This is why I really like Andrew Sullivan:
http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2010/01/now-fight.html#more
I thought all Palins showed up for $$.
Not always, but today I adore Andrew Sullivan!
This is about more than health reform and we have to see it in that context. This is about a cynical nihilist attempt to break this presidency before it has had a chance to do what we elected it to do by a landslide vote. It is an attempt to destroy a majority’s morale, to break a president’s foreign policy autonomy, to prevent engagement in the Middle East peace process, to stop action on climate change, to restore torture, to increase tensions with the Muslim world, to launch a war on Iran. We cannot delude ourselves that if Obama fails, this is not the alternative. It is.
http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2010/01/now-fight.html
TNX, OMG. A heartening read.
The alternative is Palin. Let’s hope that an unintended side benefit of her being on FOX is that we continually get a refreshed view of the fascist horror that awaits, and thus continue to persevere.
Best hot chocolate EVER (imho):
Hotel du Palais in Biarritz, France. The town even has a Chocolate Museum.
I think the word that Sullivan is search for begins with an “f” and ends with “m” doesn’t it?
http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2010/01/the-scotus-decision.html
oops…as usual, errors on my part…the above was meant to read “searching”
Paula Says:
January 22nd, 2010 at 7:32 AM
I had an interesting thought this morning that I thought I’d share.
As upsetting as the Supreme Court decision is, I thought, hmm, if Obama can pull off a Constitutional Ammendment to protect Democracy from Corporations and give the vote back to the people, this will be a significant moment in history, one that will (historically) override the healthcare debate, the finacial crisis, etc. Like Lincoln and Emancipation, he would be remembered as the man who saved Democracy as we know it.
The first African American President saves the Union. That thought -thinking in a long term manner, made me feel quite a bit better.
*************************************************************************
from your lips to heavens’ ears.
Paula…let us hope!
On another matter…In Looney Land Sarah Palin’s head must be spinning completely around–exorcist style! First there was Brown stealing the limelight and now this! Glenn Beck asked Michelle Bachmann if she would ever run for President:
http://mediamatters.org/mmtv/201001220014
I am dissapointed and pissed too . I do not know how many glasses of wine I took last night, but had no effect on me. Just made me feel sick this morning. You can tell by my rants on my blog, I have not even touched the Supreme court’s decision, just makes me sick. At this point, we need to regroup and work as a team.
All I am thinking now is to get thick skined and keep fighting . Period.
http://bilia.wordpress.com/2010/01/22/drama-queen-sarah-palin-to-campaign-for-gop-candidates/
Thanks for the Andrew Sullivan link. I have been waiting since yesterday to hear his thoughts on the matter. He knocks it out of the park!
MonaLisa (inCT) @ 34 ~ You are absolutely, right. Our base-ten counting system has us use multiples of 10 – 10, 20, 30; we count from one through ten, eleven through twenty, etc. – it’s just that, by tradition (?) and/or custom (?), we’ve ‘decided’ a “decade” starts with the 0-ending year. We’re completely wrong in that, of course, but we do it anyway… Silly us. beth.
[For the record, I've always had a particular dislike for 9-ending years. Things seem to fall apart in those twelve months for me. Big time. Upon reflection, though, 2009 doesn't seem so bad when I compare it to the start of 2010. Could it be that January 2010 is really an gawd-awful extension of 2009? b.]
Sky says “I am dissapointed and pissed too . I do not know how many glasses of wine I took last night, but had no effect on me. Just made me feel sick this morning.”
My indulgence (wine and chocolate) last night was money not well-spent also. I can drink when anxious or depressed or HAPPY (of course), but it is never a good combination for me to drink when I feel angry. I should have remembered that; it never produces a pleasant buzz, but is more likely to make me feel ill. And that slice of store-bought chocolate cake I got up to eat at 3 a.m. didn’t help at all.
This assault on democracy by the supreme court is the final gift from George Bush.
What did we do when the supreme court was deciding the outcome of the 2000 elections? We quietly stood by and allowed the court to decide that the votes of some people would not be counted. Why were we so complacent? The people of Iran risked their very lives to protest their corrupt election. We call Palin supporters sheeple, but are we any better?
Hey Canadians-
Harper has shut down Parliament.
A multi-party group that started on Facebook is now on the net at noprorogue.ca
They plan protests in quite a few Canadian cities tomorrow to tell their MPs to get their sloppy bods back to work at Parlament on Monday. They are also lobbying the official who can lock or unlock the Parliament buildings to open them so that MPs who are willing to work can show up.
noprorogue.ca
Here’s another site that’s Liberal but has videos useful to all opposition parties:
Wonderful cartoon of Harper.
http://liberalvideodepot.blogspot.com/2010/01/facebook-faceplant.html
Sometimes our fate resembles a fruit tree in winter. Who would think that those branches would turn green again and blossom, but we hope it, we know it.
– Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
In a previous rant about prorogation, I erred in blaming with our Governor General for obediently shutting down parliament when Harper asked her to. The fault is entirely Harper’s.
So, Michaelle Jean, I thought you had been bullied into acting, and I apologise. Here’s an explanation from the noprorogue blog comments:
The GG cannot refuse the advice of a PM who has the confidence of the House. As there was no pending non-confidence vote, Harper technically had the support. What right does she, as an appointed official, have to refuse our elected PM? When the PM does NOT have the support of the House, then she is in the right to refuse. But as she was also appointed by the Liberals, Harper would have had a field day if she had refused. He backed her into a corner and he knows it. He shouldn’t have asked and he also knows that. This is from a Constitutional law perspective (I’m a law student and the info comes from a Constitutional law expert.)
chocolate cheesecake.
76 KateinCanada Says:
January 22nd, 2010 at 9:39 AM
Hey Canadians-
Harper has shut down Parliament.
_______________
my biggest nightmare, a Sarah Palin (or somebody like her) in the White House and Harper with a majority :S
A very good book and excellent insight to what is going on is
Screwed by Thom Hartmann
Talks about how the middle class is being destroyed by corporations, that the safety nets (social security – medical – job stability) for middle class society is being wiped out by “conservatives”
paraphrased “The battle facing America today, is between those that want to protect our democracy and those that want a small elite class ruling America.” (ie those with inherited or corportate weath)
Although I am still in Part I of the book — it is quite scarey. What will continue to happen with the destruction of the middle class will be similar to middle ages or Dickens-era. What is more scary however, tea-baggers may have the right idea about “taking back our government” – not from Obama and the democrats – but from corporations.
And here I thought Stephen King wrote scary books !!!
@ KateinCanada
Harper is and always was a bully
AKM
I believe you owe those Alaskans living out in the bush an apology. While most outsiders do not know that a large percentage of Alaskans live off the road system and therefor have no access to all chocolate establishments you should know better then to tease.
Of course being in Anchorage my self I could not help rubbing it in a little to our friends out on the peninsula.
But I used coco butter, you know, so it would not hurt as much.
M. Paul
Jon Stewart Takes On Keith Olbermann.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/22/jon-stewart-takes-on-keit_n_433179.html
anybody watching the President in Ohio ?
Regardless of everything i think he is just a great guy
Attention all DC area mudpuppies….Beck’s other fave for President, Michelle Bachmann, is planning a little activity next week on the day of the State of the Union Speech. You know that the media will give her and her clan a big share of the limelight so get your signs of support for the President ready! It would be fantastic to gather a huge number of people to counter her little tea party group.
http://www.politico.com/blogs/glennthrush/
Send this information to all like-minded supporters–time to roll up the sleeves!
A good laugh always helps. A name floating around for the new Senator:
Senator Staplenads
1smartamerican-
we’ll probably end up with Brown…he’s done a fair job in Oakland, and I’d like to see Linda Rondsadt again…hehehehehe,,,,
Did you see Olbermann’s commentary on the Supreme Court ruling?
http://girldujour.wordpress.com/2010/01/22/unbelievable-what-the-hell-is-going-on/
This place is cool: http://www.hersheys.com/chocolateworld/
It’s next to an amusement park, a stadium where rock concerts are held and where I will watch the Hershey Bears play hockey tonite. Just hope the World is still open when I get there. …
AKM,
I will pass on the chocolate, but not on your precious wise mind.
You and this community will be among our only hopes.
The SC decision means that MUDFLATS and other intelligent blogs
and PERSON TO PERSON contacts are going to have to be the weapon
of MASS EDUCATION.
After the second Bush “victory” MoveOn focus groups identified
the mass media as one of the most important areas that had to change
to affect politics. That did not happen, but in the 5 years since, the
‘rise of the blogosphere’ happened. And the President won with the use
of the internet.
Now the mass media has been sold lock, stock and barrel.
So we just have to use the absolute ground of people influencing
people directly.
Otherwise….or maybe anyway…..we really are as doomed as I thought
when I heard of the SCOTUS ‘decision’…..
While I was out running some errands today, I was listening to some guy who lived through the depression talking about how people today need to be more optomistic. That we all need an attitude adjustment. I was driving and listening, shaking me head agreeing with him…and the radio died.
If anyone wants to join me, I’ll be in the treehouse listening to Shannyn’s radio show for a few hrs starting at 3pm. Shannyn’s show is one of the things I’m really happy about.
As long as we’re in whining mode, couldn’t the “shoot the abortion doctor” defense apply to any jihad terrorist if extended to it’s logical conclusion?
That “illogical righteousness” could be used as a defense for cold-blooded murder against someone with whom one disagrees is truly frightening!
Maybe some of local Alaskans will have this answer
Shannyn’s show is about to come on the air for today. KUDO is just the local Progressive radio station right. We heard that Air America filed for bankruptcy yesterday but this would not affect Shannyns other than the fact that some of the other hours of programming during the day they use might be rebroadcasts from some Air America radio Hosts.
Would KUDO continue to operate as a local Alaskan station?
Heh – trawling the few comments at Thomas Frank’s WSJ piece about selling off Fort Knox, I found this smug little gem:
“Those of us with land and gold and silver and gardens and ammo and guns and real-world skills would be quite comfortable. Those of you with nothing but a laptop and half-baked ideas of money and economics would be reduced to begging in the streets for scraps. And the trees and lightpoles in DC would be burdened by the useless remains of the stupid politicians, policey wonks, and bankers who thought up the brilliant idea of selling the country’s wealth to spite a few conservatives. ”
Nice, huh?
I’m guessing those “real world skills” reduce to being able to use a shovel?
“We’ve seen the heartbreaking devastation in Haiti, the election of Scott Brown to the vacant senate seat left by Ted Kennedy, the horrendous decision from the supreme court in Citizens United v. FEC, and Air America has declared bankruptcy. And it’s still January.”
and the POTUS is STILL talking AT us
He’s had a year to get in the groove and he still cannot make eye contact with the camera. He still cannot commit to a course of action and use the Office he was given to make it so.
I’m the last person on the planet I ever thought would type that. It’s gonna take more than chocolate.
@”Butler tells TMZ on one occasion Levi was prepared to hand over $3,000 … but Bristol never showed.”
I call bullshit on that. The USPO is a highly efficient organization. Manufactured dramatics. I guess he learned well during his tenure ’round Winky.
well we can start here, kick the elected Dems in the rear, or hit them upside the head, whatever, they need to hear us! I”m not giving up. Off to have a dark chocolate.
AKM, that place looks really neat, thanks for sharing, just the visual is soothing.
http://act.boldprogressives.org/cms/sign/reconciliation/?rd=1&source=e2_fin&t=2&referring_akid=253.87122.-HV-rT
“Tell Congress: Don’t learn the wrong lesson from losing Kennedy’s seat!
Sign the message to Democratic leaders!
Democratic politicians are on the verge of learning the exact wrong lesson from tonight’s election. Can you sign this emergency petition telling them to be stronger — not weaker — in 2010?
“The loss of Ted Kennedy’s seat — due to a lack of enthusiasm among Democrats and Independents — sends a clear message to Congress. The Senate health care bill is not the change we were promised in 2008, and it must be improved. The Senate must use ‘reconciliation’ to pass a better bill with a strong public option.”
This is already a sad time for those of us who loved Ted Kennedy. But to make it even worse, conservative Democrats are claiming that the loss happened because Congress was “too far to the left.” But poll after poll shows voters want Democrats to fight harder for change.
72,049 people have taken action—144% of our goal of 50,000!
Beth, tradition and custom counts for a lot when defining words. Technically, September, October, November, and December should be the 7th, 8th, 9th, and 10th months, by “definition”, literally. But the calendar has gone through many, many changes over the centuries and we now have no problem accepting December as the 12th month, as illogical as that is.
In any case, when we talk about people’s ages, decades start with the ’0′ year.
On a related note, do weeks start on Sunday or Monday?
Um, “count” not “counts.” My fingers appear to be disconnected from my brain today.
moosepucky, you echo my thoughts. The authority to try, convict, and execute punishment is reserved to *the people* by way of the judicial system, not to individuals.
@46 GhostbusterTX: I playfully reject your rejection!
Your comparison of time and distance is all appley-orangish, and quite possibly special-relativitistic, and since I’m a product of my town’s public education system, I don’ know nuffin’ ’bout dat. But!
I DO know that I have not driven 1 mile (or 1.609 km, for you 31/12 types) until the odometer actually reaches the 10/10ths mark, i.e.: 10 sub-units of a mile have been completed. True: we are ‘in’ the first mile, but until that 10th sub-unit is complete, and the tiny numbered wheely thing clicks into place, we have NOT driven 1 mile.
I submit that decades are like that. We are IN a decade, but said decade is incomplete until 10/10ths of said decade are completed. A baby isn’t said to be 1 year old until 364-5 days after birth (depending on if it’s a leap year
) Though the child is IN his first year, you don’t usually get dolled up in grandma’s clothes, arrange half-eaten casseroles on the counters and bathe the child in the kitchen sink to wash off the photo-op birthday cake until at least 1 full year has passed since the aforementioned baby first inhaled.
Just sayin’….
We can feel good about this……..this is a poll from Fake news, one they’re not really hyping up, lol.
http://www.frumforum.com/foxs-own-poll-shows-tea-party-palin-less-popular-than-obama
“The poll also looks at hypothetical matchups between Barack Obama and potential Republican nominees, and finds the President in a decisive lead among all the candidates tested.
President Obama would trounce former House majority leader Newt Gingrich and former vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin, beating each by 24 points. The strongest challenger to the President appears to be former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, who is only 12 points back in a hypothetical race.”
And we can feel good about the fact that 57% Repubs think ALL (not just the Dem) Washington politicians should be ousted and replaced, lol. I think the whole country is fed up with pay for vote officials. I wonder if they’ll vote the underfunded underdogs just out of spite. I think some heads are gonna have to roll in the White House, and on down.
“The poll also reveals the depth of disenchantment that Americans are starting to feel towards their elected officials. Fifty-seven percent of Republicans and fully half of all independents believe it would be good for the country if all the current members of Congress were voted out of office and replaced with new representatives.
Americans also remain skeptical of their representatives’ intentions. Seventy-nine percent of Republicans and independents alike think that elected officials in the United States are more concerned with power and wealth than with public service.”
Hmmmmm. I’ve been thinking–as frightening as that thought is…
Perhaps we all need to take a deep breath and step back and stop panicking.
I had an excellent discussion with a friend the other day. He leans conservative on some issues and liberal on others. His take on health care is the same as mine (that being that ultimately what this country needs is universal health care). His argument was excellent and might just win over some conservatives (including teabaggers/partiers or whatever they are calling themselves these days).
The backbone of this country has always been the small business entrepreneur (think Thomas Edison).
Most people will put their health at the top of the list of priorities in their lives. Before protection (think police or military-government supplied). Before infrastructure (think roads and mass transit-government supplied). Etc. The creative minds that might become the next Thomas Edison are not, cannot, take the risk of pursuing their creativity and starting their own businesses because they cannot afford to cover their own healthcare, so they continue to work for big corporations (or small ones) in order to maintain their health care coverage (if they are lucky enough to have it). Few people will take the risk of “losing it all” on the roll of the dice that they will not have some catastrophic health crisis that could end up with them losing their homes, etc.
Why, if we are letting the government cover all of these other things, and never questioning it, do we not consider the idea of health coverage for everyone? It would free people up to follow their dreams, to put the creative ideas out there, to rebuild the economy, to think green in terms of energy, to make their own money, employ other people, etc.,etc., etc.
I know. We are all crying that it is the corporatocracy that we live in (that has now apparently bought our Supreme Court) that owns us.
Here is my take.
#1.Corporations depend on your money. Don’t buy their goods (or at least be very careful how you spread your money around) if you don’t like what they are doing. Don’t tune in to their media. Don’t watch or read their ads. The almighty dollar speaks louder than any words in this country and we still know that. They can be swayed by public opinion fairly easily. They live terrified that the people might actually know this.
#2. Even some teapartiers (particularly the libertarians) are upset about this ruling. It is the old school GOP that is excited about this. The “little guy” is still getting screwed and they know it. They just have a different way of expressing their anger.
#3. Are we really surprised that the corporations seem to “own” this country? Haven’t we known that for awhile now? Look at Murkowski. We need to let, not only our elected officials (even if we didn’t vote for them) as well as the corporations know that we will not sit down and put up with this.
The lemonade is the fact that this may actually be the one thing that can bring us all together. The bank bailouts followed by huge bonuses has everyone POd. From what I can gather from my reading, the bail outs were necessary. The bonuses are BS.
Andrew Sullivan is right. Now is the time to fight.
And remember, there are other people lurking on this blog who take great joy in any misery spoken of here (just as we sometimes gloat when “the other side” is freaking out). Freaking out is not the thing to do right now. We can get angry. We can be worried. Most of all we need to find a way to make our voices heard. And perhaps, as unpopular as this thought might be, we need to have conversations with people who do not necessarily share our views (the sane ones anyway) and find common ground. The obvious common ground at this point seems to be that we are “the people” and our voices will not be drowned out by corporate money.
Scarah is back to tweeting? It’s something about Beck manufacturing a crisis, lol.
http://mediamatters.org/blog/201001220001
Glenn Beck, SP…this is exactly what I am talking about. We got blindsided by the SCOTUS while listening to all of the drivel (sp).
Wake Up everybody. Pay attention to the things that matter. What is important is what our congresspeople and local legislators are doing. Not what the boobs have to say.
@19 austintx and 54 sandipants
Santa brought mini Vosges bacon chocolate bars to all the stockings on our mantel this year…sad for the rest of the family, I’m the only one who loves it!
The seasalt dark choc they sell at CoffeeBean& Tea Leaf is a winner too.
I just got out of a meeting with a business owner.
In late Nov., he wanted to eliminate part of his company entirely, and I told him not to. We ended the year up 8% in the total business, and nearly double 2008 in the part of the business he wanted to eliminate. This was that area’s second-best year.
If that isn’t enough good news, this week the company got orders to start an expanded relationship which will be good for everyone involved.
NOW, here is the kicker: He’s going to expand to 2 more locations. That means more jobs for a lot of people.
He lives in San Diego and moved here from AZ.
So the business economics are changing for the better–some of the money to finance this expansion is from the “Obama Stimulus Program” and the SBA. So don’t give me that BS about the stimulus isn’t helping, the President isn’t doing enough, government is bad, blah, blah, blah.
Spread this good news around.
(I think the chocolate has helped!)
nswfm……that is fantastic news!!! Definately the chocolate.
I totally forgot that today is the anniversary of Roe v Wade. Now not only can you show up in Washington to march, you can march virtually. And guess who’s one of the marchers:
http://www.virtualmarchforlife.com/
Irishgirl, I have to admit to a lot of chocolate in the month of December (lost count of the parties), but have pretty much laid off since New Year’s Day (which was Key Lime Pie Day for me).
But just the memory of the Biarritz hot chocolate and the Chocolate Museum was enough to put me in a good mood this AM. “Art and history of chocolate on display to inform visitors all about one of the most widely desired comfort foods in the world.”
and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biarritz
Pearl, is there a virtual march for the right to choose what happens with your own body? Because I have a half a peace sign for people who want to tell me what to do with that. And it’s not a foam finger, either.
AKM – would it be possible to put a link for Shannyn’s show along with the “right side ” site links? ( Apologies if it’s there and I’m missing it !) I know we can get the link from Shannyn’s site but sometimes it’s difficult to access.
And – woohoo! I just received my copy of “Republican Gomorrah” . I won it at http://www.BuzzFlash.com during a Twitter contest. And, to cop an old 80′s phrase, ” I was stoked” ( and the stoking continues now that the package is here )
lovemydogs –
#1 on your list is spot on . Remember last year when we circulated the list of sponsors for douchebag Beck and fired off e-mails ?? It works.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/james-rucker/verizon-lowes-johnson-joh_b_267302.html
OK, first of all, my nomination for the best chocolate for the body and soul. We never leave Florida after a visit to family without something from there shop.
http://www.normanloveconfections.com/
As for the recent events, here’s how I feel….Lemons make great lemonade!
Scott Brown’s win in Massachusetts can be a big winner for the President and the Democrats, if they use it wisely. They should wait a bit and allow him to settle in and show his true colors. He has already dimmed Palin’s luster in the media sunshine. More will come out about him as the media digs, and it’s not going to be pretty.
The “populist” theme can be utilized to get back some of the enthusiasm for Democrats in the 2010 elections. President Obama and the Democrats just need to tap into that with a consistent and strong message…go after BIG business and the BIG banks, find ways to create jobs, even if they are temporary, and keep repeating that the GOP is standing in their way. Hammer home the message that McConnell, Boehner, et al, aren’t supporting a jobs bill, banking regulation, effort to get TARP fulling repiad, etc. AND, they must do something dramatic with the federal budget…find a way to cut more spending so that people can see that the deficit is being addressed. And going back to the jobs thing….only 15% of the young population voted in MA and they have one of the highest percentages of unemployment. Thousands of 2008 and 2009 college graduates still don’t have jobs….send them to Haiti, New Orleans, and into their own cities and towns to work for their communities. Get them off their butts, they want something to do. Let’s help them connect with what really matters.
Health Care Reform will happen, but it may take a little more time to pull it off. Remember both the House and Senate have voted already, so it is very possible to pass something that could be even better than what is out there already by using the Reconciliation process and a handful of regulatory pieces of legislation that has , dare I use this word, bipartisan support, like banning recision, allowing children on policies until age 26, etc. They could even gain momentum by embracing a modified tort reform effort with strong patient rights language.
The SCOTUS decision , while pitiful and a slap in the face for the everyday US citizen, will add to the fracture of the conservative movement into pieces. REAL Tea Party advocates will go after the GOPers who celebrate it.
Congress should act quicky to pass regulations that require identification of companies or individuals who place political ads in the media. If people see the companies that are behind these ads, boycott movements can be initiated. Look at what happened with the Glenn Beck advertisers when a strong campaign was waged against his advertisers.
All is not lost…I refuse to give up HOPE.
GRAB A MOP….FIRED UP, READY TO GO!!!!!!!
Along with other sensible measures being taken to post-haste return the voice of the *people* to the *people* (thanks Franks, Grayson, et al), I firmly believe the FCC needs to get involved in clarifying and delineating what is –and is not– allowed in political (campaign) ads, in the first place.
It should be abundantly clear our citizens expect (and demand) “truth in advertising” for goods, services, and products. Wasn’t the demand for “truth in advertising” the whole reason behind getting rid of/banning use of the [unspecific] “Brand ‘X’” in advertising**, lo, these many years ago? And didn’t the consumer/user demand for “truth in advertising” result in companies/organizations not being allowed to make claims that their product/service were anything other than what they were? That, unless there was proof that a claim made –whether it was ‘for’ the product/service advertised or ‘against’ their competitor– was, indeed, factual, that ‘claim’ could *not* be used in their advertising?
Political campaigns are doing nothing more –or less– than selling a product (the candidate(s) and/or agenda) to the consumer. Why should the FCC allow political campaigns different media standards than are demanded of any *other* ‘sales pitch’ aimed at influencing/swaying the *consumer*?
To my way of thinking, the FCC has to be involved. As it stands now, any old ad can be made touting the virtues (or despicable shortcomings) of any candidate or agenda. There is no control over them *other than* the endorsement/disclaimer: “I’m Blah-de-Blah and I approve of this message” and/or “Paid for by: [insert an innocuous-sounding ‘Friends of’ or ‘People for’ front org/shill group]”. Heck, even my local TV station runs political ads that are blatantly full of falsehoods; ads *it* –the station!, on air!– has thoroughly debunked! Why? Because they are being *paid* to run the ads (whether the ad is a certified bunch of out-and-out hooey, or not, the money is green) AND, there is *nothing* preventing a TV/radio station, even against their better judgment, from doing so…not to mention, the money is still just as green.
Unless -and until- the FCC gets involved to set standards of accountability and honesty in ALL advertising FOR the consumer, local (and national) TV and radio will continue to run moose pellet ads. FCC-regulated media now, is, sadly, virtually *required* to run every . single . political . ad that comes its way; if they don’t, there’s a great hue and cry of “discrimination” from the candidate(s) and/or ‘political’ groups if their ad(s) are, by some miraculous fluke, turned away (ref: “money/green: use of”, above) by the station.
The FCC, in my humble opinion, MUST get *actively* involved in protecting the consumer from ALL false (debunkable) ‘claims’ in advertising from the get-go –be those ‘claims’ for goods and services OR for political candidates and agendas. Once the moose pellet ‘claims’ have been made to/at the wide(er) audience via the airwaves, they can’t be un-made; surely the consumer deserves *as much* –if not MORE– protection from (provably) false ads/’claims’ wanting to be put out by political candidate(s) and agendas, as they do from false ads/’claims’ wanting to be put out/generated by feminine hygiene products manufacturers?
OK … I’ll take a deep breath, now. beth.
**For younger mudpups who’re unfamiliar with the “Brand ‘X’” deal, there was a time in our country’s media when, say, Handrail brand toothpaste [made up brand name- b.] could –and did– advertise pretty much any way they wanted, to include, *at the expense of* other brands…the non-specific, advertising-ubiquitous, “Brand ‘X’s” of the genre. They could advertise, for example: “When compared to ‘Brand X’, Handrail toothpaste won’t make your teeth fall out or cause premature death”.
Since no one could identify the “Brand ‘X’” being referenced [to check the veracity of Handrail’s ad], Handrail could run the ad with impunity. What they [Handrail] were claiming/inferring “Brand ‘X’” would/could do if it was used (instead of Handrail brand toothpaste) was at the core of their ad. The ‘horrors’ of “Brand ‘X’” was their ‘selling point’. The *fact* that no other toothpaste made your teeth fall out or caused premature death, was immaterial; any old bs could be attributed to “Brand ‘X’” and no other toothpaste brand (Crest, Pep-so-dent, Colgate, etc.) could refute those claims because none had been specifically named.
Handrail could, if push came to shove, simply say, “Oh, when we said “Brand ‘X’”, we were talking about that toothpaste made in the country of Upper Middle Drangiomantia called “Teeth Fall Out and Die Soon” [also made up brand name] that we’d heard about; we weren’t talking about Crest, Pep-so-dent, Colgate, etc.; oh, no, by golly, not them…sheesh! We stand by our ad, though, because we were only telling the truth; we were talking (and telling the truth) about the Upper Middle Drangiomantia brand.” {NOTE: that Handrail had only heard about the brand used as it’s “Brand ‘X’” example, and what they’d heard “Teeth Fall Out and Die Soon” would –absolutely!- do to the product user, was also immaterial to their advertising campaign.}
Thus endeth a brief background of the whole “Brand ‘X’” phenomenon and why said ‘brand’ is no longer allowed to be used in advertising *unless* it is used as a tongue-in-cheek guffaw or as a ‘send up’ point in an ad. b.
nswfm Says:
January 22nd, 2010 at 12:38 PM
Pearl, is there a virtual march for the right to choose what happens with your own body? Because I have a half a peace sign for people who want to tell me what to do with that. And it’s not a foam finger, either.
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uh huh and i got the other half.
Say NO to Palin in politics @101…great post. I disagree with Mr. Frum on most issues but he is a thoughtful and intelligent man who is interesting to read. It is very telling, as he noted, that Fox had buried the poll results that showed Obama’s popularity while emphasizing those results that pointed to Obama’s negatives. It is also interesting to note that Mr. Frum does not appear on Fox too often, choosing instead to be a contributor on CNN.
If more republicans were like this, the country might not be in such dire straights. Of course, there would be disagreements and arguments but that’s the way the process is meant to work. There should always be a loyal opposition but that opposition should base its arguments on research and intelligent study not lies and hate-speech. Sadly, the current leadership of the right has lost total sight of those traits.
Another poll showing Obama at a one percentage point disadvantage against Huckabee:
http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/01/poll-obama-in-close-races-for-2012-huckabee-has-one-point-edge.php
Am I the only one for whom Elizabeth Warren has emerged as the brightest, most grounded liberal populist of the past year? If the Dems need a voice of reason and common sense to steer by in the midst of all the Republican chaos and Teabag tantrums, they could find no ideas more worthy of rallying behind than Elizabeth Warren’s. She embodies everything that Obama the candidate convinced people that he represented – smart, steady, uncompromisingly ethical, non-reactionary, and committed to defending and protecting the interests of the people. I have been frustrated for months that she seems to have been marginalized by the Obama’s Wall Street cabal.
http://tinyurl.com/yegp76p
@115 Bubs and Pearl
I can contribute another half!
Hope Y’All have stocked up on chocolates. Just watched Sarah and Bristol on Oprah. It was an uncomfortable interview. Sarah’s hair……Gone With The Wind, Dear Scarlett.
And please let’s get rid of loser Bernanke!
Excellent explanation of the SCOTUS decision yesterday…even if it still doesn’t pass the logical smell test.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/geoffrey-r-stone/explaining-citizens-unite_b_433140.html
Oh yes, Elizabeth Warren used to write a column for Talking Points Memo, years ago. She was talking about the foreclosure tsunami and the collapse of the mortgage-backed securities market long before I heard a word about it anywhere else.
Strike “the” before “Obama’s Wall Street cabal.”
————
beth @ 114
My favorite example of the type of advertising you’re referring to is from a marketing class a took, well, ions ago. At a time when salmon still dominated the canned fish market, one tuna packer’s ads touting the virtues of tuna ended with, “… and it’s guaranteed not to turn pink in the can.”
Can we assume Karl Rove had a progenitor in the tuna business?
I just watched $arah & Bristol on Oprah. All they talked about was Bristol’s sex life. It was via satelite.
Oprah did ask if it was unrealistic to say Bristol was never having sex again until she gets married. She predicted she’ll marry 10 years from now!! HAHA!
I guess she didn’t enjoy sex that much.
And of course, $arah went on and on and on…….about how PROUD she is of Bristol and how STRONG & INDEPENDENT Bristol is. That pretty much sums it up.
If you eliminate the commercials, the whole thing lasted about 10 minutes.
Of course, everytime Bristol talked, Mommy Dearest had to have the last word.
And Bristol looked different. I couldn’t tell if she lost weight, because if she did, she had lost a lot between the last photo spread and now. Or maybe it was her hair that she was wearing differently. No new bumpit. She must have seen the pics of herself with the bumpit and grossed out. It made her look matronly.
So, make sure to watch. They’re the first thing when Oprah starts. No hard questions but a slight confrontation, if you can even call it that.
Rep. Grijalva has been a true champion for the public option. And now, because he’s sticking to his pledge and his principles, Grijalva is being called a “monster.” We need to get the backs of Grijalva and other progressives.
http://action.firedoglake.com/page/m/5958d6f2/459011f9/637214bd/3dc655dc/3852843914/VEsE
Tell House Progressives: Honor Your Pledge and Don’t Vote for the Senate bill.
GreatGranny2C I agree with you on TMZ but they will go after anyone.I don’t think they really care.Right now everyone is about palin so that’s the way TMZ runs when the tables turn(hopefully) they will praise Levi.After what the palins pulled on him I will back him 100%.I think the palins put that out their to get people on their side.Palin knows how to play the game with the media or should I say Murdock does.
I agree the dems need to get aggressive like the republicans are and fight just as dirty as the republicans do. I know I catch my self on news blogs forcing myself not to be like the many posting and calling names(palin supporters)Maybe the dems shoulkd be like Bill o when he all but said wouldn’t it be nice to be rid of Dr. Tiller,giving someone the Ok to do murder in the name Of God LOL
Apparently, Mrs Palin’s hair was hysterical. The bots are not pleased.
http://breepalin.blogspot.com/2010/01/sarah-palin-unveils-new-look-on-oprah.html
Sorry AKM, I should be more mature, but it has been a tough week.
I didn’t even say ……fec
Nevermind…I have gone to moderation.
Mrs. Palin’s hair is horrific on the Oprah show. One small bit of consolation.
She has gone for curls.
Are Dolphins People Too?
http://www.canadiangeographic.ca/blog/posting.asp?ID=206
You may have heard about the scientific consensus growing around the idea of granting dolphins special rights as “non-human persons” as it gained momentum earlier this month when two new studies hinted at the depth of the animal’s intelligence.
The research forward’s evidence that dolphins have distinct personalities, a strong sense of self and can think about the future. And, as the above video shows, they have sophisticated hunting skills.
The announcement lead to some interesting discussions about the repercussions of classifying “non-human persons.” Especially at the Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies, which says this case could help to pave the way for robotic rights. Yet, arguments for corporate personhood look as though they could play a significant role as well. What do you think? Are dolphins people too?
i refuse to watch Palin on Oprah
but if anybody want to get a boo here is a clip
i got a chuckle from the headline
Palin’s Hair Shocks Oprah: “What Did You Do?!” (VIDEO)
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/22/palins-hair-shocks-oprah_n_433582.html
1smartcanerican I don’t believe California has a viable choice for governor.Brown is an old has been called the feel good governor and Whitman couldn’t even run a company decent.They have to have better than those two.Neither IMO would be good for California.
Say NO to Palin in Politics I am one of the 57 % IMO there should be term limits and should have been all along.Then maybe we wouldn’t be in this mess and our congress people would listen to us or maybe it would make it worse and if they know they can’t run again they will just do as they please./
LiladyNY — Done.
Rep Raul Grijalva has been my Congressman since he went to DC, and was my State Rep before that. I trust him not to sell us out, and to make the distinction between a disappointing bill and a bad bill – something I do not trust Pelosi or Reid to do. When I hear “Just pass it – we’ll fix it later” I absolutely cringe. It’s an acknowledgment first off, that the bill is worse than merely disappointing. And then the obvious question is – If you can’t pass a good bill when you’re up big in the House and 60/40 in the Senate, why should we believe the votes will exist to fix it later? Especially now that corporate opposition will be even more empowered against it, that statement just twinkles with rainbows and unicorns.
@Desert Mudpup
I have mixed feelings about the current HCR bill. Part of me thinks that one giant step forward will lead to more steps later. And that flushing all that political capital down the toilet is not going to be so hot.
And then, what I really want is single payer–and/or lots of public options.
How to get there best? That is the question.
Truly, I think best route to proper HCR is for Congress to take it away from themselves until they’ve got it right and the same for all.
Entertainment Tonight w / Levi on the panel – I’ve only seen the first few minutes but I have to say – I think he’s doing much better in front of the camera and he continues to come off as honest .
@BuffaloGal
I read a synopsis of his interview and I have to agree with you 100% . This young man comes across as years more mature than Granny Palin. Who BTW looks completely ridiculous with her Nellie Olsen curls for the Oprah interview today. I believe the adage is something like mutton dressed as lamb.
I watched the Oprah/SP thing. Not only did Sarah look different, but, as someone has already mentioned, Bristol has really changed!
I had to get up close to the screen to see if it was really her. Her demeanor wasn’t all that friendly, either. I think Oprah made them look rather shallow.
In asking what Bristol did all day to bring up her baby, she said she got up about 4 AM, gave him his bath, fed and clothed him, and went off to work, came home and bathed him again, fed him and put him to bed. (Who looks after him when she is working – not a mention of that!) Someone was asking the other day if she was really going to college – Oprah asked her if she missed college life and friends, and she said “yes”. Guess that means she isn’t attending, as SP has told everyone.
Net-neutrality now more important than ever!
BuffaloGal Says:
Entertainment Tonight w / Levi on the panel – I’ve only seen the first few minutes but I have to say – I think he’s doing much better in front of the camera and he continues to come off as honest .
I just caught the last end of ET with Levi and he said that he has never seen SP’s hair like that and she looked ridiculous. I spit out my drink all over the place.
twain12 -
Thanks for that link.
Well , I call bulls^*t on Oprah. Second time she had sarah in the crosshairs and did not pop her ass on at least ONE lie among the skadillion out there. And Oprah , got some news for ya , sarah is a bigot and racist.
Dang.
sigh
Lame.
LiLadyNY – The “Nellie Olsen” curls in reference to the way $P appeared in the Oprah interview is just cracking me up . HA!!! What was $carah thinking ???
LiLadyNY – The “Nellie Olsen” curls.
That;s exactly what it looks like. How funny. New name for SP…….Nellie or shirley (temple)
My husband bought me a precious stuffed animal moose to cuddle.
Watching the special on Haiti now…music is powerful. God help us all. Love and peace
Right wing David Frum’s column entitled “The GOP’s Supreme Court Epic Win” on the Supreme Court decision:
“The Supreme Court’s decision in Citizens United v FEC gives Republicans an unexpected and possibly transformative gift in the lead up to the 2010 mid-terms…. that is if Republicans are smart enough to recognize it as such and take advantage.
The decision almost certainly favors Republican interests, since corporations are certainly not going to line up in favor of Democrats.”
http://www.frumforum.com/the-gops-supreme-court-epic-win
—————————————————————–
Yep….Frum’s comments are a detailed and ideological analysis with thoughtful insight into the legal and cultural ramifications of this court decision which swept away a century of checks on corporations on the elections process. Right?? Right??
Naw….he’s gloating over the unexpected windfall of “filthy lucre” that corporations will now be able to sink in a lopsided fashion into the GOP. You can almost hear him and other hatriots crowing that Obama may have his millions of poor slobs sending their $10 donations to him but the GOP now has corporations sending their $10 billion to them.
He’s right about one thing: It IS a “gift” from the 5 Republican appointed justices to the GOP…..at the expense of our democracy. Every American, regardless of political stripe, should be shuddering in their shoes at the thought of corporate America set free like foxes in the hen house to buy our elections.
LiladyNY Says:
January 22nd, 2010 at 3:5
@BuffaloGal
I read a synopsis of his interview and I have to agree with you 100% . This young man comes across as years more mature than Granny Palin. Who BTW looks completely ridiculous with her Nellie Olsen curls for the Oprah interview today. I believe the adage is something like mutton dressed as lamb.
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just watched huffpo video of ms palin on Oprah. Oprah did snap on that hairdo.
Austin tx……..Oprah knows what she is.
135 Moose Pucky Says: January 22nd, 2010 at 3:26 PM
Truly, I think best route to proper HCR is for Congress to take it away from themselves until they’ve got it right and the same for all.
—-
Then we’d see how fast that health insurance would be made available for all.
Consider the following with respect to Frum’s comments:
Approximately only 22% of voters currently identify themselves as GOP. If indeed the corporate windfall of election money will go to the GOP as Frum says…….then 22% of the electorate will have the staggeringly unfair advantage of corporate billions behind their particular agenda.
OK.
I hereby nominate George Clooney to run all the s^*t. What he has done putting together the hopeforhaitinow telethon is AMAZING. The list on who is not there would be real short. Turn it on. THIS is the America I love. The music is very uplifting.
Clarification on my comment # 145: The post on David Frum’s blog was actually written by Jeb Golinkin, not Mr. Frum himself. Sorry, Mr. Golinkin….. Not really. Your post sucked, Mr. Golinkin. Cheers.
I watched a Star Trek Original Series episode tonight. One with a chick for Kirk to hit on. I was laughing at the overdone 60′s hair–big curls all over, and then saw Sarah’s Oprah hair! What a laugh. She could easily be Nellie Olsen or a Kirk love interest in that ridiculous hair do.
And how did it make her look like Oprah! Oprah looks put together. Sarah was indeed mutton dressed as lamb.
I think anyone coming after Kennedy will disappoint, and it might as well be a republican. Makes a democrat that runs later look all the better.
And I’m not sure that people in the beltway really have figured out how angry people are. They were angry before and Brown was a wake up call. Now they’re furious. Time to put a poll in the field, White House.
Dems, this isn’t a sign to retreat to “safe ground” in the middle of the road. People are saying they want reform, they want it now, and they want it to actually do something. If you park in the middle of the road, you’ll most likely get run over. I’ve straddled the yellow line and my electric car has you in its sites!
Tried to post this earlier but the site was down, too tired to catch up:
I forced myself to watch Oprah and amongst other things my take is Palin was all fluff as usual. Also tried to take control when Bristol talked. Bristol’s face was quite interesting when B Mama spoke. I liked that Oprah pushed the ‘guaranteed no sex’ until marriage promise Bristol made. She gave her an out several times and pretty much guaranteed media coverage when/if she fails or marries before 10 years. The audience laughed re: no sex guaranteed. (Who cares if it makes young women feel like crap or become Carrie Prejean? Sarah is proud of Bristol cuz she is strong)
Maybe it was just me but I thought Oprah was making a point that Mrs. Palin didn’t get about the media at the beginning of the interview. Palin is gonna change it by incorporating the 5 w’s which she proudly learned in college. Oprah basically said ‘yea, me too’ and media needs to stick to the facts.
My 6th grade Grand daughter, who is an avid reader, writer brought that up to me 2 weeks ago.
I seldom watch Oprah, not a fan, but I urge you to to check it out – my take is Oprah is garnering Palin’s trust and letting the chips fall where they may. Might be hopeful thinking but we could all use some hope.
Got distracted w/Haiti but here ya go – and bubbles if you’re around I owe you a hug from a while back (o:
Tried to submit this, was in maint mode w/new host?? what is up?
Palin has gone from bumpit, pouf head to plastic head. She looked even creepier but cute June Cleaver outfit. Darn that Beaverette it was all Wally’s fault!! (o:
For those that did see the new ‘ dew ‘ on Granny…with O
She may choose to keep the bumpit and just add the curls.
( Here is a possibility..? Jessica Beehive… think about this )
Looks very much the Tea-Party ” Queen “… doncha think?
http://images.buycostumes.com/mgen/merchandiser/18323.jpg
Interested Person at 91: What makes you think blogs like The Mudflats are going to be around? Net Neutrality will be history. The net has to be controlled so no other candidate like Obama can address people directly. It must be filtered through the Corporate Media.
Any regulation that protects or benefits us but costs money will be history.
(As will EPA, clean water act, etc.) If it interferes with profits and the bottom line, it will be eliminated. You’re looking at clear cutting old growth and strip mining the tops of mountains. Forget coal emissions, greenhouse gases, etc.
Medicare is socialized medicine and costs money. Guess how long that will last in it’s present incarnation.
Social Security and Public Education will be privatized. Those are the last two pots of taxpayer money that private for profit corporations haven’t been able to get access too.
They will now.
And Enjay in E MT at 81: A small elite class ruling America.”(ie those with inherited or corporate wealth) is the definition of Fascism. They are the only ones that live in a “democracy”, the rest of us living in a Fascist State.
Next read Robert Paxton: The Five Stages of Fascism.
We’re beyond #3 and into #4 now. The Fascist Five of the Supreme Court just handed this country to the conservative Corporatocracy.
Jojobo1 at 133: Whitman will win. She has a lot more access to corporate money than Brown. And now that there is no limit as to what corporations can spend, they’ll buy her the Governor’s office if they want her to represent them.
That will be your bellweather to how the future elections in this country are going to go. We’ve already had a taste. The Mormon’s bought the Prop 8 vote with the aide of the Catholics.
Money equals votes. If you buy enough ads and air time and keep telling the same lie over and over, people will believe it. Goebbels proved it.
re: Palin’s hair.
I think she’s planning to move to Nashville and take up a career as a country western star.