1/ Fascinating in depth investigation by the NYT detailing the 158 families who are funding the 2016 election, and naming some names too.....they could have called the story "Meet The Oligarchs"......so if you send your $50 to Bernie, remember this is the opposition.....billionaires with no empathy gene at all.....
They are overwhelmingly white, rich, older and male, in a nation that is being remade by the young, by women, and by black and brown voters. Across a sprawling country, they reside in an archipelago of wealth, exclusive neighborhoods dotting a handful of cities and towns. And in an economy that has minted billionaires in a dizzying array of industries, most made their fortunes in just two: finance and energy.
Now they are deploying their vast wealth in the political arena, providing almost half of all the seed money raised to support Democratic and Republican presidential candidates. Just 158 families, along with companies they own or control, contributed $176 million in the first phase of the campaign, a New York Times investigation found. Not since before Watergate have so few people and businesses provided so much early money in a campaign, most of it through channels legalized by the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision five years ago.
These donors’ fortunes reflect the shifting composition of the country’s economic elite. Relatively few work in the traditional ranks of corporate America, or hail from dynasties of inherited wealth. Most built their own businesses, parlaying talent and an appetite for risk into huge wealth: They founded hedge funds in New York, bought up undervalued oil leases in Texas, made blockbusters in Hollywood. More than a dozen of the elite donors were born outside the United States, immigrating from countries like Cuba, the old Soviet Union, Pakistan, India and Israel.
But regardless of industry, the families investing the most in presidential politics overwhelmingly lean right, contributing tens of millions of dollars to support Republican candidates who have pledged to pare regulations; cut taxes on income, capital gains and inheritances; and shrink entitlement programs. While such measures would help protect their own wealth, the donors describe their embrace of them more broadly, as the surest means of promoting economic growth and preserving a system that would allow others to prosper, too.
Mostly Backing Republicans
2/ Amy Schumer killed it with her monologue on SNL this Saturday - this is one of the funniest riffs I've ever seen.....yes she is an acquired taste [more than a little raunchy], but if you like her you will LOVE this eight minutes......
Amy Schumer crushed it on Saturday Night Live last night. Comedians often times do well on the sketch comedy show, but Schumer has a history with many current and former SNL cast members who were likely helpful in tips and tricks.
3/ Hillary Clinton has recently made some policy speeches that sound pretty good, and the one where she reversed her position was her 'get tough" initiatives on Wall Street banks.....unfortunately as James Kwak points out in a story from The Atlantic, it's the usual smoke and mirrors......
Her campaign worries people don't trust her? Wonder why....
The 2008 financial crisis handed Barack Obama a clear mandate to fix a broken system. But Obama and his key economic advisers, Tim Geithner and Larry Summers, didn’t opt to go that route. Instead of undertaking structural reform, they proposed a long list of incremental improvements that eventually became the Dodd-Frank Act.
Seven years later, with her new proposals to reform Wall Street, Hillary Clinton is sticking with that strategy. There is plenty to feel vaguely positive about in Clinton’s plan: Tax high-frequency trading! Close the Volcker Rule loophole! Require firms to admit wrongdoing when agreeing to sweetheart settlements! Increase the maximum penalties that regulators can impose! What’s not to like?
Let’s start with what the Clinton plan isn’t. In less than two years, Franklin Delano Roosevelt passed the Glass-Steagall Act, the Securities Act, the Securities Exchange Act, and the Federal Housing Act—defining pieces of legislation that overhauled the regulatory framework for mortgage lending, banking, and the securities markets.
By contrast, the Clinton plan is small-scale. It’s Dodd-Frank 2.0: a list of regulatory tweaks requiring various agencies to write complicated new rules governing obscure corners of the financial markets.
4/ A really good Bill Maher "New Rules", one of his better ones for a while, and he has some wonderful zingers in this five minutes.....excellent, but the best is the Pope joke .....
Host Bill Maher ended Friday night’s Real Time episode with his regular New Rules segment, and used the opportunity to deliver a few barbs toward the recent US visit of Pope Francis.
Although much of his closing segment focused on the new-age crippling addiction to smart phones, Maher — a famous atheist — could not resist a well-timed swipe at the Catholic Church’s sex abuse controversies.
http://www.mediaite.com/
5/ The top ten reasons to vote Republican, from the Daily Kos......needless to say it's sarcasm, but if you do indeed fall into one of these categories they are the party for you.....
Why would anyone vote Republican? Well, here are 10 reasons.
1. You are a bigot
It's true that not all Republicans are bigots. But if you ARE a bigot, the Republican party will be much more your group than the Democratic party. Remember that there are lots of ways to be a bigot: You could be a racist, a homophobe, an Islamophobe, or lots of other things.
2. You like eating, drinking and breathing poison.
Many Republicans are calling for or voting for shrinking or eliminating agencies that protect us against poison. They seem to think that the corporations will do the right thing, without any pressure from the government. Uh huh. Read The Jungle. Look at the way Monsanto is hiding facts about Round Up. Look at food safety and outbreaks of E. Coli.
Corporations exist to make money. They will do so any way they can. The government needs to stop them from doing so in ways that hurt people.
3. You think the rich don't have enough money
6/ "Fox and Friends" is the Fox show you get a lot of clips if you are looking for stupidity, so this four minute cold open from SNL was spot on.....very funny.....
The talent in Studio 8H wasted no time in their second episode of the season by opening up with a spot-on impression of the hosts of Fox & Friends.
Actors Taran Killam, Vanessa Bayer, and Bobby Moynihan impersonated Steve Doocy, Elisabeth Hasselbeck, and Brian Kilmeade respectively in the show’s cold open, skewering the daily cable news morning show. SNL favorite Kate McKinnon played DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz in the opening sketch as well.
7/ This is a story for anyone interested in politics and/or worried about the rise of the crazies in the Republican party - it explains in clear terms what has led to this dysfunction and where it is going.....
A longish read, but very insightful......
According to the news media, 2014 was the year that the GOP “Establishment” finally pulled Republicans back from the right-wing brink. Pragmatism, it seemed, had finally triumphed over extremism in primary and general election contests that The New York Times called “proxy wars for the overall direction of the Republican Party.”
There’s just one problem with this dominant narrative. It’s wrong. The GOP isn’t moving back to the center. The “proxy wars” of 2014 were mainly about tactics and packaging, not moderation. Consider three of the 2014 Senate victors—all touted as evidence of the GOP’s rediscovered maturity, and all backed in contested primaries by the Establishment’s heavy, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce:
- Thom Tillis in North Carolina (a “purple” state at the presidential level) moved to the Senate from being Speaker of the House in North Carolina, where he had been a central player in the state’s sharp right turn. A strong ally of multi-millionaire Art Pope, an arch-conservative and member of the Koch brothers’ inner circle, Tillis sits on the national board of directors of the right-wing American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), which in 2011 selected him as its “legislator of the year.”
- Joni Ernst in Iowa (another purple state), touted for her just-plain-folks demeanor and service in Iraq, also has an impressive record of extremist policy positions. During the primary, she called for abolishing the Department of Education, the Internal Revenue Service, and the Environmental Protection Agency, and indicated her support for a proposal that would allow Iowa officials to nullify the Affordable Care Act and arrest federal officials who tried to enforce it.
- Tom Cotton, who got the Chamber’s backing in Arkansas, opposed the 2014 farm bill—because it didn’t cut food stamps enough
8/ A two minute commercial from SNL parodying a gun ad....it's very well done......Amy Schumer is in it too!
The best sketch was a fake public service announcement for firearms. A week after the Oregon mass shooting and just days after a double shooting, the ad features a collection of seemingly random people in their lives. A woman waiting at a restaurant for a date who is late, followed by an awkward dude checking out a girl at a party, a couple having a baby, a runner in Central Park.
“There are things we all share,” the ad says. “Love. Family. Connection. A sense of purpose. And also: Guns. Guns are there. In little events, and big ones, when things fall apart, or it all comes together. They unite us, comfort us, bring us joy, and strength.”
The ad shined a light on the absurd notion from gun manufacturers and the NRA that guns will always make us safe. At one point a father gives his newborn baby a tiny baby gun instead of a bottle. The tagline: “Guns: We’re here to stay.” Funny, because it’s sad and true.
9/ Amusing [but a little rude] ad......one minute.....set in a Swedish sauna.....
10/ This is great news - according to this story the Coen Brothers are back on form with their new movie "Hail Caesar"......a really interesting trailer.....
For months, fans of Oscar-winning filmmakers Joel and Ethan Coen — so, really, fans of movies in general — have been wondering, with great anticipation, just what the pair's upcoming Hail, Caesar! is all about. It's been teased as a musical comedy, but not really, a period piece about "religion and faith," but also the movie business.
Various combinations of those qualities could apply to any Coen brothers film. The pair is known for black comedies that push the edge of what can be considered "comedy," while still delivering laugh-out-loud moments. They frequently dip into period pieces, and "religion and faith" are common themes throughout their filmography. The pair's breakout hit, Barton Fink, is set in the same 1940s Hollywood milieu as Hail, Caesar, and their last film, Inside Llewyn Davis, could also fit the description of "a musical comedy, but not really."
Based on its first trailer, Hail, Caesar! already seems like it might be the most Coen-y Coen brothers movie in a long time.
Todays video - a Trump commercial about the evils of anchor babies who are destroying America......an amusing minute....
Todays Wal-Mart joke
So I finally landed a job as a Wal-Mart greeter, which is a good find for many retirees, unfortunately I lasted less than a day.
About two hours into my first day on the job a very loud, unattractive, mean-acting woman walked into the store with her two kids, yelling obscenities at them all the way through the entrance. Per my greeter training manual I said pleasantly, “Good morning and welcome to Wal-Mart.” “Nice children you have there. Are they twins?”The ugly woman stopped yelling long enough to say, “Hell no, they ain’t twins. The oldest one is 9, and the other one is 7. Why the hell would you think they’re twins? Are you blind, or just stupid?”So I replied, “I’m neither blind nor stupid, madam. I just couldn’t believe someone slept with you twice. Have a good day and thank you for shopping at Wal-Mart.”My supervisor said I probably wasn’t cut out for this line of work.
Todays jokes about infidelity
The 1st Affair
A married man was having an affair
with his secretary. One day they went to her place and made love all afternoon. Exhausted, they fell asleep and woke up at 8 PM. The man hurriedly dressed and told his lover to take his shoes outside and rub them in the grass and dirt. He put on his shoes and drove home. 'Where have you been?' his wife demanded. 'I can't lie to you,' he replied, 'I'm having an affair with my secretary. We had sex all afternoon.' She looked down at his shoes and said: 'You lying bastard! You've been playing golf!' The 2nd Affair A middle-aged couple had two beautiful daughters but always talked about having a son. They decided to try one last time for the son they always wanted. The wife got pregnant and delivered a healthy baby boy. The joyful father rushed to the nursery to see his new son. He was horrified at the ugliest child he had ever seen. He told his wife: 'There's no way I can be the father of this baby. Look at the two beautiful daughters I fathered! Have you been fooling around behind my back?' The wife smiled sweetly and replied: 'No, not this time!' The 3rd Affair A mortician was working late one night. He examined the body of Mr. Schwartz, about to be cremated, and made a startling discovery. Schwartz had the largest private part he had ever seen! 'I'm sorry Mr. Schwartz,' the mortician commented, 'I can't allow you to be cremated with such an impressive private part. It must be saved for posterity.' So, he removed it, stuffed it into his briefcase, and took it home. 'I have something to show you won't believe,' he said to his wife, opening his briefcase. 'My God!' the wife exclaimed, 'Schwartz is dead!' The 4th Affair A woman was in bed with her lover when she heard her husband opening the front door. 'Hurry,' she said, 'stand in the corner.' She rubbed baby oil all over him, then dusted him with talcum powder. 'Don't move until I tell you,' she said. 'Pretend you're a statue..' 'What's this?' the husband inquired as he entered the room.
'Oh it's a statue,' she replied.
'The Smiths bought one and I liked itso I got one for us, too.'
No more was said, not even when they went to bed.
Around 2 AM the husband got up,went to the kitchen and returned with a sandwich and a beer. 'Here,' he said to the statue, 'have this. I stood like that for two days at the Smiths and nobody offered me a damned thing.' The 5th Affair A man walked into a cafe, went to the bar and ordered a beer. 'Certainly, Sir, that'll be one cent.' 'One Cent?' the man exclaimed. He glanced at the menu and asked: 'How much for a nice juicy steak and a bottle of wine?' 'A nickel,' the barman replied. 'A nickel?' exclaimed the man. 'Where's the guy who owns this place?' The bartender replied: 'Upstairs, with my wife.' The man asked: 'What's he doing upstairs with your wife?' The bartender replied: 'The same thing I'm doing to his business down here.' The 6th & Best Affair Jake was dying. His wife sat at the bedside. He looked up and said weakly: 'I have something I must confess.' 'There's no need to, 'his wife replied. 'No,' he insisted, 'I want to die in peace. I slept with your sister, your best friend, her best friend, and your mother!' 'I know,' she replied. 'Now just rest and let the poison work.' |
Todays growing older joke
Love the mystical beauty of this tender message.
Walk With Me While I Age
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