1/ Frank Rich on Howard Schultz and more.....excellent insights....
At least he’s bringing people together. Photo: JASON REDMOND/AFP/Getty Images
Most weeks, New York Magazine writer-at-large Frank Rich speaks with contributor Alex Carp about the biggest stories in politics and culture. Today, Howard Schultz’s bid for the White House, what to expect in Stacey Abrams’s State of the Union response, and two more insider accounts of Trump’s path to the White House.
Since former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz announced that he’s interested in a “centrist independent” run for the White House, he’s been the target of criticism everywhere from the White House to his own book signing. Is there no room for a centrist in the race, or is he just the wrong one?
Sometimes I wonder if there is such a thing as “centrism” in our politics anymore beyond its use as a branding strategy for pundits and out-of-work politicians hustling to be hired as talking heads.
2/ I love these - here is the NFL 2019 "Bad Lip Reading" just in time for Super Bowl....most amusing, 8 minutes....
Warm up for Sunday’s Super Bowl between the New England Patriots and the Los Angeles Rams with Bad Lip Reading’s amusing summary of the 2018-2019 NFL season.
As has become an annual tradition, the YouTube channel’s editing wizards spliced and diced clips ― and added their own audio ― to reveal what really gets said by coaches and players on the field.
3/ A sobering article from Salon about fish sold in stores and served in restaurants not being what they tell you it is....you have to know and trust whoever you buy fish from to be sure you aren't getting Vietnamese tilapia or Cambodian catfish loaded with antibiotics....
Interesting story........
In New York, according to Attorney General Letitia James, if you are buying Lemon Sole, Red Snapper, or Wild Salmon it is likely that's not what you're taking home.
Late last month the attorney general's office issued a report asserting that 43 percent of the time, when premium priced fish — like grouper, cod, halibut, striped bass, and white tuna — fetching between $19 and $29 per lb. is purchased, inferior varieties farmed in foreign countries with very little or no regulatory oversight, costing as little as $3 per lb., is substituted by the retailer.
"I'm very happy to see law enforcement getting involved says," Larry Olmsted, author of "Real Food/Fake Food: Why You Don't Know What You're Eating and What You Can Do about It." "Mislabeling is rampant in the seafood industry, and if you can't reliably get the fish you want in a port city like New York, just imagine what levels of fraud are like further inland. This business has had a fraud problem for years and years and the only people tracking it have been public interests groups."
4/ Bill Maher with one of the best summaries of the urgency of climate change I have yet seen....leave it to a great comedian to lay out the facts.....
an excellent, compelling five minutes....
Bill Maher agreed on Friday that America needs to build a wall.
But not the barrier that President Donald Trump is advocating on the U.S.-Mexico border.
Instead, the “Real Time” host said the country should construct “a sea wall” to combat climate change “because the ice is melting and rising oceans are going to swallow Miami.”
Maher warned Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) that “in 20 years you’re going to be the senator from Atlantis.”
“What is it with Republicans and the environment?” Maher asked. “They never waver in their commitment to do nothing.”
5/ I like this story a lot....."America Is Falling Out Of Love With Billionaires"....from the LA Times...
Our emerging political debate over taxing the rich seems to be getting bogged down in details — how high a tax rate, should we tax income or wealth, etc., etc. But this fixation on nuts and bolts is obscuring what may be the most important aspect of the discussion: America is becoming fed up with its billionaires.
That sentiment is long overdue. It has begun to surface in the suggestion by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez that the top marginal rate on high incomes shift back to what it was in the 1950s or 1960s, and in Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s proposal for a wealth tax on those with high net worth.
Since the Reagan administration, the political establishment has strived to convince Americans that extreme wealth in the hands of a small number of plutocrats is good for everyone. We’ve had the “trickle-down” theory, the rechristening of the wealthy as “job creators” and their categorization invariably as “self-made.”
6/ The SNL Tucker Carlson cold open....since I can't watch either Carlson or Janine Pirro for more than 10 seconds without barfing I can't tell how good this is, but Kate McKinnon as Wilbur Ross is amazing.....and Steve Martin as Roger Stone is [I'm told] accurate! Six minutes....
7/ Matt Taibbi has read Howard Schultz's book, and gives us his thoughts on the book and the man in Taibbi's unique style. Read this article, see
what a dick Shultz is, and I for one ain't going anywhere a Starbucks again.....
Scientists may someday find the edge of the universe, but there is no end to the delusional self-regard of America’s one-percenters, as former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz proved this week.
Sunday night on 60 Minutes, Schultz announced he was considering a run for president as an independent. The Twitter reaction was like something out of 28 Days Later: mobs of Trump-exhausted Americans sprinting to bite hi
Why the severe reaction? Schultz openly declared his decision to run as an Independent was based on the idea that he’d have to “lean left” to win the Democratic nomination. This is rich-speak for “I obviously couldn’t win the nomination if I had to compete honestly.”
8/ Sam Bee takes a look at Roger Stone in her inimitable way.....funny, informative and wonderfully vicious, a very good five minutes....
Samantha Bee roasted Roger Stone on Full Frontal Wednesday night, as part of a deep dive into the career of the longtime Trump adviser just arrested and indicted as part of the Mueller investigation.
“It’s easy to make fun of Roger Stone, he literally looks like an Easter Island statue,” Bee said. “But there’s a lot more to Roger Stone than a cone head and Nixon tattoo.”
“For decades, Stone has proclaimed himself a political genius, a high-powered trickster merrily owning the libs, a sort of Republican Banksy,” she explained, before mocking his claims that he’s an “agent provocateur.”
9/ How can Democrats win next year? Wage a class war! A thought-provoking and pretty persuasive story from New York Magazine....
Senator Elizabeth Warren. Photo: Scott Eisen/Getty Images
The Democratic Party’s leading lights — from Elizabeth Warren on the party’s left flank, to Joe Biden on its right — are all telling versions of the same story: The American people are working hard, but their economy is hardly working. Wage growth is too damn low, while the cost of health care is too damn high. Inequality is getting out of control and the American dream is growing out of reach. Diversity is our strength, bigotry is our weakness, and progress is our destiny. We must move forward, not backward (upward, not forward, and always, twirling, twirling, twirling toward freedom).
Policy visions vary. Democrats disagree about how their party should go about solving America’s problems. But when it comes to describing those problems, there is only one question that bitterly divides them: Does their story of middle-class decline need a ruling-class villain?
10/ SNL's Leslie Jones doing a rap song? It's actually pretty good, very New Yorky.....3 minutes....
It’s worth noting that Leslie Jones has about a hundred percent more energy and charisma when on the “Weekend Update” desk than in an ADR-assisted video in which she praises the Upper East Side of Manhattan. That being said, Jones’ low energy is still more than other performers cranking it up to Spinal Tap’s 11. This song overcomes its initially tame beginnings and ultimately ends with one of the best last lines of any sketch this season.
After some initial lines praising the clean subways and safe streets of the U.E.S., things start getting downright odd (and delightful) when McAvoy’s German baker Michael appears to spice things up with his thick accent and $12 croissants. It’s unclear if Michael, and the patronage of his bakery, is a celebration or a mockery of the Upper East Side. The fact that Kate McKinnon would rather stay home to Netflix and chill with her cat suggests it’s the latter. But near the end, Jones defends her lifestyle. “They say, ‘Leslie, you forgot where you came from.’ Bitch, I live here because I rememberwhere I came from!”
11/ The truly evil bastard in our politics is Mitch McConnell.....Trump is obviously the worst but he's mentally ill - McConnell is knowingly evil....
His treatment of the voting bill the Democrats just put forward reveals what a cynical, dangerous slime ball he is....
Good story from Rolling Stone...
Suppressing votes is not merely a racist act, nor it is simply the last resort for a party out of ideas. Voter suppression is traitorous. Intentionally restricting access to the ballot is a violation of the ideals that we have been told are inherently American. The United States government is of, by and for the people. Yet we are barred from the fundamental democratic process by those in power merely because our skin color predicts our political persuasion. The Supreme Court’s 2013 Shelby vs. Holder decision should have had people marching in the streets to restore that landmark civil rights legislation to its full powers — or at least made that a key topic of the subsequent presidential election.
12/ The best TV coming this year....from RS....
If the constant deluge of programming in the Peak TV era is starting to make viewing feel like a chore… snap out of it! (To quote, well, not a TV show.) The beauty of the streaming age is that there’s something — many things, in fact — for everybody, available at any time of day, whenever you want to escape the real world and drop into another.
Maybe that world is the lawless and dusty hills of 1870s South Dakota, where everyone carries a gun and has a musical command of the word “fuck” (Deadwood). Maybe it’s the misty cliffs of tony, modern-day Monterey, California, where secrets hide in multimillion-dollar mansions overlooking the Pacific (Big Little Lies). Maybe it’s the coke-fueled chaos of Wall Street circa 1987 (Black Monday) or a world we’ve never seen before in a galaxy far, far away (The Mandalorian).
Whatever your fancy, Peak TV creators can deliver it.
13/ Considering what's coming tonight [Maroon 5], have a look at the Super Bowl half time shows ranked from worst to best by Rolling Stone.......fascinating....
There is no gig in music like the Super Bowl halftime show. You have 12 minutes to justify your legend. You have 150 million people watching, most of whom are distracted by the nachos platter, how much beer is left in the fridge or how much of the rent they bet on the Eagles. Chances are it’s the biggest worldwide audience of your life, and getting it right means rising to the hugeness of the moment. Getting it wrong can crush a career. Good luck, Justin Timberlake, and try not to undress anybody this year.
And with Super Bowl 52 set for this Sunday, what better time to rank the Big Game’s halftime shows from worst to best. Here’s a subjective, personal, irresponsible and indefensible breakdown of the winners and losers. The Bonos and Beyoncés and Bru
https://www.rollingstone.com/
Todays Political joke
A man told his friend, "You won't believe what happened last night...
My daughter walked into the living room and said, ‘Dad, cancel my allowance immediately, forget my college tuition loan, rent my room out, throw all my clothes out the window; take my TV, and my laptop. Please take any of my jewelry to the Salvation Army or Cash Converters. Then, sell my car, take my front door key away from me and throw me out of the house. Then, disown me and never talk to me again. And don't forget to write me out of your will and leave my share to any charity you choose.’ "
"Holy Smokes," replied the friend, "She actually said that?"
"Well, she didn't put it quite like that. She actually said... 'Dad, meet my new boyfriend - Mohammed. We're going to work together on AOC's election campaign!' "
Todays political joke
Due to the current financial situation caused by the slowdown in the economy, Congress has decided to implement a scheme to put workers of 50 years of age and above on early, mandatory retirement, thus creating jobs and reducing unemployment.
This scheme will be known as RAPE (Retire Aged People Early).
Persons selected to be RAPEDcan apply to Congress to be considered for theSHAFTprogram (Special Help After Forced Termination).
Persons who have beenRAPED and SHAFTED will be reviewed under theSCREW program (System Covering Retired-Early Workers).
A person may be RAPEDonce,SHAFTED twice andSCREWED as many times as Congress deems appropriate.
A person may be RAPEDonce,SHAFTED twice andSCREWED as many times as Congress deems appropriate.
Persons who have beenRAPED could get AIDS (Additional Income for Dependents & Spouse) or HERPES (Half Earnings for Retired Personnel Early Severance).
Obviously persons who haveAIDS or HERPES will not be SHAFTED or SCREWED any further by Congress.
Obviously persons who haveAIDS or HERPES will not be SHAFTED or SCREWED any further by Congress.
Persons who are not RAPEDand are staying on will receive as much SHIT (Special High Intensity Training) as possible. Congress has always prided themselves on the amount of SHIT they give our citizens.
Should you feel that you do not receive enough SHIT, please bring this to the attention of your Congressman, who has been trained to give you all theSHIT you can handle.
Sincerely,
The Committee for Economic Value of Individual Lives (E.V.I.L.)
PS - Due to recent budget cuts and the rising cost of electricity, gas and oil, as well as current market conditions, the Light at the End of the Tunnel has been turned off.
The Committee for Economic Value of Individual Lives (E.V.I.L.)
PS - Due to recent budget cuts and the rising cost of electricity, gas and oil, as well as current market conditions, the Light at the End of the Tunnel has been turned off.
Todays "The Villages" jokes
These are actual ads seen in
''The Villages'' Florida newspaper.
Sexy, fashion-conscious blue-haired beauty, 80's, slim, 5'4' (used to be 5'6'), Searching for sharp-looking, sharp-dressing companion. Matching white shoes and belt a plus. ------------------------------ LONG-TERM COMMITMENT : Recent widow who has just buried fourth husband, Looking for someone to round out a six-unit plot. Dizziness, fainting, shortness of breath not a problem. ------------------------------ SERENITY NOW : I am into solitude, long walks, sunrises, the ocean, yoga and meditation. If you are the silent type, let's get together, take our hearing aids out and enjoy quiet times. ------------------------------ WINNING SMILE : Active grandmother with original teeth seeking a dedicated flosser to share rare steaks, corn on the cob and caramel candy. ------------------------------ BEATLES OR STONES ? I still like to rock, still like to cruise in my Camaro on Saturday nights and still like to play the guitar. If you were a groovy chick, or are now a groovy hen, let's get together and listen to my eight-track tapes. ------------------------------ MEMORIES : I can usually remember Monday through Thursday. If you can remember Friday, Saturday and Sunday, let's put our two heads together. ------------------------------ My favorite… MINT CONDITION : Male, 1932 model, high mileage, good condition, some hair, many new parts including hip, knee, cornea, valves. Isn't in running condition, but walks well. Do not regret growing older. It is a privilege denied to many. |
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