1/ Good column about Trump and the Republicans from Paul Krugman....Trump was rage-tweeting about this article this week, which means it got to him....
So all the “fake news” was true. A hostile foreign power intervened in the presidential election, hoping to install Donald Trump in the White House. The Trump campaign was aware of this intervention and welcomed it. And once in power, Trump tried to block any inquiry into what happened.
Never mind attempts to spin this story as somehow not meeting some definitions of collusion or obstruction of justice. The fact is that the occupant of the White House betrayed his country. And the question everyone is asking is, what will Democrats do about it?
But notice that the question is only about Democrats. Everyone (correctly) takes it as a given that Republicans will do nothing. Why?
2/ Matt Taibbi chastises the media and a lot of us for believing there was a Russiagate, after the Meuller report debunks it....he may be technically right about contacts with Russia, but the obstruction was definitely real....
On February 15, 2016, the National Review took unprecedented action. In an all-out plea to Republican voters to stop Donald Trump before it was too late, the magazine enlisted 22 of the right’s most prominent voices to band together and throw support elsewhere, to save the party.
The “Conservatives Against Trump” issue didn’t move the needle. Despite a lineup of pleas against Trump that included Glenn Beck, Cal Thomas, Mona Charen, Michael Medved and Dana Loesch, Trump surged in the polls that month, expanding his lead over primary opponents at a critical juncture of the race. Trump voters considered these and other pundits part of the Republican establishment and therefore not to be trusted.
3/ John Oliver with 15 minutes of reassurance about the Mueller report....however the good news was Trumps team was hopelessly incompetent.....
Comedic reporting, not his best but still decent....
4/ Michelle Goldberg with an excellent column that will leave you depressed....
It’s a national disgrace that Trump sleeps in the White House instead of a federal prison cell, but it has been a while since I had any expectation that the special counsel Robert Mueller’s findings, many of which were finally released to the public on Thursday, could set things right. Instead, I’d desperately hoped for something more modest: clarity.
5/ Tom Tomorrow on the Mueller report....
6/ Interesting story from Salon about how Mayor Pete exposes the hypocrisy of the "Christian" right......keep going Pete!
South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg has drawn criticism for running for president in a crowded field of Democrats that includes many women and candidates of color who have a great deal more political experience than he does. But there's one reason Democratic voters should be glad he's in the primary race, even if they don't plan on voting for him: Every day Buttigieg remains in the national spotlight he exposes the hypocrisy of white evangelicals. In doing so, he's helping to diminish their still-formidable political power.
7/ Interesting story about the British and who owns their land.....no surprise here....
Half of England is owned by less than 1% of its population, according to new data shared with the Guardian that seeks to penetrate the secrecy that has traditionally surrounded land ownership.
The findings, described as “astonishingly unequal”, suggest that about 25,000 landowners – typically members of the aristocracy and corporations – have control of half of the country.
8/ The Daily Show tries to solve the mystery of what Ivanka actually does......a mildly amusing three minutes....
9/ Interesting - Umair is truly a radical and sometimes goes over the top in his conclusions, but as always there are some truths
in his rants....unpleasant truths indeed. In this essay he argues the Anglo countries are collapsing....
We report, you decide....
Every age has a dunce. A society, or set of societies, that just don’t get it. They don’t learn history’s lessons. They don’t progress — they stagnate, and then regress, clinging desperately to failing ideologies, grasping at dead, obsolete ideas like a drowning person grasps at flotsam. But history’s tide is unforgiving. It cares little for the fool who clings to the driftwood, instead of swims for the shore.
Every age has a dunce, and the dunces of this age, my friends, are us. You and me. The Anglos. I think that we have to confront a difficult truth. One that’s especially difficult for me, as an Anglo, an English-speaker, and maybe for you, too. Our societies are not looking like they are going to make it.
Take a hard look at America and Britain. Do these seem like sane, enlightened, thinking societies to you anymore?https://eand.co/why-
10/ There's a big debate among Dems whether or not to try to impeach Trump, so here's a novel argument for letting him finish his term - it will destroy the Republican party....
In the fall of 1998, Erskine Bowles, the White House chief of staff, traveled to Capitol Hill to meet with the speaker of the House. Mr. Bowles enjoyed a better relationship with Speaker Newt Gingrich than anyone in the Clinton White House, partly based on a shared Southern heritage and commitment to fiscal conservatism. At the end of the meeting, Mr. Bowles put a very direct question to Mr. Gingrich: Why were the Republicans intent on impeaching Bill Clinton? The speaker replied, “Because we can.”
I had a front-row seat and a small speaking role in the political drama that followed. Now, as the country is gripped by another impeachment debate, many are comparing the two scandals and handicapping what the Democrats might do.
11/ How to cut the cord to cable TV and still get the rest of the channels....good article.
It’s actually better than cable. Photo: Thierry Chesnot/Getty Images
For years, “cord cutting” — dropping your cable television package and watching video content only over the internet — has been discussed as a strategy for saving money. My husband and I cut the cord in April, and we are indeed saving money: about $24 a month.
But that’s not the main reason we cut the cord.
We cut the cord because TV through the internet now provides a better user experience than traditional cable television.
12/ L-Serine....you may remember a DDD story in Fortune Magazine a couple of weeks ago which said L-Serine could prevent and/or mitigate Alzheimers and dementia. I did a google search to see if there was any reaction to the Fortune piece, and found this story on the fourth page from Yahoo News.....
Is this breakthrough being suppressed by the drug companies, or is the work of these scientists a hoax? Good question, but personally I think the story is convincing enough to buy L-Serine for Mary....
Again - we report, you decide....
13/ Revealing story from Vox on Mueller's process for Volume 2 of the report.....most interesting....
If you are a fan of movies or stories where a clever protagonist uses cunning strategy or the tools of science to outmaneuver an opponent, then you’re going to love Volume 2 of the Mueller report. Special counsel Robert Mueller released his report Thursday in two volumes. Volume 1 is all about the connections between the Trump campaign and Russian agents, businesses, or government actors. Volume 2 is all about the possibility that President Trump engaged in the criminal act of obstruction of justice during the investigation about his campaign.
The maneuver that Mueller uses in Volume 2 is extraordinary.
14/ South Florida - one of the most unequal areas in the country....
A new report draws a stark picture of economic inequality in the Miami metro area, where 30 full-time resident billionaires — one of the highest concentrations in the world — occupy the top of the pyramid atop deep and widespread poverty, a small and shrinking middle class and a large workforce dependent on poorly paid service jobs.
Miami does enjoy a gleaming new downtown skyline and a thriving economy, but its prosperity is far from equally shared, the report concludes. Titled “Toward a More Inclusive Region,” it’s co-authored by noted urbanist Richard Florida for the Miami Urban Future Initiative think tank at Florida International University.
Todays oldies joke
Getting Older
A mechanic was removing a cylinder head from the motor of a Harley motorcycle when he spotted a well-known heart surgeon in his shop.
The surgeon was there, waiting for the service manager to come and take a look at his bike.
The mechanic shouted across the garage, "Hey, Doc, can I ask you a question?"
The surgeon a bit surprised, walked over to the mechanic working on the motorcycle. The mechanic straightened up, wiped his hands on a rag and asked, "So Doc, look at this engine. I open its heart, take the valves out, fix 'em, put 'em back in, and when I finish, it works just like new. So how come I get such a small salary and you get the really big bucks, when you and I are doing basically the same work?"
The surgeon paused, smiled and leaned over, and whispered to the mechanic... "Try doing it with the engine running."
******************************
GETTING OLDER? ME TOO
A distraught senior citizen phoned her doctor's office.
"Is it true," she wanted to know, "that the medication you prescribed has to be taken for the rest of my life?"
"'Yes, I'm afraid so,"' the doctor told her.
There was a moment of silence before the senior lady replied, "I'm wondering, then, just how serious is my condition because this prescription is marked
'NO REFILLS'."
***********************
An older gentleman was on the operating table awaiting surgery and he insisted that his son, a renowned surgeon, perform the operation.
As he was about to get the anesthesia, he asked to speak to his son.
"Yes, Dad, what is it?" "Don't be nervous, son; do your best, and just remember, if it doesn't go well, if something happens to me, your mother
is going to come and live with you and your wife...."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Todays relationships joke
How men and women record things in their diaries.
Wife's Diary:
Tonight, I thought my husband was acting weird. We had made plans to meet at a nice restaurant for dinner.
I was shopping with my friends all day long, so I thought he was upset at the fact that I was a bit late, but he made no comment on it.
Conversation wasn't flowing, so I suggested that we go somewhere quiet so we could talk. He agreed, but he didn't say much.
I asked him what was wrong; He said, 'Nothing.
I asked him if it was my fault that he was upset.
He said he wasn't upset, that it had nothing to do with me, and not to worry about it.
Wife's Diary:
Tonight, I thought my husband was acting weird. We had made plans to meet at a nice restaurant for dinner.
I was shopping with my friends all day long, so I thought he was upset at the fact that I was a bit late, but he made no comment on it.
Conversation wasn't flowing, so I suggested that we go somewhere quiet so we could talk. He agreed, but he didn't say much.
I asked him what was wrong; He said, 'Nothing.
I asked him if it was my fault that he was upset.
He said he wasn't upset, that it had nothing to do with me, and not to worry about it.
On the way home, I told him that I loved him.
He smiled slightly, and kept driving. I can't explain his behavior. I don't know why he didn't say, 'I love you, too.'
When we got home, I felt as if I had lost him completely, as if he wanted nothing to do with me anymore. He just sat there quietly, and watched TV. He continued to seem distant and absent.
Finally, with silence all around us, I decided to go to bed. About 15 minutes later, he came to bed. But I still felt that he was distracted, and his thoughts were somewhere else. He fell asleep; I cried. I don't know what to do. I'm almost sure that his thoughts are with someone else. My life is a disaster.
Husband's Diary:
He smiled slightly, and kept driving. I can't explain his behavior. I don't know why he didn't say, 'I love you, too.'
When we got home, I felt as if I had lost him completely, as if he wanted nothing to do with me anymore. He just sat there quietly, and watched TV. He continued to seem distant and absent.
Finally, with silence all around us, I decided to go to bed. About 15 minutes later, he came to bed. But I still felt that he was distracted, and his thoughts were somewhere else. He fell asleep; I cried. I don't know what to do. I'm almost sure that his thoughts are with someone else. My life is a disaster.
Husband's Diary:
A two-foot putt ... who the hell misses a two-foot putt ?
Todays golfer joke
Sal Wallerstein was at the country club for his weekly round of golf. He began his round with an eagle on the first hole and a birdie on the second.
On the third hole he had just scored his first ever hole-in-one when his cell phone rang... It was a doctor notifying him that his wife had just been in a accident and was in critical condition and in ICU.
The man told the doctor to inform his wife where he was and that he'd be there as soon as possible. As he hung up he realized he was leaving what was shaping up to be his best ever round of golf.
He decided to get in a couple of more holes before heading to the hospital. He ended up playing all eighteen, finishing his round shooting a personal best 61, shattering the club record by five strokes and beating his previous best game by more than 10. He was jubilant....
Then he remembered his wife. Feeling guilty he dashed to the hospital. He saw the doctor in the corridor and asked about his wife's condition.
