I pray Al Michaels is spared this game.
Thursday, October 31, 2024
He ought to know
Vance suggests upper- and middle-class kids ‘become trans’ for college admissions, says Trump may earn ‘normal gay guy vote’
Is the "Silent Kamala Voter" Female?
Same CBS article:
Meanwhile, prominent women in politics believe women will overwhelmingly support Harris — and may do so in secret. Former Republican Rep. Liz Cheney, who appeared on "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" on Sunday, urged women to "vote your conscience" in the 2024 presidential election, even if it's not the way the men in their lives think they should vote.
"You should do what you think is right," Cheney said. "And I think you're going to have, frankly, a lot of men and women who will go into the voting booth and will vote their conscience and will vote for Vice President Harris. They may not ever say anything publicly, but the results will speak for themselves."
"You should do what you think is right," Cheney said. "And I think you're going to have, frankly, a lot of men and women who will go into the voting booth and will vote their conscience and will vote for Vice President Harris. They may not ever say anything publicly, but the results will speak for themselves."
Now this has gotten a lot of reaction from right-wing men commentators who see it as a real threat. It has spooked them. One warned women they better not; another, some Fox guy, said it would be the equivalent of his wife cheating on him if she voted for Kamala.
"Well, I'm going to do it, whether the women like it or not, I'm going to protect them."
Former President Donald Trump said Wednesday at a campaign rally that "whether the women like it or not," he will "protect" them, noting that his advisers had instructed him not to use the line, which he said they deemed "inappropriate."
...
The former president then described how he would "protect" women, though he noted that his team had urged him against using the line.
"My people told me about four weeks ago, I would say 'no, I want to protect the people. I want to protect the women of our country. I want to protect the women,'" Trump said, describing how his advisers said it would be "very inappropriate for you to say."
"I said, 'Well, I'm going to do it, whether the women like it or not, I'm going to protect them,'" Trump said.
Trump went on to ask the crowd, to applause, "is there any woman in this giant stadium who would like not to be protected? Is there any woman in this stadium that wants to be protected by the president?"
Harris responded Thursday morning to Trump's comments, telling reporters that it's "very offensive to women in terms of not understanding their agency, their authority, their right and their ability..."
"This is just the latest on a series of reveals by the former president of how he thinks about women and their agency," she added.
...
The former president then described how he would "protect" women, though he noted that his team had urged him against using the line.
"My people told me about four weeks ago, I would say 'no, I want to protect the people. I want to protect the women of our country. I want to protect the women,'" Trump said, describing how his advisers said it would be "very inappropriate for you to say."
"I said, 'Well, I'm going to do it, whether the women like it or not, I'm going to protect them,'" Trump said.
Trump went on to ask the crowd, to applause, "is there any woman in this giant stadium who would like not to be protected? Is there any woman in this stadium that wants to be protected by the president?"
Harris responded Thursday morning to Trump's comments, telling reporters that it's "very offensive to women in terms of not understanding their agency, their authority, their right and their ability..."
"This is just the latest on a series of reveals by the former president of how he thinks about women and their agency," she added.
That is a rarified, highly intelligent, perceptive analysis by Kamala. It's bad enough that the messenger is a rapist. Whar is worse is that he thinks--as he asked his audience!--that women don't have "agency", that if a man didn't "protect" them, that they would not be safe; that he will do it "whether they like it or not"--without their consent!--for their own good. They are "the weaker sex" who need a strong man; they are children who aren't competent to make decisions themselves, who need a guardian. Who does he think he is, Nicholas Kristof?
Yes, this was a great "reveal".
I cannot explain Lyndon Johnson, cruel, serial vote-thieving, "N-----"-saying, red-baiting, ass-kissing, ass-chewing, wife-cheating, war-making, Civil Rights Act-signing, Medicare-creating, Great Society originator. Who was he? Who liked him? Robert Caro has spent decades of his life and millions of words because he cannot explain an accidental president of only five years.
Inflated Porkbellies Investment Cogitations Parte Deux
Note to self: I'm up $25 on the season.
I'm not touching Smeww-Pitt or PeeEsseEw because of the QB gamesmanship/uncertainty.
East Lansing Spartak (4-4) vs Indiana (13) -8. That's up .5 from Monday. That makes the Hewzeers slightly less appealing.
Illinoise (24) vs Minnehaha (5-3) -3. That's up a full point. I don't understand that, I didn't understand it when it was Mn -2. Do the Illinis have significant injuries or something? Illinoise did get banged up in the beat down in Ewwjeen. But as of Tuesday, HC Bret Bielema said he expected all the bangers to be ready for more bangs agin Goldy. "After a perfect October..." ESPN says of Mn. Teams can get on a roll! USC, then 11th 24-17, @UCLA 21-17, Maryland 48-23. USC isn't quite 11th no' mo', the EwClans suck and Maryland needs an MD. Before their pristine October they lost to UNC at home, got murdered by Iowa at home, and lost to the then-12 'Eens up there....Idk, further cogitation.
Well, so I'm not feeling it. I am going to play. I'll have to look at the non-biggies.
🕒 Last update: 12:15 p.m., Thursday, October 31. The forecast remains extremely stable. Kamala Harris’s winning odds are 46.2 percent and Donald Trump’s are 53.4 percent, essentially the same as in our model run last night. That’s very close to a coin flip, in other words. While Trump made meaningful gains in our forecast in mid-October, we don’t think there’s much sign that the race is continuing to drift toward him in the final week and the seven most important swing states remain incredibly close. Another update may follow later today if there’s significant new polling.
"Troubling signs" for trumpie
Republican pollster Mitchell Brown warned Fox Business host Stuart Varney that he was seeing "troubling signs for the Trump team" because early voter turnout appeared to be high for the 2024 election.
"So let's just say turnout is above what it was in 2020 in these swing states," he added. "That is not a good thing for the Trump campaign."
During a Thursday interview, Brown told Varney that he believed Donald Trump would win the election if it were held today. [Oct. 31]
"OK, so early voting necessarily does not favor either party," Brown replied. "But when you see the turnout numbers of early voting and what that shows for the signs of Election Day turnout, that's where you can see some troubling signs for the Trump team."
"But I do want to preface and state that this election is going to be even closer than 2016 and 2020. We're talking about 10,000 people spread across three or four states that are going to decide this election."
2,500-3,000 people per state?! The "hidden hand" of Kamala's superior GOTV can deliver 5,000/state.
Varney asked which candidate was favored in early voting."OK, so early voting necessarily does not favor either party," Brown replied. "But when you see the turnout numbers of early voting and what that shows for the signs of Election Day turnout, that's where you can see some troubling signs for the Trump team."
"So let's just say turnout is above what it was in 2020 in these swing states," he added. "That is not a good thing for the Trump campaign."
Las Vegas Sun Editorial
Donald Trump’s cognitive decline becoming a troubling concern
Donald Trump’s racism, sexism, xenophobia and penchant for corruption have long made him unfit for any public office, let alone the presidency. But as he continues his bid for a second term in the White House, there is an unsettling and undeniable shift that is leading many experts, observers and even some Trump supporters to conclude that the former president’s mental acuity and sharpness are also in decline, that his physical health and stamina are waning and that his frustration and anger are boiling over.
Americans from both sides of the political spectrum should be alarmed by Trump’s words and behavior. The nation must confront the fact that beyond his hateful character, he is crippled cognitively and showing clear signs of mental illness.
There’s no need to resort to armchair psychology to interpret what’s apparent. If victorious, Trump would be the oldest president ever inaugurated. In recent weeks, he has canceled an increasing number of public appearances, with Trump’s own campaign citing the candidate’s exhaustion. When he does appear publicly, Trump struggles to complete sentences or sustain coherent thoughts, and has shown a pronounced difficulty concentrating and a tendency to repeat himself, sometimes within the same sentence.
At a recent rally in New Hampshire, for example, Trump began to discuss infrastructure and wound up segueing into a disjointed monologue about loyalty and perceived injustices against him, ending with a bewildering comment about windmills causing cancer.
This is not an isolated incident. A recent analysis by The New York Times noted that Trump’s rally speeches over the past eight years have become darker, longer, more profane and increasingly unfocused and unhinged — a troubling sign that he is no longer able to articulate ideas or reason in ways we expect of our leaders. This makes him prey to manipulations by his own staff or, worse, the control of foreign adversaries.
He shambles about aimlessly, slurs his words and sometimes speaks gibberish. Always an effortless liar, now that his speeches are nothing more than a series of lies tangled in a mass inside his head, it appears he no longer even knows he’s lying.
...
With Trump’s fragility comes an increasing dependence on enablers who show a disturbing willingness to indulge his delusions, amplify his paranoia or steer his feeble mind toward their own goals. Among these enablers is his running mate, Sen. JD Vance of Ohio. Should Trump be deemed unfit to serve, Vance would step into power.
[Salieri]...Vance poses a different threat to democracy than Trump. He has repeatedly demonstrated that he is little more than a puppet of his billionaire hedge fund benefactors and has openly stated he would have refused to certify the 2020 election, suggesting he would subordinate constitutional principles for personal profit and power.
His willingness to discard any principles shows that he would likely not push back against Trump’s excesses or his deteriorating mental stability. Instead, he might embrace a Trumpian authoritarianism, exacerbating the very dangers we face with Trump’s current mental decline.
...Trump’s instability, paired with his and Vance’s increasing willingness to trample democratic norms and visible contempt of anyone not like him, has transformed what might have once been seen by conservatives as an uncomfortable leadership style into an existential threat to American democracy.
... a return to Trumpian leadership is dangerous in its own right. But to do so with an impaired leader who cannot govern competently and a fellow authoritarian waiting in the wings is perilous.
...it’s essential to recognize that this election is not merely a choice between policy platforms or party loyalties. It’s a test of our willingness to safeguard our nation from leaders whose fitness for office is in serious question. This election is about protecting the integrity of our democracy from those who would let it collapse in the name of power, loyalty or expedience.
Donald Trump has never had the moral compass to lead this country. But even his supporters cannot afford to ignore the signs that he may no longer have the mental faculties to lead it either. The stakes are simply too high.
Calmala
Democrats are a fretful bunch. Always have been. I certainly am. What I am noticing in these last few days of the campaign though, is an absence of a freak-out. It's a vibe. It's only weakly tethered to data. It comes from the top, from Kamala herself. It's present in the punditocracy. It's not exactly optimism or confidence, but it's closer to that than to doom and gloom. I got it: "calm". That's the mot juste, there is a calm among Democrats. It has filtered down to me.This vibe is reinforced by an equal and opposite vibe from trumpie. Just yesterday:
“Pennsylvania is cheating...
That's beyond doom and gloom, that's desperation. He knows he's losing Pennsylvania. He is going to lose Pennsylvania. And Michigan and Wisconsin and the presidency.
“I think Harris is going to win easily."--Stuart Stevens
I don’t think it’s going to be particularly close. It’s the most stable race I can remember. 47% of the country is either MAGA or open to MAGA and 53% isn’t. So the Harris campaign’s goal, task, challenge has been to get as much of that 53% as they can and get them to vote. So we wake up in a world where our Senator Bernie Sanders and my old friend Liz Cheney are on the same side. That’s not a bad coalition.
"What is striking about the early vote is that women are voting at 10% higher than men … (and Harris) is winning women by 14 points … Even I can do that math. When this race is done, it’s going to be seen as the women of America spoke.
"What is striking about the early vote is that women are voting at 10% higher than men … (and Harris) is winning women by 14 points … Even I can do that math. When this race is done, it’s going to be seen as the women of America spoke.
"Trump is never going to concede. They will attempt to have the House (of Representatives) not certify. I think the period from election night until January 20 is going to be the most dangerous period in America since the Civil War.
“Trump didn’t hijack the (Republican) party. He revealed it. And the reason that Trump is popular in the Republican Party is because he’s what Republicans want.” Even if Trump loses, “it’s not going to be the end of Trumpism.”
“Trump didn’t hijack the (Republican) party. He revealed it. And the reason that Trump is popular in the Republican Party is because he’s what Republicans want.” Even if Trump loses, “it’s not going to be the end of Trumpism.”
Wednesday, October 30, 2024
Normals and Abnormals, at 10:22 pm on Oct. 30, the Kama Walz has resumed.
I think they're going to dance all the way through Nov. 5 to the White House.
The Fucking Cadavers are FIVE and 0!
They beat La-La Bron-Bron tonight 134-110 in the Pawn Shop. God damn the pusher man!
Indiana Wants Me handed the Champions their first loss, 135-132 in the Gym.
Phila-Boo (1-3) lost to the previously winless Zollner Pistons 105-95 on South Broad Street. I guarantee you Philly was booing. Joel Embiid and Paul George have not played this season, "left knee injury maintenance" and "left knee bone bruise" respectively.
The "Knicks" beat my beloved 45's tonight, but why are they only 2-2? Why were they 1-2 before coming to their home away from home? Did they make one trade too many this off-season? They were the Nova Knicks but they traded one Nova alum, Donte DiVincenzo, along with Julius Randle for Karl-Anthony Towns. They let Isaiah Hartenstein go to OKC. Towns had a MONSTER game tonight, 44 points, 13 rebs, but that was against the 45's. They lost some good chemistry players and fan favorites in DiVincenzo and Hartenstein. It's going to take time for KAT to mesh (maybe tonight was Mesh Night). Their losses have been to the current creme de la creme, Beans and Cle. and their win was over Indy. Tonight was their first game against a bona fide Middlesbrough team going nowhere. Thibodeau runs his players into the dirt. Tonight's starters played 36'-42'. They're going to wear down. Anyway, they'll be fine in the short term. The "Heat" will be short in the long term.
TROLLEY DODGERS!
They were behind five zip after 3; they're tied with New Amsterdam 5-5 bottom fifth.
City's "remarkable" "talent factory"
Part of [Thomas] Krucken's philosophy is to create "players of the future."
...
...one of Europe's premier talent factories.
The benefit in Guardiola looking to the academy for new players is that, from an early age, City's young players are taught the basics of what it takes to play in his team and so the transition period can be relatively short.
"Coming through the academy, you learn about how a City player should play," [Oscar] Bobb told ESPN in April. "Things like where you're supposed to move. ..."
"He's a player who comes from the academy," Guardiola said on [James] McAtee's prospects of playing first team football this season. "He knows all the process and how he moves in the pockets. When you find players in the small spaces that attack the final thirds, have a sense of goal, it is difficult to find these sorts of players. McAtee has that quality..."
"The speed of the game has increased: if you compare a game with a game 20 years ago, it's very different," says Krucken. "This is our idea of creating the future player because we are sure the speed of the game will keep increasing. ...That means thinking now about what an under-10 player will need in 10 years. This is always the challenge for an academy."
Not everyone who passes through City's academy over the next decade will play for the first team. The level required to break through at a club that wants to win the Champions League every year is extremely high and for some it will be out of reach.
City, though, have become masters at ensuring that those who don't make the grade earn moves to other clubs, often for big fees. Sources have told ESPN that the club has agreed deals which could total £276m for academy graduates over the last five years alone. This summer, Taylor Harwood-Bellis joined Southampton for £20m while Liam Delap signed for Ipswich Town for £15m. Cole Palmer moved to Chelsea for £42.5m in 2023.
It means that if City do eventually choose to use the transfer market to replace Álvarez, there's money to spend without having to walk the tightrope of the Premier League's profit and sustainability rules.
things are moving a very little
Like the inchworm but not that fast.
For instance, from whatthefuckjusthappenedtoday, yesterday, Tues, Oct. 29, E-7:
Today, Oct. 30, E-6:
For example, Nate Silver, Silver Bulletin:
A "hair", an inch: Things are a tiny bit better across the board in the forecasts.
The Hidden Kamala Voter?
Man, I am hurtin' for certin' You know when I know I'm hurtin' for certin'? When I look beyond what my lyin' eyes see to a deus ex machina. Desperation makes you do that. "I leave it up to God"🙄 I heard that so many times from families of clients in hopeless cases that one time I felt the anger boil up in me and almost come out of my mouth (They were paying clients so I checked it.).
Thus:
The election is close. Too close for reasoned optimism. In fact so close that my eyes and my mind know the clear truth: Kamala will lose. We will lose democracy. trumpie has an advantage in the Electoral College and to overcome it a Democrat needs to have a national lead of 3-4 points. She has a point and a half. Ergo, defeat.
But, Look! Up in the sky, it's a bird, it's a plane, it's a deus ex machina! The swing state polls are just as close, even closer, than the nationals. The nationals at this point can be disregarded. The only polls that matter are in the swings.
That part is true. It is also true that,
1) Kamala has a ginormous advantage in GOTV.
2) All of the swings' margins except Arizona, maybe Georgia too, certainly the Blue Wall states, which would give her 270 EV's, and Nevada, are within the grasp of the "hidden hand" of GOTV.
Here's the leap from the concrete to the inchoate. It's the only thing left: That there will be a SHOCK, a SHOCK RESULT where in those four states the hidden hand of the Kamala campaign's ground game will eke out wins, with it the presidency, the salvation of democracy, and the destruction of authoritarianism in America.
There will be recounts out the asshole. There will be legal challenges. There will be violence. The results will not be known on November 5, nor for days after. But if the votes are there for Kamala in Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin, then the truth will out.
I have another blood pressure headache.
1A
I have a framed Thomas Nast cartoon somewhere. It's on the 1896 election. I did my master's thesis at MIT on that election. The cartoon depicts one of the political parties, I think labeled "Democracy", skinny dipping in a pond wearing a barrel bathing suit. The rich party, I think Republican, man is standing on the shore taking the bathing man's clothes. "Hey!", the naked man calls, "What will I do without them?" "What have you done with them but cast them off?", the rich man returns. The articles of clothing are labeled as abandoned policies, "tariff" I remember was one of them.
I'm getting there, this is preamble.
You know how the Dec. of Ind. says that the Creator has endowed us with certain unalienable rights, among which are life, liberty and the p.o.h.?
In the early 19th century there was a strain of American politico-religious philosophy that argued that since God gave us these rights we had an obligation to God to use them. Otherwise, God would be pissed. Wouldn't want to do that. It is my understanding that as a philosophical argument that one did not gain wide acceptance. "But it is there", as Louis CK said about his unaccepted ideas.
Our Constitution puts some clothes (see what I did there?) on the Dec. of Ind. skeleton.
First Amendment Fundamental Freedoms
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press...
That's the FIRST amendment to the Constitution. Important things, Firsts.
You lawyer types, don't jump in my shit pls. I know: "Congress"; Jeff Bezos can do whatever he wants. We're talking political philosophy here, particularly that early 19th century strain. We are clothed in the freedoms of speech and the press. But when we voluntarily unrobe ourselves of them, don't use them, remain silent, leave them on the shore, and someone takes them from us without our permission, then there is a meaningful sense in which "Use it or lose it!" is true. Analogously: We also have a right to be free from unreasonable governmental searches and seizures of our person and property. That's another Biggie, the Fourth. We don't have a freedom from a G-man searching our trash can. We have discarded whatever is in there, given up our "right" to that property.
So there is a meaningful, practical truth, and consequences, when we voluntarily don't use a right. What Jeff Bezos did was not illegal, of course. He is not compelled to speak. But he does not please God nor the Founding Fathers when he self-censors so powerful an organ as the Washington Post. There are consequences, the least of which is the loss of his customers. The foremost of which is that to which those "Fundamental Freedoms" are the pillars. Democracy Dies in Silence.
New Amsterdam Staves Off Elimination
The "Yankees" blasted the "Trolley Dodgers" 11-4 last night. MLB is using a 2-3-2 format so G5 is tonight, also in the Bronx.
Tuesday, October 29, 2024
The Trans-Canada Railway, With Stops at Luxury Hotels, is one of, if not the, greatest idea in any country, ever
I took a bucket list train ride through the Canadian Rockies and here's what it was really like
11 reasons the First Passage to the West train journey is worth it—and will change your mind about train travel forever.
In my amateur art studies phase, I ran across this
The People Who ‘Danced Themselves to Death’
In 1518, a ‘dance plague’ saw citizens of French city Strasbourg dancing uncontrollably for days on end – with fatal results. It’s a bizarre event that continues to fascinate artists and writers.
George Conway
@gtconway3d
“While Donald J. Trump was rallying his fervent supporters at Madison Square Garden on Sunday, Liz Cheney, the Republican former congresswoman, was on the other side of the Hudson River, saying she was ‘confident’ that Kamala Harris would be the next president of the United States.
“‘We are not cruel, and we aren’t evil, and we don’t elect people who are,’ she told an enthusiastic audience at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark.”
5:45 AM · Oct 28, 2024
·
353.3K Views
George Conway
@gtconway3d
There are many fine amendments to our Constitution. But I have a strong feeling that, after next Tuesday, my favorite will be the Nineteenth.
10:16 AM · Oct 28, 2024
·
1.6M Views
So, the lines
Paterno-Sandusky (3) Ohio (4); Smoo (20) Pitt (18): the lines are surprisingly in favor of the lower ranked teams. Reasons: uncertainty (perhaps deliberate) at the QB position. Drew Allar legitimately hurt his knee against Wisconsin. HC James Franklin says Allar's status is going to be gtd. Eli Holstein had to come out of the "Panthers" game against Syracuse also. Like Allar, he didn't return. But that was in the fourth quarter of a blow-out. Holstein hit his head on the turf. I either didn't see it, or saw it and nothing was made of it, in the highlights. But in his post-game with reporters HC Pat Narduzzi said Holstein was "fine". So I don't know, but that uncertainty is going to scare bettors, at least this bettor, off. I was going to play Pitt for the first time and was cogitating on taking PSU. No play on either.
Master of the Senate, Caro
I do say this is the oddest book I have ever read. After a short chapter or two on the subject, Lyndon Johnson, we now have a longgg--38 pages--chapter on Richard Russell, Jr.
Homicide Scene
I notice the signs of normalcy. I can see the palm fronds outside my balcony windows still swaying gracefully in the gentle breeze. I hear the workmen across the street, their drills and saws still humming, their hammers still making their sharp crack. And yet there it is. The husband lying utterly still on his kitchen floor in a pool of his blood; the naked floater brought out of the brackish bay onto the hard, cold concrete breakwater. I look across the bay to the merry Friday night partiers, their Christmas tree tail lights in a long ribbon, oblivious.
The Death Watch
I get up and my mind is clear and I read LBJ. But as I awaken it crowds in. A loved one, too young, with a terminal condition, has been given a week to live. I'm not a doctor and those who are are as helpless.
I am prepared. I have a reminder on my calendar each day to make my will.
Monday, October 28, 2024
😁
Vice President Kamala Harris joined Gov. Tim Walz on the trail for the first time since August in Ann Arbor, Michigan Monday...
Walz appeals to young voters in Michigan rally with Harris
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz delivered a focused message that aimed to rally young voters in the crowd as he stumped for Vice President Kamala Harris in Ann Arbor, Michigan, on Monday.
In an appearance near the University of Michigan campus, with a little over a week before Election Day, Walz delivered a short and thoughtful speech boosting his running mate's candidacy.
First time since AUGUST! What am I going to do, laugh or strangle her and the campaign? Laugh.
Stillers recalled Matt Canada and Kenny Picket from waivers
And managed a 9-9 tie with the New York (football) "Giants" at HT in a lonely field beyond Fort Pitt on six combined FG's.
Then they went back to Russell Wilson and whoever their new O-coordinator is and have a, one offensive TD to go with the all-important 4th FG. They also get an INT TD. Not to be outdone the G-Men got a 7-spot and the men of the Steel Toe lead 26-15 with 5:51 left to kick, er play.
The aforesaid Russ is 20/28, 278, 1 TD.
Najee Harris has 96 yards on 15 carries.
"Daniel" "Jones" is 18/29, 197 for the Empires.
No turnovers in the game. For the life of me I don't read the stats as equaling the scoreboard.
The Miami 45's must be proud
Tonight they beat the Zollner Pistons, who are one of the ten best teams in all of the G-League, 106-98 in the Bus. It was the Carny's second win in three outings, the first in Chazz over the Queens. Their sole loss, also in the Bus, was to the team that finished three spots but only one game ahead of them in 82 games last season. That was a squeaker, 116-97, which the locals got down to "respectability" from 28.
Plus they unveiled a statue of Dwayne Wade that is a spitting image of an angry Kelsey Grammer.
RODRI WON THE BALLON D'OR!
Best football player in the world.
(best woman footballer with him)
I am gabsmocked.
CONGRATULATIONS RODRI! 💙💙
It's Starting
This is MAGA.
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Incendiary devices were set off Monday at two ballot drop boxes — one in Portland and another in nearby Vancouver, Washington — destroying hundreds of ballots in what one official called a “direct attack on democracy” about a week before a heated Election Day.
...
...within a few hours, another fire was discovered at a transit center drop box across the Columbia River in Vancouver. Vancouver is the biggest city in Washington’s 3rd Congressional District, the site of what is expected to be one of the closest U.S. House races in the country, between first-term Democratic Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez and Republican challenger Joe Kent.
...The ballot box in Vancouver also had a fire suppression system inside, but that failed to prevent hundreds of ballots from burning said Greg Kimsey, the longtime elected auditor in Clark County, Washington, which includes Vancouver.
“Heartbreaking,” Kimsey said. “It’s a direct attack on democracy.”
...
Authorities said at a news conference in Portland that enough material from the incendiary devices was recovered to show that the two fires Monday were connected — and that they were also connected to an Oct. 8 incident, when an incendiary device was placed at a different ballot drop box in Vancouver. No ballots were damaged in that incident.
...
In Phoenix last week, officials said roughly five ballots were destroyed and others damaged when a fire was set in a drop box at a U.S. Postal Service station there.
Van Jones, who was once an adviser to Obama, said Harris' campaign has gone from "brat to flat" since she entered the race in July...
I agree. I have written that.
During a recent appearance on Real Time with Bill Maher, Jones suggested that Harris' loss of momentum is partly because her campaign is now "not as much fun."
"When Kamala was rising, she was fun," he said. "Remember, it was the politics of joy, it was fun... and then we went from brat to flat and it's just not as much fun."
...praised Trump's recent visit to a McDonald's location in Pennsylvania as a "brilliant" move.
I agree.
"I think we've got to acknowledge that this guy is beating the pants off of us with these so-called publicity stunts," he said.
I agree.
"It gets into everybody's feeds and people who are not looking at politics will look at that. I think we just have to be have more fun ourselves. We were having a great time during the Democratic convention. If we have more fun, if our, if the Democratic Party is a party of fun, people will join in. We should be doing crazy stuff, too."
Agree.
Inflated Pork Bellies Cogitations*
"Ain't gonna lie", I'm not playing What's My Line this week. Speaking of. "Ain't gonna lie" is what Indy QB Anthony Richardson said after another Dolts loss, after another atrocious performance by Richardson, after he subbed himself out for a play because, "Tired...I didn't think I was gonna be able to do the next play."
I said it then (you can look it up), I say it now, Anthony Richardson cannot play at the NFL level. It was a wasted draft pick.
With that diversion out of the way, I just took the lines in on the top 25 games like the MET director of acquisitions did with potential art buys, and these are the games where my eyes paused:
Paterno-Sandusky (3) vs Ohio (4) -4.5. Oh hardy har har. The Snits are going to win that game...But this is eye-pause, not D-Day. *Updated: I completely forgot (investors shouldn't do that) that Drew Allar got hurt against the Boogers. James said Allar "could be a game-time decision", which "could" work in PSU's favor, keeping Ohio prepping for two different QBs after all, but the injury is legit and it's to the knee and on a QB that's about the worst thing. Even if Allar plays, if he is not 100% that's a beeg problem for PSU.
East Lansing Spartak vs Indiana (13) -7.5. OH HARDY HAR HAR! The Hewwzeers have not trailed for one second of one game this season and have yet to beat an opponent by less than 14 points, and AGAIN House, as you did last week, you're installing them as basically a one-TD fave? Get the fuck outta here...But not yet.
SMU (20) -7-5 vs Pitt (18). Biggest rodeo the Ponies have ridden in in about fawty yeers, I bet. I don't bet on my team. Never have. Might make an exception here.
Illinoise (6-2) (24) vs Minnheehaha (5-3) MINUS TWO. Wtf is up with that line?
Extremists inspired by conspiracy theories pose major threat to 2024 elections, U.S. intelligence warns
Candidates, elected officials, election workers, members of the media and judges involved in election cases are among those U.S. intelligence officials identified as targets.
US Intel Says Insider Threats Are 'Likely' During the Election
A government memo viewed by WIRED states that insider threats “could derail or jeopardize a fair and transparent election process.”
...
The bulletin cites the Department of Homeland Security's definition of an insider threat: someone who “will use his or her authorized access, wittingly or unwittingly, to do harm to an entity.”...
...This warning comes as election deniers across the US have assumed positions at all levels of the electoral system.
Feds see uptick in online chatter among extremists preparing for ‘civil war’
A Department of Homeland Security report says the discussions are tied to the 2024 election and concerns about immigration.
"It’s time to get organized and get ready. To prepare for what’s to come."
I am prepared. I know what I'm going to do.
"Taking a Stand in Baton Rouge" leshia Evans, nurse, Pennsylvania, July 9, 2016. Photo by Jonathan Bachman, Reuters.
"It is a far, far better thing...It is a far, far better rest..."
...people seem to be both misdiagnosing and underestimating what happened at the Washington Post. This isn’t about censorship or the media. It’s catastrophic failure of the rule of law.
No. What?
This is a watershed moment that suggests we are in greater danger than we realized.
I agree. Bezos did it because he is convinced that trumpie will be the next POTUS. It is democracy that is both the cause and the casualty of a second trumpie presidency. I understand that that is not spiffy for the rule of law, but first things first. The people are preparing to democratically throw off democracy.
It’s time to get organized and get ready. To prepare for what’s to come.
...
What we witnessed on Friday....was something much, much more consequential. It was about oligarchy, the rule of law, and the failure of the democratic order.
When Bezos decreed that the newspaper he owned could not endorse Trump’s opponent, it was a transparent act of submission borne of an intuitive understanding of the differences between the candidates.
Bezos understood that if he antagonized Kamala Harris and Harris became president, he would face no consequences. A Harris administration would not target his businesses because the Harris administration would—like all presidential administrations not headed by Trump—adhere to the rule of law.
Of course a Harris admin wouldn't "target" Amazon or Blue Origin, but the Post? The Post already has been hurt by Bezos. It is a money-loser anyway but has had one editor resign and has had canceled subscriptions. If a newspaper falls in the forest and there was no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound? No. A newspaper exists to be heard, to have influence. No one in a Harris admin would read the Post, give them an interview, return their calls. The writer here, Jonathan V. Last both goes too far and doesn't go far enough. He goes too far in the consequences to the Post from a Harris admin. He doesn't go far enough in not recognizing that Bezos knows that Kamala is not going to win. Bezos would not have taken this action, which may destroy WaPo as we know it, if he believed Kamala would win.
Bezos likewise understood that the inverse was not true. If he continued to antagonize Trump and Trump became president, his businesses very much would be targeted.
...
What Trump understood was that Bezos’s submission would be of limited use if it was kept quiet. Because the point of dominating Bezos wasn’t just to dominate Bezos. It was to send a message to every other businessman, entrepreneur, and corporation in America: that these are the rules of the game. If you are nice to Trump, the government will be nice to you. If you criticize Trump, the government will be used against you.
Which is why Trump met with Blue Origin on the same day that Bezos yielded. It was a demonstration—a very public demonstration.
...
The Bezos surrender isn’t just a demonstration. It’s a consequence. It’s a signal that the rule of law has already eroded to such a point that even a person as powerful as Jeff Bezos no longer believes it can protect him.
So he has sought shelter in the embrace of the strongman.
Bezos made his decision because he calculated that Trump has already won—not the election, but his struggle to break the rule of law.
Last has a reasoned position, I just don't think it's the rule of law that has been broken. Bezos is using the rule of law to sue trumpie for not giving Amazon government contracts. I assume that it is not a baseless suit, that there are laws that trumpie broke or distorted. I just don't think you have to go all the way to "he broke the rule of law". I am 100% sure that Bezos didn't sit down and calculate, "Well, the law can't protect my business, I better seek "shelter" from the strongman." I'm pretty sure Bezos made a more pedestrian calculation. He read the tea leaves, followed the polls, saw the trend line, talked to some people and concluded, as I did, that trumpie was going to win. I don't think it was 50-50 in Bezos' mind. "Well, I don't know, 538 says it's a toss up!" No. Bezos was convinced, convinced to a standard that he was willing to sacrifice WaPo, that trumpie was going to win.
New England (2-6) 25 New York "Jets" (2-6) 22
Are there any more friends of Aaron Rodgers that the Fast Planes can sign? 5L.
"Quid Pro Quo"
Executives of Blue Origin briefly met with Trump within hours after paper spiked endorsement of Harris
...executives from [Bezos'] aerospace company met with Donald Trump on the same day the newspaper prevented its editorial team from publishing an endorsement of his opponent in the US presidential election.
...
Amazon and the space exploration company Blue Origin are among Bezos-owned businesses that still compete for lucrative federal government contracts.
...
Friday’s announcement did not mention Amazon or Blue Origin. But within hours, high-ranking officials of the latter company briefly met with Trump after a campaign speech in Austin, Texas, as the Republican nominee seeks a second presidency.
Trump met with Blue Origin chief executive officer David Limp and vice-president of government relations Megan Mitchell, the Associated Press reported.
Meanwhile, CNN reported that the Amazon CEO, Andy Jassy, had also recently reached out to speak with the former president by phone.
Those reported overtures were eviscerated by Washington Post editor-at-large and longtime columnist Robert Kagan, who resigned on Friday. On Saturday, he argued that the meeting Blue Origin executives had with Trump would not have taken place if the Post had endorsed the Democratic vice-president as it planned.
“Trump waited to make sure that Bezos did what he said he was going to do – and then met with the Blue Origin people,” Kagan told the Daily Beast on Saturday. “Which tells us that there was an actual deal made, meaning that Bezos communicated, or through his people, communicated directly with Trump, and they set up this quid pro quo.”
AP Top 25
1. O (61 of 62 1st place votes)
2. UGA (the other 1st place vote)
3. Paterno-Sandusky
4. Ohio
5. UMG I got UMG and Texas reversed.
6. Texas
7. Rocky Top-Oh God, I inadvertently left Tn out of my projections.
8. The University of Our Lady of the Lake }Even aside from Tn, I did very poorly. I had Iowa State 8th.
9. BeeYEw-I got BeeYEw right.
10. Texas DEI } I had Indiana here.
2. UGA (the other 1st place vote)
3. Paterno-Sandusky
4. Ohio
5. UMG I got UMG and Texas reversed.
6. Texas
7. Rocky Top-Oh God, I inadvertently left Tn out of my projections.
8. The University of Our Lady of the Lake }Even aside from Tn, I did very poorly. I had Iowa State 8th.
9. BeeYEw-I got BeeYEw right.
10. Texas DEI } I had Indiana here.
________________________________________
18. Pitt-I had us 17th. They moved us up one spot.
Restraint
Another L, another round of Mike Norvell buyout articles
If I were Half Ass Ew admin, I would fire him for cause. He abdicated when the Semiholes didn't make the playoff last season; that caused the players to quit, resulting in a 63-3 humiliation to UGA in the Orange Bowl, and players quitting this reason, resulting in 1-7. The firing would be for cause, and that's the cause. (It wouldn't succeed in court.)
Projecting the AP top ten (and Pitt)
1. Oregon should be unanimous.
2. Georgia
3. Paterno-Sandusky but they will gain on UGA.
4. Ohio after unimpressive win at home over Neb.
5. Texas after unimpressive win at Vanderbilt.
6. Miami Gardens
-Clemson, Iowa State, BYU were 8, 9, and 10 last week (LSU falls out). IPTAY and Cyclops didn't play and BYU routed the line and woeful UCF in Orlando. The three were separated by 74 votes last week. IPTAY has a loss, the other two are unbeaten. I have a distaste for major teams with a L ahead of major unbeaten teams, a distaste that I know the cognos share, but which they get over.What will the cognos do? Not what I would do.-
7. Clemson
8. Iowa State
9. BYU
10. Indiana I think the AP voters will jump the Hewwzeers over Notre Dame
________________________________________________________________
Now it gets hard. How far does two-loss LSU fall? How far does two-loss Alabama (15th) rise after a thoroughly impressive demolition of fading Mizzou? One-loss DEI (14)? Kansas State, 1L, was 16th, Boise State, 1L, was 17th, and Olé Miss, a 2L, was 18th last week. Only three points separated K-State and Boise and they both won, unimpressively, over mediocre and worse opponents. Olé Miss was far behind, 165 votes behind, Boise, and didn't cover the spread against crumbling Oklahoma. Pitt, 19, was close (12 votes) on the Rebels' heels. And LSU is going to fall somewhere in here. Lord, a 2L band of Bayou Bandits over an undefeated Airplane Conference team? What will the cognos do?
16. LSU
17. Pitt
18. Olé Miss
19. Boise State
20. Kansas State
The cognos, I believe, will drop slightly Kansas State (16) and Boise State (17), both 1L's after unimpressive wins over mediocre opponents.
Michelle Obama's Sobering Message to Men: "We as women will become collateral damage to your rage."
In Kalamazoo, MI, the former First Lady delivered an extaordinary speech directed to men:
"I am asking y'all from the core of my being to take our lives seriously.
"To the men who love us, let me just try to paint a picture of what it will feel like if America, the wealthiest nation on earth, keeps revoking basic care from its women and how it will affect every single woman in your life."
Obama argued a woman affected by the policies could be "in legal jeopardy if she needs a pill from out of state or overseas, or if she has to travel across state lines because the local clinic closed up."
"Your daughter could be the one too terrified to call the doctor if she’s bleeding during an unexpected pregnancy. Your niece could be the one miscarrying in her bathtub after the hospital turned her away.
"And this will not just affect women; it will affect you and your sons," she said, suggesting both men and women would suffer from "the devastating consequences of teen pregnancy.
“Your wife or mother could be the ones at higher risk of dying from undiagnosed cervical cancer because they have no access to regular gynecological care.
“And then there is the tragic but very real possibility that in the worst case scenario, you just might be the one holding flowers at the funeral,” she later added. “You might be the one left to raise your children alone.”
Obama also addressed voters who were considering not casting ballots or voting for Trump or a third-party candidate in protest, arguing that "we as women will become collateral damage to your rage."
"Are you as men prepared to look into the eyes of the women and children you love and tell them that you supported this assault on our safety?" she asked.
Obama contended that some people are "holding Kamala to a higher standard than her opponent."
"We expect her to be intelligent and articulate, to have a clear set of policies, to never show too much anger, to prove time and time again that she belongs," she said. "But for Trump, we expect nothing at all. No understanding of policy, no ability to put together a coherent argument, no honesty, no decency, no morals."
The Obamas have delivered the two most effective appeals to men in Kamala's campaign.
SMOO escaped!
They prevailed over the Blue Demons 28-27 in OT last night, setting up the biggest game in Airplane Conference history--Pitt-SMU in Dallas!
Saturday, October 26, 2024
K-State (16) will survive. 29-27, :45 left. "Wildcats" can kneel it out.
That's IT! I'm turning off the phone.
I lied. I love the excitement.
Duke has tied SMU 21-21 and they have the ball at the Ponies' 38 but it's 4th and 9, 2:45 left.
I want Pitt to rise in the rankings, they are the lowest rated undefeated team next to Army. The games that could shake loose a slot or two for them are:
-Boise State's (17) close win at UNLV Friday night.
-DEI's 15-point demolition of no.8 Elle Esse Ew, with 2:36 to play. This will be the Bandit Tigers second loss. Admittedly, it's a sharp fall from 8 to 19 but this is a sharp loss.
-Particularly, K-State (16) is trailing woeful Kansas in Manhattan 27-26, 2' left but the "Wildcats" are at the KU 33.
Okay, Bees and Gees, that's gonna do it for me
I had a great day with the bookies, lucky really. They cleaned my clock last week. They're good, man. They're pretty accurate at this point in the season. Not on UCF-BYU, though.
UMG has ended thrashing Half Ass Ew, it's 36-7, 1:50 to play, but it wasn't as dominant as it looks. UMG just steadily added points.
PSU is still holding off Wi., it's not over, 6:19 4Q, 13-21, but the House set the line right and I'm reasonably confident that's going to be about the final margin.
Down Tobacco Road way Smoo has taken a 14-point lead (the line was -11) on the Blue Demons. There's still 3:49 in the 3Q, but again, the margin is close to predicted, and without a financial interest, I'm too tired to stay up to see how right the House was. They're damn good and I respect them.
In the sparkliest World Series ever, which has drawn even me, a baseball-phobe, the "Trolley Didgers" are poised to fly to New Amsterdam with a two games to nil lead.
Good night yinz yinzers!
Oh! Drew Allar got hurt! Wi 13 PSU 21, 10:01 4Q
"Lower body injury"--he was shown with a brace on his left knee--late in the 1H. Hasn't played in 2H.
Lates
UMG (6) 23 Half Ass Ew 7, End 3Q
Texas DEI (14) 7 ElleEsseEw (8) 17HT Dook 7 EssEmmEw 14
🏀 FT Chazz 106 Miami 45's 114
UMG leads Half Ass Ew 20-7, 4:50 3Q
This is a HUGE rivalry game but this is the worst, quittingest tribe of "Seminoles" I've seen in 40 years. UMG is no. 6 and was a 21.5 point favorite. They should have lost two games if there was justice in the universe! I really thought that they would scalp the "Seminoles", I really think they should scalp the, but they're not exactly doing that at this particular moment in the rent fabric of space time.
Okay Boogers, HT 10-7. Dju see what PSU did in the 2H to USC?
They're looking ahead to Ohio next week and as he did last week in La-La James Franklin is going to rip his team in the locker room and they will come out, seize this game by the balls and win. Wisconsin is better than USC, they're really coming on, but. This is the most promising PSU team of the Franklin era. They are solid everywhere, have an elite QB, and...James Franklin is not going to have them lose to fucking Wisconsin. I will say this additionally: James does not have the Michigan-Ohio double wammy every year anymore. They don't play M at all this year. If Wisconsin beats PSU you'll hear the howls for Franklin's head in State College all the way from Madison. T'AIN'T gonna happen.
Gardeners (6) got a FG to end the half, lead 17-7.
Man, the B1G is boring--good, but boring. PSU leads the Boogers in Madison 7-3, 3;57 2Q.
Dook 7 EsseEmEw (22) 0, 13:08 2Q but the Ponies are expressly on the Demons 1.
Ahead of their annual Space Game, Hairy Boner is getting shaved in Tucson by the 'Eers 17-7, HT.