¡Viernes mexicano enlaces con un café!

Buenos Tardes!  Brett is currently partying down with a buddy.  More details on that at his leisure….

 

Julian Assange is not the only one arrested for being affiliated with Julian Assange.

Interior Minister María Paula Romo did not name the man but said he had been arrested for “investigative purposes”.

An unnamed government official told the Associated Press that the man is Ola Bini, a Swedish software developer.

It comes just hours after Assange was himself arrested at the Ecuadorean embassy in London.

“A person close to Wikileaks, who has been residing in Ecuador, was arrested this afternoon when he was preparing to travel to Japan,” Ecuador’s interior ministry tweeted late on Thursday.

Say it with me now….More caravans!

This is a bullshit move by Team Trump and not just because there are a couple of Cubans on my team.

Senior Trump administration officials said they were rescinding an Obama-era decision that deemed Cuba’s baseball league to be separate from the Cuban government. The U.S. economic embargo on Cuba prohibits Americans from doing business with Cuba’s government, so the Obama administration’s ruling had cleared the way for an agreement between MLB and the Cuban Baseball Federation reached late last year

[…]

Under the U.S. economic embargo on Cuba passed by Congress decades ago, the administration has discretion to decide whether an entity like the Cuban Baseball Federation is too closely aligned with the government — in this case Cuba’s sports ministry — to be considered independent. Senior Trump administration officials said they couldn’t understand why the Obama administration had deemed the federation to be independent, calling it “an entity of the Cuban government.”

But former Obama administration officials said the goal of the policy had been to enable Cuban players to join U.S. teams without having to defect to the United States, which often involved dangerous journeys at the hands of human smugglers. Players would often pay to be smuggled into a third-party country from which they could join MLB.

Good job, dumbass.

Socialized healthcare, Venezuelan style.

Please, I’m still going to Mexico.  The world is dangerous, act accordingly.

Speaking of caravans, I suppose that is one way to respond

President Trump’s call to cut aid to El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras is raising concerns among lawmakers and national security and development experts, who say cutting aid will exacerbate the migrant crisis that is already crippling U.S. resources at the Southern border.

A spokesperson for the U.S. Agency for International Development told NPR on Tuesday that the agency is carrying out the president’s order to end foreign assistance programs for the Northern Triangle, the area that comprises those three Central American nations. The spokesperson said the agency is still finalizing the allocation of funds for 2019.

Trump has blamed the Central American countries for sending migrant caravans through Mexico to the U.S. border, an idea Trump has repeatedly promoted to raise the alarm about illegal immigration. In tweets on Saturday, Trump also returned to his previous threat to completely seal off the Southern border, blaming Democrats and Mexico for the turmoil at the border.

I suppose its better than a Ma-Duece.

Hi Preet.
In some parts of the world, they call this “moonshine.”

For those that answered on whether or not I should shoot something yesterday, I tried in the morning, but somebody decided they wanted to shoot tracers at the outdoor range that backs a mountain.  Naturally the mountain caught fire and I had to leave, lest I lob 5.56 NATO at a bunch of firefighters.  I hate shooting the carbine indoors but…

For those of you that will not click any links at all, I will just leave a picture of this item I found at a local grocery store….for your…whatever.

Here’s a good tune.  [NOT DEATH METAL]

Comments

303 responses to “¡Viernes mexicano enlaces con un café!”

  1. Scruffy Nerfherder

    Getting ready to enter a certain unnamed base that may sometimes be referred to as a farm for an right year olds birthday party.

    I hate these things, I’d rather be at Chuck E Cheeses. At least I can leave that any time I want.

    1. Scruffy Nerfherder

      eight

    2. mexican sharpshooter

      a certain unnamed base

      Al Udeid?

      1. Scruffy Nerfherder

        Fewer planes, more spooks

        1. mexican sharpshooter

          Tampastan?

      2. Chipwooder

        Doin’ the dirty Deid!

  2. Private Chipperbot

    Happy Weekend. Hopefully Trump just escorts all the caravans to San Fransisco.

    1. Suthenboy

      I was thinking LA. That way when they see how shitty it is they are close to Mexico and can leave.

      1. mexican sharpshooter

        San Diego is even closer.

        1. Galt1138

          True. But, LA is much shittier than SD.

  3. Private Chipperbot

    Here’s the ‘IT”S MA’AM’ guy going to the chiropractor.

    I dunno. It popped up when I was surfing youtube.

    1. Scruffy Nerfherder

      I wonder if that chiropractor thinks he’s helping his business with that video.

    2. Chipwooder

      Logan Pixler
      6 hours ago
      “Ma’am if you could just tuck your balls so I can adjust your hips…”

      *golf clap*

    3. Chafed

      I didn’t get the reference until I clicked. Jesus what a publicity hound.

  4. Tres Cool

    cuatro !

  5. Ed Wuncler

    “Hard-line critics of the Cuban government, such as Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., have been ramping up pressure over the issue since Cuba earlier this month released the list of the first group of players who are eligible to sign direct contracts with MLB teams.”

    Marco Rubio fucking sucks. He’s that kind of asshole who practiced his inauguration speech in front of a mirror in 5th grade.

    1. Old Man With Candy

      The male Tracy Flick.

  6. The Late P Brooks

    Here’s a good tune. [NOT DEATH METAL]

    Phew. I have it on good authority that death metal causes churches to mysteriously burst into flames.

  7. kinnath

    Thanks for the Seether.

    1. kinnath

      Youtube fed this to me next. One of my all-time favorites.

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40V9_1PMUGM

  8. Juvenile Bluster

    WARNING: This link contains Trump/AOC fanfiction so vile even SugarFree wouldn’t write it.

    https://twitter.com/shawndecker/status/1116770416641679360

    1. Pan Zagloba

      Bah, so tame, Uncivil Servant called it “bland and flaccid”.

    1. Rhywun

      Thank you for reading my mind for me.

      1. slumbrew

        Same.

        1. Tundra

          Yup.

          1. bacon-magic

            *DROPS GLOVES*
            Ya’ll are salty.

          2. jesse.in.mb

            Says the man whose online identity is cured meat.

          3. bacon-magic

            *Sprinkles salt on bearded one

    2. mexican sharpshooter
      1. kinnath

        +1

      2. bacon-magic

        +2

    3. slumbrew

      That rolled into Cannonball & now Here Comes Your Man. I am pleased.

    4. A Leap at the Wheel

      Teen Leap Approved(™)

  9. The Late P Brooks

    Trump’s America- what a dystopian shithole.

    As the Trump administration prepares to drastically weaken Obama-era rules restricting vehicle pollution, nervous automakers are devising a strategy to handle their worst-case scenario: a divided American auto market, with some states following President Trump’s weakened rules while others stick with the tougher ones.

    The effort is increasingly urgent because the Trump administration has now settled on the key details of its rollback plan, according to two people familiar with the matter. The new rules would all but eliminate the Obama-era restrictions, essentially freezing standards at about 37 miles per gallon, compared to 54.5 miles per gallon required by the current rules. The policy makes it a near-certainty that California and 13 other states, collectively representing roughly one-third of the United States auto market, will keep enforcing the stricter rules, splitting the national auto market in two.

    Although Mr. Trump has billed his rollback as a boon to the auto industry, automakers say the split-market outcome would be a logistical and financial nightmare for them. Their current strategy centers on selling completely different kinds of cars in different parts of the country — chiefly hybrids or electric vehicles in states like California, and less efficient SUVs (which American car buyers love) in other states.

    But automakers recognize it would be easy for some buyers to simply cross state lines to buy what they want.

    —————-

    In interviews, California officials who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak on the record, noted that California already has in place border laws requiring vehicles brought into the state to meet certain pollution standards.

    “California is prepared to strike at any blow dealt our way and regardless of what comes next, we have laws in place to keep our state moving forward,” the state’s attorney general, Xavier Becerra, said.

    Consumer preferences? Hahahahahahahahaha.

    The whole article is, as one might expect from a NYT writer, an incoherent mess. Just repeat after me: Orange Man Bad! Trump is going to kill you and your children if the noble Californians don’t stop him.

    ps- Fuck you and the broom you rode in on, Xavier.

    1. Juvenile Bluster

      tl;dr seems to be “consumer choice bad, because consumers might make decisions we don’t like”

      The only reason to have a “split market” (as opposed to just making all cars on the “better” standard) is that they think consumers will make the “wrong decision” to not want those cars.

      1. Juvenile Bluster

        Also, I fail to understand how California’s rules (especially the one about not being able to take a “non compliant” car bought out of state and register it in California) don’t violate the constitution.

        1. I believe the relevant law expressly allowed California to set its own standards, and other states could select either Federal or California standards.

        2. Gadfly

          I had the same thought. It seems to me that their actions are a clear impediment to interstate commerce and therefor ought to be slapped down under the interstate commerce clause. If the courts have now decided that clause means the exact inverse of what it says, I give up.

        3. Lackadaisical

          I mean this is even worse, but they also ban guns, etc. If anything, from a constitutional perspective, the CAFE standards themselves are much more constitutionally questionable- both because of the latitude of the executive and the fact that there’s no federal interest really.

    2. Pan Zagloba

      The policy makes it a near-certainty that California and 13 other states, collectively representing roughly one-third of the United States auto market, will keep enforcing the stricter rules, splitting the national auto market in two.

      But….but the lowered regulation simply lowers the floor, not the ceiling.

      You are allowed to make existing cars under new regulation! So if having two production lines is unprofitable, don’t make two!

      I think this isn’t even TDS. I think the writer really can’t comprehend that you are allowed to do things other than the strict word of regulation.

      1. Chipwooder

        You’re allowed to make those cars…..that no one actually wants to drive unless the state forces you to.

    3. Rhywun

      I thought California started the whole “split market” thing with their super-special emissions way back when.

      1. Juvenile Bluster

        Me too (though I learned that by watching The Price is Right and always hearing about cars referred to as having “California Emissions”)

        1. So I’m not the only one!

        2. Rhywun

          Hahah I was going to add that but decided to keep it pithy.

        3. Suthenboy

          You misspelled ‘California costs’.

          1. Galt1138

            Indeed. Any and all of those CA regulations did nothing but add cost.

            Oh, and on the Federal level, there’s strong evidence to suggest to move to lighter cars to meet CAFE standards increased traffic accident deaths due to lighter construction and weaker construction materials.

            They’re also why lots of new cars don’t even come with the stupid donut spare tire anymore.

      2. Michael

        CAFE standards have pretty much dominated the national car market for decades now. What they fear the most is exactly what’s described in the article – Californians getting stuck driving shitty, boring and unreliable shitboxes while the rest of the country enjoys real cars. I never thought it could happen like that, but now I wonder if a split market could be a real possibility with how much EV production has been ramped up in recent years.

        1. slumbrew

          It’s OK as long as everyone is stuck driving miserable shit-boxes. But if some hick in a flyover state can drive a car that’s cheaper but better in every practical way, that’s intolerable.

        2. Rhywun

          Meh, they’re always bragging how huge their economy is. Let them build their own damn cars.

          1. Suthenboy

            ^Amen^

          2. jesse.in.mb

            American Honda is based a few blocks away from me, Toyota America still has a sizeable chunk of it’s infrastructure a few blocks from that although they moved their HQ to Texas after Rick Perry offered some slick tax incentives. Suzuki, Hyundai, and Kia all have their headquarters here or significant portions of their American presence. Tesla is in CA as well as two or three smaller electric car companies.

          3. Rhywun

            I was aware of the Tesla factory. Are those others factories or just offices?

          4. jesse.in.mb

            Mostly offices. The electric car companies all have factories here I believe, but it won’t be long until they’re in the Nevada desert or something. Although I believe a big chunk of American auto “manufacturing” is now just assembly so that companies can stamp made in America on their cars. Everyone is buying things manufactured in Mexico or Honduras or something and assembled in Tennessee.

    4. Suthenboy

      “California and 13 other states, collectively representing roughly one-third of the United States auto market, will keep enforcing the stricter rules, ”

      How so? If a Californian goes to Nevada or Arizona and buys a car that doesnt meet the standards what are they gonna do? Border check points and disallowing those vehicles to enter?

      Fuck them.

      1. Lackadaisical

        Nope, when you go to register they’ll check the vin or model and make sure you can register it there.

        1. Suthenboy

          That’ll get votes.

          1. Lackadaisical

            in California it will

      2. blackjack

        If you try to register a used car from out of state and it has less than 7500 miles on it, they will force you sell it to someone not in California and fine you. Same with motorcycles.

      3. Michael

        Special toll lanes.

        As an aside, it’s amazing how easy it is to fart out progressive “ideas”. It’s as if they require no thought at all.

    5. “while others stick with the tougher ones.”

      Yeah, that’s whats gonna happen.

  10. Rhywun

    Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro pledged to continue cutting down trees in the Amazon during his campaign and has appointed ministers who are seen as anti-environment. […] De Blasio urged the museum “not to allow him to be hosted there.”

    How DARE Brazil take any steps to develop resources and/or improve the lot of Brazilians. That land and the primitives living on it need to be frozen in amber forever. Oh, and HOMOPHOBIA!!11!!ELEVENTY1!!NOT IN MY CITY!!11!

    1. Chafed

      Deblasio is a shit stain. Even for NYC he seems extreme.

      1. Rhywun

        He is. Here, it’s all about free shit and power. Nobody except a tiny but vocal cadre of Park Slope and UWS cucks gives a shit about all the other leftist crap he goes on about. But because of the way machine politics works, it just ratchets farther and farther.

  11. The Late P Brooks

    Also-

    “They will have to choose between Trump and California,” said Margo T. Oge, a former senior E.P.A. official who works on auto pollution policy issues.

    “If you go with Trump, it solves the short-term temper tantrum and the threat of trade wars on the horizon,” she said. “But that is also taking a big legal risk. Because in the long term, California could win the legal fight to keep its state standards. Trump is right now, but California is forever.”

    Fuck you and the broom you rode in on, Margo.

    1. slumbrew

      California is forever

      We’ll see.

      1. Suthenboy

        Yeah. I am not so sure about that either.

    2. JaimeRoberto: Gentleman, Scholar, French Tickler

      Detroit is forever!

  12. Raston Bot

    i highly dissuade anyone from teleworking at their local watering hole. i’ve probably been borderline inappropriate in half my work correspondence the past two hours.

    but the onion rings here are fucking la bamba (which i assume is Spanish for “the bomb”) and this Uinta tropical IPA is flavorful. who said the Mormons can’t make good beer?? well, obviously Joseph Smith likely said that. but what does he know. he reads dishware.

    1. slumbrew

      That seems like a bad idea, tempting though it might be.

      1. Raston Bot

        ^hey chekcout Mr. Hindsight over here

          1. Raston Bot

            That’s later at a 5-year old’s birthday party. There will be much street hockey.. and the egos will *NOT* be checked.

          2. Stillhunter

            A buddy and I said that to a waitress at a strip joint in Denver back in the early 90s. She was the one who correctly guessed we were from Wisconsin since we drank like fishes and swore all the time.

    2. jesse.in.mb

      Para bailar los aros de cebolla really doesn’t have a nice ring to it though.

    3. mexican sharpshooter

      la bamba (which i assume is Spanish for “the bomb”

      La Bamba is a dance and traditional Mexican folk song made famous for Americans by Richie Valens. Para bailar La Bamba, que necessito una poca de gracia “To dance La Bamba, one needs a little grace”

      La bomba is bomb.

      1. Raston Bot

        Danke!

  13. The Late P Brooks

    I think this isn’t even TDS. I think the writer really can’t comprehend that you are allowed to do things other than the strict word of regulation.

    You’re definitely on to something. She probably thinks all fires would burn forever if there were no officially designated government fire-putter-outers.

    1. Lackadaisical

      What do you think killed the dinosaurs?

      1. A Leap at the Wheel

        Net neutrality.

        1. Lackadaisical

          I sar the dems whining about that again. God knows why.

  14. What a way to go!

    Ian Cognito: Comedian dies on stage in Bicester

    Mr Bird, who runs the Lone Wolf Comedy Club event at the venue, said Cognito had not been feeling well before the gig started, but insisted on going on stage.

    “He was like his old self, his voice was loud. I was thinking ‘he’s having such a good gig’,” Mr Bird said.

    Mr Bird said Cognito had even joked about his health during his set, telling the audience: “Imagine if I died in front of you lot here.”

    1. LJW

      I told my wife I hope I go out on hilarious note. I’d prefer my family laugh when they talk about my death.

    2. Does that qualify him to enter Valhalla?

      1. Rebel Scum

        I knew I wasn’t the only one watching The Last Kingdom.

  15. Gadfly

    Please, I’m still going to Mexico.

    In fairness, I think this warning was directed more at the average tourist, not a “Mexican Sharpshooter” who would, presumably, be better equipped to handle any vacation “difficulties”.

  16. Rufus the Monocled

    Don Cherry’s tribute to Marvel suit:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tte28aAKkRU

    Know what? I think I’d wear that with a nice pair of jeans.

    1. Rufus the Monocled

      He’s right about the icing by the way.

      1. Tundra

        What did he say? I’m not in the mood to listen to the rest of his blathering.

        1. Rufus the Monocled

          He basically pointed out that if the defender can clearly play the puck then it’s not icing. Except refs lately have been doing exactly that and showed some highlights to prove his case.

          1. Tundra

            Yeah, I agree with that. They changed it after guys like Foster were breaking things trying to get to the puck, but they need to dial it in a little.

          2. DenverJ

            It sure looks like english, but reads like gibberish…

    2. l0b0t

      What is up with that shirt collar though? It looks like one of those old celluloid jobs but about 3 sizes too large for the fellow.

      1. slumbrew

        He’s a big Goodfellas fan?

      2. But Enough About Me

        That’s just how the Cherryman rolls.

  17. Ed Wuncler

    I hate the fact that we’re heading towards the politicization of every aspect of our lives.

    A coworker of mine (who I enjoy working with) lamented the fact that we don’t discuss more about social issues and politics at lunch. I replied that we have built a great camaraderie here and one of our strengths is being able to collaborate together and discussing politics would slowly erode that along with making work less enjoyable. We all willingly hang out with each other after work and that’s rare in most work places but yet she and other people like her want to ruin that all because, “some people need to be educated about their privilege.”

    Like I said, she’s a great coworker and works her ass off, but I was tempted to tell her that it’s arrogant of her to believe that people who think differently need to be taught the right way.

    1. A Leap at the Wheel

      “You read John Galt’s speech in one sitting, you can educate me on whatever you one for one lunch period. Let me know when you’ve finished.”

      You’ll never hear from her about politics again.

      1. Ed Wuncler

        They were discussing affirmative action and I said that while I understand the idea behind it, it doesn’t do much because only the upper and middle class black people take advantage of it. You know, the people who would have succeeded anyway. And it’s paternal as fuck because it gives credence to the belief that black people aren’t able to do for themselves without the help of the benevolent white person.

        They were scared to say anything or refute that.

        1. Why do you hate black people? 😉

          1. Lackadaisical

            They’re not usually afraid to say that. Even to black people. (Maybe not to their face)

        2. JaimeRoberto: Gentleman, Scholar, French Tickler

          You are so racist.

        3. Suthenboy

          “…it gives credence to the belief that black people aren’t able to do for themselves without the help of the benevolent white person.”

          At least you know who the real racists are.

    2. Sean

      “some people need to be educated about their privilege.”

      I would vote not guilty if you would have slapped her right then & there.

      1. Rebel Scum

        I have checked my privilege and found it wanting.

        1. But Enough About Me

          I checked mine. It’s down a quart.  :-/

    3. kinnath

      “some people need to be educated about their privilege.”

      I have not been in a face-to-face conversation when that has come up. I am waiting for it. I don’t believe I will be able to respond with anything other than “fuck off”.

      1. A Leap at the Wheel

        You better hurry, privilege is losing its cache. Now everything is colonial.

      2. I’ve had my male privilege femsplained to me by a coworker before.

        I’ve had to sit through a non-HR but still mandatory implicit bias training.

        Ive had to sit through a 4 hour I&D seminar.

        I’ve had cultural appropriation come up in a “site events” meeting.

        If my law school didn’t have me by the nuts, I’d tell these jokers what I think. Instead I keep quiet and pay my student loan bills. The instant the last check clears, it’s gonna be really hard to keep the cork in.

    4. slumbrew

      lamented the fact that we don’t discuss more about social issues and politics at lunch..

      Jesus. WTF is wrong with people?

        1. Gustave Lytton

          One of my favorite Tom Baker stories, along with the irredeemable Talons of Wen Chiang.

    5. Rhywun

      Good for you. That shit is toxic.

      1. Ed Wuncler

        It is but it’s the younger crowd that wants to shift our conversations along those lines while the people in their 30’s and above are content to leave that shit at home or on forums.

        1. Lackadaisical

          My under 30 coworker is the same. . . Dunno why, no one cares about your opinion. Plus everything you said.

        2. Rhywun

          They’ve probably never encountered an opinion that differs from their own before.

          1. Stillhunter

            I think that’s true, but they also believe they have moral and intellectual high ground, so even if they did encounter one, they would prevail.

          2. Tundra

            It’s simple. Too many people encouraged them to spew their brain vomit from a very young age. Kids used to be required to STFU and listen and learn.

            /wishes he could see a lawn keep people off.

          3. Stillhunter

            Yep. When I was a wee lad, the adults were in their room and the kids played elsewhere. Rarely was a kid pawing at a parent asking for something. And if they did come in, one of the uncles berated them (jokingly) until they left of embarrassment.

            Usually the parents were playing euchre or poker while drinking excessive amounts of Blatz or Old Style and the kids were wreaking havoc as far away as possible. We didn’t WANT to be around the parents.

            Also, I’m quite annoyed that this snowfall is so dense that my snowthrower won’t work. Just clogs up and pushes it… *grumbles* I guess I just need to wait a couple days until it melts.

          4. DenverJ

            I’ve recently invented something that I call a “snow shovel”. You wanna borrow it?

          5. The Bearded Hobbit

            Children should be seen and not heard and women should be obscene and not heard.

          6. Stillhunter

            I already shoveled the deck and parts around the house, but considering I have 400 feet of driveway and another 200 feet of trail connecting house to 2nd garage I’ll just wait for Mother Nature, thanks.

          7. Fourscore

            I had to do the driveway, a long one, to make sure my daughter could get out and go home to Mpls. I hadn’t planned to, just drive through it with the truck but her little front wheel drive wouldn’t have made it.

            Slowest speed, snow was wet and heavy but fish/relatives/three days so it was worth the effort.

          8. Stillhunter

            I’m looking forward to getting a plow on my truck for next winter, which will double for business use. Snowthrowers on John Deere garden tractors are not made for working like this. I have no pavement and it’s not level. I go through at least one drive belt per season due to rugged conditions, not to mention the occasional dog toy (Great Dane size)…*more grumbling*

        3. Pope Jimbo

          I wonder if they think that having these “discussions” will allow them to fit in. Growing up, that is how they established peer groups.

          You geezers won’t let them light their Virtue Signal, so how can they let you know that they are super good and not some icky wrongthinker?

    6. Michael

      I have a suspicion that many people lead far more interesting lives on social media than they do in reality, and a lot of them are – whether subconsciously or overtly – trying to translate that rush they get from “likes”, “retweets” and “engagement” into everyday interactions. I don’t think it is going to turn out very well for any of them.

      1. A Leap at the Wheel

        I try to keep my off-line life far more interesting the my social media life. Its worked out so far.

  18. The Late P Brooks

    It’s baffling

    The recent focus on health care and abortion follows well-coordinated attacks on policies like the Green New Deal, which reduced the far-reaching climate change proposal to a punch line with jokes about cow flatulence and putting farms out of business.

    Some Democratic strategists said they have been taken aback recently by how successful Mr. Trump and Republicans have been at setting the terms of the debate around liberal policy ideas. And they are encouraging their party to be more nimble and deliver a more concise and accessible message.

    ———-

    It is not clear whether any of the Republican messaging is having an impact on voters outside of the president’s so far unmovable base. But Ms. Lake said that as she surveyed likely 2020 swing voters, she was surprised to hear people in focus groups repeat false assertions made by the president and his allies — that Democrats would end air travel in the United States and shut down dairy farms and beef production because of greenhouse gas emissions from cows.

    “It’s amazing the number of people who would volunteer that,” she said. The actual language in the proposal calls for cleaner transportation and agriculture “as much as is technologically feasible.” The misperception about cows and airplanes originated with a now-retracted fact sheet published by Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s office that contained an ironic aside about getting rid of “farting cows and airplanes.”

    Republicans said they also saw “Medicare for all”-type proposals as a way to give their rallying cries on socialism more substance and potency. Some plans, like the one put forward by Mr. Sanders, would largely eliminate private insurance plans, which Republicans have found is overwhelmingly unpopular with the kinds of voters they need to win back.

    “The debate that’s going to play out in suburbs across the country is a choice between capitalism versus socialism,” said Ronna McDaniel, the chairwoman of the Republican National Committee. “When Democrats talk about abolishing private health insurance, for example, most of my friends are on private insurance plans through their jobs or their husbands’ jobs. They don’t want to lose that. They don’t want to wait in line to get to the pediatrician.”

    How is it possible for Trump to make these perfectly reasonable- nay desperately needed- policy proposals look bad to the American voter?

    The guy’s a magician.

    1. A Leap at the Wheel

      Shit. If I sat down to write “most tone deaf, sneering progressive rant to the base” I could try, I couldn’t have come off that tone deaf and sneery. I need to be more cynical.

    2. LJW

      The mind games these people play with themselves is incredible. Don’t read the comments section.

    3. Michael

      Some Democratic strategists said they have been taken aback recently by how successful Mr. Trump and Republicans have been at setting the terms of the debate around liberal policy ideas.

      Just because your party’s base marches lockstep with whatever its leadership decrees doesn’t mean everybody else does. The rest of America didn’t have wait until Trump, McConnell or whoever voiced their opinions about the GND because it was and still is completely fucking laughable on its face. Trump could have refrained from ever saying a single word about it and people would still be roasting it like a campfire s’more.

      1. DenverJ

        Mmmm…. s’mores….

    4. The Other Kevin

      Just like the DNC WikiLinks documents. The problem isn’t that people are lying about the Democrats, the problem is that they’re telling the truth!

    5. Gadfly

      The misperception about cows and airplanes originated with a now-retracted fact sheet published by Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s office that contained an ironic aside about getting rid of “farting cows and airplanes.”

      Gee, it’s so unfair to use their own words against them.

      1. Rhywun

        *narrows gaze*

        1. Gadfly

          *widens grin*

          Happens to me all the time, so I’m glad to be on the right side of the time stamp for once.

    6. Rhywun

      How dare Team A use Team B’s own words against them. It’s unseemly!

    7. Suthenboy

      “…reduced the far-reaching climate change proposal to a punch line…”

      I would say that is being generous.

  19. Drake

    Donald J. Trump – World’s Greatest Troll

    1. Sensei

      That is great!

    2. Michael

      Superb.

  20. commodious spittoon

    Wheeeee, employment offer on Monday. I don’t know what to expect.

    1. mexican sharpshooter

      They do plan to pay you…money right?

    2. Creosote Achilles

      Congrats! Hopefully a near 20% pay increase and an extra week of vacation and 2 weeks of sick time.

    3. egould310

      ???

  21. Gadfly

    So apparently the US has recently denied entry to one of the co-founders of the BDS movement, on the grounds that he’s a tad bit antisemitic:

    He later went on to make his meaning crystal clear. “A Jewish state in Palestine, in any shape or form, cannot but contravene the basic rights of the land’s indigenous Palestinian population and perpetuate a system of racial discrimination that ought to be opposed categorically,” he said. “Definitely, most definitely we oppose a Jewish state in any part of Palestine. No Palestinian — rational Palestinian, not a sell-out Palestinian — will ever accept a Jewish state in Palestine.”

    Quelle surprise.

    1. Old Man With Candy

      That’s too bad. I hate the idea of us using border control to keep out ideas, even stupid ones.

      1. A Leap at the Wheel

        Just out of curiosity, do you dislike it because you think it is an illegitimate use of state power that this particular state does not have, or do you think it is a stupid use of a legitimate state power?

        1. Old Man With Candy

          A stupid and pernicious use of a legitimate federal power (border control).

      2. Gadfly

        I hate the idea of us using border control to keep out ideas, even stupid ones.

        That’s a fair objection, especially since this was just a temporary visa to come, say his piece, and go back to whence he came.

      3. Not Adahn

        oh don’t worry, we’re keeping Jews out too.

        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t0yxrfGFv0A

    2. kbolino

      the land’s indigenous Palestinian population

      No.

      1. They’re called Palestinians because the Roman Emperor Hadrian renamed the province of Judea to Syria Palaestina to spite the Jewish rebels who tore down his pagan temples
      2. They speak Arabic and practice Islam, neither of which are native to the Levant and instead come from Arabia
      3. The reason they speak Arabic and practice Islam is that the area was conquered by Arabian Muslim invaders
      4. The region has changed hands so many times that any exclusive claim to indigeneity is arbitary

      1. Jarflax

        4. The every inhabitable region on Earth has changed hands so many times that any exclusive claim to indigeneity is arbitary

        May I respectfully suggest this change to your point? (FTFY has come to seem rude to me)

      2. Suthenboy

        “The region has changed hands so many times that any exclusive claim to indigeneity is arbitrary”

        True of every square inch on the planet but one can easily be forgiven for saying ‘especially there’.

        1. Yet Jews can document being on that land several thousand years ago. How far back can these “indigenous” Palestinians go? And they might want to ponder the fact that they mostly descended from nomadic tribes, meaning they aren’t really indigenous to anywhere.

    3. Lackadaisical

      I don’t see why that’s grounds for being barred from entry. Unless we only let libertarians in, everybody we let in is going to have reprehensible views.

  22. The Late P Brooks

    They were discussing affirmative action and I said that while I understand the idea behind it, it doesn’t do much because only the upper and middle class black people take advantage of it. You know, the people who would have succeeded anyway. And it’s paternal as fuck because it gives credence to the belief that black people aren’t able to do for themselves without the help of the benevolent white person.

    Oh, what the hell would you know about it, Ed?

    1. Ed Wuncler

      I’ve always said that I want to be hired because I’m damn good and not because of some race quota. A lot of woke black people complain that white people assume that they deserve to be at a school or job but advocate hard for affirmative action. You can’t have it both ways.

  23. The Late P Brooks

    Meh, they’re always bragging how huge their economy is. Let them build their own damn cars.

    Tesla has a factory in Fremont. Problem solved.

    1. Sensei

      Well I’d take anything made there today over what GM and Toyota produced there. OTH, the paint quality probably was better on those vehicles…

    2. Rhywun

      Yep, and that is likely part of the reason they are so expensive. Oh well, it’s not like the poor who’ve been priced out of the big cities and into Vallejo and Stockton need a car for anything.

    1. slumbrew

      New challenge for the Q-links – identify any that have zero surgery.

      1. creech

        Fondle them all and let God sort them out.

        1. Chafed

          I’m here to do doG’s work.

  24. The Late P Brooks

    Nope, when you go to register they’ll check the vin or model and make sure you can register it there.

    I *believe* California will refuse to title or register your filthy emissions-cheater turbodiesel VW unless you can prove it has had the factory “fix” (a sofware patch which reduces mileage and kills performance). Hell, as far as I know, they might confiscate it and send it to the crusher.

  25. LJW

    Ocasio-Cortez Appears On ‘The Price Is Right,’ Guesses Everything Is Free

    I can’t believe she didn’t make it out of the bidding round.

    Side note a local radio host won the showcase on the Price is Right. She refused most of the prizes because the taxes would have left her broke. If you’re on a California gameshow the only thing worth winning is cash and maybe an automobile.

    1. A Leap at the Wheel

      I can feel the burn from here. She’s the vanguard of the “Democratic Socialism means Give Me Stuff” movement.

    2. Rhywun

      When host Drew Carey asked if Ocasio-Cortez understood the game’s rules, she told Carey not to cat-call her and then responded, “Don’t hate me cause you ain’t me.”

      LOLOL

      1. slumbrew

        The Bee really is excellent. Some searching around yesterday showed they keep a low profile IRL – founder (who has crippling social anxiety disorder) sold it to an investor a few years back; head writer was his buddy, working construction at the time.

        They regularly bring the funny.

        1. slumbrew

          Quite the libertarian streak running through them, too:

          Under Pressure To Join Small Group, Church Introvert Insists He’s Already In The Smallest Group Of All, though I’m not sure they’d describe themselves as such.

          As an aside, the Calvinist humor makes me laugh every time Calvinist Tech Guy Assures Church His Mistakes Were Ordained Before The Foundation Of The World, no idea why.

        2. Drake

          Comey: ‘We Did Not Spy—We Just Observed And Reported Secretly Without The Subject’s Knowledge Or Consent’

          That’s good stuff.

    3. Tundra

      She was at one point puzzled by a stack of croissants but eventually guessed that they also were free.

      So, so good.

  26. Yusef drives a Kia

    Bella just bit my hand, I think she broke it,

    1. slumbrew

      Ooof. Bad girl. I truly hope it isn’t broken – that’s the last thing you need.

    2. But Enough About Me

      Ow, sorry. Was she frightened by something?

      1. Yusef drives a Kia

        It hurts but is alright, she mistook my hand for the Rope and bit down full force,
        Playful shit

        1. Old Man With Candy

          She thought you looked delicious.

          1. Yusef drives a Kia

            DOG the Inhaler!!!!!!

    3. Spudalicious

      You obviously did something wrong.

  27. grrizzly

    Wow, that’s weird. S. Korean babies born Dec. 31 become 2-year-olds next day

    Just two hours after Lee Dong Kil’s daughter was born on New Year’s Eve, the clock struck midnight, 2019 was ushered in, and the infant became 2-years-old. She wasn’t alone, though it happened for her quicker than most: Every baby born in South Korea last year became 2 on Jan. 1.

    According to one of the world’s most unusual age-calculating systems, South Korean babies become 1 on the day of their birth and then get an additional year tacked on when the calendar hits Jan. 1. A lawmaker is working now to overturn the centuries-old tradition amid complaints that it’s an anachronistic, time-wasting custom that drags down an otherwise ultramodern country.

    1. A Leap at the Wheel

      Neat! Didn’t know about this.

    2. jesse.in.mb

      That’s weird. I thought it was calculated on the lunar new year, not the solar one.

      1. kbolino

        If it’s anything like Japan, they probably celebrate both days but use the Gregorian New Year (Jan 1) for legal stuff.

        1. jesse.in.mb

          Yeah. It looks like that’s the case. It’s just odd because I remember having one of the teachers explain how to calculate my “Korean Age” and we had to figure if my birthday fell before or after the Lunar New Year that year (it was a week before).

          My kindergartners were 5… “Korean age or Western?” “Korean age of course!” “so…some of them are three western age?”

      2. grrizzly

        That’s what the articles says:

        Young people consider themselves another year old on solar New Year’s Day (Jan. 1) while older people often use the Lunar New Year’s Day.

        1. jesse.in.mb

          I wonder if that’s more a Seoul thing. I was someplace that was considered a bit of a backwater.

          1. Spudalicious
          2. Sam and Dave are disappoint.

          3. Spudalicious

            Jake and Elwood cover, ftw.

    3. Fourscore

      Don’t all race horses share that same birthday so they can run as 2 year olds.

    4. AlmightyJB

      Whatever makes the girls hit legal age faster,I approve of.

    5. DenverJ

      A lawmaker is working now to overturn the centuries-old tradition amid complaints that it’s an anachronistic, time-wasting custom that drags down an otherwise ultramodern country

      So… a Seoul patch?

    6. Pope Jimbo

      3 of the 4 kids in my wife’s family have the exact same birthday. Why? Because my father-in-law registered the all on the same trip to the town hall. My wife still hasn’t explained why he waited so long for the older ones. But all the rest of the family thinks it is pretty funny that they all have the same b-day because Ma & Pa couldn’t be bothered with details.

      *Do not think that just because her b-day is bogus, that your wife will forgive you for forgetting it. Learn from my mistakes.

  28. Damn this is some good stuff…

    1. Tundra

      Quit flaunting your legal weed privilege!

      1. Yusef drives a Kia

        Mmmmm, Alien OG, delivered no less

      2. Dude, that’s just like your opinion. ::takes a puff::

      3. ElspethFlashman

        Plus we are drinking wine, and listening to jazz. . . it’s all good man. It’s like I can hear the colors of the music.

        1. Old Man With Candy

          My invitation seems to have gone missing…

        2. slumbrew

          Libertarians == libertines, confirmed.

          1. Tundra

            When was that in doubt?

        3. Spudalicious

          Well, what the hell are you drinking? Wine snobs want to know.

  29. R C Dean

    rescinding an Obama-era decision that deemed Cuba’s baseball league to be separate from the Cuban government

    Why is that bullshit? Isn’t the baseball league actually part of the Cuban government? What’s bullshit about recognizing reality?

    the goal of the policy had been to enable Cuban players to join U.S. teams without having to defect to the United States,

    This is really puzzling. Who is preventing them from joining US teams without having to defect to the United States? My first guess would be . . . Cuba, the Open-Air Prison in the Carribean. How does the US categorization of the Cuban baseball league change that? I’m going to need some more explaining on this one, and not from an Obama apparat.

    1. mexican sharpshooter

      If they have to defect first there is no guarantee they will get a tryout, find a roster spot on the team, or even make it to the US alive since they are being smuggled by human/drug traffickers.

      The exception allowed a somewhat legal method for the players to leave the open air island prison, which means MLB teams are able to legally seek out Cuban players. Given many of these players are actually pretty good, there is an incentive for them to do so. Scouts traveled to Cuba to find players, and paid the prospect’s team a fee for the rights to the player after 6 seasons with the team. Yes, the Cuban Baseball league is a proxy for the Cuban government and most of what the MLB teams are paying is to grease the wheels at every step.

      It results in poorer competition but more importantly I think, it results in fewer people getting off an open air island prison that actually want to get off the prison and have a skill to immediately contribute something to society.

      1. Lackadaisical

        It also funnels less money to the Cuban government, that it then uses to oppress the people there, if one cares about that (I don’t).

      2. Suthenboy

        I am guessing that like Cuban doctors sent overseas, the ball players are slaves. Every penny they make goes to the Cuban govt.

        1. mexican sharpshooter

          Cuban doctors are sent to other shithole countries willing to extradite them back to Cuba

          From what I’ve been able to find the player is garnished 25% of the signing bonus. Last year 34 such players under this agreement totaled $2.5mm. All of which is paid by the MLB team (a private org). It doesnt strike me as a lot of money considering nearly all of these players stay in the US and become citizens.
          https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-04-08/trump-cancels-major-league-baseball-s-deal-to-sign-cuban-players

          That is unless you have a link or other form of reference that suggests otherwise.

  30. Tundra

    More good news for Elon.

    Booooooring. But there’s this:

    As affordability is the name of the game here, the Geometry A is a single-motor car, with that electric unit making 161 horsepower and 184 pound-feet of torque. Zero-62 mph passes in 8.8 seconds, Geely claims. The car excels in slipperiness, too, with a drag coefficient of 0.237. As for price, that’s a key selling point. Before incentives, the base Geometry A’s price translates into $31,250.

    Loftier, Long Range models top the $37,000 marker. After applying Chinese-market subsidies, a buyer can get a base sedan for $22,321. (There are three configurations for both variants.)

    1. Rhywun

      Cronyin’ isn’t just for the Americans.

      1. Tundra

        Speaking of cronyism.

        Whoever was responsible for the nose of these vehicles should be terminated immediately.

        1. Rhywun

          Every year when my tax prep software asks me if I have solar or EV benefits to claim I grind my teeth.

        2. At least from the back it looks like a Cylon.

          1. slumbrew

            I was expecting a different Cylon, but I’ll accept it. Repeatedly.

          2. Spudalicious

            Daaaammmnnn.

        3. LJW

          Agreed they look sexy until you see the front.

        4. Stillhunter

          That’s awful. The rest of the lines are decent, but the front and tail are just bad. The stupid linear lights make it worse.

          I will believe the 400 mile range when I see it. I wonder what the range is when at full GVWR? Nothing like stopping for the night after 250 miles while traveling with the camper…

    2. DenverJ

      Why would I want my tires to slip?

    3. Suthenboy

      Electric car = retarded idea.

      1. Rhywun

        Enh, it has a niche, in cities. But only if they can get the price down and stop the subsidies.

      2. Not Adahn

        They’re great for tooling around the golf course.

      3. Spudalicious

        Chevy was six months from rolling out a hydrogen powered car. Until the Obama mafia gave them a loan, demanded they end the program and develop electric cars.

        1. Jarflax

          ^ Mercedes had one ready to roll as well, then the battery EV became the darling of the ‘Green’ movement despite being incredibly bad environmentally. In my paranoid moments I think this was because fuel cell vehicles can use the existing fueling infrastructure with comparatively minor changes, and don’t tether their owners to chargers every hundred miles or so. They seem ‘greener’ than battery EVs, but they don’t have the same inconvenience factor.

          1. Spudalicious

            Hydrogen cars = bad. They pollute the environment with water vapor.

          2. KSuellington

            Well, water vapor is the largest greenhouse gas. We need to ban dihydrogen monoxide for the good of the planet.

  31. Ownbestenemy

    My wife’s trailer is coming along. Finished the insulation of the walls, next up time to put up the siding and roll on the floor.

    Getting a custom box to sit on the a-frame tongue to house the generator. Still on the to-do list: insulate and panel the interior roof, run plumbing for water, build the shelving and support for the tub.

    I miss my weekends

    1. slumbrew

      Check out this alpha, making his wife live in a trailer.

      1. slumbrew

        (I may have missed some background)

    2. DenverJ

      At least you’re doing it for your self/ wife. I’ve spent the last 3 Saturdays trying to do everything in one day because home owner fired contractor because she knows better and her house is torn apart with only one working sink.

    3. Tundra

      Good job! What are you towing it with?

      1. Ownbestenemy

        Toyota 4runner for now. She wants a new truck though

    4. I hope you are documenting this process in pix and are going to write it up as a series. /diygeek

      1. Ownbestenemy

        I have some but I am not a picture guy. Ill see whay i have from my wife

    5. Lackadaisical

      Your getting her box to sit on the tongue? *raises eyebrows*

      1. Ownbestenemy

        See…you get it

        1. Pope Jimbo

          Until your tongue snaps because the weight limit was exceeded. Then you have to tap dance around that.

    1. Bob Boberson

      Exhibit A of why I have few moral qualms with slander and libel laws.

      1. Saying bad things about people, even if outright lies, should not be criminal. Sounds an awful lot like ‘I believe in free speech..but”

        1. commodious spittoon

          If it qualifies as defamation, it should be. I’m as Rothbardian as anyone about the ownership of reputation, but we do not live in a Rothbardian America. We live in one in which people expect norms about truth to be enforced to some degree by litigants resorting to the courts. And the SPLC has been feted as inerrant truth tellers precisely because that expectation has not been widely tested. If they defamed their victims, nail ’em to the wall.

          1. So no more National Enquirer? Alex Jones? SNL? Hat and Hair? start down Censorship Path and end up on Totalitarian Way.

          2. Rhywun

            I… agree with you.

          3. Proof of my integrity, I have been defamed so often on this site that people are shocked, shocked I say, when they agree with my completely unobjectionable libertarian views, and yet have I whinged about it? (other than that one time, on the BIF review, which that was all in jest) Calling someone an Asshole even if they aren’t an Asshole is not something we should want the violence inherent in the system to address.

            That said I think we could all be satisfied by a strong jury system with nullification as a goto finding. Call someone an Asshole publically enough times and they break your nose, the jury may just find them innocent. They will never be a system precise enough to account for all possibilities, let twelve, or so, ‘peers’ decide.

          4. slumbrew

            I have been defamed so often on this site that people are shocked, shocked I say, when they agree with my completely unobjectionable libertarian views, and yet have I whinged about it?

            So, you’re just making conversation, not whining now?

          5. commodious spittoon

            Hell, I don’t know. These are people who’ve been granted entirely undue influence, enough to shutter groups with which they disagree, in an apparent market failure. And when market failure is the issue, I assume the actual failure is down to some application of coercion that isn’t readily apparent. In this case, rooting out the corruption could prove existential: the SPLC sits at a nexus of state interest, media interest, and its own self-interest. They’re grifters, and their grift is useful to our overwhelmingly leftist media class, which is allied to the bureaucracy. So the SPLC benefits from a totally corrupt alliance of interests. So does it set bad precedent to see their grift ended by means we normally wouldn’t agree with? I don’t think it matters. I think we’re too far gone for it to matter. You have indoctrinated school children militating against free speech. Whether or not a defamation case can be made on terms libertarians wouldn’t normally agree with isn’t going to address how far into the red we already are.

        2. Saying bad things about people, even if outright lies, should not be criminal.

          Sure, under 2 conditions.

          1) we get rid of public/private person distinctions in civil defamation laws. Everybody is able to sue for defamation.

          2) punitive civil damages for repeat offenders against the same person.

          1. Bob Boberson

            ^^This. Deliberate attempts to damage someone’s reputation with outright lies to hurt them financially, professionally, etc is, IMO, an act of aggression. I see the hazard in using the state to arbiter such situations. However, I believe there should be a mechanism for recourse against it.

          2. Leaving it up to ‘The State” you already have at least three layers of subjective interpretation, ‘Deliberate’ ‘Damage’ ‘Outright’. As I say above if you are defamed dot the guy’s eye, if a dozen or more locals think he deserved it you walk.

          3. Is this all tort law that you’re tossing out in favor of vigilanteism, or just defamation law?

          4. Jarflax

            I think he is objecting to criminal libel laws, which I agree are a bad idea, but perhaps he is objecting to the tort as well.

          5. Yeah, criminal libel laws are stupid.

          6. IANAL…Tort as I understand it, involves damages, defamation does not. Someone drives through your fence and causes $500 worth of damage, that’s one thing. Someone says your fence (that your favorite daughter designed and built) is a piece of shit, yeah you might take umbrage but have sustained no damages, even if your daughter is in the fence building game, and the criticism may cost her future business. No blood no foul.

          7. Jarflax

            If some one slanders you they can certainly inflict real damage. A lying review of your business can destroy it. A false accusation of rape can make you unemployable, and such damage is not easily fixed by claiming you are innocent. Can it be abused? Sure, just like personal injury claims, med mal claims etc., but I don’t see that as meaning you have to just suck it up and go live your life doing odd jobs because the wrong doing that destroyed your livelihood involved communication.

          8. defamation does not

            Sure it does. I stand in front of your lemonade stand with a sign that says “hyp dipped his dick in the lemonade”. As a result, nobody comes to your lemonade stand anymore and you go out of business. No damages?

            Going to your fence issue:

            Someone drives through your fence and causes $500 worth of damage

            What makes it $500 worth of damage? The specific posts and slats are no longer manufactured, so you found a guy who would custom make replicas and install them for $500. I found a guy who would install standard big box posts and slats that are close enough for $225. Is it $500 of damages or $225?

          9. As a result, nobody comes to your lemonade stand anymore and you go out of business. No damages?

            Unprovable, chances are no one was coming to my lemonade stand anyway.

            Is it $500 of damages or $225?

            Make it whole then, the dollar amount is immaterial aside from its use to represent value, you lost something that you had, not something that you might have had or should have had or could have had, that is is the difference.

          10. chances are no one was coming to my lemonade stand anyway.

            Well, If you stopped sticking your dick in the lemonade, then somebody might take a chance on you.

          11. commodious spittoon

            Hyperbole wasn’t exaggerating about the slander.

          12. If you stopped sticking your dick in the lemonade

            But that was my thing, schtick, calling card, brand identity.

      2. Suthenboy

        Have you ever been slandered?

        1. commodious spittoon

          I was, once, but she charged me extra and the weird look she gave me after makes me think she kinda believed it.

    2. But Enough About Me

      That would be awesome. Fingers crossed.

    3. Rhywun

      When you’ve lost Nathan J. Robinson…

  32. DenverJ

    Policing is less dangerous, by 75%!, than it was years ago

      1. DenverJ

        I give up, google it

        1. commodious spittoon

          Wow. That’s quite a pileup.

          1. Stillhunter

            *Cleanup on aisle 5!*

        2. Nephilium

          You may want to have your blood sugar tested.

      1. Bob Boberson

        “This result directly contradicts the hypothesized war on cops, in which an increase in felonious killings after August 2014 is predicted. Our results show the opposite. In the context of nearly 50-year monthly trends, our results show a statistically significant decline in felonious killings of police after Michael Brown’s death.”

        I’d be interested to see the murder rates of cops killing civilians and the trends over the last 50 years. Oh wait, nobody tracks that because FYTW.

  33. Why bother pretending?

    https://hotair.com/archives/2019/04/11/no-republicans-need-apply-sign-academia/

    Also, this seems like actionable viewpoint discrimination.

    1. Yusef drives a Kia

      A pox on both houses, huzzah!!!!

  34. Sean

    Tucker’s doing a good bit on Trump sending illegals to sanctuary cities.

    1. Yusef drives a Kia

      Declare them ghettos, and when they resist, burn them out, worked before……..

      1. slumbrew

        Too Jewish.

  35. Tulip

    OT public service: I have mentioned that I fell, landing on my face. I got checked out and am healing. (I fell in December, I still have a slight bruise. I was lucky.) I just learned a neighbor’s aunt fell, and thought she was ok. Two days later, a colleague had to take her to the hospital because they thought she was having a stroke. No, she had a slow bleed in her brain. She may have permanent brain damage. Get checked out, don’t fuck around with head injuries.

    1. Rhywun

      OMG yeah various forms of sportsball are over that lately. Glad you’re OK.

      1. Rhywun

        *all over that

    2. I’m suddenly reminded of having had a pool cue busted across the back of my head. That was in 1980; hopefully any lasting effect would have showed up…

      …by…

      …now…

      Bep bep bep…

      … I like potatos…

      …Weeble…

      G’night.

      1. OneOut

        Me too was once kicked in the face by a pointed toed Cowboy boot while slapping the friend of cowboy boot wearer in the head with a 16 ounce leather covered lead blackjack.

        I won the fight as one of them had to go to the hospital.

        I lost the long term war because my left eye starts closing after a few beers.

        Ahhh. To be young again.

      2. Tres Cool

        Good…Im not the only one with that dent in the back of my head

    3. Tundra

      Now you tell me…

      Heal up Tulip. We need you!

    4. Pope Jimbo

      Why are you covering for your domestic abuser Tulip?

      Just tell the truth!

    5. Not Adahn

      In your honor: The original Coca Cola recipe:

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWYuPE8rkeE

    6. Tulip

      It surreal to have a doctor tell you that you’re lucky (when you look like an extra from the walking dead) because you didn’t catch yourself with your hands. Although, having two broken wrists would have been worse.

  36. Pope Jimbo

    So if Brett is partying on, I think that makes me Pope Jimbo Esquire and Brett is Brett Bartholomew Logan.

    Highlight of the trip was meeting up with Brett and having him drunkenly think I was OK enough to meet his wife. (OK, he was passed out on the floor and I used his phone to trick his lovely, lovely wife into meeting up with us at a dive bar).

    I can’t be Minnesoda Nice enough about how wonderful Brett and his wife were to a simple kid off the prairie of Western Minnesoda. They didn’t even steal my rental car (although, to be honest it might have been on the table until Brett’s wife realized it was a Chevy).

    Tampa is a very nice town. The only thing wrong with it is their airport. Pre-Check is closed? And you expect me to keep my mouth shut about that? I don’t think so.

    1. Pope Jimbo

      I swear I’m not making this up, but a Spirit Air gate attendant just got on the PA and demanded that whoever stole his pen, return it.

      1. Jarflax

        Give that man back his pen you animal!

      2. Rhywun

        Airports are a special level of hell.

        1. Pope Jimbo

          It is even worse when you are flying super economy air instead of a major carrier. Not only are the employees JV squad material, the people flying are worse.

          Another announcement was just made because someone left their bag between in the hall between the Chik-Fil-A and the bodega. TSA showing their crack concern, said that if anyone felt lighter they should come get it or they’d turn it over to the police.

          I doubt that they’d be as carefree in the Delta terminal. (although, I think these guys have the right attitude.)

        2. Nephilium

          This is true. Although being raised Catholic, I think of them more of a kind of purgatory. Everything is overpriced, it’s almost the same from airport to airport, everyone is just passing through, and people wander in and out as voices call out over the speakers.

          1. Tulip

            Purgatory is the perfect way to think of airports

          2. Rhywun

            Agreed

    2. Did you go to Mons Venus?

      1. Pope Jimbo

        Dude? What kind of Glib would I be if I didn’t go to El Uranus? (although, the grass looked greener over on Pluto)