Caturday

Mama cat at a shelter and her kittens.

Adopt a rescued pet, if you can. They enrich your life.

Stocking With Swamp Creatures

Trump is picking banksters and other vermin for his administration. Putting "The Foreclosure King" in charge of the Treasury Department is akin to putting the head of a drug cartel in charge of the DEA.

The most interesting appointment is Wilbur Ross, the "king of bankruptcy", as the Commerce Secretary. Ross's knack was making money from companies that were in trouble, while Trump made his money by setting up companies and running them into the ground. So in a way, they complement each other.

So far, I have yet to note a single appointment of anyone who has a track record of sticking up for the working stiffs of America. Between a troll who wants to set fire to what's left of the social safety net and banksters, Trump's picks sound more like hiring the firm of Kyd, Teach and Roberts to defend the sea lanes.

Everybody Has a Video Camera, People. Please Act Accordingly.

You've may have heard about the woman who went on a racist Trumpian rant at a store because they didn't have a free bag large enough to hold her shit. Apparently, losing her shit in public is her thing.

As the cops are gradually realizing, when you do stupid shit in full view of other people, somebody's probably recording your antics. And, should your stupidity be of the sort that becomes widely known, it will fuck up your life.

I'm not writing her name, but it's easily findable. Unless the Klan or Breitbart is hiring, she's going to have a hell of a time finding a job where the human resources department does any bit of research on job candidates.

When you're out in public, act like adults, people.

Crime and Video

If you're going to do highly illegal/stupid shit, it's a good idea to not stream live video of you doing said stupid shit.

Police say a Rhode Island man who streamed himself on Facebook Live driving 114 mph before crashing into a garbage truck and a concrete barrier was driving with a suspended license.

Because It's Friday

There is some annoying music in this one. But to be fair, I regard any music on steam and aircraft videos as annoying as all fuck.

Foreign Policy: Now Commence Amateur Hour

Late on Wednesday afternoon US President-elect Donald Trump had a phone call with Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

According to a Pakistani account of what should probably have been a procedural discussion, Mr Trump lavished extravagant praise upon Pakistan's prime minister and its people.

"You have a very good reputation. You are a terrific guy," it goes. In addition, Pakistan is "a fantastic country, fantastic place" with the most "intelligent" people and "your country is amazing with tremendous opportunities".

Not satisfied with that, the account, commonly known as read-outs, culminates with this flourish: "Please convey to the Pakistani people that they are amazing and all Pakistanis I have known are exceptional people, said Mr Donald Trump."One may be surprised that Trump didn't say that "Pakistanis are the best cab drivers and suicide bombers."

Naked and baseless flattery may work in Trump's world, but to those who live in a reality-based universe, it looks like insincere bullshit.

Since apparently the fetal-Trump administration doesn't believe that there is such a thing as "facts" or reality, then this is going to be a very interesting administration to watch and endure.

Caturday Humor

A "cat treat" commercial:

You Might Want to Sit Down For This:Good Work, Mr. Trump.

Donald Trump praised Carrier for keeping over 1,000 jobs in the U.S. -- and threatened other companies that might consider leaving the country.

"Companies are not going to leave the U.S. anymore without consequences," Trump said Thursday at the Indiana plant where the company makes furnaces.

Trump said that those consequences would include paying higher tariffs on imports.

Carrier announced in February that it would lay off workers and move those jobs to Mexico.

However on Tuesday, the company announced that it had reached a deal with Trump to keep the jobs at its Indianapolis plant, rather than move them to Mexico.

As much as I don't believe a word that he normally says, it does seem reasonable to suppose that, but for Trump, those jobs would have left the country.

Well done, sir.

Another Newspaper Died Today

As I wrote two months ago, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review ceased operations today.

I don't see how it'll work worth a crap. If you're in Pittsburgh and you want a morning paper to read, the P-G is still around. There's a weekly that targets a few neighborhoods.

Most digital news sites are tied into other media, which generates both the operating income and the content. Purely digital news sources don't seem to do a lot of original reporting; they may add commentary, but they mostly bite off other sources, the ones who employ the reporters who interview people, attend public meetings and research stuff. The Trib's been open about buying out senior staff and laying off others, which I take to mean that they have the staff to reformat press releases, but they're not going to be attending school board or city council meetings.

I strongly urge that people subscribe to a print newspaper. It's great if it's your local one, but if not, so long as you're subscribing to some form of general print journalism. The digital folks aren't going to be the ones who hold public officials' feet to the fire. For freedom and liberty to exist, there has to be independent watchdogs.

If not the press, then whom?

(My screed about newspapers and online content.)

Selling Out, Mitt?

Mitt's expression seems to indicate that he didn't get a good price for his soul.

Trump, on the other hand, looks like a cat playing with a fresh mouse.

Here's another one, for your pirating pleasure:

It appears that Mitt forgot to bring it.

My guess is that, having publicly humiliated Mitt and destroying what's left of his reputation for integrity, Trump will curb-stomp Romney. And it would seem that Romney knows that will happen, for he looks about as happy as a man whose been told that he has stage 4 penile cancer.

(Romney's thinking: "I got more votes than this tool and I lost?"