Some Thoughts About the Return of the Orange Emperor

First, some thoughts from a friend:

In the words of Maya Angelou, “When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time.”

• If you voted for someone who spews hate and retribution, you didn’t vote for peace and unity in our nation. 

• If you voted for someone who demonstrates bigotry, you didn’t vote for racial equality. 

• If you voted for someone who has a history of misogyny and assaulting women, you didn’t vote for gender equality or the protection of women. 

• If you voted for someone who has cavalierly violated numerous laws, you didn’t vote in support of law enforcement or an equal system of justice for all. 

• If you voted for someone who has unabashedly violated most of the Ten Commandments, you didn’t vote for Judeo-Christian values.

You don’t get to launch an atomic weapon and then say “I hope everyone is okay on the ground where it hit.”

If there is any one person to blame, that would be President Biden. He had alluded to stepping down after one term, but once Trump got into the race, Biden let his ego get the better of him. I guess that's somewhat understandable; you don't spend a life in politics without developing a very large sense of importance. A series of primaries might have resulted in a better candidate. That's not a slam of Vice President Harris, but asking a country where Trumpist racism is engrained to choose a Black Asian woman as president was probably a bridge too far. So was asking her to mount a hundred-day general campaign for the job.

But beyond that, if there is anyone to blame, it is the American people. It was clear to all but the most casual observer that the root cause of inflation over the past few years was the billions and billions of dollars that both Trump and Biden had shoveled out to everyone, individuals and businesses, need be damned, to help keep the economy afloat during the COVID-19 pandemic. That money had to go somewhere and it did. I can understand why Biden didn't point that out, he was a part of it, but it might have helped lower the temperature. Trumpers were bleating about gasoline being $1.80/gal in 2020 without acknowledging that the reason it was so cheap was that millions had been tossed out of work and millions more were working from home. There was a contagious pandemic going on and nobody was going anywhere. Supply and demand; there was gas, but few were buying it. MIB said it best, really.

Trump has said who he is and what he wants to do. This time, there are no guardrails. There are no senior Republicans to suggest that he not do something. The Supremes have neutered the courts for him. He has the unchecked power that Nixon could only dream of having. And if he decides to not leave office in January of 2029, there will be no mechanism to tell him no.

A side note: Don't be shocked if there is a mass exodus of senior civil servants who will decide they would rather secure their retirement than put up with bullshit from the MAGA political appointees.

A side note on the ethics tax: Trump lost in 2020 by millions of votes, but that didn't stop him or his core believers from trying to stage a coup and then whining for four years about the election being stolen. Harris lost by millions of votes, yet she's not calling for a "stop the steal"movement or contesting it. Because Trump never plays fair. He's a liar and a cheat at all things, great and small, from politics to business to golf to his marital vows.

Still, the blame here is on the American people who heard all about what Trump said and knew about his past behavior. his criminality, his grifting the Oval Office, his penchant for treason, his love of all things Putin, and his constant lying and dismissed all of it, whether out of fear, anger, racism or disbelief. Pick one or more. Also, this. And this.

It's going to be an even more interesting time. Strap in.

And one final note: Comment moderation is in effect. Govern yourselves accordingly.

Oopsie on the Memes

I forgot one for today:

While I'm at it:

Passing This On, Here

Nice Gun, But Still

The Phoenix 1911:

Yes, it seems awfully nice and you can read about it right here.

But still: Five grand for a carry gun? I guess if you love 1911s and such, and you've got the money for one (and a SWMBO who won't mind), knock yerself out. Custom gunsmiths gotta eat, too.

If you're not in the economic stratosphere where you can think about dropping five grand on a carry gun, then click the easy button and get yourself a Glock or a S&W M&P. Frankly, 9mm has been good enough for social work for a long while, now. If you live in a state that bans high-capacity magazines, then sure, look at a .40 or .45. If you can only load ten rounds, make them big ones.

I do like 1911s, though I will concede that one is dealing with a design that is over a century old and yes, the aforementioned guns are better choices. If you want one, you can still pick up a Springfield Armory 1911 for under a grand with a warranty. Or you can roll the dice on a Turkish or Filipino clone, either of which may be fine or they may be a piece-of-shit if you don't mind tinkering on it. Or haunt your local gunshop and keep an eye on the used case.

Advice for Today

Go vote if you haven't already, of course. As Jimmy Kimmel said: "Polls is short for bipolar."

Then: Unplug from the news. If you're not at work, go for a walk if the weather's nice. Binge-watch something. Clean your house. Go watch a movie. Read a book. Wax your car.

Anything but watching or reading the news.

What will happen, will. Que sera, sera.

Then, tomorrow, turn on the news and deal with it.

Hold Yer Breath...

Kamala Harris now leads Donald Trump in Iowa — a startling reversal for Democrats and Republicans who have all but written off the state’s presidential contest as a certain Trump victory.

A new Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa Poll shows Vice President Harris leading former President Trump 47% to 44% among likely voters just days before a high-stakes election that appears deadlocked in key battleground states.

I have some thoughts if this pans out. So check back in a few days.

Anyway, in a couple of days, we'll be back to TV ads being from sleazy ambulance chasers, sleazier Medicare Advantage insurers, and home-improvement ripoff artists.

One of the Better SNLs in Years

Starting with the cold open:

Heh. Heh. Heh.

The Dentists and Oral Surgeons Protection Plan From Bobby Brainworm

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a prominent proponent of debunked public health claims whom Donald Trump has promised to put in charge of health initiatives, said Saturday that Trump would push to remove fluoride from drinking water on his first day in office.

Fluoride strengthens teeth and reduces cavities by replacing minerals lost during normal wear and tear, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The addition of low levels of fluoride to drinking water has long been considered one of the greatest public health achievements of the last century.

Kennedy made the declaration on the social media platform X alongside a variety of claims about the heath effects of fluoride.

“On January 20, the Trump White House will advise all U.S. water systems to remove fluoride from public water,” Kennedy wrote. Trump and his wife, Melania Trump, “want to Make America Healthy Again,” he added, repeating a phrase Trump often uses and links to Kennedy.

I'm surprised that Bobby Brainworm isn't screeching about the Earth being flat, that the Apollo missions were faked and demanding to be in charge of NASA. Because he is just that sort of crazy.

Clocks

Hopefully, you remembered to set your clocks back before going to bed.

Except for Arizona, which is possibly the only good reason to live there.

Your Sunday Morning Prop Noise

Avro Lancaster:

Airplanes were far less complex then, which may be why the British were able to field three heavy bombers (the Lancaster, the Stirling and the Halifax).

If You're Not One of the Seventy Million Who Have Already Voted

You should go read this. I have nothing to add to it.

Of all the music that the TOFF plays at his rallies, I'm somewhat surprised that he hasn't played this tune:

All of the Debates, All of the Yelling

They happen right here, a post from fifteen years ago.

I wish I could say "stay cool, it'll all be over in a few days", but that ain't happening.

Caturday

In cat news, Speck hasn't been seen in several days.

Introducing….

The worst inflatable sex doll on the market.

True, That

And this:

Three Big Shockers.

1. Epstein and Trump were best buds.
2. Tucker Carlson is a religious whackadoodle.
3. Trump is a coward.

The guy whose dad paid off a doctor to write a letter lying about his having bone spurs to get him out of the draft really has no grounds to blather about someone else's bravery or lack thereof.

He could barely get into a garbage truck.

Trump in a garbage truck is a hell of a straight line. I'll bet the late-night guys had fun with that.

Because It's Friday

New Hope & Ivyland:

Here's an Idea: Put a Certified Nutjob in Charge of Medical Research and Public Health

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. told supporters on Monday that former President Donald Trump has promised to give him “control” of several public health agencies, including the US Department of Health and Human Services and the US Department of Agriculture, if he wins a second term in November.

Kennedy, who suspended his independent presidential campaign in August and endorsed Trump, said during a livestreamed organizing event that Trump told him he’d oversee a vast public health portfolio if the former president returns to the White House, and added that he’d prioritize his agenda for “making America healthy.”

“The key that I think I’m – you know, that President Trump has promised me is – is control of the public health agencies, which are HHS and its sub-agencies, CDC, FDA, NIH and a few others, and then also the USDA, which is – which, you know, is key to making America healthy. Because we’ve got to get off of seed oils, and we’ve got to get off of pesticide intensive agriculture,” Kennedy said, according to video of the event obtained by CNN.

Right, Good Ol' Bobby Brainworm is going to oversee health researchers. That will end well. He's been floating around the Felonious Celeb for seven years.

Meanwhile, Widdle Elon is promising hard times for most Americans if Trump wins, but you can bet the contracts for SpaceX won't feel a tremor.

Halloween Short Flicks

Tricking These Down, Here

Believe Him

What Trump says he'll do and the ramifications of that.

Arnold Endorses Kamala

In short, because Trump is a greedy fat fascist.

But don't take my word for it.

I don’t really do endorsements. I’m not shy about sharing my views, but I hate politics and don’t trust most politicians.

I also understand that people want to hear from me because I am not just a celebrity, I am a former Republican Governor.

My time as Governor taught me to…

— Arnold (@Schwarzenegger) October 30, 2024

Of course, fifty million people have voted already, so the impact of this might be somewhat limited. But at least he took a stand.

Donald Trump, Greg Abbott and Ken Paxton Killed Josseli Barnica

So did John Roberts, Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Barrett. They all have blood on their hands.

Josseli Barnica didn't have to die. She had a miscarriage. The doctors refused to treat her for forty hours, because of Texas law. She died from a subsequent infection that was entirely preventable.

Every doctor consulted by Pro Publica agreed that what happened to Ms. Barnica was nothing sort of state-mandated malpractice. She did not have to die. She died because she had the misfortune to be pregnant and miscarry in Texas, a state that places zero value on the lives of mothers because members of the Christian Taliban rule the state.

To put it succinctly, Ms. Barnica was sacrificed on the altar of the Cult of the Fetus.

Her death was eminently foreseeable. Her death was a consequence of Texan abortion law that was made known to the cultists who enacted that law and to the justices who cleared the way for the law.

They all have her blood on their hands.

No Balls at All

It's just cowardice. As Stephen Colbert pointed out, the job of the editorial/opinion department is to have opinions. Until Murdoch trashed the WSJ, they were famous for having a wall between the news operation and the editorialists.

Bezos's craven groveling to Trump has cost his paper over a quarter-million digital subscribers, who had paid from $29/yr to $100/yr. So, maybe ten million bucks, give or take. But that's an amount that he can find under his couch cushions, unless Vance is using it.

Hmmm

The TOFF and widdle Elon have seventeen kids between them by six women.

Now, imagine if they were both women. Imagine the utter meltdown that the Right and the Christian Taliban would be having. Imagine the attack ads they would be running. Imagine the 24/7 misogyny from Republicans.

But when men do it, such as both of those Russian Assets, silence.

Anyway, just tossing this in:

The FOFF can't bring himself to denounce speakers at his MSG hate rally, instead, calling it an "absolute love fest."

Blitzing These Down, Here