224 Comments

  1. Tres Cool

    mornin’ banjos

    whaddup doh’

    • Nephilium

      Thought of you when the local indie rag posted this retrospective.

      • PieInTheSky

        to much W there not that diverse

      • Nephilium

        You’re complaining that there’s too many women looking for men in old personal ads in newspapers?

      • PieInTheSky

        I assumed that is the F not the W

      • Nephilium

        You are correct, I was misremembering the codes. Scene was the “indie/punk/alt” rag. The other demographics had their own freely distribute rags.

      • Tres Cool

        Ya know, I never fucked with BackPage. CL personals got me laid a lot.
        And the last one (Jugsy) still hasn’t left.

      • prolefeed

        That’s a … qualified … vote of confidence for Jugsy on V-day, you hopeless romantic. 🤣

    • DrOtto

      This is exactly how I feel on Dec 26th about Christmas.

  2. Ownbestenemy

    In some team building this morning presented each of us with a probability question, failed to recognize it was a conditional probability question, and presented the wrong answer even after a couple of us presented the math on why he was wrong. I think used chatGPT to show him he was wrong. I used a math website to show him he was wrong. He still is saying those are all wrong.

    • Nephilium

      Was it some bad take on the Monty Hall problem?

      • Ownbestenemy

        Exactly. Confused the question presented with an answer from the Monty Hall problem.

    • PieInTheSky

      I think there is a word missing in that first sentence

      • Ownbestenemy

        It originally said “Our boss, in some…” and I got lazy and cut things out.

      • Not Adahn

        Does his position require being able to do math?

      • Ownbestenemy

        Its a low level management job…so no. In the past when a tech…absolutely.

      • UnCivilServant

        It does require being able to trust feedback from his people when they present evidence of an issue.

        So he’s failed.

      • Ownbestenemy

        Bingo

    • Pope Jimbo

      I think that exercise went quite well.

      All you potential trouble makers have clearly identified yourselves as shitlords who need watching.

  3. Rat on a train

    Denver Slashes City Budget to Fund Illegals
    But they are net tax payers, right?

    • The Other Kevin

      Amazing how if it’s to balance a budget there’s nothing left to cut, but if it’s to support the Democratic vote machine then get out your knives.

      • prolefeed

        It’s a two-fer: buy illegal votes, and gut the election fraud detection agency.

      • Rat on a train

        Remember Obama rules:
        Ensure to inflict as much pain on the public as possible.
        Spending more to keep something closed is good if it inflicts pain.

      • Nephilium

        Obligatory Sowell article on this very point.

    • DrOtto

      They make it up on volume.

  4. Nephilium

    Illegal Immigrants Entering U.S. Through the Northern Border in Record Numbers

    /looks north at the lake

    Are they swimming across? What’s the boating equivalent of a coyote?

    • Not Adahn

      River otter?

    • Toxteth O'Grady

      Beaver?

    • Ownbestenemy

      Hire a Monstro? Taking a ride with Jonah? Thats all I got.

      • Nephilium

        Well, there are legends about the Lake Erie Monster (hence the minor league hockey team name).

    • Tres Cool

      Capt. Merrill Stubing ?

      • The Other Kevin

        Snowbacks?

    • Pope Jimbo

      Mostly walking it looks like

      A group of nine people who had mostly crossed the U.S.-Canada border illegally were found suffering from exposure to harsh weather conditions near Warroad on Tuesday.

      The Royal Canadian Mounted Police received an emergency call from a member of the group early Tuesday morning. According to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, its agents responded at approximately 4:50 a.m.

      The group was located in a flooded bog west of Warroad, according to CBP.

      The management of the U.S.-Canada border has been the subject of recent focus as authorities in both countries seek to control illegal migration in both directions under the terms of a joint treaty.

      Shortly after the treaty was tightened last month, eight migrants from India and Romania drowned trying to enter the U.S. from Canada by crossing the St. Lawrence River by boat in Quebec.

      In January 2022, police in Canada found the bodies of four members of an Indian family, including an infant, on the frigid North Dakota-Minnesota border of Manitoba as they tried to cross into the United States on foot.

      A Florida man is facing federal charges of human smuggling in the latter case.

      Seriously, they hired Florida Man to guide them through the frozen tundra? They deserved what they got.

      • Not Adahn

        The St. Lawrence is a for-real river.

      • Gustave Lytton

        seek to control illegal migration in both directions

        Ok…

      • Nephilium

        Do you think Canada really wants all the Progressives who threaten to move up there every election cycle?

  5. WTF

    Joe Biden’s Classified Docs Contain More Evidence Hunter’s Influence Peddling Was A Family Affair
    Impeachment evidence counters Biden’s claims, shows he met with many of son’s major foreign clients

    Of course the MSM will bury it as best they can or “explain” how it’s totally not what it seems like if they can’t bury it effectively.

    • Ownbestenemy

      At this point I wonder if there has been a conversation on how they can…take care of Hunter…so Biden can go all rage about how dare you talk about his dead son (part deux)

      • Nephilium

        Are they going to set him up with bottled water?

      • Sean

        Sprinkle a lil Fentanyl on Cracky.

      • WTF

        Today is Wednesday, isn’t it?

      • Strange Brew

        Yes, a continuous series of attempted killings by the secret service in which they contaminate Cracky with all sorts of poisons, only to find out that Hunter is immune to all substances because his tolerance is other worldly.

      • R C Dean

        It ends with Hunter pulling one of the agents aside and saying “Man, I don’t what you put on Cracky, but can you do me a solid and hit me again?”

    • WTF

      When did it become fashionable to have no knowledge of your customer base?

      • Not Adahn

        “Gamers are dead — gamers don’t need to be the market for video games”

      • UnCivilServant

        When businesses hired for rightthink instead of results.

      • Sensei

        Which customer? The buyer or FedGov?

  6. Pope Jimbo

    Uffda. No more buffalo mascots I guess.

    Dakota Middle School must begin the process of finding a new mascot.

    One of Rochester Public Schools’ newest schools, Dakota opened in 2022 and worked with Native students, their parents and the American Indian Parent Advisory Committee in selecting its mascot of the Bison.

    Tuesday, Dakota Principal Levi Lundak emailed parents to inform them that due to a change in state law and the rejection of an appeal, a new mascot must be named. The intent is to find a new mascot that will continue to honor the heritage of Native families.

    Personally, I’d go with George Custer as my new mascot.

    • UnCivilServant

      Nah. Go with Smallpox.

      • slumbrew

        Amherst isn’t using the Lord Jeffs anymore. Probably get some deals on old swag.

    • Gustave Lytton

      So the Indians are now claiming to be bison?

      • Gustave Lytton

        There’s a stolen valor/cultural appropriation angle of buffalo soldiers in there too.

      • UnCivilServant

        I wager it’s yet another case of someone getting offended on behalf of someone who isn’t offended.

      • Ownbestenemy

        They claimed the moon so why not?

    • Gender Traitor

      …the Minnesota legislature passed a law to end the use of Native mascots in Minnesota public schools.

      So no more native North American species?

      At least there are some good, safe options that roll trippingly off the tongue:

      Dakota Kangaroos 🦘
      Dakota Koalas 🐨
      Dakota Wallabies (No wallaby emoji? Now I haz a sad! 😢)

      • Pope Jimbo

        Impressive amount of flair. He’s just not doing the minimum.

      • DrOtto

        Even at a glance, I don’t want him around my children.

      • R.J.

        He kinda looks like a bison.

      • Zwak says the real is not governable, but self-governing.

        Or at least ate one.

      • Tres Cool

        Great Crow….he even has the Fun-O-Meter

    • creech

      And “Garry Owen” as the school song.

  7. Pope Jimbo

    My wife scored big this Valentine’s Day.

    I dislocated my finger last night playing hoops and know have a knuckle the size of a walnut. She’s in for some terrific foreplay.

    • Sean

      Oh my.

  8. Sean

    I played https://squaredle.com/xp 02/14:
    *24/24 words (+4 bonus words)
    📖 In the top 1% by bonus words

    I played https://squaredle.com 02/14:
    *40/40 words (+10 bonus words)
    📖 In the top 17% by bonus words
    🔥 Solve streak: 143

    • Rat on a train

      This week’s assignment comes from a buyer in Vancouver.

      • Pope Jimbo

        I would have guessed an anonymous buyer. HB from Washington DC.

        Then see your work being sold to Democratic donors for millions.

    • UnCivilServant

      No images of the art in question?

      how is this journalism?

    • prolefeed

      If the teacher had made agreements with the students and parents to act as a gallery owner on their behalf, they could have taken the usual 50% or higher cut of the sales price, and no one would have had cause to complain. He’ll, they could have passed it off as teaching students how to become professional artists. But they got greedy.

  9. Not Adahn

    So, there’s a lawsuit against the artificial magazine restriction law in DC.

    Check out the argument from the defender of the restrictions:

    Ashwin Phatak, the principal deputy solicitor general for the District, said studies showed that people using firearms in self-defense on average fired two or three shots. If the District raised the limit because people felt that larger magazines would make them safer from crime, “an arms race” would follow, Phatak said.

    “They may want a machine gun for self-defense; they may want a grenade launcher for self-defense,” Phatak said. “They have not put forward any coherent theory why they need more than eleven rounds.”

    • R C Dean

      And here I am waiting for a coherent theory on how magazine restrictions are constitutional.

      I’m not even going to engage on whether they make anybody safer. Not relevant.

    • Gustave Lytton

      Need? That’s not how any of this works. Asshat can fuck right off.

      • Not Adahn

        Studies show that most police officers never need to fire their handguns in a self-defense situation. Obviously DC should ban generally issuing guns to police.

    • UnCivilServant

      Where did you get the idea that “Need” has anything to do with it?

      • Not Adahn

        Well, naturally before you can have a right, you must submit a Certificate of Need and have it approved by the local authoritahs.

      • UnCivilServant

        That reminds me, I still have to get some paperwork together…

      • Suthenboy

        If they keep getting away with this shit need for self-defense is going to have everything to do with it.

    • prolefeed

      “They may want a machine gun for self-defense …”

      That prior violation of rights justifies any and all future violations of rights?

      Had a discussion of the ACLU with Mrs. Prole, where I said the organization that used to defend Nazis’ free speech would now call marching in Skokie hate speech. Said any alleged civil rights organization that opposes the right to self-defense has been skin-suited by authoritarians and doesn’t deserve further donations from her.

      • R C Dean

        “That prior violation of rights justifies any and all future violations of rights?”

        Your Supreme Court appointment, sir.

    • Zwak says the real is not governable, but self-governing.

      Does anyone need more than one attorney while before a judge and jury?

      Does anyone need the right to remain silent?

      Does anyone need to be free?

  10. The Other Kevin

    Happy Valentine’s Day to you all. This day is usually low key for us because our anniversary is the day before. Which is nice because it’s way easier to get reservations at a nice place on the 13th. This year things are a bit lean, but we spent the day together and we were happy we could do that. Thinking back, we were never going to be the couple who both worked 9-5 and went on a cruise every year. But we are putting together one hell of a story.

    • Pope Jimbo

      Congrats on the anniversary!

      On our first anniversary, the best place we could afford was the Olive Garden. We ate there for many subsequent anniversaries because of “tradition”. Now we usually just stay in.

      • prolefeed

        I’m gonna avoid the crowds at restaurants today and smoke a pork shoulder to make nacho Cubanos.

        Told Mrs. Prole that when you’re in love, every day is Valentine’s Day.

      • The Other Kevin

        If I said that to Mrs. TOK she’d make pretend throwing up noises. But like your Mrs., mine absolutely appreciates my cooking, especially a good BBQ.

      • Gustave Lytton

        Mine too.

        We’re having leftover chicken I smoked this past weekend.

      • Nephilium

        The girlfriend and I went out for paczki and pints at a local brewery last night, and are planning on hitting up another one today who’s doing a special charcuterie pretzel. Large brewhouse pretzel with dark chocolate heart-shaped cookies, chocolate-covered strawberries, x’s & o’s gummies, and chocolate-covered cherries. Roses of assorted gourmet meats, cheese cubes, assorted olives, and more.

      • UnCivilServant

        For a moment I was worried they’d put the chocolate on the pretzel, but it was an unfortunate line break in the browser that separated the dark chocolate from the cookies.

      • Pope Jimbo

        We won’t go to a restaurant, but I will be heading out soon to buy flowers and a card.

        Our first Valentine’s Day together Mrs. Holiness told me that we are broke and not to waste any money on flowers, candy or a card. Being a dumb rookie husband I listened to her. The defense of “You told me not to buy flowers!” did not carry any water in the argument that started the second I returned home empty handed.

      • UnCivilServant

        “You expect me to not take you at your word?”

      • Nephilium

        I have managed to put up a strong resistance to purchasing cut flowers for any girlfriend/event. I stick with either small live plants, or alternate material flowers (steel, leather, chocolate, etc.). The Lego kits have made it much easier.

      • Pope Jimbo

        Mrs. Holiness is pretty low maintenance. So flowers one day of the year is probably worth it.

      • pistoffnick

        Here is a token of my love (hands her a cut flower). It will wither and die in a few days.

        That always seemed like the wrong message. I don’t buy flowers, clothing, or jewelry. I buy cheese and meat!

        We are having 1/4 wheel of raclette cheese melted over steamed cauliflower with pickles and charcuterie (shark cootchie, as she calls it)

      • Ownbestenemy

        shark cootchie

        I uh…YDY

      • Not Adahn

        “Cloaca” sounds too clinical.

      • R C Dean

        I have no doubt shark cootchie is on offer at certain select Chinese wet markets.

      • Nephilium

        Exactly. The alternate flowers I get will last (well, except the chocolate ones, those get eaten). Plus, with most of the Lego flowers, if she wants, she can bring them into her salon to decorate.

      • robc

        I am making paella tonight.

      • The Other Kevin

        We had always talked about going to Tahiti for an anniversary. But she became a stay at home mom, and now we have the gym, so that extra few thousand bucks never showed up. Even still, we’ve had a lot of adventures and there will be more.

      • kinnath

        I took my wife to Singapore on our 30th anniversary. It was a delayed honeymoon.

      • The Other Kevin

        Awesome. See that’s the spirit.

      • Ownbestenemy

        Since we know the kids won’t live long in our house in Nevada, we have been planning out the financial windfall from that and one thing is to do our much delayed honeymoon.

      • R C Dean

        “that extra few thousand bucks”

        That would get you there. Were you planning on coming back?

        Just razzin’ ya, TOK. I hope your gym gets sorted out – Mrs. Dean has had the chance to take over a couple of gyms and has passed. Long hours, hard work, dealing with the public – not easy.

    • Zwak says the real is not governable, but self-governing.

      Your ability to stay positive, or at least put that face on, is one of the greatest things about this site, and a real inspiration for me with all my struggles.

      Happy Anniversary!

      • The Other Kevin

        Wow thank you for that compliment! I’m not always successful but I do my best.

    • Pine_Tree

      We’re low key on Valentine’s Day because it’s offspring #4’s birthday, so that gets more notice (17 today), and both of us score very very low on “gifts” in the “love language” thing.

      • dbleagle

        Happy Arizona Statehood Day to one and all! Back in 1912 President Taft vetoed the AZ statehood bill because it had the initiative, referendum, and recall in the proposed state constitution. Taft was a judicial sort and he didn’t take kindly to those three ideas. The Territorial lege took them out, Congress passed another statehood bill and Taft signed it on this day. The new state promptly put all three back into the state constitution.

    • Mojeaux

      Happy Anniversary!

      We filed for bankruptcy on VDay 4 years ago. We ended up arguing at Sams Club while buying toilet paper and vitamins, had hot dogs, and got a tray of cupcakes. It was not a fun day, so since, it’s been “the day we filed for bankruptcy and were in a pissy mood.”

      TODAY THOUGH!!!! We have the Chiefs Superbowl parade!!!! (No, we’re not going. TV is better.)

      • Necron 99

        Speaking of bad VDays, it was 18 years ago today that I was diagnosed with Stage 4 Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. At first I was kind of pissy on VDay, remembering chemotherapy and the hell that brought. Then, due to the many PET scans, they found a spot on my right kidney that was later determined to be renal cell carcinoma. Had old righty removed and lefty has been doing overtime with no complaints since. The odds of noticing RCC prior to pissing blood is very low – in fact, my older brother was diagnosed with RCC after he pissed blood. He’s dead now.

        So, VDay has mixed feelings for me now, fortunate I went through the hell, which saved my life from the other cancer. Sad my brother didn’t have the same luck. Very happy I’m here to celebrate another VDay with my wife. I’ll probably pick up some ribeye steaks on the way home.

      • Mojeaux

        That’s understandable and I’m happy that was caught and you lived to Valentine another Day.

        Filing for bankruptcy was a necessary evil and I felt free of my POS house. It was the argument later at Sam’s Club that leaves me with a bad taste in my mouth.

    • WTF

      Why do think the Dems want millions of illegals flooding across the border?

    • Ownbestenemy

      I was told this is untrue, there is no fraud and our elections are the most secure thing on the planet, next to Biden’s storage locations.

    • robc

      But I thought there was no fraudulent votes!

  11. Pope Jimbo

    Rubes in the Snow

    How dare these wackos try to run their own government?

    Crosslake may soon be the first Crow Wing County city committed to administering its own elections this year, including all absentee ballots.

    Having declared its intent to do so in a 4-1 vote late last year, the City Council will discuss the possibility again at a 6 p.m. Monday, Feb. 12, special meeting in Crosslake City Hall.

    The reasons for the change, according to the citizen-led effort, are increased election security and emergency preparedness, along with more trust and transparency in the process.

    Actually a pretty good article. The journalo tends to write from a “what a bunch of paranoid crazies” view, but enough quotes make it into the story to make it interesting.

    • Pope Jimbo

      The million dollar quote:

      Farder said the reason the topic resonates with her is because she doesn’t understand the resistance to the change, including from the county.

      “Why would anyone care that we want to count our own ballots?” Farder asked. “That’s just my own — it makes me more interested, because it feels like it shouldn’t really be an issue.”

      I’ve had the same thoughts when we tried to pass voter ID laws. Why do they fight it so hard? Especially if there isn’t any voter fraud going on?

      • Ownbestenemy

        People might get the spark of liberty and self-governance. We cannot have those dangerous ideas running wild.

  12. Sensei

    No mention of Biden’s memorable shrinkflation observations on X (obligatory – formerly the heroic Twitter) video. Darn that corporate greed! We all know that snack food manufacturers costs haven’t changed, right?

    The consumer-price index rose 0.3% in January and 3.1% over the last year. Excluding food and energy, core prices have increased 3.9% year-over-year. That’s progress from a year or two ago. Prices for goods have fallen over the last year, which is good news if you’re looking to buy a used car or washing machine.

    But January’s 0.4% monthly increase in the core inflation index (sans food and energy) is the highest since last May. Some analysts blame the government’s measurement of housing, which rises and falls with a lag. Owners’ equivalent rent rose 0.6% in January. More startling was the 2.4% increase in hotel and lodging prices, which had declined for most of last year.

    Home insurance was also up 0.7% in January and 4.1% over the last year, which represents the biggest increase since April 2015. Repair of household items (18.2% since January 2023) was the largest on record—not good news if you need to fix a washing machine. Car repair and insurance prices also continue to climb. Prices for food away from home have accelerated over the last six months, which makes it tougher to take the family out for Sunday dinner.

    In sum, inflation in services shows little sign of easing. Services excluding energy rose 0.7% in January, the most since September 2022.

    https://www.wsj.com/articles/consumer-prices-inflation-sticky-stocks-federal-reserve-jerome-powell-921d7929?st=lluvpfqgpuaox21&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink

    • kinnath

      My car insurance is up 25% since the beginning of 2020. Food pricing is terrible.

      We had the exterior of our house completely redone last year (siding, soffits, fascia, gutters, and roof). The cost was staggering compare to the original construction costs in 2005.

      The core inflation index is a fucking lie.

      • PieInTheSky

        You need to haggle better

    • The Other Kevin

      “Prices for goods have fallen over the last year, which is good news if you’re looking to buy a used car or washing machine.”
      Mrs. TOK stopped by CVS yesterday to pick up some of those Lindor chocolate truffles. They wanted $1 per piece. And the Godiva ones were $1.25. Yes I know they raise the price for Valentine’s Day, but that was unreal. So we went without chocolate. I still get anxious when I go grocery shopping.

      The best they can say is “prices aren’t increasing as much as they were a few years ago” which like saying they only punched you in the face three times instead of five so you should be happy.

      Bottom line is that prices are still way up, and wages haven’t kept up, and that’s all you need to know.

      • Fatty Bolger

        Who ya gonna believe, us or your empty wallet?

    • Pope Jimbo

      It is like none of you print out my comments and keep them handy. Grocery prices are down! Down I tell you!

      Grocery prices in the Twin Cities may have hit a tipping point and are now slightly lower than they were a year ago.

      That’s good news for consumers’ pocketbooks as residents in the Minneapolis-St. Paul region continue to experience lower inflation than the nation as a whole, even if the rate has bumped up a bit in recent months.

      Grocery prices in the region fell 0.8% last month compared with a year ago, according to data released Tuesday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

      In the metro area, prices for fruits and vegetables declined by 7.2%, and dairy and related products decreased by 5.4%. Prices for cereals and baking products dropped 2.7% and for meats, poultry, fish and eggs by 2.3%. Meanwhile, restaurant prices rose 4.6%.

      Then several paragraphs later…

      But it wasn’t all good news for grocery prices in the latest inflation report. While they improved year over year, grocery prices in the Twin Cities rose a bit faster — 0.6% — over the previous two months.

      Economists don’t expect grocery prices — or prices for most items — to return to 2020 levels. While some items may see some deflation, they mostly expect prices to stop rising as fast as inflation cools off.

      So you wreckers and kulaks had better stop bad mouthing Brandon’s economy.

    • R C Dean

      “X (obligatory – formerly the heroic Twitter)”

      I’ve noticed people have stop saying the “used to be Twitter” thing.

      • grrizzly

        I keep referring to it as Twitter. No X for me.

  13. PieInTheSky

    The Muslim conquests of territories were significantly different from Western colonialism. Our motivation wasn’t rooted in worldly gains or plundering wealth. In many cases, we were provoked, leading to conquests. Upon conquest, we became an integral part of the land, rather than ruling over the masses with a sense of superiority. Today, you won’t find museums in Turkish or Arab lands filled with looted artifacts from India or other regions. Muslim conquerors didn’t transfer wealth of the conquered territories but utilized them for the benefit of locals.

    https://twitter.com/AyishaMuhamad/status/1757311857973489931

    The Turks were not ruling in eastern Europe no sir. No wealth transfer or slave transfer either. What swell guys they were

    • UnCivilServant

      Today, you won’t find museums in Turkish or Arab lands filled with looted artifacts from India or other regions.

      Because they destroyed them instead.

    • RBS

      Her feed could make an American prog’s head explode.

    • Stinky Wizzleteats

      Quite a magnanimous bunch weren’t they? Now ask why there aren’t hardly any black people in the former Ottoman Empire.

    • Mojeaux

      Vlad Tepes says, “Whatchu talkin bout Willis?”

    • R C Dean

      They were provoked into invasions by the spectacle of seeing non-Muslims walking around.

      And lets do talk about the genocide in the Indian subcontinent and environs.

    • WTF

      Who are you that is so knowledgeable in the ways of science?

      • Tres Cool

        +/- 1 duck

      • Translucent Chum

        What manner of man are you that makes fire with no flint or tinder?

    • The Other Kevin

      That upper right one looks like the remodel of Soldier Field in Chicago.

      • OBJ FRANKELSON

        Do you mean that poorly rendered CGI spacecraft landed on a lovely neo-classical structure?

    • Stinky Wizzleteats

      Impressive yet she’ll still get squeezed out by AI.

      • Not Adahn

        Unless she does it on twitch while wearing a bikini.

      • Ownbestenemy

        We need research!

    • R C Dean

      Interesting that the faces are “upside down” as she draws them. It would never occur to me to try to do a portrait that way.

      • Ownbestenemy

        It is a known practice, especially in learning to draw the face, because it helps rid preconceived ideas of what certain facial features ‘look’ like. In this case, its just showing off though and rightly so.

  14. PieInTheSky

    I think $150k – $225k has to be the worst salary range.

    You make too much to say “F*ck this place, I quit.”

    Yet not enough to be financially free without a job for any significant amount of time.

    https://twitter.com/TheJackForge/status/1757140668403904839

    • Nephilium

      Huh? Why can’t you save more if you’re making $150k? I’m not quite at that range, but somehow I’ve managed to save enough that I could go without a job for quite a while (although it would eventually hurt my retirement prospects).

    • Ownbestenemy

      Yet not enough to be financially free without a job for any significant amount of time.

      So you’re telling us you are piss-poor with the management of your finances.

      • Stinky Wizzleteats

        Yep, idiots spend commensurate with their income and thereby get themselves trapped. Fuck that guy.

  15. The Late P Brooks

    Speaking of prices, what about electronics? Computers, teevees, stereos…

    Maybe I’m just out of the loop, but I don’t remember seeing any big pre-supar-bowl teevee sales as in days of yore.

    • Ownbestenemy

      Most are on the cheap right now from what I have seen and what I have to keep veering Mrs OBE away from getting right at this moment.

    • Nephilium

      GPU/CPU prices are still up a bit last time I checked due to AI and crypto mining.

  16. The Late P Brooks

    There sure are a lot of “What will we do about Joe?” articles floating around on the google news.

    1000%

    • R.J.

      The dens made that monster. He will not leave or retire now and he has all kinds of executive power thanks to years of government mismanagement. They can cry all they want. He is going nowhere.
      Also, the people running the deep state have really enjoyed the last three years of total control. They are commies, and they win with Joe. He’s not leaving.
      The dems have no control over their monster. I have no pity for them.

    • PieInTheSky

      “Contrary to stubborn anthropological myth, people everywhere fall in love… The idea that romantic love is an invention of Western culture is itself an invention of Western culture, and a rather implausible one at that.”

      https://twitter.com/SteveStuWill/status/1757698699998732572

      • UnCivilServant

        Where did this person get the idea anyone thought romance was even a modern invention? A shift to tie romance to marriage is a modern western trend, but to conflate that with “romance is a western invention” is disingenuous at best.

      • PieInTheSky

        I heard this notion on the internet… like ancient X did not have love

      • UnCivilServant

        Given the prevalence in so many myths and folklores, I find it absurd that anyone would make such an assertion.

      • robc

        They never read Song of Solomon obviously.

      • robc

        “A shift to tie romance to marriage is a modern western trend”

        And even that is wrong. Now, the order of operations might have been different (first marriage, then romance), but it was still there.

      • Mojeaux

        The “Western comstruct” did not posit that romantic love didn’t exist. It posited that marriage amongst the upper classes was not about romantic love. Marriage was for a power and money alliance/exchange amongst those of relatively equal rank. If romantic love existed between the two, yay. The bride was property and the groom wasn’t much more than that. You were to go elsewhere for love.

      • Mojeaux

        The reason Victorian times are given the honor as to when romantic love grew in popularity was because the Industrial Revolution leveled some of the playing field re power and money such that lower classes with money (say, the merchant class) had a wider field to choose from which would increase the odds of finding someone to love whom they could ALSO marry without thinking first and foremost about alliances.

        Romantic love has always been more for the poors and icky people more than a privilege of the upper classes.

  17. Tres Cool

    I remember reading this from Bash.org

    Well, there are a lot of reasons that love should be modeled on a potatoes and not a flower such as a rose. I mean, roses only last like a couple weeks and that’s if you leave them in water. They really only exist to be pretty– so that’s like saying: “my love for you is transitory and based solely on your appearance.”

    But a potato! Potatoes last for fucking ever, man! In fact, not only will they not rot, they actually grow shit even if you just leave them in the sack– that part alone makes it a good symbol– And there’s more! There are so many ways to enjoy a potato! You can even make a battery with it! And that’s like saying “I have many ways in which I show my love for you” potatoes may be ugly, but they’re still awesome. So tell her your love is like a potato, man, and that’s like saying: “It doesn’t matter at all what you look like, I’ll still love you!”

    • Nephilium

      Always remember the most important three words today.

      • R C Dean

        Your boyfriend called?

      • Tres Cool

        “Im not pregnant”

      • Ownbestenemy

        That is a weird thing for a guy to say, but it is 2024

      • Gender Traitor

        “Diamonds or pearls?”

      • Gender Traitor

        ::reads comment:: Correct answer!
        ::clicks link:: ***SIGH!!!*** Not really what I had in mind… 🙄

      • Gender Traitor

        Combine the two into amethyst and we’ll talk.

    • UnCivilServant

      “So I’m ugly and utilitarian to you?”

    • Gender Traitor

      As a chick, I strongly advise against this approach.

      • Compelled Speechless

        Amber Heard? Is that you?

  18. UnCivilServant

    In a meeting with a vendor.

    We’ve got a Frenchman, a programmer whose machine indicates a language setting of “German (Switzerland), so I guess he’s Swiss, and some Texans.

    I have the most trouble understanding some New York people and the Frenchman. The Frenchman because of his thick accent, the New York people because they aren’t making any sense.

    • Ownbestenemy

      I am not sure that is ironic, don’t you think?

      • UnCivilServant

        How many of them have worked on the specific type of fixture you find on aircraft? Would the airline’s insurance cover it? Would the FAA set in if a non-certified third party worked on the plane’s systems? Clearly it’s required for a flight, so it’s regulated. Would they have the tools and parts on board?

  19. The Late P Brooks

    Dreamland

    Unfinished tower blocks in Los Angeles that have become a destination for vandals, graffiti artists and BASE jumping thrill-seekers have cost 3,000 hours of police time so far, authorities said Tuesday.

    LAPD Chief Michael Moore told a news conference Tuesday that the Oceanview Plaza Towers in a busy downtown area of the city had “strained our deployment.”

    “We have called in some officers on an overtime basis, so that we can provide for these added patrols or station them at that site to deter vandals and others from gaining access to it while also ensuring that we meet the minimum deployment requirements for stations across the city,” he said.

    He was speaking after footage went viral of a man parachuting from the top of one of the towers on Monday, prompting an urgent safety warning from city mayor Karen Bass.

    Video shared on Instagram appeared to show someone paragliding from the top of the towers.

    ——-

    The towers began construction in 2015, but by 2018 money had ran out and building work stopped in 2019 after the developer went out of business, NBC 4 LA reported.

    One day they just ran out of money and stopped working. Nobody knows why.

    • R C Dean

      EFP = Explosively Formed Penetrator.

      Had to look it up.

      • kinnath

        thank you for your efforts.

  20. rhywun

    Dem Wins George Santos’ Former Seat

    This might be peak Stupid for the Stupid Party.

    I guarantee you if the parties were reversed, a Dem in this position would not attract a single vote for expulsion from another Dem. But no, the Dems got a 100+ Stupids to willfully take one step closer to ceding total control back the Dems.

    SMDH.

    • UnCivilServant

      I’m afraid those titles got dissolved after the first world war, she’s no princess.

      • R.J.

        I saw “titties got dissolved.”

      • Not Adahn

        Just pixellated.

  21. CPRM

    I wonder if Valentine’s day steak sales will drop significantly due to Ash Wednesday or if it’s just too passe for most to restrict themselves for the sake of stodgy unwoke religion? On that front, I’m guessing Il Papa himself will probably partake of a porterhouse today.

    • Not Adahn

      I think the church says you can only wear gray or black lingerie, and only unflavored lube.

    • pistoffnick

      Steak and BJ day is in March

      • Sean

        You’re doing it wrong.

  22. The Late P Brooks

    Tools down

    Two Department of Homeland Security officials told NBC News Immigration and Customs Enforcement is now forecasting a budget shortfall of over $500 million unless Congress takes action. Other areas of the department, including Customs and Border Protection, are facing similar shortfalls, they said.

    At that rate, key areas of ICE operations could run out of money by May, the officials said.

    Under the bipartisan border deal, DHS was supposed to get more than $15 billion to do things Republicans had demanded, such as deporting more migrants and stopping fentanyl smuggling.

    Without the new funding, the agency will not only be unprepared to deal with a rapid increase in migrant flow across the border, but it will also be unable to maintain the status quo, two DHS officials told NBC News. The officials said DHS agencies will soon have to move resources from other areas to scrape by.

    ——-

    At the southwest border, meanwhile, the federal agencies will not have enough money for needed new hires, and there will be fewer arrests, detentions and deportations of immigrants.

    The bill would have included $7.6 billion for ICE and it would have dramatically increased detention space for migrants.

    Now not only will ICE be unable to increase detention space, but it will also have to carry out fewer deportations than it has in the past year, when deportations nearly doubled from the previous year to 142,580. It may be unable to deport many migrants who already have final orders of deportation.

    Sounds like they are scheming to make their budget problems as painful and visible as possible. Standard negotiating tactics. Congress will, of course, fold like a two dollar lawn chair.

  23. The Late P Brooks

    “A reduction in ICE operations would significantly harm border security, national security and public safety,” a DHS spokesperson said.

    Nobody move, or the nigger gets it.

    • The Other Kevin

      The only way to save it would be to pass a huge spending bill in which that funding only accounts for 0.5%. The only way.

    • R C Dean

      That presumes ICE operations are having a noticeable positive impact on border security, etc. I for one don’t regard more rapid processing of illegals so they can roam the country indefinitely as a positive impact.

    • R C Dean

      Although, I have noticed on the local news that nearly every day they report on some group of illegals that got smuggled in and caught. I have no idea why they don’t all just walk up to a border patrol station and say “Yo soy refugee. Dame asylum.” I think that’s pretty much all it takes.

      • rhywun

        That is all it takes but the message spreads slowly, I guess.

  24. The Late P Brooks

    And creating a nuisance

    The Democratic National Committee has taken multiple steps in recent days to portray Kennedy as a spoiler who would help Republican frontrunner Donald Trump defeat President Joe Biden, arguing Kennedy is funded primarily by wealthy donors aligned with the former president.

    Last week, the DNC filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission alleging that Kennedy’s campaign had illegally coordinated with American Values 2024, a PAC backing his White House bid. Kennedy’s campaign has denied coordinating with the group.

    In a call with reporters outlining the complaint, DNC adviser Ramsey Reid blamed Trump and his donors for turning Kennedy into a “stalking horse” by funding the PAC.

    “We’re concerned that Donald Trump is disrespecting the democratic process. It’s pretty clear that Trump and his megadonors are propping up RFK Jr. as a stalking horse,” Reid said.

    And that is why we cannot allow anyone the opportunity to vote for him.

  25. The Late P Brooks

    Although, I have noticed on the local news that nearly every day they report on some group of illegals that got smuggled in and caught. I have no idea why they don’t all just walk up to a border patrol station and say “Yo soy refugee. Dame asylum.” I think that’s pretty much all it takes.

    According to several articles I have read, they pretty much do. They show up at established collection points and wait for the border patrol bus to pick them up. It’s cheaper and easier than Uber.

  26. pistoffnick

    From upper management:

    …to ensure brand consistency by standardizing our email signatures so that all team members have the same email signature format…

    That’s great! I’m sure that will be less confusing and sell more units. But why is my title in my email signature “Princ Engineer”?

    Am I a prince? Do I get a scepter and a fancy chair? I suppose concubines are out of the question?

    • UnCivilServant

      No, you’re a Principal, you get to rule over a school.

    • R C Dean

      You engineer princs?