379 Comments

  1. Not Adahn

    Paddy was either stupid or lying if he claimed he couldn’t buy a laptop charger at WalMart.

    • UnCivilServant

      “It’s not [brand], that can’t possibly work with my machine.”

      “Sir, I assure you, this is a compatable charger.”

      “What do you know, you work at Wal-Mart”

      /how I see the discussion going down.

    • UnCivilServant

      Oh, and if you look at what he says:

      Where Walmart doesn’t have a plug adapter for my UK laptop

      That tells me several options were available – from a power brick with a US plug to an outlet adapter from US plug to those godawful UK plugs. I suspect he was looking for too specific an item rather than a solution, and possibly in the wrong part of the store.

      • Count Potato

        Or you know, he’s an idiot.

      • R.J.

        I’m going with idiot. Walmart has all kinds of phone adaptors for charging.

      • R.J.

        I am going to take a big dig on this guy, maybe a little out of character. He comes from a country so full of mama’s boys that they banned everything down to fucking SCISSORS. Of course his dumb ass doesn’t know the difference between a BB gun and an actual weapon. I feel sad for the UK. They went from producing “mad dogs and Englishmen” to making utter pansies like him.

      • Nephilium

        Depending on where in the country he was, it was also the wrong place to look. I wouldn’t expect Walmart (or Target or Best Buy) here in Ohio to carry the international plug adapters. I’d think either a AAA or Amazon to order one.

      • UnCivilServant

        I’m sorry, I assumed the guy from the BBC would avoid flyover country, but I shouldn’t assume.

      • R.J.

        WalMart does. There’s a travel kit there with every adaptor on God’s green earth and some that aren’t. He probably didn’t want to pay $39.99 for it and just wanted a single adaptor. That wouldn’t even happen at Radio Shack.

      • Count Potato

        I thought Radio Shack was extinct?

      • R.J.

        They became odd cell phone stores.

      • Sean

        I miss Radio Shack.

        *sigh*

      • rhywun

        “May I have your phone number?”

        “I’m just buying a battery.”

        /every conversation I’ve ever had at Radio Shack

      • Tonio

        They are still a thing online, and have mini stores within some of the other surviving brick and mortar chains, most notably HobbyTown.

      • Necron 99

        I found all kinds of them in a rural Texas Walmart prior to my trip to Switzerland. It is in the luggage section, not sporting goods.

      • Nephilium

        I’d think the tech section if they had it. I would not expect to find them in sporting goods or kids toys (BB gun could be in either).

        Next time I’m in a Walmart I’ll need to look for a luggage section, I don’t remember ever seeing one (but again, I’ve never looked for it either).

      • Tonio

        Stocking those in the luggage section also makes a certain sort of sense, particularly for travelers who are unaware that such things exist.

      • cyto

        Beyond that….. he said laptop. You can get a replacement power adapter (not international) at Walmart for cheap. So he had 2 ways, and was wrong about rifle.

        Plus, why wouldn’t you be able to buy a rifle at a store? Where else are you gonna buy something? The library? The doctor’s office? Perhaps on public transportation?

      • Sean

        From sketchy dudes in the supermarket parking lot.

      • Necron 99

        Parking lot loopholez!!!11!

      • Zwak,The Baddest Johnny on the Apple Cart

        The UK treats air guns much like we treat firearms; you have to be over 18 to purchase or use (unless under adult suppervision), over 12fps and it has to be listed on you FAC (fire arms certificate), no shipping of airguns made before 1939 (must be person to person transfer), and so on. Seeing one in a store (the douche has probably never been in a gun shop, which they do have in the UK), melted his prog brain.

      • UnCivilServant

        I should be able to take a stroll through my local farmer’s market, buy produce, baked goods, and fully automatic anti-aircraft artillery for cash with no paperwork.

      • SDF-7

        *That* will teach Old Man Hodgins to stop flying his cropduster over your fields, dangnabbit!

      • whiz

        How about as license to sell the produce baked goods? Food safety, you know.

    • Name's BEAM. James BEAM.

      You buy plug adapters at your departure or destination airport. Everybody learns that. It’s where all the actual selection is.

      He can’t buy a UK adapter in most of France, either.

    • JaimeRoberto (shama/lama/ding dong)

      There’s also a non-zero chance that he was making a joke.

      • whiz

        i.e., lying.

  2. Scruffy Nerfherder

    “Totally understand that this is entertainment for some,” one Twitter employee tweeted. “But please understand that this is certainly not entertainment for me.”

    It’s a job, you stupid bint.

    • Grosspatzer

      “The news today is so crazy I literally forgot I have COVID,” another posted.”

      You forgot you had the deadliest plague in history? How does that work?

      • Festus

        Xe stepped on Xer own dick and was distracted.

    • The Last American Hero

      I really don’t understand these people, who are the same people that had to take time off work when Trump won the election or were crying in the office in November 2016 or January 2021. There are any number of decisions my company could make that would upset me (i.e., following the mandates of the Fauci Administration), but it didn’t lead to tears or an inability to function. It lead to bitching for a bit and then back to the trenches.

      • SDF-7

        Doing the job you’re getting paid for and keeping your feelings to yourself is now White Cis-Normal Patriarchy or something…

  3. UnCivilServant

    New magnet facility breaks ground in Texas to address supply chain, China dependence

    I can understand the attraction.

    • Not Adahn

      So that’s why so many people are being pulled to TX.

      • UnCivilServant

        Maybe. It’s kind of a polarizing subject.

      • Plisade

        Grrrr! I’m not sure punning multiple times in one thread is acceptable conduct.

      • SDF-7

        I dare say you’re going to recoil from this current trend?

      • Plisade

        It’s a very polarizing issue.

      • juris imprudent

        Is someone fooling with an iron law?

      • SDF-7

        We’ll find out after Swiss is done with his filings for the day.

      • Ted S.

        We’ll see weber or not he narrows his gaze.

      • whiz

        It’s time to quench this thread.

      • tripacer

        If Swiss doesn’t show up someone better Lentz him a hand.

    • guy in the back row

      I’m gaussing this will be a big deal

    • guy in the back row

      I’m gaussing this will be a big deal

      • ron73440

        Crap!

        You have attracted the squirrels.

      • SDF-7

        Must be his comment put the server in flux.

      • Festus

        Oh, the irony!

      • SDF-7

        Oh no! We’re repelled Swiss!

  4. Scruffy Nerfherder

    “ MP Materials broke ground on its first rare earth metal, alloy and magnet manufacturing facility in Fort Worth, Texas, Thursday. It the first-of-its kind facility to be built in Texas, and in the U.S.”

    It should be completely staffed by Juggalos.

    • Not Adahn

      Fucking Juggalos how do they work?

      • pistoffnick

        I’m just a Juggalo and everywhere I go
        People know the part I’m playing
        Paid for every Faygo, dressing up in Day-Glo
        Ooh, what do they say about me?

    • Ted S.

      They just want to celebrate.

  5. Rebel Scum

    Several Twitter employees expressed serious concerns and fear over Musk’s $44 billion acquisition of the company including a prominent worry that Musk would undo censorship mechanisms they had worked to implement over the years, The Washington Post reported Monday.

    Muh-narrative control!

    • cyto

      It is truly amazing how many of them are literally saying this out loud.

      The old guard over at Reason also is tipping their hand…. they have a little bit of “free speech is a good thing”, but there has also been a crapton of “Republicans shouldn’t complain about anything the democrats are doing”…. and not a peep in the direction of “we were totally wrong to keep claiming that there was no such thing as shadow bans and censorship by the left”. And funny how all of those articles about “it has nothing to do with free speech because the first amendment doesn’t apply to private companies” have not had a follow up.

      • Rebel Scum

        Another telling thing is how the peppermint commie brought section 230 immediately after the purchase agreement. it’s not about anything but power for the left.

  6. Rebel Scum

    “Gadde cried during the meeting as she expressed concerns about how the company could change, according to three people familiar with the meeting. She acknowledged that there are significant uncertainties about what the company will look like under Musk’s leadership,” POLITICO described.

    It’s good to see that Twitter has well-adjusted adults at the helm.

    • Scruffy Nerfherder

      Gordon Gekko would be a breath of fresh air compared to these idjits.

  7. Count Potato

    “Right wingers see giant leaps in their Twitter followers and left wingers lose huge numbers amid speculation algorithm has been changed”

    Wouldn’t that “algorithm” be simple addition?

    If Jane has 5 followers, then gets 4 more followers, and Dick slips into her DM’s, how many followers does she have?

    See, I should teach school, unlike those creeps on TikTok.

    • cyto

      Nope. They actively promote some folks and downgrade others… and they allow some bot companies to persist, and others they block.

      The idea that Obama is the most followed person on Twitter is silly. He was never one for saying pithy things. Nobody ever hung on his every word. He ain’t a Kardashian. The bulk of Twitter users are not going to be following a politician… thats the media and activist crowd. Normal people follow hot chicks, athletes, pundits, actors and comedians. Former politicians? No.. I don’t see that being real. Not unless it was Trump. That guy should pull followers from left and right, whether for the LULZ or for the rage tweets.

      They must have scrubbed bots and dead accounts, and removed the block on right leaning folks.

      It is so petty that they were discussing it on Crowder yesterday. Apparently all of their individual accounts followers went up by a couple of thousand. Like, really? Twitter was paying attention to bit players on a podcast?

      • R C Dean

        “He ain’t a Kardashian.”

        Now that is a sick burn.

      • Urthona

        I think “right wingers” seriously got more followers. Because I am one of them. Downloaded twitter and started following people. So did multiple others in my extended family.

      • Count Potato

        Well, then “shouldn’t” than “wouldn’t”.

        “He ain’t a Kardashian.”

        Has anyone ever tried to steal Michelle’s DNA?

      • kbolino

        It’s even pettier than that. The suppression is not on the followee’s end, but on the follower’s. In other words, the 5,000 or so “new” followers are actually from accounts that have always been following but were being hidden from the count. A large amount of how Twitter works these days is through “shadow” actions, where numbers and trends are manipulated but no indication is given that this has taken place.

  8. cyto

    So….. since misinformation is so super important to address that former President Obama made it his top priority, and all of the social media platforms absolutely must do more to address (and block) it…. is our intrepid BBC reporter banned for spreading misinformation about Walmart and guns? Has the president made a statement? Where is Brian Stelter?

    I know the entire left is apoplectic that Musk might stop banning speech on one platform, but surely if stopping misinformation is so critical to democracy, the BBC will be pressured to fire this guy immediately for spreading dangerous misinformation. Right?

    That is where this is going, isn’t it?

    • Ted S.

      Funny how “misinformation” and “fake news” are only used for things the Establishment Class doesn’t like.

    • Rebel Scum

      Where is Brian Stelter?

      Having second breakfast.

      • juris imprudent

        Must be a Sackville-Baggins.

      • rhywun

        ^ LOL

      • Name's BEAM. James BEAM.

        From which he’ll smoothly segue into “elevenses.” Can’t maintain that physique with just any old calorie intake, yo . . .

    • Animal

      Where is Brian Stelter?

      Studying for his second career as an actual potato.

  9. Count Potato

    “Truth Social is top free app, with Twitter second on iOS Apps store”

    I still think Truth Social is a stupid name.

    • Plisade

      Agreed. I thought Facebook was too when it came out, but now it’s part of the world’s vernacular.

    • UnCivilServant

      Has rings of Pravda to it

      • slumbrew

        Pravda Sotsial’naya?

    • Compelled Speechless

      Pretty sure the name itself is a troll solely meant to cause lefty heads to explode.

    • cavalier973

      Exactly so.

      I think I’ll re-truth this

  10. SDF-7

    Georgia elections chief hints at organized effort behind ballot harvesting, registering noncitizens

    And I strongly suspect that he’s only showing an interest because there’s an election coming up and either his job is on the line or he’s associated with Kemp in the mind of the voters after the 2020 debacle and trying to look good for the boss. I know Perdue isn’t doing well, probably because he apparently has the charisma of a damp noodle left on the counter all night — but both of those worthless “Let Fulton cheat like crazy” jerks need to be shown the door as soon as someone decent to take their place can be found.

    • juris imprudent

      He might also be taking note of how things are going in Florida.

      • cyto

        I don’t understand how DeSantis is the only politician who understood what Trump was doing.

        All he did was refuse to bend to the leftist mob. He refused to apologize when they came after him over mandates. He called them out on their hypocrisy. They called him a racist and he didn’t apologize. They called him sexist and he didn’t even acknowledge it. They lied about corruption and he went right after the reporter, calling him out directly.

        And he became a lightning rod, and destroyed his opposition.

        Yet everyone else bows and scrapes.

      • juris imprudent

        Uh, Trump destroyed his opposition? Do you mean those who opposed him outside of his party, or within? Maybe in the Deep State?

        Trump was a clown show. We are very fortunate that DeSantis has figured out how to harness just enough of the outrage to be effective and politically attractive. Because populism is far more prone to leading to an outright tyrant; Trump was a phony-tyrant, one who liked to bluster but didn’t revel in bloodshed.

      • cyto

        I am talking about the politics. What drew people to him was that he refused to even acknowledge their game. They said racist. He neither apologized nor defended himself. He simply clapped back .

        He never took a step back. No Republican since Reagan has done that. They always go along with the fake outrage. Trump proved that there a better way. But only DeSantis has followed.

      • juris imprudent

        I’m not sure I would agree that Trump proved anything.

        DeSantis is doing well because he can lead his party within the state. Trump was never able to lead the party.

      • Banjos

        He is leading the party, at least 95% of it, despite having everything and the kitchen sink thrown at him. It’s the entrenched establishment that is still stubbornly fighting him. They are well hated by the base and are on track to being thrown out one by one.

      • Not Adahn

        he can lead his party within the state.

        It will be interesting to see if he can lead the GOPe

      • juris imprudent

        Trump isn’t leading the party. His endorsements are sketchy at best (in terms of did he pick the winner, not that his word means victory) and there is no reconciliation with what passes for leadership within the party.

        Look, I’ve got no problem if our Republicans go the way of the French Republicans, or the Democrats end up like the French Socialists. We can have two new entirely different parties – it would probably be pretty healthy. I still won’t expect to be represented politically by anyone of any influence, because of the fucking people liking who they do as politicians.

      • Zwak,The Baddest Johnny on the Apple Cart

        No, the establishment R’s hated him, hated him as much as you do.

        But what Cyto is seeing, and I agree with him, was that during the run up to ’16 he caught all the establishment guys flatfooted. And it was clear that each and every one of them would have gotten smashed in the media ring, as he left had its hooks for anyone who stood against them. But the truly important part was he saw that the opening was in not giving a shit what the media thought, which took away half the weapons the left had in an election, while at the same time seemingly to look at the common man, the rust belter, so-to-speak, and make him feel like he was part of the discussion.

        None of the others did that.

        Now, it is very true that he, mistakenly, thought that he party as it stood then would have his back once he was elected. And that is where he miscalculated. I am firmly of the belief that anyone, R or D, who is in that hot seat looks like a jackass when the media hates him as much as they did, and when you compound it with his own supposed party sharing that hate you get what you see; a clown. But when you strip away those two things, you see something else; a person trying to manage what is arguably the toughest job in the world that has no comparison or preparatory experience. And, at least in my eyes and I would bet at least 71million other people, he wasn’t half bad at it. Certainly no worse than the POS that came before him.

      • juris imprudent

        I don’t hate Trump. I just don’t particularly like him and I sure don’t love him.

        In ’16, both Bernie and Trump waged insurgencies on the establishment in both parties. It isn’t like Trump was unique, just that the Republican establishment was a joke and had a campaign of political midgets arguing about who was tallest. Hillary rallied her party machinery to protect her while the Republican machinery was something Rube Goldberg-esque that Trump kicked over and watched the wheels go flying.

      • kbolino

        Because populism is far more prone to leading to an outright tyrant

        FDR won and Huey Long was shot, not the other way around.

      • juris imprudent

        Given FDR won 4 terms, I’m not sure you have correctly identified the tyrant.

      • kbolino

        We got the tyrant (FDR) without the populism (Long). Winning elections does not foreclose the possibility of tyranny.

      • Not Adahn

        Populism may be more likely to the “stongman” form of tyranny, but technocracy has a hardon for “tyranny of the ‘smart'” built into it from the ground up.

      • juris imprudent

        Both fair comments.

  11. Plisade

    2 headlines this morning… In one of which Fauci says we’re out of the pandemic phase. In the other Pfizer is seeking emergency authorization for vaccines for kids <=5. Does not compute.

    • Scruffy Nerfherder

      FYTW

    • cyto

      The vaccine for under 5 is an abomination that reveals the complete lack of brainpower among out leadership.

      NPR was flogging the vaccine for 5 year olds yesterday. They had CDC officials saying it was a godsend to protect our children and it was critical to get all 5 year old kids vaccinated. To protect them. They touted how it reduces severe illness and hospitalization.

      Among 5 year olds? Who have almost zero risk?

      This is insane.

      And I actually am godfather to a kid who did get hospitalized at 5. Turned out, she had sickle cell anemia and the covid caused a flair up. I doubt the vaccine would have made a difference. Heck, the vaccine could have caused inflammation and activated the sickle cell disease.

      • Scruffy Nerfherder

        The vaccine for under 5 is an abomination that reveals the complete lack of brainpower morals and ethics among out leadership.

      • trshmnstr the terrible

        Scruffy nails it. This isn’t a case of 80-something IQ. It’s a case of moral depravity wrapped in a facade of caring for others.

      • Rebel Scum

        eveals the complete lack of brainpower among out leadership.

        Or they are malicious cuntes.

      • ron73440

        Why can’t it be both?

  12. Rebel Scum

    Walsh’s book about a boy who pretends to be a walrus was intended as commentary on the transgender child debate, and it quickly soared to the #1 bestselling LGBTQ book on Amazon before the company removed it from its LBGTQ book list. Amazon employees reportedly characterized the book as harmful during an internal meeting while accusing Walsh of exploiting the company’s algorithms to harm the community, according to the videos.

    OK, groomers.

  13. UnCivilServant

    ? Listing the same jobs for each qualification with no variation.
    ? Listing the same jobs for both database and middleware administration without mentioning work related to either the database or middleware other than as an end user
    ? Listing the same jobs for a specific hardware platform without mentioning the hardware, or the software that always runs on it
    ? Listing almost more years with the specific hardware platform that it’s been on the market (but not quite)

    I’m starting to see red flags with this candidate.

    • UnCivilServant

      It’s not just that guy.

      I set out quals for an admin. I got seven developers or functional people. I wish I could tell the vendors “Try it again!”

    • waffles

      straight shooter with upper management written all over him

      • UnCivilServant

        I haven’t added it up yet, but it looks like he’s not even going to make the threshold to be interviewed.

    • Grosspatzer

      Back in the day we got a resume for an open developer position. Resume included a paragraph describing a big project the candidate had successfully led at a prior employer. But wait – I actually worked on that project; not only did he not lead the project, but was pretty much useless. I convinced my manager to bring him in for an interview.

      • slumbrew

        I would occasionally check the LinkedIn profile of a former co-worker for the amusement of seeing him progressively inflate his resume.

        Acted as a sys admin for the customer portal machines became “architected and deployed customer portal”. Uh….

        Oh, and he graduated from “Harvard”. Well, not exactly.

        He was a useless co-worker, unsurprisingly.

      • UnCivilServant

        I wonder how glowing my resume would look if I took my actual accomplishments (which I regard as pretty solid) and fed them through whatever filter guys like that use.

      • slumbrew

        “Dr. UnCivilServant, Chief Information Officer for the State of New York”

      • trshmnstr the terrible

        Lol, hearing stories like that make me laugh at myself that I would worry about possibly overstating the case on a project I worked with my old boss on. I submitted my resume to her earlier this week and have been wondering if I should have softened some of the language on a project or two (that I actually significantly contributed to).

      • The Last American Hero

        Ah, the old “I played hockey at college (not for my college, mind you)” or “I have a masters in electrical engineering (actually a Master Certified Electronics Technician)” claim.

  14. juris imprudent

    Funny how all of this Hunter stuff is making the news now, isn’t it? Oh wait, what I am saying, it isn’t like the MSM is on the story.

    • UnCivilServant

      Does anyone still pay attention to them?

    • Plisade

      If Durham goes the RICO path, couldn’t the media be found as part of the conspiracy? Or does 1A give them an out?

      • juris imprudent

        Sadly they go along without being co-conspirators; they’re more like useful idiots for the true believers.

      • Plisade

        Somewhere I read that 1A has 2 parts: the first protects the right to express, the 2nd the right to *access* to others’ expression. No idea if that’s a legal thing or not, but if so, it brings suppression of the truth into play; and I think fraud by the media should already be on the table.

        As for their simply going along, the trend I see is the press’s abandonment of journalism and adoption of he said / she said reporting. If all they’re doing is quoting people, I suppose they can’t be held responsible if the quotes are lies/fraudulent.

      • Tonio

        He wouldn’t have to charge them so much as subpoena them to testify.

    • Rebel Scum

      President Puppet has served his purpose. They will dispose of him after the midterms.

  15. Rebel Scum

    “There’s not a Build Back Better revival,” Manchin, D-W.Va., told reporters Tuesday at the Capitol. “There’s not.”

    But Build Back Bankrupt is still in the works.

    • Plisade

      Kick Back Better

      • Sean

        Yo, where’s my trigger warning?

      • UnCivilServant

        It’s an outbound link from Glibs. That should be warning enough.

  16. SDF-7

    From the Manchin link:

    Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., met with Manchin Tuesday morning at the Capitol to discuss a pathway forward. Schumer contends the way to address inflation is to undo some of President Trump’s 2017 tax cuts and the budget reconciliation process is needed for that.

    Sure, Chuckles… best thing to do for the voters when inflation is hitting them hard and it looks like a recession is to *raise* taxes on them (and I’ll bet he wants to sneak in raising the SALT cap again… so raising taxes on the non-coastal elites, lowering them for his buddies…). That makes a lot of economic sense and will surely help with inflation.

    Not like the Feds pulled in more money after the tax cuts when the economy kicked up from the anemic Obama “growth” rates or anything…

    Or in the short version around here — “F you, cut spending!”

  17. Rebel Scum

    “[W]hen Stacey Abrams ran for governor four years ago, she talked about the blue wave,” Raffensperger recalled, “and she said, ‘That’s the people who are documented and undocumented,’ i.e., that means the noncitizens … she wanted them to be able to vote in our elections, and absolutely not. I’ve been pushing back on that. I think that’s an incredibly critical issue, not just for us here in Georgia, but for the entire country. Only American citizens should vote.

    I cannot even with this racist bigot.

    • juris imprudent

      Stakeholder democracy!

  18. Semi-Spartan Dad

    BBC Journalist Mistakes BB Gun for ‘a Rifle and Ammunition’ at Walmart

    That’s funny. You can buy long guns and ammo at our local Walmart, though it’s been several years since I’ve been to the gun counter there. Much prefer the LGS and Rural King.

    I think Walmart did stop selling handguns/handgun ammo, and I’ve read something about them starting to phase out other firearm and ammo availability.

    • Sean

      Handgun ammo was phased out. I scored some stuff half off, pre covid. I emptied the shelves.

      • ron73440

        Didn’t they stop selling “assault rifles” after Sandy Hook, or was that just Dick’s Sporting Goods?

    • Pine_Tree

      Our local (big) WM’s dropped ammo in recent years, but I’m sure it’s a business thing, not a politics thing. We’re small-town GA. They despise having low-productivity shelf-space, and the ammo market issues meant that trying to keep an ammo section left shelves idle that they could otherwise fill with high-rotation-rate product (their thing).

      They may still have a few guns, but with the LGSs here and Bass Pro or Academy an hour or two away, nobody looks for guns at WM.

      So if I’m WM, I’m dropping them, too.

      • Zwak,The Baddest Johnny on the Apple Cart

        Before CA took what ever actions they ended up taking (seriously, I can’t remember at this point) urban Walmart’s had gotten rid of all firearms stuff, while suburban stores still carried ammo and long arms.

  19. Sean

    Morning’ y’all.

    Late start/weird morning. Blech.

    • Festus

      From the dead thread. I’m at the precise place where I stood 40 years ago. At a precipice or a mountain to climb. Kinda wild. A turning point. Freaky as fuck and I don’t like it.

  20. Festus

    Kurt was a screaming fucking wretch! Did he not realize the endemic white privilege that allowed him to grow up in such a healthy environment? It’s an insult to Black and Brown bodies that you would play that song! I can’t even…

  21. Rebel Scum

    *shocked face*

    Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer convicted in the death of George Floyd, is seeking a new trial.

    In an 82-page brief filed Monday, Chauvin’s attorney, William Mohrman, argued that it was impossible for his client to get a fair trial in Minneapolis amid the tense climate surrounding the proceedings and the pre-trial publicity.

    He said the media coverage of the case “glorified Floyd and demonized Chauvin.”

    • Rebel Scum

      He’ll probably just be railroaded again.

    • ron73440

      it was impossible for his client to get a fair trial in Minneapolis amid the tense climate surrounding the proceedings and the pre-trial publicity. He said the media coverage of the case “glorified Floyd and demonized Chauvin.

      He’s not wrong.

      • Fatty Bolger

        True, but there is no venue where that wasn’t the case.

      • whiz

        ^^ This

    • SDF-7

      Ugh… annoying Max Verstappen fans… 😉

    • Not Adahn

      Oryx horn makes an absolutely bitchin weapon haft. Affixing the blade can be tricky though.

  22. The Late P Brooks

    Truth Social on Tuesday ranked as the No. 1 free app on the online iOS apps store, with the Twitter app in second.

    But I heard it was a flop. A total disaster and an embarrassment. Did CNN lie?

    • Scruffy Nerfherder

      Wait, I thought it was the non-masked that were going to assault the masked?

      “Welcome to Costco, don’t be an asshole.”

    • slumbrew

      I’m shocked at how many people around here appear determined to go to their graves wearing masks. As in, walking around outside, in the sunlight and breeze, masked up.

      Party of Science, ya’ll.

      • Rebel Scum

        I’m shocked at how many in the medical industry persist with this idiocy. They were quite insistent I either wear a mask or face shield (lol…that is even stupider…) when I had to get my hand sewn up after an unfortunate dish washing incident a couple weeks ago.

      • slumbrew

        Both masks and face shields at the podiatrist yesterday :-/

      • Certified Public Asshat

        My dentist still required masks a few weeks ago…

        I’m looking for a new dentist.

      • Zwak,The Baddest Johnny on the Apple Cart

        My state requires masks at all medical facilities. When I saw my doc last he noticed that mine was under my nose so he immediately took his off. It was quite nice.

        Mine is always under my nose at the med facilities, no one says anything.

    • juris imprudent

      And when that proves as infeasible as VT’s universal healthcare, they’ll just leave it on the books for future implementation?

      • Grumbletarian

        Infeasible? There are other states with no income tax already.

      • juris imprudent

        Because they won’t cut spending, they’ll need the revenue.

      • Nephilium

        The state has been good about keeping a rainy day fund, and as stated below, there’s still other revenue that the state will be collecting.

      • juris imprudent

        I’ll remain skeptical of Republicans following through on a long-term commitment until they actually do it.

      • Nephilium

        It’s clarified a bit in the story, but this is personal income tax, not business. The R’s here have been good about cutting down the state income tax for quite a while now. It’s currently at a top rate of 4%. There’s still sales tax, use tax, licensing, etc… so there’s still revenue for the state. One nice paragraph from the article:

        Huffman said that lowering the income tax will create more economic activity and, paradoxically, more tax revenue — noting that even though lawmakers have lowered income-tax rates, total income tax receipts are higher than where they were a decade ago.

      • The Hyperbole

        The R’s here have been good about cutting down the state income tax for quite a while now

        Yep, thanks to Kasich I haven’t paid any state income tax for years.

      • rhywun

        But you have local taxes too. Expect them to rise?

      • Nephilium

        That’s an interesting issue that’s causing a big divide between the big cities and the suburbs. In Ohio, you pay local tax in the municipality you work in, and the municipality you live in. There’s usually a level of reciprocity between the two (the work one gets first cut, the one you live in gets the smaller share). With the huge move to WFH, the cities’ budgets are hurting as they’ve lost all that worker revenue. The suburban tax receipts are on the upswing, since they’re now getting the full tax rate without needing to lose a share to the city that the worker’s job was located. Since the suburbs house a larger share of the population then the cities… it’s not looking good for the big cities.

        I don’t recall a local tax increase in any jurisdiction I’ve lived or worked in. Biggest changes were usually in the reciprocity agreements and who was collecting the tax (local authority, or farmed out to RITA). I remember several sales tax and “sin” tax increases over the years.

        Regardless, the local taxes go to the municipalities, not the state. The state has a flat sales tax that they collect from everyone, and the counties (and I believe the cities) can put their own tax on top of it.

      • rhywun

        Huh. I would think they’d base it on where your office is, regardless of where you work. That’s how it works with my state taxes, anyway. I don’t set foot in NJ any more but they still get the lion’s share of my state taxes.

      • Nephilium

        There was a temporary bill passed that allowed that early in 2020 (when everything got shut down). That has since expired, and there’s several lawsuits pending from people to claw back the taxes that some municipalities still took after that bill expired. There was at least one suit filed by an out of state worker who had been commuting into Ohio to work at a hospital, and go back over the weekend back during the shutdowns. IIRC, the out of state worker lost that case.

      • Fatty Bolger

        Where I lived we had local city tax (schools), Columbus tax (city services), and if you had a job outside of Columbus there might be yet another tax based on your workplace.

    • Gender Traitor

      State Sen. Stephen Huffman, a Tipp City Republican who introduced SB327

      You go, Tipp City! (We built it on rock and roll!)

      • Festus

        Heh!

    • Certified Public Asshat

      Don’t they want to eliminate the CAT too?

  23. Count Potato

    “A Virginia court dismissed a lawsuit against a school district for allegedly indoctrinating children in the worldview of critical race theory, teaching them to “dismantle the dominant white, Christian culture” and treating them differently based on race and religion.

    While the parents suing Albemarle County Public Schools deemed its antiracism policy “racist at its core,” Circuit Court Judge Claude Worrell compared the policy to teaching children not to use the n-word, according to a Daily Progress report on Friday’s hearing.”

    https://justthenews.com/government/courts-law/judge-upholds-virginia-school-district-antiracism-policy-claims-its-banning-n

    Then it gets worse from there. Read the whole article.

    • Scruffy Nerfherder

      It’s Albemarle County, rich prog central in Virginia outside of the DC metropolis.

      Taking that to the courts seems to be a stupid move. Should have gone directly after the school board.

      • juris imprudent

        Taking that to the courts seems to be a stupid move.

        ding-ding-ding

        Political shit should never be litigated.

      • ron73440

        Political shit should never be litigated.

        Those cases depend more on the judge’s politics than anything resembling actual law.

      • juris imprudent

        Exactly, and you end up digging a bigger hole.

      • kbolino

        Political shit should never be litigated.

        Common law without monarchy pretty much makes the litigation of political matters inevitable.

    • SDF-7

      Dude… why are you trying to Bruce Banner me this early in the morning?

    • Festus

      I said “nigger” in front of my parents once. Once. I would have been about 5 or so. That slap across the face sorta stuck.

    • SDF-7

      Ok… after reading the article — have to say, really, really stupid people there. Definitely feeling their oats as the perceived top of the power pyramid and all, and rubbing it in the face of anyone who doesn’t go along. Problem here is — they’re in the decided minority and not as well armed. So that’s only going to fly as long as the majority is willing to stand for it… and it really screams “Screw around and find out” to me.

      Of course, I know we’ve speculated here before that these morons *want* a race war and are trying their hardest to stoke one. I just keep thinking that’s an incredibly bad idea that will not go at all well for their side if they ever push things to that point.

  24. Grummun

    Georgia elections chief hints at organized effort behind ballot harvesting, registering noncitizens

    Would have been nice if he had shown any interest in this sort of thing back in November of 2020.

    • R C Dean

      Didn’t he adamantly deny there were any shenanigans at all?

      • juris imprudent

        What – and admit he hadn’t done the job he was elected to do? Is there ever a bureaucrat or politician that does that?

  25. Rebel Scum

    Weak.

    I took down a post I made earlier today after reading some of the comments. It was a poor choice of memes and I saw how it was offensive. It came across totally wrong. I apologize.

    Here’s the removed Denny Hamlin tweet

    So Seth McFarlan has to be canceled now I guess?

    • SDF-7

      Oh noes… NASCAR fans might realize Denny Hamlin is an asshole! 😉

      • Gender Traitor

        Not any fan who’s ever heard a word from Kyle Busch’s mouth.

      • juris imprudent

        Which one is the kettle?

    • Urthona

      Doesn’t Family Guy air on the same network?

  26. Drake

    I find this article interesting because of the perspective. It’s written by a self-proclaimed “Russian-nationalist” who is critical of Putin and Russian foreign ministry who let Ukraine get to this point. I did think it odd that the Russians let that 2014 coup go off without getting involved.

    His criticisms of Putin sound like many who criticized Trump. The leader was saying the right things, and maybe even trying to get the right things done – but it all got lost in the bureaucracy and what really happened was a hot mess. Just a symptom of big, corrupt government in general?

    • Stinky Wizzleteats

      Putin didn’t make moves beyond Crimea in 2014 because he thought our political and intellectual classes were rational actors and would deal. He was wrong wrong wrong on that one.

    • juris imprudent

      why Ukraine was lost in the first place

      Hmm, reminds me of how the U.S. lost China post WWII. Guess I should be glad that that kind of stupidity isn’t limited to our country.

  27. Rebel Scum

    This is fine.

    Russia will cut off the gas to Poland and Bulgaria on Wednesday in a major escalation in the standoff between Moscow and Europe over energy supplies and the war in Ukraine.

    Moscow appears to be making good on a threat to halt gas supplies to countries that refuse President Vladimir Putin’s new demand to pay for the crucial fuel in rubles. Europe has said that doing so would breach sanctions and strengthen Russia’s hand.

    As payment deadlines start falling due, Poland, followed swiftly by Bulgaria, said on Tuesday that Gazprom PJSC had informed them the gas will stop flowing on Wednesday. In the coming weeks, more companies will have to decide whether to pay in rubles — or risk losing supplies.

    Nothing like this has ever led to war before.

    • Scruffy Nerfherder

      The Polish government is going to drag us into war (at the urging of lunatics in it State Department).

    • Stinky Wizzleteats

      Will the Poles and Bulgars send their aircraft carriers to surprise attack Pearl Harbor, err Vladivostok? The world wonders.

      • Drake

        They’ll send the Winged Hussars to sack Moscow again and teach the Muscovites another lesson.

      • Pine_Tree

        The history geek in me just wanted to say howdy to your analogy and last sentence.

    • Swiss Servator

      That is not the action of a country that feels it is winning…

      • kbolino

        Winning is when you create a big grid of all your corporate logos.

  28. The Late P Brooks

    The twatter deal hasn’t even been finalized. How can Musk be in there rewriting code?

    • slumbrew

      Preemptive ass-covering by current employees?

      • Rebel Scum

        Most likely.

      • Festus

        ^^^ This is happening now.

    • R C Dean

      I thought they froze the code.

      Or at least claimed to.

      • slumbrew

        There are code changes and then there are settings – these changes likely don’t require an actual code change, just updating settings.

        It’d be nice if there was an audit log of changes to any settings, but there may not be.

    • Fatty Bolger

      They’re preemptively scrubbing the worst of the politically motivated stuff.

    • R.J.

      It is possible people are removing prejudicial code to save their hides right now. Another possibility is that conservatives jumped back on in a giant wave, and simultaneously bots were removed.

      • Urthona

        The conservative growth is almost certainly organic. The numbers were not crazy and seemed totally possible.

        The left wing exodus seems more suspect.

      • Animal

        Hmm. I wonder when STEVE SMITH will make his triumphant return to Twatter.

    • UnCivilServant

      At the very least he’s cleaned out a still or two.

      Though I think they were making Rum.

    • Pine_Tree

      Well I’ve heard of a mikerowebrewery, so there could be a mikerowedistillery, right?…

    • Festus

      Gah. Don’t ship Mike. He’s cool and all but come on…

  29. The Late P Brooks

    Truth Social on Tuesday ranked as the No. 1 free app on the online iOS apps store, with the Twitter app in second.

    At least they waited ’til spring. They’re not completely heartless.

  30. ron73440

    New VCDL ad.

    Hope this passes, but it probably won’t happen unless the republicans have the House and Senate.

    • Semi-Spartan Dad

      I thought the ban on carrying in government places was an executive order? Unless I’m mistaken, it could be repealed at a pen stroke by the governor.

      • ron73440

        Pretty sure they went through the assembly.

        I did learn from that ad that carrying in rest stops was illegal, something I’m sure I’ve done many times.

      • Rebel Scum

        I’d love to see the logical contortions on how that passes constitutional muster. But I suppose “fytw” suffices.

      • ron73440

        It always does.

        As an Open Carrier of my pistol, guess I could have gotten in trouble, for doing something that should not be illegal.

      • slumbrew

        When I was a much younger fella I was walking home from the bar very late one fine summer evening. I decided to take the scenic route along the Esplanade and followed the path out to that island part.

        I was surprised there were so many people out. I was also surprised dudes were staring me down – like, am I going to end up in some random fight?

        Say, what are those fellas doing over there by that tree?!?

        I completed the rest of that walk with my eyes fixed firmly to the ground.

        Man, I was young and innocent in the ways of the world.

        (later, when I wondered “why would they do that there instead of just at home?”, someone pointed out their wives would probably object).

      • Tonio

        Thanks for posting this, Ron. Rest stop ban is troubling.

      • Chipwooder

        It was originally an executive order from McAuliffe. I remember when it happened, they started plastering huge signs about it at work. Two years ago it was codified by the Assembly.

  31. The Late P Brooks

    [Truth Social on Tuesday ranked as the No. 1 free app on the online iOS apps store, with the Twitter app in second.

    At least they waited ’til spring. They’re not completely heartless.]

    Well, that was a total fuckup. Cut and paste was supposed to be Russians cutting off gas supplies to Poles.

  32. The Late P Brooks

    Twitter executive Vijaya Gadde, head of the tech giant’s trust and safety, legal, and public policy functions, held a meeting Monday where she cried to employees who work under her amid recent changes to company leadership.Twitter executive Vijaya Gadde, head of the tech giant’s trust and safety, legal, and public policy functions, held a meeting Monday where she cried to employees who work under her amid recent changes to company leadership.

    I know just how you feel, Toots. One time we got a different sponsor on a one race deal. I cried my eyes out as I was peeling the old decals off.

    She’s head of “trust and safety, legal, and public policy functions”? Sounds like a case of taking money under false pretenses, to me.

    • juris imprudent

      Corporations are now operating on the govt bureaucracy model, particularly corporations that seemingly have little to no profit motive.

  33. MikeS

    7️⃣5️⃣
    4️⃣6️⃣

    • SDF-7

      Daily Quordle 93
      4️⃣8️⃣
      5️⃣7️⃣

      The suburbs of Chumptown continue to sing their siren song…

    • whiz

      Daily Quordle 93
      4️⃣7️⃣
      3️⃣8️⃣
      quordle.com
      ⬜??⬜⬜ ⬜⬜⬜⬜?
      ⬜⬜⬜?⬜ ⬜⬜??⬜
      ??⬜⬜⬜ ⬜??⬜?
      ????? ⬜⬜⬜⬜?
      ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ ?⬜???
      ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ ?⬜???
      ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ ?????

      ⬜⬜??? ⬜⬜⬜⬜?
      ⬜⬜??⬜ ⬜?⬜⬜⬜
      ????? ⬜⬜?⬜⬜
      ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜
      ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ ?⬜⬜⬜⬜
      ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ ??⬜⬜⬜
      ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ ?⬜⬜⬜⬜
      ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ ?????

      A good start, but three ways the upper right could go and it was the last one I chose… grrrr.

    • Grumbletarian

      Daily Quordle 93
      ?9️⃣
      8️⃣5️⃣

      All hail the Mayor of Chumptown.

      • rhywun

        Daily Quordle 93
        ?9️⃣
        4️⃣8️⃣

        Chump brothers unite.

        Zero help from initial words meets multiple distracted fuckups.

      • TARDis

        Full speed to Chumptown! Hey I’m in a hurrry. Busy day.

        Daily Quordle 93
        6️⃣5️⃣
        8️⃣?
        quordle.com
        ?⬜⬜?⬜ ⬜?⬜?⬜
        ⬜???⬜ ⬜⬜⬜?⬜
        ???⬜⬜ ⬜⬜???
        ⬜⬜?⬜⬜ ?⬜??⬜
        ⬜⬜?⬜⬜ ?????
        ????? ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛

        ⬜⬜⬜?⬜ ⬜⬜⬜⬜?
        ⬜?⬜?⬜ ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜
        ?⬜??? ⬜⬜⬜⬜?
        ?⬜??? ??⬜⬜⬜
        ?⬜??⬜ ?⬜⬜⬜⬜
        ?⬜⬜⬜? ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜
        ??⬜?? ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜
        ????? ⬜⬜?⬜⬜
        ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ ?⬜??⬜

    • Sean

      8️⃣ 5️⃣
      4️⃣ 6️⃣

    • Bobarian LMD

      Lucky guesses
      Daily Quordle 93
      4️⃣5️⃣
      3️⃣7️⃣ == 19
      quordle.com
      ⬜⬜?⬜⬜ ⬜⬜⬜?⬜
      ?⬜⬜⬜⬜ ⬜⬜??⬜
      ??⬜⬜⬜ ⬜??⬜?
      ????? ⬜⬜⬜⬜?
      ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ ?????

      ⬜?⬜?⬜ ⬜⬜⬜?⬜
      ?⬜⬜?⬜ ⬜?⬜⬜⬜
      ????? ⬜⬜?⬜⬜
      ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜
      ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ ?⬜⬜⬜⬜
      ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ ?⬜??⬜
      ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ ?????

    • kinnath

      9️⃣4️⃣
      6️⃣7️⃣

      Continuing my streak of mediocrity.

    • Tundra

      Daily Quordle 93
      7️⃣5️⃣
      6️⃣8️⃣

      Juuuuuust a bit outside!

  34. Rebel Scum

    Joyless Reid is still a bigot.

    Elon Musk’s companies have a history of open racism. You know, there’s been this lawsuit against Tesla, and he himself is a troll. So his idea of freedom means freedom to be a jerk and to be cruel and to have no one be able to stop you.

    Freedom of speech for all includes the right to be an asshole.

    There was a time when people had the double hashtags around their names because they were Jewish, and right-wingers were saying get in the oven any time you made any benign comment on Twitter. They attacked women. The misogyny was crazy on Twitter for a while. Elon Musk, I guess he misses the old South Africa in the ’80s. He wants that back.

    Someone is mad that an actual African has wealth and power.

    • rhywun

      She’s a mind-reader of galactic-historical significance.

      • Scruffy Nerfherder

        The Left always seems to have absolute certainty when it comes to intents and motivations.

    • ron73440

      means freedom to be a jerk and to be cruel and to have no one be able to stop you.

      And we know Joy is always so nice.

      • Festus

        Joy Reid is the epitome of the ugly American. Brash, loud and ignorant.

  35. wdalasio

    Preemptive ass-covering by current employees?

    Possibly. I think it’s more likely that a Twitter employee has figured that Vijaya Gadde’s (the bawling Twitter executive’s) days at the company are numbered – the new owner of your company calling your behavior “obviously, incredibly inappropriate” is never a good sign for your career prospects – and either no longer fears not toeing the woke lion or hopes to get in good with the new management.

  36. The Late P Brooks

    Next thing you know, he’ll be doing yoga on the beach, the dirty peacenik hippy

    Secretary of State Antony Blinken forcefully pushed back Tuesday when Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky pointed out that Ukraine and Georgia were once part of the Soviet Union as Paul appeared to raise Moscow’s alleged rationale about the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

    “I firmly disagree with that proposition,” Blinken said during a congressional hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, in responding to Paul’s assertion that “you could argue” that the countries Russia has attacked were part of the Soviet Union. Paul seemed to indicate Russia’s anger about Ukraine possibly joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization — especially given it used to be in the Soviet Union — could have triggered the invasion.
    The back and forth was prompted by Paul questioning why the US had been “agitating” for Ukraine to join NATO last fall, which was something Russia ardently opposed as a “red line.”

    Blinken argued that it was important to continually defend NATO’s open door policy.

    Right. It is vitally important to our national interest to piss off the Russians as a sop to NATO and the EU. Because Trump.

    • Drake

      The dumbest and most evil Sec State since Albright.

    • Rebel Scum

      Paul seemed to indicate Russia’s anger about Ukraine possibly joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization — especially given it used to be in the Soviet Union — could have triggered the invasion.

      It’s not like this is the stated position of the Russian Federation or anything.

      • Festus

        Stop poking that bear! How fucking hard is that to understand?

      • juris imprudent

        Well who can believe what they say; much better for us to trust the imaginations of our DC foreign policy establishment!

    • Scruffy Nerfherder

      Blinken argued that it was important to continually defend NATO’s open door policy.

      Why?

      Somebody explain to me how admitting North Macedonia as an Article 5 member of NATO benefited anyone already in NATO? What exactly is North Macedonia bringing to the table other than a liability? Is their massive military going to come to the defense of Germany?

      This entire effort to expand NATO has been bureaucratic empire building and a thumb in the eye of Russia. It benefits the populace of the USA in no way and in fact is a detriment to our security.

      • Drake

        NATO should have been disbanded when the Cold War ended. Now it has been retooled to become the alliance of globalist leftists – something very ugly and dangerous. Their opposition to Russia is based on the Russians retaining some sense of nationalism and not going along with open-borders, letting their economy get looted by global financial institutions, celebrating lgbq whatever, etc.

      • juris imprudent

        That’s the current BS, the problem as you note goes back farther and has less to do with the current rationale.

      • Rebel Scum

        NATO should have been disbanded when the Cold War ended.

        Yup.

  37. Count Potato

    “A Queens prostitute was sentenced to 30 years for fatally drugging four men with fentanyl in 2019 so she could rob them, with victims including a Cipriani chef.

    Angelina Barini, 43, cried in court on Tuesday as she admitted distributing fentanyl and ‘date rape’ drug GBL to three unnamed men and Italian-born chef Andrea Zamperoni, 33. She did so in the hopes of knocking the men out and robbing them, but ended up killing them.”

    https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10757473/Queens-prostitute-jailed-30-years-drugging-FOUR-clients-death-fentanyl-rob-them.html

    Whoopsie!

    • wdalasio

      “Angelina Barini, 43, cried in court..”

      Is it me, or am I noticing a lot more of this lately. Not sure what it signifies. But, it looks like a pattern.

    • SDF-7

      Wow… I knew England had the Royal Navy, the Royal Guard and all… but official “Queen’s prostitute” too… they really cover all their bases.

      Does that mean we have to start calling Hunter’s baby momma the “First Stripper”? Or just “First Lady of the Night”…..

      • Festus

        “Top Bitch”

    • Scruffy Nerfherder

      “The fucking you get for the fucking you got.”

    • JaimeRoberto (shama/lama/ding dong)

      Is she friends with Ed Buck?

  38. The Late P Brooks

    Blinken also said that the US sought to engage Russia on many of its concerns about Ukraine before it invaded Ukraine, but those efforts went nowhere because Russia was not genuinely interested.

    Well. There you have it.

    • wdalasio

      Yeah. That’s a half truth, at best. The Russians have shopped various alternatives to resolving the matter for years. “Seeking ways to engage” someone where you’re simply demanding they accept your position really isn’t anything meaningful.

      • Scruffy Nerfherder

        It’s an outright lie.

        Last August they intentionally sent Nuland to Moscow as a slap in the face. State knows Moscow hates her guts after involvement in the 2014 coup.

      • wdalasio

        It’s utterly dishonest, but it isn’t an *outright* lie. Sending Victoria Nuland to Moscow is technically “seeking ways to engage” with them. And that’s the entire trick the establishment keeps playing. To understand just how mendacious Blinken’s response was, you have to have some knowledge of the situation beyond the events of late-February 2022 until today, which most Americans, understandably, don’t. That leaves your opponent stuck trying to explain how that thing you said that was technically true was grossly misleading. If you’re somebody who has no idea who Victoria Nuland is, your observation isn’t going to make any sense, even though it’s entirely true and very relevant. Most Americans have no idea who Victoria Nuland is.

      • Scruffy Nerfherder

        To be clear, it’s a lie of omission, which is the regime’s favorite type of lie.

      • kbolino

        It’s the type of lie that makes “it’s not malice, it’s just incompetence” they’re go-to defense when questioned.

      • kbolino

        their* not they’re

      • juris imprudent

        technically “seeking ways to engage” with them

        So is dropping bombs on that in that regard.

      • juris imprudent

        them/that

    • Grumbletarian

      but those efforts went nowhere because Russia was not genuinely interested in having another NATO country on its doorstep.

      • Festus

        Yes.

      • WTF

        The expansion of NATO post cold war was stupidity on stilts. Once the Soviet Union collapsed, NATO should have been disbanded. Russia should have been courted to become a partner of the West and welcomed as a Western nation, but instead we thought it better to expand NATO against an already-paranoid Russia’s borders and treat them as adversaries.

      • juris imprudent

        Didn’t Democrats ridicule W for his engagement with Russia, and then of course Obamessiah ridiculed Romney for considering them to be an adversary. I think I have whiplash trying to keep up with their position switches.

      • kbolino

        It wasn’t a principled stand, it was just a smokescreen.

      • juris imprudent

        Smokescreen like what flows out of Cheech & Chong’s van?

      • kbolino

        Yes, though the media is also standing around saying it’s absolutely positively just engine trouble causing the smoke.

      • kbolino

        But Serbia/Kosovo!

  39. Count Potato

    “Off-duty NYPD cop is given YOGA as punishment for stumbling drunkenly onto San Francisco highway while on vacation and falsely accusing cops of assaulting her

    Lamonica’s punishment from the NYPD was cushy. The officer was docked the standard 30 vacation days, attended counseling for six weeks and did volunteer work with the NYPD’s stress management unit, reports the Post. In addition, Lamonica also did yoga with fellow officers.”

    https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10756791/Off-duty-NYPD-cop-given-YOGA-punishment-stumbling-drunkenly-San-Francisco-highway.html

    • Festus

      I want to be a New York cop, now. Old guys like me don’t get to attend those young ladies classes,

    • Not Adahn

      Ain’t gonna lie, losing six weeks of vacation would be a big deal to me.

      Also, NYPD gets six weeks of vacation?

      • Count Potato

        I can do that standing on my head.

  40. The Late P Brooks

    Freedom of speech for all includes the right to be an asshole.

    There is no freedom without the freedom to be wrong.

    • Rebel Scum

      That too.

  41. The Late P Brooks

    Elon Musk, I guess he misses the old South Africa in the ’80s. He wants that back.

    Let it out, Joy. Parade your envy and hatefulness before the world. Let everyone know the depth and breadth of your stupidity.

    • Festus

      I try not to let hatred live in my heart but Joy Reid really tests that decency.

      • rhywun

        Her and that bottle-blond guy sidekick of hers are some of the absolute worst I’ve seen.

      • juris imprudent

        Keith Olbermann haz a sad.

  42. db

    First time back into the office for us en masse since 2020. Nice to see a bunch of familiar faces! Masks and vaccination are “a personal choice” per our company policy. Only saw one guy wearing a mask, and I know he has had health concerns in the past.

    • trshmnstr the terrible

      Masks and vaccination are “a personal choice” per our company policy.

      Y’all hiring?

      • Swiss Servator

        We are…email me swissservator at the evil mail.com

      • slumbrew

        We’re hiring too – lots of fully-remote work opportunities.

        handle at protonmail

      • slumbrew

        I should note that you need the vax to go to the office – but it’s (mostly) personal choice how many days one goes to the office – from 0 to 5 days.

      • slumbrew

        Bah, probably nothing you’re interested in – the two things in Legal:

        Associate Counsel
        Poland, Krakow

        Counsel – Remote
        India Karnataka Bangalore

      • db

        I’m hiring for a chemical engineer on the northern Gulf Coast. Don’t know if our legal team is hiring (it’s a very small team–one general counsel and one associate counsel). It’s possible our R&D team might want a patent atty but that’s always been farmed out.

    • Festus

      We’re all still masked up at work but as soon as I’m 50 feet away from a cow-worker, I let the mask slip. Been doing it from the start. Sure do wish I hadn’t got the poison doses though. Makes me feel rather less than.

  43. Scruffy Nerfherder

    Tesla declined about 12% yesterday. He may have walked right into a trap.

    He borrowed money against his Tesla shares to buy Twitter and could be facing margin calls in the near future putting him in a cash crunch.

    • Scruffy Nerfherder

      “He” being Musk, of course.

      • Festus

        Nah. He knows pretty much how everything is going to turn out.

    • Stinky Wizzleteats

      Huh, I figured he slept on a pile of cash a la Scrooge McDuck or an elder dragon and he just had the money on hand.

      • UnCivilServant

        And lose his nesting material? No, that is not for spending. Better to finance.

    • Q Continuum

      I’ve been predicting his demise for years and he just keeps overperforming.

  44. The Late P Brooks

    What if twatter’s army of fact checkers and content moderators went on strike? Would anybody beg them to come back to work?

    • Festus

      Hair dye and nose rings? Perhaps.

  45. The Late P Brooks

    Tesla declined about 12% yesterday. He may have walked right into a trap.

    I think that’s mostly because of the Shanghai lockdowns and the Tesla factory closure, but it’s really bad timing.

    There might also be some people concerned about the distraction factor, but it’s not very likely Musk is going to insert himself into the day to day operations of twatter. That’s my best guess.

    • Fatty Bolger

      Yes, that’s extremely unlikely. His agenda with Twitter isn’t even that complicated.

  46. Swiss Servator

    LAST COUPLE OF WEEKS AUTHOR SHOUT OUTS! (leaving out TPTB, we know we are cool)

    RJ – thanks pal, you have been a big content provider and help… and this Thursday is going to ROCK!
    CPRM – Tonight for your latest Hat n’ Hair. Glad I am a Hair level sponsor now. I had best see my name in the credits…
    Gadfly Dude…tomorrow yours is up at 1100. Strong work!
    ron73440 Thanks for the continuing Stoic column!
    Animal The all time continuing champ, next to SugarFree. I have the first two of your next one set.
    Yusef That interesting art one goes up Monday PM.
    Tulip Thanks for covering WAWR, and the next Friday will have the next post in that series of Friday PM ones.
    Richard Who knew Vermont was so interesting – thank you!

    Not Adahn and Chafed, thanks for keeping our Sunday line up running!

    It has been a bit of a time lately, at Glibs HQ. We appreciate your help, and continued support. (Thanks to trshy and Athena, and all you who contributed, it was a little brighter).

  47. Fatty Bolger

    Redactle in 12, that was an easy one.

    • rhywun

      Ugh I got it narrowed down to a category but I could play whack-a-mole all day with guesses.

    • Plisade

      I wasn’t aware that an important word was still gender-specific on liberal sites. Threw me off for awhile. I did not get it in 12. Most impressive!

    • Scruffy Nerfherder

      LOL

    • slumbrew

      “OK, there were at least 90 yards of penalties and at least two ejections in less than 30 seconds.”

      Yep.

    • The Hyperbole

      Most of it was then too, Turkey Jones got called for unnecessary roughness for pile-driving Bradshaw aka ‘The single greatest moment in sports history’.

  48. The Late P Brooks

    Justice ad hoc

    Deputies protecting Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz had to pull him aside and surround him Tuesday after a member of a jury pool mouthed possible threats toward him and caused others to become “excited,” leading them to fear a potential brawl, officials said.

    A 70-member pool of potential jurors was filing into the courtroom and taking their seats when one of the first to enter, a man in his 30s, began “mouthing expletives” toward Cruz, Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer said. Cruz, 23, is facing a possible death sentence for murdering 17 at Parkland’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Feb. 14, 2018.

    Bailiffs moved in quickly to remove the man, who shook his head vigorously and muttered “that’s horrible” repeatedly as he walked past reporters seated toward the back of the courtroom.

    At this point, several other jurors became “excited” and were saying something that could not be heard, Scherer said. The first man then started looking back over his shoulder toward Cruz. The half-dozen armed deputies who always stand just behind Cruz then grabbed and surrounded him, fearing that the first juror was about to run toward them and would be joined by others.

    “The sheriff’s office observed all of that and determined they needed to protect Mr. Cruz,” Scherer said.

    “One instigates and then there are many followers,” explained Broward Sheriff’s Capt. Osvaldo Tianga, the head of courthouse security.

    “We’re gonna need a bigger jury pool.”

    • Semi-Spartan Dad

      The half-dozen armed deputies who always stand just behind Cruz then grabbed and surrounded him, fearing that the first juror was about to run toward them and would be joined by others.

      “The sheriff’s office observed all of that and determined they needed to protect Mr. Cruz,” Scherer said.

      There is something ironic about Broward law enforcement bravely standing against the unarmed citizens to protect Cruz, while previously cowering in fear from Cruz when he was armed and gunning down children.

    • juris imprudent

      That’s a novel way to get out of jury duty.

      • kbolino

        The law of the jungle is many things, but it’s generally not insincere.

    • Count Potato

      You mean he hasn’t been tried already?

      “In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury”

      Yeah, sure.

  49. Sean

    #waffle96 4/5

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    ? streak: 11
    ? #waffleelite
    wafflegame.net

    Look carefully Waffle fans. There was a link to a secret waffle game after completing. A bigger board!

    • rhywun

      #Worldle #96 2/6 (100%)
      ?????↗️
      ??????
      https://worldle.teuteuf.fr

      Dammit – one off again!

  50. Not Adahn

    The interconnect guru at this meeting is named “Kuechenmeister.”

      • UnCivilServant

        Cake, Kitchen, I got within the same room at least.

      • rhywun

        Unciv is right – it would translate to “kitchen master”.

    • Draw Me Like One of Your Tulpae, Jack

      self-regulation has failed

      OMG NET NEUTRALITY WE’RE ALL DEAD & DYING FROM INTERNET FREEEEDOM!

    • kbolino

      Pattern-recognition engines keep recognizing patterns that human beings are not allowed to recognize. This is what they mean by “injustice”. An AI algorithm is not a magic oracle, and shouldn’t be viewed as a true neutral arbiter of deeper truths; however, the best ones are pretty good at recognizing patterns at scale and can provide some useful insight. They can also be manipulated and retrained to say just about anything; access to source code, training data, priors, etc. as well as reproducibility of results is necessary to determine whether this has occurred.

      • slumbrew
    • Scruffy Nerfherder

      The disparate analysis AI will usher in justice.

  51. The Late P Brooks

    Follow the science money

    New guidance from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force says people over the age of 60 should not start taking daily, low-dose aspirin to prevent cardiovascular events like heart attacks or strokes.

    Low-dose aspirin had been a popular prevention measure, but as more evidence has accumulated its benefit has come into question. On Tuesday the task force finalized new recommendations advising against the practice. The task force concludes that initiating daily aspirin in adults 60 years or older has “no net benefit,” and increases a person’s risk of internal bleeding.

    ——-

    The science has changed since the influential medical panel put out its last guidance on taking aspirin to prevent cardiovascular disease in 2016. Dr. Salim Virani, a cardiologist at Baylor College of Medicine, says newer studies are not finding as much of a benefit, in part because people are taking drugs like statins.

    Inexpensive treatments should be banned.

    Also- didn’t this “reassessment” pop into the news just about simultaneously with a study showing aspirin had some sort of beneficial effect on the plague?

    • kbolino

      newer studies are not finding as much of a benefit, in part because people are taking drugs like statins

      “The science has changed” but also we can’t be bothered to control for variables.

    • Scruffy Nerfherder

      in part because people are taking drugs like statins

      Which benefit one aspect of your health while killing you in a wholly different way.

      • juris imprudent

        All a matter of which aspect of your ‘health’ is most profitable.

    • Rebel Scum

      You can’t take something that helps to prevent cardiovascular problems while they are trying to inject you with a substance that causes cardiovascular problems.

    • Certified Public Asshat

      “Ctrl+F Exercise”

      Hmm, doesn’t appear in that article.

      • Ownbestenemy

        I’m surprised it wasn’t in that article in a negative light.

  52. Draw Me Like One of Your Tulpae, Jack

    How do you know a government agency has already made a hiring decision before even announcing the job? When they do announce the job, the application deadline is 3 business days and it’s only available to internal candidates.

    Long live equity, inclusion, & fairness in hiring!

    • Nephilium

      At one old place, they had carefully crafted a position for one of my co-workers. The person who was the manager of that position asked me after it was filled why I didn’t apply. I said, “Because you created the position for %redacted%.”

      Him, “But you weren’t supposed to know that.”

    • Ownbestenemy

      For my old position it was crafted very narrow but at least still open to the FAA wide. I’ll get to see who applied here in a couple of days

    • juris imprudent

      Ha, my current position I had to ask if they had written the position description specifically for me. They hadn’t.

    • Scruffy Nerfherder

      The neocons and neolibs are making a desperate lunge at the brass ring here and they’re liable to get us all killed in the process.

      • Q Continuum

        “Why have all these nukes if we’re not gonna use them?!”

    • juris imprudent

      At least they aren’t doing it in secret? That’s better, I suppose.

    • SDF-7

      F’ing hell:

      Indeed, Austin and Blinken announced a new round of military aid to Ukraine, bringing the total amount of U.S. assistance to about $3.7 billion since the invasion began. After resisting pressure early in the conflict to supply Ukraine with advanced weapons systems, the Biden administration has changed course. It is now preparing to send heavy artillery, helicopters, armored personnel carriers, antiaircraft radar systems, advanced attack drones and other weapons.

      Austin told members of the press that the Defense Department won’t just send weapons, but “will expand military training for Ukrainian service members in the region on certain weapons systems being provided.”

      I think Russia could credibly call that acts of war if we do this. What the hell are they thinking?!?

      • Ownbestenemy

        Well ever since that meeting with all the defense contrators at the WH the tune had changed.

        Imagine that

      • Ownbestenemy

        Sorry..at the pentagon. That was Apr 12. Since Apr 12 we ramped up the money and arms and rhetoric.

      • Scruffy Nerfherder

        What could possibly go wrong?

      • rhywun

        The new “I did this!” stickers write themselves.

      • Urthona

        Russia’s already had ample reason to consider themselves at war with the US. They just aren’t taking direct action because it would greatly harm them.

  53. The Late P Brooks

    Just a string of unrelated coincidences

    All three indexes are on track to end the month with sizeable losses, with the Nasdaq set to end April down more than 10%.

    There is plenty of cause for alarm on Wall Street at a time when investors were already worried about sharply higher interest rates as the Federal Reserve fights inflation.

    Shares also tumbled late last week after Fed Chair Jerome Powell signaled policy makers could raise rates by half a percentage point at the central bank’s next meeting in early May, or double the rate hike it delivered in March.

    Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has also led to concerns about food and energy supplies, further ratcheting up inflation fears.

    And now, lockdowns in China amid a spike in COVID cases are raising concerns about global supply chains, while some of the world’s largest companies have reported disappointing earnings.

    Don’t worry, Admiral Biden will turn this tug around, once the last of Trump’s legacy of evil and authoritarianism has been erased.

    • UnCivilServant

      You left off the part where she failed to kill him.

      But seriously, what makes murder the more attractive option to just calling it off?

      • Dr. Fronkensteen

        Arranged marriage in India. She may have felt that she was unable to call it off. Certainly without the families consent.

    • SDF-7

      To be fair — yeah, I’d be pretty damned surprised I expect.

      • Chipwooder

        True. She wasn’t lying.

  54. db

    9 5
    7 6

  55. The Late P Brooks

    “Ctrl+F Exercise”

    Hmm, doesn’t appear in that article.

    A more suspicious mind than mine might think the public health expertocracy explicitly want to punish anyone who attempts to take on any sort of individual responsibility for their health and wellbeing.

  56. The Late P Brooks

    You mean he hasn’t been tried already?

    He has pleaded guilty. This proceeding is to legitimize the revenge murder as carried out by the State.

    • Chipwooder

      I gotta be honest, this is one of the cases where revenge murder doesn’t faze me in the slightest. Personally, I’d prefer if victims’ relatives beat him to death with crowbars, but no, we’re too civilized for that.

    • Tundra

      Gay.

  57. Not Adahn

    No that tensions with Russia are ratcheting up, it’s crucial that we address a loingstanding problemn in hte US military:

    Insufficient cartoon mascots

  58. Not Adahn

    The cafeteria here never fails to amaze.

    Join us for free lemonade & churros as we celebrate Eid-Ul-Fitr and Cinco De Mayo

  59. Evan from Evansville

    Folk around?

    • Chipwooder

      Some folk’ll never be around, but then again, some folk’ll,
      Like Cletus, the slack-jawed yokel

    • UnCivilServant

      Sugarfree article just dropped, so people will wander over to that thread.

      • The Hyperbole

        Personally I prefer to mosey.

  60. Ted S.

    Daily Quordle 93
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