Monday Open Thread

"Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings" - Father John Misty

Ex-Fleet Foxes drummer Josh Tillman, who has really grabbed me with a couple of songs recently.

- Mitt Romney may be the most despicable human being to win a party's nomination for the presidency in my lifetime.   He's neck and neck with Nixon on that score.  Christ, even W and Ronald Reagan had their redeeming qualities.  I see none with Romney.  He has no integrity, no core, no soul.  Watching him lose -- and I remain cautiously optimistic -- is going to be one of the most pleasant experiences of my life. 

- I am not yet ready to comment on the horrific shooting in Wisconsin.  I have some thoughts, but want to hear more facts before spouting off.  

Update:  Can you hear that dog whistle?  The Romney campaign goes full on racist before Labor Day.  (In the Romney campaign, white is always in fashion, even after Labor Day.) Their newest campaign advertisement has this language: 

“Under Obama’s plan, you wouldn’t have to work and wouldn’t have to train for a job,” says the narrator of a new ad from both the Romney campaign and the RNC. “They just send you your welfare check.”

And you know who is getting those welfare checks, don't you?  How long will it be before the narrative turns to "welfare queens buying Cadillacs" and "strapping young bucks buying T-Bone steaks?" Hey, it worked in 1980. 

I hate this white-bread motherfucker. 

Time to take Stanley out for a stroll.  Jump into the fray. 

Further Update: I know that we have a problem again with comments.  I've sent an email off to Typepad.  If any of you want to try to get attention via Twitter, that seemed to have worked well the last time. 

 

Comments

[oddjob]

We Now Have Our Smallest Government [all levels totalled together] in 45 Years

[oddjob]

(Video question to Barney Frank):

As a resident of Massachusetts, what did you make of Governor Romney?

[nancy]

Heh. I feel redeemed. Vertigo always made me snicker and roll my eyes. Here's James Wolcott on it's ascension to the 'Sight and Sound' 'greatest movies of all time' critics' poll top slot, brushing aside 'Citizen Kane'.

" Vertigo ...an elaborate sarcophagus that closes in on itself...":

Strip Vertigo of its haunting, Wagnerian eternal-return score by Bernard Herrmann and you've got a muddled Orphic saga that looks like a not-great Steve Ditko comic with a performance by Kim Novak that exerts all the erotic mystery and allure of a burlap bag.

Lists, schmists.

[low-tech cyclist]

A lot of people (Benen, TNC among them) are jumping on Harry Reid for his claims that Romney hasn't paid taxes in 10 years. TNC says he's rumor-mongering, which is bad no matter which side does it. Benen makes the point that "expecting presidential hopefuls to respond to every unsubstantiated rumor just isn't fair," but I don't think it's germane here.

I think they're both essentially drawing a false equivalence.

On the one hand, Reid is making some (possibly unsubstantiated) statements about Romney. But substantiated or no, they don't contradict anything we already know. And they're statements about something that should be in the public record, but Romney has refused to put there. This isn't in the class of "every unsubstantiated rumor." Nowhere close.

On the other hand, Romney has been going well beyond rumor-mongering and unsubstantiated claims, as Benen should be the first to point out - he's been making claims that have already been substantiated as false.

These two things would be equivalent if:
a) Romney had already released his back tax returns,
b) he'd paid taxes in all those years, and
c) Harry Reid was still claiming that he hadn't paid any taxes during that time.

Then, and only then, would Harry Reid be doing a full Mitt, and sinking down to the level of the man that the GOP is trying to put in the White House.

[Sir Charles]

l-t c,

I am sick of weenie ass liberals going after Reid. There is no doubt that Romney should be disclosing his taxes. Period. His claims that they are none of the voters' business is completely illegitimate and should be treated that way.

It seems to me that in the absence of reasonable disclosure there should be a presumption of something to hide -- behavior with regard to taxes so aggressive that it would be essentially disqualifying for him to report it.

So I'm with Reid.

[nancy]

Wrote the above Open/T comment because the election season and its robo-call/e-mail/daily stuffed letterbox panic alert fundraising has worn out its welcome chez nous. Joining that arms race makes no sense to me.

At this point, I'd sooner talk about movies, books, recipes, cats, crop circles, boxers or briefs, Mars landings, Pablo Picasso's teenage painting years, Stanley's preferred evening walk route -- anything but our modern GOP and its hateful 'zaniness.' Sigh.

And yes. Harry gets my 100% approval. You go guy.

[Sir Charles]

nancy,

I am working on a post about books to try and relieve some of the election-induced tedium. (I have been too busy reading to finish it -- I am trying to turn more to the written page some days and avoid the on-line a little bit.)

Stanley likes pretty much any walking route. I tend to take him on the main street here which has a number of stores and restaurants where he is well known. (I've met all kinds of people because of him -- dogs can be a great socializing tool.) My wife prefers the more bucolic setting of the residential neighborhoods heading towards Rock Creek Park.

[low-tech cyclist]

SC - A book thread would be a great idea. I just finished reading Wolf Hall, btw, thanks to your recommendation.

[Sir Charles]

Checking here as well. All seems to be in order.

l-t c,

I am going to try to work on the book post this evening.

[Sir Charles]

Glad you liked Wolf Hall -- the sequel, "Bring up the Bodies" is, I think, equally compelling.

I think Emma deserves the thanks for the recommendation.

I can't wait until the next one.

[Paula B]

US nuns consider breaking with Vatican and starting a "new organization."
http://nbcnews.to/ONpE3M

[Sir Charles]

Testing.

[Linkmeister]

Paula's link is broken for me. Try this one: http://tinyurl.com/8aoacyg

[kathy a.]

there is something so heartening about nuns standing their ground.

[paula b]

Is that a pig I see flying overhead?

[oddjob]

Sen. Harry Reid's a much more bare-knuckled fighter of a politician than he's typically thought to be.

[oddjob]

A Chinese supplier of Samsung's is accused of using child labor.

[oddjob]

A quick snapshot on Obama, race, and politics in southwestern PA (in John Murtha's old district, which is predominantly Democratic and also big labor conservative).

From the front page of today's Boston Globe.

[paula]

Thanks for posting the Globe piece, OJ. So, even if Obama wins, it will be same-old, same-old. Those who are sure he is (pick one) socialist, Muslim, anti-Christ will spew their hate for another four years, until any white guy is elected. Do party/accomplishments/platform matter as much as race in this election? I think not. So discouraging.

[oddjob]

As it turns out August 8 was a signficant calendar day in the Nixon Administration:

8/8/68: Nixon is nominated for the GOP ticket on the first ballot at the RNC in Miami Beach

8/8/73: Agnew denounces as "damned lies" the reports that he'd taken kickbacks while governor of Maryland and vows not to resign

8/8/74: Nixon announces to the world that he will resign the presidency effective the following day

[paula]

Wow! The stars must have been aligned in the right position. The universe was trying to tell us something.

[nancy]

Oddjob, I'm fairly certain it didn't used to be the case, but the Globe is now pay-walled for me. Hope that's just an experimental trial.

Primary results here in eastern WA were encouraging with a well-heeled Tea Party rancher a distant second as State Land's Commissioner [yeah right, what a clever idea], a relative unknown and first-time candidate doing respectably well in his U.S. Congressional challenge, a local darling of the Christian right coming in far behind in her state Senate bid, even after having spent all the cash the GOP could lavish on her. The Governor's race is looking good in spite of the Seattle Times endorsement of the GOP AG candidate, he of the ACA court challenge. Locally we've a great new young state Congressional candidate in a musical chairs bid to keep Dems in the State House. Drinks all around. If it can happen here... May Congresswoman 'no war on women' Cathy trip over her best bud Cantor on her way out and justice be served.

These east-side results give me more confidence about Jon Tester in Montana. The two places are similar in many ways.

Thought this write-up of the atmospherics in Michigan also encouraging: 'The GOP's Kamikaze Candidate'.

[oddjob]

the Globe is now pay-walled for me

Sorry about that. They've gone that way for some time now. You may find that several days from now it no longer will be. I was hoping since I could see it that meant everyone else would be able to as well.

:(

[oddjob]

("it" in this case being the article itself, not the Globe in general.)

[oddjob]

Apparently Romney's alluded to what a good idea Romneycare is for Massachusetts, and the wingnuts are furious.

[oddjob]

More context and explanation of what the Romney campaign said, why wingnuts are apoplectic about it and why what the campaign said matters in regards to the election.

[nancy]

Forgot to mention. I must purchase music above, for ahem, sharing with the younger set around the household. Holy shit. So not like the Fleet Fox sound.

[nancy]

Foxes. Yeah, yeah. Fleet fox was an Aesop fable character or something. :)

[Sir Charles]

oddjob,

The Romneycare gaffe was an excellent one. And a true Kinsleyan gaffe at that.

nancy,

Yeah, I find Fleet Foxes to be precious beyond bearing. And Father John Misty is anything but -- he seems to have a wicked sense of humor and a sense of fun as well. His enthusiastic dancing cracks me up. Obviously this was a guy who desperately needed to get out from behind that drum kit.

[oddjob]

Have you ever wondered what a hard-core, Bible-thumping, Tenth Amendment Tea Partisan would produce as legislation if he got really, really stoned first?...

:)

Hat tip, Patrick Appel (at Sully's blog).

[kathy a.]

oddjob, even when i'm overwhelmed with work and gloom, you manage to bring me the funniest damned report on proposed legislation of the day. eternal thanks, my friend!

[paula]

ditto that, oj.

[kathy a.]

OK, so. romney doesn't want to disclose his tax returns because he isn't a business. and anyway, john mccain didn't release all his heiress wife's tax returns, so there.

ahem. isn't romney currently running on his record as a business-person? isn't he -- as he himself has said -- "currently unemployed"? but wasn't the dressage deduction actually billed as a business expense, even though team romney has previously argued that it is mean to beat up on the horse because the horse is therapy for the mrs.?

[oddjob]

There is a statistically significant inverse correlation between having allergies to molds, dusts, pollen, pet dander, etc. and the risk of getting brain cancer.

Having said allergies means you're less likely to develop brain tumors although what it's all about isn't clear.

[oddjob]

What I don't get about Romney and the taxes is why he expects not to get dinged for it when this whole open book practice about past tax returns was begun by his very own father!

[oddjob]

Time marches on in the most sobering of ways.

(Just go to the link and you'll understand immediately.)

Hat tip, Patrick Appel over at Sully's blog.

[oddjob]

I'm guessing the enthusiasm difference is more likely to harm the down ticket races than to make Romney the winner.

[Sir Charles]

Waiting for a delayed flight from DC to NYC -- and then on to Boston. (Don't ask why this route, only Delta knows for sure. Evidently there is all kinds of bad weather north of here.

Ah, the joys of flying.

[oddjob]

Yes, there was heavy weather in the Boston area earlier this evening.

[nancy]

SirC, my husband has been trying for two days to get out of San Jose to get home. Southwest intended to put him on a delayed flight out of San Jose, route him through Las Vegas where his final connection couldn't happen and he would have had the thrill of hanging out for 16 hours. So he took the flyaway back from San Jose to Marina where he's spending another day with #l son and his caddy buddies.

I think this was a wise choice. ;-)

Hope you're airborne or better. Joys of flying usually beat the Greyhound though. :)

Oddjob, I think you're correct about down-ticket. I'd love to pose some hypothetical questions to those enthusiastic voters. "If you win BIG [mandates, baby] at every level, and the Presidency, the Congress, state governments, local governments are given everything the GOP and Antonin Scalia wishes for, what do you foresee for the future?" Really. Gut government. Gun arsenals for all, no birth control, no environmental regulation, for-profit unregulated institutions at every turn. On your own with health care, food safety, crime, mental health, consumer protection, education for our children, etc. "What will that look like from your privately-policed, hope-the-monthly-security-bill-is-paid-up, fortress? Mitt, of the car elevator, won't be paying any attention, in case you're wondering."

[paula b]

BREAKING--It's Paul Ryan, not Ted Nugent!!! Bridesmaid? I think not.

[oddjob]

What will that look like from your privately-policed, hope-the-monthly-security-bill-is-paid-up, fortress?

Ayn Rand just never understood why "I've got mine. The rest of you can rot." simply isn't a prescription for a successful society, and today's GOP base doesn't understand that, either.

[paula]

I hope everyone (especially OJ) saw the piece in the Post yesterday about Romney's dismal handling of the Big Dig, which was the focus of his gubernatorial campaign. If you missed it, you'll find it here:
http://wapo.st/Ob4tJT

Love the privately-policed fortress image, nancy. And OJ,you're right on the money.

[oddjob]

I read the first three pages of it and then WaPo put up a wall.

I remember all that. It is a decent example of Romney's strengths and weaknesses.