Friday’s Forum
Steven L. Taylor
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Friday, July 21, 2023
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44 comments
About Steven L. Taylor
Steven L. Taylor is a Professor of Political Science and a College of Arts and Sciences Dean. His main areas of expertise include parties, elections, and the institutional design of democracies. His most recent book is the co-authored
A Different Democracy: American Government in a 31-Country Perspective. He earned his Ph.D. from the University of Texas and his BA from the University of California, Irvine. He has been blogging since 2003 (originally at the now defunct Poliblog).
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Post-menopausal killer whales defend their sons from aggressors, study finds
I want a gal just like dear old Mom.
@OzarkHillbilly:
“Post-menopausal Killer Whales” would be a good name for a band
Apparently there are only 3 mammal species that experience menopause:
Humans
Orcas
Short-finned pilot whales.
It clearly is an evolved trait.
(The claim elephants do menopause has been debunked).
Now if orcas could only have squatted around a campfire and told stories, or smashed stones into bones for marrow until they realized they were chipping tools… well, whatever equivalent one might imagine… OK you creative types — ‘Planet of the Orcas’ anyone?
The Supreme Court of Misery slapped the AG down in his attempts to lie about the proposed abortion amendment.
Yeah, because he had accomplished what he wanted:
I can’t say what I want to say, so I’ll just STFU.
eta: to clarify, the GOP state auditor concluded that the Amendment would have NO fiscal impact on the state, Bailey wanted to say it would cost the state billions of $.
@Stormy Dragon: Damn, you are right. You’d better trademark it before I do.
It looks like racketeering charges for Benito in Georgia.
Tony Bennett has died.
RIP
@Mister Bluster: Well shit.
@Mister Bluster: Truly a multi-generational talent. And unlike a few of his contemporaries, he seemed to draw real love and respect from those around him. Kudos to Lady Gaga for bringing him to a new generation, and then remaining part of his life even into dementia.
@OzarkHillbilly:..Well shit.
He was 96. I know he couldn’t live forever but maybe just one more song…
Depressing.
The military ordered big steps to stop extremism. Two years later, it shows no results
San Antonio Express News weather forecast: “It was hot on Thursday. It will be hot on Friday. And it’s going to be hot on Saturday.”
@Mister Bluster: “Tony Bennett has died.”
My neighbor!
(He lived about six floors above my apartment… presumably in a much bigger and nicer one!)
@Mister Bluster:
@MarkedMan:
Remember seeing his Glastonbury performance on TV a few years ago.
Excellent set, and the crowd loved it.
RIP
I think this is too stupid for even MAGA people to buy:
Florida’s CFO blames wokeness for insurers leaving the state: ‘I do call them the Bud Light of the insurance industry
UK politics news.
Three by-elections yesterday.
All supposedly Conservative safe seats; they lost two, rather badly.
Just held on to Johnson’s former seat, Uxbridge.
Lost Selby to Labour, Frome to LibDems.
Turnout down, so probably a lot of Conservatives staying home.
Main thing: large amount of “anti-Conservative” tactical voting in evidence; as percentage of vote LibDem vote down 5% in both Selby and Uxbridge; Labour vote in Frome down 10%.
If the tactical voting is anything near in the general, Tories are toast in much of the country.
How sad 🙁 *snark*
@JohnSF:
Is this the Boris Johnson Effect?
@wr:..My neighbor!
WOW!
Tony Bennett, Elvis Costello and Count Basie
Buzz is beginning that studios may delay release of completed pictures, because their stars are on strike and can’t take part in promotion.
It’s hard not to laugh at this. Don’t they have AI chatbots that can take over promotional duties?
So, today I woke up at 4 am, and couldn’t fall back asleep. I gave up trying around 4:20 and got some coffee. By 4:45 or so, I decided to try again, even with caffeine merrily metabolizing inside me.
Next thing I know, it’s 6:15 and the alarm is blaring and vibrating. This would mean I slept through the first alarm, which goes off at 5:50 and runs for over three minutes non stop.
Speaking of sleep, I had an odd dream a few weeks ago. All I remember is a woman addressing a large audience at an auditorium, saying the company will hire more people, raise wages, and other things along those lines. Someone off stage then says “That’s gonna cost a lot of money!”
And the woman calmly replies “That’s ok. We have money.”
I can’t help but think it was one of the most rational dreams I’ve ever had.
@Mister Bluster: Yeah, I know, not a surprise, and he was suffering from dementia, which is it’s own kind of hell but still the world is a little emptier with him gone.
Toward the end of the GenZ post from yesterday, JKB noted this morning
That he can try to make this assertion given his several-years endorsement of Trump simply proves that Tom Lehrer was right when he responded to Kissinger winning the Nobel Peace Prize by saying “Irony is dead.”
A couple of Texas stories to be ashamed about:
Tearfully testifying against Texas’ abortion ban, three women describe medical care delayed
Confusion and stress abound for 500,000 Texans bumped from Medicaid
@MarkedMan: The Bennett/Gaga album was a real eye-opener for me. Bennett picked a partner who has a real voice and knows her music. They even play it now in my local coffee shop.
@Mister Bluster:
His rendition of “The Shadow of Your Smile” is the best I’ve ever heard.
@CSK:
Opinions differ. LOL.
And in both directions.
Oh, and a local Labour official is saying its because St. Jeremy is no longer Labour leader. *eyeroll*
A lot of commentators are putting it down to the extension of the London ultra-low emissions zone (ULEZ) charges, which is attributed to London’s Labour Party mayor, Sadiq Khan.
Missing that it was actually related to conditions placed on London Transport subsidy by the government. 🙁
And now the “anti-Green” element in the Conservatives is trying to big-up this alongside “anti-woke” and “anti-migrant” as key weapons in the next election.
Fools.
As somebody once said: “It’s the economy, stupid.”
Which in turn relates to the economic impact of Brexit, and the failure of the Conservatives to recognise that trying to promise tax cuts is a mirage leading them, and the country, deeper into the desert.
@JohnSF:
Makes sense.
Regarding Tony Bennett, aka Anthony Benedetto, just found out some things I never knew, though perhaps other folks here did.
He was among the US forces that liberated Dachau in 1945.
He was promoted to corporal, and then demoted to private and assigned to Graves Registration for the crime of associating with a black guy he knew from New York.
And marched at Selma after being approached by Harry Belafonte to support Rev. King’s campaign there.
RIP
Fly Me to the Moon
Tony Bennett
Apollo 11
July 16-24, 1969
54 years ago
@OzarkHillbilly:
@Stormy Dragon:
You two should make sure you get your trademarks quick so you don’t end up like this:
https://www.billboard.com/business/legal/dj-john-summit-label-name-legal-dispute-off-grid-promoter-1235376074/
For those of you who are like, who the hell is that, John Summit is a former accountant turned DJ/Partyboy/brat/dingdong. He’s also an object of lust for me cause he’s hot, makes beautiful music, and I have poor taste in men.
The other guy, I have no idea. I hadn’t heard of that festival until this happened. I suspect both of them might be SOL per the “Taco Tuesday” litigation, but I’m not a trademark attorney.
In Russia, it seems that the the right-nationalist critics of the conduct of the war are getting the treatment.
Girkin aka Strelkov arrested. Also Gubarev.
Implication: the factional alliance supporting Shoigu and Gerasimov is ascendant, favoured by Putin, and telling their opponints to back off or else.
Also, the army is being purged it seems: Popov, commander of the 58th Army, removed from post. And rumours of some mid-ranks being removed as well.
Looks like the Kremlin is competing with UAF to delete Russian senior officers.
IIRC senior commanders killed this month: Generals Goryachev & Tsokov, Colonels Ivanov, Pisarenko,
@Mister Bluster: Gawd I’m old. I was thinking “that couldn’t possibly be 54 years ago” when I read it. I was seventeen then and I’m only 71 now.
(As you can probably guess, I’m also innumerate. 😉 )
@Just nutha ignint cracker:
I’m now counting in Seychelles tortoise years.
It’s so much more comforting to know I’m only just approaching middle age. 😉
Scott- Have talked with colleagues in Texas. The way this is being played is that it is the doctor’s fault, that they are failing to interpret the law correctly. Of course the state made sure all doctors were notified that they could be sued if they broke the law and it is not doctors interpreting the law but their lawyers or the lawyers of the hospital for whom they work. The lawyers think the law is unclear so are counseling caution. The medical societies have asked to clarify the law but Texas has not done so. They seem to like the confusion as it means fewer abortions and if people only “almost” die so far that’s OK with them.
Steve
@steve:
And it’s only a matter of time before someone does die. Do your colleagues and their attorneys have any idea what to do with the Malpractice suit that will come from that? It’s not going to be a defense to say they complied with the law. Especially since the law is so purposefully vague.
The headline says it all: Bankman-Fried planned to buy Nauru and build apocalypse bunker
I would urge the world to keep this in mind when they hear some other billionaire, or wanna-be billionaire, expound on the virtues of “effective altruism.”
@Scott: That is ridiculous. Insurers are leaving because it is no longer profitable.
It’s called a death spiral and Florida’s insurance market is close to being in one.
@Kathy:
Considering that Nauru is famous for an economy based on being metres deep in birdshit, it seems somehow appropriate.
Beth- They are aware of that but they are trapped. They just hope their lawyers are correct. Cynically, I would note that if the mother dies they can only be sued by family. If they do an abortion they can be sued by anyone.
Steve
@Scott: considering that “environmental” extends to “how many damn hurricanes we got hit with last year”, I would say that yes indeedy it is true, if Florida’s insurance companies totally stopped taking account of “ESG and put it away” they’d probably have an entirely different opinion…..
(I suspect the yelling at the insurance companies is simply because deSantis et al. know full well the insurance companies will continue to say “adios” and scamper out of the state. They’re desperately hoping that accusing the insurance companies of being “woke” will fool their ageing Boomer supporters just enough to get one more supporting vote out of them before Grandma and Grandpa keel over (or get fed up with the increased cost of insurance and move out of state.))
@JohnSF:
Was. Now they do money laundering, as I understand.
Imagine moving from bird droppings to something less unsanitary but far more offensive.
@Scott:
Luddite that I am, I suspect the reason the report hasn’t been released is because it reports extremism is alive and well in the military. The cynic in me thinks our military leaders don’t really see this as a problem.