Saturday’s Forum
Steven L. Taylor
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Saturday, November 7, 2020
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81 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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No coffee in the AM sucks.
@OzarkHillbilly:
I’m on Day 9 since I quit coffee cold turkey.
Mornings suck.
‘Red alert’ for hospital ICU beds in Twin Cities amid COVID-19 surge
@EddieInCA: I’ve been doing off and on this year because of denial about stomach issues I am having (“It’s not that bad, I don’t even feel sick.”)(which I didn’t) Then a couple weeks ago I had an episode of acid reflux that led to me spitting up blood for about five minutes afterwards. Got scoped, had “8 giant bleeding polyps” removed, and am now off the blood thinners because due to the condition of my stomach lining, I am at high risk of “uncontrolled bleeding.”
Which is not good, because being off the blood thinners puts me at high risk of a pulmonary embolism, which I already spent 6 days in ICU with some years back. (I’ve had blood clots one other time, in addition to an extensive family history of them)
And with Covid currently taking off everywhere…. My timing really sucks.
White House chief of staff Mark Meadows tests positive for coronavirus
Since providing multiple links will probably send me to comment purgatory, I’ll just say that http://www.thebulwark.com is full of good stuff today.
@OzarkHillbilly: @EddieInCA:
It’s none of my business, but may I ask why you’ve both given up coffee? All the medical advice I’ve read recently seems to suggest that a cup or two isn’t harmful, and may indeed be beneficial. Again, just asking out of friendly concern. I enjoy reading both your comments.
@OzarkHillbilly:
Oh, man. I am sorry to learn this. You take care of yourself.
from First the carrot, then the stick
Time and again we’ve seen how Republicans actually feel about being “responsible, protective and committed to our families and communities”.
@CSK: Coffee definitely inflames the stomach lining, So does eating for that matter, tho I am in the process of figuring out which foods are the worse. I tried having a little soda the other day. Uh uh, nope, not good. Happy to report that pastrami is OK tho.
It’s the little things in life. 🙂
@OzarkHillbilly:
Damn, I’m sorry to hear this. (Good about the pastrami, though.) Presumably your doctor can provide you with a list of safe foods, if she or he hasn’t already.
@OzarkHillbilly:
Not really, everybody is different. Obviously, acidic foods are worse. The rest I just have to figure out.
@OzarkHillbilly:
I wish you the best with doing so. Sorry you have to go through this.
Cited here.
@CSK: Getting old is not for the weak. 😉
@OzarkHillbilly:
Yeah, it’s the most pre-existingest condition of all.
I posted these yesterday, but this thread more appropriate:
https://twitter.com/TheRealHoarse/status/1324914377552703488
https://twitter.com/RosieGray/status/1324911207279710208
Michigan couple with 14 sons finally has a daughter
I have a long time friend I’ve known since HS days who is one of 9 children. All his siblings are of the female persuasion. Thanksgiving dinner was…. different at his parents. Very loud, and woe to the boyfriend who said the wrong thing (and no matter what they said, it was the wrong thing). I was immune to such pile ons for some reason or other.
Testing comment edit feature
DOES THIS WORK?
@James Joyner:
I saw click to edit in your post. I tried clicking it but could not do anything,
ETA: After going to the home page and back to this thread, an edit button had suddenly been added to my own post, was not there when I first posted this comment.
FWIW I got the edit function on your comment but when I clicked it, it got stuck loading the comment
They’re baaaack….Tea party-linked activists protest against ‘election fraud’ in US cities
The same rightwing activists that helped grow the Tea party movement and spread protests against coronavirus lockdowns are now organizing demonstrations alleging fraud outside vote-counting locations in Democratic cities.
Amplifying Donald Trump’s baseless claims that Democrats are trying to steal the election, established conservative players are encouraging citizens to show up to protest in person at locations where ballots are being counted, prompting concerns about intimidation of poll workers.
FreedomWorks, a conservative advocacy group backed by wealthy donors that played an influential role in the Tea Party movement, touted the appearance of protesters with their preprinted FreedomWorks signs in Detroit and Philadelphia on Thursday.
The group was advertising more protests in Michigan and Pennsylvania on Friday, as well as a “solidarity” protest in Oklahoma, a solidly red state whose votes for Trump are not being contested.
ETA: I had to refresh before it would appear. If you are reading this, it worked.
@sam: Am too lazy to Google-fu it right now, but some time ago a female celebrity had two Chinese characters tattooed on herself which she probably thought was the bees’ knees….
….and which turned out to be the brand name of a small backdoor grill.
A very succinct summary.
Over at http://www.thedailybeast.com Will Sommer has an interesting article about how Trump’s loss has thrown QAnon into a state of total confusion. Hillary Clinton hasn’t been consigned to Gitmo. John F. Kennedy Jr. hasn’t risen from the dead. Donald Trump hasn’t arranged for the mass arrest of the members of the international cannabalistic pedophile ring. What’s an avid conspiracy theorist to do?
@James Joyner: @charon: @OzarkHillbilly:
“Edit” appeared for me right away in my previous post. Usually I have to refresh the page once or twice, and that doesn’t always work.
@OzarkHillbilly:
That surname ought to be schvantz given the way they reproduce.
A keeper:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EmMI6fQXEAAU9g7?format=jpg&name=small
https://twitter.com/CraigFromPA/status/1324912517844496384/photo/1
https://twitter.com/CraigFromPA/status/1324912517844496384
@charon: I saw that last night and about fell out of bed laughing!
It will be interesting to see it he software “glitch” discovered in Antrim county Michigan where 6000 Trump votes were given to Biden is more widespread. Trump now has won the county by 2000 votes. I think it flipped a down ballot race Republican as well. The software is used in 47 MI counties. And the software is used in 30 states including most of the ones with close results.
Some say the “glitch” would have been found anyway in the canvassing of the votes before certification. If so, that still means we need to wait on the certified vote results before presuming a winner. May know by the mid-December.
@JKB: Denial is not a river in Egypt.
@OzarkHillbilly: Trumpers aren’t known for their massive intellects. 😀
A long thread, well worth reading in it’s entirety:
Sad to say, having seen the light, I don’t think he quite gets it yet.
You know how you go on a diet and the results seem random? Up a pound, down a pound, stalling out, overnight two pound changes and in the end you’re back where you started?
20 years ago I clocked in at 270. At 6’8″ that’s pretty good. Pity I’m only 6’2″ because then it’s obese. So I did Atkins with absolute discipline and dropped almost 50 pounds. Largely because we were applying to adopt from China and the Chinese don’t like fat people.
Since then I’ve never gone above 250 let alone 270, but it’s been a see-saw battle. And each time dieting was less effective, Atkins or calorie, didn’t matter. Covid lockdown came and that wasn’t good, I hit 230. Dieted. Nothing. Just nothing. And then…. Trulicity.
I am not a doctor <—— Also not diabetic. The Trulicity was off-label use. Not easy for me since I have a genuine needle phobia. However, started using it. (Fortunately my wife doesn't mind stabbing me in the leg while I wince and look away. In fact….hmmm.) Some intermittent nausea which went away. Stayed on exactly the same diet that had been so ineffective and suddenly the diet worked with metronomic regularity. A pound. Another. No wild swings, no inexplicable weight increases. Pound, pound, pound. 20 pounds in 20 weeks. Like clockwork.
The moral being yes, sometimes it is something metabolic, not just that you're an indulgent, undisciplined swine.
Sigh. I wonder how many other stories we’ll hear like this?
https://news.yahoo.com/missouri-poll-worker-kept-covid-213608870.html
@OzarkHillbilly:
Take care of yourself. Yeah, blood thinners suck, even when they are helpful.
@JKB:
I know how Trump and his supporters hate fake news. The spreaders of such, have been working overtime, disguised as Republicans, and making the Party look even worse than the President’s time in office.
From the Michigan Secretary of State. Your welcome.
Link:
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.michigan.gov/sos/0,4670,7-127–544676–,00.html&ved=2ahUKEwjQj_ny3PDsAhUnHzQIHUr2DWoQFjAKegQIARAB&usg=AOvVaw0o73FMmlCTeGbeDgjPgLCh&cshid=1604762379904
Congressperson Ocasio-Cortez has called for a “blacklist” of Trump administration officials and supporters to be created. GLAAD already has a “Trump Accountability Project”. Unsure if they are different or the same list.
I know, many here support such going after Trump supporters. But that means that the incentive is to fight this election out to the end. If the consequences of concession is metaphorical, or even literal, death at the hands of the winners, you con’t concede. You fight it out to the bloody end.
Not to mention, Trump has no incentive to take the election “call” by Fake News, who have incentive to “get back” at Trump. Better to wait for the state election authorities, unofficial calls or the official certified results at a minimum. This election has revealed the illusion that the election night media “calls” are substantive. Even someone at the New York Times tweeted out their delusion that the news media “call” the winner of the election. Quickly deleted, one supposes when one of the few adults still at the Times pointed out the flaw in the assertion.
Sorry for the long post but it’s worth saying. From the NYTimes:
The AP and NPR just called PA and the race.
https://www.npr.org/2020/11/07/928803493/biden-wins-presidency-according-to-ap-edging-trump-in-turbulent-race?utm_term=nprnews&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=npr
Trump was, at that moment, preparing to golf. His PA legal team was about to kick off a presser at a landscaping company (located next to an Adult Book Store). All of that seems pretty appropriate.
Personally, I’m all for Trump taking the rest of his short (one term) Presidency at the golf course. That would be a relief for most of us folks who are celebrating this big win for the Deep State.
@JKB: What in God’s name are you yapping about? It’s over, you lost, you can’t change that fact, so why don’t you either accept it or just go away?
Fox just called it too.
Also, let’s not forget that the US has elected the first Female VP (not to mention the first VP of Black and East Indian descent). So it’s a day of firsts.
Drudge Report’s headline (as I expect will be a lot of other ones tomorrow):
“You’re fired!”
According to http://www.thehill.com, Brad Parscale is planning on writing a book (or will be looking for someone to write one for him) and is in talks with an agent and potential publishers. The speculation is that he’ll reveal damaging info about Trump and his spawn.
@mattbernius:
The photo accompanying it made me laugh out loud.
What a great Saturday!
Biden and Harris smote Trump/Pence
Cow Hampster is having its 3rd consecutive 70+ degree day. Let’s see, we’ve had a hard freeze and snow and it is November, so we are officially in Indigenous People’s summer. Thank you.
An excuse to drink before 5.
@Sleeping Dog:
I wonder how business is doing at the NH state liquor stores?
Could there be any better encapsulation of the shambolic wreck that is Trump and everyone who hitches themselves to his rusty golf cart of a life? Did they try to book the Four Seasons and they refused? Did Trump make some bizarre autocomplete error and his staff never even tried to book the hotel? My favorite theory is that all that is left of the Trump campaign are a bunch of 19 year old Young Republican types being charged out as “Media Experts” at $250/hour but only getting paid $3 over minimum wage. Oh, and they’ll get stiffed for even that.
@CSK:
Gangbusters!
2 lines, one for those who want to drink to kill the pain and the other for those feeling schadenfreude for the other’s pain and want to dance on Trumps political grave.
LoL
@Sleeping Dog:
My TV machine is showing people literally dancing in the streets in DC and NY. Huge crowds.
@MarkedMan: “My favorite theory is that all that is left of the Trump campaign are a bunch of 19 year old Young Republican types being charged out as “Media Experts” at $250/hour but only getting paid $3 over minimum wage”
OVER minimum wage?
It appears, that the soon to be former blah, blah, blah, decide to go golfing today. And while he is gone the streets around the WH are filled with citizens celebrating his defeat. Best thing is that he will need to pass through it upon his return.
@MarkedMan: Wait. Am I to understand that the gravel covered parking lot of this one story building in a suburban Philly industrial park actually did host a Trump legal team press conference, and it wasn’t just some random typo confusing the Four Season Landscaping with the Four Seasons Hotel? And that Rudy Giuliani was the main attraction?
Geez Louise. I actually considered that it might not have been a typo for a few seconds, before thinking, “Nah, there’s no way that even the Trump gang could think that was going to be viewed as anything other than a humiliation and make them a laughingstock.” As Abraham Lincoln once said, “Never underestimate the absolute incompetence and fecklessness of Donald J. Trump, as will become instantly apparent once all the rats have left the sinking ship.”
This is the amateurish losers representing Donald J. Trump, who in turn is the very same clown that our resident Trumpers view as their alpha dog, their North Star, and have abased themselves for over the past half decade.
[I didn’t need to edit this, but seeing the button, I just couldn’t resist]
Maybe I just can’t stop raining on peoples parades
Another thought from the OP
And a comment
@Jax: There is a special kind of stupid here in Misery.
@JKB: Blah, blah, blah. Apparently mathematics is another of the realities you pack of Trumpist losers deny.
@JKB: I’ve got a list. Sorry, you aren’t on it.
@EddieInCA: @OzarkHillbilly: What?? Understand, I haven’t consumed caffeinated coffee since I left Korea (well, a cup here and there) because it exacerbates my tremor, but guys, how much do you drink and what is it doing that cold turkey looks like an answer?
@MarkedMan: Four Seasons Total Landscaping is between a dildo shop and a crematorium. It’s so good.
I’m not sure I know what’s real anymore. I thought it was a joke, because… what the actual fuck?
@OzarkHillbilly: Ouchies! You need to figure out something else to drink all right. Take care of yourself! WA!
One of my friends in Korea started having stomach problems from drinking too much Coke. He found that barley tea and corn tea were pretty soothing and came to be just as pleasant for him as soda used to be.
@Just nutha ignint cracker: Sure! As soon as I post the comment here, the edit shows up finally. 🙁 See second graph above.
@MarkedMan: The more I think about the ludicrous “Red Lectroids at Yoyodyne” vibe of this whole thing, the more I realize that Trump’s actual campaign staff probably left a month ago, knowing he would stiff them when he lost.
Ozark,
Sorry to hear about that. I saw you tried “soda” and that compelled this comment. Soda pop is highly acidic but not a heck of a lot of people are aware of just how acidic it really is. Cherry coke is the worst at 2.5, (diet or otherwise). For context, water is 7 and battery acid is about 1. Coca cola dissolves soap scum as well or better as vinegar does.
I learnt the hard way too. Gave up on “soft” drinks completely and don’t miss them a bit, not anymore anyway.
@OzarkHillbilly: @CSK: Also, as your stomach heals up, you’ll find more stuff doesn’t trouble it. If you are a label reader and soda is important to you phosphoric acid is the stuff in soda that seem to be the harshest and not all sodas use it. Something to consider in the future, maybe.
@OzarkHillbilly: That really sucks. Take care of yourself, man. At least as well as you can.
If you want to be crazy while you’re off your blood thinners, measure the diameter of your calves each day, 10cm down or so (use a pen, draw a mark so it’s the same spot, somewhere near the widest). Then you can see if one leg is swelling, which is a good indication of a DVT. They may not be the same, and there will normally be some variation with measurement, but if a leg swells more than 1.5cm, it’s likely beyond just a measurement error (but not necessarily a DVT)
I had a superficial clot once, and after it cleared I was always panicking (anxiety disorders are great), and my doctor taught me that in a moment of “well, if you’re going to be crazy, here’s something useful and reassuring.”
Eventually, some years later, I decided it was just being crazy and stopped doing it, and then two months later I had a massive pulmonary embolism. I probably would have caught the DVT before throwing the clot had I been crazy for another two months.
Now on blood thinners for the rest of my life, and measuring my calves forever, even though my doctor says “oh, you’re on blood thinners, you don’t have to worry about it.” Good times.
@OzarkHillbilly: Of course not. The weak have already succumbed WAY before old arrives. Take care. Wishing you a speedy recovery and good fortune with sussing out your revised diet.
@Just nutha ignint cracker:
Well, I don’t have Ozark’s problem, knock wood, but this is good to know. I drink very little soda. Mostly I guzzle low-salt V8 and sugar-free juices. My PCP keeps screaming at me to “Hydrate! Hydrate!”
@dazedandconfused: @Just nutha ignint cracker: I usually go months without drinking soda (too damned sweet for me) and the only reason I had the one was because the deli didn’t have anything else. I sipped here and there on the way home and when I got there I took a couple good swigs and…. Nope. Immediate effect. Dumped the other half of the bottle out.
@OzarkHillbilly: WA! And she doesn’t seem like she’s stoned at all.
@Gustopher: not a bad idea, thanx.
The first time I got one I ignored the pain, thinking I had bruised myself somehow, until my calf ballooned up like a watermelon. By that point my lungs “looked like apple trees.” The 2nd time I recognized the pain immediately and went to the doc post haste. Got the sonogram and back on the blood thinners before it ever got to my lungs.
@JKB: “Not to mention, Trump has no incentive to take the election “call” by Fake News, who have incentive to “get back” at Trump.”
Good point. The same applies to us listening to your twaddle. Go home and consult whatever talking points medium you consult so that you can start practicing your next attack/new issue. This one is stale now. The election is over, the canvassing begins, the winner will be officially declared in a month or so (on page 26 0r 27 just like in the past). But you still need a new schtick. You should start working on it instead of beating this dead horse.
@OzarkHillbilly: I’ve had GERD for a long time now. Nexium keeps it somewhat under control. I also take Gaviscon right before bed to prevent any sneaking reflux, which can happen during sleep. Not fun to wake up and feel like you’re choking/coughing to death. I hope you’re taking something, and if not, I’d recommend those. Good health!
ETA: I don’t modify my diet too much. Plenty of coffee, spicy foods, and, uh, alcohol. I’m not sure how much they really contribute to the condition. I think the best thing for me is to limit my calories in general.
trump finally draws crowds in DC to rival those at Obama’s first Inauguration.
@MarkedMan: My question is who got paid for the service placement/advertising link, Trump or Four Seasons Total Landscaping? (If it was Four Seasons TL, change the question to “who imagined that they were getting paid.”)
@CSK:
Personally, I recommend ethanol thinly disguised as fruit juice.
And ‘ludes. Lots of ludes.
Maybe a bit of acid.
Just sayin’
@Michael Reynolds:
Congratulations on the weight loss! I (and I suspect many of us here) are all too familiar with that struggle. Personally, I’m an acolyte to the “Chemotherapy Weight Loss Plan.”(TM). Over the first year of a 3-1/2 year regimen, I went from a “portly” 280 down to 205. Well, the temporary ileostomy and later permanent colostomy certainly helped. Significant changes in dietary restrictions certainly followed.
@OzarkHillbilly: and everyone else in that thread.
Yeah, the stomach issues really suck. I know my initial self-diagnosis was that I’d probably perforated an ulcer slightly, as my chosen career led me to skip the spoon and eat stress directly from the serving ladle (that, and the fact that I’d passed a colonoscopy with a “nada” the year before). But not being able to tolerate cold (due to treatment) led to dropping soda (or pop, depending on your location) and drinking lots of coffee, tea, and herbal concoctions (all at room temp). By all means, keep on top of this, and take care of yourself. We’re all too old to find stunt doubles to take our places – trust me, Cracker and I have been looking, there are none available in the PNW. Unlike you and Cracker, I haven’t completely given up on caffeine, as I haven’t noticed any increase/decrease in tremor due to that. But again, YMMV.
A close friend of mine works in the U. S. Capitol building. He told me something yesterday that had me in stitches.
He has access to pretty much the whole building, so sometimes he’ll take the Senate elevator to get where he needs to go. He’s met plenty of politicians–he specifically mentions how nice John McCain always was–but this time it wasn’t McCain, it was McConnell.
My friend had just gotten in the elevator and was waiting for the doors to close when he saw McConnell and a couple of aides approaching. As they got close, my friend quickly held up a finger in the “Wait!” gesture, and McConnell actually stopped…and my friend just stood there as the elevator doors closed. He says the look on McConnell’s face was absolutely priceless.
On the way up my friend was thinking “holy crap, I am SO fired…” but then realized McConnell didn’t know who he was anyway. He remains employed.
This is the most incredible Tweet thread of insults I have ever seen.
https://twitter.com/harikunzru/status/1325129548325933056?s=19
An example:
I knew I had been actively avoiding bad news since Wednesday morning. 2016 was trauma. No, since Tuesday morning to be fair.
I was chatting with a woman at the grocery store this morning and she told me PA got called for Biden.
Until then, I had zero idea how clenched and tense I was, and had been. The release was palpable. Glory be and good riddance. I could relax. (Still upset about Senate and what that means)
The aphorism about a weight being lifted off your shoulders is profoundly true. If not for Covid restrictions I would have hugged that random woman in joy. We sufficed with an elbow bump and a few seconds of bad thrill dancing.
@Mikey:
Great story!