Saturday’s Forum

FILED UNDER: Open Forum
Steven L. Taylor
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). Follow Steven on Twitter

Comments

  1. OzarkHillbilly says:

    Ben Wakana
    @benwakana46

    Do vaccine requirements work? Let’s check

    ✅@United
    went from 59% to 90% vaccinated in 6 weeks
    ✅@DeptofDefense
    went from 76% to 89% in 3 weeks
    ✅@LSU
    went from 63% to 81% with a month left
    ✅@FoxNews
    , @aboutKP
    , @RutgersU
    are all at 90% or above.

    So yes, vax requirements work

    5
  2. CSK says:

    I wonder what will happen at today’s rally in D.C. Already the MAGAs are spinning it as a “false flag operation” on the part of BLM, Antifa, and the FBI. I particularly like this comment:

    “You gotta know the FBI will instigate enough violence to give themselves Creedence* and to vilify Truly Patriotic Americans and Trump.”

    *As in Clearwater Revival????

    1
  3. OzarkHillbilly says:

    William LeGate
    @williamlegate

    Conspiracy theories from Republicans that the “justice for J6” rally is actually a FBI plot to round up Trump supporters to send them to the gulag has severely hindered expected attendance.

    The organizer says he may be the only one there

    Ah yes, The last true brave American patriots, abandoning the field of conflict at the first sign of a lack of proper deference to their collective whiteness.

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  4. OzarkHillbilly says:

    @CSK: “You mean we aren’t allowed to commit violence and destruction just because we are having a white boy tantrum??? How UN AMERICAN!!!!”

    1
  5. OzarkHillbilly says:

    Former Texas solicitor general Jonathan Mitchell, who played a pivotal role in designing the legal framework of the state’s near-total abortion ban, also argued on behalf of anti-abortion group Texas Right to Life that women would still be able to terminate pregnancies if Roe was overturned by traveling to “wealthy pro-abortion” states like California and New York with the help of “taxpayer subsidies”.

    “Women can ‘control their reproductive lives’ without access to abortion; they can do so by refraining from sexual intercourse,” Mitchell wrote in the brief. “One can imagine a scenario in which a woman has chosen to engage in unprotected (or insufficiently protected) sexual intercourse on the assumption that an abortion will be available to her later. But when this court announces the overruling of Roe, that individual can simply change their behavior in response to the court’s decision if she no longer wants to take the risk of an unwanted pregnancy.”

    No comment, except to say that some things are better left unsaid.

    8
  6. OzarkHillbilly says:
  7. JohnMcC says:

    @OzarkHillbilly: Alternatively, ‘the girls’ could resume that old contraceptive method of holding an aspirin tablet between their knees. Didja ever think of that!?

    1
  8. Mr. Prosser says:

    @OzarkHillbilly: Strikes me the best response is to emulate Lysistrata and her associates. (I knew there was a reason for Freshman Lit in college.)

    7
  9. CSK says:

    @OzarkHillbilly:
    The funny (in the ha-ha sense) is tat if the MAGAs DO turn up in D.C., the MAGAs who don’t turn up will accuse them if being false flaggers in disguise.

    1
  10. OzarkHillbilly says:

    @CSK: While the MAGAs who do turn up will accuse the no shows of being cowards. I love dissension in the ranks.

    2
  11. CSK says:

    @OzarkHillbilly:
    At the current rate, there might be a lot more uniformed LEOs showing up than MAGAs. Even the organizer himself said it could be just him and a bullhorn.

  12. Mister Bluster says:

    WTOP 103.5 FM: Washington’s Top News just reported that 3 people have showed up for the Justice for J6 rally that is scheduled to begin in 14 minutes.

  13. Just nutha ignint cracker says:

    @OzarkHillbilly:

    the “justice for J6” rally is actually a FBI plot to round up Trump supporters to send them to the gulag has severely hindered expected attendance.

    As ideas go for rounding a bunch of them up, this is not a bad plan over all, but I wonder why the attendees feel they need to fear from law enforcement. Did they do something wrong? Remember, only the guilty get arrested. Ed Meese said so.

    2
  14. CSK says:

    @Just nutha ignint cracker:
    Law enforcement is an arm of the globalist communist conspiracy now.

  15. CSK says:

    According to Reuters, police “vastly outnumber” the MAGAs who’ve arrived to protest in D.C.

  16. Mister Bluster says:

    Justice for J6 rally is over!

  17. flat earth luddite says:

    @OzarkHillbilly:
    I’m stunned at the quality and glory of those photos. And more than a skoosh jealous of the shooters’ sheer ability. But Jeeze, that’s waaaaayyy closer to a gator in the water than I EVER want to be!

    2
  18. CSK says:

    Well, that was a rousing…flop.

    3
  19. flat earth luddite says:

    Angry Anti-Masker Sues Joe Biden, Facebook, And Twitter Because His Social Media Was Taken Down For Disinfo

    Another day, another truly silly lawsuit. The “Liberty Justice Center” and the Tyler & Bursch law firm — both of which seem to specialize in filing ridiculous lawsuits — have now filed a lawsuit on behalf of a disinformation-spewing anti-masker against Joe Biden, Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, Facebook, and Twitter… because Facebook and Twitter locked his account after he posted an image claiming (incorrectly) that “masking children is impractical and not backed by research or real world data.”

    with a h/t to Tech Dirt… and a sigh over the stupidity (it burns, it burns!)

    1
  20. JohnSF says:

    Re the J6 rally (6 being the number of people who turned up, it appears) this amused me:
    “I never thought racoons would eat MY face,’ sobs man who voted for the Racoons Eating People’s Faces Party.”

    1
  21. OzarkHillbilly says:

    @flat earth luddite: I have to admit, I would love to be that close to a gator. And live to tell about it. ;-(

  22. flat earth luddite says:

    @OzarkHillbilly: Well, yeah, that pretty much goes without saying. But these days I more resemble chum than I do an apex predator…

    1
  23. Mu Yixiao says:

    Today was our city’s “beer and ribs” festival.

    I put in a 9 hour day where I was forced–forced I say!–to drink home brew and scotch ale; eat ribs, chili, and salsa; listen to live music; and observe lovely ladies dancing in their summer clothes… in order to keep our electorate informed.

    The things I endure journalism!

    (I’ll accept glasses of scotch as a sign of your sympathy)

    4
  24. Jax says:

    @Mu Yixiao: Well, that just sounds like a TERRIBLE day! 😛 (I just bought you a virtual glass of scotch)

    Me, I’m drinking a hot buttered rum. It rained on us all day bringing cattle home from the forest. About two hours in I was seriously re-thinking my life choices.

    2
  25. flat earth luddite says:

    @Mu Yixiao:
    This Old Fashioned is drunk in your name. Thanks for taking the hit today for all of us!

    @Jax:
    Yeah. Stuff like that almost made the draft board look like a viable option. Almost.