Gromnir

am rooting for the eagles. why? an eagles victory means nfc east winner is 6-10. HA! Good Fun!

"Opinion by Ashton Carter, **** Cheney, William Cohen, Mark Esper, Robert Gates, Chuck Hagel, James Mattis, Leon Panetta, William Perry and Donald Rumsfeld" All 10 living former defense secretaries: Involving the military in election disputes would cross into dangerous territory another situation wherein the shocking aspect o' the story is not what fits within the four corners o' the piece. "As senior Defense Department leaders have noted, “there’s no role for the U.S. military in determining the outcome of a U.S. election.” Efforts to involve the U.S. armed forces in resolving election disputes would take us into dangerous, unlawful and unconstitutional territory. Civilian and military officials who direct or carry out such measures would be accountable, including potentially facing criminal penalties, for the grave consequences of their actions on our republic." every former defense secretary not in the dirt were concerned enough to state what should be axiomatic regarding a possibility which four years past woulda' been unthinkable. carter, cheney, cohen, esper, gates, hagel, mattis, panetta, perry and rumsfield is reminding military officials o' the oath they took to defend the Constitution. dismiss as impossible trump invoking the insurrection act in a last ditch effort to maintain his grip on the resolute desk ignores the dozens o' previous trump actions which were previous unthinkable, improbable and even impossible. am personal still in the "improbable" zone, but such does not blind us to a real possibility which for us became considerable less improbable today.

breaking news: video o' raffensperger responding to trump's conspiracy laden doggerel aimed at changing certified election results. HA! Good Fun!

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the wacky aspect o' this is not trump's efforts to influence an election official, but the predictable inability o' most trumpers to see anything wrong 'bout the audio. HA! Good Fun!

am suspecting in many neighborhoods with loads o' college educated parents, having a social studies teacher who introduces machiavelli and orwell to his/her middle school students will be applauded... just so long as the kids continue to get good grades. alternatively, the problem with letting people make choices for themselves is they will all too often make choices you do not like. people are stoopid, bigoted and petty. people are generous, courageous and wise. when The People decide... HA! Good Fun!

we were thinking same thing as we reflected 'pon our recent paid property tax bill(s). am knowing ca is relative reasonable for property taxes, but doesn't feel reasonable when am writing a check with so many digits. HA! Good Fun!

december 29, 1890 20 medals of honor awarded to us soldiers for the killing in the snow. less than 500 us soldiers. as many as 300 dead indigenous people. by comparison, o' the 70,000 us marines who fought on iwo jima, 27 were awarded medals of honor. Wounded Knee: Healing the Wounds of the Past ... "I did not know then how much was ended. When I look back now from this high hill of my old age, I can still see the butchered women and children lying heaped and scattered all along the crooked gulch as plain as when I saw them with eyes still young. And I can see that something else died there in the bloody mud, and was buried in the blizzard. A people's dream died there. It was a beautiful dream..." --black elk

source. as usual, gd doesn't check sources. the school district in Massachusetts referenced in the recent wsj opinion piece (poorly sourced itself) did not ban orwell or homer. what happened were that books by homer and orwell were removed from the curriculum-- no longer part of required reading lists. weren't some kinda trigger nonsense which prompted the removal neither. arguable worse reasoning were actual at fault for removal: poor student performance. closest thing we heard which matches gd description is a district in california allowing for review o' a handful o' books. bipoc is asking for numerous books to be removed from required reading lists. again, the school district will not ban such books, but pending a public hearing, the books has been temporary sequestered from required reading lists. again, the school district is not banning or removing books, but they are making clear they is willing to listen to concerns from groups offended by... whatever. personal, the idea o' removing of mice and men, adventures of huckleberry finn, and to kill a mockingbird annoys us as shortsighted if the reason for such removal is sensitivity to depictions of race or handicap. am equal annoyed if a massachusetts school district removes homer and orwell from reading required curriculum 'cause o' poor student performance. regardless, gd needs do better at accurate presenting facts, 'cause at this point we need assume he is talking out his kiester whenever he makes a claim. gd beats stuffing out of straw men he builds from odds and ends half-heard on alt-right radio or taken from op-eds? *shrug* gd gots weird and self contradictory notions 'bout democracy and liberty while refusing to make any effort to check sources before posting as fact anything he mighta' heard which aligns with opinions he already believes. serious, check sources. be more suspicious o' a source with which you agree. HA! Good Fun!

Donald Trump’s pardons must not obstruct justice The result is not to negate the pardons issued but to expose a president to prosecution for the way he deployed them. If Mr Trump abuses pardons to shield himself and key allies from justice, that could be charged as criminal obstruction of justice, an abuse of the constitutional power of clemency to accomplish an illegal end. In a poetic turn of justice, such obstructive pardons would make prosecuting a president who granted them easier. If Messrs Manafort and Stone and former national security adviser Michael Flynn were called to testify against Mr Trump, their pardons would make it much harder for them to invoke their constitutional rights to remain silent to avoid self-incrimination. ... an interesting read. two observations: 1) the author is the foremost expert on law o' the US Constitution. 2) the author is also an unabashed partisan who does not hide his contempt for trump. is our opinion larry's intellectual integrity supersedes any political opinion he might embrace. nevertheless we do feel compelled to observe that the professor's legal analysis and conclusions, o' which we find no obvious flaw, conjure forth a scenario grounded as much in a solid understanding o' law as mr. tribe's personal sense o' justice. HA! Good Fun!

"the most offensive song"... evar? warning: seriously merry christmas obsidian made a south park game, so, let's not be hypocrites, eh? HA! Good Fun!

trump pardoning all the russia investigation dirtbags could come back to haunt the President, and quick at that. nothing to stop biden's ag from convening a new grand jury and bringing in stone, manafort, and the rest to testify. catch 'em in a lie and you got 'em for perjury and as we know they previous lied, "catch" is kinda a misleading description o' what would be taking place. either the scumbags gotta roll on trump, or they prompt go back to prison. 5th amendment is an issue, but could grant 'em immunity. am uncertain biden wants to go the retribution route as he is talking 'bout mending divisions, but a few o' these pardons is particular loathsome and there should be some kinda pushback. admitted, the pardons which bothers us most (so far) is kushner and the blackwatwer mercs, but am not seeing a path to retrying those scumbags. am suspecting 2021 will be almost as unpredictable as were 2017. "may you live in interesting times," eh? HA! Good Fun! ps am thinking worst thing trump could do if he wishes to avoid fed prosecution is to pardon himself. biden is unlikely to push for prosecution and will leave such up to his new ag, but joe is likely to pick an ag reluctant to prosecute trump. however, if trump pardons himself, is no way we see the new administration allowing such an unconstitutional precedent to stand w/o challenge. can't test the validity o' a self-pardon w/o a case/controversy. only way to make sure is no future self-pardons by corrupt Presidents is to charge trump with a fed crime and then have the courts weigh in on the pardon question. a trump self-pardon functional forces the doj to prosecute, and mueller left behind a whole lotta evidence o' obstruction of justice in addition to january 20, 2021 marking the end of trump Presidential privileges protecting witnesses and documents. will indulge a clumsy christmas reference and observe that the self-pardon is the coup de grace of all dares: the sinister triple-dog-dare.

reminded us HA! Good Fun!

the question is, "why?" who here believes trump gives a darn about economic suffering of americans, present or future? so, the more vital and pertinent question is, how does this move benefit a soon-to-be ex-President? what is trump 'bout to do which he believes necessitates drumming up popular support? as @BruceVC observes, demand $2000 stimulus puts pressure on trump Congressional allies as 'posed to democrats. petty mischief and wanton vandalism is motivations enough for trump, but one would expect such to be directed at those he deems enemies. $2000 stimulus is not the goal. eye on the ball. HA! Good Fun!

oh, they changed the definition, but is understandable 'cause more than a few idjits were false reading "vaccination" and "previous infection," as being equivalent approaches for reaching herd immunity 'cause such appeared in same sentence authored by WHO separated by nothing save a conjunction. only an a-hole or complete yutz would take the june 2020 definition and ignore lethality, transmissibility and projected body counts when out-of-context quoting o' the WHO definition, and yet... am suspecting previous to 2020, the november revisions woulda' been deemed unnecessary by WHO as the additions woulda' been considered self evident. who knew? HA! Good Fun!

am predicting this post does not age well... and won't take too long to be proven as such. hospitals is current at icu thresholds in numerous states, and past such thresholds in numerous locations. christmas and new years is gonna create new mini-surges, but we won't see the damage from such for a couple weeks following those dates. winter is finally here... literal. first day o' winter were the 21st o' december, and winter were always predicted to be difficult, regardless o' vaccine distribution. am thinking it makes a whole lotta sense to assume january is gonna be terrible, and if such doesn't end up being the case, then we can all indulge a sigh o' relief. plan as if january is gonna be brutal, and will be brutal 'cause o' what is happening today. ... is good to listen to science, but this is one situation where listen to social scientists might be beneficial and am speaking o' historians specific. the methods we got to combat the virus has been same since december o' last year... and is in fact same as since middle age plagues. social distancing and mask wearing were known to be efficacious in 1918 and during many prior pandemics. widespread recognition o' hygiene as a defense 'gainst disease were a bit more 20th century, by we have functional same tools as did past generations. https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-04-19/coronavirus-lessons-from-great-1918-spanish-flu-pandemic the plague during shakespeare's era were not an airborne virus, but folks knew 'bout social distancing. large gatherings were rigorous and draconian prohibited during the plague years o' 1592 and 1603 forcing the shuttering o' theatres and any other places where multiples o' people congregated, with the exception of churches, 'cause obviously God wouldn't allow people to become sick in church. *groan* same f'ing mistakes. don't trust science? fine. look at history instead. history makes all too clear that is far better to act quick and aggressive when facing a pandemic and "we are turning the corner" thinking is likely to result in multitudes o' unnecessary corpses. thanks to science, particularly darpa, there is an end in sight. is multiple highly effective vaccines. but for next couple months we don't need rocket science or sooper geniuses to tell us solutions. we need be more vigilant than at anytime since we collective became aware o' covid-19 on a national/international scale, but basics is same as they were in early 2019 or in 1918: social distance; wear masks; avoid travel; wash your hands.... and unless you got allergy issues or are pregnant, take the freaking vaccine. assume next month(s) is gonna be worse. behave as if today is the worst and covid-19 situation is only gonna get better is the kinda thinking against which we need defend. seriously folks, in the US at least is likely only a few more months o' serious pain IF we don't collective go ultrastoopid. significant increases in holiday travel is anything but a good start, but is not too late to get less stoopid. HA! Good Fun!

unlikely to make you feel less blue, but... Holiday Suicides: Fact or Myth? "CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics reports that the suicide rate is, in fact, the lowest in December. The rate peaks in the spring and the fall." ignoring fact that fall ends today, in lateish december, is nevertheless a curious bit o' myth busting regarding the holiday + suicide myth... at least in the US. on the bad side, if malc is blue now, the 'bove facts suggests he gots a tough couple months ahead as melting snows and blooming flowers is the more sinister harbingers o' lethal blues as 'posed to santa and same eight christmas carols played on a loop 'til you is driven mad, Mad, MAD... HA! Good Fun!

am not gonna speak for @Boeroer, but one cannot help but recognize how you are indulging in arguable the same sin against which you rail. also, while am not agreeing with you regarding obsidian's best titles, am thinking such a recognition is hardly significant. am convinced fact we both approve o' obsidian, in spite o' fact we disagree 'bout their best works, is a positive sign. all too often, "niche" is an excuse for why a game sold poorly. fact that nobody thus far has identified the two titles we would identify as our obsidian favorites (not necessarily their best works) is potential a positive as such suggests the appeal o' obsidian games is not limited to an insular and discreet hardcore fanbase so utter homogenized they is incapable o' embracing a game which could have broader appeal. gonna go out on a limb and predict microsoft wants broader appeal than the bulk o' previous obsidian titles. in another bit o' irony different from your lack o' self awareness regarding boeroer's criticism is fact we disagree with you which has us optimistic 'bout future obsidian games. whatever is the essential appeal o' obsidian, it clear transcends individual titles. notoriously finicky hardcore fans may be able to continue to enjoy whatever is the new brand o' obsidian titles. ... what the heck. am gonna admit that while the game were woeful undercooked and ended worse than even other obsidian titles which tends to end less well than started, kotor 2 were our favorite game from obsidian. sure, near everything after the big confrontation with the assembled masters on dantooine is a torturous slog, but the first 2/3 o' kotor 2 is fantastic. big name title with a publisher as much adversary as enabler and we still ended up with a few o' obsidian's best written characters. obsidian even managed to work with an established ip not their own and do something unique with it. kotor 2 were, even at its best, a hot mess. we liked kotor 2. is aspects o' kotor we liked better than any other obsidian game. manage kotor 2 while working with/for lucas has us far more optimistic 'bout the future working with/for microsoft than is many o' our fellow boardies. and am recognizing kotor2 and lucas ain't same as microsoft situation. just sayin'. btw, am not much o' a star wars fan, so the kotor2 approval for us is all the more curious. HA! Good Fun!

double, but not related to previous post. apologies. Trump campaign takes fight over Penn. election, ballot laws to Supreme Court article isn't worth reading but the comments coming after the article is... am not gonna describe 'cause is a bit like describing a horrific car accident or drug house gang battle; our efforts would be gratuitous. as to the trump campaign's newest attempts to have SCOTUS take up cases the Justices has heretofore been ignoring or rejecting in part or whole, am thinking a visual illustration o' legal efforts headed by rudy giuliani and jenna ellis on behalf o' trump co may prove more succinct. if there were something new or different in these filings, we would share. isn't such. taking aim at the same trees. HA! Good Fun!

his plain speaking rationality woulda' been much appreciated before the hour o' his book's publication, including those days and weeks preceding the impeachment of donald j. trump. in the later months of 2019, one might have thought mr. bolton had perhaps converted to buddhism and adopted a vow o' silence so taciturn were he at the time. "another day at the office"? if so, and calls for martial law recent reported is analogous to the day-to-day excesses o' the President as bolton observe for many months, then am thinking it were moral bankrupt o' him to have kept such information held so close to his chest like miser's ill-gotten silver as posed to exercising his newfound rationality and glibness. he were complicit. now he is not? am doubtful bolton finding his courage in 2019 woulda' made any difference insofar as impeachment, but sharing truths when doing so might have had the chance o' benefiting his country could have had no result other than an increase in our respect today for the man and his rationality... even if such divisive edification woulda' hurt the eventual sales o' his book. and speaking of martial law and the military seizure of voting machines... HA! Good Fun!

somebody were gonna be first. HA! Good Fun!

members o' congress are not a suspect class, and as we keep trying to tell @Guard Dog, money is not a fundamental right. as such, there only need be a rational basis for a law which would preclude members o' Congress, or other politicians, from benefiting from sales o' stock or other identifiable investments. the government need pay you if they take your property, but prevent you from making stock trades if you want to be a Congressman is gonna need overcome an exceeding low bar to pass legal muster. politicians, by the nature o' their jobs, is privy to information not available to the public. public trust in legislators or politicians is arguable diminished when stories 'bout folks such as loeffler and perdue arise in the press. a law which prevents such skeevy transactions from being possible would arguable diminish public distrust in the motives o' elected officials by eliminating an incentive to exploit information unavailable to the public. "arguable" is enough. is nothing in the constitution which precludes such limits... is no right to free trade o' stocks, which is precise why insider trading is legal prohibited. however, if one were to pass such legislation, is likely it would only affect elected officials up for reelection current or in future. apply retroactive would be problematic 'cause voting for Congressmen is a right in the Constitution. lindsey graham were recent reelected to the senate. didn't give him or his voters a chance to decide regarding the stock trade prohibition when he were elected. so, six years? yup. is a similar issue with term limits btw. can create term limits, but for incumbents is only gonna apply following the current term in office. as for consulate closing, am amused by the suggestion this were on the to-do list for the trump administration and they is just getting 'round to it now a couple years after the fact... or the more silly suggestion o' this being a preemptive action. sure, the announced explanation were that the closings were related to staffing parity issues resulting from previous closings which occurred in freaking 2017. been so busy with other things like deregulating shower heads and toilets that it just slipped the mind o' administration officials until the month before a new President is set to take office? alternative: US punched selves in the face so russia can't get satisfaction o' doing so? neener neener? HA! lord knows trump ain't proactive eliminating a future headache for biden by addressing this little administrative oversight. HA! Good Fun!

‘I am responsible’: Warp Speed chief accepts blame for reduced vaccine doses but creates new confusion about quality control steps But he (gen. perna) was not clear about the scope of quality assurance, or about why it would delay the release of doses, saying only that the Food and Drug Administration “does a fantastic job doing that.” The FDA does not review batches of vaccine before their distribution, an agency spokesperson said Saturday in response to requests to explain the process. Under the terms of the agency’s authorization for the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, the company is required to submit “certificates of analysis for each drug product lot at least 48 hours before vaccine distribution.” But the FDA does not review the information before the product is shipped. FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn confirmed that later in a tweet, saying, “they can distribute without waiting for FDA’s ok.” Asked about the steps involved in clearing doses for release, Perna said he didn’t know “the exact details on that.” He did stress that there had been “zero problems” with Pfizer’s product. ... Asked to explain in simpler terms what happens to make doses releasable, he said, “I am not going to spend any more time talking about the details between fill-finish and releasable.” keep in mind that with a rollout this large, it were inevitable there would be minor and major hiccups. however, the explanation for the shortfalls in deployable vaccines is wanting. all those persons unreasonable suspicious o' the vaccine is gonna have legit cause to be suspicious if the government ain't complete transparent. HA! Good Fun!

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have never been quiet 'bout our concerns regarding russia. LTG H.R. McMaster: The Toughest Man on Russia? have posted the video embedded in the article more than once. am recommending a viewing for any who is thinking the threat o' russia is diminished 'cause they is impoverished (economy 'bout the size o' texas but with ~5x the population.) how many times has we mocked obama for his it didn't age well debate response to romney. as an aside, recent fired #1 at cisa were prophetic when he posted the following: https://us-cert.cisa.gov/ncas/alerts/aa20-296a we linked the post 2 days after cisa made available. Trump downplays Russia in first comments on cyberattack "Officials at the White House had been prepared to put out a statement Friday afternoon that accused Russia of being “the main actor” in the hack, but were told at the last minute to stand down, according to one U.S. official familiar with the conversations who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private deliberations. "It is not clear whether Pompeo got that message before his interview, but officials are now scrambling to figure out how to square the disparate accounts. The White House did not immediately respond to questions about the statement or the basis of Trump’s claims." so charlie fox. edit: as if the election nonsense couldn't get weirder. Trump Discussed Naming Campaign Lawyer as Special Counsel on Election Fraud HA! Good Fun! ps in case it were missed, from the haberman twitter link: "During the meeting, the president asked about Flynn’s suggestion of deploying the military, those briefed said. That was also shot down." both flynn and powell were at the meeting.