Help needed - not entirely apolitical
An old friend of mine is in some serious distress. After more than 40 years as a working musician, playing on the road, cutting albums, backing many other 'name' groups (the Rolling Stones, Huey...
View ArticleMore shenanigans in Wisconsin
I was reading an article on another website, and after finishing it though "This is the kind of thing DKos is really good with."
View ArticleIn Memoriam
I have seen many news articles and facebook posts today talking about "the heroic sacrifices of our heroes in uniform" and similar hyperbole.I just don't see it that way.
View ArticleNN News - scum alert!
Was looking through some morning news, and ran across an article on The Smoking Gun that says that infamous asswipe James O'Keefe will be attempting to crash Netroots Nation....
View ArticleGoodbye, Jack.
Yesterday, we lost one of the greats.Well, we lost two, but the one you would know was Jack Sheldon.
View ArticleWhy all in one direction?
This will necessarily be quick and dirty, as I am at work, and don't have the time and resources I need to do it right, but the weekend is coming, and ... anyway.Why is all of the push coming (as...
View ArticleThe Big Blackout
I don't know if it got any coverage anywhere else (on CNN it has a small header that links to nothing useful), but last night, much of southern California was without power.
View ArticleResponding to SPAM
I was recently targeted by one of those obnoxious, badly thought out electronic chain letters that are going around. I'm sure you've all seen it. It goes like this: (More beneath the Squiggle of Power)
View ArticleGood bye, Annie Mac
Yesterday, the world of readers lost a great one.Ann McCaffrey, author of way too many good and great books, died of a stroke at home yesterday. She was 85, and her family says she went quickly, and...
View ArticleMiss Representation?
A friend of mine introduced me to a YouTube clip that is pretty damned powerful. It is about the place of women, not only in our society, but in our perceptions of our society. It has engendered...
View ArticleHarrumph!
I just got a robo-call (Gods but I hate those things) from Governor Jerry Brown, pimping for one of the San Diego Mayoral candidates. And now I'm pissed.
View ArticleHelp with econ theory
An old friend of mine is a fairly rational guy, but has some blind spots. In a recent (ongoing) facebook discussion, he posted a reply to something I said with the following claptrap.I can easily get...
View ArticleA conversation about history
An old friend and I have been ‘discussing’ politics on facebook, and nothing much of it has had any effect at all, but I still feel the need to reply. Yeah, my bad. (Note – this friend of over 30...
View ArticleOPEN THREAD - Voting Stories
I've been reading/scanning the diaries today, and a lot of them have been about all of the bad that has been happening. Well, not everything is bad.If you have a story about voting today, tell it!...
View ArticleWho else won?
Numerous races were still undecided as of the morning of the 7th. Today I have read that Ami Bera and Scott Peters have both been declared the winners of their respective races in California, and that...
View ArticleAnti gay therapy law tested
According to an article in today's Los Angeles Daily Journal (hidden behind a pay wall, of course), a California law that "prohibits licensed psychotherapists from counseling gay minors on how to...
View ArticleMining Irony
Just read an article on Slate (sent to me by my brother-in-law) about a Welsh Coal Mining Museum that is being fitted with solar panels to save money.I love irony.Anyway, the article is at SLATE
View ArticleDoctor Who new season opener
So the season opener for the new season (or series if you are British) just ended. It appears that:1) The new Companion is something very new. Not compliant, not complacent, nearly as bright as The...
View ArticleRIP Jonathan Winters
The great comic improviser, Jonathan Winters, passed on yesterday, age 87.He was an inspiration to many, including Robin Williams. His style of improv confused some, but almost always got a laugh. He...
View ArticleJaw Wired Shut
My oldest nephew, who is a great guy, was in a collision this weekend, and suffered a broken mandible. Ow. This means that he has had his jaw wired shut for the next 6 weeks (or so, depending on...
View ArticleRed Cities fight against Unions.
From today's Los Angeles Daily Journal: Cities sue over union-friendly law. [Note: The Daily Journal on-line at www.dailyjournal.com is behind a pay wall]Six California cities (El Centro Carlsbad, El...
View ArticleSan DiegoCity Council overrides minimum wage veto
The San Diego City Council this morning held a special session to override a veto of the minimum wage increase it voted in at the end of their last regular session. Mayor Kevin Faulconer (R-Big...
View ArticleDepression is not a mood
Mental illness is not insanity. What is depression? I can only speak from my own experience, but that experience is very expensive, and very deep.
View ArticleH.A.L.T. - An acronym that helps.
One of the concepts that I have been re-introduced to lately has been the HALT anagram. It can be a very useful way to double-check yourself when things get stressful. H.A.L.T. is an anagram for...
View ArticleThe internet officially sucks!
but it isn't cheap. According to today's Los Angeles Daily Journal [Bwehind a paywall] dailyjournal.com, ICANN (The non-profit that does such things) has auctioned off the .sucks top level domain name....
View ArticleCalifornia Judges barred from Boy Scouts
According to an article in today's (26 Jan) Los Angeles Daily Journal, the California Supreme Court has voted unanimously to bar judges and justices in the state from being a part of the Boy Scouts,...
View ArticleFinally: A justice who likes justice!
From today's Los Angeles Daily Journal (behind a paywall) - an article on the new Chief Justice of the Delaware Supreme Court, Leo E. Strine, Jr. Being from Delaware, home of corporate headquarters...
View ArticleRIP Terry Pratchett
The world grew a bit more dismal this morning when Terry Pratchett passed on. According to the BBC, Pratchett, aged 66, died in his sleep.
View ArticleI went to see “Tomorrowland”
And I liked it.It is a film that should resonate with the Daily Kos crowd - it has liberal politics, evil robots who smile too much, George Clooney, and a positive message.More below the squiggle.
View ArticleHerbalife ruled to be a Pyramid Scheme
Yeah, I know. Not a big surprise.But this time, the ruling came from the FTC, and carries with it a $200 million fine, and instructions to restructure the business model way from recruiting new...
View ArticleWhat next?
OK - the election is (functionally) over - the votes have been cast, or will be by the end of the day. Now it's time to start looking forward at what happens next. And one of the big sets of...
View ArticleWhat happens next?
OK — we know the feeling — we felt it, to lesser extent,when W was selected twice. I admit to still being in shock. But there are advantages (and disadvantages) to having a degree in history — we’ve...
View ArticleAnd here it goes...
The blaming. The backstabbing. The ‘I told you so’s’. The gloating. The “only my opinion counts’ posts.Fuck all that. Didn’t any of you read (and understand) Franklin? “If we do not hang together...
View ArticleIs this what we want to be?
The past year on Daily Kos has been interesting, from a sociological and personal perspective. I have long considered DKos a mirror of sorts for the Democratic party. Not for the ordinary members,...
View ArticleMy response to the 'not a state of the union'
PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP'S ADDRESS TO A JOINT SESSION OF CONGRESS Remarks as prepared for deliveryThe speech, as downloaded from CNN, with comments by me. (I get grumpy by the end)TO THE CONGRESS OF...
View ArticleFlake lives down to his name, again tries to end-run the 9th Circuit
Jeff Flake, notably flaky Senator from Arizona, may be on Trumps ‘naughty’ list, but that does not make him an ally of anyone here. he is once again trying to break up the 9th Circuit Court of...
View ArticleBorder Patrol Given Too much deference.
According to today’s L.A. Daily Journal, a 9th Circuit Court of Appeal panel has ruled that a district court Judge gave a DHS agent too much deference, and didn’t give enough weight to the first...
View ArticleRIP Harlan Ellison
Damn. I wish No one ever had to write this.I first met Harlan when I was in junior high school — he came to talk to my English class (I cannot for the life of me remember the name of the teacher, but...
View ArticleWhat a week! RIP Bill Watrous
William Russell “Bill” Watrous, long considered the best trombone player of the late 20th century, passed on this evening in a hospital in Los Angeles. He was 79 years old.Bill was raised in...
View ArticleSupremes block district re-draws in Ohio, Michigan
I am hoping that someone here will have more information and better drafting skills. I looked, and didn’t see any other diaries on this.Apparently the Supreme Court has been fatally compromised. They...
View ArticleA situation here I could use help with
I got into a conversation last night on facebook with a guy I was in the navy with 30-some years ago, and I think maybe he might be salvageable.See transcript here:washingtonpost.com Secret use of...
View ArticleDuncan Hunter Jr files appeal
According to today’s San Diego union-Tribune, Con(gress)man Duncan Hunter Jr has filed notice with the 9th District Court of Appeals that he intends to file a motion challenging a ruling by District...
View ArticleGoodbye, Sammy
There’s this guy I used to know...His name was Sammy Nestico. He was born in 1924. A little guy from the Italian side of Pittsburgh. Discovered he had a musical bent early on. When he was 13 he...
View ArticleChick Corea
Well, crap. I just got the word from a bunch of people that Chick Corea passed on Tuesday from cancer.I hate cancer.Chick was a groundbreaking pianist. He wrota classic pieces like “Spain” and “La...
View ArticleNeed help with a court case
One of the attorneys I work with just called for my advice (because at 65, I am much younger and more ‘in touch’ with social media than he is), looking for good, available examples of a certain kind of...
View ArticleWhat I did for my Summer Vacation
What I did for my summer vacation.What I learned during the Covid shutdown. The last year and a half have been many things. Frightening, depressing, enlightening, inspiring, perspiring,...
View ArticleLouie does it again
Louie Gohmert, as always defending his title as “stupidest man in congress” presented a ceremonial flag that had been flown over the Capitol to Simone Gold when she was released from prison on...
View ArticleUnmasking time
I have always tried to keep a fairly low profile here on Daily Kos (and have, I admit, failed sometimes). I try to keep my posts (on issue posts, not so much on community stuff) focused on the issues,...
View ArticleWhat I did on my summer vacation - a trip to the Mayo Clinic.
What I did on my summer vacation – a trip to the Mayo Clinic.I have a friend whose health had never been ideal, for many reasons. Let’s call her K___. She is indolent, and has neurochemical imbalances...
View ArticleHenry Kissinger, dead.
Said war criminal lived to be 100, and accomplished nothing positive in all that time. Good riddance.
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