Tuesday Open Thread
It’s Tuesday, it’s November, is there anything special going on? Welcome to your open thread. Use this thread to talk about the election or not. The floor is yours.
But Scott Lemieux notes that the reaction to the pitch from some on the right is rather odd.
Shorter Verbatim Blogprof: “How refreshing that we had a President that knows how to throw a baseball. Bush didn’t ‘wrist’ it like sissy girls do.” How dreamy! Sadly, this is followed by links to several other wingers making similar observations, perhaps while scrawling hearts all over their kiddie biographies.
It seems bizarre, but far-right really do seem excited about this today. One prominent conservative wrote about the former president throwing a baseball, “What a moment! … What a wonderful moment.” Another called the joint appearance on the field, “What a moving study in dignity and class. What a great example.” Another writer on the same site wrote, “God, I miss the man. I disagreed with him on a number of issues … but no one ever doubted where his loyalties lay or what country he thought he was President of…. It’s good to see that he still throws a baseball like a man, which is how he governed.”
Another wrote, “Miss them yet, America? What a moment in Texas. Father, son and baseball — it does not get any more American than that…. Remember Barack Hussein Obama’s pathetic first pitches? Who could forget the lameness.”
Remember, these people are entirely serious. None of this is tongue-in-cheek, or intended to be funny, or published as some kind of parody.
Yes, the Republicans have man crushes. I remember how crazy they went when Bush landed a plane and declared “Mission Accomplished.”
Italy’s Silvio Berlusconi is in trouble again. It involves a young woman – big surprise!
It is not the first time that Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi of Italy has gotten into trouble for dallying with under-age girls, but the most recent scandal involving the septuagenarian’s private life could open the door to a full-fledged government crisis.
At the heart of it all is a Moroccan girl nicknamed Ruby, who turned 18 on Monday, but was still a minor last May when she was held in a police station in Milan, accused of theft until Mr. Berlusconi called and demanded she be released, Italian newspapers reported.
The details of what happened that night are now in the cross hairs of Milanese prosecutors, who must determine whether laws were broken or procedures ignored when Ruby was placed into the custody of Nicole Minetti, a former showgirl and Mr. Berlusconi’s dental hygienist. In March, Ms. Minetti was elected to the regional assembly in Lombardy as a candidate of the prime minister’s People of Freedom Party.
But beyond any legal repercussions, which may well not exist for Mr. Berlusconi, 74, the political stakes became apparent during the weekend as Gianfranco Fini, a disgruntled former ally, suggested that the prime minister might have overstepped his authority by intervening in Ruby’s release.
Berlusconi reminds me of Carl Paladino. How much do you want to bet that Berlusconi forwards pornographic emails to people?
Tags: Open Thread
Incredible that anyone could be nostalgic for W. Do all conservatives have brain damage that affects their long-term memory?
The fact that anyone cares whether or not the president can throw a baseball makes me want to move to another country.
So ODonnell goons are intimidating voters? Who has the skinny?
If an O’Donnell goon tries to intimidate you, punch them directly in the face. If violence is not your thing, call the police.
How do you intimidate someone who is voting behind a curtain? You can only intimidate someone who has to vote out in the open, like what would happen in an organizing campaign if “Card Check” were passed.
Intimidation occurs before you enter the polling place, jackass.
Anvil: I could recommend that you read some nineteenth century American history, but I’m afraid we all may get a chance to see some of it again. In states with early voting, there have been reports of Republican poll watchers trying to stand behind people and watch them vote. I’m not sure what exactly is going on in Dover.
Canadian Free Press website looks like a news site. As you might expect, the WHOIS shows the domain name is registered in Toronto CA. So far, so good.
I’d been there 2 or 3 times to read articles referencing DEsen race and/or the candidates. The articles clearly favored Christine and were unfairly critical of Coons. But this takes the cake for blatant, unimaginative slant:
“Many employees of Chris Coons know him too well to vote for him. Those who work for Coons tell O’Donnell campaign volunteers that they will never vote for Coons, because they have seen him in office as their boss.”
http://canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/29452
Below which you’ll find a link to another smear sight “www.meetchriscoon.com” with attribution!,
Authorized by Friends of Christine O’Donnell
P.O. Box 3987
Wilmington, DE 19807
I’m afread this is just the tip of the iceberg. Its a good thing for Chris that people knew him before Christine starting smearing him.
Also notice they’ve put Uncle Sam on the banner today and the word “vote”. LOL
“Intimidation occurs before you enter the polling place, jackass” Ouch! Just trying to cite a hypothetical example in order to understand the issue better. I’m sensing a lot of anger here at DL.
Sorry, Anvil. It sounded like you were defending voter intimidation, and I get violent at that.
I believe that anyone who compromises the electoral process should be executed,, but that may be somewhat extreme.
It seems like the Extreme Monster has invaded DL for the last 24 hours.
$$$Make Money$$$
Start printing “Don’t blame me, I voted O’Donnell” bumper stickers, target next TP rally.
Kick back a third to Delaware Democratic Party
Frank Knotts, high up on his soapbox where the air is perhaps a bit too thin, cites four of the largest government programs in history:
I wonder how many of us political junkies take off work on Election Day (hint, hint DL poll)?
November surprise from an alternate universe: Imagine if the fire-sale of Wilmington Trust occurred while board member Michelle Rollins was on the ballot for Congress.
Stock price when she joined the board: 42. Stock price today: 4.
She would have lost horribly, but she was going to lose horribly anyway.
I suppose the GOP would have blamed Wilmington Trust’s flame-out on unions and immigrants.