Monday Open Thread [7.18.16]
NATIONAL–PRESIDENT–ABC News/Wash Post–Clinton 47, Trump 43
NATIONAL–PRESIDENT–NBC News/Wall St. Jrnl–Clinton 46, Trump 41
NATIONAL–PRESIDENT–CNN/ORC–Clinton 49, Trump 42
VIRGINIA–PRESIDENT–Hampton University–Clinton 39, Trump 39
OHIO–PRESIDENT–CBS News/YouGov–Clinton 44, Trump 40, Johnson 5, Stein 3
IOWA–PRESIDENT–CBS News/YouGov–Trump 40, Clinton 39, Johnson 3, Stein 2
MICHIGAN–PRESIDENT–CBS News/YouGov–Clinton 42, Trump 39, Johnson 5, Stein 2
KANSAS–PRESIDENT–KSN News/SurveyUSA–Trump 47, Clinton 36, Johnson 8
MISSOURI–PRESIDENT–PPP–Trump 46, Clinton 36, Johnson 7, Stein 1
The latest NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll finds that a whopping 76% of Latino registered voters said they back Hillary Clinton in the presidential race, while just 14% said they back Donald Trump.
“The poll was conducted in English and in Spanish. Twenty-nine percent of respondents said they speak mostly English at home; 35% speak mostly Spanish and the remainder speak both languages equally in their household.”
GOP, RIP? My column: All Americans owe a debt to the historical Republican Party. #Trump would kick all that awayhttps://t.co/XdCIOswuHk
— EJ Dionne (@EJDionne) July 18, 2016
During their disaster of an interview on 60 Minutes last night that made Sarah Palin’s appearance on the same program 8 years ago look thespian, Trump gave Leslie Stahl this shocking response when she asked him about his running mate Mike Pence’s vote to give Bush the authority to invade Iraq. I honestly think Trump didn’t know Pence voted for the war.
Lesley Stahl: But we did go to war, if you remember. We went to Iraq.
Donald Trump: Yeah, you went to Iraq, but that was handled so badly. And that was a war– by the way, that was a war that we shouldn’t have entered because Iraq did not knock down–excuse me
Lesley Stahl: Your running mate–
Donald Trump: Iraq did not–
Lesley Stahl: –voted for it.
Donald Trump: I don’t care.
Lesley Stahl: What do you mean you don’t care that he voted for?
Donald Trump: It’s a long time ago. And he voted that way and they were also misled. A lot of information was given to people.
Lesley Stahl: But you’ve harped on this.
Donald Trump: But I was against the war in Iraq from the beginning.
Lesley Stahl: Yeah, but you’ve used that vote of Hillary’s that was the same as Governor Pence as the example of her bad judgment.
Donald Trump: Many people have, and frankly, I’m one of the few that was right on Iraq.
Lesley Stahl: Yeah, but what about he–
Donald Trump: He’s entitled to make a mistake every once in a while.
Lesley Stahl: But she’s not? OK, come on–
Donald Trump: But she’s not–
Lesley Stahl: She’s not?
Donald Trump: No. She’s not.
IOKIYAR in real time. Or a double standard being applied to a woman in real time. Or just plain hypocrisy. Take your pick.
Trump on CBS telling L Stahl, “Everybody knows I was against the war in Iraq.”
He was not. https://t.co/rYc7V8LbR2
She just lets him say it.— James Fallows (@JamesFallows) July 17, 2016
Politico: “Nearly two-thirds of Republican insiders, 65 percent, said they are less excited about this year’s convention — which a number of top Republicans are avoiding — than previous editions.”
“Republican insiders are far less excited about their party’s convention than their Democratic counterparts: Roughly a quarter of Democrats, 27 percent, said they are less excited about their convention in Philadelphia next week.”
@KagroX Here another room… pic.twitter.com/vq0UNMig8t
— sandy herr #VOTEBLUE (@sandyherr2) July 18, 2016
The Washington Post says Trump prides himself on not reading much: “Presidents have different ways of preparing to make decisions. Some read deeply, some prefer to review short memos that condense difficult issues into bite-size summaries, ideally with check-boxes at the bottom of the page. But Trump, poised to become the first major-party presidential nominee since Dwight Eisenhower who had not previously held elected office, appears to have an unusually light appetite for reading.”
Trump said that he does not need to read extensively because he reaches the right decisions “with very little knowledge other than the knowledge I [already] had, plus the words ‘common sense,’ because I have a lot of common sense and I have a lot of business ability.”
He is THE perfect Republican. Arrogant and Ignorant at the same time.
Found a pic of it pic.twitter.com/CO1lwJQuHL https://t.co/XmDkNXOWHR
— David Waldman (@KagroX) July 18, 2016
Tony Schwartz, who was the ghost writer for Donald Trump’s The Art of the Deal, talks to the New Yorker:
“I put lipstick on a pig,” he said. “I feel a deep sense of remorse that I contributed to presenting Trump in a way that brought him wider attention and made him more appealing than he is.” He went on, “I genuinely believe that if Trump wins and gets the nuclear codes there is an excellent possibility it will lead to the end of civilization.”
If he were writing The Art of the Deal today, Schwartz said, it would be a very different book with a very different title. Asked what he would call it, he answered, The Sociopath.
Trump after the interviewer tells him she wants to hear Pence answer her question. pic.twitter.com/gxgrQEy8rN
— Jared Yates Sexton (@JYSexton) July 18, 2016
A great behind the scenes look at Donald Trump’s running mate search from Time:
Chris Christie’s allies were so sure the New Jersey governor was the pick that his former New Hampshire state director quit a lucrative consulting job to join the Trump campaign.
Newt Gingrich thought things were drifting his way too, thanks to a lobbying push led by powerful conservative stalwarts, including billionaire casino magnate Sheldon Adelson, who suggested he would lavish more cash on Trump’s campaign if the former House Speaker was on the ticket.
Meanwhile, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence was left in suspense in his New York hotel room Thursday night, days after allies became convinced that Trump had zeroed in on the Hoosier, and hours after the choice began leaking widely.
Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort was overheard by the Weekly Standard in a Starbucks confirming that Gov. Chris Christie was “livid” at not being picked as Trump’s running mate.
The Republican National Convention announced the schedule of events for this week:
Monday: Make America Safe Again
Headliners: Melania Trump, Lieutenant General (ret.) Michael Flynn, U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Jason Beardsley and U.S. Rep. Ryan Zinke (Mont.).Tuesday: Make America Work Again
Headliners: Tiffany Trump, Kerry Woolard, Donald Trump, Jr., U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (WV), Ben Carson and Kimberlin Brown.Wednesday: Make America First Again
Headliners: Lynne Patton; Eric Trump; former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Newt Gingrich, and Indiana Governor Mike Pence, whom Donald Trump has chosen as his vice presidential running mate.Thursday: Make America One Again
Headliners: Peter Thiel, Tom Barrack, Ivanka Trump and Donald Trump
LOL.
That Pence voted for the invasion of Iraq, and that Trump doesn’t care will cost him zero votes. Pence’s heart was in the right place and he was tricked. Clinton’s vote was part of an crooked scheme. Duh.
Thought-provoking piece on how pop culture trivializes rape:
http://www.rawstory.com/2016/07/10-pop-culture-characters-who-bizarrely-stayed-friends-or-lovers-with-their-rapists/
“on how pop culture trivializes rape”
Pop culture has producers and consumers. Look at the covers of romance novels and tell me that’s not a rape fantasy from a female point of view. Or for that matter look at 50 Shades and tell me whose fantasy that is. I guess the feminist viewpoint is that it is a male’s idea of a female rape fantasy. But look who’s writing and buying these books.
On a related note: If two blind drunks have sex, who raped whom?
What a shit show of a convention.
I can set my watch by puck’s comments.
First, puck obviously hasn’t looked at romance novel covers, let alone read them. Perhaps puck should have googled romance covers 2015 – 2016. Bodice rippers died out in the 70s/early 80s. Some of the strongest feminist messages can be found in today’s romance novels.
50 shades of Gray was a terrible book (I wrote posts on it), but it did feature consent. (It basically follows the Beauty and the Beast story – he’s awful and abusive, but her love will change him) So I’m not seeing any rape fantasy. Granted, I might have forgotten something – mainly because I didn’t invest much time into the book. The writing was awful. If that’s your go-to for romance novels you’re not up to speed on the genre.
I’m not getting where puck is getting his romance novels/covers = rape fantasy claim. Perhaps he could give examples that the genre/covers are awash in rape culture. I can’t remember who said it, but I’ll never forget it. Romance novels are the one area where sex happens with a woman, rather than to a women. She’s the subject, not the object.
Personally people have all sorts of sexual fantasies, and that’s their business. Acting out fantasies with a consenting partner is 100% ok. Hello? It’s why safe words exist. See? Safe word = consent. This really isn’t difficult.
As far as two equally drunk people having sex… I’m sure that happens, but it isn’t what we’re discussing. It’s basic deflection. Most women know the difference between a hook up and rape. It seems like certain men are the only ones confused – and I’d say they’re deliberately confused. But why is it that alcohol excuses his actions and condemns hers? Why is it (as Cassandra linked to a while ago), in rape cases, men have potential (futures) while women have pasts?
It’s really tiresome to keep arguing something so obvious. I still can’t figure out why puck couldn’t flat-out condemn the Stanford rapist, Brock Turner. That case checked every box he always insisted must be checked. Seriously, you are really close to sounding like a rape apologist. Sorry, but that’s how you sound.
When you take the contrarian position on every thread you enter blog comment performance art territory.
@puck: Did you actually read the link?
Jay Rosen appears on the NJ Opinion page with an excellent contemplation of the expectations of campaign journalism in the era of Trump — who doesn’t speak in any truthful or rational manner to his audience:
Laundering GOP misinformation into respectability seems to be the job of journalists and has been for awhile, IMO. See the so-called debate about evolution for how that works. But good on Jay Rosen for pointing out the challenge.
Even though I will likely try to avoid coverage of the convention this week anyway.
I admit my knowledge of romance novels ends some decades ago and consisted of seeing the covers in passing. Guilty on that charge. In my defense, when I go to a bookstore these days it is usually a used bookstore. I take it women’s studies majors have taken over the industry these days.
50 Shades is a rape fantasy thinly framed by consent just to generate the kind of defense posted above, right on schedule. Nice try.
Yes I read the linked article. That is where I got the premise of my comment, that pop culture has supply only where is demand. I don’t know any guys who even know who Luke and Laura are, not that it matters.
Oh of course. “Rape apologist” is the go-to slur when one is too lazy or unwilling to engage on the topic. “Didn’t flat-out condemn Brock Turner?” My first mention of the case on this blog was a condemnation of the rapist. That story about me not condemning was made up out of thin air, god knows why. Not that I expect to see a retraction here.
When I asked “If two blind drunks have sex, who raped whom?” I didn’t say what GENDER they both were. What if they were both men? But the predictable if muddled response was that one of them is a woman and the man is guilty, of course. Because if he didn’t do anything wrong, some OTHER guy surely did, and guy #1 shares blame for being in a culture or something.
You don’t know the genre, but nice jab at Women’s studies majors.
Did you read 50 Shades of Gray? You must have, right? The book was based on Twilight Fanfic (which boosted it’s popularity. Ugh.). It was BDSM (bad BDSM). Are you saying that BDSM = rape fantasies? I would beg to differ.
And the article Anonymous linked to was how pop cultures trivializes rape. Your first response calls out women who buy books you don’t read. Your tag on question follows that statement. You call out a gender and then act like your comment was gender free. Are you putting forth a sort of “All rapes matter” defense?
Here’s your condemnation of Brock Turner: “At least one thing went right: the crime was reported to police, prosecuted, and a conviction obtained. That’s how you handle felonies. If it hadn’t been reported to police it might have ended up another he said/she said.”
Love the he said/she said add on. Do you really consider this a condemnation?
And then there’s this: “But the predictable if muddled response was that one of them is a woman and the man is guilty, of course. Because if he didn’t do anything wrong, some OTHER guy surely did, and guy #1 shares blame for being in a culture or something.”
That statement floors me. Do you really believe that?
Pandora, I will defer to your expertise on BDSM. But not on literature. I have read erotic literature going back hundreds of years or more… The Song of Solomon… Justine…. Fanny Hill… Henry Miller… Anais Nin… DH Lawrence… Not because I am a fan of the genre, but because I am an English major and I read everything. So I skimmed throught 50 Shades (I don’t own a copy), and was pretty convinced I was reading a knockoff of something I read many times before.
I’m so confused
Puck hates women, but is an “educated liberal” or something, so their comments about rape-culture always carry a pseudo-intellectual slant to them.
Kind of like people who believe in the Bell Curve.
Obviously, because 50soG is a best seller, it means all women have poorly-conceived rape fantasies. Also, erotic fiction, so , women’s studies.
That’s interesting that Puck believes that fantasies of consensual domination and submission are tatamount to fantasies of non consensual rape. That equation savors of a wish. It sure as Hell is not a reasonable hypothesis.
She’s a stripper, so she MUST want it…. esspecially if she says no.
@DB “That’s interesting that Puck believes that fantasies of consensual domination and submission are tatamount to fantasies of non consensual rape.”
How is it possible to have both consent and submission unless it’s within the framework of a fantasy? True dominance/submission is the act of making consent irrelevant.
You have no idea what you’re talking about.
There is such a thing as consent within the realm of BDSM (which is an EXTREMELY broad term, often misunderstood by people who think they know all about because of a few episodes of SVU and passing familiarity with 50 Shades of Grey).
I assume you’ve heard…. probably jokingly, given your general ignorant attitude…. of “safe words”. People can consent to be dominated…. when done properly, it is after much communication with their partner so what is in and out of bounds is well understood.
While it is not a community in which I myself participate, like homosexual sex, it is something I try to understand enough not to be a judgy dick about it. Something so-called-liberals here and elsewhere should make an attempt to do.
Whoa, Ben… who are you talking to?
LE.
Their more-enlightened-than-thou, neo-liberal comments are grating on me.
Also, Puck earlier, for their assumption that a literary genre they do not read is proof that women are to blame for rape-culture…. or whatever they were trying to say.
I don’t think LE is saying what you think he’s saying, Ben. He’s separating fantasy from reality. He’s saying dominance and submission without consent is rape/assault. With consent it’s sexual fantasy.
I’m just looking for an older woman in Henlopen Acres who wants a boy
Thanks pandora.
The whole concept of “safe words”, makes sure that’s it’s all just a fantasy… not very different from any sort of play acting (e.g. cosplay). People in consensual BDSM are simply playing a role.
“That is where I got the premise of my comment, that pop culture has supply only where is demand.”
I’m sorry, I should have asked if you understood the linked article.
I can’t talk about the insidious effect of pop culture now – The Bachelorette is on. Shhh….!
Can we add all the candidates, or a write in option, for insurance commissioner?
I think there’s an art opening this friday night at the Art League. I’ll have to dress up for the DC ladies in the Acres lol
You guys are pathetic….Useful idiots.