Labor Day Open Thread [9.1.14]

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So now we have a new bit of right-wing foolishness to live through -- Right wing launches misguided protest against Labor Day. Got that? A protest against Labor Day, folks.
But to the Freedom Foundation, a business-backed Olympia think tank, the day is evidence of the power of unions, which to members equals the decline of America. Rather than stoop to taking a union-backed day off, they plan to fight the power by ... working all day Monday instead! “I can’t think of a problem in society that can’t be traced in some way back to the abuses of organized labor, so it would be hypocritical of us to take a day off on its behalf,” said Freedom Foundation CEO Tom McCabe, in announcing the “work-in.”

Weekend Open Thread [8.30.14]

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The Audacity of Taupe: President Obama wore a summer tan suit at his press conference on Thursday and I gather that this is not only news, but something of a cause celebre in Tea Party Nation. A Tan Suit, people. If you are a journalist actually paying attention to this, I need you to ask yourself now if you are why Americans seriously distrust their media. But when Eternally Outraged Congressman (ed. Peter King) Not Trying to Be ‘Trivial,’ But Doesn’t Think Obama’s Tan Suit Was Appropriate is making a fuss, I guess knee jerk coverage is in store, laundering this thing into some legitimacy that just looks bad for the liberal media that is actually covering this. (Be sure to click the link to NY Mag to see Peter King rockin' his tan suit next to Gerry Adams. Then tell me who looks statesmanlike there.) And to all of the badly dressed teajhadists who think that a tan suit is a THING:
Thursday Open Thread [8.28.14]

Thursday Open Thread [8.28.14]

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Two conservative groups commissioned a poll and found that women think that the GOP is "intolerant". Ya think? YA THINK???
The report found that women think the GOP is "intolerant" and "stuck in the past," and that women are "barely receptive" to Republican policies. Women think Republicans "fail to speak to women in the different circumstances in which they live." “This lack of understanding and acknowledgment closes many minds to Republican policy solutions,” the report reads, according to Politico.

Tuesday Open Thread [8.26.14]

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Chris Christie demonstrates a perfect execution of the GOP Grift:
Gov. Chris Christie's administration openly acknowledged that more New Jersey taxpayer dollars were going to land in the coffers of major financial institutions. It was 2010, and Christie had just installed a longtime private equity executive, Robert Grady, to manage the state's pension money. Grady promoted a plan to put more of those funds into riskier investments managed by Wall Street firms. Though this would entail higher fees, Grady said the strategy would "maximize returns while appropriately managing risk." Four years later, New Jersey has secured only half the promised results. The state has sent more pension money to big-name Wall Street firms like Blackstone, Third Point, Omega Advisors, Elliott Associates and Grady's old firm, The Carlyle Group. Additionally, the amount of fees the state pays financial managers has more than tripled since Christie assumed office. New Jersey is now one of America’s largest investors in hedge funds.

Wednesday Open Thread [8.20.14]

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More Ferguson, to be filed in the Annals of Really Bad Policing -- video of a cop in last night's protests in Ferguson of a cop waving his weapon at peaceful protesters telling them that " I will fucking kill you!" There are two videos here -- one of the cop threatening the protester and a clearer one of the cop and the other cop who caught up to him to get him to lower his weapon. Seriously, this cop doesn't look angry -- he looks scared to death. In a group of people with their hands up (and often you can see the light of smartphones filming), folks. No wonder he didn't want to give his name.

Saturday Open Thread [8.16.14]

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Have you been following the #iftheygunnedmedown campaign? As the conversation has evolved this week about how Americans see its black men, it is black men (and women) who have taken to Twitter to ask the question: Which picture of me would the media and authorities use to represent me if I was gunned down by the police today? Here are a few of them:

Late Night Video — Robin Williams, RIP

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I'm really stunned at this evening's news that Robin Williams died today, apparently of suicide. Many years ago I saw him in a Kansas City club -- the second show. He was on a tear, and the audience was falling off of their chairs laughing. By the time they got to the club's closing time, Williams had a ton of energy and the audience was game to stay -- so the owner closed the club, charged people $5 or something (so he could claim it was a private club since he was keeping the bar open) and Williams went on for at least two hours more. And it was really interactive too -- not only was he conversing with patrons (and then riffing off of the conversations), but he took suggestions for routines. Mostly from Shakespeare. It was utterly hysterical and really smart -- you could tell that he knew the work he was riffing off of. I can't imagine what he has been experiencing, but I know depression can be brutal. Even if you are someone that the world loved so very much.

Thursday Open Thread [8.7.14]

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Delaware has convened a study panel to see if there is a way to get electricity to you cheaper than Delmarva can sell it. See if you can spot the irony:
Electricity aggregation programs, already in use in some states, allow governments or communities to negotiate for and buy power in a block for residents, with the group potentially able to get a better deal than the "standard offer" available from utilities. In Delaware, the block could be as large as 900 megawatts annually, a deal that [Sen. Colin] Bonini said could draw spirited bidding from large and "very smart" suppliers. Delmarva Power officials said they still were puzzling over the proposal Wednesday, when a study committee chaired by Secretary of State Jeffrey W. Bullock held an initial public meeting in Dover. The committee agreed to hire a consultant to assess potential gains, prospective supplier markets and other considerations. "There are other jurisdictions throughout the country that have looked at retail purchase energy models both for gas and electric," Bonini said. "We're looking specifically at electric."

Thursday Open Thread [7.31.14]

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So conservatives who simply cannot live in the Reality Based Community created their own version of Facebook.  It is called Reaganbook -- the "Facebook for Patriots".  Somehow these conservatives feel that they are being censored and hounded off of Facebook and they need their own social network.  (There is nothing more appalling or more hysterical than conservatives who think they are being persecuted.) That site was recently pre-launched and that failed launch was subject to serious take-backs: