I don't know if it's fair to Bernie Sanders to call them "Sanders Supporters" -- because they aren't doing anything Sen. Sanders has requested they do and even booed him at the DNC -- but social media is filled angry anti-Hillary progressives who pound away at their keyboards about the Evil That Is HRC.
According to my new girlfriend "Julia Sugarbaker," Barack Obama is on IT. The big conspiracy that gave us "The Coronation." I guess he's backing Hillary because she's secretly for TPP, and as you know, TPP is really the biggest issue facing us as a nation.*
And yet they claim they will miss him. Apparently because of his charming performance at the White House Correspondents' Dinner back in May.
So they support a President who is backing a woman who:
• stole the nomination
• murders people (I'm not kidding)
• is the victim of a neurological condition that causes her seizures (that's what Trump is exploiting when he emphasizes that Hillary said she "short circuited" in her interview with Chris Wallace)
Do they really think they have been able to find things on Google about Hillary that the President of the United States doesn't know? So he's endorsed her, speaks out for her, campaigns with her, even though she's a thieving, stroked-out murderer.
Oh yeah, and the POTUS gave us Obamacare -- which according to Sanders himself is a mess and must be overhauled -- and the aforementioned heinous TPP. And Debbie Wasserman-Schultz! Who do they think hired her in the first place?
But three months ago, he made a cute video about his lame duck days in the White House, so they'll miss him.
Nerd Prom was back in May. And it was covered extensively, as any news event about Washington correspondents naturally will be. So were they paying attention to political coverage back in May? You know, in the run up to the West Virginia, Kentucky and Oregon primaries. No. It's more fun to follow each other and make fun of Hillary's "shrill" voice and pantsuits. (Because Sanders has the pipes of an FM jazz dj and is sartorially splendid.)
Where the Clintons have always been lucky is that no matter how badly they act, the people who attack them are always worse. As I watch Donald Trump imply that Hillary is not "all there," and I see "progressives" slander her more and more insanely, I find myself defending her more and more. Contributing more and more cash. A woman I don't really care for! OOOOH! Maybe that's part of her brilliant master plan, too!
By the way, the President's video was a remake of the one Bill Clinton made for the same event in 2000.
*I thought it was guns, or perhaps upcoming Supreme Court nominations, but that's because I'm a silly woman who lives in a mixed-race urban area ... ON PLANET EARTH!
Monday, August 08, 2016
Sunday, August 07, 2016
August Happiness Challenge -- Day 7
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| Look at my happy kitty |
Each day in August you are to post about something that makes *you* happy. Pretty simple. And, it doesn't even have to be every day if you don't want it to be. It's a great way to remind ourselves that there are positive things going on in our lives, our communities, and the world.
If you want to play along, just come back here (meaning to this blog, not this individual post) each day in August, looking for the happy cat. Every day I will try to have a post with the headline: August Happiness Challenge: Day [X]. Leave a comment and then post your own daily happiness, with August Happiness Challenge in the title to make it easy to find.
Paul O'Neal was an unarmed man
Paul O'Neal is a difficult hero to embrace. He's been implicated in the theft of more than 30 cars out in Bolingbrook and Naperville. On the last day of his life, he was caught on video pumping gas, paid for with a stolen credit card, into a stolen vehicle.But even more disturbing, he was shot in the back by the Chicago police. The bodycam video shows officers going through the dying kid's backpack and finding no weapon.
The Chicago police shot an unarmed kid in the back.
The body- and dashcams are all over the internet. If you're interested in this case -- or in big city policing in general -- you should view them.
This is how the case appears to unfold to me. O'Neal was reported driving a stolen Jaguar. Two different squad cars begin pursuit and he's caught between them. Someone -- I believe it's an officer in the police car behind O'Neal -- begins shooting at the car. This is in violation of department policy.
The police in the other car apparently believe O'Neal is firing at them. O'Neal crashes the car, jumps out, and runs. He leaps over a fence into a backyard. Police chase after him on foot.
We can't see the actual shooting -- the cop who actually fired is the one whose body cam isn't working -- but we can hear it. Six shots. Into the back of an unarmed kid.
The Chicago police shot an unarmed kid in the back.
This breaks my heart. I like cops. When I see them, I'm always grateful. I've never been treated with anything but respect.
But what I saw on the videos is just wrong. Police firing live ammunition into a stolen car? That Jag belonged to someone completely innocent in this saga. And what about the welfare of the residents? What if O'Neal had crashed the car into an innocent bystander? What if a bullet caromed off the car and hit someone?
Also, by firing when he wasn't supposed to, that first cop set up the false assumption that O'Neal was armed.
I don't, however, think this racially motivated. However, the motivation doesn't really matter, does it? Stealing a Jag and a credit card isn't punishable by death. And even if it was, O'Neal is entitled to a trial he didn't get.
I do, however, think this is the last thing my city needed during this long, hot summer of violence.
Sunday Stealing
Sunday Stealing: The Gal's Meme, Part One
Ha! I own the weekend blogosphere, don't I?
What’s your favorite word or phrase? "Gubernatorial." It's just fun to say. And living in Illinois, where two of our last three governors have ended up behind bars, newscasters unfortunately have many opportunities to use it. Generally "gubernatorial" is followed by "misconduct."
Tell us about a person who made you smile today. It's still early so I haven't had any real-life human interaction yet today. But the local weather man made me smile. It's not going to be that hot today.
What were you doing
at 8 am this morning? It's not 8:00 yet. But I will be watching Meet the Press with Chuck Todd. I appreciate his brains, his enthusiasm, and his ability to keep the big picture in clear focus.
What were you doing 30 minutes ago? Feeding the cats. Reynaldo has a special diet that Connie shouldn't eat, so their breakfast requires vigilance.
What were you doing 30 minutes ago? Feeding the cats. Reynaldo has a special diet that Connie shouldn't eat, so their breakfast requires vigilance.
What is your favorite holiday? Why? Thanksgiving. Since my mother's passing, I've been spending it with my friend, John. It's always such a warm, relaxing, delicious evening, and a great way to officially kick off the holiday season.
Tell us about a visit to another country. The mug on my counter, where I keep the quarters for my laundry, is a memento from the Hofbrauhaus Munchen. I took my one and only trip to Europe when I was in my late teens.
What is the last thing you said aloud? "Connie!"
What was the last thing you had to drink? A glass of milk
What are you wearing right now? An oversized t-shirt that wear as pajamas.
What was the last thing you ate? Last night, I had a handful of Saltines before bed.
Have you bought any
new clothing items this week? Nope.
When was the last time you ran? HA!
What’s the last sporting event you watched? The Cubs beat Oakland As ass Saturday afternoon. Look at those standings.
If you could go anywhere in the world,
where would you go? If this was an all-expenses-paid trip, I'd take my nephew to Washington DC. He so wants to go, and I'd love to show it to him. But right now, I can't afford it.
Who is the last person you sent a comment/message to on Facebook? My friend, Chuck. I wondered what was up in the continuing saga of White Sox pitcher Chris Sale.
Ever go camping? If yes, tell us about one time. The last time I went camping was about 15 years ago. My niece -- who just graduated from college -- was in first grade. Her mother had just had a baby so I was drafted to play "Brownie Mom" on her first-ever overnight with her troop. I was fascinated by how trusting the little girls were. They'd never seen me before, and yet since I was in the role of "Mom," I had to be OK. I remember sitting down on a bench and this little foot suddenly appeared on my thigh. This wee one didn't know how to tie her own shoe, I was an adult, why not press me into service?
Do you think a tan improves your looks? No. All a tan means to me is more wrinkles and perhaps a mole that will need to be lopped off.
Have you ever lost anything down a toilet? Well, not literally. But I have had to dispose of things that I dropped in the bowl and didn't think I could disinfect properly. Does that count?
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| I'll take the one on left, please. |
What is your guilty pleasure? 1960s-era TV westerns. Especially Bonanza and The Big Valley. The cowboys were all so handsome and good and true. Sigh.
August Happiness Challenge -- Day 6
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| Look at my happy kitty |
Usually we meet one Tuesday/month, and lately we've been concentrating on the films of director Preston Sturgess. But Will, our enthusiastic moderator, introduced another topic -- the films of 1939 -- and we're going through those one Saturday/month.
So yesterday I headed back into the city and into the South Loop. It was a beautiful late afternoon walk from the el stop to the community center where Will shows the films. Often when I take this walk I'm in a hurry -- it's too hot, or raining, or cold, or I'm late. Today I was able to stroll, and appreciate how different the neighborhood looks in summer.
South Loop is an interesting mix of commercial and residential. Apartments cosset the bars, restaurants, salons and daycare centers. I loved seeing all the colorful patio gardens overhead. Old buildings butt right up against newer construction, so it's cool to take in the architecture.
Joanna is traveling this week and was unable to make the Meetup, and in a way, that made me happy, too. I feel such a great affinity for her that when she's there, we tend to talk to each other rather exclusively. When she's not there, I talked more with Betty, Barbara and Barbara's best friend -- a woman who joins us occasionally but doesn't wear a nametag because she isn't a member of the group.
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| She's right. He was a hottie. |
Each day in August you are to post about something that makes *you* happy. Pretty simple. And, it doesn't even have to be every day if you don't want it to be. It's a great way to remind ourselves that there are positive things going on in our lives, our communities, and the world.
If you want to play along, just come back here (meaning to this blog, not this individual post) each day in August, looking for the happy cat. Every day I will try to have a post with the headline: August Happiness Challenge: Day [X]. Leave a comment and then post your own daily happiness, with August Happiness Challenge in the title to make it easy to find.
Saturday, August 06, 2016
Saturday 9
1) The song begins with a
chess reference. Do you play chess? Not well.
Haven't even tried in decades.
2) The lyric also
mentions losing altitude. Often airline travelers complain thattheir
ears pop as the plane loses altitude. When you fly, does this bother you? Yes.
And I never remember to bring gum. (I've heard chewing gum helps.)
3) Four of the original members
attended the same school -- Fairfax High in Los Angeles. Fairfax High's mascot
was The Lions. Do you remember what your school team (grade
school, high school or college) was called? Grade school was the Panthers,
high school was the Bull Dogs.
4) The band has
appeared on The Simpsons. Which is your favorite character
from the long-running Fox cartoon show? I don't think I've seen more
than 5 episodes in my whole life. I don't know why. It's not like Seinfeld,
which I've seen but never could stand. I've just never gotten around to
watching The Simpsons.
5) Bass player Michael
Balzary, or Flea, cofounded The Silverlake Conservatory of
Music, a non-profit educational organization for
under-privileged children. Share a memory from music class in school. In grade school, when we were learning songs from
around the world, I was taught a Czech polka and the lyrics have always stayed
with me:
Water from mountain flows,
melted from winter snows,
turning she gaily goes, circling the
maple tree.
Water from mountain flows,
melted from winter snows,
turning she gaily goes, calling to
me. HEY!
6) The Red Hot Chili
Peppers have played at massive outdoor festivals all over the
world. Do you enjoy listening to concerts outside, under
the sun or stars? Or do you prefer air conditioned indoor comfort? Indoors.
I'd prefer to sit down and not be bit by mosquitos. Hell, I'm old.
7) Red bell peppers are
used in Giada De
Laurentiis' popular Italian sausage, pepper and onion recipe. Would
you prefer to have your portion served in a bowl or as a sandwich? In
a bowl, so I can more easily pick out the pepper and onion. I don't like spicy
foods.
8) Red cayenne peppers are very
hot. Do you enjoy spicy foods? See above.
9) Random question: Are you a spender
or a saver? A spender. And I regret it, now that my earning years are
coming to an end. When I was young, I never really believed I'd ever be
old.
Friday, August 05, 2016
August Happiness Challenge -- Day 5
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| Look at my happy kitty |
So I'm DONE! Tomorrow I'll wake up without any of those major, daunting time suck chores awaiting me.
HURRAY!
Each day in August you are to post about something that makes *you* happy. Pretty simple. And, it doesn't even have to be every day if you don't want it to be. It's a great way to remind ourselves that there are positive things going on in our lives, our communities, and the world.
If you want to play along, just come back here (meaning to this blog, not this individual post) each day in August, looking for the happy cat. Every day I will try to have a post with the headline: August Happiness Challenge: Day [X]. Leave a comment and then post your own daily happiness, with August Happiness Challenge in the title to make it easy to find.
"Joe Nathan is no longer a Cub."
I saw his first game as a Cub and fell in love with him. His first pitch -- for his new club, after his rehab -- was a strikeout! Come on, this is worthy of The Natural. I love it when life imitates art.
But today, the Cubs let him go.
This is so fucking cruel. Imagine having everyone tell you you're past your prime but no, you insist you're not. You have complicated surgery and endure an arduous recovery process ... and get signed by the best team in baseball.
You take the ball, go out there and perform well. You're back, baby!
But the Cubs, being the best team in baseball, are enjoying an embarrassment of riches. Too many good players. Young players. 24-year-old Jorge Soler is healthy and back from the disabled list and someone had to go to make room.
Six months ago, I didn't care one whit about Joe Nathan. But tonight, hearing Cub announcer Len Kaspar say, with callous casualness, that "Joe Nathan is no long a Cub," just broke my heart.
I know, I know ... He is a grown man who is lucky enough to be paid handsomely to play a boy's game, I get that. But he's still a person and I can't imagine what it was like for him to get the news this afternoon.
Here's hoping Joe Nathan turns up with another club. And if he does, should he do damage against my guys in Cubbie blue, I swear I won't blame him one bit.
Thursday, August 04, 2016
August Happiness Challenge -- Day 4
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| Look at my happy kitty |
It's a little place, tucked away inside the train station. It's dark and the music is eclectic and loud. Every time I've passed it I've thought to myself, "John would love this place." Tonight we finally got to lift a few at a table by the door and I'm happy to report that he did, indeed, love it.
It makes me happy, too, to know someone so long and so well. I really am lucky when it comes to my friends.
(Re: the money ... John and I are going to the Cubs-Giants game over Labor Day weekend and I'm the one who paid when ordered the tickets.)
Each day in August you are to post about something that makes *you* happy. Pretty simple. And, it doesn't even have to be every day if you don't want it to be. It's a great way to remind ourselves that there are positive things going on in our lives, our communities, and the world.
If you want to play along, just come back here (meaning to this blog, not this individual post) each day in August, looking for the happy cat. Every day I will try to have a post with the headline: August Happiness Challenge: Day [X]. Leave a comment and then post your own daily happiness, with August Happiness Challenge in the title to make it easy to find.
Of Diana's Death and the Clinton Candidacy
And so conspiracy theories cropped up and now, more than 20 years after her death, flourish. The Royal Family saw her as a threat and had her killed. The people who believe this will say if you don't see their evidence, you are blind. They have to cling the conspiracy, because the truth is unacceptable to them. It simply doesn't compute.
I'm finding the same attitude among Sanders supporters toward the nomination of Hillary Clinton. It became mathematically impossible for Sen. Sanders to win the nomination before Memorial Day, but for the more rabid, the math doesn't compute, the reality is unacceptable and as we race toward Labor Day they're still in denial.
I'm not talking about hurting. Of course true believers are still hurting. And as a Kerry 2004 supporter, I can promise them the pain won't ever completely go away.
I'm talking about getting past the rage. And the Facebook page I stumbled upon has shown that this rage can make a woman I assume is otherwise intelligent -- she says she's a lawyer -- sound like the Brit in a pub in Queens Road ranting about the MI5 assassination of Diana.
Oh, my Lord. For her, the Clinton/Sanders campaign outcome wasn't predictable because of 21st century demographics. No, that's too simple, too tawdry and forces her think about which side of the racial divide she's standing on. It's preferable to make this about THEM, the tyrannical corporate oligarchy.
• THEY wanted Hillary because Sanders is the candidate THEY feared most. I agree Sanders is the candidate big business disliked most, but they never feared him. Because he was never going to win this nomination. Sen. Sanders never caught fire with POC. Maybe that was unfair, maybe his message should have resonated. But going forward, if Sanders supporters want to enhance the legitimacy of their candidate among African Americans, maybe they should have thought twice before booing Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, Elijah Cummings and Cory Booker on national TV during the DNC. The oligarchy had nothing to do with that tone-deaf display of privilege.
• THEY wanted Trump. I believe in this case, THEY switches from just the oligarchs to now include a combination of the Republican and Democratic establishment, who chose (or allowed) Trump to win because he would be so easy for Hillary to beat. This conspiracy depends upon collaboration among the senior operatives of at least 18 national campaigns across two parties. Okie-dokee. That's not only naive, it's muddle-headed. Why would THEY want to damage every down ballot Republican in all 50 states, just to win the White House for Hillary? How did THEY get to be so rich and powerful without noticing it's the local and statewide governments that make most of the laws that decide how day-to-day business is conducted?
• The way to stop THEM, long-term, is to vote third party. Yeah, that'll work. BTW, which party is the third party? Am I striking a blow for decency and showing my moral superiority by voting for Johnson or Stein?
... And in private, Queen Elizabeth exchanged her crown for a fedora, puffed on a fat Cohiba like Al Capone, and called for a hit on Princess Diana.
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| Trojan horse? |
She claims her "spirit animal" is Julia Sugarbaker from the late 80s/early 90s sitcom Designing Women. You remember firebrand, Julia. She was created by Linda Bloodworth-Thomason, a well-known Clinton confidante. During the 1992 season, the Julia character was a Clinton supporter and a 1993 episode revolved her attempt to attend Bill's inauguration. Yet the Clintonites have slyly co-opted a Sanders supporter! OH. MY. GOD. Look how deep the conspiracy goes!
Wednesday, August 03, 2016
August Happiness Challenge -- Day 3
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| Look at my happy kitty |
For the uninitiated, here's how it works: Every day a different star is featured for 24 full hours. There's always interesting, thoughtful commentary between the movies, too.
I always look forward to seeing favorites again, to seeing movies I've only heard about but never seen all the way through, and a film or two I never even knew existed.
Today is Bing Crosby Day. Right now I'm watching an old favorite, The Country Girl. I get Georgie, the title character. Grace Kelly is so understated, so exhausted, that you forget how beautiful she is.
Next I may watch one of the Hope/Crosby "Road" pictures. I know they're supposed to be funny. Hope has never amused me, but then I only really know him from the dreadful NBC specials I grew up on.
And yesterday I DVR'd The Dark Corner. Tuesday was Lucille Ball Day, and in The Dark Corner -- made in 1946, years before anyone ever heard of Lucy Riccardo -- she plays a no-nonsense Girl Friday who helps her PI boss solve a crime. I can't wait to see it. I love noir mysteries, and I'm interested to see Lucille Ball display her versatility.
Each day in August you are to post about something that makes *you* happy. Pretty simple. And, it doesn't even have to be every day if you don't want it to be. It's a great way to remind ourselves that there are positive things going on in our lives, our communities, and the world.
If you want to play along, just come back here (meaning to this blog, not this individual post) each day in August, looking for the happy cat. Every day I will try to have a post with the headline: August Happiness Challenge: Day [X]. Leave a comment and then post your own daily happiness, with August Happiness Challenge in the title to make it easy to find.
WWW.WEDNESDAY
To participate, and to see how others responded, click here. 1. What are you currently reading? Barbara Stanwyck by Al Diorio -- and I'm enjoying it.
It's a perfectly serviceable movie star bio, the kind that publishers used to crank out to fill shelves back in the 1980s, when Crown Books and Borders anchored every mall. (Meaning: It's likely a combination archive interviews, news articles and press releases cobbled together with a touch of craft. It quotes conversations the author couldn't possibly have accurate knowledge of. )
Yet I'm enjoying it because it's all new to me. I knew Stanwyck's given name was Ruby Stevens, but beyond that I knew little about her childhood. And it was a harrowing one! Born into poverty, she was orphaned at an early age and shuttled from foster home to foster home. She began working full-time at 14, first in offices, then in a chorus line and finally with a speaking part on Broadway.
So this Oscar/Emmy nominated legend of Old Hollywood almost literally created herself. Knowing this makes me appreciate her impressive body of work all the more.
2. What did you recently finish reading? Wanton's Web by Alex Matthews, a mystery set in Chicagoland, revolving around the murder of a high-paid call girl. Our sleuths are a psychologist who works from home and her lover, an investigative reporter for a fictional Chicago newspaper.
3. What will you read next? I don't know.
August Happiness Challenge -- Day 2
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| Look at my happy kitty |
I've done my share of complaining on this blog about my little beige demon, but Reynaldo has always been a prince at mealtime. Because of his sensitive kidneys he's on a special, high-protein diet. So he gets the same prescription food every day, and every day he snarfs it down with enthusiasm and without complaint.
Connie, on the other hand, is usually my problem child. She prefers kibble but must have a dollop of canned food with each meal because I've got to dissolve a supplement in the moisture. And she is so freaking picky about the canned food! At first we tried gourmet foods, but after the first day/first meal, she sniffed at it. For a long time, she snarfed down Gerber Baby Meats (for human babies) but suddenly she decided she was bored with it.
Lately we've had ongoing success by mixing human baby food with kitten food. It's such a delight to watch her first poke around the dish with her nose and dive in.
I was a little apprehensive posting about this. For the fresh, homegrown cucumber I referenced yesterday played havoc with my gut. I hope spotlighting kitty cuisine doesn't jinx breakfast!
Each day in August you are to post about something that makes *you* happy. Pretty simple. And, it doesn't even have to be every day if you don't want it to be. It's a great way to remind ourselves that there are positive things going on in our lives, our communities, and the world.
If you want to play along, just come back here (meaning to this blog, not this individual post) each day in August, looking for the happy cat. Every day I will try to have a post with the headline: August Happiness Challenge: Day [X]. Leave a comment and then post your own daily happiness, with August Happiness Challenge in the title to make it easy to find.
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