I hear them off and on all year, mostly at dawn or dusk, but I really would like to actually see one. By the time I open the slider and step onto the patio, they're gone.
Owls, in general, are pretty intense, even intimidating creatures, but that Stygian owl...
I bet the panhandlers and street solicitors give them a wide berth...
I am thinking that a metronome in the likeness of a Stygian, or maybe an elaborate clock, maybe both, using the bird's head movement as the pendulum would really liven up the living room...
The DC Reports piece on the bank bailouts is disturbing. It’s not just the corporations that need to be brought to heel should we ever retake congress and the WH. Appears we also need to inject some spine into democrats.
I think it was a little over a decade ago that I met Rebecca for the first time. It was at the Rosamunde Sausage Grill gathering in Oakland, CA. Donna Rose was still an infant at the time.
When I had a chance to chat with Trix, I introduced myself and my teenaged son and mentioned that I had read her book, "Commie Girl in the OC". She replied, "Oh, you're the one."
This right here is why I am no longer upset Governor Walz dropped out of the race. He no longer needs to be polite.
Copy of an article of a barn burner of a press conference he gave. I can't find a clean video of the remarks but I watched a video of the entire press conference from KSTP 5, his "good" remarks start at about 29 minutes in.
"Governor unbound: Freed from reelection niceties, Walz comes out swinging at Trump, GOP
Tim Walz spent the first full day of his last year as Minnesota governor showing off a range of raw emotion.
Like a doting dad, he played peek-a-boo with a baby while others in a Minneapolis retail building touted the new paid leave program he helped enact.
Then Walz flashed bouts of rage over what he saw as a distasteful pressure campaign aimed at hurting him and, indirectly, the state the two-term Democratic governor leads.
Taking his first questions on a decision this week to end his reelection campaign, Walz let loose and didn’t try to put a happy spin on it. He blasted:
The “war being waged against Minnesota” by President Donald Trump and administration officials
A new wave of federal immigration enforcement officers spilling into the state
Trump’s spread a debunked conspiracy theory about the assassination of the late House Democratic leader Melissa Hortman, Walz’s close friend and colleague
Minnesota Republicans who he said hadn’t stood up to the president over that post or other abrasive comments
A federal prosecutor whom Walz alleged engaged in speculation as he offered up a ballpark estimate on fraud in state government programs
Those in the Legislature unwilling to hold votes on gun restrictions
It was a contrast from Walz’s sullen announcement a day earlier that he will abandon a third bid for governor. His voice rising and his arms in motion as he spoke, Walz said he had more energy than ever. He said it will be readily apparent to anyone who takes notice.
“I'm not running for office again, but I have a year to continue to improve on a record that I think will stand up against anybody's, a record that has made Minnesota better, a record that makes people want to come here and a record that has respected not only the dignity of people but the idea of rule of law and camaraderie,” Walz told reporters.
Walz said he’d opted not to run again after consulting his family. He said they had been subject to safety threats. But he committed to working against efforts from the Trump administration that he viewed as harmful for Minnesotans — like suspending child care funding, cutting small business loans and scapegoating Somali Americans.
“We are under assault like no other time in our state's history because of a petty, vile administration that doesn't care about the well being of Minnesotans,” Walz said. “My job is to protect the well-being of Minnesotans.”
He went after Trump’s personal integrity, too. Walz was clearly upset over the president spreading conspiracy theories that he had a role in Hortman’s assassination.
“That is freaking evil, and every one of you in this room knows it's evil,” Walz said.
Then he turned his focus to Minnesota Republicans.
“They are unwilling to stand with Melissa Hortman's children, and I want to tell you this for those legislators who went and shed crocodile tears at her funeral, shame on you. Shame on you,” Walz said. “Her children are asking you to do one thing in her name. It's to tell the president to stop doing this.”
House Speaker Lisa Demuth, who is also running for governor as a Republican, told MPR News she didn’t believe the conspiracy that Walz called for Hortman to be killed. She said she wouldn’t have shared the misleading post as Trump did.
“That is not anything that I would have tweeted or retweeted,” said Demuth, R-Cold Spring. “My working relationship with Melissa Hortman is something that I value. And I think the statement that you saw come from her children in response to that. It wasn't hateful. It wasn't attacking. It was explaining the grief that they're still in and then asking for something to be taken down.”
It’s not clear whether Walz will make this the end of a political career that included two terms in the governor’s mansion and a dozen years representing southern Minnesota in Congress. Walz suggested he might return to his roots teaching geography in a high school classroom.
Others predicted Walz, 61, had reached the final chapter of his career in politics.
Former U.S. Rep. Dean Phillips, who left Congress after an unsuccessful Democratic run for president in 2024, said Walz made the right move stepping down. Phillips said he doesn’t see Walz reemerging as a candidate for public office.
“Just like Hollywood, American politics can make you a prince one day and a pauper the next, and I’m afraid that’s what's transpired with Governor Walz. He was a good man, but he’s also been subject to what happens in politics: It compromises principles and the focus becomes on maintaining power rather than improving lives,” Phillips said. “I know he did both, but I don’t see much of a future in Minnesota or federal politics for Governor Walz.”
Walz also said that now that he doesn’t have to worry about reelection in the fall, he’d go all in on issues that matter to him come the start of the legislative session.
He said he would push lawmakers to vote on various gun restriction measures that had stalled after negotiations on a school safety package faltered following a Minneapolis school shooting. He said legislators would have to work with him if there are more changes to be made in addressing fraud.
“I will tell you what, if they think game’s over for him now. It was all me. I was the bad guy, or whatever. Well, put up or shut up now and tell us what you're going to do to make this state better,” he said. “Expect for the next 11 months for me to ride you like you've never been ridden, to make sure that you're doing your job.
Walz may no longer be a candidate, but he said he’ll keep the pressure on in his remaining months in office.
MPR News host Cathy Wurzer , reporter Peter Cox and producer Gracie Stockton contributed to this story."
I fell in love with a Commie Girl many decades ago and the OC Weekly was a wonderful part of my world. Clearly, I would follow her anywhere, even to a mommyblog :)
It's been two days since surgery. The good news is that the pain is tolerable. Home health nurse is coming this afternoon to check my surgical site and re-dress the bandages. I find myself somewhat depressed over the loss of a body part, but I suppose I can deal with it.
It's not that I miss my toe, but I suppose I'm worried--possibly scared?--about what the future holds. The good news is, tomorrow I finally get to close the drama of my apartment lease tomorrow. And unfortunately, that will include late fees for my rent. Ew.
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine has endorsed Vivek Ramaswamy for Governor of Ohio.
Every time the Ohio Republican Party tries to make Vivek work for the rank-and-file, all I can see is the South African Embassy scene in Lethal Weapon 2.
DeWine is a chode, through and through. Then again, we haven't had a governor who really worked for the people of Ohio since....when? Even Strickland was pretty lame.
It's probably like comparing apples to oranges. When he came in, all of the statewide offices went Democrat, and he had Democratic majorities in both houses of the legislature.
Things seemed to go pretty well, as I remember, but Democrats were running the state.
Like everything Trump is doing, that whitehouse page will be undone by the next Dem admin in 5 seconds flat. Apart from demolishing the East Wing NOTHING he has done cannot be undone.
It will take time, money and effort. Too much of all three. But he has created exactly ZERO permanent legacy. And I hope he lives long enough to see it all torn down.
"...You may have heard that Venezuela has the world’s largest oil reserves — 300 billion barrels. You probably don’t know that Venezuela’s reported oil reserves tripled while Hugo Chavez was president. This increase, from roughly 100 billion to 300 billion barrels, didn’t reflect major new discoveries or exploration. Instead, it reflected the Chavez government’s decision to reclassify the country’s Orinoco Belt heavy oil ..."
So, it appears the Chavez regime decided to lie back then as much as Donnie does now.
Also, more crony capitalism:
"...Which is not to say that nobody has profited from the abduction of Maduro. A few months ago Trumpist billionaire Paul Singer bought Citgo, the former U.S.-based arm of Venezuela’s state-run oil company. Citgo owns three Gulf Coast refineries custom-built to process Venezuelan crude, refineries that have suffered from the U.S. embargo on imports of that crude. If Trump lifts that embargo, Singer will receive a huge windfall. But this windfall will have nothing to do with reviving Venezuelan production.
Singer has made huge political donations to Trump, raising questions about how much he has influenced policy. His purchase of Citgo was also remarkably well-timed. What did he know?"
These fucking people need to be hung from lampposts!
Krugman: I see [people with power and money incentivizing right wing positions] all the time, even aside from journalism, if you’re an academic economist with some foot in the policy world, there are just a lot of—individually, quite innocent—but a lot more doors are open if you’re right leaning than if you’re left leaning. It’s what always makes people who think that there’s this massive left wing bias in academia seem foolish. Certainly not in my corner of academia. The incentives are all the other way.
Higgins: I mean, it’s the same with history, which is my academic background and my dad’s academic background. If you’re a historian who has a left wing or a liberal background that doesn’t distinguish you from the rest of the field. But if you’re a historian like Niall Ferguson, then there are a lot of opportunities that are open to you.
Krugman: Ferguson, on economics as well, got quite a lot of attention for saying things that were just flatly wrong, you know?
I have to confess that I was (sadly) relieved when I clicked over to the White House link. I thought it was going to involve some new "people are dead and here's how Trump did that" or "we bombed Cuba and/or Greenland" thing. But... yeah... completely gross and disgusting, and now I need some kittens.
Two superb owl gifs in one week?! It’s owl good! More info: https://martiniambassador.substack.com/p/the-stygian-owl
And your meme chat: https://open.substack.com/chat/posts/88bab2a8-5129-4f50-827a-30f7e40c779c?utm_source=share
🎶 Who are you? Who? Who? Who? Who? 🎶
I hear them off and on all year, mostly at dawn or dusk, but I really would like to actually see one. By the time I open the slider and step onto the patio, they're gone.
Way back when I was a night watchman there were barn owls nesting in the area. I'd see them occasionally ghosting overhead.
Well, it is Superb Owl season after all!
Owl be loving you
Owl ways
With a love that's true
Owl ways
Did you save any for the first week of February? 😁
Owl always love you ♥️
Owl be seeing you
In all the old familiar places
That this heart of mine embraces
All day and through
Owly to bed, owly to rise
Makes a Wonker healthy, well teaed, and wise
You can never have too many owls.
Even though it appears to be looking at TABS, I would be wary of that incredible creature looking at me like that.
Owls, in general, are pretty intense, even intimidating creatures, but that Stygian owl...
I bet the panhandlers and street solicitors give them a wide berth...
I am thinking that a metronome in the likeness of a Stygian, or maybe an elaborate clock, maybe both, using the bird's head movement as the pendulum would really liven up the living room...
Let people know who they're dealing with, anyway
Q: Where do you go to get discounts on Strigidae and Tytonidae birds?
A: The owltlet mall.
Oof Dah
(applauds)
Looks like he's asking "Say what?" after reading the Tabs.
Don't we all say that after reading TABS?
Sometimes with a rising voice, "...say 𝘞𝘏𝘈𝘛?"
"We must take our Hemisphere back from these devil owls and reclaim our small varmints!
Today our anti-owl forces are landing in Cuba to begin that righteous task!"
DJT
Owl: "Let's face it, I have cute ears!"
And quoting CSI "Whoooo are you?"
Owl looks like s/he is asking "Why? Why?" It's something those of us ask everyday!
Any way you look at it, those are spicy tabs.
The DC Reports piece on the bank bailouts is disturbing. It’s not just the corporations that need to be brought to heel should we ever retake congress and the WH. Appears we also need to inject some spine into democrats.
I had a weird thought about stickers on park passes. How about putting a transparent one over the Big Orange Blot? It signals intent clearly. (ahem)
Or draw a mustache and beard on it?
They did only mention stickers. A detail like that could end up at the Supreme Court.
𝘐’𝘮 𝘢𝘭𝘸𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘢 𝘴𝘶𝘤𝘬𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘩𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘖𝘊 𝘞𝘦𝘦𝘬𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘴 𝘮𝘦 𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘵.
I think it was a little over a decade ago that I met Rebecca for the first time. It was at the Rosamunde Sausage Grill gathering in Oakland, CA. Donna Rose was still an infant at the time.
When I had a chance to chat with Trix, I introduced myself and my teenaged son and mentioned that I had read her book, "Commie Girl in the OC". She replied, "Oh, you're the one."
"...a brilliant 23-year-old writer named Rebecca Schoenkopf..." [sigh]
This right here is why I am no longer upset Governor Walz dropped out of the race. He no longer needs to be polite.
Copy of an article of a barn burner of a press conference he gave. I can't find a clean video of the remarks but I watched a video of the entire press conference from KSTP 5, his "good" remarks start at about 29 minutes in.
"Governor unbound: Freed from reelection niceties, Walz comes out swinging at Trump, GOP
www.mprnews.org
Tim Walz spent the first full day of his last year as Minnesota governor showing off a range of raw emotion.
Like a doting dad, he played peek-a-boo with a baby while others in a Minneapolis retail building touted the new paid leave program he helped enact.
Then Walz flashed bouts of rage over what he saw as a distasteful pressure campaign aimed at hurting him and, indirectly, the state the two-term Democratic governor leads.
Taking his first questions on a decision this week to end his reelection campaign, Walz let loose and didn’t try to put a happy spin on it. He blasted:
The “war being waged against Minnesota” by President Donald Trump and administration officials
A new wave of federal immigration enforcement officers spilling into the state
Trump’s spread a debunked conspiracy theory about the assassination of the late House Democratic leader Melissa Hortman, Walz’s close friend and colleague
Minnesota Republicans who he said hadn’t stood up to the president over that post or other abrasive comments
A federal prosecutor whom Walz alleged engaged in speculation as he offered up a ballpark estimate on fraud in state government programs
Those in the Legislature unwilling to hold votes on gun restrictions
It was a contrast from Walz’s sullen announcement a day earlier that he will abandon a third bid for governor. His voice rising and his arms in motion as he spoke, Walz said he had more energy than ever. He said it will be readily apparent to anyone who takes notice.
“I'm not running for office again, but I have a year to continue to improve on a record that I think will stand up against anybody's, a record that has made Minnesota better, a record that makes people want to come here and a record that has respected not only the dignity of people but the idea of rule of law and camaraderie,” Walz told reporters.
Walz said he’d opted not to run again after consulting his family. He said they had been subject to safety threats. But he committed to working against efforts from the Trump administration that he viewed as harmful for Minnesotans — like suspending child care funding, cutting small business loans and scapegoating Somali Americans.
“We are under assault like no other time in our state's history because of a petty, vile administration that doesn't care about the well being of Minnesotans,” Walz said. “My job is to protect the well-being of Minnesotans.”
He went after Trump’s personal integrity, too. Walz was clearly upset over the president spreading conspiracy theories that he had a role in Hortman’s assassination.
“That is freaking evil, and every one of you in this room knows it's evil,” Walz said.
Then he turned his focus to Minnesota Republicans.
“They are unwilling to stand with Melissa Hortman's children, and I want to tell you this for those legislators who went and shed crocodile tears at her funeral, shame on you. Shame on you,” Walz said. “Her children are asking you to do one thing in her name. It's to tell the president to stop doing this.”
House Speaker Lisa Demuth, who is also running for governor as a Republican, told MPR News she didn’t believe the conspiracy that Walz called for Hortman to be killed. She said she wouldn’t have shared the misleading post as Trump did.
“That is not anything that I would have tweeted or retweeted,” said Demuth, R-Cold Spring. “My working relationship with Melissa Hortman is something that I value. And I think the statement that you saw come from her children in response to that. It wasn't hateful. It wasn't attacking. It was explaining the grief that they're still in and then asking for something to be taken down.”
It’s not clear whether Walz will make this the end of a political career that included two terms in the governor’s mansion and a dozen years representing southern Minnesota in Congress. Walz suggested he might return to his roots teaching geography in a high school classroom.
Others predicted Walz, 61, had reached the final chapter of his career in politics.
Former U.S. Rep. Dean Phillips, who left Congress after an unsuccessful Democratic run for president in 2024, said Walz made the right move stepping down. Phillips said he doesn’t see Walz reemerging as a candidate for public office.
“Just like Hollywood, American politics can make you a prince one day and a pauper the next, and I’m afraid that’s what's transpired with Governor Walz. He was a good man, but he’s also been subject to what happens in politics: It compromises principles and the focus becomes on maintaining power rather than improving lives,” Phillips said. “I know he did both, but I don’t see much of a future in Minnesota or federal politics for Governor Walz.”
Walz also said that now that he doesn’t have to worry about reelection in the fall, he’d go all in on issues that matter to him come the start of the legislative session.
He said he would push lawmakers to vote on various gun restriction measures that had stalled after negotiations on a school safety package faltered following a Minneapolis school shooting. He said legislators would have to work with him if there are more changes to be made in addressing fraud.
“I will tell you what, if they think game’s over for him now. It was all me. I was the bad guy, or whatever. Well, put up or shut up now and tell us what you're going to do to make this state better,” he said. “Expect for the next 11 months for me to ride you like you've never been ridden, to make sure that you're doing your job.
Walz may no longer be a candidate, but he said he’ll keep the pressure on in his remaining months in office.
MPR News host Cathy Wurzer , reporter Peter Cox and producer Gracie Stockton contributed to this story."
Go get them Governor!
I fell in love with a Commie Girl many decades ago and the OC Weekly was a wonderful part of my world. Clearly, I would follow her anywhere, even to a mommyblog :)
It's been two days since surgery. The good news is that the pain is tolerable. Home health nurse is coming this afternoon to check my surgical site and re-dress the bandages. I find myself somewhat depressed over the loss of a body part, but I suppose I can deal with it.
It's not that I miss my toe, but I suppose I'm worried--possibly scared?--about what the future holds. The good news is, tomorrow I finally get to close the drama of my apartment lease tomorrow. And unfortunately, that will include late fees for my rent. Ew.
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine has endorsed Vivek Ramaswamy for Governor of Ohio.
Every time the Ohio Republican Party tries to make Vivek work for the rank-and-file, all I can see is the South African Embassy scene in Lethal Weapon 2.
"But, you're blech!"
DeWine is a chode, through and through. Then again, we haven't had a governor who really worked for the people of Ohio since....when? Even Strickland was pretty lame.
Celeste?
I dunno. How much good did he do? I know he was generally liked, but...
It's probably like comparing apples to oranges. When he came in, all of the statewide offices went Democrat, and he had Democratic majorities in both houses of the legislature.
Things seemed to go pretty well, as I remember, but Democrats were running the state.
Yeah....too bad that doesn't happen more often...
Like everything Trump is doing, that whitehouse page will be undone by the next Dem admin in 5 seconds flat. Apart from demolishing the East Wing NOTHING he has done cannot be undone.
It will take time, money and effort. Too much of all three. But he has created exactly ZERO permanent legacy. And I hope he lives long enough to see it all torn down.
The J6 thing from the fucking Reich House.
It's the shuddery picture. On a goddamn federal government web page. WHAT THE FUCK DUDE
Link: https://paulkrugman.substack.com/p/the-emperors-new-oil-wealth
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐄𝐦𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐨𝐫’𝐬 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐎𝐢𝐥 𝐖𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑟𝑢𝑡ℎ 𝑏𝑒ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑑 𝑇𝑟𝑢𝑚𝑝’𝑠 𝑏𝑙𝑎𝑐𝑘, 𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑘𝑦 𝑓𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑠𝑦
"...You may have heard that Venezuela has the world’s largest oil reserves — 300 billion barrels. You probably don’t know that Venezuela’s reported oil reserves tripled while Hugo Chavez was president. This increase, from roughly 100 billion to 300 billion barrels, didn’t reflect major new discoveries or exploration. Instead, it reflected the Chavez government’s decision to reclassify the country’s Orinoco Belt heavy oil ..."
So, it appears the Chavez regime decided to lie back then as much as Donnie does now.
Also, more crony capitalism:
"...Which is not to say that nobody has profited from the abduction of Maduro. A few months ago Trumpist billionaire Paul Singer bought Citgo, the former U.S.-based arm of Venezuela’s state-run oil company. Citgo owns three Gulf Coast refineries custom-built to process Venezuelan crude, refineries that have suffered from the U.S. embargo on imports of that crude. If Trump lifts that embargo, Singer will receive a huge windfall. But this windfall will have nothing to do with reviving Venezuelan production.
Singer has made huge political donations to Trump, raising questions about how much he has influenced policy. His purchase of Citgo was also remarkably well-timed. What did he know?"
These fucking people need to be hung from lampposts!
Most despised verb neologism in my spam email subject lines this AM: "upskill".
On the left bias in academics:
Krugman: I see [people with power and money incentivizing right wing positions] all the time, even aside from journalism, if you’re an academic economist with some foot in the policy world, there are just a lot of—individually, quite innocent—but a lot more doors are open if you’re right leaning than if you’re left leaning. It’s what always makes people who think that there’s this massive left wing bias in academia seem foolish. Certainly not in my corner of academia. The incentives are all the other way.
Higgins: I mean, it’s the same with history, which is my academic background and my dad’s academic background. If you’re a historian who has a left wing or a liberal background that doesn’t distinguish you from the rest of the field. But if you’re a historian like Niall Ferguson, then there are a lot of opportunities that are open to you.
Krugman: Ferguson, on economics as well, got quite a lot of attention for saying things that were just flatly wrong, you know?
I have to confess that I was (sadly) relieved when I clicked over to the White House link. I thought it was going to involve some new "people are dead and here's how Trump did that" or "we bombed Cuba and/or Greenland" thing. But... yeah... completely gross and disgusting, and now I need some kittens.
It's Owl good with Tab's and Coffee in the Morning ☕💯👍