I've been a homeowner in USAmerica since the early 80s, sometimes I've even owned two homes because I worked far from home and it was cheaper to buy than rent. I have never once felt "wealthy". I couldn't afford to buy my current home, nor could I afford to rent it. I'm facing the loss of my drivers license due to vision issues. If that happens, I can't stay here. Nor can I afford to move to town.
So Gallbladder claims his mom is on line 1, but I'm still in a fit of pique over his failure to let me know whether she's arriving via dogsled or surrey with the fringe on top to convey us to prom.
NEW: As he released 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos, Judge Biery warned of vast lawlessness and inhumanity in the Trump administration’s mass deportation efforts. He said courts amounted to “a judicial finger in the dike.”
And here's a text-heavy order from Judge Sorokin on Friday saying ICE failed to heed his orders to ensure a detained woman was receiving epilepsy medication. He threatened contempt if the meds were not provided. www.courtlistener.com/docket/72181...
The federal district judges are starting to get very pissed off at the Trump administration. You don't want the federal district courts going all Marbury v. Madison on you.
Yes it was. It should never have been adopted to begin with, but Chief Justice Marshal never expected the federal government to out and out lie to federal judges. He expected each branch of government to do their best to follow the Constitution. The other branches might be wrong or in error, but they should never lie.
When I started in practice I didn't appreciate the freedom that comes with everyone being on the same side & willing to share strategies etc. And what better villian than the feds?
It does make it easier when all of the legal beagles are pulling together, sharing the research, and copying and pasting each others' arguments to the various petitions that are being filed around the country. No one has to reinvent the wheel, they just need to put the train together and get it running.
Over 500 habeas petitions filed in MN on immigration cases since mid December- thats an insane number for a district of this size. Plus those filed in Texas
That's a lot of habeas petitions. Computers make drafting them so easy. Imagine if all of them had to be hand written or typed on a typewriter.
And it helps a great deal when the lawyers know which arguments have the court's attention and which ones not to waste time on. It streamlines the process quite a lot.
Try some newer stuff maybe. Search anti-iCE music and see what's out there you might like. "Ice Fuck You" or "Chinga La Migra" might appeal, depending on your interests.
You know those ICE goons in the little red car who cut off and drew weapons on that lady today? I'll bet you anything they were wired. I'm almost willing to bet that ICE goons get speed on a regular basis. Because anytime I think they're not going completely Nazi, I find out otherwise. Basically we've got a bunch of untrained thugs with guns and badges and they're wired to the gills. That could also be a reason ICE keeps them away from the cops -- they know how fucked up their goons are. This is just a theory, but I would bet money on it.
ICE brings a Mexican man into an ER in Minneapolis with severe skull fractures. They tell the ER staff that he hurt himself by ramming his head into a wall while handcuffed. The staff says, don't piss on our legs and tell us it's raining.
One of the biggest problems with state sanctioned police violence is that it takes on a life of its own. Even if Donnie really meant to slow things down, he has limited control at this point over these armed angry thugs.
We are the checks and balance, until higher ups can assert control if they choose to.
Yes, We The People are the ultimate checks and balance on our state and federal governments. We have the right to a republican form of government and we have the right to defend it by force, if necessary.
Oh like fuck he ever meant to slow things down. That was just a line some of his minions fed to some gullible reporters to get the temperature down for a few days. Nothing in Minneapolis has changed, according to people on the ground.
Why would they love ICE, running wild and unrecognizable in their territory?...they may hate the mayor and lean MAGA, but this is questioning their own authoritah!...
Very good. Police are a part of the communities they "serve & protect." Also very heartening that leaders are learning & implementing resistance techniques.
Trump is really dumb. He has no control over housing prices, which are cyclical. A housing market bust is overdue, and he's doing everything he can to cause a depression, so ...
"The case has its genesis in the ill-conceived and incompetently-implemented government pursuitof daily deportation quotas, apparently even if it requires traumatizing children....
"Apparent also is the government's ignorance of an American historical document called the Declaration of Independence....
"Civics lesson to the government: Administrative warrants issued by the executive branch toitself do not pass probable cause muster. That is called the fox guarding the henhouse. The Constitution requires an independent judicial officer....
"Observing human behavior confirms that for some among us, the perfidious lust for unbridled power and the imposition of cruelty in its quest know no bounds and are bereft of human decency...." and finally--
"With a judicial finger in the constitutional dike, It is so ORDERED. SIGNED this 31st day of February, 2026."
It's what I pulled. Sometimes when you're writing a screed, you get so lost in the rage and the sentiment you lose track of physical things like time and space.
I've been a homeowner in USAmerica since the early 80s, sometimes I've even owned two homes because I worked far from home and it was cheaper to buy than rent. I have never once felt "wealthy". I couldn't afford to buy my current home, nor could I afford to rent it. I'm facing the loss of my drivers license due to vision issues. If that happens, I can't stay here. Nor can I afford to move to town.
In conclusion, fuck tfg.
Democrat Christian Menefee on Saturday prevailed in the special election in Texas' 18th Congressional District
Retiring and living off the value of your home with some reverse mortgages is what Republicans think is called "working hard."
So Gallbladder claims his mom is on line 1, but I'm still in a fit of pique over his failure to let me know whether she's arriving via dogsled or surrey with the fringe on top to convey us to prom.
I suppose I could just grab my lap robe and go...
Have I told you how much I loved you lately?
Shhhh…I thought we vowed not to speak of it.
I wanted to look just right.
Your Canadian tuxedo + spats are timeless.
Especially nude.
That wasn't a body stocking?
Let Me Sum Up and me are buying hamburgers on her tab.
We need to discuss the matter of payment. Not to mention the exchange rate.
https://youtu.be/wy709iNG6i8?si=YcITrW2JRDGYRx9k
Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
Proposed new slogan for a pitch to the hummus lobbying industry:
"Hummus: The Silent Killer"
I may have to workshop this some more.
"Hummus: Buy the dip!"
Hey buddy, this is my racket. Move on down the road!
*steals slogan*
Friends don't let friends eat hummus.
Not the commercial stuff; the good stuff is heavenly though.
No lyrics, just hummus.
"Hummus: Don't Ask" . . .
"Hummus: The Dip That Won't Let You Eat Potato Chips Because They Break Off in It" needs work too, I guess.
Pita chips or GTFO.
Revised slogan: "Hummus: Pita chips or GTFO"
I like the co-branding. Maybe I can sell this to Big Pita Chip too.
Yeah, pita chips and hummus go together like potato chips and sour cream-based dip.
Legal eagle stuff:
Kyle Cheney
@kyledcheney.bsky.social
· 4h
NEW: As he released 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos, Judge Biery warned of vast lawlessness and inhumanity in the Trump administration’s mass deportation efforts. He said courts amounted to “a judicial finger in the dike.”
www.politico.com/news/2026/01...
-----
Kyle Cheney
@kyledcheney.bsky.social
· 3h
Judges have continued churning out rulings w/ increasing outrage about ICE's arrest and detention practices.
Here's Judge Tunheim lamenting the arrest of a daycare cook, with parents and kids watching:
"The court is disturbed by the facts of this case." storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...
-----
Kyle Cheney
@kyledcheney.bsky.social
· 3h
And here's a text-heavy order from Judge Sorokin on Friday saying ICE failed to heed his orders to ensure a detained woman was receiving epilepsy medication. He threatened contempt if the meds were not provided. www.courtlistener.com/docket/72181...
The federal district judges are starting to get very pissed off at the Trump administration. You don't want the federal district courts going all Marbury v. Madison on you.
And Tunheim used to take forever to reach a decision - so speed + anger - it's all uncharted territory.
And no longer giving the administration the benefit of the doubt or believe that they're acting in good faith to the Constitution or the law.
That's a big step forward.
The presumption of regularity was overdue for jettisoning.
Yes it was. It should never have been adopted to begin with, but Chief Justice Marshal never expected the federal government to out and out lie to federal judges. He expected each branch of government to do their best to follow the Constitution. The other branches might be wrong or in error, but they should never lie.
Shocking that a bunch of privileged white guys never foresaw there would be someone outside their social caste to contend with.
I'm so proud of my colleagues in the local immigration bar!
They are doing heroes work right now.
When I started in practice I didn't appreciate the freedom that comes with everyone being on the same side & willing to share strategies etc. And what better villian than the feds?
It does make it easier when all of the legal beagles are pulling together, sharing the research, and copying and pasting each others' arguments to the various petitions that are being filed around the country. No one has to reinvent the wheel, they just need to put the train together and get it running.
Over 500 habeas petitions filed in MN on immigration cases since mid December- thats an insane number for a district of this size. Plus those filed in Texas
That's a lot of habeas petitions. Computers make drafting them so easy. Imagine if all of them had to be hand written or typed on a typewriter.
And it helps a great deal when the lawyers know which arguments have the court's attention and which ones not to waste time on. It streamlines the process quite a lot.
With good reason.
It is, as you no doubt imagine, a very small & increasingly close knit bunch.
Good morale too I bet in spite of it all.
If you talk to them, tell them that someone they may never meet is cheering them on.
I'll bring it up at trivia w Liam's lawyers next week if they can make it.
Listen, you want to fuck around as a matter of national television?
Is there another option?
Let me know if you find one.
Not really, no.
Well that's about the end of that discussion.
My mom on line 1...
The movie is over if you would like to join us there for OT.
Thanks!!
"And the poets down here don't write nothing at all
They just stand back and let it all be
And in the quick of the night
They reach for their moment and try to make an honest stand"
.
Bruce did good with his recent Dylaneseque protest song. A little late but good. So where is Dylan?
Try some newer stuff maybe. Search anti-iCE music and see what's out there you might like. "Ice Fuck You" or "Chinga La Migra" might appeal, depending on your interests.
Sure, ok, but none of that gets the attention of Springsteen coming out against Trump's fascist tactics. This is a broadband issue.
Only for old white guys.
Yeah, you don't get it. I understand.
Someone doesn't for sure.
Give it a rest, bro.
You know those ICE goons in the little red car who cut off and drew weapons on that lady today? I'll bet you anything they were wired. I'm almost willing to bet that ICE goons get speed on a regular basis. Because anytime I think they're not going completely Nazi, I find out otherwise. Basically we've got a bunch of untrained thugs with guns and badges and they're wired to the gills. That could also be a reason ICE keeps them away from the cops -- they know how fucked up their goons are. This is just a theory, but I would bet money on it.
At some point someone is going to second amendment the shit out of a few of these brown shirts. I just hope it happens in a red state.
I know several Native Americans who are packing just in case ICE shows up in Eastern Oklahoma.
I don't wan to give anybody any ideas but heir body armor doesn't protect their genitals.
My money is on lots of cheap, white boy meth. Been working well since the Russian Front.
Kids with guns.
ICE brings a Mexican man into an ER in Minneapolis with severe skull fractures. They tell the ER staff that he hurt himself by ramming his head into a wall while handcuffed. The staff says, don't piss on our legs and tell us it's raining.
https://apnews.com/article/immigration-enforcement-minneapolis-hospitals-32cd5ca61d495e155d43b7cfd5e563b9
It's like they're asking to get torn limb from limb by a mob of fed up, angry citizens.
Telling care givers he “got his (expletive) rocked”? WTF?
Have you seen the video of ICE carjacking a woman for videoing them?
https://www.mprnews.org/story/2026/01/30/st-peter-police-chief-intervenes-prevents-federal-agents-from-arresting-resident
ICE agent: "I'm not getting into the legality of everything."
Oh yes you are, by your own admission.
You're soaking in it, per an old TV commercial.
I thought Trump said they were dialing that shit down.
Oh well, since everything he says is a lie, I should have known that was too.
One of the biggest problems with state sanctioned police violence is that it takes on a life of its own. Even if Donnie really meant to slow things down, he has limited control at this point over these armed angry thugs.
We are the checks and balance, until higher ups can assert control if they choose to.
Yes, We The People are the ultimate checks and balance on our state and federal governments. We have the right to a republican form of government and we have the right to defend it by force, if necessary.
Oh like fuck he ever meant to slow things down. That was just a line some of his minions fed to some gullible reporters to get the temperature down for a few days. Nothing in Minneapolis has changed, according to people on the ground.
Well, yes, but the point remains.
Well apparently not, per these new stories.
Murderous fuckers need @#$$%^^&$#@!
Blame gallbladder.
https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Exnf!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fmedia_upload%2Fcomment%2Fc792fcc5-837b-4e43-ada9-e04f1a90aa71%2Fe3fea5db-0b5c-4667-96b8-6c9fba90afed.jpeg
That looks like trouble is brewing.
Good trouble, I'll bet.
The Guardian.
"𝐂𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐠𝐨 mayor orders police to investigate alleged illegal ICE activity in city
Brandon Johnson gives police ‘clear procedure’ to follow if they witness or get reports of agents involved in illegal activity"
https://archive.ph/ozQzc
The cops won't listen. They hate him and love ICE, or at least they love beating on POC.
Very sorry to hear that. This may aggravate ambient chaos & strife.
Why would they love ICE, running wild and unrecognizable in their territory?...they may hate the mayor and lean MAGA, but this is questioning their own authoritah!...
The only thing they care about with ICE is keeping them and civilians from hurting each other.
Good. Hold the fuckers accountable. Preferably where Orange Chaos can neither pardon them or bully the governor into missing a state pardon.
Very good. Police are a part of the communities they "serve & protect." Also very heartening that leaders are learning & implementing resistance techniques.
Trump is really dumb. He has no control over housing prices, which are cyclical. A housing market bust is overdue, and he's doing everything he can to cause a depression, so ...
Re: Liam Conejo Ramos and Dad, detention--sorry if other people mentioned it earlier, I am often late to parties, but I have other better qualities.
OT, but timely: Judge Biery's 3 page opinion ordering the release, by Tuesday, Feb. 3.
Here is the text:
https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26708008-us-district-judge-fred-bierys-opinion-ordering-release-of-5-year-old-liam-arias-and-father/
A couple--ok, a few--highlights:
"The case has its genesis in the ill-conceived and incompetently-implemented government pursuitof daily deportation quotas, apparently even if it requires traumatizing children....
"Apparent also is the government's ignorance of an American historical document called the Declaration of Independence....
"Civics lesson to the government: Administrative warrants issued by the executive branch toitself do not pass probable cause muster. That is called the fox guarding the henhouse. The Constitution requires an independent judicial officer....
"Observing human behavior confirms that for some among us, the perfidious lust for unbridled power and the imposition of cruelty in its quest know no bounds and are bereft of human decency...." and finally--
"With a judicial finger in the constitutional dike, It is so ORDERED. SIGNED this 31st day of February, 2026."
From Texas, with love, my Wonks.
31st of February? Okay....
Liam Conejo Ramos. His middle name translates as "rabbit." A little rabbit in his blue rabbit hat.
In that picture, he looks so much like my 4 year old grandson it took my breath away.
Gut punch. : [
I noticed that immediately, but apparently none of the news articles either knew about it, or cared to comment about it.
Same.
Spanish: a bridge too far for the American journalmediocracy.
Wait, that's in the future.
It's what I pulled. Sometimes when you're writing a screed, you get so lost in the rage and the sentiment you lose track of physical things like time and space.
I'm going to check PACER and see what it says.
No worries.
Also, a precursor to the Allman Brothers Band:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_31st_of_February