Every time I see Gym Jordan, I think "What a fucking chudfuck yahoo dickshit asshat motherfucking fuck!" And that's just for today. I'll have a completely different epithet for that benighted fuckbrick tomorrow, I'm sure.
Israel is calling up 300,000 reservists. This almost seems like they are going all-in on this. I can't even figure out how to feel about this. It's going to continue to be bloody AF.
700 people were killed and the bombings continue. If Israel wanted to be barbarous they could flatten Gaza from the air, but targeting the military targets requires ground troops that will suffer casualties.
Fuck. Today is Columbutt day and I had intended to go to the bank and the post office. WTF do we still have a holiday for that piece of shit? Why not Hawking Day or something? Oh, that's right: Science scares the chuds. Did I say we're fucked yet?
In some states, including mine (MA), today is "Indigenous People's Day," a holiday for state workers and school kids, but not for most other working stiffs. It's probably going to become a state holiday.
You know you’ve been retired for awhile when you forget it’s a postal holiday, This is the week we used to come down here from Reading for vacation. Also had bank/USPS on today’s to-do list. Oh, well…can dash to DE for tax-free wine & smokes:)
Hi neighbour! *waves* Yeah, moving to AZ has been,er, an,er,...adjustment? Yeah, An Beeeg Adjustment. I mean, it's been almost ten fucking years (yikes) and I still run up against things that cause me to demand of Hubby, "Whaddaya *mean*, Arizona has/doesn't have ___________ ??!!" :/ ~sigh~
Major reason we live here. Himself cannot tolerate many pain/calmative drugs, but weed doth calm the savage breast --- & helps his PTSD/anxiety stuffs too.
Speaking of Nice Things, at least we managed to finally get ourselves a Dem Gov & AG, so progress !!
The Izus are a string of volcanic islands off the coast of Honshu, convenient to and popular with Tokyo tourists. Yesterday afternoon, between 4:13 and 5:21, they had TEN earthquakes registered between 4.7 and 5.4, at the relatively shallow depth of 10km. Happy hour must have been intense.
Japan frequently has earthquakes. I lived there as a Service brat back in the day and remember a good-size quake that had me racing down the stairs and outdoors.
Yikes! There have also been over 1,000 (mostly minor) earthquakes near Naples, Italy in the past month; there is a volcano (larger than Vesuvius) nearby, and some evacuation plans and tests are underway.
Oh lordy, somebody smarter than me help out here. Wasn't there some theory after the 1906 San Francisco quake that it had been preceded by smaller quakes around the world? Not liking that theory right now.
Will have to go farther down the internet rabbit hole. Apparently, about five of the islands feature resorts with beaches, water sports, etc. That’s a whole lotta shakin’ for shore shack.
I had just finished lunch when I heard the sirens.
My family is in the States. I’m staying with friends. I did visit with my wife’s aunt yesterday-she's in an independent living apartment here in Jerusalem. She’s really cool-I’m glad I got to meet her.
The RWAH presiduntial candidates just can't help but spew endless bullshit about the situation in Isreal. All of these candidates are terrorists as far as I'm concerned. They all need to be treated as such. Of course, that will never, ever, happen.
Good morning, all. (celebrates the Sacrament of Coffee) The US has moved the USS 'Gerald R. Ford' carrier battle group to the eastern Mediterranean, an act that Hamas says (according to the BBC) is an attack. Well, we'll see.
Snooty Pooty's favorite lapdog de jure, Tommy Tuberville, says that he's not budging on his not allowing any military promotions, despite the war going on between Israel and Gaza. Shades of the liberum veto . . .
Snooty Pooty was reported as saying that, thanks to the Israeli-Hamas conflict, the West will start backing away from supporting Ukraine "in a week." Nice signal to the Useful Fools, eh, Vladdy?
Can no one rid us of this troublesome overpromoted and underperforming feetball coach? Alabama, pull the earplugs out from Lynrd Skynard and retire this idjit already. Show some pride, FFS.
Yes, because the US military, doctrinally configured to fight two global-scale conflicts at once and prevail in both of them, is somehow not going to be able to manage (*checks notes*) sending 5% of its budget to Ukraine and aiding armed-to-the-teeth Israel in fighting Hamas at the same time.
indeed, I now realize that it's been significantly reformed since the end of the Cold War. Still, I don't imagine that these two conflicts are something it's not in the US's capacity to manage.
The *political* crisis, though, I think is going to be the more difficult part.
Most modern US doctrine is based around the concept of power projection and full spectrum operations, which combine offensive, defensive, and stability or civil support operations simultaneously as part of an interdependent joint or combined force to seize, retain, and exploit the initiative.
What kills me is Russia is allied with Iran and Hamas. The right can’t figure that out. I gotta run (literally, it’s stupid human tricks time) I should not babble on here before I roll outta bed.
And the thing is, when we send already-manufactured weaponry to Ukraine, we need to spend Ameros *here* to replace it. Why do they hate Merkin Industry?
May the Lord shine His light upon you and yours, and all the kindred of your faith, for the love of God; may His blessing and care never cease, for so it has been promised, and we believe the word of the Lord and the promise of the Name.
I have my issues with the Church, but not with the Prayer Book.
For everyone who keeps blathering about “indiscriminate bombing in Gaza”-if we wanted to be indiscriminate, we’d surround the Strip with artillery and just flatten everything. Much cheaper and safer than sending the Air Force to target command posts and rocket launchers (which are ALL hidden amongst civilians).
In other words, we could do what the Americans did to Fallujah.
The U.S. did a lot of evil in Iraq, such as invading in the first place, waterboarding and other torture, and letting Blackwater kill civilians. But let's not forget that in the past few years Israel hasn't exactly been treating Palestianians with kid gloves, and Israelis keep voting for Netanyahu the Corrupt.
He’s a damn good retail politician-and he brought the fascists in. For that, I will NEVER forgive him. He has always presented himself as “Mar Bitahon”-“Mr. Security”. A lot of us didn’t buy it, but a bunch of people did. Just like a lot of Americans buy the stupid idea that Republicans are strong on national security. This mess has shattered Bibi’s image.
DKos has what seems like a good assessment of this whole calamity. TL;DR: Hamas is losing influence as more and more Arab nations normalize relations with Israel, so this attack is mostly just an outburst of rage, because that's all they have left. In the process, they've all but guaranteed they'll have no allies or sympathy when Israel responds (as it must). The possibility of any viable two-state solution, or lasting peace, is going to be out of reach for another generation, and the Palestinian civilians in Gaza or going to bear the brunt of the suffering that results.
Senseless violence, for its own sake. Heaven help us.
I meant that Hamas' terrorist attacks don't accomplish anything that benefits them, or the Palestinian civilians, or even any military objective. But Israel must defend itself, as is its right and obligation, and as you say is doing so with restraint.
Hamas had to have known that this would be the response, and that the civilians living in Gaza would suffer for it, but they did it anyway. That's the senseless part.
So I have been following the progress of HR 82 since early this year. This is a one-trick pony of a bill that repeals the Windfall Elimination Provision and the Government Pension Offset, both of which take a hefty cut out of SSA for people who have non-SSA pensions in addition to earned SSA, up to about $7K a year, enough to impact quality of life for some people living on a fixed income. The WEP and GPO have been brought up for repeal in one guise or another almost since they were passed by a legislation that simultaneously exempted themselves from the consequences thereof.
HR 82 now has 296 co-sponsors, so a supermajority of voting members, with strong bipartisan support. Its companion bill, S 597, has 46 co-sponsors, so not yet a majority, but under normal circumstances, these would be promising numbers.
If it came to it, HR 82 in theory could be brought before the Speaker to force a floor vote. Nowhere on my 2023 Bingo card did I have, "HR 82 will not be brought before the Speaker because we don't have a Speaker. Bwaaah-ha-ha!"
You know whoever they nominate will be an idiot, because only an idiot would want the job right now.
Every time I see Gym Jordan, I think "What a fucking chudfuck yahoo dickshit asshat motherfucking fuck!" And that's just for today. I'll have a completely different epithet for that benighted fuckbrick tomorrow, I'm sure.
I just think, why's this guy not in jail? and go on to the next fiasco.
Keep 'em comin'.
Hmm. The Promptoberfest writing trigger is the word 'neglect.' I shall ponder this as I have some breakfast and get some walkies in.
Yeah. Like the Israeli government being too busy fascism-ing while neglecting intelligence data.
Israel is calling up 300,000 reservists. This almost seems like they are going all-in on this. I can't even figure out how to feel about this. It's going to continue to be bloody AF.
700 people were killed and the bombings continue. If Israel wanted to be barbarous they could flatten Gaza from the air, but targeting the military targets requires ground troops that will suffer casualties.
Looking forward to a productive day today:
Writing, of course
Having a bit of posh chat with an airline about a flight credit
Maybe getting my laptop off the DL
Ordering a birthday present for possible delivery next week
Yard work (hedges and trimming back a tree branch or two).
No NEKKID jogging??
Fuck. Today is Columbutt day and I had intended to go to the bank and the post office. WTF do we still have a holiday for that piece of shit? Why not Hawking Day or something? Oh, that's right: Science scares the chuds. Did I say we're fucked yet?
We're fucked yet!
Yeah I just stopped by the bank. I was going to take care of *one* errand today ...
In some states, including mine (MA), today is "Indigenous People's Day," a holiday for state workers and school kids, but not for most other working stiffs. It's probably going to become a state holiday.
You know you’ve been retired for awhile when you forget it’s a postal holiday, This is the week we used to come down here from Reading for vacation. Also had bank/USPS on today’s to-do list. Oh, well…can dash to DE for tax-free wine & smokes:)
I'm sure the UPS Store will be open and I can post USPS items from there.
Hamilton in Bill O'Reilly voice: "Fuck it!! We'll do it Tuesday."
Ahem. It's Indigenous People's Day.
Don't waste any energy on that genocidal monster. Consign his memory to the midden heap of history, where it belongs.
I'm in AZ. We are always ten years behind on what things are called.
Hi neighbour! *waves* Yeah, moving to AZ has been,er, an,er,...adjustment? Yeah, An Beeeg Adjustment. I mean, it's been almost ten fucking years (yikes) and I still run up against things that cause me to demand of Hubby, "Whaddaya *mean*, Arizona has/doesn't have ___________ ??!!" :/ ~sigh~
{{{Waves...drops vape...Simba swats it under the fridge.}}}
Maybe as AZ gets more blue it will get more civilized and we will have more nice things. At least I can get weed now.
Major reason we live here. Himself cannot tolerate many pain/calmative drugs, but weed doth calm the savage breast --- & helps his PTSD/anxiety stuffs too.
Speaking of Nice Things, at least we managed to finally get ourselves a Dem Gov & AG, so progress !!
Now, if I can only get my weed delivered here in Phx.
It is? Huh, okay. So no mail today, which isn't catastrophic.
Eventually, we will just have an annual Mail Day.
If DeJoy has his way, we won’t even have that.
Hard to fathom why Biden didn't get rid of him.
Well, I'd almost go for canceling the USPS just to dump DeJoy out of his job.
Wash your mouth out with soap. It’s in the Constitution. Don’t it always seem to go that you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone.
I always figured he was going to cut the fool's salary to $1.
There's so much goneness that I'm just plain numb.
Hand me that bar of Lifebuoy, please.
GODdammit!
3am here.
You monsters are lovely, but, I must away.
Be kind to yourselves. Be kind to others.
I love the ones of you that I love.
(Mandrake gestures hypnotically) SLEEP!
{{{THUDDD!!! ... looks up}}} I know that was not intended for me but I read that by mistake, so anyway okaybye {{{THUDDD!!!}}}
Gunite!
The Izus are a string of volcanic islands off the coast of Honshu, convenient to and popular with Tokyo tourists. Yesterday afternoon, between 4:13 and 5:21, they had TEN earthquakes registered between 4.7 and 5.4, at the relatively shallow depth of 10km. Happy hour must have been intense.
Japan frequently has earthquakes. I lived there as a Service brat back in the day and remember a good-size quake that had me racing down the stairs and outdoors.
Yikes! There have also been over 1,000 (mostly minor) earthquakes near Naples, Italy in the past month; there is a volcano (larger than Vesuvius) nearby, and some evacuation plans and tests are underway.
Oh lordy, somebody smarter than me help out here. Wasn't there some theory after the 1906 San Francisco quake that it had been preceded by smaller quakes around the world? Not liking that theory right now.
Is there much damage?
Will have to go farther down the internet rabbit hole. Apparently, about five of the islands feature resorts with beaches, water sports, etc. That’s a whole lotta shakin’ for shore shack.
Godzilla's awakened and is having a wank?
Glad to hear she's okay.
Update-the rockets fell in open areas west of Jerusalem. All clear now.
Whoa!
I had just finished lunch when I heard the sirens.
My family is in the States. I’m staying with friends. I did visit with my wife’s aunt yesterday-she's in an independent living apartment here in Jerusalem. She’s really cool-I’m glad I got to meet her.
The RWAH presiduntial candidates just can't help but spew endless bullshit about the situation in Isreal. All of these candidates are terrorists as far as I'm concerned. They all need to be treated as such. Of course, that will never, ever, happen.
We are fucked.
A little Tom Waits for you? Hold On: https://youtu.be/0P5jV4lHHR0?si=gBaJ2XaCulUxuig7
Who was it who proclaimed something like "If War is able to solve anything, why do we still do it?"
Seriously.
The Greeks wrote about "War".
I'm pretty sure people before them had Wars and wrote about them.
Apparently, it does not work as any kind of solu-
Oh. Wait. That's true for "Peace", too, isn't it?
.
We're doomed.
'Sun Tzu's Military Method') is an ancient Chinese military treatise dating from the Late Spring and Autumn Period (roughly 5th century BC)...
War.
Hm.
What is it good for?
Absolutely nothing.
Fighting for peace is like fucking for chastity.
It's good for profit$$.
Check with some European families on that.
From the Ferengi Rules of Acquisition:
War is good for business.
Peace is good for business.
War is good for fascism.
Fascism is absolutely fabulous for business, making the rich richer.
(obviously fake Liverpudlian accent) "I'm fighting a war for peace."
"Piece (of ass) in our time."
-- Neville Hamilton
Do we need a war against racism?
Or a race against fascism?
Or, you know, a fast against wargasm.
Fuck if I know. I'm just tired of ALL of this shit. We are going to be killed off by morons, willful idiots, haters, and rich assholes.
Say it again
(giggling like a dingbat at a replay of last night's San Francisco-Dallas game)
Good morning, all. (celebrates the Sacrament of Coffee) The US has moved the USS 'Gerald R. Ford' carrier battle group to the eastern Mediterranean, an act that Hamas says (according to the BBC) is an attack. Well, we'll see.
Snooty Pooty's favorite lapdog de jure, Tommy Tuberville, says that he's not budging on his not allowing any military promotions, despite the war going on between Israel and Gaza. Shades of the liberum veto . . .
Worldle in one:
#Worldle #626 1/6 (100%)
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🎉
⭐⭐⭐🏙️🪙
https://worldle.teuteuf.fr
The latest assessment of the Russo-Ukrainian War: https://understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-october-8-2023
Snooty Pooty was reported as saying that, thanks to the Israeli-Hamas conflict, the West will start backing away from supporting Ukraine "in a week." Nice signal to the Useful Fools, eh, Vladdy?
Can no one rid us of this troublesome overpromoted and underperforming feetball coach? Alabama, pull the earplugs out from Lynrd Skynard and retire this idjit already. Show some pride, FFS.
Putin is an asshole. A meddling one or an opportunistic one, it makes no matter.
A piece of shit of the lowest order.
It's axiomatic that he's an asshole.
Yes, because the US military, doctrinally configured to fight two global-scale conflicts at once and prevail in both of them, is somehow not going to be able to manage (*checks notes*) sending 5% of its budget to Ukraine and aiding armed-to-the-teeth Israel in fighting Hamas at the same time.
Putin remains a master strategist.
...two global-scale conflicts...
Ukraine and Israel? Get real.
"..the US military, doctrinally configured to fight two global-scale conflicts at once and prevail in both of them..."
Your doctrine is about 40 years out of date.
indeed, I now realize that it's been significantly reformed since the end of the Cold War. Still, I don't imagine that these two conflicts are something it's not in the US's capacity to manage.
The *political* crisis, though, I think is going to be the more difficult part.
Most modern US doctrine is based around the concept of power projection and full spectrum operations, which combine offensive, defensive, and stability or civil support operations simultaneously as part of an interdependent joint or combined force to seize, retain, and exploit the initiative.
True. What's important is to link aid to Israel to aid to Ukraine, both under the guise of "defeating terrorism."
What kills me is Russia is allied with Iran and Hamas. The right can’t figure that out. I gotta run (literally, it’s stupid human tricks time) I should not babble on here before I roll outta bed.
And the thing is, when we send already-manufactured weaponry to Ukraine, we need to spend Ameros *here* to replace it. Why do they hate Merkin Industry?
Because the Putinist wing of the GOP hates America for falling into degeneracy. It's why they want a fascist takeover: to cleanse the nation.
I know, right?
I did well until flag, so I got that going for me.
#Worldle #626 1/6 (100%)
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🎉
⭐⭐⭐
https://worldle.teuteuf.fr
What is the one country that looks sort of like a saddle? I got all the others.
I think you may mean Festivus (sic) Island. That came up as a neighbor a few times for me and I finally remembered it.
It reminds me of a saddleback caterpillar.
Christmas Island.
THANK YOU I missed it on another recent one too.
Same here, that's how I know.
It's a little odd.
Air raid sirens and the boom of Iron Dome taking down rockets. We’re in the armored room.
May the Lord shine His light upon you and yours, and all the kindred of your faith, for the love of God; may His blessing and care never cease, for so it has been promised, and we believe the word of the Lord and the promise of the Name.
I have my issues with the Church, but not with the Prayer Book.
Lordy. I hope iron dome does the job but stuff still falls out of the sky. Stay safe!
Stay safe.
For everyone who keeps blathering about “indiscriminate bombing in Gaza”-if we wanted to be indiscriminate, we’d surround the Strip with artillery and just flatten everything. Much cheaper and safer than sending the Air Force to target command posts and rocket launchers (which are ALL hidden amongst civilians).
In other words, we could do what the Americans did to Fallujah.
The U.S. did a lot of evil in Iraq, such as invading in the first place, waterboarding and other torture, and letting Blackwater kill civilians. But let's not forget that in the past few years Israel hasn't exactly been treating Palestianians with kid gloves, and Israelis keep voting for Netanyahu the Corrupt.
He’s a damn good retail politician-and he brought the fascists in. For that, I will NEVER forgive him. He has always presented himself as “Mar Bitahon”-“Mr. Security”. A lot of us didn’t buy it, but a bunch of people did. Just like a lot of Americans buy the stupid idea that Republicans are strong on national security. This mess has shattered Bibi’s image.
Whole lotta hot-ass takes out there.
DKos has what seems like a good assessment of this whole calamity. TL;DR: Hamas is losing influence as more and more Arab nations normalize relations with Israel, so this attack is mostly just an outburst of rage, because that's all they have left. In the process, they've all but guaranteed they'll have no allies or sympathy when Israel responds (as it must). The possibility of any viable two-state solution, or lasting peace, is going to be out of reach for another generation, and the Palestinian civilians in Gaza or going to bear the brunt of the suffering that results.
Senseless violence, for its own sake. Heaven help us.
I meant that Hamas' terrorist attacks don't accomplish anything that benefits them, or the Palestinian civilians, or even any military objective. But Israel must defend itself, as is its right and obligation, and as you say is doing so with restraint.
Hamas had to have known that this would be the response, and that the civilians living in Gaza would suffer for it, but they did it anyway. That's the senseless part.
Okay-sorry I misunderstood you. I’m just a little bit on edge right now.
Nothing quite like getting shot at to sharpen the mind.
Yeah, that’ll fucking do it.
Quite understandably; it's a horrific situation over there. Please stay safe.
So I have been following the progress of HR 82 since early this year. This is a one-trick pony of a bill that repeals the Windfall Elimination Provision and the Government Pension Offset, both of which take a hefty cut out of SSA for people who have non-SSA pensions in addition to earned SSA, up to about $7K a year, enough to impact quality of life for some people living on a fixed income. The WEP and GPO have been brought up for repeal in one guise or another almost since they were passed by a legislation that simultaneously exempted themselves from the consequences thereof.
HR 82 now has 296 co-sponsors, so a supermajority of voting members, with strong bipartisan support. Its companion bill, S 597, has 46 co-sponsors, so not yet a majority, but under normal circumstances, these would be promising numbers.
If it came to it, HR 82 in theory could be brought before the Speaker to force a floor vote. Nowhere on my 2023 Bingo card did I have, "HR 82 will not be brought before the Speaker because we don't have a Speaker. Bwaaah-ha-ha!"