Just don’t cross the streams.
8 Likes
Is crossing streams a bad thing?
2 Likes
It was what Egon warned against in GB I. At least, I think it was Egon.
5 Likes
We’re just doing the Star Wars arc.
The “young” Luke Skywalker came to us in 2020, during very dark days in the empire, our New Hope.
The Debate was the defeat of the rebel base on Hoth and leading to the exile last week and training in the force.
Today, we see the Return of the Jedi, and Biden’s got to get rid of Jabba the Hut and clean house a bit, then on to defeat the emperor.
36 Likes
And I believe we can stop fascism here by the Democratic party presenting a united and enthusiastic front and running a disciplined campaign (it can be done, even by democrats). Our policies on abortion rights and scotus reform are popular with ‘independent’ voters. We are the ones with the most potential to gain votes beyond our base. GOTV and win.
Fascism has limited appeal here, as does TSF. I remain encouraged and committed.
36 Likes
I too believe we can stop fascism here.
But I also believe that fascism has a worryingly strong appeal here: yes indeed, it can happen here. Related is that many voters who are not themselves positively fascistic are nevertheless comfortable enough with it that they will vote for Trump.
11 Likes
Wasn’t there a guarantee when we signed the dotted line and paid up? If not, there should have been. Are we not buying a service? This reminds me of how so much is simply swept under the rug. It’s not just getting on the MM that is a problem. Whomever’s job it is to create and or fix the system ought to be fired. Mind you, we can all be passive, sit back, say and do nothing. Then again, that’s the general mess the world is in.
4 Likes
I’m convinced that the resolution of the problem depends on Discourse to fix the integration with this site. Since there are work arounds it isn’t considered a high priority.
6 Likes
My thought here is that they have no more money to pay qualified technicians to come in and monitor the problem. It’s the problem with being a small site. It’s kind of like the power company that has to invest in a whole bunch of line repairs after a major storm. They pass the costs the next year on to the consumer.
I know we aren’t getting what we’ve paid for. Having been on the other side of this fiasco for a couple of decades, it’s frustrating when there isn’t the support from management when the fixes are known, inexpensive, but there’s no more money in the budget to pay for them, regardless of how inexpensive they are.
I will probably unsubscribe if they subject us to another upgrade any time soon. The pain and aggravation of this one just isn’t worth going through another when it’s clear they don’t prepare for the upgrade impact to the people paying the bills.
4 Likes
Josh and crew appear to be under the impression that people come here for the articles and blog.
22 Likes
I agree it’s Discourse. They are the ones I’m talking about, the creators and apparent fixers of the Hive.
1 Like
They would be entirely wrong and that’s just indicative of how they don’t understand their community.
A primary example of our community was the massive response to the passing of mattinpa. If they don’t understand their community after that one, they deserve a mass migration away from TPM.
Read the room, fellas. Time is running out.
11 Likes
Re North Carolina – I know polls are at best snapshots and at worst garbage, but the fact that Robinson is either ahead or barely behind right now gives me pause. NC GOP funder Art Pope must be thrilled at taking a state that had one of the finest state universities and some of the most notable cities in the New South and managing to tear a good chunk of it down.
22 Likes
Not talking about Josh, TPM etc. I’m talking about the Hive.
I think I already have enough today.
See y’all in the movies.
3 Likes
France was not hampered by a inherently gerrymandered Electoral College and their voters decided to turn out and put the 30 % choosing to vote right wing in their place.
21 Likes
Well there you have it. If Biden has done all the consulting and heard from his doctors and family and he thinks he can get to the finish line, there isn’t anything more to be said. It’s very risky and doesn’t improve our position, which was possible. There was a very good chance that a change at the top of the ticket would have ignited some amazing enthusiasm. There was risk, too, but it was no greater than the risk we carry hoping Joe has made the right call and can perform the way a hard-fought campaign needs.
I would disagree with his statement that a change at the top of the ticket would be a betrayal of the voters and democracy, etc. etc. That is not correct, if he had to step aside there is no one to blame and it isn’t a betrayal. Some of the most ‘out there’ suggestions of passing over Harris and having an open convention might have some elements of thwarting the democratic primary process. But Joe stepping down due to health concerns isn’t a betrayal. No honor would be lost and it could be done completely on the up-and-up.
So, if this letter he sent today is the real deal, I will suspend any further speculation of a better strategy. We all know the trepidation that we have lived with since Biden first announced for the 2020 election. Amid extraordinary efforts to overthrow our system of govt., we acknowledged he was the person among our candidates who could pull together the necessary demographics. But it was a double-edged weapon, as his age was going to be an issue for the next 4 years and his appeal to younger generations was likely a significant weak point. Plus, we all knew that the way presidencies go…it is grooved for a two-term process and if you thought hanging on by our nails to reach '24 was fraught, reloading the same ancient weapon for '24 to '28 came with huge risks.
With this letter from JRB, we are cemented into that scenario.
Nobody seemed to want to work out a different succession scenario in the last 4 years, and the trepidation grew as the '24 campaign started. Joe put that to rest as much as was possible with his SOTU speech, but this isn’t the kind of issue you can put to rest. Old is old. It is the one issue that EVERY voter can judge. No matter how stoopid or belligerent or self-harming the electorate is, they all have witnessed aging first-hand. It isn’t a policy position which can be changed/finessed. It isn’t a scandal that can be addressed or overcome. You can say “I looked under the hood and made the necessary policy changes” or “we reviewed this department and made the necessary personnel changes”…but you can’t come back to the people and say “After careful review, I am not old any longer, lets get to work!”.
We will have to do our best, to carry on with the tremendous disquiet and trepidation we have lived with for four years already. It bakes in the very high possibility (if we win) that we will have a president who won’t finish their term. I felt that a change at the top of the ticket, if handled properly, could engender a blow-out blue wave that would make a House and Senate sweep possible and effect every race. I fear that this decision today means we still have a chance to beat Chump in a nailbiter, but not much else.
17 Likes
As was I. Their priorities are keeping the main page up and running, the chat has always seemed like an afterthought for them.
8 Likes
Sounds Irish, an Irish girl.
3 Likes
Marcy Wheeler reviews more responsible reporting on Bidens health/mental capacity.
The take is that Biden is mentally fine, but that he is showing a significant change in energy and appearances of aging, possibly due to the stress of the last year.
33 Likes
They do exist. They just don’t get jobs with high paying “Conservative” think tanks, and therefore don’t usually show up in the media. It’s kind of like being an actual expert. Nobody likes those guys.
9 Likes