Althouse: At the Prairie Café...

August 21, 2015

At the Prairie Café...

... let's take a closer look...

... at insect politics.

61 comments:

Eric the Fruit Bat said...: I came across a book of quotations, back when I was in high school, so I decided to read it cover-to-cover, rather than do my homework.

Let's see if I can access any of it . . . . ah ha! . . .

"Nature gives nothing away for free but everything is had at a price. It is only in the ideals of abstraction that there is choice without consequence."

Can't remember who said it, though.; 8/21/15, 10:30 AM
Now is the winter of our discontent made glorious summer by this son of New York said...: Fall is coming, my very last day lily is blooming today.

"Nature gives nothing away for free but everything is had at a price. It is only in the ideals of abstraction that there is choice without consequence."

Guarantee you that quote wasn't from Bernie Sanders.; 8/21/15, 10:41 AM
jaydub said...: During my daily 10K walk this morning, it suddenly dawned on me that dogs in Spain must be specifically bred for their ability to poop in the middle of the sidewalk. Don't know why it took me so long to figure that out, given that the impetus for such a hypothesis has always been lying right there in the open.; 8/21/15, 10:58 AM
Eric the Fruit Bat said...: Actually, now I think it was "cost" rather than "price."

It's been a while.; 8/21/15, 11:15 AM
Hagar said...: I think birthright citizenship is a wonderful thing about America and I would loathe to see it abandoned.
I also think it is inherent in the original Constitution, never mind the 14th Amendment.

But that is only for the babies born here. The idea of "anchor babies" conferring special treatment status to their parents, siblings, aunts and uncles, and cousins out to the 7th degree, is not in the Constitution, nor in any law. It is just a fancy of State Dept. "policy," and however well meant in the past, is untenable in the modern world.

And I do not see anything wrong in deporting baby citizens along with their non-citizen parents unless they can find sponsors willing to take responsibility for them here. They would, of course, have the right to return to the U.S. when they reach legal age, but unil then they should stay with their parents in their parents' country.; 8/21/15, 11:16 AM
Ann Althouse said...: I'm always happy to hear from jaydub about how things look from Spain!; 8/21/15, 11:19 AM
Bobby said...: jaydub,

Where are you in Spain? My parents are going out there again this fall to do el camino de santiago de compostela for the second time. Well, actually, my Dad considers it the "first" time, because last time they started in Burgos, and this time they're starting in Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port going through Roncesvalles to Santiago and then Finisterre. I'm not convinced my mom is going to be able to do the whole thing, but my Dad at 71 is more excited for this than I've ever seen him before.; 8/21/15, 11:27 AM
Hagar said...: I believe Democrats of the liberal persuasion have been strongly opposed to broad interpretations of the 14th Amendment in the past. (Is there anything the Supremes cannot see in there if the they squint just a little?).; 8/21/15, 11:46 AM
Unknown said...: Insects don't have politics.; 8/21/15, 12:03 PM
Robert Cook said...: America, Fuck Yeah!

"Insects don't have politics."

Welcome to the American anthill.; 8/21/15, 12:23 PM
Mark said...: I keep thinking that's the big hill at Pheasant Branch Conservancy even when I know it's likely Governor Nelson.

I love this time in the prairie, as summer turns from green toward gold.; 8/21/15, 1:03 PM
Scott said...: I've had the worst earworm for the past couple of days -- Barbara Streisand singing "Evergreen." "Love, soft as an easy chair" and "Spirits rise, and their dance is unrehearsed, they warm and excite us" ... it's got such a lesbian vibe to it, you can almost smell the dead fish.

Totally uninteresting. I need to find the headset, tune in BBC Radio 2, and finish my work.; 8/21/15, 1:10 PM
Now is the winter of our discontent made glorious summer by this son of New York said...: More dead fish more me Scott.; 8/21/15, 1:23 PM
Mid-Life Lawyer said...: Twitter is insect politics - As soon as a wound is detected, all the other insects rush in and devour the wounded, then they quickly all go on about their business until the next wound is detected.; 8/21/15, 1:28 PM
Eric the Fruit Bat said...: I've found that "I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)" by The Proclaimers is a detergent that gets out even the toughest earworm stains.

News you might be able to use.; 8/21/15, 1:34 PM
bbkingfish said...: Speaking of insects in politics...

I see that Scott Walker is taking another one of his extremely courageous "no position" positions...this time on birthright citizenship.

He is standing out from the rest of the GOP as the candidate of mush-mouthed, non-committal equivocation.

Poor Scotty seems quite intimidated by the big stage. I think he is coming unglued.; 8/21/15, 2:07 PM
Now is the winter of our discontent made glorious summer by this son of New York said...: Some people are coming unglued, that's for sure.; 8/21/15, 2:19 PM
Bay Area Guy said...: I'm reading "Slaughterhouse Five" by Kurt Vonnegut, this weekend. I must have missed it in high school and college. Probably, playing hooky.

He is trying to say something about the allied bombing of Dresden in WWII (he was there as a young soldier), but I'm not quite sure what.; 8/21/15, 2:39 PM
David Begley said...: Marxist UWM prof makes $170,000 per year.

http://dailycaller.com/2015/08/21/marxist-professor-rakes-in-170000-per-year-at-u-wisconsin/; 8/21/15, 2:52 PM
machine said...: I'm not taking a position on it one way or the other...; 8/21/15, 3:08 PM
rhhardin said...: Yard.; 8/21/15, 3:16 PM
Humperdink said...: Visiting family in central Oregon. Hard to believe there is redneck country in Or.

It is a high desert area, not a blade of grass in sight. It has rained twice since March.; 8/21/15, 3:17 PM
Anonymous said...: Poor Scotty seems quite intimidated by the big stage. I think he is coming unglued.

For someone who is constantly bragging about how "unintimidated" he is, he sure comes across pretty damn scared when it comes to interactions with the media, even conservative news sources.

The Scott Walker campaign is quickly building a reputation as the most press-averse group in the Republican field.

On Tuesday, Walker's policy team held a press call with reporters to discuss the Wisconsin governor's health care plan, as well as his intention to repeal and replace Obamacare. But when reporters tried to submit a question, they were greeted by a press aide who demanded to know what question each reporter intended to ask.

"Was on Gov. Walker health plan press call. First time as a reporter I've ever had my questions pre-screened before I could ask them," Stephanie Armour, The Wall Street Journal's health care policy reporter, tweeted after the call.

This is not the first time Walker and his team have exercised extreme caution when dealing with the press.

In March, Walker made public appearances in Texas and South Carolina but closed the events to press and refused to take questions from the media. In April, while visiting Europe, he held no public events and took no questions from reporters. In May, while visiting Israel, he did the same.

http://www.politico.com//blogs/media/2015/08/scott-walker-campaign-screens-reporters-questions-212564.html?utm_source=morningmedianewsfeed&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=dailynewsletter20150819

If he is too scared to interact with the press, then how is he going to be with someone like Putin?; 8/21/15, 3:30 PM
Paddy O said...: Let's take a closer look at those pests.; 8/21/15, 3:34 PM
jaydub said...: Bobby, I live in El Puerto de Santa Maria, Cadiz provence, on the Costa de la Luz. The region where your parents are visiting is due north from here on the noerh/northeast side of Portugal. The wife and I are headed up that way to Merida and Caceres in a couple of weeks, but we won't get as far up as the Basque region. I want to do that, though as I've heard it's lovely. Your folks will love it I'm sure. The Spanish folks are wonderful and gracious, and the country is completely safe. BTW, I'm 70 myself, retired over here, and thankful for the opportunity.

Ann, thanks for the comment. I really enjoy your blog, and I appreciate the time and effort it takes to produce such a quality product, particulary since you also have full time day job. I know you get a lot of grief, and not a small amount of gratuitus bile, and I admire your good sense to ignore it. Also, I note that all your detractors keep coming back. I wonder what that means?; 8/21/15, 4:25 PM
Tank said...: @jaydub

Cadiz !

Wow. We stayed at the beach there and had great time. At 9 pm, no one was in the restaurants yet (they were all strolling), but by 9:30, the restaurants were hopping. And great food and wine there. At 6 pm, the sun is almost directly overhead.

You are lucky !; 8/21/15, 4:47 PM
Birkel said...: Is Brittney Griner a "splooge stooge," Althouse?; 8/21/15, 4:56 PM
Guildofcannonballs said...: "Also, I note that all your detractors keep coming back. I wonder what that means?"

Not Chip Ahoy to my knowledge, one of the best voices on the web as far as I'm concerned.

Perhaps your point stands if you phrase it "most" instead of "all?"

Either way, I come back here because I haven't been kicked out yet, geography, and Gods of the Copybook Headings.

And although I feel I have performed an important undertaking by showcasing the side of (psuedo) anonymity folks forget about, specifically being all-in honest even when the ego takes a deserved whuppin', as distinct from the pedestrian "anonymity makes people mean and angry," I do not feel as though Althouse owes me anything.; 8/21/15, 5:05 PM
Meade said...: Ask not what Althouse owes you...; 8/21/15, 5:31 PM
Birkel said...: That is true in all directions...; 8/21/15, 6:07 PM
steve uhr said...: “I’m not taking a position on it one way or the other,” the 2016 Republican presidential hopeful said. Only after securing America’s borders, he explained, is it appropriate to address the issue of birthright citizenship."

Doesn't Walker have it backwards? Once the border is secured the issue of birthright citizenship pretty much goes away.

Kudos to the WSJ for lambasting the republicans who argue that the 14th amendment does not make citizens of all those born in the USA to illegal immigrants. Trump and other candidates apparently think the 14th amendment is unconstitutional. Walker per usual pretends not to have an opinion on the issue.; 8/21/15, 6:47 PM
Paco Wové said...: Personally, I think this is a better "America, Fuck Yeah!" story, but I can see why Cook would differ.; 8/21/15, 7:15 PM
grackle said...: Trump should hit on what China is doing to the world stock markets with China's currency devaluations in his big speech tonight.; 8/21/15, 7:18 PM
pm317 said...: Hey, I know Caceres.. on our way there, we asked the toll woman what else we can stop at that is interesting. She said go to Evora and we did. It was fantastic.; 8/21/15, 7:39 PM
Anonymous said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 8/21/15, 7:53 PM
Marc in Eugene said...: Humperdink, Oregon is home to many rednecks and their cultural sympathisers, just not enough to outvote the leftists in Portland and here in Eugene and the other college towns.; 8/21/15, 7:54 PM
Anonymous said...: steve uhr: Kudos to the WSJ for lambasting the republicans who argue that the 14th amendment does not make citizens of all those born in the USA to illegal immigrants. Trump and other candidates apparently think the 14th amendment is unconstitutional.

Oh ffs uhr, nobody has argued that "the 14th amendment is unconstitutional". Nothing like taking your news straight up from retarded headline writers.

At any rate, any nation that hasn't descended into full-on idiocracy ought to be able recognize that, in modern circumstances, giving citizenship to the offspring of illegal aliens, or the clients of "birth tourism" hustlers, is a stupid policy.; 8/21/15, 7:56 PM
Freeman Hunt said...: A man who lives in our area went into his front yard and shot himself in the head today. Many people coming home from work were greeted with the sight of his remains before the police finished curtaining off the yard.

If only he'd waited one more day before doing that; things might not have looked so bad.; 8/21/15, 8:00 PM
David said...: A photo of the ultimate victors, eh?; 8/21/15, 8:00 PM
David said...: "If only he'd waited one more day before doing that; things might not have looked so bad."

Of if he had done it in the back yard.; 8/21/15, 8:01 PM
steve uhr said...: Anglelyne -- the retarded headline writer in this case is the WSJ editorial board. That was my source.; 8/21/15, 8:12 PM
Bobby said...: jaydub,

Hey, isn't that near where our Marines doing the AFRICOM crisis response mission are based? It's a Spanish naval base, Rota.

My parents loved walking The Way the first time- my Dad came back raving about the food, the people and (because we're engineers) what he called the "great infrastructure" (chiefly, the roads and the trains). They're really amped about walking the whole length this year. 800km is a long walk for anyone, especially a couple of senior citizens, so I'm a little nervous for them. But they're in good shape, they have plenty of time to go slow and deliberate, and (as you said) it's safe, so it beats some other adventure they might otherwise want to do. Besides, they get to stop at all the churches and cathedrals along the way, and they love meeting and hanging out with other pilgrims and the various Spaniards who support the pilgrims during their journey. I guess it's one of those things that you earn once you retire and you've gotten all the kids educated and out of the house!; 8/21/15, 8:16 PM
Robert Cook said...: "Personally, I think this is a better "America, Fuck Yeah!" story, but I can see why Cook would differ."

It's a good story, but all credit goes to the individuals--who happened to be Americans--and not to America. This is not an "America! Fuck Yeah!" story at all.; 8/21/15, 8:18 PM
JPS said...: Robert Cook:

They happened to be Americans. Right.

Of all the people on the train, the ones who decided to look askance at the bastard, and take action to stop him, just happened to be Americans. Just happenstance, I guess.

And, of all Americans, I'm going to say a disproportionate fraction of those who, unarmed, would even think to try to disarm a heavily armed murderous fanatic, will happen to be military or former military, and of those, a disproportionate fraction will happen to be Marines.; 8/21/15, 8:52 PM
Big Mike said...: They are Marines. Not many people would be sufficiently situationally aware to notice the guy. Many fewer would recognize the sound of a magazine-fed rifle being loaded. And only someone really badass -- like a pair of Marines -- would take on a guy armed with an AK-47 without being armed themselves.

Cookie, you'll never understand men like that.; 8/21/15, 9:15 PM
Anonymous said...: steve uhr: Anglelyne -- the retarded headline writer in this case is the WSJ editorial board. That was my source.

You mean this this one? Lol. Yeah, I saw that. The WSJ editorial board has long been batshit crazy on the subject of immigration and open borders, so I'm not surprised that they went full retard and tried to present a statement about the interpretation of what the 14th amendment says about citizenship as "He said the 14th amendment was unconstitutional." (They're not the only ones.)

They wrote: "Donald Trump fomented the mayhem when he told Bill O’Reilly on Fox News that the Fourteenth Amendment is unconstitutional. 'It’s not going to hold up in court, it’s going to have to be tested,' he said." That's like writing "Smith, a gun-control advocate, told the WSJ that the 2nd Amendment is unconstitutional", when Smith's actual quote is about the interpretation of "well-ordered militia".

I note that some of the other GOP candidates are now furrowing their brows about the abuses of birthright citizenship (now that somebody else has demonstrated how to say boo! to a goose), but I doubt even any of them have actually said anything as dumb as "the 14th amendment is unconstitutional!", any more than Trump has. Plenty of journos dumb enough or dishonest enough to write it up that way, though.; 8/21/15, 9:34 PM
Fritz said...: Visiting family in central Oregon. Hard to believe there is redneck country in Or.

You're kidding, right? Outside the I 5 corridor it's all redneck.; 8/21/15, 9:36 PM
Humperdink said...: Not kidding. Never been to Oregon. Just watched every presidential election go blue by a wide margin.

Staying south of Bend, which solid redneck. After visiting Bend 20 miles to the north today, it appears to be a collection of transplants from the I-5 corridor.; 8/21/15, 10:20 PM
Paddy O said...: "Outside the I5 corridor it's all redneck."

And much inside it.; 8/21/15, 10:23 PM
Drago said...: Cookie the "conspiracist": "It's a good story, but all credit goes to the individuals--who happened to be Americans--and not to America"

LOL

Sure cookie. Sure.; 8/21/15, 11:05 PM
Drago said...: Angelyne: "At any rate, any nation that hasn't descended into full-on idiocracy ought to be able recognize that, in modern circumstances, giving citizenship to the offspring of illegal aliens, or the clients of "birth tourism" hustlers, is a stupid policy."

Which is precisely why the left's beloved European nations do not offer citizenship to birth tourism babies.; 8/21/15, 11:07 PM
The Cracker Emcee Refulgent said...: ""Outside the I5 corridor it's all redneck."

And much inside it."

Oh yeah. I can hear I-5 from my hill top home and I've never been to a wedding reception around here where they didn't play Sweet Home Alabama. Was at another one tonight. Lovely garden setting, wonderful cuisine, and, sure enough, in Birmingham they love the governor.; 8/22/15, 1:26 AM
jaydub said...: Tank, adapting to the Spanish eating and social schedule has been the biggest adjustment for us. Nor am I sure I'll ever get completely used to seeing families with toddlers out and about at midnight, but that's the culture and they seem to really include children in everything. Refreshing to me.

Bobby, there is a Spanish naval base just North of here, and another on the Cadiz back bay.; 8/22/15, 2:03 AM
Now is the winter of our discontent made glorious summer by this son of New York said...: Robert Cook as a problem common to lefties, he believes everything he thinks.

You can bet if the two individuals had been wrong, the Muslim had been unarmed and they took him down and killed him, their "Americaness" would have been tops in Cookie's mind. But he is a deep thinker. LOL.; 8/22/15, 6:04 AM
Rusty said...: Ya gotta love the United States Marines.
I'm just surprised the mouth breathing Islamic moron is still alive.
Marines!
Get some!; 8/22/15, 6:55 AM
Robert Cook said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 8/22/15, 1:34 PM
Robert Cook said...: "You can bet if the two individuals had been wrong, the Muslim had been unarmed and they took him down and killed him, their 'Americaness' would have been tops in Cookie's mind."

No, you'd lose that bet. The culpability here would have been that of the two individuals and not the USA, just as is the credit due them for stopping the would-be mass-killer, (especially in that they stopped him without killing him).

You really only the broadest and coarsest sense of what someone means when they say something, don't do?; 8/22/15, 1:36 PM
Robert Cook said...: "They are Marines."

One was a National Guardsman, one was Air Force.; 8/22/15, 1:41 PM
Now is the winter of our discontent made glorious summer by this son of New York said...: No, you'd lose that bet. The culpability here would have been that of the two individuals and not the USA

Yeah, that is what you need to say to support your argument at this time, so you do. I fully expected that response from you. I don't think you have sufficient introspective capacity to know what you would really say in that case if your answer was not already contaminated by the knowledge of this case.; 8/22/15, 3:56 PM
ken in tx said...: We have a law that says that children born to foreign diplomats are not covered by the 14th Amendment. They are considered to be born under the jurisdiction of the parents' home country. We could have a law that says the same thing about children born to illegals. After all they are not legally here. The law could say that they are considered to be born in the parent's home country.

BTW, American Indians born on a reservation were not considered US citizens until a law was passed making them so in 1924. A law can make or unmake US citizens.; 8/22/15, 5:26 PM
Bobby said...: Ken in tx,

It's probably a little more complicated than that. The justification for the exclusion of the children of the foreign diplomats is specifically covered in the text of the 14th Amendment. The actual text of the relevant part of the 14th Amendment reads:

Section 1. All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

Bold added for emphasis. Foreign diplomats are not "subject to the jurisdiction"- as our diplomats abroad are not subject to the jurisdiction of the countries they reside (diplomatic immunity, reciprocity, and all of that). It seems to me that to pass a law stating that the children of illegal immigrants are not citizens, and remain consistent with the text of the 14th Amendment, you'd probably have to establish that illegal immigrants are not subject to the jurisdiction of the United States... and that might not really be feasible.

Ultimately, what the 14th Amendment means is determined by 9 Justices on the Supreme Court, and there's millions (literally) of Americans who are better qualified than me to interpret that text. But I don't think it's as simple as saying "we passed a law there, so we can pass a law here" and ignore the distinctions and relevant Constitutional protections in between.; 8/22/15, 11:57 PM