Althouse: At the Green Café...

August 22, 2017

At the Green Café...

... you can talk about whatever you want.

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55 comments:

Ralph L said...: Moss grows thin on a flat stone.; 8/22/17, 9:13 PM
FullMoon said...: Stumbled upon this yesterday:

Commoner Captures Princess, Blog Version

Meadehouse, a Love Story; 8/22/17, 9:13 PM
Chest Rockwell said...: Phoenix Live Stream

Bloggers captcha is getting pretty sophisticated!; 8/22/17, 9:14 PM
Chuck said...: Funniest line I heard today; "Trump is coming off a terrible week, capped by a cramped, strictly-scripted speech in which he had to reverse his previous public position (on Afghanistan). He'll be doing one of his freewheeling campaign stump speeches (it is a campaign event), in a state where both Republican Senators, and the Republican Governor won't attend and where thousands of protesters will be outside. He'll be straddling the Arpaio-pardon issue, and the remnants of the Charlottesville-response debacle. What could possibly go wrong?"; 8/22/17, 9:14 PM
sunsong said...: “In every outthrust headland, in every curving beach, in every grain of sand there is the story of the earth.”
— Rachel Carson; 8/22/17, 9:20 PM
Static Ping said...: How many faces do you see in the picture? I keep seeing more and more.; 8/22/17, 9:21 PM
traditionalguy said...: Time for the Rise of the Phoenix in a Trump rally speech. A great way to end a great day.

Our President wants to rebuild our country. Boy will that make the DC Swamp creatures sweat. How will they steal big money for their empty promises once we see a leader who is doing it for nothing. That is Mcdonnell's Rinos worst nightmare.; 8/22/17, 9:21 PM
Chest Rockwell said...: Lol, Trump admonishes the media, pans to the crowd. A lot of thumbs down, cries of 'Shame'.

I'm thinking a Tom Perez rally would feature middle fingers and a lot of 'Fuck you's!"; 8/22/17, 9:22 PM
Big Mike said...: I want to discuss the perfidy of a woman who would challenge us to find five egregious errors in a painting, when she apparently doesn't know for sure that there are any errors at all! For shame. 😛; 8/22/17, 9:30 PM
MountainMan said...: Meanwhile, in the most incredibly stupid example of Confederate Derangement Syndrome sweeping the country, ESPN has removed an ASIAN announcer from the UVA vs. Willam & Mary game because his name is "Robert Lee" and they did not want to offend the snowflakes. At first I thought this was a joke but apparently it has been verified by an ESPN statement. You can read the article here:

https://www.outkickthecoverage.com/msespn-pulls-asian-announcer-named-robert-lee-off-uva-game-avoid-offending-idiots/

I am surprised they are carrying the game at all, as major slaveholder Thomas Jefferson was a W&M graduate and he is the founder of UVA. That's a big twofer. Given the current state of CDS I would not be surprised if that happens.; 8/22/17, 9:34 PM
sane_voter said...: Didn't get a chance to comment yesterday on the eclipse. We saw it near Casper WY and it was amazing. There were some wispy cirrus clouds around, but the sun was in a clear patch when totality started. The temperature felt like it dropped at least 15 degrees just before totality, but I am sure some of that is due to the difference of being in full sun to being in a shadow.

We made sure to look west to observe the rapidly approaching umbral shadow across the plains, versus watching for the initial diamond ring effect. It was an incredible feeling observing such an unusual visual phenomenon, seeing it and knowing totality was rushing towards us. It is also easy to imagine the fear a person centuries ago might feel observing this if he didn't understand an eclipse was coming and what was causing the cooling and the rapidly approaching darkness.

the actual totality was stunning, seeing the corona and the stars at midday. Mostly looked at the sun but also did a full 360 degree view around the horizon. The overall light at the horizon is almost like civil twilight, or about 30 minutes after sunset. We watched at a campground, and the sounds of cheers and clapping of other viewers added to the enjoyment. then the diamond ring effect appeared, and it was over. The diamond ring effect was like a bow on a fantastic experience.

I didn't observe any solar prominences, even with my binoculars, although some photos show a slight pinkish tinge around the moon.

The only problem we encountered was driving to our hotel near Denver afterwards. I-25 was a crawl and it took over 10 hours to drive the 270 miles. But it was still well worth it, and I plan to go see the next one in 2024.; 8/22/17, 9:35 PM
David Begley said...: Trump in classic form tonight. Dismantling the dishonest media. I laugh and laugh.; 8/22/17, 9:36 PM
Chuck said...: "...formenting...[sic]"

Google says it best, when you search "formenting"; Did you mean "fermenting"?

That came almost immediately after Trump's proclaiming what a good student he was, in a better and more elite school than "the so-called elites."

This all sounds like a drunk guy talking to his shrink.; 8/22/17, 9:43 PM
David Baker said...: So, they're saying (pushing) that our navy is exhausted, sailors stumbling around the decks, tumbling down stairs, grasping for anything that will hold them up. Blurry-eyed, deprived of sleep, a tragic state of affairs, I'd say - if it were true.

But now we find out the Fitzgerald's and McCain's steering was compromised, as in; they had none when they needed it, like when a ship the size of Manhattan was baring down on them.

No mention of sabotage, or the Chinese, just a great big coincidence so far beyond the edge of probability it defies explanation. Except "exhaustion."; 8/22/17, 9:45 PM
Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...: Mike Rowe - love him.

I can’t think of a single celebrity whose political opinion I value
&
"Millions of reasonable people – Republicans and Democrats alike – are worried that our universities are doing a poor job of preparing students for the real world. They’re worried about activist professors, safe spaces, the rising cost of tuition, a growing contempt for history, and a simmering disregard of the first amendment. These people are concerned that our universities – once beacons of free speech – now pander to a relatively small percentage of students who can’t tolerate any political opinion that challenges their own."; 8/22/17, 9:51 PM
Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...: ESPN - point and laugh. I mean really. Point and laugh.; 8/22/17, 9:55 PM
Tyrone Slothrop said...: Althouse once used a url of a certain form with which one could search the web for archived comments here. Sadly, I've lost that form and can't find it anywhere. Does anybody know what I'm talking about? Anybody have an example of that url?; 8/22/17, 9:59 PM
Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...: Live theater is an interesting phenomena, if you buy into the performance of the actor then the actor's performance is your reality for the duration of the performance. But, if you don't buy into the actor's performance then the actor's machinations seem trite and transparent - the actor grates on your nerves for the duration of the evening.; 8/22/17, 10:01 PM
Clyde said...: Just got home to Florida from visiting my brother in Kansas City. We went up to St. Joseph for the eclipse, got almost completely clouded and rained out. We saw the beginning of the eclipse through breaks in the clouds, then the heavy stuff rolled in. It rained almost up to totality. I tried playing music to drive the clouds away: "Both Sides Now" by Joni Mitchell ("So many things I would have done, but clouds got in my way...), "Here Comes The Sun" by the Beatles, "Black Hole Sun" by Soundgarden, "Sunshine Of Your Love" by Cream, "Mr. Blue Sky" by ELO. Didn't work. When totality arrived, the rain had stopped but clouds covered the entire sky. It did get completely dark for about 2-1/2 minutes, which was eerie. A few minutes later, we got a break in the clouds and saw the moon still almost completely covering the sun. An hour or so later, the sun was back out. We just had crappy timing where we were.; 8/22/17, 10:02 PM
Michael K said...: "He'll be straddling the Arpaio-pardon issue, and the remnants of the Charlottesville-response debacle. What could possibly go wrong?"

Trump will pardon Sheriff Joe. It was a fake prosecution to force him out and put Soros' man in who will last until the next election.

Watch the rally, chuck.; 8/22/17, 10:07 PM
Chest Rockwell said...: @Dickin'Bimbos@Home

Reality imitates The Onion!; 8/22/17, 10:09 PM
Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...: Chest Rockwell-

That Asian guy has a racist Nazi White supremacist name. Quick - stone him to death, beat him with an antifa baseball bat.; 8/22/17, 10:17 PM
Richard Dillman said...: "In Wildness is the preservation of the world."; 8/22/17, 10:19 PM
mockturtle said...: AP report from the Trump rally in Phoenix:

"5:45 p.m.

A half-dozen people showed up outside President Donald Trump’s speech with military-style rifles and fatigues to join the protests against him.

Members of the Redneck Revolt describe themselves as an anti-fascist group who are offended by the president’s policies and comments in the aftermath of the racial violence of Virginia. A man who identified himself as “John Brown” carried an AK-47 and said he was there to protect the anti-Trump protesters. Arizona allows people to carry weapons openly."

So why weren't these guys called 'Nazis'?; 8/22/17, 10:25 PM
chuck said...: Watch the rally, chuck..

Umm, Michael, you did it again.; 8/22/17, 10:25 PM
rcocean said...: I just want to say that no one - I repeat no one - hates the 500 American KKK/Nazis more than I do.

God-damn it, I'm brave.

Please hold your applause.

[Admires self]

AND I think for myself.

Thank you.; 8/22/17, 10:27 PM
sane_voter said...: Clyde, Sorry to hear your rotten luck with the weather.

I decided to detour to Casper WY instead of Western NE to watch due to the cloud cover forecast. Drove down from South Dakota the day of the eclipse.; 8/22/17, 10:32 PM
mockturtle said...: rcocean, you may hate them but you haven't renounced them. ;-); 8/22/17, 10:32 PM
JackWayne said...: All you have to do is google Althouse.blogspot.com + search item1 + search item2 and more. Search item1 could be your posting name. Search item2 could be a word in the post you are trying to find.; 8/22/17, 10:35 PM
JackWayne said...: I keep hearing the news pronounce it Anteefa instead of Anti fa. What's up with that?; 8/22/17, 10:39 PM
mockturtle said...: Jack, that's what my daughter told me, too. Doesn't make sense for anti-fascist. But, then, nothing they do makes sense.; 8/22/17, 10:45 PM
LordSomber said...: Unactualized Moai.; 8/22/17, 10:46 PM
The Cracker Emcee Refulgent said...: The Robert Lee thing is beyond hilarious. Every sports-minded LIV in America will know about this by noon tomorrow. Yeah, the GOPe sucks, but the Democrats are bat-shit insane. The Republican's 2018 fortunes are rising daily.; 8/22/17, 10:50 PM
I Have Misplaced My Pants said...: Deep, deep in the comments of a three-year old piece at slatestarcodex, I found a perfect articulation of why the tearing down of statues bothers me so much. Dig this, friends:

I think we need to start speaking not in terms of “tolerance” but in terms of “pluralism”. Pluralism is a loftier goal than tolerance, because it says that rather than merely putting up with your existence, we recognize that you’re actually contributing something valuable to our rich cultural tapestry/marketplace of ideas. But it’s also a more down-to-earth goal, because you don’t need to stop hating the outgroup, or pretend to stop hating the outgroup. You can still view the Outgroup as pure evil, which let’s be honest you were going to do anyway, all you have to do is recognize that the goal of maintaining a tradition of pluralism is more important than crushing this particular pure evil.

I think the protection of pluralism is one of the best things about the US Constitution, and that’s why it makes me said when private actors gleefully silence other private actors. ~"suntzuanime" on October 1, 2014

I couldn't agree more. I want more ideas and experience and perspectives, not less. I want a statue that represents something interesting, and then to hear a variety of opinions and responses and interpretations of that, rather than.....nothing. I also want ideas and books and political movements that I loathe, because those help me learn and grow. I want the freedom to disagree and loathe whatever I want (as long as I'm not attacking others) without becoming unemployable. I also want the freedom to agree and love whatever I want without becoming unemployable. I want those freedoms for you guys too. I want a pluralistic, busy, interesting, mature, confident, amused, distinctive crazy quilt of a society.; 8/22/17, 10:56 PM
rhhardin said...: Rewatching the most recent Jason Bourne, it was all new even though it was watched not long ago.

The secret is a plot that makes no sense.; 8/22/17, 11:07 PM
Churchy LaFemme: said...: I think a neat trick would be to brand them as the antifada. I always half hear it that way anyway and a) A little mockery of the other side is never amiss and b) they might even be bubbled enough to embrace it.; 8/22/17, 11:14 PM
rcocean said...: "rcocean, you may hate them but you haven't renounced them. ;-)"

Uh, (sweat forms on brow) I mean:

I really, really, *RENOUNCE* Nazis and the KKK.

I mean, I've said it 100 times. But you really can't say you love Comrade Stalin...I mean love Big Brother...I mean renounce the Nazi's/KKK, enough.

I'm sure Abe Lincoln, George Washington and Teddy Roosevelt - if alive -would feel the same way.; 8/22/17, 11:37 PM
California Snow said...: How stupid does ESPN think it's viewers are? Well, apparently REALLY stupid. Is there anyone left there that isn't brain dead?; 8/22/17, 11:43 PM
Tyrone Slothrop said...: Thank you, Jack Wayne. That's what I was looking for.; 8/23/17, 12:30 AM
pacwest said...: Has anyone seen Daniel Greenburg's take on McMaster? I'm not sure to make of it.; 8/23/17, 2:13 AM
Unknown said...: Light relief ...

Trump: "The dishonest, fake news media said don't look at eclipse w/o glasses, so I did! JOBS!"; 8/23/17, 2:19 AM
Humperdink said...: @Unknown, you and the MSM continue to disappoint me. I was watching analysis after analysis last night and not one mention of Russia! Russia! Russia! Where did it go? It's still a country. It's an albatross around Trump neck, right? Where is it?; 8/23/17, 6:00 AM
Kevin said...: I see the "Trump doesn't want to be President" rumors are starting again. This of course implies you're doing him a favor by voting for impeachment, particularly if you're a nervous Republican.

And it tells me the Russia thing is looking like a giant nothing to those hoping otherwise.

We are probably a couple weeks out from "Barron isn't adjusting to his new school" followed by "Melania hates the D.C. social scene".; 8/23/17, 6:23 AM
Kevin said...: I was watching analysis after analysis last night and not one mention of Russia! Russia! Russia! Where did it go?

Wait until Mueller wraps his investigation and officially finds nothing. See how they make that a one-day story with nary a hint of mea culpa from the media. It will be "we never said it was true, we only reported what people were talking about". And people like Inga will go away for a few days, only to come back when the next set of talking points is more favorable.

The lack of embarrassment will be the final sign the American media has truly perished.; 8/23/17, 6:49 AM
Clyde said...: Yeah, ESPN is well on the path to Idiocracy.

"Next, on ESPN! Ow, My Balls! Brought to you by the Thirst Mutilator, Brawndo! It's got electrolytes!"; 8/23/17, 7:05 AM
Hammond X. Gritzkofe said...: Looks like Mt. Rushmore after years of climate change and an attack by anti-miscegenationists.; 8/23/17, 7:39 AM
Rick said...: He was just one of many caught up in the post-rally violence, as cops used nonlethal methods to disperse crowds who had thrown rocks and bottles at them.

What were the chances the media would drop the "mostly peaceful" locution when demonstrators were on the right instead of on the left?; 8/23/17, 7:51 AM
Ken B said...: Two portraits of Thomas Hart Benton, recently deplored on this blog. https://timedotcom.files.wordpress.com/2014/10/best-of-eisenstaedt-22.jpg?quality=85&w=701; 8/23/17, 8:01 AM
Chuck said...: Michael K;

Regarding your comment up above, I did watch the rally. And Trump did everything humanly possible, to straddle the Arpaio/pardon issue, just as I wrote before Trump got into it. I was right. I was as right as I could be.

You think Arpaio should be pardoned. Clearly, Trump does too. Okay; make the case. Do it clearly and directly. Take the action, if you are Trump. Issue a pardon. Run it through the office of the White House counsel, and the DoJ. Issue a clear statement.

Trump did none of that. Trump played the pro-Arpaio card for his base of support, but didn't do anything. Trump said nothing of clarity or substance, he just winked and nodded that Arpaio would be fine.

I presume that Trump will do a pardon. He has sent all the signals. But he didn't do it last night. As I stated before it happened, Trump "straddled" the issue. I'm actually not all that clear about the basis for the Arpaio prosecution. I know that I'm not opposed to pardons. Scooter Libby should never have been prosecuted, or convicted, and should have been given a full pardon and not some mere commutation.

I do think that Arpaio is the same sort of personal assclown that Trump is. But I'd be open to listening to a well-articulated case for an Arpaio pardon. Trump didn't make it.; 8/23/17, 8:31 AM
tcrosse said...: It's time to remove Bruce Lee's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.; 8/23/17, 8:32 AM
David Baker said...: Is it possible to know something before you know it? Apparently, yes it is:

"Adm. John Richardson ordered an operational pause in all the fleets around the world while the Navy works to determine the factors behind the collision. Richardson tweeted that the Navy will conduct a wide investigation, including a review into the possibility of “cyber intrusion or sabotage,” — though a Navy official told Fox News on Tuesday any possible cyber sabotage played “no role” in the USS John S. McCain incident.

Richardson made clear that there is no evidence of a hacking at this point, but some cyber experts have raised to possiblity given the location of the warships.

Jeff Stutzman, an ex-information warfare specialist in the Navy who works at a cyber threat intelligence company, told McClatchy that “there’s something more than just human error going on.”

_________________

Like I said, once you eliminate the tanker-was-doing-70-knots theory, there's not much left to play with. Not to suggest the Navy will fess up, but common sense just makes it that much harder. And even well executed contortions have their limits.; 8/23/17, 8:55 AM
Hagar said...: Trolls of Wisconsin.; 8/23/17, 9:34 AM
EMyrt said...: Hagar, they're waiting for the Hodag.

Ann, that photo takes me back.
My parents had a summer home on Washington Island for many years.
Sometimes I miss the Burlington limestone, the glacial erosion and the Great Lakes. California is probably more beautiful, but this still looks like home.; 8/23/17, 9:04 PM
veni vidi vici said...: The rock formation looks like Mount Rushmore gone to seed.; 8/23/17, 11:55 PM
veni vidi vici said...: Ah, Hammond saw what I see! Good that I'm not alone; seemed pretty obvious tbh...; 8/23/17, 11:56 PM