January 24, 2018

At the Frosted Roll Café...

IMG_1839

... you can talk about anything.

(And please consider doing your Amazon shopping through the Althouse Portal.)

55 comments:

Big Mike said...

Is that $4.25 for the whole batch? I'm in!

Yancey Ward said...

Sorry, Mike, that is for the individual roll.

Big Mike said...

A bit too much, then, unless it's a bake sale for a good cause. But they do look good, do they not?

Big Mike said...

This being a cafe post, I would be remiss if I failed to mention my schadenfreude at protesters doing to Chuck Schumer what Democrats used to applaud them doing to right of center targets.

I look for some bipartisan legislation AT LONG LAST! to limit the ability of nasty people to harass politicians and other targets of left wing crazies in their homes.

MadisonMan said...

The cinnamon rolls look good, but at $4.25 I'd be disappointed.

The best Cinnamon Rolls I've had in Madison were at Oliver's, on Old University, at a Brunch.

Humperdink said...

So the DOJ/FBI has a Secret Society that meets off-site. Hmm. Last time I heard of a secret society in the USA it was the KKK. Is this new society involved in lynchings also (of the high tech variety)? I am thinking so.

Sad to see Horny Joe defend the FBI as the back-stop for our democracy. Scar'bro has jumped the shark so many times you'd think he was a trainer at Sea World.

tcrosse said...

The last time I paid that much for a sweet roll it was the size of the Duluth phone book. We had to share.

Lewis Wetzel said...

If I can talk about anything, I'd like to mention the impropriety of the extra-marital affair between Strzok & Page. I can't believe that they wouldn't have been shown the door in the old FBI. In many states adultery is a misdemeanor crime. It is also possible that the adultery could lead to blackmail of the FBI agents involved. The FBI has extraordinary powers. Shouldn't its agents be expected not to cheat on their spouses?

rehajm said...

Formerly a cinnamon roll aficionado I've now moved on to the Joanne Chang Sticky Bun...

rehajm said...

I'm from Boston so FBI corruption is nothing new: John Joseph Connolly

Humperdink said...

@Lewis Wetzel. I worked in industry (manufacturing) for 25 years. If this occurred at anytime back then, they would both be canned.

Instead, Strzok was sent to work in HR (you know, where the personnel files are). Not sure where Page landed.

Meade said...

"The best Cinnamon Rolls I've had in Madison were at Oliver's, on Old University, at a Brunch."

Probably baked at Batch.

Meade said...

Checked. I was mistaken. But you can find their pastries at Babcock Hall.

Rick.T. said...

I think I need new glasses. Even with a good-sized monitor, it looked like "Bitch" to me.

Inga...Allie Oop said...

Whoa, way too much cream cheese frosting on those cinnamon rolls, but still look eatable. With a big cup of coffee to wash it down with, I could force myself to eat the whole thing....

Inga...Allie Oop said...

I love Carl’s Cakes, my youngest daughter’s wedding cake came from there. The frosting, a really good buttercream, isn’t overly sweet and the cake is always moist.

walter said...

James Comey
‏Verified account @Comey
Jan 3
Where are the voices of all the leaders who know an independent Department of Justice and FBI are essential to our liberty? “You are not only responsible for what you say, but also for what you do not say.” — Martin Luther

walter said...

(and if you say the wrong thing, erase it, foo!)

Char Char Binks, Esq. said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Char Char Binks, Esq. said...

Ronald Gasser is being prosecuted for daring to defend his life against a violent Negro assailant.

stevew said...

Good lord, you don't need that much frosting, pretty much ruins the thing. If you like that much, use a spoon and skip the bun.

-sw

madAsHell said...

Hmmmm.....I haven't seen much of jj. His blog is quiet as well.

J. Farmer said...

Can anyone explain to me why on earth we are keeping troops in Syria indefinitely?

madAsHell said...

I find it hard to believe that so many partisans infiltrated into senior FBI positions, and expected to change the direction of an election.

Here's the senior staff org chart. In particular, we can see that Andrew McCabe joined the FBI in 1996, and while it's still available the bio sheet for Rybicki joined in 2001.

MadisonMan said...

But you can find their pastries at Babcock Hall.

The only two things I buy at Babcock: Chocolate Milk and Summer Sausage.

Big Mike said...

@Farmer, just to piss you off, of course.

Danno said...

Something Ann might like to read on Dylan's girlfriend from high school-

https://www.twincities.com/2018/01/23/bob-dylan-girl-from-the-north-country-echo-star-casey-died-iron-range/

tim in vermont said...

German leader Merkel says the current world order is under threat

Trump is doing his job. If the Davos set, who feel like the answers to all of their problems is to replace the voters in their countries are feeling the pressure, good!

David said...

"Batch cinnamon roll?"

tim in vermont said...

Can anyone explain to me why on earth we are keeping troops in Syria indefinitely?

Well, it’s called playing the ball where it lies. Obama liked to pretend that Bush didn’t put us in the sand trap, and just used the old “foot wedge” to move the troops out of Iraq, which brought on chaos. For some reason, Hillary and Kerry seemed to think that the US had business in the Syrian civil war, which, had we not poured arms in, and had we left troops in Iraq on the border, Assad probably could have dealt with. Now if we leave, it’s a mess. A deal will have to be made with Assad and Putin, or we give it all back to ISIS. That’s my view anyway.

At least it’s not a new war. We don’t seem to have any new wars going, or even brewing.

David said...

J. Farmer said...
Can anyone explain to me why on earth we are keeping troops in Syria indefinitely?


Saying when they are going to leave does not work out very well. You may have missed this effect in (say) Iraq, Afghanistan and the states of the former Confederacy after 1877. (Ask American black people about that one.)

tim in vermont said...

Where are the voices of all the leaders who know an independent Department of Justice and FBI are essential to our liberty?

Comey, we can see the chocolate all over your shirt, we know you were in the cookie jar! You’re embarrassing yourself!

rhhardin said...

What's annoying about tit scenes in movies is that the plot stops.

J. Farmer said...

@Big Mike:

@Farmer, just to piss you off, of course.

Undoubtedly.

@tim in vermont:

If the Davos set, who feel like the answers to all of their problems is to replace the voters in their countries are feeling the pressure, good!

Agree 100%

Now if we leave, it’s a mess. A deal will have to be made with Assad and Putin, or we give it all back to ISIS. That’s my view anyway.

The proximate cause of the rise of ISIS in Syria was the Syrian civil war. ISIS everywhere has been able to thrive in failed states where central governments have limited control over territory (e.g. western Iraq, eastern Syria, and Libya). An ISIS attempt to infiltrate Lebanon was quickly repelled within a matter of days, and ISIS has no significant threat to Lebanon or Jordan for that matter. Attempts to fight ISIS and the Assad regime were always absurd. Trump's decision to end the CIA funding and arming of anti-government forces was a good one. But one of the stated reasons for keeping troops in Syria is to defend areas of Syrian territory captured from anti-government forces. That is putting troops in the middle of a civil war on one side. What authorization does the president have to unilaterally do this?


Big Mike said...

What authorization does the president have to unilaterally do this?

Same one Obama had to do regime change in Libya, I imagine.

Eric the Fruit Bat said...

Those things might have been edible until some obese, diabetic albino took a gigantic crap on them.

J. Farmer said...

@Big Mike:

Same one Obama had to do regime change in Libya, I imagine.

I opposed everything Obama did in Libya, so I'm not really sure how that's relevant to my argument. The fact that Obama did something wrong is not a defense for Trump doing something wrong. But from a legalistic point of view, US intervention in Libya was authorized under UN Security Council Resolution 1973. There is no UN authorization nor an authorization from Congress for such action in Syria. Even the effort to justify the attacks against ISIS under the 2001 AUMF were laughable, but there is no zero authorization for the president to fight a war against the internationally recognized government of Syria.

Lewis Wetzel said...

Blogger rhhardin said...
What's annoying about tit scenes in movies is that the plot stops.
1/24/18, 5:44 PM

The plot doesn't stop just because you quit thinking about it.

Big Mike said...

I opposed everything Obama did in Libya, so I'm not really sure how that's relevant to my argument. The fact that Obama did something wrong is not a defense for Trump doing something wrong.

I don't know whether your first clause is true, but fundamentally you're right. Except that Obama established a legal precedent -- for better or worse the President of the United States can do just about anything he damn well pleases with the military. I'd don't think that's a good idea, but no one is asking me. You either, come to think of it.

Sprezzatura said...

"Checked. I was mistaken. But you can find their pastries at Babcock Hall."

Ha.

No need to move Meadehouse, yet.

Still haven't conquered the local yokel locale.


Give it another five years. Then look for a small pond. To be a big-ish fish.

Sprezzatura said...

OTOH,

In, sorta, big pond Emerald City you can now walk in an anonymously buy extra small condemns. Just stick em' in your bag hole.


Decisions.

tim in vermont said...

fight a war against the internationally recognized government of Syria.

Well, the problem is that the internationally recognized government can’t hold the territory. There will be a vacuum if we leave. It will have to be negotiated. Obama put us there, we can’t just leave.

tim in vermont said...

What authorization does the president have to unilaterally do this?

Yeah, I wish they had kept the barn door locked during the Obama years when the horse got out too. Now we have the tiger by the tail and have to come up with a way to let go without causing more harm.

tim in vermont said...

We need Dick Nixon!

J. Farmer said...

@Big Mike:

Except that Obama established a legal precedent -- for better or worse the President of the United States can do just about anything he damn well pleases with the military.

There is no reason that must be true from until eternity. Excessive power grabs can be restrained., unless you have simply abandoned consensual government all together.

I'd don't think that's a good idea, but no one is asking me. You either, come to think of it.

Come to think of it, "no one," whoever they are, is asking your opinion about anything. Yet, you express it here. Just like I do. So what?


J. Farmer said...

@tim in vermont:

Well, the problem is that the internationally recognized government can’t hold the territory. There will be a vacuum if we leave. It will have to be negotiated. Obama put us there, we can’t just leave.

What is the evidence that the "can't hold the territory?" The Syrian Army campaigns against ISIS strongholds between July and October of 2017 were decisive. The army regained control over the entire territory. The most decisive strategic decision was to quit supporting forces that were making war against Assad. The Assad regime, when not being attacked by outside agitators, can keep a lid on the country, just as it did before the Civil War. Plus, Tillerson himself that US forces in Syria were directed against Assad. That has nothing to do with ISIS, and what authority does the US president have to commit troops indefinitely to operate in countries who have not attacked us and pose no threat to us?

tim in vermont said...

What is the evidence that the "can't hold the territory?

I agree that the US was a big part of causing the problem, and we never should have gone in there, but. at this point an exit will have to be negotiated, Who knows what reprisals and retaliations will be unleashed if we just leave. Look at the mess Obama left in Iraq.

It’s a mess, but just leaving now without a negotiated solution is not an option, unless you have the stomach for watching people be gassed for trusting us.

J. Farmer said...

@tim in vermont:

but. at this point an exit will have to be negotiated

Under what authority is the US operating in Syria? Is it your position that the president can unilaterally make war with any country and commit US troops there indefinitely?

Bad Lieutenant said...

J. Farmer,

Is it too much to say that you literally, not figuratively or virtually, don't care who lives or dies over there?

J. Farmer said...

@Bad Lieutenant:

Is it too much to say that you literally, not figuratively or virtually, don't care who lives or dies over there?

How much does “caring” matter? It’s not about what I feel. It’s about what I can do. Any human death is a tragedy, but there are limits to state power. Do you want US soldiers mediating the decades-long internecine civil war in central Africa? How about the civil war in Sri Lanka? Should we get involved in conflicts in Burma over the Rohinga? Should we get involved in separatist conflicts in Thailand? Turkey? Is it just because you don’t care about people dying over there?

Bad Lieutenant said...

So can I take that as a yes? Or rather no, it's not too much to say?

J. Farmer said...

@Bad Lieutenant:

So can I take that as a yes? Or rather no, it's not too much to say?

I thought the answer was obvious. Yes, I care. Do I want the federal government to do anything about it? No.

I care that 3,000,000 children starve to death every year. Do I want the US government to sponsor a massive international food aid effort? No.

So, I have answered your question. Now, perhaps you can answer my questions. Do you want US military involvement in Sri Lanka? In central Africa? In Southeast Asia? In central Asia? If the answer is no, then we can obviously conclude you don't care about the lives there. So what?

Bad Lieutenant said...

No, J, you can't make it up in volume. Quit ranting, I appreciate your taking the Vulcan remark to heart, but there is such a thing as measure.

J. Farmer said...

@Bad Lieutenant:

No, J, you can't make it up in volume. Quit ranting, I appreciate your taking the Vulcan remark to heart, but there is such a thing as measure.

So you care about some people dying but not others. Perhaps you can explain to us why it is right to care more about an innocent dead Syrian than an innocent Sri Lankan or Congoan. Of course, given that your position is completely incoherent (and that you're completely incapable of mounting an actual defense for it [as usual]), I won't hold my breath.

Bad Lieutenant said...

Well, moderation has been enabled, so this is going nowhere. If you get this, what were your policy prescriptions for Asia and Africa, then?