December 1, 2018

At the Crying Rat Café...

fullsizeoutput_2d98

... you can talk all night.

(And remember the Althouse Portal to Amazon.)

82 comments:

Ignorance is Bliss said...

Roll Tide!

JackWayne said...

The more I see of Trump Jr. the more I like him. He seems well-balanced and rational.

HT said...

Just give us the title. What else do we have to do? Beat New England? RTR.

wildswan said...

A strange light was seen over the eastern hills. Moonrise? No, this was the dark of the moon, especially in that direction. Sunrise? But it was 9 PM. Brighter and brighter it grew. Mesmerized, strangely, we gathered, singing quietly. The white disc grew in size, spinning slowly amid its unearthly white glow. Then down it came, slowing like a glowing Ferris wheel and stopped and dropped. One picture was taken and sent by "fullsize output" and then ... The rest is silence. No one has ever known the full story, not even Q. Yet, my friends, CRYING RAT WAS HERE is still being drawn all over Dane County wherever free speech is being committed. Clap your hands if you believe and "Crying Rat" will live another day.

Henry said...

CRC - Santa Ana, Colombia

JML said...

There are tears in Georgia tonight. Sweet and salty and lovely tears.

IIB - You are correct. Roll Tide!

FIDO said...

Do you think that women will win more or lose more in the increasingly low trust society?

Narayanan said...

https://goo.gl/images/nRkcEU

HT said...

Seems to me, you can't have both an expanded playoff and these conference championships. Most of the time, conference championships are a waste of time. Occasionally, in the case of the SEC, the conf championship as well as just some regular SEC games, is akin to the national championship. But that's rare.

narciso said...


As might follows day:

https://mobile.twitter.com/MZHemingway/status/1068927734385180673

chickelit said...

Any Latin scholars out there? When I put "crying rat" into Google Translate it gives me Clamor Rat as the Latin translation. I was expecting something with the root "lacrima" in it, not "clamor." Also, is "rat" a Latin word? I was expecting Rattus or the like.

narciso said...

Piangere rattus.

Guildofcannonballs said...

I've never felt more at home.

narciso said...


So this happens:

https://mobile.twitter.com/RJBrodsky

JackWayne said...

Narciso: I like your links but a lot of time, they are not good links.

tim in vermont said...

Do you think that women will win more or lose more in the increasingly low trust society?

I think that the idea is that the govt will tax men for them to get what they need, but I am not sure how this will really work for them in an evolutionary psychological point of view. In other words, they still won’t be happy.

narciso said...

The earlier one points out the big nothing re the old narrative, the second is an actual Iranian missile test

narciso said...

Meanwhile over in Paris, there was less damage in the commune of 1871.

chickelit said...

narciso said...Piangere rattus.

Sounds like a hybrid of Italian and Latin. BTW, isn't the latinate root more like "plangere"? i.e., with a "pi" replacing "pl"? Italian is filled with words like piano (Plano), piacere (placate). piovere (Pluvium). Same with gi => gl and fi => fl. A real linguist would have a name for that akin to Grimm's Law consent shift in Germanic languages.

chickelit said...

BTW, "clamor" is a great example of this unnamed consonant shift. Where Latin has clamare, Italian has chiamare; the Italians even have to throw in that extra "h" to keep the c-sound hard.

narciso said...

Probably lacrima is the noun, llorar is the verb

chickelit said...

If vbspurs were here, she'd know.

tim in vermont said...

A real linguist would have a name for that akin to Grimm's Law consent shift in Germanic languages.

He’d have to be pretty cunning.

chickelit said...

llorar is the verb



That double "l" thingy is Spanish. Spanish shows a double "l" where Latin has a "pl" IIRC.

Guildofcannonballs said...

Max Ehrmann


Desiderata

Go placidly amid the noise and haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible without surrender
be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly;
and listen to others,
even the dull and the ignorant;
they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons,
they are vexations to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain and bitter;
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs;
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals;
and everywhere life is full of heroism.
Be yourself.
Especially, do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love;
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment
it is as perennial as the grass.
Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe,
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.
Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be,
and whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul.
With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful.
Strive to be happy.
Max Ehrmann, Desiderata, Copyright 1952.

chickelit said...

I always thought Victoria was pretty cunning.

chickelit said...

More examples: Florence (Firenze); Flume (Fiume).

narciso said...

What I was referring to:


https://mobile.twitter.com/Uncle_Jimbo/status/1068913252862763008

dustbunny said...

Did Althouse do only one of these or are there stickers for sale? Nice rat.

Inga...Allie Oop said...

Yep there was voter fraud! Committed by Republican Mark Harris in North Carolina.

Guildofcannonballs said...


Too xonreicws, roo xonairNXRS.

MOZART, THOUGH EARLUY, WAS BRON FOR ME.

Guildofcannonballs said...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rb0UmrCXxVA

Michael Fitzgerald said...

Best Simpson's episode ever is the one when George and Barbara Bush move in next door.

tim in vermont said...

No, the best Simpsons ever was when Homer removed the pencil from his skull and became super intelligent.

Original Mike said...

We got ice cream!
(no, it's custard)
We got ice cream!
(no, it's custard)

gilbar said...

paris is burning

narciso said...

Yet homer got along great with gerald ford.

narciso said...

There was no great feud with salieri, the latter respected his talent.

etbass said...

Alabama in its worst game of the year still beat an outstanding Georgia team.

Trumpit said...

I love rats more than life itself. Rats are smarter than cats. For some reason they don't live very long, but they are strong for their size. I owned two rat terriers who had the digging and hunting instinct strong. They would catch the scent of a gopher and dig tirelessly (and futilely). Although they would be happy to kill a rat (by shaking it until lifeless), it would have upset me. The killing must stop! Outlaw hunting and their weapons of death, guns and traps. Scalia is dead! Hooray! Ding dong the wicked witch is dead. We will outlaw guns, and make abortions easily available to poor women who don't want to carry their fertilized egg to term. A fuck does not mean a ball and chain for 18 years.

David Begley said...

Only at Althouse would there be a discussion about Latin.

True story. I took Latin I in college and got a C. The teacher was Fr. McGloin. Kevin Ross was a basketball player who caused a scandal when he sued Creighton claiming he didn’t know how to read. He did not graduate and was an average player to boot. He lost his case but it hurt the University for years.

Ross got a better grade than I did in Latin! But Fr. McGloin was a huge basketball fan and the coaches knew that.

Creighton since then is at the top of academic performance index. Great success with many players. Three doctors and one Harvard Law grad that I know of.

FIDO said...

This ignores the fact that REAL Romans don't cry. They make other people cry.

narciso said...

Plague rats came from a confrontation between Italian city states in the region of the black sea in the 13th century.

Ingachuck'stoothlessARM said...

crying wolf will garner you scorn
crying rat? Rear windows adorn!

Guildofcannonballs said...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rb0UmrCXxVA

jimbino said...

Thoughts on asylum:

Granting of asylum is appropriate for those who face well-documented threats of persecution in their country of origin.

Does, then, any atheist (or apostate) residing in a Muslim country qualify, ipso facto, for asylum, and what would keep an economic refugee from "converting" to Christianity to qualify for automatic asylum?

Phil 314 said...

I was surprised at the Ill will towards GHWB on this blog.

And not surprised at the final score of the Ohio State - NU game. Still a great season for the Cats.

narciso said...

Because that is haram:

https://mobile.twitter.com/KDKA/status/1069008240816607234

narciso said...


Then this happened:

https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1053138/Trump-news-US-china-trade-war-donald-trump-xi-jinping-g20

Ralph L said...

Did anyone catch the goof on Jeopardy yesterday (or Thursday)?
They had a video clue whose answer was the Duomo in Florence, but the photo was of another domed Italian church.

Recent contestants have been shaky, especially about history. None knew the Battle of Sharpsburg in MD is also called Antietam. How many unobscure Civil War battles were fought in MD?

gadfly said...


@jimbino said...
Thoughts on asylum:

Donald Trump should be committed to one for his own good. I recommend the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum located in Weston, WV, As Billy Joel sings, "You may be right ..." FIFY

Ralph L said...

what would keep an economic refugee from "converting" to Christianity to qualify for automatic asylum?

Bacon Biscuits on ICE.

Ralph L said...

Narciso, you need to give us a better hint about your links. We have to budget our time when working up something clever or insightful to say.

narciso said...

Were you expecting a 90 day moratorium on tariffs with china?

narciso said...

As with everything the quality of the staff is slipping.

heyboom said...

Inga...Allie Oop said...

Yep there was voter fraud! Committed by Republican Mark Harris in North Carolina.

Now do California.

Questions about stolen elections not going away in California

Yancey Ward said...

So, Ohio State or Oklahoma?

And really, could either one of them beat Georgia or lose to Notre Dame?

Ralph L said...

As with everything the quality of the staff is slipping.

In my experience, that's a good thing.

narciso said...

It shouldn't be hard to match the picture with the relevant city.

narciso said...


This will get out of hand,...we'll be lucky to survive this:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6449407/Fresh-violence-Paris-riot-police-use-tear-gas-batons.html

Churchy LaFemme: said...

ROMANES EUNT DOMUS

Freeman Hunt said...

I want Althouse rat merchandise. Probably a mug and a t-shirt.

Freeman Hunt said...

I think it's time to revert to wearing weird shirts under cardigans.

Ralph L said...

Freeman tries to get our blogress to join the Alt-Rat.

tim maguire said...

HT, it sounds like you’re not much of a college football fan. It may be changing, but traditionally and still for the much of the alumni donor base, a conference championship is more important than a national championship. If we are to do away with one, do away with the playoff.

tim maguire said...

Narciso, if you’re going to post a lot of links, this is a great service to your reader:

link text

Michael McNeil said...

It would not only be a service to his readers, it would be a service to himself — if he wants people to see the links he's so laboriously and voluminously posting. I, for one, am typically not going to tediously copy and paste a URL into my browser — but I will at least look at a link to see where it's going.

HT said...

That's funny, Tim Maguire. Football's in my blood, with family and friends who coach and played for bama as well as teams in the ACC. And speaking of the ACC, look at that awful conference championship. Why even have it? It was meaningless. Pitt might as well have been the Rhode Island School of Design. Ohio State should have schelacked Northwestern (NORTHWESTERN??) but good. If they're going to expand the playoffs (which is a mistake) then they need to do away with the conf championships.

Darrell said...

tediously copy and paste

Get yourself a browser where you can select the url (Left click), then right click and select "go to." Btw, you can instantly see where narciso's links are going--with your eyes.

HT said...

That's funny, Tim Maguire. Football's in my blood, with family and friends who coach and played for bama as well as teams in the ACC. And speaking of the ACC, look at that awful conference championship. Why even have it? It was meaningless. Pitt might as well have been the Rhode Island School of Design. Ohio State should have schelacked Northwestern (NORTHWESTERN??) but good. If they're going to expand the playoffs (which is a mistake) then they need to do away with the conf championships.

stevew said...

Cool and rainy today on the northshore, time to get the Christmas tree though so we'll be focused on that. Pats / Vikings later today, should be a pretty good tilt.

Michael McNeil said...

Get yourself a browser where you can select the url (Left click), then right click and select "go to."

You mean like Chrome? Chrome which slows my bluetooth keyboard down to unusability? No thanks! Browsers are a whole package deal, not to be selected (IMHO) according to just a single trait or two.

Btw, you can instantly see where narciso's links are going--with your eyes.

No shit — but I can also see where a link's going by just resting my finger on it.

Original Mike said...

narciso doesn't care if you follow his links. Whatever weird performance art he's doing it's for his own benefit, not ours.

TwoAndAHalfCents said...

I had a nightmare last night that my Dawgs were beating an incredibly talented Bama team, only to have the Tide switch QBs and claim a come from behind victory. No way that could happen twice in one year, right?

Meade said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
walter said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
walter said...

Paris also has a rat "invasion". Why you'd want pestilence imagery on your car is a mystery.
(free cue for obligatory TDS..go)

walter said...

Rat Map

(Hint: link created by http://www.easyhyperlinks.com)

Meade said...

If you really like the rat sticker, email me. — Meade

RobinGoodfellow said...

Blogger HT said...
Seems to me, you can't have both an expanded playoff and these conference championships. Most of the time, conference championships are a waste of time. Occasionally, in the case of the SEC, the conf championship as well as just some regular SEC games, is akin to the national championship.


I think the SEC champion should be the national champion.

Anita Villegas said...

My neighbor Beryl was born in the year of the rat. Rats are very clever. We will need to harvest our rat skills for when G-d consumes the earth. You know, the sun will occasionally just eject a gigantic coronal mass, and the next one is going to fry every piece of gear not protected by a Faraday cage. You people, so snide and prideful, are going to be really weird when you can't get your anti-anxiety meds, and the food to the cities runs out. Enjoy the view!

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