Althouse: Summer's end.

September 17, 2019

Summer's end.

125 comments:

tcrosse said...: RIP Cokie Roberts; 9/17/19, 10:00 AM
Nonapod said...: Gone too quickly if you ask me. Although I am looking forward to foliage.

It figures that right after I spent a bunch of money buying most of the old Seinfeld episodes on Amazon they would ink a deal with Netflix.; 9/17/19, 10:02 AM
Unknown said...: Ann, I enjoy your photographs very much. You have a good eye!; 9/17/19, 10:07 AM
The Cracker Emcee Refulgent said...: The elegiac insect photo. An underappreciated art form. That is a good one.; 9/17/19, 10:22 AM
Anne in Rockwall, TX said...: Here in North Texas, I saw a large vee of canadian honkers headed south. It may hit a hundred degrees again today, but summer is over.; 9/17/19, 10:32 AM
Michael K said...: Detailed analysis of the Saudi refinery strike by Iran if anyone is interested.

Maybe it's all flowers and rock stars,.; 9/17/19, 10:35 AM
Dave D said...: Did you use a filter? The variance and singularity in yellow is striking! Something about wilting flowers that makes me sad.; 9/17/19, 10:38 AM
tim maguire said...: I'm not excited for the cold to return, but my summer was not enjoyable and I'm glad it's over.; 9/17/19, 10:39 AM
JOB said...: September: “Angeload”

-after a painting by Jamie Wyeth

September blow soft till the fruit’s in the loft.
-Sixteenth century proverb

Angeload, this poem is about you, but is not for you

Because the blush is on the apple, sugar’s rush to cover
Itself with the belabored wane of summer’s fullness;
And fox broom and goldenrod have come to no good
By savaged month’s end as forests blush deeply
At what summer has done to itself in the end:
Trees fill their spatula shapes with sapphires
And colors of the flame - smoky pumpkin and fazed lemon.

But as steadfast as fir and spruce expose their spines,
Green wood’s last opposition unravels to the first of autumn,
It is a wandering time for all who can walk or think...
And fox-terrier and corgi terrorize the warrens, coming back
From Canuck Hill with fur matted in dew and blood while leaves
Hang in snags beneath the belly’s hem, like an elegantly stained slip
Shred in some Dianic drama, backlit by moonlight.

The morning air in our room is super-cooled by last night’s
Storm front, exorcised, flushing us from warm beds, refugees
On dog-walks among orchard’s golden tents, last asylum
From time’s windy stead. And for instinctual reasons,
The inquisitive whiskers, the assured, anthracitic nose,
The bifurcated eyes, the mane of foxy merriment,
All these assumed the equinox without comment.

Lady, look, light catches your two shades in plain wicker. . .
And see, Jasper, your dog survived the shot-guns and damp duck-
Blinds, never really much of a huntress in the first place. . .
But one eye goes dark like late leaves, the other blue again
This year, for a cold day of atonement to come: skies
Of cancerous cloud fever the laden land with high bronchial rattle
Changing from the summer’s someday to autumn’s now on –

But without Angeload, for whom this poem is, she who is not.; 9/17/19, 10:42 AM
Fandor said...: That's it? It's over?
We've only just begun...; 9/17/19, 10:45 AM
Big Mike said...: Accuweather.com predicts at least two more weeks of 80 degree weather.; 9/17/19, 10:46 AM
Fandor said...: That's it? You say its over?
We've only just begun...; 9/17/19, 10:47 AM
Bay Area Guy said...: Great, great summer. Spent some time in Italy. Roman Holiday. But looking forward to Fall.; 9/17/19, 10:49 AM
Robert J. said...: As imperceptibly as Grief
The Summer lapsed away —
Too imperceptible at last
To seem like Perfidy —

A Quietness distilled
As Twilight long begun,
Or Nature spending with herself
Sequestered Afternoon —

The Dusk drew earlier in —
The Morning foreign shone —
A courteous, yet harrowing Grace,
As Guest, that would be gone —

And thus, without a Wing
Or service of a Keel
Our Summer made her light escape
Into the Beautiful.; 9/17/19, 10:49 AM
Fernandinande said...: "Learn to identify 10 of the most common and important bumble bee species in Wisconsin"

which are supposedly getting wiped out, to some extent, by imported domestic honey bees.; 9/17/19, 11:05 AM
Fernandinande said...: A bumble bee flies into a bar and starts telling the bartender, "A few minutes ago I scared the crap outa some kid who thought I was gonna sting him!", and then he says, "Hey, I just pollinated a hundred flowers in 10 minutes!", and the bartender says, "Why are you telling me all this?" and the bee says "Bumble brag."; 9/17/19, 11:08 AM
Yancey Ward said...: Still Summer here in Oak Ridge, TN. Indeed, the hottest weather of the entire Summer the last two weeks, though quite comfortable humidity-wise during most of that that time. We need some, rain, though- hasn't rained here for almost a month now, and none forecast until the end of the month either.; 9/17/19, 11:28 AM
AustinRoth said...: Summer’s end? Not in Austin. That is mid-October.; 9/17/19, 11:33 AM
Temujin said...: 92 today in Sarasota. We're dreaming of winter.; 9/17/19, 12:17 PM
Drago said...: This is for readering:

This Day In History

1939
September 17
Soviet Union invades Poland

"On September 17, 1939, Soviet Foreign Minister Vyacheslav Molotov declares that the Polish government has ceased to exist, as the U.S.S.R. exercises the “fine print” of the Hitler-Stalin Non-aggression pact—the invasion and occupation of eastern Poland."

https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/soviet-union-invades-poland; 9/17/19, 12:21 PM
Sheridan said...: Big shift in the weather today in NW Montana. Yesterday we were at 78F and partly cloudy. Today, 63F high and 40F low and overcast with rain. 10 day trend is like today. I'm already prepping the house, property and equipment for winter. In about 3 weeks I'll have the irrigation system blown-out which is a reluctant admission that winter is coming. Six months until Spring!!; 9/17/19, 12:22 PM
traditionalguy said...: Bees need love too. They certainly work hard for everything they get.; 9/17/19, 12:25 PM
rehajm said...: It's same as yesterday in Boston- a beautiful Fall like day with low humidity and deep blue skies. We're supposed to get hot later in the week and into the weekend. Liz Warren Summer.; 9/17/19, 12:28 PM
Bay Area Guy said...: 1939
September 17
Soviet Union invades Poland

Drago for the win!

Everyone knows the Nazis invaded Poland on 9/1/39 to start WWII. Many forgot that the Soviets, as a tactical matter, invaded Poland 2 weeks later. The Soviets were allied with the Nazis to start WWII. (See Hitler-Stalin, Non-Aggression Pact, 8/23/39.)

The Soviets were as evil as the Nazis.

Anybody disagree?; 9/17/19, 12:32 PM
Sebastian said...: "RIP Cokie Roberts"

Amazing, isn't it, that NPR etc. would have a partisan Dem, daughter of a Dem politician, as a "neutral" commentator all these years.

Maybe, just for the sake of balance, we can have a righty take her place for the next few decades? A sorta-insider, daughter of a sorta-insider -- who fits the bill? Hinderaker and Johnson's daughters? That'd be fun.; 9/17/19, 12:45 PM
narciso said...: Well they were still bitter over their loss at the battle of vistula.; 9/17/19, 12:48 PM
Jay Vogt said...: C D B. D B S A BZ B.

But of course, I M A UMN BN.

My kids love it when I read them that book; 9/17/19, 12:52 PM
Meade said...: "Summer's end."

Wish you didn't have to go...; 9/17/19, 12:59 PM
narciso said...: Oops:

https://libertyunyielding.com/2019/09/16/do-journalists-even-care-anymore-about-accuracy/; 9/17/19, 1:16 PM
mandrewa said...: There are so many things the left doesn't want to talk about and one of them is South Africa. The news blackout is near 100% but still some things slip through.

Mobs, the destruction of South Africa, and Xenophobia

I imagine that most white, Asian, and Hispanic peoples will look at things like that video and come to the conclusion that black Africans are horrible, evil people that you want to keep as far away from as possible. Or at least they will think this even if they don't say it.

The question is what is the, or a, constructive reaction to this reality?; 9/17/19, 1:25 PM
Michael K said...: Beautiful fall day in Tucson. Only 94 predicted and a nice thunderstorm last evening.; 9/17/19, 1:30 PM
narciso said...: Dead pan response:
https://mobile.twitter.com/columbiabugle/status/1174019200727289860?s=21; 9/17/19, 1:34 PM
stevew said...: Still summer here in Italy, at least as this Bostonian usually defines that season. Was expecting to return to full on fall when we get back to Boston this weekend but rehajm indicates we will have some Indian summer weather.

I love this time of year.; 9/17/19, 1:40 PM
madAsHell said...: Trump is rocking the White House with Metallica's "Enter Sandman"!

Somewhere, P.T. Barnum is taking notes.; 9/17/19, 1:49 PM
rehajm said...: I ordered a new Defender. I've been waiting for 20 years to get one. Prices for the old ones climbed out of my range. Now, just a little longer...; 9/17/19, 3:06 PM
readering said...: Lewandwoski should skip the NH Senate race and start practicing for DWTS.; 9/17/19, 3:20 PM
Ignorance is Bliss said...: Summer of existential suckage.

Fall's not looking so hot either...; 9/17/19, 3:20 PM
Original Mike said...: Up to the lake house for a month. Colors are beginning to pop.; 9/17/19, 3:41 PM
Ingachuck'stoothlessARM said...: "Climate Emergency" has now replaced "Climate Change"

as per NPR today; 9/17/19, 3:53 PM
Meade said...: If you go when the snowflakes storm
When the rivers freeze and summer ends; 9/17/19, 3:59 PM
narciso said...: Its tough to see who was a greater idiot, id say sheila jackson lee.; 9/17/19, 4:03 PM
Beasts of England said...: It’s 101° at the moment, with 36% humidity; feels like 108°. It’s not fall just yet...; 9/17/19, 4:11 PM
Drago said...: narciso: "Its tough to see who was a greater idiot, id say sheila jackson lee."

I'd say readering is doing his/her/xer best to win that contest.

BTW readering, did you catch my 12:21pm posting? I couldn't help but think of you when I read it.....; 9/17/19, 4:11 PM
Ingachuck'stoothlessARM said...: Judge Reaffirms Pact That Allowed Late Sex Predator Jeffrey Epstein to Skirt Federal Charges in 2008

https://bigleaguepolitics.com/judge-reaffirms-pact-that-allowed-late-sex-predator-jeffrey-epstein-to-skirt-federal-charges-in-2008/; 9/17/19, 4:22 PM
Hagar said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 9/17/19, 4:37 PM
Hagar said...: The photos from the Saudi oil processing site show 6 craters that probably are from the cruise missiles, and 11 spherical tanks with holes presumably resulting from precision guided armor piercing missiles launched from remote controlled drones. The holes look to be placed with regard to the visual impact from just the after the strike photos we see, i.e., an intentional taunt to not just the Saudis, but the U.S. as well, as the providers of the Saudi protective weapons systems.
It is very much an act of war, but no one believes the Houthi rebels did this.
So who did? Iran of course, but do they have the in house capabilities to do this?
Whose GPS was used, who controlled the drones, and from where?

I think this is a very serious matter, and we are likely to hear a great deal more about it.

9/17/19, 4:37 PM; 9/17/19, 4:43 PM
J. Farmer said...: Secretary of State Mike Pompeo heads to Saudi Arabia to discuss Iran response

I don't expect anything good to come from this. Trump has spent his entire administration kowtowing to the Saudi's. Now is not the time to continue to indulge in that behavior. For counterpoint, I'd recommend:

Don’t Start a War for Saudi Arabia; 9/17/19, 4:44 PM
narciso said...: the impacts of the abquaiq attack, seem overstate, the quds 1 seems to be the weapon of choice, which which militia was provided said tools,; 9/17/19, 4:54 PM
readering said...: To quote a great man, Congratulations Poland.; 9/17/19, 5:00 PM
J. Farmer said...: Evern if it were 100% determined that Iran launched this attack, that would say absolutely nothing about what the US response should be. We have been indulging the Saudis for far too long, including Obama'a initial green light on the Saudi attack on Yemen, which has been going on for nearly five years.; 9/17/19, 5:06 PM
narciso said...: just savage,

https://twitchy.com/brettt-3136/2019/09/17/nuked-corey-lewandowski-trolls-congressman-by-referring-to-him-as-president-swalwell-at-hearing/; 9/17/19, 5:13 PM
narciso said...: now bettel forgot the first rule of fight club,

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2019/09/17/brexit-stunt-shows-uk-wants-says-us/; 9/17/19, 5:20 PM
Drago said...: readering: "To quote a great man, Congratulations Poland."

Yep. Deflection and avoidance is probably your best strategy at this point.; 9/17/19, 5:21 PM
FullMoon said...: So, anyway, I'm at the store buying stuff to make spaghetti sauce and chilli. I make about a gallon and a half of each and freeze it in dinner size portions.

I pass by the mops and brooms and stop to see what's new. Nothing really, but they have those old fashioned sponge mops with the squeeze handle. Not the flimsy rectangular junk, but the nice half round looks-like-a-real sea -sponge kind.

So, being in a good mood, I figure, "what the heck", and I go ahead and buy it. 199.99 plus tax.

Going to give it to my wife as a surprise gift. She should be real happy, as it is not her B day or Anniversary or anything special Just a nice present from me showing her that I can be thoughtful..

They also had a nice matching broom and dustpan set but no sense in over doing it. Made a mental note for Christmas..

Can't wait for her to get home !; 9/17/19, 5:21 PM
J. Farmer said...: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2019/09/17/brexit-stunt-shows-uk-wants-says-us/

Britain's primary problem was that they choose to solve the Brexit question with a referendum, which invariably set the stage for a constitutional crisis. And the choice of a referendum was made because David Cameron and the Tories, to quote the current Prime Minister on an unrelated subject, were a bunch of "great supine protoplasmic invertebrate jellies." Cameron was worried about losing Tory seats to UKIP so decided to add a referendum on Brexit on the Conservative Party manifesto, despite the fact that he considered UKIP to be "a bunch of fruitcakes and loonies and closet racists." Deplorables, if you will. I don't think Cameron expected to lose the referendum, and so the results caught him and the Tories completely by surprise.; 9/17/19, 5:27 PM
Beasts of England said...: ’Going to give it to my wife as a surprise gift.’

Chicks dig stuff like that - fine work!! 👊🏼; 9/17/19, 5:29 PM
narciso said...: the machinery of state including the parliament is tied to the leviathan in brussels, the people who haven't taken the red pill are more cognizant, it's similar to the deplorable/detestable dynamic over here,; 9/17/19, 5:32 PM
Maillard Reactionary said...: Meade @12:59 PM:

I remember when that song was new. I was 12. It seemed to me at the time, achingly nostalgic. But I didn't know why.

Now I do.; 9/17/19, 5:40 PM
J. Farmer said...: And hence you are left with the absurdity of a Remain parliament being asked to negotiate Brexit. I have very little faith in Boris Johnson's ability to deliver. Of course, we have six more weeks until October 31st but count me as highly skeptical.; 9/17/19, 5:41 PM
FullMoon said...: Followed Narciso link above to twitchy and found this guy ripping Nadler a new one.; 9/17/19, 5:45 PM
Maillard Reactionary said...: Speaking of summer's end, I just noticed today driving home that the autumn light has come again.

Low in the sky it is, golden, redolent. Lighting up the ferns in the spring-burnt forest, the leaves in my backyard. The cicadas are done, the katydids fading, only the crickets will sing in the night by and by, and then, the long quiet.

Time to go out photographing, late in the day.; 9/17/19, 5:47 PM
Mark said...: So the leaves on one half of another huge oak tree on our condo property have suddenly dried up and died. Not turned fall color, but died. And you can see the leaves on other branches starting to go. I give it before the end of the week before the leaves are all dead. This after a 70-foot oak about a hundred feet away or so suddenly had all its leaves die.

There are another three huge oaks about another hundred feet away in the other direction.

I fear we're going to lose them all.

Still holding out hope they are just stressed and going early into dormancy. But it's just a hope.; 9/17/19, 5:51 PM
Maillard Reactionary said...: Perhaps my favorite. Robert Frost.

The Oven Bird

There is a singer everyone has heard,
Loud, a mid-summer and a mid-wood bird,
Who makes the solid tree trunks sound again.
He says that leaves are old and that for flowers
Mid-summer is to spring as one to ten.
He says the early petal-fall is past
When pear and cherry bloom went down in showers
On sunny days a moment overcast;
And comes that other fall we name the fall.
He says the highway dust is over all.
The bird would cease and be as other birds
But that he knows in singing not to sing.
The question that he frames in all but words
Is what to make of a diminished thing.; 9/17/19, 5:51 PM
Mark said...: Wow JF. First you lob your own missile at Saudi Arabia, who is the victim, not the aggressor. Then you lob another missile at democratic self-rule.

Care to go three for three?; 9/17/19, 6:00 PM
BUMBLE BEE said...: This'll turn some heads...
https://legalinsurrection.com/2019/09/msnbc-poll-about-guns-backfires-fabulously/; 9/17/19, 6:03 PM
Churchy LaFemme: said...: Summer's Gone.

Apparently a swan song.; 9/17/19, 6:23 PM
Michael K said...: Of course, we have six more weeks until October 31st but count me as highly skeptical.

Have you ever been positive about anything ? If so, I missed it.; 9/17/19, 6:25 PM
etbass said...: Farmer, your advice for the British PM?; 9/17/19, 6:26 PM
narciso said...: he's marvin the android, so according to david martin, who was the first to go after james angleton, many moons ago, they say the missiles came from southern iran,; 9/17/19, 6:29 PM
Michael K said...: Lewandwoski should skip the NH Senate race and start practicing for DWTS.?

readering is having a meltdown. SJL is one of your smartest reps. Right ? Send that Maras rover over to check on the Moon flag.

At least Hank Johnson stayed on earth.; 9/17/19, 6:29 PM
J. Farmer said...: @Mark:

Wow JF. First you lob your own missile at Saudi Arabia, who is the victim, not the aggressor.

Saudi Arabia initiated a ware against Yemen 5 to install their preferred leader on Yemen. But they're the "victim?" Please!

Then you lob another missile at democratic self-rule.

Oh please. So tell me. Is it your position that anytime the US Congress needs to make a decision, it should result to a national referendum? If no, does that mean you are against "self-democratic self-rule?"

Care to go three for three?

What do you got?; 9/17/19, 6:33 PM
narciso said...: it really is the star war bar scene, Jackson lee, boy isn't yale proud, swalwell, other screaming banshees to be named later,; 9/17/19, 6:33 PM
J. Farmer said...: @Michael K:

Have you ever been positive about anything ? If so, I missed it.

Nope. And that still doesn't make me wrong.; 9/17/19, 6:33 PM
J. Farmer said...: @etbass:

Farmer, your advice for the British PM?

What he has already done, call for an election. The only way to make Brexit a success is to have a majority of Parliament support....Brexit. Wild idea, I know.; 9/17/19, 6:35 PM
narciso said...: I thought it was silly for lewandowski to humor this committee, but he came equipped with laser pointers,; 9/17/19, 6:35 PM
narciso said...: https://thefederalist.com/2019/09/16/republican-presidential-candidate-joe-walsh-call-his-own-party-a-cult-after-states-cut-primaries/; 9/17/19, 6:38 PM
Narr said...: Everybody mobilize! Farmer's on the loose, freedom and democracy hang in the balance!

Since people are asking the difference between the Soviets and the Nazis, a really important one was that the Nazis attacked everybody (including us) with reckless abandon, while the Soviets attacked easy targets when it was safe.

The West needed the help, and vice versa: so we cooperated with a sadist to put down a mad dog. Good for us.

Narr
Peculiar thing to get exercised about at this late date; 9/17/19, 6:46 PM
readering said...: Michael K is whining when he should be trying to imagine CL in yellow frills and white.; 9/17/19, 6:51 PM
J. Farmer said...: @Narr:

Farmer's on the loose, freedom and democracy hang in the balance!

Yeah, great. Now tell me how what I said was wrong....

If you believe that there is some great benefit that the US derives from US-Saudi relations, by all means share it with us.; 9/17/19, 6:53 PM
wildswan said...: Fill Moon said
[I saw] old fashioned sponge mops with the squeeze handle ... So, being in a good mood, I figure, "what the heck", and I go ahead and buy it. 199.99 plus tax."

That WAS thoughtful as she can replace it for 19.99 and spend the rest on a fall outfit and count on you not to notice either one.; 9/17/19, 6:57 PM
narciso said...: Whats it made of gold?; 9/17/19, 6:58 PM
Original Mike said...: "If you believe that there is some great benefit that the US derives from US-Saudi relations, by all means share it with us."

I don't have a strong opinion at this point on what to do, but it does some that if Iran were to take Saudi oil off line it would have a big negative impact on the world economy. An economy in which we are the biggest player.; 9/17/19, 7:23 PM
Birkel said...: Premises:
Saudi Arabia attacked Yemen.
Iran attacked Saudi Arabia in response.
No critique of Iran.

Premises:
Iran attacked Saudi Arabia.
The US has not attacked Iran.
Criticize the US.

Geometric Smug.; 9/17/19, 7:32 PM
Michael K said...: readering said...
Michael K is whining when he should be trying to imagine CL in yellow frills and white.

readering is helping Sheila Jackson Lee get that Mars rover over to the moon to look for the flag.; 9/17/19, 7:46 PM
mandrewa said...: J. Farmer said, "Is it your position that anytime the US Congress needs to make a decision, it should result to a national referendum?"

If the US Congress decided it wants the government of Venezuela to run the United States, well then, yes I absolutely think that's the kind of thing that should only be valid if they were national vote for it, and actually it should require a super-majority, that is two-thirds, for it.

Nor would it be any different if Congress decided the Canadian government should run the US or that the UN should run the US. Anything like this should demand a proof of political legitimacy far beyond simply having won a majority in the Congress.

In fact it's likely the case that the Constitution would require a two-thirds majority of the states to vote for such a thing, along with other challenges to be met before it was valid.

Of course none of that would matter, in other words what the Constitution says, if the left gets control of the Supreme Court.

But this isn't a constitutional issue, this is a moral issue. Any regardless of whether we had a Constitution or not, this should be the kind of the thing that should public participation not only just once, but many times even, as the nation was successively dissolved.

In the case of Britain, there should have been four or five referendums by this point where the British public would have been given a chance to voice their opinion. And actually there have been many previous promises by virtually all of the British political parties to have a referendum over the decades.

But until 2016 no such thing had happened. Not just for Britain but really for all the nations within the EU. There is a massive lack of democracy within the EU.

Most countries in Europe have never held referendums on membership in the EU. Three that have are Norway, Switzerland, and the UK. And in each of theses, the elite was for membership, while the majority of the population turned out to be against it.

Britain has a major problem with deceitful and dishonest politicians. So does the US, but really in Britain it's just a much bigger problem.

Although the great majority of the Members of Parliament are Remainers, almost all of them, something like 80% even were elected promising to deliver Brexit.

If you think something has happened to explain a change of sentiment, you'd be wrong. Nothing fundamental has changed except probably the percentage of the population that wants Brexit has probably increased.; 9/17/19, 7:51 PM
FullMoon said...: Fill Moon said
[I saw] old fashioned sponge mops with the squeeze handle ... So, being in a good mood, I figure, "what the heck", and I go ahead and buy it. 199.99 plus tax."

That WAS thoughtful as she can replace it for 19.99 and spend the rest on a fall outfit and count on you not to notice either one.

A question was asked of a Japanese Artist who created exquisite ceramic vases and stuff
"Why do your creations incorporatea an intentional flaw?"

He answered: "Because only God is perfect".
..................

I took that to heart and have followed his example. Sometimes, I include several mistakes to make up for the times I may have been inadvertently perfect.

Meanwhile, I'm gonna look for that reciept.; 9/17/19, 7:52 PM
Mark said...: It's my "position" that government exists for the people and when the people have voted for something, then the government does it. Anything else is tyranny.

Government usurping the will of the people and effectively engaging in a coup, instead of doing what the people have decreed, may be all the rage these days, but armed revolutions have started over less in the past.; 9/17/19, 7:59 PM
Birkel said...: This is the answer to Brexit:
"When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation."

...separate and equal station...
No, some animals are NOT more equal than others.; 9/17/19, 8:09 PM
FullMoon said...: Lewandwoski should skip the NH Senate race and start practicing for DWTS.?

Name was familiar but I couldn't remember why. Quick search reminds me he was the guy who put himself in harms way protecting Trump from an overly aggressive reporter.

Brought back un-pleasant memories of a particularly brutish and vulgar commenter here who fantasized assaulting a tiny female newsperson in order "to show her how it feels."

His name escapes me at the moment. Wonder what ever happened to him. Hopefully he has received the care he needed.; 9/17/19, 8:19 PM
effinayright said...: ..
Mandrewa said: bullshit, from start to finish. Bullshit, all the way down.

There are NO provisions in our Constitution for the government itself to hold a national popular referendum on ANYTHING.

The entire point of our republican government is NOT to be ruled by simple majority vote by the populace.

Nor could either or both houses of Congress vote to abolish the Constitution or hand the country over to a foreign government. Under our system they lack that power, which should be blindingly obvious.

You must get your understanding of our system of government from Howard Zinn.; 9/17/19, 8:21 PM
Maillard Reactionary said...: 'splainin'@8:21 PM 'splained it well IMO.; 9/17/19, 8:24 PM
Browndog said...: Qatar attacked the Saudi oil field, somewhat on behalf of Iran, with advanced U.S. weapons we sold them.

Just sayin...; 9/17/19, 8:34 PM
Ingachuck'stoothlessARM said...: "Women Poop. At Work. Get Over It" --NY Times

Are they referring to the quality of their recent reporting?

https://thehill.com/homenews/media/461833-ny-times-mocked-for-women-poop-at-work-story; 9/17/19, 8:34 PM
buwaya said...: Poland is not yet dead -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N057iKYUj0c

The Dobrowski Mazurka; 9/17/19, 8:39 PM
FullMoon said...: Babylon Bee:

"Hypocrisy: Right-Wingers Who Love It When The Babylon Bee Makes Stuff Up Suddenly Get Mad When The NYT Does It"; 9/17/19, 8:43 PM
mandrewa said...: wholelottasplainin, I don't think you've addressed most of what I said.

And I believe you've also misunderstood what I've said, if you think I was stating that a simple majority vote in a popular referendum should be able to dissolve the United States, or that I was arguing for the Congress being able to hand the country over to foreign powers.

I was in fact addressing multiple topics. But one of them was how the Constitution would hypothetically relate to all of this. Except I was really addressing the morality of the process rather than what the Constitution literally says.

Some of what you said is quite correct. A) The Constitution does not allow for referendums at the national level. B) I also don't think Congress has any legitimate power to hand the country over to foreign powers.

Expanding on point B, I believe the only legitimate way that the federal government could in effect disband itself would be to hold a Constitutional Convention. I forget whether it's two-thirds or three-fourths of the states that have to agree to such a thing.

Obviously, it's a difficult hurdle to legitimately authorize a Constitutional Convention and it's clearly far more difficult than simply having a majority vote in Congress.

On the other hand, the easy way to accomplish such a thing would be to get a left-wing majority on the Supreme Court, who would then claim the Constitution means whatever they want it to mean.; 9/17/19, 8:52 PM
effinayright said...: mandrewa said...
wholelottasplainin, I don't think you've addressed most of what I said.

>>> Yes, I didn't addressed your jejune comments about Brexit.

And I believe you've also misunderstood what I've said, if you think I was stating that a simple majority vote in a popular referendum should be able to dissolve the United States, or that I was arguing for the Congress being able to hand the country over to foreign powers.

>>>that's exactly what you said.

I was in fact addressing multiple topics.

>>>Oh really?

But one of them was how the Constitution would hypothetically relate to all of this.

>>> Oh? You have not explained this hypothetical. Please do so. You do know, don't you, that the UK has no written constitution.

Except I was really addressing the morality of the process rather than what the Constitution literally says.

>>> Oh really? Are you saying that "morality of the process" (whatever that means) is superior to what the Constitution actually says? How's that work? Who decides what the "morality" is?

Some of what you said is quite correct. A) The Constitution does not allow for referendums at the national level. B) I also don't think Congress has any legitimate power to hand the country over to foreign powers.

>>> Then we're good! Snort. (and I think that's all I really said.)

Expanding on point B, I believe the only legitimate way that the federal government could in effect disband itself would be to hold a Constitutional Convention.

I forget whether it's two-thirds or three-fourths of the states that have to agree to such a thing.

>>> I FORGET??? Don't you think that it's you job to FIND OUT ???

>>>The Constitution itself only offers various methods for **amending** itself, not for nullifying itself and ending the polity known as the United States of America. That's what the Civil War was largely about: secession and all that.

Obviously, it's a difficult hurdle to legitimately authorize a Constitutional Convention and it's clearly far more difficult than simply having a majority vote in Congress.

>>>Yes, the STATES would have to organize a Constitutional Convention..one to dissolve the country, and make all the states...what?! Anyone think you could get enough to do that?

On the other hand, the easy way to accomplish such a thing would be to get a left-wing majority on the Supreme Court, who would then claim the Constitution means whatever they want it to mean.

>>>You have utterly and totally changed your argument--the hallmark of a person who understands his original position is doo-doo. Yes, the Supremes have claimed the power of judicial review, but they have never attempted to claim that they could simply nullify the document and end the country.

You've added this in an attempt to resurrect your inane argument.

BZZZTTT!

Pass the bong.; 9/17/19, 9:52 PM
wild chicken said...: Strange summer in Missoula. No meadowlarks this year. Few bees. No waxwings to eat the chokecherries. Rain. No fires to speak of. The air was wonderful.

Good apples and tomatoes, but no cucumbers. How can you screw up cukes?; 9/17/19, 9:57 PM
narciso said...: The report was that us intelligence saw thr drones warming up for the attack on abqaiq; 9/17/19, 10:01 PM
rcocean said...: BTW, I've been reading about the very odd - very sad - Ring Lardner Family. Lardner came from a Midwestern family and then became a famous sports writer and humorist ("You know me Al"). He had 4 sons, then died at the age of 48, in 1933. Sends them all to rich prep schools and Havard/Yale/Princeton.

Then:

-One son turns commie and dies in Spain 1938.
-Youngest son dies 1944 as ETO war correspondent - age 25.
-Eldest son dies at 48 in 1960 of a heart-attack.
-Ring Jnr. goes to Moscow Commie U in the 1930's for 2 years. Becomes successful Screenwriter during WW2 (how did he get out of draft?). Then defies Congress and gets blacklisted. Then writes MASH, wins Oscar and dies at 90.

You gotta wonder why a Bourgeois Midwesterner raised two commies, or maybe three.; 9/17/19, 10:03 PM
Churchy LaFemme: said...: You gotta wonder why a Bourgeois Midwesterner raised two commies, or maybe three.:

"Havard/Yale/Princeton"; 9/17/19, 10:08 PM
narciso said...: Well jr was in the socialist club at princeton, james burnham the senior strategist at national review was also a princeton alum and a trotakyite turned more pragmatic by 1941 when he published the machiavellians, which preducted a fascist victory; 9/17/19, 10:22 PM
narciso said...: Ring jr was smart enough not to get himself killed in europe so he chose a safer path.; 9/17/19, 10:23 PM
Big Mike said...: Go Nats! Open up some space between you and the Vubs and the Brewers.; 9/17/19, 10:33 PM
Big Mike said...: Cubs; 9/17/19, 10:38 PM
narciso said...: One question answered:
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-saudi-aramco-security/costly-saudi-defenses-prove-no-match-for-drones-cruise-missiles-idUSKBN1W22FR; 9/18/19, 12:13 AM
J. Farmer said...: @mandrewa:

If the US Congress decided it wants the government of Venezuela to run the United States, well then, yes I absolutely think that's the kind of thing that should only be valid if they were national vote for it, and actually it should require a super-majority, that is two-thirds, for it.

The EU came to the UK by way of a treaty. The US has assented to dozens of treaties in the course of our history. How many of those were decided by popular national referendum?; 9/18/19, 2:01 AM
J. Farmer said...: @Mark:

It's my "position" that government exists for the people and when the people have voted for something, then the government does it. Anything else is tyranny.

So if people vote for a total ban on guns or to make certain speech a crime, we should do it?; 9/18/19, 2:05 AM
J. Farmer said...: @Birkel:

Premises:
Saudi Arabia attacked Yemen.
Iran attacked Saudi Arabia in response.
No critique of Iran.

Premises:
Iran attacked Saudi Arabia.
The US has not attacked Iran.
Criticize the US.

Geometric Smug.

Newsflash: I criticize the US because that's the country I'm a citizen of. It's the country where I have some influence. Of course, I could spend my days criticizing countries I am not a citizen of and have no influence in, but that and three bucks will get you a gallon of milk. If the US was selling Iran billions of dollars of arms, refueling their jets mid-air, and assisting them with targeting and carrying out a war against a neighboring country, I'd oppose that, too.; 9/18/19, 2:12 AM
Clyde said...: That Lewandowski hearing was entertaining. He owned the Dems. "President Swalwell"?! I almost hurt something laughing so hard. And calling Jackson-Lee's rant out what it was? Perfect. Every time we see Democrats in one of these hearings, they show exactly what kind of execrable people they are. It was good to see someone who could give them what they deserved.; 9/18/19, 3:22 AM
Big Mike said...: Newsflash: I criticize the US because that's the country I'm a citizen of.

Which is unfortunate. Very unfortunate.; 9/18/19, 4:06 AM
Big Mike said...: @Farmer, BRW, how much do the Iranians pay you to advocate for them, and have you remembered to register as a foreign agent?; 9/18/19, 4:18 AM
J. Farmer said...: @Big Mike:

Which is unfortunate. Very unfortunate.

Right. Immigration restriction, skepticism towards "free" trade and outsourcing, opposition to endless war. Thank goodness the country didn't follow my agenda!

@Farmer, BRW, how much do the Iranians pay you to advocate for them, and have you remembered to register as a foreign agent?

Millions. It's all part of that nefarious Iranian plot to control America through comments on an obscure blog that almost nobody in America reads.; 9/18/19, 4:33 AM
Big Mike said...: Only in the good, old, US of A ...

... could someone run as a champion of African-Americans while (2) not being African-American herself and (2) her main claim to fame was incarcerating young African-American men for lengthy prison sentences over minor crimes.

... could an old man do senile he can’t always remember which state he is in be the leading candidate for the Presidential nomination of one of the two major parties.

... could a man who has done a below average job as mayor of a modest-sized Midwestern city be regarded as a legitimate contender for the Presiddntial nomination.

... could a person whiter than Wonder Bread run as a genuine Hispanic on the strength of a nickname.

More to come.; 9/18/19, 4:50 AM
Birkel said...: Smug,
I knew your response before I finished typing my comment.
Be more original.

Cop to Smug: Why do you beat your husband?
Smug: He's the only one I have any power to influence.
Cop: Watch your head. *drives away*; 9/18/19, 5:41 AM
rehajm said...: I'm rather enjoying the troll purge...; 9/18/19, 5:47 AM
rehajm said...: The best gift I ever received was: a first-edition Samuel Johnson dictionary. I just find it fascinating. Whenever my wife and I have a disagreement, I show her the definition of wife as “chattel” and “property of a husband” and then she punches me in the face.

-Jay Leno; 9/18/19, 5:59 AM
brylun said...: Does Felicity Huffman’s 14 day sentence, and Ms. Althouse’s silence about this issue, offer a comment on the state of higher education? Acceptance by silence?; 9/18/19, 6:30 AM
Rosa Marie Yoder said...: As I sat in my Secret Garden yesterday, I noticed that a rather large bumble bee had stayed in one place for a long time on a brightly flowered Autumn Sedum Joy. I poked at it with a long stick, causing it to fall to the ground, with only slim signs of life. There was a brief feeling of guilt that it was now denied death in a beautiful spot. There are red maple leaves on the ground, but it doesn't seem a suitable substitute.

In other news, the 10-day weather forecast for Portland Oregan (Beaverton) predicts temperatures cooler than for central Michigan. It's a good thing that I'm not visiting for the weather.; 9/18/19, 6:55 AM
Michael K said...: It was good to see someone who could give them what they deserved.

I hope others being subpoenaed to this clown show took notes as he showed them how to respond.

Hank (Guam capsizing) Johnson and Shelia Jackson (Mars Rover to Moon flag) Lee are the two most ridiculous clowns.; 9/18/19, 7:09 AM
wild chicken said...: Oh Rosa, so sad about the bee!; 9/18/19, 7:54 AM
mandrewa said...: J. Farmer said, "The EU came to the UK by way of a treaty."

Yes, it did. Actually there have been a number of treaties. One of the recent ones was the Lisbon Treaty, which arguably reduces the UK to a province of the EU. It was signed by the UK's prime minister at the time, David Cameron, and I don't even think it was approved by the Parliament.

Or if it was, it was done in such a way that the public was barely aware of what happened. In fact people in the UK are still not really aware of the Lisbon Treaty and what it says. It was the kind of thing where politicians try to hide what they are doing from the voters, and with a complicit media they were quite successful.

So you think that this should be all it takes to disband a nation? Just sign a treaty. I agree that in fact this is what has or almost has happened in the UK.

But you think this is the way things should be. I'm not talking about the law. I'm talking about right and wrong.

I must say I'm very surprised you think that. I didn't see that coming.

J. Farmer said, " The US has assented to dozens of treaties in the course of our history. How many of those were decided by popular national referendum?"

Well none of them were, of course. And by the way I'm not advocating for a national referendum. If you read closely what I originally said, I believe that such decision should be a really big deal, aka a Constitutional Convention.

But I do think a national referendum is completely appropriate for the UK, as it is the only real possible democratic mandate that they can have.

By the way a similar situation for the United States isn't all that implausible. I can see certain actors, and Obama was one, that probably will in the future try to subsume the United States within the UN.

And I can see what the future argument will be. The left, and I know you are not the left, will claim that all that is needed to reduce the United States to vassal states of some foreign empire is a treaty passed the Senate.; 9/18/19, 9:25 AM
Big Mike said...: Millions. It's all part of that nefarious Iranian plot to control America through comments on an obscure blog that almost nobody in America reads.

Thanks to Obama they have millions to spend. But Althouse is a very well-known blog that many people read. Even so, I question whether the Iranians get their money’s worth. There are only two strings on your guitar: whatever the US policy is in the Middle East, it milestone be wrong, and whatever Iran does, don’t retaliate.; 9/18/19, 9:58 AM
Narr said...: Farmer, you took my comment wrong last night. Whatever the rights and wrongs of the wars in Islamoshitolistan, I am amused, like you, by the impression some have that your opinions are going to sway policy or change anyone's mind.

Don't enlist me in the Anti-Farmer Legion.

Narr
Opinions! On Althouse!; 9/18/19, 9:59 AM
Mark said...: So if people vote for a total ban on guns or to make certain speech a crime, we should do it?

Your example is the equivalent of saying that Britain leaving the EU is a violation of fundamental natural rights, thereby justifying Parliament's refusal to act.; 9/18/19, 2:21 PM