Althouse: At the Wildflower Café...

July 13, 2022

At the Wildflower Café...

... you can write about anything you want (including the Chinese government and TikTok).

45 comments:

wendybar said...: Adam Goldman
@adamgoldmanNYT
·
Follow
Ray Epps has suffered enormously in the past 10 months as right-wing media figures and Republican politicians have baselessly described him as a covert government agent who helped to instigate the attack on the Capitol last year. @alanfeuer

Poor little Ray Epps who WAS actually inciting people to "GO TO THE CAPITOL". His life has been Hell since he was jailed without due process in the DC Gulag....OH WAIT.....The Fed is complaining his life was disrupted??; 7/13/22, 7:22 PM
Bender said...: It happened. It happened to me. Today.

I was suspended by Twitter. In fact, I was bot-suspected or AI-suspended or algorithm-suspended, whatever.

Tour de France had tweeted out to not do things like jump into the road and run alongside with a long pole that could get in someone's wheels or run with a burning flare. I tweeted in response things to do, like punching idiots in the mouth that did such things, and then pummeling them.

Seconds later my Twitter page froze up with an announcement that I was suspended for 12 hours for violating the Terms for making threats, etc., and would need to delete the tweet, etc.

Of course, with their spy-ware, they will now probably kick it up to 12 days.; 7/13/22, 7:40 PM
Michael K said...: I was suspended again (twice in 2 weeks) by Facebook. It was silly and I responded to disagree. I guess they gave up after that.

Poor Ray Epps. The only January 6 protestor that the NY Times likes.; 7/13/22, 8:14 PM
Lem Vibe Bandit said...: Headline: "What We Learned From the Webb Telescope’s First Images"

I had an idea for a political cartoon.

The James Webb telescope beams back the contents of Hunter Biden's laptop, catching the media completely off-guard.; 7/13/22, 8:29 PM
StephenFearby said...: Reason (Linked to by Hot Air):

Politicians Defy the Supreme Court's Ruling on the Right To Bear Arms
Several states are retaining subjective criteria for carry permits or imposing new restrictions on gun possession.
JACOB SULLUM | 7.13.2022 12:01 AM

'...New York responded to the Court's rebuke with a law that eliminates the "proper cause" requirement but specifies a long list of "sensitive locations" where gun possession is a felony punishable by up to four years in prison. Those restrictions will make it impractical or legally perilous for many permit holders to actually exercise the right recognized by the Court.

In addition to listing myriad places where permit holders may not carry firearms, New York's law bans guns in all private establishments open to the public unless they post conspicuous signs announcing that they are deviating from the default rule—a step many business owners will be reluctant to take. A bill backed by California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Rob Bonta takes a similar approach.'

'...UCLA law professor Eugene Volokh, a First Amendment specialist, thinks such a wide-ranging inquiry is "clearly unconstitutional." Volokh notes that "the government can't restrict ordinary citizens' actions—much less their constitutionally protected actions—based on the viewpoints that they express."

Although Massachusetts dropped its "good reason" criterion for carry permits, it still requires that an applicant be "a suitable person to possess firearms," a standard that leaves considerable room for subjective judgments. The same vague requirement applies in Connecticut, where Attorney General William Tong has promised to resist any changes to the law.'

'...Even before the Court's ruling, the vast majority of states either did not require permits for carrying firearms or had "shall issue" carry-permit laws, meaning applications generally were approved as long as gun owners met objective criteria. Those policies recognize, as the Court did, that "the right of the people to keep and bear arms" cannot be treated as a privilege for the lucky few.

Some politicians still seem determined to reject that point. They will not respect their constituents' rights until new constitutional challenges force them to do so.'

https://reason.com/2022/07/13/politicians-defy-the-supreme-courts-ruling-on-the-right-to-bear-arms/

Other states mentioned are Delaware, Rhode Island, Hawaii, Maryland, and New Jersey.

Evoking Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking Glass:

“When I use a word,’ Humpty Dumpty said in rather a scornful tone, ‘it means just what I choose it to mean — neither more nor less.’

’The question is,’ said Alice, ‘whether you can make words mean so many different things.’

’The question is,’ said Humpty Dumpty, ‘which is to be master — that’s all.”; 7/13/22, 8:33 PM
Bender said...: Pogacar's teammates really let him down today, not helping him and forcing him to ride solo. They lost him the maillot jaune, perhaps for the rest of the way.; 7/13/22, 8:34 PM
Humperdink said...: One of our beloved lefties brought up slumlords on an earlier café thread.

My view of slumlords changed when I got to know one. His reputation in the local community was lower than whale doopie. He did not fix up his rentals because they would only get trashed. The rent was cheap and these people had limited choices as to where to live. Think about it. He fixes the place up, raises the rent to cover his costs and the working poor have to move out. And when they move out, it quite an expense to get the dwelling back up to being inhabitable. In a few cases, his vacant properties were stripped of their copper plumbing.

One would think the government would step up and offer "affordable" housing. Well they have and the government rentals generally turn into the same trashed-up places in a few years. No easy solutions.; 7/13/22, 8:37 PM
Sprezzatura said...: I'm starting to know what it's like to be of the Meadehouse generation that hangs out at this blog.

Recently I learned new terms: "yt girl" and "pushing black."

I follow Snoop on Insta, and I saw that he posted a video of a yt girl completely thrashing a black girl at school while the school's yt principle watched w/o doing anything. Then another black girl started thrashing the yt girl that was thrashing the first black girl. Then the principle stopped the second black girl from thrashing the yt girl that was thrashing the first black girl.

Imposed over this video, as a bug (as the industry calls it), was a graphic that said "pushing black."

This Meadehouse blog is dedicated to jabbering about the grievances of (to simplify) T party type white Rs. This blog, day in and day out, reinforces the idea that these T party type white Rs are the victims. And this is done w/o a hint of irony or self reflection re reality. No Meadehouse doesn't say "keep the gov hands off my Medicare." But, Meadehouse's gussied up version isn't more compelling, IMHO. If anything the Madhouse slickened up version is less compelling than the no-nothing rubes' version. Being able to know better but still choosing not to do better is duplicity (not that lawyers have a problem w/ duplicity, if it works re them being an advocate that's what they're trained to do by law profs). I'm not into duplicity.

Anywho, I'm starting to see how Meadehouse and other old people can get out of touch v younger folks doing new stuff. Maybe someday I'll also be a geezer that spends my time and effort supporting and making excuses for a person like DJT.

Time will tell.; 7/13/22, 8:41 PM
Narr said...: 13.37 gallons of gas cost me $54.55 today, after .50 off the gallon. Ouch. It's a good thing that we drive so little or it will start to smart.

I think Ray Epps is the person who has been chosen to demonstrate to the slow of wit that a J6 Insurrectionist is whoever they need to be one, and vicey-versy. Part of the "Who You Gonna Believe?" population conditioning.; 7/13/22, 8:54 PM
Bender said...: Politicians Defy the Supreme Court's Ruling

The "segregation now, segregation forever," stand-in-the-schoolhouse-door party.; 7/13/22, 9:35 PM
Bender said...: FDA finally got around to authorizing Novavax coronavirus vaccine.; 7/13/22, 9:50 PM
Narr said...: My uncle Jimmy was a small time landlord, and I know exactly what his tenants were like. Some of them were OK and others were hopeless. Uncle Jimmy was a conservative, as were and are most of his ilk. Doesn't make them bad people.

I haven't kept up, but for a while there were all kinds of rehab subsidies open for landlords from local, state, and federal government. I know of some properties that seemed to get fixed up nice and a just a few years later they needed fixing up nice again, with subsidies to contractors and landlords. They are probably conservative also, and might be bad people.

I like that "Politicians Defy the Supreme Court" too. Those politicians. (The Name That Party Game never gets old.); 7/13/22, 9:58 PM
narciso said...: https://legalinsurrection.com/2022/07/protesters-demanding-return-of-frozen-funds-attacked-by-chinas-security-forces/; 7/13/22, 10:00 PM
n.n said...: Biden Advocates..... shooting illegal border crossers?

No, blocking all illegal immigrants either by instantly forcing them back across the border they entered through or preventing them from crossing in the first place, by deadly force if necessary, would not, of course, stop all rapes, including rapes of 10 year olds.

But it absolutely would have prevented this one.
...
PS: She didn't have to cross a state line either. Indiana law does not prohibit terminating a pregnancy under these conditions. Biden not only supports the illegal import of child rapists who would be happy to impregnate your 10 year old daughter, he's a liar besides.

Was a confused state the origin of the handmade tale, or was a handmade tale and social progress the motives for placing the girl and community at forward-looking risk? This incident has the feel of a Whitmer event colored with Roe's exploitation and regrets.; 7/13/22, 10:07 PM
narciso said...: Matthew perna was unavailable for comment because he hung himself.

Meanwhile two molotov firebombers get a slap on the wrist; 7/13/22, 10:07 PM
narciso said...: https://campusreform.org/article?id=19822; 7/13/22, 10:16 PM
Bender said...: Vingegaard taking off at 5K, tete de la course, was set up by all those feints earlier on that provoked Pogacar to respond and wear out his legs. Leading Pogacar to go to the front to try to control things, which only wore him out more and allowed Vingegaard to save energy. Like van Aert before, tactical mistake, if not a strategic one. Can he recover?; 7/13/22, 10:36 PM
StephenFearby said...: Linked to by Hot Air Jul 13, 2022 10:40 PM ET

New Statesman (UK)

Why the Russian military should be very worried
As Ukraine targets ammunition depots, Putin’s forces may be approaching a crisis point
By Lawrence Freedman

To put things into perspective, this guy isn't just another Joe Shmoe.

'Wikipedia: Sir Lawrence David Freedman, KCMG, CBE, PC, FBA (born 7 December 1948) is Emeritus Professor of War Studies at King's College London.[1] He has been described as the "dean of British strategic studies"[2] and was a member of the Iraq Inquiry.[3]'

'In my last piece I asked whether Ukraine could win its war with Russia, to which I answered that it could, although it was not yet clear whether it would. In this piece, I want to expand on one of the reasons I came to this conclusion.

I suggested that the Ukrainian forces would not follow the same tactics as the Russian ones, and would instead seek to exploit the accuracy of the long-range artillery delivered by Western countries. They would concentrate “on supply lines, bases, and command centres, making opportunistic advances, using guerrilla tactics in the city against the occupying forces, leaving Russian troops uncertain about where the next attack is coming from”. All these things have been happening over the past week.

I went on to suggest that this could start to pose awkward choices for the Russian high command. It would need to consider its long-term position and how to maintain its forces to deal with future threats, other than Ukraine. Russia would not be able to “afford an inch-by-inch retreat to the border, taking losses all the way”. This is the point I wish to explore further.'

'...Third, by way of contrast, the accuracy of Ukrainian systems is starting to tell, especially in attacks on these ammunition dumps. Now that the Ukrainians have long-range systems, such as the American Himars, available, accurate attacks can be launched over distances of more than 60km. The strikes are following a deliberate strategy, making it extremely difficult for Russia to manage further advances. One report on 9 July referred to four strikes across the Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson and Chornobaivka areas (the latter target being an airfield). They are causing serious problems for Russian logistics, which are already slow and inefficient.

The supply chains are manageable so long as Russian forces can fight close to railheads but become increasingly problematic as the hubs are moved closer to the border where the materiel has then to be loaded by hand onto trucks for what can be hazardous journeys to the front. Igor Girkin, the candid Russian nationalist critic of the Kremlin’s management of the war, has complained that the failure to disguise, protect or take “basic safety measures” with these sites represents “outstanding sloppiness” by commanders.

Another military blogger has lamented the “untrained morons” leading the Russian army, imagining their disastrous strategy: “Despite the absence of any military secrecy around supplies to Ukraine of modern long-range artillery and MLRS, continue concentrating artillery ammunitions at large and unfit for purpose industrial facilities in the range of reach by the enemy rockets and artillery. Lose one by one all the depots. As a result, lose the ability to properly advance at least the way they were advancing before. Create out of nowhere a wild ‘shell hunger’ in conditions where the enemy has received and trained on those new artillery and MLRS.”'

"...The point of my stress on the threat posed to the institution of the Russian military is that it redefines the challenge facing Ukraine. It is not necessary to think in terms of pushing Russian forces right back to their own border, although some pushing will be required, but to concentrate on continuing to undermine the capabilities and reputation of the Russian military, and consequentially its role in the Russian state."

https://www.newstatesman.com/world/europe/ukraine/2022/07/ukraine-war-why-russian-military-should-be-worried; 7/13/22, 10:37 PM
Joe Smith said...: '13.37 gallons of gas cost me $54.55 today, after .50 off the gallon. Ouch.'

$4 per gallon?

That's nothing.

There is no gas anywhere in CA within a dollar of that.

The cheapo gas where I am is $6...a little better at Costco.; 7/13/22, 11:52 PM
gadfly said...: wendybar said...
Poor little Ray Epps who WAS actually inciting people to "GO TO THE CAPITOL". His life has been Hell since he was jailed without due process in the DC Gulag...OH WAIT.....The Fed is complaining his life was disrupted??

Well - they are turning him loose. Don't believe everything you read on the extreme right-wing site "Revolver."

Gosh, Wendy, he is one of your kind - a Trumpist. And sometimes Tucker Carlson makes things up.; 7/14/22, 1:17 AM
gadfly said...: In direct violation of the law, TFG called a White House staff witness scheduled to testify before the J6 Committee. Newsmax host Greg Kelly suggested the phone call was nothing more than a “butt dial” that did not suggest the former president was actively engaging in witness tampering.

It occurs to me that with the giant size of Trump's ass, he must do that kind of phone-dialing often. Except, of course, on January 6, when his call log had a seven-hour "Nixon-tape-like" gap.; 7/14/22, 1:38 AM
Humperdink said...: So inflation checks in at 9.1%. Consensus building for 100 basis point increase by the Fed. Think that will increase the crude oil production? Asking for a friend.; 7/14/22, 5:22 AM
wendybar said...: YOU are a fool if you think Ray Epps is a lowly Trump supporter and not a fed gadfly, so SHOO....!!!! YOU have Trump on the brain. Maybe if you actually watched the videos of Ray Epps and the Trump supporters around him calling him a FED, you would understand, but you are in the Nasty Nancy court of disinformation.; 7/14/22, 5:30 AM
Humperdink said...: (Reuters) – Texas’s power grid operator on Wednesday took emergency measures to avoid rolling blackouts as soaring electricity demand threatened to outpace available supplies amid a stifling heatwave.

Crude oil, coal and natural gas everywhere, but alas, no electricity.; 7/14/22, 6:14 AM
farmgirl said...: “If anything the Madhouse slickened up version is less compelling than the no-nothing rubes' version.”

I’m thinking you meant “know-nothing”?
I don’t follow gangsta/rapper anything, really. Never heard of a yt girl.
I’d be interested in more of what you have to say? Or- does frustration paint us, here, the same shade of aging white, to you…

No one around me can hit persuasive talking points on the political subjects. Talking past e/other, over e/other and no one listening: recipe for frustration.

One thing I kinda know: I think that everything I said above- is right back at me re: color. I don’t think “anyone” akin to Snoop gives a crap what I think or if I care or… anything.

Do we all have such a false sense of pride that broken will never be fixed again?; 7/14/22, 6:19 AM
wendybar said...: WHY was Gavin Newsome sneaking into the back door of the White House when Biden left for Israel?? WHO is he meeting there and why?? Are they booting Biden for the San Francisco freak?? Time will tell. We may soon have feces covered streets all over America!!! YAY!!; 7/14/22, 6:21 AM
Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...: Epps is FBI.

Epps was on film over and over asking people/ telling people to "go into the capitol"

He was then on the FBI's wanted list.until he wasn't.

Epps is an FBI informant.

If Epps was Trump - he'd be in jail.; 7/14/22, 6:37 AM
Narayanan said...: So inflation checks in at 9.1%. Consensus building for 100 basis point increase by the Fed.
========
for comparison need data from Canada and Mexico.
Canada already did 100 point increase.
Mexico will send electricity to TX.; 7/14/22, 6:48 AM
Jersey Fled said...: I'd vote for AMLO before I'd vote for Biden.; 7/14/22, 7:33 AM
DINKY DAU 45 said...: looks like my COLA this year will be over 9% will find out in October..Cool that will pay for 0ur $250.00 electric bill during summer,11% original thoughts would even be better,$265.00 minus Part B adjustment.Thanks Big Brother..; 7/14/22, 8:08 AM
Lurker21 said...: If Epps wasn't a "fed" from the beginning, he got immunity after January 6th by rolling over on his associates. The government not coming clean about this only encourages the suspicion that he was a federal operative from the beginning.

"yt girl" apparently refers to a young woman who wants to become a "You Tube" influencer. There is a "big sort" on the internet. The tendency is for every site to lean to one side or to the other politically. That is a given. There's a tilt here like everywhere else, but it remains relatively civilized compared to other places on the internet.; 7/14/22, 8:12 AM
Iman said...: Meadehouse is good and we need. Shithouse no good. Take potato and go home, spazzatura.; 7/14/22, 8:29 AM
Rusty said...: Hunter Biden's tax payer funded Hooker said...
"Epps is FBI."
The cartoon gadfly has running in his head does not have that in its plotline. There is no nuance. It is a black and white cartoon?; 7/14/22, 9:42 AM
Jaq said...: The New York Times story on Ray epps kind of proves that the conspiracy theorists were right. The guy is obviously connected.; 7/14/22, 9:49 AM
Jaq said...: I felt so smart when I took the COLA on my pension and started out lower, until I found out that it was capped at three percent a year, so it's getting hammered; 7/14/22, 9:52 AM
Inga said...: “In direct violation of the law, TFG called a White House staff witness scheduled to testify before the J6 Committee. Newsmax host Greg Kelly suggested the phone call was nothing more than a “butt dial” that did not suggest the former president was actively engaging in witness tampering.

It occurs to me that with the giant size of Trump's ass, he must do that kind of phone-dialing often. Except, of course, on January 6, when his call log had a seven-hour "Nixon-tape-like" gap.”

Seeing as Trump talks through his ass, butt dailing is appropriate for him.; 7/14/22, 10:28 AM
Narr said...: Leave California, Joe Smith. (Everything is cheaper here, not just gas.); 7/14/22, 10:48 AM
Michael K said...: Maybe if you actually watched the videos of Ray Epps and the Trump supporters around him calling him a FED, you would understand, but you are in the Nasty Nancy court of disinformation.

The gadfly-Inga brain trust weighs in with their wisdom of the day.

It occurs to me that with the giant size of Trump's ass, he must do that kind of phone-dialing often. Except, of course, on January 6, when his call log had a seven-hour "Nixon-tape-like" gap.”

Speaking of butt dials, is that where your comments come from ?; 7/14/22, 11:18 AM
Marc in Eugene said...: Had no idea what 'yt girl' is, either, although in the back of my mind there was the half-thought that I really ought to know what one is. Like many crossword clues-- obvious once one knows the answer. Thanks to Althouse's recent practice, I'd have figured out 'tt girl' immediately.; 7/14/22, 2:26 PM
Marc in Eugene said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 7/14/22, 2:27 PM
stunned said...: Spasmotura, go sell some essential oils.; 7/14/22, 2:47 PM
Jim at said...: Don't believe everything you read on the extreme right-wing site "Revolver."

Snort. And then he follows it up with a link to Axios.

Perfect.; 7/14/22, 4:25 PM
wendybar said...: Looks like the "so-called" rapist of the 10 year old little girl may be Mommy's boyfriend

....https://twitchy.com/samj-3930/2022/07/14/alleged-mother-of-10-year-old-rape-victim-tells-telemundo-the-child-is-fine-and-everything-they-say-about-him-gerson-flores-is-a-lie-watch/; 7/14/22, 5:17 PM
wendybar said...: Does it sicken anybody else that the Biden family is paying off and getting jobs for their co-conspirators?? This corruption is blatant, yet....CRICKETS from the Propagandists who lie to us daily in the Main Stream Media. They are all in one big giant orgy in DC, and they don't give a shit about any of us.... https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2022/07/former-business-partner-hunters-personal-attorney-now-dojs-criminal-division-ironically-despite-ample-evidence-crimes-hunters-laptop-hunter-goes-free/; 7/14/22, 5:30 PM
Michael K said...: The story of that 10 year old girl Gets stranger and stranger. One reason it was not reported is that the whole relationship was consensual.

Footage showing Telemundo reporter Maria Vargas-Pion questioning the mother of the 10-year-old rape victim surfaced on social media. In the video, Vargas-Pion is shown at the door of the mother's home, asking if the child lived at that location.

In Spanish, the woman replies, "yes, but she's fine. Everything that they're saying against him is a lie."

In her report, Vargas-Pion stated that the woman, who confirmed that she was the mother of the child, "has not filed charges against 27-year-old Gerson Fuentes."

This is not over yet.; 7/14/22, 6:13 PM