November 30, 2024
The lake at noon... freezing up.
I created a new tag this morning and I noticed an old tag that I can never use anymore.
The old tag: "Written strangely early in the morning." There's no earliness in the morning that can be strange anymore. I used to think it strange to put up the first post in the 4-o'clock hour, but now, it would only be strange if I put up the first post before midnight, and that wouldn't be "morning" yet — no "a.m." The last post in this once-important tag was January 23, 2022 — "Why Ayn Rand is trending on Twitter under the heading 'Sports.'" — published at 3:10 a.m. Yes, that seemed notably early, 3 years ago. But now, when I wake up, feeling refreshed after what seems like a long sleep, and I look at the iPhone hoping it's not too early — which wouldn't be strange at all — I'm pleased if I see it's at least 3 a.m. Yesterday, when I looked — ready to leap out of bed — it was only 12:35 a.m. There are so many old posts with that tag! Here's the first one, in my first year of blogging, 2004: "Did you see that the first post today has a 4:33 a.m. timestamp? And yesterday's was 5:02? My two-hour 8 a.m. class has completely transformed my biorhythms, apparently. I was already a morning person, but this is a bit eerie. At least the NYT is already here at that hour...." That was 20 years ago, back when "the NYT" referred to a folded paper concoction stuffed in a blue plastic bag.
"Over a several-hour period, a localized zone of occasionally heavy snow dropped a couple inches on places not far from Eau Claire — and the primary culprit was exhaust from a nearby glass factory."
That's a free-access link, because maybe you are interested in the science and maybe you are interested in Wisconsin but mostly because it's the last day of the month and the November allotment of gift links is about to expire.
The comments over there are all Human activity affects weather???!!!! Who'd've thunk it??!!!!!
"Cooking at home really saves lots of money. Guys, it just hit me that frugality can be the primary productive force."
"On behalf of all the women (and I know it’s many) you have abused in some way, I say … get some help and take an honest look at yourself...."
Wrote Penelope Hegseth, quoted in "Pete Hegseth’s Mother Accused Her Son of Mistreating Women for Years/Penelope Hegseth made the accusation in an email to her son in 2018, amid his contentious divorce. She said on Friday that she regretted the email and had apologized to him" (NYT)(free-access link).
"Maps Pinpoint Where Democrats Lost Ground Since 2020 in 11 Big Cities... where Kamala Harris got fewer votes compared with Joseph R. Biden Jr. and which voting blocs drove each city’s red shift."
AND: Speaking of conspiracy theories, on another post this morning, Lem, the commenter, wrote: "Conspiracy theory Althouse is the best Althouse 😌." So if you're disappointed that I won't lean into the stolen-election theory, you can go over there and see what I had to say about Biden carrying the "Hundred Years’ War on Palestine" book.
"I do not speak to the Post (or the Times for that matter), so this is not for publication, but my reaction is that this is 4 years too late."
Quoted by the NY Post in "Biden picks up anti-Israel book during Black Friday shopping— ‘4 years too late,’ says author."
It was not immediately clear if Biden purchased the book or if it was given to him while in the shop — after he and first son Hunter Biden, 54, dined with first daughter Ashley Biden and other family members at the nearby Brotherhood of Thieves restaurant ahead of the island’s annual Christmas tree-lighting ceremony.
Is he such a dolt that he could be conned into holding a book and looking as though he selected it — selected "The Hundred Years’ War on Palestine: A History of Settler Colonial Conquest and Resistance." The title is completely explicit. Why would he carry that? Did someone put that in his hands to trick him into looking as though he endorses the theory that Israel is an oppressive colonial power?
Biden has repeatedly referred to himself as a Zionist, meaning a supporter of the movement that spurred Jewish immigration to the Holy Land, leading to the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948. “You don’t have to be a Jew to be a Zionist. I’m a Zionist,” Biden told visiting Israeli President Isaac Herzog on Nov. 12 in the Oval Office.
Did someone (perhaps Biden himself) decide that carrying that book would be a good way for Biden to moderate his "I’m a Zionist" talk and to express openness to understanding the conflict from the Palestinian perspective?
But why is the President communicating by toting a book around in front of photographers? Let him sit for a serious interview and explain his position. I know. That's laughable. That's my point. The President lacks the capacity to serve as President. Or is that what whoever slipped that book into his hands wants us to think? Is this a sly device to trigger us into clamoring for Biden to resign and give us one last great creation: President Kamala Harris?
November 29, 2024
The lake shore at 3:52 p.m. — with the wind chill at -1°.
Calling other people stupid is a dangerous business.
"I would say it's a bony eared assfish"/"Honestly, I thought this was a joke until I saw more comments saying it."
Someone links to the article at Wikipedia, which contains the statement, "The bony-eared assfish may have the smallest brain-to-body weight ratio of any vertebrate."
And somebody says "The amount of shaming on its Wikipedia page is harsh. They start by implying it’s stupid and go on to refer to it as 'flabby.' Who did it hurt?"
"There is a very sly critique of liberalism in the film’s characterization of Glinda. She is obsessed with being seen as good..."
Says Tressie McMillan Cottom, in "Four Opinion Writers Visit Oz and Ask: Who’s Really ‘Wicked’?" (NYT)(free-access link, because this is a long conversation with, obviously, 4 voices).
Beautiful cathedral and I'm delighted at the restoration but what on earth was Louise Bausiere doing for 2 years?
Louise Bausiere, who spent the last two years working on the cathedral's knave, told NBC News Wednesday said she hoped people would admire what the team of craftsmen had done.
A knave is "A dishonest unprincipled man; a cunning unscrupulous rogue; a villain" (OED).
The main part of church building is called a nave.
(Thanks to commenter Kate for pointing me there.)
"I talked about a pencil for 8 minutes" — at the QVC audition — "I was on the air 48 hours later at 3 in the morning trying to make sense of the... infrared pain reliever and the Amcor negative ion generator."
"I tried to explain to them how the Taliban has destroyed all the dreams I worked so hard to achieve. They kept saying how happy they are here..."
Said 24-year-old Afghan woman, speaking about her female cousins, who were visiting from Europe. She is quoted in "Women despair over Taliban rules, but many Afghan returnees don’t see it/Afghans living abroad are flocking back to visit relatives for the first time since the Taliban takeover. Severe restrictions on women are not top of mind" (WaPo)(free-access link).
"In 'Selected Amazon Reviews,' Killian adds yet another Kevin to the list. This Kevin spends his evenings with his wife curled up on the couch..."
Writes Oscar Schwartz, in "A Portrait of the Artist as an Amazon Reviewer/Between 2003 and 2019, Kevin Killian published almost twenty-four hundred reviews on the site. Can they be considered literature?"
"Hauls are the shopping equivalent of a dopamine-chasing overdose. That is the essence of the idea, which is less about any one thing..."
Writes Vanessa Friedman in "I Haul, Therefore I Am/It is the shopping phenomenon of our times, and now it’s an Amazon store" (NYT).
"The whole thing is hard for me to write. I couldn't sleep for two years after the election. I was so angry, I wasn't fit to be around."
Writes Bill Clinton in his new book, quoted in "Bill Clinton makes stunning confession about his bizarre behavior after Hillary's defeat in America's 'darkest election'" (Daily Mail).
What were the "cyber attacks"? Here's Kathleen Hall Jamieson's book, "Cyberwar: How Russian Hackers and Trolls Helped Elect a President: What We Don't, Can't, and Do Know" (Amazon Associates link). From a 2018 New Yorker article about that book:
"Somewhere in a Kyiv bunker a former comedian is quietly whimpering. But if the show that is unfolding will remain just a show, we will say 'thanks for the popcorn' and move on."
November 28, 2024
"Happy Thanksgiving to all, including to the Radical Left Lunatics who have worked so hard to destroy our Country, but who have miserably failed, and will always fail..."
Tweets Donald Trump.
“She explores how she struggled as a 'fat philosopher' — a representative of a field that prizes 'muscular and compact' forms of argument and 'prides itself on sharpness, clarity, and precision'..."
From "The consequences of being fat are deeper than we realize/In the book 'Unshrinking,' philosopher Kate Manne argues that fatphobia is a form of structural oppression" (WaPo)(free-access link).
"Australia has imposed a sweeping ban on social media for children under 16.... But many details were still unclear..."
From "Australia Has Barred Everyone Under 16 From Social Media. Will It Work? The law sets a minimum age for users of platforms like TikTok, Instagram and X. How the restriction will be enforced online remains an open question" (NYT).
"I must admit I had misgivings about Trump and his election denial after Jan. 6, but..."
Writes Maureen Dowd's brother Kevin, in "My Brother Is Doing the Trump Dance" (NYT).
"A quick Bluesky primer: Content has a 300-character limit. Those entries are officially called posts, though some have taken to calling them 'skeets'..."
From "X is Elon’s world. Threads is a mess. Is Bluesky any better? The virtual town square, once framed by Twitter, is now fragmented as people flee to bluer pastures" (WaPo)(free-access link).
A quote from a "35-year-old stay at home mom": "I have to find every mean person that’s on here and make sure that all nice people know there’s a meanie in our midst. I definitely think that we can keep that out if that’s what we continue to want."
"MSNBC is a giant corporate propaganda operation to trick Democratic voters into voting for the most Republican candidate."
Still, Uygur said that MSNBC’s audience — “older Democratic viewers that decide primaries” — is an important one.... While MSNBC is not on the market, according to Comcast, Uygur recently floated a potential acquisition — not unlike Elon Musk, who also raised eyebrows by asking on his X platform how much the network might cost. “Anything is possible,” Uygur said. “If you’re looking to reform MSNBC into something that is popular, it makes sense to go to a popular online network, and see if they can do the trick.”
"did you guys know I was in the original YMCA music video?!"
AND: For the annals of pronoun usage:Since the @realDonaldTrump YMCA dance is trending and taken the world by storm…did you guys know I was in the original YMCA music video?!
— Caitlyn Jenner (@Caitlyn_Jenner) November 27, 2024
Check it out! So much fun! pic.twitter.com/29EzcE46bg
ALSO: That video was clearly influenced by this much more carefully choreographed scene in "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes":God he’s hot
— Caitlyn Jenner (@Caitlyn_Jenner) November 28, 2024
November 27, 2024
Sunrise — 6:32, 6:50.
"I'm not the most famous person in the world, but let me tell you something — all the Trumpers know me from the head picture."
"A federal judge overseeing New York City’s violent jails, including Rikers Island... found the city in contempt for failing to stem violence and excessive force at the facilities..."
The NYT reports.
"On Monday, X filed an objection in The Onion’s bid to buy InfoWars.... In the objection, Elon Musk’s lawyers argued that X has 'superior ownership' of all accounts on X..."
"Over the summer, everyone I know went to Greece. From Greece, everyone I know posted one picture: octopus suspended on a clothesline, hanging against the Aegean Sea."
From "Going Dull/Being interesting is a burden. Is there relief in choosing to be bland?" (NY Magazine).
"He looked like some kind of health food hostage wanting to impress the cool kids by caving to their greasy junk food vices."
That's Jessica Reed Kraus, describing RFK Jr. in that famous photo that shows him eating McDonald's food on a plane with Trump, Musk, and Trump Jr.
I thought maybe "The Democrats" was a satirical account and this new video of Kamala Harris was A.I.
But no, "The Democrats" is really the Democratic Party:Vice President @KamalaHarris’ message to supporters. pic.twitter.com/x5xMUGTtkz
— The Democrats (@TheDemocrats) November 26, 2024
November 26, 2024
Sunrise (with crescent moon) — 6:32, 6:51.
"Americans are very uninformed about reality.... That vacuum is filled by the film industry...."
Alec Baldwin thinks Americans are "uninformed" about "what's really going on" in the world and says the film industry is helping to plug the gap.
— The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) November 25, 2024
"There's a hole, a vacuum... a gap in information for Americans," the actor said at the Turin Film Festival on Monday. "Americans are… pic.twitter.com/lVBD6UO4pi
"When J.K. Rowling said that denying any relationship between sex and biology was 'deeply misogynistic and regressive,' a prominent L.G.B.T.Q. group accused her of betraying 'real feminism.'"
From "Transgender Activists Question the Movement’s Confrontational Approach/Facing diminishing public support, some activists say all-or-nothing tactics are not working. 'We have to make it OK for someone to change their minds'" (NYT).
"This Tariff will remain in effect until such time as Drugs, in particular Fentanyl, and all Illegal Aliens stop this Invasion of our Country!"
Wrote Trump, on Truth Social, quoted in "Trump Plans Tariffs on Mexico, Canada and China That Could Cripple Trade/The president-elect said that he would impose the across-the-board tariffs on Day 1 and that they would stay in place until Canada, Mexico and China halted the flow of drugs and migrants" (NYT).
News of the tariffs immediately set off alarms in the three nations, with the currencies of Canada and Mexico sliding against the dollar and a spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in Washington warning that “no one will win a trade war.”
Calling it a "trade war" is itself an attempt to win. Trump is calling it an "invasion."
Well, you have to be interesting.
People saying the left needs their own @joerogan don’t understand that they can go on his show too. He’s not of the right or the left. He’s a guy with a long format show with interesting guests.
— Seán Ono Lennon (@seanonolennon) November 26, 2024
"These operatives had the gall to say they were fighting to protect our democracy. In reality, they undermined it at every turn..."
November 25, 2024
Jack Smith moves to dismiss the January 6th case against Trump.
The request by Mr. Smith was his final acknowledgment that after two years of courtroom drama, prosecutors will not be able to hold Mr. Trump accountable for his efforts to undo the results of the 2020 presidential election as he prepares to re-enter the White House.
The department’s policy that sitting presidents may not be prosecuted “is categorical and does not turn on the gravity of the crimes charged, the strength of the government’s proof or the merits of the prosecution, which the government stands fully behind,” Mr. Smith wrote. “Based on the department’s interpretation of the Constitution, the government moves for dismissal without prejudice of the superseding indictment.”
"Don't say anything robophobic."
"There will be a desire to hear her voice, and there won’t be a vacuum for long."
"AI will be incredible," tweets Elon Musk...
AI will be incredible
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 25, 2024
pic.twitter.com/1fU4Jn7yN9
"We’ve marched so much. We’re tired of doing the same thing over and over...."
“We need to be positioned to bring a new generation into office so we’re not just protesting and marching,” Mr. Hogg said. “We can’t be outside looking in.”
The NYT usually tells us how old people are. We're told a random "nurse from Virginia" is 45. But I had to look up how old Hogg is. It mattered to me, because he's going on about having done "so much... over and over." Hogg is 24.
"Alice Brock, whose eatery in western Massachusetts was immortalized as the place where 'you can get anything you want' in Arlo Guthrie’s 1967 antiwar song 'Alice’s Restaurant'..."
From "Alice Brock, Restaurant Owner Made Famous by a Song, Dies at 83/Arlo Guthrie’s antiwar staple 'Alice’s Restaurant' was inspired by a Thanksgiving Day visit to her diner in western Massachusetts" (NYT).
"As the wearer walks, the shorts analyze the user’s movement pattern and take some of the load from their hips, adapting to their pace and kicking in just as the hip joint swings."
November 24, 2024
"With the result of the 2024 election, my wife and her family are directing their understandable fury at my mother."
From a letter to the NYT Ethicist, in "My Mom Voted for Trump. Can We Let It Go? The magazine’s Ethicist columnist on how a family might proceed in the wake of a momentous presidential election."
"If I try to protect my mother from vitriol, would I be betraying myself, or my wife and her family, in order to preserve harmony and child care?"
Playing very old music, Spotify snuck in something that only sounded old and tricked us.
"CBS News poll finds Trump starts on positive note as most approve of transition handling."
Bill Maher asks about the "fact" that 84% of "gays" "stuck with the Democrats," and Andrew Sullivan doesn't agree with the assertion of fact.
"Much like the 'videotape format wars' Betamax and VHS fought in the 1970s and '80s, in the new millennium..."
From "Tesla won the plug war. Enter the age of the EV charging adapter" (NPR).