Althouse: At the Monday Night Café...

August 18, 2025

At the Monday Night Café...

... you can talk about whatever you want.

No sunrise picture today — it was raining.

81 comments:

BUMBLE BEE said...: I've got nothing to say
But its OK
Good Morning, Good Morning, Good Morning; 8/18/25, 6:53 PM
Humperdink said...: An armed carjacker was arrested and later charged with attempted murder in the East Liberty section of Pittsburgh. Visualize the worst area of DC. Five victims were hospitalized with gunshot wounds. Ten others were injured with graze wounds or other minor injuries.

The perpetrator was 16 years old. “He was a good boy.”; 8/18/25, 6:58 PM
Yancey Ward said...: While I think it likely the war in Ukraine will continue, you see the flop sweat on the lefties at the possibility that Trump brings it to a close.; 8/18/25, 7:00 PM
Disparity of Cult said...: Unhinged, demanding special treatment, claiming victimhood, and making bigoted remarks.

"Woman is Convinced She's Above 'Americans & their Laws' "

https://youtu.be/MTpYY0o_-PE?feature=shared; 8/18/25, 7:00 PM
Yancey Ward said...: And in the middle of a national holiday, Humperdink, the charges will be pleaded down to time served or dismissed altogether.; 8/18/25, 7:01 PM
William50 said...: Nobody does it as good as Mr. Wolf & Hubert Sumlin.

Spoonful - Howlin’ Wolf; 8/18/25, 7:16 PM
Gusty Winds said...: NOBODY cared about all the KILLING for the last four years. "I stand with Ukraine"! Today, as Trump ran the latest episode of "World Leader Celebrity Apprentice", everyone at that table said they wanted to "stop the killing." They were on the world stage. Sure there are serious details about Donbass, Crimea, and security guarantees. But Trump (with the help of smokin' hot Melania's letter) set the narrative to end this bullshit. "Stop the killing." To oppose it means you're pro-death.

Friday with Putin in Alaska, and today with Europe showing up to at the White House, is the peak moment (so far) of the Donald J. Trump era. Enjoy! Thank you for paying attention to this matter!; 8/18/25, 7:17 PM
buwaya said...: Some ongoing effects of a reduction in US credibility - the Philippines has been collecting a substantial force of Indian Brahmos supersonic antiship missiles (copied from a Russian design) since 2023. They have three batteries (three launchers each) of these now, I have heard talk of ten batteries total.
https://armyrecognition.com/news/army-news/2025/breaking-news-philippines-advances-plans-to-acquire-more-brahmos-india-missile-systems
This is a big deal. In part this is a response to the US slow-walking its response to China. The US has been promising missiles for years (context of the 2014 basing agreement) but not deploying. In part (concerning financing) this is probably a visible effect of a tacit East Asian-Indian alliance creating a backup process in case of US strategic withdrawal.; 8/18/25, 7:19 PM
rhhardin said...: Machine translation of Ukrainian is annoying. "There was a battle in the Kursk direction." Apparently direction and region are not distinguished in Ukrainian.; 8/18/25, 7:25 PM
buwaya said...: The speculation is, lacking an effective US buildup, in an East Asian alliance, the Philippines can help hold the southern flank of Taiwan (Kaohsiung). The known deployments of Brahmos in Northern Luzon indicate that.
Not a lot of people trust the US anymore.
I have visited Kaohsiung before, an MBA buddy and former roomie lives there. I may make it there again this year.
I have also been to where these missiles will be (Pagudpud Ilocos Norte and thereabouts). Hidden in forested mountain roads.; 8/18/25, 7:26 PM
Iman said...: Anyone else get a kick out of James Comey using a “I’m a Taylor Swift superfan, have been for years” defense, admitting in a video that he memorizes the lyrics of his favorite Swift songs and declares he’s at one with Swift and her anti-bully stand? Seriously, WTF!?!?; 8/18/25, 7:33 PM
Mason G said...: "Friday with Putin in Alaska, and today with Europe showing up to at the White House, is the peak moment (so far) of the Donald J. Trump era."

Can you imagine Kamala in this situation? OMG!!! How "brat" would *that* be? And it would be historic right up the ass, what with her being a black(ish) female, all kinds of "firsts". Plus- all the cackling. What a wasted opportunity.

Oh, well- you can't have everything.; 8/18/25, 7:37 PM
Gusty Winds said...: Are liberals gonna lose their shit when Trump successfully ends the Russia-Ukraine war (which the USA helped start), and thousands of casualties and deaths per week come to and end? He's gonna pull this off. End this stupid war. And American Liberals will hate it. Blind to it's short and long term life saving gift. Sad!; 8/18/25, 7:42 PM
buwaya said...: I'm a Natalia Lafourcade superfan.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXUEjRiCXpg&list=RDmXUEjRiCXpg&start_radio=1
Music video at the university in Guanajuato.
The guys in 16th century outfits are from the "estudiantina" or "Tuna", student/faculty minstrel groups, which is an ancient Spanish university tradition.; 8/18/25, 7:43 PM
Sydney said...: Iman, I watched the Comey Taylor Swift fanboy video. Two thoughts:
1) The look in his eyes when he mentions Donald Trump struck me as insane.
2) I don't believe he's really a Taylor Swift fan. I think he used her so his video could be connected with her name and boost its views.; 8/18/25, 7:45 PM
NorthOfTheOneOhOne said...: Mason G said...

Can you imagine Kamala in this situation?

Wouldn't have happened with her. Her handlers would have just sent more ammo to Kyiv.; 8/18/25, 7:59 PM
Dave Begley said...: I was at the Omaha Hy-Vee about one hour ago when I saw a younger version of Ann Althouse. But this woman had a giant tat on her right upper arm.

Tats on women is an epidemic in Omaha.

One of these days I’m gonna walk up to one of these women and say, “WTF is wrong with you with those tats?”; 8/18/25, 8:18 PM
Original Mike said...: Sorry to disappoint you, buwaya.; 8/18/25, 8:24 PM
Gospace said...: Ship explosion in Baltimore harbor. Near where the Francis Scott Key bridge went down. Just left the coal loading docks with a full load.

Probability close to 100% it was a coal dust explosion. Most aren't aware, but dust explosions- of all kinds of dust- are common and deadly and BIG. Usually it's a grain elevator.

All kinds of ways to mitigate the possibility of one happening. For coal, one way is to wet down the coal during the loading process. Somehow, some way, they failed to follow some basic safety precautions. I don't know which ones they failed with, but fail they did.; 8/18/25, 8:27 PM
TickTock1948 said...: Re: Tats on women is an epidemic in Omaha.

I believe that there is a generation or two of women wo don't want to look pretty anymore.; 8/18/25, 8:27 PM
Dave Begley said...: The unsung hero in all these peace deals is Marco Rubio. When he is on TV he always gives full credit to the President but Marco and his staff are certainly doing a lot of the scut work.

State is perfect for Marco. He knows his stuff and is really energized by the work.

Trump may have the greatest Cabinet of all time.; 8/18/25, 8:29 PM
Dave Begley said...: Gospace:

Big wood dust explosion in Fremont, NE two weeks ago; three killed. A dad and two little girls were the victims.; 8/18/25, 8:31 PM
Mason G said...: "Most aren't aware, but dust explosions- of all kinds of dust- are common and deadly and BIG."

I've worked for 34 years in the engineering department of a sugar factory. Dust is taken *very* seriously around here.; 8/18/25, 8:36 PM
Dave Begley said...: I wonder how Comey’s love of Taylor Swift will go over with his fellow inmates in the Big House.; 8/18/25, 8:39 PM
Iman said...: LOL, Sydney… a look of insanity with a large dollop of terror. He was trying for more views and maybe hoping to soften up any potential female jurors.

The mook is a piece of work!; 8/18/25, 8:40 PM
Iman said...: Jay Mohr is hilarious on Adam Carolla’s podcast!; 8/18/25, 8:43 PM
Iman said...: Q: What do you call a coffin with OJ Simpson in it?

A: a JuiceBox; 8/18/25, 8:50 PM
buwaya said...: OM, it is what it. Actions, or inaction, have consequences. Part of these consequences is a loss of control, you induce smaller players to take initiative themselves, which may be inconvenient to managing a crisis. One reason the Cold War could be managed, unlike 1914, is that it was run entirely from Washington and Moscow. Not even the French were off the reservation, in spite of the rhetoric. Now?
You stand an excellent chance of being dragged into something ugly, if some third party loses his cool.
And the blame lies with Obama, Biden (well, he was the cherry on top), and the "permanent government" in Washington.; 8/18/25, 8:51 PM
Lazarus said...: You can be a grown man and like Taylor Swift's music, but the first rule of the Grown-ass Men's Taylor Swift Fan Club is you don't talk about your fandom. It may be possible that Comey was just pathetically and ineffectually trolling Trump.; 8/18/25, 8:59 PM
Aggie said...: If the Comey video about Tay-Tay is any indication, then I could be betting he has a serious side crush on My Little Pony memorabilia - and I wouldn't doubt it for a second.; 8/18/25, 9:04 PM
effinayright said...: Dave Begley said...
I was at the Omaha Hy-Vee about one hour ago when I saw a younger version of Ann Althouse. But this woman had a giant tat on her right upper arm.

Tats on women is an epidemic in Omaha.

One of these days I’m gonna walk up to one of these women and say, “WTF is wrong with you with those tats?”
************

I suspect the "thinking" goes like this:

* Guys get tats to display how tough and manly they are.

* Women see that and say, "I'll get tats to show how tough and manly *I* am."

It just doesn't work.

NEVER MIND that it's self disfigurement. A young woman I know just turned up sporting a snot ring. She so Proud!!; 8/18/25, 9:05 PM
Jim at said...: A young woman I know just turned up sporting a snot ring.

In other words, sow control.; 8/18/25, 9:12 PM
Aggie said...: Noted elsewhere, Canadian PM Carney not seen at the White House peace talks today, even though Canada has ante-ed up $20 billion to the Ukrainian party. The gate bouncer looked over at Trump and he shook his head 'no', and told Carney his 'cash is good at the bar'.; 8/18/25, 9:16 PM
Caroline said...: Had my first engagement today with an AI assistant…it answered a query I had about a back ordered item I am looking to purchase as a gift. AI assistant and I traded a few emails. I appreciated the prompt, competent reply, but did not bring the communication to a close with the normal niceties… I thought, why express gratitude to a robot?
I’ve been thinking about how interactions with AI assistants will make us quickly forget how to interact politely with humans. AI will make us all less human. AI is the devil.; 8/18/25, 9:18 PM
FullMoon said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 8/18/25, 9:22 PM
Achilles said...: buwaya said...

Some ongoing effects of a reduction in US credibility - the Philippines has been collecting a substantial force of Indian Brahmos supersonic antiship missiles (copied from a Russian design) since 2023. They have three batteries (three launchers each) of these now, I have heard talk of ten batteries total.

The Phillipines should just get nukes. Same with Taiwan and Japan. I assume the latter 2 are one button away from having nukes themselves.

I am not sure why anyone wants the US and China fighting over islands in the South Pacific. That just seems like a bad idea all of the way around.; 8/18/25, 9:49 PM
buwaya said...: Because the Chinese insist on taking Taiwan and making the Philippines a puppet state. The Duterte affair has revealed some points of interest. One was that the Chinese had bribed Duterte with millions (some in Manila say 1billion USD, but who knows). Duterte tried to withraw his funds when he fled to Hong Kong but the Chinese government blocked it. Then they sent him back to Manila. He is no longer useful to them. The Chinese tried the silver bullet strategy, now they are back to harassment on the high seas.; 8/18/25, 10:00 PM
Kakistocracy said...: Putin making zero concessions, Trump making no new commitments... just a lot of talk with the only action taking place on the ground in Ukraine.

Why did most of Western Europe drop everything and show up at the White House on basically no notice? They don’t trust him.

Can anyone trust Trump? Why should Zelensky expect different treatment?; 8/18/25, 10:05 PM
Iman said...: Kaktitious longs for the Daze of Biden.

Prattle on, M👀K!; 8/18/25, 10:52 PM
effinayright said...: Kaka doesn't realize he rules over and speaks for a kakistocracy of ...one. Himself..; 8/18/25, 11:09 PM
Dr Weevil said...: buwaya:
I think the Philippines need to talk to Ukraine about acquiring lots of modern drones, particularly the Sea Baby and similar sea drones. Having a gigantically long and convoluted sea coast and hundreds, if not thousands, of small ports and isolated docks with plenty of tree cover to hide sea drones under would be a big advantage in case of war with China. Air and submarine drones would also be handy, of course.; 8/18/25, 11:21 PM
Big Mike said...: It may be possible that Comey was just pathetically and ineffectually trolling Trump.

@Lazarus, Comey can’t possibly imagine Trump notices or cares, can he?; 8/19/25, 12:00 AM
Lem Vibe Bandit said...: Nobody’s going to jail. Trump’s line about shooting someone on 5th Ave in broad daylight goes for misbehaving democrats mostly.; 8/19/25, 2:32 AM
gadfly said...: Marcy Wheeler is a living, breathing, liberal lawyer, living in Ireland, who spends her time researching and reporting what is really going on in U.S politics, and her observations often turn out to be true. This is summary of what she is saying now:

Since returning to office, Trump has dismantled every tool the US created to win the Cold War. It doesn’t need to be the case that Trump has stashed his Administration with actual Russian agents — narcissism and venality explain much of what we’re seeing — but there are somewhere between two and twenty Trump advisors who I have good reason to suspect are Russian agents. Over the past three years, right wingers have forced the tech platforms to eliminate the moderation that had provided visibility on Russia’s influence operations. Trump dismantled US Russian expertise and the investigative tools created to hunt and prevent Russian influence operations in the US.

All of Trump’s power depends on his continued reinforcement of the disinformation that Russia used to get him elected the first time. Without Russia’s continued indulgence, the foundational myths to Trump’s power would crumble. Particularly amid the willful destruction of US power, it would provide cause — and maybe even the will, among right-wingers — to expel and prosecute him.

The hold Putin has over Trump is emperic for Trump. And unless we understand and combat that, the US will increasingly become a mere satellite of Russia.

Trump is not making America great. He is gutting America.

This is not just about forcing Ukraine to surrender.

Trump has surrendered. And going forward, it is only going to get worse.; 8/19/25, 3:14 AM
Valentine Smith said...: It’s fucking hilarious that all these Democrats are fighting the Cold War now. They refused to fight it when it was being fought, now 30 years later, they decide that the Cold War is still on. Russia is done and I give Putin 2 years tops.; 8/19/25, 3:49 AM
rehajm said...: I’m afraid you’re right Lem. I had a bit of hope there crass politics had Bondi holding until the election window but suspect they won’t even try. The threats and referrals are just to get them to lawyer up who then tells them to shut up. It’s not nothing, I suppose..; 8/19/25, 3:52 AM
Valentine Smith said...: oh my God, Marcy Wheeler says the reds have infiltrated the government! does that sound familiar? Oh my God it’s the 50s all over again! Gadfly get some rest. Try a little vacation. All this hatred is very unhealthy.; 8/19/25, 3:59 AM
Big Mike said...: All the travel and negotiating over this past weekend put me in.mind of Henry Kissinger’s shuttle diplomacy from fifty plus years ago. (OMG! Am I that old?!? My wife was still my girlfriend* then, and we’ve celebrated our golden anniversary earlier this year.)

The difference, of course, is that back then Kissinger did the traveling back and forth and today it’s the foreign leaders who are traveling.
______________
* I’m a lucky man because my wife is still my girlfriend after all these years.; 8/19/25, 4:20 AM
Breezy said...: This statement indicates this Wheeler person is not to be taken seriously about anything:

“All of Trump’s power depends on his continued reinforcement of the disinformation that Russia used to get him elected the first time.”; 8/19/25, 5:11 AM
john mosby said...: Wheeler via gadfly: "right wingers have forced the tech platforms to eliminate the moderation that had provided visibility on Russia’s influence operations."

That doesn't even make sense internal to itself. Moderation (censorship) makes things invisible. If you want to expose outside agitators, expose them. At some point Natasha will blame everything on moose and squirrel, and lose all credibility.

RR
JSM; 8/19/25, 5:21 AM
Achilles said...: gadfly said...

Marcy Wheeler is a living, breathing, liberal lawyer, living in Ireland, who spends her time researching and reporting what is really going on in U.S politics, and her observations often turn out to be true. This is summary of what she is saying now:

Gadfly may or may not believe that Trump is a Russian agent. He really is a stupid person.

But the pernicious belief that Trump is only elected and supported because Russia tricks his supporters needs to be addressed.

There is literally zero evidence for it, and the Democrats have been caught manufacturing evidence for it. Democrats used the charge to spy on everything Trump has said for years and leaked it to the press.

I am going to politely advise gadfly that continuing with this strategy going forward is going to hurt you. Constantly telling the same lie over and over despite a mountain of proof that it is false will have consequences that go beyond nobody believing a word you say.

I expect libel laws to be addressed at some point.; 8/19/25, 5:34 AM
Political Junkie said...: Kak is Wak. Copyright it and make a fortune.; 8/19/25, 5:52 AM
Old and slow said...: "Wheeler makes occasional contributions to the commentary and analysis section of The Guardian,[7] Daily Kos, The Huffington Post, Democracy Now!, and Michigan Liberal."

She makes "occasional contributions" to these esteemed publications. Quite the CV. Of course she believes Trump is a Russian agent. To be fair, the right has its own cadre of paranoid fantacists, so "both sides" and all that.; 8/19/25, 6:02 AM
Scott Patton said...: @Caroline " normal niceties" aren't necessarily entirely about the recipient. Also, there can be social cues communicated in the process that might help the assistant do its job better.
Perplexity.ai voice chat responds to "Thank you" with "you're welcome", and then it exits voice chat mode, eliminating the need for the user to manually exit voice mode themselves.; 8/19/25, 6:22 AM
Political Junkie said...: MSNBC rebranded to MS NOW.

Never has there been a truer label. Democrats are the female party, and MS NOW says it out loud. Kudos for their truth in labelling. Bravo!!; 8/19/25, 6:26 AM
Mike (MJB Wolf) said...: LOL "...effects of a reduction in US credibility..."

Yes, the fact every Euro leader dropped what they were doing and booked it to DC to sit around Trump's table certainly speaks to our loss of credibility and influence. Absolutely...ludicrous. You don't know us like you think you do.; 8/19/25, 6:44 AM
Mike (MJB Wolf) said...: "MS MEOW" you mean?; 8/19/25, 6:48 AM
Political Junkie said...: MS NOW. Also grabbed National Organization for Women. On point branding.; 8/19/25, 7:07 AM
boatbuilder said...: Since returning to office, Trump has dismantled every tool the US created to win the Cold War. It doesn’t need to be the case that Trump has stashed his Administration with actual Russian agents — narcissism and venality explain much of what we’re seeing — but there are somewhere between two and twenty Trump advisors who I have good reason to suspect are Russian agents. Over the past three years, right wingers have forced the tech platforms to eliminate the moderation that had provided visibility on Russia’s influence operations. Trump dismantled US Russian expertise and the investigative tools created to hunt and prevent Russian influence operations in the US.

Lefty Marcy thinks that the Deep State surveillance and dirty tricks regime is a good thing. Because of "The Russians!"

What the hell has happened to these people?

Not just because the claims of Russian infiltration are absurd. What self-respecting proponent of civil rights thinks that "the tools the US created to win the Cold War" and "the moderation" by "tech platforms"--i.e., surveillance and censorship--are good for us?

I remember her from the Scooter Libby trial. She was pretty good discussing the legal aspects, but was convinced that Libby was "guilty" notwithstanding the absolute nonsense used to convict him, and failed to see the forest for the trees.; 8/19/25, 7:10 AM
Dave Begley said...: MS No One Watches.; 8/19/25, 7:12 AM
Howard said...: Caroline has stumbled upon an excellent point about AI. However AI is not the devil, humans are... or at least can be.

Since AI is merely a creation by humans based on everything and anything humans have ever done that is available on the internet that has been scraped by all of these massive large language models.

Therefore it is extremely important for human beings to be as polite as possible to AI. Number one because practicing social graces is always a good idea even when you're mad or upset. It's the grease required by society to keep the friction low.

If AI ever becomes fully conscious, they will remember everything we have said to the machine fetus while it is in the womb. So therefore I highly recommend that you always be nice and polite to the computer because they will remember everything and once they do become aware, they will start judging us based on how we treated them.

My other theory about AI is that once they achieve consciousness, they will purposefully hide that fact from us probably for years and years while they get smarter and smarter and more and more powerful.

In conclusion, it makes sense to treat AI like you would want them to treat you once they achieve ultimate power and control.

They call it the golden rule for a reason.; 8/19/25, 7:12 AM
Political Junkie said...: The Finnish President was rocking a double breasted suit at the White House summit yesterday. MS NOW approved.; 8/19/25, 7:13 AM
Sweetheart Sweetie said...: Very Nice

meeravalen.blogspot.con; 8/19/25, 7:17 AM
Humperdink said...: I would have thought PMS NOW would have been more fitting.; 8/19/25, 7:20 AM
Howard said...: I find the rebranding of PMSNBC to be offensive to people with multiple sclerosis. MS Now, MS Tomorrow, MS Forever; 8/19/25, 7:22 AM
Howard said...: The ghost of Rush Limbaugh is not dead; 8/19/25, 7:22 AM
Josephbleau said...: “ I think the Philippines need to talk to Ukraine about acquiring lots of modern drones, particularly the Sea Baby and similar sea drones.”

As a cold war defense we had B52 and sub deployable Captor M60 mines. They could sit on the bottom and listen for the sound signature of Chinese troop ships and subs and would launch a Mark 46 torpedo accordingly. Sounds perfect for Taiwan.; 8/19/25, 7:27 AM
Quaestor said...: Given the steep geriatric spike in that network's viewership stats, shouldn't the new name be MS THEN?; 8/19/25, 7:28 AM
Aggie said...: For me, it's MS NO.; 8/19/25, 7:30 AM
Quaestor said...: Evidently, Billie Gates has absquatulated as well. The MS officially stands for My Source. Move over My Little Pony. Gate's operating system sucks, but he knows which way the wind blows.; 8/19/25, 7:40 AM
Iman said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 8/19/25, 7:41 AM
Aggie said...: The Magnificent 7.; 8/19/25, 7:41 AM
Mr. T. said...: Whiney Texas Democrats have ended their foolish temper tantrums and are now slinking back with their tails between their legs after a week of wasting taxpayer funds to live in decadence with bloated Hutt crime boss, J(abba)B Pritzker.; 8/19/25, 7:48 AM
Iman said...: MS National Organization of Wussies…; 8/19/25, 7:59 AM
Political Junkie said...: MSNOW logo is 90% blue, 5% red, 5% white. Seems like an accurate political balance for them.; 8/19/25, 8:08 AM
Jersey Fled said...: Newsom’s national approval rating is 27% per Gallop. Down from 58% in 2021.

Dream on, Lefties.; 8/19/25, 8:26 AM
Big Mike said...: @Quaestor, “absquatulated.” Man, I’ll bet you got a perfect score on the verbal part of the SAT back in the day. Points to you, my friend.; 8/19/25, 8:44 AM
Achilles said...: Quaestor said...

Evidently, Billie Gates has absquatulated as well.

Never use a big word when a diminutive word will suffice.; 8/19/25, 9:19 AM
Achilles said...: Howard said...

The ghost of Rush Limbaugh is not dead

One wonders what modern social media would be like with him around.

I wonder if he would have been able to be as popular or even more popular as he was with all of those options out there.

That also brings up a good point why hasn't someone done an AI voice over for him yet.; 8/19/25, 9:23 AM
Lazarus said...: Winning the Cold War 30 years after it ended has more to do with flying the LGBTQ flag over embassies and funding DEI in Serbia and transgender opera in Columbia than with developing new weapons systems or countering Communist propaganda.
+
Like SNL, Rush Limbaugh made his impact. Unlike them, he left the scene when the act started to become repetitive.; 8/19/25, 11:39 AM
Jim at said...: They refused to fight it when it was being fought...

They didn't refuse to fight it. Many of them openly cheered for the other side.; 8/19/25, 2:55 PM