April, 2017 archive
The “Friend Zone” 0
In The Guardian, Jessica Valenti tries to make sense of men who are afraid to be alone with women just because they are women.
(snip)
And that’s the rub. To some conservatives, still, relationships are not about joy or friendship, mutual admiration or common interests – they’re about creating new citizens. “Get pregnant a bunch of times and give birth to a bunch of beautiful little future taxpayers,” (Federalist writer and Lutheran pastor Hans Fiene–ed.) Fiene instructs women.
That’s why I can’t feel too badly for men like this, who are missing out on rich friendships and connections with women. Because the reason they refuse to see us as friends is that they don’t really see us as people – just potential wives or objects or desire, virgins or whores.
This does not negate that there are some men who should not be alone in a room with women.
The Big Dance 0
Badtux points out that it takes two to tango.
Clouds of Witless 0
Afterthought:
It is certainly difficult to find sympathy for Assad.
Nevertheless, I doubt that raining robotic death from the skies in a fit of pique will make a difference.
I use the term “fit of pique” quite intentionally. Here’s a bit of commentary from Josh Marshall (full article at the link):
The United States has a history of over-estimating its ability to change by force what’s happening in other countries. If you don’t remember the war in Viet Nam, I do. More recently, we have ventured into Afghanistan and Iraq. Viet Nam was a failure wrapped in lies; Iraq and Afghanistan have become quagmires and will likely end in failure, if they have not already achieved that status–I think they have–if one defines “failure” as “not achieving stated goals” (as good a definition of failure as there is); no goals have been achieved and they go on and on, bloody soap operas of death.
Last night I was reluctantly discussing politics with an acquaintance of mine. Almost my last statement in that discussion was, “How long till a war?”
Guess I got my answer.
Image via The Bob Cesca Show blog.
A Case of Consumption 0
Lee Camp tees off on that recent Pepsi ad. (Warning: Language, and lots of it.)
At Psychology Today Blogs, Pamela D. Rutledge has a less profane take. A snippet:
For Pepsi, however, this has been a significant fail. Rather than pushing the edge of pop culture to show themselves youthful and “with it,” they have potentially alienated a younger generation known for having high levels of social concern.
Hot Air 0
Josh Marshall thinks the current kerfuffle about the filibuster is much ado about not much of anything, although he thinks Democrats’ forcing Republicans to take a position is likely worthwhile. He suggests the, as far as court nominations are concerned, the Republican Party effectively eliminated the filibuster years ago.
Democrats likely have no power to finally prevent this corrupt transaction. It is nonetheless important that they not partake in the corruption.
Republicans are violating the public trust. As Atrios pointed out a couple of days ago, Republicans seem to believe that the rules are for them and for no one else.
Theft of Labor 0
Thom discusses Donald Trump’s recent executive order nullifying President Obama’s workplace safety initiative and how it facilitates theft of labor.
Walleyed 0
Dick Polman thinks Trump’s border wall is a non-starter for many reasons. Here’s one of them; follow the link for the rest.
I’m waiting for Trump to say, “Nobody knew the wall could be so complicated.”
But the biggest problem is that most Americans don’t even want the wall. Turns out – and I know this comes as a shock – that the enthusiasm for walling us off from Mexico was largely confined to the subset of citizens who flocked to Trump’s rallies. Turns out that when it comes to wall spending, most of us are actually fiscal conservatives.
Trump’s proposed budget calls for a $1.5-billion down payment on the wall. According to a new national poll released today, only 28 percent of Americans like the idea. And 58 percent do not.
Empty Suits 0
Robert Reich suggests that the phrase “Republican governance” is a oxymoron.
Their chronic incapacity to govern didn’t reveal itself as long as a Democrat was in the White House. They let President Barack Obama try to govern and pretended that their opposition was based on a different philosophy of governing.
Now that they have a Republican president, they can no longer hide. They have no philosophy of governing at all.
Follow the link for more.
Migratory Marco 0
Daniel Ruth pleads for someone to help Little Marco find a new office. A snippet:
All Rubio had to do was his job in the first place by making himself available to listen to the public instead of cooking up phony excuses as too busy to perform the most elementary part of his job — constituent service. The reason his Kennedy Boulevard office became such a focal and vocal point of attention was simply because a sitting United States senator did not have the common courtesy, nor courage of his own convictions, to meet face-to-face with people who might disagree with him.
The senator whined he wasn’t interested in subjecting himself to the possible jeers and boos from the public although being called an idiot is an inherent part of the job description. And if you are going to be this thin-skinned about criticism, perhaps Rubio might consider an alternative career as a hermit.
Facebook Frolics 0
Full Disclosure:
I know nothing about the merits of the case, nor do I know enough to have an opinion about the legal issues involved, but I find it gratifying when the Zuckerborg comes a cropper.
