Rachel Maddow and the Covid Chronicles

 Maddow has issues with Trump's cabinet picks particularly Dr. Jay Bhattacharya to head the NIH.  He was a signer to the Great Barrington Declaration out of Stanford University which was basically against covid lockdowns in general and said herd immunity is the way to go.  There was an important caveat to this however: targeted protection for the most vulnerable groups (e.g. the elderly, people with co-morbidities etc.).  In other words during that covid timeframe you didn't invite Grandma over for the holidays.  We all understood this, everyone was on the same page but Maddow has outright lied about Dr. Bhattacharya and his views.  This wasn't exactly the Swedish model that basically said go about your business and the deaths will frontload early and then level off.  In the U.S. we had one of the highest covid death rates despite the lockdowns and mitigation efforts the 6 Foot Rule not even based on science as Fauci later admitted.  No matter to Rachel Maddow.  We also have early footage of Maddow stating emphatically that when you get covid-vaccinated the virus can't use you as a host and transmission stops with you blah blah blah which we now know is not true.  My brother has been hyper-vaccinated which is what most doctors still recommend these days and he still came down with a few cases of hardcore covid.   I'm not even clear whether Maddow and her hero Dr. Fauci even believe we have functioning immune systems but many people say she's in the pocket of Big Pharma and the military/industrial complex.  Word on the street is she's dragging MSNBC down the tubes with her.  Rumor is Musk might buy MSNBC outright.  Maybe Walmart, maybe Yonkers, maybe a feral cat colony island.  The times they are a'changing.

Is being over-informed a good thing?

 A lot of old people watch the news all day.  Had an uncle watched the news at 5 a fire in Brooklyn.  Then he watched the news at 6 the same fire in Brooklyn.   OK so now you're extremely well-informed now go watch a movie.  Old people also big on the weather.  I don't have to look at my weather app anymore.  A customer tells me what it's gonna be.

Being overly or extremely well-informed also means absorbing through a kind of unconscious osmosis the biases of the mainstream press.  Watched the PBS Newshour last night.  Story about "Rising Hate."  They had on an "expert" from the Southern Poverty Law Center who tied it all into MAGA and Trump's cabinet picks.  RFK Jr. might be a little quirky but he's a hater?  The SPLC is a lot like the ADL.  They hate conservatives and conservative groups.  No counterpoint on the Newshour of course. 

Maybe I'll rename myself the Grouchy Blogger.

The media are in denial about their own relevance anymore

 They couldn't even influence the election.  They relied heavily on the fake polling industry to show a neck and neck race to motivate people to vote for Harris but Rasmussen were the only ones predicting a Trump landslide and if you notice they never quoted the Rasmussen numbers.  The American voters have spoken.  The media doesn't respect landslides or the will of the people.  You can give The New York Times and The Washington Post to people for free and many are not gonna read it.  Good for lining a birdcage or wrapping fish.  Now Trump's Cabinet picks are no good.  Expect four more years of a negative drumbeat from the msm.  Meanwhile the rest of us have moved on.

When did loyalty become such a dirty word?

 Trump filling up his Cabinet posts quick.  The msm is spinning everything he does in a negative light saying he's packing his Cabinet with fierce loyalists.  When I was growing up the word "loyalty" had more positive connotations.  Loyalty used to be considered a virtue.  A dog is loyal to its owner.  A wife or husband is loyal to their spouse.  A worker is loyal to their company and doesn't sell trade secrets.  I could use a few fierce loyalists in my own life.

BTW where is the Bobby slot?

The existential meltdown continues

 I have actually read in some online forums about people who have broken down emotionally and mentally over the Trump victory and have to be counseled.  I kid you not.  Now let's remember Trump also won the popular vote and his victory was big enough you could call it a mandate.  The legacy media is pretty much dead at this point as they're not as influential as they thought they'd be.  People are gravitating more towards alternative independent media like Joe Rogan and not even giving a passing thought to what the New York Times has to say these days.  Ole Gray Lady hubris.

Whither this blog?  Start any post even mildly favorable to Trump and there's threadshitting.   I don't plan on this place becoming a dumping ground or landfill for Trump hatred over the next four years.  Criticism yes but there's a fine line between that and unhinged, valid takes and deranged rhetoric.  I'm also seeing a lack of critical thinking skills like Trump wants every Latino person who voted for him to leave the country.  That's just low-effort shitposting.  Another one people who haven't gone to college don't know how to vote that's just plain intellectual snobbery.  You know some calculus and some Nietzsche that makes you special?  Saw a bumper sticker once that said "Without Truckers America Stops."

Word of advice to the Democrats:  Next time leave Taylor Swift out of it.

Trump's war on women continues with his selection of a woman to be his Chief of Staff

 Little known Susan Summerall Wiles or Susie Wiles for short.  Was Trump's campaign manager.  67-year old grandma and daughter of the late American football player and broadcaster Pat Summerall.  Back in the day involved in Reagan and Florida politics.

The New Republic.  I used to read this when it was just a mag in Barnes and Noble.  Kind of a liberal version of National Review I would read it on occasion.  With Michael Kinsley as editor I found it a tolerable read.  He's gone on to other things and now it's just straight up deranged political commentary basically untreated TDS.  Reminds me of the scene in Easy Rider when they drop acid in the cemetery.  

Is Trump gonna find a role for Snoop?

My take on the Trump victory

 Kamala Harris should never have been the Democratic candidate.  Exit polling showed most voters had concerns about the cost of living and the economy.  The incumbency or in this case part of the incumbency doesn't normally win with that kind of data.  The Democrats should have gone with someone outside the WH and surprised there was no real discussion of this apparently between the time Biden dropped out of thr race and the start of the DNC.  They may have still lost with another candidate but their chances would have been at least slightly better imo.

There will be the liberal wailing and gnashing of teeth over the next four years.  Also Trump will be dealing with a hostile media on a daily basis led by the New York Times.  As my friend said let the man do his job and finish the work he started.  IF he had won the last time against Biden he'd be nearing the end of his second term right now and liberals and the Left could finally get on with their lives or at least be free of the TDS episodes and suffering.  Instead this is what you got deal with it.  You're out of tune with the American people.

The media's last-ditch effort to influence the election

 Jeff Bezos has warned a Trump victory would mean the death of corporate media.  Some people feel the polling is a little sketchy.  I'm no data scientist but I'm seeing my poll is better than your poll.  Saw some Rasmussen interpretation last night that there's some indicators Trump could win in a landslide.  Another analysis - Harris needs her entire blue wall to win.  If Trump chips away at that it's over.

The last thing the msm came up with, I mean after the Liz Cheney thing was Trump simulated a sex act on a mic at a rally in Milwaukee on Friday night.  This was only after his mic wouldn't work right for a whole hour.  Sometimes people get punch drunk from stress or overwork.  I'm sure you've dealt with them.   You go to work and someone's acting a little too zany.  Drudge ran with the headline though with a short clip on X.  Is Drudge still around?

The legacy media.  Where do we go from here?

Ethnic humor doesn't fly anymore

 The NYT has studied Trump's campaign speeches and says they have grown harsher and darker.  Trump throws in a penis joke to lighten the mood and there's a bee in everyone's bonnet.  Ethnic humor -- You might be able to get away with a few Irish jokes but the better comedians have moved on.  Back in the day on his radio show Stern used to say A LOT of racial things.  Didn't stop Kamala from talking with him though.  Just watched the 12 minute clip of comedian Tony Hinchcliffe at Trump's recent MSG rally and a small portion was devoted to what you would call racial humor.  Yes cringe - groan.  Times change.  Every once in a while you need to open up the window and look outside.  Jon Stewart defended him as a roast comedian who once roasted Tom Brady.  My take calling PR a floating island of garbage is rough even by ethnic humor standards.  Having said that it doesn't affect the race in the least imho.  On the other hand the Left's claim that Trump has it on his bucket list to be an aging Hitler now that's HILARIOUS.  A tyrant for life with dementia.  ROFL!!!

The Joe Rogan Prolonged Experience

 Did some checking.  Trump on Rogan clocked it at 2 hours and 58 minutes.   The Godfather was 2 hours and 55 minutes.  Both epics.  Now there's pressure building on Kamala to go on like JRE is some type of requirement.   Her CNN Town Hall with Anderson Cooper didn't go too well what has she got to lose?

Dems gloomy all of a sudden like resigning themselves to a Trump second term and getting ready to point fingers.  The Washington Post and Los Angeles Times have failed to make endorsements.  Kamala vague on her economic plans just that she loves the middle-class and everyone needs more money.  Where did all the joy go?

Trump has the gift of gab.  Kamala always looks like she just took a pill and the side effects are starting to kick in.

Dunno.

Kamala Harris playing the Nazi card

 Quick recap - Trump's former Chief of Staff John Kelly said in interviews with The Atlantic and The New York Times that Trump fits the definition of a fascist and prefers the dictator approach to government.   He also claims Trump admired the loyalty of Hitler's generals and that Trump said Hitler also did some good things.  Kelly is coming out with this kinda late almost like an October Surprise.

Harris on X:  "Donald Trump is out for unchecked power.  He wants a military like Adolf Hitler had, who will be loyal to him, not our Constitution."  Also @Kamala HQ:  "Trump said he wanted generals like Adolf Hitler had.  He wants a military that is not loyal to the Constitution, but loyal to him...This is a window into who Donald Trump really is from the people who know him best."

My sober analysis (it's still early in the evening).  All these allegations are not in the realm of established fact but the msm is treating it as such.  How do you fact-check hearsay?  It's possible it's true.  It's possible it's not true.  It's also possible there's some missing context or grayscale.  Harris playing the Hitler card doesn't help people pay the mortgage or the rent or put food on the table.  So far it's an academic discussion that may not sway the undecideds.  She's looking to seal the deal on this.  Throw some pasta against the wall and it might stick (old chef showed me that).  It's a lazy approach imo.

Is McDonald's now a swing state?

 Media giving this maybe more attention than it deserves.  As we all know Donald Trump worked the fry station at a Philadelphia-area McDonald's over the weekend and held a kind of impromptu news conference through the drive-thru.  He has called into question Kamala Harris work history saying there's no evidence she worked at a McDonald's during summer break while attending Howard University.  Media giving this LOTS of attention calling to task his lies and baseless claims once again.  On a scale of 1 to 10 it hardly registers with me.  It's really not that important.  Everyone knows Trump talks out of his ass.  Maybe what we should be asking is was RFK Jr. okay with his stint at McDonald's???  He took Jr. on board to make America healthy again.  Is Jr. pissed?  I mean Trump could have put the produce away at a Whole Foods or something.  Does Bobby feel used in any way?

I like McDonald's btw.  Kamala Harris and Trump both like McDonald's.  The media taking this way too seriously imo.  Bobby probably confused at this point.

The ghost of Arnold Palmer was appalled by Trump's crude remarks

 It's hard to find decent coverage of the elections these days at least in my curated newsfeeds.  Heavily anti-Trump it's almost as if they're trying to influence the election.  Ya think?  Trump can't serve fries at McDonald's without a negative spin.  No longer objective news that pretense has been long abandoned with the rise of MAGA.  We're engaged in trivialities in these final days.  Kamala Harris has time for Stern but not the Al Smith dinner.  Did she have a souffle in the oven?  Bill Maher is gibbering about this and that.  He's kind of lost me.  The whole election thing is like a bad dream.  What does any of this have to do with the price of Fancy Feast?

The only problem is Woodward isn't a trash writer

 I'd sooner trust him than Tom Selleck trying to sell me a reverse mortgage.  Woodward's new book War - According to the book Trump and Putin had at least seven private calls since Trump left office.  Also Trump allegedly sent Putin Covid-19 test machines during the peak of the pandemic when there was a shortage.  Trump calls Woodward "a storyteller who has lost his marbles",

POT - KETTLE - BLACK

Steven Cheung Trump's communications director said Woodward's book is "the work of a truly demented and deranged man" who suffers from TDS.  Did he make up Watergate too?

There's other stuff in the book.  Lindsey Graham calls visiting Mar-a-Lago like visiting N. Korea everybody has to clap when Trump enters the room.  Biden's complicated relationship with Netanyahu and his angry tirades over the Israel/Hamas War yada Yada.

I'm no fan of the media by any stretch but it ain't Maury Povich writing.

The Democrats and their hurricane-making machines

 Latest conspiracy theory being peddled by Marjorie Taylor Greene.  I'm beginning to think she might be a left-wing plant to make conservatives look bad.  The Democrats can't even make health care affordable for most Americans how are they gonna control the weather?

On to Trump.  The New York Times is taking his latest campaign rambles and rants, lies and misinformation very seriously indeed but they're missing something big time here.  Let me illustrate with an anecdote.  Back in the day we lived close to an older couple.  The elderly husband eventually developed Alzheimer's.  The wife asked my sister for a favor if she could just take him out and walk him around the block.  Nice day and a group of black guys hangin' on the corner.  As my sister and her ward got closer he started using the N-word.  Why this even came out in an Alzheimer's state is itself an interesting question.  I mean why not "look at the pink elephant"?  Anyway he was like "look at the (N-words)" etc. etc. They were naturally getting a little upset, just a tad mind you until my sister explained to them he had Alzheimer's.  They completely understood and let it go.  Last time my sister took him out for a walk btw.  Now my point about the Ole Gray Lady and the mainstream media in general.  IMO Trump has some cognitive issues.  Something is off.  Don't think it's weed.  Might be pre-Alzheimer's, dementia or something else.  DO NOT treat Trump's pronouncements and latest utterances as you would a normal person.  You don't fact-check some old guy in a nursing home say who's rambling on about when are the elves gonna bring in his food.  You let it ride but that's the problem with the msm they're missing the bigger picture.

Having said that I don't know what the problem with MTG is.

Fact-checking the fact-checkers

 I've always felt the so-called fact-checkers come to the conclusions they want to come to.  A lot of people know the fact-checkers are biased.  They always seem to be helping the liberal cause if you notice.  Confirmation bias.  One of my issues is the sheer speed with which they come to some of their conclusions.  Let's say a Bigfoot was spotted in Central Park.  Less than a day goes by and Snopes will authoritatively pronounce it false.  Yes a ridiculous example for levity's sake but as usual don't take their word for anything.   Do your own research.  If your conclusions dovetail with those of the fact-checkers all well and good.  If you feel as Joe Rogan does that they're full of shit that's fine too as you've probably done more homework than them anyway.

When it comes to hard objective news the msm is great.  The horrible human tragedy of Hurricane Helene they can be relied upon for giving you the most basic facts of the situation.  Our hearts and prayers.  Other stuff however the social and the political area I find myself gravitating more towards independent media.  Sure Russell Brand is big on clickbait but you get more on your plate.  Everybody's biased but you're a grown adult you can figure it out.  You don't need everything handheld for you by the fact-checkers and the strained puree of data they give you.

Have a good day.  Don't be lazy.  Do your homework. 

Does Trump really want the job at this point?

 Or is he doing a reappraisal?  Two assassination attempts.  Will this remain some kind of aberration or is it probable there will be more attempts on his life?  Saw recent headlines is Trump suffering from PTSD from the first assassination attempt and has he lost that fighting spirit?  If he does regain the WH will things only get worse?  If he does get assassinated while in office he wouldn't be able to complete the work of MAGA.  Ego versus personal safety is he evaluating that calculus as well?  Maybe his selling $100K watches is really his yearning to go back to the regular business world from which he came and which he's good at and known for.  Under normal circumstances I would not be posting this but we are not living in normal times.  Two attempts on a man's life can seriously interfere with his psyche.  He has the delegates he has the nomination and he has a fighting chance in the polls but the msm seems to be boxing off the two assassination attempts and treating the rest of the campaign with their usual anti-Trump bias putting the two attempts on his life as more of a historical footnote.  This election season is not normal and nothing is normal.  It's not like we can just pause the whole thing but have to go through the wretched motions.

I'm just trying to say something a little off the beaten path.  Let me know in the chat.

Everybody is good people

 So the authorities in Springfield Ohio have determined that it was apparently impossible for any illegal homeless Haitian immigrant to have eaten a feral cat or two.  My newsfeed says Dems are pushing back against Trump's racist fear mongering of Haitian immigrants.  This can actually work in reverse.  By giving so much attention to Trump's mindspace they're completely ignoring the fact that they're here illegally in the first place.  Least those are the ones we're talking about.  This is a good time to discuss the difference between rights and privileges.  If you're here illegally you technically have no right to be here.  Now some government policies might try to accommodate you and your family anyway but that's a privilege that you're still allowed to remain and work here but still not a right.  Kamala is trying to tow a tougher line on illegals and the border because it's obviously a winning issue for Ttump but her own party seems to be working against her.  According to a recent PBS Newshour report on the situation some of the illegal Haitians are terrors behind the wheel of a car and the subject has been brought up at Springfield City Council hearings.  The Dems always present a fairy tale version of reality though so I think the issue still sways strongly in Trump's favor.  Whither Ohio?

Curated newsfeeds

 Google News, Samsung News, NewsBreak and a few others.  You know the pre-installed crap apps that come on your devices.  They're anti-Trump day in and day out while Kamala gets a free ride.  No serious research they just regurgitate each other and spew out the same canned news items on a daily basis.  A common everyday theme is a quick debunking of every Trump utterance.  The so-called fact-checkers have become a cottage industry.  Joe Rogan speaking of them on his podcast said fact-checkers are full of shit.  I'm inclined to agree.  Do they go out in the field and do extensive research?  They sure come to their conclusions rather quickly.  Everything is binary to them there are no even partial truths.  All this and more is the reason why more and more people are gravitating to independent media.  Curated newsfeeds they don't just give you the news they cue you in on what to think.

I have no recommendations just do your own research.

It was a feisty debate. I don't declare a winner.

Both got in their jabs.  Kamala Harris made a lot of funny faces during Donald Trump's remarks.  At one point Trump called her a Marxist and said something about people eating dogs but I was slightly under the influence of Caribbean rum at the time trying to put it all together.  A long debate don't really want to sit through another one.  During the recap the ABC News commentators seemed biased saying Trump came across as angry.  To me he wasn't over the top just regular Trump mode.  No clear winner imo but it was an entertaining night.