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Friday Night Multimedia Extravaganza!

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The Late Show: The Oregon Trail on mushrooms.

The Atlantic: Inside a historic win on election day 2018.

Jimmy Kimmel: The week in unnecessary censorship

Robert Reich: How to hold corporations accountable.

Vox: Why Colombia is losing the cocaine war.

I.C.E.-y Walls:

Adam ruins frequent flyer miles.

GQ: The tattoo artist who covers racist tattoos.

Chris Hayes: Paul Ryan and the GOP’s hypocrisy on the debt and deficit

Minute Physics: Hardy’s paradox and the quantum double double slit experiment.

Wired: How Boston Dynamics’ robots became internet favorites.

Vox: Why “Buy one, get one free” isn’t a great deal.

The Daily Show looks back at 2018.

Roll Call: Congressional hits and misses.

The Dotard Трамп and His Band of Putin Toys:

Jimmy Kimmel: This year in unnecessary censorship.

The Atlantic: We should be “screaming mad” about Amazon’s “corporate welfare”.

Mental Floss: Everything you need to know about the holidays.

Vox: The World War II battle against STDs.

Stephen: Tucker Carlson’s new target is gingerbread people.

Dulcé Sloan: How to handle your news rage.

The New Yorker: Inside the forges of New York City’s bladesmiths.

John Oliver: Brexit update.

Last week’s Friday Night Multimedia Extravaganza can be found here.

Comments

  1. 1

    Ending a Congress with a Government shutdown, wonder if it was a first. In Australia , failure to pass a budget, could potentially trigger a double dissolution election.

  3. 3

    Spokane getting electric buses, partly funded by the Volkswagen settlement.

    http://www.spokesman.com/stori.....ontent=amp

    As for the photo, the Spokesman Review, use Route 24 Monroe, as they said it would be used on a new High Performance Transit line on that corridor. Will be interesting on the South Hill portion. A trolley bus would be better for that.

  4. 4

    You have some that really want to make the World, Country, State, or City a better place. And then you have those that just want to make things better for themselves and nobody else.

    Anywhere here come to mind?

    https://www.courant.com/politics/hc-pol-ned-lamont-funding-transition-costs-20181221-amtjsatlfbc4xftn5hx2dwinde-story.html

    Could anyone see a Republican doing this? Or a current modern Republican at least. One from Kansas?

    Bob corrected me earlier this week. Maybe he can correct me again and tell who might be that current day Repuke.

    I wonder if Ned wants to run for President one day.

  5. 5

    On the one hand, maybe we can’t blame Republicans for quitting on America and going home to party with lobbyists and porn stars until next year. After all, the way the Republican White House tricked Senate Republicans into a vote on a stop gap and then within 24 hrs announced the veto must have been discouraging to say the least.

    On the other hand, Republicans are entirely to blame for handing that bait and swtch to the Republican White House in the first place: first, when House Republicans canceled their scheduled vote on the stop gap at the insistence of The Rage Baby; and second, by vowing at the outset never to override their beloved President Unindicted CoConspirator.

    This is what you get whenever you vote for Republicans.
    Because this is really who Republicans are from now on.

  7. 7

    RBG talking to trump: “Of course i’m fine, It’s not like I have bone spurs or anything”

  8. 8

    I know that Bob caught hell for the comment about RBG, including my own comment……But, I really wish Lindsey Graham would croak.

  11. 11

    @8 I don’t wish that, and none of us should go around wishing such things, if for no other reason because then we become them. See #9.

  14. 14

    “Brett McGurk, the U.S. envoy to the global coalition fighting the Islamic State group, has resigned in protest to President Donald Trump’s abrupt decision to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria, joining Defense Secretary Jim Mattis in an administration exodus of experienced national security officials. Only 11 days ago, McGurk had said it would be ‘reckless’ to consider IS defeated and therefore would be unwise to bring American forces home.”

    https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/brett-mcgurk-anti-isis-coalition-quits-trump-syria_us_5c1e6fdae4b05c88b6f932d2

    Roger Rabbit Commentary: Now we’ve got a word for it.

  15. 15

    Of course, it isn’t just Trump and his Syria policy that are reckless. Electing him was reckless. The voters who did that are reckless. The Republican politicians who’ve tried to block investigations of his corruption, collusion, and crimes are reckless. Doctor Dumbfuck is reckless, too, but mainly he’s just plain stupid.

  17. 17

    14)Wonder if the Revolving door mechanic is furloughed, with the amount of turnover in this administration.

  18. 18

    16,
    Both legislative chambers have adjourned and most members and their staffs have left the district. Meanwhile the White House has on no fewer than four prior occaisions, when facing difficult negotiations over crucial spending legislation, reneged on their commitments to lawmakers of both parties. This White House and its negotiating teams have a very firmly established and frankly disgraceful track record of lying during negotiations and betraying their commitments to their negotiating partners at home and abroad.

    It would be altogether irresponsible for Democrats to even signal a willingness to come to the table with any of these people until they have clear public promises in advance from their leader, President Angry Dumbshit, on precisely what they, as a party, are willing to agree to in order to restore funding to vital government services. No rage Tweets. No empty threats. No shouting at cameras. True legislative commitment in writing with a signature.

    Things never should have been allowed to come to this. But time after time disorganized and incompetent Republican legislative leaders have proven incapable of persuading their President to work with them on important legislation like this. Here the Republican Christmas Shitdown is no exception. They have absolutely no party unity, no clear legislative agenda, and thus they are unable to communicate their aims in a single voice. Republicans only seem capable of unified action when defending white supremacists and child molesters or bitching on cable about African American athletes.

    This is really who Republicans are from now on.

  21. 21

    Jim Wright December 16 at 11:16 AM

    Trump: I’m shutting down the government. I’m doing it! It’s totally me! I’m the one, I made the decision!
    Trump Staff: Trump totally owns the shutdown. He’s the one. It’s him. He made the decision. He owns this shutdown.
    GOP: Our boy Trump is shutting down the government! We fully support him and this shutdown!
    Fox: With great courage, Trump himself personally shuts down the government!
    Trump supporters: SHUT IT DOWN! SHUT IT DOWN! SHUT IT DOWN!

    It’s the Democrats fault!

  22. 22

    So Doctor Dumbfuck, how is that “generational judicial system” treating you now? In the last couple weeks two conservative justices have sided with the liberal justices. How dare they! Damn rouge SCOTUS justices! Trump put one of his stooges on the bench and then took the Chief Justice to task. How is that working out? You and your ilk are beyond fucking stupid. All you have left is wishing for the death of a female justice of the SCOTUS. You are reprehensible.

  24. 24

    23,
    He can’t respond right now.

    He’s being pinned down and gagged in the back of the Sheriff’s SUV while the auctioneer disposes of OfDumbfuck’s horses to the knackers.

    This is the market they prayed for.

  26. 26

    What do business leaders think of Trump? Not much. When they go abroad they have to apologize for his behavior to their foreign colleagues.

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2018/12/17/ceos-say-they-often-apologize-business-partners-abroad-trumps-diplomacy/?utm_term=.fac4ef5aa406

    In a column this weekend, Bloomberg writer Eli Lake says, “Donald Trump may not know it yet, but his presidency is collapsing.”

    https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2018-12-21/mattis-resigns-and-puts-trump-s-presidency-in-peril

    That doesn’t mean the End Days are upon him. Not yet. He still has his trailerbilly base. But we’ll see how they feel about him after they go without food stamps for a couple months.

  27. 27

    @18 ” … disorganized and incompetent Republican legislative leaders … have absolutely no party unity, no clear legislative agenda … ”

    Interesting; Krugman’s take is nearly the same as yours:

    ” … I have been insufficiently cycnical …. These days the G.O.P. is all about power; there are no principles … it’s a party that belongs to Trump. What he says is the party line, on any and every issue. Trumpism, it turns out, trumps everything else …. ”

    https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/20/opinion/conservative-economics-trump.html

  28. 28

    Democrats should offer President PornSweat half of his $5 billion.
    But it should be strictly conditioned on him getting the other half from Mexico first.

  29. 29

    @28 Republicans seem to be living in an alternative reality.

    “Sen. David Perdue, R-Ga., a key figure in the president’s corner in this fight, told NBC News that Vice President Mike Pence came to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., today with a presidential request that fell between the $1.6 billion initially negotiated in Congress weeks ago, and the $5 billion figure passed by the House but rejected by the Senate this week.”

    In return for what? Reopening the government they shut down? That won’t cut it. If the Democrats are going to give them any more money for a wall, they should get legislative concessions in return, specifically relating to comprehensive immigration reform.

    “After lunch with conservative lawmakers at the White House Saturday, President Donald Trump is prepared for a longer fight, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., who attended the lunch, told NBC. ‘We came out of the lunch with a commitment from the president that we’re going to get more than $1.6 billion for the wall,’ Graham said.”

    What does meeting with conservative lawmakers accomplish? It’s Democratic votes Trump needs, and they weren’t even invited. Is this incompetent politics, or what? Graham, once a half-credible senator, lately has been assuming the role of dumbass. He claims Republicans are “committed” to getting more from the Democrats. With what? I’d like to know. Are they stupid enough to believe they can get it for free? I think they are.

    https://www.aol.com/article/news/2018/12/22/partial-government-shutdown-to-continue-through-next-week/23625510/

    The bottom line is these guys have 12 days left to do a deal, then they have to start over with a Democratic House. Unless the Democrats fold, there’s no way Trump gets his wall money without giving them something pretty substantial in return. Are they assuming the Dems will fold, or are they high on angel dust? Time will tell.

  30. 30

    27,
    I no longer perceive any practical distinction between raving QAnon loons, Fred Perry clad neo Nazis, radical climate deniers, and the wider bulk of mainstream Republicanism as exemplified by the WSJ opinion page that nurtures and supports them.

    Ultimately they all believe in ridiculous bullshit. And along with that they remain steadfast in their faith that despite always being wrong, and never once being right, that any day soon now they will be vindicated and recognized as brilliant visionaries.

    Like dangerous Heaven’s Gate cultists, they will never ever turn away from the bullshit. They are just too invested in all of it. And if it wasn’t clear enough before, by now it ought to be plenty obvious that if we dont put these people away once and for all they are going to poison all the kool aid and take the rest of us down with them.

  33. 33

    Damage control won’t work much longer. The GOP has a loose cannon in its camp, and they’re gonna have to do something about it before much longer.

  35. 35

    The Hump Administration – Bankrupting America, one day at a time. Just like he failed as a businessman, with multiple bankruptcies (or organized bank robbery). Every good bank robber who gets away with it should be considered a good businessman, better than The Hump.

    The only difference is that the Banks won’t let you get away with robbing them. The American people are not so smart, they’ll be robbed right under their noses and will not even get a small wiff of it.

  37. 37

    “…causes the status quo of Republicans to change…”

    That’s like saying an iceberg caused the status quo of the Titanic to change.

    #youbuiltthat

  38. 38

    Republican President AnalLube got up this morning and told Mattis to GTFO NOW!
    Still no replacement nominated yet.
    By statute Deputy will act.
    Same as it ever was.

    This is really “the status quo” of Republicans are from now on.

  39. 39

    33,
    “…and they’re gonna have to do something about it…”

    Nope.
    It’s really long past time to stop talking about Republicans like this.

    They aren’t going to do anything at all. They really, really like this shit.

    They like the falling DOW. They like the exploding deficit. They like the mass resignations. They like the Republican War on Christmas Shitdown. They like torturing and killing Guatemalan infants and toddlers. They like Nazi Tiki Torch rallies. They like $15,000 office dining room sets. They like beer drunk violent date rape. They like Roy Moore groping high school freshmen. They like rising sea levels. They like taxpayer funded NetJets excursions to Paris for coke fueled partying with lobbyists. They like Russian meddling. They like election fraud. They like Duncan Hunter fucking off to Florida with teenage hookers and expensing it to the campaign. They like dismembering dissident journalists while they are still alive.

    This is really “the status quo” of Republicans from now on.

  40. 40

    @39 “This is really “the status quo” of Republicans from now on.” Absolutely correct.

    How do they get to this to be the status quo? With moron enablers like Pars and Dr. Dumbfuck and putting fear into their ignorant base.

    I know the movie “Idiocracy” was made as comedy/satire but actually appears to be quite a prognosticator of the future, albeit now and not 500 years from now as in the film: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0387808/

  42. 42

    @36

    I really wouldn’t know about that. Of course, you could always go and screw yourself.

  44. 44

    @43 Nothing a jackhammer or oxyacetylene torch can’t open a passage through. Unless every foot of the wall is constantly under observation, it will soon look like swiss cheese.

  45. 45

    Something for the boomers like bob, to think about. This is what the kids think of you and your kind.
    “We were born in your world…but you will die in ours.”

  46. 46

    45

    Yeah, but we didn’t major in bullshit and actually have real jobs that provide good lives for us while your ilk wants safe spaces and free shit forever!.

    Eat shit and die, you little fuck!

  53. 53

    Eat shit and die, you little fuck!

    Funny you should mention that, old man.
    But maybe we need to talk about the nursing home’s regular Tuesday night chocolate pudding and whatever happened to your heart pills.

  55. 55

    So at President AnalLube’s raging insistence, The Mnooch arranged a call this morning with the Working Group on Financial Markets to try and push poll the members about firing Powell. They all responded that the markets were behaving as expected, that banks continue to lend, and that they agreed with Fed market policy. Indexes continued to plunge as the major party in control of the government spiraled incompetently out of control during a failure to fund government operations.

    Maybe it would be best if the entire Republican Party just went golfing in Florida… forever.

  56. 56

    @50 In other words, you were hiding while we were defending our country against a foreign invader.

  57. 57

    @55 I can think of less gentle fates for them. All self-inflicted. I’d love to be a fly on the wall watching these guys watch the ticker tape. The S&P 500 is now back to where it was in March 2017. Congratulations, Mr. President, on your brilliant economic policies.

  59. 59

    @52

    Are we sure Piddles is gone?

    What a comeback! Sweet burn.

    I’ve missed having a pre-teen wit around here.

  61. 61

    @59, nah – either Max or Bob.

    We’ll never know because they are too ashamed of showing their real faces here.

    GOP = Fuck America!

  62. 62

    But the Economy, the awesomely, awesome, great economy is great!

    People can be fooled into being told that their shit don’t stink.

    I asked for the graphs….what graphs….it’s awesome!

  63. 63

    It’s unfortunate that the black guy isn’t President anymore. If he were, all of what is happening right now in this Country would be so understandable. It would come down to one reason – the black guy. Mitch and that drunk (how quick we forget names) House of Representative from Ohio, and Sarah (the you know what), and the rest of the Tea Baggers would be looking to lynch the fucker (you know who).

    Right now them same fucks, they either no longer exist or getting ready to enjoy the rest of their day. Bunch of lousy fucks.

  64. 64

    @59 Yeah, boring as hell with only doc* and fetid body parts to kick around. We need more sacrificial trolls.

    * Doc is actually an endless loop recording 14.7 seconds long.

  65. 65

    “Didn’t vote for Trump or Clinton.”

    Predictably being said by each and every one of the 63 million ignorant, beer-drunk, trailer trash who sold out their allegiance to democracy in exchange for permission to tell racist jokes at work again.

    #youbuiltthat

  66. 66

    As we might have expected, The Mnooch’s call to the Working Group members testing the waters for Republican President PornFinger’s plan to fire Powell had an alarming effect on the markets at the close. And with the vast majority of the world’s traders and analysts heading out to party with family, friends, and coworkers for the rest of today and tomorrow, accompanied by more speculation and concern about the mental imbalance of Republican President RageBaby, more of the same is sure to follow on Wednesday.

    Here’s the thing: this is what The Republican Party wants. Some donors may be upset. A few may even be fed up. But from President FingerProbe on down through the ranks, including Ryan, McConnell, and the rest of the party leadership, this shit is what they want. They want the chaos. They want the uncertainty. They will use it. They will invent a caravan, or a Chinese plot, trigger a sell off, or exploit a school shooting or a natural disaster. Whatever it takes to put fear into the half-pickled brain pans of every beer-drunk witless shit stained trailerbilly, and get them to stay the course. That’s the whole program now, kids. The ideology is gone. Policy is for losers. These guys stand for chaos and fear now. Because that’s what gets them elected.

    This is really “the status quo” of Republicans from now on.

  67. 67

    @66 And here I thought they were scheming to sell their stock, then tank the market by creating chaos, so they could buy it back for half of what they sold it for.

  68. 68

    67,
    Gaming the markets is only an accessory feature of modern conservatism.
    In that sense they consider themselves innocent of any wrongdoing. Every market participant is equally free to act on the presumption that, despite the silly media branding, Republicans can be counted upon to wreck the economy in some fashion.
    They always do.

    This is really “the status quo” of Republicans from now on.

  69. 69

    Merry Christmas, Putin-loving traitors! May you spend the next one behind bars.

    I can’t believe it’s already past 9:00 a.m. and this is today’s first post. Looks like everyone’s sleeping in this morning.

  70. 70

    @69

    Merry Christmas, meh, just another day.

    What we should be celebrating is the birth of Sir Issac Newton because he was born today in 1642: https://earthsky.org/human-world/this-date-in-science-isaac-newtons-birthday
    OK, I will concede that it depends on which calendar is used, but Newton himself would have claimed a December 25th birthday.

    The stock markets paid their respects to Newton by free falling like an apple from a tree.

    Happy Newtonmas everyone!

  71. 71

    It’s RBG’s last Xmas on earth.

    Which really is too bad, because if there was fairness in this world it would be Hillary’s last Xmas on earth instead.

  72. 72

    Ah there it is, the good doctor wishing death upon females. Such a charming bedside manner. How Christian of him, I guess he has given up “keeping up appearances”.

  73. 73

    @70 “The stock markets paid their respects to Newton by free falling like an apple from a tree.”

    I could have sworn I saw Trump up in the tree throwing them down, no gravity or bad economy needed.

  75. 75

    @72 Like Trump, and toddlers everywhere, he’s rattling his playpen and throwing his blocks because he’s starved for attention. Best ignore it.

  76. 76

    @74 The Democrats should sit tight. Then the Republicans in Congress will have to choose between two options:

    Option 1: Override Trump’s veto of a CR, or

    Option 2: Watch the “Trump Shutdown” become a “GOP Shutdown.”

    My guess is they’ll override, but it doesn’t really matter, because either way is a disaster for their party.

  77. 77

    Happy Holidays HA HEROES and vlad putin worshiping trolls set on infinite repeat:

    boob: harry reid! that bitch!

    z0 pork sauce: porn demorats!

    schizo glibertarian broken record: die roger rabbit! that bitch! gold! pot!

    Ailes is dead. Billo the klown is off the air and many millions of dollars poorer. Life is good!

  78. 78

    Trump is missing a real chance to appeal to his base. To build his stupid wall, he should just catch and conscript all the people that try to cross illegally. Put Sheriff Joe in charge of the chain gangs and once the wall is completed the conscripts can then apply for citizenship.

    That would almost be Republican nirvana and Trump would 1) get his wall, 2) claim Mexico built it, 3) make people sucking on the government tit work for their rations, and 4) provide a path for citizenship to illegals.

  79. 79

    Selected Border Patrol agents not only get to work on Christmas Day, but don’t get paid for it. That will do wonders for recruiting and retention.

  80. 80

    @78 Trump will never go along with (4). He even wants to kick out the ones who are already citizens.

    And not just the Latinos. While he won’t say it, his heart is in “send ’em back to Africa.”

  82. 82

    “Ah there it is, the good doctor wishing death upon females.”

    On Christmas day, no less. Trading options while the orange moron tweeted must have resulted in the good doctor finding nothing but coal in his stocking this morning.

    Geez, this is HA’s first Christmas since the loon (RIP) got himself lynched. SAD!

    Merry Christmas, everybody!

  85. 85

    @ 83

    You can watch and read Massey’s posts below:

    I’d be more interested in watching the hotel video footage prior to Massey being approached by the security guard.

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