Too Good for Their Voters

George H.W. Bush is too good for the Republican National Convention. Let me repeat that. George H.W. Bush, whose pardons ended any chance of anyone being punished for the Iran-Contra cover-up and whose government denied for years that any veterans suffered as a result of the first Gulf War, is too good for a Republican National Convention at which Donald Trump will be nominated. (Donald Trump’s policies, at this point, have killed exactly nobody. Can’t say the same for Bush the First.) You know who else is too good for the Republican National Convention? George W. Bush. You might remember … Continue reading Too Good for Their Voters

Saturday Odds & Sods: They All Laughed

Mondrian
Painting by Piet Mondrian.

It’s been a wet May thus far in New Orleans. Jazz Fest was a muddy mess. The day we went turned out to be the driest of the second weekend. I wonder if the Mud Brothers returned to slip and slide in the slop?

In other news, the Formosan termite swarms returned to town. It’s a spectacular sight but not if you’re caught out in it. It’s like the locust scene in The Good Earth but doesn’t last very long. Somehow Adrastos World Headquarters was spared the worst. I have a theory about that:

Actually, I should give credit where it’s really due:

Enough Termite talk. Time to bug out and move on to this week’s theme song. They All Laughed was written by the brothers Gershwin for the 1937 Astaire-Rogers movie musical Shall We Dance. It became one of Fred’s signature tunes. My favorite Astaire version is a 1953 small group jazz version with the great Oscar Peterson on piano:

Next up on the Gershwin hit parade are Ella and Louis with Oscar Peterson on piano. Detect a pattern? It’s followed by a swinging big band version from Der Bingle:

Finally, it would be unforgivable if I didn’t let Fred and Ginger dance in an art deco nightclub for you this Saturday morning:

Now that we’ve all laughed, it’s time for the break. See you on the other side.

Continue reading “Saturday Odds & Sods: They All Laughed”

Bill Kristol Should Keep Charles de Gaulle’s Name Out of His Whore Mouth

Today has been quite the day for whiny Republican man-boys who, in the wake of Donald Trump securing the nomination of their party for President, have taken to the Internets to write 3,000 word essays about their stupid fucking feelings. Their party led for the past two decades by draft dodgers and former Nixon bagmen, these meatflaps spent the Bush years declaring themselves an oppressed minority fighting against The Terrorists by changing the font colors on their idiot websites. They called themselves a Strike Force, and an Army. They offered their bodies for the fapping to protection of their favorite female warbloggers lest … Continue reading Bill Kristol Should Keep Charles de Gaulle’s Name Out of His Whore Mouth

John Off The Kasich/Never Say Never Trump

I’ve been waiting to use that Kasich pun but thought he was going to hang in longer. I’m not sure if he’s going to support the Insult Comedian but the so-called Never Trump “movement” is folding like a circus tent. Charlie Pierce called him a Potemkin candidate, which is not far wrong. He’s a hardcore Class of 1994 conservative who doesn’t froth at the mouth and that made him a moderate in this race. I guess one could call it the Kasich of the Potemkin Moderate… The man who’s wrong about everything, Bill Kristol is making noises about caving to … Continue reading John Off The Kasich/Never Say Never Trump

Maybe Detroit’s Teachers Could Sell Some Bling

Then they could afford to work!  “There’s a basic agreement in America: When you put in a day’s work, you’ll receive a day’s pay. DPS is breaking that deal,” Ivy Bailey, the union’s interim president, said in a statement. “Teachers want to be in the classroom giving children a chance to learn and reach their potential. Unfortunately, by refusing to guarantee that we will be paid for our work, DPS is effectively locking our members out of the classrooms.” Teachers rallied at the school system’s headquarters Detroit on Monday morning to “protest the news that Detroit educators will not be paid for … Continue reading Maybe Detroit’s Teachers Could Sell Some Bling

Why I’m Not Afraid of President Trump’s Economic Policies

Shit like this:  “It depends on how aggressive you want to be. I’d rather not be so aggressive. Don’t forget: We have to rebuild the infrastructure of our country. We have to rebuild our military, which is being decimated by bad decisions. We have to do a lot of things. We have to reduce our debt, and the best thing we have going now is that interest rates are so low that lots of good things can be done that aren’t being done, amazingly.” In other words, Trump wants to spend on infrastructure. He doesn’t really care about eliminating the … Continue reading Why I’m Not Afraid of President Trump’s Economic Policies

Today on Tommy T’s Obsession with the Freeperati – Will, or Will not edition

Georgie porgie, puddin’ and pie.

Freepers all want to see you die.

Why?

[George Will]:If Trump is nominated, the GOP must keep him out of the White House
Washington Compost ^ | 29 April 2016 | George Will

Posted on 4/29/2016, 10:41:16 PM by Fractal Trader

Donald Trump’s damage to the Republican Party, although already extensive, has barely begun. Republican quislings will multiply, slinking into support of the most anti-conservative presidential aspirant in their party’s history. These collaborationists will render themselves ineligible to participate in the party’s reconstruction.

Ted Cruz’s announcement of his preferred running mate has enhanced the nomination process by giving voters pertinent information. They already know the only important thing about Trump’s choice: His running mate will be unqualified for high office because he or she will think Trump is qualified.

Hillary Clinton’s optimal running mate might be Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio, a pro-labor populist whose selection would be balm for the bruised feelings of Bernie Sanders’s legions. Running mates rarely matter as electoral factors: In 2000, Al Gore got 43.2 percent of the North Carolina vote. In 2004, John Kerry, trying to improve upon Gore’s total there, ran with North Carolina Sen. John Edwards but received 43.6 percent. If, however, Brown were to help deliver Ohio for Clinton, the Republican path to 270 electoral votes would be narrower than a needle’s eye. [SNIP]

Trump would be the most unpopular nominee ever, unable to even come close to Mitt Romney’s insufficient support among women, minorities and young people. In losing disastrously, Trump probably would create down-ballot carnage sufficient to end even Republican control of the House. Ticket splitting is becoming rare in polarized America: In 2012, only 5.7 percent of voters supported a presidential candidate and a congressional candidate of opposite parties.

1 posted on 4/29/2016, 10:41:16 PM by Fractal Trader
So, George – basically you’re saying that outside of the Freeperville bubble, people can’t stand the fucking jerk?
How about inside the Freeper bubble?
To: Fractal Trader

 

George Will needs to finish his lobotomy.

2 posted on 4/29/2016, 10:42:38 PM by datura

Downside of the GOP’s disgust with The Darnold?
To: datura

 

If they try this…Trump will just jump the fence.

6 posted on 4/29/2016, 10:44:45 PM by hal ogen (First Amendment or Reeducation Camp?.)

OhPleasePleasePlease
.
To: Fractal Trader

 

Poor George Will.

To the Left of Juan Williams, George Will
is married to a RINO’s flack and WIllard Romney.
What a threesome they must have; perhaps
foursome with Juan.

7 posted on 4/29/2016, 10:45:31 PM by Diogenesis (“When a crime is unpunished, the world is unbalanced.”)

.
FreudOnVacation
.

What a #ing scumbag.

18 posted on 4/29/2016, 10:49:59 PM by Gene Eric (Don’t be a statist!)

I do notice that the Cruz Loosers are nowhere to be found on this thread.
Perhaps The Darnold’s knob-lavers ate them?
GrouchoTrump
.
More Triumph Of The Will after the “nope”.

 

Continue reading “Today on Tommy T’s Obsession with the Freeperati – Will, or Will not edition”

Not Everything Sucks: Some People Make Doghouses

In case you needed this today:  Smith, who grew up in Bronzeville, sets up in the backyard of a two-flat apartment building in the 7000 block of South Aberdeen Avenue. Smith says that he had gotten many customers who happen to drive by and see him making benches and dog houses. He says he make doghouses for all types of dogs. “It started out as a hobby for me. I would bring out my tools, start to make them, and people would ask if they could buy them,” Smith said. “A lot people are amazed. They have never seen houses in such colors.” A. Continue reading Not Everything Sucks: Some People Make Doghouses

Both Sides Bombed Cambodia!

No, basically:  Kerry’s past and present will merge again Wednesday at a Vietnam symposium at the LBJ Presidential Library in Austin, Texas. He will preview the Obama trip, and chat onstage with filmmaker Ken Burns about Burns’s upcoming documentary on the Vietnam War. [snip] Kerry is not the only participant under criticism. Some students at the University of Texas are calling for pickets to protest Henry Kissinger, who was secretary of state during a particularly bloody stretch in the long war. John Kerry: Served honorably, came home at the age of 27 and said nobody else should have to do … Continue reading Both Sides Bombed Cambodia!

Sunday Morning Video: Bad Company Live

It’s guilty pleasure time here at First Draft. I’ve always had a soft spot for Bad Company who are technically adept musicians playing stripped-down blues rock. Besides, nobody tosses a mic stand as well as Paul Rodgers. And the man can sing a little. This is a 2008 show from the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida. That tour marked the return of lead guitarist Mick Ralphs. There’s no word as to whether the band had any dealings with Florida Man: Continue reading Sunday Morning Video: Bad Company Live