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Happy Thanksgiving and/or Thursday! Open Thread

Happy Thanksgiving, to everyone who celebrates it! And a very merry Thursday to everyone who doesn’t.

Because I haven’t provided a health update in a while (outside of the comments) I just wanted to reassure everyone that I am still here, and still trying to sort through a bunch of medical issues with the help of assorted doctors, some very competent and others not so much.

The issues I’m facing aren’t lifethreatening, but they are still debilitating enough to keep me from regular posting here. Sorry to be so vague; I’ll offer more details once some of these issues are sorted out a bit more. I’ll return to posting as soon as I am able but I cannot predict when that will be.

I appreciate everyone’s patience and continued support. Thanks!

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Buttercup Q. Skullpants

@Kat

Is it just me or does everyone notice that the guy puts foundation on his lips, not just his skin?

Euw! I always just assumed they were chapped from kissing Putin’s ass.

Kat, ambassador of the feminist government in exile
Kat, ambassador of the feminist government in exile
6 years ago

@Buttercup

Snort.

Tovius
6 years ago

@Buttercup
Well, you’re not wrong.

Kat, ambassador of the feminist government in exile
Kat, ambassador of the feminist government in exile
6 years ago

Conductor and pianist James Levine!

Metropolitan Opera
(@MetOpera)
We are deeply disturbed by the news articles that are being published online today about James Levine. We are working on an investigation w outside resources to determine whether charges of sexual misconduct in the 1980s are true, so that we can take appropriate action.
3 hours ago · Twitter

Zak Hudak
(@HudakZak)
.@MetOpera GM Peter Gelb confirms that the Met became aware of child molestation allegations against current Director Emeritus James Levine in 2016. pic.twitter.com/rdSuPHK…
59 mins ago · Twitter

The New York Times
(@nytimes)
Met Opera to Investigate James Levine Over Sexual Abuse Accusation nyti.ms/2ADJZtY
3 hours ago · Twitter

abars01
abars01
6 years ago

The US just threw 13 million people off healthcare, whilst this week, Australia looks slated to legalize gay marriage. I swear, I’m hating America and loving Australia just a little bit more every day nowadays. (More broadly, I’m hating America and loving every first-world industrialized nation that isn’t America just a little bit more every day nowadays).

Any person who proclaims America to be the “greatest country in the world” is roundly invited by me to insert their genitals into a food processor.

weirwoodtreehugger: chief manatee

That’s nice, dear.

Swedish Sexual Bread
Swedish Sexual Bread
6 years ago

@abars01
Honestly, given Australia’s treatment of refugees, I’d not really be ready to start loving Australia all too much yet.

Pie
Pie
6 years ago

@surplus

Meanwhile, how long until a major political issue in Canada is illegal immigrants pouring in from our southern border because we have a way higher standard of living, I wonder?

Well, you can’t do a proper job of bringing the republic of Gilead to life without a well controlled border, so I’m sure the issue will resolve itself.

Shadowplay
6 years ago

@Brony

Firstly, I apologise that my comment on your blog (and excellent analysis) caused you to revisit some pain. No one needs that, and I am truly sorry. You are wise to concentrate on the essentials first, and it sounds like your wife totally rocks as a person. You’re not too shabby yourself. 🙂

Oh yeah, the ethical problems with planning group trips into hostile territory is that there will be people who treat it like they are being attacked. I need to plan for intense reactions to what look like reasonable criticism to us. We need to plan for acting our best and the worst occurring.

Well, to be fair, they are being attacked, right in the worldview. Now although Archimedes was right – with a lever and a place to stand you can move a world, you do need a hell of a long lever. Worlds don’t move easily, and people often die rather than be forced to change their core. 😛

This has to be about managing aggressive responses and other intense responses to things they hate. That seems an ethical thing to do. Do the work of considering positive and negative approaches and preparing for deliberate and measured increases and decreases of intensity that can be justified. There will be a reaction to this sort of thing. From the 10% consciously terrible people and their dominance displays if nothing else. The enablers will be different in how they relate and behave too.

It is an ethical approach – and far more generous and considerate than what seems to be the norm.
I do suggest you factor in an additional 10% who will never change their mind, no matter what. These people are fixed in their ways and, in terms of sheer ethics, should be identified quickly as such and disengaged – with respect if possible. While disengaging does nothing for them, that reasonableness does have an effect on onlookers who are more open to argument and discussion. It’s a long haul job you are talking about 🙂

Editing because the blockquote mammoth found my offering worthy.

Mish of the Catlady Ascendancy
Mish of the Catlady Ascendancy
6 years ago

Thanks you guise, for the good wishes re my awesome niece and her awesome girlfriend. The crusty old socialist part of me isn’t really fussed one way or the other about marriage per se – but it has status, and recognition, and a ton of benefits and privileges. I’m happy that Mia and Holly (see, even their names are awesome) can access those.

Re Australia more generally – nah :D. As Swedish Sexual Bread pointed out, our current treatment of asylum seekers is more than enough to have us struck off the “Good & Nice Country” list, not to mention the myriad of ways the current govt is trying to fuck over those of us actually living here. I’m grateful for Twitter etc. which means we can stay in touch with the men on Manus.
My money’s on New Zealand – pretty cool leader, great cultural production (The Piano, Peter Jackson’s oeuvre, What we do in the Shadows), gorgeous environment, and hands-down best sense of wacky humour.

More seriously – awful news re the tax bill, USian people. Really, really, hope it doesn’t get any further. My hoping and fingers crossed does absolutely nothing constructive, but I’ll keep doing it <3

Surplus to Requirements, Observer of the Vast Blight-Wing Enstupidation
Surplus to Requirements, Observer of the Vast Blight-Wing Enstupidation
6 years ago

Knowing my luck, if I ever managed to emigrate to New Zealand it would be right before the next VEI-8 from the Taupo Volcanic Zone. 😛

mildlymagnificent
mildlymagnificent
6 years ago

Back to Flynn’s guilty plea. I’ve looked through the last couple of days worth of comments and I can’t see whether anyone has posted this marvelous video. Downfall eat your heart out.

Weird (thumper of trumpanzees) Eddie
Weird (thumper of trumpanzees) Eddie
6 years ago

@ mildymagnificent

That’s some good video work there (in addition to being a spot-on “Mike’s summer daydream”)!!

That must be the same technology the reptilian people used to fake the “Access Hollywood” vid… (/s)

Weird (thumper of trumpanzees) Eddie
Weird (thumper of trumpanzees) Eddie
6 years ago

Read this. It’s scary.

PeeVee the (Tired of the Militant Plasticfaced) Sarcastic
PeeVee the (Tired of the Militant Plasticfaced) Sarcastic
6 years ago

Mildlymagnificent, that’s really well done.

I like this one, too:

https://youtu.be/nSuregWhlWk

(Sorry, I can’t imbed from my phone.)

Brony, Social Justice Cenobite

@Shadowplay
No apology necessary. I was aiming for matter-of-fact. Being socially open about these things helps in taking them seriously. Therapy is maintenance and it’s often like going to work. There are some places that are unexpectedly though, my therapist seems to like my view of Tourette’s Syndrome and ADHD useful.

It’s frankly unsurprising what my wife and I are learning and practicing. She had the traditional Catholic thing and I had the male conservative protestant military thing. I wish we knew to do this earlier.

It was tough, but I have places where I made the best of a bad situation. I supported her professional aspirations and now she’s being groomed for future administration roles and happy at work. She followed and supported my attempt to be a research scientist and I’m happy to be making my career compatible with hers.

Brony, Social Justice Cenobite

That should have been “… unexpectedly fun though…” in my comment above.

Shadowplay
6 years ago

@Brony

Thank you. You are gracious too. 🙂

Being socially open about these things helps in taking them seriously

Yeah, I’m the same with being an alcoholic. Being open about it reduces it’s power. Somewhat, at least.

Tovius
6 years ago

Did you see this! Convicted Rapist Brock Turner is trying to appeal having to register as a sex offender!

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/brock-turner-files-appeal_us_5a22f1d4e4b03350e0b71db1

Fuck him.

Hippodameia
Hippodameia
6 years ago

Oh, he wants a whole new trial because the prosecutor said the assault happened “behind the dumpster” instead of “by the dumpster.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/grade-point/wp/2017/12/02/stanford-sex-offender-brock-turner-is-appealing-his-conviction/?hpid=hp_no-name_hp-in-the-news%3Apage%2Fin-the-news&utm_term=.e16948df4bf8

He’d better watch himself – in a second trial he might get a judge with a brain.

Tovius
6 years ago

@Hippodameia
We can hope.

PaganReader - Misandrist Spinster

@RedSilkPhoenix
I don’t know anything about that browser, or how to use a Fire 7, so this might not help, but Puffin works with Flash.
https://www.puffinbrowser.com

Redsilkphoenix: Jetpack Vixen, Agent of the FemiNest Collective; Keeper of a Hell Toupee, and all-around Intergalactic Meanie
Redsilkphoenix: Jetpack Vixen, Agent of the FemiNest Collective; Keeper of a Hell Toupee, and all-around Intergalactic Meanie
6 years ago

@PaganReader,

Thanks. I’ll try it out on my tablet once I get to a free WiFi spot in the next day or so, and see if that works on it. Though I should point out that part of my problem with my Fire is that I seem unable to access any App Store besides the Amazon one, and Amazon seems to not carry things like Chrome or Firefox on it. Which kinda throws a monkey wrench into figuring out how to do Flash on it.

@Hippodameia,

*Tilts head* Uhm, doesn’t “behind” mean pretty much the same thing as “by” in this case? I kinda doubt that the Court of Appeals would toss the conviction over that detail.

Kat, ambassador of the feminist government in exile
Kat, ambassador of the feminist government in exile
6 years ago

A lot of covering his own ass in Billy Bush’s op-ed piece — but apparently BB heard the same words we did: Grab ’em by the pussy. Oh, and seven other guys on that bus heard the same thing.

Billy Bush: Yes, Donald Trump, You Said That

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/03/opinion/billy-bush-trump-access-hollywood-tape.html

opposablethumbs
opposablethumbs
6 years ago

you’ve probably already seen this, but just in case you haven’t – have a one-minute video of extreme happy, to help counteract some of the awful:

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/video/2017/dec/04/australian-mp-proposes-to-partner-during-same-sex-marriage-debate-in-parliament-video

(who can help but be particularly pleased that the answer to the question gets recorded in Hansard, as duly noted by the Speaker of the House 🙂 )

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