October 27, 2020

The FBI should have a little chat with donnie about what he can and cannot say

regarding a political opponent. "Oh, that wasn't what I really meant" is not a defense. toddler in chief needs to chill.

October 27, 2020

Yet another mountain of grift trump needs to be investigated for if the Emoluments Clause

is to mean anything ever again. Time for an independent investigation and Special Counsel. It doesn't matter if no one has managed to nail trump for his crimes before now. The time for that has come as well.

October 27, 2020

For those who can swing it, local food banks need your help now more than ever.

Thanks if you can pay it forward, just take care of yourself if you can't. We all take turns.

I'm so angry at Mitch McConnell right now I can't think anything else half sensible to say.

October 27, 2020

Thank you so much for posting that, Jim. Thank you, niyad, for requesting it.

What a beautiful song of hope. Bravo to Isolde and all of the girls who were involved in the creation of this song and video. Here's one of the best responses to it:

Yes, she will.

October 26, 2020

You might want to get a VPN.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virtual_private_network
https://www.techradar.com/vpn/best-free-vpn
https://www.vpnmentor.com/blog/top-really-free-vpn-services/


I've used TunnelBear (free) in the past, and currently have paid NordVPN (free 30 day trial) which I got on sale. I haven't used TunnelBear in a while, so I don't know how well it works these days. NordVPN works very well for me, and I'm able to use it on my phone as well as my laptop, which is nice.

Good luck.

October 26, 2020

13, 15, 21... I don't care, we just need to fix it.

The size of the Supreme Court and its heavy consequences have been a problem for decades. It could be that the timing of Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death and the fallout from it are a blessing in disguise. Circumstances seem to be coalescing into the perfect storm that finally will allow us to deal with the issue.

October 25, 2020

I am so happy for Hunter that Joe is his dad,

and that Joe Biden is willing and able to stand up for and stand by his son so well. There was another essay linked in the article that also talks about this:

https://slate.com/human-interest/2020/10/joe-biden-hunter-kiss-masculinity.html

Really looking forward to having a stable, loving family in the White House again.

October 25, 2020

Fantastic! I have been wishing for something like this.

I wanted something like another 'My American Prayer' to come along, but figured that was lightning in a bottle. It likely wouldn't happen again.
I was wrong. So happy I was wrong. Here it is, and it's so powerful. It's so absolutely beautiful.

October 24, 2020

I'm of two minds on the issue of mandatory voting.

On the one hand, everyone has to file taxes, so why shouldn't everyone have to vote? It's a very glib way of putting it, but it is a point. There are times when citizens in a 'free country' are compelled to do things by their government, and they do them. Is it so bad to require voting?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compulsory_voting#Arguments_against

On the other hand, if compulsory voting seems a step too far, what about compulsory registration? One of the hurdles to voting is getting registered, and some people do find that a big hurdle. If everyone went onto the voter rolls automatically at age eighteen, there's one less roadblock to getting people to vote. There would be details that vary state by state, as some states have closed primaries requiring party declarations. There also might be serious privacy concerns. This could be a backdoor route to the national ID database that conservatives and Republicans have been salivating over for decades. Along with Bob Barr (of all people) and the ACLU, I've long agreed that national ID is an idea rife with problems.

https://www.aclu.org/other/5-problems-national-id-cards
https://www.aclu.org/issues/privacy-technology/national-id/real-id

Australia manages to have compulsory voting while not requiring any sort of national ID, so it can work. Any Aussies who could weigh in on how this gets done would be appreciated.

eta, though personal stories from Australia would be great -
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/22/world/australia/compulsory-voting.html
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/mar/08/how-australias-compulsory-voting-saved-it-from-trumpism

One way to make voter registration easier is to fold in the process with application for driver's licenses, etc.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Voter_Registration_Act_of_1993 ["Motor Voter" - thanks, Bill C.!]
https://www.ncsl.org/research/elections-and-campaigns/automatic-voter-registration.aspx

Other ways to get better turnout without requiring voting include a national voting holiday and/or weekend, and as seen this election, having vote by mail available in all 50 states.

It doesn't seem that there is one magic fix to getting more people to vote, but a multi-pronged strategy might be the way to go. Any other ideas?

Thoughts?

October 23, 2020

There has been no repeal of the Civil Service Reform Act

Apologies for a naive question, but legally, can he actually do this? In know trump does what he wants, but that's not my question. There is legislation currently in place - isn't there a problem if presidents throw out that legislation with the sweep of pen? Congress passes the law, not the president. Do they have any pushback?