Don't you hate when that happens?

Whoopsie!

 The latest republican bugaboo is the use of vaccine passports, whereby in the future the government and businesses may require people to carry proof of their vaccinations for COVID-19 in order to gain entry into government offices and restaurants, sporting events, grocery stores, etc.

The government requirement is actually pretty cut and dried, as anyone with children in public schools will tell you.  Every child is required to be vaccinated against certain diseases in our public school systems, or they aren't attending.  Any parents who choose not to vaccinate their children are free to home school or send them to a religious nutjob school.

What I find most karmic, though, is businesses requiring people to show proof of vaccination (these businesses are being called "communist corporations," a glaring oxymoron if ever I've heard one).  Most people don't realize that unless you're self-employed or work for an exceedingly small business (with a really shitty lawyer), companies across the board have Employee at Will policies.  An Employee at Will policy states the following:  the company you work for is free to terminate your employment at any time with or without reason (i.e., at will); to make it sound not quite as draconian, it also states that you are free to end your employment at any time, with or without notice.  In short, this means that yes, the company you work for can indeed require you to get a vaccination or terminate you.  The minute you come on board, you're an employee at will until you leave.

Want to guess what helped usher in Employee at Will policies?  If you guessed Right to Work (for Less) laws, give yourself a kewpie doll--you're right!  And want to guess which party has been a champion of Right to Work (for Less) laws for decades?  Give yourself another kewpie doll if you guessed the GQP!

A wise human once said that payback is a motherfucker, but they neglected to mention that on occasion it's as funny as fuck, too.

Though I do suppose republicans are free to open their own restaurants or start their own sports leagues....

400,000 Needless Deaths Because the Pro-Life Party Botched the Pandemic

Peace,

emaycee

Another float in the pervert parade

Prisoners don't take kindly to pedophiles

 In completely unsurprising news, republican U.S. representative Matt Gaetz is under investigation for allegedly having sexual relation with a seventeen year old, and for transporting her across state lines for illicit purposes.

Gaetz joins such republican pervert luminaries as Roy Moore (lost Senate election because of his predilection for young girls), Jim Jordan (stood by while the athletes he coached were molested--for what it's worth, he believes Matt Gaetz when he says he's innocent), Dennis Hastert (went to prison for molesting boys he coached), and their beloved Donald Trump (who walked in on a young girls' dressing room in a beauty pageant of his--and God only knows what Jeffrey Epstein knew before he was killed commited suicide).  For all the QAnon nonsense about pedophiles running the world, you'd think they'd have figured out by now that pedophiles are running the republican party.

By the way, how long do you suppose before republicans forget all about how they said Bill Clinton shouldn't have taken advantage of twenty-four year old Monica Lewinskey, and start their defense of Gaetz by saying that a seventeen year old isn't all that young and plenty of young girls look strikingly like adults?

400,000 Needless Deaths Because the Pro-Life Party Botched the Pandemic

Peace,

emaycee

These boots are made for mocking

 

The people's philosopher

I read this quote today and I immediately thought of the republican base:

          

          "People who bite the hand that feeds them usually lick the boot that kicks them."

                                                            --Eric Hoffer

It's been noted again and again by people much better at political blogging than me, but the average republican votes again and again against their best interests.  Democrats are constantly crafting policies that will make them safer, healthier, and wealthier, but republican voters are too happy to embrace a free market that crushes them and an individualism that hollows their lives.

Their subservience to an imagined power over others has garnered them nothing.

400,000 Dead Americans Because the Pro-Life Party Botched the Pandemic

Peace,

emaycee

Give us that old time religion

Speaking with tongues...

News this week that church membership in the United has dropped from 70% to 47% since 1999 should be met with little surprise.  Over the course of the last thirty years, both evangelical Christians as well as the Catholic Church have sold out the poor and the sick for anti-abortion platitudes and homophobia.  The decline in identifying with a church is a validation of them reaping exactly what they sowed:  disgust and distrust.

It seems that even 2100 years after their savior's death, actions still speak louder than words to most folks.

400,000 Dead Americans Because the Pro-Life Party Botched the Pandemic

Peace,

emaycee

Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. CCCXXV--David Bowie: Rebel Rebel

 The first time I heard this week's tune, I was driving my parents car to one of my college classes, and I was absolutely convinced it was a Neil Young song I'd never heard before because the guitars sounded exactly like Neil Young guitars.  When I got home later that day I immediately went to check my three or four Neil Young albums and was extremely disappointed that it appeared on none of them.  Some time later, I managed to get to a music store and checked the big music catalogs they used to have (whose name I have completely forgotten) and discovered it was by David Bowie.  Oddly enough, as I did my half-assed research this week, the guitar work in the song was compared again and again to the Rolling Stones.  After re-listening, I still think it sounds a lot more like Neil Young....

Man, I'm not even going to try a synopsis of David Bowie's career.  Not only is it long, varied, and critically acclaimed,  it is flat intimidating.  He truly was one of the few geniuses pop music ever spawned, and his influence will be felt long after most of us have left this vale.  Just to give you an idea, in the first week after his death, Bowie had 19 albums and 13 singles in the U.K. top one hundred albums and singles.  He is obviously a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and in 2016 Rolling Stone named him the greatest rock star ever (debatable, but I certainly didn't think "You've got to be fucking kidding!").  In the you don't know what you've got till it's gone category, Bowie won the bulk of his Grammy Awards and Brit Awards after his death in 2016.  His discography is mammoth, having released 27 studio LPs and 128 singles over the course of his 54 year career. He will be remembered for his music, his lyricism, his artistic tendencies, and his showmanship.  A once in a lifetime artist--enough said.

Fun Fact:  I was actually going to make this post's fun fact the fact that I could have made an entire post of fun facts just about Bowie's career, but I decided to opt instead for what Bowie said after he listened to "Tutti Frutti" by Little Richard for the first time:  it was like he had "heard God."

"Rebel Rebel" was released as the first single from Bowie's seminal work Diamond Dogs in 1974.  The single would hit #5 in his native U.K. and a somewhat disappointing #64 (with a bullet!) in the U.S. (possibly because his label released a shorter version here that most think pales in comparison to the original).  The album went to #1 in the U.K. and was Bowie's first big hit in the States, peaking at #5 on the Billboard 200.

"Rebel Rebel" is considered to be Bowie's goodbye to glam rock and his Ziggy Stardust persona, and if so, it's a hell of a parting.  Needless to say, the amount of my life spent partaking in anything other than reading about glam would fit inside Donald Trump's pea brain.  Nonetheless, when you hear Bowie's guitars (and yes, it's Bowie playing the guitar) and his fuck all vocals you are left captured by an incredible swan song.  And the fact that you don't need to live the glam life to both feel and understand this paean to youth probably says all you need to know about it.  It was the song that made me begin paying attention to David Bowie, and had I but world enough and time, I'm sure I would have explored every nook and cranny of his music.    As is, a brilliant tune from a brilliant--and much missed--artist.

Lyric Sheet:  "We like dancing and we look divine/You love bands when they're playing hard/You want more and you want it fast..."

Enjoy:

400,000 Dead Americans Because the Pro-Life Party Botched the Pandemic

Peace,

emaycee

Some things don't go better with Coke

 Kind of an interesting ad, don't you think, in light of Coke's silence on Georgia's recently passed voter suppression laws?

400,000 Dead Americans Because the Pro-Life Party Botched the Pandemic Response

Peace,

emaycee

If the shoe fits...

 

These folks aren't voting for Democrats...

Lindsey Graham went on Fox News today and said that the GQP was sick and tired of Democrats using the race card against the republican agenda.

Maybe the best way to end that is to stop being a party of racists?

400,000 Dead Americans Because the Pro-Life Party Botched the Pandemic Response

Peace,

emaycee

American genocide

 

They're literally killing their own.

It's republicans who are refusing to wear masks.  It's republicans who are going about their lives believing the coronavirus pandemic is a hoax.  It's republicans who are refusing to get the vaccine.  Throw in the fact that COVID-19 adversely affects those over the age of 65--a reliably republican demographic--and you have to wonder just how the GQP thinks it's helping itself by not promoting masks or advising its adherents to get the vaccine.  

Donald Trump is responsible for 400,000 American deaths--and red states are leading the nation in deaths per capita.  Donald Trump's policies concerning Americans' health have negatively impacted rural areas disproportionately when compared to cities--and rural areas are a GQP stronghold.  And yet the pro-life party literally kisses Trump's ass every time he farts.

And in the end, it's hard to feel sorry for a group of people that are more than happy to be led to their poverty ridden, drug addled, and politically pointless deaths by leaders who are more than happy to sacrifice them just to own the libs.

400,000 Dead Americans Because the Pro-Life Party Botched the Pandemic Response

Peace,

emaycee

The American Tass

 

A good flag for the GQP

If there's one positive Donald Trump has done for the GQP and conservatives, it's to turn them into world class whiny ass bitches.  Even Fox News got into the act this week, when their "reporter" Peter Doocy whimpered because Joe Biden didn't call on him to answer whatever irrelevant question he had hoped to ask during Biden's first press conference.

Can you blame Biden?  Fox News is to actual news what juggling is to neurosurgery.  They are not a news organization--they are the GQP Propaganda Channel.

And to be honest, I have no problem with that, as long as they're honest about it.  Hell, I'd love to have a Democratic Propaganda Channel, but for whatever odd reason selfish, hateful billionaires don't seem to want to throw around their billions for a Liberal oriented channel (amazing that George Soros--who's responsible for everything the left ever does--hasn't poured his wealth into such a channel for us)

The folks at Fox need to get over it.  America is not the Soviet Union where, no matter the leader, Tass is there to to proclaim they walk on water and raise the dead.  We have actual opposition parties here, and if Fox wishes to align itself with the party of fascism, they should not be surprised when the party for freedom isn't interested in playing their game.

400,000 Dead Americans Because the Pro-Life Party Botched the Pandemic Response

Peace,

emaycee

Biden my time

 400,000 Americans Are Dead Because the Pro-Life Party Botched the Pandemic Response

Peace,

emaycee

Don't say a little prayer

Remember:  Nothing is more futile than prayer

After another eighteen Americans died in two more senseless mass murders this week, Senator Ted Cruz said he wouldn't apologize for sending out utterly useless "thoughts and prayers" messages.  Apparently, contrary to all reason, the power of prayer actually works.  Sort of like belief in Santa will get that toy you want so badly--just ask any homeless child how well that works out.

The apology Cruz (and all those of his ilk) should be giving, though, is the one for all of the Americans who have died needlessly through gun violence because of their misguided faith in an amendment written two hundred and thirty years ago that could never have imagined the destruction that guns could cause.  Good luck in explaining your responsibility for those deaths to your God.

On the bright side, plenty of us will be sending you "thoughts and prayers" messages while you're rotting in hell.  Hope it helps.

Daily Reminder:  Zero Republicans Voted for the COVID-19 Relief Package

Peace,

emaycee

Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. CCCXXIV--Janet Jackson: Again

 For whatever odd reason, the music of the Jackson family, whether solo or in their incarnation as the Jackson 5 or the Jacksons, has never caught my fancy.  They're certainly an incredibly talented bunch, but my favorites playlist includes exactly two songs by a member of the Jackson family.  Both of them are by the family's youngest, Janet, and one of the two is this week's featured tune.

Like numerous other artists featured here on Friday Night Jukebox, Janet Jackson's accomplishments are a bit long and varied for a one paragraph synopsis so I'll just hit a few highlights (truth be told, her Wikipedia entry is novelesque and I just skimmed most of it).  Ms. Jackson actually got her start in television with her guest starring on the family variety show, followed by stints on Good Times, Diff'rent Strokes, and Fame.  In 1982 she began her recording career, and while her first two albums had little success, her third drove her into the sales stratosphere.  Jackson went on to be the second best selling artist of the nineties (Mariah Carey was first), and has sold over 100 million albums in her career (ninth best selling artist of the rock and roll era).  She has won five Grammy Awards (her list of overall awards is mind boggling).  For her career, she has released eleven studio albums (with seven of them hitting #1), and a whopping 78 singles with ten of them reaching the top of the Billboard Hot 100.  Jackson was elected into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2019, and has had nine world tours.

Fun Fact:  Ms. Jackson holds the record for most consecutive top ten hit singles by a female artist with 18 straight from 1989 to 1998.  Not a bad run....

"Again" was the third single from Jackson's album Janet (also known by janet.).  The song was originally the closing song of the movie Poetic Justice (though not included on the soundtrack).  Both the single and the album reached #1; additionally the song was nominated for an Academy Award and a Golden Globe for Best Original Song.

For the second straight week, we have a song that's a top forty wonder, though this week's is a ballad rather than a pop ditty.  Jackson tells the story of running into a former lover and realizing she's still in love with him, but not knowing if she can take the pain if he leaves her, well...again.  The melody is syrupy sweet throughout, aided by some lightly tickled ivories and a string section that gives the song its overarching glow.  In the end, though, this is Jackson's showcase and she sings it with all heartfelt hope and painstaking fear that she can muster.  Yes, it's a bit on the sappy side, but it's another nice musical reminder that love can both make us and break us...but we keep looking for it regardless.

Lyric Sheet:  "I've come too close to happiness/To have it swept away/Don't think I can take the pain/No never fall again..."

Enjoy:

Daily Reminder:  Zero Republicans Voted for the COVID-19 Relief Package

Peace,

emaycee

The crown clowns

The only throne republicans are worthy of

 I've noted a time or two here that had we had the republican party in 1776, they would have fought tooth and nail to keep the monarchy.  It's a reactionary party that has never believed in democracy.  They want government officials and their laws by fiat, and the rest of us can eat cake.

Thanks to the Heritage Foundation (what passes for a "think" tank--or more likely, fink tank--in conservative circles these days), we now have proof:  later this month they have scheduled a forum entitled "The Crown Under Fire:  Why the Left's Campaign to Cancel the Monarchy and Undermine a Cornerstone of Western Democracy Will Fail."

You cannot make this shit up.

Apparently the Heritage Foundation doesn't realize that we cancelled the Monarchy in 1776 when we a) crafted the Declaration of Independence, and b) thereafter fought the American Revolution to rid ourselves once and for all of said Monarchy.  For a think tank, not the brightest folks around.

Truth be told, if given our druthers I think most of us on the left would prefer that the United Kingdom not have a monarchy--but I don't imagine it's a platform most of us give all that much thought.  Too busy cleaning up republican messes here at home to worry a lot about a system that really doesn't much affect us since we opened a can of whoop ass on the Brits in the Revolutionary War.

Still, the Heritage Foundation's forum was one more reminder that conservatives do not like American Democracy--most seem just fine with the idea of installing Donald Trump as our permanent leader, voices of the voter be damned.  And their continued efforts at voter suppression further show their lack of caring for the American system.

You can forget all that "Don't Tread on Me" and "pissing on the tree of liberty" bullshit they like to proclaim as if they're the rightful heirs to the Founding Fathers.  Republicans don't love America--they hate it.

And they let us know again and again by their actions.

Daily Reminder:  Zero Republicans Voted for the COVID-19 Relief Package

Peace,

emaycee

Happiness is the truth

Ali would have whooped Trump's ass, too

 News out of San Antonio that a wax museum, Louis Tussaud's Waxworks, had to take down a statue of Donald Trump because it was sustaining continuous beatings warms the cockles of my heart.

There might be hope for America yet.

Daily Reminder:  Zero Republicans Voted for the COVID-19 Relief Package

Peace,

emaycee

Vladdy's comrades

 

They're all Benedicts, now

Not really sure why Fox News is so agog over Joe Biden debating Vladimir Putin--it's just another way for Biden to look so much more Presidential than their boy, Donnie Trump, ever did.  I mean Biden is going to walk out of it looking even stronger and not like Trump did in Helsinki when one could see Putin's cum stains on Trump's tie after their "meeting."

I'd also like to see Democrats pass a new law in this session of Congress allowing real Americans to bitch slap any republican wearing an American flag or using the word "patriotism."  Hoping the Russian "President" bests the American President doesn't make America great again.  It makes you a traitor.

Swear to God, these pathetic whiners would sell their own children into prostitution if they thought it would own the libs.

Daily Reminder:  Zero Republicans Voted for the COVID-19 Relief Package

Peace,

emaycee

Alabama snakes

 

Specially made for Donald Trump

From the How Pathetic Can You Be Files:

As if having their puckered lips permanently affixed to his fat ass wasn't bad enough, the Alabama GQP this week voted unanimously to declare that Donald Trump was one of the greatest and most effective Presidents in the history of the United States.

Frankly, he isn't the greatest and most effective President America has had in the last six months--Joe Biden is drinking his milkshake on a daily basis (100  million vaccines administered in two months, $1400 checks, COVID-19 cases and deaths plummeting, and Putin being bitch slapped to name but a few).

The Alabama resolution carries all the gravitas of Spacely Sprockets owner Cosmo Spacely being named boss of the year.  And at the very least, it can be said that Mr. Spaceley at least had a modicum of success as a leader, which is a modicum more than Mr. Trump ever had.

Daily Reminder:  Zero Republicans Voted for the COVID-19 Relief Package

Peace,

emaycee

Pirro retch

 

Twenty-five more than he should have had

Twenty-six.

That's how many women have filed credible sexual assault charges against Donald Trump.

Want to guess how many times Jeanine Pirro, Fox News opinion host, has called out Donald Trump for it?  

That would be zero.

So you can color me unimpressed with Pirro's diatribe this week against Vice President Kamala Harris for not speaking out yet about the sexual harassment charges against New York Democratic Governor Andrew Cuomo.  Frankly, Harris is following the proper decorum--the New York legislature spoke first, then the state delegation in the House and Senate, then her boss, Joe Biden, and I'm certain that at some point Harris will make a measured statement, much like Biden's.  Which is the way it is properly done, not pretending that your pervert of a candidate is some kind of an altar boy when in fact his very being comes from the depths of hell...much like Pirro has done while glorifying Satan's half-brother, Donald Trump.

Cuomo should have resigned yesterday.  I am certain that like Al Franken, the pressure from Democrats will eventually be enough to end his career either voluntarily or through the power of impeachment.  It is certain, though, that unlike republicans, we will not tolerate it.  We won't venerate him or bury our heads in the sand pretending he's a paragon of virtue who has twenty-six allegations of sexual misconduct against him that are nothing more than a conspiracy to keep his failed Presidency from continuing.

By the way, twenty-six charges for sexually abusing women are far more than a conspiracy--they're veritable proof that Donald Trump is a sick and twisted man who should be behind bars.

Daily Reminder:  Zero Republicans Voted for the COVID-19 Relief Package

Peace,

emaycee

Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. CCCXXIII--Paolo Nutini: New Shoes

In which we touch upon emaycee's love for blue-eyed soul and good old fashioned top forty pop....

Paolo Nutini hails from Paisley, Scotland and released his debut album at the ripe old age of 19 in 2006.  Over the last fifteen years Nutini has carved out quite a career for himself, especially in his native U.K.  He has had two #1 LPs on the U.K. Album Chart, as well as a #3.  He's also had four top twenty singles on the U.K. Singles Chart.  He's been nominated for three Brit Awards.  For his career, Nutini has released three studio albums, one live album, and twelve singles.  While the bulk of his success has been on the British Isles, all three of Nutini's albums have charted here in America.  While Nutini has not spoken of it, he has been on hiatus since 2017, but one supposes with his track record of success it's only a matter of time before he's recording and touring again.

"New Shoes" was released on his debut album in 2006, These Streets.  The single reached #21 in the U.K., but did not chart here in the States.  The album was #3 in his home county, and reached #48 on the Billboard 200.

The first time I heard "New Shoes" (either MTV or VH-1, can't remember which), it reminded me of the top forty singles I heard in the early to middle 70's that were the genesis of my love for rock and roll.  This one is just plain fun--a ditty about a guy who makes his day better by putting on some new shoes (oh, if only it was that easy).  The stanzas are a cool warm up to the chorus, which is to catchy what sugar is to sweet.  But Nutini's vocals are what turn the song into a pure pop dream--his voice is smooth and silky with the same swagger that propelled Van Morrison and Rod Stewart to long careers.  It's not going to end up on any all-time top ten lists, but it's a shot of musical joy, a jolt of blue-eyed soul that I can guarantee you I'll be bopping along to it until it's time for me to start preparing next week's Jukebox post....

Lyric Sheet:  "Oh, short on money but long on time/Slowly strolling in the sweet sunshine..."

Enjoy:

Daily Reminder:  Zero Republicans Voted for the COVID-19 Relief Package

Peace,

emaycee

They're not even hiding it anymore

 

Ron Johnson and his fellow republicans

Republican Senator Ron Johnson went on the radio in his native Wisconsin this week and said (note that he was truly this blunt) he wasn't afraid of the insurrectionists on January 6th because they were white people who loved this country, but that if protesters from Black Lives Matter had roamed the capitol building he would have been scared.

There was nary a retraction from Johnson or his staff.

Had any Democratic senator made any comment akin to this but switched their fear for White Nationalists instead of Black Lives Matter, it would have been roundly condemned by the mainstream media.  But the media in this country has become so afraid of calling out republicans for any issue, let alone racism, that it hardly made a ripple and was met with a nary a condemnation.  I guess the line in the sand will be use of the n-word, but at this point I wouldn't hold my breath.

One wonders if our mainstream media understands that if Johnson and his ilk win the battle for the soul of America that their publications and stations will become little more than echoes of Russian media outlets like Pravda and Tass, whose sole purpose is to be nothing more than propaganda for the state, and that any employee who wants to present unadulterated news will find themselves inside of a state prison before you can say "gulag."

After Donald Trump, anyone who thinks it can't happen here is a fool.

Daily Reminder:  Zero Republicans Voted for the COVID-19 Relief Package

Peace,

emaycee

Dog shit

The Trumps make money off of this suffering

 News out of North Carolina this week is that Trump's daughter-in-law, Lara, in her position as an event chairwoman for Big Dog Rescue Ranch, funneled almost $2 million earmarked for abused dogs into Donald Trump's properties.  And they're going to spend another $225,000 this weekend at his Mar-a-Lago country club.

And Lara is reportedly interested in running for the Senate seat in North Carolina that will open in 2022.

It will be interesting to see how right wing media spins this one (especially since Trump is known to despise pets), but for anyone with a soul the heartlessness of the Trump family is staggering.

Daily Reminder:  Zero Republicans Voted for the COVID-19 Relief Package

Peace,

emaycee

Fucker Carlson

Maturity level of an average republican pundit

 As I've gotten older, I pay less and less attention to the likes of Sean Hannity or Tucker Carlson or Laura Ingraham or Ann Coulter or the late (thank Christ) Rush Limbaugh (though I am glad there are those still willing to chronicle what assholes they all are).  The plain truth is they sow controversy to get a spike in their ratings or sell more books.  None of their ilk give a shit about America and even less about the Americans who watch them or read their drivel--much like Corporate America, it's all about the money.

Still, every now and again a conservative pundit birdbrain takes his bloviation to such an abhorrent extreme that ignoring their assholery is not an option.  This week it was Tucker Carlson stepping back to the 1950's and complaining about the U.S. Military's accommodations for pregnant service members, which basically became a diatribe against women in the military.

Sheesh.  Where to begin?

First, it's 2021--the women being free to pursue any avenue they choose for their lives other than being a sperm donor ship sailed a long time ago.  Second, the U.S. Military has been massively successful for the last two hundred and fifty years--pretty sure they don't need the input of a douche to decide what kind of personnel they need.  Third, fucking Tucker Carlson?  I mean really--he makes his living being an effete TV personality.  My guess is most of the military women he's criticizing could dress Carlson up in full military gear and give him an M-16 and still kick his ass wearing their dress blues and having nothing more than a feather for their weapon.  

Just how afraid of OAN and Newsmax is Fox News?  Apparently Dr. Seuss and Mr. Potato Head have run their course.  Their next grievance is that raising Wally and the Beaver isn't fulfilling enough for June Cleaver.  

How long before, do you suppose, they're wondering just why America can't be ruled again by white male plantation owners wearing wigs?

It's never a good sign when Jeffrey Dahmer is trying to out crazy Charles Manson.

Daily Reminder:  Zero Republicans Voted for the Pandemic Relief Package

Peace,

emaycee

Horton hears a fool

 

Daily Reminder:  Zero Republicans Voted for the COVID-19 Relief Package

Peace,

emaycee

Potato kooks

 Daily Reminder:  Zero Republicans Voted for the COVID-19 Relief Package

Peace,

emaycee

Thanks for nothing

Fox News can thank Donald Trump for this

 Fox News has been having a shit fit since Joe Biden's incredible and fabulously Presidential speech last night, which was vastly superior to any speech Donald Trump gave over the course of his four years occupying the White House.  Apparently, they're just sick and tired of hearing about the 500,000 Americans who have died because of Donald Trump's incompetence, and their tiny little snowflake hearts were grieving because President Biden didn't give President Catastrophe any credit for the vaccine. (Note that Pfizer and Moderna both avoided Trump's vaccine summit because they knew he would fuck up the distribution...and he did.)

Giving Trump credit for the vaccine saving lives would be like Germany giving Adolph Hitler props for committing suicide and hastening the end of World War II in Europe.

Daily Reminder:  Zero Republicans Voted for the COVID-19 Stimulus Package

Peace,

emaycee

Captain Poindexter really fucks up

Endemic to republicans...

 Hoo-boy, just when you think garden variety republicans can't get any stupider they manage to prove you wrong.  Stewart Allen Clark, a pastor at Malden First General Baptist Church in Missouri, this week urged the women in his congregation to lose a little weight and gussie themselves up for their husbands so they can be more of a trophy wife like Melania Trump.  And just to make sure that he came across as a complete pig, he suggested that most wives probably can't be like Melania, but at least they can be "participation trophies".

In an announcement as shocking as the facts that water is wet and the sky is blue, his church later announced he had been placed on leave and was seeking counseling so that he might be able to go home to his wife again.  Maybe.

Is there any wonder that so many republican men's best chance at a fulfilling sexual relationship lies at the end of their own wrists?

Daily Reminder:  Zero Republicans Voted for the COVID-19 Stimulus Package

Peace,

emaycee

You have the right to remain silent...

 

Cue "Dragnet" theme song...

For a guy who went to Stanford and Yale University Law School, Josh Hawley hasn't shown that he's making the most of an elite education.  As if the Sieg Heil! salute to the insurrectionists on January 6th wasn't bad enough, this past week during the Senate investigation into the attempted coup d'etat Hawley was dumb enough to ask the director of the FBI for the names of the people being investigated for links into the Capitol riots (even worse, numerous people noticed the nervousness--gulp!--in his voice).  Needless to say, FBI Director Christopher Wray shot Hawley a "Nice Try Dipshit" look and refused to answer.

Though it's usually used in response to the query "Who farted?", I think the phrase "A rat smells his own hole first" to describe Hawley's inquiry is wholly appropriate here.

540,000+ Dead Americans Because of Donald Trump's Incompetence

Peace,

emaycee

Mountain Manchin

Redder than a ripe tomato

 I was watching Chris Hayes on Friday as I panicked about Joe Manchin's last minute hold up of the COVID stimulus package, and Hayes noted (correctly) that despite what we might think of Manchin's Democratic Party bona fides, he's managed to win several elections as a Democrat in one of the reddest states in America.  He even survived a pretty ugly scandal involving his daughter (Heather Bresch, CEO of Mylan) wherein her company gouged ordinary Americans on the price of Epi Pens and Bresch watched her salary go from $2 million to $18 million virtually over night.

And for that he deserves his props.

However, it does serve as a reminder once again how important the Senate elections in 2022 will be-with even a 52-48 or 53-47 Senate Majority Manchin (and Krysten Sinema for that matter) will fade into oblivion.  He can whine as much as he wants, vote however he wants, create what amendments he wants, but we won't need him.

Win in 2022, and Manchin fades into political irrelevancy.

538,000+ Dead Americans Because of Donald Trump's Incompetence

Peace,

emaycee

Take a left

 Amen.

537,000+ Dead Americans Because of Donald Trump's Incompetence

Peace,

emaycee

Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. CCCXXII--Guided by Voices: Bulldog Skin

 I believe I've noted a time or two here about songs discovered on the Canadian MTV, Much Music (which was actually, uh, much better than MTV).  Sadly, Much Music as a music channel no longer exists...but we'll always have Paris....

Guided by Voices got its start in 1983 in Dayton, Ohio, and while they haven't had a great deal of commercial success, they have found their niche with a solid cult following that allows them to still be touring and recording to this day.  There have been 25 different members, with the only constant being lead singer and songwriter Robert Pollard.  The band has had three separate stints, from 1983-2004, 2010-2014, and from 2016 through the present.  For their career, they have released 33 studio albums (including three just last year and one this year), two live albums, 19 EP's, and twelve compilations.  Only three of their albums have ever hit the Billboard 200, with the highest hitting #160.  They've also released 39 singles (many of them of my beloved 7" 45 records), and have never had one hit the Billboard Hot 100.  Still, while I'm not familiar with most of their material, they are one of those bands that you just have to love, who have persevered and continued recording and touring despite their lack of commercial success, if only for the love of music and to please a small, devoted following.  Hear, hear!

"Bulldog Skin" was released in 1997 on their oddly named LP, Mag Earwig!  Neither never so much as sniffed the charts, though the single should have, goddamnit.

I enjoy nuanced and multi-layered rock and roll songs as much as anyone, but there's still a lot to be said for three chord garage rock, and "Bulldog Skin" is a proud member of its legion.  There's nothing fancy (and there doesn't need to be) as the guitars rip right through those three chords and drive Pollard's defiant vocals through to the end.  Near as I can tell this one's about developing mental toughness the hard way (experience) and keeping the gumption train rolling even when it's breaking down.  There's an excuse me guitar solo thrown in toward the end, and the short and sweet chorus closes it out.  "Bulldog Skin" makes the most of its two minutes and forty seconds, leaving us with a power pop punk gem--and another fist pumping wonder for Friday Night Jukebox.

Lyric Sheet:  "I played around/I heard the sound/Of certain trouble on the way/I got bulldog skin..."

Unfortunately, I was unable to find the official music video (it's a heartwarming treat) on YouTube, so I had to settle for the famed Album Cover Video--nonetheless, enjoy:

537,000+ Dead Americans Because of Donald Trump's Incompetence

Peace,

emaycee

Finis

 

And it hasn't been nice to know you...

On Friday, Arizona Senator and Democrat Krysten Sinema thought she'd liven up the vote on a $15 minimum wage by traipsing up to the front of the Senate and curtsying whilst she gave a thumbs down.  One supposes Sinema was trying to channel John McCain's vote against ending Obamacare, only McCain's vote took courage and didn't actively hurt people.  (It's also hard to see how this helps Sinema politically--Trumpsters hate McCain as do Democrats and that doesn't leave a lot of folks to appeal to electorally.)

Sinema later put out a statement saying that she fully appreciates poverty and trying to live on the minimum wage (beyond what the fuck?) and wanted to make sure there was a robust debate (newsflash:  republicans do not debate they just obstruct).

Frankly, had Sinema just voted against it I would have shook my head and thought "Another rich asshole trying to fuck over the working man" and moved on, but Sinema's antics showed a classlessness and tone deafness that I truly thought was impossible for a Democratic Senator.  

We might have to put up with such bullshit from Joe Manchin in redder than red West Virginia, but Arizona is trending bluer by the year and Sinema should be primaried yesterday.

537,000 Dead Americans Due to Donald Trump's Incompetence

Peace,

emaycee

Elvis has left the White House

At least Elvis had talent once

 The absolute best embodiment of Donald Trump since he left the White House has to be that of Fat Elvis (though Elvis was the King of Rock and Roll at one point and Trump never progressed beyond king of the Turds).

If nothing else, it's a reminder that Trump's tenure was an embarrassment--a caricature of a pathetic man and the dead carcass that remains.

Especially since Biden is on the verge of passing the biggest investment (COVID relief package) in the poor and middle class that America has ever seen....

537,000+ Dead Americans Because of Donald Trump's Incompetence

Peace,

emaycee

Shart in the water

 

This would be a lot funnier if Texas Governor Greg Abbott's bonehead move wasn't going to kill so many more Americans than his idiocy already has....

535,000+ Dead Americans Because of Donald Trump's Incompetence

Peace,

emaycee

Your moment of bitch slap

535,000 Dead Americans Because of Donald Trump's Incompetence

Peace,

emaycee

Hungry for the union

 Ever wonder why republicans, Corporate America, and rich folks are so eager to either bust unions or prevent them from organizing?  Take a good look at that graph above--it's the best way the bastards can make sure that the rich keep getting richer and the poor keep getting poorer.

534,000+ Dead Americans Because of Donald Trump's Incompetence

Peace,

emaycee

Not so fast, Donald

 

Donald Trump in 2024 (only fatter)

Donald Trump's boast at last weekend's CPAC that he wanted to come back to beat Democrats a third time (guess again, Donnie--you've lost the popular vote badly twice and were only put in the White House because of the antiquated and racist electoral college) should pretty much be taken with a grain of salt.  For one, Trump is up to his neck in state investigations and will soon be facing a bevy of personal lawsuits.  Second, polls have show that only 85% of republicans will vote for him if he's the 2024 republican nominee--that number will surely grow, but even a conservative loss of 4-5% of republican votes will ensure an even bigger landslide for Biden.  Finally, the state of Trump's health continues to be problematic at best, and it isn't going to get better as he a) ages and b) loses the best healthcare in the known universe.

I see a lot of gloom and doom on liberal web sites concerning Trump running again in 2024 (some of which could simply be click bait), but I think the odds of Trump being the republican nominee are slim and his chances of winning the Presidency again slimmer.  I've been wrong before, but Americans are already reaping the benefits of having a competent President, and a return to even relative normality is bound to be an even bigger boon for Biden than Trump's historic incompetence.

533,000+ Dead Americans Because of Donald Trump's Incompetence

Peace,

emaycee

What is (pro) life?

 

The Catholic Church would prefer to bury you

In its never ending quest to fade into oblivion, two different Catholic archdioceses have let their parishioners know that it is not acceptable to receive either one (New Orleans) or all three (Texas) of the COVID-19 vaccines, because somewhere along the line stem cell clones were used to develop the vaccines.

In fairness to the Catholic Church as a whole, the Vatican is requiring its employees to get the vaccine and has not questioned the origins of the vaccines.  Still, one has to wonder just how the Catholic Church in America defines pro-life--half a million dead Americans versus an organism the size of a dot that has been xeroxed seems to me to make a very compelling case for taking the vaccine.

Fortunately for those of us who prefer not to get sick, the edicts of the Church often fall upon deaf parishioners' ears.  Still, for an organization that preaches the sanctity of life, it's pretty sanctimonious in deciding who it feels should live or die.

531,000+ Dead Americans Because of Donald Trump's Incompetence

Peace,

emaycee

It's only a matter of time

 

See also:  conservatives/republicans

QAnon, as you may have heard, seems to have some sort of obsession with pedophiles running the world, and seem to think Donald Trump, of all people, will be the one to crush the perverts in their tracks and set us all on a path to righteousness.

Which is really rich, considering Trump's past relationship with noted (and mysteriously dead) pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.  And I'd be willing to bet it's only a matter of time before we find out that Donald is a pervert, too, and the GQP's talking points will become some biblical degenerate who married a twelve-year-old.  And QAnon will find some other bugaboo that's threatening the world.

Swear to God, we could get proof that Donald Trump has shit stains in his underwear everyday, and republicans would begin telling us how having Hershey squirts in your shorts are everyone's patriotic duty.

529,000+ Dead Americans Because of Donald Trump's Incompetence

Peace,

emaycee

They've got nothing

Also, the average republican's IQ

 Here's how devoid of ideas the republican party is these days:  the big story on Fox News, featured all day today, is that Dr. Seuss Enterprises (a private company) has decided to cease publication of six of his sixty-three books because of racist caricatures or images, of which most of the books the average dolt who watches Fox News has never heard of.

Ahem.

Let me get this straight:  over 500,000 Americans have died because of COVID-19, millions of Americans are struggling financially because of the pandemic, and a group of traitors tried to overthrow our government two months ago (all thanks to the worst President in American history), but our real problem is cancel culture.

Tomorrow, one supposes, their issue du jour (that's "of the day" for any Fox News viewers who may be reading) will be why McDonald's not offering the McRib sandwich 365 days a year is another case of cancel culture run amok.

529,000+ Dead Americans Because of Donald Trump's Incompetence

Peace,

emaycee

Once again, Karen and Ken

If you don't think you've got it, you've got it

One of the truly great mysteries of life these days is what possesses any white American to think they have any right whatsoever to question the social actions of any black American.  All that's going to happen is you're going to eat a much deserved shit sandwich.

I note this because we had two instances this past week of white folks passing along their "wisdom" to black folks with all the elan of Donald Trump when he tries to seduce women by grabbing them by the p*****. First,  Megyn Kelly (worked for racist Fox News and couldn't hold keep her job at non-racist NBC) went on Bill Maher's (look up insufferable in the dictionary and Maher's picture is featured) HBO show Real Time and told black Americans how they're children should be educated (apparently has something to do with not having Kelly's kids take part in black history and Maher unabashedly accentuating his white privilege).  One supposes they were just keeping it "real."

Second, Swedish tennis pro Zlatan Ibrahimovic took time this week to give social activist hero Lebron James some advice about his outspokenness on issues facing black Americans, telling James in essence that he should just shut up and dribble.  James had a good chuckle, vowed he would never quit, and was polite enough to not say "Who the fuck is Zlatan Ibrahimovic?" like I did.  On the bright side, as a tennis player, Ibrahimovic is quite familiar with unforced errors.

Look, when it comes to the issues facing black Americans I'm neither an expert nor do I have the answers.  But I am smart enough to know that no group in the history of mankind has had a cushier berth than white American males such as myself, and maybe it's best if I just shut up and listen when folks whose life experiences do not remotely match mine are advocating for themselves.

527,000+ Dead Americans Because of Donald Trump's Incompetence

Peace,

emaycee

At last, republican success

Here's your participation trophy, losers

I'll give republicans credit for at least this--I've spent years getting ever so angry at all their indiscretions, but after their condoning of the Trump insurrection on January 6th and their descent into becoming little more than a pathetic cult in its aftermath, all I feel toward them anymore is disgust.  I don't even pay attention--they're just not worth the effort.  

It's literally--and you can take this with every negative connotation it begets--like being on a jury where someone is accused of child molestation, the prosecution has the act or acts on videotape and makes you watch in all its horror, and having to share a courtroom with the motherfucker until you can convict him.

It's revulsion--complete and utter revulsion.

527,000+ Dead Americans Because of Donald Trump's Incompetence

Peace,

emaycee