LMAO:
Ted Cruz on Friday said he would that he would vote for Donald Trump for president.
“After many months of careful consideration, of prayer and searching my own conscience, I have decided that on Election Day, I will vote for the Republican nominee, Donald Trump,” he wrote in a Facebook post.
Cruz said he endorsed both because of his primary pledge to support the party nominee, as well as his concerns about Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.
“Last year, I promised to support the Republican nominee. And I intend to keep my word,” Cruz said. “Second, even though I have had areas of significant disagreement with our nominee, by any measure Hillary Clinton is wholly unacceptable — that’s why I have always been #NeverHillary.”
The announcement follows months of waiting for Cruz’s stance on Trump, as well as the political ramifications of an endorsement following the Texas senator’s bitter, personal primary race against Trump.
“If he announces he endorses, it destroys his political brand,” said someone who had worked for Cruz’s campaign.
Before, when they thought Trump was going to lose, conservatives thought the best plan of action was to boldly oppose Trump so it would benefit them as the heir apparent to the “conservative” cause. Now they think he can win, so they are all reversing thrusters to full because they think it will benefit them (check out the divinely inspired backtracking from Trump’s catholic liasion). There are two conservative principles. One is cleaks law. Cleek’s Law:
Today’s conservatism is the opposite of what liberals want today, updated daily.
It’s always about what’s best (or what they think is best) for them at this very moment. Always. It’s why they embraced the bugfuck crazies in the tea party movement. It’s why they all saw starburts with Sarah Palin and then eight years later boldly disassociated themselves from her. It’s why they embraced Joe the not actually a plumber and currently a union member.
The second conservative principle is they hate you:
I was a winger for years, and we can discuss that particular psychosis at a later date, but what I can explain to you right now is that they fucking hate you.
They just do.
They hate you because you respect gay people as normal human beings.
They hate you because you respect African-Americans as normal human beings.
They hate you because you respect Asians, Latinos, and everyone else who isn’t a straight white male.
They hate you because you respect a woman’s right to choose.
They hate you because you respect the right of people to be with who they love.
They hate you because you respect the right of anyone to adopt a child.
They hate you because you respect international law.
They hate you because you believe in economic and tax fairness.
They hate you because you respect the right of anyone to worship any way they want.
They hate you because you respect scientists and their collective knowledge.
They hate you because you respect teachers and the work they do educating Americans.
They hate you because you respect the human dignity of every American.
They hate you because you respect the rights of people over corporations.
They hate you because you respect nature and think we have a duty to take care of the environment.
They hate you because you respect your right to vote, and they don’t think you deserve it.
They hate you because you respect the constitution and the rule of law.
They hate you because you respect laws against torture.
In short, they hate you. Period.
They masquerade their bullshit in the words of Jesus and the all-knowing free market, but it is transparent what motivates them. Not love for their fellow man, not love for their fellow citizen, not love for country- what motivates them is hate for the other.
You.
They fucking hate you. They want you, and everyone who speaks for you, and every institution that represents your values, whether it be Planned Parenthood or food banks or ACORN- you name it. They want it destroyed.
So when slimy pseudo human Ted Cruz is running in four years against Hillary, and the usual clowns start fapping about him being a true conservative and not like the Trump aberration, remember this.
redshirt
Party before Country!
Pogonip
Cole, I hate to interrupt your indignation, but have you had any further updates on Walter? I believe he was accepted for a medical trial?
OK, carry on.
RaflW
Posted downstairs but reposted for sweet, sweet laughs
Yutsano
They. All. Fall. In. Line.
Every. Single. One.
Every. Single. Time.
Pogonip
Regarding the second conservative principle: Cole, did YOU hate all those people? Doesn’t sound like you. You’re a pretty sweet guy.
Mike in NC
You just know it’s going to be Ted Cruz and Steve King in 2020.
Corner Stone
Cruz is going to catch it coming and going after this. There’s a chance he may not even win a chance for his seat again in ’18.
This leaves Kasich as the only prominent non Trump-esque who may be able to run successfully in 2020.
Corner Stone
What a fucked up video in Charlotte. Christ.
Ozarkhillblly
Will i or won’t i end up in moderation?
Ozarkhillblly
@Ozarkhillblly: It worked it worked!
DCrefugee
I had a long heart-to-heart with a white male friend of mine a couple of years ago. He’s a prototypical Trump voter, just the right demo (as am I, but I digress…). For him, it boils down to hating people who think they’re better than him. On one level, BHO has never knocked on his door to say something like, “Ha, ha, honky; I’m better than you.” But on the other hand, ke knows deep down that BHO is, in fact, “better than him,” whatever that means, and it pisses him off.
I don’t know how to fix that…
? Martin
Prayer? Who the fuck was he praying to, Cthulhu?
Ozarkhillblly
@DCrefugee: I know BHO is better than me too, but somehow or other I’m not bothered by that fact.
SFBayAreaGal
He put Trump before his wife. What a piece of dirty rotten maggot pile of sh*t. No that is insulting to a pile of sh*t.
redshirt
@Ozarkhillblly: I know BHO is better than I am, and I find that inspiring.
germy
dr. luba
George Takei @GeorgeTakei
Ted Cruz announced his support for Trump after “searching his conscience.” Long time associates were alarmed, however, to learn he had one.
hellslittlestangel
What a relief to no longer have to feel a grudging respect for Ted Cruz.
I guess he caved out of fear of the wrath of the mighty Reince Priebus.
gene108
I think spent most of his political capital on this Presidential bid. I don’t know, if anyone really cares what he thinks anymore. He’ll have his followers, but his dick moves in the Senate have probably marginalized him a bit within the Party and no one is going to out racist Trump (I hope), so does not have a clear path to the Trump shitgibbon brigade.
Brachiator
@redshirt:
Yep. And a smart move by Trump’s strategists and the RNC. Even though Cruz is hated by the GOP establishment, they are now able to call disaffected Republicans home, and say to them, “in your heart, you know you want to vote Republican, and that you must stay true. You can’t stay home, you can’t voter Libertarian. If Cruz can do it, you can do it, too.”
Is Jeb already on board? And I guess The Romneybot 3000.
@SFBayAreaGal:
Ein Volk, Ein Reich, Ein Trumpster!
Kylroy
@DCrefugee: Last time, Sherman fixed it with a march to the sea. Hopefully this time they just die out.
nominus
Cruz proves that he really is an idiot politician. Same with the shutdown, and every other way he has managed to step on his own dick. He was good at getting himself elected, but as a politician he is completely blind and deaf.
Corner Stone
@hellslittlestangel:
Why would you have ever felt that way about Cruz? For even one second? He made a political calculation, it backfired on him to some degree, now winds have changed and he has shifted to what he thinks is the most expedient political course.
And for those who feel the slightest bit sorry for his wife (I mean beyond the disgusting fact of being married to Cruz), she absolutely backs his political ambitions a 1000% and she has no issue with Cruz putting her in the wood chipper. Umm, metaphorically of course. She might actually object the other way.
Kylroy
@Pogonip: Note that he is no longer a conservative. As for the rest of them, the Onion nails it here:
http://www.theonion.com/article/aunt-facebook-casually-advocates-war-crime-53745
Boussinesque
I used to believe that everyone was reachable, that all it would take was the right argument, the right set of facts, and they’d come around. This election cycle (and really, the past 8 years in general) has disabused me of that notion. That there are so many petty, spiteful, hate-filled jackasses in this country saddens me, but all that’s left is to beat the fuckers everywhere we can–every local, state, and national race. Throw those retrogrades into the dustbin of history where they belong.
And that picture of Carly and Ted always makes me laugh, until I remember that people actually put them in positions of authority where their decisions could affect actual people. Then I just want to strangle someone.
catclub
@dr. luba:
well, he claimed to have one. There is a difference.
SFBayAreaGal
@Corner Stone: Don’t get me wrong. I have no sympathy for the wife. Just pointing out his hypocrisy.
Felonius Monk
@redshirt:
But, SELF before everything.
WaterGirl
@SFBayAreaGal: Now Mrs. Cruz has an excuse (that her husband might understand) for never having sex with him again.
P.S. I hope Mrs. Cruz secretly votes for Hillary.
Rommie
404 Error Soul Not Found
? Martin
@Corner Stone: You asked the other day about international air freight. I looked up some of my old notes. Bulk air freight from China to the west coast most times of the year is around $2.50/kg. It usually spikes twice each year – once in Sept when iPhones come out to about $10-$12/kg and again just before Christmas usually to more like $8/kg. As of 2014, iPhones and iPads made up almost 5% of global air freight and closer to 20% during the iPhone launch. That’s certainly lower now, but it shows where some of the price volatility comes from. Rates are probably somewhat lower now as well due to lower fuel costs.
Now that doesn’t cover the endpoint costs to package for shipment or necessarily for delivery upon arrival, but it gives you a ballpark number to work out where air freight is attractive.
In Apple’s case they moved to air freight because of the high value of the merchandise and because it works out to actually be cheaper than container. An iPhone cost about $1 to get to the US from China, but Apple can earn about half of that $1 from the earlier account receivable. iPhones destined for the US almost always route through St Louis by way of Anchorage so the cost doesn’t really vary across the US, except for Hawaii. By keeping them in the same shipping chain (which they can’t do with containers) they certainly save $1 on handling and warehousing.
Put short, it’s cheaper for them to ship straight from the factory in China than any other way, and the 2 days to process is sufficiently fast that consumers don’t seem to mind a slightly longer wait time. For any suitably large company shipping out of China, provided their product is relatively small and light compared to it’s price – you mentioned a watch which could easily fall on either side of that line, they should be able to scale operations and contracts to do something very similar. The electronics I buy certainly fall in this category. The semi-precious stones my wife sometimes buys (she makes jewelry as a hobby) were a surprise, though. They certainly fit the weight/cost, but it doesn’t seem as though they should sell enough to have a very sophisticated operation. It’s possible there are outfits in China that resell freight capacity to small operators like that.
nonynony
Cruz manages to set himself up with the worst of both worlds with this. Hell this is actually the WORST calculation he could have made after snubbing Trump at the convention:
If Trump loses – which is still the most likely thing to happen no matter what the hair-on-fire crowd and the horserace media want to believe – then Cruz gets no benefit of being the guy who was right about Trump being horrible. He’s endorsed Trump now he owns Trump’s failure. But he also gets no benefit from the pro-Trump crowd who will remember his treason and not his facebook endorsement.
If Trump wins then he’s going to remember Cruz as the guy who dissed him at the convention not the guy who endorsed him. And when President Trump leads the country into disaster, Cruz won’t even be able to be the Republican who stands up and says “I told you so” and takes over the remnants of the GOP. He owns Trump’s failure there too.
He has the political instincts of a baked potato. Why did people think that this guy was such political hot stuff?
hellslittlestangel
@Corner Stone: Sorry to have failed you.
/s
Karen S.
@DCrefugee: Someone like that particular friend of yours is unreachable because believes that no black man can or should ever be better than him at anything. I don’t think there’s any way to uproot a deeply held belief like that.
Mary G
@Boussinesque: This.
I used to know the deplorables in my head, but now I feel in my gut and they make me sick. Bill Kristol will be next.
? Martin
@Brachiator:
Jeb wasn’t as of a few days ago. Given his dad’s comment, I think he has a safe out. Romney won’t jump on. Very much to their credit, Mormons really don’t put party over faith.
Corner Stone
@hellslittlestangel: You know what you did.
Ozarkhillblly
@dr. luba: trump searched his conscious and found nothing there.
Joe Falco
I had to rush over to RedState after hearing about this piece of news, and lo and behold, the comments are awash in sweet tears and crushed hopes. My cup runneth over. I have enough schadenfreude to last through the weekend now!
nominus
@? Martin: yep, Mormons are quite willing to hold to their opinions and tell the rest of the universe that they’re wrong. Romney just won’t tell anyone who he voted for. Jeb, like the rest of the Bushes, knows that he still has more money than Trump and (more importantly) his money is older and better than Trump’s so DJT can go shove a 7-iron up his ass.
Mark Field
@SFBayAreaGal: Greater love hath no man than this: that he lay down his wife for his friends.
Jeffro
@Corner Stone:
Cruz thinks he can run a Trump-esque campaign in 2020 – smarter, without all the obvious offensive stuff + all the decades of Trumpian grifting weighting him down. However…
…I think this just sets up the upcoming Republican civil war up as the Trumpkins vs. the Kasich-ites. Cruz is not a unifying force, but the Trumpkins are a majority within the GOP at this point.
That VOX interview with the Republican strategist…Goldman, I think his name was?…pointed out a key fact: the Trumpkins think they’re a majority of the country but they’re not; however, they ARE a majority of the GOP.
anderj
IT has probably has probably already been suggested, but Hillary should bring a small sign to the debate with “he lies” on it. She might want to include a link to a website with instant fact checks suchs as
Corner Stone
@? Martin: More than raw cost my question was about the turnaround availability for some items you mentioned. On a scaled down operation way below the level of an Apple it seemed unlikely to me they could afford the infrastructure to not only package the item(s) but have the systems in place to clear customs going and coming. The watches cost around $10/$12 or so per and that includes free shipping in most cases. But as I said, for my specific example it can take up to 30 days to arrive.
We’ve ordered other things, like super powerful magnetic balls, that were also inexpensive but took their time.
Roger Moore
And Nate Silver wins the internet for today:
Jeffro
@nonynony:
I’m not sure about that. GOP voters appear to have pretty short memories and even fewer functioning brain cells. I think he’s waited to see that Trump is pretty sure to lose, and now he wants at least some sort of cred for having come out as #NeverHillary.
He thinks he’s going to rally the Trumpkins in 2020, and re-run Trump’s campaign, only smarter & smoother. The problem with this is that in the end, it’s still Ted Icky Cruz at the top of the ticket.
gogol's wife
@SFBayAreaGal:
Wife and father, let’s not forget.
PPCLI
Third, I will admit that Trump was not acting deplorably when he said my Dad had something to do with the Kennedy assassination. I didn’t want to admit is, but in fact my Dad was the man on the grassy knoll.
Fourth, I gladly admit that Melania is totally hotter than Heidi and I’m very jealous of Donald for getting three such quality wives.
And fifth, Jesus told me to say all these things.
NorthLeft12
Colour me shocked. These guys [Republicans] will always support their tribal leader no matter how odious, dangerous, ignorant, bigoted, or degenerate he may be. There is no level that they would hesitate to sink to, no moral standard they would abandon, or principle that they would betray in their slavish obedience to their party.
They care not for country, or the people that inhabit it. These snivelling, cowardly sycophants would crawl on hands and knees to prostrate themselves and bear any humiliation if they thought in the long run it would benefit them and their selfish cronies.
debit
@Pogonip: The stem cell trial has not started yet. I was told it would be in the next month or two by the coordinator. In the meantime, Walter is still getting his Rimadyl, and I’ll push my vet for an Adequan prescription. His first therapeutic massage is on Oct 11, and he’ll have a standing one for every two weeks. So there really isn’t anything to update. He’s going in for a precautionary blood draw tomorrow to make the Rimadyl isn’t causing any organ damage, but that’s about all that’s new. He’s still eating, pooping, following me from room to room, and always on the lookout for the elusive squirrel.
nonynony
@Jeffro:
The problem is that he forgets that he’s a Hispanic guy with the last name Cruz. He’s not getting the core of the Trump demographic to vote for him.
nonynony
@NorthLeft12:
yes – this is why when everyone was looking at Clinton’s huge lead over Trump a month or so ago I knew it was ephemeral. Republicans will vote for the Republican because they’re Republicans. It’s what they do and it’s who they are.
Trump will get at least McCain/Palin levels of support (45%). That’s the group of people who looked at 8 years of Bush and said “well, that wasn’t the best but if the alternative is a Democrat then to hell with them” and voted for the Republican again. The fact that Trump polls under that level is a mark of just how bad a candidate he is, because that level of support is something that every Republican should be able to assume is just in the bank for them after the convention ends.
nominus
@nonynony: He won’t be able to win no matter what he does. He thinks he’s against the establishment in a Buchanan sort of way, but either he looks just like an establishment twerp to the trumpkins, or they see him as Hispanic. He could pass as an Establishment guy, except that a) they hate him so much they would set him on fire just to piss on him, and b) he’d screw up trying to run to the Establishment voters anyway, because he’s completely incompetent.
SiubhanDuinne
@Mark Field:
? ? ?
Roger Moore
@dr. luba:
More like “searched for his conscience”. When he realized he didn’t have one, he knews he wouldn’t have any problems endorsing Trump.
Hal
Cruz might be in one of the only senate districts in the country where not voting for Trump, even if he loses big, would count against him. His decision makes sense if one has no moral compass and is only concerned about being reelected.
Neabinorb
They will all bow down! That or bend over.
Steeplejack (tablet)
@Ozarkhillblly:
Christ, you’re misspelling your own nym. That’s why you ended up in moderation (as a “new” commenter).
Turn on BJ cookies to save your nym and e-mail address.
Amir Khalid
@nonynony:
In the time I’ve known of his existence, Ted Cruz has never struck me as an able politician. He can certainly piss people off, you gotta give him that; oh boy, can he piss people off. His main characteristic is an inflated self-regard, and his number one political move is sabotaging a collective effort by his own party just to play to the grandstand. As I understand, the Congressional Republican caucus hates his guts for this reason. I can’t see him winning allies for another presidential run, I don’t see how he can last longer than one US Senate term, and I think that he will see out his political career in Texas if he has one at all.
Teddy' Person
@debit: Walter’s story is the highlight of my year so far. Thank you for giving him his forever home.
nominus
WaterGirl
@Steeplejack (tablet): Hey, he just had surgery yesterday – shoulder surgery, no less! And he may still be using an iPad, so it would be easy enough to goof that up.
I have apparently appointed myself Defender of OzarkHillbilly today, regardless of how he spells Hillbilly. :-)
P.S. Have you checked your email lately?
Waldo
To Ted’s credit, it took some balls to flip Trump the bird from the convention stage. A shame those balls now reside in Trump’s trophy case.
Patricia Kayden
Every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess that Donald Trump is lord.
p.a.
@DCrefugee: @Ozarkhillblly:
It’s all of a piece with this change in mindset: at one time (say New Deal through 1960’s just to paint with a broad brush) Americans (or at least non-elite whites) would see a group who had a better deal than them and say “hey that’s not cool. HOW CAN WE GET THAT BENEFIT ALSO?”
Since then, and there are various theories on the change, the thought is, “hey that’s not cool. FUCK THEM. I DON’ T GET THAT. I’M GOING TO WORK TO TAKE IT AWAY FROM THEM.”
Part of it is the delusion that ‘the coloreds’ are getting the super secret benefits, but it’s beyond that. Race/identity is a major driver, but there’s a ‘screw everybody’ mindset no matter demographics. Just an asshole culture. Vicious.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Steeplejack (tablet):
I’m afraid to ask what kind of cookies, BJ cookies are.
WereBear
@DCrefugee: I have come to think that a lot of people are desperate to feel better about themselves, but instead of, oh — improving their character or something — they embrace a philosophy which allows them to decide huge chunks of the population are simply “lesser.”
It’s stupid, but also, easy.
Trollhattan
@?BillinGlendaleCA: If frosting is involved I’m so out of here.
Amir Khalid
Bruce Springsteen on Trump:
Irony Abounds
If you are judged by the company you keep, Trump deserves to lose (Christie, Giuliani, Bannon, Stone, Flynn, Page, Cruz, Fiorina, Hannity, etc.). If you are judged by your enemies, Clinton deserves to win (see all of the above, along with countless other scumbags, including Jill Stein). No matter whether you idolize Clinton, or have reservations about her, the choice in this election is so obvious, and so important for America to get right.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Amir Khalid: I would have gone with “Common Clay of the New West”, but that’s just me.
Patricia Kayden
@Corner Stone: Why are you forgetting Lindsay Graham? Why does anyone forget Lindsay Graham? To my knowledge, he still hasn’t endorsed Trump.
Steeplejack (tablet)
@catclub:
I thought that was a transcription error above, and Cruz actually said:
Kyle
1. There was a story a couple of weeks back where Cruz’s approval ratings nose-dived after his convention debacle. I’m sure it’s more than prayer that convinced him to make this endorsement.
2. How ’bout them evangelicals?!? Without blinking an eye, they are supporting a thrice-married, philandering, liar for whom there exists not one piece of credible evidence that he is religious in any way over a woman whose faith is well-known and whose charity has and continues to save the lives of millions of the poor. Clearly, they’re not asking what Jesus would do this time around.
It really is about hating folks, and they have sided with the one they believe will be the most hateful to the ones they hate the most.
Pogonip
@debit: Sounds like he has a full schedule!
singfoom
Couldn’t have happened to a nicer fellow. I can’t see how he survives this politically.
Patricia Kayden
@Amir Khalid: I wonder how Springsteen feels about Christie being implicated in the bridge scandal given that Christie is his self-proclaimed biggest fan.
Trollhattan
@Amir Khalid: Keepin’ it real, happy 67th, Bruce!
Corner Stone
@Patricia Kayden: Not forgetting. Dismissing. He has no constituency.
FlipYrWhig
@DCrefugee:
Your pal hates people who think they’re better than him… so he’s voting for _Donald Trump_? Donald Trump thinks he’s better than everyone in the world when it comes to everything. It’s kind of his whole campaign: I am the greatest, richest, sexiest, healthiest, bestest, bigliest human being who has ever existed, get on board. Your pal hasn’t noticed that? He thinks Donald Trump is just folks? Day-YAM that’s some stupid shit to believe.
Amir Khalid
@Patricia Kayden:
How can you doubt that Chris Christie is Bruce’s biggest fan? I mean, just look at him!
Seriously, do you remember this Bruce appearance on Jimmy Fallon? It got reported in political news over there as a very public repudiation of Christie by Bruce.
Shell
So another bat-shit crazy repub chimes in. Whoop-ee
I call bull on those supposed ‘months of prayer.’
Patricia Kayden
@Amir Khalid: Love that video!! Also I am a huge fan of Springsteen so Christie can shut it. Springsteen can sing that song outside of the jail once Christie is imprisoned for shutting down that bridge.
chopper
any time some guy starts his sentence with “after many months/days of prayer” you know the rest is gonna be just mendacious horseshit.
D58826
@dr. luba:
Alarmed or surprised?
chopper
@? Martin:
mammon? moloch?
PPCLI
There is a lot more entertaining stuff on Lyin’ Ted’s facebook post. For instance:
Yes, that is exactly what oil-producing states need right now. A massive increase in oil production, to drive gas prices even lower.
debit
@Teddy’ Person: I feel lucky that he came to me. He is such a good boy and it makes me so happy to make him happy, if that makes sense.
BruceJ
There, Ted, FTFY!
Major Major Major Major
@PPCLI: Obama’s been trying to crush the oil and gas industry? That would come as news to the oil and gas industry.
Felonius Monk
OT, but it needs to be said: FUCK MIKE DITKA.
RoonieRoo
In some ways this is a relief for me. I was having to deal with kind of liking him. He’s my senator and on my ballot. I was experiencing daily cognitive dissonance of my intense hatred for the man and grudging respect for the stand he was taking. It’s part of why I’m having to wear my mouth guard to bed again. Though I doubt this will fix my teeth-grinding at the moment, it sure makes my world a bit more “right” as I view it again. I don’t have the anxiety of having any respect for Cruz anywhere in my brain anymore.
Whew.
Corner Stone
@RoonieRoo:
I have no idea how anyone in Texas ever felt anything remotely similar to this.
I guess this is how a democracy dies. Not with a bang but with a, “Meh that evil piece of shit made motions at something not 100% evil. Maybe I can get his autograph for scrapbook class.”
Frankensteinbeck
I’ve been trying to explain this to folks here for years, Cole, but unless you grew up immersed in it, the idea that people can be driven by spite over all other impulses is hard to comprehend.
Iowa Old Lady
@Patricia Kayden: Today is Bruce’s birthday. Also Mr IOL’s, who is also from NJ.
Corner Stone
People. Ted Cruz was not standing on principle. He was not admiring the history of this great nation and fearful of what trump represented. He had no, zero, zilch, nada good intentions by twerking Trump at the convention.
It was a political gambit. A game. A crudely cynical maneuver that did not pay off. That’s it. That is all.
Now he has moved to the next switch on the dial to see how far that will take him down his ambitious path. He is a poor politician and a huge asshole of a human being. He has no redeeming qualities, not as a father, husband or public servant. In that regard he is most like Trump.
Matt McIrvin
After many months of prayer, I have examined my conscience and decided to kneel before Zod.
MomSense
Anyone else watching Brain Dead? Looking at that photo at top I swear bugs have eaten their brains.
Shana
@Felonius Monk: What’d he do?
Ozark hillbilly
@WaterGirl: wife’s old iPad. I hate it. That’s ok, it hate’s me back. (Seriously, these things have several….. Quirks, that just plain fuck with me. For instance, it insists my real nym is Omari Hillbilly)
WaterGirl
@MomSense: I had to give up watching after 2.5 shows. I just couldn’t watch one more person trap and betray the person who loved them so the bugs could eat their person’s brains. The rest of the show was fun and interesting, but I just couldn’t watch that, episode after episode.
Except for that, is it turning out to be a good show?
SiubhanDuinne
@Iowa Old Lady:
Hipy papy bthethdth thuthda bthuthdy to Mr. IOL!
Felonius Monk
@Shana:
Another Holocene Human
@Ozarkhillblly: Me too. I just try to learn from BHO’s example. I need people to look up to. I would want my leaders to be people I can look up to.
West of the Rockies (been a while)
@hellslittlestangel:
Does anyone fear Prince Reibus?
SFAW
@Trollhattan:
Amen to that. Saw him last week at Schaefer Stadium, he was awesome. (I was going to write “awesome as usual,” but that was, sadly, the first time I’ve ever been to one of his gigs.)
And I thought I heard once that he has no love for Christie, but I may have been imagining it.
SFAW
@Felonius Monk:
Wow, Ditka being a moron, who’d’a thunk?
ETA: I was going to say “acting like a moron,” but it’s no act with him.
Corner Stone
@Felonius Monk: The man who also said his life’s greatest sorry/sorrow* was not running and beating Obama for the IL Senate seat.
ETA* I like “greatest sorry”.
Corner Stone
@West of the Rockies (been a while): “Don’t Fear The Reibus” ?
Felonius Monk
@Matt McIrvin:
FIFY
Iowa Old Lady
@SiubhanDuinne: Thank you on his behalf. He’s out playing bridge which has driven me to eat Nacho Bell Grande for dinner.
SFAW
@Corner Stone:
Needs more
tumbrelcowbell.Steeplejack (tablet)
@WaterGirl:
Got it and just replied.
SFAW
@Iowa Old Lady:
A belated Happy B-Day to him!
Brachiator
@Corner Stone:
My high school biology lab had a Reibus Monkey.
Felonius Monk
@Iowa Old Lady:
That just sounds so good right now. Also too, wish Mr. IOL a Happy Birthday.
Felonius Monk
@Corner Stone: Great player, great coach, but otherwise a fucking moron.
Iowa Old Lady
@SFAW: @Felonius Monk: Mr IOL would be most appreciative.
OT but we’re still doing flood preparation here. The river is expected to crest here on Saturday. People are sandbagging. I drove on a road today that sometimes floods in one particular place, and there were barriers at the side of the road, ready to be put in place should they be needed. It rained again last night.
OzarkHillbilly
I hope my wife brings my lap top tomorrow.
Another Holocene Human
@Roger Moore: LOLing like a crazy person at your inspired comment.
Another Holocene Human
@Felonius Monk: He seems nice.
Villago Delenda Est
@redshirt: Partei before country. Sneer reference to a certain Central European regime of the later half of the first half of the 20th Century is important. Because it captures what these “people” adore.
RoonieRoo
@Corner Stone: You are a fucking asshole. You are how democracy dies. People who are so down in their ideological hole that they no can no longer see other people as actual people. You are the biggest slime there is.
debbie
Glenn Beck has pretty much been Ted Cruz’s #1 fan girl since the beginning. He’s feeling horribly betrayed by Cruz’s endorsement of Trump.
Iowa Old Lady
@Iowa Old Lady: Here are pictures of us and surrounding towns. They say the flooding may be worse than in 2008.
Corner Stone
@RoonieRoo: Hahahaha. You want to give Ted Cruz “grudging respect” for being a complete political animal? There was nothing redeeming or likeable about Ted Cruz telling people at the convention to “vote their conscience”, and now him telling us all that after searching his conscience he will be voting Trump.
Dude told us Cruz’s dad killed JFK and Cruz’s wife was an ugly bitch that he was going to spill all the beans on about how she fucked dobermans.
Step off with your foolish self.
Hal
@Corner Stone: Ditka was never winning that seat. Obama was double digits ahead of Jack Ryan before he dropped out and the Illinois gop trier to recruit Ditka before settling on the original 27 percenter Allan Keyes. He’s delusional if he thinks he was going to win.
Jeffro
@Amir Khalid: Who knew that Springsteen has been reading my stuff ?
Roger Moore
@?BillinGlendaleCA:
They’re the best cookies, the classiest cookies in the world. You’ve never had cookies this good!
Corner Stone
@RoonieRoo: I am a fucking asshole. But I also didn’t preach to the R House to do a government shutdown because it satisfied my personal political goals. If you are in TX and know nothing about how Cruz has conducted himself in the public service arena then you can go back to your creepy ability to ignore reality.
Felonius Monk
@debbie: Only a matter of time before Beck also kisses Trump’s ass.
? Martin
@Corner Stone: That’s going to vary a great deal from what I can see. One benefit of Chinese export economy is is that it is remarkably compact. Everyone is basically in the same city, and so there is tremendous supply chain efficiency because there are many highly focused services just around taking your goods, getting them packaged and getting them to the air freight hub or port. And because of that density, they can run a cargo plane every few hours to the US (Apple alone flies out roughly 6 per day) or a container ship every day (with other stops on the way).
Now for a 30 day delivery, you’re almost certainly seeing a container -> distribution -> domestic shipping arrangement. $12 is too cheap to do air, even for something as small as a watch. Maybe at $100 they would switch over. So if they put it on a ship within 48 hours of your order, it would probably take 2 weeks to hit a US port depending on where else the ship stops, then a day to the distribution, then 2-3 days to your house. 20 days would be reliable window assuming everything went according to plan. If it takes them a few extra days to get it on the ship, or if they want to give some wiggle room, then a bit longer.
They could certainly tighten that up if they had the volume, even with container shipping. I’m pretty sure they could keep that no longer than 20 days, allowing for only 4 days on the ends and 16 on the ship. The ships are a big variable in this. The only way to smooth that out is to keep inventory in the US, which is expensive outside of Amazon. Amazon through automation, scale, and just general mistreatment of employees has gotten those costs down such that they are very effective at warehousing and quick delivery – one of their biggest selling points.
My son ordered a few hard drives for us from them on Labor Day (Monday) at noon. We got them by 5PM free shipping through Prime. They came from Las Vegas. We didn’t need them quickly but that was an impressive experiment. I’m still kind of blown away they could deliver within 5 hours from another state on a federal holiday.
I doubt many humans touched that package to pull that off. Quite possibly none until it went into the FedEx truck locally, if anyone was wondering where our blue collar jobs are actually going.
Corner Stone
@RoonieRoo:
Just want to make sure that gets out there again.
Jeffro
@debbie: i haz a happy at this news…poor Glenn…
Sandia Blanca
@debit: That makes perfect sense, debit! Thank you for this mini-update, which we needed to hear in the midst of our national nightmares.
Van Buren
@Mark Field: Felt a sudden chill in the room after reading that.
MomSense
@WaterGirl:
Well let’s just say that alien insects eating the brains of politicians explains a lot.
Mark Field
@Van Buren: Heh. I hope there are lots of rooms in TX which need that kind of chill.
p.a.
Good news from Ohio. on voter purge.
Death Panel Truck
@Felonius Monk: He reeked of Jim Beam and Slim Jims.
Moron doesn’t even scratch the surface.
RaflW
@PPCLI: The problem for Cruz and all these peddlers of lies is that the blossoming American energy renaissance is what is killing coal. Natural gas is cheaper to produce, cleaner burning (I know there are some other very dirty consequences of fracking, but…), easier to transport than coal.
Despite utilities frequent complaining about, and attempts to thwart, renewables, they are increasing. And getting cheaper.
Of course lyin’ Ted Cruz is lying to his base, as are all GOPers on coal and various other renaissance fuels. The rubes will believe them because they’re losing jobs and it has to be the fault of hippies, not capitalists.
Villago Delenda Est
@Felonius Monk: Mike Ditka should shut his festering gob.
Villago Delenda Est
@debbie: My Schadenfreude meter…it’s pegged!
SiubhanDuinne
Not to be lookist, but what the hell is wrong with Carly Fiorina’s mouth in that photo?
redshirt
The amazing thing these days is that there are no Conservative principles anymore, other than the accumulation of power.
They have complete post modern beliefs – there is no truth, there is no reality than what we agree is reality, there are no facts other than what we agree are facts, changeable daily. The so called Conservatives are huge radicals with a nihilistic belief system, pretending to be religious. It’s a pretty volatile amalgam.
debbie
@Villago Delenda Est:
Yep! My guess is that by my next day off, he’ll have penned a tragic opera.The drama, it burns.
debbie
@SiubhanDuinne:
Looking closely, I’m thinking it’s collagen gone wrong. She is very thin-lipped and those bulges on either side of the poorly painted lower lip are not normal lip formations.
Major Major Major Major
@redshirt: it’s really pretty amazing, isn’t it? I mean say what you will about national socialism, at least it’s an ethos.
debbie
@debbie:
ETA: Has to be. Check out these side-by-side photos.
redshirt
@Major Major Major Major: It’s like the “Big Lie” manifested as a political party.
Mike J
Iowa early ballot requests:
Democrats: 54,059
Republicans: 20,687
No Preference: 21,379
Major Major Major Major
@redshirt: I just don’t see how you fight it at this point. Other than GOTV. People just… believe them.
Feebog
@RoonieRoo:
Corner Stone absolutely nailed it. You are a moron. That is all.
redshirt
@Major Major Major Major: Yes, GOTV. Win elections, and peel off people on the least fringey edge. As old people die and young people vote, hopefully the tide will turn.
We need to be loud and vocal and active though. We need to seize the era like Republicans somehow seized the era of the 80’s and beyond. We need to take over the conversation, rather than always be meekly responding.
bluehill
The timing of the announcement before the first debate can’t be coincidental. Their strategy has been to appeal to those undecided “conservatives,” so I wonder if this somehow fits into their debate strategy. Fortunately, Trump appears to have no ability to pay attention so not sure how much of the strategy he’ll remember without a teleprompter. Hope someone makes sure he’s not wearing an earpiece.
Major Major Major Major
@redshirt: yep. Exactly. I don’t know how to do that, but I know we needed to stop being nice right around 1994.
redshirt
@Feebog: To wade into it, I thought RonnieRoo was trying to say he liked that Cruz was tweaking Trump and had some respect for him doing so, like at the RNC. And for him to now kneel before the Orange One is a disappointment, since it would have been better if they kept fighting.
At least, that’s my take.
redshirt
@Major Major Major Major: GOTV. Good candidates. Money.
Major Major Major Major
@redshirt: doesn’t address the ‘hack gap’ that hinders our ability to seize the narrative.
Iowa Old Lady
@Mike J: Those must be absentee ballot requests. In-person early voting starts next Thursday, I think. What you do then actually is fill out an absentee ballot in person.
p.a.
@Death Panel Truck: Trailerpark Mary: bourbon, bbq sauce, tobasco on rocks, glass rimmed with dry rub, slim jim garnish.
SiubhanDuinne
@debbie:
That’s what I was looking at. Sad!
SiubhanDuinne
@Iowa Old Lady:
Jee-SUS, that is scary news. Stay safe and dry.
redshirt
@Major Major Major Major: I don’t think the MSM can be saved. But their impact will diminish over time as people who are used to never watching them get older and older. One day they will have no impact as everyone will have their own AI blog.
the Conster, la Citoyenne
@DCrefugee:
That’s the essence of the white resentment of changing America – mediocre white (mostly) males grokking that there are superior people of color and women who will clean their clocks, rightfully, if there wasn’t a tilted playing field that the racist operating system that America runs, called white supremacist patriarchy, working for them. They’re right, and they’re wrong.
SiubhanDuinne
@bluehill:
I don’t even know why Cruz is doing this, let alone why he chose this timing. He’s completely despicable, that’s been clear for years, but he’s not entirely stupid. Is he looking for a fucking Cabinet position in a Trump administration? I have utterly no respect for him, but I still thought he would’ve had a bit more political savvy than to publicly endorse Trump.
Barney
In Britain, it’s known as a ‘reverse ferret’:
SiubhanDuinne
@redshirt:
I think RoonieRoo is female, not that it matters on the Internet.
ETA: And I could be wrong. Yes indeed, I could be very wrong.
Omnes Omnibus
@SiubhanDuinne: He’s not up for re-election until 2018, so he can’t figure it’s going to help him with that.
SiubhanDuinne
@Omnes Omnibus:
I know. I don’t get it.
Major Major Major Major
@the Conster, la Citoyenne: yep. This. Though a lot of them don’t know know that they feel this way.
mike in dc
Increasing the proportion of white people with college degrees, particularly advanced degrees, might be the best way to shrink the winger base. College grads less conservative, people with grad and professional degrees considerably less.
debbie
@redshirt:
Cruz was not tweaking at the convention. He was pulling his pseudo-patriot act, which is why he got booed off the stage.
Omnes Omnibus
@SiubhanDuinne: Here is the answer in tweet form:
Matt McIrvin
@SiubhanDuinne: Cruz is probably betting that Trump will win, and figuring that if he hasn’t endorsed Trump before the election, President Trump will destroy him.
redshirt
@debbie: Boo! You just made me imagine Ted Cruz twerking.
West of the Rockies (been a while)
@SiubhanDuinne:
That through it she utters the thoughts formed in her cavernous brain?
redshirt
@Matt McIrvin: This is the answer of course. And if Trump loses, then this never happened.
The Lodger
@Roger Moore: “Come to the Dark Side… we have cookies.”
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@Matt McIrvin: and if (when) Trump loses, he will (probably) still be around in 2020, still able to command media attention and rile up the mouth-breathers. Far more of a consideration than a certain Kenosha political operative, I suspect.
Lizzy L
@Matt McIrvin: Exactly. Not rocket science.
SiubhanDuinne
@Mike J:
:-)
Matt McIrvin
I don’t think the political hit Cruz takes by endorsing Trump if Trump loses is that large, either. Trump is the nominee, after all, and if he loses, Republicans who didn’t support him will be blamed for the Clinton presidency.
It’s humiliating for him in the short term, but long-term, it serves a Republican politician better to fall in line.
Another Scott
In other news, there’s still no Federal Budget. Any bets on whether Hillary and Donnie will be asked about it at the debate on Monday?
TheHill:
It would be hard to imagine the GOP letting a shutdown happen 35-ish days before the election, but the Teabaggers are crazy enough to try it. And McConnell is chicken enough to let them do it.
Maybe we’ll get that October Surprise that everyone is worried about after all. ;-)
“But please don’t throw me in that briar patch!!11”
Cheers,
Scott.
Omnes Omnibus
Villago Delenda Est
@Omnes Omnibus: That is subtle. I doubt if many members of the Drumpfenproletariat will comprehend it.
rikyrah
@Ozarkhillblly:
He is a Black man that was ELECTED President of the United States. …that he is smarter than 98 out of 100 people in any room is a given.
Villago Delenda Est
@rikyrah: He’s definitely smarter than 100% of Drumpf supporters.
rikyrah
@debit:
Thanks for the Walter updates.?
Major Major Major Major
@rikyrah: only 98? Well, I guess if Michelle is in the room…
JR in WV
@? Martin:
When I buy stones, they ship priority mail flat rate. Mail is cheaper than freight for stuff that weighs less than a few pounds, or will fit in a flat rate box.
I have shipped amazing heavy things home from Tucson in flat rate boxes, in order to not carry them to the airport. Now I have too many rocks and crystals, and only buy gem rough and cut stones for the most part, except for new finds, minerals and combinations not found before.
But mail is the way for things like stones. Even diamonds.
fastEddie
They hate equality. They demand white privilege. A strong government will enforce equality, so they hate government. Government programs help to ease inequality so they hate government programs. A strong government will regulate businesses so they can’t crap on the “other” so they hate regulations. “Conservative” principles are only used to enforce white nationalism. So they have no problem spending TRILLIONS of dollars to kill brown people.