Yes, as you all know, I love slagging conservatives. The concept that being decent in their personal relations somehow mitigates the damage they do to the rest of the world is bullshit.
Not abusing your spouse and children is the floor for reasonable behavior, not the fucking goal. So yeah, I enjoy a little schadenfreude when one of them rages himself into an early grave with the assistance of booze and cocaine. I get a little happydance going when one of them, having lost the ability to see his dick, not only steps on it, but grinds it into the ground over and over and over again. That’s just the kind of guy I am. And when a couple of c-listers try to come by and play the sadface troll in order to pick up some extra credit from the wingnut welfare circuit, I enjoy slapping them around a bit too.
But there has to be more to life than all that, fun as it is. We don’t want to end up like those fools, now do we?
So I pet my dog. She makes me a better person.
This is an open thread.
Maude
She is an angel.
deep
http://www.cracked.com/blog/6-things-rich-people-need-to-stop-saying/
geg6
OMG, that is the cutest little puffball evah.
General Stuck (Bravo Nope Zero)
Funny how that works. Your doggie is cute overload.
Maxwel
I hear ya, bro.
CaseyL
It’s those trusting, loving, very bright eyes. If you have any soul at all, you want to be worthy of that kind of regard.
Walker
Since this looks like an open thread:
Is anyone else enjoying the Reaper invasion on twitter?
http://twitter.com/allianceNewsNet
BruceFromOhio
I wonder where this ex-military-slagger-of-conservative trait got crossed with the cute-overload-pets-in-my-house trait: nurture or nature?
Either way, good on ya, SG. Fine looking pup there, too!
ETA @CaseyL: … and do your doggonedest to keep it that way …
BigSouthern
Way to get it done, VCU! Woo!
jharp
How sweet it is that it ends up being President Obama that brings the limp dicked lard ass down. And by doing nothing more than doing what was was right and sticking to it.
He is quickly becoming a great President.
SuperHrefna
Aw, what a sweet fluffball! Here is a pic of one of mine: She’s still trying to find out where I hide the hat so she can destroy it :-)
Gus
Oh my god, this blog has been overloaded with cuteness the last few days. I want to pet that little pup in the worst way.
Beth in VA
I don’t believe that’s a real dog. It looks like a stuffed toy, maybe with glass doll eyes or something! It’s too perfect, too cute to be real!
trollhattan
Lawdy, puppeh would disappear beneath Tunch, never to be seen again. Dang cute, though.
JordanRules
What a doll. Thanks for the hit off the adorable pipe.
David Koch
she sure is fluffy
David Koch
Does she mind being strapped to the roof of your care?
Martin
Dude, you’re killing me out here.
MikeJ
@Walker: Is there anything more boring “viral” marketing?
jeffreyw
Them’s the rules.
johio
Anyone read juanitajean blog? Not sure if I’ve correctly inserted the link on this little tablet. But her post today on lights, camera, oh crap! is worth keying in the address, juanitajean.com. Must be something about liberal Texas women that makes them naturally fall down funny.
Maude
John McCain wants to bomb Syria. He’s got his days all mixed up. Today is the day Repubs want to bomb Iran.
Carolina Dave
Good for VCU.
And that dog is just too freakin cute.
Petting time around here involves BIG dogs like Lab, Rottie, Weim and, on loan, Norwegian Welkund.
Shocked the neighbor when she asked why I don’t like Rush if she was a slut.
Soonergrunt
@Carolina Dave:
Wait, what?
gogol's wife
Squee is the only word for her. Everyone’s talking about the eyes, but what about that nose?
Soonergrunt
@jeffreyw: OH, MY, GOD! /13-year-old daughter
Walker
@MikeJ:
If it is just retweet-bait, sure. But not when it tells a decent story.
01jack
I keep getting the mobile version, ever after I “Switch to our desktop site.”
Is there anything I can do, or is it just another FYWP?
(Firefox on Ubuntu, if that matters)
PurpleGirl
SG — awwwww, she’s cute.
SuperHrefna: Your little one is cute too.
One of the retired racers my friends had was named Red Nurse — she was red brindle. (I forget the story behind her name.) Anyway, my friends and I went to a crafts fair and there was a person who made hats for animals. We found an old-style nurse’s hat and bought it for Red. She actually let us put it on her. (Sorry, I don’t know what happened to pictures we took.)
01jack
Huh. That fixed it.
Stentor
Awww, she’s so cute! I pet my kitty Sneakers, he makes me a better person. He’s a sweet boy, & my wife just adores him. I have a picture that an ex-girlfriend took of me holding him like a baby, & petting him. She thinks it’s funny that a big, tough, Marine has such a soft side. I was the one who told her I wanted her to get a kitty too. She now has two puffballs of her own, Allie & Koko.
Jeffraham Prestonian
Here’s my guy that I didn’t submit for the calendar. That would be Curly, the sweetest, off-the-rack brown tabby evar.
.
daize
Puddin’!!! What a lovely little friend.
SuperHrefna
@deep: That was a good article! Cracked really does lay it on the line. It’s weird, I remember it from my childhood as a hopelessly crass & dumb magazine, but now they’re turning out some really good writing on the web.
stibbert
thx johio, that jj post is great. i’m still laughing.
Yutsano
@Soonergrunt: They’re in Illinois. You’re safe soldier. :)
Horrendo Slapp (formerly Jimperson Zibb, Duncan Dönitz, Otto Graf von Pfmidtnöchtler-Pízsmőgy, Mumphrey, et al.)
I can’t say this enough. Some years ago, I heard Mary Cheney on Dianne Rehm’s radio show. To her credit, Rehm asked Cheney about the reputation her father has as a vile, sadistic sociopath (though she didn’t put in those words). And Mary Cheney answered by telling us how much Cheney loves his wife and daughters, what a great father and husband he is. And I thought, “What the hell? That’s the standard for being a great person? That’s the lowest standard any even halfway decent person should live up to.” And to Rehm’s discredit, she didn’t follow up on this.
geg6
I have got to remember to send some of my favorite photos of our Otis to Anne Laurie for a rescue story. He’s my baby boy. Even if he does weigh ninety pounds.
Yutsano
@geg6: Has he been hanging on you while John’s in the hospital? An update on his condition would be appreciated too.
a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)
@SuperHrefna: Be glad she can’t dial the Humnane Society to report your for intentional infliction of emotional distress on a kitteh.
a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)
@jeffreyw: You’re just mean. I want one. And the thread picture is to squee over!
Curly is adorable! In a regal way, of course.
Joseph Nobles
Jesus, it’s a record. Two posts eaten by a stupid tech error that makes no sense. I am not posting from an offsite form, WordPress!
Anyway, short version. I need advice. My parents need someone to watch their beagle until they can find a house in San Antonio. Champ has been an indoor dog with the run of their old backyard and the supervision of two retirees. I live in a one bedroom Dallas condo and work ten-hour nights four nights a week. Would it be inhumane to take this dog, even temporarily?
SuperHrefna
@a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q): Oh I bet she could (she’s a clever little kitteh) but she’d rather guilt me out of extra snacks instead. I call her my walking stomach, she never met a food she didn’t adore… she even eats raw zucchini chunks that drop on the floor when I’m cooking and once I had to prise her out of a colander full of draining green beans…
Citizen Alan
That does not look like the dog of someone who goes by the name “Soonergrunt.” That looks like the dog of someone who goes by the name “Aunt Vivian.” Darn cute though.:)
FuriousPhil
@Horrendo Slapp:
I appreciate that she does talk about issues a lot of the time. Her voice just drives me nuts. I prefer Terry Gross. Or even the hyperactive Neal Conan.
I think I listen to the radio more than I watch television. That must make me some kind of anomaly.
Linda Featheringill
@jeffreyw:
Hey, Jeffrey! good to hear from you!
Jay C
OK, a question for the Balloon Juicitariat: TPM posted an article about what sounds like an unexceptional temporary halt by GM in the production of their hybrid/electric Volt model. Apparently, this vehicle is some sort of bête noire for some rightwingers, and this seemingly-normal hiatus prompted a sneering, gloating press release from a Republican Congressman.
OK, it WAS from Perennial-Candidate-For-Asshole-Of-The-Century Darrell Issa; but SRSLY – getting this worked up over a car? And a car designed, produced and sold by GM, yet?
What IS it with these people? Is their Obama Derangement Syndrome SO far-along that they have to jump on anything, however trivial or off-the-wall to try to make a “point”? (and usually fail)
johio
@stibbert: you’re welcome, she’s a daily read for me. Was especially funny while Perry was still running. Brought back memories of Molly ivins
Martin
@Jay C:
Um, yeah! You’re new to this, aren’t you?
geg6
@Yutsano:
Oh my, yes. Otis is completely discombobulated by John not being here, even though he’s been known to travel for work a lot in the past. But this is also the first time John has been gone since Henry passed. So that may also be part of the problem. It’s kinda sad to see him, when I walk in the door from the hospital or work, looking behind me to see if John is coming in, too. Very clingy. But he’s like that at the best of times, just not as much.
As for John, it’s amazing the difference a day or two makes. The third pint of blood did the trick with whatever they were worried about that nessitated transfusion (probably a higher blood loss from surgery than they anticipated). And his physical therapy is going very, very well. They’ve already had him doing stairs for two days now. He says he’s pushing himself and the therapists are really happy with his progress. He was always athletic and perfectly willing to do hard work, though, so I’m not surprised. We will be having a meeting with his team tomorrow afternoon and it’s very probable that he’ll be home either Thursday or Friday if his progress so far is any indication.
SuperHrefna
@Joseph Nobles: I think if you could find the time to take the beagle out for long happy walkies every day then it wouldn’t matter about you working long shifts at night. You might want to think about a large crate filled with stuff from your parents’ old home so Champ has a place to retreat that smells like home to him.
Spaghetti Lee
@deep:
Read it this morning. Took a lot of guts to write on a site like that, was my first thought. I don’t even dare read the comments.
jeffreyw
@a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q): One of these, maybe?
Soonergrunt
@Jay C: The only thing Darryl Issa knows about cars is how to steal them.
Karen
I have my bratty cat Contessa. I pet her, or rather, I serve at her pleasure and when she wants attention in the morning, she’s not above walking on the bed, then on my head to make her point.
I know this is OT even on an open thread but I’ve noticed that Balloon Juicers live in the Metro DC area (not sure if where John Cole lives in WV is considered to be part of it). Would anyone want to meet up in DC, like maybe somewhere metro accessible?
jeffreyw
@Linda Featheringill: Ma’am..
Yutsano
@Jay C: A one month temporary production halt after a dip in sales is standard practice in the industry. Of course all Issa knows about cars is stealing them, so the fact that a genius of his caliber missed the point is hardly surprising. That and Volts are a big symbol in the global warming fight.
@Soonergrunt: Beaten to the punch, I am. :)
Linda Featheringill
@geg6:
If his physical therapy is progressing, he is probably out of danger. That’s good.
Surgery is a shock to the system. Sometimes it just takes a little while to recalibrate.
PeakVT
@Jay C: If liberals are for it, conservatives are against it. See also: GM bailout.
Mnemosyne
@Joseph Nobles:
You can probably make it work if you can do what SuperHrefna said, but you might want to look into doggie day care places nearby just in case the beagle seems to need more exercise/stimulation than you can provide on the days you work.
wetcasements
For the followers of Rush Limbaugh to play the concern-troll card re: not being weepy enough about Breitbart, well, that never gets old.
Yutsano
@geg6: Awww. Otis must feel spoilt from all teh head skritches he’s been getting lately. He definitely sounds like he’s been a big help during this time.
John sounds like he’s gonna break records! Just make sure he listens to his body and if there’s a problem he gets help. Otherwise sounds great on that front! :)
piratedan
@deep: ty, that was a refreshingly pleasant read
Jay C
@Martin:
Umm, no; not really: more of a rhetorical question. It was just gobsmacking to read shit like Issa’s press release that seemed like, SO divorced from reality – factually incorrect, too, but never mind. Is Issa really advocating for us burning more gasoline than we do now? As some sort of public good?
FuriousPhil
@Jay C:
As someone who lives near Detroit and know a lot of people who work for Ford, GM, Chrysler – this is commonplace and happens fairly frequently.
To know the mind of a conservative is to glimpse madness, I guess.
Richard W. Crews
This is a letter I had printed in my local right-wing paper ; nctimes.com north san diego county : cunningham (jail), issa, bilbray , hunter
Politics and goodness jan2012
America looms large world-wide; it’s actions have huge impact. The sheer size of American policy can overshadow personal actions. Good people can empower bad policies, negating their “goodness.” I’m sure every immoral government has held upstanding citizens who maybe had to turn a blind eye or suppress an opinion. We vote for our leaders and policies. Often our vote is our only [political activity. It’s really all the political entities want. Voting must be seen at large scale; not just a little thing done once in a while.
It’s our responsibility, as decent people, to have our institutions reflect ourselves. There are issues, such as torture, war, pollution, and attitudes towards our more unfortunate, that reflect the sum of our individual votes. Supporting such policies, given our scale, negates personal efforts at being good. You cannot sin with one hand and pray with the other and expect decent judgments.
Not all of any party is all good or bad, but the overall positions can be determined, and individual support evaluated. I grieve to see small income percentages subvert serious social needs and graces. I see craven and immoral acts clearly expressed through politics, and simple clear binary election choices.
Libby's person
@Joseph Nobles: 10 hours is a long time for a dog to have to go without urinating. Could you arrange for someone to stop by for a half-hour or so during your 10-hour workdays to walk and play with the dog? If so, then it should be fine; the dog will likely be a bit stressed to begin with from the change in circumstances, but less so than if it were in a kennel. If there isn’t any way to get the dog walked while you’re at work, then I think it would be a bad situation for the dog. Good luck figuring this out!
PeakVT
@Jay C: Is Issa really advocating for us burning more gasoline than we do now?
Yes, most Republicans are for burning more gas. In their minds it’s manly, and conservation would make their weenies shrivel. Scroll through any Prius or Volt thread on an auto website and you’ll see what I mean.
geg6
@Yutsano:
@Linda Featheringill:
Besides his physical progress, I noticed yesterday how different his legs look. We’ve been together five years now (!!) and he’s always had these super bowed legs. I helped him get his legs up on his bed after he’d had a short walk and his legs were totally straight. His doctor says that he’ll be about a half inch or even an inch taller. There was literally nothing in his knees between his femur and tibia and the ends of those were worn down. The surgeon said that on a scale of 1 to 10 (with 1 being not damaged at all), John’s left leg was a 9 and his right was a 10.
Anonne
Melody!! Sight for sore eyes.
Maike
I want a dog just like yours.
geg6
If you haven’t been over to Tbogg’s place tonight, I highly recommend a quick read. The caption to the top pic wins the internets.
http://tbogg.firedoglake.com/2012/03/05/mitt-romneys-hobo-wife-may-have-to-live-out-of-one-of-her-cadillacs-someday/
Yutsano
@geg6: You’ll be amazed at how much better he says he feels. I imagine he’s noticing already although I bet he’s still pretty drugged up for that yet. When my dad has his done his pain difference was remarkable.
a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)
@jeffreyw: Heartless, you are. I want them all!
General Stuck (Bravo Nope Zero)
Along with significant moves of women voters toward President Obama, the news doesn’t get any better for republicans amongst Hispanic voters.
These numbers are simply brutal for the GOP, though we have a ways to go before election day, somebody needs to find that Whitey Tape, and PDQ.
Martin
@Jay C:
No, not as a public good, but as a measure of American Exceptionalism. Conservation is for soçialists and banana republics. It’s a sign that you’re a loser.
Burning as many barrels of fossil fuel as you can manage is a sign of dominance – it shows that you’re a taker – that when you really need to get your dually with gun rack over to that NASCAR race, you’re willing to go into some 3rd world country, kick some ass, take their shit, and not apologize. The ability to light your cigars with $100 bills proves that you’re a winner.
scav
test, sorry
ETA: I thought I was invisible there for a second. Two posts about Nigel Bruce in a row mistappeared. Carry on.
Martin
@General Stuck (Bravo Nope Zero): Yep. And here’s the lesson within Texas. Had Latinos turned out at the same rate as whites in Texas in 2008, Obama would have won the state. You want to know why the GOP has gone all-in on voter suppression and redistricting – it’s that fact. And Latinos know it now.
There is a legitimate risk that the GOP could lose Texas. Odds are against Obama winning, but not impossibly so. It’s purely a GOTV effort. The voters are there, they just need to pull the lever. This Latino trend only makes that more possible.
Chuck Butcher
It isn ‘t a good thing to find that your capacity has outstripped demand and it is damned expensive to shut down. This hurts.
Beauzeaux
@Joseph Nobles:
Not cruel at all — as long as you hire a dog walker to take her out for a walk mid-shift. You’ll also have to take her out again when you get home and lavish love and treats on her most deserving self.
brettvk
@geg6: I’m getting a malware warning when I try to connect to Tbogg’s place for a couple of hours now.
Odie Hugh Manatee
If that picture was sugar I’d be in a coma right now. Does your wife ever mistake her for a powder puff? ;)
asiangrrlMN
Squeeee! Cute puppeh is key-oooooooot!
@SuperHrefna: She’s beautiful, but watch out when you sleep!
@Jeffraham Prestonian: D’awwww! I wanna snuggle with Curly.
This thread was exactly what I needed.
Nutella
@PeakVT:
And they get a patriotic, all-American thrill from the idea that their grandchildren will freeze to death in the dark after we’ve used up all the oil as fast as possible.
Joseph Nobles
Thanks for all the help, folks. The problem with hiring a dog walker or even having a friend come over, either of which I would be more than happy to do, is my working nights. Mid-shift for me is 11:00 pm Central.
I guess I’m going to hope that some of my parents’ friends see their way to taking Champ. Or maybe Mom will come every night (they’ll be in Fort Worth, I’m in Dallas) and walk Champ the nights I work! Yeah, that’ll happen. Plus, they have to go to San Antonio every once in a while to actually look for a house. Sigh.
Anne Laurie
@Joseph Nobles:
If Champ is a “bugling” beagle, moving him into your condo might qualify as cruelty to your neighbors. If you’re renting, it might be a lease-breaker. And even if he doesn’t howl much now, having to adapt to the “loss” of his old home & family might set him off.
Apart from the noise problem, if Champ is older than two and younger than nine or so, he should actually be able to hold his water for a ten-hour stretch, but it’ll take him some time to acclimate to the new situation. Best thing to do, starting now, is for your parents to start crating Champ every night at their place, during the hours you’d be working. Established custom is 90% of what makes dogs happy with their lives, and getting him used to the crate & the timing before the move will make it easier for all four of you to take the next big step. Have your folks buy a crate for Champ, if he doesn’t already use one, and start small by feeding him in it every night, leaving it with the door open in the room they use most, and giving him a treat or a special toy when he goes into the crate on his own.
If Champ can’t acclimate to the crate — if he howls non-stop when he’s in it, or he soils himself even when he’s been ‘exercised’ in the last couple hours — then you’ll all know that other arrangements will have to be made, before it’s the middle of the night & you get a message that somebody’s called the police to ‘rescue’ the howling varmint in your otherwise empty apartment. Believe me, it would be even more “unfair” to leave a beagle alone to “defend” an entire condo for hours at a time; even while he was barking/yowling defiance at all the invisible intruders outside, he’d be frantically tearing the place to pieces looking for a safe place / displacing his anxiety.
And it’s amazing how much damage a small dog can do — shortly after we adopted our 15-pound rescue papillon Sydney, the Spousal Unit stupidly insisted we leave him uncrated in the bedroom while we took our other dog Zevon for a 20-minute consolation visit to the doggy toy store (Petco). When we came back, Sydney’s nose was just emerging through the hole he’d gnawed through the base of the hollow-core door. He’d also dragged everything off the bookcase headboard (which, thank Murphy, is bolted to the wall, or he’d probably have pulled it over on top of himself), pee’d and crapped on the resulting pile of books, papers, kleenex, eyedrops & reading lamps in the center of the bed, and ripped up both the carpeting and the underlayment around the door to give himself better access. He had a mouthful of splinters, and had worn or split all the nails on his front feet. And Sydney’s just a weeny little lapdog — I guaran-damn-tee that a beagle will be able to do way more damage, in much less than 10 hours!
Joseph Nobles
@Anne Laurie: Problems with posting earlier ate two posts that went into detail about how worried I was just leaving Champ by himself not only for his sake (from 24 hour supervision from two retirees to just me and me gone 10-11 hours a stretch in the night) to what my neighbors would do as well if he started howling. He is four, but they must be out of the house they’re in in a week and a half, and so I don’t think that’s long enough for crate training.
Luckily I just checked out the Facebook post my parents had put out to their friends, and my brother in Mobile has offered to take Champ. He lives someplace much more suited to Champ’s outdoor needs and he’s got kids that can come by and walk him during the day while he’s at work. My niece would walk through glass to help an animal out. A couple of other people were at least looking around to see if they could find a foster family. So I and Champ may be out of the firing line.
I’m also going to tell my mom about the doggy day care idea. If the extended stay hotel they pick will let them have a pet, and she can take Champ somewhere to get thoroughly socialized and exercised while they house hunt, maybe that’s the best solution all around.
Joseph Nobles
I googled doggy day care in San Antonio (I was wrong, that’s where they are going to find a place to stay) and lo and behold, Lucy’s Doggy Day Care starts you out at $20 a day. You can buy multi-day packages, my Air Force vet brother there can hook them up with a military discount on that, and if they want to board him, they can even get him a luxury 8 by 8 suite with a flat screen TV for $39 a night. Lord God, they better take that dog with them. I’ll pay for the first 30-day package just to not worry about Champ being left alone.
Anne Laurie
@Joseph Nobles:
Yeah, that sounds like a better solution for everybody! In our experience some ‘extended stay’ hotels do allow dogs (it helps if your parents can stress that Champ is small). And if they can get him used to a crate before they move, even better — they don’t want to leave him crated alone for long periods, but if they tell the management they can ‘crate’ Champ, it greatly reduces the fear of liability incidents. And chains that don’t permit dogs usually have a list of recommendations for local boarding kennels / doggie daycare sites, too.