Week-long Welcomings from Moosylvania: March 20th through March 26th

March 20, 2016 JanF Community 170

Welcome to The Moose Pond! The Welcomings posts give the Moose, old and new, a place to visit and share words about the weather, life, the world at large and the small parts of Moosylvania that we each inhabit.

Welcomings will be posted at the start of each week (every Sunday morning). To find the posts, just bookmark this link and Voila! (which is Moose for “I found everyone!!”).

The format is simple: each day, the first moose to arrive on-line will post a comment welcoming the new day and complaining (or bragging!) about their weather. Or mentioning an interesting or thought provoking news item. Or simply checking in.

So … what’s going on in your part of Moosylvania?

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NOTE: The comments page will now split off after 20 or so left margin comments with the most recent comments on the current page. To see the older comments, scroll to the bottom of the page and use the link.

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50 Comments

  1. Good morning Meese

    My heart goes out to people in Brussels. .trying to follow – airport and subway – pictures too awful to post.

    My news time is also split between Cuba and primaries.

    • The breaking news this morning was the airport attack and then minutes ago, the subway bombing.

      Not much doubt that this is related to the arrest of the last known participant in the Paris bombings in Belgium. I cannot imagine what it would be like to live in constant fear that some angry person will blow up a place where you or your loved ones are. :(

      • Was reading statements from the wounded – and people looking for family members killed.
        Several had Muslim names. Daesh is the enemy of us all. I’m bracing for more waves of Islamophobia :( – especially spews from Trump, Cruz

    • I am looking forward to the primaries being over. I am fed up with the lies and attacks and the damage that is being done to our candidate by people who should be allies. The general election will, hopefully, bring everyone together against our common enemy, the hostility of the Republican Party to everything we hold dear.

      I was amused to see that Tad Devine pulled down $800,000+ last month for his help building Sanders’ strategy – and $400,000+ the month before. Not a very good dollar to delegate ratio but it shows why the BS brain trust wants to take it all the way to the convention. $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

  2. Good morning—I suppose—it’s certainly not a good morning in poor old Brussels. Was there once and it was so picturesque. Those poor people! How one despises Daesh and its worship of everyone’s death except its own. Anyway, partly cloudy here in NoVa, 29 F. now, going up to 62 F. later today. Sorry about the snow where you are, Jan. Snow after Ostara—yikes!

    As we’ve decided to “age in place” rather than move, we are engaging a gardener. He’s coming between 9:30 and 10. Have to visit my periodontist today, which I love doing. We spend the first 10 minutes of my visit discussing politics. He’s a Democrat, by the way.

    GOS is no better post-Ides of March than it was before. Thank goodness we have the Moose—or, more accurately, thank you, Jan! Was so cheered to see our POTUS in Cuba yesterday. It’s more than time to make up with them, IMHO.

    Will end with a prayer to Goddess that there will be no more awful news today, from Europe or anywhere else. {{{Hugs to all!}}}

  3. Watching the news. I’m reminded of when the British attacks happened, I got out of the shower and wondered why Tony Blair was on the TV, as I had the local news on. Then…. why is Tony Blair still on my TV??? Then I tuned in to the words. It felt like that this morning, with the local news covering it. Now I’m watching MSNBC because Richard Engel. Just sad & sick.

    Still cold in Austin, compared to last week anyway. It’s probably actually seasonal, but after last week, it feels cold. And there’s no music in my head. Weirdly, it wasn’t playing even when I woke up, like my brain already knew.

  5. 51 at dawn (the pre-dawn moon was beautiful) and still is but heading for 70 today. Also sunny like yesterday – I generated a total of 21.5 KWHs yesterday – highest since last August.

    Brussels tragically shows the liberal/progressive problem – prevent Evil People from destroying and killing without becoming like them. Please goddess that we manage on both counts. So tired of the evil perpetrated in the name of god – I do understand why some atheists are anti-religion although I don’t agree with them. For Evil People, any excuse will do and god is an easy one to use. But we still cannot defeat them by becoming like them. The “quilt sisters” are doing (I think they still need some messages) a quilt for Mother Emmanuel, but there’s no way to do a quilt for an entire nation. I’ll find a candle somewhere to light for them.

    Hope there is comfort, joy even, in your day to help balance the evil. {{{HUGS}}}

  6. The mainstream media calls up Donald Trump and puts him on TV to give us his “reaction” to the bombings. This is why we can’t have an intelligent conversation about terrorism … the MSM is obsessed with ratings even if it subverts the best interests of our country. Angry Mouse speaks for me:

    It’s the kind of tragedy that might, in a more civilized era, have caused people seeking to be world leaders to take a breath and offer their condolences to the nation under attack and to the victims and their families. But in this era, when we don’t have time to be politically correct or even mildly decent, or the slightest bit responsible about the language we use and the accusations we so carelessly fling against The Bad Guys, there’s no time like the present to start spewing incendiary language, speculating about whom to blame — even though officials have not determined who is responsible — and trash-talking, oh, well, everyone. […]

    Meanwhile, the actual president of the United States, currently in Cuba, has been briefed by the actual intelligence experts whose job it is to knows about such things. He has yet to speak on the issue, probably because he’s too busy undermining American security by taking selfies next to paintings of revolutionary icons. No wonder Republicans think he’s not even really the president.

    Or maybe it’s because Barack Obama is an actual grown-up, who would rather know what he’s talking about before stoking fears and xenophobia and calling everyone who isn’t him a stupid weak loser pansy-ass dummy. Which is why he will address the attacks in Brussels in a speech later this morning, from Havana.

    • The president’s address to the Cuban people on state television will be streamed at 10:10am Eastern. He is expected to talk about the Brussels bombings.

      • Another remarkable speech. I get all goosebumpy when he talks about small d democracy. It makes me feel hopeful even as we are in the midst of the ugly season of American politics.

  8. Morning all – cannot say “good” morning given the terrible news from Brussels. I’m listening to Pres. Obama speak in Cuba, and of course he began with measured strong words about the bombings – and then I see on twitter that the Today show couldn’t wait to milk the Trump ratings cow and got that idiot blowhard on to give his “thoughts” about Brussels and terrorism. Hillary declined to appear anywhere near Trump, but did phone in a couple of hours later to give the nuanced, measured response we would expect from a President. I despair for this country if the networks’ need for ratings leads to a President Trump. Good god.

    The President seems to be getting a good response from people in the auditorium in Havana – stressing bringing two peoples together, not so much governments.

    On a personal note, I was greatly relieved to finally get a communication from the IRS yesterday – they’re investigating the tax id fraud and meantime I’m to file my taxes as I normally would. So I’ll try filing electronically this week and see what happens. I may make it to the bank today to send off the wire transfer to pay off my mortgage, or I may do it later this week – my allergies are just killing me this morning.

    Have a good day everyone – my thoughts are with the people of Brussels.

    • Yay! Good news on the IRS. I hope they can sort out last year’s mess and get your refund to you. You are paying off your mortgage? Wow! The only way I ever pay off mortgages is by selling a house and/or refinancing. And then I get another mortgage to replace it. :)

      The president’s speech was inspiring. He has such an excellent way with words, words that convey his thoughts and feelings and hopes and dreams. I hope that President Raul Castro allows for opening up his society and that our Congress will one day lift the embargo that is part of what President Obama called “the last remnants of the Cold War”.

  9. Good morning, 45 and partly sunny in Bellingham. The news of the day makes me even more grateful I have a garden to be in today. I’m going to clip ivy, move the lavender plants, and replant the border on the lower patio with heather. The deer are munching the plants I have there now so I’ll move those plants to a spot at the top of the garden where the deer can find them first. Maybe feeding them well will keep them from eating the rest of the garden!

    Nancy LeTourneau…..

    Donald Trump is a One-Trick Pony

    Donald Trump is not an incredibly savvy media player. He’s a narcissistic one-trick pony. In other words, he knows how to “shock and awe,” but is completely clueless when it comes to intelligent adult conversation.

    I am aware of the fact that his style is attractive to a certain segment of the population right now and that those folks will vote for him no matter what he says/does. But on a morning when the news is all about the latest terrorist attacks in Brussels and the leading contender for the GOP nomination is a clueless narcissist, its not surprising that a lot of Republicans are embarrassed. They have every reason to be.

  11. Good Wednesday mornin’ Meese
    47 here in Saugerties

    Am following POTUS on his journey – was moved by his speech, though not for reasons most folks would discern.

    Brilliant, brilliant speech

    Transcript

    The opening ceremony of the baseball match was moving too – can’t find a video of it anywhere yet.

  12. Good morning, meese! Wednesday …

    It is 35 degrees in Madison on its way up to 36. Rain and wind are in the forecast. We are still on track to get a major spring snowstorm tonight into tomorrow. I will try to get my errands done today.

    Apparently the vote tabulation is still not complete from yesterday’s primary and caucuses. Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump won Arizona and it is beginning to look like the slate for the general election is set. I keep looking for signs that Reince Priebus is cracking but either he is the best poker player in the world or he is on major drugs. He is presiding over the disintegration of a major political party and he looks like a guy without a care in the world. My nightmare scenario, that Paul Ryan is drafted to run, is getting more than a little attention. Today he gives a major policy speech on the state of American politics and Charlie Pierce thinks his AIPAC speech was a prelude to a run. Grannies everywhere!!! Get your wheelchairs fitted with bazookas!!!

    Here is an excellent analysis on the state of the race from a Democratic party strategist: Here’s How You Know 2016 Is Already Decided:

    The 2016 presidential election is looking like it will be a matchup between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. While this election season has been full of surprises, it is likely that the most decisive period in the election has already passed, the outcome is set and this presidential election will be the first time since 1952 that Democrats will hold on to the White House for three terms in a row.

    I hope he is right.

    Another endangered Republican Senator: Richard Burr of North Carolina. The Trump Effect has him polling only 5 points ahead of his challenger with lots of North Carolinians unhappy with him and his support of “whoever the nominee will be”.

    See all y’all later!

    • Hi, Jan, thanks for the link to the Sosner article, which Politico bills as one of the “big-think” articles Sosner writes for that site. (Does no one speak, read, or write English nowadays?)

      Before I read it, I was going to post a “WANTED–Used Wheelchair” notice on Freecycle and order a bazooka from Amazon. ;)

      • I am going to find someone with mad photoshop skillz to create an image of an army of wheelchaired grannies with bazookas chasing Paul Ryan’s boney ass.

        He really scares me. He is Eddie Haskell and I am not sure there are enough skeptical June Cleavers left to see through his smarminess.

    • Am writing about the Democratic women running for the Senate for Sunday – Deborah Ross (NC-D) was endorsed by Emily’s list , and is going to need support – am hoping that Hillary coattails will help her. Obama won NC in 2008 and narrowly lost it in 2012.

      • There is a Democratic woman running in Arizona against Grampa McCain who is within 1 point. The question is no longer “will we take back the Senate?” but how many extra seats we will pick up. We don’t need a lot because we don’t have too many red state Senators left but it would be nice to have a counter for the votes of Tester, Heidtkamp, and Manchin.

  13. So according to the latest returns, Hillary and Bernie are tied in delegate votes. She ended up with 62 which is higher than her FiveThirtyEight.com projection and he is currently at 62 although it looks like some of the delegate counts haven’t been updated. Even if he gets a dozen more delegates, he ends the night further behind than when he started.

    Here is Hillary’s post-primary speech – from Seattle WA where she is expected to do well in Saturday’s caucus: Hillary Clinton Primary Night Speech

    Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton spoke to supporters in Seattle, Washington, as the polls closed in Arizona, Idaho, and Utah

    It was a good speech … I listened to it live. She is clearly in general election mode. If nothing else, having a “contested” primary has guaranteed that her speeches will get covered on TV.

    Today she is scheduled to give a major speech at Stanford University about counterterrorism. CSPAN will cover it live: Hillary Clinton on Counterterrorism

    Airing LIVE Wednesday, Mar 23 2:15pm EDT on C-SPAN2
    Democratic Presidential Candidate Hillary Clinton delivers remarks on counterterrorism in Stanford, California. Her remarks come a day after a major terrorist attack in the Belgian capital of Brussels.

  14. NY Mayor Bill De Blasio and Police Chief Bill Bratton denounce Ted Cruz

    “I would remind the senator that he lives in the United States of America, and the statements he made today is why he’s not gonna become the president of this country,” Bratton said during a joint press conference with Mayor Bill de Blasio. “We don’t need a president that doesn’t respect the values that form the foundation of this country.”

    • Republicans who are voting for Cruz as the Not Trump are going to be unpleasantly surprised when they dig a little deeper into his positions and his gawdawful policy advisors. He is actually a scarier candidate than Trump because Cruz is a True Believer and will destroy our nation, and the world, rather than stray one iota from conservative purity. He is the demon spawn of Goldwaterian and Birchian politics: “Extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice. And moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue.”

      • Yes – Cruz is a nightmare-in-waitng. I’m just hoping we jump on the Republican disarray and increase our number of house seats and flip the Senate.

      • The Cruz Missal is even scarier than Trump, in my opinion. Remember Sinclair Lewis’ well-known quote: “When fascism comes to America it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross.”

        A Cruz presidency, Goddess forbid, would end this country as we’ve known it.

  15. I got a lot done yesterday, despite being glued to the TV. One thing I didn’t do was cook, so I’m going to try to leave at 4 so I can make lunch for the rest of the week. My head is full of U2 music, since all my friends on the U2 fan pages are sharing snippets from the Paris concert. Praying along with my boys that we don’t become a monster in fighting a monster.

  16. Good morning, Moosekind! It’s 51 F. here in NoVa under cloudy skies (which means another full moon tonight we won’t be able to see), going up to 71 F. today.

    Glad that HRC won Arizona, putting her ahead of St. Bernard in delegates. The state of the world is so awful one doesn’t know what to say. One of my Canadian friends on FB took everyone to task for not mourning those dead in the Daesh bombings in Turkey, and she has a point. Dead innocent people in Turkey are Muslim so we don’t mourn, but dead innocents in Brussels are Christian, so there’s a worldwide outpouring of grief? It bears thinking about.

    Hoping for a quiet 24 hours at home and abroad, and wishing everyone in Moosylvania a good day!

    • i agree with your friend. I noticed that some of the wounded who were interviewed were Muslim. Daesh has slaughtered over 10000 people so far – most of whom are Muslim.

      • I noticed that Young Tom Cotton, Senator from Arkansas, wants to change the visa rules to allow CHRISTIANS fleeing from Daesch a quick entry into the United States. Because even though, as you point out, Muslims are more likely targets, I guess they don’t count in the United States of Theocracy that Cotton and Cruz espouse. “Muslim Lives Don’t Matter”. >_<

        • If anything could make me believe in retroactive abortion (nothing could, thank you), the junior Senator from AR would be it. He’s a baby Hitler.

  17. 60 at dawn and 60 still – overcast so we may or may not get to the predicted high of 68. May or may not get some rain this afternoon or evening, which we could use.

    Glad Hillary’s margin was so good. Kos did an editorial in The Hill saying it’s time for Bernie to step aside so the Orange will probably be something like a stirred up hornet’s nest – I only go into HNV (and diaries linked to from there) and the Pootie diaries so I won’t know but I’d bet money on it. I don’t care if Bernie stays in – IF he stops with the R-like character assassination campaign. In fact, I think it would be a good thing. His supporters would be able to vote for him. His loss would be “clean” – honestly defeated not pushed out of the game early. The media would continue to report some actual political stuff about Hillary instead of 24/7 R-memes. And I think the Bernie supporters would “come home” more easily under those circumstances. I know we Hillary supporters of ’08 certainly did. But that whole scenario is predicated on Bernie following Kos’ DBAD rule. Which I doubt is going to happen. sigh.

    • If Bernie doesn’t stop with the character assassination, he will find himself speaking at the Philadelphia convention at 2am in a banquet room. He can’t be trusted with a prime time speech like then Senator Clinton was because he has shown his true colors and they are ugly. Why would any Democrat want to be known as the guy who only wins the white states?? And is proud of it?????

      • Honor and honorable for him are the same kind of honor and honorable that allowed America to breech treaties with Indians and other peoples/nations whose people are not white – a promise doesn’t count if it isn’t made to “one of us”. So I hope something that would be more to the point – especially if we flip the Senate by at least 2 and preferably more – he’ll be told he’s not only going to face a progressive Dem in his next Senate race, but he’s going to lose those plum committees he’s been pontificating from if he doesn’t cut it out. Threaten his soft seat and maybe he’ll pay attention.

        • I doubt that anyone would run against Sanders in VT – as delightful that would be. Vermonters seemed to support his poke-the-Democrats-in-the-eye candidacy. But, yes, I would hope that plum committee assignments be saved for loyal Democrats in the 115th Congress.

  18. Morning all! Beautiful day here in north Florida – a bit cool which I’m trying to enjoy while we still have it!

    Had a fun night last night following the primary/caucus returns on Twitter and at the Hillary primary threads at GOS. And yesterday watched the President’s speech in Havana – so powerful, so moving – and some of the baseball game as well. Loved all the pics from Cuba!

    The Bernie people will take heart from last night’s wins in lily white Utah and Idaho, and the string of upcoming primaries will largely go to him. But then comes the mid-Atlantic state primaries and Hillary will bury him there. Sadly, I don’t think he’ll do anything to bring his supporters into the Democratic fold – he’s in narcissist territory now, and his campaign advisors, especially Devine, I firmly believe are in it for the money, so the attacks on Hillary (which are what move the needle for Sanders in fund raising, I would bet) will continue up to and possibly into the convention, I believe. What a putz he is!

    I had some fun on Twitter last night – I saw that Rolling Stone was going to endorse Hillary, so when Al Giordano asked all of us who follow him (he’s a great political analyst and long time organizer and rabble rouser) what we were drinking, to pass the time till results came in, I said ‘The bitter salty tears of Matt Taibbi as Rolling Stone endorses Hillary Clinton. That’s what I’m drinking.” (Taibbi really hates Hillary). I don’t do many tweets, but lots of people liked and retweeted that one lol.

    Have a great day everyone!

    • Considering his track record, what are the odds that Devine is actually an R-mole? I hope to heaven no Dem ever hires him again. For anything.

    • Yes, Taibbi hates all Democrats – he is a frustrati god.

      Sanders will win in Wisconsin but I did my part and banked my vote for Hillary today so she can take home some delegates. I hope the turnout is awesome and that we get our Supreme Court candidate elected off the BernMentum. Finally, a good use for it!

  19. Good morning, 47 and cloudy in Bellingham. Thanks to a great afternoon in the garden I dozed through the primary results and then overslept. Now it’s time to find my suit and go to the pool.

    HRC’s Seattle schedule was busy!

    Clinton slams ‘leaders who incite more fear,’ pledges to defend workers’ rights

    The last thing we need, my friends, is leaders who incite more fear,” Clinton said, assailing Republican talk of building walls and closing U.S. borders. “What Donald Trump and Ted Cruz and others are saying is not only wrong, it is dangerous.”

    The remarks came during a campaign swing through Washington before Saturday’s Democratic caucuses.

    In an earlier rally in Everett, Clinton took aim at the labor vote and jabbed Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, her rival for the Democratic nomination, for opposing loan guarantees that help Boeing and other exporters.

    • Here is the embed of her post-primary speech last night. It was really good:

      She went right at Trump and Cruz and set the tone for her general election campaign.

  20. Hillary’s speech in Seattle last night was wonderful, as was her speech on fighting global terror today at Stanford – I listened to it on C-Span, and the contrast with the Republican clowns AND Sanders on foreign policy issues could not be more stark. I thought, this is what a President sounds like. I imagine world leaders on their knees every night praying to whoever they pray to that Hillary wins in November.

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