The Sunday Rumble: 10.12.17

Are the Democrats doomed?  I ask because there are two interesting articles of foreboding on this subject today.  The first, and perhaps most surprising, is from the impeccably liberal Maureen Dowd writing in the NYT.  She chronicles the disaster that has followed the Dems attempts last year to seize on Trump's self-confessed bad attitude to women whilst supporting  'HillBilly' who had joined enthusiastically in attacking the female victims of her own husband's voracious sexual appetite. 

The other article is an anonymous one in The American Spectator which complies with the old diktat to 'always follow the money'.  According to this writer, the Dems are heading, if not for bankruptcy then for severe impoverishment.  The chances are that the new Supreme Court will finally back a law that will stop public service unions from extracting money from their members who are not Dem supporters.  In anticipation, they have already slashed their contributions to the Dems.  The 'yuuuuuuge' amounts of money usually forthcoming from Hollywood have disappeared as the entire industry gurgles down the toilet.  Likewise, the Obama corruption in which various government funds were aimed at Democrat-supporting entities will cease under Trump and the cream on that cake is that Obama left the DNC an overdraft on its funds!  Read the article to see all the other revenue sources which have either disappeared or shrunk.  Trump may, or may not, be dumb but he's certainly lucky!

 

Quantum physics is easy compared to the Brexit imbroglio:   Does anyone really and truly understand the ins and outs of the Brexit negotiation?  As you may have noticed, given the lack of posts here on the subject, I haven't a clue.  Reading the, er, 'informed' commentariat simply leaves one even more confused.  Given the internal conflicts in the Tory party it was never going to be easy but my trust in an eventually satisfactory outcome remains with that "old common arbitrator, Time".

 

No wonder 'the cousins' are confused:   So far this year CNN, one of the principle news networks 'over there', has had to retract seven false news stories.  There's still three weeks to go until the new year so we must wait and see if they can reach double figures.  They are rapidly approaching the (in)accuracy record of the British Met Office who haven't changed the seaweed that hangs outside their windows for decades! Does anyone watch CNN anymore? 

 

Say it ain't so:   There is a 'SHLOCK-HORROR' story in today's Times reporting that a 'business man' connected to the Labour party has been recorded demanding a bribe of £2m from a developer trying get planning permission to build a new office skyscraper.  I can't provide the details because I refuse to pay to read The Times and thus keep the sundry wives of my ex-best friend, 'Rupe', in the style to which they have become accustomed!  But surely, 'Brother' Jeremy would not allow himself to be soiled by connection to such capitalist swine!

 

When it comes to Martin Schulz we must not be 'lookist': 

 

I agree that Herr Schulz is unlikely ever to win a leading role in Hollywood but, then again, nor is 'Mutti' Merkel!  However, the fact is that he is now 'Mutti's last chance to form a government and, whilst he is clearly and honestly an out-and-out Euro nutter, he might be a help to us rather than a hindrance.  He has now proposed that the Euro fanatics should be honest and not only admit to wanting a 'United States of Europe' but actually campaign for it to come about by 2025!  Because of this, Herr Schultz is fairly relaxed at our desire for Brexit, indeed, according to a piece in The Coffee House, he would be happy for any other 'wobblers' to depart and thus leave Euro-ultras to get on with it without opposition. 

 

 

 

The truly brain-dead are among us:   I refer, of course, to those Brit 'footie fans' who, having shared their handful of brain cells with each other, are preparing to visit Russia next year for the World Cup.  Amongst them will be, no doubt, the 'usual suspects' who like nothing better than a bit of boozing, street fighting and hooliganism.  Their Russian equivalents, of course, can hardly wait!  They, after all, are the 'pros' who actually conduct tactical exercises in street punch ups.  Our lot are ill-disciplined, drunken 'ams' and the resulting bloody defeat will match that of our gallant 'footie' team.  As for the rest of the visitors to Mother Russia, they can expect to be ripped off and over-charged where-ever they go.

 

 

A pre-Christmas gift to you all:  God, I'm good - and generous!  I offer you all a glass of vintage Hitchens - no, no, not Christopher! - I mean his brother, Peter, who is in fine form in today's Mail:

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-5163571/How-save-British-politics-Make-MPs-bus.html

 

 

 

No more rumbles today

 

Comments

[Pat]

If Trump is dumb what does that make his rivals and opponents?
I note that being pro-women consists largely in making it easier for them to kill their babies. I'm not convinced that all women have that as their top priority.

[David Duff]

I think, Pat, that it is almost impossible for an Englishman to decide with certainty whether or not Trump is dumb because he is so damned un-English! In fact, in some of his impetuous ways he reminds me of Churchill who was, of course, half American! All we can do is watch what he does, cross our fingers and hope for the best.

[Whitewall]

Are Democrats doomed? Unfortunately not. They are however the mostly unwitting agents of an ideology that always ushers in doom. The Republicans are too busy standing around with their hands in their pockets playing pocket pool to put the Dems away for good.

It has taken the likes of Trump to cut off their funding. Dirty money and too much immigration are their lifeblood. Choke off both and they will die off. Very soon works for me.

[Whitewall]

CNN, the most busted name in news! (H/T Diplomad)

[Bob]

You're burdened with a lot of misconceptions about American politics today, David. First, Maureen Dowd might be "impeccably liberal" relative to you, but not in fact. She's made a career of deriding the Clintons (which they deserve). Also, she has been far less left since 9/11 in 2001, when she seemed to suffer a nervous breakdown. I quit reading opinion pieces unless they're linked in a blog about five years ago, so that might have changed, but the piece you link seems typical of what I remember.

Second, the piece in TAS ignores the fact that individual Democratic candidates have been out fundraising the DNC significantly lately. Grass roots Democrats and the left dislike the party establishment almost as much as Republicans despise theirs.

Third, CNN's ratings are good:

http://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/october-2017-ratings-cnn-remains-a-top-10-basic-cable-network/346890

[Loz]

"Regulatory alignment".

What a stroke of genius that phrase is. It's a magic spell that when cast causes the great majority of folks who once had a passion for Brexit, whether Remain or Leave, but no brains and a gnat's span of attention, to instantly lose interest completely and rout from the battlefield.

This of course rules out the entire Brexiteer fraternity - from the cabinet top to the farmyard bottom.

"Would you like to discuss regulatory alignment with me?" is guaranteed to send any self-respecting Cunt-Bumper into a frenzy of cries of "Run away! Run away!", and, spitting out the straw from the corner of their mouth and grasping at the string holding their trousers up, decamp from the cabinet (top) or lawn in front of the Houses of Parliament (farmyard) and scarper down the A303 to Zummerzet! (See above post, for example).

What a move by May! What a result for "Remainers-by-proxy".

What it actually means is a slider-bar. In fact, not just one slider-bar, but one for every industry in Blighty.

A slider-bar is one of these ...

Slider-bar

You slide the nob in the middle to left or right to increase or decrease an effect. Maybe volume on a radio, or bass / treble in a music system, etc.

Well now the UK / EU negotiation teams have a whole bank of slider-bars, like a mixing desk in a recording studio.

Each slider-bar in the bank thereof represents an industry: Finance, agriculture, tech, manufacturing, etc.

Move the slider-bar to the left and you get less "regulatory alignment" and less access to the single market - huzzah say the Brexiteers. You pay less in EU single market access fees, but more in cross-border trade tariffs.

Move the slider-bar to the right and you get more "regulatory alignment" and more access to the single market - huzzah say the Remainers. You pay more in EU single market access fees, but less in cross-border tariffs.

Each slider-bar for each industry will now be adjusted by nerdy-werdy industry specialist types, well beyond the mental capacity and reach of mass media memes and bullshit, like: "Let's spend £350m a week on the NHS instead", and the knuckle dragging pols and activists that go with the mass media memes and bullshit.

And we know the class of folks who inhabit the nerdy-werdy world of the civil service, foreign office, and negotiation elite, don't we? Put it this way, they don't chew straw in the corner of their mouths or have string holding their trousers up!

Which means the "Remainers-by-proxy-of-regulatory-alignment", to give them their full title, have much to be pleased about, imho.

So there is a delish dollop of irony: In one sense you did take back control of the bank of slider-bars - but only to hand it over to the "Remainers-by-proxy-of-regulatory-alignment" coz it was too complicated for your lickle-wickle peanut brains!

By George and all the Saints, what a saga. You couldn't make it up.

SoD

[JK]

"Unwitting" Whitewall, surely you jest?!!!

David?

As far as that Spectator piece (that, admittedly, I've yet to read) there's [probably] another factor that'll be a contributor - Lois Lerner's Weaponized IRS is now severely constrained.

I'd put that "constrained" in other terms but as yet, I've not had my regular three cups of coffee. With two grams of 85% cacaoed chocalate per cup.

(Bob? I'll tend to you later.)

[Whitewall]

JK,
Just call me "in the Christmas Spirit"! I recover quickly right after. I am with you on the coffee...but the chocolate?

[JK]

Well Whitewall, doctor's orders is what the chocolate is. Mind, not the sweet sort - being sugar restricted (thus the choc/cacao being no less than 85% [definitely not Hershey's or Godiva - nor milk-chocolate] the stuff's bitterer than my usual beer)

Anyway, supposedly, both my circulation and mood are improved.

(Though my associates frequently query, "How so?")

- Check your email Whitewall -

[David Duff]

JK, I'd heard whispers from up in, er, 'them thar hills' that Barney Magroo's profits had slumped recently. Dammit, man, you have a reputation to uphold - coffee? - chocolate? - good grief, you'll be telling us next that you are drinking tea!

[JK]

No need to worry 'bout Barney's margins David.

Since the Pervnado hit Washington DC, orders for his products have gone through the roof. Matter of fact, Barney's considering an IPO.

(*Note on pronunciation of Pervnado - rhymes with tornado, long A.)

[backofanenvelope]

SoD - "You couldn't make it up."

You just did!

[Mayfly]

JK - try whisking in some ghee. Looks revolting, tastes amazing and is incredibly good for you.

[Bob]

JK,

Pervnado? Washington DC? What are you trying to say?

Barney should offer to market "Trump Moonshine". It's a natural. I hear he might never get his cut, though.

[Loz]

Mmm, I love the smell of napalm in the morning. Smells like ...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/12/13/pmqs-live-theresa-may-jeremy-corbyn-clash-government-prepares/

... VICTORY!

Those slider-bars just went right a couple notches.

SoD