Comments

  1. Pteryxx says

    via Salon, North Dakota ramps up oil production because Economy!, North Dakota has its first big oil pipeline spill, right on time.

    Reuters:

    At an estimated 20,600 barrels, it ranks among the biggest U.S. spills in recent years. It is the biggest oil leak on U.S. land since March, when the rupture of an Exxon Mobil pipeline in Mayflower, Arkansas spilled 5,000 to 7,000 barrels of heavy Canadian crude.

    […]

    The company said the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) were at the site. The regional EPA office could not be reached because of the government shutdown.

    This is the biggest oil spill in North Dakota since 1 million barrels of salt water brine, a by-product of oil production, leaked from a well site in 2006, according to the state Department of Health.

    New developments in hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, have caused a boom in North Dakota’s oil production and boosted the state’s economy. Oil output jumped from 125,000 barrels per day in 2007 to 875,000 bpd in July. North Dakota is now second only to Texas in oil production among U.S. states.

  2. says

    Okay, so the Values Voter Summit will soon be upon us. As Republicans seek to broaden their base, what can we expect from the Values Voter Summit?

    Organizers tell us that the “top cultural topics” will be “marriage, abortion and religious liberty”.

    Ted Cruz, Rand Paul, Mike Lee and Michele Bachmann will be there. That’ll accomplish the goal of broadening the base. Not. Republicans can’t help themselves. They will continue to wage war on women, on gay rights, and on, well … everything.

    Not satisfied with the public spectacle of the Values Voter Summit, Christian conservatives arranged to meet privately with Ted Cruz and Rand Paul to further refine their strategy.

    A group of longtime Christian conservative activists are holding a private meeting Thursday [yesterday] in Washington to hear informal presentations from two of the most talked-about potential Republican presidential candidates: Senators Ted Cruz of Texas, and Rand Paul of Kentucky….

    The gathering is being held in conjunction with the Family Research Council’s Values Voters conference, an annual gathering of Christian conservatives in Washington, but it is not an official part of that event. Rather, it is being staged by a loosely-organized group of Republican leaders that call themselves “Conservatives of Faith.”

    The hosts include Tony Perkins, the head of the Family Research Council, …

    “Our hope is to create a warm and welcoming atmosphere that allows the leaders and their wives to open up and really share with us what they believe. Far from the tally lights of the camera and the scratchy notepad of a reporter, these leaders will share their worldview on a wide variety of crucial issues.”
    …

    http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/10/09/christian-conservatives-to-meet-cruz-and-rand-paul/

  3. says

    Pteryxx thanks for that info. Here is Rachel Maddow’s coverage of the North Dakota spill. Her segment begins with a quick roundup of previous spills.

    The FERC, the federal agency that regulates pipelines in the USA, is going dark next week. They’ve already furloughed two thirds of their staff. Pipelines don’t shut down, but the agency that supervises them does shut down.

    Maddow goes on to discuss other shutdown stories, all stuff from outside Washington D.C.

  4. thunk (sigh) says

    ugh hi.

    Long break for me… but I can’t help raging at a) the banksters who are dead-set on shoving me into debt service before I get to do anything (luckily, white middle-class privilege leaves me ways out) and me being really bored.

    *sigh*

  8. says

    PZ
    Now, the question is whether my or your anti-virus protection didn’t work, because I feel exactly like that. Also on the timing, since my term starts on Monday and missing the first week can ruin a whole term.

    beatrice
    Thanks. It kind of confirms my ideas that we’ll never ever really get along with each other. The whole letter is one big exercise in “me, me, me, me, me, I want, I want, I want.”
    I mean, why on earth should I want to spend any time with them?
    Oh right, I remember, nobody cares about what I want…

    Caitie, Esteleth
    When I was a kid “Schlüsselkinder” (kids with doorkeys) were the worst off, really, how could their mothers leave them alone.
    And for the grade school stuff: It’s amazing how the words “father” or “parents” don’t feature. I mean, even at the parents’ night with several fathers present, the teacher always talked about “mums”. “I tell the kids “your mum has to sign it, even if you don’t see her that night”. I couldn’t help but ask “are fathers allowed to sign?”

  9. says

    http://www.salon.com/2013/10/11/fox_news_and_talk_radio_brainwashed_my_dad_partner/

    Interesting read. Unfortunately, very close to my experience of the growing irrationality of my parents, though Rush Limbaugh was their mainstay, with Fox News playing a minor role. I am almost relieved that both of them died before Barack Obama was elected. Their passage to death was slow (years) and increasingly painful for them, so presidential elections look minor in comparison. Still, the focus on political nonsense did them no good.

    … Bob Grant [radio host] was a bombastic, rude, openly racist and sexist radio host. And very slowly, my dad began to change.

    Then when he started listening to Rush Limbaugh, that was when I started getting worried. He hated Bill Clinton with a passion I thought was bordering on obsessive. …

    So when Rush Limbaugh told him that poor people and Mexicans and blacks and feminazis were to blame for well, everything, he got mad too and took it up as his cause. He would get super-angry and bite the middle of his tongue and look like he was going to explode. …

    When I was growing up my dad seemed to love everybody. I never heard any kind of talk against any race or ethnicity. He was funny and goofy and talked to anybody….When I was in college I knew a lot of gays, and he was friendly and even gregarious and even thought them “cultured.” He wasn’t prejudiced at all. It wasn’t until later that he underwent a radical change.

    I remember one time in particular when we went to New York to go to Radio City Music Hall. A black homeless man asked him for money. My father called him sir and gave him money. That is imprinted on my memory. When my dad changed, he became obsessive. …

    My mother found he wrote all these checks to various right-wing causes. …

    Rush’s audience is 72% men and most are white over the age of 65, and with Fox and other outlets, it’s similar stats. However, I have met people across the board who get sucked into right-wing media outlets. It always surprises me. …

    I believe anger can be addictive. It can be a rush.

  11. Esteleth, statistically significant to p ≤ 0.001 says

    Giliell:

    Schlüsselkinder

    “Latchkey kid” is the American term.

    And as in Germany, it is a very class-laden term. A latchkey kid is either the child of a single parent ( a single mother, that is – the child of a single father doesn’t get half the stigma that the child of a single mother does – reflecting that a single father is a hero while a single mother is pathetic or a failure) or the child of a father who cannot afford a housewife, who is thus presumed to be poor or otherwise have “failed” as a man.

    It may also refer to a child of divorced parents who splits time between their home, and has keys to both. Also stigmatized.

  12. cicely says

    kittehserf, I read “the preparators had to clean up a whale that had washed up dead on the beach somewhere” as “the perpetrators had to clean up….”
    :)
    –
    chigau, *huggggsss bakk*
    –
    I am not sapient before about 9:00 or 10:00 a.m. Doesn’t matter what time I got to bed (and going to bed earlier doesn’t mean I can go to sleep earlier, either, even if exhausted), this is just How It Is, and neither does getting up an hour earlier help…
     
    …which is why I was purely incapable of passing any non-sleep-through-able class at any 8-fucking-o’clock in the goddamn morning. And Anatomy & Physiology was only offered in that time-slot. The instructor was perplexed.
    –
    Tony @442: Yeah, I know! Weird, huh?
    Obviously the Hundred-and-First Guest (goes by the name of Social Anxieties) dominated the (lack of) conversation.
     
    I guess my choice of non-verbal identifier for you would be a stereotypic bar rag—’cause a stereotypic beer glass would be no help at all, in this group!
    :D
    –

    Like the quote goes “Whatever isn’t nailed down is mine, and whatever I can pry up isn’t nailed down.” Rats would find that philosophically agreeable.

    Rats…are kender??? Or kender are evolved from rats?
    The implications….
    –
    And my non-verbal identifier for Lynna would be a coffee-table book full of stunning pictures of out-in-the-middle-of-nowhere scenery.
    –
    chigau:

    What a horrible phrase, “start a family”.

    On par with “start a fire”?
    –
    Beatrice:

    Even without thinking of anecdotes, just knowing how family/society expect people to want and have kids is enough to drive me to the conclusion that there must exist a whole lot of people who probably had kids just because they were supposed to.

    Or were guilted into it by their parents and their desire for grandkids. My mother is trying to get me to apply this to Son, because she wants additional grandkids. It is not working.
    –
    *hugs* for carlie. Your Tale of Woe reminds me of the time I was sure that the recurring puddle on the floor was from one of the cats spraying on the wall and thereabouts—which he totally was; we caught him in the act—and then it turned out, once the cat pee was out of the picture, that the bulk of the puddle was, in fact, the hot water heater leaking, puddling in the floor of its closet, and soaking through the wall right at just the site of The Peeing, and transferring into the kitchen floor for a large area around.
    :( :( :(
    So now we have a water-damaged, sagging kitchen floor that we were supposed to be going to fix when the MRSA-cre was paid of, but which has now been deferred until after The Husband’s treasonous-and-exiled gallbladder is paid for…at which time, no doubt, my gallbladder will finally explode, either killing me…or not.
    *sigh*
     
    Later this month, we will definitely be checking to see if the Affordable Care Act can help us out; but we’re afraid that they won’t count the doctor, hospitals, anesthesiologist, and I think one more—though we have got the Radiology Etc. sorted out—as “expenses” for purposes of determining what they think we can afford.
    But that’s a panic for Another Day. “Don’t borrow trouble; the interest alone will eat you alive.”
    –
    Kevin, congrats and commiserations.
    –
    *hugs* and sympathy and moral support for Giliell.
    –

  13. Pteryxx says

    re Lynna @503:

    The FERC, the federal agency that regulates pipelines in the USA, is going dark next week. They’ve already furloughed two thirds of their staff. Pipelines don’t shut down, but the agency that supervises them does shut down.

    …That’s kind of the point across the board, isn’t it. Businesses can go on selling tainted food but nobody can inspect it. Pipelines can go on running because it’s not illegal for them to operate without approval. But furloughed employees and food stamp recipients aren’t allowed to receive benefits *unless* they have direct approval from the programs being shut down. If those businesses had to suspend operations for lack of approval, the GOP would never have shut the government down. And that goes back to… where did I read it… the new-fangled interpretation that “government shutdown” MEANS choking off funding and closing everything, instead of simply running on autopilot like it used to.

    This isn’t the article I read (I think…) but still:

    http://www.npr.org/2013/09/30/227292952/a-short-history-of-government-shutdowns

    Drawn-out fights over spending bills are nothing new for Congress. But that’s where the fights used to stay: in Congress. The rest of the country didn’t have to pay much attention to countdown clocks and all this drama.

    “In the ’60s and ’70s down until 1980, it was not taken that seriously at all,” says Charles Tiefer, a former legal adviser to the House of Representatives, who now teaches at the University of Baltimore Law School. In the old days, he says, when lawmakers reached a budget stalemate, the federal workforce just went about its business.

    “It was thought that Congress would soon get around to passing the spending bill and there was no point in raising a ruckus while waiting,” he says.

    That easygoing attitude changed during the last year of President Jimmy Carter’s administration. That’s when Attorney General Benjamin Civiletti issued a legal opinion saying government work cannot go on until Congress agrees to pay for it.

    “They used an obscure statute to say that if any work continued in an agency where there wasn’t money, the employees were behaving like illegal volunteers,” says Tiefer. “So they not only could shut off the lights and leave, they were obliged to shut off the lights and leave.”

  14. Pteryxx says

    cicely @512:

    …which is why I was purely incapable of passing any non-sleep-through-able class at any 8-fucking-o’clock in the goddamn morning. And Anatomy & Physiology was only offered in that time-slot. The instructor was perplexed.

    *headdesk* … one would think an ANATOMY & PHYSIOLOGY instructor would know what sleep cycles are. FFS.

    (For one of my morning classes back in the day, I started showing up at 3 AM and sleeping right there in the classroom, so I’d always be on time. <_< )

  16. says

    *Completely Threadrupt* So I’ll add hugs to the *pile*

    —-

    Husband and I both got and accepted the jobs. Both of our bosses took it really well. We’re gearing up to move for the second time in 9 months and holy crap is stuff insane. They want us to start Nov 4.

  17. says

    “Stand Your Ground” laws are responsible for another miscarriage of justice, this time in South Carolian:

    On Wednesday, a South Carolina judge granted immunity from prosecution to a man who shot and killed an innocent bystander during a botched confrontation with a group of teenagers. The judge relied on the state’s ‘Stand Your Ground’ law.

    Seventeen-year-old Darrell Niles was in his car, minding his own business back in 2010 when 33-year-old Shannon Anthony Scott shot and killed him. …

    “All that matters is that Mr. Scott felt his life was in jeopardy,” Rutherford said….

    http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2013/10/11/2769631/south-carolina-stand-ground/

  18. says

    Lynna #502

    As Republicans seek to broaden their base, what can we expect from the Values Voter Summit?

    Same as it ever was. They haven’t changed their message in 200+ years, why would you expect them to start now?

    Kevin, Carlie, CaitieCat
    Hugs and commiserations.
    CaitieCat 492
    re: Middle Class Privilege
    When I was a young child, the family was pretty short financially as Dad drifted from adjunct professorship to temporary guest lecture position etc. and Mom took care of two young children and worked as available. Even though he found a permanent position when I was pretty small still, and Mom shortly after, I wore hand-me-downs, ate PB&J sandwiches packed from home for lunch, etc. But, because despite somewhat straitened finances, both my parents have postgraduate degrees and work in very white-collar fields (professor and archivist respectively), I still was raised with the expectation and experience that official-type people were just someone to talk to until the problem got solved, and they would helpfully and politely work with me to solve it, as you describe your partner’s experience rather than your own.

  19. carlie says

    That’s awful, PZ. I know that feeling of wanting to get sick and get it over with.

    cicely – oh, what are the odds the cat would pick exactly that spot to fake you out? How awful.
    I hope the ACA can do something for you.

    I was great in the morning as a teenager, but then I hit the wall right after lunch. I remember
    nothing from cell biology, because it was a 1:30-2:30 lecture and I fell asleep every time. This is probably why I started working on dead things.

  20. Pteryxx says

    I’ll just leave this here…

    http://www.salon.com/2013/10/10/gops_literal_hostage_crisis_how_the_shutdown_jilts_victims_of_abuse/

    When the government shut down last week — which, it seems worth noting, happened on the first day of Domestic Violence Awareness Month – it tied up and, within days, locked down federally-funded victims assistance programs like the Temporary Aid to Needy Families (TANF), the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) and the Victims of Crimes Act (VOCA). The money drawn down from these programs by state-level agencies and community-based organizations is used to reimburse work that’s already been done the previous month: crisis counseling, sheltering, long-term counseling, legal assistance. When scarce agency reserves run out, operations will soon freeze up.

    “The people I talk to are worried. They’re worried about serving victims,” Cindy Southworth, vice president of development at the National Network to End Domestic Violence, tells Salon.

    […]

    The director of a Florida shelter expressed concern that, already operating on a shoestring budget, the loss of federal funds would mean putting out 14 families and more than 30 children who are currently being housed by the program. In California, one shelter is taking a “scattered furlough” approach in order to stay open while keeping administrative costs low, asking staff to choose one day a week as a furlough day so that the shelter never has to close for a full day.

    The stakes are simply too high to close. So Larson, like many others, will keep working — with or without pay — for as long as she can. “I am not going to walk away from this job,” she says.

    These folks run the hotline that I keep recommending, the one that probably saved my life around the time I delurked here. Their network comprises the 56 state and territory domestic violence coalitions across the US.

    http://www.nnedv.org/news/3981-federal-shutdown-jeopardizes-domestic-violence-victims-and-programs.html

  21. says

    Mormon Moments of Madness, rewriting history category.

    Not content to obscure or rewrite the entire history of the mormon church, LDS leaders are now rewriting history that’s less than a week old.

    LDS apostle D. Todd Christofferson has removed the words “feminist thinkers” from his recent General Conference address about the role of Mormon women in the version now online at lds.org.

    During the afternoon conference session on Oct. 5, Christofferson said, “Some feminist thinkers view homemaking with outright contempt, arguing it demeans women and that the relentless demands of raising children are a form of exploitation.”

    The revised version now reads: “Some view homemaking with outright contempt, arguing it demeans women and that the relentless demands of raising children are a form of exploitation.” …

    After the Utah-based faith’s October 2010 General Conference, senior Mormon apostle Boyd K. Packer modified his speech about gay marriage, same-sex attraction, pornography and addiction for the online publication
    .
    Packer had originally said, “Some suppose that they were pre-set and cannot overcome what they feel are inborn tendencies toward the impure and unnatural. Not so! Why would our Heavenly Father do that to anyone? Remember he is our father.”

    In the edited version, the word “temptations” replaced “tendencies” and the question about God’s motives was dropped. …

    http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/blogsfaithblog/56982696-180/conference-lds-feminist-thinkers.html.csp

  22. says

    Mormon Moments of Madness, sex category.

    http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/entertainment2/56955900-223/book-mormon-hardy-virgin.html.csp

    Excerpt below:

    In 2011, Seattle writer Nicole Hardy touched a nerve with her searingly honest New York Times essay about her plight as a single Mormon woman and a 35-year-old virgin.

    In her mid-30s, Hardy felt choosing to remain celibate, as required by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ law of chastity, caused her to feel like she was “a child in a woman’s body.”

    “Virginity brought with it arrested development on the level of a handicapping condition, like the Russian orphans I’d read about whose lack of physical contact altered their neurobiology and prevented them from forming emotional bonds,” she wrote … “Similarly, it felt as if celibacy was stunting my growth; it wasn’t just sex I lacked but relationships with men entirely. Too independent for Mormon men, and too much a virgin for the other set, I felt trapped in adolescence.” …

  23. JAL: Snark, Sarcasm & Bitterness says

    480
    CaitieCat

    See, and I reckon other working-class types here can back me up on this, I grew up thinking that everyone official is against me. My parents taught me that, I saw the things happen to them that backed it up, and I came to believe it. When I go to a government office, I go prepared for combat, to get the things I need. I experience the world as a series of gatekeepers, whom I have to trick or bribe or otherwise get past, to get the things I need to live.

    YES. All of it. And no matter how bad it was, it didn’t prepare me for how much worse it is when you are homeless.
    *shudder*

    492
    CaitieCat

    That’s not exactly a load of money, is it, and absolutely nothing frivolous in the list. And yet the maximum you can get from welfare is $606/mo.

    And that’s me living in Soviet Canuckistan. The US story of the same situation would be worse.

    The next time you hear someone talk about ‘welfare queens’, demand a citation.

    Abso-fucking-lutely.

    Keep in mind I live in AZ:

    When I was getting cash welfare aka Cash Assistance or if you’re a family, TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families), after Little One was just born I received $260 a month. There was also a 60 month limit on it. This is the money I got when all my working was exempted because it was work study.

    Funny side note: They first denied me benefits because of my work study at a whopping $8 an hour for 20 hours. I even highlighted and faxed them a copy of their own rules saying work study was exempted. They didn’t give a fuck. Still denied. I had to call and fax my information to Sen. McCain’s office at the suggestion of my boss. (who was a white middle class lady, I never would have thought of it.) Myself and the higher ups in the DES office got a standard response from his office. They then followed the rules and I was approved. The DES offices in different areas of the state did the same damn thing to every work study there. I seriously had the information ready to fill out and fax over to McCain’s office every time there was a new work study.

    Now TANF is $275 a month for two people on their website and there’s a 36 month limit. Three in a family gets you $347. Make a dollar over that and you get nothing. Nothing. Single or coupled adults without children are not eligible. I know my mother and husband couldn’t get benefits, which left them homeless until he got his disability and a program to help with rent. (Yep, still on food stamps and rent assistance from an outside program.) Now on AZ’s benefits website it gets confusing because there’s a money quote about adults only stay on CA for around ten months when there is a 24 month limit on them. The forms and eligibility sections though clearly spell out it that you gotta have a kid. Apparently, they haven’t updated.

    Considering what a fucking red state we are, we’ll be at the top for sucking at pretty much everything, especially welfare. So grain of salt and all that.

    Here food stamps for me and Little One are just over $300 per month. Have one working adult in the house though and they start cutting shit. It’s all or nothing with them and their “all” is just a single crocodile tear. I think my mother and husband receive less as two grown adults, but I’ve never asked them directly. And as the website says, next month this will be decreasing and mass changes don’t require individual notice.

    Lovely.

    This isn’t even mentioning all the fucking hoops to jump through for getting benefits and then keeping them. It’s a full time job keeping up with all that shit. There’s also the fact that I’ve been bottom of the barrel for years but have never been able to get on the waiting list for Section 8 or any housing help. Dental care is only for those 19 and below. Or on disability. Same goes for eye care. Because who needs to eat and smile and talk or see?

    *snort*

  24. says

    *fistbump of solidarity* for JAL, cause yeah. Exactly.

    there was a recent study that pointed out that for people used to being poor, just introducing the idea of a financial stress was able to make cognitive competency drop way down. That’s the thing I think people who’ve never been in deep poverty don’t get: it’s not the money, specifically, it’s the constant stress and fretting over how you’re going to get enough to live through to next month that’s the brutal part.

    Poor I can cope with. Stress hits me as hard as anyone. And stress about stuff you literally can do nothing about is the worst, because nothing you do alleviates it. People wonder why people in poverty are often players of lotteries, or heavy drink or drug users, and it’s dead simple: if you don’t get even little tiny doses of pleasure or hope, you give up. It sounds stupid, I know, but if public assistance specifically included a ration of ‘something fun’ – whether that’s a reasonable cigar, or a movie out, or a meal in a cheap restaurant – would do SO MUCH for making poverty more livable for people, even more than just giving out more money would. Because among other things, the Common Wisdom says that we don’t deserve any fun, ever, because poverty=undeserving. Undermining that narrative would be a big help.

  27. cicely says

    Oh, Giliell…what makes you think they want the useless feeders to have a diginified life? Nope, it’s grudged hind tit, all the way.
    –

  28. says

    cicely
    Oh, I know what they want: To feel superior all the way down. The youth organisation of the conservative party regularly brushes their “social image” up by doing food drives for poor people. Win-win: First you deny them the means to feed themselves, then you make other people pay for the charity to feed them, then you feel all so good and charitable. It’s a conservative feel good perpetular mobile.

  29. awakeinmo says

    Here food stamps for me and Little One are just over $300 per month. Have one working adult in the house though and they start cutting shit. It’s all or nothing with them and their “all” is just a single crocodile tear. I think my mother and husband receive less as two grown adults, but I’ve never asked them directly. And as the website says, next month this will be decreasing and mass changes don’t require individual notice.

    It’s just sad that we can’t do better in this country. It’s like they (the powers-that-be) want to punish a person for being down on their luck.

    I’ve been out of work for about a year now. I am (was?) self-employed so I’m not eligible for unemployment. I’m a single adult, so I’m not eligible for pretty much any aid. But I am damned lucky to have some savings and a family that gives a shit. My mom regularly gives me gift cards to my local grocery chain, and that helps a lot. I’m hurting a little, but I know there are folks who’ve got it far worse than me, and it almost makes me cry thinking of how awful it is to have live under that stress every day and OK I’ll stop rambling now.

  30. JAL: Snark, Sarcasm & Bitterness says

    Ughhhh reading the Another Ridiculous Poll thread has me tearing up and wanting to throw up. With memories popping up and what’s going on now, just triggering as fucking hell.

    Considering how my Mom was calling religious people who know Asshole Husband to help talk to him the other day….

    Oh, and by the way, guess what she decided? She doesn’t want to leave him now. She thinks his diagnosis is wrong and he’s split personality and wants to help him. He’s schizo which is notoriously hard to diagnosis and treat, has gone through so many different diagnosis I’ve lost track. It’s completely possible he’s mentally split. Currently, he’s in the “I want help” mode but I’ve seen this cycle before. It resembles the DV cycle exactly. I don’t even care if that’s just a coincidence, I don’t want her sacrificing herself. I need her. Little One needs her. She needs herself. :(

    She might not even want to move as soon as she gets her check. But she’s willing to have us move first, pay the bills and then move with us. All while keeping where we live a secret but I’m so full of doubts about that working. He’s paranoid and she’s doped up on meds so much she’s had days she doesn’t remember anything she did.

    *sigh*

    =====
    524
    CaitieCat

    *fistbump of solidarity* for JAL, cause yeah. Exactly.

    Right back at ya.

    there was a recent study that pointed out that for people used to being poor, just introducing the idea of a financial stress was able to make cognitive competency drop way down. That’s the thing I think people who’ve never been in deep poverty don’t get: it’s not the money, specifically, it’s the constant stress and fretting over how you’re going to get enough to live through to next month that’s the brutal part.

    Poor I can cope with. Stress hits me as hard as anyone. And stress about stuff you literally can do nothing about is the worst, because nothing you do alleviates it. People wonder why people in poverty are often players of lotteries, or heavy drink or drug users, and it’s dead simple: if you don’t get even little tiny doses of pleasure or hope, you give up. It sounds stupid, I know, but if public assistance specifically included a ration of ‘something fun’ – whether that’s a reasonable cigar, or a movie out, or a meal in a cheap restaurant – would do SO MUCH for making poverty more livable for people, even more than just giving out more money would. Because among other things, the Common Wisdom says that we don’t deserve any fun, ever, because poverty=undeserving. Undermining that narrative would be a big help.

    YES. Again. All of this.

    Because, you know, the whole struggle to survive thing I haven’t been able to do much activism and such. But one thing I did do that I’m extremely proud of, was back at the community college. I was in honors English and had to do a special project above the class requirement in order to fulfill Honors. I wrote a paper 36 pages long with so many sources (this was above and beyond the requirement) regarding being poor and homeless. Part of the Honors requirement was to give a presentation in class. This terrified me since it’s so personal and I hate speaking in front of people. I have enough problems in conversation with just one person, but I digress.

    My classmates were absolutely shocked, shocked, at the reality of the situation. They had no idea. They weren’t high class or anything, just regular working and working poor. They didn’t have a fucking clue. Considering how conservative my state is I was expecting blow back. Disbelief, denial, targeting for hate and bullying, etc. I did my presentation towards the end of class and they were so enamored the presentation went longer than my slides and into all the addition stuff in my paper. After the 15-20 minutes for my slides, it became a Q & A that lasted 45 minutes. There were a few tears shed, and not all by me. There were a few who were resistant but after looking up the links and resources I handed to them, they came up to me after the next class to apologize.

    It was terrifying and stressful and painful but rewarding. My teacher was just beaming, and bragged about it to everyone that would listen. It went so well, I was asked to repeat the performance at an assembly to inform and encourage students to sign up for Honors. That one was much shorter, since it was a whole planned session but I still had people come up to afterwards.

    The thing that kept being repeated most was that they had no idea people like me were around them. I hid it as well as I could with a lifetime of practice. That’s just needed to survive. They believed as the majority do that the poor and homeless were not like them. Having me as an ‘out’ DV and homeless person made them stop to realize the class line doesn’t render me non-human or a sub-species. We are entirely deserving and needing of fun and joy and light.I tan down my schedule, my life, my existence to showing them just how bleak it was; how hurtful it was to be judged for buying something fun thing like candy. I told them “You know those days were everything goes wrong and you just want one thing, one good thing to happen? You reach for the chocolate or a movie or some junk food and recover for the next day. My entire life is your worst day with a ton more on top and not a single piece of chocolate without people deciding I need to take more shit for that.”

    They were still some “but you’re one of the good ones!” and I have no illusions, but simply hope, that I made a lasting change those days. Because, dammit, I’m a person too. :(

  31. says

    Rob Grigianis @526: That’s a truly remarkable thing to hear from a Conservative Senator. Seriously. It’s the thing I’ve never understood about fiscal conservatives: they’ve become all about the short-term visuals, and have come to completely ignore the potential long-term destruction caused to the economy by allowing people to be in hard poverty. Surely it’s got to be clear that the more of us who are able to pay taxes, the fewer dollars we’ll have to give up. Helping to get people out of hard poverty would be a way in which the fiscal conservatives could actually lower their taxes, for a whole bunch of reasons.

    I note that Switzerland, whose population recently voted to limit CEOs’ pay packets by binding shareholder vote, are also running referenda on the possibility of exactly what Senator Segal is talking about: a Guaranteed Annual Income, I think they’re talking about $2800/month, as well as a more rigid CEO pay limit (12:1, it’s called; that a CEO should be paid no more than what their least-paid employee gets in a year, in any given month). I do think, long-term, that this will be the route taken by western democracies to deal with the way capitalism has been affected by the move to an information economy, where earnings multiples per employee have become huge, while income has stagnated and all the wealth has flowed to a few people.

    What century the US might join the rest of the western dems on that would be a fun pool to have, but I doubt anyone reading this would be alive to collect.

    Thanks for bringing that link to my attention, Rob. I’m going to contact the Senator’s office on Monday, and see if there’s an organization fighting for this idea, that I could add my help to.

  32. blf says

    the way I would recognize blf might be a shirt with a cheese eating penguin.

    A shirt and a penguin munching cheese walk into a bar.
    The bartender asks, “Are you blf?”
    “This is a free shirt and that is a penguin. I will soon be ea—”…

    (The shady characer hidden in the darkest corners of the furtherest stall “chuckles” into his drinks and is promptly ejected by the bouncer…)

  33. Ogvorbis: Apologies Available for All! says

    blf:

    I currently have a large slice of a very good, earthy domestic brie in my refrigerator. I will be willing to share some with the MDP. As long as the MDP comes here (my travel budget it a little limited until the American right wing becomes rational again).

  34. Nutmeg says

    cicely:

    :Rats…are kender??? Or kender are evolved from rats?
    The implications….

    Wow, that takes me back. Those were some of my favourite books in my early teens. Haven’t looked at them in years, I wonder if they’d still be enjoyable.

  35. blf says

    Poopyhead comments “I’m hoping I get sick this weekend.”

    Yer in luck. There’s still a few openings on Teh Plague Team, and Ebola Unlimited is always looking for new recruits.

  36. blf says

    I will be willing to share some with the MDP. As long as the MDP comes here…

    Share? Share? Share? Her Penguinistahighness, Supreme Field Marshall Generalissimo for All Eternities and Prime President Minister of the Multiverses, Confidant of the Greatest Sky Faeries, Destroyer of Peas, Anti-Horse Lord of Justice, Kleptomaniacy, Cheese, and MUSHROOMS!, has no idea what you mean. What is this “share”?

    … until the American right wing becomes rational again.

    There are no units in which the elapsed time until such a delusion comes true can be expressed with available matter, energy, and cheese in All the Multiverses, even when using Scientific Notation.

  37. kittehserf says

    cicely @512 – well, those guys were perpertrators on occasion (I worked in that section a while, it was fun) but not of whale murder! :P

  38. Ogvorbis: Apologies Available for All! says

    Ah. The MDP understands sharing the same way that Tea Party Republicans understand sharing — what’s mine is mine and what’s yours is mine. I got it.

  39. Markita Lynda—threadrupt says

    On welfare or the social safety net:

    That’s not exactly a load of money, is it, and absolutely nothing frivolous in the list. And yet the maximum you can get from welfare is $606/mo.

    And that’s me living in Soviet Canuckistan. (CaitieCat @492)

    I don’t know about the other provinces, but in Ontario, the Conservatives got in and around 1999 they cut welfare by about 20% so that there was no way someone could pay rent and buy groceries at the same time. And if anyone gave them a bag of groceries, that was illegal cheating and welfare fraud: it should be reported so that the value could be deducted from their cheque. It had already been falling behind inflation. I hate those smug, mean-minded, selfish jerks.

  40. Nerd of Redhead, Dances OM Trolls says

    Yeah, cut welfare and force people into taking jobs with benefits at places like Walmart….Oops, what’s wrong with this picture….

  41. chigau (違う) says

    I don’t remember who or what thread but THANK YOU for pointing out the ‘A Girl and Her Fed’ web comic.
    [xpost with the other Thread]

  42. A. Noyd says

    So I found out today that some Japanese people use English dubs of anime as listening practice because there’s a minimum of unfamiliar cultural references to contend with. I can see why that would be appealing, since spoken English has so many obnoxious linguistic features* that are hard to grasp for people who’ve spend most of their studies working with written English. Using dubbed anime would let a person concentrate just on those linguistic features without having to puzzle out culture-dependent content at the same time.

    ……
    *Like our love of the schwa. And how we move beginning and ending consonants onto neighboring words. And the way monophthongs become diphthongs and vice versa depending on accent.

  43. kittehserf says

    Threadrupt to show some pretty things I bought today – first time the legs have been up to a day of meandering around for ages:

    Stockings by Dub & Drino in the same pattern as these socks;

    coathanger from the Stupell collection;

    and a cat brooch by Erstwilder. (The 3-D work on the nose makes the kitty’s eyes seem to follow you around.)

    :)

  44. says

    I need an emergency hug.
    My car has a flat tyre. Now, that’s not a big deal, it’s time to change them to winter-tyres anyway (yes, I know, privilege is talking out of my ass), but you’re allowed to guess where my winter-tyres are stored.
    Right.
    At my parents.

  45. dongiovanni (Because I had to try this function sometime) says

    … hugs for Giliell. Hope unpleasantness does not occur.

    ***

    Can anyone recommend some good vegetarian dishes that for preference do not contain fungus? I’m considering going vegetarian, but don’t think I can bring myself to do it unless I find some basic recipes that I’d enjoy, as my current repertoire consists largely of insipid mush.

  46. says

    Thanks, dongiovanni
    Mr has bravely gone to pickup thy tyres by himself. Sometimes everybody can do with a white knight.

    OK, so I’m right that you want vegetarian recipes, not vegan (because I suck at vegan)

    Spinach, potatoes and eggs
    Sauté diced onions and garlic in a bit of oil or butter, add spinach (frozen spinach works perfectly). Add salt, nutmeg, and if you tick like me, black cumin.
    Either just boild potaoes in saltwater, or make mushed potatoes, or use ready-made mashed potatoes.
    Eggs: scrambled eggs or fired eggs

    Pasta with tomato sauce
    Fry garlic and onions. Add about a teaspoon of brown sugar. Add diced veggies (courgettes, peppers, olives, whatever). Add fresh or canned tomatoes. Season with French herbs, salt, pepper, serve with pasta.

    Fritata
    Starchy potatoes, not too watery veggies (carrots, squash, courgettes…), garlic, onion.
    Grate all veggies, fry them in some olive oil.
    Scramble eggs and season to taste, pour over veggies (if you make a large serving cover a cookie sheet with baking paper and put veggies on it before adding egg) and bake/fry at low heat. Serve with sour cream.

    Orientalist* curry
    Chickpeas, you can used canned ones, peppers, carrots, whatever, onions, garlic, creamed coconut, curry…
    Again, fry onions, add finely diced veggies, add spices, add chickpeas and coconut, season to taste, serve with rice.

    *Because this has nothing to do with any actual Asian recipes

  47. dongiovanni (Because I had to try this function sometime) says

    Well, I guess that works for acquiring tyres…

    Thanks very much for the recipes. Next order of business… try a bunch of these.

    Also, must stop reading about diseases on wikipedia. Graphic photos of gas gangrene are more than a little nauseating.

  48. Beatrice, an amateur cynic looking for a happy thought says

    dongiovanni,

    You can play with some of the things Giliell recommended for more variety. Since everything is better after being topped with enough cheese to make your heart stop, and baked in the oven, that’s one of the directions I’d recommend.

    So, tomato sauce (with any other vegetables you like thrown in) + pasta + mozzarella, baked in the oven.

    Risotto:
    One of my new favorites: fry some onions, add zucchini cut into thin slices, then rice. Add water until rice is cooked almost to your satisfaction. It’s going in the oven only long enough for the brie you’ll put on top of it to melt through, so you just have to take a bit of care not to overcook the rice.

    Pizza:
    Make whichever pizza bread you prefer. Topping: tomato sauce, swiss chard (seriously) but be careful not to forget to salt the layers of chard, ricotta cheese + some other grated cheese if you like. It sounds weird, but it’s delicious. I bet spinach would work just as well if not better.

    Lasagne:
    For the filling, fry onions, garlic and grated zucchini. After it’s done, add ricotta (or some other cream cheese) and gouda (or whichever cheese you usually use for pizza topping), salt and pepper. Put a little bit of tomato sauce on top of each layer of pasta, before adding the filling. You can top it with more cheese.

    If you’re thinking about eating fish, I can add two more recommendations.
    (surprisingly, only one of them contains cheese)

  49. Beatrice, an amateur cynic looking for a happy thought says

    Oh, also : cream soups.

    And pea and chive risotto.
    Or leek risotto.

    …
    I’m really really hungry now.

  50. dongiovanni (Because I had to try this function sometime) says

    Fish… perhaps. We’re not exactly short of pest species in our waterways, although the ethics of killing and eating them is somewhat hazy. The risotto direction seems promising as does the pizza.

    I suspect that this is going to have the side effect of causing me to eat much more sugar than I already do… I can’t stop thinking about pancakes with white cheese, sugar and alcohol…

    Come to think of it, what is the general consensus on clams and such?

  51. ledasmom says

    I make something rather like that pizza recipe, but with caramelized onions as well. And if you put a bit of crushed fennel seed in with the onions when you’re caramelizing them, it tastes all Italian-sausagey.
    Thing to do with leftover spaghetti: Put a little oil in a pan and get it hot. Put in spaghetti – I like it really browned, but the important thing is you’re drying it out a little. When it’s ready, put it on a plate or whatever while you do the vegetables. Grated carrot is nice, but whatever veggies you like: you can even do frozen if you get your pan hot enough. Garlic is good. Throw in some shredded greens towards the end; they sort of mingle with the spaghetti. Then – make sure there’s not a lot of liquid from the veg – throw in soy sauce, as much as you like. Let it sizzle down a bit. Throw spaghetti back in, toss it around to get the reduced soy sauce on it. A bit of sesame oil, as much as you like – this is abominably tasty when it’s greasy, but it’s good when it’s not greasy, too. Some hot sauce if you like that. You can put in sauteed tofu, too, or chopped peanuts; if you use a bit more soy sauce, or if you throw in a bit of broth or coconut milk, you can put some peanut butter in there, but with the peanut butter it’s better to mix it up with some of your liquid first. Peanut butter is sort of the same taste as sesame oil, so you can leave the sesame oil out if you do that, or not. With the peanut butter you have to be careful not to burn it. It’s ready when it’s all hot after you toss it together. Make sure to scrape up the peanut-butter crunchy layer on the bottom if you use peanut butter; it’s tasty.

  52. birgerjohansson says

    Ted Cruz and Rand Paul being mentioned as possible Republican candidates for the presidency? Is there any realistic chance of this happening? Or is it too early for the Democrats to cheer the Republican group suicide?

  54. says

    This story starts with “Two rabbis” but does not end up in a bar.

    … two rabbis were charged in New Jersey on Wednesday in a scheme to force men to grant their wives religious divorces. …

    Sources say the investigation was sparked by a similar case in 2011, when David Wax, a 49-year-old rabbi and Talmudic scholar from Lakewood, and his wife, Judy, were charged with kidnapping and severely beating an Israeli man who had refused to give his wife a divorce. …

    According to the FBI, most of those being charged today were arrested last night after a meeting at an undisclosed warehouse in Middlesex County, as the group gathered to launch the kidnapping plan. The rabbis were arrested at their homes. Many of the still unnamed defendants had been recruited as the muscle of the operation, sources said.

    To bring their plot to fruition, the two rabbis used threats of kidnapping, beatings and physical torture. An electric cattle prod played a major role.

    According to a criminal complaint unsealed this morning, the four are accused of charging families thousands of dollars to get recalcitrant husbands to agree to divorces, frequently through means of violence. …

    While a divorce may only be initiated by the husband, a wife has the right to sue for divorce in rabbinical court, known as a “beth din,” which may order the husband to issue the get. If he refuses, he may be subjected to various penalties to pressure him to consenting to the divorce. Without a “get,” a woman can end up in limbo for years, unable to remarry.

    According to the complaint, the four men— for a price— were willing to provide “convincing” by any means possible.

    In one recorded meeting, Epstein spoke about kidnapping, beating and torturing husbands to in order to force a divorce, according to the complaint.

    “Ya know, this is an expensive thing to do,” he said on a surveillance recording. “It’s not simply…basically what we are going to be doing is kidnapping a guy for a couple of hours and beating him up and torturing him and then getting him to give the get.”

    One of his tools of persuasion, he said, was an electric cattle prod.

    “If it can get a bull that weights five tons to move…You put it in certain parts of his body and in one minute the guy will know,” Epstein said, in one of the conversations with the undercover agent….

    http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2013/10/2_rabbis_4_others_charged_in_divorce_shakedown.html

  55. Azkyroth Drinked the Grammar Too :) says

    Can anyone recommend some good vegetarian dishes that for preference do not contain fungus? I’m considering going vegetarian, but don’t think I can bring myself to do it unless I find some basic recipes that I’d enjoy, as my current repertoire consists largely of insipid mush.

    12-16oz dried macaroni (shells are a good default annoyingly, most of the kinds I really like ar barilla brand. Radiatore are amazing if you can get them)
    1-1.5lb assorted cheese (2-3 recommended, minimum, an Extra Sharp or Aged cheddar base and something else interesting)
    Two 12oz cans of fat-free evaporated milk
    1/2 cup White Whole Wheat flour

    Cook pasta per package directions in a large pot, preferably a dutch oven of 5 quarts or more. While cooking, preheat oven to 350 F (190 C?), grate cheese; coarsely is fine. Drain into a large collander, optionally run water over to discourage sticking. Pour cans of evaporated milk into pan; scrape collected solids from the bottom with one of those soft scrapy–blade-stick-things that are also called “spatulas” despite being useless for turning anything that’s being heated. Add flour, whisk vigorously until smooth. Add grated cheese. Cook on high heat until smooth and thickened, stirring constantly (this is why it works), around 5 minutes or so. Remove from heat, add macaroni, stir thoroughly to coat. Bake in preheated oven for about an hour.

    Stomach people who think “macaroni and cheese” comes out of a box. >.>

    Alternative recipe:

    Replace all cheese with blue cheese (Point Reyes Blue or large-chunk Stilton, to minimum the rind-flavor, is recommended)
    Replace one can of milk with 12oz white port.
    Cook per above.

  56. Azkyroth Drinked the Grammar Too :) says

    Orientalist* curry
    Chickpeas, you can used canned ones, peppers, carrots, whatever, onions, garlic, creamed coconut, curry…
    Again, fry onions, add finely diced veggies, add spices, add chickpeas and coconut, season to taste, serve with rice.

    *Because this has nothing to do with any actual Asian recipes

    …wait, HAS it been decided that cuisine-inspired recipes are “cultural appropriation” now? >.>

  57. A. Noyd says

    dongiovanni (#545)

    Can anyone recommend some good vegetarian dishes that for preference do not contain fungus?

    – Fried rice with egg, edamame and whatever veggies you like.
    – Look up an agreeable recipe for “kuku” (a Middle Eastern souffle/fritter thing).
    – Falafel sandwiches with fresh cucumber, tomatoes, cheese and yoghurt.
    – Mushroom-free frozen burger substitutes, like black bean ones or salmon ones (if you’re doing fish).
    – Thai/Vietnamese fresh rolls with the rice paper wrappers and peanut sauce for dipping.
    – Bean and/or seafood-based tacos.
    – Tofu aloo gobi.

    ~*~*~*~*~*~

    Azykyroth (#556)

    …wait, HAS it been decided that cuisine-inspired recipes are “cultural appropriation” now?

    From what I’ve seen, people tend to consider it appropriation when a (usually) white person gets lauded for cooking “ethnic” or “ethnic-inspired” foods. Like on cooking shows or major recipe sites or whatever. Random people cooking food at home isn’t usually a big deal except when they cook super-Westernized versions of, say, Chinese food and try to call it Chinese food when it bears zero resemblance to anything you’d find in China.

  59. blf says

    Can anyone recommend some good vegetarian dishes that for preference do not contain fungus?

    The mildly deranged penguin suggests a nutty bread and spicy sausage stuffing for roasted vegetarians, with a cheese sauce and grated cheese topping. Or chop the vegetarian finely for simple-and-fast to make Tagliatelle Vegetariano, with a cheese sauce and grated cheese topping.

    You can also make a casserole out of vegetarians. They also are good in a Cassolette.

  62. says

    Mormon Moment of Madness, childbearing category:

    .I am exhausted and I’m NOT looking forward to doing this again. [Being pregnant and giving birth.] But I’m going to have to anyways….I don’t really have much of a choice. I’m supposed to have at least 1 more kiddo and I’m way TOO fertile. My hubby LOOKS at me and I get pregnant! I’m going to try to put it off as long as possible but the most time off (of nursing or being preggo) that I’ve managed to get for myself is 3 months. Thats it. I’ve had 5 or 6 months out of the last 10 years that I have not been pregnant or nursing. I don’t even know what its like to be an adult and to really have my body to myself………ugh……..someday….I hope! “this too shall pass” RIGHt???? Honestly, I DREAM of being done……

    http://community.babycenter.com/post/a22321257/how_long_after_birth_before_you_can_sauna?cpg=2&csi=2139135930&pd=1

  63. says

    Another excerpt from the link to the mormon Babycenter (see #562):

    Its not fun. But its part of being a member of the church I guess (at least for me)…..some people are lucky enough to have a choice. Hopefully someday I will be able to stop. Since my body seems to be failing me it seems like I might get my wish…….

  64. says

    The government shutdown disproportionately hurts women. The usual Republican shenanigans related to making birth control harder to get, etc. are not the only ways in which the shutdown hurts women more than men.

    http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2013/10/11/2772191/shutdown-women/

    The government shutdown, which has lasted for nearly two weeks and could stretch on as many as six more, is a budget fight that is currently being negotiated solely by men. …

    1. Federal Workers’ Pay
    Women make up an estimated 43 percent of the federal workplace — but they’re disproportionately represented in the types of clerical jobs that are likely to get furloughed…. There have been concerns that the workers who are currently furloughed may not receive back pay.
    2. Nutrition For Low-Income Mothers And Infants
    The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) hasn’t gotten any federal money since the government shut down October 1. Nearly 9 million low-income mothers and their children around the country rely on the program to afford food and formula….
    3. Rape Kits
    If the government shutdown stretches on into November, it could eventually halt rape kits in Washington, DC. … Rape kit processing is already notoriously sluggish across the country, an issue that can make navigating the court system even more difficult for victims of sexual assault — particularly since forensic evidence of rape quickly degrades.
    4. College Sexual Assault Investigations …
    5. Domestic Violence Programs
    … Programs had already warned that the budget cuts from sequestration could lead to more homicides of women who are denied services.
    6. Child Care And Head Start ….

  65. says

    For me, the line on appropriation has always been about whether or not I’m misusing white privilege to do so. That is, if I’m able to appropriate something and benefit by it publicly where it might be just expected of the person whose culture I’m nicking, then that is appropriation for me, just as wearing blackface makeup would be. And, y’know, also hella racist, but that’s a whole ‘nother level.

    If I make a reasonable attempt at aloo gobbi, and serve it to my family at dinner, I would say this isn’t appropriation, because I’m really not benefiting by it publicly (other than ‘having yummy food’). But if I claimed to be a gourmet of Indian food because I can make a tame Englishwoman’s-tongue version of aloo gobbi, or published “my recipe” to make myself look good, or get blog hits, or get a chef show because of my wonderful ‘ethnic’ food that I’m not culturally ‘entitled’ to, then yeah, appropriation.

    At least as far as food and small cultural practices. When it comes to clothing/jewelry and such, I think the line is a bit further back: I wouldn’t feel right about wearing clothing clearly associated with a particular culture unless specifically invited to by someone whose culture it is. So, no “Indian” gear (of whatever version Indian means!) unless an Indian person of the appropriate sort invites me to. I considered wearing a sari at my handfasting, but realized it didn’t seem right, and I think it wouldn’t have been, for me. Others might draw that line differently; one of my handmaiden (pagan ceremony) who’d suggested the possibility (she’s Sikh) thought it was alright, but I wasn’t comfortable with it. I might wear some piece of jewelry inspired by a given culture, but only something fairly small, again, unless invited by someone whose culture it is.

    The other place I would tend to find adopting cultural practices from someone else’s culture to be alright, would be if I went to live in that culture. If I move to Mumbai, I’d be a lot more inclined to consider wearing something local like a salwar kameez, not least because it’s climatically appropriate. If I just visited the country, I’d be a lot less inclined.

    I’m not sure it’s possible to draw a bright line standard that would cover all situations; that’s just the sort of vague rule I use, and try to err on the side of recognizing that white privilege is not something I can disassociate myself from, and if there’s any question, better not to.

  66. cicely says

    From over at Whatever: When Will I Be Turned Upon.
    –
    kittehserf the cat brooch link, doesn’t.
    –
    *hugs* for Giliell.
    –
    dongiovanni:

    Come to think of it, what is the general consensus on clams and such?

    The representative from my taste buds casts one vote for “clams are not food, except in chowder”.
    –

  67. says

    Cicely:

    From over at Whatever: When Will I Be Turned Upon.

    1. Dude, if I ever act like Hugo Schwyzer, feminists screaming for my head is the very least bad thing that should happen to me.

    Scalzi always grabs my mind from the start. I ♥ that man.

  68. Walton says

    Ugh. This is terrible: a summary of the provisions of the new immigration bill here in the UK. Among other things, the bill will make it illegal for landlords to rent housing to undocumented people, and for banks to allow undocumented people to open accounts. It also stops undocumented people getting driving licences. The cumulative effect of these provisions will likely be to push more undocumented people further into destitution and create more suffering.

    The bill also does various other nasty things. It restricts appeal rights in various ways. It introduces a policy of “deport first, appeal later” for foreign criminals whose human rights claims are certified as unfounded – which will likely lead to more people being deported in breach of their human rights, to places where they face danger and/or will be permanently separated from their families. (Remember that some of these “criminals” are guilty only of immigration offences such as using false papers to work illegally – a victimless crime, and one which people often have to commit in order to survive.) It will also require courts, in deciding whether someone’s deportation would be a disproportionate interference with their right to family life under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, to discriminate against poorer people and those who don’t speak English.

    Also, check out Life Without Papers, a powerful new blog by a journalist writing about the real lives of undocumented families living in Britain. These are the human beings who will be hurt by the Tories’ policies.

  71. The Mellow Monkey: Non-Hypothetical says

    There are never enough rats. But those pictures help.

    —

    Fuck. My mother has asked me to stay at her house tonight. My step-father got sloppy drunk (he’s an alcoholic and isn’t supposed to be drinking at all) and took her car. Sounds like he pawned some household items to buy his booze in secret.

    Bringing my laptop and may ramble here some more later. :/

  72. says

    OptimalCynic:

    There aren’t enough rats in this thread.

    There are never enough rats. I’ve been bad about updating Rattitude lately, too. Thanks for the pics, as usual, rats are adorable!

  74. kittehserf says

    Ratty in the blue blanket looks like zie’s having a good chuckle over something! :)

    Oh, poop, it’s raining. So much for wanting to get the grocery shopping out of the way this morning ( I don’t drive).

  75. dongiovanni (Because I had to try this function sometime) says

    I will defend spaghetti alla vongole to the death. Clams are amazing.

  76. Ogvorbis: Apologies Available for All! says

    Old joke from Arlo Guthrie:

    Do you know why Indians didn’t eat clams?

  78. David Marjanović says

    Caught up since my previous comment.

    *so many hugs all around*

    The collections of the American Museum of Natural History are up and running! I hope to spend the week after Skepticon there!!!

    Petition to UNHCR: Investigate slavery in Russian prisons

    http://endtheirresponsibleshutdown.com/ (also a petition)

    Petition to ICE, whatever that is, to drop all charges against people who protested against a deportation, and to stop the deportation.

    “Stand Your Ground” laws are responsible for another miscarriage of justice, this time in South Carolian:

    HULK SMASH

    And how we move beginning and ending consonants onto neighboring words.

    What do you mean? :-)

    Malala Yousafzai on Jon Stewart:
    http://www.upworthy.com/watch-this-incredible-young-woman-render-jon-stewart-speechless

    Oh, wow.

    Mormon Moment of Madness, childbearing category:

    Oh, wow. In the… other direction.

    The government shutdown disproportionately hurts women.

    *violent headdesking*

    (…Now where’s the paper about that injured head dome of a pachycephalosaur… well, I can’t look for it at 2:20 am.)

    Remember that some of these “criminals” are guilty only of immigration offences such as using false papers to work illegally – a victimless crime

    But they’re stealing your joooooooooooobs!!!1!!1!

  80. says

    David, you should be pleased to know that Dexter has stopped living squarshed between one of the condos and the wall, and is a fairly social and happy boy these days. (The change was due to Sam dying, there was great relief all around.)

  82. David Marjanović says

    David, you should be pleased to know that Dexter has stopped living squarshed between one of the condos and the wall, and is a fairly social and happy boy these days.

    YAY YAY YAY YAY YAY *squee*

    …But what was up with Sam? I spent too much time outside the [Lounge] to keep up. :-(

  83. Nerd of Redhead, Dances OM Trolls says

    Been a real work for the Redhead day. First soaking her feet in vinegar to soften the toenails/kill nail fungus, and then giving her a pedicure. This was followed by the first real washing of her hair in a year and a half with a recently bought hair washing trough. While not as bad as it could have been, not a real success either. For example, it looks like her transport wheelchair is more appropriate as she can get a couple of inches closer to the sink due to the smaller rear wheels, so the shampoo trough works better. And she, not me, needs to brush out her hair prior to washing. Still a work in progress.

    Now on to the semi-soft dinner (her mouth still hurts, but is healing, where she bit it a few days ago). The old graduate student stand-by. Kraft mac & cheese, tuna, and a can of peas. Only now, dessert is blood pressure pills crushed into strawberry yogurt with blueberries.

  84. The Mellow Monkey: Non-Hypothetical says

    All right! Looks like I’m spending the night in my brother’s room (he’s off at college, so I don’t think he’ll mind). After some incoherent ranting and threats of violence on his part, my mom finally got my step-father to leave and all the doors here are locked up tight now.

    This really sucks, because things had seemed to be going fairly well. The drinking was the line in the sand, though. He had been told that he’d have to leave if he started drinking again.

    Since I haven’t written enough on my latest WIP to earn a new Discworld novel, I’m going back to Guards! Guards!. Having already read it before, this doesn’t violate my agreement with myself about when I could start a new one. And I really desperately need something escapist to read tonight.

  85. says

    David:

    …But what was up with Sam?

    Sam had been badly treated before we got him, and wanted nothing at all to do with humans. On top of that, he was an Alpha rat and a colossal asshole. He mistreated every other rat in the house, including his spawn, once they were past 8 weeks of age. (When they were teeny, Sam was one of the best daddies I’ve seen, especially with Esme’s crew being orphaned at 3 weeks. Sam would get in the condo and let the ratlings swarm him until they tipped him over, looking for a nipple, which males don’t have.)

    Anyway, Sam was a terrible bully, and would chase and beat up rats at random, but a few he targeted, namely Havelock (the other daddy rat) and Dexter. Those two had it the worst from him. I don’t know why Sam went after Dexter, but it might have had something to do with his tail – Dex’s tail is marked *exactly* like Sam’s. Also, Dexter is one of the hornier rats among the males, that little dude barely takes time off to eat in his constant pursuit of the wimmins, and I’m sure that didn’t make Sam happy at all. Sam got way worse after Esme died, she was the only one who could mellow him down. I assumed he was terribly grieved, rats get that way, but he channeled that into being even more aggressive.

  88. The Mellow Monkey: Non-Hypothetical says

    Sam had a hard life and clearly had his personality influenced by that, but he did raise some truly lovely ratlets and was a great daddy to them.

  89. says

    MM:

    Sam had a hard life and clearly had his personality influenced by that, but he did raise some truly lovely ratlets and was a great daddy to them.

    Yes, he was. That’s the only time Sam was truly happy, when he was with his babies (even the ones which obviously weren’t his, like Vasco) – Sam wanted to be king of baby mountain.

  90. says

    I continue to be surprised by how much emotion and personality rats show.

    Which reminds me, the NYT had an artificial a bit ago about results of an experiment with MRIing dogs (they trained dogs to enter the MRI so they could respond to stimuli for the experiment) that claimed to show evidence that dogs show emotional reasoning/capacity. Anyone with the background able to comment on it?

  92. says

    Walton @568:

    This is terrible: a summary of the provisions of the new immigration bill here in the UK. Among other things, the bill will make it illegal for landlords to rent housing to undocumented people, and for banks to allow undocumented people to open accounts. It also stops undocumented people getting driving licences. The cumulative effect of these provisions will likely be to push more undocumented people further into destitution and create more suffering.

    Jesus effing christ, way to keep people down. Also likely to force people into criminality. Crime = survival. That whole thing makes no sense whatsoever. Don’t landlords need to keep their housing fully occupied?

  93. says

    Chigau:

    They look so young!

    Dexter still looks that young, it’s amazing. He looks like he just stopped at 4 months or so. He isn’t near the size of his brothers (Chester, Oliver, Theo, & Neville.)

    I’m trying not to freak the fuck out over Chester, he’s seriously ill. Can’t get him in to see Angie until Monday. He’s pulled back from the brink since I’ve been assisting on liquids (via syringe) and serving up baby food. I couldn’t fuckin’ believe we were out of Baytril, either, but we are. Going to have to get more from the clinic on Monday. Chester had better be alright, I swear. If I lose him…

  94. says

    Jesus effing christ, way to keep people down. Also likely to force people into criminality. Crime = survival. That whole thing makes no sense whatsoever. Don’t landlords need to keep their housing fully occupied?

    Which will be used to argue that immigration leads to crime

  97. thunk (sigh) says

    ugh hi.

    I need some fun things to do late at night, fucking anhedonia ruining everything. Visiting places (like the in-my-general-backyard Field Museum) should be fun, and it really isn’t.

    gaaaaaahhh. I so want something interesting to happen to me.

  98. A. Noyd says

    I wish I could go on a mission through time to keep the inventor of the plug in air freshener from ever being born.

  99. Tony! The Immorally Inferior Queer Shoop! says

    Beatrice:
    You asked earlier what your non verbal identifier would be…
    Two choices, both with the same play on your post nym–
    1- a shirt broken into a grid of six panels on the front, and a large one on the back. Each of the panels on the front features a disembodied head with hands searching for something, overturning a rock, a car, and generally searching far and wide for–A Happy Thought (embodied on the back with a smiling thought balloon being hugged by a disembodied head/hands combo.

    2– Similar to the first, except you will be a mime, acting

  102. says

    Kids moment:
    Now, I can’t decide whether #1’s problem is maybe on the ADH-spectrum or whether she’s just fuckin’ lazy and totally not inclined to take any responsibility (whenever something leads to unwanted consequences, somebody or something else is to blame and yes, that includes inanimate objects), but most conflicts here revolve around her totally not doing any of her tasks, including to get herself dressed.
    So, another round on that carousel last night let me exclaim “Did you ever just DO what we asked you to?”
    Answer: “Yes, mum. I think it was before the little one started kindergarten”
    That was over a year ago…

  103. OptimalCynic says

    Kittehsurf:

    Ratty in the blue blanket looks like zie’s having a good chuckle over something! :)

    That’s not a blue blanket. That’s the chest pocket of my polo shirt. Now that you’ve scaled the little chuckler appropriately, you may resume squeeing :)

  104. OptimalCynic says

    Caine: Coincidence! I gave ours M&Ms as a treat last night as a particularly bratty litter of babies just arrived in the adult cages. Filled up a cereal bowl with them and while the adults were trying to eat them, the babies were playing in them just like people in a ball pit. So. Damn. Cute.

  105. kittehserf says

    OptimalCynic – extra squee power! I had scaled uber cutie rat all wrong. Or the fabric, at least. :)

  107. blf says

    “Plug in air freshener”? Please tell you are joking and there is no such thing… albeit a search with Generalissimo Google™ says there is. Good grief. That’s almost as pointless as peas, and at least as horrible as horses.

    Is there such a a thing as a face smashing desk hulk headpalm? Something like that is only a start…

  108. opposablethumbs says

    blf, I can go you one worse I think. Visited friends a long while ago who had an air-freshener gizmo that attached to a door, so that every single time anyone either opened or closed it there would be a generous additional squirt of noxious biohazard “air freshener” perfume into the room.

  109. Walton says

    Jesus effing christ, way to keep people down. Also likely to force people into criminality. Crime = survival. That whole thing makes no sense whatsoever.

    QFT.

  111. Esteleth, statistically significant to p ≤ 0.001 says

    I have decreed that today is Make and Eat Pancakes Day.

    I am observing this.

    And, I’m sorry, this is the one area I’m jingoistic. I’ve ordered pancakes in Europe. And while crepes are nice, they are not pancakes. Pancakes are thick. They soak up syrup. They do not have the consistency of paper.

  112. The Mellow Monkey: Non-Hypothetical says

    opposablethumbs

    Visited friends a long while ago who had an air-freshener gizmo that attached to a door, so that every single time anyone either opened or closed it there would be a generous additional squirt of noxious biohazard “air freshener” perfume into the room.

    I’ve seen commercials for those. I feel a little wheezy just thinking about them. Ugh.

  114. says

    I’m not sure who’s maintaining the list – is it you, Caine, maybe? – but I wanted to draw attention to the most recent post at nirmukta here on FTB, Sunil’s second in the series about the weaknesses of Arguments From Analogy: AFA in Victim-Blaming. It’s well-researched, well-presented, and I think would be a valuable addition to anyone’s progressivist toolkit.

  115. blf says

    I’m sorry, this is the one area I’m jingoistic. I’ve ordered pancakes in Europe. And while crepes are nice, they are not pancakes. Pancakes are thick. They soak up syrup. They do not have the consistency of paper.

    Yes. The only decent pancakes I’ve had “in Europe” (which includes the UK) are the ones I make myself. From scratch. (I do know a few places when I can purchase Alienstani commercial “pancake mix”, but what is the fecking point…?). I’m quite found of using organic spelt flour with added ground (organic) nuts. And organic Canadian maple syrup is easily found.

    Proper buttermilk is a much more serious problem. Currently, I use Arabic † fermented (goat’s ?) milk, which is tasty albeit it reminds me more of what I recall cultured USAlienstan buttermilk as tasting like, not the proper fermented kind…

    When I was in Ireland, I could occasionally find organic fermented buttermilk. Yum yum… Never seen it anywhere else, and it seemed to be bloody rare there.

      † Actually, it is made here in France, but is clearly aimed at the local Arabic-speaking community.

  116. Esteleth, statistically significant to p ≤ 0.001 says

    My googling informs me that the chief difference, recipe-wise, between pancakes and crepes is that pancakes contain a leavening agent. So pop a bit of bicarbonate in there!

  117. smhll says

    Seconding what CaitieCat said re: the excellent piece on victim blaming. It’s really thorough and clear.

  118. Beatrice, an amateur cynic looking for a happy thought says

    I had no idea thick pancakes existed and were called pancakes, and that what I called pancakes were crepes until Internet taught me.

    I like pancakes filled with fruit.
    But crepes with Nutella are divine.

  119. blf says

    Over a fine lunch of mussels and bœuf , warshed down with a nice local vin, I read the hardcopy version of Marseille, the Secret Capital of France in the International Herald Tribune (the international version of the NYTimes, soon to be renamed as such). It was in the glossy occasional weekend “magazine”, which I usually ignore, since it seems to most be trivia-and-“puff” pieces and good only for boiling blood, mine. The village I live in is not-too-far from Marseille so I was curious…

    No comment on most of the article. However, I did find myself mentally ticking off a ✓ Yes / ✗ No list during the opening few paragraphs:

    Marseille has always been a big village, with its distinct dialect and style, a slow, noisy, rough but cool magnet for bohemia, like Berlin, except hilly and sun kissed, open to the world, with its own sad stories.

      ✓ “big village”: Don’t know, but I can believe it. Seems to share some charateristics with London, which is a city of villages.

      ✓ “distinct dialect and style, a slow, noisy, rough…” Again, probably true.

      ✗ “but cool magnet for bohemia, like Berlin”. Horsepucky. Marseille is a cesspool, Berlin is not.

    [Marseille] has cultivated a local rap music, which, like the soccer team, is supported in local clubs and on local radio stations and has come to link Marseillais across race and class. Rappers in Marseille celebrate the city’s melting-pot heritage.

      ✓✗ “…cultivated a local rap music, which, like the soccer team, is supported in local clubs and on local radio stations and has come to link Marseillais across race and class.” Yes. You can’t get away from the bloody soccer team. And there is no rugby (in Marseille that I know of), albeit the European champions Toulon are nearby and the national rugby team does sometimes play in Marseille.

    Some of the local rap music is brilliant.

      ✓ “Rappers in Marseille celebrate the city’s melting-pot heritage.” Yes. Not only in lyrics, but also the music. Multiple traditions are evident.

    When suburbs outside other French cities rioted several years ago, Marseille remained calm. The poor neighborhoods belong to the city, so poor Marseillais, unlike young immigrants forced to live outside Paris or Lyon, feel connected to it, bound together by a civic identity.

    This surprised me. At the time I was living in Montpellier, where the local elders calmed down the situation (and so there were no riots in Montpellier to speak of, albeit there were some nasty ones in Sète). I have no recollection of the situation in Marseille, but would have speculated it would be like Toulouse, where the poor immigrant population is obviously marginalized and there was some bad rioting.

    Nevertheless, the number of murders in the city has spiked in the last few years. Another spate of revenge killings this summer provoked Le Monde to declare that Marseille is spinning “out of control,” despite its makeover [mostly in the “tourist” areas as this year’s European City of Culture].

      ✓(✗) Yes (but obviously not in a good way). The gang-/drugs-related violence spilled over into the village were I live with a gangland-style “professional” (hitman) murder of someone apparently reputed to be involved in shady activities in Marseille.

    …
    But Marseille and its surrounding region had 52 homicides last year. Baltimore, with a smaller population, had 217.

      ✓✓✓ Yes! Welcome to Europe. No concealed-carry, no “stand yer ground”, even the racists are not armed. In some countries (plural), neither are the police. There are fewer (far fewer) guns than people.

    (And I am procrastinating…)

  120. The Mellow Monkey: Non-Hypothetical says

    Thanks to sadistic people on the Internet who keep talking about pancakes when bread makes me ill these days, I was inspired to try to make an…alternative this morning with what I had on hand. What results is not pancakes. Instead I have dubbed it…

    Super Happy Fun Time Squirrel Breakfast

    1/8 cup raw hulled sunflower seeds
    1/8 cup raw sesame seeds
    1 tablespoon ground flax seed
    About a dozen blueberries
    1 medium egg
    1 tablespoon butter
    1 tablespoon sour cream
    Smidge of vanilla extract
    Dash of cinnamon

    I ground up the sunflower and sesame seeds in the coffee grinder, then mixed them with the flax seed, blueberries and egg. I smashed up the blueberries with a fork to spread the sweetness around, but I imagine people with more of a sweet tooth than I have would want to use some sort of sweetener in addition to this.

    I used half of the butter to cook Super Happy Fun Time Squirrel Breakfast on a skillet, then mixed the other half with the sour cream, vanilla and cinnamon for a topping. When the “cake” was done, I smeared the topping on it and ate it.

    It is absolutely nothing like a pancake at all. It’s still pretty good, though. The way I did it came out with 11 grams of carbs (including 4 grams of fiber), 34 grams of fat and 12 grams of protein. Because fat is the best tasting thing in the world and this hasn’t made me sick like carb heavy stuff tends to do, I find it acceptable.

    This is probably a good illustration of why I should never be left alone in a kitchen for too long.

  121. blf says

    My googling informs me that the chief difference, recipe-wise, between pancakes and crepes is that pancakes contain a leavening agent.

    McGee On Food & Cooking broadly confirms that (my paraphrasing):

      ● Crêpes: Thin, unleavened, typically folded over a filling, and the basic batter recipe is thousands of years old. (Blintzes and some other dishes are closely related.)

      ● Pancakes: Batter is more floury and viscous, usually leavened, and retains gas bubbles during cooking. (British crumpets are similar, but made from an even thicker batter and cooked more slowly.) I would add pancakes are rarely folded over a filling.

    [C]repes with Nutella are divine.

    Impossible. Nutella is peas mixed with aged horseshite.

    (For some reason, the LED lightbulb went out when I was typing this. Either its a secret Nutella admirer, or else I have an electrical / power problem…)

  123. Azkyroth Drinked the Grammar Too :) says

    the basic batter recipe is thousands of years old.

    Millenia-old batter? There’s your problem right there.

  124. Tony! The Immorally Inferior Queer Shoop! says

    Nom nom!
    Pancakes!!! I have not had any in a year or so.
    Crepes…hmmm…I think I was a kid on one of the bases my father was stationed at when I last had a crepe. I recall my mother and I having breakfast with a friend of hers. This woman was German*, IIRC and introduced us to crepes, which were so damn good! Now I want some.

    *relevant bc we were in the South and crepes are not common

  126. Tethys says

    OptimalCynic

    Thank you for sharing the ratling photos. So cute, squeeeeeeeee!
    —-

    Hugs to Caine. I hope he pulls through, and you get some sleep.

    —–

    Pancakes vs crepes

    I grew up eating both of these, though I didn’t learn the word crepe until I was an adult.

    We called them Russian pancakes, (because we are Germans from Russia), and I have seen other german americans refer to them as German pancakes. They are the traditional food for Easter brunch, and are quite tasty filled with sweet filling, or savory fillings.

    The batter is very thin and runny in comparison to the flapjack variety of pancake.
    It is flour, milk, and lots of eggs, with a bit of vanilla or cinnamon added if its on hand.
    Since every farm household would have seasonal gluts of milk and eggs, it is a good way to not let any food go to waste through spoilage.

  128. blf says

    If a pancake and a crepe had a child it would be a Dutch Baby!

    Oh I’ve had those! In USAlienstan many yonks ago. I don’t recall what they were called, and have no recollection of the term “Dutch Baby” (which, according to Ye Pffft! of All Knowledge, refers to the Pennsylvania Dutch). I had no idea how to make them… Thanks.

  129. Beatrice, an amateur cynic looking for a happy thought says

    I’m (re)watching the first season of Haven.

    I forgot how much I liked it. Can’t wait to get to the episodes I haven’t seen yet.

  131. A. Noyd says

    chigau (#600)

    Can you do the same for those responsible for Axe®?

    Why, certainly!

    ~*~*~*~*~*~

    blf (#607)

    “Plug in air freshener”? Please tell you are joking and there is no such thing…

    I wish. My building management has decided, yet again, to stick one of those horrid things in the lobby. Like they think its cheery and welcoming to give people apple-cinnamon-scented athsma attacks.

    ~*~*~*~*~*~

    opposablethumbs (#608)

    Visited friends a long while ago who had an air-freshener gizmo that attached to a door, so that every single time anyone either opened or closed it there would be a generous additional squirt of noxious biohazard “air freshener” perfume into the room.

    If I was visiting, I would have ripped the fucking thing off the door and stomped it to pieces and claimed gallantly to have just saved them from what is clearly a terrorist device of some sort.

    ~*~*~*~*~*~

    Beatrice (#618)

    But crepes with Nutella are divine.

    The place I go to get bubble tea also serves Nutella wontons. I don’t hate Nutella or anything, but I couldn’t possibly eat those. The smell of them is enough to induce diabetes.

  132. blf says

    The smell of [Nutella] is enough to induce diabetes.

    Mild reaction. I’ve always associated the smell with that of a corpse of a diseased pod of whales who eaten a pea and demolished several cesspools when they washed ashore. Near a tannery.

    I’ve never actually eaten Nutella (that I know of), except once. By mistake. I misheard the waiter’s description of the dish… I survived only by performing an emergency harakiri. Actually, some people say I didn’t survive, explaining it’s not natural to lurch, stare wide-eyed, and bite the heads off baby mice. I disagree, after you keep banging your desk on your head, lurching into walls with an unfocused glazed expression and snapping at anything is quite understandable.

  133. Ogvorbis: Apologies Available for All! says

    Nutella is, as a food, an abomination unto Nuggan!

    It is useful, however, for producing a really good chipped paint effect on a model tank.

  134. Ogvorbis: Apologies Available for All! says

    I got my unemployment finding yesterday. It comes out to 2/3 of my take home pay (after things like health insurance, retirement, etc). Which means that, until the Tea Partiers decide to actually make an agreement and then do what they agree to do, things will be tight.

  135. says

    Paul Ryan is more or less the poster boy for the House Republicans right now. He’s standing on shifting sands and swiftly jumping from idea to idea in an effort to find solid ground. Look at Ryan, and them imagine most of the House Republicans doing the same thing. It’s fucking chaos.

    Recently Ryan was greeted by the beltway press as a savior waiting in the wings, when all he really wanted to do was to take advantage of the government shutdown to foist his discredited Ryan budget onto the citizens of the USA. After the rabid right took him to task for not mentioning defunding Obamacare, Ryan jumped onto the Obamacare Scare wagon. He is just fucking delusional. He and Romney did not win the election. His budget has been discredited hundreds of times. He cannot defund Obamacare.

    Ryan, who was savaged by some on the right last week for seeming to trade the goal of repealing Obamacare in exchange for Obama embracing most of the infamous Ryan budget, is now back to Obamacare. In fact, he’s insisting the House GOP shouldn’t back any deal that opens the government or extends the debt ceiling deadline without major changes to the Affordable Care Act, including letting employers withhold birth-control coverage from insurance plans for religious reasons.

    Ryan has been consistent about only one thing, making it harder for women to obtain birth control.

    He’s not the only one of the frothing right wingers to remain consistent on this single point. Women need to shut this guy down. We don’t need a government shutdown. We need a shutdown of the Republican war on women.
    http://www.salon.com/2013/10/13/the_delusional_and_dangerous_paul_ryan/

    What really ticks me off is that several media sources are holding Paul Ryan up as an example of reasonableness. http://news.yahoo.com/paul-ryan-budget-163215145.html

  136. blf says

    [Nutella] is useful, however, for producing a really good chipped paint effect on a model tank.

    Except that no-one survives to admire the effect. I suggest using something a little-less planet-dissolving. Nuking from orbit, for instance. Or rubbing vigorously with a teathug. (Rubbing the model tank, that is…)

  137. blf says

    We need a shutdown of the [theethugs] war on [reality].

    Fed them Nutella? It might also stun them long enough for some model tank rubbing.
    </snark>
    And for the grownups to enact a few sensible things.

  138. The Mellow Monkey: Non-Hypothetical says

    Threadrupt family rambling. TW for alcoholism, abuse.

    My mother and stepfather divorced over twenty years ago, before my younger half-brother was actually born. He was an alcoholic and abusive and never paid a penny of child support. Despite the divorce, he kept finding himself homeless and my mother would take pity on him and give him a place to stay. So the drinking and the abuse could continue.

    Ten years ago, he moved to another state to be closer to his siblings. We only saw him on special occasions and he always portrayed himself as having stopped drinking. This winter he ended up homeless again and arrived at my mother’s doorstep unannounced. At first he made it seem like he had jobs lined up and would be moving along quickly, but it soon became clear that he was just moving in. She made an agreement with him that he could stay if he kept off of alcohol and did some work for her and her brother. He agreed.

    Well. Most of the work never got done and then the drinking began yesterday and appears to still be going on. A little while ago he let himself in the front door and began insisting all of his problems were her fault and she had “done” this to him and insisted she was required to sit there and listen to him. I stayed out of it, cleaning in her kitchen and finding things to busy myself even though I could hear the whole one-sided fight. It was all the classic emotional abuse bullshit, where he kept pushing her about how she owed him and she was required to listen to him and if he harmed himself it was her fault, etc. She offered him options to help him get back to his family to go stay with them, but he wouldn’t have any of that. He wanted to blame her, not find solutions. Finally they got onto the topic of their work agreement and she told him to come into her office so they could go over the agreement once again and she could point out all the things he didn’t do. He refused, saying he didn’t have to listen to her.

    That was when I just couldn’t stay out of it any longer. I asked him, “So everyone is required to listen to you, but you don’t have to listen to anyone else?” He agreed. “This is all about you?” He agreed. “You don’t have to do anything at all, but we’re all beholden to you?” Yes.

    After a lifetime of this shit I just couldn’t take it. I yelled at him to get the fuck out of my face, to walk out the door. He kept trying to engage me and I just kept repeating myself, pointing at the door. At one point I took a step closer to him and the door and my mom was worried I was going to hit him, but that honestly never crossed my mind. He’s a coward who bullies people weaker than him and I knew if I was angry and adamant enough he’d leave. He did.

    He left this building, anyway. He’s off on another property my mother owns instead. This isn’t the end of it.

  139. rq says

    I love Nutella.
    And I haven’t yet made falafel in this country, even though I had my mum’s recipe sent to me years ago. My previous excuse (of not finding any chick peas on store shelves) no longer holds up to close scrutiny.

    Hello, Lounge.

    *hugs* and *[gesture of appreciation, love and support]* to those who need them (up for grabs for Mellow Monkey especially, considering most recent comment).
    Broke a personal record yesterday (two if one counts the turkey record): most guests in house at one time.

  140. blf says

    I love Nutella.

    You must have fallen off a horse recently. On yer head. Into a patch of celery. Where some peas were lucking. And were then stepped on by the horse. Or more likely, jumped on…

    Either that or you’ve been nuked from orbit.

  142. ledasmom says

    Anybody else do that thing with crepes where you make a stack of them and every time you add one to the stack you put a little lemon juice and a sprinkle of sugar on there? Delicious, and the crepe cook gets to sit down to eat.
    Or crepes with thinly-sliced ripe peaches and a bit of vanilla sugar, folded up, or apples well-sauteed in butter. I do like fruit with my crepes.

  143. thunk (sigh) says

    yum. I need to find something interesting to have crepes with. The traditional russian condiment is sweetened condensed milk, or “sguschyonka” (roughly).

    and I need a better diet.

  144. chigau (違う) says

    thunk
    You can put anything you want into a crepe.
    bacon
    felafel
    salad
    The real point of a crepe is to convey food to your mouth.

  145. cicely says

    Caine:

    Scalzi always grabs my mind from the start. I ♥ that man.

    Me, too.
    We could use a million more just like ‘im.
     
    Later: I hope Chester recovers well. Sorry he’s ill.
    –
    kittehserf, the cat brooch is very cute. I like it a lot.
    It looks…playful.
    –
    *hugs* for Mellow Monky. And yet more *hugs* after reading about Asshole Step-father.
    –
    Nerd, does vinegar soaking really kill toe nail fungus? I’ve had Listerine application recommended to me (didn’t work), and Vaporub ditto (and ditto).
     
    I’m sure the hair washing will work better with experience.
    –
    A. Noyd:

    I wish I could go on a mission through time to keep the inventor of the plug in air freshener from ever being born.

    and
    chigau:

    Can you do the same for those responsible for Axe®?

    Oooh! Do the Axe one first! Toxic in all situations.
     
    The office where I work used to have one of those industrial auto-spritzer air freshener devices in the bathroom. Some of the “fragrances” made my eyes water and/or my nose hairs feel crispy and brittle. The lightly lemon one was not too bad.
    –
    Nutella is awesome, and neither Horses nor peas are responsible for its content.
    –
    All this talk of pancakes has 1) made me want some, and 2) brought home to me the jarring realization that I can not haz, because gluten.
    This gives me a massive sad, not unlike the one I got from the realization that no more cinnamon rolls.
    :( :( :( :( :( :( :( :( :( :( :( :( :(
    –
    *pouncehugstorm* for rq.
     
    But let’s make this perfectly clear: Nutella has nothing to do with Horses.
    If They are bringing you platters (silver or otherwise) of something that They claim is Nutella, run!!!—’cause this is where the ground pea paste and aged Horse shit come in.
    An understandable mistake on blf’s part, but a mistake nonetheless.
    –

  146. Esteleth, statistically significant to p ≤ 0.001 says

    There’s something about the flavor of apples a day or two before they’re bad that is just utterly delectable.

  147. Nerd of Redhead, Dances OM Trolls says

    Nerd, does vinegar soaking really kill toe nail fungus? I’ve had Listerine application recommended to me (didn’t work), and Vaporub ditto (and ditto).

    The Redhead bought a small, but expensive bottle that claimed to work. Nothing but ethanoic acid (acetic acid), the active component in vinegar. Wiki how to article here. The salves use a long chained unsaturated fatty acids which will stick around on the toes.

    The Redhead soaks her feet for thirty minutes three times in a week. Repeat as necessary. Does the trick.

  148. Nutmeg says

    Non-existent gods, I am so fucking grateful to live in Canada.

    My mom has had a bad cough that suddenly turned into pneumonia last night. She and my dad are at the hospital while she gets pumped full of IV antibiotics. Unless something changes, she’ll come home tonight with a prescription for oral antibiotics and maybe some extra asthma meds. She’ll be much better in a few days. All of this will cost us little or nothing, because we live in a sane country that understands that healthcare is a basic human right.

  149. chigau (違う) says

    ca-na-da
    ca-na-da
    ca-na-da
    We have some bad medical stuff happen but look at #648.
    It can be that easy.

  150. thunk (sigh) says

    Chigau:

    I could but picky eaterness is making me treat most non-junk food as poison. fuck I’m screwed.

  151. says

    Yeah. It’s something I don’t think many USans can really get at the moment, because even if they’re reasonably well off, they probably aren’t safe from a catastrophic medical bill. I’ve never had to worry about that, in my life. Not in the UK, not in Canada, not before we were citizens, not ever. And anyone telling you our outcomes are worse, or we don’t get any choice in doctors, or death panels or all kinds of silliness, has a) never experienced nationalized health care and b) never looked closely at an HMO’s rules to find out where lack of choice and death panels happen.

    Given my pain and depression issues, before the PPACA in the US, I’d never ever have considered living there, because the idea of my health care being tied to my employment is terrifying and ridiculous. Now, I might if I were wealthy enough. Which, y’know, is never going to happen, so sorry to disappoint, my USan friends, I will remain part of the neighbours to the north, unless/until y’all go expansionist and Gilead-ish, at which point I may well exercise my rights to my UK citizenship…

  153. Esteleth, statistically significant to p ≤ 0.001 says

    Jebus! I am a bad kitty-mommy.

    I was stroking Morgan and felt bumps under her fur. So I looked – the poor thing is covered in flea bites! D:

  154. chigau (違う) says

    Esteleth #653
    You, as kitty-mommy, should be licking, not stroking.
    —
    You’re welcome.
    teehee

  155. says

    Thunk:

    I need to find something interesting to have crepes with.

    Slather crepe with good quality sour cream, then add a layer of thinly sliced apple, then add a generous layer of brown sugar. Roll and eat. For real, it’s very good.

  156. gobi's sockpuppet's meatpuppet says

    Ogvorbis: Apologies Available for All!
     

    It is useful, however, for producing a really good chipped paint effect on a model tank.

    Whaaa? How does that work?
    Anyway… Phffft I say to all you Nutella haters! Phffft! Nutella is child’s play when you live in the country that foisted Vegemite upon the world.

  157. says

    Cicely, pilamayaye for thinking of Chester. He’s now gone and dyed a good portion of himself blue, along with Oliver and a couple of others. I have no idea what did it, but it will be all kinds of fun trying to explain that to our rat Doc tomorrow. :sigh:

  158. says

    Kind of ‘rupt, trying to stay off the computer for a while because my tendinitis is flared up.

    *pouncehugs* rq

    I has a working bike again, which is nice. The old bike had enough value left in it to pay for the tune-up on the new one, which is working quite well.

  159. gobi's sockpuppet's meatpuppet says

    …and a proper hello to the Lounge. I won’t even pretend to be up to date, but safe air hugs ( I am not a big contact person) for anyone who needs them and a big happy grin for anyone who has had good things happen.

    Just had two weeks almost alone (doggies kept me company). Had a bad start with the anxiety and depression thing for a couple of days but did really well after that. Yay for me :)

    The puppetmistress brought me back a lovely gift from Paris – a set of Sennelier water colours from the original Sennelier store. Getting them from the source gives you a feeling of the history of Paris and pigments.

  161. Esteleth, statistically significant to p ≤ 0.001 says

    One dash to the store later, flea medicine has been obtained and the first dose administered.

    And in a few days, these scratches in my arms will heal.

  162. gobi's sockpuppet's meatpuppet says

    Hi chigau!
    Contact has always been difficult for me – the worst is when someone swoops in for a hug or the face kiss thing. Some are quick enough to spot my rabbit-in-headlights look and pull back :)
    People do air-kisses – I think air-hugs should catch on lol

  163. cicely says

    Nerd, thank you! I’m gonna try it. We already have a large (gallon-sized? Something like that…) bottle of vinegar just sitting around doing nothing.
    Time it earned its keep!
    –

  164. Azkyroth Drinked the Grammar Too :) says

    Cicely: it’s also a viable and economic light surface cleaner.

  165. Nerd of Redhead, Dances OM Trolls says

    Cicely, we have a 2.5 gallon cheap plastic washing bin we inherited from her rehab (still used daily for her sponge bath). I add about 2-3 inches of vinegar, heat it for 40-50 seconds in the microwave, and stick her feet in, and soak for 30 minutes. Dry with towel. Remove gunk from under nail with appropriate tool. If one foot has fungus, use two tools, one for the clean foot, one for the “dirty” foot. Clean tools with alcohol between uses.

    Her toe fungus recurred during her hospitalization/rehab. It wasn’t until she got home that we got it under control, as there just wasn’t time for soaking except on weekends in rehab. Once a week, or twice on a weekend didn’t do the job. Every other day for a week did the trick, especially when repeated a couple of weeks later.

  166. gobi's sockpuppet's meatpuppet says

    Hmmm…
    Just noticed a spider has built its web across our garage door. The spider itself is not quite as big as my hand so I feel I can take it on…

  167. gobi's sockpuppet's meatpuppet says

    Umm… Just noticed my all-too-confident spider comment was #666.
    Do I take that as a portent of doom?

  169. gobi's sockpuppet's meatpuppet says

    WMDKitty
    I tend not to kill garden spiders – just relocate them if they are in an inconvenient spot. The problem with this one is it is probably big enough to take the broom off me and beat me with it lol.
    I know some people are triggered by spiders but if you are curious as to what it looks like google ‘golden orb spider’ for images.

  170. Tony! The Immorally Inferior Queer Shoop! says

    Esteleth:
    Fleas–uh oh.
    You may need the Hertz version of nuke ’em from orbit, i.e. flea bombs. I still have flea problems in the house (realized there was a problem earlier this year,but a combo of no time and/or no money-and since June, no vehicle-has extended this battle). As of this writing, I have largely won the My legs vs the fleas fight (for a while I was waking up to various bites and had no clue how I got them…til I realized the fuckers invaded my room).
    Heh
    Heh heh
    I just realized something…as much as I loathe mosquitoes (with loathe being so-not-a-sufficiently-potent-term) I would rather deal with them, bc they only bother me, whereas fleas bite me, my dogs and my cats.

    Oh, and I HAVE CARPET THROUGHOUT THE HOUSE.
    Sorry for shouting, but that exacerbates fleas problems drastically.

  171. Tony! The Immorally Inferior Queer Shoop! says

    H
    o
    L
    Y

    F
    U
    C
    K
    .
    That is a big spider. I do not have any fear of spiders, but if that came near me, I would outpace cicely running from horses…

  172. gobi's sockpuppet's meatpuppet says

    The PM and I used to clean residential properties after they were vacated by tenants. I remember walking into one and looking down at my (white) trousers and seeing hundreds of little black dots up to about calf height. That was a real ‘oh fuck’ moment. I hate fleas.
    You can get rid of them if you break the life cycle and they aren’t reintroduced, but you have to get them all. Eggs included.

  173. Tony! The Immorally Inferior Queer Shoop! says

    Re: Vinegar uses

    Until a few years ago, I never knew how versatile the stuff is. I have seen some extensive lists (100+) of the many uses of vinegar.

    y of other uses for vinegar that a reasonable person would want to try. Here they are:

    – Remove greasy residue from your stove, counters or cabinets. Usually, your exhaust fan is to blame for the wide-reaching oil slicks. To clean the mess (and deodorize), wipe down surfaces with a mix of equal parts vinegar and water.

    – Get rid of mildew. Full-strength vinegar will get rid of the nasty stuff without the sort of fumes that send one inelegantly running for the nearest breath of fresh air.

    – Remove stickers and mysteriously sticky spots. Don’t ask. Just dab at the situation in question with a cloth dipped in vinegar. Dilute it to a 50/50 mix of water and vinegar if you’re dealing with a delicate (or vintage) item.

    – Clean scissors. Water will just rust the blades. A better idea: wiping them clean with, you guessed it, a cloth dipped in vinegar. Seeing a pattern here?

    – Cleaning out the refrigerator. This is one place where you don’t want strong fumes coming near your food. Instead, wipe out the interior with… yes… a cloth dipped in vinegar. And yes, the odor will go away.

    – Deodorizing litter boxes. After you clean it out completely, give it a swish with white vinegar. I won’t go into the details. You wouldn’t want that.

    – Cleaning the dishwasher. If you have hard water, this is especially necessary. Just pour a cup into the bottom of the dishwasher, then run it (on empty) to get rid of any build-up.

    – Unclog the shower head. Again, if you have hard water, you’ll need to do this. If possible, screw off the shower head and place it in a basin filled with vinegar. If you can’t, try this trick from Lifehacker, which involves the clever use of a plastic bag.

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/01/8-uses-for-vinegar_n_3530517.html

  174. Tony! The Immorally Inferior Queer Shoop! says

    Gobi’s sm:
    It was suggested that I bomb the whole house, but I do not know what to do with the dogs, who are outside in the day. I am sure the fleas were brought in by them (the cats are inside only) so the problem is also outside.
    Argh!

  175. gobi's sockpuppet's meatpuppet says

    Spider and I have reached an agreement of sorts. Spider can now occupy a different part of the garden and I will watch my back in case it is harbouring any ill feelings against me from destroying its house.

    If you are freaked out by spiders stop reading here

    Story: how I lost my fear of spiders
    I lost my fear (but not my respect) for spiders as a student in rural Queensland.

    To get home from college I had to ride down a lane between tall eucalyptus trees and paddocks. The orb spiders would build their webs across the lane (I have seen webs span 20 feet). There was no getting around it – I just peddled furiously to get up speed, crouched over the handle bars, and with gritted teeth and a closed mouth scream… went for it!

    I could feel each web as I went through it – they are almost like fishing line. I still have this image in my mind of a dark shape on a bicycle rocketing along, trailed by filaments ending in flailing spiders like the tin cans on a car with ‘just married’ written on it.

    Upon reaching home I would yell out to my then-partner ‘spider check!’ and stand perfectly still until it was certain they had all bailed. I have never been bitten by an orb spider but I am told it hurts. Thankfully you really have to piss them off before they will bite you.

    Dont ask me about the trapdoor spiders that covered the ground – the ones that appeared at night as hundreds of tiny eyes reflected in your torchlight and are related to the funnel-web spiders in Sydney…

  176. gobi's sockpuppet's meatpuppet says

    Tony!
    The dogs need to be treated as well. The fleas wont survive without a host so if you treat the dogs and the house at the same time you will have a chance. The only other thing to worry about will be wildlife introducing them to the dogs.

  177. gobi's sockpuppet's meatpuppet says

    Oh, and the cats. They all need to be treated at the same time. The flea pupae are the real pain because it is hard to kill them with insecticide and they can survive for months. You have to kill off each wave of fleas until all the pupae are hatched, so expect to repeat the treatment after a couple of weeks.

  180. JAL: Snark, Sarcasm & Bitterness says

    ARGHBLECHARGLKDFJdslfkasjfjasdf

    My landlord shut off the AC and turned on the heat. In Arizona in the beginning of October. WTF?!?

    Oh, wait she lives here too and that’s how she likes it so fuck everybody else sweating to death.

    And, I just found out, she’s a verified thief. She’s straight up stole shit from tenants here. She kicked out tenants illegally and kept their stuff. Her boyfriend, who is also the maintenance man, has a son who is now using a stolen computer from a former tenant. She’s the one who’s been stealing and moving stuff from my mother’s apartment, which is literally driving her Asshole Husband crazy.

    And I just paid her the first part of this months rent.

    Fuck. My. Life.

    My mother’s disability back pay can’t come fast enough.

    ===============

    Also, to my fellow USians, Happy Bartolome Day!

  181. says

    Good morning

    Pancakes and crêpes
    No, no, no, no.
    Pancakes, Pfannkuchen and crêpes are three different items that are related to each other but not to be confused with each other. Like bagels, pita and baguette. Crêpes are very thin and there’s butter in the batter. Pfannkuchen are not that thin, but neither do they contain a raising agent. They can be sweet or savoury. Pancakes are fluffy and sweet.
    And I’m amazed nobody has mentioned buckwheat gallettes so far (savoury crêpes that are filled with a variety of things and make a main course)

    MM
    Loads of hugs and support.
    Seems like we both gave our fathers a piece of our minds these days. Only that mine isn’t the alcoholic, but the one who covers for her and blames everybody else.

    I had a long chat with my mum’s cousin last night. I think she doesn’t yet understand that my ambition to invest fuck in the relationship with my parents is quickly approaching zero…

  182. rq says

    dongiovanni
    Alas, I am with you for only a short time – to be specific, until Tuesday evening. ;) (Sorry, couldn’t find a musical link for that line at the moment!)

    Alright, I’ll try out this *pouncehug* business – here’s some for cicely and some for Dalillama.

    Also, cicely, I found some gluten-free crepes with Nutella here, here and here. And these are gluten-free, but there’s no Nutella in the instructions.
    Horse-free links this time, guaranteed!

  186. Esteleth, statistically significant to p ≤ 0.001 says

    Re: flea bombs:

    This is actually my plan. In fact, here’s the plan in total:
    (1) Morgan gets the dermal anti-flea medicine for 6 months, starting yesterday.
    (2) Midway through month 2, when we both will be going away for a weekend (Thanksgiving), the house will get flea bombed.

    Hopefully, we will come home to a apartment full of dead fleas and the remaining 3.5 months will be a mopping-up of eggs that hatch on her body.

  187. rq says

    Ah, fleas! I have a feeling the one’s over that side of the pond are more persistent than the ones here – when Cat was covered (covered!) in fleas, we never felt them at all, until he escaped, and they had no other choice but to attack us. Our solution consisted of (1) lots of vaccuuming (especially lots of the panicky kind early on when they were legion); and (2) flea drops for Cat every 3 weeks, no exceptions, for about 3 months. The vaccuuming got most of the dead bodies and eggs out of the floor and carpet, and the flea drops on Cat took care of those we missed who still managed to hatch (since they drink flea-drop-laced blood and either die, or become infertile). And that was all!
    I don’t even know what a flea bomb is… and I have a feeling I don’t want to!!

    Also, I never new cilantro haters couldn’t help it. You poor dears.

  188. The Mellow Monkey: Non-Hypothetical says

    Thanks for the words of support, everybody.

    Giliell

    …and blames everybody else.

    Ogods is that a familiar refrain. I think dealing with that growing up is a large part of why I’m always so cautiously introspective and trying to figure out whether or not something really is my fault. It’s hard to free my mind entirely of this shit.

    —

    And since, thanks to the Oatmeal, I keep seeing shit about Bartolomé de Las Casas in addition to Columbus today: fuck THAT guy, too.

    Happy Indigenous People’s Day!

  189. Tony! The Immorally Inferior Queer Shoop! says

    From the Department of “Graphic Novels with interesting conceptual ideas”, we get this info from New York Comic-Con (now as big as San Diego CC):

    Black Eyed Peas singer Will.i.am and futurist Brian David Johnson came together on Friday afternoon in New York City to tell a packed room about their upcoming comic “Wizards and Robots.” Due out in March 2014 from IDW Publishing, the story revolves around robots from the future come back to do battle with wizards from the past in the present day.

    […]

    That idea was “Wizards and Robots.” Will had been working with inner city kids for his charity i.am.angel, encouraging them to study math and sciences, and was concerned that technological intelligence was outpacing human’s ability to control it.

    “I started feeling really concerned,” Will said. “You mean to tell me that my 7-year-old niece, when she’s 47 years old, will have to compete with an appliance? It sounds giggly and funny, but it’s something we should all be concerned about. In the industrial revolution we made a train, but we didn’t think we would have to compete with a train in regards to speed. We didn’t think it would outthink us.”

    Will chose Johnson to work with because he was a self-starter who published his own books. Will said, “I want to work and collaborate with people who do things on their own. They don’t need a company. They don’t need some firm to fund it. They just figure out a way to do it.”

    […]

    Johnson added, “The idea behind it was that magic is just science you don’t understand. We started looking at, well, what if we used quantum physics to explain the spells? You’ve got entanglement, you’ve got teleportation. What if quantum physics was real, and that’s what actually drove these wizards? And what if we took the work I was doing with robots and we made that real, too? So we made this world very much a universe in and of itself, and started thinking about what it might be.”

    “Robots from the future come back from the future to do battle with ancient wizards,” continued Johnson. “Their war takes place in our time with technology and magic based on real robotics and quantum physics.”

    […]

    “The idea in the ‘Hope Algorithm,’ which is the prequel, is that all data is memory and all memory is data,” Will said.

    The main robot character in the story is Kaku, who contains the entire sum of mankind’s knowledge, including everything on the Internet.

    “Kaku, because he’s a robotic historian from 3000, he knows ever single person in this room,” Will said. “Why? Because he has access to the cloud. Every single tweet and conversation that you’ve tweeted on Facebook or Twitter or Instagram. He collected all of that information.”

    Johnson added, “These robots actually care, and they actually care about us. Kaku is studying us because he’s interested in us. There’s not this idea that you’ve got Terminators and all these things that are scary. For robots like Kaku, the idea of the T-9000, the idea of the Terminator, is their nightmare. Their nightmare is that you would have robots doing something bad to human beings.”

    Naturally, music will play a part in the series, too. “I’m gonna score this whole freaking thing. Go to Prague and work with the big Prague Philharmonic and just score it. Fuse computer music with orchestral compositions and score a graphic novel,” Will said.

    Johnson added, “We went back and rewrote history, and said what if wizards actually existed, but their power is so immense that they convinced everyone they couldn’t exist. That’s how powerful they are. That they could think that they didn’t exist. So we had Kaku the historian go back and start to track them. No one ever talked about them in history but you can start to see them. You can see back in Babylonia when a general won something he should never have won. Or you’ve got some emperor or some pharaoh in Egypt who conquered the four corners of the Earth. That could never have happened if you didn’t have a wizard.”

    “Even though it’s rooted in science-fiction, a lot of it is rooted in science-fact. We just don’t have the technology to make it possible right now,” Will said.

    Will then revealed he’s going to MIT to study computer science and learn more about technology.

    Oh, yeah, can’t forget the sexist thinking, which gets called out:

    A young woman noticed that they’d been referring to Kaku as a “he” during the panel, and wondered how a robot could have a gender. They revealed that Kaku is actually genderless, even though they use male pronouns for him. Johnson said, “We were very specific that the robots did not have genders.”

    Very specific about robots having no gender, yet you use male gendered pronouns when talking about them..?

    http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=48486

    Is Will.i.am’s concern of technological intelligence outpacing humanity’s warranted? Obviously that is well beyond the scope of wheelhouse, but perhaps some in the relevant fields could speak to that.

  191. cicely says

    Nerd, we have a tub about that size, left over after The Husband’s gallbladder surgery. (I had one from the MRSA surgery, but deemed it prudent to not bring it home with me….) Does the vinegar need to be heated, or is that a comfortableness thing?
    –
    Flea bombs don’t always do the trick. Unfortunately. I have anecdata.
    –
    Tony:

    That is a big spider. I do not have any fear of spiders, but if that came near me, I would outpace cicely running from horses…

    Only if you can go trans-light.
    :D
    –
    gobi’s sockpuppet’s meatpuppet, your description is vivid. I picked up the ‘visual’, no problem.
     
    Only question is—are you usually an Animated Feature?
    :)
    –
    Finish catching up later.

  192. Pteryxx says

    mostly threadrupt because there’s just too much BS in the air these days and it takes all I have just to keep abreast of it… I should take longer fuck-the-world breaks. JAL and Giliell and everyone with fleas, *all the nethugs*

    —-

    via Shakes and HuffPo: Republicans changed the rules just before the shutdown, to ensure votes to restart the government could not come up.

    …WTFnF.

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/13/house-republicans-rules-change_n_4095129.html

    “The Rules Committee, under the rules of the House, changed the standing rules of the House to take away the right of any member to move to vote to open the government, and gave that right exclusively to the Republican Leader,” said Van Hollen. “Is that right?”

    “The House adopted that resolution,” replied Chaffetz.

    “I make my motion, Mr. Speaker,” said Van Hollen. “I renew my motion that under the regular standing rules of the House… that the house take up the Senate amendments and open the government now.”

    “Under section 2 of H.R. 368, that motion may be offered only by the majority leader or his designee,” Chaffetz said.

    “Mr. Speaker, why were the rules rigged to keep the government shut down?” Van Hollen asked.

    “The gentleman will suspend,” Chaffetz interjected.

    “Democracy has been suspended, Mr. Speaker.”

    —–

    And since, thanks to the Oatmeal, I keep seeing shit about Bartolomé de Las Casas in addition to Columbus today: fuck THAT guy, too.

    Happy Indigenous People’s Day!

    —warning because the details and scope are almost incomprehensibly horrific—

    Thanks to Gregory in Seattle and other folks mentioning the book A People’s History of the United States, I was spurred to search for it and found the fulltext online here.

    http://www.historyisaweapon.com/zinnapeopleshistory.html

    When he arrived on Hispaniola in 1508, Las Casas says, “there were 60,000 people living on this island, including the Indians; so that from 1494 to 1508, over three million people had perished from war, slavery, and the mines. Who in future generations will believe this? I myself writing it as a knowledgeable eyewitness can hardly believe it….”

    and the US Slave blog is a massive trove of references, including these and more about the horrific treatment of America’s indigenous people.

    http://usslave.blogspot.com/2011/02/chapter-two-first-slaves.html

    Barely five years after their first recorded contact with Europeans, this final battle of the bloody Pequot War conclusively finished a doomed experiment by Indians and Puritans to live side by side. By the time the Treaty of Hartford was signed the following September, formally ending the war, the English had killed or enslaved more than 1,500 Pequot men, women and children, scholars believe.

    During the uneasy decades that followed, as the Puritans pushed deeper into Indian country and their numbers swelled, it was difficult to travel through Connecticut, Massachusetts or Rhode Island and not encounter an Indian slave, working in a field, orchard or boatyard.

    By the end of the 1600s, there were probably thousands of Indian slaves, many of them servants in homes and on farms. It would become, in the words of Roger Williams, a founder of Brown University, an essential component of “the Unnecessary Warrs and cruell Destructions of the Indians in New England.”

    A 1496 Letter from King Ferdinands to the Taino-Arawak Indians: Convert or Die!

    You own compliance as a duty to the King and we in his name will receive you with love and charity, respecting your freedom and that of your wives and sons and your rights of possession and we shall not compel you to baptism unless you, informed of the Truth, wish to convert to our holy Catholic Faith as almost all your neighbors have done in other islands, in exchange for which Their Highnesses bestow many privileges and exemptions upon you. Should you fail to comply, or delay maliciously in so doing, we assure you that with the help of God we shall use force against you, declaring war upon you from all sides and with all possible means, and we shall bind you to the yoke of the Church and of Their Highnesses; we shall enslave your persons, wives and sons, sell you or dispose of you as the King sees fit; we shall seize your possessions and harm you as much as we can as disobedient and resisting vassals. And we declare you guilty of resulting deaths and injuries, exempting Their Highnesses of such guilt as well as ourselves and the gentlemen who accompany us.

  193. Nutmeg says

    Thanks, birgerjohansson. My mom’s white count was through the roof last night, so she got the heavy-duty IV antibiotics, stuff I had to look up. She’s still feeling pretty awful today but not feverish anymore.

    It’s Canadian Thanksgiving. Normally I think it’s kind of cheesy to count the things I’m grateful for on Thanksgiving. But today I’m grateful to live in 2013, because a hundred years ago my mom probably wouldn’t have survived this. And I’m grateful to live in Canada, because getting prompt treatment and appropriate prescriptions for my mom cost a grand total of $11.53. And I’m grateful for my own health, which is pretty decent, and for the doctors and pharmacists that keep it that way.

  194. says

    Moments of Mormon Madness, family values category:

    Elders, never love your wives one hair’s breadth further than they adorn the Gospel, never love them so but that you can leave them at a moment’s warning without shedding a tear. Should you love a child any more than this? No. Here are Apostles and Prophets who are destined to be exalted with the Gods, to become rulers in the kingdom of our Father, to become equal with the Father and the Son, and will you let your affections be unduly placed on anything this side that kingdom and glory? If you do, you disgrace your calling and Priesthood. The very moment that persons in this Church suffer their affections to be immoderately placed upon an object this side the celestial kingdom, they disgrace their profession and calling. When you love your wives and children, are fond of your horses, your carriages, your fine houses, your goods and chattels, or anything of an earthly nature, before your affections become too strong, wait until you and your family are sealed up unto eternal lives, and you know they are yours from that time henceforth and for ever.

    I will now ask the sisters, do you believe that you are worthy of any greater love than you bestow upon your children? Do you believe that you should be beloved by your husbands and parents any further than you acknowledge and practise the principle of eternal lives? Every person who understands this principle would answer in a moment, “Let no being’s affections be placed upon me any further than mine are on eternal principles-principles that are calculated to endure and exalt me, and bring me up to be an heir of God and a joint heir with Jesus Christ.” This is what every person who has a correct understanding would say.

    – Prophet Brigham Young, Journal of Discourses, v. 3, p. 354

    Looks like Brigham was worried that some of the men in the mormon church would love their wives and children more than they loved him. And then where would he be? Elders might not obey him. Tithes might not flow into his coffers.

  195. Crip Dyke, Right Reverend Feminist FuckToy of Death & Her Handmaiden says

    Little #2: Will you read me a book?

    Crip Dyke: Sure, love to. Why don’t you go pick a good one?

    …

    …

    CD: You’ve got one now?

    Little #2: I wanted you to read me something really, REALLY cool, so I picked SCIENCE! [Hands me a book about sabertooth cats that includes some fluffy bits but is actually chock full of info on the evolutionary relationships of different cats, how different lines convergently evolved saber teeth, how scientists learn about them from fossils, the taphonomy of La Brea, etc.]

    CD: [wiping tear away] Oh! That is really cool!

  196. Pteryxx says

    …and as I check just now, Ron of US Slave blog has been very busy this weekend.

    —Further warning: not just for disturbing content, but also lavish illustrations and photographs at the blog.—

    http://usslave.blogspot.com/2013/10/hero-making-christopher-columbus.html Excerpt from Lies My Teacher Told Me

    http://usslave.blogspot.com/2013/10/the-doctrine-of-discovery-1493-by-pope.html

    The Bull stated that any land not inhabited by Christians was available to be “discovered,” claimed, and exploited by Christian rulers and declared that “the Catholic faith and the Christian religion be exalted and be everywhere increased and spread, that the health of souls be cared for and that barbarous nations be overthrown and brought to the faith itself.” This “Doctrine of Discovery” became the basis of all European claims in the Americas as well as the foundation for the United States’ western expansion. In the US Supreme Court in the 1823 case Johnson v. McIntosh, Chief Justice John Marshall’s opinion in the unanimous decision held “that the principle of discovery gave European nations an absolute right to New World lands.” In essence, American Indians had only a right of occupancy, which could be abolished.

    The Bull Inter Caetera made headlines again throughout the 1990s and in 2000, when many Catholics petitioned Pope John Paul II to formally revoke it and recognize the human rights of indigenous “non-Christian peoples.” (source: The Gilder Lehrman Center at Yale University)

  197. says

    Wow, Mr. Young was a really terrible writer. My eyes glazed over about ten words in, it’s basically unreadable word-pablum (like word-salad, but put through a juicer).

  198. Nerd of Redhead, Dances OM Trolls says

    Cicely:

    Does the vinegar need to be heated, or is that a comfortableness thing?

    Totally a comfort thing. The Redhead complained it was too cold if not heated.

  199. Crip Dyke, Right Reverend Feminist FuckToy of Death & Her Handmaiden says

    You know one of the things I like about Canada? I had to read Johnson v. McIntosh twice in first year – once in the first couple weeks of Property, the other time in the first week of second semester Con Law.

    Of the three friends who went through US law schools with whom I’ve spoken about J v McI, **none** of them read it in first year – not even once (though 2 did read it during electives on what is in US legal circles called “Indian Law”).

  200. carlie says

    Oh my gosh you guys, I am so happy right now. I’ve been whining a lot, so I should share the good too, right? First, we had a fantastic family trip to Ottawa this weekend. It had been pre-planned and had a pre-paid nonrefundable room fee, and with my mood lately I really needed to GET OUT, so we went anyway despite our budget woes. It was only a single overnight, so not bad money-wise. The weather was amazing – mid 60s and sun, and the trees are not far past peak, so it was beautiful and we didn’t get into any fights and it was just so lovely. (Spouse had been there before, but the rest of us hadn’t.) Then we came home to the broken furnace, but Spouse wanted to check just to see if anything was still covered, and get this: we had purchased a 7 year extended service warranty on it when we bought it, and it still has two and a half weeks left. HOLY SHIT. We almost never end up on the right side of things like that. So at least the service call and labor will be free. I’m sure everything will come crashing back down around me as soon as I go back to work tomorrow, but for now content is ruling the day. :)

  202. says

    That’s just lovely news about the leaves in Ottawa and the furnace warranty at home, carlie.

    I don’t think I’ve ever been on the right side of a warranty issue. Having recently replaced a hot water heater, washer, and a furnace fan I’ve had my share of sighing over expired warranties. Some of the workmen replacing these crapped-out appliances have bemoaned the plastic parts that have generally been substituted for more long-lasting construction that used to be the norm in appliances.

    I just wish I could buy something, a house for example, that would last for the remarkably short lifetime of one human being. My main problem may be that I never have enough money to buy top-of-the-line anything.

  203. says

    Here is yet another WTF moment associated with the government shutdown:

    Here’s what I’m worried about a deal coming out of the Senate: that a majority of Republicans can’t vote for in the House, that really does compromise Speaker Boehner’s leadership. And after all this mess is over, do we really want to compromise John Boehner as leader of the House? I don’t think so.

    So I’m not going to vote for any plan that I don’t think can get a majority of Republicans in the House, understanding that defunding Obamacare and delaying for a year is not a realistic possibility now.

    That’s Republican Senator Lindsey Graham telling you that he’s more worried about John Boehner’s reputation and Boehner’s ability to lead that he is about what’s best for the USA, or even for his own constituents.

    Boehner has already done enough, or failed to do enough, to qualify him for the trash heap. This level of fuckupedness in Republican policy is just unbelievable.

    Graham’s comments can be found in this longer piece, which covers several interviews:
    http://abcnews.go.com/ThisWeek/week-transcript-wikileaks-julian-assange/print?id=20549207

  205. Pteryxx says

    … One more post from the US Slave blog, and then I’ll behave, I promise. <_< This editorial argument struck me because it meshes so neatly with the complaints of racism-deniers and Nazi-invokers that show up in every social justice argument from sexual harassment to Change the Mascot, and are currently ‘splaining away in various comment sections as the SciAm debacle goes viral.

    http://usslave.blogspot.com/2013/10/american-holocaust-columbus-and.html

    To The Editors:

    In his review of my book, American Holocaust: Columbus and the Conquest of the New World [NYR, June 24], J. H. Elliott does not take issue with “all the historical information” I have “so conscientiously assembled,” but rather with what he describes as my “indiscriminate use” of such words as “racism” and “genocide” in discussing the European and American destruction of the Western Hemisphere’s indigenous people.

    Regarding the first of these terms, I use the phenomenon of racism in American Holocaust not as a casual insult against Euro-American thought and behavior, as Professor Elliott suggests, but rather as one of several essential components—each one taken apart and examined in some detail—of an analysis of the cultural, political, and economic forces that, interacting upon one another, produced the deaths of tens of millions of indigenous people.

    […]

    No, what makes the Nazi behavior qualify as “genocide,” Elliott says, in contrast with the Euro-American destruction of the indigenous inhabitants of the Americas, is that “‘genocide,’ as used of the Nazi treatment of the Jews, implies not only mass extermination, but also a clear intention on the part of a higher authority.”

    Here Professor Elliott has wandered, with apparent innocence, into a thicket of ongoing scholarly controversy. The matter of “clear intention on the part of a higher authority” is one of the core points of contention in an unresolved debate that has filled many volumes for many years regarding the alleged “uniqueness” of the Nazi Judeocide campaign.

    […]

    But Professor Elliott apparently prefers to not trouble himself with such complexities. Indeed, the very topic of the Euro-American assault on the natives of the Western Hemisphere seems to weary him: “If it is thought necessary to rehearse these horrors yet again,” he writes “so be it, although there can by now be few who are unaware that the invasion and settlement of America by the Europeans was far from sweetness and light.”

  206. says

    Lynna @ 704,

    That’s enough projection for a whole country’s-worth of Imax theaters. Yeesh.

    *Offers hugs for anyone in need of same, whilst I’m here*

  207. David Marjanović says

    Then we came home to the broken furnace, but Spouse wanted to check just to see if anything was still covered, and get this: we had purchased a 7 year extended service warranty on it when we bought it, and it still has two and a half weeks left. HOLY SHIT.

    :-) :-) :-)

    Also, has everybody seen Optimal Cynic’s cat with her duckie yet? Posted on the “Justine” thread.

    Stuff I didn’t have time to post on Friday:

    “Petition Text

    Our Message to President Obama and Democrats in Congress

    To President Barack Obama, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi:

    Thank you for standing up to Republican bullying and hostage-taking over the debt ceiling government shutdown.

    Republicans are plunging in national popularity right now, and things will only get worse for them as this continues. Please, keep up the good work, and hold fast.”

    “GOP falls off the cliff”: “GOP favorability has cratered”, “GOP unfavorability has skyrocketed” in polls.

    Even older:
    “Senate Democrats consider whether to save the national economy by going nuclear on filibuster” – does that mean a 50-% majority can abolish the weird requirement for a 60-% majority?!? Anyway, the page contains yet another petition.

    Bizarre: “Nestlé is draining Pakistan to sell us bottled water.” “Groundwater levels are plummeting, families are being driven into poverty, and whole areas are being rendered uninhabitable.” Petition to Nestlé executives to stop that at the first link. (…And I can never read about “liquid gold” without smiling again.)

  209. rq says

    *hugs* and *cheers* for the happy news, carlie! I’m glad you enjoyed Ottawa; it’s my hometown (well, actually a silly little suburb called Kanata, but hey, it’s all Ottawa now!), so I’m extra glad it gave you the welcome and outing you so deserve.

  210. opposablethumbs says

    Happy happy yays for Crip Dyke re #2 and xir great taste in reading books (sabre-toothed cats ftw), and for carlie and the autumn-getaway-plus-boiler-warranty goodness.

    Not commenting much lately due to shortage of time and spoons, but very glad to read you.

  211. rq says

    Hi, opposablethumbs!! *waves*

    Crip Dyke
    Your #2 has awesome taste in books.
    Also, that sounds like a great book – what’s it called, who wrote it? I’m currently on the market for more sciency animal books, since we already have a small collection of favourite insect and spider books (which regularly get brought along to kindergarten), and geology books. We’re a bit short on the mammals, birds and evolution.

  213. Crip Dyke, Right Reverend Feminist FuckToy of Death & Her Handmaiden says

    @opposable thumbs:

    very glad to read whom? I would say thanks, but I don’t want to assume that I’m included in that.

    @rq:

    Ice Age Sabertooth by Barbara Hehner.

    Little #2 is going by feminine pronouns, btw. She absolutely **loves** lions specifically and cats of all kinds generally. This even transfers to thylacosmilus and thylacoleo – for her “cat” is a polyphyletic group. We’ll get into taxonomy in 3rd or 4th grade, I suspect.

  214. says

    Good evening
    So, UMP (University of Monty Python) has struck again.
    Term started today, but education science had decided all along to start tomorrow. English department started today. Except for my lecture…
    So I drove nearly 50 km just for 45 min…
    And thanks everybody for the hugs and comfort

    MM
    My parents are the most driven people ever. They never act, they only always react, usually because of something their horrible children have done.
    There’s a story my mum used to parade around (maybe she still does)
    Once, when I was playing outside I did some mischief and she called me out on it from the house.
    Upon hearing her I covered my butt with my hands to protect it.
    Now, this was a horrible betrayal on my part. It made her look like she regularly hit me!* This made her come out, grab a wooden stick used for stabilizing plants and give me a spanking until the fucking thing broke.
    She had always sworn that she would never hit her children with an object and I had made her break that rule!
    *No, really. She didn’t spank me all the time. She only told everybody and their dog that I really needed to be spanked every six weeks or there was no living with me. Seriously, it’s not like she went around telling that the only way to control me was with violence, no, not at all. It’s also not that “stop crying or I’ll give you something to cry about” was a stockphrase at our house.

    YAY for nice weekend, carlie!

  215. opposablethumbs says

    Oh, I totally meant you, Crip Dyke! It was just so nice to share your enjoyment of #2’s great choice :-)

    And a heartfelt yay for Little#2 and her love of knowledge.

    Hi rq! ::waves back:: – good to see you!

    And it’s good to read the Horde in general too. :-)

  217. Crip Dyke, Right Reverend Feminist FuckToy of Death & Her Handmaiden says

    @Giliell:

    The thing with your mom?

    Yeah, that’s my childhood to a T. She even broke a piece of wood across me.

    misty, water-colored memmreeeeeees

  218. Crip Dyke, Right Reverend Feminist FuckToy of Death & Her Handmaiden says

    @opposable thumbs, 715:

    glad I could bring a little joy. I havne’t been commenting much either, but instead of just 4-6 hundred pages of reading, I have a major paper due on Thursday, so of course I am finding time to be on FtB yesterday and today.

    What, that’s not how it’s supposed to work?

  219. David Marjanović says

    Sam wanted to be king of baby mountain

    I squeed. In meatspace.

    So, another round on that carousel last night let me exclaim “Did you ever just DO what we asked you to?”
    Answer: “Yes, mum. I think it was before the little one started kindergarten”
    That was over a year ago…

    o_O

    The closest my experience comes is myself: at that age and even later, I did get dressed, but took forever to do it. It was just too boring. I’d, like, interrupt it and continue reading a book.

    My mum then had me practice. Dressing & undressing several times in a row.

    And, I’m sorry, this is the one area I’m jingoistic. I’ve ordered pancakes in Europe. And while crepes are nice, they are not pancakes. Pancakes are thick. They soak up syrup. They do not have the consistency of paper.

    Where in Europe? French crêpes ≠ French galettes ≠ Austrian Palatschinken ≠ (northern?) German Pfannkuchen… wouldn’t be surprised if Dutch pannekoeken turned out to be different yet again.

    (This might be ordered from thinnest to thickest. But of course other differences exist; crêpes are sweet, galettes savory [see comment 681], even though certain cookies and occasionally sweet cakes are also called galettes; here in Berlin, I’ve seen passable Palatschinken labeled “Eierpfannkuchen”, literally “egg pancakes”, suggesting the thicker German ones contain less egg…)

    But crepes with Nutella are divine.

    Pssst… they’re even better with chocolate. :-)

    ✓ “distinct dialect and style, a slow, noisy, rough…” Again, probably true.

    Isn’t it just generic southern French?

    Yes. You can’t get away from the bloody soccer team.

    Berlin has two, like Vienna.

    (And that’s not counting the three of Istanbul. In both cases.)

    After a lifetime of this shit I just couldn’t take it. I yelled at him to get the fuck out of my face, to walk out the door. He kept trying to engage me and I just kept repeating myself, pointing at the door. At one point I took a step closer to him and the door and my mom was worried I was going to hit him, but that honestly never crossed my mind. He’s a coward who bullies people weaker than him and I knew if I was angry and adamant enough he’d leave. He did.

    *applause*
    *offering hugs*

    – Cleaning out the refrigerator. This is one place where you don’t want strong fumes coming near your food. Instead, wipe out the interior with… yes… a cloth dipped in vinegar. And yes, the odor will go away.

    *snort*
    I don’t want vinegar fumes near my food either!

    If you are freaked out by spiders stop reading here

    […]

    Dont ask me about the trapdoor spiders that covered the ground – the ones that appeared at night as hundreds of tiny eyes reflected in your torchlight and are related to the funnel-web spiders in Sydney…

    what

    Also, to my fellow USians, Happy Bartolome Day!

    I didn’t know about the massive amount of slavery Columbus was involved in.

    And I didn’t know Bartolomé de las Casas eventually came to renounce all slavery.

    savoury crêpes that are filled with a variety of things and make a main course

    Palatschinken, too, are a main course. Yes, we have sweet main courses in Austria.

    A Superhero for condiments.

    “Do not try this at home, kids!”
    Twice.

    badass ballerina

    “Moi, j’te déteste !!!”

    Republicans changed the rules just before the shutdown, to ensure votes to restart the government could not come up.

    This is my completely cynical face.

    the Taino-Arawak Indians

    The Taíno and the Arawak.

    CD: [wiping tear away] Oh! That is really cool!

    *heap of fluffy hugs of joy*

    a silly little suburb called Kanata

    *etymology geek-out*

    Twitter #changethemascot

    Thanks!

    The thing with your mom?

    …I’ll restock the hug truck. *facepalm*

    Seriously, Giliell, your mom needed professional help before you were even born.

  220. David Marjanović says

    Crip Dyke, I need to book my flights. Let’s keep each other off FtB somehow. Deal?

  221. Pteryxx says

    Let’s keep each other off FtB somehow. Deal?

    *mutters to self* Log… out… and… close… the… tab. Log… out… and… close… the… tab…….

  222. The Mellow Monkey: Non-Hypothetical says

    Giliell, that story makes me sick with sympathy for you. I know this shit with your father recently hasn’t been helping things, but I’m so glad you’re away from your mother now.

    For me, those kinds of head games were the worst part. I can remember often making mental negotiations in which I hoped I’d just be hit and I wouldn’t be told how terrible I was. “Please, please just hit me and shut up.” Ugh.

  223. says

    Thanks, everybody
    The really frightening thing is how normalized that shit becomes. I mean, that story wasn’t told as “the time I horribly fucked up as a parent” but as “funny anecdote to further establish that Giliell was always a difficult child”.
    The only thing that remains to be done is to be a better parent.

    CD
    *hugs*

    David

    The closest my experience comes is myself: at that age and even later, I did get dressed, but took forever to do it. It was just too boring. I’d, like, interrupt it and continue reading a book.

    Yes, something like that. She can work on things that interest her. Since her maths homework is no longer writing “1”s and “2”s on sheets that are plain chaotic but structured exercises that at least remotely make her think, she does it in about 5-10 min. It took us up to 1 and a fucking half hours to do those “write numbers” exercises. Same with German: practising letters? A nightmare! Writing stuff? Gimme more!
    She can also work under pressure or when bribed. maybe I should get out the “collect stamps to get a (horrible pink) Filly Horse” cards again…

    Seriously, Giliell, your mom needed professional help before you were even born.

    Yep, there’s lots of people who shouldn’t have had children and my parents are some of them.

  228. Tethys says

    Hugs for Giliell. Alcoholics are indeed horrible at being parents. I too had the “stop crying or I will give you something to cry about” sort of a childhood.

    TRIGGER WARNING FOR FRANK DISCUSSION OF CHILD ABUSE and possible TMI

    My abusive parent used a perforated metal paint stirring stick to beat sense into us. I was a special target of this treatment as his eldest child, follwed by my brother as his first male child. We were not allowed to cry when he decided to beat us, and we practiced this often.

    I buried that thing in the woods one day, and enjoyed every second of his screaming, ragey melt-down that happened the next time he drug a sibling into the basement for some discipline torturing and found his preferred weapon was gone.

    Baby brother got a chance to escape, and I got the smug satifaction of being a 4 year old who had just reduced an abuser to incoherent rage, frothing, rolling around on the ground biting rocks temper tantrum.

    I don’t speak to the man at all nowadays, and my only fear is that he is going to die and I will have to deal with the horrible emotional tangle of his abuse, coupled with grieving for a dad that never existed.

    Damn, abuse is just the shittiest gift that keeps on giving.

  229. Crip Dyke, Right Reverend Feminist FuckToy of Death & Her Handmaiden says

    @Tethys

    I’ll just pass on the hugs Giliell gave me…

  230. Esteleth, statistically significant to p ≤ 0.001 says

    DDMFM re: pancakes:

    Where in Europe?

    Regensberg, Germany. Or maybe Regensburg. I’m fuzzy on the spelling – the city in Bavaria. Also Vienna, Austria (did not distinguish a difference).

    *shrug*

  232. says

    HUgs to you, too, Thetys
    Now, somebody remind me again why “what if your mother had aborted you” is supposed to be an argument against abortion?

    Esteleth
    Regensburg

    +++
    Hmmm, and I think I need to make Kaiserschmarn next week

    Good night, everybody

  233. Esteleth, statistically significant to p ≤ 0.001 says

    I think tonight I’m going to get my ingredients together and make an old family recipe – Swedish meatballs with tomato-based sweet-and-sour sauce. The sweet-and-sour aspect coming from copious amounts of Worcestershire sauce in the pot.

    I also think that I’m going to serve them over spätzle.

  234. Esteleth, statistically significant to p ≤ 0.001 says

    Thanks, Giliell! The -berg vs -burg thing has always thrown me.

  236. Sili says

    Woohoo!

    Just returned from a talk by Eske Willerslev, and he shared some awesome results. Not yet published so we were ordered not to tweet about them. Annoyingly.

    The thing I can say, though, is that it’s absolutely deplorable how the US research establishment and public still treat Indians/Aboriginals/Native Americans. I knew some of it, of course, but it’s easy to dismiss from a distance.

    On the other hand, it makes it easier for outside researchers to get a foothold, when they make a slight effort to respect people’s history and culture.

    (I still think reburial of human remains is a waste of future research potential, but so be it. Better to suck up to people now and get at least *some* science done, rather than antagonise everyone and get no access at all to skeletons.)