Miscellaneous And Off Topic Subjects

[Dr. Strangelove]

RIP Bob Dole.

[lineygoblue]

Dole was one of the good guys in the Senate. A certified RINO, but overall a decent and honorable man. A WWII vet, as we continue to lose the heroes of that era.

[Hannibal]

Why are you guys talking about guns when you should be apologizing for your whiteness?

[lineygoblue]

Why are you guys talking about guns when you should be apologizing for your whiteness?

You're right, Hanni ... I apologize for your whiteness ...

[Dr. Strangelove]

[Hannibal]

I hope that none of you have up Christmas lights. If you do, add that to your list of things to apologize for.

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[Jeff Buchanan]

I have a good friend who, a long while ago, was the Lt. Governor of MN. He was elected on a conservative ticket. He's a solid R. He's retired in FL now. He's one of those genetically Scandinavian, tall and handsome males that live a long time and look like they're not a day over 50. He's 81.

He is absolutely appalled by what has happened within pockets of Minnesota government. A formerly very conservative state (during his time in state government) it has been overtaken in the metro areas by woke D's in particular at the local level. Minneapolis has become grossly mismanaged by an enlarging number of illiberal D's. You know the stories from last summer. They're worse close up. He still has family members living in MN, in the northern reaches that are still conservative. He still visits.

I'm going to show him this letter pictured above. He'll laugh and say, well, it's sad and if I were still in government and spoke out about this kind of bull-shit, I could forget about reelection let alone threats of violence against my person from the crazies on the fringes .... wait, I mean the center of the Ds holding public office.

[lineygoblue]

We put up lights on Saturday afternoon.

Any of my neighbors that don't like it can suck it.

[THE_WIZARD_]

Yer so sexy when you get feisty...

[Jeff Buchanan]

Fauci appeared on Sunday TV today. There's an AP article that describes the TV interview. I can't find a free link to it. The gist of it is, ta - da, drum roll ........ Omicron isn't as dangerous as Delta. It is probably not going to over-take Delta as the dominant global strain and it is clearly not producing serious disease even among the unvaccinated (and that is the kicker in this). What it is doing is causing a lot of runny noses and coughs like the common infection with a standard coronavirus does. Hospitalizations and deaths are still declining globally. Regional exceptions not with standing but that is OK as the world passes from a pandemic to an epidemic, vaccination or acquired immunity increases and preventive pharmaceutical and medical management of COVID accelerates dramatically.

We knew this. At least I did after reading a whole lot of scientific and medical journals on it last week. The research that's actually on-going is ahead of what's being reported by the press and US pH officials. Fauci added his standard rejoinder, we need more time to assess blah, blah blah. No, what we need is people like you to explain in understandable terms that research is finding that most of the changes within Omicron, like most viruses experience, are not adding to the morbidity or mortality of SARS2 and viruses like this extinguish themselves over time. Omicron was a big nothing burger whose reporting of it by lay people in the press, most of that reporting not well sourced and premature, cost a shit-ton of money to a lot of people and a lot of businesses along with a bunch of unnecessary interruptions to mobility and commerce.

Talent made a great post the other day talking about the incredible blown opportunity the Chairman had to exercise some presidential leadership and reassure the American public who had been exposed to premature, misleading, incomplete and often counterfactual information on Omicron. He tried ..... and failed. He tottered around like the demented nearly 80 year old he is and mumbled some things about COVID that didn't make a lot of sense. I heard it. Instead of a strong statement, he ended up with a watered down one and a lot of caveats ..... yes Omicron isn't as dangerous as we thought but wait, still social distance, wash your hands, don't travle and don't go into crowded places. Oh, yeah, keep wearing those masks. Just killed everything he said just before that dumb ass rejoinder. WTF was he thinking? Wait, he wasn't and that's a problem.

I am absolutely positive he is being told by competent medical and PH officials that things are fine and the detailed scientific data behind that assertion. Shit, I have trouble comprehending all of this complex information. I stopped ER medical practice because I couldn't recall information fast enough to practice at the standard I expected of myself. I did internal medicine in a private practice for a couple more years then retired all together.

You may remember one of the TV Doctor shows that Alan Alda played an ER doc with worsening dementia thought to be Alzheimers. He was reluctant to admit his limitations and continued to practice while making frequent errors in judgement. It was a good story where through support from his colleagues he came to recognize he shouldn't be practicing in the ER and removed himself form direct patient care there and served as a in-patient counselor and out patient private practice doc.

Biden is in that place. I'm sure of it. I can't diagnose him but I see the signs of dementia, maybe not Alzheimer's which takes sophisticated studies to determine if a patient is afflicted with that condition. He probably listens attentively to his health advisors but I doubt he comprehends a lot of it and accordingly, he's meely mouthed in a presser he's convened to talk about Omicron. Fauci is meely mouthed for other reasons mostly to protect himself but I understand what is behind the encouraging account he made today about the lack of a real threat from the Omicron variant of SARS2. But Biden is the guy with his finger on the nuclear button. He's just as scary as Trump both of them having this incredible power and both, for different reasons, incapable of good judgement in the use of it.

[THE_WIZARD_]

I just need to know if I can give hayrack rides with my tractor to people without vax or masks. Did he say that was ok?

#worriedintheheartland

[foxhopper]

stfu

[Hannibal]

I just need to know if I can give hayrack rides with my tractor to people without vax or masks. Did he say that was ok?

#worriedintheheartland

As long as people are triple-masked and have all of their booster shots you can do it at half capacity.

[foxhopper]

Sick of the bad news. Time for some optimism. The chairman hard at work saving us 2 cents a gallon!


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[Dr. Strangelove]

Former DC National Guard official accuses two high up generals at the Pentagon of being "absolute liars". He says they delayed sending help for hours on Jan. 6 and are now lying about it.

https://www.politico.com/news/2021/12/06/jan-6-generals-lied-ex-dc-guard-official-523777