Bobservations

Y’all know we survived the hurricane with no damage, save some fallen branches and a butt-load of leaves and debris. So, even though the storm was still hovering over us on Sunday, I thought it best to get back to normal and I asked Carlos if he was making pancakes as usual for Sunday breakfast.

“Pancakes? We’re having a hurricane!”

“Well then, call them hurricakes and get to it!”

I kill me.

Another reason to keep your religion out of my government?

GOP …because, of course … Tennessee State Senator Mark Green who opposes Medicaid expansion because it prevents people from finding God.

Oh, but he does. Mark Green rejected billions in federal Medicaid expansion funds because he believed the funding would lead people away from Jesus:

“People go to God because of a physical need and they walk away with a spiritual need met. That’s the story of the Gospels. And so government has stepped in, at least in this country, and done all the work for the church. And so the person who’s in need — they look to the government for the answer. Not God. And I think, in that way, government has done an injustice that’s even bigger than just the entitlement — creation of an entitlement welfare state. I think it’s even bigger. And in this setting, I’ll share the story… I think it interrupts the opportunity for people to come to a saving knowledge of who God is.".

That’s right, Green would deny people in his state medical care in the hope that they might find God instead. It is at once both despicable and deplorable.”

Seriously. Another GOP asshat using God and fear for votes.

Roseanne says she knows how her character will be killed off of ABC's The Conners spin-off.

"Oh, they killed her. They have her die of an opioid overdose. It wasn't enough to just do what they did to me, they had to, so cruelly, insult the people who loved that family and that show. They had to cruelly insult them and that's what they chose to do. There's nothing I can do about it. It's done."

We loved that family, but not after you turned her into some rightwingnut _____ goose-stepper to match your off-screen persona. And we’ll love the family even more because they’ll get back to being topical and funny.

Still, we’ll have to wait and see if Roseanne’s right, though my money is her ‘cause of death’ is wrong ... it was "Ambien"..

I don’t watch Big Brother but apparently, last week, right after her husband Les Moonves resigned as head of CBS over sexual misconduct allegations, BB host Julie Chen, signed off the show with a new name …Julie Chen Moonves … for the first time ever.

And the backlash was swift, with one publicist, Danny Deraney, whose clients include Illeana Douglas, a Moonves accuser, saying he would no longer book any of his clients on Chen’s show The Talk.

Oh, except now Chen is stepping down from The Talk saying she has to focus on “clearing her husband’s name from accusations made 25-30 years ago and tending to her son.”

She signed off again, ’Julie Chen Moonves’ although, as I posted to Twitter, it sounded a lot like she said ‘Camille Cosby.’

#ByeFelicia

South Carolina Republican Senator, Miss Lindsey Graham used to be known mainly as a War Hawk and for being John McCain’s BFF. And, like most Republicans, he used to have open contempt for candidate _____, calling him unhinged and a kook and unfit for office.

But today? Graham lost his flipping' mind and has moved away from McCain, even before his passing, and perched himself in _____’s lap. And now he’s saying he "regrets" that McCain "didn't have more time" with the president, pointing out that McCain was able to forgive the men who imprisoned him in Vietnam. Graham optimistically theorized: "Who knows what would have happened over time?"

John McCain would have kept his opinion on _____ and not caved like a little bitch as Graham did.

That’s what.

More hurricane tales … On Friday before Flo visited, Carlos had the day off, while I had to go to work for a couple of hours. As I was leaving, he said he was going to do some yard work and I told him to be careful, because with the wind kicking up a little, branches could fall from the trees.

He said:

“So, I get hit by a tree. Think how much easier your life would be!”

“Easier? Think of all the phone calls I’d have to make. Think about me trying to say ‘Carlos is dead’ in Spanish to your parents! Think of me calling the police and the funeral home to get rid of the body! Think of me calling someone to take out the tree! It won’t be easy at all for me.”

Again … I kill me.

The Swamp has another resident, former South Carolina governor, and current US Ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley.

At a time when the State Department is freezing salaries and cutting budgets, they spent $52,701 buying customized and mechanized curtains for the picture windows in Haley’s official residence. The 6,000 square foot residence has spectacular views, and costs $58,000 a month, and yet the drapes cost nearly the same.

The curtains themselves were $29,900, while the motors and hardware cost $22,801; Haley’s spokespeople say the cost isn’t that much, given that the drapes would be used for years and, wait for it, because it’s the height of ridiculousness, all Haley has is a part-time maid, and the ability to open and close the curtains quickly is important.

Seriously; that’s the reason.

Speaking of tools, years ago the architect of _____ Tower cameo _____’s office to show him the design for the residential elevator cabs. _____ looked at them and noticed a series of dots located beside the buttons you push for each floor. He demanded the architect remove the dots, and the architect said:

“We can’t. It’s the law.”

“Get rid of the [expletive braille. No blind people are going to live in ____ Tower. Just do it.”

He ended by hurling his favorite epithet at the architect by calling him “weak”.

Still, the braille stayed, and _____ turned out to be the weak one.

A couple of new shows set to air this fall, featuring hotties …

The Little Drummer Girl, based on a John le Carré novel, will air on AMC and is said to compare favorably to last year’s The Night Manager. All I know is that it stars Alexander Skarsgård, who is steaming hot … even when he’s reading nekkid in the snow.

Then there’s A Million Little Things, the story of a group of friends who become motivated to live fuller lives following the unexpected death of a friend. I’ll be motivated to watch because it stars David Giuntoli, a hot hottie formerly of Grimm, and Ron Livingston, formerly of many shows including Sex and the City.

But again, if Skarsgård wants to appear nekkid reading, that’ll be my go-to show.

Random Musings

Well, _____ has fired FBI Director James Comey just as Comey’s investigation into _____’s ties with Russia and crimes against America deepen.

Nothing to see here, right, except the subjugation of democracy by a narcissistic, lunatic.

Oddly enough, the official line is that Comey was fired because he ALLEGEDLY violated Justice Department principles and procedures by publicly discussing the investigation of Hillary Clinton’s use of private email.

Wait, so he was fired by _____ for talking Hillary and not because he’s investigating _____? I have a bridge to sell you.

PS Somewhere in Hell, Richard Nixon, whilst pounding rocks, was heard to say, “WTF Donny?”

In the midst of the Comey firing suddenly White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer vanished and was replaced by that idiotic, er, more idiotic, Deputy White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, and here’s how that went down:

REPORTER: “You said that [Comey] made a lot of missteps and mistakes; back at the end of October, this president was applauding the FBI Director when he reopened the investigation into Hillary Clinton's emails. So he seemed quite happy with him at that point. What changed?”

SANDERS: “Well, I think the president's position. One, he was a candidate for president, not the president. Those are two very different things. Once you take over leading the Department of Justice, that's very different than being a candidate in a campaign. As you guys all know, there's a very clear distinction between those two things.

I think also having a letter like the one that he received [from Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein] and having that conversation that outlined the basic, uh, just, atrocities in circumventing the chain of command in the Department of Justice.

Any person of legal mind and authority knows what a big deal that is, particularly in the Department of Justice, particularly for somebody like the Deputy Attorney General, who has been part of the Justice Department for thirty years and is such a respected person. When he saw that, he had to speak up on that action, and I think that was the final catalyst.”

Wow, and we thought Mama Grizzly Bore™ tossed a good word salad.

And let’s be clear that the “atrocities”—and isn’t that a strong word—that _____ says Comey committed appear to be the same things for which he praised Comey a few months ago. The only real atrocity Comey committed was aiding and abetting _____’s ascent into the White House.

And, to be even more clear, while Huckleberry-Sanders says Deputy Attorney General Rosenstein's report was the final straw, Rosenstein never clearly recommended firing Comey ... that was Jeff “Ties with Russia” Sessions.

If you believe that now is not the time to fear for our Democracy then you are dead from the neck up.

Re-f**king-sist. Write, call, email, Tweet your representatives and demand a special prosecutor investigate these crimes and if they don’t follow your instructions—and remember, you are the boss—vote them out.

On a better note—see what I did there ... because this Musing is about music ... Note? Music? I’ll stop.

This past weekend the local community band, in which Carlos plays the trumpet, had their concert in Rectory Square, and the aforementioned Carlos lead a group of buglers in The Bugler’s Holiday.

Now, I didn’t record their version, but that’s Carlos up there, and that, down there, is The Bugler’s Holiday.

Speaking of music ... though it’s quite a strecth ... Billy Ray Cyrus is celebrating the 25th anniversary of his Achy Breaky Heart—clearly a Top Ten Contender for Worst Song EVER-R-R-R-R!

And how exactly is he celebrating? He’s going the way of Madonna and prince and Cher by changing his name to ... I must control my gag reflex ... Cyrus.

“After August 25th, I will be the artist formerly known as Billy Ray. I’m just going by my last name Cyrus. I always went by Cyrus, and I begged Mercury Records to call me Cyrus in the beginning because that’s what I was comfortable with. I’m going to the hospital where I was born in Bellefonte, Kentucky, and legally changing my name.”

I guess Hack was taken; No-Talent was already being used; One-Hit-Wonder was already licensed; Past-Your-Sell-By-Date was gone?

Remember when Tennessee State Senator Mark Green was _____'s pick to be Secretary of the Army?

Now, not so much. Green has opted out because, yeah, those hate-filled anti-transgender comments he made but said he didn’t make reared their ugly head and everyone now realized he said them, then lied about them.

But he’s still saying the attacks were false and misleading even though they weren’t.

#ByeFelicia.

So, I love a BBC show, and I have been watching Ripper Street for the last couple of years, partly because I love the historical aspects of the storytelling and partially because it’s really like Law & Order: Ripper Street and partly because it has Hot Men like ...

From the top, Jonas Armstrong, who plays cannibalistic murderer Nathaniel Dove and is one beefy killer; and then, in the middle, Killian Scott, who plays Augustus Dove, Nathaniel’s tightly wound police commissioner, and murderous brother. Who knew killers could be hot?

Lastly, from American Gods, we have Ricky Whittle who just steams up the screen as Shadow Moon in a show about old gods coming to America to battle new gods like Celebrity and Technology.

Like I said, he steams. Just sayin’.

Ryan Seacrest has officially become the new co-host alongside Kelly Ripa in the newly redubbed, Live! With Kelly and Ryan!

Now, to be fair, I kinda like Kelly, but she’s also kinda annoying and when paired with ultra-smarmy and smugly annoying Ryan Seacrest, I see this becoming a battle of Who Do You Dislike Most?

Perhaps they should have called the show that?

In another example of how clearly out-of-touch _____ is, his daughter, the one he’d bang, if you, know ... incest ... Complicit _____ will head a review of US climate change policy at the United Nations climate change meetings next week in Bonn, Germany.

Wait, a woman who hires people to design jewelry and handbags and then has them made in China where she pays workers pennies a day, and the same woman who had someone write a book about how hard she has it as a millionaire working woman and then slapped her name on it, is now a climate change expert?

Yeah, that’s America under _____.

_____ Army Secretary Pick, Mark Green, Says Hateful Things, Then Lies About It

As a _____ choice to be the next Army secretary, Tennessee Republican ... because, of course ... Mark Green has come under fire for some rather hateful and ignorant comments he’s made in the past, and so he’s decided to clear them up ... on Facebook. And, naturally, he blames the “liberal left” for making him out to be a “hater” when, he says, he clearly does not hate:

“The liberal left has cut and spliced my words about terrorism and ISIS blatantly falsifying what I’ve said. Let me be very clear,

1) The only people I have ever called evil are murderous terrorists trying to kill Americans.

2) The only people I have ever suggested be crushed are the terrorist enemies of our nation.

3) I have never and will never force my religion on anyone. If God gives Mankind a choice, which I believe, who am I to force my faith on anyone?

4) I believe that every American has a right to defend their country regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, and religion. It’s the radical left that won’t allow the latter.

5) I have never considered myself a judge of anyone, but I have been a protector of everyone in this nation.”

Well, then, I guess he told us; I would like to apologize for the “liberal media” and their vendetta ag ... wait ... what? The Huffington Post did a quick search and found Green’s actual quotes; what he really said? Well, then, here it is:

In September Mark Green told a Tea Party gathering that he believes being transgender is a disease:

“If you poll the psychiatrists, they’re going to tell you that transgender is a disease. It is a part of the DSM-6, I think it is, the book of diagnostic psychological procedures or diagnoses. It’s very interesting to see what’s happening in government, or in our nation.”

Not exactly, true, now is it Mark? Being trans is not a disease, it’s just what bigots, homophobes and transphobes do to feed the fires of hatred; for decades, people like you said being gay was a disease, a mental defect, until we all learned that was a lie. And this transgender is a disease nonsense is just more of the same.

But, still, you do go on; you also said you were against allowing people to use the restroom that corresponds to their gender identity, rather than the sex assigned at birth, saying the matter should be left up to the states rather than the federal government; and you played that old _____-card about the safety of women as your reasoning and then cited the Bible because the Bible has whole verses about trans person ... oh, wait, it doesn’t:

“The government exists to honor those people who live honorably, who do good things―to reward people who behave well and to crush evil. So that means as a state senator, my responsibility very clearly in Romans 13 is to create an environment where people who do right are rewarded and the people who do wrong are crushed. Evil is crushed. So I’m going to protect women in their bathrooms, and I’m going to protect our state against potential infiltration from the Syrian ISIS people in the refugee program.”

First off, douche ... may I call you douche ... the government exists to serve the people, all of the people, and not just those you consider honorable, because I can guarantee we have different versions of the word honor.

And looky there, right towards the end, where you say, using your actual words, that you are going to crush evil and protect the women of your state in their bathrooms.

Your words, Mark; your words. Sure, you tossed an ISIS bomb in there at the end though I don’t understand what protecting women in bathrooms and ISIS have to do with one another.

And, again, to be clear, Mark, there has been not one incidence of a trans person using the restroom that corresponds with heir gender identity, who has harassed, ogled, fondled, or raped a woman in a bathroom; you’re thinking of straight men, allegedly like yourself.

So what you need to do, Mark, is protect women from sexual predators and not trans Americans; and you need to quit calling trans person evil, because the only evil I see is the one spreading lies and hate under the guise of the Bible.

“There are 300,000 rapes in the United States every year, Three hundred thousand women who are sexually assaulted by predators. We know this. It’s documented. It’s factual. To think that some young guy isn’t going to take advantage of the system where we’re going to allow guys to go into the bathroom ― the women’s bathroom ― to think that it’s not going to happen is just ridiculous.”

Predators, Mark, not trans people; a trans female in a women’s restroom is a female using the restroom to pee; a  man dressed in women’s clothes using the restroom to ogle, fondle, assault or rape a woman is a predator; can you see the difference, or does your transphobia cloud your eyesight?

You, sir, are not an honorable man; you judge trans people based on your warped view o what trans means; you lump trans people into evil, alongside ISIS; you say you have to protect women from trans people when that’s a lie; and you use the Bible to justify all of this.

No one cut and spliced your words together, mark, you said them. You meant them. Own it and then sit down, you have no place in government.

JoeMyGod

Huffington Post