Monday Afternoon Links

Alright. Having cleared my house of an in-law infestation, I can proceed to loaf and link. (Kidding, I love my in-laws and they even painted a couple of rooms in the new house for us! Thanks, guys.)

First, we’d like to thank each and every one of you, but especially the Canadians, for putting us into the top million most visited sites in the world. Canadians, please don’t forget us when you get more than five hours of sunlight per day. Our internal theory is that 80% of the “American” commenters are either lying about not being Canadian or socks. IFH, Raven Nation, we need those antipodean number up, up,up!

I’m not saying If-hes-for-it-I’m-agin-it works every time, but if Ben Bernanke is for the Border Adjustment Tax, I’ll assume until proven otherwise that this is one of those things that economists love to model that don’t really work like the model.

If only California had passed a law against consuming alcohol and firing guns, people would be alive today, right?

Kurt Schlichter is taking up the happy warrior type posts that I associated with Mark Steyn about 15 years ago. He’s kickin’ hippies asses and raising hell and seems to be enjoying it.

Catholic as church on Sunday. Christian as nailing theses to a church door.

If this is “seductive” in the Malaysian chess world, I vote we send some of HM’s thicc models to the tournament to cause heart attacks. Of course, its probably the 12-year old part that those perverts find seductive.

It looks like the fascist “anti-fascists” have a pretty good toe-hold in Paris as well. File under: Why Brett sees downside to political street-fighting.

If any of our super-smart glibertopian commenters have time and knowledge to write about this, I think the completely unintentional destruction of the petro-state by American fracking* is going to be a big deal.

Only we can line our pockets at the young workers’ expense, tovarich.

*soon to be followed by China, although they seem to be having trouble replicating the success of people driven by risking their own money

 

Have a little BB King and some blues.

Comments

275 responses to “Monday Afternoon Links”

  1. That Emre Can goal from 10 minutes ago was pretty fucking insane..

    1. Juvenile Bluster

      I was planning on posting that.

      I’m watching a stream on my phone in the office. I hope I didn’t draw any attention with the bit of a scream that escaped when that went in.

      1. Bobarian LMD

        I hope I didn’t draw any attention with the bit of a scream that escaped when that went in.

        Is this some kind of sex thing? Cornholing in Cubicles?

        1. Slammer

          STEVE SMITH PAY OFFICE VISIT

        2. Juvenile Bluster

          Being sexually attracted to Emre Can is actually called being human. It’s impossible not to be.

          1. Suthenboy

            *googles image to see who Emre Can is*

            It’s a dude. All dudes attract me the same amount.

          2. Seguin

            Man, raise your standards. You’re worth it.

    2. PBRstreetgang

      That was totally redonk.

  2. Negroni Please
    1. Slammer

      Not a BBQ fan, I bet

    2. This is why we need common-sense knife control.

    3. Hyperion

      People wouldn’t get stabbed if we had common sense gun control.

    4. Brett L

      I lived just down from Gregory my freshman year.*

      *Spoiler alert, everyone else lived across the street in Jester.

      1. Negroni Please

        Moore-hill? I lived in Taos with all the dirty hippies. Ugh I think all those smelly commies helped make me libertarian.

        1. Brett L

          Yep. I partied at Taos a lot. Had a FWB there in fall of 1999.

          1. Negroni Please

            Uh oh. That’s my era. Though I was already in an apartment by 1999 I still hung out there plenty. We probably met at least once.

          2. Negroni Please

            The spirits are bringing me the name Sarah… I don’t know why, but I vaguely associate a Brett with a Sarah back then.

          3. Brett L

            We probably do know each other then. Weird.

          4. Had the FWB in Taos In 88.

      2. I thought you went to aTm.

        1. Brett L

          I’m sending your daughters Michigan shirts right now.

          1. LOL.

            Truce?

          2. Brett L

            Truce

      3. I was in moorehill? I think it was called. Can smell the grackel shit in the morning now.

    5. Rasilio

      You know, it always amazes me how absolutely no one is phased by the fact that in the course of most of our lifetimes the world improved to the point that a single random murder has become a national news story.

      40 years ago a single random stabbing like this probably wouldn’t even make the evening news forget make a national news outlet.

    6. Suthenboy

      “Details on what may have sparked the attack were unclear. ”

      Unclear to whom?

    1. Bobarian LMD

      She does want to send all the maplebacks packing, so…+1

        1. CZmacure

          Chiiiiiliiiiiss… maple back riiiiibs.

          Maple Barbeque SAWCE.

    2. Gadianton

      “Get rid of the guns, and replace them with swords.”

      She’s right. Swords are much more bad-ass.

      1. Vhyrus

        A long time ago in bumfuck, Colorado there was a small gun store I used to freqent. Off to one side was a glass display case full of various cheaply made knives and swords with a little yellow sign in the back that said “When guns are outlawed, can we use swords?”

  3. Negroni Please

    Hey Florida folks. The girlfriend and I are headed to south Florida for a vacation at the end of the month. We’re flying into Ft. Lauderdale and eventually meandering down to Key West. No real plans yet, beyond that vague itinerary, so I would like to request suggestions for what we should do. Obviously a vacation like this centers on beaches and booze, but please let me know if there’s any can’t miss shit I should check out.

    1. You should go to Miami.

      That’s all I’ve got, unless you’re a golfer. Then you should try to get on the Trump Doral course. It’s pretty fucking nice and on the way south.

      1. Negroni Please

        Definitely not a golfer. We’ll likely be in Miami for a day or two. Anything in particular you recommend doing there?

        1. Yeah. Taking as many pictures of Cuban poon as you can get and emailing it to HM for Thicc Thursdays.

          And going to eat at Exquisito Restaurant. And Versailles Restaurant.

          1. Negroni Please

            Excellent. Good food is critical. Putting those places on the list. Thanks Sloopy

          2. Juvenile Bluster

            Versailles food is okay, but that’s more about the experience (which is awesome). I’ll second Exquisito and add in Puerto Sagua if you don’t want to go to Calle Ocho.

          3. robc

            Is it pronounced like Frenchy Versigh or Kentucky Versales?

          4. Juvenile Bluster

            French.

        2. Rufus the Monocled

          “Definitely not a golfer.”

          You say this as if it’s a positive. THUMBS UP!

          1. Negroni Please

            Yeah I pretty much hate golf. Maybe if I could hit the balls at people or if you could play golf cart polo. As it is golf is definitely a pass for me.

        3. Enough About Palin

          Anything in particular you recommend doing there?

          Every Latina you can.

    2. Vhyrus

      If you like snorkling or diving there’s a decent place out off looe key. It’s where I learned to dive. Not too busy but good times. Also check out bahia honda beach nearby. There’s also some good charter fishing in marathon.

      1. Negroni Please

        You’re the second person to mention bahia honda beach. So that’s definitely going on the list. I’m not a big snorkeling fan but the GF is so that sounds likely. Thanks.

        1. Vhyrus

          Theres also a good cuban restaurant my parents eat at when they’re down there. It’s not anywhere near the main drag, I’ll try to get the name of it for you.

    3. Juvenile Bluster

      Guess that’s me.

      What are you looking for? Relaxing beach? Drinks and people watching? Adventuring?

      1. Negroni Please

        Beach, Bars, and Booze are definitely my primary objectives. The girlfriend is more into adventuring and it’s really her trip so any suggestions on that front are appreciated.

        1. Juvenile Bluster

          In Fort Lauderdale I’d probably recommend Elbo Room for the experience (people watching and drinks). Go to Le Tub in Hollywood, (http://theletub.com/) for burgers and beer because that place is awesome.

          Miami has the beaches (South Beach isn’t the greatest place to relax but it’s spectacular for people watching), and there are plenty of bars on the beach to people watch. But since it’s on your way, go to the Ancient Spanish Monastery in North Miami Beach. It’s a 12th Century Spanish Monastery that was moved brick-by-brick to Miami. They hold services there on the weekends. Pretty cool place that for some reason not a lot of people know about.

          On your way from Miami to the Keys, it’s a bit out of the way west in Homestead… but it’s not really known either. Go to Robert Is Here (https://www.robertishere.com/pages/about-us). Delicious stuff. Kind of miss when I lived in South Dade county and could go there more easily.

          Need to think a few more minutes for Keys stuff. One off the top of my head, and it’s really touristy but still cool stuff to look at, is snorkeling at Pennekamp State Park in Key Largo.

          1. Negroni Please

            Awesome. Thanks JB!

          2. Not Mons Venus? 😉

          3. Juvenile Bluster

            That’s in Tampa!

          4. Private Chipperbot

            It’s not a strip club, but there’s always Mango’s.

        2. Juvenile Bluster

          Mods, can someone please approve my comment above with multiple links?

          1. Maybe you shouldn’t have submitted a comment with multiple links.

            (Seriously, though, I think a limit of two would be more appropriate than a limit of one.)

        3. Go mountain climbing. 🙂

        4. Juvenile Bluster

          While I’m waiting for my comment about Dade and Broward to be approved, more on the Keys.

          There’s a Florida Keys Brewing Company that’s in (I think) Islamorada. Some nice beers. For that matter, there’s Funky Buddha Brewing Company near Fort Lauderdale and there’s the South Florida Distillery in Fort Lauderdale that makes a really excellent local rum.

          Near Marathon and in Key West you’re going to find all kinds of snorkeling, diving and fishing adventures. Can’t really recommend any of them because I know enough. In Key West you want to do the Hemingway Museum, because he was awesome. There are a million bars on the water there.

          1. Negroni Please

            Fantastic. I’m not sure I can drag the girlfriend to a brewery, but she might be down with checking out some local rum. I forgot about the Hemingway museum, but that’s certainly going on the list.

          2. Juvenile Bluster

            http://www.southfloridadistillers.com/distillery/ is the distillery. If you can’t make it there during the hours you can buy it elsewhere. I’d recommend the Total Wine and More off 17th Avenue in Fort Lauderdale (close to the port) for stocking up on alcohol.They sell the rum, and a bunch of other local beers/drinks.

        5. Aus

          I was recently in Miami to booze and party. Glad I went and did it but honestly far too expensive and I don’t really give a shit about celebrities so seeing famous people, athletes, or “famous” instragram models does nothing for me. For the record there were several that we saw, but it was my friends that recognized them.

          Club Liv at Fountainblu, sp? was quite fun, but a drink is ~$17 ea. Plus $60 cover on a slow night, unless you’re a hot babe.

          Pool parties at Fountainblu or like SLS can also be good fun. But again… 3 of us had to agree to spend a minimum of $400 inside before they let us in.

          That shit was off the chain though.

          All told, not my scene but I’m glad I did it once when I’m young. For party destinations I’d prefer NOLA. Much cheaper. Of course, my hometown of Columbus OH has no shortage of boozing and attractive young people.

          1. Heroic Mulatto

            unless you’re a hot babe.

            Well, get to work!

            Transition if you have to!

          2. Aus

            Free drinks and no covers is appealing but not enough to give up my patriarchy membership. *adjusts monocle

          3. {|}===[|}:;:;:;:;:;:;:>

            Vis Maior?

    4. stilljustcarol

      I haven’t been south of Sarasota in years but you won’t have any shortage of things to do in the Keys. The best thing to do here in Florida is nothing. Just kick back on the beach and enjoy the local dives.

      1. Negroni Please

        Sounds like a plan

    5. Alligator Alley.

      John Pennekamp and the other state parks are probably already booked solid by now.

      1. Juvenile Bluster

        Alligator Alley runs from right near where I live to Naples. There are a few places to look out into the Everglades but mostly it’s a boring straight road where people drive too fast. There’s always a ton of cops on the side of the road next to an overpass bridge near Naples and they always have people pulled over. Usually tourists who don’t know about where the cops hide.

    6. The Other Kevin

      Spend a day or two hunting giant snakes. Catch a few big ones and the trip will pay for itself.

      1. Negroni Please

        Beaches are OK, but swamps are bullshit. I will not be heading into the fetid deathlands on a vacation. Or ever really.

    7. Vhyrus

      El siboney on catherine st in key west. Excellent cuban food.

      1. Negroni Please

        Danke

    8. Suthenboy

      Dive the western dry rocks.

    9. AceDroman

      The Florida Keys are the sport fishing capital of the world for good reason. Do it and send me some Mahi fillets.

      1. AceDroman

        Oh and eat at Keys Fisheries while you’re passing through Marathon!

  4. UnCivilServant

    Our internal theory is that 80% of the “American” commenters are either lying about not being Canadian or socks.

    How does Alexa collect this location data? Because some deficiencies in methodology might be to blame for the Canukistani bias.

    1. Probably IP address. So anybody running an anonymizer or VPN will show up as Canadian since that’s their biggest export to America, Sr.

      1. UnCivilServant

        But how are they harvesting the fact that IP 123.456.789.123* visisted a particular site?

        *yes I know IPv4 octeds go 0-255

        1. Caput Lupinum

          Our Data
          Alexa’s traffic estimates are based on data from our global traffic panel, which is a sample of millions of Internet users using one of over 25,000 different browser extensions. In addition, we gather much of our traffic data from direct sources in the form of sites that have chosen to install the Alexa script on their site and certify their metrics. However, site owners can always choose to keep their certified metrics private.

          Our global traffic rank is a measure of how a website is doing relative to all other sites on the web over the past 3 months. The rank is calculated using a proprietary methodology that combines a site’s estimated average of daily unique visitors and its estimated number of pageviews over the past 3 months. We provide a similar country-specific ranking, which is a measurement of how a website ranks in a particular country relative to other sites over the past month.

          Source

          1. UnCivilServant

            So unless Glibertarians is feeding them directly, They have one canukistani with an infested extension who keeps dropping by…

          2. bacon-magic

            Blame Rufus.

          3. Caput Lupinum

            And not rain on our host’s well deserved parade, but:

            There are limits to statistics based on the data available. Sites with relatively low measured traffic will not be accurately ranked by Alexa. We do not receive enough data from our sources to make rankings beyond 100,000 statistically meaningful. (However, on the flip side of that, the closer a site gets to #1, the more reliable its rank.) This means that, for example, the difference in traffic between a site ranked 1,000,000 and a site ranked 2,000,000 has low statistical significance. Sites ranked 100,000+ may be subject to large ranking swings due to the scarcity of data for those sites. It is not unusual for such sites to decline to “No data” Traffic Ranks, or to improve suddenly.

            If you’re curious about their methodology, they discuss how they normalize the data here.

          4. Yep, I was about to pour that same cold water. The reason the results are so surprising is that they’re garbage.

    2. Mad Scientist

      Yeah, I’m curious about that too. Or Rufus is just pressing refresh 20,000 times an hour.

      1. Bobarian LMD

        Rufus is just pressing refresh

        Good euphemizing, right there, I tell you wut!

  5. Chipwooder

    It looks like the fascist “anti-fascists” have a pretty good toe-hold in Paris as well.

    Do they want more LePen? Because that’s how they will get more LePen.

    The far left, around the world, really is having a hard time coming to grips with how outlandish average people are coming to view them as.

    1. Hyperion

      The mask is completely off now. You have the NYTs writing praising the glories of communism. A couple of years ago if you accused them of being commies, they would scream at you ‘socialism! Not communism! You don’t even know that socialism is!’. A couple of years before that, socialism was a word they would deny being associated with in any way. Pretty soon Newsweek will put out an issue with ‘WE ARE ALL COMMUNISTS NOW’ on the cover.

      1. Stinky Wizzleteats

        The NYT’s mask has been off since the days of Walter Duranty.

      2. thom

        Have they purged/bought out all of their writers who documented the fall of the Berlin Wall? It’s crazy how quickly people can forget things.

      3. Chipwooder

        Wow, I thought you were kidding about that. I was wrong.

        1. OneOut

          ;during that time frame several hundred thousand Americans moved to Russia following ads in the newspapers for workers . Workers who could teach Henry Fords method of assembly line production to their fellow working class.

          Many of them were neber heard from again after the first few years.

          A couple of hundred thousans American citizens disappeared or wound up in the gulags after once being children baseball coaches in the new workers parsdise.

          my google doesn’t work on this phone so you will have to google your own links

      4. Akira

        Let’s ghost-write a fawning op-ed waxing nostalgic about the numerous benefits of Nazism. We’ll see how it goes over.

  6. Slammer

    Coup: New York’s Anti-Trump bar

    1. Bobarian LMD

      SF’d?

    2. Cool link, bro.

      1. Slammer

        I tried, man. No guts no glory posting from the phone

      1. Bobarian LMD

        They should call that bar Coop. Sounds like they’ll be shit and feathers everywhere.

        I’m also gonna guess that there aren’t gonna be a lot of ‘profits’ left over to share with all those needy government organizations that Trump is heartlessly defunding.

  7. Vhyrus

    I am shocked at how easy going the french cops are. If you threw a molotov at a riot squad state side your brains would be decorating the end of a baton before you could tweet about it.

    1. westernsloper

      That was my thought. I doubt they would get close enough for baton work though. Trowing flaming bombs onto police is how you get yourself shot. I might even be with the police on that one. Setting cops on fire is kind of using deadly force first and you should expect it to be returned,

  8. Rufus the Monocled

    Which one of youz wrote that article about inheritance taxes again?

    Anyway. I was reading some donkey go on and on in his commie drivel defending inheritance taxes and used TDR and the Founding Fathers as his example of people who supported them.

    Was wondering to what extent they really did. TDR I can totally see being a progressive and I did read some literature of people Franklin supporting it but can anyone add to this?

    1. Mad Scientist

      Ha! He specifically calls out Dave Weigel in point 3.

      1. Chipwooder

        But why would he call out Noted Libertarian Dave Weigel for socialism denial? I’m baffled!

    2. Rufus the Monocled

      About ‘no true socialism’. It comes in many forms. Like the discussion we had in the Derponomics thread about that dope who said ‘no one is advocating to ban profits!’

      And as I pointed out there, you can bet your fucken bottom dollar his view would easily shift to banning profits the second he gets his marching orders from his intellectual masters.

      I’m pretty sure the leap to it is very shallow for people like him.

      I’m sure Frank has some thoughts.

      1. SimonD

        Hmm. I seem to remember a Congress-critter lecturing the CEO of Exxon saying that she would love to nationalize his company. (Maxine Waters?)

        So, Yes, people (people in power) are advocating banning profits, at least in certain circumstances.

        1. Pat

          (Maxine Waters?)

          Yep. Well, she said “socialize” not “nationalize”.

    3. Hyperion

      The thing that irritates me the most is that you have all of these smug American progs who proclaim how great it is in Europe compared to the USA. But none of them have ever been there and I don’t see anyone fleeing the USA for Europe. Why is that?

      1. Mad Scientist

        They’d be nobodies in Europe. What they’re really after is power.

    4. Worker and Parasite

      That’s a good list. Numbers 4 and 5 are the ones that drive me especially crazy.

    5. Akira

      I would add the surprisingly common “USSR was a great patron of arts and culture!”

      Yep, the Soviets were like one big PBS. In fact, the USSR was such a great place for artists that Shostakovich almost killed himself because of Stalin’s bullying! Progress!

  9. Vhyrus

    Good afternoon Glibbers, and welcome to Vhyrus’s afternoon music links. Do you remember when we we’re all terrified of the coming Hillary presidency? I remember. Good thing we dodged that bullet. Hopefully that song gets you amped up and through your otherwise bleak Monday.

    1. Bobarian LMD

      I ‘member.

    2. These guys remember something else. Something better.

      1. Of course, nobody remembers that I played them in the morning links. Because you bastards don’t pay attention to what I post.
        ::kicks pebble. sulks off::

        1. UnCivilServant

          It’s not that I don’t pay attention, it’s that I don’t follow YouTube links at work.

        2. The Ramones are overrated.

          1. Tundra

            *SLAP*

          2. UnCivilServant

            It’s not friday.

          3. Tundra

            Fine.

            *drops gloves*

          4. Mad Scientist

            Kick his ass, Tundra!

          5. Slammer

            Tundra: “Turn around, nobody, so I can see who I’m having a go with!”

          6. Rufus the Monocled

            Ted needs to be sedated.

          7. Tundra

            Maybe the KKK took his baby away?

          8. thom

            Dude needs to be buried in a pet sematary.

    3. Pat

      Do you remember when we we’re all terrified of the coming Hillary presidency?

      Can’t say as I do

      1. Gilmore

        Even lefties agree that song probably cost Hillary a million votes.

        it was so bad. so so so bad.

        1. Pat

          Fantano is such a penis. I hate it when he’s right.

          1. Gilmore

            Dicktony Cocktano?

            I don’t care much for his musical opinion, but i find him an entertaining youtuber. I like his “Meme reviews”

            btw, sorry if there was some miscommunication re: your long question earlier this morning. I was sort of hyperfocused on a narrow point re: “whether these studies actually showed genuine widespread fraud or not” and generally ignored your broader ‘economic’ question.

          2. Pat

            Same. I love to hate Fantano. I still pop over to /mu/ from time to time just to see the latest Fantano takedown thread.

            Re: the morning thread, I appreciated your analysis. The broader “why isn’t the market resolving this problem” question does depend on the true extent of the problem, and whether it even *is* a problem. I knew you guys would have some unique takes, which is why I wanted to post it here.

  10. Just Say’n

    “looks like the fascist “anti-fascists” have a pretty good toe-hold in Paris as well.”

    What is so strange about this is that Le Pen’s core base of supporters are the actual working class (not the faux working class hipsters that are protesting here). Isn’t it time that Western Leftism admit that they are just about power and not the working class, as they seem to despise that class whenever they turn against their ideas?

    1. Brett L

      Wide-spread suffrage prevents that. They have to lie.

    2. Stinky Wizzleteats

      The left is for you as long as you agree, and I mean really agree-like lockstep, with them. If you don’t you must be destroyed. Orwell’s Homage to Catalonia is as relevant now as it ever was.

  11. Rufus the Monocled

    I think Canada comes for Rufus.

    Other than that, Canadians do the work Americans don’t want to do.

    1. UnCivilServant

      So why hasn’t Canada painted my back room yet?

      1. UnCivilServant

        That was terrible phrasing.

        1. UnCivilServant

          Here’s the real context of that question.

          I am having trouble with a room that happens to be at the back of the house and needed repainting. It’s half done.

          1. Big Tar Heels fan?

            Dude, go to Home Depot and pick a guy up, a him $100 UPON COMPLETION and watch it get done in about 4 hours.

          2. UnCivilServant

            What’s a tar heel?

            I just picked blue because it wasn’t beige and it wasn’t the hot pink that was on that wall before those layers of primer went up.

          3. Somebody from UNC. That’s their primary school color.

          4. Hyperion

            Go down to Home Depot and find the Canucks who are just standing around in the parking lot. They’re the ones with red lumberjack shirts and boggin hats, guzzling from a jug of maple syrup.

      2. John Titor

        I know we’re starting to loosen up on prostitution laws in some places up here, but damn dude, I’m sure you can find someone on kijiji.

        1. Rufus the Monocled

          Kijiji women drink Lucas oil as an aperitif.

      3. Mad Scientist

        First they have to elect a new Minister of Interior Decorating to approve a shade of gray for your room. Environmental impact studies have to be completed. They’ve never settled the debate about whether latex or acrylic is more toxic. Bids have to be put in, with a number of set-asides for French Canadian painters. Import tariffs on masking tape have to be negotiated. Expect your room to be painted in 2023, maybe 2024, at a cost of around 2 million.

        1. UnCivilServant

          Expect your room to be painted in 2023, maybe 2024, at a cost of around 2 million.

          I can cover that in Zimbabwe dollars.

      4. Hyperion

        Are any of these things actually NOT true about Canadians?

        Canadian Stereotypes

        1. Rufus the Monocled

          I never heard anyone say ‘aboot, I don’t drink Tim Hortons and think Canadians who *hate* Americans to be insecure dope heads who know jack shit about The Littlest Hobo and history.

          1. Hyperion

            Why are Canadians afraid of the dark? Some of those are hilarious like the one about everyone living in igloos and riding polar bears to work. But I don’t get the afraid of the dark one?

          2. Chipwooder

            Maybe not aboot, but when I was in Vancouver a long time ago I definitely heard plenty of “Eh”s

          3. bacon-magic

            I heard it recently talking to a Canukistani techie.

        2. John Titor

          3’s ‘kinda’ made up. Canadian’s will generally be more polite, but too many people equate that to being pushovers. A rural Canadian will still call you a fucking prick and give you the left-right if you piss him off.

          5- Pretty common, but curling ends up on tv a lot as well. Speaking of which, have you seen women’s curling? Goddamn.

          6 – Summer actually bloody sucks in certain parts of the country, mostly because it’s so goddamn humid that the heat is just an extra layer. I’d take a Manitoba winter over a summer, it’s just humidity and mosquitoes.

          7 – Tim Horton’s are everywhere and cheaper than your fancy American Starbucks and what-not. So mostly yes, but plenty of people bitch about Tim’s coffee (it’s pretty bitter).

          8 – We didn’t have major roads until the 1830s, so partially true?

          9 – Kraft dinner has sucked for like the past decade or so, they change the ingredients and now it’s terrible.

          11- Shitbag Canadian nationalism is defined as ‘not being American’ ( and of course the first major comment is MURICANS R RACIST!). It’s pretty obnoxious to the more self-aware of us.

          1. Hyperion

            “MURICANS R RACIST!”

            Damn, I always thought that the only people who believe Americans are racists, are American progs. I didn’t know anyone else even believes that bullshit. Even the Europeans don’t think that, they just think we’re mean as fuck and all ride around in pickup trucks with machine guns mounted on them.

          2. John Titor

            Even the Europeans don’t think that,

            Uh, yes, of course they don’t Hyperion…

            (Nobody tell him)

          3. Hyperion

            The ones I’ve talked to, I’ve never heard say that. They seem pretty open about thinking we’re crazy gun slinging maniacs though. They’re also racists.

          4. Hammercorps

            To be fair, the Brits don’t think we’re racist because they’re too busy hating on the Poles.

          5. Slammer

            Number 5…hell yeah

  12. The Late P Brooks

    I’m not saying If-hes-for-it-I’m-agin-it works every time, but if Ben Bernanke is for the Border Adjustment Tax, I’ll assume until proven otherwise that this is one of those things that economists love to model that don’t really work like the model.

    Greg Mankiw had something good to say about it, too.

    To be sure, the immediate impact of the change would be to discourage imports and encourage exports. But that in turn would mean Americans would supply fewer dollars in foreign-exchange markets, and foreigners would demand more dollars. As a result, the dollar would appreciate, making foreign goods cheaper for Americans, and American goods more expensive for foreigners. The movement in the exchange rate would offset the initial impact on imports and exports.

    The main advantage of destination-based taxation is that it is easier to determine where a good is consumed than where it is produced. In a world where multinationals produce goods using parts from around the world, origin-based taxes invite firms to game the system with transfer pricing schemes. Destination-based taxation is less easily gamed.

    I’m not sure I agree with the claim FX will magically adjust. Mankiw is the only one I’ve seen that even attempts to explain the mechanism.

    And, of course, the devil is in the details carve-outs.

    1. PBRstreetgang

      He led off with a “to be sure”?

    2. AlmightyJB

      Mankiw made some good points in that article.

  13. The Late P Brooks

    Oops- left something off:

    the dollar would appreciate, making foreign goods cheaper for Americans, and American goods more expensive for foreigners.

    Not everybody is going to like that; but who’s going to listen to Boeing’s lobbyists, or Caterpillar’s?

  14. Gilmore

    I think the completely unintentional destruction of the petro-state by American fracking* is going to be a big deal.

    I think you may be getting ahead of yourself by asserting that it was necessarily “unintentional”

    I think Obama often defended fracking against the constant criticisms of his greenie-base…. because people in the geopolitical-strategy world told him how incredibly powerful it would be in undermining our enemies (e.g. Russia, Iran, Venezuela, and others), and even making our friends (e.g. saudis) more reliant on our goodwill.

    1. Brett L

      Defended by writing rules making it hard to do on public land? I don’t think that anyone in his administration was farsighted enough to see 2014’s crash.

      1. Just Say’n

        He was for it before he was against it (this is actually true as he once applauded fracking as a bridge toward a ‘green economy’ before it became passe among the Leftist radicals)

      2. Gilmore

        Defended by writing rules making it hard to do on public land?

        I know his administration was not one-sided in favor of fracking. I think that would have been politically impossible.

        In light of what he COULD have done, i think it was a miracle he didn’t try and @$(*%) ban it. And he was pressured to do so many times.

        I don’t think anyone foresaw a price crash. but many people foresaw that development of NA energy resources would have a dramatic effect on the petro-states that were most troublesome to the US, and consequently said, “every US president should encourage this development as much as possible”.

        ‘as possible’ being a very politically-qualified idea.

      3. Gilmore

        this is sort of an interesting example of how Obama “bought” his support of fracking by always pitching it in the context of “stuff he’d do for the greenies in exchange”

        …thanks to fracking, there’s plenty more natural gas to displace coal.

        Power plants are by far the biggest greenhouse gas emitters, accounting for 2.2 billion tons of carbon dioxide emissions (67% of the total).

        No wonder President Obama said tonight that “my administration will keep cutting red tape and speeding up new oil and gas permits.”

        That’s music to the ears of the oil and gas industry.

        But then why does the president have to go and mess it up? In his speech tonight he said:

        “Indeed, much of our new-found energy is drawn from lands and waters that we, the public, own together. So tonight, I propose we use some of our oil and gas revenues to fund an Energy Security Trust that will drive new research and technology to shift our cars and trucks off oil for good

        1. Mad Scientist

          our oil and gas revenues

          Fuck off, slaver.

    1. John Titor

      I do think Trump is setting a good tactical example for if we ever get a vaguely libertarian President in power. All he has to do is make some comments about how Lincoln was a tyrant and the media will flip out about that while he dismantles the EPA and the Department of Education.

      1. Rufus the Monocled

        He may as well go full throttle and for the love of God DO NOT extend an olive branch to Democrats or their supporters.

        Fuck them.

    2. Just Say’n

      I know that Trump doesn’t realize this, but his statement really isn’t that crazy. Buchanan was still president when South Carolina was the first state to vote on secession. Buchanan did nothing about it. Under Andrew Jackson, South Carolina tried to nullify federal law and Jackson responded by organizing an army to invade the state. South Carolina eventually backed down. So, technically, there is a case to be made that Jackson could have prevented the Civil War as he showed more fortitude during the Nullification Crisis than Buchanan showed at the beginning of secession.

      The media is just as historically ignorant as the president and I doubt knows anything about the Nullification Crisis.

      1. Pat

        Suggesting that there might have been any other possible way to end slavery than a 600,000 casualty bloodletting is tantamount to calling Martin Luther King a nigger as far as the media is concerned. The hagiography has already been chiseled.

  15. robc

    I’m not saying If-hes-for-it-I’m-agin-it works every time

    For me it works every time, for every one. Including all of you.

  16. Gilmore

    I like this and i think this is true =

    #TheResistance is not really resisting Trump as much as it is resisting us. The elite establishment is outraged that we normals have demanded to govern ourselves rather than begging for scraps from our betters in DC, NY and LA. It wasn’t just that horrible, sick old woman that we rejected; it was them. And by doing so, we “stole” what they see as their birthright to reign sovereign over us. They try to cover up their humiliation with tales of “Russians” and “hacking” because the truth is too painful to face. This election was about the people they sought to rule looking at them and their track record of failure and saying, “Nah, you suck.”

    I think if there’s any general message re: the Trump administration, its that no one takes the self-styled “experts” seriously anymore. Whether its economic, foreign policy, “science”, or whatever. The shit that “experts” were shoving in people’s faces was fucking stupid. No, we don’t think Climate Change Taxes are a ‘solution’. No, we don’t think the world is going to fall apart without American “global leadership” (read: we pay for NATO and police the planet). No, we don’t think Davos-approved Trade Deals are the path to prosperity vs,. simply *lowering fucking taxes*. And so on.

    The expression, “Nah, you suck” is pretty much what Bush said here, so very accurately.

    1. american socialist

      This is a good article that is similar

      http://joelkotkin.com/the-arrogance-of-blue-america/

      where did you get the above by the way? So i can read the rest

      1. Gilmore

        from the above link re: =Kurt Schlichter is taking up the happy warrior type posts that I associated with Mark Steyn about 15 years ago. He’s kickin’ hippies asses and raising hell and seems to be enjoying it.”

    2. Aus

      “Nah, you suck” is fun and I agree with the article. I may try to work that into my political argument with regressives.

      FTA: “Plus, of course, his two greatest achievements – not being Hillary, ” Yup; I don’t care that Team Red won, only that HRC and the regressives needed to lose, it was important for the fate of humanity. For several days I binged out on regressive tears, staying up to the wee hours of the night… my eyes bloodshot from crying laughing and the lack of sleep.

      I think also, that the “deplorables” incident motivated the normies to fight back more so than they might have otherwise and HRC declaring an innocent internet meme a racist enemy of the state pissed off the mischievous internet trolls, and that’s a vicious enemy to pick a fight with. The internet doesn’t like being told what to do.

      Sargon’s recent video included a clip of the antifa girl explaining plain as day “why the right’ is winning.” (Not really, the “right”, but whatver). I shared that clip on my derpbook, but nobody reads my feed, pretty sure all my regressive peers have hidden my posts because calm, logical, discussions hurt their underdeveloped brains.

      Antifa girl admits they lost the culture war (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_bKfycjdl7E)

  17. Pat

    I feel like I’m probably late to the game on this one, but this is some of the funniest shit I’ve ever read in my life.

    1. Just Say’n

      Disturbing

    2. Hyperion

      What.the.fuck…. what the hell is that?

      1. Hyperion

        I mean, is it supposed to be funny?

        1. John Titor

          It’s agitprop for social justice, it’s just meant to reinforce the ‘our opponents are evil, do not listen to them, dehumanize them as much as possible’ policy.

          1. Hyperion

            I thought they were trying to convince people that they write boring as fuck stuff that is not interesting or meaningful in any way whatsoever.

        2. Gilmore

          PEOPLE WHO DISAGREE USE LOTS OF WORDS AND SAY LOTS OF STUFF BUT THEY REALLY JUST MEAN “RACISM” SO DONT BOTHER LISTENING

    3. John Titor

      It’s like Social Justice Chick Tracts. And about as accurate.

      1. Heroic Mulatto

        Brilliant!

    4. kbolino

      If everything is “white nationalism”, then nothing is.

    5. Pat

      I meant to link to the main page, not that specific comic (although one is as good as the next). I literally spent like half an hour scrolling through and trying to decide if it was parody or not. It’s mesmerizing, in that car wreck sense.

      1. Gilmore

        *i just realized that the main character in the comic is supposed to be “Trans”

        which seems to raise a strange point about trans-ness.

        if they really want to be seen as *women*, why would they try to represent themselves in comic form as “trans” rather than female?

        is the goal to truly make transpeople so normalized that we see them no different than other boys + girls? Or are they trying to carve out their own 3rd category which transcends the 2 and demands special attention, never being confused w/ “normals”? Because it seems sometimes they want it both ways

        1. Heroic Mulatto
          1. Pan Zagloba

            Cheapest way to get new transformers?

        2. Pan Zagloba

          Hey, I was asking literally the same questions about Krem in DA: Inquisition.

          Then I just realized it’s idiotic to try and divine it and went back to fanboying over Jennifer Hale’s acting.

          1. John Titor

            I know next to nothing about Inquisition, because fuck modern Bioware, but based on that clip:

            That is a TOMBOY. A tomboy with some obvious mental issues, but a tomboy nonetheless.

            Fuck me, it’s like claiming Persona’s Naoto is a different gender.

          2. Pan Zagloba

            Honest talk, Inq is my favorite DA game. Which I think speaks more of the quality of the franchise, but damn, DA:O was so tryhard, and DA2 was a crime against writing. And gameplay. And everything that’s not ‘talking to your friends and trying to hook up with sexy pirate lady’.

            Inq at least doubled down on ‘hanging out with your buddies’ and had the only time when I was ever presented with a choice in Bioware game where I had to get away from the desk and think about it (there are other games that gave me meaningful choice, but this was the first time I had to think about it, hard). And even better, reason I had to make that choice is because of my actions in DA:O. Had I just had a default save, it would have been a no-brainer (awesome design there, boys).

          3. John Titor

            but damn, DA:O was so tryhard

            Hey now, some of us like tryhard.

            Looking at that clip and other stuff elsewhere, it does seem to be that they’ve improved over Dragon Age 2 (and I’ll take decently written shoehorned flavour-of-the-year minority characters over comparisons to 9/11 and the Holocaust any day of the week), but I’m really not interested in financially supporting Bioware anymore due to the corporate culture and constant decline over the years.

          4. Hammercorps

            Inquisition sucked because of it’s open-world design, the main quest was pretty great.

            I’ve got Andromeda sitting here on my hard drive, trying to decide if I want to start it up or not. I’ve lost faith in Bioware, especially since CD Projekt RED have kicked them from the top of the heap. (And Guerilla seems to be getting some good punches in too now.)

          5. Heroic Mulatto

            At least that draws upon history, like Ulrika Eleonora Stålhammar, who, realizing she had a bad-ass surname, dressed as a male and joined the Swedish army. She eventually married another woman, and when that woman found out that her spouse was a female – she was completely cool with it. However, they were found out and put on trial. After their convictions, the King of Sweden was basically like “Lesbians? Niceeee….” and commuted their sentences. They then lived a quiet life together.

          6. John Titor

            Stålhammar’s experiences, however, come off as pragmatic concessions to the time period in order to fulfill roles she couldn’t otherwise. Pan’s clip clearly shows that the character is framed in a different way, with it being a core mental state that makes up her personality.

            And it’s somewhat goofy to use that considering the Dragon Age universe runs on ‘Rule of Cool’ and women have complete combat equality in both military position and strength.

          7. Heroic Mulatto

            I originally read Pan’s post as a continuation of his response to my question about why Transformers have gender. That is, at least there have been crossdressing lesbian soldiers, but we haven’t seen a crossdressing lesbian robot yet.

          8. Pan Zagloba

            Wait, Arcee is a lesbian?

            FUUUC… I mean….good, we need more representation?

            (sob)

          9. Heroic Mulatto

            However, the ability was a sacrificial one, as it drained almost all of Elita’s energy. With Elita now hovering on the brink of death, Prime took her to Alpha Trion, where Trion revealed that only Prime’s power supply could properly interface with hers (as a result of their shared schematics). Now aware of Trion’s hand in his creation through implications made by the ancient Autobot when Optimus confronted him on how he would have known the Autobot leader could revive her, Prime re-energized Elita, and the two helped rescue their comrades from a Decepticon attack.

            A Transformers sex scene is canon.

          10. Pan Zagloba

            It was specifically the part where PC goes “hey, what if we got some magic to get your body to follow your mind?” and the answer is “fuck no!”

            That’s when I figured it was a meaningless character quirk. Because in the context of DA universe, going on a quest to do this and dealing with potential price to pay is a decent story possibility (particularly given body-shaping-gone-wrong in DA2). I was playing a wizard who honestly believed she was God-chosen to stop the general fuckery going on, so that could have been one of them well done Bioware choices (like Mordin or Legion quests in ME2).

            But, that might have insulted some people so fuck the story potential, at which point I was like, “OK, fair enough, fuck your writing, too. Jennifer Hale did a great job here, at least. Let’s ignore her and go get 20 bear assess for my war table.”

          11. John Titor

            To be fair, if they did do a quest about a magical sex change right at the tail end of the Gamergate flip-outs I can see the “OMG BIOWARE IS TRANSPHOBIC THEY BELIEVE IN BIOLOGICAL SEX” articles pouring out of the shitbag gaming press.

        3. Pat

          is the goal to truly make transpeople so normalized that we see them no different than other boys + girls? Or are they trying to carve out their own 3rd category which transcends the 2 and demands special attention, never being confused w/ “normals”?

          Let’s go to the source.

          1. Pan Zagloba

            “transmysoginist”.

            So, it’s either a person who hates everyone not female, or person who has gone beyond the hatred of women…

  18. Juvenile Bluster

    Re: The Nut-Punch I posted in the mourning lynx: Looks like this could be a particularly bad one. There might even be charges until the DA purposefully blows the case and the jury finds the officer not guilty.

    1. robc

      Merritt said he was told there is body camera footage of the incident and that it has been turned over to the sheriff’s office.

      We will see if there is a server error that deletes it.

    2. AlmightyJB

      Let’s hope the footage depicts accurately what happened.

      1. Juvenile Bluster

        Does it ever?

        1. AlmightyJB

          Proper procedures were​ followed. They used special techniques that only top ninja LEO’s can interpret correctly.

          1. Heroic Mulatto

            We’re already getting the first pics of him looking vaguely threatening to old White people:

          2. Vhyrus

            Yeaahh…. they’re going to have to try harder. Not even skittles in that second pic.

  19. Enough About Palin

    Have a little BB King and some blues.

    Saw BB King in the Venecian Room at the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco back in ’87. Small room. Fantastic show.

  20. Gilmore

    as far as “interesting forms of diplomacy” goes… I’ve found the recent developments here to be interesting

    Basically, it seems like Trump’s “prelude to war”-posturing with the Norks was really just a bit of Negging to tease KJU into being shocked/surprised when Trump says, “Hey why not be the first North Korean Leader since the war to visit the US”?

    I think its an interesting case-study in Trump’s “hot-cold” negotiation M.O.

    I don’t think Fatty Un Un will ever make the trip. I think he’ll use the attention to bluster louder. But i think deep in his heart he’s secretly fiending for the opportunity to do something neither his father or grandfather did.

    1. Gilmore

      interesting interesting interesting

      i think i suffer from mild echolalia.

      1. Gadfly

        “Interesting” is the best of all adjectives, as it is the most deliciously non-committal. “Interesting” could mean good, bad, or neutral, but it never means “meh”, so it is both active (this means something) and passive (but I’m not going to say what I think it means) at the same time. Never apologize for using it.

        1. Aus

          Rand Paul always uses “Interesting” or “Interestingly” before he makes a point. I liked it and starting using it as well. Maybe a less smug way of saying “ACHTUALLY…”

    2. “But i think deep in his heart he’s secretly fiending for the opportunity to do something neither his father or grandfather did.”

      Like get overthrown in a revolution?

      1. Gilmore

        Like get overthrown in a revolution?

        Sadly, that aint’ happening. there is something sick about human nature that adapts to those conditions. basically its a slave culture, and it stamped out any possibility of liberating itself generations ago.

        i think they’d actually need to have their regime toppled from outside in order to believe that its “over”. the narrative of their world can’t undo-itself. It would need to be undone by some other force.

      1. Pat

        Trump and Taliban both start with a “T”. Coincidence?

    1. Pan Zagloba

      Woah, Trump! We don’t need you saturating the Orphans and Waifs market! Go back to real estate!

    1. Pat

      They should have used the defense that they can’t fix their primaries because a secret Russian cabal actually controls all US elections.

    2. “attorneys representing the DNC have previously argued that Sanders supporters knew the primaries were rigged, therefore annulling any potential accountability the DNC may have.”

    1. Juvenile Bluster

      Love the top comment.

      Lynchings weren’t a racist/white-supremacist problem. They were a tracheal constriction problem.

      1. Mr Lizard

        As a member of a domineering space-faring species, I could call a planetary bombardment surface level kinetic energy problem

    2. John Titor

      It’s true that FGM is practiced in non-Muslim cultures, particularly in Africa. But it seems to ignore the fact that issue here is overwhelmingly about Islamic culture and is really only being tolerated, sympathized or qualified for so that some people can put little checks on their ‘not Islamophobic’ cards.

    3. Juvenile Bluster

      On the other side, a WTF comment:

      @meh128 well the way trump treats women is arguably as bad as FGM. It’s abusive, in any case. And many white women voted for him. It’s not about pushing the button but what that vote represents.

      1. Pat

        Talking to a reporter about theoretically grabbing a woman’s pussy is literally as bad as cutting off her clit. L-I-T-E-R-A-L-L-Y.

      2. Vhyrus

        Trump is quickly replacing BOOOOOSH as the catch all blame card isn’t he?

    4. Vhyrus

      Holy lack of awareness, batman! Did you see the article below it?

      “Aaron Hernandez’s Suicide Highlights a Huge Gap in Correctional Health”

      FUCKING REALLY?! I hope by huge gap they mean murdering shitbags offing themselves isn’t happening enough.

  21. one true athena

    Choice bits from the flyer I got for the Teacher’s Unions “Re-elect Corrupt Scumbag to the School BOard!” campaign (this is the runoff from the spring election, previous flyers were focused on the Great Satan DeVos but now pounding Literally Hitler himself:

    – Opponent is supported by Trump donors (which if you read the fine print says that actually it’s supported by one dude who who donated to Trump)
    – The “extremem Trump/DeVos education agenda has no place in our classrooms”
    – Trump and DeVos are trying to carry out their pro-privatization agenda in every local school – diverting funds away from public schools toward private
    – Stop the Trump Education Agenda (!!!!)

    sigh.

    1. Vhyrus

      Depending on where you live they probably just got their opponent elected with that flyer.

      1. one true athena

        tragically, Los Angeles. The only real hope is that the donor they’re talking about is former mayor Riordan who’s throwing his money to the opposition because a group of high school students actually banded together to get Zimmer out and asked him to help. I think he’s still somewhat respected, which is probably why the flyer doesn’t mention his name.

    1. Vhyrus

      Progressives do literally suck the fun out of every fucking thing. I thought hardcore republicans had no sense of humor but my god this makes Doonesbury look like Tom & Jerry/

    2. Pan Zagloba

      So, is this the new everydayfeminism? Cause that comic is an endless source of derpery, but feels like shooting fish in a barrel…

      1. Gilmore

        is this the new everydayfeminism?

        No, nothing can replace their lecture-y elitisth-uber-woke gibberish

        1. Pan Zagloba

          Good point, their comics are interminable and pointless.

          1. Gilmore

            i always find their “whines within whines” fascinating =

            How Stereotypes About What Queer Women Look Like Erases Femmes”

            Just when you thought it was Ok to recognize bulldykes as ‘normal’, you’re now participating in ‘erasure’ of … some other category of snowflake. it never ends.

          2. CZmacure

            FWIW, I completely agree that mainstream lesbian culture “erases” both Femmes and bisexual women, and bisexual Femmes most of all.

          3. Hammercorps

            Dammit, I’ve got to stop clicking on these links.

    3. Juice

      ACK!

      1. Bill the cat, is that you?

  22. Diane Reynolds

    Hey, it’s Monday. Which means.

    As May Day marchers worked their way through downtown Seattle Monday, the city council unanimously supported [fill in the blank]”

    http://mynorthwest.com/619200/seattle-income-tax-resolution-pass/

    1. At least this might put a dent in all that gentrification.

  23. Left Hand of Radar

    Jim Thome is on “MLB Tonight”… tonight. Man, I love that dude!

  24. trshmnstr

    Derptastic comic where only blacks have superpowers.

    You know who else believed in a race of superhumans?

    1. Gilmore

      Der Überschwarz

      i had some really, really, really bad jokes teed up for minute, then decided “nah”

      1. Just walk away.

        Those jokes WOULDN’T BE AT ALL FUNNY.

        1. trshmnstr

          Nor would they be OKAY.

    2. Heroic Mulatto

      *shrugs*

      Maybe the story is interesting?

      1. Gilmore

        All of you are men, and while the comic definitely makes strides toward inclusion, the voice and perspective is also rather definitively cisgender male. What conversations did you guys have among yourselves about the absence of women from your creative team?
        Osajyefo: We’re all painfully aware,

        Painfully

        1. Heroic Mulatto

          Probably not interesting.

        2. Vhyrus

          Story line and art is now secondary to being as inclusive and intersectional as possible.

          Welcome to hell, vern.

    3. Pan Zagloba

      Unless it’s written by Hooper X, I’m not interested.

      1. LT_Fish

        No kidding. Classic.

  25. Mythical Libertarian Woman

    My sister just asked me, “What’s this orange thing?” And I automatically responded, “Can you see it? Is this orange?” Blank stares. Thanks, Glibs.

  26. KibbledKristen
    1. trshmnstr

      I have $10 on either the campus black center or the campus diversity council.

      1. KibbledKristen

        I got an email blast from the President of the university, and he promised to follow up with the results of the investigation. My guess is we won’t hear another peep about it if the investigation plays out like we predict. My personal guess it was done by the sorority mentioned on the…decorations.

    2. Mythical Libertarian Woman

      “I am like very devastated.”