Quote of the Day
Faithful are the wounds of a friend,
John Travolta and Olivia Newton John, Summer Lovin"
Quote of the Day
Courtesy of Gary Varvel via Townhall
John Travolta And Olivia Newton John - You're The One That I Want
Quote of the Day
Sam & Dave "I Thank You". This is the final segment for this act.
Quote of the Day
Most of what we call management consists of
Sam & Dave - Soul Man
Quote of the Day
In matters of style, swim with the current;Sam and Dave - Hold on I'm coming
Quote of the Day
Love conquers all.
Savage Garden - Crash and Burn
The only election I ever volunteered for was Jimmy Carter's 1976 campaign. Unlike some dudes who did more than lust in their hearts, Carter was a fundamentally decent man with major deregulation reforms. My thoughts and prayers for surviving family.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) December 29, 2024
Crackpot rubbish, complete lie. The number of unauthorized aliens achieved a high in 2007j. RINO Trump just used a phony issue to seize power over a diminished problem that had trended down over the Great Recession. Eisenhower fixed the problem with foreign worker permits.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) December 30, 2024
A lot of Trumpkins hate Paul Ryan because Ryan knows 50X more about government policy than RINO Trump will ever know. Dumbass Trump, unlike Ryan, has no plan to fix failing entitlements. He lacks the balls to be a true leader. He is a cowardly bully.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) December 30, 2024
I may not play pro basketball, but I am king of my own kingdom. We also share birthdays with Tiger Woods and the guy I was nicknamed after in high school, Albert Einstein
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) December 30, 2024
No, there is plenty of evidence POTUS isn't a relevant US officer, and in any event SCOtUS ruled Congress hasn't operationalized said clause.https://t.co/jGVDFN9FTghttps://t.co/GTDgs7dTFa
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) December 31, 2024
I don't think that's true, even in the source you're paraphrasing: "Biden then went off script and took questions from reporters at random, prompting a combative exchange with CNN correspondent MJ Lee, who asked about Americans who are concerned about his age." CNN is mainstream
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) December 31, 2024
This is so over the top I thought the OP might be a parody account. No, I'm an original Never Trumper, and the Russiagate paranoia is totally baseless. Biden/Harris had very low job approvals going into the general election. https://t.co/aCvcsTzJ03
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) December 31, 2024
This partisan troll is repetitive and obsessed. I already posted a reply refuting her bogus arguments in a different post. I'll simply point out here the Dems didn't provide evidence of a conspiracy with the J6 rioters at impeachment. https://t.co/j9Uxi8l0j0
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) December 31, 2024
Jesus! It's like we're living through the Hillary Clinton failed candidacy conspiracy crap all over again. No, the 14th Amendment was not about a stealth litmus test for POTUS eligibility. Note not even Jack Smith is bringing insurrection charges against Trump. https://t.co/38wSY03BPh
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) December 31, 2024
Oh my God! He would have drafted my then 19-year-old mother and housewife to my Dad.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) December 31, 2024
Hell no! In a land of liberty, young adults are not slaves to a governor. This GOP political whore has no right to restrict life choices for young adults. If they want to work to support their families or start their own business; it's their decision, not his. https://t.co/0L4cm7pgAs
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) December 31, 2024
No, Trump doesn't have control over individuals and at risk behaviors. If not for expedited review under Trump, a robust vaccine may have taken longer, costing thousands, if not millions of lives, https://t.co/k4ClzWEWf7
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) December 31, 2024
This is not to say I think Trump is a "Christian". Come on: this dude tried to get an old woman's house condemned so he could procure the land for casino limo parking. But leftists trying to portray morally-hazardous social welfare as "Christian" are just as phony.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) December 31, 2024
We need to combat RFK Jr.'s anti-vax rubbish at the source.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) December 31, 2024
"A 2011 study in Pediatrics, for example, found only 14% of Amish people surveyed didn’t vaccinate their kids at all, Wallace noted."
"Braxton Mitchell...said autism does occur among members."https://t.co/Wled8SaHSq https://t.co/ry3wV1VCtA
I don't know why people have a naïve reliance of ivermectin on COVID based on flawed scientific studies. https://t.co/j2CL6ZDY2A
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) December 31, 2024
Well, the problem is that reality is nuanced. Take new jobs statistics. You can have new (e.g., part-time) jobs offsetting full-time jobs going down and higher unemployment in households. Thus, the new jobs earlier announced by Biden may be corrected on household survey data https://t.co/Axb8zwOk3g
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) December 31, 2024
The leftists have used all sorts of gimmicks to put a positive spin on Bidenomics. They'll suddenly rediscover the statistical analyses used by Trumpkins as soon as he takes over, and Trump will put lipstick on the pig of reported stats like Biden has.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) December 31, 2024
No, Trump did not get a landslide. Trump lost all blue states, See LBJ's 1964, Nixon's 1972, Reagan, 1980, 1984. Even Obama got more electoral votes. No mandate: no coattails. 4 GOP Senate candidates lost in states Trump won. https://t.co/I8syAlcKRs
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) December 31, 2024
Well, Stacy Abrams is right on this one: https://t.co/RLx8q2Iaup pic.twitter.com/OPU99LcLCs
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) December 31, 2024
Can we please stop naming football games after marketing gimmicks? Seriously, the Pop Tarts Bowl or the Tony the Tiger Bowl? Seriously, I don't think I've said those words since I became a teenager. I think my blood sugar rose over the idea of Strawberry Milkshake Frosted Flakes.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) December 31, 2024
No, we have a federal system, not a national system.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 1, 2025
Make the states primary again. Remember the principle of Subsidiarity. Don't settle for Trump's recycled unoriginal soundbites
"Make America Great Again"
I can't wait!! I've been waiting so long for this...
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 1, 2025
Torture for a Texas Longhorn alumnus is not having ESPN on my cable package and having to follow spotty play by play on webpage refreshes. Texas prevailed in 2 OTs, not happy we blew a 2 TD+ lead, not to mention game-winning FGs in the fourth quarter.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 1, 2025
Violent attacks on innocent people are immoral. But we don't need xenophobic Trumpkins and irresponsible news media escalating tensions against immigrants as pathological liar RINO Trump has done since 2015. There is no "conspiracy", a product of feebleminded imaginations.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 2, 2025
First of all, Trumpkins don't know the meaning of "open borders". Second, union-backed labor-protectionist Democrats have opposed immigration and trade for decades; RINO Trump brought these economically illiterate policies with him.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 2, 2025
Immigration made America great. pic.twitter.com/lC043UUSVZ
Trump is trying to to reinstall the utterly corrupt Jacksonian spoils system. There is reason we got rid of this system where personal loyalty trumps quality public service. Trump's management by paranoia is mismanagement 101.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 2, 2025
First of all, xenophobes are anti-American. real Americans cherish our melting pot roots.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 2, 2025
Second, consider Trump against opinion cut legal immigration in his first term (Not so much illegal.)
From Gallup: https://t.co/A4TZyzVet4 pic.twitter.com/eMvG8zZPr7
Personally, I don't like or trust Trump's corrupt character; the dude bragged about his affairs in books. but more importantly, he has always been unqualified and bad in public sector experience, incompetent on policy, and wrong on the economy.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 2, 2025
At least he didn't compare himself to Christ like Lennon. For the record, though, the Pope doesn't draw a salary (his expenses are covered by the Vatican's budget), so even failed rappers can make the same claim. https://t.co/zBT15FiUIS
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 2, 2025
Oh, for God's sake! While I was growing up, people were comparing coincidences between JFK and Lincoln! https://t.co/103BRKcBi9 https://t.co/Zi8V9NEFf7
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 2, 2025
I'm glad to see the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals put an end to Dems' attempt to establish a federal power grab over the internet through the "net neutrality" euphemism.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 3, 2025
I don't get idiot Trumpkins' empty prosecution threats against Liz Cheney and other J6 investigators. They parrot every stupid thing that comes out of RINO Trump's mouth. It's like they never heard of legislative immunity. RINO Trump hasn't read that far in the Constitution.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 3, 2025
Every time I hear of Trump's grossly immoral plot to deport some 4% of de facto Americans, most law-abiding contributors to our economy, an artifact of economically illiterate quota systems, it reminds me of how he blamed Romney's cruel self-deportation policy for his 2012 loss.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 3, 2025
Now leftist hypocrites like Pete B do not apply representational (democratic) principles within state. For example, large portions of California do not favor leftism. A more democratic system would assign an electoral vote for a district's plurality winner.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 3, 2025
i'm tired of crackpot conspiracy theorists on both the left (RFK, Jr), right (Alex Jones) or independent (Ron Paul) hyping paranoid rubbish. https://t.co/4VruQ9YiNq
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 3, 2025
Hell no!
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 3, 2025
No. 49.8% of voters preferred Donald Trump by 1.5% points over a deeply unpopular VP who was a candidate for just 3 months.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 3, 2025
Biden gave a medal to a former Trumpkin for giving bipartisan cover to a largely partisan investigation on J6. Ms. Cheney committed political suicide knowing her constituents didn't support her stand against Trump. Cheney was Biden's useful idiot.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 3, 2025
Take, for example, the Dobbs decision reversing an unconstitutional nationalization of abortion policy. Chuck Todd of NBC was obsessed with the issue and GOP vulnerability. The Dems made it a cornerstone of their campaign. It wasn't why Biden/Harris had low job approvals.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 3, 2025
It's not just that the filibuster (yes, that institution which Senate Dems wanted to kill) is a powerful negotiation tool, but daily on X you'll find endless Trumpkin rants against moderate or independent minded Republicans who sometimes disagree with Trump, e.g., Massie.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 3, 2025
I am not a teetotaler like Trump (who, of course, had no problem with selling potato vodka), but my last glass of wine was maybe 4 years ago. There are other health risks with heavy alcohol use including liver damage. Don't expect consumers to read warnings: personal doctors!
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 3, 2025
Just to be clear: Matt Gaetz has been alleged to have sex with a minor for money, but he's not been found guilty in a court of law. The post was more a play on words with Trump's Advent calendar.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 3, 2025
I oppose Biden's corrupt action blocking the acquisition of US Steel by foreign producer Nippon on bogus national security grounds. It just goes to prove the Trump/Biden protectionist tariffs didn't work to strengthen the company's global competitiveness.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 3, 2025
Jeffries is yet another political hack, paying lip service to the false empty slogan that social security and Medicare are not entitlements. The government calls them so: pic.twitter.com/JXiS0zdsyh
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 3, 2025
Tom Massie's vote against Speaker Johnson's reelection to the post is another example of why he remains my favorite congressman. (It's complex because he's often a Trumpkin which tests my patience.) Trump has tried and failed to primary him in the past.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 3, 2025
Oh hell no. If I ever ordered Obama online, my account was hacked.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 3, 2025
I was listening to a Reason podcast interviewing Sister Helen Prejean, pro-life on capital punishment like me. I differ from her embrace of morally hazardous statist welfare programs. I agree with voluntary charity and the principle of Subsidiarity in any public welfare scheme.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 3, 2025
if Trump does what the OP advocates, i hope Merchan sentences the convicted felon to time in prison. Personally I think the judge is going to hit him with a heavy fine and maybe some probationary sentence. But f*ck Trumpkins.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 3, 2025
Nope. But identity politics is part of the reason why she lost. The American people are fed up with DEI crap.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 4, 2025
Nope. Trump is a criminal in NY state and he has no power over it as POTUS. It's not a federal case.https://t.co/bq9scaglvO
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 4, 2025
Nope. Trump got convicted despite stupid Trumpkins. He'll be sentenced like the criminal he is. I know a lot of people who voted for him but it was mostly against Biden and Harris, not because they are idiot cultists.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 4, 2025
Well, WWE swerved Smackdown as Lucy finally let Charlie Brown kick the football. Yes, Tiffany Stratton FINALLY cashed in her MITB contract post-match over champ Nia Jax after teasing a cash-in earlier in the championship match against Naomi, only to set up a Jax victory.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 4, 2025
No. Free trade provides competition benefitting consumers. Other countries have their own compatible standards. RFK, Jr. is engaging in xenophobic fearmongering, enabling higher markups at the expense of US consumers.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 4, 2025
What the leftist troll doesn't point out (conveniently) is that Biden/Harris didn't scale back Trump's tariffs, in fact added to them; note the hypocrite Kamala Harris during the debate made Trump's "sales tax" an issue. RINO Trump has always opposed trade, as have Democrats. https://t.co/1oKf2D9lpt
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 4, 2025
Trumpkins are so stupid they don't realize the Pledge was written by a socialist.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 4, 2025
I had to confirm Bonehead Trump actually said something this stupid. (Yup, Reuters reported it.) This is reading comprehension 101. Windmills generate power. Windfall taxes try to tax away surplus profits. pic.twitter.com/71t95cY8pA
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 4, 2025
Trumpkin morons like the OP are hypocritical bastards. Trump is the textbook definition of a RINO. Mitt Romney was 50X more successful as a CEO and would have been 100X better a President. Unlike dumbass corrupt Trump, Romney could govern with a Dem legislature & win a blue state
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 4, 2025
I have always thought that Romney's biggest mistake in 2012 was not flipping the Bush/Obama wars on Obama who had won office arguing he had opposed Gulf Region intervention (but lacking the judgment to exit them. Instead, he tried to run to the right of Obama if that was possible
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 4, 2025
Why did I as a libertarian like Romney? Because he was a stellar executive and a turnaround specialist. There's a saying in basketball: you can't coach height. When it comes to Trump, he's uncoachable, a dumbass who doesn't acknowledge his very real limitations
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 4, 2025
ABC covers some ESPN NFL regular season football games on Saturday, but won't cover their NCAA college playoff games? (ESPN is 80% owned by ABC.) I happen to think playoffs and championships should be on free TV.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 4, 2025
I was worried for a minute there was a college football bowl named after "Count Chocula".
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 5, 2025
I can't believe that the country singer Jimmy Charles who sang the national anthem before the Ravens/Browns game is trending. I have to admit it was probably the worst version I've ever heard, but I thought maybe it was just my opinion. Apparently not...
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 5, 2025
"National Anthem"
Well, if we're picking on Billy Joel songs, I'm the Catholic big brother to 4 little sisters who is not fond of "Only the good die young".
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 5, 2025
Well, I think Billy was the first to chart with his cover of Dylan's "Make you feel my love".
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 5, 2025
It reminds me of the hassles I had when I had to deal with registering as a new resident driver in WV. I had to make multiple trips to the DMV (and I had checked before my first trip). They demanded a copy of my apartment lease, but then the lease didn't include contact info.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 5, 2025
Nonsense. That is a particularly childish, polemical argument.
— raguillemette (@raguillemette) January 5, 2025
We libertarians oppose the concept of anything like a voter id. it's a pushing-on-a-string unconstitutional restriction which empowers the State over the individual. https://t.co/2i9Eeiz7vV
Quote of the Day
A man should never be ashamed to own that he has been in the wrong,
Savage Garden - I Knew I Loved You
The latest CDC weekly stats:
One of the prominent stories over the past week is the WHO is pressing China to share more data, particularly relevant to COVID-19 origins; for irs part, China argues it has been transparent.
Other related news items include:
After a blip of pageviews last weekend, the blog is back to a more regular pattern. No new essays published but I'm working on a couple of posts. On Twitter/X, my followers have surged up to 62, although it frequently seems to fluctuate daily.
I've tweeted or posted on this topic on multiple occasions , but I have a big problem with college playoffs and championships being on cable. More to the point, my Texas Longhorns were playing Arizona State in the second round, in this case the Peach Bowl. My cable bundle never included ESPN, and it's not like you can add a la carte channels for a modest fee. I think you have to upgrade to a bigger channel upgrade that probably costs like $50+ more to your monthly. and my bill is already $160+/mo. so in addition to my math MA, my middle brother has a chemical engineering degree, two nephews (different siblings) have engineering degrees, and a forensic analyst niece also got her degree there.
In my experience, the way things work if say you want to to view ESPN the app will have you sign into your cable provider. Then my provider tells the app it's not in my cable bundle, i get a sales pitch om upgrading my cable bundle. i was texting my brother and he was arguing with me, saying he was watching it free on the app. I don't know his circumstances (he recently moved back to Kansas).
I first tried to follow an Internet play-by-play but it was slow and died somewhere late in the first quarter. I ended up following some Google webpage refreshes showing possession and frequent but inconsistent play outcomes. So Texas had a compelling 3-possession lead. And then the lead evaporated in the fourth quarter, apparently including a pick-6, not to mention Texas had 2 makeable field goal attempts to put the game away in the closing minutes, but blew those. A lot of this was by way of my brother's texts. Overtime. I wasn't crazy about that; we just lost the SEC championship in OT against Georgia. it was impossible to follow anything in OT other than eventual score changes. We won in OT 2 when Texas intercepted Arizona State after Texas scored in their possession.
Quote of the Day
True love stories never have endings.Savage Garden - The Animal Song
"The song is about Ireland (personified as an “old woman”) and its four provinces (represented by “green fields”), one of which remains occupied (“taken”) by the British (the “strangers”) despite the best efforts of the Irish people (her “sons”), who died trying to defend them."
Savage Garden - Truly Madly Deeply
Quote of the Day
No man's life, liberty or property are safe
Savage Garden - To The Moon & Back
Quote of the Day
Nevër cut what you can untie.
Savage Garden - I Want You