October 29, 2021

White House Communications Director, Kate Bedingfield is awesome.

I just saw her this AM and she is really really good. Joe & Kamala's press and spokespeople are all top notch.

October 28, 2021

It started raining but I still had a bunch of trick or treaters

Life is good.

Give me a fairy princess or a bumblebee and my heart
melts. Some stuff is priceless.

Happy Halloween 🎃 👻 🎃 👻 🎃

My Clintonville neighbors now want me to have Chilli and spiced rum.

October 28, 2021

At the end of the day politics is about the art of what is possible given the realities of ....

... what is there. And we can and must change those realities in '22 & '24.

This is a very good start and it is a good bill too. Yes, more things need to be done and they
almost certainly will but you have got to start someplace.

October 27, 2021

Are you fucking kidding me? Kyrsten Sinema's look at me moment.

Kyrsten Sinema Shredded for Wearing a Jean Jacket to Preside Over the Senate: ‘Does She Think This Is a F–ing Rodeo?’

Arizona Democrat Kyrsten Sinema wore a jean jacket vest Tuesday to preside over the U.S. Senate.

The throwback fashion statement — and we’ll call it what it was, tacky — wasn’t her first questionable choice or behavior that has drawn condemnation. But the utter surprise for those expecting a more professional sartorial demeanor — even from her — remained.

And it came at a crossroads, as congressional Democrats closed in on a deal for a domestic spending package. It’s something Sinema had previously stood in the way of, provoking anger among many of her colleagues in part because, in addition to trolling instead of engaging, she used it as part of an apparent attention-getting ploy.

https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/kyrsten-sinema-shredded-wearing-jean-001725851.html

October 21, 2021

Joe Biden is doing a great job and he has put together the best team I have ever seen.

The supply chain problems are not his fault but he is still working to fix it.

Republican obstructionists and 2 bought off Democratic Senators are not Joe's fault but he is still
working to get things done that the American people want to get done.

An ISIS suicide bombing in Afghanistan was not his fault but still he did the right thing in getting
us out of that unending war and pulled off the largest international airlift/evacuation in history.
The Taliban was escorting Americans and our allies to the airport and we did not lose one American.

Joe is not responsible for misinformation on Fox and the like along with Russian backed misinformation
on Facebook telling people that their free DUMBS are being hurt by getting a life saving vaccine and
trying to stop a global pandemic. Many republicans and their wealthy backers actively want the C-19
nightmare to keep going because they think that it will keep them in power because of a very Machiavellian
use of "chaos theory."

Joe is not responsible for the violence and brutal poverty in Central America that is MAKING people flee
their homelands and try to come here. However he has Kamala working on those tough issues with those
governments and international agencies and she is doing it quietly because that is what grown ups do.

Joe and Kamala have put together and are still building a new and very diverse Democratic party that will
be a juggernaut which will crush the republicans in most states in '22 & '24 if we get out and work. Joe's
got our backs so can we have his back?


BTW Joe is responsible for Jen Psaki and her daily ass kicking of turds like Doocy.



Jen's M.O., stupid question ... Then she does her head tilt, half smile, flips hair, nuclear powered laser beams from her
eyes (which we can't see), and then she drops the hammer. I want to have her children.

BTW I think this is a good time for me to take a break from DU for "a little bit."

October 20, 2021

Something really good in West Virginia

The Upper Gualey River. I might have one more trip in me. Class 5 Whitewater.

October 20, 2021

Liz Cheney, "Trump appears to have been 'personally involved in planning and execution of Jan 6 ....

insurrection."

No shit. Trump:

Helped to pay for it.

Gave out over a dozen invitations to the violence in which he gave the day, the date, the time, and the place.

Had his chief of staff Nick Mulvaney's niece fill out the paper work for the permit for his pre-riot pep talk.

Told the crowd to go and storm the Capitol so as to protect America's freedoms.

Fired Sec. of Defense Mark Esper and installed Christopher Miller who gave stand down orders to the D.C.
National Guard on 1/4/21.

Refused to call of his supporters when asked to do so from Rep. McCarthy and V.P. Pence.

Watched the violence and chaos on T.V. and did nothing.

Knew of planning sessions for the violence in 2 different D.C. Hotels.

And at the end of the day let the violent thugs walk away and told them that he loved them and was
proud of them. President Trump’s Chilling Message to Violent Mob Overtaking Capitol: "Go Home. We Love You, You’re
Very Special."

https://variety.com/2021/politics/news/trump-protesters-riot-capitol-video-1234879939/


*********

What Trump was looking for on 1/6/21 was to have so much violence up to and including the muder
of Speaker Pelosi & Vice President Pence so he could declare martial law and stop the Constitutionally
mandated transfer of power.

October 19, 2021

About Bumble Bees

Bumble Bee populations across America have fallen off drastically however there are some
simple things that you can do to help out this extremely important native pollinator. Give
'em food (native plants), water, habitat, and limit you use of insecticides and one person,
or one school, or one business can help our friend "the Bombus."

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/american-bumblebee-has-vanished-from-eight-us-states-180978817/

BTW joining and supporting the Xerces Society is good way to help to support all of our "little
critter friends." E.O. Wilson, "The Little Things that Run The World."

************

All bumble bees belong to the genus Bombus within the family Apidae. The family Apidae includes the well-known honey bees and bumble bees, as well as carpenter bees, cuckoo bees, digger bees, stingless bees, and orchid bees. Bumble bees are important pollinators of wild flowering plants and crops. As generalist foragers, they do not depend on any one flower type. However, some plants do rely on bumble bees to achieve pollination. Loss of bumble bees can have far ranging ecological impacts due to their role as pollinators. In Britain and the Netherlands, where multiple bumble bee and other bee species have gone extinct, there is evidence of decline in the abundances of insect pollinated plants. Bumble bees are also excellent pollinators of many crops.


Nesting

Bumble bees are the only bees native to North America that are truly social. They live in colonies, have different divisions of labor or castes, and have overlapping generations, usually with multiple broods throughout the spring, summer, and fall. However, unlike the non-native, European honey bees, the bumble bee colony has an annual life cycle. At the end of the summer the foundress queen, her workers and male offspring will all die; only the newly emerged, fertilized queens (gynes) survive to hibernate through the winter. In the spring, she will found a new nest that eventually may grow, depending on the species and available resources, to 50 – 500 individuals. Bumble bees need a cavity in which to build their nest. The queens are opportunists, looking for any suitably sized cavity. Sometimes this is above ground, such as in hollow trees, abandoned bird nests, rock walls, or under a tussock of grass, but they mostly nest underground. An abandoned rodent hole is a favorite, as this space is warm and already lined with fur.

snip

Foraging

Bumble bees are generalist feeders, often the first bees active in late winter (February) and the last in fall (November). Since they are active for so many months, they must be able to forage on a wide range of plant species in a wide range of weather conditions to support a colony. Early season, and late season resources are critical, as these are sensitive times of the year for successful establishment, and reproduction. Some individual bees in the colony choose to forage exclusively on a single species or a limited range of related plant species, effectively becoming specialist foragers. When foraging, the female bumble bee carries pollen in a concave, hairless area surrounded by stiff hairs on her rear legs, known as the pollen basket or corbicula. This basket can be seen clearly when it is empty⁠—and, when full, the pollen ball pressed into it is obvious.

Pollination

Bumble bees are able to fly in cooler temperatures and lower light levels than many other bees, and they perform a behavior called “buzz pollination,” in which the bee grabs the pollen producing structure of the flower in her jaws and vibrates her wing musculature. This causes vibrations that dislodge pollen that would have otherwise remained trapped in the flower’s anthers. Some plants⁠—including tomatoes, peppers, and cranberries⁠—benefit significantly from buzz pollination. In contrast to European honey bees, who make large amounts of honey so the entire colony can survive the winter, bumble bees only make a small amount of honey⁠—just enough to feed the colony for a couple of days during bad weather. Since newly-mated bumble bee queens hibernate, they do not need the vast quantity of honey found in honey bee hives.

https://xerces.org/bumblebees/about

October 18, 2021

ESPN reporter Allison Williams leaving network over COVID-19 vaccine mandate

ESPN reporter Allison Williams is leaving the network over her decision not to get a COVID-19 vaccine, Williams said Friday on Instagram.

Disney, ESPN’s parent company, has implemented a coronavirus mandate for all employees that will go into effect Thursday. Williams said last month that she was unvaccinated and planned to remain that way while she and her husband were trying to have a second child.

snip

The CDC has said that pregnant women can safely receive any of the three coronavirus vaccines available to Americans. An overwhelming majority of medical experts and health organizations have determined that the vaccine has no impact on fertility.

https://sports.yahoo.com/espn-reporter-allison-williams-leaving-network-over-covid19-coronavirus-vaccine-mandate-050701907.html

*******
She is a freaking college grad too. When did the brain eating worms get out into scoiety?

October 17, 2021

A must see! There has been a coup': Bernstein on Trump's role in January 6 riot

https://www.democraticunderground.com/1017687757

Are we country of laws or a lawless country?