We didn’t see this in New Orleans, but I endorse it heartily:
Swastikar gets bombarded at Mardi Gras
byu/funksonme inPublicFreakout
I also find this account from inside one of the Swasticars amusing:
New Orleans is a blue city in a bloody-red state, but still: Resistance. And resistance that means more than wearing a pink suit and holding up a little paddle. I mean, we’ve seen what a piece of crap a Cybertruck is — one of those beads might have shattered the windshield.
And this, Reddit informs me, is now a regular event at the Easton Tesla dealership in Columbus:
I guess if we’re going to save what’s left of this country, we’ll have to do it ourselves. Surely we can’t rely on anyone in Washington to do it:
Republicans on Capitol Hill are shying away from criticizing Donald Trump’s policies over fears for their physical safety and that of their families, a Democratic member of Congress has said.
Eric Swalwell, a Democratic representative from California, said his Republican colleagues were “terrified” of crossing Trump not only because of the negative impact on their political careers, but also from anxiety that it might provoke physical threats that could cause personal upheaval and require them to hire round-the-clock security as protection.
…“It’s their personal safety that they’re afraid of, and they have spouses and family members saying, ‘Do not do this, it’s not worth it, it will change our lives forever. We will have to hire around-the-clock security.’ Life can be very uncomfortable for your children.
“That is real, because when [Elon] Musk [Trump’s most powerful ally] tweets at somebody, or Trump tweets at somebody, or calls somebody out, their lives are turned upside down.
“When he tweets at you, people make threats, and you have to take people at their word. And so that is a real thing that my colleagues struggle with.”
Here’s my advice: Don’t take them at their word. Assume the people who make these threats are what they seem to be: Cowards. Live your life in the open. If someone yells at you in a restaurant, yell back, or spill your ice water on their shoes, or just look bored and snap your fingers for security to throw them out. Don’t hire around-the-clock security. Be brave. Public service isn’t all receptions at the French embassy. There are women all over the world who open their inboxes every day and find death threats, rape threats, threats most congress members haven’t even considered. Teach your children what bravery looks like.
(Noted: This didn’t work out for Salman Rushdie, true. But most of these people are indeed cowards. The odds are in your favor.)
But if you can’t find the strength to do this, please dispense with the pink and the paddles and the other empty gestures, which sound like something you’d hear discussed in the background chatter in a Woody Allen movie party scene. It just doesn’t pack the punch you think it does. Boycott the speech. A pink pantsuit is not bravery.
And now we’re back home. The shiner has progressed from Mardi Gras magenta to southwestern-sunset shades of muted purple and yellow. Most of the swelling is gone, but the browbone is still a little tender. I forget what I look like, and every time I pass a mirror I start a little, but oh well.
And Kate found a house! A cute, very nicely remodeled bungalow on the east side of Detroit. Still has to pass inspection, but I’m thinking it’ll work out.
The week begins, and already my to-do list is a mile long. First: Lunch. Then a workout. Hope your goes well.
Peter said on March 9, 2025 at 2:25 pm
I heard Eric Swalwell’s comments earlier in the week, but you repeating it just made me think of something: Why should these Republican congresspersons be afraid? Aren’t they all carrying a weapon? Didn’t they squeal when the metal detectors were brought into the Capitol because they couldn’t bring their heat onto the floor? Isn’t the main reason we don’t have gun control laws is so an honest American can defend themselves? THEY’RE the ones who are afraid of a death threat? Bunch of wusses.
500 chars
Ann said on March 9, 2025 at 3:12 pm
Ohh, I love Peter’s observation about how they all have guns so they can defend themselves so what are they afraid of. Good point.
That’s great about Kate’s house. There’s never a promise that a college grad will end up living anywhere near their parents but it looks like you’ve won the jackpot on this one. For more reasons than that, of course.
Marquette survived the great Marquette blizzard of 2025 and still had 200 people show up for an International Womens Day rally. It felt good to be doing anything.
519 chars
Charlie said on March 9, 2025 at 4:19 pm
My favorite Bluesky comment on the Guardian article was: those folks should have to read the email inbox of a woman sports writer. They’d have a breakdown.
157 chars
Sherri said on March 9, 2025 at 4:36 pm
The Dems who voted to censure Al Green are standing up for decorum. Standing up for decorum is standing up for the status quo. It’s like standing up for slavery as long as slave owners treat the slaves well.
You don’t stand for decorum when democracy is being dismantled.
https://www.thehandbasket.co/p/rep-al-green-democrats-suozzi-censure
351 chars
Sherri said on March 9, 2025 at 4:58 pm
So, if you’ll remember, Speaker Mike Johnson said he and his son monitored each other’s Internet usage to make sure they weren’t watching porn.
But he has no problem renting from a big money Republican donor, Lee Beaman.
“Beaman was once so fed up with the restrictions that came with owning a home on a “government-controlled lake” that he bought a sprawling property with a 50-acre private lake of its own, according to a profile in an architecture book. He became a fixture of Nashville media in recent years because of sordid allegations made by his fourth wife during their divorce, including that he made her watch what he called “training films” of him having sex with a prostitute. Beaman’s lawyers wrote at the time that his wife’s filing contained “impertinent and scandalous matter only meant to harass Mr. Beaman.”
Beaman makes his property in DC available to rightwing Congress members, and Beaman’s right wing pastor, right there to influence (but not lobby, no, that would require registration as a lobbyist, he’s just there to pray with them).
https://www.propublica.org/article/mike-johnson-evangelical-pastor-steve-berger-roommates
1190 chars
David C said on March 9, 2025 at 6:11 pm
I read this morning that Elon says he challenged Putin to a fight. I guess to try to deflect from his Putin ass kissing. What is it with him and claiming to challenge people to fights. Is he a jr. high school kid? Is it because of Ketamine? He seems to think it makes him seem tough, but it only makes him look like a bigger dipshit. Just in general, he seems to be going full Howard Hughes.
391 chars
Mark P said on March 9, 2025 at 7:19 pm
I said before the Democrats should have waited for Trump to start speaking and then walked out as one.
I wish Putin would take Musk up on his offer. I think Musk would run away like a big sissy.
197 chars