We are all given to complaining this year, and who could blame us, but before 2020 slips away, I want to say some good things about the city I live near, but not in: Detroit.
Much maligned, particularly by dipshit Republicans who still think we stole Michigan, I was reminded of how well Detroiters (and others, yes) did one thing this year: Test for Covid.
Starting in the spring, the mayor and one of our local billionaires teamed up for a mass testing regime that worked better than I ever expected it would. One of the billionaire’s companies has phone-bank employees who were either idled or handling way less work than they normally would, and they went to work for this project. The city used the idled state fairgrounds to set up a drive-through with six or eight testing stations. You called a number, made an appointment, and once you arrived, never got out of your car. For the check-in, you didn’t even have to roll down your window. Once you were checked in, it was simply a matter of waiting your turn. I had three tests, and never had to wait more than 15 minutes.
Since cold weather arrived, they’ve moved it to an indoor facility, but it still goes smoothly: Arrive. Park in a numbered space. Call a number, tell them you’re there, and they come to you.
It’s not perfect. There’s no same-day service, so if you wake up with symptoms, you’ll still need to go to an urgent care or other facility. They also don’t do the rapid-response tests, so the wait can be anywhere from two to five days, but those are about my only quibbles. If you need a test for an upcoming trip, say, and if you’re capable of the simplest advance planning, it’s great.
Also, did I mention it’s free? It’s free if you live in Wayne County.
I took it for granted until the holidays approached, and I was discussing a possible visit with my sister-in-law, who is incredibly wary of this disease. “Just get tested a week ahead and we’ll do the same,” I said, but in her small city there is no such program. She’d have to go to a hospital, and all require a referral.
Detroit’s numbers have gone up with the onset of cold weather, like everyone’s have, but on a per-capita basis, we’re doing pretty well. I credit the testing program for a big part of this.
I also want to say something about the election, which is still chapping my ass, weeks later. I wonder if every dumbshit who shared a stupid meme about the TCF Center, or “just thinks something must have been wrong in all that business” ever considered what it takes to put on an election in a city with 500 precincts, in a pandemic, with a new law that makes absentee voting easier, etc. etc. When you consider all of that? This election went down like a cold drink on a hot day.
There was a lot of help and support involved in making this happen, granted. People with deep knowledge of election law and the foresight to see what was coming got involved. The city clerk hired as a consultant a former state elections director, a man of sterling reputation and ironclad nonpartisan status. And there was a lot of grant money pumped into the system, which bought new equipment, paid staff and enhanced training. Of course there were bobbles. Of course mistakes were made. But in the end, for all the crowing about “imbalanced precincts,” the total number of votes described in that phrase were around 400, in more than 250,000 cast. Not one race could have been changed by that number of votes.
I’ve written before about the barely concealed racism behind the endless complaints about Detroit, which is one reason I’ve lost all tolerance for those who cannot let this go. It’s one thing to lose. It’s another thing to be a sore loser. But it’s a third thing entirely to be a malevolent force in the service of an evil individual, and at this point I don’t think any other adjective is needed to describe President Trump.
But now it’s nearly 2021 — the sun is setting as I finish this up — and 20 days in, we’ll be rid of that p.o.s., at least in the Oval Office. Let’s hope, when the sun rises tomorrow, we can wish one another Happy New Year, and actually experience it.
I’ll see you all after the weekend.
David C said on December 31, 2020 at 5:02 pm
I sure hope Dominion goes ahead and sues Rudy’s star screen scrubber and anyone else sueable who was involved in all the BS. Too bad the city clerk’s office can’t sue the state lege’s Republican caucus.
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JodiP said on December 31, 2020 at 5:04 pm
Dahlia Lithwick had a great interview with the MI Secretary of State, Jocelyn Benson on the December 19th podcast, Amicus.
About ready to work my last few minutes in 2020. It’s been a really challenging year, given that I became a supervisor for the first time in August 2019. Lots of unknowns for 2021, as for many workers.
I had a great day yesterday. Three of the staff I support typically attend a court in which the people can get a bettter outcome if they work with a social worker. They were all off yesterday, which meant I covered. It was via Zoom, and it was so good to see the attorneys I worked with in the public defenders’ office and talk with clients!
2021’s gotta be better.
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Colleen said on December 31, 2020 at 5:29 pm
Happy New Year, Nancy and all the Nallites. Thank you for being a place online where I am not constantly faced with Trumpanzees and covid deniers and minimizers. It helps keep me from going around the bend. Well, this place and pharmaceuticals..
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Deborah said on December 31, 2020 at 5:55 pm
Happy New Year’s Eve to all. As everyone else we’re looking forward to this year being over. The saddest part for us besides the 338,000 deaths from Covid was the death of uncle J. The best part was the slower pace of life and the renewal of being thankful for small things and of course the election of Biden/Harris.
Every chore completed out here today at the Abiquiu cabin I said to myself “well, that’s the last time I will do that this year”. We go back to Santa Fe tomorrow and then Chicago on the 4th, that’s it until May. It was 14° this morning so waking up with no fire still going makes me sorta thankful for not being back until it’s warmer. Here’s to flush toilets for the next 4 or 5 months!
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Deborah said on December 31, 2020 at 6:07 pm
Oops we leave for Chicago on the 3rd and arrive there the evening of the 4th. I tried to edit but it didn’t seem to work.
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Jeff (the mild-mannered one) said on December 31, 2020 at 6:10 pm
Deborah, please give Pedernal a nod for me. Hope the sunset shone rosy on the Sangre de Cristos to your east tonight . . . and the moon rose over Truchas Peak!
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Sherri said on December 31, 2020 at 6:21 pm
Snopes is awarding their first ever Lamplighter awards, and they’re excellent.
https://www.snopes.com/2020/12/31/snopes-awards-2020-honoring-our-lamplighters/
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alex said on December 31, 2020 at 6:53 pm
As an ex-Chicagoan I find myself defending the city against smack-talking right-wingers all the time, rubes who buy into Fox and talk radio propaganda custom-tailored for God-fearing Americans.
Evidently God must be Black and a Democrat because that’s the only thing these people are afraid of.
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Julie Robinson said on December 31, 2020 at 6:53 pm
It’s a wild and crazy party tonight at Chez Robinson; just finished homemade chicken noodle soup and are contemplating a movie. Which makes it different from every other night only by what we cooked. But we’re safe and healthy, have a roof over our heads and enough to live on, so there’s nothing at all about which to complain.
It may be unrealistic to say Happy New Year since it’ll be months before enough of us can be vaccinated, so I’ll just send best wishes.
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Margaret said on December 31, 2020 at 6:57 pm
All of those companies and people need to sue the liars and defamers-hold their feet and their pocket books to the fire. Perhaps they’ll think twice about trying to pull such stunts in the future. It was easy to get a test in NY but is relatively difficult here where I reside. (without paying)
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LAMary said on December 31, 2020 at 8:01 pm
Easy peasy free testing here with results in less than 24 hours (usually). A friend who works at the Dodger Stadium testing location told me that the people working at the test site got free vaccinations. Good for them. Big night here. Pot roast, potatoes, carrots and green beans and my vote is to watch the movie Paterson on Prime. My friends the twin actors are in it. And it’s about Paterson, which is where Lou Costello, Bucky Pizzarelli, Chuck Connors and I were born.
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David C said on December 31, 2020 at 8:20 pm
Our county has free drive-in testing. Thankfully, I haven’t needed to use it.
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Julie Robinson said on December 31, 2020 at 8:56 pm
Our county has free testing too and you can even set up an appointment online. Results are 3.5 days though.
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Sherri said on December 31, 2020 at 9:01 pm
May 2021 bring better things for us all.
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Mark P said on December 31, 2020 at 9:05 pm
I’m not sure the racism is even barely hidden. It’s the same attitude people had and some still have about Atlanta.
There was no mass testing in my home town. Based on casual observation of mask wearing, there are a lot of people who still don’t think this disease is serious. They all seem to be white, except for their necks.
I am not enthusiastic about rapid antigen testing. I haven’t seen actual statistics on false negatives, but they are more common than with the PCR tests that usually take longer. I have seen recommendations that if you get a negative result in a rapid antigen test, you should be retested. On the other hand, if you get a positive, it’s almost certainly accurate.
I was surprised that T***p went back to DC instead of staying in Florida. I wonder what he has in mind. I can hardly wait for January 20 so we will no longer have to bear the indignity of having T***p as president.
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Dexter Friend said on January 1, 2021 at 2:59 am
There’s no easy testing here that I know of. If you get so sick you must go to the hospital, I suppose that’s a mandatory test. We are losing about 5 people to Covid19 every week or so as near as I can tell.
Stacey Abrams has done wonders and both runoffs are too close to predict, but I feel Ossoff will prevail but Warnock is facing big bucks, like billionaire-richest-Senator opposition’s $$$$, so it may split the state and keep the turtle in command. I write this with the assumption these polls are still trending so well, making me just a naysayer. https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/georgia-senate-polls/
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beb said on January 1, 2021 at 4:54 am
I think Trump went back to DC because all the real bootlickers were there. Or maybe he wanted a front row seat to the revolution perhaps exhort his followers from the White House balcony. It increasingly sounds like the 6th is going to be a real shit-show. And more and more I’d like to see Pelosi go nuclear on the Republicans and refuse to seat anyone who had signed on the Texas lawsuit. I’d like to see her refuse to seat anyone who attempts to challenge the Electoral College vote but that happens after the swearing in of the new Congress, I think. Perhaps she could read them The Riot Act about sedition and threaten to censure anyone making a fuss. Equally nice would be if the fucking NYT would list any challengers to the vote on their front page as breakers of the law. Republicans have no shame but it would be nice if for once the “Newspaper of Record” were honest about who is trying to blow up the place and who’s trying to govern.
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Suzanne said on January 1, 2021 at 8:48 am
I take no interest in polls any more. I just finished Michael Cohen’s book Disloyal in which he discusses how easy and often Trump was able to spend a bit of money and have someone easily manipulate polls in his favor. I don’t have high hopes for Georgia because it is Georgia, old times there are not forgotten.
Made it to midnight last night. Watched Death to 2020 on Netflix which was quite funny and some documentary on how Monty Python got started in which I learned that David Frost began in comedy, which I did not know. It also made us laugh. Kept switching channels for the NYE shows because they were all pretty lame starring celebrities I had never heard of. But the ball dropped, we drank champagne, 2020 turned 21 and can now legally drink, so I am a bit apprehensive about the new year.
Onward we go, full sails ahead, damn the torpedoes!
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David C said on January 1, 2021 at 9:07 am
We were up at midnight on NYE for the first time in I don’t know how many years. Only because some neighbor touched off a volley of fireworks. I bet that wasn’t a mask wearing, socially distanced party.
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Jeff (the mild-mannered one) said on January 1, 2021 at 9:09 am
Here’s the thought (and image) I’m starting 2021 with…
https://www.truthinsideofyou.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/I-don-t-know-where-i-m-going-but-i-m-on-my-way-Carl-Sagan.jpg
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Mark P said on January 1, 2021 at 9:30 am
My feeling has been that Warnock was doing better than Ossoff, but that’s based on nothing buy my observation that Warnock’s ads were so great and he looked so good compared to Kelly Loeffler. I hope they both win but it would be a huge upset.
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alex said on January 1, 2021 at 11:45 am
fivethirtyeight was giving some optimism yesterday. The turnout among youth has been as strong as it was in the general election, which has never been the case in a runoff before. It sounds like the Dem constituencies are highly motivated this time while Republicans discouraged by the general election may not bother with this one.
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Deborah said on January 1, 2021 at 11:45 am
I’m not interested in polls anymore either, big waste of time and anxiety producing.
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Dave said on January 1, 2021 at 1:21 pm
We watched a bit of the New Year’s Eve shows on broadcast TV until my wife got disgusted with it, said why do these women do this, and turned it off. We did see the ball come down and it was strange to see Time’s Square nearly empty. I know that is not an original thought but still.
We can only hope 2021 might be an improvement. I fear what that Orange moron might do in his remaining days in DC. Like the rest of us, our year has been not so good. This past month, we learned that our son and daughter-in-law in Virginia have decided to end their eleven year marriage and that has us bummed out. Three children and now this, we don’t understand all the reasons but we only know half the story, like always. No matter what, I still try to send some positive thoughts to Dexter everyday because his year was like none of the rest of us, Dexter, my goodness, I don’t know what else to say about that. Good wishes to all the regulars here.
Oh, and what Deborah said about polls, polls don’t give me much optimism anymore. During this most recent campaign, my next door neighbor complained about his landline ringing constantly, I suspect at least a few of those calls were for polls. I told him to get rid of it, why keep it. I think they’re going to do just that.
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Jessica Weissman said on January 1, 2021 at 1:52 pm
I spent the last hours of 2020 trying to do what remained of my annual donations. Every year I swear I’ll be more organized about it, and every year I’m not.
Then it was 2021 and a lot of fireworks went off in a lot of back yards, followed by a lot of happy yelling. The fireworks are illegal in my county, but very welcome. Irrational exuberance has its place.
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Heather said on January 1, 2021 at 2:03 pm
Happy New Year, all! Had a couple friends over for a fire in the pit out back. Even in 25-degree weather, with parkas, blankets, cocoa, etc., it wasn’t too bad and we lasted about three hours. Watched the fireworks in the neighborhood at midnight then laughed at the clips of drunk Andy Cohen and Anderson Cooper on CNN.
This morning I went out to clean up and my neighbor pointed out a black cat stuck up in a tall tree in her backyard! What kind of omen is this, I wondered. But then it got down by itself once we stopped staring at it and went inside to figure out a plan. So I think that’s a good sign–with enough courage and determination, we’ll get out of this mess.
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susan said on January 1, 2021 at 4:07 pm
Here’s another omen: January 20, 2021 is a palindrome.
Oh, maybe that’s not an omen, but cool serendipity.
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susan said on January 1, 2021 at 4:09 pm
Here’s another omen: January 20, 2021 is a palindrome.
Oh, maybe that’s not an omen, but cool serendipity.
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alex said on January 1, 2021 at 4:20 pm
My hubs was working in Chicago yesterday and wasn’t going to make it home in time to keep a late dinner reservation at our favorite hideaway. So I asked a friend to join me for dinner, then came home and passed out in a chair, where I woke up at 5:00 AM. Hubby got home just a little after midnight and said he was unable to shake me out of my stupor.
Today it’s ice storming, so I made a big batch of black bean soup from scratch. Here’s the recipe:
https://food52.com/recipes/78183-instant-pot-no-soak-black-bean-soup-with-alllll-of-the-toppings
Only divergence from the recipe — and I’ve been using this one for a while — is that I put in a whole tablespoon of paprika and also throw in a tablespoon of chili powder. I also cream it up with a submersion blender at the end.
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Sue Manion said on January 1, 2021 at 4:25 pm
I heard this today from a fellow Meals on Wheels driver after being wished a “Happy Better New Year”.
His response, ” Thank you, but if nothing changes, at least we had a year of practice, and hopefully we’ll handle it better.”
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LAMary said on January 1, 2021 at 9:35 pm
A bunch SoCal locals are whining on facebook about the Rose Parade being canceled. Best response I saw? Just show them last year’s parade and no one will know the difference.
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Dexter Friend said on January 2, 2021 at 12:57 am
I watched some canned show aired during what would have been the live Rose Bowl Parade. I was always told every float was made entirely of roses, which of course is a lie. The float creators use every vegetable and plant and anything else they need to build a float. I only watched 15 minutes. The Rose Bowl game was in Arlington, Texas on a last minute deal due to Covid19. This Wolverine fanatic tips his cap to Ohio State, who destroyed Clemson to make it to the final game, the championship game in 9 days.
It’s a weird weather thing, the grass is frozen and topped with nearly freezing rainwater, making dog-walking treacherous as hell. The streets are salted and OK; the sidewalks are like coiled serpents with black ice hiding to slip you up and down, kerplunk. I am extremely vigilant regarding ice.
I had New Year’s Day pork for good luck. Just a simple roasted tenderloin served with beans, and fresh fruit for dessert.
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LAMary said on January 2, 2021 at 2:58 am
Dexter, you haven’t been paying attention to the commentary during the parade all these years. They’re always talking about black onion seed and pampas grass and all that stuff on the floats. Float building volunteers are nuts. Aside from the highly regarded float designer people who are pretty bizarre themselves (one who died a couple of years ago was never seen without his parrot on his shoulder) the float decorators are fanatics. I worked with one. She pretty much killed any interest I had in watching anything other than the equestrian groups and the marching bands. The impact the parade has on Pasadena starts a good two weeks before. The town gets filled with RVs and there are people camping out on the sidewalks to save their spots. Huge bleachers are erected on parking lots and tickets for those seats are pricey. It’s best to just stay out of Pasadena. The city of Pasadena makes a lot of money from the whole thing and they’re unhappy with that lack of income this year.
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Deborah said on January 2, 2021 at 4:56 am
We were in Pasadena last year during New Year’s, my husband’s sister lives within walking distance of part of the parade route. There were people camped out on the sidewalks of the route and lots of vintage cars everywhere, it was crazy. I kind of wanted to see a bit of the parade itself but we opted not to. We left for NM the next day. Seems like 10 years ago.
Today is LB’s birthday.
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Mark P said on January 2, 2021 at 8:41 am
The new, more transmissible strain of the coronavirus is now in Florida. It’s pretty clear it will be everywhere soon, if it’s not already. Not good news.
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Deborah said on January 2, 2021 at 10:16 am
Nancy got me started on one word resolutions a few years back. Mine for 2021 is Breathe, partly because I’ve started meditating and want to keep it up and because now that we’ll have a new president and administration I hope to relax.
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Julie Robinson said on January 2, 2021 at 11:37 am
Happy Birthday to Little Bird! Hope it’s a good day, as good as can be in the middle of a pandemic.
My late BIL lived in Pasadena, close to where the parade was, and my MIL got a color TV just to watch it. After marching in parades for six years as a band member, I’m over them. They feel like a throwback to the 30’s, when people were easily amazed.
I think my one-word resolution is move. Move forward on projects, move more physically, and move to Orlando. Next year at this time, no more ice storms.
This morning I learned that wearing masks causes cancer. For realz.
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susan said on January 2, 2021 at 12:31 pm
Super-spreader New Year’s Eve pahty at Merde a Lardo. Holy $h!†. They’re partying like it’s 2019. Not a mask in sight. Unbelievable. They really do think they have a force-field around them. Wonder how many will get the Crap? There’s even one ancient Beach Boy playing. He’ll probably drop.
Also, too, they had to pay something like a thousand bucks ON TOP OF THEIR MEMBERSHIP FEE to party. The Grim Reaper ain’t cheap there.
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Jakash said on January 2, 2021 at 2:05 pm
Deborah, re: 36. This is out of my purview, but my wife is looking forward to a month’s worth of focusing on “breath,” courtesy of Adriene, the friendly, free, undemanding YouTube yoga mentor. Don’t know if she’s been mentioned here, or if you’ve heard of her, perhaps.
https://www.youtube.com/user/yogawithadriene
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/25/magazine/yoga-adriene-mishler.html
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Suzanne said on January 2, 2021 at 2:37 pm
Oh look! Indiana’s Senator Braun is engaging in open treason!
https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/532366-11-senate-republicans-say-they-will-object-to-electoral-college-results-on
Stay out of Indiana if you can help it. We have fully become part of the Deep South, full of ignorance, racism, and stupidity.
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David C said on January 2, 2021 at 3:07 pm
I’m glad we have Tammy Baldwin to take some of the sting away from having traitor and soon to be second dumbest Senator Ron Johnson.
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Brian stouder said on January 2, 2021 at 3:17 pm
Happy birthday to Little Bird!!
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LAMary said on January 2, 2021 at 3:24 pm
Ooooh. Vanilla Ice and the husks of the untalented Beach Boys were there at Mira Lardass. Groovy.
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Brian stouder said on January 2, 2021 at 3:32 pm
….and, regarding the marvelous city and region of Detroit, Michigan, the next time we’re up there (probably to visit Belle Isle), we’ll absolutely have to visit River Rouge, which I’ve yet to ever see. But, we digress!
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Mouse said on January 2, 2021 at 3:57 pm
LAMary Mike love and Bruce Johnston will whore out to anybody with a dollar.Brian wilson and Al Jardine disavow their performances as the Beach Boys—-Sad!!
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Bitter Scribe said on January 2, 2021 at 4:37 pm
Remember those “Sore Loserman” T-shirts Republicans were wearing after the 2000 election? Quaint, no?
Regarding Ted Cruz’s bumping Josh Hawley out of the way as the leader of the bitter-end change-the-election contingent in the Senate, two thoughts:
—Cruz’s colleagues are going to LOVE him for putting them on the spot like this. More than they already do, I mean.
—Let’s not forget that the No. 2 finisher in the GOP primaries was, yup, Ted Cruz. And he was also second only to Trump in obnoxiousness.
I predict a long period of political bleakness.
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susan said on January 2, 2021 at 4:58 pm
bitter @46— Too bad these mugs are sold out on Al Franken’s website. So are the etched pint glasses. Wonder Ayatollah Ted bought them all up to hand out as souvenirs to all his fellow seditionists. He probably thinks they’re funny.
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Little Bird said on January 2, 2021 at 6:08 pm
Thanks guys! This has actually been a fantastic birthday! I might not be able to spend time with my friends for this one, but it’s still been fabulous. I’m pretending that the world doesn’t exist for today.
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Jakash said on January 2, 2021 at 6:25 pm
Susan beat me to the classic Franken / Cruz take-down. The quote on those mugs is indeed an all-timer: “I like Ted Cruz more than most of my other colleagues like Ted Cruz. And I hate Ted Cruz.”
That being said, the fun of having that printed on a mug would not be nearly enough to prompt me to buy it, given that Ted’s mug is on the other side.
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susan said on January 2, 2021 at 6:41 pm
But Jakash, Al drew that caricature himself. That’s kind of cool.
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Jakash said on January 2, 2021 at 6:57 pm
Granted, Susan, it is cool, but I’d still have to look at Ted Cruz every day. I can do without that…
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LAMary said on January 2, 2021 at 8:07 pm
mouse, I really liked the Beach Boys. A friend was a roadie and I got to be back stage a few times. Mike Love was a jerk then, about 45 years ago, and I can’t imagine he’s better now. The Wilson brothers were ok. Carl was a good guy and Dennis was alright. Brian had a shrink with him, summer in Denver, wearing a floor length fur coat. The shrink stayed close by. I’m not at all surprised by Mike cashing in on the band name and entertaining at a MAGA party. They played at a trump rally in Orange County in the fall.
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Sherri said on January 2, 2021 at 9:11 pm
This thread is an insight into the level of logistics that is mostly unseen in the development of new drugs, and gives a sense of the level of logistics required for a massive new vaccine rollout (really, multiple vaccines). Given the caliber of people currently in political leadership in this federal administration, very little useful will happen until they’re gone.
https://twitter.com/kennwhite/status/1345515809880342528
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Sherri said on January 2, 2021 at 10:39 pm
Growing a beard didn’t make Ted Cruz’s face any less punchable.
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LAMary said on January 3, 2021 at 1:06 am
You are so right, Sherri. In fact I think it’s more punchable. He is such a terrible person.
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Dexter Friend said on January 3, 2021 at 2:09 am
LA Mary, I saw The Beach Boys in the summer of ’75 in the Fort Wayne Coliseum; it was hot as hell and most of the men fans were shirtless , me included. We were seated very close to the stage and it was a rockin’ good time, about the time you were hanging around them.
Here’s the only thing I ever did in Pasadena: My first wife and I saw George C. Scott in a movie, “The New Centurions”, about LA cops. Before that movie, I never had heard of drinking scotch with milk. I then drank that as a bed-time potion for years after.
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Deborah said on January 3, 2021 at 7:25 am
That Twitter thread about vaccine implementation was an eye opener. Rolling something out at that magnitude is mind boggling.
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LAMary said on January 3, 2021 at 11:11 am
Dexter, did you notice then that Mike Love did little other than hand jive to Little Old Lady From Pasadena? And yes, that was probably the year I saw them. They were playing Mile High Stadium with Santana and Fleetwood Mac.
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Mouse said on January 3, 2021 at 11:41 am
I also saw the Beach Boys in Ft. Wayne probably 1990,Brian Wilson wasn’t touring with them then,still a good show but just not the same without Brian.Mike Love has some kind of agreement with Brother Records which allows him to use the BB name only if he uses only male vocalists in his shows and only preforms certain hits in their shows.Strange,Brian Wilson who IS the BBs has to preform under his name while Love gets to use the BB name.I’m sure there is a hefty fee involved but it upsets my rock and roll sensibilities. The BBs whoring out to the Orange King and their ilk is just not right.
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alex said on January 3, 2021 at 11:50 am
On the bright side, il Douche had a hissy and didn’t attend, so all the idiots who paid big money to see him on New Year’s Eve got screwed.
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Mouse said on January 3, 2021 at 12:03 pm
Brian Wilson strongly objected to the BBs preforming the Orange County rally but legally could do nothing about it.He an Al Jardine signed a petition objecting to the group playing at some kind of safari convention that Donald Trump Jr. was the keynote speaker of.Didn’t want anybody thinking he endorsed anything the Trumps were involved in.
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beb said on January 3, 2021 at 12:49 pm
I was never interested in the Beach Boys. By the time I started listening to music the surfing thing was over. I was more into the rock and roll of the British invasion.
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basset said on January 3, 2021 at 12:50 pm
I saw the Beach Boys at Assembly Hall in Bloomington around the same time, 1975 or so… outdoor show that was rained out and moved indoors, building was over full but that just made it better. As I remember, they opened with “Wouldn’t It Be Nice,” reaction was pretty good but they did “Little Deuce Coupe” next and the crowd just went insane, have rarely seen that much of a reaction. I remember someone who I think was Brian Wilson walking around the wings pre-show wearing a bathrobe.
Saw him at the Ryman in Nashville a few years ago, he had a young band which played and sang everything perfectly but he mostly stood around looking vacant, it was pitiful.
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Jakash said on January 3, 2021 at 1:25 pm
I never really cared much about “the beach,” never even considered the possibility of surfing (which was easy to ignore as I’ve had few actual opportunities in a lifetime), but I loved the Beach Boys. I’ve got an original vinyl copy of Pet Sounds that’s still viable.
For some reason, I missed them when I should have seen them, but saw them in some bastardized version decades later. Then saw Brian Wilson once and pretty much had the same opinion of that experience as Basset.
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LAMary said on January 3, 2021 at 1:25 pm
Slate described the festivities at Mira Lardass as the worst bar mitzvah you’ve ever been to. A highlight was Donny Jr. attempting to dance to Vanilla Ice performing Play That Funky Music White Boy. I saw whatserteeth Guilfoyle on the video wiggling to Ice Ice Baby, which is so perfect.
Correction. It wasn’t Slate. Probably NY Mag,
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David C said on January 3, 2021 at 1:34 pm
I think it was Digby who said it looked like a convention of insurance salesmen at the ballroom of the Ramada Inn in Cleveland.
I saw, or mostly just heard, the Beach Boys at the Ionia County Fair. I imagine they play a lot of county fairs. I mostly just heard because the people in front of us were standing on their chairs through the whole thing so I just saw their asses. It’s not like they have a riveting stage show anyway. Just a bunch of old gits playing songs I’ve heard thousands of times.
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Sherri said on January 3, 2021 at 2:06 pm
The new Congress convenes today, and Marjorie Taylor Greene, (QAnon-GA), demonstrates she’s going to make a run for Louis Gohmert’s title of dumbest member of Congress by refusing to wear a mask for swearing in and being escorted off the floor. Of course, newly elected Luke Letlow of Mississippi dropped out of the running by dying of COVID before he could even be sworn in.
You know, I’m sure there are Democrats who are not the brightest bulbs, but I don’t think they’re operating in the same league as these people.
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Brian stouder said on January 3, 2021 at 3:04 pm
You know, every time I think our ship-of-state has hit bottom, our out-going POTUS finds a deeper fissure for us to continue the plunge. I mean, good God! (Georgia is now on EVERYONE’s mind!)
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Suzanne said on January 3, 2021 at 3:51 pm
You all have probably heard this already. Trump called the Georgia Secretary of State and asked him to cheat and “recalculate” the election results in his favor.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-raffensperger-call-georgia-vote/2021/01/03/d45acb92-4dc4-11eb-bda4-615aaefd0555_story.html
Not that it will probably matter to the GOP.
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David C said on January 3, 2021 at 4:40 pm
The Post has now released the entire recording (just got whacked on Twitter for calling it a tape – but I’m old). I’ll have to wait for others to listen. I can’t listen to one more second of that jackass’s braying.
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alex said on January 3, 2021 at 5:40 pm
I just read the transcript. Can’t stand the jackass’ braying either. President Karen.
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Jeff (the mild-mannered one) said on January 3, 2021 at 6:05 pm
Lord, give me the quiet calm & courtesy of a Brad Raffensperger the next time I have anyone venting & ranting & rambling & threatening & belaboring all over me in a conversation. That is all for now, Lord: Amen.
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Suzanne said on January 3, 2021 at 7:32 pm
No kidding, Jeff(TMMO)! Raffensperger deserves a Congressional Medal of Honor for not spewing out a tapestry of profanity when Trump badgered him over and over and over. Unreal. I hope he got himself a stiff drink after he hung up.
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susan said on January 3, 2021 at 7:57 pm
I just called Speaker Pelosi and my Congresswoman telling them to start impeachment proceedings tomorrow morning, if not tonight, dogdammit. Trump trying to intimidate the Georgia Secretary of State to change to outcome of the Georgia election is criminal. That shit-head has gotten away with so much in four years, he should NOT get away with this one. Even though there are only about two weeks until Biden takes over, so what.
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Deborah said on January 3, 2021 at 8:41 pm
We’re at the Hampton inn in Catoosa, OK, halfway from Santa Fe to Chicago. Quiet here hardly anyone around, thank goodness. OK is a major hotspot, we’re getting tested in Chicago on Tuesday.
So I’m away from the Internet for awhile on the road and Trump has sunk even further into the mire. How low can he go the next few weeks?
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Brian stouder said on January 3, 2021 at 9:42 pm
Here’s wishing continued safe travels to you and yours. I love traveling, but would be trepidatious in 2021
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LAMary said on January 3, 2021 at 9:50 pm
I think Raffensperger and his lawyer should have a big high five after that call. Unless they’re not in the same place, then a virtual one.
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Sherri said on January 3, 2021 at 10:00 pm
Raffensperger is not a hero, he’s a standard-issue Republican who does voter suppression the ordinary Republican way, by removing people fro the voting roll. That he’s not as venal as Trump or Cruz or Hawley does not make him a hero.
https://msmagazine.com/2020/12/08/barbara-arnwine-black-voters-matter-fund-transformative-justice-coalition-rainbow-push-coalition-voter-suppression-georgia-brad-raffensperger/
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alex said on January 3, 2021 at 10:43 pm
I see Raffensperger as a victim. Trump threw him under the bus and now he has to live in fear of vigilante nutters. Terrible thing to do to anyone, even a Republican.
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Sherri said on January 3, 2021 at 11:28 pm
Nope, not a victim, either. Of course Trump threw him under the bus, that’s what he does. Just because Raffensperger finally found a line he wouldn’t cross, despite supporting Trump to now, doesn’t make him a victim or hero. He had plenty of evidence of what would happen, and plenty of time to walk away before now.
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Jeff (the mild-mannered one) said on January 4, 2021 at 8:13 am
People Magazine, I’m telling you, there’s nothing wrong with recalculating. Navigation devices do it ALL the time. I just KNOW I won “Sexiest Man Alive,” I’m sure of it. I ask folks if they think so, and they always say “Sure Jeff, sure.” I hear that all the time, so it’s clear to me, I won. There’s no way Michael B. Jordan beat me. I mean, I don’t find him all that attractive, all those bumpy tattoos and stuff he had on, and the way he treated T’Challa? Under Wakandan law, that should be a criminal offense right there. But all I’m asking, not a unanimous vote for me, just get me enough to win. It’s what, seventeen, twenty editors voting on this? I just need eleven, then. Eleven lousy editors voting for me when we all know I won, fair and square. Don’t leave me feeling like a schmuck here.
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Mark P said on January 4, 2021 at 8:53 am
Sherri, you’re right, Raffensperger remains a Trump Republican, and that means not a hero and not a victim. Not even a decent person. A decent person would have rejected Trump long ago, and he still does not.
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JodiP said on January 4, 2021 at 8:59 am
Some days, mainstream newspaper headlines read like The Onion. OK, that’s been pretty much every day. Here’s my pick from WaPo today: Trump to give Nunes the presidential medal of freedom. I can’t read the article.
We finally got enough snow to XC, so my personal life improved 100%. Met up with friends on Saturday. I also learned in recent years that a local XC organization has partnered with the city parks board to make snow in more areas. So, more skiing for me despite climage change.
Sherri is absolutely right about Raffensperger.
Jeff, I would of course vote for you in exchange for arranging a hotel deal.
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LAMary said on January 7, 2021 at 7:26 pm
Nunes AND Jim Jordan. Two presidential medals of schmuckness.
I had a navigation device that sounded like the woman was drunk. I think it was all the street names in LA that did it. Figueroa, Cahuenga, La Cienega, Sepulveda. All slurred and accented on the wrong syllable. She also said “recalculating” strangely. The TING part was enunciated very precisely.
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