We all knew that when Trump was elected he was going to fill the executive branch and the courts with extremists, incompetents, and ideologues. That’s pretty much a given unless the Donald undergoes some miraculous personality transformation. Now, according to BuzzFeed, his transition team has aseembled a list of potential nominees for Cabinet posts. It does nothing to calm my fears.
Note that this is tentative; as BuzzFeed notes:
The list of 41 names, obtained by BuzzFeed News, covers 13 departments, the attorney general, Office of Management and Budget, White House chief of staff, and White House counsel.
A source familiar with the list stressed it was not final, and it is unclear whether transition officials have narrowed it down or added more potential candidates for consideration by Trump.
Still, have a look at it. The most egregious is Ben Carson being vetted for Secretary of Education or Health and Human Services; this is a man who is a full-bore Biblical creationist. Chris Christie is entangled with criminal conspiracies, and as for Newt Gingrich and Sarah Palin (seriously, Secretary of the Interior? Shades of James G. Watt!), I have no words.
As I said, the real cabinet may be very different, but I think its ideological slant won’t be too far off from this.
We’re in for a rough four years. Here’s the list from BuzzFeed:
List of Potential Trump Cabinet Nominees:
Attorney General:
Gov. Chris Christie
Attorney General Pam Bondi
Sen. Jeff Sessions
Former Mayor Rudy GiulianiSecretary of Commerce:
Christie
Former Nucor CEO Dan DiMicco
Businessman Lew Eisenberg
Former Gov. Mike Huckabee
Sen. David Perdue
Former Sen. Jim TalentAgriculture Secretary:
Gov. Sam Brownback
National Council of Farmer Cooperatives CEO Chuck Conner
Gov. Dave Heineman
Texas Agricultural Commissioner Sid Miller
Former Georgia Gov. Sonny PerdueSecretary of Education:
Ben Carson
Hoover Institution fellow William EversSecretary of Energy:
Venture Capitalist Robert Grady
Businessman Harold HammSecretary of Health and Human Services:
Former New Jersey state Sen. Rich Bagger
Ben Carson
Newt Gingrich
Gov. Rick ScottSecretary of Homeland Security:
Christie
Sheriff David ClarkeSecretary of the Interior:
Gov. Jan Brewer
Gov. Mary Fallin
Grady
Hamm
Oil Executive Forrest Lucas
Rep. Cynthia Lummis
Former Gov. Sarah PalinSecretary of Defense:
Former Gen. Mike Flynn
Stephen Hadley
Rep. Duncan Hunter Jr.
Sessions
Former Sen. Jim TalentSecretary of State:
John Bolton
Sen. Bob Corker
GingrichTreasury Secretary:
Rep. Jeb Hensarling
Businessman Carl Icahn
Banker Steven MnuchinChief of Staff:
Reince Priebus
Director of Office of Management and Budget:
Sessions
Secretary of Labor:
EEOC Commissioner Victoria Lipnic
Veterans Affairs:
Rep. Jeff Miller
White House Counsel:
Donald McGahn
To read more about the awful Trump Cabinet that may be in store for us, read New York Magazine’s speculations, though they devalue their article by using Millennial lingo and referring to men by their genitals: “The Trump Cabinet is Shaping Up to be a Total Sausagefest.” (Imagine what people would say if I published a post saying “The Huffington Post List of Editors is Shaping Up to be a Total [insert your favorite term for female genitalia here]Fest!) After all, the vast majority of its editors are women.
Scientific American has already reported that Trump chose a climate-change skeptic, Myron Ebell, to head his EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) team:
Ebell is a well-known and polarizing figure in the energy and environment realm. His participation in the EPA transition signals that the Trump team is looking to drastically reshape the climate policies the agency has pursued under the Obama administration. Ebell’s role is likely to infuriate environmentalists and Democrats but buoy critics of Obama’s climate rules.
Ebell, who was dubbed an “elegant nerd” and a “policy wonk” by Vanity Fair, is known for his prolific writings that question what he calls climate change “alarmism.” He appears frequently in the media and before Congress. He’s also chairman of the Cooler Heads Coalition, a group of nonprofits that “question global warming alarmism and oppose energy-rationing policies.”
Any tears left? The Daily Kos reports that “The architect of the most racist law in American history has been named to Trump’s team.” The man is Kansas’s Secretary of State, Kris Kobach, and the law is this:
Why should this terrify you? Because Donald Trump has just named one of the most racist politicians in all of America to his transition team. Kris Kobach was the architect of the most racist law in modern American history. SB 1070 passed in Arizona in 2010. What did it mean? If you have brown skin or an accent, police had a right to stop you, detain you and demand you prove your citizenship.
Arizona’s S.B. 1070 compels police to ask for papers from anyone they have a reasonable suspicion of being without status. Under this law any person of color, or anyone with a foreign accent, can be required to prove their status and be jailed—regardless of whether they are a citizen or an immigrant—until they can do so. The Supreme Court indicated that prolonged detention would be impermissible, but people’s rights will likely be violated before that limitation can be enforced.
By targeting certain groups of people living within the state, the Arizona law amounts to an ethnically divisive and deeply hostile social policy. It raises the specter of states treating people differently based solely on their appearance rather than on their actions. Every person in Arizona and states that pass S.B. 1070-like legislation will be required to carry proof of their legal status at all times or face the possibility of being detained. In practice it will be people of color that bear the brunt of these policies.
It was nicknamed the “Papers Please” law and thanks to Kris Kobach and the right-wing ALEC (American Legislative Exchange Council), two dozen copycat bills quickly spread to other conservative states. Can you imagine walking down the street and police having the power to stop you and your children and throw you in jail on the suspicion alone that maybe you don’t belong? Because you have brown skin or an accent? Terrifying, right?
Kobach has also spoken before white nationalist and anti-immigration groups. Welcome to Götterdämmerung.
Could all of this mean that low intelligence is dominate. I would rather see the studies than to experience it in real life.
“Dominant.” 😉
Which one was the former chicken farmer?
“Perdue” is a brand of mass produced grocery-store chicken, with its farms and factories located in the southeast, so I’m guessing the Perdue of Georgia, named on the list.
Nous sommes perdu(e)s
Zeh ha-emet gadol.
(Translation: Boy, is that ever true!)
Mine was a Himmler reference but I’m even more sad to know there may actually be one among his elite.
I can’t call it a silver lining, but this is a recipe for such a complete disaster that the midterm elections are a chance for Democrats to do what the Tea Party did in 2010.
All assuming Democrats can get their act together.
In any case we are in for a very terrible time.
I’m not all that up in my politics, so I’m not sure how many of these choices represent the power elite of the Republican party, and how many of them represent the kook fringe.
If the latter predominates, then that makes it more likely that the Republicans will go into containment mode when it comes to Donald Trump trying to throw his weight around and Get Things Done Around Here. He might be stonewalled. Or he might be flattered into focusing his attention on crap which isn’t really all that significant, like picking the official National Rock (“We don’t have one! History will sing the praises of the president who remedies that catastrophe!He’d have to be pretty powerful, though … and brave.”)
Granted, mainstream Republicans are bad enough. But I’m hoping that even they have a lunatic fringe, and wouldn’t be too happy about being associated with it, let alone doing its bidding.
Funny thing about that; sometimes you can look from pig to man, and from man to pig, and from pig to man again, but it’s impossible to say which is which.
Yes, Napoleon.
George Orwell-Animal Farm.
House maybe, possibly, could be but senate no way. There are only 8 republicans seats up for election while 20-30 democrats. So, Democrats have to win all of their seats and 6 out of 8 Republican seats to break their majority. In other words, it is not going to happen. Senate majority is going to be Republican for the entire time Trumpard is the President.
Perhaps. But I’ll note that we’ve been surprised before. The Republicans can’t own the almost-certain consequences of their complete control forever.
Sorry but that is highly highly unlikely. These are the seats up for grab from R:
Arizona, Mississipi, Nebraska, Nevada, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Wyoming.
Which six are going to pick to become D, while keeping the other 25 D seats D as well? Remember that this the same country that *re-elected* G. W. Bush. It is far more likely that R add more seats to their majority than the other way around. D majority is nothing but a piped ream at the moment.
I don’t think you have the math right. In a 52/48 Senate you have to pick up three, not six. I would think Nevada and Arizona are reasonable possibilities.
But I agree, it is a long shot from a math point of view. Where things can change is where the angry electorate remains angry, and gets angrier.
Time will tell.
Brownback of Kansas? The guy who destroyed the state’s economy? That Brownback?! He is a disaster all by himself. Combine his mentally with the likes of Palin, Gingrich, Ben Carson, Huckabee, and Christie, and we have the team to drop the IQ of this country’s leadership lower than anywhere else in the industrialized world.
Some Veteran’s (Veterans’?) Day/Culture Wars humor:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/editorial-cartoons-for-november-2016/article32562195/
Sarah Palin can see lots of federal land from her home in Alaska, that certainly qualifies her doesn’t it? :p
Silver lining – Tina Fey gets to do more great sketches on Saturday Night Live.
Her first proposal will be to build a wall to protect people from bears.
That’s very likely. Silver lining – most American bears have already applied for Canadian citizenship.
LOL!
Two walls. One to protect the people from Canadian bears, and another to protect people from Russian walruses.
Is the Alaska-Canada border shorter than the US-Mexico one? Wouldn’t it be easier to move the people of the USA to Alaska, and then build the wall there?
Brilliant idea! Plus, all that open land available for Trump This and Trump That building. Now, if only we can convince Trump to get there and start before the rest of us.
Joke’s on her: Putin gets take-backs on Alaska.
oooooooo…
I just read on 5.38 that the median household income of trump voters across the country was 72,000 US$ – about 10,000 above the average. This was considerably higher than the median income of Hilary voters.
http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-mythology-of-trumps-working-class-support/given more voters entitled to vote did not vote than voted for trump
Now forming a great team of radicals and racists.
Huffpo are twats. their “poll” predicted 92.1% of voters would vote Hilary!
“Huffpo are twats. their “poll” predicted 92.1% of voters would vote Hilary!”
If you are referring to the official Huffington Post polling staff then no, they did not predict that 92.1% of voters would vote Hillary. Actually, they gave Hillary over a 98% chance (probability) of winning. This was bad enough.
The two lowest income brackets voted in favor of Hillary. The higher the bracket, the more it favored Trump. But that is likely because the higher the bracket, the whiter it is.
I am getting sick and tired of this kind of stuff “The higher the bracket, the more it favored Trump. But that is likely because the higher the bracket, the whiter it is.”
Please tell me why being white is a crime unto itself. What generalisation can you make on me being white.
“why being white is a crime unto itself”
Can’t dance?
“What generalisation can you make on me being white”
Frequent summertime use of sunscreen?
Or wealthy for that matter.
Peter, sadly, Trump got the majority of the white vote.
https://news.vice.com/story/white-people-voted-to-elect-donald-trump
(I know, I don’t identify with those whites, either.)
White women especially — they split 50/50 between Trump and Clinton. for chrissake.
Guess I shouldn’t be surprised by the treachery of white women, though; they’ve laid low more brothers than Kools, Colt 45, and pork products combined.
“White women especially…”
I know–so ineffably depressing! Lotta Stockholm Syndrome going on with some of them, IMO, and that faction–well Trump’s supporters overall–were more motivated to come out and vote, I think.
I’m sure you heard about the thousands of women who visited Susan B. Anthony’s grave on election day, and about Hillary’s election night headquarters with a most symbolic glass ceiling. So sad.
” . . . the thousands of women who visited Susan B. Anthony’s grave on election day.”
I wonder if any visited Elizabeth Cady Stanton’s.
I wondered that, too. I wouldn’t be surprised. The only one I heard about was Anthony’s, though.
“Please tell me why being white is a crime unto itself. What generalisation can you make on me being white.”
A fairly well known female SJW on youtube, who I often disagree with, tweeted something along the lines of “fuck you white male America” on Wednesday, (2/3 of whom voted for Trump). First of all I never took that personally because I know I’m not one of those she’s talking about, and secondly I recognized that at heart she and I have a lot more in common than we differ. I empathize with her pain, and I’m not going to criticize her for expressing that pain as she did.
Yuck! Not the unctuous Newt Gangrenich, that disgusting POS.
And Carson as Secretary of Education has to be a joke, right?
“And Carson as Secretary of Education has to be a joke, right?”
It would make a terrible Onion story because it would be too obviously a satirical.
Ronald Reagan’s education secretary tried to dismantle the agency. I would not be surprised if the attempt was made once again.
Reagan had a Republican Senate, but the House was Democratic throughout his term of office. Trump has the trifecta, which makes him more dangerous. Plus, he automatically gets to nominate a justice to SCOTUS.
I’m not so sure about the SCOTUS vacancy. Here’s a whitehouse.gov petition calling for Obama to appoint Garland before he leaves office, on grounds that the Senate has waived its right to advise and consent by refusing to hold a confirmation hearing.
It seems likely Obama has thought of this already, and has had his legal team quietly researching this option in case of a Trump victory. So I would not be flabbergasted if we hear some announcement about this in the next few weeks.
Meanwhile, signing the petition can’t hurt.
Obama said he wouldn’t do that. I’m not sure that having the last thing you do in office as going back on your word is the best thing for your legacy. A recess appointment would expire in 2017 anyway, if not confirmed by the Senate. If the Dems had taken the Senate, this might work, but alas…
I think Obama is right.
Could you imagine the cache of goodwill Trump could earn by re-submitting Judge Garland’s nomination after the inauguration, as a magnanimous gesture of appreciation to Obama?
Probably never happen, but still. This is all a strange vortex of unknowableness right now.
Maybe like his janus-faced tweets? We have a labile beast with a personality disorder in the White House. Who knows how bad it will get, but there will most certainly be blood.
He might do that, knowing that not too far in the future he might have the opportunity to appoint a couple more justices.
Racist pig
The schadenfreude is about to commence.
Merry Christmas America.
It was obvious from the start of his campaign that Trump knew next to nothing about policy and had little inclination to learn. I think he envisions his role as president is to be the chief P.R. man for the country. Policy will be formulated through a combination of his underlings and the right-wing congress. He most likely will approve any bill or regulation that lands on his desk. He probably has little knowledge or concern regarding the views of these potential nominees and will go along with the recommendations of his alt-right advisors such as Steve Bannon.
The next four years will not only be hell for liberals, but also for the teeming masses that view Trump as their savior. They will only grow angrier as America is not made great again and the country has not magically returned to 1955. The great unknown is how they will react to yet another bitter disappointment. Perhaps they will give Democrats landslide victories. Or, will they turn their adoring eyes to an emerging unequivocal fascist? We’ll find out, but I fear that we will not like what we will see.
I think you’ve nailed exactly how his “Administration” will function.
He was hired to “destroy the establishment” and “Make America Great Again”, but instead it appears he’s setting course to “make the establishment great again” and “destroy America.”
I’ve thought of that scenario as a kind of silver lining – things deteriorate so people turn to the “center” to recover. But, it also occurs to me that 4 years will not be enough time for that desirable outcome to unfold, so we’d have to start thinking about a two term Trumpfest.
Several Democrats (Schumer and Sanders among them) are pushing Keith Ellison to be the new chair of the DNC. If this happens, the party will swing far to the Left, a mistake in my opinion.
Curious to know who you would suggest instead?
It appears that the Bernie wing is out for DNC blood.
Howard Dean or Martin O’Malley. Andrew Cuomo would be great, but he thinks he’s going to be the next president.
From here in Europe I’m more concerned that the sane voices in the intelligence community who opposed Trump, effectively excluded themselves from any influence at all on future foreign policy.
I fear very much that the consequences for the rest of the world will be immeasurably worse than the will be for the US itself.
Yes. America possibly could get away with some years of isolationist policy, but I fear what Putin and Erdogan are expected to do in our dear old Europe. If only we Europeans were able to get our sh*t together!
Trump could pull an Erdogan on those who opposed his election, especially if they work inside his administration (i.e., the administrative branch of federal government). I fear he will Trump will be more Erdogan than Dutarte, but he will be somewhere in between. At least, the Dutarte side puts him at greater risk of impeachment.
Trump didn’t get where he is by playing fair or nice. He is an expert at attacking his attackers with a viciousness beyond whatever his targets could have imagined, before attacking him. They necessarily run scared. He is a very dangerous person.
…and I fear that those who are saying “the left is responsible for the rise of Trump” etc, are underestimating the strength and intentions of the tsunami that just hit them.
How does Ben Carson like his Vanguard News Network buddies. Are they everything he hoped they would be?
I had to google that. It came with this, right on the Google page: http://www.vanguardnewsnetwork.com/category/jewed-foreign-policy/.
Antisemitism.
I’m out of here. Anyone else want to make aliyah? I’ll keep a spare room available.
Pam Bondi accepted a large campaign donation from Trump just before deciding to dismiss Florida’s Trump University case. So much for draining the swamp.
The real pay to play.
That is not even the worst part. She was so bad at the states attorney office in Hillsboro county they made her a spokesperson to keep her away from cases. From this she failed upwards by getting elected to SA of Florida. If only she was corrupt but she is corrupt plus stupid and incompetent.
Good grief. It’s worse than I knew! SMH.
The only way for a sane person to deal with the coming clusterf**k is humor. I cannot take this as anymore than a yuuuuuge joke. We all know it’s a recipe for disaster and the situation cannot last. The level of incompetence has already raised G W Bush’s administration rating from worst ever to benign. Think about this: Palin has more experience in government than Trump! And speaking of ratings the Chinese are expected to lower America’s credit rating fearing Trump will declare bankruptcy and stiff them.
Luckily for America money is the paramount concern in life. Once Trump’s policies start costing the wealthy money they will want him out. Lowering educational standards and wages will generate more profit in the very short term but over time it will have the opposite result. So it is going to get a lot worse very quickly but Trump will never finish his term. The insane cannot run the asylum and we are talking insanity here
Mike Pence, also insane, will take over.
And Pence is a bible thumper. At least Trump seems disconnected from personal religious belief.
Speaking of which (insanity), it’s really too bad there won’t be an on-call staff psychiatrist. It’s a veritable lunatic asylum of conservative sadists who are transforming the country into The Island of Doctor Moreau.
Can we at least petition the bicameral legislature for a Trump ankle monitor?
Newt for State — because nothing says “diplomacy” like the name Gingrich.
Actually, as appalling as Gingrich would be in that position, I see that *John Bolton* is on the list as well for the same. If the Trump administration wants to give the middle finger to the world, JB as SofS would be the perfect fit.
This is an interesting list. Yes, it’s full of buffoons, but there are some names on there, if they were nominated, would cause some havoc. First, if you believe (as I do), that Trump doesn’t have a clue about how to run the country, then you could assume that his Chief of Staff will be the most powerful man in the world. You can say a lot about Priebus, but he is a very smart guy (that could be scary). I want to think that Reince will keep Trump from blowing up the planet. We shall see.
Another name, is Bob Corker for Sec. of State. I’d love to see him nominated. Some Republicans despise him.
https://www.conservativereview.com/commentary/2016/11/levin-trump-must-not-nominate-losers-like-sen-bob-corker-to-anything
Another is Sheriff David Clarke. He’s kind of a no-nonsense guy who is hated by people of color. So far, the list is between him and bridge guy. Some choice…
Hopefully, the total fools like Palin, Christie and “America’s Mayor” will be kept out and more level heads will prevail.
The list omits Trump’s children. He’s the emblem for nepotism, so I bet they get key spots, spots with top power, influence, and, of course, pay. They will be Trump’s slave-master surrogates, so Trump can safely run the show through them. It’s how he runs his business. It’s what he raised them up to do.
Melania’s job will be to spy for Trump, pretending to care and listen to complaints of othes, then bringing their complaints, framed as back-stabbing blabber, to Trump, so Trump can decide how to enforce his rule over his unruly.
That’s my prediction.
Canadian academic here, paraphrasing from a colleague:
“What is the morality of taking my research team to a conference in the US in the future when a fraction of them are not able to go? Is it right for me to go when I have to tell my Muslim colleagues that there is probably little point in them spending time and money trying to get a visa with a low likelihood of success? Is it right for me to make this decision on behalf of my entire team, thereby denying those not affected the opportunity to make their own decision?”
“Muslim colleagues”
Are these colleagues Canadian citizens? Canadians generally don’t need visas to enter the US (and that includes muslim Canadians).
Also, I haven’t heard Trump say anything about keeping muslims from visiting the US, just refugees.
Look more closely.
“Donald J. Trump is calling for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our countries representatives can figure out what is going on.”
I wouldn’t bet on any politician fulfilling all, or actually any, of his campaign promises. Even if he is not the obligate liar Trump is.
I think this is overblown, probably as a result of the shock.
We have a diverse research team – many are non-Canadians, here on student visas or work permits.
Yes, he did say “total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering …”. OF COURSE it was just rhetoric, right? Fine. Let this morph into “extreme vetting” [sic]. It will amount to the same thing for our non-Canadian colleagues.
If you think this is overblown, you are not paying attention. This is happening. The “immigration transition team” is not kidding around, they will implement this.
Yeah, Chris Christie for the Justice Dept. I mean, why not? The nation hasn’t had an Attorney General indicted since that pair back in the Nixon administration.
Welcome to the 4th Reich.
Fascism takes control of America with a psychopath leader.
The rest of the world weeps with you.
This cannot end well.
– Evan
BBC says 25% of Trumps transition executive committee (headed by Pence) is related to him including 2 of his sons, his daughter and his son in law.
56% has no prior service in government (though some are political fundraisers)
http://www.bbc.com/news/election-us-2016-37955321
Bring back Earl Butz at Agriculture. What with the new national mood that’s been set upon us, I’ll bet a whole lot of Americans, of every color and persuasion, could do with some “tight pussy, loose shoes, and a warm place to shit.”
If being dead doesn’t preclude him from holding office, his conviction for tax evasion would.
Minor technicalities. Ol’ Earl was a hard-nosed boilermaker outta Purdue; he ain’t gonna let a little death and disenfranchisement stop him.
Disambiguation:
the US Cabinet now also known as the Clown Car.
How about Newt’s idea to make America Great Again*, that is again circulating: Newt Gingrich wants new House Un-American Activities Committee
*as in McCarthy’s era
Not to worry! I’m sure “President-Elect Tweet” will keep us updated as he adds to his lists.
This administration will do for science, free thought, philosophy, and cultural studies what Hitler did for expressionism.
Goodbye Library of Alexandria, hello Führermuseum.
One aspect of all this that’s becoming more apparent to me is just how strange this full change of team hand-off is shaping up. We appear to be a nation about to make an abrupt U-turn and over half the passengers still want to be going straight ahead.
At the end of Dubya’s second term everything was FUBAR. Economic meltdown, ongoing wars, lots of uncertainty. Thankfully, Obama arrived to steady the ship and most people were glad to lean into the turn. The alternative option was complete economic collapse.
Right now, at the end of Obama’s second term we are not super duper fantastic, but we’re heading in a nice steady upward direction towards better days. But suddenly, out of nowhere we are now in a completely different car that kind’ve sucks going backwards on the wrong side of the road.
Odd times a-comin’.
Yes. Deepwater Horizon will be making a comeback. The lights are coming back on in the casino and the lessons of deregulated economics have been long forgotten. Bubbles, and bubbles, and bubbles for all.
I just read that Pence is taking over the transition team. The tiny sliver of hope I had that Trump would be rational has totally dissipated.
My advice, if you live in a backwards State, move!!!!!! There will be no Federal protections for you.
Maybe Gingrich for Health and Human Services – don’t forget he wants to double the NIH budget… http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/22/opinion/double-the-nih-budget.html
I know that Rick Perry is being considered for something. I am hoping Agriculture, as he would probably be OK at that. We def do not want Sid Miller. I am warning y’all, he is a pure-D lunatic.
He should be considered for Commerce, Education, and I forget the third one.
Oops.
Maybe Secretary of Coiffures.
Lol, good one!
Also, then he can do away with himself.
Rick Perry is being considered to head the Department of Veterans Affairs, according to Texas Public Radio.
In the end, Republican voters united around a candidate many of them didn’t like. They had party discipline.
As often happens, Democrats, lacking the same discipline, preferred to virtue signal instead of backing their flawed candidate. Many stayed home.
The consequences for most minorities are going to be brutal.
I hope that, at least, this will be a reality check for some folks who set Ferguson and Baltimore on fire.
As a small token of levity, it would be funny if gov. Christie were named Transportation Secretary.
Ha!
Today it appears, in a delicious twist of irony, that Christie has been appointed the Secretary of Hit The Road, Jack.
Just had a conversation with our local Muslim here in Alabama (convenience store owner). Somehow he knew I had voted for Hillary, Massachusetts accent maybe. I said “I hope you don’t get deported”, and he said “I’m from Canada, I’d happing go back”. So I asked if he’d take me with him. :p
*happily
The Huffington Post has actually run separate articles on both good and bad euphemisms for female genitalia but the good ones are all invented by HuffPo readers and so are not well known.
But by far and away the best one (which I would like to see catch on) is “Cinema Suicide”.
Perhaps “The Huffington Post List of Editors is Shaping Up to be a Total Cinema Suicide Fest” doesn’t really sound that bad (but admittedly its still bad enough to be referencing this at all.)
Interestingly, what’s offensive or not varies with time. The notorious C-word wasn’t considered insulting or derogatory until the very late 19th century.
Recently when a female friend of mine who works for the annual Dickens Faire quarreled with a male employee who called her a “c–t”, I suggested to her that since the Dickens Faire is very strict about period authenticity, she should send him a polite note asking to clarify if he meant this in the terms of the Dickens period or the early 21st century.
My favorite euphemisms for male genitalia remain “one-eyed trouser snake”, “bald-pated friar”, and “matrimonial peace-maker”.
Cinema suicide?? What am I missing??
If you show it in a (mainstream) movie, your box office will precipitously decline, due to the inevitable NC-17 rating and the consequent reluctance of newspapers to carry advertising, and of many chains to show it.
Even the best NC-17 films, like Ang Lee’s “Lust, Caution” never do well at the box office. It’s considered the kiss of death.
Thanks, Jon. I thought I was missing a pun.
I did see, and like, that Japanese movie😀
I dunno; Talk to Her did pretty well for a foreign flick…
Good movie, that. Almodóvar — now there’s a guy knows how to direct a cinema-suicide flick.
Dives into it, you might say.
Love Almodóvar! Looking fwd to seeing his latest which we tried to see at the Toronto Film Festival in Sept but it was sold out. Good news for old Pedro. Not sure if it’s released yet. The name is currently escaping me…Gloria??
The flick’s called Julieta, not Gloria.
Anyway, if there’s anything that’s “cinema suicide,” isn’t it male full frontal?
I mean, you women — yours is neat and aesthetically pleasing, like a flower. (Just ask Georgia O’Keeffe!)
We mens, on the other hand — ours looks like something jerry-built from giblets off the offal pile.
I’m no prude, but when I’m at the cinema and a guy in full dishabille comes on the screen, my palm shoots out at arm’s length, with an involuntary “Jesus, get that thing outta here!”
I can’t be the only one.
I think turnabout’s fair play. Did you think we women are always comfortable with female nudity?
Did like your humor, though. 😉
Oh, I think turnabout’s fair, too. (But it’s unequal box office.)
I recall an interview with Robert Altman where he said if he showed a woman in the altogether, he’d be sure to flash a tallywacker on screen, too. (Which explains Julianne Moore being matched by Huey Lewis in Shortcuts.)
PS – I’ve never used that word before, either. 🙂
You know Ms. Moore, of the flaming red hair, of course. The curtains and carpet were in pari-passu, you might say.
All I recall about Huey is he was takin’ a leak.
Tallywacker?? Never hoid dat woid before. Am currently reading Peter Carey’s wonderful Illywhacker, though…
For me, it depends on the cut of his jib. I much prefer kosher-style hotdogs.
😀
Wouldn’t that be the non-cut?
Circumcision requires cutting. It leaves a nice, trim, clean result and is no more dangerous than ear piercing.
(Okay, let the loud counterarguments commence. I won’t respond to them, as I’ve just had my say, and research backs it up.)
First of all, I was hoping no one would read my stupid post, as it was back-assward of what I know perfectly well is the Jewish POV on circumcision! I hope I’m not the only one who doesn’t listen to what I say. 🙄
As to the debate you mention; not gonna get into that one. (But I prefer uncut…despite a very small sample size, the US being how it is…)
LOL!
And I’m glad we get a variety from which to choose, so each to her own. 🙂
Reince Priebus for chief of staff? I would have thought that Priebus is on Trump’s enemies list for his less than enthusiastic support of Trump’s campaign.
Well, you were taken in by the circus act. Trump’s campaign was rather obvious: tell everyone what they want to hear and promise that it won’t be politics as usual. He would have let the GoP in on his secret once he was awarded the nomination for Prez – so it’s no wonder that pretty much everyone in the GoP who initially said they’d rather vote Hillary than Trump got right behind Trump and voted for him after all. He would also have made a lot of backroom deals as a show of faith to get those votes – which is why the Teabaggers have got the country by the nuts.
BuzzFeed has this revealing look at German headlines about Trump
https://www.buzzfeed.com/ryanhatesthis/horror-clown-sexmonster-blonde-mussolini?utm_term=.iq3bryaX4#.ycEEpKQMq
As I mentioned on Novella’s site today, I find it both amusing and depressing that some of us are desperately considering what courtesy scraps of legislation Trump might toss our way. The man is a nightmare, surrounded by a circus, and no amount of begging, silver-lining treasure hunts, or hope-infused compromises will assuage the agony of the EF5 headed for scientific discourse or social justice during the next 4 years. Prevention has just been abrogated by the votaries of unreason.
USA in 2016, Germany in 1933.
I’m wondering if Trump will turn his failed property development projects into locations for future internment camps. Gives “all aboard the Trump train” new meaning.
Wow I wonder if the whining was as intense back in November 2008. Since Obama is perfect he must have picked a perfect cabinet…well maybe with one exception, Paul Krugman wasn’t picked for a cabinet post. I’m sure some whining occurred about that.
Of course Hillary would have made preferred choices since none of them would have been a “deplorable”, i.e. rednecks, racists, hicks, “slow”, homophobic, trans-phobic, dumb, unsophisticated, Cracker Barrel patrons.
Cracker Barrel? I must be out of touch, haven’t been there in years.
Y’all, help me out, here: Is that an example of false equivalency or straw man?
Or ignoratio enlenchi: the argument should have been about how Trump’s supposed choices are *not* awful, etc.
Ah! From Wikipedia: “Ignoratio elenchi, also known as irrelevant conclusion, is the informal fallacy of presenting an argument that may or may not be logically valid, but fails nonetheless to address the issue in question. More colloquially, it is also known as missing the point.”
Reminds me of Trump’s surrogates being interviewed on TV, defending him by missing the point.
Thank you for expanding my education.
No problem. Alas, following political matters is a great way to learn about fallacies!
For the most part it seems to be rewarding the sycophants, which has been de rigeur in the GoP for decades nor is the Democratic party entirely immune to it. Unfortunately with the current crop of sycophant psychopaths this is particularly bad news. I would like to think that many voters will soon be thinking “hey, Obama wasn’t that bad after all and Hillary would probably have been better than Trump” but unfortunately reality doesn’t work that way – the people who made the mistake of handing the entire Federal government to the GoP are far more likely to blame all its failures on something else (or someone else). I agree with PJ O’Rourke (at least it has been true since the Reagan era) – that the Republican party is the party that claims government doesn’t work, then gets elected to prove it.
To simultaneously depress & excite everyone further, I recommend reading Masha Gessen’s terrifying article in the New York Review of Books about being governed by an autocrat (she should know, since she is a Russian dissident and fierce critic of Putin now resident in the USA). I note also that the murderous Duterte of the Philippines has already welcomed the Drumpf, Drumpf, Drumpf of marching feet…
Thanks for making me aware of the Gessen article. We should know within about six months of his taking office whether Trump hopes to make himself America’s Putin. What concerns me greatly is that Trump’s most zealous supporters have little regard for democracy – in theory and in practice. For them, any means available should be utilized to keep America a white, Christian country. Their egos and sense of self-worth depend on this. As a result, they would cheer on any authoritarian methods Trump may employ to achieve this end.
This is the link to the Gessen article:
http://www2.nybooks.com/daily/s3/nov/10/trump-election-autocracy-rules-for-survival.html
Don’t most of these people dislike Trump? Also, I don’t see anything actually remarkable about any of these options.
Most of these choices could have been Romney’s? This is a consistent GOP cabinet.
Where’s the change?
I predict:
1) the liberals will not see as much change as they fear
2) the conservatives will not care but just be happy they are in power
Grady and Hamm probably have no idea what a nucleus is. Just a hint, guys, nuclear power is 20% of US power and growing…and you’re gonna also be in charge of managing the NNSA; go look it up.
There’s supposed to be a Million Woman March in D.C. on Jan 21. This is the kind of 60s activism and solidarity that I like to see. However, Trump will mistake it for a beauty pageant.
While I’m in agreement in the need for activism, there’s something about this one that I think is wrong. My wife wants us to go to Washington for this march but from the information I’ve seen about the event, it isn’t clear if I’m welcome or not. IMO we need to cut back on identity politics.
I agree with you, Greg. I especially don’t like the He’s not my president signs. I couldn’t believe that I actually agreed with Giuliani when he called those who painted that message on their foreheads spoiled brats. They are playing the same It’s rigged game as the Trumpites. I think a peaceful, multi-gendered, multi-racial parade of United We’re Stronger type message would be much more effective in at least helping women and minorities feel that many people have their backs.
If it means that much to your wife, you can’t go wrong by supporting her any way you can!
I’m waiting to see if a Terrorist Event occurs to warrant the suspension of Elections, a la the Reichstag. History has an awful habit of repeating itself.
“Sausagefest”?! Still haven’t learned eh?
A most unbelievable thing just happened and one main reason is because of the attitudes that generate crap like ‘sausagefest’.
Reap what you sow.