All purpose news and politics thread part VI: This Is Not The Time For Posing

[worstblogever]

There's just a point where comedians can clearly cross a line and it's not funny or appropriate.

Rosanne Barr's anti-semitism comes to mind.

[wjowski]

Chapelle used to be legitimately cutting edge, now he's just another rich old man not able to cope with a changing world.

[AnakinFlair]

Trump sues Jan. 6 committee, National Archives seeking to block handover of documents

Trump's saying "the committee’s subpoena is invalid because it has no power of investigation. And it says the material should be protected by executive privilege."

[Xheight]

Trump sues Jan. 6 committee, National Archives seeking to block handover of documents

Trump's saying "the committee’s subpoena is invalid because it has no power of investigation. And it says the material should be protected by executive privilege."

Well that is sort of true in that Congress can only refer it to the justice dept. and has no power to follow on contempt standings. There has been a recent attempt to put teeth into it that some Republicans are onboard with in hopes of impeaching Biden. IMHO not a power I want congress having which has a horrible historical record already in its hearings and should stick to the power of the purse.

[Xheight]

Satire should ridicule corrupt power. But it can also be used simply to point out absurdities in society. For instance, I think it's absurd how many rap artists refer to themselves in the third person in their songs. Would it be wrong to do a satirical rap pointing out that bit of absurdity?

Sorry but that Pratchett thing is cooked up bunk to begin with about some generic "people" that our modern identity politics lumps as winners and losers (stereotypes) rather than identifiable people or characters that classic satire inverts. Satire in itself is a populist function and a product of the majority, and it needs to be said are classically people without power, which is different from modern fiction and its celebration of the marginal.

[skyvolt2000]

I suppose it's likely the Powell family weren't thinking about that when they issued their statement, that it never occurred to them to mention the cancer complications. In lieu of not having any other information, I'm willing to give them the benefit of doubt. I don't want to consider the possibility the family intentionally omitted the cancer diagnosis to make it appear that COVID alone felled Powell, despite his having been vaccinated. That's too damn sinister for words.

They probably did not expect the anti-vaccine crowd to take this and run with it.

The man had other factors that would make Covid worst for him if he got it. A booster might have helped him. But with the Kyrie Irving and anti vaccine folks REFUSE to shut up and let facts be heard-no one would have thought about treatment for cancer and other illness.

[numberthirty]

While this is not exactly race officials putting the black flag out, it is also not the best sign...

https://www.politico.com/news/2021/1...-retire-516187

House Dem retirement rush continues with 2 new departures

A pair of longtime House Democrats announced their retirements on Monday, the latest in a string of departures that has left some in the party anxiously bracing for more ahead of what could be a brutal midterm.

Pennsylvania Rep. Mike Doyle and North Carolina Rep. David Price, who both spent decades in the House, said Monday they would not seek reelection, becoming the sixth and seventh Democrats to announce their retirements ahead of next November.

Senior Democrats downplayed the latest announcements, saying both Price and Doyle had been privately forecasting their retirement plans to close colleagues for several months. But the loss of the two longtime members — both deans of their respective state delegations — comes as the House Democratic Caucus faces the potential for significant turnover next year, including in its top leaders.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

They probably did not expect the anti-vaccine crowd to take this and run with it.

The man had other factors that would make Covid worst for him if he got it. A booster might have helped him. But with the Kyrie Irving and anti vaccine folks REFUSE to shut up and let facts be heard-no one would have thought about treatment for cancer and other illness.

I was at the gym this afternoon, CNN was on one of the many TV screens, and the crawl at the bottom mentioned Powell was suffering from cancer and Parkinson's. A one-two punch of maladies that left him weakened and susceptible to the virus, despite having been vaccinated.

[Mister Mets]

I think his family may have just not thought of it. Powel hates Trump and backed Biden. he was also pro vaccine so I doubt they would hurt that by making i4t sound like the vaccine was bad or to take a cheap shot at Biden over Civid or something.

And yep I am sure Biden was just eating. The video they showed was like a 5 second clip of him walking in the restaurant looks like he was leaving. So they are going on about how he does wear a mask with Zoom calls or when talking to reporters, times he knows when the camera is on him but not when he thinks no one is watching. Also the mayor of Chicago was at the WNBA game without a mask. They are running with both.

Now they did say both have had the vaccine and boosters so they shouldnt need the masks but they are going on about how they are violating the mandates they cried for and are in favor of and it is typical" Dem will tell you what to do but I wont do it myself" spin they run with.

Powell had a form of blood cancer that made Covid vaccines less effective.

https://www.nytimes.com/live/2021/10...inated-myeloma

Peggy Cifrino, Mr. Powell’s longtime aide, said that he had been successfully treated for multiple myeloma, a cancer of white blood cells in the bone marrow. People with multiple myeloma have compromised immune systems and are thus at greater risk of developing severe Covid-19. Vaccines are also likely to be less effective in these patients.

The family’s statement did not provide further details about the complications or underlying health conditions Mr. Powell had. It said he was treated at Walter Reed National Medical Center. Ms. Cifrino said Mr. Powell, 84, had gotten his second dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine in February and had been scheduled to get a third shot last week when he got sick, “so he wasn’t able to get that.” He had also been treated for early stages of Parkinson’s disease, she said.

“We encourage everyone to get vaccinated,” Ms. Cifrino said.

In a study published in July, researchers found that just 45 percent of those with active multiple myeloma “developed an adequate response” after receiving the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccines.

It may very well be that the spokesman didn't realize this when they had to make a quick statement about the death of an important figure.

[Mister Mets]

Or, as I said upthread, people could just not care enough about trans people.

There wasn't a freakout about what he said when he said "Poor white people love, and I mean they fucking love... Heroin."

I shouldn't have to explain to you the difference between poking fun at members of the majority and a vulnerable minority. 'poor white people love heroin!' is not even remotely in the same ball park as 'trans women aren't real women and I'm on the side of people who think they're sexual predators and want to strip them of basic civil protections'.


Good lord.

White people are a majority.

Mocking poor white people and/or drug addicts is punching down.

As for your original post, bringing about crime statistics when you write "yes, I'm sure that his target is just merely 'woke scolds'. *eyeroll*" is only relevant if you think his intent is to cause harm. It's a different and entirely defensible argument to say that the scolds are right, but you didn't quite make it.

Well that is sort of true in that Congress can only refer it to the justice dept. and has no power to follow on contempt standings. There has been a recent attempt to put teeth into it that some Republicans are onboard with in hopes of impeaching Biden. IMHO not a power I want congress having which has a horrible historical record already in its hearings and should stick to the power of the purse.

Congress has some power here, even if it hasn't been exercised in a while.

https://www.cnn.com/2021/10/07/polit...ner/index.html

It's been a while since the the House or Senate sergeant-at-arms detained or imprisoned the person in contempt until he or she honors congressional demands, but the law remains on the books.

The GOP packed the Court with fascist. They got what they wanted, a court that doesn't believe in Rights of regular citizens.

In this situation, the Supreme Court agreed with the initial decisions, reversing subsequent appeals. This has some questions on qualified immunity, which is based on police officers' understandings of the law. How should they know that prior cases established something as unconstitutional is if the courts are uncertain?

The cases are also not that sympathetic.

https://www.cnn.com/2021/10/18/polit...urt/index.html

One of the opinions released Monday stemmed from a dispute in California. Police officer Daniel Rivas-Villegas responded to a 911 call reporting that a woman and her children feared that the woman's boyfriend, Ramon Cortesluna, was going to hurt them. The call came from a crying 12-year-old girl who said that she and her mother and sister had shut themselves in a room and that Cortesluna was trying to hurt them with a chainsaw.

When the officers came to the house, Cortesluna emerged as directed. As he walked toward the officers, Rivas-Villegas eventually straddled Cortesluna and found a knife in his pocket. He placed his knee on the left side of Cortesluna's back near where the knife was and raised both his arms behind his back. Rivas-Villegas was in the position for approximately eight seconds.

Cortesluna sued, arguing that Rivas-Villegas had used excessive force.

A court of appeals ruled against the officer because "existing precedent" put him on notice that his conduct constituted excessive force. The Supreme Court Monday reversed the decision, holding that there were factual distinctions between the precedent and the case at hand.

The second case, out of Oklahoma, concerned Dominic Rollice, whose ex-wife called 911 because Rollice was intoxicated in her garage and wouldn't leave. Officers Josh Girdner, Chase Reed and Brandon Vick responded. They met the wife at the front of the garage and began speaking to Rollice through the doorway. Police bodycam video captured Rollice, still conversing with the officers as he turned to walk to an area where his tools were hanging. He grabbed a hammer and faced the officers who asked him to drop it while drawing their guns.

Instead, he raised it behind his back as if he was about to throw it at them and charge. In response, the officers fired their weapons and killed him.

[Xheight]

Powell had a form of blood cancer that made Covid vaccines less effective.

https://www.nytimes.com/live/2021/10...inated-myeloma



It may very well be that the spokesman didn't realize this when they had to make a quick statement about the death of an important figure.

So basically vaccine or no he could well have died from Covid in any case...which is what the Anti-vaxers have been saying about the need for the compromised to think of personal safety not public safety.

[SUPERECWFAN1]

There's just a point where comedians can clearly cross a line and it's not funny or appropriate.

Rosanne Barr's anti-semitism comes to mind.

Comedians can cross the line on what many deem appropriate material. A fact Norm Macdonald in stories would routinely do this a lot at places. Jon Lovitz detailed a story how him and Norm was kicked out of a casino as the rules were laid down. No swearing , no sexual material etc. So he does his set and Norm gets up there and starts this filthy set. Which has someone yell out ..."Your not allowed to do that !"

Norm then starts a survey deal. Having people raise their hands as Lovitz watches this as he knows what is ahead. Norm asks , how many want him to not do his filthy material. Majority raise their hands . Norm is like ok...how many want to tone it down some ? A few raise their hands. Then Norm asks how many just want him to keep going and Lovitz claims maybe 10 people raise hands.

"Well folks , I'm gonna have to listen to those 10 people !" And starts off with an even filthier set of jokes . As Lovitz claims both of them were banned from the casino . (Course Norm was also gambling there and all too lol) .


Jim Bruer detailed a story where they went to some city in Iowa and people loved Norm. That the city there everyone was packed to see Norm Macdonald at this gig. Well before him and Darrell Hammond was there too go onstage the people tell everyone how there will be no swearing , sexual , or anything like that said. Jim claims he did his clean set and did goat boy , Hammond gets up and does impressions. Norm walks out and starts discussing sex and more ! The audience was like stunned.

Jim jokes that Norm was literally told to not come back the next day.


Some comedians constantly push the line. Norm did ...a lot. He was one of my favorites from SNL and if you watch a lot of Weekend Update stuff he did ....oooh boy people would do a double take now. (His jokes on WNBA then....ooh man those don't age well in today's era)

[numberthirty]

White people are a majority.

Mocking poor white people and/or drug addicts is punching down.

As for your original post, bringing about crime statistics when you write "yes, I'm sure that his target is just merely 'woke scolds'. *eyeroll*" is only relevant if you think his intent is to cause harm. It's a different and entirely defensible argument to say that the scolds are right, but you didn't quite make it.

...

A couple of things that I don't believe that you are accounting for here...

- The idea that folks need to be as vocal about it for it not to be a given that mocking folks(no matter what their background...) is unacceptable. Never mind that those white drug users were never being assaulted/murdered by non-drug users.

- When it comes to hard drug use? The guy as obviously not just talked about poor whites. Trying to frame that as "Apples..."/"Apples..." with the pretty singular way that he has gone after trans folks falls apart pretty quickly once you actually go over what is taking place.

[numberthirty]

So basically vaccine or no he could well have died from Covid in any case...which is what the Anti-vaxers have been saying about the need for the compromised to think of personal safety not public safety.

Common sense dictates that they can rather easily care about both.

[Xheight]

With Chappelle I don't think he sees it as bullying , more of his type of what he does on stage . Hell I just saw a spot where in Texas back a few years ago he jokes about possibky walking into KFC and seeing everyone working there wearing KKK hoods etc. He is like... well f-ck this I want that 2 piece bad enough since I love the Colonel. I can take it..

That is the type of aspect he seems to really be at. Well my humor (which people can say isn't humor etc and its their right) is this.

Absolutely not and if worst can cite a routine let me point out that the marginal is in the eye of the beholder at times as the "What is Sodomy?" with Gene Wilder segment should show us about bestiality. or is it okay with consenting sheep? https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x6ud0mq