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merrily

merrily's Journal
merrily's Journal
January 30, 2015

Governor Patrick's Legacy.

I got a call today from someone wanting a donation to preserve Governor Patrick's legacy. I was about to go out the door and asked if they could call another time. Anyone know what that is about?

Meanwhile, here is what someone at the Boston Globe thinks of Patrick's time in office.

http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2015/01/04/patrick-leaves-complex-legacy/EL6AzxhtwDbyLCw9mARRyI/story.html

January 27, 2015

WARNING: Dig out your car's exhaust pipe!

To those who got appreciable or heavy snow, dig out your car's exhaust pipe before getting into the car with the engine running to get warm or letting your kids do the same. Make sure it's clear. Otherwise carbon monoxide inside the car can be very dangerous, perhaps fatal.

January 27, 2015

A much earlier historic September 11 in the US: Christiana resistance

"Resistance" is a more modern name for it. It was originally called a riot and that is how the historic marker reads.

http://explorepahistory.com/hmarker.php?markerId=1-A-109

I first learned of this tonight, while watching, of all things, an episode of "Who Do You Think You Are?", featuring the ancestry of Zooey Deschanel.

According to one of the historians filling her in about her ancestors, the event was one of the pivotal events that led to the Civil War.

I'd heard of the Fugitive Slave Act before, but I'd never heard of Christiana before. Yet, I learned of it watching what I assumed would be near mindless TV.

January 24, 2015

Two things in one:

The best example of plutocracy and the one of the most wry segments Jon Stewart has ever done--and that is going some.

http://thedailyshow.cc.com/episodes/mqpvxh/january-22--2015---jennifer-aniston

The first segment is the one to which I am referring. The segment on Nigeria is great as well.

January 22, 2015

*knock knock*

Tourist from the Massachusetts group here, wondering if you all think O'Malley is magnetic, a good speaker, a good leader, etc.

Trying to find out as much as I can about people who have been mentioned in connection with the 2016 Presidential.

I am reading his wiki, but am looking more for the more intangible things, like how he comes across.

Also, if anyone prefers to start a thread in GD to post about him, instead of doing so on this thread, that might be even better, so everyone can see.

Thank you for any info you don't mind posting.





January 20, 2015

All true.

About homelessness: a number of years ago, I didn't keep track, I saw a documentary on TV about how much cheaper it was for society to pay a modest rent for a homeless person than to bear the social monetary cost of average homeless person's homelessness. (I hope that is not impossible to follow.) So, homelessness exists in the US because we are a spiteful species (my words). Not only can we afford to do better, but doing better would actually cost us less.

Yadda yadda, a couple of weeks ago, I saw a segment, again on TV, where UTAH actually built housing for the homeless for that very reason, namely, it costs them $12K per person per year, whereas leaving the average homeless person without a home cost them an average of $20K per year. Neither is free, of course, hence a certain segment of our population would just as soon people die. People say that's not intentional, but take away a needy person's fuel subsidy and cut their Social Security and food stamps and only a mentally challenged person doesn't get deaths will result. (Can people even register to vote if they are homeless?)

So, either I am better informed about these matters than the average US Senator or town council member, or people in power would rather see homelessness than save money.

I've been saying for years that, at the very least, we have to provide some clean public showers. For a while, some homeless people were using the rest room in the waiting room at the health center to wash up, but they were leaving too much water around, so the health center put a lock on the door. And some don't have a change of clothes, so laundromats are useless to them. And some of these people are trying to keep kids in school!

Makes me cry, how mean our species can be.



January 14, 2015

Every time I see Baker on TV, I feel a combination of mild nausea, vague anxiety and a tinge

of anger. (Nasty combination that.)

Then, it worsens and continues to worsen, even after he's off the screen.

I really don't want to go through this for the next four years. I hope I get some kind of immunity, as when your body reacts to a nasty new med, but then adjusts.


Anyone else having a physical reaction to this lower end version of Mitt?



With all the institutions of higher learning in Massachusetts, how did they make the same mistake twice?

I fear that Dems in the Mass. legislature have drifted right as well, so there won't be as many veto overrides as we had with Mitt. If so, Baker will be even worse than Mitt. Actually, I think Baker may be worse than Mitt anyway, except maybe on social issues.

Wish we had a recall provision!

January 14, 2015

Elizabeth Warren on Bill Moyers in 2004

Lest the usual suspects jump to conclusions, as they so often do, let me clear: my posting this in the Warren group does not mean that Warren is my candidate. I have no clue who my candidate will be and don't plan to hurt my eyelashes choosing one until people announce and I don't have to play games about who is running and who isn't. I simply came across this while doing some online research and thought this group might find it especially interesting. Then again, who am I kidding? Nothing I say will stand in the way of conclusion jumpers.

What I find especially interesting about it is how early on EW was making television appearances. But it is also interesting for her relatively early foreshadowing of the disaster that hit us in 2008, thanks in great part to deregulation generally and repeal of Glass Steagall in particular.

http://billmoyers.com/segment/flashback-elizabeth-warren-basically-predicts-the-great-recession/

January 13, 2015

I've been having trouble with advanced search. After typing in all the info I have,

all I get is that blessed circling that indicates "searching," until I get a message my browser telling me it cannot connect.

Anyone else having that issue?

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Member since: Wed Jun 20, 2012, 02:49 AM
Number of posts: 45,251

About merrily

https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=5664118; https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=5664129
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