Oh, PETA...

https://twitter.com/ToadWasTaken/status/780490623715577857

A sort-of thread hijack: Alabama is holding a special election to fill the Senate seat vacated by Jeff Sessions when Trump appointed him to run the Justice Department. Senate races in Alabama usually don't draw much national attention because it's generally a foregone conclusion that the Republican nominee will win. However, the big question in this one is who will win the primary. There are three very different candidates running, and it could present a lot of voters with a Faustian choice. The primary is August 15.

The first character in this act is Mo Brooks, who is currently in the House representing a district of North Alabama that includes the tech center of Huntsville. Brooks is a Tea Party supporter and he leans about as much libertarian as any major-party politician in Alabama; he's the guy who proposed the one-sentence Obamacare repeal bill a couple of months ago. However, he's not a fan of Trump.

Which brings us to the second candidate, Luther Strange. Formerly the attorney general of Alabama, he currently holds Sessions' former Senate seat, having been appointed to fill the seat back in May. He has been running a very pro-Trump campaign. However, he is also connected to Mitch McConnell and others in the GOP leadership; McConnell has a PAC that has donated a lot of money to him. Strange has been running ads featuring anti-Trump statements from Brooks that have been very effective, and Brooks' campaign has not come up with a counter.

The last actor in this drama is Roy Moore, a former state judge and very much a social conservative. He has a well-deserved reputation as a loose cannon; as a judge he pointedly made a number of decisions that went against precedent, based on his own beliefs (all of which were overturned by higher courts). From what I've read, both McConnell and Trump are leery of him. However, he has a loyal base of support in the more conservative parts of the state (while being very much disfavored elsewhere). He isn't on record as making anti-Trump statements, and Strange's campaign hasn't come up with much to use against Moore.

The result of all this is that, a week and a half out from the primary, the polls have Strange and Moore neck and neck, with Brooks trailing badly. So here are our choices:

* Brooks, the libertarian candidate who probably doesn't have a chance of winning.
* Strange, the stealth GOP establishment candidate.
* Moore, the wacko.

My wife pointed out to me the other day that, as things stand, we'll have to vote for Strange to try to prevent Moore from winning. That sucks. But you do what you have to do. The danger is, Moore is a very divisive candidate. If he gets the nomination, the Democrat candidate could position himself as a moderate and possibly draw enough votes to win, and the the Senate GOP majority is down to 1.

Some more info:
http://www.thedailyreporteronline.com/news/2017/08/04/alabama-senate-race-a-choice-between-incumbent-firebrand-hardliners/

You want more Trump, Stu? this how you get there.

http://twitchy.com/brettt-3136/2017/08/03/helpful-context-for-trumps-rally-from-a-pro-west-virginians-are-angry-easily-misled-lots-dont-speak-english/

Dammit
Fido And Fluffy Are Ruining The Environment

https://patch.com/california/hollywood/fido-fluffy-are-hurting-environment-ucla-study-says

March 2014. With the help of my ADF and ACLJ attorneys, we won a major free speech trial in front of a federal jury made up mostly of Democrats. I have written about this elsewhere so I will not rehash the details here. Suffice it to say that the proceeds from the legal judgment were spent on extremely expensive guitars that now adorn the walls of my living room. Out of affection, I named each one of the guitars after a defendant in the case. I’m sentimental that way.

https://townhall.com/columnists/mikeadams/2017/08/04/my-resignation-from-uncwilmington-n2364243

Okay, now, you murderers in Baltimore don't go killing anyone until Monday. Take the weekend off.

There's no cleverness to the construction... To get the composition to five minutes, they almost literally play the same passages twice. The arrangement, instrumentation, and vocal effects are unremarkable when considered individually. But it's a still a really pleasant piece of cheese music.




...Via the Internet's Best Easy Listening Radio Station for seniors. Minimal singing, aggressive timbral exploration, and every fifth tune has good drums. Every thirtieth tune is worth hearing a second time. Every two-hundred-fiftieth is worth adding to your lifetime collection.

That wasn't meant sarcastically! Considering that music is a matter of intensely personal taste, that's an extremely high percentage.

I secretly admire Shkreli... Anyone so pungently despised by the masses has to be doing something right.

A buncha people hated Palin, too.

Speaking of spotted dick, Planned Parenthood wants you to teach your pre-school child about genitals and gender.

That means this kid needs to be re-educated.

Did we forget about the "adult" candidate?

"There are three very different candidates running, and it could present a lot of voters with a Faustian choice."

Perhaps you've noted who is in the race to be Detroit's mayor...

...of the eight candidates, four are felons, two for attempted murder, per radio station WJR.

The fun part is figuring out which really represents the people!

Dear Crid: please update your IMdB profile.

No time; too much sex with starlets in Bel Air.