toastykitten

Never heard of this guy before. But pretty on point.

The fallout from that viral CBS interview continues. Zeteo reports that basically, the group hosting Ta-Nehisi Coates already had vetted questions ready to go, but Mr. Dokoupil just steamrolled everyone. And apparently this guy would do it again, and would also ask some Palestinian if Israel had a right to exist. And apparently the top brass is fine with that "in the name of fairness". Would CBS anchors interrogate any Israeli and/or Jewish authors of books they're promoting about Palestinian rights to exist? We all know the answer to that.

Looking forward to the interview Coates does with Trevor Noah on his podcast, which drops tomorrow.

I got this book from the local Buy Nothing group. It's kind of funny because our Buy Nothing group's literary tastes usually consists of the following categories: children's books, cookbooks, and airport thrillers. Oh and outdated self-help books. I have always really liked Erdrich's writing, and this book was a pleasant read about a very unpleasant topic. My only complaint was that it kind of ends a little abruptly and I want to find out what happens to the rest of the characters.

The Night Watchman is inspired by Erdrich's grandfather, who mobilized members of the Turtle Mountain Reservation to fight the termination policies of the 40s-60s, which would have ended federal recognition of the sovereignty of individual tribes. It was not successful for this tribe, but it happened to a lot of other tribes, and the consequences meant that indigenous peoples suffered and died in poverty. It follows the Thomas Wazhashk, and his family and friends as they live their lives, survive, and try to figure life out in a world actively trying to get rid of them. Every character is nicely sketched out, and there are some very funny moments.

Chimp Crazy is a 4 part documentary about people who own chimps, and this one centers mostly around Tonia Haddix, who is fighting with PETA over ownership of her chimp, Tonka. The documentary is from the same guy who made Tiger King, Eric Goode.

Here's a profile of Eric Goode - he appears to be really rich, and also owns a turtle conservancy, and is just really fascinated with people who own animals. Because of Eric Goode's fame from the Tiger King series, he relied on the use of a "proxy" director to gain Haddix's trust and get permission to film.

Going to do spoilers for this one, as it's worth watching in its entirety:

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Overall this was a really interesting look into a world that I didn't know all that much about. I think Eric Goode makes very compelling documentaries, but I don't know if they're completely all that ethical.

Source: the pharmacist who did our COVID boosters yesterday. Apparently you cannot make online appointments for kids to get the vaccine, so it'll have to be walk-in only.

Anyway, they also have the flu shots too, so you can do a double shot. My kids prefer the nasal vaccine, of course, so I am doing their flu shots at the pediatrician's office.

Just saw the news about an even more contagious strain, sigh.

General strike called in Israel.

This is my politics stuff dump - I am absolutely going to kill the vibes for a minute here:

That Kamala Harris is making no change in policy on Israel from Biden, and refusing to consider even halting arms to Israel while bemoaning what happens to Palestinians as a result of us arming them is reprehensible, repugnant, and immoral.

That Kamala Harris is going all out on focusing on "securing the border" which is just politician-speak accepting the rightwing racist framework of immigrants as boogymen is also reprehensible, repugnant, and immoral.

That the Democratic Party is taking out opposition to the death penalty, adding language that signals the possibility of picking a fight with Hezbollah, and moving rightward with regards to criminal justice and police, and honestly, downright predictable.

I am so tired. I just want someone with basic morals to be the leader, someone who opposes genocide when they see it, and takes actions to stop it.

I guess that's too fucking much to ask of this country.

But r/oakland has an interesting discussion on the merits, advantages, and disadvantages of Kamala Harris as a presidential candidate. lot of different viewpoints - and some gossip:


I worked for her at the DA. She is fine, but not amazing as a politician. Important: she is liberal but not overly progressive, but also she is not Trump or even Trumpian in nature. Many of her views and policies reflect this, even though some are uninspired.

Unimportant, but interesting: she creates toxic work environments that suck to work in. Most of her staff quits on her in a year or two, which means she typically rotates through staff quickly. This has and will continue to impact her ability to operate effectively in Washington.


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 Obama was much further to Biden's left on paper, but once he got into office he never seemed affected by outside pressure. Biden spent his whole career doing one set of things, and then once in office he made partnerships that clearly steered him to make some big changes.

I think it's true that every progressive knows that Harris isn't a true believer. But she also knows which way the wind blows. I think she's flexible. I don't think she's a real progressive, but I absolutely believe she can be a partner to progressives.

(And for any moderates/liberals/conservatives/independents, this can be a reason for you folks to vote for her too.)

 TAP article on Walz - But it’s Walz’s experience as governor of Minnesota that would be most helpful to Harris as a partner. In a best-case scenario, a President Harris will step into the same situation that Walz did in his second term in Minnesota, with a thin legislative advantage and a public desire for real advances. Walz’s improbable success in governing with a one-seat majority in the state Senate, and not much more in the state House, may have been an important factor in his favor.

of the US/Russia prisoner swap only highlights for me, how ghastly the situation contrasts to Gaza. The Israeli hostages could have been freed, Palestinians do not have to keep being bombed and forced out of their homes. We do not have to be continually on the brink of regional war.

I'm so over everything.