Thursday Open Thread

16 thoughts on “Thursday Open Thread”

1. For anyone not yet clear about what a DeSantis presidency would mean, here's a story from the Washington Post about how he's appointed conservative activists to the New College of Florida board of trustees.

   (Christopher) Rufo is among six people who were appointed to New College’s board earlier this month by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), setting the stage for what many think will be a conservative overhaul of an institution known for an LGBTQ-friendly ethos and a carefree student body. The fate of the college has become entwined with a larger culture war, as DeSantis has decried “woke” indoctrination in colleges and schools.

   Back here in the Rockies, I've joined a lot of people in questioning why we have an elected University of Colorado Board of Regents. It might be because if the wrong kind of cat wins the CO Governor's race, we'd more than likely see appointments along these strict ideological lines.

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2. Masterpiece Cakeshop loses in Colorado Court of Appeals.  https://www.courts.state.co.us/Courts/Court_of_Appeals/Opinion/2023/21CA1142-PD.pdf

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   1. They did before. It won't change a thing. The shop will appeal to SCOTUS and the previous verdict will  be affirmed.

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      1. There are actually significantly different variable in this case. In the last case, SCOTUS went in favor of Phillips when they very narrowly ruled that the Civil Rights Commission acted incorrectly by not applying religious neutrality in their decision. They did not rule on the bigger question of can he deny services to LGBT customers.

         This new case by-passed the CRC and went straight to court. One major question they ruled on if if it was proper to skip CRC. Will SCOTUS even take this case will be a big question down the road.

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   2. Nice. CADA is safe from religious snowflakery, at least until SCOTUS gets its grubby mitts on the case. Employment Div. v. Smith is gonna get a major haircut when that happens.

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   3. There are enough procedural issues I'm not sure SCOTUS will weigh in.  We'll see if the COSCT does.  

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3. Love today's quote.  I should have been more specific about what I didn't want to be.

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4. This is a great piece co-authored by Nick Hanauer.  

   The Top 1% of Americans Have Taken $50 Trillion From the Bottom 90%—And That's Made the U.S. Less Secure

   Even inequality is meted out unequally. Low-wage workers and their families, disproportionately people of color, suffer from far higher rates of asthma, hypertension, diabetes, and other COVID-19 comorbidities; yet they are also far less likely to have health insurance, and far more likely to work in “essential” industries with the highest rates of coronavirus exposure and transmission. It is no surprise then, according to the CDC, that COVID-19 inflicts “a disproportionate burden of illness and death among racial and ethnic minority groups.” But imagine how much safer, healthier, and empowered all American workers might be if that $50 trillion had been paid out in wages instead of being funneled into corporate profits and the offshore accounts of the super-rich. Imagine how much richer and more resilient the American people would be. Imagine how many more lives would have been saved had our people been more resilient.

   Nick on TedTALK:

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5. What's the Most Effective Political Donation?

   Who knows? I can't find any source that discusses the impact of different donations

   I got a text the other day asking me to donate for whoever will be the Democratic candidate in AL-05 because it’s imperative that we take out Mo Brooks. First off, Mo Brooks is no longer a Representative. Second AL-05 is R+15. I might as well light the money on fire for all the good it will do there.

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6. I Will Donate $20,000.00 to the Democratic Party

   If they get every candidate to stop sending me fundraising texts & emails

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   1. Im humbly asking you for $20 dollars to not ask you until the check or venmo payment processing clears. 

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   2. Just spitballing here, but, wouldn’t it maybe be much more effective, and undoubtedly considerably cheaper, to just hire someone to take out the guy forcing you to open and read all those e-mails?

      I might know some folks who might know some folks.

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      1. The emails I have set to go to junk and get marked as junk. It works 99% of the time.

         The texts however… haven't figured out a way to block them.

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7. http://www.thesmokinggun.com/documents/bizarre/fargo-jesus-not-saved-923074

   Bring on the wood chipper.

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   1. It's hard to find fun and enjoyment in North Dakota in the winter.  Or in the summer.  Or spring.  Fall too

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   2. She was probably intoxicated from watching the latest Steve Bannon podcast.

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