#politics So Trump’s argument now against the effort to ban him from ballot listing is that his presidential oath included preserving, protecting, and defending the Constitution, but did not include “supporting” the Constitution. Not that he wasn’t involved in an insurrection (which a judge recently ruled he was). So even if he was an insurrectionist, it doesn’t matter, because the Constitution says he must also have taken an oath to “support” the Constitution to be barred from the ballot.

@awnaves Yeah, you get some of those, though Amazon is getting better at spotting them. I prefer getting blurbs from respected book-review bloggers for my books, as they’re authentic and done for free.

@KarenSohne Thrillers are my favorite, and that’s what I mostly write. The book that prompted my post was a “thriller” written by a woman who held a position in the Reagan administration. Lee Child, of the Jack Reacher series fame, wrote a brief blurb praising it. I doubt he read the book. Blurb inflation has become common these days. https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2023/08/book-blurbs-ethics/675139/

When you consider buying a book on Amazon by an author you’re not familiar with but find glowing blurbs for it by famous authors that don’t even indicate they’ve read the book, be very skeptical. I just finished a book that had several praising blurbs by well-known authors. The book was so badly written that I wondered if an editor had been involved at all in its publication.

Rather than using these blurbs as a guide, read the reviews given by normal readers to get an idea of what to expect.

@stephen_a_allen My mother always made creamed onions for Thanksgiving. My wife tried to duplicate it for me early on, but over the years it got pushed aside for other accompaniments. Thanks for the memory.

Oops, I meant unemployment rate, of course.

#politics When he was president, Trump bragged about having the greatest economy and the lowest employment rate in the history of the country - day after day. Say it enough times, people believe it, even if it’s not true. Biden actually has a better economic record, but does he constantly hype it? No. But it doesn’t matter, because under his watch we have inflation. And Joe Sixpack only cares about the price of gas and food, not the stock market or any other economic measurements.

@Charles_Hawtrey I hope that was sarcasm, since Peru doesn’t have a stable government these days, to say the least.

#politics Biden has two chances to win next November: Trump becomes incapacitated or dies, or Trump gets convicted in one of his trials before the election. The first is possible, but unlikely; the second, based on the snail’s pace of the justice system, probably won’t happen, and even if it does, still might not be enough to get Trump supporters to switch or stay home. Color me discouraged, but I’m holding onto Yogi Berra’s aphorism: “It ain’t over till it’s over.”

So SCOTUS will adopt a code of ethics, something it has already had unofficially, according to Roberts, in order to clear up a “misunderstanding” the public has about the Court. Oh, and there will be no enforcement/accountability for violations. Give me a break.

@walterbays No, you had it right. I still don’t know how “Cutter” came into being. What’s next - “Quite” for Kuwait?

I get irritated (my bar is obviously low) whenever I hear a government official or news person pronounce Qatar as if it rhymed with butter. How did this mispronunciation get started? It should be pronounced Kuh-TAR. That’s how that country’s inhabitants pronounce it and how I learned it way back in grade school.

@SECRET_ASIAN_MAN Biden supporters keep saying that Trump is only three years younger. But at those ages, three years is significant. Trump has shown some cognizant disconnects many times already, and that is bound to get worse. Biden has noticeably deteriorated in the three years since his campaign.

Yesterday’s election results give me hope that democracy can survive the forces aligned against it.

Let me get this straight. College football coaches scouting opposing teams’ games to see what they do is illegal? Because secret “signs” might be on display? Give me a break.

@Charles_Hawtrey Yup!

Maybe I’ve been streaming too many series like Suits and Billions, where revocation of professional licenses occur with one board hearing, but I’m perplexed over how long Eastman’s trial over his law license is taking. Months, and no decision yet!

@0x56 You should see your doc.

@0x56 How many days have you had it?

RIP, Bobby Knight. You were not a nice person, but a helluva good basketball coach.