Obviously, it has to be: What was your favorite Halloween costume ever?
I mean your favorite that you've ever worn, but, if you don't have one, your favorite that you've seen someone else wearing will do!
Question of the Day
The Monday Blogaround
This blogaround brought to you by David S. Pumpkins.
Kenrya: [Content Note: Police brutality; racism] Walter Scott Police-Involved Killing Trial Begins Today
Andy: [CN: Homophobia; transphobia] Trump Again Tries to Pretend He's a Friend to LGBT Voters; Enters Rally with Rainbow Flag
Jerico: [CN: Self-harm] Male Participants Quit 'Effective' Birth Control Study Due to Adverse Effects
Katie: How I Finally Figured Out I'm Queer in My Late Thirties
Marley: Bionic Artist Viktoria Modesta Transcends "What You Think Makes a Human Body"
Dan: NASA's Incredible Pumpkin Carving Contest Wins Halloween
Leave your links and recommendations in comments. Self-promotion welcome and encouraged!
Shaker Gourmet
Whatcha been cooking up in your kitchen lately, Shakers?
Share your favorite recipes, solicit good recipes, share recipes you've recently tried, want to try, are trying to perfect, whatever! Whether they're your own creation, or something you found elsewhere, share away.
Also welcome: Recipes you've seen recently that you'd love to try, but haven't yet!
Daily Dose of Cute
As always, please feel welcome and encouraged to share pix of the fuzzy, feathered, or scaled members of your family in comments.
In the News
Here is some stuff in the news today...
ThinkProgress' Ian Millhiser makes "The case for firing James Comey" because "Americans have rights. Even if they are Hillary Clinton."
[Content Note: Video may autoplay at link] And another important one from Kurt Eichenwald: "Donald Trump's Companies Destroyed Emails in Defiance of Court Orders." Of course they did.
Also not a surprise, but nonetheless infuriating, comes this news from Matea Gold at the WaPo: "Donald Trump is refusing to pay his campaign pollster three-quarters of a million dollars." The guy has paid himself and his family members millions from his campaign coffers, but can't pay his pollster. Just like he's been stiffing contractors his entire life.
My Shareblue colleague Tommy Christopher on the brilliant Hillary Clinton ad that features the "Daisy Girl" from Lyndon Johnson's 1964 ad.
[CN: Environmental harm; child abuse] Awful, awful, awful: "About 300 million children in the world are living in areas with outdoor air so toxic—six or more times higher than international pollution guidelines—that it can cause serious health damage, including harming their developing brains, a new United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) report has revealed. 'Pollutants don't only harm children's developing lungs—they can actually cross the blood-brain barrier and permanently damage their developing brains—and, thus, their futures,' said UNICEF's Executive Director Anthony Lake in a news release today announcing the agency's new report 'Clear the Air for Children'."
[CN: Transphobia] "The U.S. Supreme Court agreed on Friday to take up the case of Gavin Grimm, a transgender high school student who sued Gloucester County School Board over its policy prohibiting the 17-year-old from using the boys' bathroom during his senior year at his high school." GOOD. Now let us fervently hope they make the right decision.
I #StandWithGavin because trans rights are human rights and human rights are trans rights, once and for all.
— Melissa McEwan (@Shakestweetz) October 28, 2016
The Transgender Law Center has more.
Interesting: "Dear Science: Why do people like scary movies and haunted houses?"
"The male wine-throated hummingbird has an impressive courtship display." That's pretty much how Iain courted me. Except instead of fuchsia plumage, it was an elaborate display of treating me like an equal human being.
What have you been reading?
Open Thread: Halloween!
Happy Halloween!
I know Halloween has become many people's favorite holiday of the year, and I also happen to know that some Shakers take Halloween very seriously! So here is a thread to talk about Halloween, and please feel welcome and encouraged to share descriptions and/or pictures of your costume.
This year, I'm fixing to go as one of the most elusive and terrifying creatures in modern history: A visible Hillary Clinton supporter!
But, obvs, this is the best costume of all the costumes this year or any year:
No offence, but Dog Jareth is the only costume that matters pic.twitter.com/KSZyZvcFGP
— Crayon to Crayon (@CrayonToCrayon) October 30, 2016
[Tweet features an image of a small dog dressed as David Bowie's character from Labyrinth.]
A++++++++++++++++++
All of This Sounds About Right
David Fahrenthold has done some of the most important investigative reporting on Donald Trump during this election. Over the weekend, the Washington Post published his account of months of research into Trump's claims of charitable giving. It is an absolutely extraordinary piece, and I highly recommend taking the time to read the entire thing: "Trump boasts about his philanthropy. But his giving falls short of his words."
It is, at once, totally unsurprising, given everything we already know about Trump, and utterly breathtaking, seeing it all compiled in one place like this.
Donald Trump is, truly, the most brazen liar to have ever run for the office of the United States presidency.
That is abundantly clear.
An Observation
[Content Note: Bigotry; threats of violence.]
There were more incidents of threats, bigotry, and other ugliness at Donald Trump events over the weekend. Reporters were abused with anti-Semitic taunts; a Black Trump supporter was mistaken for a protester and called (by Trump himself) a "thug" and kicked him out; a warm-up speaker at a rally fantasized about the deaths of Hillary Clinton and Huma Abedin; there were more anti-Clinton shouts and plenty of folks wearing t-shirts emblazoned with gross anti-Clinton text and imagery.
This is concerning for a number of reasons, and this is right at the top of the list: If Trump wins, his supporters are going to be terrifying because they have been empowered. If Trump loses, his supporters are going to be terrifying because they feel disempowered.
And that has been precisely his goal. It's no wonder he feels like he's winning no matter what the polls say.
His candidacy has been ruinous for this nation.
I am very nervous about what happens on November 8th, but I am even more nervous about what happens on November 9th. And the days after.
We'll Make History
I've got a new essay at Shareblue about how each person who votes for Hillary Clinton will be etching our names into history:
The fact that Clinton made shattering a 227-year-old glass ceiling look inevitable is testament to how thoroughly she has changed the landscape.There is, as always, much more at the link.
She has taken centuries of acrimonious exclusion, and rendered them a relic.
In the strangest way — and most expected, for students of women's history — Clinton being greeted as just another boring old candidate, by people who are not inclined to appreciate the seismic shift of her achievement, is the most pointed evidence of its profundity.
Oh her. Yeah, all she had to do was be extraordinary.
But whether we appreciate the enormous import of her historical candidacy — and the possibility of triumph ahead — each of us will making history, in the quiet privacy of a voting booth, as we cast our votes.
...Each of us walks into a voting booth alone. Behind a little curtain, we make a choice. We fill in a circle, or pull a lever, or punch a card, or push a button. And then we are done.
It is a solitary task. But none of us decides an election on our own. We are part of a collective. Tens of millions of others, each completing the same solitary task on the same day. It is a unique thing, voting the way that we do. In solitude. Together.
The Virtual Pub Is Open
TFIF, Shakers!
Belly up to the bar,
and name your poison!
The Friday Blogaround
This blogaround brought to you by squash.
Recommended Reading:
Ryan: [Content Note: Misogyny; sexual harassment; humiliation] Video Shows Donald Trump Sexually Humiliating Woman Before Large Audience
Sameer: [CN: Racism; fearmongering] Jorge Ramos Condemns 'Trump Effect' on Immigrants' Children in New Interview
Jenn: [CN: Racism] Sen. Mark Kirk Apologizes After Racist Remark Against Rep. Tammy Duckworth
Andy: [CN: Homophobic violence] Pulse Nightclub Victim's Mother Stars in Powerful Ad for Hillary Clinton
Amie: [CN: Anti-choicery] Debunking the Mythical "Nine Month Abortion"
Stephanie: [CN: Misogyny; violence; anti-choicery] Anti-Woman Horror 101: How Rereading Christopher Pike's Whisper of Death Killed My Nostalgia
Leave your links and recommendations in comments. Self-promotion welcome and encouraged!
I'll Believe It When I See It
[Content Note: Harassment; bigotry; abuse.]
Twitter says (again) that it's definitely totally for sure going to address its harassment problem pretty soon:
Twitter is a real time platform for news and conversation, but sometimes that conversation can get quite nasty. The company's laissez faire attitude toward freedom of expression has seen it develop a reputation for toxicity that's scared off several potential buyers, including Disney. That's why, Twitter is now pledging to deal with its cultural problems by making "meaningful" changes to its "safety policy, product, and enforcement strategy."Twitter has a massive problem. And they are colossally failing at addressing even the most vicious harassment and threats, so I don't even know how they imagine they're going to tackle stuff like the below exchange, which is entirely typical of my experience on Twitter on a daily basis.
The prevalence of Twitter trolls is often blamed for the site's slow user growth and difficulty with advertisers. It's hoped that this new strategy will give people "more control over their Twitter experience" and offer the "most important safety features" to users. That may not be enough, however, given that how easy it is to find accounts spreading racism, targeted harassment of women and minorities, or threats of violence.
[CN: Homophobia; disablism.]
Me: Saved people's lives. #ObamacareInThreeWordsSo, because I stated the indisputable fact that Obamacare has saved people's lives, I got told I should be deported, that I'm a dumb dyke, that I'm autistic, and that I'm a stupid dyke.
Random Dude: i hope you get deported
Me: I'm an American citizen, so I cannot be deported. Seems you need to brush up on immigration law.
Dude: i could care less if you are an american citizen or not you dumb dyke, i just want you and your autism out of this country
Me: Why? Because I stated a fact that Obamacare has saved lives? That seems rather unreasonable.
Dude: it has? really, please tell me how and who it saved :)
Me: Here, let me Google that for you. [link to Google search "obamacare saved my life"]
Dude: Ok? that prooves nothing you stupid dyke
Me: You asked me to tell you whose lives it saved. I did. How does that make me stupid?
And this, mind you, was one of dozens of exchanges I had exactly like it. I don't typically engage with trolls on Twitter, but I did this time, just because the pushback was so immediate and vicious, over three words, and I figured I'd engage entirely reasonably, calmly, and factually, just to demonstrate that the entire point of trolling is to be vicious. Not to engage. Not even if the person they are attacking is reasonable. It is literally just to harm.
Twitter has facilitated that behavior since its inception. How it imagines it will change that culture now, I have no idea. I'll believe it when I see it. And I frankly don't expect to see it anytime soon.
It grieves me that putting up with that shit is the cost of using their technology, which, for entirely other reasons, I value deeply. But I can't imagine it won't be any other way anytime soon. I hope I'm wrong.
In the News
Here is some stuff in the news today...
"Bundy Brothers Acquitted in Takeover of Oregon Wildlife Refuge." I don't even have words. I really don't.
And all I have to say about the newest EMAILS!!!1!eleventy! development is to echo what Peter Daou said here: Most voters don't care. Sustained media coverage and intense investigations have yielded no wrongdoing. Even most voters who oppose her don't really care, beyond its value to try to harm her.
Wow: "President Obama commuted the sentences of 98 federal inmates on Thursday, almost all of whom were convicted of nonviolent, narcotics-related crimes. A total of 42 of them had expected to serve the remainder of their lifetimes in prison. This is just the latest wave of prisoners who will now get to go home early, courtesy of Obama. The president has now granted commutations for a total of 872 prisoners during his entire presidency, which, according to the White House, beats the last 11 presidents combined. This year alone he has shortened the sentences of 688 people—a presidential record."
Further evidence that Donald Trump is not an outlier of his party: "Election Day is still more than a week away, but for some Republicans it is not too soon to begin plotting the next war against Hillary Clinton if she wins the presidency. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) raised the prospect of an indefinite Republican blockade around the vacant Supreme Court seat. ...Another ominous statement came this week from Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah)... Mr. Chaffetz told The Post's David Weigel that he intends a scorched-earth approach to investigating Ms. Clinton if she goes to the White House. 'It's a target-rich environment,' he said. ...In both the Cruz and Chaffetz statements rings the banana-republic tone of Donald Trump, who has not committed to respecting the will of the voters if he loses the presidency, who rails against 'crooked Hillary' and whose rallies are filled with the ugly chant of 'lock her up.' It is a primitive approach to politics that suggests a conflict over ideas and policy is not enough, that the opposing side must be annihilated at any cost, even if it leaves the government paralyzed."
I wrote a thing about a deeply moving video from VoteVets.org about immigrant servicemembers and vets.
By my Shareblue colleague Matthew Chapman: "Harvard poll: Clinton winning millennials by massive margins."
"This Dog Caught a Koala Peeking into His House and It's So Cute." As advertised!
What have you been reading?
Daily Dose of Cute
As always, please feel welcome and encouraged to share pix of the fuzzy, feathered, or scaled members of your family in comments.
Quote of the Day
“We should just cancel the election and just give it to Trump,” Donald Trump remarks https://t.co/UYpqI3w42L https://t.co/D8pyd326Yx
— CNN (@CNN) October 27, 2016
"I'm thinking to myself right now: We should just cancel the election and just give it to Trump, right? What are we even having it for? What are we having it for?"—Donald Trump.
Once again, I will point out it was HILLARY CLINTON—who's out there working to earn every vote and campaigning like she's behind in the polls—who was accused of feeling "entitled" to the presidency.
For months. And months. And months and months.
And now that Trump is literally suggesting that we should just do away with the democratic process altogether, and "just give" the presidency to him, where is the commentary that he feels entitled?
Crickets.
An Observation
Never get tired of tweets from people telling me to "inform myself" about Hillary Clinton. Excellent advice, always.
— Melissa McEwan (@Shakestweetz) October 27, 2016
This election is very interesting in that, on the one hand, I am an ignorant jackass who needs to "inform myself" about Hillary Clinton and "wake up," and, on the other hand, I am so well-informed that my ideas are way ahead of the curve and also constantly plagiarized.
The funny thing is, in either case, whether it's a troll or a thief, I am definitely not given credit for knowing anything. So at least they have that in common.
It's so much fun to be the smartest dum-dum in politics!
Meet the "Top Scot" Who Took on Trump
[Content Note: Bullying; intimidation.]
I've got a new piece at Shareblue about Michael and Molly Forbes, the Scottish farmer and his mom who took on Donald Trump when he tried to force them off their land for a golf resort:
For nearly a decade, Scotsman Michael Forbes and his mother Molly fought a battle against Donald Trump, who used every means possible to try to get his hands on their farmland as part of a golf resort project in Aberdeenshire.There is more at the link. It's simultaneously the most Trump story ever (in a bad way), and the most Scottish story ever (in a good way).
When they refused to be bought, Trump threatened to try to use a compulsory purchase order to forcibly remove Forbes and his mother from their own property.
And when that didn't work, Trump started a media blitz against Forbes, saying he lives in "disgusting" and "slum-like" conditions, asserting that he is "not a respected man among the people that he lives with," and sneering that he "lives in a pig-like atmosphere; it's disgusting."
Yet another on an endless list of reasons that this guy should never be our president.
