Moderately Funny Open Thread

Posted on January 22, 2012 by lmsinca

Happy play off Sunday all.  Today I’m a SF fan, what are you?

Filed under: 2012, comics, Uncategorized |

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47 Responses

  1. okiegirl's avatar
    okiegirl, on January 22, 2012 at 8:43 am said:

    Apparently Romney has announced he will release his 2010 tax return and 2011 tax estimates on Tuesday instead of waiting until April. Am I correct that this means he does not plan to release any tax returns prior to 2010?

    And Joe Paterno has died.

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  2. ScottC's avatar
    ScottC, on January 22, 2012 at 8:52 am said:

    Joe Paterno dead at 85. 1926-2012

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  3. msjs0315's avatar
    msjs0315, on January 22, 2012 at 8:55 am said:

    Good morning.

    Wow! I totally misread the SC shifts. I was quite sure Romney would squeak out a narrow win.

    On the tax returns, I don’t think Gingrich has released anything prior to 2010. If that’s the case, I don’t think Romney will feel pressured to either.

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  4. okiegirl's avatar
    okiegirl, on January 22, 2012 at 9:07 am said:

    Good morning back at ya, msjs.

    I don’t know that anybody expected the seismic last-minute shift in SC. From what I’m reading, in exit polls the SC voters predominantly indicated they made up their minds at the last minute. So who knew?

    I guess my lazy butt will have to do a little actual research. For some reason I was thinking it has been customary to release 5 years of tax returns. Actually, I’m also curious about whether it has been customary for presidential candidates to release their academic records. Maybe I’m getting this confused in my now elderly brain, but it seems to me there was some argument about GWB releasing his.

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    • Kevin S. Willis's avatar
      Kevin S. Willis, on January 22, 2012 at 5:10 pm said:

      And Obama, as I recall. And John Kerry and Al Gore. If I’m not mistaken. I don’t think voters much care other than as something else negative to say about the guy they aren’t going to vote for anyway.

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      • okiegirl's avatar
        okiegirl, on January 22, 2012 at 6:27 pm said:

        Kevin, if you are responding about academic records, there is current discussion about it re Obama. It was in that context I was wondering aloud whether it is the convention. Did not recall about Kerry and Gore, so was not particularly trying to single out GWB. It’s just that he was a Pres besides Obama for whom this came to my mind. Agree completely in that I too don’t think voters much care about this except for the purpose you mention.

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  5. bannedagain5446's avatar
    bannedagain5446, on January 22, 2012 at 10:47 am said:

    For me now the question is this.

    Are Obama’s people smart enough to simply shutup at this point and let the GOP kill each other while gridlock and the Fed work their magic on improving the economy?

    Every speech, and every proposal he makes will only take the eyes of the country off the buffoonery in the GOP race.

    Have a beer. Watch the playoffs. Hold some fund raisers.

    Shhh, we must be vewy, vewy quiet! (as Elmer Fudd would say)

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    • RUK's avatar
      RUK, on January 22, 2012 at 10:54 am said:

      Agree completely john/banned. In addition some indys may be put off if the Dems appear to be kicking the R’s when they’re down.

      But ultimately it’s all show business now anyway isn’t it? If the economy keeps improving, and even Larry Kudlow had three guys on last week who think it’s going to do just that…the race is over…barring of course some huge natural or manmade disaster.

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    • RUK's avatar
      RUK, on January 22, 2012 at 11:26 am said:

      john/banned I was reading this morning that Obama is perhaps considering Jamie Dimon. I remember about ?? years ago when I made an investment simply based on the fact that he was named CEO… I think it was AMEX back then as he worked his way to the top of the food chain.

      Jamie Dimon is the quintessential 1%er but for some reason I’m not as put off by him as Timmy boy. Perhaps because Dimon is right more often than Timmy, perhaps it’s because the HBO movied…Too Big To Fail portrayed him in the most sympathetic light of all the bankers at the big table.

      And since I’m simply speculating and you have a far more educated opinion a two parter for you….1.) Have you heard any rumblings of Dimon going to the W.H.? 2.) Do you think that would be a smart pick for Obama?

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      • bannedagain5446's avatar
        bannedagain5446, on January 22, 2012 at 11:39 am said:

        By coincidence I wrote just that elsewhere this morning. Dimon to T and Dennis Ross to State.

        I think however that Dimon will wait to make sure this ship is not manned by Captain Schettino before getting on board. I wouldn’t look for it until the fall.

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  6. okiegirl's avatar
    okiegirl, on January 22, 2012 at 11:00 am said:

    john/banned, I’ve been reading some comments at PL this morning. You are cracking me up!

    So you think Obama should not make any proposals and should call a campaign/speech moratorium while the Rs sort out who their nominee will be? Not sure I agree with that. I think he needs to keep hammering on populist proposals (if he has any). Although I do see that it could be in his best interests to stay out of any direct commentary on the R campaigns. Obama has surrogates for that; are you suggesting they too should refrain?

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  7. Fairlington Blade's avatar
    Fairlington Blade, on January 22, 2012 at 11:01 am said:

    I wonder if the events of the last year literally killed JoePa. Or at least sped his exit. I grew up a Cornhuskers fan in the era of Joe Pa and Dr. Tom (Osborne). Hated it when Penn State killed Nebraska’s chances at a national title. I’m delighted that NU-PSU will be a regular feature. Paterno made a tragic mistake in not pushing on this. His legacy may be tarnished, but not diminished.

    Scott – I’m curious as to what you thought of the science post. If there’s something missing, let me know. A follow-up is coming: data manipulation and scientific fraud. As per my personal policy, there is no requirement to respond (and we can email each other if need be).

    BB

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    • bannedagain5446's avatar
      bannedagain5446, on January 22, 2012 at 11:20 am said:

      I think it would be more accurate to say that the family and perhaps the unviersity were hiding how seriously ill Joe was over the last couple of years.

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    • ScottC's avatar
      ScottC, on January 22, 2012 at 12:01 pm said:

      FB:

      I have to confess that I started to read your (daunting!) post, but didn’t get very far. I’ll try to find some time to focus on it a bit later.

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      • Fairlington Blade's avatar
        Fairlington Blade, on January 22, 2012 at 5:47 pm said:

        It is a long one. Take your time. You posed some good questions in a previous thread that are worth answers.

        Cheers!

        BB

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  8. mcurtis3's avatar
    mcurtis3, on January 22, 2012 at 11:06 am said:

    FWIW, I think the stress helped Paterno’s fate along.

    I think the Obama campaign can nudge the GOP along their way to self-destruction.

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    • Kevin S. Willis's avatar
      Kevin S. Willis, on January 22, 2012 at 5:16 pm said:

      By self-destruction, I assume you mean losing the 2012 election to an incumbent president during an election cycle where the economy is on the upswing. 2014 and 2016 will be whole new games.

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      • RUK's avatar
        RUK, on January 22, 2012 at 6:41 pm said:

        Kevin

        You’ve had this race figured out even before this blog was created. You pointed to the power of incumbency and the economy. I agree with you and john/banned.

        Economy good or improving..it’s Obama…a bad dip and it Romney/Gingrich/ ???

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  10. bsimon's avatar
    bsimon, on January 22, 2012 at 11:38 am said:

    The playoffs I’m going to watch are just a mile down the road…

    http://www.uspondhockey.com/

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  11. lmsinca's avatar
    lmsinca, on January 22, 2012 at 2:01 pm said:

    Well I’m pretty sure I won this round with the most **liked post by an outsider. Aaron the Ogre likes my post…………………………….so there. And somebody found us already.

    **See like button just under the funnies.

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  12. msjs0315's avatar
    msjs0315, on January 22, 2012 at 2:27 pm said:

    Totally off-topic, but this article sorta describes my average day.
    http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/health_med_fit/with-alzheimer-s-dementia-on-the-rise-more-family-members/article_988c73fc-437b-11e1-bf83-001871e3ce6c.html?mode=story

    My comment to the article is:

    For two years I have been telling anyone who will listen that the cost of health care and who pays for it in this country is just the tip of the iceberg. Articles like this one demonstrate why.

    More and more people want to remain in their homes as they age. That means the lives of everyone else in the household are irrevocably altered.

    I disagree that the first step is getting a proper diagnosis. As the article implies, a proper diagnosis can take time and many of the drugs currently available don’t do much good anyway. In the meanwhile, care has to be provided and those who provide it have to adjust to new realities.

    If space permitted, I could write a small book about what I’ve learned in the last two years about caring for someone with dementia. And I’m hardly unique.

    The one thing I will share here is that this country is no where near ready — financially, physically, emotionally, mentally, spiritually, individually or collectively — for the aging of the Baby Boomers.

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    • RUK's avatar
      RUK, on January 22, 2012 at 3:01 pm said:

      MsJS

      I appreciate you sharing your experience. I know it must be tough and I wish there was something I could say. But of course words are so meaningless in your situation.

      I go to the Nursing Home every Friday night with my wife to see my 95 year old mother in law. Getting off the elevator on the third floor is the worst. My mother in law still has a minimal quality of life, she is not senile, she can no longer walk or get in and out of her bed. My wife of course is thankful that she hasn’t had to bear your cross…her mother still has her mind. When we get off the elevator at the third floor we have to walk down a couple of hallways to get to her room. Her room is located where patients are similar to her..it’s no picnic…but it’s nothing like we see when we first get off the elevator. People strapped to their wheelchairs…parked in the hallway..obviously out of their minds. Some frighten me because while they are not “rational” they seem to be suffering a non stop nightmare..their faces contorted in fear and pain. I could literally cry as I type this.

      All of this, the nursing home, your suffering and challenges, shake my spirituality. Again I’m not a Christian but closer to a Buddhist. But I just don’t understand why God..The Universe…whatever allows this to happen.

      I hear you loud and clear when you say…

      “The one thing I will share here is that this country is no where near ready — financially, physically, emotionally, mentally, spiritually, individually or collectively — for the aging of the Baby Boomers”

      I know there has been much made of the financial part of what you are saying and indeed it is a challenge. But we waste so much money in this country on wars and not returning to a “normal” (by historic standards) tax system. I’m far more sanguine about figuring out how to pay for it. It’s the rest of what you describe..physical, emotionally, mentally, spiriturally and individually or collectively….you are the one on this blog who is most qualified to comment on this. I can only say I agree 100% just from my observations at the nursing home, and the stories my wifes patients tell her about their “caregiving” responsibilities.

      The only way I, an INCREDIBLY blessed individual, with an athletic body, I won’t mention my mind for fear of attracting some insults…but I just don’t know how to say it MsJS. I think you are a SAINT!! I literally do not understand how you do it.

      And so I try some coping mechanisms…one is that there are saints like you and some of the people working in nursing homes. My other coping mechanism is to try and always be enormously grateful for my good fortune. When I’m in a spinning class and it hurts to push on…I chastise myself…I know you’d give nothing more than to be able to get out of your chair and peddle a bike. I feel responsible to get as much from the experience as I can because I feel like I’m getting your share of the deal. It’s so unfair and I literally feel so helpless. I wish I could do more to help MsJS. Just realize that we all know what an incredibly special lady you are…not only bright, articulate, and wonderfully objective in your posts…but also a saint!

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  13. okiegirl's avatar
    okiegirl, on January 22, 2012 at 2:50 pm said:

    msjs, that was an interesting read. I haven’t been in your position on this so don’t know that I can truly appreciate it. The last six months of her life, my sister had increasingly severe cognitive issues (like not being able to remember how to get dressed), but I don’t think that’s the same as what you are talking about. FWIW, one of the faculty members I work with focuses her research on dementia and alzheimer’s. I always love editing her submissions because I learn so much from them. The feds recently announced priority for funding alzheimer’s research; we’ll see if that actually happens and has worthwhile results.

    lms, don’t want to be a bubble-popper, but I was intrigued and visited our visitor’s blog. He obviously makes it a point to leave a footprint on other blogs in order to generate such traffic to his. Not saying that’s bad, and I did enjoy his blog. I’m glad he checked us out.

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  14. mcurtis3's avatar
    mcurtis3, on January 22, 2012 at 3:43 pm said:

    Nope, the U.S. is not ready for the baby-boomers to age. We may be heading to a point where older folks are not respected at all. We’ll become useless eaters.

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  15. msjs0315's avatar
    msjs0315, on January 22, 2012 at 4:08 pm said:

    Believe it or not, one can carve out a life. It may bear little resemblance to one’s prior life, but it can be fulfilling nonetheless. Takes work though.

    Our biggest/funniest drama of the last 24 hours….MrJS woke me just after midnight and said our caregiver was having trouble breathing and I needed to call 911. Since I’m not ambulatory and couldn’t check in on her myself, I called for the EMT squad and then asked MrJS what was wrong. I got a story about him checking on her, she didn’t answer when he called, she was barely breathing, etc.

    So the EMTs arrive and we discover MrJS fantasized the entire story and the caregiver was simply snoring. He didn’t remember a thing this morning.

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    • RUK's avatar
      RUK, on January 22, 2012 at 4:34 pm said:

      The happiest ending to an Alzheimer’s story I can remember. Back in the 80’s I was in TV in Bristol Tn/Va. I would work out and play basketball at the Bristol YMCA. I met the nicest gentleman there who was in his late 50’s and had been a Cross Country Track star at V.M.I. in his youth. He ran every day..it was his passion. i really enjoyed this man and was saddened to find out he had early onset Alzheimers.

      He still spoke to me most days in the locker room as we changed for our workouts. But he grew increasingly more disoriented and confused. One day he walked out of the locker room into the swimming pool area completely nude. They were having a swimming class at the time and so there was some embarrassment. His family had to secure a caregiver to begin watching him. This was tough on the caregiver because while the man’s brain was fading his body was in excellent shape from his daily runs.
      The caregiver had to try and keep up in a car.

      One day when the man had pretty much lost his mind, but not his love or running, he escaped his caregiver and ran, and ran, and ran until he literally dropped dead. I couldn’t have been happier for him. I know it is the way he would have wished to check out…doing the thing in life that he loved the most!

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  16. okiegirl's avatar
    okiegirl, on January 22, 2012 at 4:38 pm said:

    If you have not seen it, Gabrielle Giffords’s “goodbye/thanks” video is worth a view.

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  17. ashot's avatar
    ashot, on January 22, 2012 at 6:07 pm said:

    As MsJs said, one can carve out a life. My dad died of Lou Gherig’s disease 20 years ago this year. He went to work until he couldn’t drive. Then he worked from home. He used a computer at home to contiue his work, eventually with splints on each of his fingers to help him type. When that was no longer an option, he typed with his foot, hitting a pedal everytime the right letter was highlighted by some now incredibly outdated piece of software. When that was no longer an option, he did this same with his chin. He followed the America’s Cup boat races and the Tour de France. I think the complex strategy of those two events appealed to him. I’ll never know how he dealt with the betrayal of his body (or how you handle it MsJs) but he smiled and laughed enough for me to know he carved out a life.
    My mom was his nurse, she got him up out of bed and his chair. He was immoblie for most of the last year of his life and never once had a bed sore. My mom is also a saint. We kids pitched in however we could. Looking back it seems crazy that I slept downstairs at the age of 11 so that my dad could call me in the middle of the night to help him urinate or move his arm, but that was normal. And I was happy. We carved out a great life.

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    • RUK's avatar
      RUK, on January 22, 2012 at 6:38 pm said:

      ashot

      You must be incredibly proud of your father! What a terrific story! I watched something similar to your father’s experience in a man named Bob Waters who was the football coach at Western Carolina. Like your father he never gave up. His final season his assistants had to wheel him to the sideline on a board and then stand it up and he communicated through a special device like your father.

      I appreciate your stories ashot and MsJS. It is Sunday and since 75% of us self ID as Christians it’s the day of rest and worship. IMHO it is a day to give thanks for ALL of our blessings including folks like MsJS and ashots Father and mother. Inspirations to all of us.

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    • Michigoose's avatar
      Michigoose, on January 22, 2012 at 11:00 pm said:

      ashot:

      Thank you so much for sharing this. Out of all of the awards that I was given while it the military, the one I am most proud of is one that isn’t official–I got it while I was an ROTC cadet.

      The man who was most responsible for recruiting me into the military and into ROTC was diagnosed with ALS when I was a junior in college, and he medically retired from the military. He spent his last months (it progressed VERY fast in his case) doing recruiting for the military–it was his passion. When I graduated I was presented with an award in his name and–what I will carry to the grave with me–his “captain’s boards” (the epaulets he wore on his shoulders). When I was promoted to captain they were the only ones I wore. He gave me two sets and I passed the second set on to the lieutenant that I brought into the military and who is a full-bird colonel today. He passed them on to the first lieutenant that he brought in. . . the first set is going into eternity with me.

      God bless those with ALS.

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      • ashot's avatar
        ashot, on January 23, 2012 at 6:26 am said:

        Thanks, Michi. That’s a great story. My dad was sick for about 4 year before he passed away, but he was very young in comparison to the patient population that usually gets ALS. It’s such an awful disease and it impacts everyone in different ways.

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  18. okiegirl's avatar
    okiegirl, on January 22, 2012 at 6:31 pm said:

    ashot and msjs, you both have some interesting and inspiring experiences on this front.

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  20. tao9's avatar
    tao9, on January 22, 2012 at 9:25 pm said:

    All is right with the world.

    And Eli!

    That is all.

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  21. markinaustin's avatar
    markinaustin, on January 22, 2012 at 10:08 pm said:

    2 close games. Maybe presages a good SB?

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  22. lmsinca's avatar
    lmsinca, on January 23, 2012 at 5:38 am said:

    Thanks for the terrific stories above all. Perseverance and joy in the face of such adversity is in many ways what we all live for. I’ve seen it often and it never fails to amaze me.

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Be kind, show respect, and all will be right with the world.