WTF-Beta

Rural and working-class areas receive proportionally smaller benefits despite often supporting the policies politically.

Yup. It doesn't pay to be ignorant.

Supporters acknowledge the high costs but argue pro-growth policies will create prosperity that makes the debt manageable.

Supply-side advocates believe tax cuts will generate enough additional growth to ultimately resolve fiscal imbalances through higher tax revenues from a larger economy.

Does "trickle down" ring a bell for these fantasizers? We know from experience that prosperity is not the bottom line for corporations. Profits is the name of the game.

Public understanding of the bill has been shaped by media coverage that focuses heavily on political process rather than policy substance. This reflects broader problems in how complex legislation gets presented to voters.

Yup. The MSM is failing its duty.

The combination of these effects would create a more manufacturing-oriented, fossil fuel-dependent economy with less universal healthcare coverage. Whether this represents progress or regression depends largely on one’s political and economic philosophy.

I guess that's what it boils down to.

The reliance on omnibus procedures and party-line voting represents a departure from deliberative processes that historically characterized congressional decision-making.

A big problem that bears repeating over and over again.

I haven't read the article yet, just skimmed all the headings (I will read it later). One thing the article does not appear to mention is probably the most important of all: ICE expansion.

From Harvard sociologist/political scientist Theda Skocpol:

Last spring, when Dan Ziblatt and I taught a comparative course on democratic backsliding, our study of the Hungarian and German (1920s-30s) cases left me slightly reassured about the United States today. Hungary is highly centralized, and in Germany the most important state transformation happened just before Hitler was appointed Chancellor, when the previous government nationalized the Prussian police and bureaucracy, removing it from Social Democratic control in federated Germany’s largest state. Not long after, unexpectedly, Hitler could easily turn the centralized agencies into his Gestapo core. I thought last year that the USA was somewhat protected against any similar coerceive authoritarian takeover by its federal structure, given state and local government rights to control most U.S. police powers (I presented this argument in my Madison lecture for the Sept 2024 American Political Science Association).

But now I see that the Miller-Trump ethno-authoritarians have figured out a devilishly clever workaround. Immigration is an area where a U.S. President can exercise virtually unchecked legal coercive power, especially if backed by a Supreme Court majority and corrupted Department of Justice. Now Congress has given ICE unprecedented resources – much of this windfall to be used for graft with private contractors Trump patronizes, but lots of to hire street agents willing to mask themselves and do whatever they are told against residents and fellow American citizens. The Miller-Trumpites are not interested only in rounding up undocumented immigrants. They will step up using ICE and DOJ enforcements use to harass Democrats, citizen critics, and subvert future elections if they can.

This is the key story unfolding right now. Governors and civic groups and media outlets need to get clear on this imminent threat and work together across the board to reveal and push back against the emerging ICE police state.

Or groans...

What do you call a virtuoso babysitter who soothes unruly kids with her violin? A pagananny.

I think my experiments with Roundup are over. For all the hype, I found it only moderately successful for the job I had tasked it with. One area has been cleared quite well, but it was a struggle even with the Roundup and took more than one application.

For sale on Halls Brook Rd., the road that leads into the hills where I live. This part of the road has not been supplied with electricity, but I believe they have started running wires for electric this summer (I could be wrong about that).

https://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/447-Halls-Brook-Rd_Groton_NH_03241_M92101-31752?from=srp-list-card

I like the colors a lot. It's very rectangular and square; I would introduce curvilinear elements if it were mine. I find it quite visually pleasing though. The artwork reminds me of another artist I'm familiar with.

They absolutely have to work on their messaging. Why is it most people think working age adults on medicaid are unemployed--including half of Democrats!? WTF? Why is it most people think that immigrants not here legally can get medicaid!?

For some reason, the party has been incapable of reaching through to people. Part of the problem is that republicans are so very good at lying and the Fox megaphone is at their disposal. But Democrats need to figure out how to combat that, if it's even possible. Sometimes I have my doubts. It seems to be in the nature of reason and intelligence to be viewed as elitist by the perpetually, if not permanently, aggrieved. Democrats need to find a way to surmount this obstacle. If it's even possible.

Now is definitely the time for the party to become very visible and very vocal, hitting hard every time a new bad news story comes out--and there will be a lot of them.

@wtg

Environmental authorities confirmed bacteria levels were well below official thresholds.

Wonderful!

So sorry for your loss, Mark.

I don't know what I'm going to do. I'm seriously pissed at Microsoft, so much so that I may leave the Windows platform. I have a 7th generation Intel CPU and it is not compatible with Win11. So far, the options I'm considering: 1) Force an upgrade and live with the possibility of calamity, 2) Move to Apple, 3) Move to iPad, 4) buy a new PC.

I don't know what to do and I think MS should reimburse everyone it's putting out of commission with the new stringent cpu requirement.

@Daniel. Well, there is that too. There is a lot of rot in settled politics. Too many long-termers at the top. I get a glimmer of hope from today's younger generation. I'm heartened by Mamdani's primary win in NYC over the Dem establishment and hope the party leadership wakes up.

More on the grotesqueness of it all: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/01/us/politics/murkowski-republican-bill.html

@Axtremus They're all bankrupt, of course. And it's absolutely sickening.

Representative Andy Harris of Maryland, the chairman of the Freedom Caucus, said that he and other conservative holdouts were swayed after discussions with Mr. Trump about “executive actions” and other steps he and his administration could take to change the way the law would be implemented.

That's an absolute travesty, but it does put those idiots in a different category from Murkowski. At least they think (ha!) the law will be implemented differently than what they voted on. Gawd, they're pathetic.

After accepting bribes, Murkowski hoped the bill would be changed in the House. And she frequently criticizes the President. Her convictions obviously don't go very deep. And, as the article points out, she held leverage. And she threw it away.

None of this should be construed to mean I hold the remainder of the Senate and House republicans in esteem. Hawley: spineless hypocrite, along with countless others.

Bottom line for me is that Collins and Murkowski often find themselves in positions of holding leverage, but instead of doing the right thing, they habitually disappoint.

@Axtremus

Presumably these 49 GOP voted more enthusiastically for the bill compared to Murkowski.

Well, that's what makes Collins and Murkowski so bad. They betray themselves. Collins, over and over again, makes sure we know how concerned she is, yet almost always fails to reach the conclusion that her logic should dictate. (She held her ground on this vote, good for her.) Murkowski flat out stated how bad the bill was and that she hoped shallow Mike would change it in the House. How f'n clueless can you be? These two excel at abdicating responsibility--responsibility that they spend a lot of time trying to convince us they have a handle on, when in fact it boils down to little more than a show because more often than not they don't have the spine to do the right thing. But we know they're concerned and they've thought about saving the day, but in the end, they cave.

Murkowski doesn't give a *^&) about people in states other than her own. She admits the bill is bad but votes for it anyway in hopes that useless Mike will cover her (&&. Makes me want to barf. My opinion of her actions really isn't fit for printing.

@wtg said in Bloomscrolling--what's in bloom where you are?:

Lindheimer's beeblossom

Thanks, wtg. Sadly, it looks like it's not hardy here. Bummer. Pretty while it lasts, though.

An overview of the front garden. I'm going for a cottage garden feel, may eventually introduce a picket fence.

A view towards the upper garden.

Other blossoms at the minute:

I bought this Sedum for the color of it's blooms. A bit of salvia on the right.

If anyone can identify this pink and white flowering plant, I'd love to know what it is:

Close up:

Clematis:

I transplanted this Geranium while it was in bud from an area infested with Bishop's Weed. It looked pretty sorry for a few days but it's perked up nicely. It's my favorite one for the color:

Another Geranium that had got lost in the weeds:

Despite the set back over the winter, the roses are blossoming. In fact, they've made a pretty good come back. The one that lost it's long canes is growing new ones at a great pace. The one that was all gone except for one stem that I subsequently, accidently strimmed off has put up a new shoot! So I it looks like I get a second (at this point it's more like 10th!) attempt to protect them next winter.

The bush that was taken for a goner:

A flower and bud on the one that lost it's tall canes:

New canes growing:

The trusty yellows and red/magenta ones:

This one hasn't blossomed in years. It was in an area that got invaded with Bishop's Weed: