Entertainment Overnight -- Country Flashback

An old favorite.

Entertainment Overnight -- Fantastic Lines

Dame Maggie Smith as the Dowager Countess of Grantham, Violet Crawley, born this day, 1934

A Pretty Terrific Kansas City Sports Year

A Timely Reminder

To whom was George Bailey speaking if not today's Republican Party?

Entertainment Overnight -- Incredible Talent

Incredible talent.  Incredible fun. There was only one Fred Astaire.

Kansas City Makes an Ugly List

I found this floating around on Facebook today. I was stunned. Definitely a horrible list to be on, if true. And frankly, I assume it is.

Names I'd Like to Never Hear Again

Herewith, then, just that--a list of names of people and places I could go through the rest of a long, healthy, very happy life having never again heard.

Trump

Fiorina

Cruz

Paul (when preceded by Rand)

Rand (when preceded by Ayn)

Carson (when preceded by Ben)

Huckabee

Bush (absolutely, never again another Bush)

Christie

Walker (when preceded by Scott)

O'Reilly

Hannity

Rove

Murdoch (when preceded by Rupert)

Limbaugh (never again and it can't be soon enough)

Cheney

Ramadi

Mosul

Erbil

Falluja

Bagram

Kandahar (and let me be clear, I'm not an isolationist)

Wolfowitz

Ailes

Hutus

Tutsis

Netanyahu

Hitler (I mean, really)

Blunt (anyone from that Missouri, government-leeching family)

Reince (when used as a first name)

Preibus (when used as a surname)

McConnell (when preceded by Mitch)

I'm sure there are more but that's enough for now.

How about you? Any people or places you'd prefer to never hear about or from again?

How Bad Jeb Bush Sucks

Yes, to be crude about it, this is how bad Jeb Bush is doing, by the numbers, by the money.

Millions Raised and Spent So Far

Totals for super PACs and other outside groups are through June 30.

1Jeb BushTOTAL RAISEDIN MILLIONS$133.3CANDIDATERAISED$24.8SPENT$14.5CASH ON HAND$10.3SUPER PACS & OTHER PACSRAISED$108.5SPENT$10.3CASH ON HAND$98.2OTHER GROUPSRAISED

2Hillary Clinton97.777.544.533.020.35.315.8

3Ted Cruz64.926.612.813.838.41.037.5

4Marco Rubio47.714.6*7.711.017.30.816.515.8

5Bernie Sanders41.541.514.327.10.00.10.0

6Ben Carson31.631.420.111.30.20.20.2

7Chris Christie18.64.22.81.414.43.011.4

8Rand Paul16.49.47.32.16.91.55.8

9John Kasich16.14.41.72.611.7

10Carly Fiorina12.08.52.95.53.51.52.1

11Bobby Jindal9.91.20.90.33.71.22.65.0

12Mike Huckabee7.73.22.50.84.51.23.7

13Lindsey Graham7.74.83.11.72.90.22.8

14Donald Trump5.85.85.60.3

15Martin O’Malley3.63.32.50.80.30.50.4

16Rick Santorum1.31.00.80.20.30.70.0

17George Pataki1.30.40.40.00.90.80.1

18Lawrence Lessig1.01.00.40.6

19Jim Webb0.70.70.40.30.00.00.1

20Lincoln Chafee0.40.40.10.3

21Jim Gilmore0.10.10.10.0

Scott WalkerDROPPED OUT33.67.46.41.020.01.019.06.2

Rick PerryDROPPED OUT15.31.41.80.013.82.111.9

More people and more corporations gave money--big, big money--to this one presidential candidate, John Ellis Bush, than to any other candidate in this race and he's doing about as badly, as poorly as anyone in the race, to date.

How bad does it suck--do you suck--that all the big, Right Wing, traditional, Republican money in the Party is trying to get you to be elected president and you're fading at the bottom of the list of candidates?

How great is that for all the rest of us? Yahoo. Congratulations, America. You're not all bad.

Open Letter to Donald Trump (Guest Post)

In case anyone didn't see documentary film maker Michael Moore's open letter to The Donald, Donald Trump, I post it here. It needs to be seen.

Dear Donald Trump:

You may remember (you do, after all, have a "perfect memory!"), that we met back in November of 1998 in the green room of a talk show where we were both scheduled to appear one afternoon. But just before going on, I was pulled aside by a producer from the show who said that you were "nervous" about being on the set with me. She said you didn't want to be "ripped apart" and you wanted to be reassured I wouldn't "go after you." 

"Does he think I'm going to tackle him and put him in a choke hold?" I asked, bewildered. "No," the producer replied, "he just seems all jittery about you." "Huh. I've never met the guy. There's no reason for him to be scared," I said. "I really don't know much about him other than he seems to like his name on stuff. I'll talk to him if you want me to." 

And so, as you may remember, I did. I went up and introduced myself to you. "The producer says you're worried I might say or do something to you during the show. Hey, no offense, but I barely know who you are. I'm from Michigan. Please don't worry -- we're gonna get along just fine!" You seemed relieved, then leaned in and said to me, "I just didn't want any trouble out there and I just wanted to make sure that, you know, you and I got along. That you weren't going to pick on me for something ridiculous." 

"Pick on" you? I thought, where are we, in 3rd grade? 

I was struck by how you, a self-described tough guy from Queens, seemed like such a fraidey-cat. You and I went on to do the show. Nothing untoward happened between us. I didn't pull on your hair, didn't put gum on your seat. "What a wuss," was all I remember thinking as I left the set. 

And now, here we are in 2015 and, like many other angry white guys, you are frightened by a bogeyman who is out to get you. That bogeyman, in your mind, are all Muslims. Not just the ones who have killed, but ALL MUSLIMS. 

Fortunately, Donald, you and your supporters no longer look like what America actually is today. We are not a country of angry white guys. Here's a statistic that is going to make your hair spin: Eighty-one percent of the electorate who will pick the president next year are either female, people of color, or young people between the ages of 18 and 35. In other words, not you. And not the people who want you leading their country. 

So, in desperation and insanity, you call for a ban on all Muslims entering this country. 

I was raised to believe that we are all each other's brother and sister, regardless of race, creed or color. That means if you want to ban Muslims, you are first going to have to ban me. And everyone else. 

We are all Muslim. Just as we are all Mexican, we are all Catholic and Jewish and white and black and every shade in between. We are all children of God (or nature or whatever you believe in), part of the human family, and nothing you say or do can change that fact one iota. If you don't like living by these American rules, then you need to go to the time-out room in any one of your Towers, sit there, and think about what you've said. And then leave the rest of us alone so we can elect a real president who is both compassionate and strong -- at least strong enough not to be all whiny and scared of some guy in a ballcap from Michigan sitting next to him on a talk show couch. 

You're not so tough, Donny, and I'm glad I got to see the real you up close and personal all those years ago. 

We are all Muslim. Deal with it. 

All my best, 

Michael Moore 

P.S. I'm asking everyone who reads this letter to go here (http://michaelmoore.com/weareallmuslim), and sign the following statement: "WE ARE ALL MUSLIM" -- and then post a photo of yourself holding a homemade sign saying "WE ARE ALL MUSLIM" on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram using the hashtag ‪#‎WeAreAllMuslim‬. I will post all the photos on my site and send them to you, Mr. Trump. Feel free to join us. 

P.P.S. - To sign my statement for #WeAreAllMuslim, go here on my website: http://michaelmoore.com/weareallmuslim

Happy Festivus!

Entertainment Overnight -- Winter

On the first day of Winter

More Guns, More Killings in Missouri---Thanks, Republicans!

From the New York Times today:

A 9mm handgun that was admitted into evidence in an armed robbery case in Kansas City. Missouri legislators began relaxing the state's gun laws in 2007. CreditWhitney Curtis for The New York Times

In Missouri, Fewer Gun Restrictions and More Gun Killings

Fewer gun limits, more gun deaths.

The gun homicide rate in Missouri was 16 percent higher in the six years since 2007, when the state repealed the requirement for comprehensive background checks and purchase permits, than it had been in the six years before.In the same period, the national rate fell 11 percent.

At least one state is making smarter moves:

Virginia to end concealed carry reciprocity with other states

What We've Come to In America

This posting comes from an article yesterday in the Springfield, Missouri News-Leader newspaper. It's a horrible indictment of our health care system, how we treat our Veterans and our nation, overall, generally.

Old man wanted more than money in Branson bank robbery

Joseph Cyrus could barely get the words out.

He knew what he wanted to say, but he didn't want to break down in the courtroom.

Cyrus' lawyer told him it was OK. He could wait until the sentencing hearing in a few months if he wanted. But the 77-year-old Cyrus couldn't wait.

A proud man, Cyrus couldn't go another day without explaining himself.

"I wanted to be caught, your honor," Cyrus said from his wheelchair last month at the federal courthouse in Springfield. "I wanted to get some help from the United States government."

A masked Cyrus robbed the Central Bank on James Epps Road in Branson on Oct. 16, pointing what he says was a plastic BB gun at the tellers.

The reason he committed the crime, he said, was to get access to healthcare in the federal prison system.

Cyrus turned himself in to police a few days after the robbery and pleaded guilty on Nov. 10.

Cyrus gave an emotional speech in the courtroom after pleading guilty, saying he has bad feet and is losing his hearing. He told the judge he recently lost his job and was turned away by a Veterans Affairs hospital.

Cyrus said he woke up the morning of the robbery in his trailer at the Yacht Club Mobile Home Park in Hollister with roaches crawling all over his body.

He asked himself a question as he was eating breakfast that morning.

"I turned around and looked in the mirror, into a mirror that I had in my apartment, and I said 'Why am I doing this?'" Cyrus said. "So I grabbed that mask (and) turned the license plate upside down."

Cyrus drove his pickup truck to the bank, hobbled in, pointed what looked like a pistol at the tellers, ordered everyone into the lobby and made out with almost $31,000 in a reusable grocery bag.

Witnesses at the bank said Cyrus was "hunched over" and appeared to be in pain as he walked out of the building.

Two hours later, Cyrus paid his rent in cash, put a "for sale" sign in his truck and left town. He would later come back to Branson and turn himself in...

...Cyrus said in court he has 16 grandchildren. He said he didn't want them to see him as an old, deaf man too sick to drive a car...

...Kristie Breshears, public information officer at the U.S. Medical Center for Federal Prisoners in Springfield, said Cyrus' case is not totally unique.

"I don’t want to give the misconception that there are all of these guys lined up to go to prison to get free healthcare," Breshears said. "But do I believe it exists? Absolutely."

Congratulations, America. This is who you are. This is what we've become.

Can we not do anything about this?

Winter

Entertainment Overnight -- More Star Wars

How fantastic is that?



Happy holidays, y'all.

Entertainment Overnight -- On Star Wars

Man Sues Kansas City, Missouri Police Department

Kansas Citians, guess how this is going to go.

Dash cam video shows Kansas City, Mo. police officer punching a suspect; man is now suing

Check out the video and see what you think:

Looks as though he's absolutely guilty of walking while black, at the very least.

And you know who's going to pay for it, right?

This, likely, is what the city needs to do.

"The Force Awakens": Ironically Racist (Warning: Some Minor Spoilers)

It needs to be said and recognized.

The new version of "Star Wars", JJ Abrams' adaptation, "The Force Awakens" is, yes, ladies and gentlemen, racist.  And simply and blatantly so. And here's how.

There is one, count 'em, one black actor as a main character in the entire movie. Apparently there aren't any black people in space.

And to really balance things out, there's one Latino, too. As we can see, there are a few Asians but that's it.

Second, if you see the movie as I did, note what this actor's training was while he was a Stormtrooper.

It's stunning.

He was in "sanitation."  Seriously.

Third, the black character fails. And he needs all the white people to save him. Seriously, that's what happens.

And then fans turned out to be even more racist. Soon as they heard there was a black hero character in the film, they went full goose, public racist, out to the world:

Racists Urge Boycott of 'Star Wars: Episode VII'

Twitter trolls urge boycott of Star Wars

 over black character

In ugly fairness from them, however, they were also angry a female character is central to the story. They really went nuts when it turned out the female character has feelings for the black guy.

Imagine that.

Ironic, isn't it? A bunch of white fans flip out because a black guy is a main character in what was, apparently, probably a favorite movie of theirs and then it turns out the movie itself is racist.

Link:  New 'Star Wars' blasted as 'anti-white'

'Star Wars' Black Character Controversy: African-American Sci-Fi Fans Battle Genre's Racial Stereotypes

The United States---the Actual Big Problem in the World?

I've said it here before. I'll say it again.

The United States is the world's warmonger.

We spend more on war and what we call "defense" than any other nation in the world, far and away. Here's 2009 alone.

We're in more nations, with more bases and more weapons and more bombs and tanks and planes and ships and more of everything else's than any other nation, bar none.



Look at the last big wars of the past 5 decades. What were they and who was in them? Vietnam and Iraq and Afghanistan is where they were and we started them. We keep saying we're saving someone from something so we go over and blow 'em up real good.

Then there's weapons manufacturers as a nation. Guess who's making more weapons, by country, than any other nation and putting those out in the world. I think you see where this is going.

(H)ere is the list of the world’s top 10 arms exporters, along with their respective shares of global exports between 2010 and 2014, from SIPRI:

1. United States: 31%
2. Russia: 27%
3. China: 5%
4. Germany: 5%
5. France: 5%
6. U.K.: 4%
7. Spain: 3%
8. Italy: 3%
9. Ukraine: 3%
10. Israel: 2%

See the entire study from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.

And those two are external. Now let's consider ourselves internally.

I think we know which nation on the planet has more weapons, for civilians, than any other, don't we? Sure we do. It's the good old, USA, once again, bar none.

We, as a nation, as a people, need to both stop thinking of ourselves as a "peace-loving people" and nation, we need to stop kidding ourselves and we need, badly, to do something about it. More people are being killed on this planet, both inside and outside the US.

We need to cut down on the weapons. There are a lot better ways to "do business" on this planet than by creating and selling and profiting from weapons.

We need to get started.

We need to give peace a chance.

The world--our own and the rest of it--will be a lot better place for our having done it.

Link: Ceasefire in Yemen Faces Collapse as U.S. Continues Weapons Sales to Saudi Arabia, Fueling Civil War