Open Thread for Tuesday, December 27, 2016

President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan pause for a moment of silence following a wreath laying at the USS Arizona Memorial in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, Dec. 27, 2016. (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson)

President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan pause for a moment of silence following a wreath laying at the USS Arizona Memorial in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, Dec. 27, 2016. (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson)

Sorry, I hadn’t posted the last day or two. I got a cold or something that hit me like a ton of bricks Christmas night, and just started feeling noticeably better today. Since I’m off from work this week, I’ve just been kicking back in sickbay mode.

But here are some things to discuss:

  1. Shinzo Abe visits Pearl Harbor in what Barack Obama calls ‘historic gesture’ — I wonder if Burl was there. After all, the Arizona Memorial is only a couple of hundred yards from his workplace. Anything to report, Burl?
  2. Israel intensifies battle with U.S. over U.N. resolution on settlements — The conflict we discussed at length on Friday continues.
  3. White House prepares covert action, sanctions to punish Russia for election hacking — Yeah, OK, but I have a question: Can we get this done before Putin’s biggest fanboy takes over the White House?
  4. Russian Sports Officials Admit to Systematic Doping Effort — On top of everything else, the Russians have to cheat at sports, too.
  5. U.S. Accuses Three Chinese Traders of Hacking Law Firms — Reminding us that the Rooskies aren’t the only bad actors we have to deal with.
  6. Aiken legislator charged with felony domestic violence of his wife — The only real news on the local front today, from what I’ve seen. Sorry it’s not happier…
  7. Carrie Fisher, Actress Beloved For Playing Princess Leia, Dies At 60 — This was the shock of the day for me. First Han Solo dies on screen, now this. Particularly shocking since I think of her as the Lolita-like character she played in “Shampoo,” two years before “Star Wars.”

 

Carrie Fisher as provocative teen in "Shampoo," in 1975.

Carrie Fisher as provocative teen in “Shampoo,” in 1975.

9 thoughts on “Open Thread for Tuesday, December 27, 2016

  1. Bryan Caskey

    Glad to see a post. We were all starting to get worried about you. I was about to send Bonden with a party of marines to check on you. Instead, we’ll pass the word for the Doctor.

    Reply
    1. Dave Crockett

      I’d like to know what the supporter(s) intend to do with the information they’d collect about folks who seek to opt out. Will they put together a black list of porn viewers for public shaming? How will they define porn? Will it include anything with a less-than-fully clothed human figure? Watch out for those breast exam sites. And we can’t be too careful about documenting how a vasectomy works.

      Yeah, this is gonna work just fine. :-/

      Reply
  2. Norm Ivey

    Fisher was good as the jilted bride hellbent of killing Jake in Blues Brothers. 2016 has been brutal on the entertainment world.

    Reply

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