Open Thread for Monday, March 2, 2020

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Image from her campaign website…

You know, after this weekend, I just feel better about the whole world, and I’m in a generous mood. So instead of a Virtual Front Page, let’s go with an Open Thread, because they’re more fun:

  1. Klobuchar dropping out of 2020 race and endorsing Biden — You go, girl. Pete showed her the right thing to do, and she did it — and then went Pete one better. She remains my top choice for veep. What else can I say, except what David Leonhardt had to say today (see item No. 3.)
  2. Pete Buttigieg Will Endorse Joe Biden for Democratic Nomination — And then Pete followed suit. I’m reminded of what Frank Bruni said in his column in the NYT after Pete dropped out yesterday: that “the youngest of the Democratic aspirants did the grown-up thing.”
  3. Bernie or Biden. Period. — That’s the headline on David Leonhardt’s column today, and that’s where we stand. There are no other real choices. So it’s time to decide, Democrats: Go down the tubes with Bernie, or take back the White House with Joe. As Joe said Saturday night, after South Carolina had done its bit to make everything devastatingly clear, “win big or lose, that’s the choice.” At this point, the only likely role of Bloomberg would be to continue to split the moderate vote, and deliver the nomination to Bernie. So he needs to get out, too.
  4. Coronavirus: 2nd Person Dies In U.S.; New Cases Reported In Florida And New York — In this area, unlike in politics, the bad news keeps coming.
  5. Stocks Rally on Hopes for Stimulus Amid Virus Fears — Let’s hope the uptick continues.
  6. What popular chain businesses is Columbia missing? The State raises this question, and offers a lot of silly answers, but to its credit includes the one that matters: an Apple store. It raises doubt that we’ll get one, but come on, gimme a break: Augusta’s got an Apple store…
  7. Jack Welch, corporate America’s ‘manager of the century,’ dies at 84 — OK, I feel guilty about this, but as a guy who follows popular culture and not business, I confess that my first thought was, “Does this clear Jack Donaghy’s way to the chairmanship?”

16 thoughts on “Open Thread for Monday, March 2, 2020

  1. Brad Warthen Post author

    I couldn’t resist asking this on Twitter just now:

    Reply
      1. Mark Stewart

        It’s a disgustingly patronizing viewpoint.

        The idea that a women, any woman, is a temptress and that a man is “powerless” to restrain himself from immoral behavior is quite frankly pathetic.

        Real men treat women with respect. That means as equals.

        Reply
        1. Brad Warthen Post author

          It may be pathetic, but men can sometimes be pretty pathetic.

          We’re like Ulysses tied to the mast. The ropes are our sense of decency, respect and self-control. It works as long as the ropes hold…

          As I’ve said, I think Pence’s approach — just don’t get in the boat to start with — is extreme. But I don’t condemn him for it….

          Reply
          1. Brad Warthen Post author

            And no, that’s not to say women are sirens.

            They don’t have to be, for men to see them that way. They can be as proper and professional as anyone would like, but, you know, we’re talking about men here…

            Reply
          2. Brad Warthen Post author

            While it’s not my way, I respect Pence the way I respect Muslims and Baptists for not drinking. It’s not my thing, but I respect them for it. And of course I sometimes think, maybe it SHOULD be my thing.

            It always amazes me when I remember that Trump doesn’t drink. I mean, so much of his behavior looks like that of a heavy drinker.

            Biden is a teetotaler, too, I hear.

            Yes, it’s true. Joe is not cool. No malarkey…

            Reply
              1. Brad Warthen Post author

                Speaking of alcohol and being cool in high school.

                Once, the guy I shared a locker with (we in the Baby Boom had to do that sort of thing in our overcrowded schools) brought some bottles of wine to school in a brown paper bag. He showed me as he was leaving them in our locker.

                That day, we had a fire drill. While we were standing outside the school, the rumor got around that this was really because of a bomb threat, and that school officials were checking all the lockers.

                There was this really cool girl I liked named Teresa. I shared with her my nervousness about the wine in my locker, thinking this was a really living-on-the-edge kind of problem to share. She said, “Wine? How quaint…”

                Dang. As long as he was going to get us in trouble, why couldn’t that stupid locker mate of mine have left some dope in the locker?…

                Anyway, nothing happened. Probably just a fire drill. Or maybe collecting the combinations of a couple of thousand lockers and opening them just wasn’t worth it…

                Reply
  2. Brad Warthen Post author

    Another topic that just came to my attention:


    Y’all can just jump in any time you like here…

    Reply

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