C. Dale Brittain

It's Halloween! Is this an ancient pagan ritual? No! Is it something from the Middle Ages? No! It is uniquely modern American, but it is still a ritual with extremely strict rules. Find out more: cdalebrittain.blogspot.com/2014/10/hall...

worry cleaning up all the damage from Trump's administration is going to be at least a 10 year job. When we elect a Democratic president in two years, will s/he be able to do enough to keep the inattentive electorate from voting Republican again? "Things aren't getting better fast enough."

Vivek Ramaswamy and his supporters feel it's fine to run an ad starring a woman who supported a man who raped his 12 yo stepdaughter. "He was never actually convicted!" they bleat. Yes, that's because after he was indicted, arrested & jailed he fled Ohio rather than face justice.

I worry that due to a combo of Trump's serious (& obvious) health issues, Democrats organizing impeachment, & even some Rs talking 25A, he may decide to resign. Great! says Vance, who secretly promises to pardon him for all his crimes to make sure he goes. Question: will Vance keep this promise?

MAGAs have mostly stopped attacking Blacks. They dismiss them along with other marginal or less powerful groups saying "no DEI," but since the Black Lives Matter protests of 6 years ago they've decreased use of the N-word. Maybe they noticed Blacks vote. Non-citizen immigrants are easier to malign.

I worry that due to a combo of Trump's serious (& obvious) health issues, Democrats organizing impeachment, & even some Rs talking 25A, he may decide to resign. Great! says Vance, who secretly promises to pardon him for all his crimes to make sure he goes. Question: will Vance keep this promise?

Small town Wooster, Ohio had a No Kings protest today, 100s of people peacefully protesting the ultrarich and politically powerful who believe they can do whatever they want. Protesters tend toward middle age, the most reliable voting bloc. Almost all homemade signs. Lots of affirmative honks! Vote!

Almost all the mass shooters are fairly young white, straight, US citizen males. Not Blacks. Not Muslims. Not immigrants. Not women. Not gays or drag queens. Home-grown boys. The communities the GOP tells us to hate and fear are not the problem.

Almost all the mass shooters are fairly young white, straight, US citizen males. Not Blacks. Not Muslims. Not immigrants. Not women. Not gays or drag queens. Home-grown boys. The communities the GOP tells us to hate and fear are not the problem.

Small town Wooster, Ohio had a No Kings protest today, 100s of people peacefully protesting the ultrarich and politically powerful who believe they can do whatever they want. Protesters tend toward middle age, the most reliable voting bloc. Almost all homemade signs. Lots of affirmative honks! Vote!

How many children did medieval women have? We don't know for most women, but we do have good data for some royal women, who had 10-12 children - and outlived the majority of them. cdalebrittain.blogspot.com

How many children did medieval women have? We don't know for most women, but we do have good data for some royal women, who had 10-12 children - and outlived the majority of them. cdalebrittain.blogspot.com

Now that Miss Kimberley has been unceremoniously dumped from her ambassadorship, maybe she's planning to pay off her Amex bill by selling juicy stories of "inside the Trump family" & "inside J6." She could get revenge on the whole clan at the same time!

It always bugs the heck out of me when a movie set in (supposedly) something like the 12th-13th century has the knights wearing 16th-century tournament plate armor. (Aluminum of course, the real stuff weighed a ton.) (Not 2000 lbs literally, but lots.)

The MAGA right has gotten so weird that it's almost impossible to do satire - it looks like real statements. So I'm going to try a (fake) conspiracy theory and see if people take it seriously. "Sources confirm that Bernie Sanders is actually an alien space reptile who eats bugs & likes them."

It always bugs the heck out of me when a movie set in (supposedly) something like the 12th-13th century has the knights wearing 16th-century tournament plate armor. (Aluminum of course, the real stuff weighed a ton.) (Not 2000 lbs literally, but lots.)

Now that Miss Kimberley has been unceremoniously dumped from her ambassadorship, maybe she's planning to pay off her Amex bill by selling juicy stories of "inside the Trump family" & "inside J6." She could get revenge on the whole clan at the same time!

Today's Wordle was one of those tricky ones that could have been a dozen different words. Alas for our streak. Wordle 1,942 X/6 ⬜⬜⬜🟨🟨 ⬜🟩⬜⬜⬜ ⬜🟩⬜🟩🟩 ⬜🟩⬜🟩🟩 ⬜🟩⬜🟩🟩 ⬜🟩🟩🟩🟩

The MAGA right has gotten so weird that it's almost impossible to do satire - it looks like real statements. So I'm going to try a (fake) conspiracy theory and see if people take it seriously. "Sources confirm that Bernie Sanders is actually an alien space reptile who eats bugs & likes them."

Christmas gets 5 or 6 weeks, Thanksgiving-New Years (the stores want it to start in October, but that is So Wrong). Halloween has it beat, at least 2 months (Sept-Oct), plus the candy 1st appears in August. Pumpkins! Cider! Ghosts! Costumes! Plus the decor (minus skeletons) works for Thanksgiving.

Christmas gets 5 or 6 weeks, Thanksgiving-New Years (the stores want it to start in October, but that is So Wrong). Halloween has it beat, at least 2 months (Sept-Oct), plus the candy 1st appears in August. Pumpkins! Cider! Ghosts! Costumes! Plus the decor (minus skeletons) works for Thanksgiving.

With everything else going on, don't lose track of the fact that Republicans want to make abortion illegal nation-wide. Then, according to Project 2025 (which they've followed religiously), they'll seek to outlaw birth control. This isn't freedom. It's the opposite. Vote Democratic.

With everything else going on, don't lose track of the fact that Republicans want to make abortion illegal nation-wide. Then, according to Project 2025 (which they've followed religiously), they'll seek to outlaw birth control. This isn't freedom. It's the opposite. Vote Democratic.

Trump is now trying to "explain" why he chose LA & SD as potential nuke targets. They are on the west coast & thus easy targets he says. Umm no. Iran has no missiles that could reach CA. It's damage control. He chose them because he despises CA & is trying to explain this away.

The @GOP imposing work requirements for Medicaid is based on the false belief that recipients are just goofing off. No. Almost all not disabled or minors are working anyway. And "free health insurance" wouldn't let the imagined goof-off eat & have a place to live. Gotta work!

Trump is now trying to "explain" why he chose LA & SD as potential nuke targets. They are on the west coast & thus easy targets he says. Umm no. Iran has no missiles that could reach CA. It's damage control. He chose them because he despises CA & is trying to explain this away.

Back in print! "Count Scar" by Brittain & Bouchard. Historical fantasy set in an alternate version of southern France in the 13th century. A noble lord & a priest who deals in magic (supposedly) redeemed from herecy. Mystery, adventure, sword fights, & (maybe) romance. www.amazon.com/dp/B0HBJLT79B

Trump clearly meant his "joking" suggestion that it would be cool for Iran to wipe out LA & SD. Otherwise the audience would not have laughed & cheered. They would not have laughed & cheered if they thought he meant, "It would be terrible if Iran targeted some US cities." They knew what he meant.

Even if the Democrats can take both houses of Congress, Trump is going to veto everything that will help Americans. I fear that when Democrats thus can't get done what they want, voters will hold it against them in 2 years.

The @GOP imposing work requirements for Medicaid is based on the false belief that recipients are just goofing off. No. Almost all not disabled or minors are working anyway. And "free health insurance" wouldn't let the imagined goof-off eat & have a place to live. Gotta work!

Freedom! We all say we want it but the Republicans want to take it away. No freedom to control your own body, marry who you love, criticize leaders who you think have gone astray, read what you want, or even go to your construction job safely if "too tan."

The potential escape of the plague (Black Death) from a Russian lab has ignited interest in the medieval reaction to the two great plague outbreaks. How did the disease affect society then? cdalebrittain.blogspot.com/2014/05/the-...

Freedom! We all say we want it but the Republicans want to take it away. No freedom to control your own body, marry who you love, criticize leaders who you think have gone astray, read what you want, or even go to your construction job safely if "too tan."

The potential escape of the plague (Black Death) from a Russian lab has ignited interest in the medieval reaction to the two great plague outbreaks. How did the disease affect society then? cdalebrittain.blogspot.com/2014/05/the-...

Even if the Democrats can take both houses of Congress, Trump is going to veto everything that will help Americans. I fear that when Democrats thus can't get done what they want, voters will hold it against them in 2 years.

Back in print! "Count Scar" by Brittain & Bouchard. Historical fantasy set in an alternate version of southern France in the 13th century. A noble lord & a priest who deals in magic (supposedly) redeemed from herecy. Mystery, adventure, sword fights, & (maybe) romance. www.amazon.com/dp/B0HBJLT79B

Trump is promising to send seniors $90 one-time check to "pay for Medicare part B." Not even clear if he can do this legally. It is however clear Medicare part B is close to $200 a month. Not going to go very far.

Trump is promising to send seniors $90 one-time check to "pay for Medicare part B." Not even clear if he can do this legally. It is however clear Medicare part B is close to $200 a month. Not going to go very far.

The @VP has no self-awareness, but he's not stupid. He knows Trump has totally lost it. But JD wants to wait until after Jan 20 to invoke the 25th Amendment so (he thinks) he'll still get 2 full terms as POTUS, plus almost 2 more years. Who's going to tell him?

The @VP has no self-awareness, but he's not stupid. He knows Trump has totally lost it. But JD wants to wait until after Jan 20 to invoke the 25th Amendment so (he thinks) he'll still get 2 full terms as POTUS, plus almost 2 more years. Who's going to tell him?

Thoughts?😊

Saint Louis MO. Did you ever wonder who the saint was this city was named for? And why Louis, the most common name for French kings? cdalebrittain.blogspot.com

Trump is using taxpayer money for self-glorifying ads saying that he will expel "warmongers" from government. So is he telling us he just fired Pete Hegseth?

Great. Not only are gas & diesel prices soaring at the pump, now Trump wants to make vehicles LESS energy efficient so they will burn even more (cost us even more). Either the oil industry has paid him awfully well or he's totally incompetent (probably both).

A relic, something physical connecting a person to a saint, was central to #medieval Christianity. Saints could be local martyrs, local bishops, martyrs from Rome, or someone from the next county over, their bones obtained in a relic swap (or a theft). cdalebrittain.blogspot.com

Trump officially rolled back fuel efficiency standards today. The new target for 2031 is about 34.5 miles per gallon, down from 50.4. That means more gas burned, more pollution, and more money out of drivers’ pockets. So much for making things affordable.

Trump is using taxpayer money for self-glorifying ads saying that he will expel "warmongers" from government. So is he telling us he just fired Pete Hegseth?

I'm worried about Texas. The Democrats have great candidates, but Paxton is Secretary of State. He's already been purging voter roles, & SCOTUS is letting him carry on. The majority wants him & all Rs out of there, but the majority may not be able to vote.