Attribution: Distraction from Epstein by John Darkow, Columbia Missourian
[John Darkow has been a professional cartoonist for over 20 years, spending the last 10 as the staff cartoonist at the Columbia Daily Tribune. He is syndicated internationally by Cagle Cartoons.]
you want a distraction worthy of your time? when all else fails, kittens and koalas can’t be beat
now this cries out for a worthy caption or creative script of dialogue
story about the above in https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/trump-s-tacky-gift-to-european-leaders-revealed/
A caption? Hmmm, how about,
“Not to be too obvious about this, but if you’re Pursuing a Peace (Prize), shouldn’t you convince Zelenskyy AND Putin to stop fighting? “
Caption: “When Biden said ‘America is Back’ this is why we asked ‘For how long’
Me and Jack pondering what Feds can really do about local crime..
Listening to NPR during yesterday’s long drive home from Durango was almost more than we could tolerate. Far from a dribble, the entire White House is a torrent of abuse and invective, all based on untruths and distortions. Agonizing to hear and fathom the depth of their depravity. If folks like us are tuning this out, that’s the reason.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-bureau-of-labor-statistics-ej-antoni-x-epstein-b2810430.html
Last week, Trump announced he would nominate Erwin John “EJ” Antoni III, the chief economist at The Heritage Foundation, the conservative group that created Project 2025, to replace former BLS commissioner Erika McEntarfer.
But a more in-depth look at Antoni’s history online indicates that a now-deleted X account, which once used Antoni’s name, posted theories about Jeffrey Epstein’s death, Covid-19’s origins, and the validity of the 2020 presidential election, according to WIRED.
A website archive of the account “PhDofbombsaway,” shows that it used the name “Dr. Erwin J. Antoni III,” “Dr. J.,” as well as “Dr. Curtis LeMay,” – an apparent reference to the Air Force general largely credited with planning and executing mass bombings on Japan during World War II, as well as advocating for nuclear weapon usage.
On January 5, 2021, hours before the attack on the Capitol, the account posted a reference to violence in the Bible while responding to a tweet from Trump in which he encouraged Republicans to “fight.”
“Samson has his arms around the temple pillars, and although he may not survive, he will bring it all down on his enemies,” it posted, referring to the story of Samson receiving strength from God to rise up against his enemies.
Last week, photos of Antoni outside the Capitol on January 6 circulated online.
***
https://www.newsweek.com/donald-trump-pick-social-security-cola-sunset-program-ej-antoni-2112825
Trump nominated Heritage Foundation economist E.J. Antoni to lead the BLS less than two weeks after firing the agency’s former commissioner, Erika McEntarfer, in response to weaker-than-expected job numbers. The dismissal has fueled concerns that upcoming BLS reports could be altered to advance Trump’s political agenda.
The BLS is the federal agency responsible for producing essential inflation data, including the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers—the official index used to calculate Social Security Cost of Living Adjustments. As commissioner, Antoni would oversee how that data is produced and published.
Speaking on KTRH’s Houston’s Morning News in December, Antoni said Social Security was set up as a “Ponzi scheme” where “today’s investors are—their funds are being used to pay yesterday’s investors.”
Social Security payments are financed from a dedicated payroll tax collected from current workers. Any excess that is not used is kept in dedicated trust funds: the Old-Age and Survivors Insurance trust fund and the Disability Insurance trust fund. These trust funds are scheduled to reach depletion in 2034 unless Congress acts, according to the 2025 Social Security Trustees report.
And unless you are going to grow the number of investors at an exponential rate, that system is eventually going to collapse. Well, since we can’t grow the workforce at an exponential rate, especially today when our population is actually in a state of decline, you’re not going to be able to sustain a Ponzi scheme like Social Security,” Antoni continued. “Eventually you need to sunset the program.”
Antoni said current benefits need not be touched, but future retirees should not rely on the program. He advocated for transitioning to a system that uses private accounts “for just them.”
*But this q-razy dude might cook the numbers for Adolf’s syphilitic brain & say there is no inflation, so maybe no COLA next year…or ever. Also, they’ve collapsed the amount getting paid in, because undocumented workers were paying in and never taking out. A lot of folks don’t get to take it out, like one of my parents, one of their siblings, and 3 out of 4 of my grandparents who all died right before it was time to take it…so there’s that money, too.
patD – The body language in the photo. Ha! (It’s so damned busy in there with all of the gold-leafed bric-a-brac. How does one even think with all of that junk?)
The seats they chose, too.
Z is off-center, so Macron can stare him down.
Meloni looks angry.
Lil Marco looks like he hadn’t slept, and yet like he slept in his clothes.
JD still looks constipated.
Honestly, between military losing benefits, getting swept up by ICE if homeless, and being deployed against civilians, I hope they will do what they need to do soon.
If we had a Dem House & Senate, we could charge Adolf with treason and get rid of the entire administration. Then, Speaker AOC? would be sworn in.
A robin hit the kitchen window & was sitting in the deck shaking, mouth open. About 10 minutes later, it had stopped shaking. Ten minutes after that, it had flown away. Trying to talk someone into putting solar screens in those windows; view and birds both preserved.
BID, you can stick up little decals on the windows to deter bird strikes. They make them specifically for that purpose. Many choices available online on Amazon and elsewhere. Do you have a Wild Birds Unlimited store, or even Lowe’s might have them?
Glad little Robin is okay.
Watch live: Texas House to take up GOP congressional map delayed by Democrats’ walkout
The Republican-led Texas House on Wednesday was set to advance a new congressional map crafted to hand five additional U.S. House seats to the GOP over fierce opposition from Democrats, who cast the plan as an attempt by President Donald Trump to stack the deck in next year’s midterm election.
Rep. Gene Wu of Houston, chair of the Texas House Democratic Caucus, intends to try blocking the new congressional map from going into effect until President Donald Trump releases the files of disgraced billionaire and accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.
*That’s the stuff! Make Republicans keep going on record to protect pedophiles!
Ivy -Not my windows; I’ve suggested stickers before, to no avail, but nudging along on the solar screens. This is what they see & there’s another one just like it around the corner. A beautiful double-view out to the neighbor’s hayfield and our garden while I’m washing dishes, but the poor birds.
BID, beautiful and inspiring view!
Tell them the stickers are temporary, peel and remove anytime. Saves them the time of cleaning up dead birds, or worse, broken windows. A friend tells of a mallard coming through their plate glass. Neither survived.
https://www.newsweek.com/donald-trump-suggests-hes-war-hero-mark-levin-2116010
President Donald Trump suggested on Tuesday that he’s a war hero, telling conservative radio show host Mark Levin that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is one and adding, “I guess I am, too.”
*Criminal. Netanyahu is a war CRIMINAL, and Orange Adolf is, too. Unilaterally bombing Iran, unleashing troops in the US on civilians. War criminals. Both of them. Malignant, narcissistic MFers.
Trump’s Alaska “win” was supposed to be a Putin–Zelensky meeting.
Today the Kremlin shrugs: What meeting?
Pat
Compare the Whitehouse picture to one taken earlier at the Ukraine embassy
On the Whitehouse picture, The Italian PM’s posture is something else, arms folded and very pissed for some reason. It makes me wonder if Trump maybe patted her on the back side.
Jack
I’m doing another Open Mic at Dupont Circle today, 2pm ET
today’s meme…
meme #2…
Each day is more off into space than the day before. He should be in a place where if he wanders off he at least cannot get on a street and get run over. Not, in the White House and Oval Office (or a 10 year old boys vision of a ore house).
Now he is looking at dying. Yeah, he cannot get to it fast enough. In my family we may look at it, but say “no thank you”. My mother just turned 98 and her words were “now to 99”. I already have been there and say I try to live so I do not do it anytime soon.
The guy is so lost in his alternate world he does not even approach ours anymore. Ranting about slavery being bad? Please. He has no brakes on his spinning brick brain anymore. He should not be in office anymore.
Open Mic Dupont Circle 2pm ET TODAY. This isn’t your average politics panel — it’s a park bench with a live mic.
Yesterday alone we covered:
— aggressive pigeons on the march
— a waft of pot smoke cruising through
— genealogy debates that got weirdly passionate
— real talk on politics, from feds vs local crime to Texas lawmakers being locked in the Capitol
…plus a few jokes about weight loss (because why not?).
Pull up a chair with us:
The question of can Feds fix local crime is more of a campaign cry than action. Federal reach is like a big hammer or monkey wrench. By design it is not for local control and action. It is always to broad and heavy. Local control knows local conditions and requirements. It is a tack hammer and forceps. Fine tuning and adjustments.
You are right about that blue. Come talk about it. Don’t have to be on cam if security an issue.
Is Judge Jeannie going to browbeat her grand juries rather than respecting their judgment? Can’t wait to see how that works out.
the fascist dictatorship is to distract us from the fascist dictatorship
Raw Story has a condensed version of a Daily Beast report regarding krasnov going into his fantasy world to tell putin about the Cold War. The mangomoron refused to allow his staff to intervene. Howling at the Moon mad.
Folks yelling at JD & Hegseth in DC today, but the yelling was all over the place. Just yell EPSTEIN. All together, now!
First topic in TX today was not flooding, but gerrymandering. Abbott and the Texas n&zis do not give a flying F about their constituents. They only care about moving forward with their christo-fascist agenda and staying in power forever. Two million more registered Dems than Repugz in Texas, but it’s engulfed in red.
Dupont Circle Open Mic
Adirondack chairs, pigeons, pot smoke… and the rumor Joe Scarborough might run for governor?!
Today’s ride →
Rear admiral is a junior flag officer. Admiral is senior commanding larger forces.
Federal takeover… or just DC performance art?
Dupont Circle Open Mic has the takes. 🎤
Ha Jamie, i was thinking at the time wish you were on, knew you could tell us.
https://www.cnn.com/2025/08/20/politics/vance-protesters-national-guard-washington-dc
Vance entered Union Station’s Shake Shack to a mix of claps and boos, shaking hands and posing for photos with several people waiting to order lunch. As the boos grew louder, others in the crowd began chanting “USA, USA, USA” in response.
*Yell EPSTEIN, then the MAGAts will be in the same page. Booing lets them know you’re not a MAGAt. Yell EPSTEIN!
Blocked from the second floor of a Shake Shack in Union Station — where Vance, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller were chatting with more than a dozen guards Wednesday afternoon — protesters loudly chanted “shame,” “this is our city,” and “we want the military out of our streets.”
Vance spoke to a small group of reporters, dismissing the growing chorus of protesters — whose chants briefly drowned out his press gaggle — by calling them “crazy” and “communists.”
Miller dismissed them as “elderly white hippies,” saying without evidence that they’re “not part of the city.”
“But I’ll tell you, a couple of years ago, when I brought my kids here, they were being screamed at by violent vagrants, and it was scaring the hell out of my kids,” Vance added.
The visit illustrated the stark divide between the Trump administration and DC residents, who overwhelmingly voted against the president. Roughly eight in 10 DC residents oppose Trump ordering the federal government to take control of the city’s police department as well as his deployment of the National Guard and FBI to patrol the city, according to a Washington Post-Schar School poll.
Vance dismissed those figures Wednesday, saying he was “highly skeptical that a majority of DC residents don’t want their city to have better public safety and more reasonable safety standards.”
Vance repeatedly claimed Union Station had been taken over by “drug addicts,” “vagrants” and the “chronically homeless” in recent years.
“We have changed so much in nine days, and I thought it important to highlight how great of a space this could be, how easy it could be to actually enjoy something like Union Station if you just had politicians who stopped prioritizing violent criminals over the public citizens who deserve public safety in their own communities,” Vance said.
When asked about the vice president’s presence, Jay Swanson, a customer eating a burger, said: “It’s disgusting, I lost my appetite.”
Swanson offered a counterpoint: “I don’t think it’s a crackdown on crime, I think it’s setting the stage for Trump to try and stay in past his term,” he said, adding: “The resolute courage of the American people will win it.”
As Vance departed, they continued to shout and wave signs. “Criminals out of DC? Start with the Epstein files,” read one sign.
If you get Comedy Central tonight’s new episode at South Park at 10pm ET goes after the federal takeover of DC.
so if big balls was the target of a “ attempted carjacking” by many people and was allegedly incapacitated as a result, why didn’t they take the car?
Sorry, we’re just dealing with people that have a history of staging events!
That pic of MicroPenis (aka big balls) was definitely staged. They didn’t even have their story straight when it allegedly happened; multiple versions.
The word AMERICAN on the vehicle behind him was so ham-handed.
A lot of blood from just a nosebleed…or maybe he’s a hemophiliac.
No visible wounds on his exposed, white-skinned body. Why was his shirt off? To show white skin.
White pants, not blue jeans or dark pants, so the blood-like substance would show up better.
The pant leg nearest the camera is covered in whatever; the other pant leg is clean.
And, they rolled it out to coincide with the takeover of DC.
The Republican-led Texas House on Wednesday approved a new congressional map crafted to hand five additional U.S. House seats to the GOP over fierce opposition from Democrats, who cast the plan as a racially discriminatory attempt by President Donald Trump to stack the deck in next year’s midterm election.
The House adopted the map, 88 to 52, along party lines. A Senate panel advanced a similar map Sunday, and the full chamber was expected to send the new lines to Gov. Greg Abbott’s desk later this week.
Gavin Newsom: “When they go low, we go to hell”
(Newsom’s California redistricting proposal has a 22-point polling advantage)
@GovKathyHochul
Game on.
@BarackObama
X.com
Over the long term, we shouldn’t have political gerrymandering in America, just a fair fight between Republicans and Democrats based on who’s got better ideas. But since Texas is taking direction from a partisan White House and gerrymandering in the middle of a decade to try and maintain the House despite their unpopular policies, I have tremendous respect for how Governor Newsom has approached this. He’s put forward a smart, measured approach in California, designed to address a very particular problem at a very particular moment in time.
NEW THREAD by our fearless leader