EppsNet Archive: Los Angeles Times

Let’s Go, Brandon!

 

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In Which We Learn That You’re Much More Likely to be Killed by a Bed Than by a Political Extremist

 

‘We are a tinderbox’: Political violence is ramping up, experts warn — Los Angeles Times Politically motivated violence has ebbed and flowed throughout U.S. history. Currently, America is going through an upsurge in right-wing violence, according to researchers who track attacks and other incidents. They say today’s climate is comparable to that in the mid-1990s, when a similar wave of right-wing violence culminated in the 1995 bombing of the federal office building in Oklahoma City, which killed 168 people. I’ll call bullshit on that. In fact, to avoid having to repeat myself, I’ll call bullshit on most of the article. It’s extremely slanted. There were 9,625 threats against members of Congress and their families last year, according to the Capitol Police — more than twice as many as in 2017. How many of the threats were carried out? I’ll estimate zero. “Death threats” are the biggest scam . . .… Read more →

A Solution for Abortion Access

 

From the Los Angeles Times: California law states that people have a “fundamental right” to choose and obtain an abortion before a fetus becomes viable. The governor has vowed to protect that right. But just because abortion has more legal protection in California does not mean it is readily accessible to all, advocates of reproductive choice say. Many Californians struggle to afford the procedure, and some live far from a clinic that provides it. Such practical barriers can make abortion too difficult to access for Californians, despite the legal assurances on the books, advocates say. What a calamity! There are no legal roadblocks to abortion in California, and yet a mother-to-be who doesn’t want to be a mother may still find the procedure inaccessible or unaffordable. What about condoms? Are condoms inaccessible or unaffordable? Read more →

Why Should Men (or Women) Have to Pay for Prenatal Coverage?

 

Illinois rep asks why men should have to pay for prenatal coverage — LA Times Evidently the LAT thinks this a hopelessly stupid question, but why? ObamaCare requires that all health plans cover pregnancy and childbirth, even though pregnancy and childbirth insurance is expensive and many people (including women) don’t need or want it. Why is a man or woman not afforded the option to buy a less expensive health plan without pregnancy and childbirth coverage? Why is that not an option? Even though the LAT frames the issue as a stupid question asked by a stupid white male, why should women in their 50s or 60s or 70s be paying for pregnancy and childbirth insurance? Or women of any age if they don’t want it? Why is this law forcing people to pay for expensive things that they don’t need or want? Read more →

It’s National Margarita Day!

 

My margarita just saw its own shadow. You know what that means? Six more margaritas! Olé! Fiesta! It's Monday, so you probably don't need an excuse to lift a celebratory margarita. But in case you do, here it is. Posted by Los Angeles Times on Monday, February 22, 2016 Read more →

Why Don’t Asians Care About the Oscars?

 

From the Washington Post: Very white Oscar nominations leave Academy president ‘heartbroken and frustrated’ From the Los Angeles Times: Oscars 2016: It’s time for Hollywood to stop defining great drama as white men battling adversity From the Wall Street Journal: Black Actors and Directors Shut Out of 2016 Oscar Race Why don’t Asians seem to care about the Oscar whiteness crisis that continues to rage unabated? Maybe they’re too busy with jobs and school . . . Read more →

NTSB Recommends Ban on Driver Cell Phone Use

 

States should ban all driver use of cell phones and other portable electronic devices, except in emergencies, the National Transportation Board said Tuesday. The recommendation, unanimously agreed to by the five-member board, applies to both hands-free and hand-held phones and significantly exceeds any existing state laws restricting texting and cellphone use behind the wheel. — latimes.com DISLIKE! Busy, productive people need to talk and text while driving in order to jumpstart this economy! Yes, some of them will die, but it’s a net win because the benefits outweigh the costs. Read more →

Harry Morgan, 1915-2011

 

Harry Morgan dies at 96; star of TV’s ‘MASH’ — latimes.com I would have bet you a dollar to a dog biscuit this guy was already dead . . . R.I.P. Harry Morgan Read more →

Don’t Make Me Laugh

 

A new study says that men are funnier than women — but just barely. — latimes.com Men are a lot funnier on average, a few women are very funny, and women who have a reputation of being funny, like Lucille Ball or Carol Burnett, are usually not funny at all. Read more →

I Love L.A.

 

The best houses of all time in L.A. (Los Angeles Times) Historical or notable bridges in Los Angeles (Bridgehunter.com) Read more →

Twitter: 2010-09-11

 

RT @kausmickey: Once again troubled by possibility that LA Times might not collapse & vanish quickly enough to enable vibrant civic culture. # Overheard: "Therein lies the rub." # Read more →

Teachers Unions

 

In our biggest school systems, it’s become virtually impossible to fight the teachers unions and fire bad teachers. The giant Los Angeles Unified school system, with 33,000 teachers, fires only about 21 a year, or fewer than 1 in 1,000, according to the findings of an L.A. Times investigation. Now either Los Angeles has the greatest teachers in the world or something is very wrong. Talk to parents and you’ll know the answer. — Mickey Kaus Read more →

Twitter: 2010-02-03

 

Does this city make my butt look big? – http://goo.gl/N72i # Sign of the times: I noticed this morning that the newspaper racks (LA Times, OC Register) in front of LA Fitness have been removed # Read more →

Has Anyone Seen Harry’s Book?

 

Reporting from Searchlight, Nev. – A commotion unfolds in the tiny public library here as the staff searches for a copy of the memoir written by Harry Reid, Senate Democratic leader and Searchlight native. “Has anyone seen Harry’s book?” a librarian calls out. A local patron grabs a trash can and peers inside: “It’s not where it’s supposed to be,” he says. In his hometown at least, there seems to be little affection for Reid, whom some residents describe as a distant figure out of touch with local concerns. — Swing states may be on the move – latimes.com Read more →

Heiress Casey Johnson Dead at 30

 

Heiress Casey Johnson dead at 30 — Los Angeles Times I myself have an heir named Casey, the main differences being that he’s a boy and he’s still alive. This is definitely another blow to the idea that being fabulously well-to-do is a guarantee of any sort of happiness in life . . . Read more →

Mascots: Trojan vs. Bruin

 

USC’s mascot is a guy on horseback waving a sword. UCLA’s is a kid in a homemade bear suit. — Jim Murray, Los Angeles Times, Nov. 25, 1973 Read more →

We Apologize to Jackasses for the Unintended Insult

 

TV listings: The Prime-Time TV grid in Thursday’s Calendar section mistakenly listed MTV’s “Jackass” show on the MSNBC cable schedule at 7 and 10 p.m. where instead MSNBC’s “Countdown With Keith Olbermann” should have been listed. — latimes.com Read more →

Wives of Spanking Husbands Club

 

From the front page of the Los Angeles Times 70 years ago today, Jan. 26, 1938: Wives of Spanking Husbands Form Girls’ Auxiliary to Club SIOUX FALLS (S. D.) Jan. 25 (AP) — Wives of Spanking Husbands’ Club, organized in Sioux City, Iowa, and parent organization of fifty-nine such clubs throughout the nation according to its own figures–reached out for another slice of territory today. The Iowa housewives who consider it a mark of esteem for their husbands to wield a disciplinary hairbrush once in a while, announced plans today for a junior auxiliary–Daughters of Spanking Parents. ELIGIBLE GIRLS A letter received here from Sioux City and signed “Rita Rae, general delivery,” told of plans for the new organization for which she claimed an initial membership of seventeen. Any girl above the age of 11 years is eligible to join, Mrs. Rae wrote. “We think all parents should spank their… Read more →

T.J. Simers Must Die

 

I thought sports columnists were appointed for life, like Supreme Court justices, no matter how irrelevant they become, and yet I see that the Los Angeles Times has just dumped J.A. Adande. Well, by golly, that’s a good start! I can’t think of a single print columnist, at the Times or elsewhere, who’s remotely relevant anymore. There are dozens of sports websites (not that one — start at Deadspin and follow the links) with at least an order of magnitude more energy, insight and wit than you’ll find in your local print rag, which is why newspapers are going the way of the 8-track tape, the buggy whip and whale oil. The next in line to go at the Times should be fatuous blowhard T.J. Simers. Simers positions himself as a pot-stirring wiseass, and the line on him seems to be that if people don’t like him, he must be… Read more →

Remember

 

As time goes on, we will naturally start to forget what happened on September 11, 2001 . . . Read more →