Tom Cowan

I'm not anything close to being a good cook, or even a competent cook.
 
But one of my grandmothers, who couldn't much cook either, used to make chicken and dumplings which I enjoyed as a kid.
 
So I decided one day to attempt making that.
 
I finished and presented it to my wife and kids. Chicken and dumplings were not part of the culture of my wife's side of the family.
 
She took one look at the dish and they all refused to even taste it. I ended up eating it all myself over the next several days.
 
< frustration >
 
So I waited a few months and cooked exactly the same thing.
 
She looked at it and asked what it was.
 
I replied, "It's thick chicken soup."
 
They all ate it and enjoyed it enough to eat the leftovers the next day as well.
 
 
"Marketing: It's what's for dinner."

But use a ceramic mug, not glass.

I do because being new to Hero it explains not only the logic but the mechanics behind the talent.  These builds are similar to code snippets in a programming manual.  And Hero is a kind of programming manual for P&P RPGs.  Or toolkit, whatever lingo floats your boat. 

It was antifa.  The left organized a false flag assault on the Capitol to disrupt the election that they already won.  This is some real sixth dimensional chess, let me tell you.
 
/s

PSA: COVID-19 is not a joke and should be taken seriously.
 
A former patient was so brain damaged afterwards that he wrongly believed he'd won an election that he actually lost by 7 million votes.
 
Don't let this happen to you: WEAR A MASK.

The challenge here is addressing the misperception that "socialism" (or even communism) is incompatible with "democracy".  Perhaps it is time to rename the terms.  Socialism is tainted.  So find a new name for policies like universal health care and affordable education.
 
We live in a buzzword-based society.  The term "socialism" has been buzzworded away from what it actually means.  So create a new term.  Reframe the debate.  "Universalism" - everybody should be equal and have access to health care and affordable education.  "Elitism" - only the Wealthy 1% are entitled to health care and education - the rest should just toil away in illness and ignorance to enrich them.  Wow, who can argue in favour of elitism?

Also, too many 'conservatives' were perfectly happy to support Trump despite so many severe warning signs, and they got what I think they wanted the most:  the conservative majority on the Supreme Court.  Throwing Trump to the lions now is purely political calculus;  he can't give them *anything close* to similar value any more, and his cost has become too high.

Yesterday's episode of The Daily (the NYTimes radio show) featured the reporters who've followed the Trumpist "Stop the Steal" movement since the election. They say people were talking about storming the Capitol weeks ago, setting up carpools so people could bring their guns without being blocked by airlines, posting images of the carpools on social media saying "Here we are, armed, on our way to attack the government," etc. There would seem to be quite an adequate trail for the FBI.
 
OTOH they also explained some of the timidity of the Washington, DC and Capitol Police preparation. After views of Black Hawk helicopters menacing BLM protesters went around the world, there was some serious fear of backlash if they made a show of force and nothing happened. Apparently not realizing that there might be a significant difference between people with the avowed goal of peaceful protest, and people with the avowed goal of overturning the election through at least the threat of violence.
 
Also, on All Things Considered: Dem senator asks Capitol police why they aren't arresting more people as they clear the Capitol. Senator said they told him they can't walk and chew gum at the same time. I assume that's a free interpretation of what they actually said. Maybe there's even good reasons for it, but it's still disappointing.
 
Segment on Georgia senatorial elections found that some Georgians were rather not charmed with Loeffler's "More conservative than Attila the Hun!" slogan. I'm speculating here, but just possibly comparing yourself to a marauding, scorched-earth destroyer doesn't fly well in the state that remembers the burning of Atlanta and Sherman's march to the sea. Who knew?
 
Also, some Georgians interviewed say they like splitting the ticket and divided government. With Loeffler and Perdue both claiming to be Trump rubber-stamps, some Georgians saw no need to elect both of them.
 
Dean Shomshak

Actual patriots taking the electoral votes to safety minutes before the Senate chamber fell yesterday:
 

Washington State Rep. Cathy McMorris Rogers, hitherto a complete Trump loyalist, has withdrawn her intent to object. So that's something, at least.
 
Dean Shomshak

This is what happens when an attempt to steal an election fails.

The croutons are too big.

Los Angeles hospitals are now officially rationing care.

Mussolini and the fascists managed to be simultaneously revolutionary and traditionalist;[83][84] because this was vastly different from anything else in the political climate of the time, it is sometimes described[by whom?] as "The Third Way".[85] The Fascisti, led by one of Mussolini's close confidants, Dino Grandi, formed armed squads of war veterans called blackshirts (or squadristi) with the goal of restoring order to the streets of Italy with a strong hand. The blackshirts clashed with communists, socialists, and anarchists at parades and demonstrations; all of these factions were also involved in clashes against each other. The Italian government rarely interfered with the blackshirts' actions, owing in part to a looming threat and widespread fear of a communist revolution. The Fascisti grew rapidly; within two years they transformed themselves into the National Fascist Party at a congress in Rome. In 1921, Mussolini won election to the Chamber of Deputies for the first time.[18] In the meantime, from about 1911 until 1938, Mussolini had various affairs with the Jewish author and academic Margherita Sarfatti, called the "Jewish Mother of Fascism" at the time.[86]
March on Rome
In the night between 27 and 28 October 1922, about 30,000 Fascist blackshirts gathered in Rome to demand the resignation of liberal Prime Minister Luigi Facta and the appointment of a new Fascist government. On the morning of 28 October, King Victor Emmanuel III, who according to the Albertine Statute held the supreme military power, refused the government request to declare martial law, which led to Facta's resignation. The King then handed over power to Mussolini (who stayed in his headquarters in Milan during the talks) by asking him to form a new government. The King's controversial decision has been explained by historians as a combination of delusions and fears; Mussolini enjoyed wide support in the military and among the industrial and agrarian elites, while the King and the conservative establishment were afraid of a possible civil war and ultimately thought they could use Mussolini to restore law and order in the country, but failed to foresee the danger of a totalitarian evolution

Definitely not safe for work!
 
 

Part of a conversation...
 
Other guy, sarcastically, "Lockdowns have a great record of success. Just look at California and New York."
 
Me:
 
"Sir, the wounded soldier lost half of his blood despite the bandages!"
"My God! Send out the word! No more bandaging wounded soldiers! Bandages don't work!"