Winter of death

"Cancel Christmas," snarls the Sheriff of Nottingham (Alan Rickman) in the otherwise pointless Robin Hood:  Prince of Thieves (1991), to show what a baddie he is.  The people of North Korea were not planning to celebrate Christmas anyway, but now they have been forbidden to laugh.  It's the tenth anniversary of the death of Kim Jong-il and there is to be no laughter for eleven days.  Or grocery shopping.  I wouldn't report this if reality hadn't surpassed The Onion again.

Donald Nixon, Roger Clinton and Billy Carter were embarrassing to their politician brothers, but not to the same extent as Piers Corbyn.  The brother of the former Labour Party leader was arrested over a video in which he urges people to "hammer to death" the "scum" who are promoting fascism in the form of covid restrictions and recommends burning down the offices of MPs who voted for them.  This would seem an abuse of free speech, especially in a country where two members of Parliament have been assassinated in recent years.  Some would say his real crime was performing this rap, which is offensive on a whole other level.

Female humans in Texas and several other places cannot have abortions performed by licensed medical personnel, but at least they can have mifepristone and misoprostol delivered by the US mail, with which it is a crime to tamper.  It's not ideal -- a Texan with an ectopic pregnancy will probably still have to die to satisfy Greg Abbott's twisted politics -- but it beats the hell out of a wire hanger.  Nearly fifty years after Roe, how many women would still know how to use a Coney Barrett snake?

Republicans who won't do anything constructive about the Trumpandemic nevertheless cherish it and want to build it a little village 'neath the tree.  Baby Tuckoo has called for a moratorium because it's boring like "telling people about your prostate every day" (he's at an age when that becomes worrying, I guess).  But Steve Bannon is delighted to have it take up all the bandwidth while he and the other serious people get on with "taking over the election apparatus" from his podcast studio/hall closet, presumably.  Sarah Palin emerged from her insecure location long enough to tweet, "It'll be over my dead body that I'll have to get a shot," eliciting many suggestions and offers of help.  I don't think the government mandate extends to people who put in a few months as governor years ago.  

And while they rant and rave, Omicron spreads like a QAnon rumor.  Joe Biden warned of "a winter of severe illness and death" for the unvaccinated.  Responses ranged from "why hasn't he fixed this?" to "but how will it affect his approval rating?"  And maybe a few people said, "You know, now I'm getting the vaccine."  Being president is like herding stupid, rabid weasels.  With mange.

Here's a bombshell from the Chattanooga Times Free Press via the Independent:  What Congress creature who won't get a shot because she's washed in the blood of Jesus also owns stock in AstraZeneca, Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson?  If you guessed Margie Three Names, have a cookie.  It's OK by Jesus if she collects the dividends.

Enjoy a rabid weasel.