January 30, 2017

Uber founder tries to have his cake and eat it too.

Who knew that Travis Kalanik's collusion with the Trump administration was all about getting underpaid Uber drivers a seat at the table until they can be replaced by driverless cars? As per his Facebook page:

"We partner around the world optimistically in the belief that by speaking up and engaging we can make a difference. Our experience is that not doing so shortchanges cities and the people who live in them. This is why I agreed in early December to join President Trump’s economic advisory group..."

<snip>

"I understand that many people internally and externally may not agree with that decision, and that’s OK. It's the magic of living in America that people are free to disagree. But whatever your view please know that I’ve always believed in principled confrontation and just change; and have never shied away (maybe to my detriment) from fighting for what’s right."

My husband (retired FDNY) drives for Uber. There was 5X surge pricing for jobs to Kennedy Airport last night. Due to a somewhat spontaneous work action by NYC cabbies, no one would answer the calls.

https://www.facebook.com/traviskal/posts/1331814113506421

January 30, 2017

If Jill Stein misled you into donating for the recount that never took place,

contact your credit card company, dispute the charge, and have your donation refunded via a charge back.

January 26, 2017

Long Island village clerk retires early after he posts what he calls an "off-color joke"

Village Clerk retires early after Women’s March post
Bob Barra wrote that pro-choice marchers ‘probably should have been aborted’

<snip>

"Village Clerk Bob Barra retired a day early on Thursday, after a public outcry in reaction to his Facebook post that the pro-choice marchers at Saturday’s Women’s March on Washington 'probably should have been aborted.'"

<snip>

"'He was asked to leave the building,' Deputy Village Clerk Bob Fumagalli said, declining to comment about the status of any retirement benefits Barra may be entitled to. His salary was $134,724 in 2016, and he has worked for the village since 2011. He was also paid $24,225 by Nassau County as a part-time golf course attendant, according to Newsday."

And it gets worse...
http://www.newsday.com/long-island/nassau/gop-linked-village-clerk-paid-33-5g-as-nassau-golf-attendant-1.7045438

January 25, 2017

Could Trump's tweets calling for voting fraud investigations provide the impetus - and cover -

that our side needs to start a serious query into whether or not the Russians/Republicans engaged in election fraud that helped put Trump into the White House?

Jeff Zeleny of CNN turned the claim right around on Trump by asking Spicer yesterday:

Zeleny not only questioned whether Trump is “comfortable” with his win, given his claims, but he also suggested that “maybe he didn’t win if that’s the case.”

http://www.mediaite.com/online/cnns-jeff-zeleny-asks-spicer-what-trumps-voter-fraud-claims-mean-for-democracy/

January 24, 2017

Inaccurate picture book biography on Trump removed from a Smithsonian shop

According to Bob Somerby of the Daily Howler (referencing Ian Shapiro of the Washington Post), the $50 book included the following claims:

On the birth certificate:

"Donald Trump took the fall for what should have been the fault of Hillary Clinton, whose campaign first propagated the misinformation about President Obama."

On the Russian hacking:

No proof it was the Russians, the book maintains, despite the intelligence community's assessment that the evidence against the Russians is overwhelming. "The Clinton campaign desperately claimed that Russia hacked the DNC and that Putin was trying to influence the American election. This was a strange maneuver on their part. ... Outside her most loyal supporters, the tactic flopped and most Americans were able to see through this blatant manipulation to distract them from the ugly truth."

On Trump's surprise victory on Nov. 8:

"Sweeping" and "decisive." Clinton only won the popular vote by 200,000 ballots, the book says.

The book was written by Brandon Christopher Hall, who (according to Shapiro who interviewed him) is a 25 year old Jill Stein voter from Atlanta.

http://dailyhowler.blogspot.com/

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/a-trump-book-for-sale-at-the-national-history-museum-is-riddled-with-falsehoods/2017/01/20/adb72e24-de6d-11e6-acdf-14da832ae861_story.html?utm_term=.61ec15486b66

January 22, 2017

President Obama visited low level government bureau workers in his last week,

and shook everyone's hand. The photo op was captured by an official photographer, and everyone was sent a commemorative picture of their individual handshake.

A friend forwarded her daughter's photo. President Obama was waiting outdoors at the bottom of a grand flight of exterior stairs into the building, as the long line made its way down.

What a classy, thoughtful thing to do.

January 22, 2017

People participated in Women's Marches on all seven continents, including Antarctica.

It seems there was an expedition...

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2017/01/21/womens-march-on-washington-antarctica/96882184/

January 21, 2017

Middle aged white guy at the Women's March mansplains the problem

to 500,000 women and their allies. This is about gender based double standards darlin', not about old guard versus new.

http://www.mediaite.com/online/we-have-to-take-over-the-democratic-party-michael-moore-at-the-womens-march/

January 21, 2017

My bus to the Women's March was canceled 3 hours before we were set to leave.

Here's the text of the cancellation email:

"URGENT Message to attendees of Long Island, NY Bus Transport to Women's March on Washington:

Here at Sunrise Junket we pride ourselves on bringing a quality product to our consumers. Unfortunately we have to relay some very unfortunate news. Sunrise Junket is a small event company that specializes in Long Island wine tours. We were asked to provide two buses for the Women's March on Washington. We reached out to a representative for Golden Class Limo, and were promised two coach buses. A deposit was made, confirmations were given, and planning began. You see, although we are a small company we decided to NOT PROFIT on this business transaction. The Women’s March on Washington is destined to be a historical event and we believe in everything it stands for. We believe in equality for all, we believe in the women’s right to choose, we believe that our daughters’ need a world where they know their voices can and will be heard. We priced each ticket knowing that it would cover the cost of the two coach buses and nothing more. And we were okay with that.

This afternoon, at just before 5pm, the aforementioned Golden Class Limo representative contacted us stating that someone had offered the company an exorbitant amount of money for the two buses that had been reserved for us. Despite our confirmation, despite our deposit, our vendor turned their backs on us and we were left with nothing. We worked tirelessly for several hours contacting everyone we possibly could here on Long Island, NYC and NJ to see if we could somehow, someway provide transportation to the March. Our hearts are broken, our heads are hung low and we are sorry to say we were unable to find a company with transportation available.

We realize the disappointment, inconvenience, and sadness this will cause for our consumers. We are saddened and disappointed as well. A full refund will be issued immediately to all with our sincerest apologies being sent. Please know that we have every intention to proceed legal action and, needless to say, Golden Class Limo has been removed indefinitely from our vendor pool.

Should you have any questions or concerns please contact us at info@sunrisejunket.com. We will be available all weekend to field emails."

Golden Class Limo....could it be any more ironic?

January 19, 2017

Some very practical information about the D.C. Women's March

Here are some links to lists of places that will welcome marchers who want to warm up, get something to eat / drink, or use a rest room.

There's also an interactive map of the welcome station locations, a guide for what to bring / wear, and a list of speakers, all via New York Magazine's blog, The Cut.

https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=1-MbCRo0_c9N2krZ8EC_JGi6hlBQ&ll=38.898067875688824%2C-77.02499509999996&z=14

https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/1Z6fsm0f8imCahdIZHDOcwzWZ1wWc2wrVF6OtGDOohfY/pub

http://nymag.com/thecut/2017/01/what-to-bring-to-the-womens-march-plus-how-to-prepare.html

http://nymag.com/thecut/2017/01/here-are-all-the-speakers-at-the-womens-march-on-washington.html

The forecast for Saturday (as of today) is a high of 55, a low of 47, and a 10% chance of rain.

https://weather.com/weather/5day/l/USDC0001:1:US