I’ll ape sloopy here and start with sports, because there was actually sports yesterday. Los Angeles doesn’t really deserve a football team, and yesterday they showed that they don’t actually have one. Alex Smith may have played his last game as a Chief, and played pretty damn well until Tennessee discovered the winning strategy- knock out KC’s go-to tight end. It’s official- Jon Gruden, who was a good-not-great coach, wins the NFL lottery. And I pre-gamed with Swiss Servator, which involved Deschutes Black Butte Porter and Deth By Cherries oatmeal stout. SP and I polished off a credible Barbera d’Alba with the Atlanta-LA game; a bit more volatile acidity and higher alcohol than I like, but the requisite low tannin and snappy acidity that we want in a pizza wine. And I’m paying for all of this as I type. GodDAMN, this keyboard is loud!

 

OK, on to Links. This I found amusing, showing that Portugal is really just the European equivalent of West Virginia. “Careful, Daddy, you’ll crush my smokes!”

 

Socialism. It’s just misunderstood. If we go socialist, we’ll ALL be wearing $700 jackets and living in million dollar third homes. The concept of “some animals are more equal than others” seems to have evaded this fellow’s reading.

“There is this idea that some people seem to have that socialists believe we should all be walking around wearing burlap sacks,” [Jacobin magazine editor] Uetricht said. “That’s not true.”

Although Uetricht is living on student loans as he pursues a masters degree in sociology, he revealed that he too enjoys occasional luxuries. He recently splurged on an “incredibly fresh” pair of $70 red, suede Nike sneakers, and a $180 pair of Timberland boots.

I can’t imagine that Uetricht’s fanboy enthusiasm for Sanders could be motivated by the thought of those student loan payments for a useless degree going away. That would be unprincipled.

 

This has gotten surprisingly little coverage in the US, but is certainly… suggestive. In other coverage, the real reason for Iran’s economic woes is exposed: unfettered capitalism, cuts in welfare, and lack of regulation. Bonus: a quote from Esfandyar Batmanghelidj, who should have been played by Adam West.

 

Hopeful headlines notwithstanding, I predict that we’re stuck with Sessions, the worst AG since Janet Reno, for quite a while. Of course, as we talked about yesterday, Team Blue has suddenly discovered their love for him.

 

This story reminds me greatly of a classic scene in Blazing Saddles.

 

A guy who led perhaps the most interesting life of all time has died.

 

And Old Guy Music, without which I’m sure your Sunday morning is not complete. I have rather, ummm, eclectic tastes in music, but I admit that I’ve shamefully neglected European classical in these various posts. I’ll correct this oversight with my favorite classical piano lyric piece, “Wedding Day At Troldhaugen.” Grieg rocked. This guy does a delightfully rollicking version of the song, and in retrospect, this should have been our wedding music instead of whatever stupid pop song was on the witness’s boombox (long story, but let’s just say that one has to do a bit of searching to find a wedding chapel in Vegas that will pretend that an 8 year old is at the age of consent).