Quick Hits: Volume CCLI

 - Remember the days when Jon Stewart hosted The Daily Show (which, unlike Trevor Noah's version of present day, occasionally drew laughs) on Comedy Central? His scathing critiques of political figures (most often of the conservative ilk) often resulted in articles titled "Jon Stewart destroys (insert name here)." 

As a guest on Monday's edition of Stephen Colbert's CBS program The Late Show, the Destroyer returneth. 

Right now: Jon Stewart on the Covid Lab Leak “theory” is solid laughs pic.twitter.com/WlRX35p9WK

— siskin.eth (@mns) June 15, 2021

You can tell by Colbert's reaction that he's not used to (nor capable of refuting) guests which counteract he and his audience's preferred narratives. 

- Speaking of hot COVID takes.......

 

Biden’s Covid czar, @ASlavitt, says the pandemic wouldn’t have been as bad if Americans “had sacrificed a little bit” more.

Avoiding social interaction "requires a certain amount of sacrifice and change." pic.twitter.com/H6fGFv5hLi

— Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) June 14, 2021

It's never ceases to amaze (and infuriate) me that those who were never asked to make sacrifices themselves resort to lecturing those whose very livelihoods depended upon interacting with others. 

- The following tweet is from a guy who reports on politics for a living with ABC News: 

Is there any doubt that the GOP would end the filibuster for good--in a heartbeat--if it served their purposes? https://t.co/5dbnxs8LDF

— Terry Moran 🇺🇸 (@TerryMoran) June 14, 2021

In this era of "what-about-ism" and "GOTCHA!" discourse, basic facts and very recent history are shoved aside. The fact is that in the first two years of Donald Trump's presidency, his same political party held a majority in the U.S. Senate. Trump actually asked then Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to abolish the legislative filibuster. Not only did McConnell decline to do so, many Senate Dems signed on to a petition declaring its importance in safeguarding the rights of the minority. But now that ditching the filibuster would serve the Democrats' purposes, many Dems (but, thankfully, not all) are now declaring the procedure as some sort of racist relic. But I digress. 

So in short, Ter, yes, there actually is significant doubt. But solid projection nonetheless. 

-----------------------------------------------