Thursday’s Forum
Steven L. Taylor
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Thursday, April 9, 2026
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27 comments
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About Steven L. Taylor
Steven L. Taylor is a Professor Emeritus of Political Science and former College of Arts and Sciences Dean. His main areas of expertise include parties, elections, and the institutional design of democracies. His most recent book is the co-authored
A Different Democracy: American Government in a 31-Country Perspective. He earned his Ph.D. from the University of Texas and his BA from the University of California, Irvine. He has been blogging since 2003 (originally at the now defunct Poliblog).
Follow Steven on
Twitter and/or
BlueSky.
Ireland update:
Dublin and Galway effectively shut down due to protests over fuel prices.
I support the protestors.
Whoever wants the Democratic nomination needs to stand up right now and spell out for Americans how badly Fatso and his band of yes-bros have fucked up…from the very second they welched on the JCPOA until today.
The stepford wife;
Whiskey Pete;
WTF are they talking about?
The regime has not been changed. They still have their uranium. And NOW they have control of the Strait and 20% of the world’s oil. And on top of everything FATSO IS ACCEPTING IRAN’S 10-POINT PLAN. If that isn’t defeat, then what the fuck is?
Please, anyone, tell me what exactly did we win?
I’d love to see Mark Kelly stand up and give everyone a big dose of reality, and not just this third-rate reality show.
One thing that hasn’t received the attention that it deserves is Vance’s shameless attempt to prop up Putin’s puppet in Hungary while falsely and hypocritically accusing both the EU and Ukraine of election interference.
Orbán, of course, also happens to be Putin’s money launderer for the European and (to a lesser extent) the US far-right.
Instead of promoting democracy, the US is now promoting kleptocracy – both at home and abroad.
Not coincidentally, fully in line with Russia’s long-standing strategy of not necessarily becoming stronger itself, but rather to weaken its geopolitical competitors by dragging them down to its own corrupt and kleptocratic standards.
I’m headed to the airport sans laptop and won’t be back until Sunday afternoon.
Update #2
Gas lines at most stations.
Limerick and Shannon both almost out of gas.
@James Joyner: Enjoy your time off. And don’t turn on the TV either.
@James Joyner: Travel safe and have fun!
Another outrage being drowned out by all the other “flooding the zone with sh*t”:
At least you know Melania won’t be sharing that bed with a senile 79 year old narcissist.
I often think how difficult a job “Military Recruiter” must be in the Trump era, and how much harder it got over the past month or so.
This is scary. If I read this correctly, China’s ballistic missile capabilities and assets are several times what Iran has.
“Wajeeh Lion”
Consider how nearly overwhelmed the defenses against Iran missiles have been, how the supply of interceptors has been expended.
I’ve been trying to avoid that middle-aged thing of only listening to the music you grew up with decades ago, so I’ve been putting on a lot of Spotify new music lists, trying to find new bands that really hit the spot. The band The Last Dinner Party has been a fantastic find (though with a quarter billion streams on one song, clearly many many many other people have found them before me). Clever lyrics, catchy riffs, lush orchestration, great vocals, and a constant current of just being kinda (delightfully) weird. A bit of Florence and the Machine, and a heavy dollop of Kate Bush, but a sound that is ultimately their own. A few samples:
Count the Ways
The Feminine Urge
Let’s Do It Again
@Neil Hudelson:
I assume you’re already aware of the Angine de Poitrine thing that has exploded music YouTube?
@Neil Hudelson:
This may not be news to you at all, but KEXP and NPR Music often have interesting new stuff.
@charontwo:
Well, China has a much larger GDP as well. they can afford more stuff.
BTW, the $1.5 trillion El Taco wants for his War Crimes department is equivalent to about three (3) times Iran’s GDP.
@Charley in Cleveland: “At least you know Melania won’t be sharing that bed with a senile 79 year old narcissist.”
I was wondering if the bed came complete with Corey Lewandowski.
@Neil Hudelson: I like The Last Dinner Party — also revealed to my by Spotify — but have really fallen in love with London Grammar. If Spotify hasn’t introduced you to them yet, check them out!
@Michael Reynolds:
No, but i will check it out right now! @drj:
Yep I’ve been a big fan of KEXP for years, mostly through their podcasts now, but i used to spend significant time for work in the PNW and would have them on constantly.
When their song of the day podcast switched to “three songs padded with 30 minutes of the dj’s talking about why these songs are great” i stopped listening so much, but i need to restart. Good suggestion, thanks.
@wr:
Appreciate the recommendation, will put them on this afternoon!
Worth a read, IMO, lots of good points:
“Omission”
Includes lots of info re: insider trades, also interesting discussion of U.S. moves towards exploiting former allies instead of empowering them.
@Neil Hudelson:
Watch the video to get the full effect. You have never heard or seen anything quite like it.
@charontwo:
China has in recent years greatly expanded its production of defensive missiles as well. This morning I was wondering about a “we’ll waive the tolls on ships carrying your oil in exchange for air defense missiles” arrangement with China. There is apparently regular rail service from China to Iran that would be hard to interdict.
ETA: The US Navy has asked for nearly $8B in its 2027 budget to replace Tomahawk and SM-6 missile stocks.
@wr:
Melania held a surprise press conference today to deny any connection to Epstein and those activities.
@Michael Cain: Did she answer questions in six different languages?
It seems chimps in Uganda have been taking human lessons.
@Michael Cain: @Lucys Football:
She wanted to distract attention from her abysmal poll numbers, which also came out today
@Michael Reynolds:
Inspirational and appropriate to current events.
We got hit with a massive Hell Week recurrence. It’s not so much the work that needs to be done, but the stupid, complicated way many things need to be done, and that several projects are due very close to each other.
Good thing I saved the chicken meat when I made the stock. But it will probably be chilaquiles rather than enhiladas, as I’ll be working over the weekend. Refried beans with onions and maybe turkey chorizo for a side. Very simple, very quick, sufficiently satisfying.
@Michael Cain:
Seems unlikely she got her hubby’s permission or approval to keep Epstein in the news. Hopefully, she’s trying to give him a heart attack.