zn wrote:

This is not an issue of the left not being heard, this is an issue of the right getting a very regressive message out to its base, while being backed by big money that has been promised huge gifts in the form of tax relief and drilling rights etc. So it’s a combination of the rich oligarchy getting even more of what it wants than ever before–and I mean by huge big preposterous bunches more–and prejudiced Magas saving their kids from migrants turning them trans (the latter joke captures a real point). Among the things threatened? Besides the environment. Social security, FEMA, education, women’s reproductive rights, the safety net and assistance out of poverty…. it goes on and on. This is the worst in our lifetimes. By far. Make no mistake.

I dunno. While I agree that things are going to get far, far worse, and this is basically the death of the “American dream” of living in prosperity and freedom, the fact that the oligarchy financed this heavily doesn’t account for the voting patterns. It is also true, for example, to say that the oligarchy financed Harris. They were kind of in a win-win situation as a class, though specific billionaires backed the MAGA agenda, and some backed Harris.

So here’s something I’m thinking about: Trump apparently has drawn FEWER votes this election than he did in 2020. He actually performed worse than the last time he ran. Not by a lot; it’s basically a push. So now I’m looking squarely at the fact that Harris got ~15M fewer votes than Biden did. Trump didn’t gain in popularity. Harris was a drop-off from Biden. A huge drop-off.

Why?

Well, it’s complex, and there are undoubtedly several factors.

But it seems apparent that, once again, the Democrats relied mostly on the argument that Trump is terrible. Which has the virtue of being true. But also isn’t enough on its own. And I say that having just made the prediction a few hours ago that it WOULD be enough, that women in particular were bound to vote against the regressive, misogynistic policies that are unfolding.

Harris ran on “Joy!” And secondarily, she ran on being a Republican. Bragged about Republican endorsements, including those of Liz and Dick Cheney, a war criminal. And promised to take advice from Republicans, and even find a place in her cabinet for a Republican. In the mean time, she also forcefully backed war criminal Netanyahu, and said nothing about specific policies. She deliberately ran on vague generalizations about “economic opportunities.” And apart from her saying she would continue to back Israel and fracking, I don’t know a single thing that she said she would fight for. On abortion rights, she said that if a bill came to her, she would sign it. She didn’t promise to lead the fight, or make it a priority.

Basically, she presented nothing except the absence of MAGA as a platform and some feel-good vibes.

And I think the way she came to be the nominee was unhelpful. Voters didn’t choose her. She was the nominee by default. I think all of this added up to a good deal of apathy about her as a candidate, and it appears that there wasn’t enough fear of Trump to put her over the top.

Well, part of it, I think, is that the camera doesn’t see what Stafford sees.

If you watch that play through the camera – which is what we do – it looks like an INT all the way, and then Johnson bursts in like a comet and snatches it out of nowhere.

But that isn’t what Stafford was looking at when he cut that throw loose.

So, again, I dunno. I’m inclined to think it was a brilliant throw, and Stafford erased Worrell because he tracked Johnson all along, and saw the window.

nittany ram wrote:

wv wrote:

Is there a throw that better exemplifies the essence of Stafford, more than that one? The gunslinger. Ice-water. Assassin. Reckless. Pinpoint power-accurate. Stubborn. Tough. I wish some football expert would go over the details of that pass. The TD will get all the press coverage, but the pass to TJ was as interesting a play as the Rams will have all year.. w v

Someone on twitter quipped that if Mahomes had made that throw, there would already be a one-hour televised special about it on NFL network.

I agree with all of this. That was either the greatest shitty pass of all time, or the shittiest great pass of all time. Or something. I dunno. But I’ve never seen anything like that before. That was brand new fresh and original.

You know, he led Tyler Johnson precisely, and put that ball EXACTLY where it need to be for that to be a catch. And the fact that “Pants-Around-His-Ankles” Worrell tried to deposit that check before it got endorsed just adds to it.

That Stun Gun was set at eleven. That’s all I know.

zn wrote:

Zooey wrote:

I don’t even recognize this Rams front office anymore. Why don’t they go get some actual players?

They know nothing about football. Remember, they’re the guys who let Darren Arnold retire.

Deacon Jones, too. Don’t forget that he could still be wearing the horns.

zn wrote:

Los Angeles Rams PR@TheLARamsPR In 69 coverage snaps this season, S Jaylen McCollough has recorded four interceptions, one defensive touchdown, four passes defended, one pass breakup, and two incompletions against as the primary defender. His 0.0 passer rating against as the primary defender is tied for first across the NFL

He can’t do better than o.o?

I don’t even recognize this Rams front office anymore. Why don’t they go get some actual players?

wv wrote:

Fwiw, Nick Wright picks Kamala.  (this guy is a serious, professional-ish gambler, btw.   He studies)

I think Kamala is going to win, and I don’t think it’s going to be as close as people think.

Looks to me like the enthusiasm for Trump has diminished over the years. He still has a lot of diehard support, but I can’t see how he would have increased support for himself. I don’t think he’s getting any votes this time that he didn’t get last time. His rallies have lower turnouts, and there are lots of people who leave the rallies early. The thing is, he used to have tremendous novelty value, but he’s basically singing the same songs. You know, REO Speedwagon can still sell some tickets to shows around the country, but they aren’t filling arenas anymore. I just see Trump as a faded star banging out his greatest hits to an audience that finds that the old excitement just isn’t quite there anymore.

The second and more important thing is that I expect an historic gender gap. I think women are gonna kill him at the polls. This is different from Hillary. Hillary was a woman, sure, and some people voted for that. But she was also a woman with high negatives, and Kamala doesn’t have the high negatives. Moreover, I think women will be motivated not just to “vote for a woman,” but to vote AGAINST the rightwing rollback on women’s rights. I think there is gonna be some backlash to the abortion rollback and the Project 2025 “barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen” crap. A lot of women are gonna look at Trump’s and the GOPs’ misogynistic bullshit and be reminded of their ex-husbands and shitty boyfriends and all of that.

That’s what I think. But I do not have a great track record as a prognosticator, so….

zn wrote:

Sarah Barshop@sarahbarshop

From NFL communications: Kam Kinchens recorded a 103-yard interception-return for a touchdown in the fourth quarter, tied with Pete Barnum (Sept. 26, 1926) for the longest pick six by a rookie in NFL history and the longest go-ahead fourth-quarter touchdown by a rookie all-time.

I don’t have a degree in Geometry, but that was 104 yards.

zn wrote:

Young (OLB with uniform # 0 ) hits Smiths arm on that throw so the ball is off target.

The DL got after it yesterday, man. They were flying in from everywhere. And so young. These guys get better every week, and the Rams DL is turning into a problem.

Now. If they can just learn to contain the slippery QBs….

Play of the game TEAM defense Byron Young sets the edge up top Bobby Brown dominated the center, Omar Speights makes tackle Hoecht gets his nose in there, too

Watch Lake on that play, too.

joemad wrote:

Zooey, are you voting for Steve Garvey?

LOL.

No.

I voted Yes on every proposition except 34 and 36.

I thought all the propositions were pretty straight-forward, with the exceptions of 33 and 34, so I researched those until I was satisfied.

There is literally only one entity that Prop 34 applies to: AIDS Healthcare Foundation. The proposition was created by conglomerate landlords to force the foundation out of Housing Advocacy actions.  They’ve been buying “fixer-upper” housing because they believe that adequate housing is essential in the fight against AIDS, and they work to improve the properties, but it’s a work in progress. They also spend money on advocating for affordable housing, so the big boys put this together to push them out of the housing game. As far as I can tell.

Prop 36 is just another one of those “if we incarcerate more people for longer sentences, we will cure society’s ills” kinds of initiatives that cost a lot of money, destroy families, and don’t fix anything except private prison profits.

• This reply was modified 1 year, 4 months ago by Zooey.

Looking forward to this game. Also, yay Dodgers.

This seems crazy to me, considering how high Richardson’s stock was last year before he was injured.

I understand that taking himself out of the game in a crucial drive late in the game is not a confidence-builder, but to turn the team over to Flacco in perpetuity seems like…well…this is more than just taking a breather during a game. There is more to this, probably a lack of work ethic generally, I’m guessing.

Colts HC Shane Steichen clarified that Joe Flacco is Indianapolis’ starting QB “going forward”. This is not an experiment. pic.twitter.com/WvyuQEgpER

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) October 30, 2024

Well, I am sorry the Cardinals won.

I am pleased to read about Dedich. I am not an OL-watcher, particularly. I focus on the skill players when watching, and I notice OL work only when it’s right in front of my face, or on replays.

But Dedich looked overmatched to me against the Raiders. I noticed him only 2 or 3 times, and those were the times when he whiffed a block, or got overpowered. So I thought, you know, “UDFA, everybody’s hurt, whattaya gonna do?” But after the Raiders game, I saw his name listed as one of the higher-rated Rams for the game, and now this praise after the Vikings game (during which I didn’t really notice him one way or another, particularly).

Limmer certainly had a rough patch last night, but appears to me to be holding up pretty well for a rookie Center. That’s not a position where rookies frequently excel, but he seems to be doing okay. I think that Delay of Game was on him, and he had a couple of other lapses.

It’s nice to have depth on the OL. Those of us who still bear scars from previous years of OL catastrophe will welcome all of this, and cheer even louder when Avila and Jackson come back in a couple of weeks.

It was just so loud in there had to cover up my ears ya know. https://t.co/R3tfgF79NT

— B.Y. (@byron_97) October 25, 2024