Author: Gnerphk

I am The Gnerphk, writer extraordinaire, opinionated, radical, and extremely humble by nature.

F&L 2020: Are They For Real?

It’s been a grueling day in New Hampshire.  Running for office is nothing; it’s the press that suffer.

Spitting snow is expected in February, and it’s just a few pellets.  Besides, soon we’ll be inside where it’s nice and warm, packed with all these people, right?  …right?

Some free advice:  When next you go to a Bernie Sanders town hall, show up well in advance and get (more…)

Fear and Loathing 2020: Escape From The Beltway

Sixty degrees and drizzly here in D.C.  The kind of weather I’m glad to escape; it’s a sad excuse for a February, far as I’m concerned. Plenty of snow where I’m going, though. Packed gloves, two scarves, and zipped the liner into my old field jacket.  Way too warm in the Uber, but I’ll need it.

The Beltway is deadly (more…)

A Note On Iowa

It’s tomorrow, and we still don’t know who won.

Yes, it’s embarrassing. But it’s something that’s to be expected in any contest when the results are close; this is something that people should have anticipated happening, to be frank. (more…)

F&L: Let’s Not Forget Tom Steyer

He’s a late entry and is polling lower than Delaney in Iowa and New Hampshire.  Nevertheless, it’s a mistake to ignore Steyer; he’s going to make a difference in at least two early races unless something big changes, and all else aside he’s likely to split that all-important Billionaire Bloc of voters.  So who is he?  Why do we care that yet another rich old white guy is running? (more…)

F&L: Mike Bloomberg Buys The DNC

It’s true.  Former New York City mayor Mike Bloomberg donated a quarter million to the DNC; two days later, they announced a rules change for the February debate in Nevada to permit him on the stage.  Joe Biden’s reply is classic:  “He’s not even on the ballot in Nevada.”  My own thought is somewhat more cynical:  If the DNC could be bought so cheaply, why didn’t the Climate Debate people (or Tulsi!) pay them off sooner?

Of course it’s not that simple; these things never are — and I’ll get into that.  But (more…)

The Not Fake News: Emergency Editorial

Today was a bad day.

We knew it was coming; the fix has been in for weeks. But still, it was disappointing to some few of us that placed our hope in witnesses.

Personally, I think it’s for the best.  Lisa Murkowski put it pretty well: It’s a sham trial; there’s zero sense dragging it out, and witnesses won’t make any difference to the result.  There’s maybe three people, maybe four, who hadn’t made up their minds before the Senate show began.  Right now there might be one. (more…)

The Not Fake News Update: 30 Jan 2020

Hello again and welcome to yet another The Not Fake News Update! It’s 30 January 2020, and oh my, are you oblivious or what?

Here’s a quick look at what you’ve been missing during the Great Washington Impeachment Show and Extravaganza:


 

– Japan’s investigation into the Ghosn extraction has completed, and they’ve issued arrest warrants for the mercs that got him out. Meanwhile, Ghosn is asking to be tried at home in Lebanon on the theory that Japan’s anti-corruption laws are horrific. Though, of course, he’s not guilty. He says. (more…)

Fear & Loathing 2020: Take The Iowa Challenge

Nate Silver is trying to get us to commit before Iowa.  I’m willing.

The following is a transcript of my live Twitter rant, fresh off the Mojo Wire. It’s edited slightly for format purposes and to remove potentially libelous content about Betsy Warren’s dog, who when all is said and done has done nothing to deserve that sort of treatment.  Besides, I love Bailey; he’s a Good Boy, isn’t he?  Yes he is!  (Follow @FirstDogBailey on Twitter!) (more…)

F&L: Donald Trump and MAGA

One could write volumes about Donald Trump the celebrity, the business mogul, the particularly slimy real estate developer, and so on.  I’m giving that a miss.  As a public person I find him odious and in business I’d resort to extreme measures to avoid him (I haven’t ruled out self-defenestration).  Beyond saying that, it’s entirely immaterial for our purposes.  Our subject is Donald Trump as president: the pros and cons of his tenure, his chance at escaping unscathed from impeachment to run again, and his likelihood of winning in 2020 based on the issues.  That should be enough for one article.

(What:  You didn’t honestly think I would give him a pass just because he’s the Evil One, did you?) (more…)

F&L: Andrew Yang and the Yang Gang

There’s a media blackout in force on the Yang campaign; we don’t notice it because there’s another rather more obvious one around Bernie Sanders and a third working against Tulsi Gabbard.  But Yang is different; he’s no party rebel and doesn’t hang out with third-world dictators.  Instead, he’s a genius — not merely smart, but a genius — who wants us to live our lives more rationally.  And he’s willing to be president in order to make that happen.

You can see why I like him already; I can tell. (more…)