Monday Reading

A number of good options this morning (as always, please go to the links for the full article/ post).

Charles Pierce on the Sutherland Springs mass murder and the crux of the gun control problem:

Thanks to the everlasting impotence of our political institutions and the people within them, we once again have to accept another unfortunate exercise of Second Amendment rights as the unfortunate consequence of being a free people. Thoughts and prayers? Jesus Christ, you should pardon the expression, these 26 people were gunned down in church. I think the “prayers” part was pretty well-covered, you indolent dolts.

When will some politician actually lose his job because he made killing his fellow citizens easier in exchange for a potful of campaign money? When will gun money become as toxic as tobacco money? Hell, when will gun money become as toxic as Heroin money? Nobody would take money from the Heroin PAC. When will gun money become a disqualifying factor in a campaign? Not soon, I suspect...

Not until a critical mass of voters makes reasonable gun control the number one qualification for their vote.

Politico exposes a proposal by Energy Secretary Rick "Oops" Perry that would benefit a heinous coal operator who was a big Trump supporter:

A proposal by Energy Secretary Rick Perry to alter the nation's electricity markets would provide a windfall for a small group of companies — most strikingly one owned by coal magnate Bob Murray, a prominent backer of President Donald Trump. 

Perry's plan would force consumers to subsidize ailing coal-fired and nuclear power plants with billions of dollars, in what he calls an effort to ensure that the nation’s power network can withstand threats like terrorist attacks or severe weather. But his narrowly written proposal would mostly affect plants in a stretch of the Midwest and Northeast where Murray's mining company, Murray Energy, is the predominant supplier, according to a POLITICO analysis of Energy Department data. 

The company and its PAC together sent $200,000 to pro-Trump election efforts last year, while Bob Murray threw an invitation-only West Virginia fundraiser for Trump in 2016.  

E.J. Dionne, Jr., on what's at stake in tomorrow's gubernatorial election in Virginia:

A Northam victory would send a signal to the country that President Trump is a severe drag on the GOP, especially if it were combined with Democratic pickups in the legislature. This would bolster the forces trying to contain Trump’s abuses and give heart to those doing the organizing work against him at the grass roots. 

It would tell Republicans in Congress that coddling and imitating Trump carry a high cost while strengthening Democratic efforts to recruit strong candidates for the 2018 midterms. 

A win by Gillespie would convey exactly the opposite message. It would ratify the Republican candidate’s vile and dishonest campaign tying Northam to felons and criminal gangs. This, in turn, would lead to more ugly racial and anti-immigrant appeals by GOP candidates next year. The party would decide that playing around with a few of Trump’s more hateful themes was the way to go. The race to the bottom would continue.

Sitting this one out is not an option for Democrats. Any who do have forfeited their right to bitch and, more importantly, reneged on their duty as responsible citizens.

Finally, Infidel 753 once again has a link round- up that is worth your time to peruse.

Go get 'em!