Covfefe Caturday: It’s a Rabbit Hole

 

“That’s a very deep rabbit hole you’ve found yourself in there, Alice.”

In an age where everyone is just a heartbeat away from being cancelled for anything, is nothing sacred?

Even coffee beans are no longer considered neutral ground(s).

Cancel culture has reportedly spread to the banking sector, as Chase Bank refuses to do business with a pro-Trump coffee company.

Chase Bank has stopped pro-Trump coffee company Covfefe Coffee from using its payment processor service, WePay, for seemingly no legitimate reason.

Kinky drinks Covfefe

And I see where Bank of America is using ‘War on Terrorists’ statutes in order to turn customer information over to the Feds without their permission.  That’s 2 out of the top 5 banking institutions in the United States that cannot be trusted, and we’ve no reason to believe the rest are any different.

I am very much beginning to feel like a stranger in Heinlein’s strange land.

“Secrecy begets tyranny.”
― Robert A. Heinlein, Stranger in a Strange Land

 

“He had learned that close-held secrets could often be cracked by going all the way to the top and there making himself unbearably unpleasant. He knew that such twisting of the tiger's tail was dangerous, for he understood the psychopathology of great power.”

― Robert A. Heinlein, Stranger in a Strange Land

Pretty In Pink

This isn’t a record – that honor is still held by Barry and Big MO – but 13 days in and we already have literally dozens of POTUS/FLOTUS cover–fluff stories. Like this: In First White House Interview, Joe & Jill Biden Talk Marriage, Family, Prayer — and the Challenges Ahead. Ground breaking material.

From the neck down Dr. Jilly could pass for Nancy P, and from the neck up President-Good-Old-Joe could pass for Hank Johnson.

Is the White House starting to feel like home?

President Biden: It's surreal ... but it's comfortable. We were here for eight years, just not in this part of the residence. Spent a lot of time in the Cabinet Room and the Oval with the president. So upstairs [in the private family quarters] is new.

I would like to see the part they left out, using an ellipsis instead, I’m sure that was the best part. But at least he knows where he is, so he’s got that going for him.

A pity our previous and last legitimate FLOTUS wasn’t considered either photogenic or articulate enough to warrant any press coverage during her 4 year tenure, unlike Dr. Jilly who hit it right out of the box.

But then, Melania didn’t have a PhD.

Although she sure did look pretty in pink.

Ah, a “Reality Czar” - What Could Go Wrong?

Anyone else starting to get the feeling that the progs idea of social democracy is much more closely aligned with dystopian totalitarianism than anything resembling “democracy”?

Because so many of us no longer watch Fox, here’s a great clip from Mark Steyn on Tucker last night addressing the NYT opinion piece calling for a Reality Czar to “fix” all that disinformation floating about in the roiling sea of free-speech which, as Mark points out, the Left mocks as a ‘right-wing fetish’.

While it pains me to link to the NYT for any reason I make an exception for How the Biden Administration Can Help Solve Our Reality Crisis because Roose’s article is so bone chillingly Orwellian you simply must read the source document.

“Several experts I spoke with recommended that the Biden administration put together a cross-agency task force to tackle disinformation and domestic extremism, which would be led by something like a ‘reality czar.'”

Other helpful suggestions proffered in his opinion piece for ways to combat “misinformation” included “auditing” social media algorithms and enacting federal government programs referred to as a “social stimulus” – which sounds chillingly similar to China’s “social credit” system. But now that Trump is gone, China is our new best friend.

Red Menace

It amuses me, slightly, that at no point does it occur to Roose that he and his lot are heavily implicated in the creation of the very “reality crisis” that terrifies him.

“I’ve spent the past several years reporting on our national reality crisis, and I worry that unless the Biden administration treats conspiracy theories and disinformation as the urgent threats they are, our parallel universes will only drift further apart, and the potential for violent unrest and civic dysfunction will only grow.”

Perhaps the reason people can no longer figure out what’s real and what’s fake is because “media” stopped presenting facts and started “shaping the public agenda” and instead began propagating exclusively the Left’s POV, talking points and stories that advanced the narrative.

You see, “fake news” isn’t the problem; the problem is mainstream “news” with an agenda. The media’s lack of credibility contributes greatly to the public’s - especially the non-liberal segment thereof – cynicism and willingness to believe anything not reported by the MSM. So Mr. Roose, this is your mess. And your proposed plan for cleanup on aisle 5 is worse than the mess you’ve made.

But if you really think a Reality Czar will do the trick I hear that Winston Smith is available, although he’s no doubt overqualified.

“The further a society drifts from the truth the more it will hate those who speak it.”

Plow or Panda: The Choice Is Yours

For all of you in the path of this week’s Nor’Easter and still digging out, allow me to offer an alternative to ongoing snow removal:

Follow the panda’s lead and do your best to enjoy it.

Let them give you a little boost and maybe we’ll all make it over hump-day.

Just hang in there a bit longer

and it will soon be spring. Maybe we’ll be able to get together with our friends and family again without social distancing,

perhaps even go out for a meal as a group again.

Which will of course still be dangerous, as this panda-emic is here to stay, and don’t you forget it!

OMG! Talk about cultural appropriation! What’s wrong with these people?

So have fun in the snow but be safe! We don’t want you falling down…

you might hurt your head

and turn into a liberal. Now repeat after me: this is a dangerous Panda-emic that’s never going away.

Let’s be careful out there.

Cultural Appropriation? Not a Problem.

It occurs to me that we may have to cancel Taco Tuesdays now that we have a “WOKE” administration. Let’s face it, culturally appropriated food was already in the crosshairs (can I say that, or will it register as “hate speech” on Facebook?) social justice warriors.

But now I think it might be punishable by law, Executive Order, or at least Facebook. So the question remains, can we honkies ever enjoy a tasty plate of tacos on the cheap again?

I’ll bet Facebook is conflicted about this. I mean, I know that Marky Z likes cheap Mexican food.

I also know how much he likes having the power to influence elections in order to impact how the worm turns:

FB wants to “work ... with [Biden] on some of their top priorities” “Biden already issued a number of exec orders on areas that we as a company really care quite deeply about”

But I’m not sure how he feels about the whole cultural appropriation thing; he obviously opposes appropriation on a personal level, having issued a scary cease and desist letter to this little mom and pop taco shop for “appropriating” his world famous Facebook logo:

They named it Tacobook Taqueria and created a logo with a thumbs-up in the familiar Facebook style. The bustling business at 1130 Broadway near Everett Community College went from five tables to 10, serving authentic and affordable fare.

In April, the owners got a letter in the mail from a Beverly Hills law firm citing “unauthorized use of Facebook intellectual property.”

Maybe we can get Jen to circle back around on this question…

but I hope it doesn’t take too long because man, I’m getting hungry. And it is Tuesday.

 

Footnotes:

Cultural Appropriation: “Taking intellectual property, traditional knowledge, cultural expressions, or artifacts from someone else’s culture without permission. This can include unauthorized use of another culture’s dance, dress, music, language, folklore, cuisine, traditional medicine, religious symbols, etc. It’s most likely to be harmful when the source community is a minority group that has been oppressed or exploited in other ways or when the object of appropriation is particularly sensitive, e.g. sacred objects.”

I’m Dutch, so I just want to go on record as specifically NOT condoning the eating Poffertjes

or raw marinated herring by POC ever again.

Although I suspect that might not be a problem

The Disinformation Age of the Imbeciles

It ain’t what you don’t know that gets you into trouble. It’s what you know for sure that just ain’t so. – Mark Twain

Indeed, if everything your liberal friends know for sure:

were actually true…

• Michael Brown was a gentle giant unjustifiably gunned down by a racist cop.

• Matthew Shephard was murdered by a hate-filled rightwing homophobe, not an ex-boyfriend in a drug deal gone bad.
• George Floyd did not die primarily from an overdose of fentanyl but was murdered by a racist cop.

Fentanyl will do that if you take enough. Also, the masks make it hard too.

• Christine Blasey Ford was a totally credible witness
• Justice Kavanaugh ran a red Solo cup rape line in college that nobody else ever heard of.
• Jussie Smollet had a noose put around his neck and bleach thrown on him by a couple of MAGA hat wearing racists when he decided to go out for a sandwich in the middle of the night in the middle of an arctic freeze.
• The Antifa/BLM riots this past year were “mostly peaceful protests.”

and so on and so on and so forth; why, no wonder they hate us!

Oh and just for the record: Jeffery Epstein still didn’t kill himself.

You know what I think? I think we need a better fan club.

Although no amount of PR will address the problem that our side tends to believe the truth rather than the politically correct narrative carefully created and curated by the left. That will always be a problem.

It’s All Rigged

I shall continue my Catty Cathy special inaugural fashion coverage today with a special report on Ella Emhoff’s unlikely new career as a model for IMG, one of the most prestigious agencies in the nation. Why do you say “unlikely”  MOTUS? After all Ella is the daughter of someone rich and famous ( in case you’re a cave dweller, Ella is the stepdaughter of VP Kammie) and that is how careers are made in postmodern America. And let’s just stipulate to the fact that, unlike Melania, she isn’t normally what you’d consider conventional model material. But then, we no longer live in conventional world, do we?

"It's not really about shape, size or gender any more," Ivan Bart, the president of IMG Models told The New York Times, "noting that what brands are attracted to, and what consumers want, is authenticity. "Ella communicates this moment in time. There's a cheekiness and a joy she exudes."

Generally more ‘cheeky’ than ‘joy’ I’d suggest.

I really hate to point this out, but those shadows in the underarm area are not “shadows” - Ella is a natural woman, a trait I’m guessing has limited ‘agency’ in the modeling world.

Now I know we used to have arguments around here regarding the “hands off the kids” policy. But with their treatment of the Trumps’ young son the media changed the rules. Also Ella is going on 22, is a senior at the Parson’s School of Design and has her own self-promoting website and Instagram account for her “designer knitwear” which she is happy to model herself.

Please note: I’ve creatively spared you the view of Ella’s underarm forest, of which she’s apparently proud. You’re welcome.

Even so, several of you noted that she looks like a sad little thing (she does). But it’s a curated image. Take this pre-inaugural shot with brother Cole (left) and Mom (real):

To look this geeky and androgynous takes real effort, especially when you’re really just a cute girl with curly hair (everywhere). And remember, Bart thinks she “exudes joy.”

Whatever

I come down on the side of those who think she’s probably a JAP (Jewish American Princess, i.e. rich spoiled brat). The tiara is a dead giveaway.

Certainly daddy’s rich enough to make her one, being a litigator/managing partner of a top U.S. entertainment law firm, i.e. representing the rich and famous for a rich cut of the take (excellent preparation for life in D.C.). Although his net worth is estimated around $6 mil, now that “Doug” - as his kids cutely refer to him – is the Second Gentleman he can expect his asset base to multiply geometrically. And that’s why he could afford to quit his job at the big law firm “in order to avoid conflicts of interest.” There was a time when there would have been no issue of conflict of interest as there was no intersectionality between entertainment lawyers and politics, but those days are long gone.

Anyway, speaking of intersectionality, back to Ella’s big new modeling contract. We’re to believe that it just organically happened when she showed up at Joey’s inauguration in her bejeweled coat and her Batsheva Hay dress and stunned the fashion world.

the frock:

When in fact the Vogue shoot and interview was done prior to the inauguration in anticipation of a big modeling contract announcement at a later date.

Inauguration Day always ushers in change, but perhaps never more so than this year, when President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris will finally wrest control of the White House away from the Trump administration. Biden and Harris’s families were, of course, on hand at the swearing-in ceremony on January 20, and preparations for the day began well in advance; for Ella Emhoff, Harris’s 21-year-old stepdaughter, that meant collaborating with designer Batsheva Hay to come up with a truly one-of-a-kind fit for the occasion.

This week, Vogue spoke to Emhoff—a designer in her own right who is currently a senior at Parsons—and Hay about the process of coming up with an Inauguration Day dress that worked with Emhoff’s Miu Miu coat, their feelings on D.C. style, and a potential future collaboration.

Batsheva, how did you feel when you found out your clothes were on Ella’s “mental mood board” for Inauguration Day?

Batsheva Hay: I was so amazed. I didn’t even know Ella’s Instagram or how to contact her, but my friend was like, “Kamala’s stepdaughter is so cool, you have to check out her work.” I never thought she’d know who I was, but my friend was like, “You should definitely shoot her.” Then, all of a sudden, this came up, and we followed each other, and I went down the rabbit hole of seeing all of Ella’s knitwear. I was literally trying to buy stuff, and it was all sold out! I became obsessed, and was like, what do I have for her? How can we make this happen?

Vogue, which could not find time or space for even one article on Melania Trump during her 4 years as FLOTUS has already done two, count them, two, articles on Ms. Emhoff, daughter of the Second Gentleman and stepdaughter to the Veep. But then Melania only spoke English as a second, third or fourth language so she couldn’t possibly be as articulate as this young and upcoming ‘designer.’

Ella, what vibe were you going for with your Inauguration Day outfit? How did you want to feel in it?

EE: My mood board was very “little girl,” in a sense, a lot of scalloped collars and big silhouette shoulders and small buttons. I was going for something girlier, to embrace my feminine side—especially after that suit that I felt so great in—because, like, how many times do you prepare yourself to attend an inauguration? This momentous of an event deserves a momentous outfit.

Ella, how does it feel to be helping to define the Biden-Harris administration’s style?

EE: It’s something that I think a lot of people in the past also haven’t put as much emphasis on, especially because you didn’t really think that certain people [in past administrations] were going to be throwing outfits out there. You didn’t expect much. Amongst Dr. Biden and Kamala and Meena [Harris] and me, though, I guess there is kind of some anticipation about what we’re going to put out there in terms of fashion. Maybe that’s because we’re all women, or maybe it’s because we’ve had big outfits in the past, but I think people are definitely going to be paying more attention.

To quote our most MAGA-nificent President: “it’s rigged, it’s all rigged.”

The FLOTUS from whom “you didn’t expect much.” Ella, Ella, Ella.

Butt Wait - We’re Allowed To Have Fashion Again!?!

What better day to return to my roots as a reflector extraordinaire and reporter of political fashionistas than Caterday?

 

It’s been 10 days and some 40+ Executive Orders since the swearing in of the most dubiously elected president in American history. So I thought I’d do a fashion review of the event.

After a 4 year hiatus of political fashion coverage due to TDS, the pent up demand for cool Washington clothes coverage was yuge. The fashion press obliged, in fact they came unhinged in their unctuous coverage of the ladies of the inaugural. They began with their favorite old work horse, Lady M. I must say I quite liked her ensemble, aside from the length of well, everything.

I’d like to think that the color and fabric choices indicated she had learned a thing or two from me butt her stylist is taking all the credit:

Former first lady Michelle Obama is still earning praise for her headline-making inauguration look and now her stylist has given a behind-the-scenes account of her outfit.

Meredith Koop, who worked with Obama during her eight years in the White House, took to Instagram to share details of the former first lady's monochrome pants, coat and top designed by Sergio Hudson, a 36-year-old Black designer from South Carolina…

The magenta shade of Obama's suit was seen by some as a nod to bipartisanship but(t) Koop said that was not the case. "You can call it berry, wine, plum or burgundy. I’m calling it wineberry plum for the moment. What it wasn’t was bi-partisan purple," she wrote. "That’s a cute story, but(t) it wasn’t the intention.

Here’s something else that was cute: while sporting her lovely magenta ensemble, Lady M goes into her best Clydesdale impersonation. She never disappoints!

Picture the Buttweiser Clydesdales and try to not LOL

The Harper’s Bazarr coverage was likewise properly overwrought:

A proper show: A symbolic, patriotic parade of well-tailored coats, eggplant hues (a color to symbolizes [sic] unity), monochromatic ensembles, and, most affectingly, the reemergence of the kind of thoughtful styling choices that lift up and celebrate emerging American design talent.

That’s the important part: symbolism! And diversity! In fashion! I mean, who ever heard of queer, black fashionistas before?

Seeing the VP in Christopher John Rogers, a young, Black, queer designer from Louisiana, gave those who are from marginalized pockets within the fashion industry an “I see you” nod just when we needed it most. Wearing a tailored coat and matching dress in a bold shade of purple, accessorizing with her signature pearls (these strands made by Puerto Rican designer Wilfredo Rosado) and heels by another Black designer, Sergio Hudson, Harris elevated these emerging designers to center stage. [ed. and that’s what’s most important for a VP to do]

Too bad it was so ill-fitting. Some unsolicited advice from the former MOTUS: women of a certain age and boobage ought not sport this pinched waist style coat unless they have a very good tailor who gets the cut right. And did anyone else notice that, unconventionally, Kammie’s coat buTToned to the left? I have a theory butt that’s another post.

You see, at its best, fashion is a reflection of what is happening in the greater world around us. We’re living through a highly divided time, still reckoning with a social justice movement that’s calling for an end to brutality against Black and Brown citizens, demanding justice for those in the LGBTQAI community, and at the very least, looking for to a (sic) return to common decency. The clothing choices of Harris and Biden help illuminate the path the administration hopes to carve out.

You don’t say. Have you got any more virtue-signaling fashion news you’d care to pass on?

For the inaugural prayer service in the State Dining Room of the White House, Harris wore Prabal Gurung, a Nepal-born, New York–based designer; while Biden wore Brandon Maxwell, a queer, Texas-born designer.

And let’s not forget how they fawned over Dr. Jilly’s getup. It wasn’t just a dress and coat you know, Town and Country informs us:  

In a press release, Markarian explained that the outfit was made in various shades of blue velvet, blue tweed, silk, and chiffon in order to "signify trust, confidence, and stability."

It wasn't just the design's color that communicated a self-consciously staid, even-keeled control. The tweed set recalled the fashions of a previous political era—a simple, dependable look that's served the Queen of England for decades.

I don’t know as though I want a Queen. Wasn’t our Declaration of Independence and Constitution intended to ensure against such things? And now, nearly 250 years later we wind up with a mad King and a handful of Queens anyway.

What a hot mess.

Butt, gosh, I’m glad to see that the fashion press has got their mojo back. Follow me for more fashion insights from the media.