November 30, 2016

Mother Jones gets a fabulously expressive photograph and serves it up with an exuberant wine-glassful of snark.



Here's the link. You should click the image to enlarge to see the photo clearly and read the text, but I'll also copy the text. Here:
"Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory; and he said to him, 'All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.'"

106 comments:

traditionalguy said...

Two TeeTotalers dividing up the Empire. The Baptists will drink to that, drink ice tea that is. Unempolyment among sommeliers is rising.

rehajm said...

A- That isn't an expression that's just Mitt's face and Two- Mother Jones is still making pee pee in their pants.

damikesc said...

Subtlety is not a strength of the Left. Everything they criticize the Right for they tend to be exceptionally guilty of.

Henry said...

Don't they know that the devil is always the hero?

Henry said...

I set out running but I take my time
A friend of the Devil is a friend of mine
If I get home before daylight
I just might get some sleep tonight
I ran into the Devil, babe
He loaned me twenty bills
I spent that night in Utah
In a cave up in the hills

* * *

You can borrow from the Devil
You can borrow from a friend
But the Devil will give you twenty
When your friend only got ten

Dude1394 said...

Funny coming from a self-professed godless magazine.

lemondog said...

Double, double toil and trouble;
Fire burn, and caldron bubble

Heheheh......

BarrySanders20 said...

So MJ thinks Romney is Christ?

Anonymous said...

At first I thought - looking at the small picture with your copy of the verse as caption - "that's actually pretty funny, not snark". Then I enlarged it and could read all the dumb "OMG!" comments attached. Viewed that way, the snark aspect prevailed, killing the funny.

Interesting how format and context affects the humor. TMI in the latter, maybe, brevity being the soul of wit and all...

khesanh0802 said...

Most Mother Jones readers will wonder where the quote comes from.

Eric the Fruit Bat said...

The lecture I was listening to this morning said that our brains are evolved to presume that objects are illuminated from above. Had something to do with misperception like people thinking they've seen an alien spacecraft or why the moon appears larger at the horizon.

Entomologists know why moths fly into flame. Has something to do with the tubes in their eyes being oriented to 30 degrees (on account of the sun) and some sort of counter-balancing/orienting thing in their brains.

The world is a very complicated place and precious few people are smart enough to comprehend even a little chunk of it.

Snark helps alleviate the shame of being dumb, has been my experience.

madAsHell said...

It looks like there is some kind of light under Trump's chair. It looks staged, or photoshopped!!

Hagar said...

In a perfect world Giuliani and Romney would both get cabinet posts, but someone entirely else becomes Secretary of State.

madAsHell said...

Two TeeTotalers dividing up the Empire.

I noticed the lack of wine on the table, but there is something in the champagne bucket just over Trump's shoulder. I think this photo is staged in a studio.

Birches said...

That picture is perfect.

JHapp said...

Romney is going to make Trump hats for 4 years (and run the hotels). You can see it in their faces.

Limited blogger said...

This will be an extremely fun 8 years

lemondog said...

So it is agreed:

Bush was Hitler.

Trump is the devil.

Well I'm glad that is settled.

madAsHell said...

....and once again a picture with Romney, and Trump is shot with the camera tilted. Notice the folds in the curtain, and the wine bottle are slightly tilted, and don't represent the true vertical.

Maybe, our hostess can straighten this out!?!?

CWJ said...

Godless or not. Subtle or not. Agree or not. It's still funny! Love the photo too.

Anonymous said...

Trump's smile looks natural, while Romney's looks forced.

JHapp said...

Romney doesn't drink, but maybe the crystal clear beverage in those goblets is vodka. I don't think Romney even plays golf.

Big Mike said...

There's a Christian working for Mother Jones???

BarrySanders20 said...

I give Trump credit for meeting with people who personally attacked him just months ago. He shows he's thin-skinned when he tweets and gets into bizarre battles with people of no significance (Khan, the plump Miss Universe) but this shows he can set aside personal attacks when he thinks the person has skills and could be valuable to the team/country.

Nonapod said...

....and once again a picture with Romney, and Trump is shot with the camera tilted. Notice the folds in the curtain, and the wine bottle are slightly tilted, and don't represent the true vertical.

In cinematography, the Dutch angle is one of many cinematic techniques often used to portray psychological uneasiness or tension in the subject being filmed..

My suspicion is that we're in for many years of crooked shots of Trump. Perhaps someone could write an app that automatically straightens and properly crops the deluge of crooked Trump shots we'll be subjected to.

tim in vermont said...

Sorry, but that is funny. That's the kind of stuff the press should do to the powerful, not serve as their palace guard, but hey, that's water under the bridge. I am sure they have changed now.

Todd said...

but I'll also copy the text. Here:
"Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory; and he said to him, 'All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.'"


Example #184756 of why Trump ditches the press to go out to eat.

I get it. You hate him. You despise him. You loath him and wish him dead. You were enthralled with President Three-putt and Queen Hillary and now you are stuck with Trump. I get it. At this point you are not only not "helping your side", you are actively showing everyone that didn't vote for Hillary that they did the right thing. Thanks. Keep it up!

dbp said...

4 years ago, by the lights of Mother Jones, Romney was the Devil incarnate. Now Romney is our Savior?

As art, the picture and quote go perfectly together.

mockturtle said...

Most Mother Jones readers will wonder where the quote comes from.

'Fraid so.

Etienne said...

If Trump adds Romney, his presidency is still-born.

Any thought of Romney negotiating a Mexican surrender, and getting them to pay for the wall, is fantasy.

Romney is a "choke artist".

Brando said...

Well, the lighting certainly does Trump no favors there.

Nice to see he's reaching out to Romney, though still can't picture him offering him State. Maybe he feels some establishment cred would help him, though he gets that with Preibus and Chaos. But in a way getting Romney on board sends a message--"this guy thought I was the worst and I won him over, I can do it with anyone".

rehajm said...

...but there is something in the champagne bucket just over Trump's shoulder.

Educated guess It's this...

Fernandinande said...

"Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain, and showed him all the taco bowls of the world and their glory; and he said to him, 'All these I will give you, if you will fall down, but not like Gerald Ford did.'"

Freeman Hunt said...

Biggest laugh of the morning here.

(I didn't read the insipid, effect-ruining comments.)

Darcy said...

Do progressive ever get tired of calling their opponents Satan? Evil? It's dull and makes them look small. It must give them some amusement, I guess.

I don't think Obama is evil. I think he is an arrogant asshole whose ideology I disagree with and who, sadly, made all of the mistakes his opponents warned about. All of them. Hard to do! I always hoped that his views would change and that he would grow to respect differences of opinion. That didn't happen.

I have a suspicion that Trump will surprise many in a good way. Welcoming Romney is very big of Trump. It speaks well of him. I'm no longer much of a fan of Romney's, but I think he would probably make a very good Secretary of State. And moderate Trump. Smart.

rhhardin said...

What are they eating? Is that food?

mccullough said...

Interesting photo.

JWH said...

Mitt the Shit ass kissing kind of takes your breath away.

Freeman Hunt said...

I want Romney to be Secretary of State. I don't think Trump is the devil.

And that picture with that caption is funny.

tcrosse said...

DJT probably figures it's better to have Mitt inside the tent pissing out than outside the tent pissing in.

eric said...

This is exactly why we always should elect a Republican to the presidency. Because a Republican can safely be mocked.

Obama has been untouchable. Anything like this directed at Obama would be the height of racism. Theyd be run out of the business.

robother said...

As W.A. Evarts commented about our last teetotaler Presidency: "And the water flowed like wine!"

My name goes here. said...

The Devil went down NYC. He was lookin' for a soul to steal
He was in a bind cause he was way behind. He was willing to make a deal
When he came across this man tweetin' on a platform and playin' it hot
And the Devil jumped upon a guilded stump and said "Boy, let me tell you what."

"I bet you didn't know it, but I'm a politician, too
And if you'd care to take a dare I'll make a bet with you
Now you play a pretty good game, boy, but give the Devil his due
I'll bet Mid-east peace against your soul cause I think I'm better than you."

The man said, "My name's Johnny, and it might be a sin
But I'll take your bet; and you're gonna regret cause I'm the best there's ever been."

Johnny, rosin up your thumbs and play your twitter hard
Cause Hell's broke loose in DC and the Devil deals the cards
And if you win you get the devil in a cage of gold
But if you lose the devil gets your soul

The Devil opened up his case and he said, "I'll start this 2012 reign."
And fire flew from his fingertips as he stoked up his campaign
And he gave the speeches across the states and it made an evil hiss
And a William Kristol joined in and it lost something like this

When the Devil finished, Johnny said, "Well, you're pretty good ol' son
But sit down in that chair right there and let me show you how 2016's done."

"Fire in Wisconsin." Run, pols, run!
The Devil's in the house of the rising sun;
Campaign in the Rust Belt picking out votes
Granny, are you well? No, child, no

The Devil bowed his head because he knew that he'd been beat
And he laid that Sec State application at Johnny's feet
Johnny said, "Devil, just come back January to Make America Great Again
Cause I've told you once--you son of a gun--I'm the best there's ever been."
And he played:

"Fire in Wisconsin." Run, pols, run!
The Devil's in the house of the rising sun;
Campaign in the Rust Belt picking out votes
Granny, are you well? No, child, no

FullMoon said...

Trump with a big ol' bowl of Mac-n-Cheese. Romney with some stacked tuna n crackers.

Bob Boyd said...

This picture would be a great advertisement for Trump Collection men's underwear.

Marc in Eugene said...

I did wonder if Mr Trump was eating breakfast cereal.

caplight45 said...

10 Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’”

11 Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.

If Mitt doesn't get the nod he'll need more than angels to attend him but that is where the Media will soothe his bruised ego with pronouncements of his wisdom, statesman-like bearing and his noble character.

Kudos to Mother Jones for a rather brilliant play on the scripture.

Etienne said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Ironchefoklahoma said...

Am I reading this correctly? Trump's election caused Mother Jones to pull down their Bibles and look for guidance?!

Is there nothing Trump can't do?

@My Name Goes Here, nice one.

dbp said...

neontaster's uncropped version.

Jason said...

Remember that scene in "Less Than Zero," where Robert Downy Jr.'s character, Julian, needs $50,000 to pay his drug dealer, played by David Spade? And David pimps him out like a bitch to his gay friends at a series of LA parties?

Julian is sitting in Spade's convertible, looking like he's just been through hell (well, a gang rape), and his pimp says "Two more stops, and we'll call it a night" and Julian leans over and pukes?

That's what Mitt looks like.

Laslo, I'm sure you know what I'm talking about, right?

Dave D said...

When it comes to calling someone a "Satan" figure, I usually go with the side that likes to rip unborn babies apart in the mothers tummy......

Sam L. said...

MJ actually read the Bible to pick up an appropriate (in their view) verse?

robother said...

Mitt looks so sheepish, like someone about to be flocked.

traditionalguy said...

One reason why they need each other could be that Mitt's Mormon friend named Marriott is in the running to be The President's Blind Trustee.

Paul Snively said...

Darcy: Do progressive ever get tired of calling their opponents Satan? Evil? It's dull and makes them look small. It must give them some amusement, I guess.

It also provides this desk jockey with about the only exercise I get, from all the eye rolling.

Sydney said...

Both the Mother Jones picture caption and "My Name Goes Here's" parody made my morning. Thanks! Worth the money I spent on your Amazon portal this past weekend.

Paul Snively said...

Darcy: I don't think Obama is evil. I think he is an arrogant asshole whose ideology I disagree with and who, sadly, made all of the mistakes his opponents warned about. All of them. Hard to do!

"Why be difficult? With a little more effort, you could be impossible!"

Brando said...

"Remember that scene in "Less Than Zero," where Robert Downy Jr.'s character, Julian, needs $50,000 to pay his drug dealer, played by David Spade?"

David Spade was in that? Or did you mean James Spader? I haven't seen it in a while.

"Then they can pipe shit down your gullet for the next six "courses" that any line cook can produce."

I haven't done a tasting menu in a while but that sounds about right. I remember attending one at a holiday party my old boss hosted, and the thing went on about four hours before I had to bail, and each course was like "here's a single bean, soaking in truffle oil" or something like that. I guess I'm not much of a gourmet as the whole time I'm thinking "can I just get a bowl of rigatoni or something?"

Romney and Trump I figure eat out enough at places like that that they know to go a la carte on their orders.

jacksonjay said...

The King of Debt Dealmaker and Establishment Reince are obviously having a delicious Taco Bowl!

C'mon Coupe, you heard that Selena Zito thing about literally versus seriously.

Birches said...

Some of you guys are too cranky this morning. It's funny. Don't take it seriously, even though the commenters at MJ are.

Fabi said...

Remember the Obama pictures that were angled just right to make the halo-effect for Ear Leader? Trump won't enjoy such photographic fawning.

wildswan said...

It would be good to have Mitt on Trump's team. He could clean up the mess which Obama's team will have left in any department you could name. And help others with that kind of mess. But Mitt is, obviously, a negotiator also.

The Facebook post gets at the situation and is pretty funny.

Gahrie said...

If they are already calling Trump the devil before he takes the oath of office, where are they going to go once he's president and actually accomplishing things?

MAJMike said...

The tears of the LibCong are sweeter than honey.

Kirk Parker said...

Freeman,

"I want Romney to be Secretary of State"

You have got to be kidding me.

Why???

mikee said...

Mother Jones probably had to hire an outside consultant to find a Biblical quote to use for that caption. I'm surprised they didn't add the rest of the chapter, too, wherein the offer of earthly rewards are refused in service of a higher purpose. That, too, would have been quite apposite.

richlb said...

@Gahrie - "...actually accomplishing things?"

He already is! Ask Carrier.

robother said...

Romney: "You know, this Crow en Ritz isn't half-bad!"

Jason said...

Ah, yes... James Spader. That's who I was thinking of. Not David Spade.

I accidentally called a Spader a "Spade."

Bay Area Guy said...

Mother Jones and its readers view that photo, and think, Holy crap, two multi-millionaire, straight white, old men, who want to oppress us. Curse them!

I view that photo and think Holy crap, two rich, powerful guys, who built many hotels, apartments, and businesses -- think of all the jobs they've created for middle-class men to earn an honest living and support their families.

Yes, I love Capitalism. God Bless the USA.

Ignorance is Bliss said...

Big Mike said...

There's a Christian working for Mother Jones???

The devil can cite Scripture for his purpose.

(Us lesser demons can only cite Shakespeare.)

Hagar said...

FNC had video last night and the scene was shot from outside the room so that the sentinels at the door were visible.
And they dined on froglegs.
Did that in Nebraska once, but we had to fish for the frogs first ourselves.
(Fishing pole with a piece of red flannel on the hook to entice the frogs.)

D. B. Light said...

WOW! How easily we have moved from Trump is the Republican candidate to Trump is Hitler to Trump is Satan! What's next?

exhelodrvr1 said...

So is Trump the devil, and Romney Christ, or the other way around?

Bay Area Guy said...

WOW! How easily we have moved from Trump is the Republican candidate to Trump is Hitler to Trump is Satan! What's next?

Nothing, they are shooting and wasting all their ammo, before inauguration. It is great to see. I hope Trump delivers, and then steamrolls them.

Unknown said...

Awesome photo and funny caption but I am hoping he picks Romney for SOS and I have a feeling that people like me are getting played, so this whole dance is getting tiresome.

eric said...

I want him to pick Bolton. I love Bolton.

Unknown said...

Looked at the full size image- Romney doesn't have much of a poker face, does he?

Levi Starks said...

Tag needed: "Mother Jones quotes the Bible"

BJM said...

I love the frogs legs mention in the lede. Pearl clutch much?

hombre said...

I think somebody here noted this once. Romney would be a good choice to head up and reform the VA. He is known as an organization fixer. It's not as prestigious as SofS, but the VA is so important and so screwed up.

I don't see the allure of Romney as SoS. I like Petraeus. I like the message his appointment would convey, that is, "the era of pussy politics is over." I think he would temper Trump's alienation of NATO and Obama's abandonment of Israel. Most of all I love the possibility of Trump dumping on Hillary if Petraeus' email issues are raised by the Democrats, e.g., "Unlike Hillary, General Petraeus has accepted responsibility for his lesser transgression and paid his debt."

Clyde said...

When do you figure the last time was that someone involved with Mother Jones set foot in a church? I wouldn't recommend it, because getting struck by holy lightning is a bad thing. In any case, it's always been said that the Devil can quote scripture for his purposes, so why not Mother Jones?

whitney said...

And I'll quote Shakespeare

“The devil can cite Scripture for his purpose.
An evil soul producing holy witness
Is like a villain with a smiling cheek,
A goodly apple rotten at the heart.
O, what a goodly outside falsehood hath!”

Lucien said...

Holy Crap, Trump is not wearing a solid colored tie -- he is wearing a stupid, DC-style rep tie. He's not going to drain the swamp, he's already been seduced and co-opted.

Birches said...

For all the gnashing of teeth over Romney as SoS, you have to admit one thing: He won't get James Taylor to play "You've got a Friend" after a terrorist attack.

I want Romney, but Bolton would be fantastic too.

Bob said...

So, the Constitution's out of date. But the New Testament isn't.

Go figure.

Alex said...

Yeah, yeah, ah, yeah
I live my life like there's no tomorrow
And all I've got, I had to steal
Least I don't need to beg or borrow
Yes I'm livin' at a pace that kills

Ooh, yeah
(Ahh)
Runnin' with the devil
(Ahh-hah, yeah)
(Woo-hoo-oo)
Runnin' with the devil
Yes I'm, yeah, hoo

Alex said...

Mitt - blink twice if he's holding you hostage.

Bad Lieutenant said...

Was that the expression on Robert Downey Jr's face in Less than Zero when James Spacer told him "Just two more?"

Brando said...

"For all the gnashing of teeth over Romney as SoS, you have to admit one thing: He won't get James Taylor to play "You've got a Friend" after a terrorist attack."

I guess I'm coming around to the choice--he might be good at it. One thing about Romney is he can adapt to whatever position he needs to take (whether it's pro-gay rights in MA, "severely conservative" in national GOP primaries, or whatever mission he'll have as SoS) and that would serve him well at State.

Plus he has a knack for organization and could probably run the department well.

glam1931 said...

Everybody's over-analyzing the photo regarding the lighting and angle; this is simply a frame-grab from the shaky video, probably shot on a phone, and was probably the best (sharpest) freeze-frame they could get given the distance. Oh, and Reince Prebus was at the table too, just out of frame on the left.

Michael said...

"I'm thinking. I'm thinking."

Saint Croix said...

That photograph is so funny!

SukieTawdry said...

What a great catch. Romney looks like the bubble over his head should say "How in hell did I get here. Somebody get me out. Anybody. Please." Doesn't look to me like Trump is making his sale.

@Fabi: Remember the Obama pictures that were angled just right to make the halo-effect for Ear Leader? Trump won't enjoy such photographic fawning.

First thing I thought of, too. We've gone from lighting the messiah to lighting Lucifer.

tim maguire said...

I'm surprised Mother Jones knows any bible verses. I wonder who thought of it.

Eric said...

I'm starting to think that some of these lefties aren't very clever.

Richard said...

Is the title, "Shit-eatin' Chagrin"?

mockturtle said...

It reminds me of the final scene in La Dolce Vita where the vacuous, degenerate youth pull a dead whale onto the beach and then gasp at how 'ugly' it is.

traditionalguy said...

My First Reaction: Blondes have more fun.

Freeman Hunt said...

Plus, this has got at least a handful of Mother Jones readers looking at the Bible. Even better!

tim in vermont said...

I have eaten at that restaurant. I didn't realize it was Jean-Georges at first. The food there was pretty damn good and the service was both friendly and excellent. I doubt I will ever get my daughters back there again, though.

gadfly said...

And I never thought that I would ever agree with Mother Jones!

It is interesting how Mary Harris "Mother" Jones was ninety-two years old when she died on her one-hundredth birthday. That makes her personality similar to Donald Trump's artificial shtick. Her story telling started off straight but fictional detours seemed to make her more popular. When she became Mother Jones, she needed to be older.

When Donald Trump was elected, he needed to spit on the likes of Mitt Romney who had the audacity to tell the truth about The Donald. So he did.

Now Donald is doing worse deals with companies like Rexnard and Carrier by giving away more taxpayer money than the jobs he is saving can ever be worth. When criticizing the Dems, he made fun of their free-wheeling, free-spending tactics. A funny thing happened after Governor Pence pledged $24 million last year and handed out about $9 million to Carrier to induce the company to stay but later the heating and A/C manufacturer decided to leave anyway. How much additional is Trump's federal "doggy in the window" going to cost? The puppy's name is Corporate Welfare and everyone knows that Trump is against that name.

Michael Fitzgerald said...

Looks like Trump gave Mitt's balls a squeeze for the camera.

Phil 314 said...

Gosh, all of these comments confirm that Rorschach was right.

mikee said...

Dear gadfly, do the math, you innumerate annoyance:

Carrier got $700,000 in tax breaks for staying, per news reports. 1000 jobs at the plant, at wages (here I guess) of just $10/h (in reality likely much higher for most employees) produces $20,800,000 in income (before taxes). Income of that amount changes communities for the better through local spending and local taxes. Loss of that income devastates neighborhood businesses, local tax base, and the employees' families.

The jobs he saved, at the least, produce more local, state & federal taxes than the $700k/year in tax breaks the company got to stay there. Shoo fly, gadfly, fly away.