It's a good stock answer for liberals.

Jordan: maybe those bugs have something to do with the dieffenbachia's woes: assuming it isn't dead yet, try a bug spray, a light solution of Miracle-Gro (TM) for its next (last?) watering: let it dry out a bit more between (maybe four days?). Otherwise, think of calling a shaman to expel The Curse Of The Black Thumb....

PS: Bird Dog: LOVE the new gravatar: is it a self-portrait?

PPS: What Darth said below.

If so and you have pets then get a mild dish detergent, Dawn for instance.  Mix it with water, just enough to make suds and put it in a spray bottle and squirt the plant liberally.  If you don't have pets and are not concerned about pesticides then use an oil base pesticide.  If that doesn't work then the plant will be too far gone, toss it, the pot and the dirt.  You might have a fungus or something in the pot, dirt or roots.

I'm assuming at this point you've googled the plants and ensured they are getting the right amount and type of sunlight.

For anyone that properly guesses what movie the following quote was derived from (only proper guesses for the one I'm thinking of if there are multiple quotes that apply).

You've made a number of tiny black bugs very happy.

Care for them. Nurture them. Buy a small magnifier and study them. Watch as they build their families and their society.

If you care enough, maybe that will make up for what you did to that poor plant!

http://www.alphabotanical.com/pdf/dieffenbachia.pdf

probably

1. Too much watering. You should water houseplants once a week at the most, the soil should dry out between waterings. Elevating the pot 1" over the saucer will help with air flow

2. Not enough sunlight. While healthy philodendron and diffenbachia can survive with low light levels, they will do better with more indirect sunlight.

3. Air too dry. This is pretty common with central heating or air conditioning. Not many solutions unfortunately.

4. Soil too dense? You want a fluffy potting soil that drains freely.

5. Darth's idea of soap is a good idea and will work, either homemade or this stuff, or if you want the neutron bomb of insecticidal soaps this stuff.

If it looks too sick to recover get rid of it ASAP, or the insects could start attacking the other plant.

Gee, ya think?

What gives?

Besides eliminating the classics department at the University Thomas Jefferson founded, and attempting to fire University president Sullivan, wealthy board members apparently thought trying to convert the faculty to bullsh&t corporate management thought would be OK:

Dragas, though, had badly misjudged the faculty. While they love to complain about their salaries, academics typically place a higher value on less quantifiable benefits, like academic freedom and the job security of the tenure system. Though they harbored no great love for Sullivan, she was still one of their own. When a financier like Jones urged them to be "elated" about the change, it only fed paranoia about the creeping influence of wealthy donors. Shortly after Sullivan's removal, Peter Kiernan sent a mass e-mail disclosing that he had been consulted ahead of time and assuring the university that Dragas and Kington -- both business-school alums -- would be proceeding "with a focus on strategic dynamism."

"I think that was the catalyst for real outrage," Robert Fatton, a comparative government professor, says of Kiernan's e-mail.

Life lesson: do not use the term "strategic dynamism" when announcing the firing of academics by business school alums.

.

Dane Co. Circuit Court judge Juan Colas struck down Scott Walker's signature union-busting law today, saying the law violated both state and US Constitutional protections of free speech, assembly and equal protection. 

I'm a little fuzzy on how a circuit court can be ruling on Act 10 now, considering it's already survived review by the state supreme court (on the legislative passage question), and the federal court of appeals also upheld most of the law, striking down only part of it.

Anyhow, Democrats are ecstatic. Seems like a big question mark to me.

I'm going to have to take a pass on this visit down for you--I had some minor (utterly non-dangerous, honest) surgery today, and between the nifty pain meds and the fact that my appearance will be (even more) frightening to small children for a few days, bar hopping is right out for a while. Raise some glasses for me, and we'll do it another time.

no, it's not perfect by any means. It's supposed to be learning, so it will take some time to figure out if it's working well or not.

I've taken some steps to make it work better, I created a new group called "long time users" and then added in everyone who's been active here within the last two years. Members of that group bypass the spam filters, so BDs diaries and catchy's comments will no longer go to moderation.

Please let me know if you have any problems, I need to know these things if I'm going to fix them.

yes, smart people will never be on the side of conservatism.

Link

An Israeli PM will likely be attacking a popular US president in the run-up to an election.

The lead article on Haaretz has a preview of the likely attack via the Israeli foreign ministry:

"The Americans were constantly trying to supply explanations and excuses for events in the post-revolution Arab states, and simply ignored the problems," one senior Israeli official said, adding, "In practice the administration's ability to affect events in the Arab world has decreased immensely. ..."We knew what was happening, but the Americans preferred to find excuses," said the senior official. 

Bibi began attacking Obama even before the riots. Last Tues. he said: "The world tells Israel, 'Wait, there's still time',” Netanyahu said in English at a ceremony in which he greeted Bulgaria’s prime minister. “And I say, 'Wait for what? Wait until when?' Those in the international community who refuse to put red lines before Iran don't have a moral right to place a red light before Israel."

Barbara Boxer wrote to Netanyahu: "I write to you as one of Israel’s staunchest supporters in Congress to express my deep disappointment over your remarks that call into question our country’s support for Israel and commitment to preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons"

It's on between the Democratic party and Israel. The Israeli right wing is trying to exact some price out of Obama and/or swing the US election to Romney. 

I don't see how it's smart to support a candidate likely to lose. I don't see how it's in Israel's interest to run the risk of making support for Israel a Republican position only. Previously, they've had a solid bi=partisan consensus on their side.

I will say that Obama deserves credit for earning the ire of Netanyahu. That's a good sign in my book, and maybe he's better on foreign policy issues than I thought. Meanwhile Bibi needs to learn that it is not w/in the boundaries of American standards for a foreign leader to directly insert himself into a US election.

Go buy off Congress and shower the rest of Washington with money like every other foreign interest. No cutting in line.  

My girlfriend argued a case before the 9th circuit court of appeals, won it and they wrote about it today in the WSJ.

sad.

has he committed a crime by filming a bad movie?

I hate nut-picking. When people on either side pick out a random nut to vilify so that his crazyness might rub off by implication on the other side, I am irritated. But when the leaders of a party -- Ryan, Santorum and others -- share the stage with certifiable nut cases, they are saying this stage and this audience is worth their time and presence. They are validating.

Some of the things that were said from that stage: 

• Most of the votes for Democrats in Presidential elections come either from people on welfare, or people committing voter fraud.  (Gary Bauer, American Values President)

• The Obama administration has begun secretly plotting with the Organization for Islamic Cooperation.  They have begun to “brainwash” FBI and other security agents to be receptive to the messages of Islam, so that Sharia law speech laws can be enforced unchallenged after Obama’s reelection.  (Michelle Bachmann, US Rep-MN)

• Planned Parenthood is an organization created for the purpose of killing off the white race.  (Rep. Tim Huelskamp, US Rep-KS)

  President Obama sided with the terrorists is Libya, cheering them on.  (Basically, everybody that got up to talk except Rand Paul)

•  
• The Obama administration is planning to make illegal all churches and synagogues, and put in jail any Americans that attend them.  This will happen this January, “march at the latest.”  (Kamal Saleem, Debunked Ex-Terrorist Impersonator)

What would be the equivalent to this crazyness on the left? Maybe 9/11 conspiracy theorists? Can you imagine the uproar from the media if Joe Biden went to such a conference?

Republican party, come back to sanity. Really... it's not funny anymore.

after about a year away. It really does feel like things are picking up here. Shops are busy and making sales, lots of shops have been renovated, seems like there's money being put into the hotels too and competition between them. My US colleagues tell me that there are jobs to be had in our sector..

It might be best if you just shut up now, rather than adding to the huge pile of evidence indicating that you're an incompetent fool who couldn't manage an ice cream cart, much less a MLB team.

...Jordan's poor plants.

In truth, I had no answer for his plant problem, since I am his equal in having plants die in my tender care...

I also have no answer for my football folly....I was in 3rd place last night....I could move up or down and I'd still deserve a kick in the butt.

Damn, it is a good thing I don't gamble!

Got no talent.

Traveller

Is there any reason based on your recent spamproofing that should be keeping me from logging in from my sister's house (about four miles away from home)?

Boy Scouts helped alleged molesters cover tracks, files show

Are all these major organizations involved with children corrupt at the core? It sure seems that the ones run by men are.

"Pre-Anniversary Occupy Arrests by the NYPD"