Demeter’s Manual notes that, in addition to an optional light tap after a vote, there are three other uses of a gavel:
To attract attention and call a meeting to order. In most organizations, two raps raise and one rap seats the assembly; in others, two raps raise and three raps seat it.
To maintain order and restore it when breached in the course of the proceedings. (Rap the gavel once, but vigorously.)
To be handed over to successors in office or to officiating officers as ceremonials, etc. (Always extend the holding end.)
That has to be a stressful job, just sitting there quietly listening to politicians blather on and not being able to express your own crazy opinion. Someone was bound to snap.
Dear Lord, we ask that you smack some sense into these fuckups, that they may see what epic level fuckups they are being. Deliver us from their weapons grade stupidity, especially that asshat over there who’s trying to claim that this clusterfuck is done by your will. Seriously, bounce some grapes of wrath off their empty noggins and make them cut this shit out. And please help the voters of this country remember what was done here in years hence, so that these fuckups won’t ever have the chance to be such incredible fuckups ever again. Amen.
Stenographitis must be catching. For the last couple of days I’ve been trying to track down a stenographer/transcriptionist who “only pops into the courthouse occasionally” and “usually does not check her messages.” WTF? This isn’t filling me with confidence concerning a transcript I ordered nearly half a year ago.
A friend of mine worked with this woman until the end of last year. We were talking about this today. She says Diane was a really great co-worker, really nice person. Never any sign of instability when they worked together. One of the few really good ones there. She was really stunned to hear about the incident. She did say that Diane is getting some help.
The job is incredibly stressful. So much so that when I visited my friend last year she looked so different and had changed so much. It was visible just looking at her. The hours are horrible and the stress is incredibly overwhelming. My friend finally had enough and quit. Moved away and her life has changed so much for the better. Thankfully she had the luxury of being able to do that. Not everyone can.
To repeat: her husband is proud of his “level-headed” wife. He interpreted getting up in the middle of the night from stress as a message from God. “What she was finding out was that God was impressing on her heart that He had a message He wanted her to share with the House of Representatives.” (“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was…incoherent.”)
As long as she’s married to that jackass, she doesn’t stand a chance.
The article I read mentioned that she was going back to work next week, that is going to be akward for everyone involved. The good news for her is that she now has a built in leave work early escape hatch. Around 3pm on Friday afternoon start yelling about freemasons, get esccorted out by security and beat the rush hour traffic.
One goes to the zoo to observe the amusing animals. Something’s wrong when the employees charged with supplying libations and emptying chamber pots begin acting like the inmates.
Even the verbiage in the SNL skit didn’t measure up to hotflungwok’s inspired take, though I suspect FCC broadcast regulations are in part responsible for that.