I might yet be able to muster some enthusiasm for Hitlery.

As a festive aside pic.twitter.com/l3j3QmzySx

— Katherine Miller (@katherinemiller) April 30, 2016

It's apparently going to be Clinton v. Trump. She will almost certainly beat him like a rented step-drum. The only question is what's she going to have in terms of coattails? (Or, really, what kind of train the gown she's wearing to the Inaugural Ball will have, given that she's unlikely to show up in a tailcoat?)

So, in general terms: everyone should stop worrying about the presidential race except as spectacle (I never watch conventions on TV, but the RNC is going to be tempting this year). What's going to happen will happen, it's pretty much all decided already. As people have been discussing in prior threads, the interesting questions are how much will the Democrats pick up in the House, and what's going to happen in state legislatures.

Here's a listing from the Cook Political Report of competitive House seats. Anyone know anything about any of them? Have any favored candidates you want to raise money for?

The NY commentariat has thinned out of late years, but Awl will be in NYC 4/27 - 5/4, and Fresh Salt could use the business. Awl, anyone else -- which of those days are good? I'm available whenever.

Update: 6:30, Friday, 4/29? I'm there, who else?

If you want to play along at home, the first summary will be posted Monday, May 9th, by Mossy Character, covering the intro and first four chapters. Schedule can be found here - there are some un-claimed chapters, so if you're feeling bold, speak up.

A noth-eastern President asks: "My significant other went to an endodontist our dentist referred us to. He needed 2 root canals because of something called internal resorption. There was no infection, and he wasn't in pain The endodontist did one root canal, then started another and said he was going to put temporary packing in, because he had left the new kind of free-flowing sealant he wanted to try at his other office.

Then he informed my husband that the first root canal had been on the wrong tooth. (He'd done the tooth to the right of one that needed root canal instead of the left, then started a 2nd root canal on a tooth that needed one but didn't finish.) The endodontist said that he was embarrassed and that he usually uses earlier dental work as a landmark, but there was none. He said to come back in 2 weeks and that he wouldn't charge for the next one and ran out of the room. My husband was in such shock that he paid the co-pay and scheduled an appointment.

We went straight to our regular dentist's office. She arranged an appointment for the next day and took X-rays which showed what had happened. The endodontist had called her right away. She had used him for years and her father had used his partner before that. She told us that no money should be paid, and she would call him back to let him know that he shouldn't charge. She refers to other endodontists when her patients want to stay in their insurance network, but she said that their work is not consistently good. She apologized for the referral and said that the work he had done unnecessarily was an A+ root canal, but obviously this was quite upsetting. She is going to do some research and try to come up with 3 names and she said to hang tight for now.

The endodontist called my husband and left both the phone number at his other office and his cell phone number.

So, what are the best next steps? I called the insurance company, and they said that they can't stop a bill unless the doctor submits a claim.

My plan was:

* Write a letter asking the dentist to (1.) refund us our money because he didn't do the appropriate work and caused harm and (2.) confirm that he won't bill for the work.

I'm nervous about calling the guy and would prefer to have things in writing (I think). I don't want to sue even though my husband will need sealant on the damaged tooth in the future, because it's such a hassle for a small dollar amount. My question is: should I report him to the State Dental Board which might do an investigation once we get our money back?

And damn, it's hard to look for an endodontist on your own. Rattled and mad as hell.

Heebie's take: I'm not sure. As a patient, this is horrifying and awful. As for the dentist, I guess the important thing is to establish a track record, in case there's a pattern of incompetence? I don't know what the statistics are on mistakes for basically competent dentists, over the course of their career.

Hooray for hating Uber!

Uber keeps its costs low by refusing to treat its drivers as employees. Under American labor law, employees are entitled to a minimum wage, overtime pay and have their expenses reimbursed. They can receive unemployment benefits if they get laid off, and have the right to unionize if they want to bargain collectively for better contract terms. The company's drivers aren't eligible for any of this, however, because the company maintains that its drivers are independent contractors -- automotive entrepreneurs running their own businesses who have decided to link their operations with Uber.

Andrew Schmidt, a labor lawyer from Portland, Maine, has brought a new lawsuit on behalf of his client Spencer Meyer that could create a lot of trouble for Uber based on this distinction. Because if Uber's drivers are really independent contractors like the company claims, it could be breaking a whole different set of laws: The antitrust statutes that protect consumers from corporate collusion.

Mostly I'm posting for this line:

"It's classic econ 101," Uber CEO Travis Kalanick is fond of saying...Unfortunately for Kalanick, there are econ 201, 301 and 401 classes. Some economics students even study anti-competitive behavior.

Also Austin is about to vote on fingerprinting Uber and Lyft drivers, and Uber and Lyft have been total horrible bullies in it.

Wow, Ace, that's a really nice song.

I have a fringe theory that if you feel yourself getting sick - tickle in your throat, etc - you should exercise extra intensely and churn that sucker out before it really takes hold*. (Once you're feeling like you're going to die, I'm not faulting you for skipping the gym. This is preventative.)

Also novocaine - if you're numbed up from the dentist and hate that feeling, go for a run and the little transporter bits in your blood will transport faster than ever and get the novocaine out of your system.

*Not you, E. M.

Minivet asks, "How about a thread for gaming out the general election as Clinton vs. Trump?"

Heebie's take: She will tear him into little pieces. Jesus christ, this will be fun. dat-da-dat-da-da... ♫

What are the most optimistic down-ticket gains?

I've been reading Daniel Kay Hertz lately, who geeks out on urban demographics and policy in a particularly informed and readable way. Lots of good stuff at his website, and he's a good Twitter follow; this post on theories of gentrification and the role of race is one good example of his work.

The unanimity in loathing for this man is remarkable. It's the one issue on which even politicians can't be bothered to find an angle to pursue their self-interest, so they just speak the truth.

John Boehner is not a big fan of Ted Cruz ... "Lucifer in the flesh," Boehner said, according to the paper. "I have Democrat friends and Republican friends. I get along with almost everyone, but I have never worked with a more miserable son of a bitch in my life."

Apparently at Hawaii's school, they dose the kids constantly with hand-sanitizer. Somehow she ended up with a little personal bottle which she is allowed? encouraged? to fill up at one of the sanitizer filling stations and then use constantly, because she's bored and it's fun and so on.

The whole thing annoys me, but I'm not on sound scientific footing. Is there a sound scientific justification for me to be annoyed? I'm picturing something like "you destroy the good bacteria along with the bad" and "being exposed to bad germs is what builds our immune system" and things along that line.

This is lovely in the ways you'd expect, but some of the reactions are heartbreaking.

It's a bummer for this guy, but honestly, seems pretty fair.

New York man punched in the face because he "looks exactly like Shia LaBeouf" (yes, really): https://t.co/fwCF3ZvXaG pic.twitter.com/SaxmVPXDLQ

— Entertainment Weekly (@EW) April 27, 2016

J, Robot writes: This doesn't surprise me in FL, but are any states running prisons decently?

Heebie's take: Don't look at us. Also that link is seriously hard to stomach.

E. Messily writes: I didn't really know this, about Delaware and tax avoidance, although it also seems vaguely familiar and I probably learned about it sometime before and then forgot it.

Anyway. I vote you post it and make the commentariat explain to me why the loophole exists and whether or not this is going to be a big deal for the election.

Heebie's take: Commentariat, consider yourself made. (Is there a more complicated explanation than "greed"?) Also, I doubt this will be a big deal because neither Clinton nor Trump will go after each other on this issue.

NPR ran a piece recently on tax havens, and of the countries where they set up a company, the US was the easiest place to do so - requiring no ID or verification of anything - and it was in Delaware. Delawhere?

This article has been making the rounds. No particular significance to anyone here. (Apparently this article has spawned panicky knock-offs of the form, "Could that happen here?!")

Congressional call centers are pretty ridiculous:

Republican lawmaker David Jolly says he was told his "first responsibility" as a new member was to raise $18,000 per day for his reelection campaign. Congressional Democrats were once advised by party leaders to spend four hours per day cold-calling for donations...Members of Congress are barred from making fundraising calls from their offices, so many spend hours in call centers set up by each party, located across the street from Congress. The centers are equipped with individual cubicles with computers and phones, where members work their way through lists of possible donors.

Maybe they could hold a raffle or a bake sale? Or sell bumper stickers that say, "It will be a fine day when congresspeople have all the money they need and schools have to hold bake sales to buy bombers"?

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