Friday Night Open Thread: Bots in the Belfry

How has the computer age aided or hindered religion?

You can use search engines and search terms to locate biblical passages on any subject you’re looking for, rather than relying on the encyclopedic memory of ol’ Uncle Pete down the road. That’s got to be a positive.

On the other hand, Democrats will definitely put you on a terrorist watch list if you do.

Straight Line of the Day: How Enviable? No, How Unviable! Other Mamdani Commie Promises That We May Hear: …

Zohran Mamdani backs down on cornerstone campaign promise of free NYC buses
NY Post | 4/08/26 | Emily Crane, Craig McCarthy

Mayor Zohran Mamdani conceded he won’t be able to deliver his promise of free buses this year — making a U-turn on one of the cornerstones of his campaign.

Mamdani’s highly-touted demands for free MTA buses have fallen by the wayside in both state and city budget proposals. …

Still, he insisted he was still “absolutely committed to making buses fast and free” — eventually.

He already pussed out on his free grocery stores.

And free child care:

NYC Mayor Mamdani: Uh, Never Mind That Property Tax Hike
Hotair | 03/25/2026 | John Sexton

In January, Mamdani got a big win when he and Hochul publicly committed to a plan for more free child care statewide.

… But creating one new unfunded mandate wasn’t enough for Mamdani. He continued to push for more taxes statewide. His plan for doing this was to threaten a massive property tax hike in the city if Gov. Hochul refused to raise taxes. So in mid-February that’s what he threatened to do.

… Suddenly, all of the would-be socialists who voted this guy into office to raise taxes on other people realized the money for all of his big plans wasn’t going to come from “the rich,” it was going to come from them. And just like that, they decided it was a terrible idea. The backlash was so fierce that Mamdani has now all but abandoned his threat.

And:

Mamdani’s Rent Freeze Fiasco Is Squeezing Landlords Dry, While NYC Housing Crumbles
Hotair | 02/21/2026 | Ward Clark

And:

Zohran Mamdani Now Proposing to Defund the Police in NYC in Order to Fund His Radical Agenda
nypost.com | Feb. 19, 2026 | Mike LaChance

Sigh:

Public employee unions that endorsed Mamdani watch as he raids their pension funds
American Thinker | 19 Feb, 2026 | Monica Showalter

Bond Girlathon Friday : Results from 4/3/2026 : New Matches for 4/10/2026

Someone call for a caped crusader?

Results from 4/3/2026

Michelle YeohNo PreferenceMie Hama
122056

(1) Teri HatcherNo PreferenceAkiko Wakabayashi
166043

New Matches for 4/10/2026

Match 1

Tsai Chin (Ling) vs Cecilie Thomsen (Professor Inga Bergstrom)

ContestantRecordTotal Scores
Tsai Chin0 – 5 – 0213 – 9 – 676
Ling

Actress:Tsai Chin
Nationality:Chinese
Bond Movie:You Only Live Twice (1967)

Synopsis:

In the opening scenes of the film, Bond is shown in bed with Ling, as the two discuss why Chinese girls taste different from all other girls. Ling gets up and presses a button that rockets the bed upwards into the wall, and two gunmen enter the room to kill Bond. It is later revealed to the audience that Ling was helping to stage Bond’s death in order to keep his enemies off his back.

Tsai Chin

VS

ContestantRecordTotal Scores
Cecilie Thomsen2 – 3 – 0637 – 5 – 458
Professor Inga Bergstrom

Actress:Cecilie Thomsen
Nationality:Danish
Bond Movie:Tomorrow Never Dies (1997)

Synopsis:

Inga Bergstrom was a Professor of Danish at Oxford University. Bond said, in Danish, “I’ve always enjoyed studying a new tongue, Professor.”, to which Bergstrom replied “One might say you have a natural ability.” Just then, the camera panned to show Bond and Bergstrom in bed together. The phone rang, and on discovering it was Moneypenny, Bond replied that he was just brushing up on a little Danish.

Cecilie Thomsen

This poll is no longer accepting votes

Who do you prefer?
57 votes · 57 answers

Match 2

Karin Dor (Helga Brandt) vs (11) Denise Richards (Dr. Christmas Jones)

ContestantRecordTotal Scores
Karin Dor1 – 4 – 0295 – 8 – 652
Helga Brandt

Actress:Karin Dor
Nationality:German
Bond Movie:You Only Live Twice (1967)

Synopsis:

Helga Brandt was a SPECTRE henchwoman who pretended to fall in love with Bond and switch to his side, only to try and kill him the next morning. For failing to kill Bond, Brandt is killed by head of SPECTRE Blofeld, who drops her into a pool of piranha fish. Helga Brandt was very similar to prior Bond girl Fiona Volpe, as the producers tried to replicate their prior success.

Karen Dor

VS

ContestantRecordTotal Scores
(11) Denise Richards4 – 1 – 0637 – 1 – 433
Dr. Christmas Jones

Actress:Denise Richards
Nationality:American
Bond Movie:The World is Not Enough (1999)

Synopsis:

Christmas Jones was a nuclear physicist working for an international agency that decommissioned nuclear weapons from the Soviet Union era. After Bond helped her escape from an explosion, Jones helped Bond investigate a bomb travelling along Elektra King’s oil pipeline. She discovered that half the plutonium was missing, which helped Bond discover King’s intentions in time to stop her. The two spend Christmas together in turkey at the end of the film.

Denise Richards

This poll is no longer accepting votes

Who do you prefer?
58 votes · 58 answers