God Love Wonkette

This week's installment of Weekend Stock Photo Report

Today's TED Talk

Today's Pix

Winter Sucks Now

I'm thinkin' I might hafta skip Leg Day tomorrow.  

And Cardio on Tuesday?  Yeah - that's lookin' a little iffy too.

What Bill Said

I'm not much of a Bill Clinton fan anymore, but here's a good one from a few years ago:

"It's arithmetic.  The top 25 Hedge Fund Managers made $14.14 Billion in 2012. They pay a 15% tax rate.  That's equivalent to 314,222 workers earning $45,000 a year.  And they pay a 35% tax rate.

It takes all of the income tax paid by 180,000 of these workers just to pay for the tax loophole for these 25 Hedge Fund Managers.

And that, my friends is only $2.8 Billion of the approximate $660 Billion in tax cuts that go each year to make the wealthy wealthier.

 Get up on your hind legs and push back - vote against this shit.

Bando del Diablo

We always tho't the kids in band were a little strange in high school.  Took all 45 years since then for me to learn how cool strange can turn out to be.

hat tip = Little Green Footballs

The Bullying Of America

Stand up.  Stand together.  Push back.

To borrow and paraphrase the old saw - getting bullied doesn't build good character in the victim, it reveals a lack of character in the bully.

Obama Roll

I used to call him President Lawnchair - mostly because I tho't he folded completely instead of really sticking it out on ACA (Public Option in particular).  And I continued that criticism for quite a while because it just looked like the guy wasn't all that willing to smack the Repubs around the way I tho't he should.

I can tell y'all now that I've changed my tune a bit lately, and while it'll take some study from an historical distance to see what all is what, I gotta say there might actually be something to the meme about how this guy plays a mean game of Fourple Dimension Chess; and we may be seeing a pretty good example of just how far into the future he's able to play.

I guess it's also possible he's been playing for this point in time all along, and he's about to kick over that one pawn that puts things in motion like a political Mouse Trap Game. (hey - let an old guy dream)

Obama wants to do something meaningful on Immigration, but he knows the Teabillies insist on forcing Baron von Boner and Mitchy-Mac to give guys like Chuckles Koch a loud sloppy blowjob in public, which makes it nigh-onto impossible for them to do anything else but stand in the way (or kneel if they're feeling particularly adept at multi-tasking), so Obama decides to use his authority as the boss of DHS to move ever so slightly forward.

Which means Boehner has only one tool, which is to threaten to withhold the funding for DHS, which means the "National Security Party" is saying "we're willing to drop all this pretentious chest-thumping bullshit about keeping America safe just so we can fuck over the Mexicans - and Obama".  Oops - Im betting they didn't mean to let it slip that DHS really is mostly pretentious chest-thumping bullshit, but for most of us, that cat's been outa the bag for quite a while - so maybe it's just time to let it go(?)  And as for "fuckin' over the Mexicans" - who doesn't know by now that that's what they wanna do?  Fuckin' somebody over is always what they wanna do, is it not?

Obama kinda has 'em by the nuts on that one.  

Now, add that to this:  The pentagon's latest assessment (QDR 2014) has concluded (again) that Climate Change (ie: congressional paralysis due to Climate Change Denial - hint hint) poses a significant threat to US National Security.  And that's across the board; from "Threat Multiplier" to just plain "making our job harder than it has to be".

Climate change poses another significant challenge for the United States and the world at large. As greenhouse gas emissions increase, sea levels are rising, average global temperatures are increasing, and severe weather patterns are accelerating. These changes, coupled with other global dynamics, including growing, urbanizing, more affluent populations, and substantial economic growth in India, China, Brazil, and other nations, will devastate homes, land, and infrastructure. Climate change may exacerbate water scarcity and lead to sharp increases in food costs. The pressures caused by climate change will influence resource competition while placing additional burdens on economies, societies, and governance institutions around the world. These effects are threat multipliers that will aggravate stressors abroad such as poverty, environmental degradation, political instability, and social tensions – conditions that can enable terrorist activity and other forms of violence.

CHAPTER I: FUTURE SECURITY ENVIRONMENT 8 

(quick little note - this kind of straight-up declarative statement doesn't make the final cut without the approval of a lotta people who wear some very heavy hats)

So what's a poor Boehner to do?  

Obama is saying he wants DHS to do something about immigration and the Repubs are saying they'd rather close DHS down altogether than take the risk of getting something done on one of the GOP's favorite issues. (say wut now?)

Obama and DoD want to do something about Climate Change (even if it's just some attempt to mitigate the negative effects), while the Repubs insist first on doing nothing about Climate Change, and oh by the way, then insist again on doing nothing while Sequestration strips away the tax dollars that get poured into Defense Contractors' pockets; then laundered thru PACs; and then eventually find their way back into the campaign war chests of Coin-Operated Politicians - like John Boehner.

So who's all about the security of the homeland, and who's not?
Who's all about supporting the mission of our exalted military, and who's not?

From where I sit, I'm just wondering if there's ever been a Speaker of the House who ended up switching parties.  That dude is fucked 9 ways from Sunday.

But wait - do we need to talk about how maybe Boehner's playing the role of Sacrificial Savior of the Party?  Maybe he's whipping this thing into a rich creamy lather on purpose, making all the bubble brains float to the top so they can be skimmed off into the shitter(?)

Yeah, OK.  We'll call that one Low Probability #37, but I purely do like to hedge my bets.

Get 'Em, Charlie

Charlie Pierce is a fucking hero:

William Kristol is what you find at the bottom of a dumpster outside of a think tank on a hot day in July. Nobody has been more wrong about more important things with more devastating consequences, and somehow remained out of jail or a locked ward. A chickenhawk's chickenhawk, he slaves constantly to send other people's children off to be maimed and to die, and he still gets invited to all the best places as a "public intellectual." Yeah, and Charlie Manson taught thoracic surgery. But, against all possible odds, he may have outdone even himself this time.

Searching for new ways to call the president a coward -- And we'll get to the obvious joke in a minute -- he fastens on the two-fisted youth of Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister of Israel who has been invited by John Boehner to come over here and heckle the president as part of Netanyahu's campaign to compromise the president's foreign policy intiatives regarding Iran. The sneer behind the words is what you see on the face of a jackal that has found an apex predator to hide behind. 

Today's Pix And A Few Toons Too

Expanding The Narrative

And we're back for a bit longer look at some aspects of "Black History" that we (ie: I) never even thought about thinking about.

I got outa school a very long time ago, but the way I recall it, we were taught American History as The History of White People in North America.  And then once in a very long while, we also got this other thing - Native-Americans or Afro-Americans or Spanish-Americans or even on very rare occasions, Sino-Americans.  But nobody ever referred to Franklin or Jefferson or Lincoln or Calhoun or Lee or Davis or TR or FDR or or or;  as Euro-Americans.  Ever.

"Our" history of "our" country in "our" terms from "our" perspective, as told to "us" by "us".

Exclusive.  Restricted.  WASPs Only.

Here's a peek via HuffPo:

Every February during Black History Month, we recognize pioneers like Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King who have pushed the civil rights agenda forward. However, the integral work of other activists is often ignored.

Rutgers University assistant professor Brittney Cooper joined HuffPost Live on Monday to discuss the exclusion of prominent black LGBT activists like Pauli Murray, who helped in the the progression of the civil rights movement.

From her campaign to matriculate into the University of North Carolina to her countless articles on race relations, Murray was an influential civil rights activist. Even with her list of accomplishments, Murray, who was of mixed-race heritage, saw her complex gender and sexual identity muted in favor of "respectability politics," Cooper said. Murray’s queer identity likely pushed the NAACP to ignore her case after she was arrested for refusing to move to the rear of a Virginia bus 15 years before Rosa Parks did the same thing in Alabama.

And here's a bit more on Pauli Murray: black, woman, LGBT.  Pretty much the trifecta.

Come To Where The Journalism Is

Dear American Media,

Where the fuck are you guys, anyway?

And why is it that we have to count on Jon Stewart, Larry Wilmore and John Oliver to do a better job of covering shit like this than all of your over-paid & under-performing Press Poodles who do practically nothing but pollute the public airwaves?

Get your shit together and try to act like you know what the fuck you're supposed to be doing.

Freedom Rings A Little Hollow

Whiskey Tango Foxtrot, over.

hat tip = FB buddy VWE and Addicting Info

Today's Facebook Wingnut

This came across from an ex-FB-Friend (which was commented on by a current FB Friend, which is how it showed up where I could see it), and it's what everybody used to get in an email that had enough "FWD"s and "RE:"s attached to it that it looked like god's own phone book.

I took a break from this shit for a while, but sometimes, I just cain't hep muhsef.

code = the Wingnutty Nonsense is in black, and my oh-so-clever rebuttals are in blue.  You prob'ly coulda guessed that much so I'll step aside and let you reap the benefit of my extraordinary wit.


So anyway - for old times' sake I guess:

Free people are not equal. Equal people are not free.

Because this is a nation of, by, & for thoughtless dolts who can’t think beyond simplistic bumper stickers.

"A gun is like a parachute. If you need one, and don't have one, you'll probably never need one again."

When was the last time some kid killed his little brother with a parachute that accidentally worked exactly the way it was supposed to work?  Please take a bit more care in choosing your analogies.

The definition of the word Conundrum is: something that is puzzling or confusing.

Well, not really - a conundrum is a difficult or confusing problem - one with no simple solution.  I’m sensing you're about to encounter some trouble getting your “logic” to connect up (especially when you leave out a fairly important piece of your premise), but anyway, please do continue.

Here are six Conundrums of socialism in the United States of America:

1. America is capitalist and greedy - yet half of the population is subsidized.

We can leave aside your apparent ignorance of Latin plurals - no need to get overly pedantic - and concentrate on translating that sentence for ya: The ruling and elitist top ½% of America is capitalist and greedy - and so half of the population is in need of being subsidized.

2. Half of the population is subsidized - yet they think they are victims.

Actually, they know full well they’re being preyed upon and victimized by a class structure kept in place by a ruling and elitist ½%, so we're not sure why you keep flogging that particular (and particularly dead) horse.

3. They think they are victims - yet their representatives run the government.

“Their” representatives are bought and paid for by the ½%.

4. Their representatives run the government - yet the poor keep getting poorer.

(see #3 above, and suddenly we know exactly why they’re getting poorer)

5. The poor keep getting poorer - yet they have things that people in other countries only dream about.

So, you’re threatening to make people’s lives even worse if they don’t kiss your ass?  And in slightly different terms: You're gonna shit on my head, and then I'm supposed to say, "thanks for the hat".  Is that it?

6. They have things that people in other countries only dream about - yet they want America to be more like those other countries.

This is called Cherry Picking - there’re plenty of other countries where “regular” people are a helluva lot better off than they are here, and it’s mostly because they know that Government by Economic System is a really stupid idea that’s never worked as advertised. Ever.

And BTW, we’re pretty sure nobody but you wants things to get any worse (see #5 above).

Think about it! And that, my friends, pretty much sums up the USA in the 21st Century.

Makes you wonder who is doing the math.

And that, my friends pretty much sums up why you're not going to arrive at a true conclusion when you start from a false premise.  

These three, short sentences tell you a lot about the direction of our current government and cultural environment:

1. We are advised to NOT judge ALL Muslims by the actions of a few lunatics, but we are encouraged to judge ALL gun owners by the actions of a few lunatics. Funny how that works.

Tell ya what, Quickdraw, get the numbers of Gun Deaths in America down around the numbers of Terrorism Deaths in America, and then we can talk.

2. Seems we constantly hear about how Social Security is going to run out of money. But we never hear about welfare or food stamps running out of money? What's interesting is the first group "worked for" their money, but the second didn't.

This is the “entitlement” bit, right? OK, so how hard did you work to be born into middle-class white suburban America?  You’ve been cashin’ in on that one for a good long time - what did you do to earn the life-long privileges of that randomly fortuitous event?  

Think about it.....and last but not least:

3. Why are we cutting benefits for our veterans, no pay raises for our military and cutting our army to a level lower than before WWII, but we are not stopping the payments or benefits to illegal aliens.

Make up your friggin’ mind, ditzoid.  Belly-ache about spending too much, or belly-ache about not spending enough.  You don’t get to occupy both positions at the same time.  

Oh, wait - you do wanna spend a shitload of tax dollars on “your guys”, which of course benefits you and yours because you’re totally entitled to be dependent on funneling those tasty tax dollars into your own pockets by way of your uber-patriotic National Security Inc.  

But really, you just can’t stand spending anything on “those people”.  Yeah. We get it.  Known about that one for a while now.  Think about getting some new material.

And speaking of new material - here's some that isn't new at all, but it's so good I can't stop listening to it.

A PolToon

...while the Executive Committee sits in a conference room (that prob'ly cost more than your fucking house) wondering, "Whatever happened to company loyalty?"