O'Donnell: Doesn't know much about fuck all
This should terrify us all. Lord knows it scared me enough that I couldn't get back to sleep after hearing it on NPR early this morning. That is, after it made me laugh out loud, and then fuzzily wonder if I wasn't just dreaming it all up. But no. No, there is video evidence:
Christine, dear, they're laughing AT you, not WITH you.
I (reluctantly, but still) reject the idea of civics tests as a requirement for voter registration. That would not be fair, until we have an education system that actually teaches kids about government. However, would a civics test as a requirement for running for federal office be completely out of line?!
I mean seriously, FUCK YOU, WOMAN! Of all the goddamn nerve. You're going to ask people to vote you into office to be an important part of the US Federal Government, and you haven't the slightest idea what the motherfucking Constitution you'd be working under actually says? Even the 1st Amendment, which I'd count—alongside the first few lines of the Declaration of Independence and the 2nd Amendment—as one of the top 3 best known fragments of our foundational documents?! Fuck you O'Donnell. Fuck you and the ignorant evangelical hell-beast you rode in on.
What an idiot. God help us all.
20th October 2010 at 6:08 am | permalink |o'donell is a twit. but joe miller is a dangerous man. why else would he need bodyguards. he considers any adversary an
20th October 2010 at 1:38 pm | permalink |enemy. is secretive in his agenda if he has one, and presents
himself as a hero instead of the pro-war elitist liar he is.
@Greg: Seriously. How did it become acceptable for complete idiots to run for national office?!
@bud: Joe Miller is pretty upfront about wanting to basically dismantle any non-military, non-constitutionally mandated government department. Social Security, the Department of Education, etc., etc. He's a standard evangelical loony Christian… etc., etc. Typical Tea Party gun-toting, Jesus-blowing, fetus-loving right-wing lunatic. To be honest, there are plenty of people like him up here.
21st October 2010 at 3:45 pm | permalink |Hey guys. Didn't mean to break up your little circle-jerk, but can either of you maybe fill me in on the part of the Constitution that sets up a Federal beaucracy that takes money from land owners to fund manditory indoctrination of childeren?
I'll admit that I didn't exactly raise the bar in my highschool civics class, but surely google should have been able to find it for me.
While you're digging that up, could you also cite the scientific evidence that settled the debate on evolution vs. creation theory. You know, the documented lab experiment where the guy takes mud and turns it in to a living, breathing mass of self replicating cells. Maybe some hybrid monkey-men fossils? Surely millions of years of evolution from apes to humans left behind some record.
You know what the scientists did find? Whale bones in the middle of the Sahara Dessert and the Montana Rockies. You know, the conclusive proof that a Biblical flood DIDN'T happen.
The gas in your car and %75 of the worlds energy resources derrived from long dead plant life being pumped from under the sand is also strong evidence AGAINST the wacko assertion that there was an ancient lush tropical paradise in the middle east.
Personally, I don't care what you believe. You will be held in account for that. I am merely stating that the absense of ANY EVIDENCE WHAT-SO-EVER crediting the theory that life can occour on accident as a by-product of inanimate objects or that one species has ever became another species, how can you close off all debate?
Facts are not derrived from consensus, nor is science settled by peer review. All theories are valid, in the name of science, until one is proven. It dosen't matter what you or I believe. I'm sure all prison inmates have reached a consensus that prison sucks ass and we should stop holding people accountable for crimes, but of course, we aren't going to start teaching that in school are we? Wait a minute…
25th October 2010 at 11:02 am | permalink |You didn't pay much attention during Geology class when they talked about continental drift, and how mountain ranges are formed, did you? Because if you did, you wouldn't be so confused about finding ancient sea mammal bones in modern mountainous areas. Nor about the formation of deserts over formerly lush landscapes, etc.
Then there are things like genetic analysis, which have produced evidence that prehistoric animal X is closely related to modern animal Y, and carbon dating & fossil records indicates the two species clearly did not chronologically coexist. So, I'm not sure if you're suggesting that God just keeps coming up with new species, using genetic debris from the old ones? Or maybe that he has a backstock of species he created as sort of a hobby, and when one species goes extinct, he just pulls another one out of the same parts drawer and tosses it down to us?
Or, y'know, do you just figure he "moves in mysterious ways" and stop questioning there?
And, y'know, the founders DID create a constitution that included methods of amending it, and ways of passing new laws and shit, so just because it's not in the original document doesn't mean it's not a legitimate part of the federal government. God help us, if we did away with the public education system, we'd probably end up with a lot more ingoramuses like yourself, and I don't think our society can really afford that.
25th October 2010 at 2:07 pm | permalink |@ William: It's clear that you didn't raise the bar for your high school civics class (or spelling class, for that matter). The "federal bureaucracy" doesn't take money from "land owners" for "manditory indoctrination" [sic]. State and local governments collect money through property taxes, sales tax, etc. That money is then used to fund schools. The federal government provides states with supplemental funding and sets national curriculum policies (high level objectives). States and local municipalities determine the content of the school curriculum.
As for evolution, scientists have been able to take inert elements and subject them to the kind of forces present in the early universe (extreme heat/pressure) and create basic amino acid chains which form the basis for all organic matter. Meanwhile, science has turned up jack shit in support of the Invisible Voo-Doo Daddy in the Clouds ™ who wiggled his nose and made existence suddenly happen like magic.
26th October 2010 at 4:47 am | permalink |@ William: Here's a citation for you: Turn on your TeeVee and go watch the Science Channel (it's even better in HD). It will help fill a lot of the gaps in your understanding of plate tectonics, basic physics, biology, chemistry, and earth history.
Whale bones in Montana? Well, that had to do with the fact that several hundred million years ago, the North American continent was split in two by a huge ocean—an ocean which ran through what is now the midwest, including Montana. The geologic forces which caused this to happen are due to plate tectonics, specifically, a subduction of the Pacific, Juan de Fuca, and Cocos plates under the North American plate, which has caused the rise of mountains in the western North America.
26th October 2010 at 5:42 am | permalink |Woah bitches! Before you completely give up on your circle-jerk to start a flame war, let me just say that I did not post my comment to incite a riot. I'm not advocating one theory over the other, and I am certianly not advocating that we shut down our research efforts and just believe what the Bible says. On the contrary, I am merely suggesting that the science is incomplete, at best.
For instance, Becca's claims that, "scientists have been able to take inert elements and subject them to the kind of forces present in the early universe (extreme heat/pressure) and create basic amino acid chains which form the basis for all organic matter."
First of all, synthetic amino acids are not created from non-organic materials. They use genome samples from other bacteria and jigsaw puzzle it into something LIKE an amino acid. Secondly, amino acids only aid in life functions by providing for vital chemical reactions. At best, the combined reaction of twenty amino acids, in the correct sequence can form a basic protien, WE THINK. The most basic form of life contains over two hundred fifty different protiens, all sequenced and working together. That doesn't even account for the multitude of other cellular substances present, most of which, we have absolutely no fucking clue what they are doing.
So in summary, there are over 300 different amino acids that have been discovered, all produced by already organic cells (no evidence suggests that amino acids create life. On the contrary, organic life DOES produce amino acids), and literally thousands of protiens. The chances of a biochemist creating life are like hitting a six number lottery twenty times in a row. THEN, taking those twenty sets of six number winners and winning a one thousand, twenty number set of six numbers lottery two hundred fifty times in a row. Even if you could ever accomplish that mind boggling feat, you still only have, what we think, is the basic building blocks of the most simple life form. To say that the science is settled from a synthesised acid is absurd.
—————————————–
On to the US Constitution.
alphabitch says, "And, y'know, the founders DID create a constitution that included methods of amending it, and ways of passing new laws and shit, so just because it's not in the original document doesn't mean it's not a legitimate part of the federal government."
Actually, article 10 says EXACTLY that. I'm paraphrasing here, but article 10 says that anything not SPECIFICALLY placed in the hands of the Federal Government by the previous 9 ammendments is the sole jurisdiction of the states or the people. That means that if articles 1-9 does not provide for a Federal education system, then you can't create one through legislation.
You see, the Constitution does not belong to you. It does not belong to me, and it sure as fuck doesn't belong to the Federal Government. The Constitution is merely a contract between the states, signed and ratified by the states. It lists 9 simple rules that all of the states agreed that everyone can live by, and in the 10th rule, placed a check on itself by stating that the Government cannot over-reach its mandate and usurp power from the people and their respected state governments. Now pay close attention here. The only way that the Constitution can be changed or ammended is by convening a Constitutional Congress. A change in the Constitution requires that 2/3 of the states agree on it.
So, in effect you are correct is stating that our Constitution can be changed to accommodate changing times. The problem I have is people that believe it can be bypassed to achieve their own goals. That said, I don't need a lecture on all of the "good" laws on the books that have circumvented that process. There are some, and I will save you the trouble. IT STILL AIN'T FUCKING RIGHT. Not when it undermines the foundation of a great nation. No matter what great benefit, nothing can reinforce our nation while, simultaneously eroding its foundation.
As to the Biblical references, yes. Plate tectonics and other natural forces can explain what was documented nearly 3000 years ago. The point is that events that science believes occoured millions of years ago, over periods of millions of years, were documented with extreme accuracy considering the available technology. That alone has to lend some credibility to the historic value present in the Bible.
Enough for one topic. I left replies on a few other posts. I'm sure you guys disagreed with those as well.
26th October 2010 at 12:56 pm | permalink |I believe you're looking for:
That's not "Article 10" of the Constitution of the United States of America, that's the 10th Amendment thereto. The actual Constitution is a lot longer than just the first ten amendments, aka. the Bill of Rights. There are also, fyi, more than 10 amendments, nowadays. Maybe you should read the whole thing sometime?
Also given the fact that (as Becca pointed out) public education is mostly administered & funded by state and local governments, the largest part of our public school system in no way violates your interpretation of the 10th Amendment. And, really, neither does the federal Department of Education. You know why? Because they have no power over anything, except when a state or educational institution wishes to receive federal funding. It's not mandatory. From their own website:
However, if you're really convinced the federal Department of Education violates the constitution, maybe you and Joe Miller can team up and sue? I mean, shit, if it actually does directly contravene the 10th Amendment, I'm sure the ACLU will be willing to back you up on that!
And, just to be thorough: Ancient people writing stories about giant floods in no way qualifies as "extreme accuracy" in relation to the geological history of the earth, regardless of the technology of the time.
26th October 2010 at 4:02 pm | permalink |"The mission of the Department of Education is to promote student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access. It engages in four major types of activities:
1. Establishes policies related to federal education funding, administers distribution of funds and monitors their use.
2. Collects data and oversees research on America's schools.
3. Identifies major issues in education and focuses national attention on them.
4. Enforces federal laws prohibiting discrimination in programs that receive federal funds."
alphabitch, I really enjoy your site. I love a good argument. Let's take this line-by-line, shall we?
1. Global competitiveness is meaningless. Ukraine has no bering on what my kids should learn. If France wants to be fucked up socialists, let them.
2. I think we have already covered Federal education funding, but just in case, FUCK YOU. YOUR KIDS EDUCATION IS YOUR PROBLEM. Sit down at night and teach your abortion dodger how to fucking read.
3-infinity. Once you understand that there is no Federal agency responsible for your kid's education, that it is ultametly your responsibility, the rest of the bullshit you said doesn't matter.
As to your beginning argument that article 10 doesn't mean ammendment 10, CHOKE ON A DICK! Article or ammendment, it still says the same fucking thing.
26th October 2010 at 5:12 pm | permalink |1. Actually, given how shitty US students generally do in educational comparisons with other developed countries, I'd say you really should be worried about global competitiveness.
2. Yes, we have already covered Federal education funding, even though MOST EDUCATION FUNDING IS LOCAL. Also, those who have the time and ability to homeschool kids are perfectly welcome to do so. Poor parents, who need to work two or even three jobs just to keep a roof over their kids' heads? They may not have the time, or even the education themselves, necessary to teach their own kids to read.
What you are saying with your "YOUR KIDS EDUCATION IS YOUR PROBLEM" is that poor kids whose parents don't have time, kids with uneducated or just plain stupid parents (poor or not), kids whose parents don't speak english fluently, and any other kids with significant environmental disadavantages, can just fuck off and go to hell. They don't deserve a chance to get a decent education. Fuck them, they were born to clean hotel rooms & flip burgers & lose limbs in meat packing plants. And FUCK all that shit about your right to "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." If your parents aren't privileged enough to provide a good education for you by their damn selves, you'd better learn to enjoy poverty, because that's all you're going to fucking get, kid.
3-infinity. So you know what? Fuck your soulless, elitist, every-man-for-himself bullshit. I'll keep my PRIMARILY LOCALLY FUNDED public school system, I won't get all butthurt if the local schools choose to accept federal funds partially drawn out of my federal taxes, and I'll cheerfully chip in my share of LOCALLY ADMINISTERED property taxes to pay for everyone else's kids' education. I am financially privileged enough to own property, so I am doing well enough in life to help underprivileged kids get an education… just like the one I was able to get, back when I was a welfare family underprivileged kid myself.
You know why? Because I have no desire to return to a world where peasants are poor & illiterate and die young of easily preventable causes, because they don't have money for medical care. Where their kids have virtually no hope of a better life, because they don't get to have an education… their parents need them to work and help put food on the table instead. Fuck your selfish "INNOWANNA PAY TAXES," crap. Society functions as a whole, not as a collection of selfish fucks all looking out for nothing but #1.
And as for article 10 not meaning amendment 10? Well, it doesn't. There are multiple articles comprising the actual Constitution, followed by multiple amendments thereto. So, y'know, you're welcome to choke on that dick your own self. Or smother in a cunt, if you prefer. Makes no difference to me.
But, y'know, I sure hope you're planning on using outside reference material if you ever homeschool any children about our founding documents.
26th October 2010 at 5:49 pm | permalink |@ William: Check your Constitution. There is a Preamble, 7 articles, and 27 amendments. Article I, which lays out the responsibilities of Congress gives Congress a pretty wide berth in its powers, including the power to regulate commerce between the states (the "commerce clause"), and the power to levy taxes. Oh shit, those Founders gave Congress the power to tax us!! OMFGPWNBBQ!!!!!!
Really, it's in there. Art. I, Sect. 8., first sentence even. "Congress shall have the power to lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts, and excises to" (wait for it) "provide for … the general welfare of the United States." See that part there? The part about "general welfare"?
Should our kids be academically competitive with the rest of the world? If you're happy having our country and economy run by foreign interests, then no.
26th October 2010 at 6:36 pm | permalink |You fucking elitist whore. Do not presume to believe that I don't care about my fellow man. You know, in stead of giving a man a fish, you can teach him how to fish. And don't give me that bullshit about he should be provided fish until he learns to fish. Who the fuck is going to fish for themselves when stupid cunts are falling all over each other to bring you fish?
I know it's a harsh thing to say. I know I am an asshole, but goddamnit, you are responsible for you and the hell-spawn you chose to raise. Fuck you. I don't owe you shit, and it is my GOD GIVEN RIGHT not to give a fuck about you.
It's easy for you to sit back and demand that everyone else pay for shit when you don't have to explain what happens when there are more payees than payers.
Fuck off. If you want to contribute to society, pick a charity that isn't %60 waste like the Federal Government.
26th October 2010 at 6:37 pm | permalink |Becca:
The 10th still limits that taxation to the previous 9. If it ain't covered in 1-9, it ain't the fucking FED. Are you fucking brain-dead? The general welfare did not intend paying for every poor sap that walks the earth.
My job is to make sure that my kids have life just a little better than me. If you don't take that responsibility, FUCK YOU IF YOUR KIDS FLIP HAMBURGERS. That is your fucking fault. The document that loosely governs 300 million people does not need to be changed simply because you didn't have time to teach your kid to read.
Fuck your second job. Second jobs exist because greedy people wiork them. Think of your kid first.
26th October 2010 at 6:47 pm | permalink |"You know, in stead of giving a man a fish, you can teach him how to fish. And don't give me that bullshit about he should be provided fish until he learns to fish.
Would you mind explaining how kids survive to adulthood if nobody provides them fish until they're old enough to fish for themselves?! The ENTIRE FUCKING POINT of the public education system is so kids CAN learn to get by in the world. And what of the adult who's worked their whole adult life in a factory that closes down and moves overseas? They haven't been leeching off your precious tax dollars yet, but now they need to learn how to do something else for a living… and you're saying fuck them? Let them and their family starve? Really?
And may I interpret that to also mean you would be perfectly happy to leave disabled folks and low-income elderly people to rot and die, rather than provide them the social services they need to survive? Good fucking christ, I'm glad I'm not your grandma.
But, really, now that you've clarified that you don't give a fuck about the well-being of anyone who isn't an able-bodied, employed, independent adult, well I guess there's not much to argue. I don't even HAVE to assume you don't give a fuck about your fellow man, because you pretty much clarified that.
Those of us who feel society DOES have an obligation to try and help its weakest members aren't the elitists here.
(Also, you're still arguing about the Constitution as though it consists of nothing but the first 10 amendments. Really, you might want to leave that subject alone until you read the rest of it.)
26th October 2010 at 10:28 pm | permalink |@ William: Wrong again. Not just a little bit, but flat out wrong.
Articles I – VII come first. Art. I lays out the powers of the legislature (Congress). Art. I, Sect. 8 is where Congress' primary powers are defined and those powers are pretty broad. But I can hear your "small government" Tea Party brain saying that the Founders wanted to empower the states first and the Federal government, last, or some other "limited government" claptrap. Bullshit.
The Founders tried the weak federal government/strong state governments thing with the Articles of Confederation and had to get rid of them because it just didn't work. So they came up with the current U.S. Constitution. Article I places a vast majority of the power of federal government in the legislature. I'm not going to list all of those powers here, but you're welcome to go read your copy of the U.S. Constitution and get back to me.
Also, you may want to note that Article VI of the U.S. Constitution makes the constitution itself the supreme law of the land. The states are subjugated to the Federal government.
As for the amendments, saying that "The 10th still limits that taxation to the previous 9. If it ain't covered in 1-9, it ain't the fucking FED" is about the most ignorant interpretation I've ever heard. Saying that taxation is not the power of the Federal government would require us to ignore not just Art. I, Sect. 8, but also the 16th Amendment which established an income tax. You might argue that the 16th Amendment came after the 10th Amendment (as though the amendments have a seniority clause), but that would also nullify the 13th Amendment (outlawing slavery) and the 14th Amendment (civil rights for all). Do you really want to argue that?
And while I'm mentioning the 14th Amendment, I'll also point out that the 14th Amendment applies all of the civil rights guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution to … the states!!! All of the "state's rights" bullshit opposing civil rights reforms of the 60s were complete bunk that wanted to do away with the 14th Amendment. And the same "state's rights" bullshit is just as irrelevant today.
I'll agree that the "general welfare" as mentioned in the U.S. Constitution does not mean "paying for every poor sap that walks the earth." We're certainly not responsible for the poor people in India or Africa. But it does, however, mean that we as a country need to have a social safety net to provide a minimum standard for everyone. As alphabitch noted, we as a country have to be able to provide for the disabled, the elderly, and others in society who are not able to provide for themselves. And that includes short term assistance to the unemployed to help bridge the gap while they find new work.
You don't want to draw benefit from society? Go John Galt. Get off the fucking roads, the phone, and the Internet. Shut off your water and electricity service and go find a field in Montana or Wyoming and build something with your bare hands from scratch, drill your own well, build your own power generation, grow your own crops, and leave the rest of us alone. A vast majority of the things you enjoy each day are the result of social infrastructure, not individual contribution.
Joe the Dickhead doesn't own a traffic light because he installed it. He gets paid for his effort and that's that. By the same token, Joe the Dickhead pays his taxes and he has roads on which to drive to go to work installing traffic lights. He pays his taxes and there is electricity which operates those traffic lights. And if Joe has a special-needs kid that can't attend a regular school, there are government programs which can help him with that kid's care so he can work and be a productive member of society. What's that you say? Joe's wife should take care of the kid? What if Joe is divorced or a widower? Is he just fucked then?
You are not an island in yourself, no matter how much you want to believe it. You are part of a larger society which is based, at bottom, on mutual support of each other: "We the People." Get over yourself and grow up. You are, however, a bit of a sociopath (or come across as one) in that you say "fuck the other guy so long as I get mine" which is nowhere to be found in the U.S. Constitution … or wait, that's not exactly what you said. You said: "Fuck you. I don't owe you shit, and it is my GOD GIVEN RIGHT not to give a fuck about you." I stand corrected.
27th October 2010 at 4:45 am | permalink |@ William: One other thing, while I'm thinking about it: I don't have any kids. I'm single. I make enough that I don't need a second job, I have not defaulted on my mortgage (or even been late with a payment), and paid my own way for pretty much my entire life. I served in the military ('86-'91) and started/sold two businesses (both still respectably successful). I've drawn unemployment once in my life (in '01 after the tech bubble burst) and have no issues with paying taxes (state or federal). I've even lived abroad where I was subjected to double-taxation (from the U.S. and the host country) and had little issue with that. I have a concealed carry permit and a weapon with which to exercise that permit (and I know how to use it).
I believe that all of your stereotypes and assumptions have now been blown away.
Getting where I am has not been easy—in fact, it's been pretty damned difficult at times. Regardless, even though I've been self-supportive for pretty much my entire life, I still recognize my responsibilities to society as a whole. I may not like it all of the time, and some of it might even piss me off, but I still fulfill my obligations. I may have gotten where I am through my own effort and hard work, but the objective of society is not to continue to make success hard for others, but to make it easier, and to make future prospects better for everyone.
27th October 2010 at 5:03 am | permalink |And just because I can …
"I'm paraphrasing here, but article 10 says that anything not SPECIFICALLY placed in the hands of the Federal Government by the previous 9 ammendments is the sole jurisdiction of the states or the people. That means that if articles 1-9 does not provide for a Federal education system, then you can't create one through legislation."
Amendments 1 through 9 (a.k.a. the "Bill of RIghts") are meant to define civil rights guaranteed to all citizens. Amendments 1 through 9 do not empower the government to do diddly-squat. The Bill of RIghts guarantees our freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, petition, the right to bear arms, the right to due process and privacy, trial by jury, the right not to be forced to quarter troops, and the right to not be subjected to cruel and unusual punishments. The 9th Amendment says that just because a specific civil right is not guaranteed by the first 8 amendments, that does not mean that such a right does not exist—usually referred to as "ephemeral rights"—and even though the right is not explicitly identified, that right is guaranteed to each citizen just as strongly as everything in Amendments 1 through 8. Amendment 10 says that "powers not granted to the U.S. by the Constitution, nor prohibited to the States" belong to the states. That gives the states the ability to enact their own laws and constitutions independent of the Federal government, but the U.S. Constitution takes precedence in most conflicts of law.
"The Constitution is merely a contract between the states, signed and ratified by the states. It lists 9 simple rules that all of the states agreed that everyone can live by, and in the 10th rule, placed a check on itself by stating that the Government cannot over-reach its mandate and usurp power from the people and their respected state governments."
No, it isn't "merely a contract between the states." That was the Articles of Confederation, which were a failure. The U.S. Constitution establishes a strong, centralized federal government with some powers delegated to the states. And the U.S. Constitution, as alphabitch mentioned, does not exist wholly and within the Bill of Rights—the actual U.S. Constitution is Articles I through VII.
"Now pay close attention here. The only way that the Constitution can be changed or ammended is by convening a Constitutional Congress. A change in the Constitution requires that 2/3 of the states agree on it."
Actually, amending the U.S. Constitution requires 2/3rds of both houses of Congress AND 3/4ths of the state legislatures to approve of the amendment (for amendments initiated in Congress). On the other hand, the states themselves can call for a Constitutional Convention by a 2/3rds majority to propose an amendment to the U.S. Constitution (check U.S. Const., Art. V for the details).
And that is exactly what happened when Amendments 11 through 27 were passed. Through those Amendments we have abolished slavery, guaranteed civil rights for all citizens, enacted an income tax, moved election of senators to the people (not the state legislature), enacted and repealed prohibition, guaranteed the right to vote, lowered the voting age from 21 to 18, and other miscellaneous fixes.
What's your argument?
27th October 2010 at 5:50 am | permalink |I may as well also point out I have no children, no husband, and no history of using the welfare system myself. I've never been late on a mortgage payment, and my job is secure enough to allow me to cut my hours & do freelance work on the side. While I wasn't in the military and they don't require concealed carry permits in Alaska, I do own a gun, and I'm not a bad shot.
Although I did use the Pell grant system to help myself get through college… So maybe that, and all the public-school-using I did as a child, makes me a contemptible leech anyhow? *shrug* I suppose that's only fitting for a cursed liberal anyhow.
27th October 2010 at 9:37 am | permalink |1. Global competitiveness is meaningless. Ukraine has no bering on what my kids should learn. If France wants to be fucked up socialists, let them.
Entertaining although completely out of touch attitude to life. Where do you want me to start – Mortgage Rates, Exchange Rates – or do we need to go to secondary factors which will cause you pain in your daily life
27th October 2010 at 6:57 pm | permalink |Fuck off. If you want to contribute to society, pick a charity that isn't 60% waste like the Federal Government.
That's the first decent liberal statement I've seen around here in a while.
Unfortunately I can choose to support charities but have to pay taxes. Given a choice I'd much rather support the Red Crescent tnan contribute to any govenment.
27th October 2010 at 7:12 pm | permalink |Amen to alphabitch's post and Beccca's responses.
How I know William is a self-centered elitist is by his comment that a second job is for the greedy.
My son is in his mid-20s. He works 6-7 days a week at two jobs just to keep a roof over his head and meet the most basic, and I mean the most basic, necessities. He's pretty tired because he's been working at that pace for almost a year, and sometimes gets sick just from exhaustion, but he has to work anyway. We continue to pay for his private health insurance because his employers do not provide it, and even if they did, he, just like countless others, would not be able to afford the deduction from his paycheck to cover his share so he would not be able to afford to sign up for it anyway.
The economy has tanked, many are lucky to have jobs at all, and far too many employers pay low wages and offer no benefits. In fact, many employers are taking advantage of the situation and sticking it the young. Next they'll be kicking babyboomers to the curb because we command higher incomes and have more healthcare costs.
In some respects, our society has devolved back to where it was over 100 years ago, before labor unions took hold and prospered, with most small farmers we have left indentured servants to agribusinesses; our youth indentured servants to scumbag finance companies shoving credit cards at them along with advertising directed at them 24/7 to lure them into using credit before they could handle it, not to mention the Bush administration turning college financial aid over to the private sector while slashing almost all aid that wasn't loans and then that private sector cheated a generation of college students by adding all kinds of bogus fees and interest charges just like credit card companies did; and many of our elderly are indentured servants because they are also in debt despite being the generation that abhorred debt, but their debt is due to needing medical care they cannot afford and there is no help available. Therefore, what with the dropping wages in real money terms, slashing of benefits, and countless indentured servants to a handful of industries, we've regressed socially in this country.
My grandparents paid into the system most of their working lives. My parents paid into the system from their late-teens through their entire adult working lives. My spouse and I have paid into the system all of our working lives. My children have been paying into the system, my oldest since she was 16-years-old. Therefore, if we or one of our children hit such hard times that we need to access social services of some kind, it will not be a handout because it was EARNED by everyone in our family for four generations.
Everyone who requires social services or help of any kind should stop hanging their heads for that very same reason and say a giant FUCK YOU to all the self-involved SOBs out there who are so ignorant they allow themselves to be duped into targeting the poor and resenting their fellow citizens instead of focusing on their real enemies, the ones laughing all the way to banks at everyone else's expense.
Shithead.
29th October 2010 at 9:00 pm | permalink |I go away for a while and miss… whatever that was.
http://bit.ly/dcroNn
30th October 2010 at 1:12 am | permalink |@Ian: Global competitiveness has to do (partially) with ability to get "good" (high-paying & with decent benefits) jobs. At least on a national quality of education level… on which level the US currently sucks.
I'd rather pay taxes to a government which had decent social service & education funding, than donate money to schoolroom-level charities, to support worthy projects the teachers have to put personal time into promoting (see http://donorschoose.org/), and have to put extra money out of my paycheck towards an insurance plan with a deductible I can't afford when I actually need care.
@Zoe: Winter before last I broke 2 or 3 ribs… not sure how many, because I would have had to pay around $500 out of pocket to see a doctor, get x-rays and get a pain medication prescription (which is all they do for broken ribs, for the record). Then I would have had to pay for medication out-of-pocket. I understand the issue of technically having access to health insurance, but not being able to afford care. My employer-provided insurance has a $1500 deductible. I wish I was still young enough to be on my parents' health insurance. Except I don't think either of my parents has insurance, both being either disabled or self-employed…
Which is, I must say (for Ian's benefit), something nobody in any other affluent industrialized nation on earth would ever have to think about when they break a bone.
30th October 2010 at 1:43 am | permalink |Also, @grimbles, see what you miss?! lol
30th October 2010 at 1:46 am | permalink |I've been up to my neck in (and recovering from) our recent federal election and its aftermath.
Then before that running for the equivalent of state senate with juicy juicy proportional representation. Ticket came 8th out of 30+, sadly only 5 tickets got seats. Still, helped embarrass the dickwad attorney-general enough that he 'retired' the post.
So yeah. Busy.
Tangentially related to O'Donnell: http://is.gd/gt0NJ
30th October 2010 at 9:05 am | permalink |Oh c'mon now, everyone knows it's only US elections that matter. Pff.
30th October 2010 at 4:07 pm | permalink |Finally heard this. *stunned* I can't even … Wow.
9th November 2010 at 8:54 am | permalink |Right? I just kind of stared at the video with my mouth hanging open the first time I saw it. heh
10th November 2010 at 1:35 am | permalink |I'm so glad this crazy bitch didn't win. Now if only a lot of those other crazies didn't win x_X
10th November 2010 at 4:14 am | permalink |Why the hell is teaching proven science "pushing your beliefs on people" but teaching "intelligent design" ok? What a bunch of backwards bullshit.
11th November 2010 at 3:39 pm | permalink |Uh, cos God says so. Duh.
11th November 2010 at 5:26 pm | permalink |Grimbles got it.
That's why it's so impossible to debate them… their omnipotent overlord says so, and a mere human CANNOT supercede that bullshit.
11th November 2010 at 11:49 pm | permalink |Yeah, I don't even try to debate religious people anymore. I don't see the point. What more could really be said at this point? Some people are just ignorant for the pure joy of ignorance.
12th November 2010 at 7:28 pm | permalink |Isn't it wonderfull? Only in America! And George Bush proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that truly anyone can become President of the United States. (Even the braindead.)
5th December 2010 at 2:46 pm | permalink |Let's just hope Sarah Palin doesn't end up proving we've already achieved gender equality in the electability of morons, eh?
6th December 2010 at 1:48 am | permalink |@William: "I don't owe you shit, and it is my GOD GIVEN RIGHT not to give a fuck about you."
Actually, since you appear to be one of them god people, a quick check upon the founding documents of your faith (whatever it be) suggests that in god's opinion you DO have an obligation to give a fuck about your fellow human beings.
Sorry about that. I know it will come as a blow.
28th January 2011 at 6:15 pm | permalink |@ Becca
"And while I'm mentioning the 14th Amendment, I'll also point out that the 14th Amendment applies all of the civil rights guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution to … the states!!! All of the "state's rights" bullshit opposing civil rights reforms of the 60s were complete bunk that wanted to do away with the 14th Amendment. And the same "state's rights" bullshit is just as irrelevant today."
In all fairness, it should be pointed out that most of the court cases around the 14th amendment (by far) in the first 50 years of its existence had to do with the "civil rights" of corporations (and their personhood). Only a small handful of cases pertained to the civil rights of African Americans and other non-white Americans.
That should not be overlooked. It has a lot to do with where we are now.
(And, PLEASE, don't construe these comments to suggest that I am against proactive and affirmative civil rights for all living, breathing human [and even some non-human1
] Americans, no matter their color, creed, gender, sexual orientation, or wealth.)
28th January 2011 at 6:23 pm | permalink |