Indiana Lawmaker Thinks Girl Scouts Are ‘Tactical Arm of Planned Parenthood’

The Republican war on Planned Parenthood takes turn into bizarre
Politics • Views: 35,005

The Girl Scouts are a tactical arm of Planned Parenthood? You could have fooled me — and millions of other families who have had their kids go through the Girl Scout programs over the decades since it was founded.

Yet, Indiana Republican, Rep. Bob Morris of Fort Wayne, claims to have come upon the links between Planned Parenthood and the Scouts:

A lawmaker has sent a letter to fellow Republican members of the Indiana House saying he will not support a resolution celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Girl Scouts because he believes it is a “radicalized organization” that supports abortion and promotes homosexuality.

In a letter obtained by The Journal-Gazette of Fort Wayne on Monday, Rep. Bob Morris of Fort Wayne said he did some research on the Internet and found allegations that the Girl Scouts are a tactical arm of Planned Parenthood, allow transgender females to join and encourage sex.

“After talking to some well-informed constituents, I did a small amount of web-based research, and what I found is disturbing,” Morris wrote in his letter, which also accused the group of promoting “homosexual lifestyles.”

Morris sent the letter to House Republicans on Saturday.

Ashley Sharp, spokeswoman for the Girl Scouts of Northern Indiana-Michiana, said Monday a statement on the group’s website states that it leaves sex and reproduction questions to parents. The group accepts transgender youth on a case-by-case basis.

The full text of Morris’ statement is here.

Among his more outlandish claims:

Nonetheless, abundant evidence proves that the agenda of Planned Parenthood includes sexualizing young girls through the Girl Scouts, which is quickly becoming a tactical arm of Planned Parenthood. Planned Parenthood instructional series and pamphlets are part of the core curriculum at GSA training seminars. Denver Auxiliary Bishop James D. Conley of Denver last year warned parents that ‘membership in the Girl Scouts could carry the danger of making their daughters more receptive to the pro-abortion agenda.’

A Girl Scouts of America training program last year used the Planned Parenthood sex education pamphlet ‘Happy, Healthy, and Hot.’ The pamphlet instructs young girls not to think of sex as ‘just about vaginal or anal intercourse.’

Morris did “a small amount of web-based research,” which probably consisted of following some conspiracy minded right wing nutter who finds conspiracies behind every door and every shadow.

I’m going to go out on a limb and say that he’s pushing the agenda of Stand for the Family (hosted by Family Watch International) and similar type groups, which think that the UN is undermining family structures and that the Girl Scouts are deeply involved in the sexualization of women. Sharon Slater, who runs both Stand for the Family and Family Watch International, is behind many of these claims.

What actual empirical evidence is there that Girl Scouts are sexualizing women? The Girl Scouts are about empowerment, education, and improving self esteem.

Yet, this Representative and these groups are trying to find links between the Girl Scouts and Planned Parenthood? Because there is a possibility that Girl Scouts used health care materials prepared by Planned Parenthood?

This is the state of the GOP today?

It’s bordering on insanity.

UPDATE:
Here’s a Washington Times article where they try to link Planned Parenthood with the Girl Scouts, and many of the same names and claims appear.

Jump to bottom

496 comments
1 jaunte  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 5:57:36pm

“After talking to some well-informed constituents, I did a small amount of web-based research,"

I think I see his problem right there.

2 Tigger2005  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 6:12:36pm

Why say "bordering" on insanity? They're coloring well outside the lines.

3 freetoken  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 6:53:15pm

WND has pushed the idea for a few years now, that the Girl Scouts are attempting to change girls into lesbians.

It's a wild world of conspiracy, inside the mind of the religious right wing.

4 Lidane  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 7:07:32pm

The idea that the Girl Scouts are anything evil or sinister is laughable.

I was a Scout for many years. Loved it. I learned a lot of skills and was always encouraged to improve myself and try new things. I made a lot of friends through Scouts, and even learned how to hustle and work because back then, we had to go door-to-door with a catalog and sign up sheet in hand to sell cookies, and then make a second round delivering all those cookies to people.

There's nothing evil about the Girl Scouts. They're a good organization that does good work in empowering young girls. These people are crazy for believing otherwise.

5 nines09  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 7:20:52pm

It's the race to the bottom. Vile and dirty and full of deep dark delusional hangups. Fully, totally F'd up. I'm almost lost for words. He's an elected official. He's educated. This is what he works on with a public paycheck? He's a moronic doltish cretin and should be asked told to give the money back he's wasted on his hallucinations.

6 jamesfirecat  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 7:51:46pm

Just wait for the wingut headsplosion to come when the Boyscouts decide to start allowing in gay members....

7 Kragar  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 7:52:04pm

re: #1 jaunte

“After talking to some well-informed constituents, I did a small amount of web-based research,"

I think I see his problem right there.

"..including infowars, world net daily, conservapedia and other notable sources..."

8 dragonath  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 7:53:33pm

Come to the Dark Side! We have COOKIES!

9 erik_t  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 7:53:57pm

Back in my day, women used Thin Mints as a contraceptive. They put them between their legs!

10 jaunte  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 7:54:00pm

"Dressed in their optics-confusing tactical greens, they ambushed me outside of Kroger and forced me to buy 20 boxes."

11 Decatur Deb  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 7:54:27pm

Some of the Girl Scouts are a little tactical. I was their PRC-77 radio operator in Korea. (We had to have air evac arranged when we were off base.) It was the only situation in which a PRC-77 is called a "PRC-77".

12 William Barnett-Lewis  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 7:56:01pm

re: #6 jamesfirecat

Just wait for the wingut headsplosion to come when the Boyscouts decide to start allowing in gay members...

Won't happen at national. They made their bed with the far right and religious right a very long time ago and will never be a decent organization for young boys to be exposed to. This causes no small grief around here as my son would like to be in scouts with his friends. I say 4H instead...

Local Scout councils are saner than national but I still won't give a penny to United Way for their support of BSA.

13 William Barnett-Lewis  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 7:56:44pm

re: #11 Decatur Deb

Some of the Girl Scouts are a little tactical. I was their PRC-77 radio operator in Korea. (We had to have air evac arranged when we were off base.) It was the only situation in which a PRC-77 is called a "PRC-77".

Damn it, you need to come here and clean my computer!

14 Mocking Jay  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 7:57:58pm

Way to take on the issues that are important, Republicans.

15 Targetpractice  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 7:58:09pm
What actual empirical evidence is there that Girl Scouts are sexualizing women? The Girl Scouts are about empowerment, education, and improving self esteem.

Listening to the far-right loons of late, that's the problem. That teaching these girls to be self-reliant and sure of themselves leads to them thinking they can get by without a man, which leads to them engaging in sex outside the marriage bed or even engaging in "deviant" lifestyles. And that what should be taught is "traditional" values and beliefs, like some 19th century governess teaching girls how to be "proper ladies."

16 erik_t  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 7:58:46pm

re: #12 William Barnett-Lewis

Won't happen at national. They made their bed with the far right and religious right a very long time ago and will never be a decent organization for young boys to be exposed to. This causes no small grief around here as my son would like to be in scouts with his friends. I say 4H instead...

Local Scout councils are saner than national but I still won't give a penny to United Way for their support of BSA.

As near as I could tell at that age, most troops and scoutmasters really don't give a damn. And I was in a Mormon troop FFS.

17 Killgore Trout  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 7:59:03pm

re: #11 Decatur Deb
I've been laying out the brick floor in the greenhouse the past few days. Using a herringbone pattern. The company who built it is coming out next week to patch up the last few air leaks and drafts. I have lemons and kumquats ripening in Portland in February. It's quite a feat and I could not be more pleased.

18 Kragar  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 7:59:52pm

Santorum: Voters should get 'nervous' about Obama on religion

Escalating his attack on President Obama over matters of faith and politics, Republican presidential contender Rick Santorum said Monday that Obama had been "particularly weak" in protecting religious liberty around the world and compared him to "tyrants" who want to limit the role of faith in their citizens lives.
...
Referring to the Obama administration, Santorum said: "You can see why they don't stand up for religious liberties. It's pretty obvious that they don't think religious liberties are particularly a high priority. When you have the president of the United States referring to the freedom of religion and you have the secretary of State referring to the freedom of religion, not as the freedom of religion but the freedom of worship, you should get very nervous, very nervous.

For some odd reason, I'm less nervous about Obama limiting my faith than I am about Santorum imposing his faith on me.

19 Feline Emperor of the Conservative Waste  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:00:15pm

re: #17 KT Smells like Roses and Rainbows

I've been laying out the brick floor in the greenhouse the past few days. Using a herrinpatterngbone. The company who built it is coming out next week to patch up the last few air leaks and drafts. I have lemons and kumquats ripening in Portland in February. It's quite a feat and I could not be more pleased.

I presume the Feline Overlords have some favorites planted as well?

20 jaunte  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:00:32pm
The Girl Scouts are about empowerment, education, and improving self esteem.

This will not stand!!!

21 Decatur Deb  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:02:22pm

re: #17 KT Smells like Roses and Rainbows

I've been laying out the brick floor in the greenhouse the past few days. Using a herrinpatterngbone. The company who built it is coming out next week to patch up the last few air leaks and drafts. I have lemons and kumquats ripening in Portland in February. It's quite a feat and I could not be more pleased.

Cool (or warm). I have only closed the hoophouse once in the last 4-5 weeks. The snow peas are like a jungle, conforming to about 1/4 of the tube. Another group of squash and cucumbers will go there from the growlights tomorrow.

22 Killgore Trout  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:02:41pm

re: #19 Feline Emperor of the Conservative Waste

I presume the Feline Overlords have some favorites planted as well?

I haven't let the cats out there yet because there's all kinds of screws, nails and aluminium shavings left on the ground. In the next few days once I finish the flooring I'll let them out there. I think they're going to love it.

23 Targetpractice  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:03:38pm

re: #18 Kragar

Santorum: Voters should get 'nervous' about Obama on religion

For some odd reason, I'm less nervous about Obama limiting my faith than I am about Santorum imposing his faith on me.

I've grown beyond tired of listening to people tell me that "freedom of religion" means letting them cram their religion down my throat without a word of protest. These are the same fuckers who push the "Christian nation" bullshit.

24 Digital Display  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:03:49pm

re: #17 KT Smells like Roses and Rainbows

I've been laying out the brick floor in the greenhouse the past few days. Using a herrinpatterngbone. The company who built it is coming out next week to patch up the last few air leaks and drafts. I have lemons and kumquats ripening in Portland in February. It's quite a feat and I could not be more pleased.

That is awesome! Congrad's on your project this year...

25 Killgore Trout  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:05:03pm

re: #21 Decatur Deb

Cool (or warm). I have only closed the hoophouse once in the last 4-5 weeks. The snow peas are like a jungle, conforming to about 1/4 of the tube. Another group of squash and cucumbers will go there from the growlights tomorrow.

What are you using for lights? I discovered the T5. 50 watts for a 4 foot stick and the bulbs last forever.

26 Slumbering Behemoth Stinks  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:05:26pm
Nonetheless, abundant evidence proves that the agenda of Planned Parenthood includes sexualizing young girls through the Girl Scouts, which is quickly becoming a tactical arm of Planned Parenthood.

And the "Michelle Bachmann Award" goes to...

27 dell*nix  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:06:00pm

re: #2 Tigger2005

"Lines??!! We don't need not stinking lines!"

28 Killgore Trout  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:06:39pm

re: #24 Slumdog Millionaire

That is awesome! Congrad's on your project this year...

Thanks. It's a real lifestyle update for me. Free food and sun all year round. That's a tall order here in the Pac NW.

29 dell*nix  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:07:12pm

re: #4 Lidane

It is the empowering young girls part that really bothers them.

30 Lidane  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:07:26pm

re: #18 Kragar

Santorum: Voters should get 'nervous' about Obama on religion

Because Barack Obama is the one who goes around making his religious views a political issue. Really.

///

31 Decatur Deb  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:08:24pm

re: #25 KT Smells like Roses and Rainbows

What are you using for lights? I discovered the T5. 50 watts for a 4 foot stick and the bulbs last forever.

Built a set of cheap plastic shelves with uv fluorescents in shop fixtures. They let me start a couple dozen peat pots at a time. They snap apart after the starting season.

32 Slumbering Behemoth Stinks  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:08:25pm

re: #9 erik_t

Back in my day, women used Thin Mints as a contraceptive. They put them between their legs!

That's not a contraceptive, that's a sexy treat.

33 Targetpractice  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:08:45pm

re: #30 Lidane

Because Barack Obama is the one who goes around making his religious views a political issue. Really.

///

He made religion an issue first! He didn't cut the Catholics out a special notch in the new mandate, as is their right!

///

34 Kragar  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:08:53pm

re: #30 Lidane

Because Barack Obama is the one who goes around making his religious views a political issue. Really.

///

Much like not coming for our guns in his first term, his total lack of imposition is meant to lull us into complacency.

35 erik_t  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:09:55pm

re: #34 Kragar

Much like not coming for our guns in his first term, his total lack of imposition is meant to lull us into complacency.

MARXIST TRICK!

36 Slumbering Behemoth Stinks  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:10:01pm

re: #28 KT Smells like Roses and Rainbows

Thanks. It's a real lifestyle update for me. Free food and sun all year round. That's a tall order here in the Pac NW.

When you fall asleep tonight, I'm sneaking into your yard and spray painting the whole thing black.

/envy

37 Mostly sane, most of the time.  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:10:14pm

I never put my daughter in Girl Scouts.

You see, I was a Campfire girl, and at that time (when she was little) there were no local Bluebird units starting up, and...I couldn't. One of my CFG friends did, she went and put her girls in Girl Scouts, but I just couldn't.

It's a Chevy/Ford kind of thing.

I do buy cookies, though, and now that there is a local Campfire unit, I buy their candy as well.

38 Mattand  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:10:40pm

I LOL'd when I saw this headline. Partly due to its sheer inanity. Also because I occasionally work with a guy who, with a straight face, told me the Girl Scouts have a "lesbian agenda."

Yes, he's a religious conservative. How'd you guess?

Anyways, he got a little peeved when I laughed in his face. But, hey, broken clocks right twice a day and what not. So I decided to do a little Googling for "Girl Scouts lesbian agenda."

The most popular results are site ridiculing the notion.

I understand that this kind of rhetoric rallies the foam-flecked Bible thumping base that the GOP has been overrun by. The fact that the right wing keeps promoting this stuff in the hopes that it will rally independents or sane people to their crusade is alternately depressing and frightening.

If these people ever get back into the White House, we are truly fucked as a country.

39 Decatur Deb  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:10:56pm

re: #28 KT Smells like Roses and Rainbows

Thanks. It's a real lifestyle update for me. Free food and sun all year round. That's a tall order here in the Pac NW.

You'll love spending days in there when the weather sucks. Of course you can pull weeds all year round now.

40 Slumbering Behemoth Stinks  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:12:24pm

re: #23 Targetpractice

I've grown beyond tired of listening to people tell me that "freedom of religion" means letting them cram their religion down my throat without a word of protest. These are the same fuckers who push the "Christian nation" bullshit.

Didn't you know? America is only for Christians.

Youtube Video

No word on where he stands on Jewish immigrants, but he did use the "Judeo" beard, so it could go either way.

41 Targetpractice  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:14:05pm

re: #40 Slumbering Behemoth

Didn't you know? America is only for Christians.

[Video]No word on where he stands on Jewish immigrants, but he did use the "Judeo" beard, so it could go either way.

Man's two cans short of a six-pack.

42 Digital Display  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:14:48pm

re: #28 KT Smells like Roses and Rainbows

Thanks. It's a real lifestyle update for me. Free food and sun all year round. That's a tall order here in the Pac NW.

It is my hope once I move back to Napa Valley we can meet up.. The old road trip.. You know I turned 21 at Whales Cove? Crazy weekend..
Be well

43 ProGunLiberal  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:14:53pm

re: #40 Slumbering Behemoth

I said this earlier about someone else, but this this guy can go play "Hide and Go Fuck Yourself."

44 Gus  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:15:13pm

Wingnut. Overload. Brain. On. Fire. Must. Remain. Calm.

45 Mostly sane, most of the time.  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:15:34pm

re: #40 Slumbering Behemoth

Didn't you know? America is only for Christians.

[Video]No word on where he stands on Jewish immigrants, but he did use the "Judeo" beard, so it could go either way.

Gonna say:
Moses Michael Hays.

46 Slumbering Behemoth Stinks  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:16:51pm

re: #38 mattand

I LOL'd when I saw this headline. Partly due to its sheer inanity. Also because I occasionally work with a guy who, with a straight face, told me the Girl Scouts have a "lesbian agenda."

Yes, he's a religious conservative. How'd you guess?

Anyways, he got a little peeved when I laughed in his face.

If there's one thing Lucifer and Her minions can't stand, it is being mocked.

47 Mostly sane, most of the time.  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:16:58pm

To have fun.
To learn to make things.
To remember to finish what I begin.
To keep my temper, most of the time.
To learn about nature and living outdoors.
To have adventures with people, places and things.
To make friends.

That was the Bluebird motto.

Maybe we should read it to Congress?

(Is there a Brownie motto?)

48 jaunte  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:17:21pm
What actual empirical evidence is there that Girl Scouts are sexualizing women?

I must admit that my sister was in Girl Scouts in the early 60's and now she has two kids.

49 What, me worry?  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:17:28pm

re: #4 Lidane

The idea that the Girl Scouts are anything evil or sinister is laughable.

I was a Scout for many years. Loved it. I learned a lot of skills and was always encouraged to improve myself and try new things. I made a lot of friends through Scouts, and even learned how to hustle and work because back then, we had to go door-to-door with a catalog and sign up sheet in hand to sell cookies, and then make a second round delivering all those cookies to people.

There's nothing evil about the Girl Scouts. They're a good organization that does good work in empowering young girls. These people are crazy for believing otherwise.

I was a scout until I was 14. From Brownies to Cadets. I loved scouting, too. In my later years, we had an awesome leader who was real outdoorsy. We did a lot of hiking, camping, wilderness survival stuff, building fires, making knots, creating trails. Lots of safety stuff coupled with that, CPR, making slings, how to carry an injured person. I'm 50 and I still remember it! CPR has changed... At any rate, it was very similar to what the boys were doing.

Also did a lot of charity work visiting/reading to the elderly.

There were a lot of more social badges, like hospitality and other things centered around manners and keeping a home. Which, quite frankly, was even taught in school from 50s-70s. So there was that. I still have my sash and my hat with maybe 40-50 badges.

Don't remember any special badges for kissing boys (or girls for that matter!), though I probably would have thought that was pretty cool at 13.

Rep Morris from Fort Wayne is a chauvinist pig-dog. It's a bandwagon against women and he's jumping on it. All this stuff is just BS.

50 palomino  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:17:42pm

re: #18 Kragar

Any idea why Rick would find "freedom of worship" to be an objectionable term as opposed to "freedom of religion?"

But Rick knows he's on to something with his emphasis on old time religion. He's way ahead in TX. These numbers are far outside the margin of error. Just imagine how dominant Santorum would look if Newt's ginormous ego allowed him to drop out.

51 SpaceJesus  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:17:46pm

Just another symptom of the homeschooling types who want their kids to be brought up at home to be anti-social hardcore religious nutbags.

52 HappyWarrior  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:17:49pm

Uh okay...........Representative Morris.

53 Mostly sane, most of the time.  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:17:51pm

re: #48 jaunte

I must admit that my sister was in Girl Scouts in the early 60's and now she has two kids.

See! See! She forgot to hold that Thin Mint between her knees.

54 What, me worry?  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:17:57pm

re: #37 To hold my temper, most of the time.

I never put my daughter in Girl Scouts.

You see, I was a Campfire girl, and at that time (when she was little) there were no local Bluebird units starting up, and...I couldn't. One of my CFG friends did, she went and put her girls in Girl Scouts, but I just couldn't.

It's a Chevy/Ford kind of thing.

I do buy cookies, though, and now that there is a local Campfire unit, I buy their candy as well.

lol I remember we had this discussion before!

55 Decatur Deb  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:18:47pm

re: #38 mattand

The Girls Scouts have a Lemonades Agenda.

Image: lemonades-lemon-bars1.jpg

56 WINDUPBIRD DISEASE [S.K.U.M.M.]  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:18:54pm

Real tough guys, these republicans, going after the girl scouts

manliness! Patriotism!

57 Slumbering Behemoth Stinks  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:18:57pm

re: #45 To hold my temper, most of the time.

Gonna say:
Moses Michael Hays.

His wiki entry is quite extensive.

58 prairiefire  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:20:27pm

re: #37 To hold my temper, most of the time.

I was a Bluebird and CFG, as well! It was somehow more poetic, if I had to compare them. I think there was more Native American lore and influence with with CGA. I was in it until I was 10 and we moved to KC. The Girl Scouts just seemed more drab.

59 SpaceJesus  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:20:29pm

Don't let your children socialize! Not even with the Girl Scouts! Keep them at home where you can brainwash them with evangelical christianity more easily

60 Mostly sane, most of the time.  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:20:59pm

re: #57 Slumbering Behemoth

His wiki entry is quite extensive.

[Link: www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org...]

61 Mostly sane, most of the time.  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:21:30pm

re: #58 prairiefire

I was a Bluebird and CFG, as well! It was somehow more poetic, if I had to compare them. I think there was more Native American lore and influence with with CGA. I was in it until I was 10 and we moved to KC. The Girl Scouts just seemed more drab.

My mother had a full Indian dress with all the beads. She had stayed in until high school.

62 What, me worry?  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:21:48pm

re: #38 mattand

I LOL'd when I saw this headline. Partly due to its sheer inanity. Also because I occasionally work with a guy who, with a straight face, told me the Girl Scouts have a "lesbian agenda."

Yes, he's a religious conservative. How'd you guess?

Anyways, he got a little peeved when I laughed in his face. But, hey, broken clocks right twice a day and what not. So I decided to do a little Googling for "Girl Scouts lesbian agenda."

The most popular results are site ridiculing the notion.

I understand that this kind of rhetoric rallies the foam-flecked Bible thumping base that the GOP has been overrun by. The fact that the right wing keeps promoting this stuff in the hopes that it will rally independents or sane people to their crusade is alternately depressing and frightening.

If these people ever get back into the White House, we are truly fucked as a country.

I mean really. How many men do you know who think women should be barefoot, pregnant, sweeping the floor and cooking the dinner? I never met any and I've lived in some poh-dunk places.

I honestly don't consider them a threat. And quite frankly, Santorum would be a PRIZE for Obama.

63 Gus  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:22:37pm

And if the Girl Scouts are turning many young women into more progressive thinker I say good. We need more progressive thinkers in this country to fight the tide of regressive far-right dinosaurs. When they grow up to be women they're certainly not going to find allies with the Republicans.

64 WINDUPBIRD DISEASE [S.K.U.M.M.]  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:22:40pm

re: #59 SpaceJesus

Don't let your children socialize! Not even with the Girl Scouts! Keep them at home where you can brainwash them with evangelical christianity more easily

SHOVE THEM THERE BIBLE IN YER BRAIN, DON'T LET THEM MUSLIM PUT THE AIDS ON YEWWW

65 Mostly sane, most of the time.  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:22:52pm

I've done some internet research as well. Did you know that aliens were among us? The evidence is in the pyramids.

[Link: www.alienswerehere.com...]

66 Targetpractice  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:22:56pm

re: #50 palomino

Any idea why Rick would find "freedom of worship" to be an objectionable term as opposed to "freedom of religion?"

But Rick knows he's on to something with his emphasis on old time religion. He's way ahead in TX. These numbers are far outside the margin of error. Just imagine how dominant Santorum would look if Newt's ginormous ego allowed him to drop out.

My guess would be that he and others on religious right view "freedom of religion" as being about more than just worship, that it means being able to cram their religion down the throats of others by pushing it on them in every facet of life.

67 HappyWarrior  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:23:11pm

Do these guys ever stop and listen to themselves speak? It's like this, dude you sound like a complete nutcase.

68 jaunte  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:24:00pm

re: #65 To hold my temper, most of the time.

I wonder if he made it to Timecube yet?

IGNORANCE OF TIMECUBE4
SIMPLE MATH IS RETARDATION
AND EVIL EDUCATION DAMNATION.
CUBELESS AMERICANS DESERVE -
AND SHALL BE EXTERMINATED.
[Link: www.timecube.com...]

69 Targetpractice  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:24:17pm

re: #65 To hold my temper, most of the time.

I've done some internet research as well. Did you know that aliens were among us? The evidence is in the pyramids.

[Link: www.alienswerehere.com...]

What next, there's some gate buried in Egypt that allows travels to other planets through artificial wormholes? Please.

//

70 Slumbering Behemoth Stinks  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:24:57pm

The real agenda of the Girl Scouts is to make people fat and give them diabetes while taking their money.

71 SpaceJesus  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:25:30pm

re: #64 windupbird is in the gravity well

islam? in MY samoas?

72 prairiefire  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:25:48pm

re: #61 To hold my temper, most of the time.

My mother had a full Indian dress with all the beads. She had stayed in until high school.

That is so cool! I have to admit I coveted those long Indian Maiden gowns the older girls got to wear. Alas, my dream was not to be.

73 WINDUPBIRD DISEASE [S.K.U.M.M.]  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:26:12pm

re: #68 jaunte

I wonder if he made it to Timecube yet?

IGNORANCE OF TIMECUBE4
SIMPLE MATH IS RETARDATION
AND EVIL EDUCATION DAMNATION.
CUBELESS AMERICANS DESERVE -
AND SHALL BE EXTERMINATED.
[Link: www.timecube.com...]

god has a four corner head and a one corner face

you are educated stupid

74 Mostly sane, most of the time.  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:26:29pm

re: #71 SpaceJesus

islam? in MY samoas?

YOUR Samoas. Those are MY Samoas. Hands off.

75 Targetpractice  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:26:37pm

re: #70 Slumbering Behemoth

The real agenda of the Girl Scouts is to make people fat and give them diabetes while taking their money.

I'm outraged! I will not fund this agenda any longer...right after I buy a couple boxes of Thin Mints.

//

76 jaunte  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:27:04pm

re: #73 windupbird is in the gravity well

" I am from the real cubeless America!"

77 WINDUPBIRD DISEASE [S.K.U.M.M.]  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:27:27pm

re: #71 SpaceJesus

islam? in MY samoas?

Cookies, Mandrake. Children's cookies.

78 What, me worry?  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:28:36pm

re: #47 To hold my temper, most of the time.

To have fun.
To learn to make things.
To remember to finish what I begin.
To keep my temper, most of the time.
To learn about nature and living outdoors.
To have adventures with people, places and things.
To make friends.

That was the Bluebird motto.

Maybe we should read it to Congress?

(Is there a Brownie motto?)

Girl Scout motto
On my honor I will try
To serve God and my country,
To help people at all times,
And to obey the Girl Scout Laws.

I think I'm missing a line or two there.

Not me, could have been me :)

Your text to link...

79 Slumbering Behemoth Stinks  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:28:53pm

Whoa, PZ is pissed. Can't say I blame him.

Nasty little man snipes at the brave

80 SpaceJesus  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:29:01pm

eating a girl scout samoa is like taking communion from satan

81 WINDUPBIRD DISEASE [S.K.U.M.M.]  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:30:15pm

re: #80 SpaceJesus


sweet

82 SanFranciscoZionist  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:31:19pm

re: #3 freetoken

WND has pushed the idea for a few years now, that the Girl Scouts are attempting to change girls into lesbians.

It's a wild world of conspiracy, inside the mind of the religious right wing.

I was a Brownie for a few years.

My mom pulled me out because it was too Christian.

It was also boring as hell.

I missed the lesbian part.

83 SanFranciscoZionist  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:31:45pm

re: #9 erik_t

Thin Mints between your legs is no way to keep men out from there.

84 SanFranciscoZionist  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:32:04pm

re: #11 Decatur Deb

Some of the Girl Scouts are a little tactical. I was their PRC-77 radio operator in Korea. (We had to have air evac arranged when we were off base.) It was the only situation in which a PRC-77 is called a "PRC-77".

What is it normally called?

85 jaunte  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:32:40pm

TRC-question.

86 Decatur Deb  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:32:54pm

re: #84 SanFranciscoZionist

What is it normally called?

Prick-77

87 Gus  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:32:58pm

re: #79 Slumbering Behemoth

Whoa, PZ is pissed. Can't say I blame him.

Nasty little man snipes at the brave

Consider the cause of his anger. Yet another useless dweeb.

88 Kragar  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:33:37pm

re: #83 SanFranciscoZionist

Thin Mints between your legs is no way to keep men out from there.

Bait...

89 Mostly sane, most of the time.  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:33:41pm

re: #78 marjoriemoon

Girl Scout motto
On my honor I will try
To serve God and my country,
To help people at all times,
And to obey the Girl Scout Laws.

I think I'm missing a line or two there.

Not me, could have been me :)

Your text to link...

In all honesty, I prefer making stuff, making friends, and having fun.

Holding my temper was actually not that hard for me personally.

90 Lidane  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:34:22pm

re: #71 SpaceJesus

islam? in MY samoas?

re: #74 To hold my temper, most of the time.

YOUR Samoas. Those are MY Samoas. Hands off.

As long as both of you keep your hands off my box of Tagalongs, no one gets hurt. ;)

91 SpaceJesus  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:34:46pm

re: #81 windupbird is in the gravity well

so, "i did a little bit of internet research" and found out that the girl scouts' official song definitely is not very christian:

Youtube Video
92 dragonath  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:34:57pm

re: #12 William Barnett-Lewis

Ah, I have many fond memories of the Boy Scouts. Most of them involved the quartermaster embezzling about $1400 dollars of my popcorn sales fund.

93 Targetpractice  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:35:20pm

re: #90 Lidane

re: #74 To hold my temper, most of the time.

As long as both of you keep your hands off my box of Tagalongs, no one gets hurt. ;)

Lidane, my good friend...

//

94 Slumbering Behemoth Stinks  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:35:24pm

Little League Baseball is actually the tactical arm of CPUSA, designed to spread communism by promoting team work, athleticism, good hygiene, and sportsman like conduct.

95 What, me worry?  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:35:49pm

re: #61 To hold my temper, most of the time.

My mother had a full Indian dress with all the beads. She had stayed in until high school.

Ya gotta love Juliette Gordon Low. She's one of our Sisters, one of our Mothers! A trailblazer in women's rights.

I said before looks helps and is an asset in politics, which is sadly true. However, the Girl Scouts never focused on glitz and glamor, especially for a woman, to rely on that to get her where she wants to go. Her brains could do it #1 and #2, we need to fight for our rights for the opportunities.

A hit against Girl Scouts in the way they're doing it, is an attack against women's causes.

96 SanFranciscoZionist  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:36:31pm

re: #86 Decatur Deb

Prick-77

LOL. I see the problem.

97 erik_t  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:36:41pm

re: #94 Slumbering Behemoth

Little League Baseball is actually the tactical arm of CPUSA, designed to spread communism by promoting team work, athleticism, good hygiene, and sportsman like conduct.

I'd sooner swear allegiance to Communist parties of every strain than have to follow baseball.

98 Slumbering Behemoth Stinks  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:37:13pm

re: #83 SanFranciscoZionist

Thin Mints between your legs is no way to keep men out from there.

Any single ladies here willing to test this theory?

99 Shiplord Kirel  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:38:38pm
It’s bordering on insanity.

No, it's invaded the heartland of that dark region and is busy carving out an empire.

100 jaunte  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:40:00pm

@thinkprogress
"You know how Mitt Romney celebrates Presidents Day?
He straps his dog to the roof of a Lincoln!" -- Dave Letterman

101 Slumbering Behemoth Stinks  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:40:55pm

re: #97 erik_t

I'd sooner swear allegiance to Communist parties of every strain than have to follow baseball.

My mom is coming to kick your ass right now.
/

102 What, me worry?  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:41:42pm

re: #89 To hold my temper, most of the time.

In all honesty, I prefer making stuff, making friends, and having fun.

Holding my temper was actually not that hard for me personally.

I'm beginning to think I had an unusual G.S. experience, although it pretty much followed the book and Juliette Low's ideal. Much of Scouting is non-girly. I guess they see that as gay. And you know, they suck.

103 SanFranciscoZionist  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:42:36pm

re: #92 dragonath

Ah, I have many fond memories of the Boy Scouts. Most of them involved the quartermaster embezzling about $1400 dollars of my popcorn sales fund.

My husband comments that his troop leader in Boy Scouts had been troop leader of that troop since World War II, when he took over at the age of sixteen, because all of the grown men had joined the armed forces.

104 SpaceJesus  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:44:19pm

great grandpa spacejesus has a scout camp named after him. he was the first ever silver antelope or golden beaver or something in his state

105 SpaceJesus  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:44:40pm

^not a furry

106 Mostly sane, most of the time.  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:45:08pm

re: #104 SpaceJesus

great grandpa spacejesus has a scout camp named after him. he was the first ever silver antelope or golden beaver or something in his state

You mean Silver Beaver? That's an accomplishment.

107 freetoken  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:45:19pm

This Wednesday the next great "debate" is scheduled, to come to us live from Arizona. (I don't think this is the one about which Gingrich was whining.)

I wonder how weird it's going to get.

108 SanFranciscoZionist  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:45:48pm

re: #103 SanFranciscoZionist

My husband comments that his troop leader in Boy Scouts had been troop leader of that troop since World War II, when he took over at the age of sixteen, because all of the grown men had joined the armed forces.

Husband is turning thirty-six this week, so he'd been doing it for quite a while by the time husband was a Scout.

109 William Barnett-Lewis  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:46:37pm

re: #37 To hold my temper, most of the time.

I never put my daughter in Girl Scouts.

You see, I was a Campfire girl, and at that time (when she was little) there were no local Bluebird units starting up, and...I couldn't. One of my CFG friends did, she went and put her girls in Girl Scouts, but I just couldn't.

It's a Chevy/Ford kind of thing.

I do buy cookies, though, and now that there is a local Campfire unit, I buy their candy as well.

I love that modern Camp Fire is not gender discriminatory. Perhaps that would work...

110 Slumbering Behemoth Stinks  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:50:12pm

I was never in the Boy Scouts, but I was in this non-denominational, evangelicaly churches equivalent known as "Tree Climbers". I was really young and it didn't last long, so I don't remember much of it. Probably for the best.

111 Digital Display  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:51:05pm

re: #108 SanFranciscoZionist

Husband is turning thirty-six this week, so he'd been doing it for quite a while by the time husband was a Scout.

I never was a boy scout or in the military..I am so proud that Jordan joined the Marines..He makes me really proud.

112 Lidane  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:51:24pm

Fiscal responsibility!

113 William Barnett-Lewis  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:51:41pm

re: #84 SanFranciscoZionist

What is it normally called?

Add an i and a k in the middle and end and remember that only young male soldiers had to carry them on their backs. Which we referred to, at our most polite, as "humping" through the wilderness...

114 SpaceJesus  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:52:14pm

re: #110 Slumbering Behemoth

but trees are for hippies who hate god

115 Mostly sane, most of the time.  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:52:58pm

re: #114 SpaceJesus

but trees are for hippies who hate god

But...wait...who made the trees...

116 SpaceJesus  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:54:27pm

re: #115 To hold my temper, most of the time.

same one who put dinosaur bones in the ground to trick us

117 Slumbering Behemoth Stinks  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:54:50pm

re: #114 SpaceJesus

This would have been in the early '70s. That wasn't part of the doctrine yet.

118 Feline Emperor of the Conservative Waste  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:55:37pm

re: #69 Targetpractice

What next, there's some gate buried in Egypt that allows travels to other planets through artificial wormholes? Please.

//

I still want to know if an eruv erected around the Stargate would make the entire Earth one domain.

119 William Barnett-Lewis  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:56:24pm

re: #97 erik_t

I'd sooner swear allegiance to Communist parties of every strain than have to follow baseball.

Amen! Brother! Say it again! Amen!

(I shut up during the series out of respect for my In-Laws but Guh, did it really have to be _T_H_A_T_ flat out deadly boring?)

120 freetoken  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:56:29pm

re: #112 Lidane

And yet...

Poll: Santorum lead expands nationwide

Rick Santorum's nationwide lead expanded Monday in Gallup's daily tracking poll, which showed the former Pennsylvania senator leading rival Mitt Romney by ten percentage points.

Santorum had the backing of 36% of registered Republicans nationwide, while 26% supported Romney. Numbers from Sunday showed a slightly smaller lead for Santorum over Romney, 36% to 28%.

[...]

Anybody But Romney.

121 Lidane  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 8:59:49pm

re: #120 freetoken

And yet...

Poll: Santorum lead expands nationwide

Anybody But Romney.

Yeah. The poll results here in Texas must have made Romney's campaign manager start drinking:

Santorum would get the votes of 45 percent of the respondents if the election were held today, according to the survey. The other three candidates in the GOP race — former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and U.S. Rep. Ron Paul of Texas — are clustered well behind. Gingrich got 18 percent, Romney received 16 percent and Paul garnered 14 percent.

122 Dark_Falcon  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:02:04pm

re: #3 freetoken

WND has pushed the idea for a few years now, that the Girl Scouts are attempting to change girls into lesbians.

It's a wild world of conspiracy, inside the mind of the religious right wing.

Indeed. I once again refer anyone interested in reading about Conspiracism in America to (Canadian) National Post editor Jonathan Kay's Among the Truthers. He does a great job of explaining why people fall in with conspiracy theories.

Kay refers to conspiracists like Bob Morris as either "Failed Historians" or "Evagelical Doomsayers". The former use the idea of a conspiracy to explain why events do not unfold as their ideology says they should, while the latter use conspiracy theories to let them live out their fantasies of battling the Army of the Damned and give meaning to their lives.

123 Gus  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:02:41pm

re: #120 freetoken

And yet...

Poll: Santorum lead expands nationwide

Anybody But Romney.

Hey. Here. Have a look...

[Link: twitpic.com...]

124 Slumbering Behemoth Stinks  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:03:04pm

re: #120 freetoken

Dear GOP...

125 Targetpractice  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:03:33pm

re: #120 freetoken

And yet...

Poll: Santorum lead expands nationwide

Anybody But Romney.

I've heard that his lead's shrunk down in Michigan, but so long as he wins, then Romney's SOL. He'd have to hit the majority of Super Tuesday to remain viable, something that a Michigan loss would make all the harder to accomplish.

126 freetoken  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:05:53pm

Picking up again with the topic downstairs, here is how the headlines are reading:

Activist deceived group to get papers on climate change

This is how it will often be played. And, this is why I avoid these type of tactics - eventually anything and everything one does can and will be used against them. 　Gleick isn't well schooled in propaganda and should have played it differently.

127 Dark_Falcon  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:06:47pm

re: #112 Lidane

Fiscal responsibility!

Big flippin' deal! It's their money, not the government's.

128 freetoken  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:08:35pm

Frum had an article today on CNN website discussing what would happen if Romney doesn't get enough delegates by the convention. Looks like it could turn out to be quite a wild ride.

We hope.

129 SpaceJesus  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:12:01pm

A brokered convention would be the best thing. The Paul delegates would literally burn Tampa down when it's announced that Romney's money has bought him enough support to be the nominee.

130 freetoken  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:13:35pm

re: #129 SpaceJesus

As Frum points out, there is no thing as a "brokered" convention anymore simply because there are no more "brokers".

131 SpaceJesus  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:14:34pm

Where is this Frum and his limitless wisdom

132 Lidane  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:14:52pm

re: #127 Dark_Falcon

Big flippin' deal! It's their money, not the government's.

Sure. But he spent all that money and he's STILL losing to Santorum in the polls.

133 Digital Display  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:15:50pm

re: #128 freetoken

Frum had an article today on CNN website discussing what would happen if Romney doesn't get enough delegates by the convention. Looks like it could turn out to be quite a wild ride.

We hope.

The GOP does not have a strong nominee...If I were Obama I'd just split most of his staff developing a vision for the next 4 years.. The GOP are done with leading America into the 21st Century..
And like the Bible says ' Without a vision..the people perish..'

134 Mattand  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:16:11pm

re: #62 marjoriemoon

I mean really. How many men do you know who think women should be barefoot, pregnant, sweeping the floor and cooking the dinner? I never met any and I've lived in some poh-dunk places.

I honestly don't consider them a threat. And quite frankly, Santorum would be a PRIZE for Obama.

I hope you're right. Keep in mind that's it just the misogyny these idiots are stoking. There's unhealthy doses of homophobia and racism in the mix as well. IMO, if the economy's bad enough, people will go with the person who they think will get them jobs.

It's a bit cynical, but based on friends and family, many of them would go with the guy who'll get them work, regardless of what kind batshit social views they espouse (ban abortion, repeal Civil Rights Act, etc.)

135 Dark_Falcon  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:16:28pm

re: #125 Targetpractice

I've heard that his lead's shrunk down in Michigan, but so long as he wins, then Romney's SOL. He'd have to hit the majority of Super Tuesday to remain viable, something that a Michigan loss would make all the harder to accomplish.

I think Romney will pull out the win in Michigan, assuming he does well in the CNN debate on Wednesday. The fact that its a CNN debate can also mean different question sets being asked compared to FNC.

136 SpaceJesus  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:18:10pm

re: #133 Slumdog Millionaire

8 more years me thinks, and the GOP will be a regional party.

137 freetoken  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:20:00pm

re: #136 SpaceJesus

You're overestimating the American electorate.

138 Targetpractice  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:20:23pm

re: #135 Dark_Falcon

I think Romney will pull out the win in Michigan, assuming he does well in the CNN debate on Wednesday. The fact that its a CNN debate can also mean different question sets being asked compared to FNC.

If he wins in Michigan, it will be by the skin of his teeth.

139 SpaceJesus  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:20:56pm

re: #137 freetoken

Just looking at demographics and political trends among youth

140 goddamnedfrank  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:21:20pm

re: #132 Lidane

Sure. But he spent all that money and he's STILL losing to Santorum in the polls.

It's Meg Whitman all over again. Romney may eek out the nomination, but at what cost ... he's become defined as artificial, weak and despicably unprincipled by the very base of his own party.

141 Lidane  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:21:42pm

re: #138 Targetpractice

If he wins in Michigan, it will be by the skin of his teeth.

And if he loses Michigan, he might as well pack up and go home.

142 ProGunLiberal  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:22:18pm

re: #135 Dark_Falcon

The United States can no longer afford a viable Republican.

I the past two weeks, they have cemented themselves as being the Christian version of the Al-Nour Party in Egypt.

We are now dealing with Religious Radicalism at home. The US is in many ways, politically part of the Middle East. The religious radicals here have more power than in Tunisia and Morocco.

143 Targetpractice  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:23:33pm

re: #141 Lidane

And if he loses Michigan, he might as well pack up and go home.

Yep. Michigan is his Gettysburg, as so many pundits have declared it. He has to win big or go home. A close win will not do it, it has to be a decisive win for him to claim that he's still viable.

144 William Barnett-Lewis  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:23:42pm

re: #136 SpaceJesus

8 more years me thinks, and the GOP will be a regional party.

No, in America we don't really have regional parties. We are probably watching the Republican Party having it's Whig moment. There will then be an election or two where there is no real alternate to the dominate party (crap like the Know-Nothings will exist but won't be important).The real question will be how long it takes a new party to emerge and what older name they will take as their name - both the current Democrats and Republicans are not the first ones to use those names in American politics and the original members would be horrified by their modern namesakes... ;)

145 Digital Display  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:24:03pm

re: #142 ProGunLiberal

Your girl is on Leno right now.. Ms. Swift

146 freetoken  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:24:09pm

re: #139 SpaceJesus

Just looking at demographics and political trends among youth

Young people are readily malleable.

When they get older many of them will change.

147 ProGunLiberal  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:26:39pm

re: #144 William Barnett-Lewis

I'm hoping we get the equivalent of the Federalists in the Republicans.

That is to say, a period where the Democrats dominate for 4-8 years that we can undo the damage done since Reagan, expand the Voting Rights Act to cover all 50 states, and various other measures.

Including the impeachment of Justice Thomas. Maybe Scalia too.

148 SpaceJesus  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:27:56pm

re: #146 freetoken

i think the causes that make people more conservative as they age are no longer really around anymore.

149 William Barnett-Lewis  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:28:24pm

re: #143 Targetpractice

Yep. Michigan is his Gettysburg, as so many pundits have declared it. He has to win big or go home. A close win will not do it, it has to be a decisive win for him to claim that he's still viable.

Won't stop him though. To continue the metaphor, General Lee couldn't just quit after he'd bungled Gettysburg in the face of Meade's masterpiece; so too will Mittens find himself in the battle to the bitter end and, nominee or not, will find himself equally lost as Lee at the courthouse.

One can only hope that he can find as much honor in his defeat as Lee was able to.

150 goddamnedfrank  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:32:56pm

I'm expecting Gingrich and Santorum to both repeatedly call Romney a liar on Wednesday, to just hammer this point mercilessly. Every attack Romney tries to land against Rick will be countered with simply stating that nobody believes anything Mitt says and if you want to see him change his mind just wait 15 minutes.

151 ProGunLiberal  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:33:38pm

re: #145 Slumdog Millionaire

Yeah, ran out as soon as you said that. Won't be here much for the next several minutes. :P

152 freetoken  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:34:21pm

re: #148 SpaceJesus

i think the causes that make people more conservative as they age are no longer really around anymore.

I disagree.

Insecurity arising change will force more Americans into difficult financial conditions. While this will fuel some what we would call "radical" or "leftist" political heat, it will also fuel reactionary and fascistic/nationalistic heat. The latter is very potent and we see it on the rise today. We already see today the President Obama, the supposed "marxists muslim", making decisions that are essentially the same that Gerald Ford or GHWB would make - in other words, institutionally conservative even if socially open to a broader palette of human society (e.g., accepting of gays without championing total equality.)

If Barack Obama is considered the most liberal Democrat this country can elect, this county is more than right of "center".

And, I expect this to continue.

If if the GOP blows up in 2012 due to the religious right and their specifically narrow-minded version of politics, the overall movement towards the deconstruction of central governance will not abate. Grover Norquist and his likes will flourish all the more as the SoCons fight over the jots and tittles of the Bible.

153 William Barnett-Lewis  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:38:45pm

re: #147 ProGunLiberal

I'm hoping we get the equivalent of the Federalists in the Republicans.

That is to say, a period where the Democrats dominate for 4-8 years that we can undo the damage done since Reagan, expand the Voting Rights Act to cover all 50 states, and various other measures.

Including the impeachment of Justice Thomas. Maybe Scalia too.

That last bit won't happen. It would lay too dangerous a precedent. While I, personally, believe that what he and his wife have done together is criminal, it is not something that is believed by a clear majority of the nation. Hence. Thomas will die in his wholly undeserved office pretty much unnoticed. He will be to history what he has been to the court - just another nothing.

As for Scalia, presidents have been nominating activist judges of their own stripe since they actually understood the meaning of Marbury v. Madison (1803). You don't impeach him. You outlive him. You watch his spleen get ever more hateful as he watches his minority get smaller and smaller with every nomination from a president who loves America.

That is how you deal with Activist judges like Scalia.

154 DodgerFan1988  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:39:10pm

I think I'm going to buy some Girl Scout cookies.

155 freetoken  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:39:29pm

re: #154 DodgerFan1988

I think I'm going to buy some Girl Scout cookies.

Thin mints.

156 SpaceJesus  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:41:34pm

re: #152 freetoken


I see it the opposite. I see the the rising income inequality in America as being a wake-up call to Americans that the "American dream" rhetoric is no longer realistic, thereby destroying the backbone of GOP economic talking points. Once folks realize that succeeding and achieving upper middle class status is much, much harder than it was in decades past, this will cripple Republicans. On the social issues front, the GOP and its bigotry can't win against young people who don't share theocratic beliefs. The rising number of agnostics, apathetics, and atheists in combination with poll numbers among the youth on issues such as birth control, homosexuality, etc. are horrible for the future of "so-cons." This is all without even discussing the rising number of immigrants and minorities, which vote 3-1 against Republicans.

157 Targetpractice  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:42:04pm

re: #149 William Barnett-Lewis

Won't stop him though. To continue the metaphor, General Lee couldn't just quit after he'd bungled Gettysburg in the face of Meade's masterpiece; so too will Mittens find himself in the battle to the bitter end and, nominee or not, will find himself equally lost as Lee at the courthouse.

One can only hope that he can find as much honor in his defeat as Lee was able to.

Ultimately depends on whether or not he can keep the private money coming in once he registers a loss in Michigan. SuperPAC money may be the only thing that keeps him afloat, as it has been with Newt.

158 Dancing along the light of day  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:42:18pm

re: #42 Slumdog Millionaire

Hey You! You're moving? Sent you a mail.

159 Targetpractice  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:43:21pm

re: #150 goddamnedfrank

I'm expecting Gingrich and Santorum to both repeatedly call Romney a liar on Wednesday, to just hammer this point mercilessly. Every attack Romney tries to land against Rick will be countered with simply stating that nobody believes anything Mitt says and if you want to see him change his mind just wait 15 minutes.

And Romney will likely spend the entire night trying to paint Santorum as a "Washington Insider," use the words "bridge to nowhere" several times, and bring up the evil specter of the debt ceiling which Santorum voted to raise several times.

160 ProGunLiberal  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:44:31pm

re: #145 Slumdog Millionaire

Hey, you better not move before I graduate.

Is there a Cleveland County Democrat meetup soon?

161 freetoken  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:46:01pm

re: #156 SpaceJesus

I see the the rising income inequality in America as being a wake-up call to Americans that the "American dream" rhetoric is no longer realistic, thereby destroying the backbone of GOP economic talking points.

But the "American Dream" is not the "backbone of GOP economic talking points."

The "American Dream" is as much part of the Democratic economic talking points.

The reason for this is because the "American Dream" is widely held as an element of faith by many Americans.

Empty of meaning that it may turn out to be, this vanishing "American Dream" will spawn disillusionment, and that will lead to a more emotional electorate. And emotional electorates are putty in the hands of demagogues (which the current GOP candidates are practicing to become.)

162 Digital Display  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:46:57pm

re: #158 Floral Giraffe

Hey You! You're moving? Sent you a mail.

Hi You..The BB is on the charger..I'll reply soon...After the Estate is settled there will be a house for me in the Valley..I think later this year I'll come home to California..

163 Dancing along the light of day  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:48:05pm

WOOT!

164 Slumbering Behemoth Stinks  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:48:07pm

Like a boss!

165 Slumbering Behemoth Stinks  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:55:04pm

re: #163 Floral Giraffe

WOOT!

Don't you mean "tweet"?

166 Digital Display  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:56:02pm

re: #163 Floral Giraffe

WOOT!

I'm so looking forward to coming home again..To roll down the window and smell the sweet air of Napa again with the radio turned up all the way.. My kids are all around the Valley with joy in their hearts to dad coming home this year..OK it's been a long road for me.. I have tears in my eyes

167 ProGunLiberal  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 9:56:30pm

re: #166 Slumdog Millionaire

What time would you be going?

168 Dancing along the light of day  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 10:01:00pm

re: #166 Slumdog Millionaire

I'm in Sonoma tonight, it's really beautiful. I KNOW you will have a warm welcome home!

169 Dancing along the light of day  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 10:01:50pm

re: #165 Slumbering Behemoth

Sweet, maybe....

170 Digital Display  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 10:03:31pm

re: #167 ProGunLiberal

What time would you be going?

Depends on the court and legal issues...Probably 6-12 months.. I have a lot of money, Mineral rights and a lake house in the will..My brother is taking the house in Yountville.. It is perfect for him..I'll hopefully spending Christmas here..
[Link: en.wikipedia.org...]

171 William Barnett-Lewis  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 10:04:16pm

Good night all.

172 Digital Display  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 10:04:45pm

re: #168 Floral Giraffe

I'm in Sonoma tonight, it's really beautiful. I KNOW you will have a warm welcome home!

Valley of the Moon! Yea Floral!

173 ProGunLiberal  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 10:04:52pm

re: #170 Slumdog Millionaire

Good, so you will still be here for a bit.

When is the Cleveland County Democratic Party Meetup?

174 Dancing along the light of day  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 10:05:31pm

re: #170 Slumdog Millionaire

That's kind of a lot of personal to post online....
My opinion, worth what you paid for it...

175 Slumbering Behemoth Stinks  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 10:07:49pm

re: #174 Floral Giraffe

I think the kind lady has a point.

Anyway, hope all works out for the best, Hoops.

176 Eclectic Infidel  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 10:08:22pm

re: #2 Tigger2005

Why say "bordering" on insanity? They're coloring well outside the lines.

I wonder how many Europeans read this and laugh hysterically at those "dumb Americans?"

177 Dancing along the light of day  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 10:20:28pm

re: #108 SanFranciscoZionist

My nic is blue for you!

178 Dancing along the light of day  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 10:39:33pm

re: #177 Floral Giraffe

Never mind! Mail sent!

179 Mocking Jay  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 11:00:30pm

Weezer - Island in the Sun

Youtube Video
180 SanFranciscoZionist  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 11:21:37pm

re: #178 Floral Giraffe

Never mind! Mail sent!

Got it!

181 Lidane  Mon, Feb 20, 2012 11:39:41pm

Haha, wow. I'm in 90's nostalgia mode. I just found my copy of this CD:

Youtube Video

Also the #LGF and #LGFPages streams have exploded in an all caps ocean of derp. Somehow the song is appropriate for the occasion. Heh.

182 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 12:09:12am

Heh. Pussy Riot has just played in the Church of Christ the Savior. That gotta be a sight to see. Waiting for the video.

183 Lidane  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 1:13:01am

re: #182 The Czarist Guitarist

Heh. Pussy Riot has just played in the Church of Christ the Savior. That gotta be a sight to see. Waiting for the video.

Just reading that sentence is a sight to see. Heh.

184 researchok  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 1:23:04am

Morning, all

185 freetoken  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 1:33:32am
MP3 Audio
186 researchok  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 1:38:10am

re: #185 freetoken

Good night Mrs. Calabash, wherever you are...

Great, great.

187 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 1:59:35am

Strauss-Kahn arrested in the pimping case.

[Link: www.lemonde.fr...]

188 Gretchen G.Tiger  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 2:28:49am

Hey all!

Girl Scouts talk sex? Wow, who knew. Must be a conspiracy to keep women from fufilling their natural role as house slaves.

How is everyone?

189 EdDantes  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 2:32:59am

re: #187 The Tsarist Guitarist

Strauss-Kahn arrested in the pimping case.

[Link: www.lemonde.fr...]

I can't read it. It's in Greek

190 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 2:35:20am

re: #104 SpaceJesus

great grandpa spacejesus has a scout camp named after him. he was the first ever silver antelope or golden beaver or something in his state

I suppose the maternal great-grandfather. Unless you're a Mormon Spacejesus. /

191 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 2:36:18am

re: #189 EdDantes

I can't read it. It's in Greek

Well, it is πορνογραφία, in some sense.

192 EdDantes  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 2:41:13am

MY koine Greek is a little rusty but that is porn???

193 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 2:42:06am

re: #192 EdDantes

MY koine Greek is a little rusty ...

... but your instincts are healthy!//

194 Gretchen G.Tiger  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 2:46:37am

LIstening to the audible version of Solaris right now.

Much better than the movie so far.

Although I enjoyed the movie.

195 EdDantes  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 2:46:40am

re: #193 The Tsarist Guitarist

... but your instincts are healthy!//

I know it when I see it-Potter Stewart

196 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 2:47:33am

re: #194 ggt

LIstening to the audible version of Solaris right now.

Much better than the movie so far.

Although I enjoyed the movie.

Which movie? Tarkovsky or Soderbergh? And which version? The original Lem?

197 Gretchen G.Tiger  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 2:50:09am

re: #196 The Tsarist Guitarist

Which movie? Tarkovsky or Soderbergh? And which version? The original Lem?

George Clooney version.

198 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 2:51:35am

re: #197 ggt

George Clooney version.

But what are you listening to?

199 Gretchen G.Tiger  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 2:52:28am

re: #198 The Tsarist Guitarist

But what are you listening to?

This one.

200 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 2:53:52am

re: #199 ggt

Ah, good. The original book is the shit. As almost all books by Lem, anyway.

201 Gretchen G.Tiger  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 2:54:25am

re: #200 The Tsarist Guitarist

Ah, good. The original book is the shit. As almost all books by Lem, anyway.

why?

202 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 2:54:48am

re: #201 ggt

why?

Inventiveness.

203 Gretchen G.Tiger  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 2:55:37am

re: #202 The Tsarist Guitarist

Inventiveness.

Is this the origin of the Odo character on Star Trek DS9?

204 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 2:56:10am

re: #203 ggt

Is this the origin of the Odo character on Star Trek DS9?

I haven't watched DS9 and don't know who Odo is.

205 Gretchen G.Tiger  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 2:58:37am

re: #204 The Tsarist Guitarist

I haven't watched DS9 and don't know who Odo is.

no worries.

206 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 3:04:33am

Here's an Eng-lang trailer for the original movie:

Youtube Video
207 boxhead  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 3:08:25am

I find difficult to post here when the topics are so fracken ridiculous. The GOP is in full assault mode against women and they see their actions as good. WTF?!?!?!? I want put all them kooks in a line and Three Stooge slap them... arrrrr It is so fucking sad how bad the GOP has become...

Youtube Video

Oh yeah... that would make me feel somewhat better...

208 boxhead  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 3:23:24am

re: #207 boxhead

short interpretation... I find myself getting angry without a safe release of that anger.... I just cannot believe what these people are trying to do.

209 EdDantes  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 3:28:48am

re: #208 boxhead

Me? I'm old fashioned.

Youtube Video
210 boxhead  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 3:30:38am

re: #209 EdDantes

heh... not too far from the GOP.

211 Tigger2005  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 3:31:57am

re: #176 Eclectic Infidel

I wonder how many Europeans read this and laugh hysterically at those "dumb Americans?"

Well, Europeans are certainly well acquainted with what happens when you let "authentic" loons into power.

212 Decatur Deb  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 3:34:31am

re: #211 Tigger2005

Well, Europeans are certainly well acquainted with what happens when you let "authentic" loons into power.

Italians don't laugh at us--too busy reacting in horror to their own leaders. However, the Israeli reaction to the Clinton impeachment effort was a riot.

213 Obdicut  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 3:48:25am

My morning page:


Why private nuclear power is problematic

214 Aye Pod  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 3:49:53am
Morris did “a small amount of web-based research,” which probably consisted of following some conspiracy minded right wing nutter who finds conspiracies behind every door and every shadow.

I have heard the same thing repeated by some other equally misinformed idiot who shares my psychosis reliable sources that I trust...

The right-wing puke validation machine - how it works.

215 wheat-dogg  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 3:50:52am

My daughter was a Girl Scout, and I happily played along by selling her cookies at work. Bought some from my students, too. She learned to camp, shoot a rifle, cook meals, sew and a bunch of other stuff I can't remember 16 years after the fact. If there was lesbian training, she missed it.

Her scout leader was also her clarinet teacher, who had three exceptionally talented daughters. And this is was in a tiny Bible Belt town in Kentucky, which as we know is a hotbed of lesbian activity. (Or is that a hot bed of lesbian activity?)

I am refraining from making Hoosier jokes, because my son now lives in that fair state, but Bob Morris would be the inspiration for hundreds of dumb Hoosier jokes.

216 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 3:55:37am

re: #187 The Tsarist Guitarist

Strauss-Kahn arrested in the pimping case.

[Link: www.lemonde.fr...]

"I challenge you to distinguish a naked prostitute from any other naked woman"
[Link: www.usatoday.com...]

Challenge accepted!

217 Obdicut  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 3:59:38am

re: #216 RogueOne

I was actually just arguing with my friend V last night while we were writing a screenplay about what 'signs' there are that a woman is a prostitute. She has a big obsession with prostitutes.

Anyway, my contention is there's only one aspect of prostitution that's a 'sign': asking for money. Other than that, it could just be a woman looking for sex.

218 Gretchen G.Tiger  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:04:09am

Going to finish my night's sleep.

Have a great one all!

219 Fat Bastard Vegetarian  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:05:46am

re: #217 Obdicut

Youtube Video
220 Tigger2005  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:09:05am

re: #215 wheatdogg

She learned to camp, shoot a rifle, cook meals, sew

All part of Navy Seal training too! Coincidence???

221 Obdicut  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:18:16am

re: #219 Fat Bastard Vegetarian

An ex-coworker of mine picked up what he thought was a very discreet and classy prostitute in a hotel bar in SF. When he finally asked her for the price, she stared at him, hit him with the (full) coffeemaker, and left. She also told the hotel management that he was trying to get hookers and doing cocaine (the last bit was a lie) and they kicked him out.

Turns out she was just a woman who found him attractive and wanted to have sex with him.

Whoops!

222 Shropshire_Slasher  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:18:43am

I can't make this crap up:
[Link: miami.cbslocal.com...]
He will need some nobby tires next time. Maybe let the air down to 5 psi?

223 Shropshire_Slasher  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:19:54am

re: #217 Obdicut

Writing screenplays?! Is that what you kids call it nowadays?!

224 CBWill  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:20:10am

Damn girl scouts pushing their Communistic, Socialistic, Fascists, Islamic, Liberal ideas…
Next someone will be saying the FFA and 4H groups are pushing beastality.

225 Obdicut  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:20:30am

re: #223 Tommy

Writing screenplays?! Is that what you kids call it nowadays?!

She's saving herself for her future husband. This week.

She's crazy in a nice way and a lot of fun.

226 Obdicut  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:22:04am

re: #224 CBWill

Next someone will be saying the FFA and 4H groups are pushing beastality.

Nah, they're just a mafia. You cross 4H, you wake up with a cow's head in the bed with you.

227 EdDantes  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:24:50am

re: #224 CBWill

2 comments in 2 1/2 years? WTF (respectfully) ?

228 Decatur Deb  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:28:06am

re: #217 Obdicut

I was actually just arguing with my friend V last night while we were writing a screenplay about what 'signs' there are that a woman is a prostitute. She has a big obsession with prostitutes.

Anyway, my contention is there's only one aspect of prostitution that's a 'sign': asking for money. Other than that, it could just be a woman looking for sex.

Sign 1. Expresses a poor opinion of vice cops.

229 Obdicut  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:28:37am

re: #228 Decatur Deb

Sign 1. Expresses a poor opinion of vice cops.

I have a very poor opinion of vice cops.

230 EdDantes  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:32:42am

re: #229 Obdicut

Cops arresting people for trading services for money. Arrest congress.

231 Decatur Deb  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:33:38am

re: #229 Obdicut

I have a very poor opinion of vice cops.

You look real nice, lover boy, real nice. Make your old grandma proud. You're gonna be the best-looking cowboy in the whole parade.

232 CBWill  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:35:32am

re: #227 EdDantes

Man of few words. Most people comment to much anyway.

233 Darth Vader Gargoyle  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:35:40am

Let's be clear, Thin Mints are the damn Debil!!!

Also, Good Morning Honcos!

234 Obdicut  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:36:27am

Sergey, I'm playing X-Com Apocalypse, and I just recruited a physicist with a skill of 100.

Name? Sergei Romanov.

Thanks, man! You're doing stellar work holding off the alien hordes.

235 Obdicut  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:36:40am

re: #232 CBWill

Man of few words. Most people comment to much anyway.

I resemble that remark.

236 EdDantes  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:36:51am

re: #232 CBWill

Man of few words. Most people comment to much anyway.

Indeed. :)

237 Decatur Deb  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:37:24am

re: #232 CBWill

Man of few words. Most people comment to much anyway.

Soros pays by the column-inch.

238 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:38:54am

re: #234 Obdicut

Sergey, I'm playing X-Com Apocalypse, and I just recruited a physicist with a skill of 100.

Name? Sergei Romanov.

Thanks, man! You're doing stellar work holding off the alien hordes.

Heh. It's actually quite common. I regularly see my name in movie end titles, etc. I even have a sort of a doppelgaenger in the Russian blogosphere with the same name. He lives in the US, spreads conspiracy theories about 9/11, Jews, denies the Holocaust, the whole bouquet.

239 EdDantes  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:39:40am

re: #235 Obdicut

I resemble that remark.

See? He has a point.

240 Kronocide  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:40:40am

re: #235 Obdicut

I resemble that remark.

Don't be recalculous.

241 Obdicut  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:45:14am

Anyone know if the Sarah Connor Chronicles are worth watching?

242 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:45:38am

re: #234 Obdicut

Y U PLAYING OLD GAMES?

243 Fat Bastard Vegetarian  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:45:41am

re: #232 CBWill

Man of few words. Most people comment to much anyway.

Anyone who comments more than once a year is being loquacious.
/

244 Obdicut  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:46:25am

re: #242 The Tsarist Guitarist

Y U PLAYING OLD GAMES?

Because they're good, and design is superior to technology.

245 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:48:03am

re: #244 Obdicut

Ever played Star Control?

246 Fat Bastard Vegetarian  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:48:52am

re: #244 Obdicut

Because they're good, and design is superior to technology.

Just because something's old; doesn't mean it's antique.
Just because something's new; doesn't mean it's improved.

247 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:51:58am

re: #246 Fat Bastard Vegetarian

Just because something's old; doesn't mean it's antique.
Just because something's new; doesn't mean it's improved.

You tell yourself that while looking in the mirror every morning?

248 Obdicut  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:53:24am

re: #245 The Tsarist Guitarist

Ever played Star Control?

Yeah, and 2. I like 'em, but prefer MOO2.

249 Sheila Broflovski  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:53:51am

OK, I have to admit, this anti-Romney shitball ad kicks ass!

Youtube Video
251 Fat Bastard Vegetarian  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 4:57:27am

re: #247 RogueOne

You tell yourself that while looking in the mirror every morning?

Pretty much.

Speaking of looking in the mirror... HAPPY FAT TUESDAY Y'ALL!!!

252 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:05:05am

Future Headline: Motorist Kills Half Dozen Fifth Graders While Trying To Read Speed Limit Sign
[Link: www.theagitator.com...]

Image: 6P-V-WHITE-LAKE-SPEED-SIGN._20120214213522_640_480.jpg

Original story:
School Speed Limit Sign in White Lake Too Complicated?
[Link: www.myfoxdetroit.com...]

253 Kronocide  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:05:43am

Bryan Fischer @BryanJFischer
Iran says will make pre-emptive strike if feel threatened. Means we better hit them first. ow.ly/9c1UI

254 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:08:28am

re: #253 Kronocide

Bryan Fischer @BryanJFischer
Iran says will make pre-emptive strike if feel threatened. Means we better hit them first. ow.ly/9c1UI

I say take Fischer and hit the mullahs with him. The gas&shit attack will be absolutely lethal. Win/win.

255 Sheila Broflovski  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:11:09am

re: #252 RogueOne

Future Headline: Motorist Kills Half Dozen Fifth Graders While Trying To Read Speed Limit Sign
[Link: www.theagitator.com...]

Image: 6P-V-WHITE-LAKE-SPEED-SIGN._20120214213522_640_480.jpg

Original story:
School Speed Limit Sign in White Lake Too Complicated?
[Link: www.myfoxdetroit.com...]

Some lawyer probably got a ticket driving too fast on a Sunday or something, challenged the ticket and then threatened to sue the traffic cop.

256 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:11:39am
Recently, Fischer has become a supporter of the AIDS denial movement. His guest on the January 3, 2012 edition of Focal Point was prominent AIDS denialist Peter Duesberg. On that show, Fischer strongly supported Duesberg's contention that AIDS is not caused by HIV, but by recreational drug use.[11][12] Fischer expanded on this further in a post on Rightly Concerned, saying that it isn't possible for a virus to remain dormant for a long period of time. He cited as an example Magic Johnson, who was diagnosed with HIV in 1991 and has remained healthy for over 20 years. This is despite overwhelming scientific consensus that HIV can stay dormant for several years before the onset of full-blown AIDS. In Fischer's view, HIV is a hoax that was concocted by cancer researchers who needed an excuse to keep their grants.[13]
257 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:11:58am
MormonVoices, a group associated with Foundation for Apologetic Information & Research, included Fischer on its Top Ten Anti-Mormon Statements of 2011 list for saying "Mormonism is not an orthodox Christian faith. It just is not ... It's very clear that the Founding Fathers did not intend to preserve automatically religious liberty for non-Christian faiths."[14
258 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:13:47am

re: #255 Look At My Grandbaby!

What cracked me up was the exact timing schedule. 6:49, 7:52, 2:03, etc..

259 Kronocide  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:17:17am

Fischer is a shining example of American Taliban.

260 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:17:21am

Michael Ruse lost it:

But is it acceptable not to vote for Romney because—or at least partially because—he is a Mormon? My inclination is to say, “Absolutely.” The president is different from, say, a congressman, because the president is not just a politician, but the leader of the country—the symbol of the country like the Queen in England. I don’t want someone who denies evolution as my President; I don’t want someone who takes seriously the golden plates stuff as my President.

Yeah, first of all Mormon does not equal a creationist, second, really? "I don’t want someone who takes seriously the golden plates stuff"? If he wants an atheist as a President that's OK, but surely he is just being picky about what religious claims he dislikes.

261 Douchecanoe and Ryan Too  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:19:05am

Morning Lizardim. Boy, it seems like the frothing wingnut contingent of the vast unhinged is in full-on attack mode this weekend. What got their panties all in a bunch?

262 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:21:02am

"I will vote for a candidate that believes that corpses can rise from the dead, but not the one that believes in the golden plates, and I'm a smart, consistent man!"

263 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:23:21am

re: #251 Fat Bastard Vegetarian

Pretty much.

Speaking of looking in the mirror... HAPPY FAT TUESDAY Y'ALL!!!

The place of my birth:

Crowds Gather in Hamtramck for Fat Tuesday Celebrations
[Link: www.myfoxdetroit.com...]

HAMTRAMCK, Mich. (WJBK) - A party is underway in Hamtramck. People from all over have gathered to celebrate Fat Tuesday at the New Dodge Lounge.

The Paczki Pallooza celebration began at 7 a.m. with plans to run all day long.

Paczki Pallooza would make a great name for a punk band.

264 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:25:21am

Mornin'. BRB Gotta make some, coffee.

265 Our Precious Bodily Fluids  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:28:33am

re: #264 Gus

At this point, I strongly suspect he's being trolled by the publishers of Mad Libs.

"Obama's (proper noun) plan is bad for (adjective) (plural noun) because of (type of bread)!"

266 Sheila Broflovski  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:29:16am

Holy crap, what happened here?

A wild scene was caught on tape inside MotorCity Casino Hotel. A FOX 2 viewer recorded a brawl involving numerous women inside the casino's Grand River Deli early Friday morning.

The fists of fury were all caught on camera and posted on YouTube. "It was about to escalate," said Gary Felton, the man who recorded the melee. "You could almost tell, the energy was growing."

At one point, you can see women standing on table tops and jumping over chairs. Several security guards moved in and attempted to break up the fight. It's not clear is anyone was arrested.

MotorCity Casino Hotel officials released a statement to FOX 2, which in part reads: "This is a highly unusual, very isolated incident. The individuals responsible for this situation have been permanently banned from our property."

267 Eventual Carrion  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:30:18am

Well, I did a quick internet search and I have found that the repub party is actually a cabal of alien pod people that are pushing a galactic invasion to steal our valuable resources. THEY MUST BE STOPPED!

268 Our Precious Bodily Fluids  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:30:27am

re: #264 Gus

Or maybe he watched his Bad Lip Reading video and thought, "wow, those are some great ideas in there."

269 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:31:07am

re: #266 Look At My Grandbaby!

Holy crap, what happened here?
A wild scene was caught on tape inside MotorCity Casino Hotel. A FOX 2 viewer recorded a brawl involving numerous women inside the casino's Grand River Deli early Friday morning.

The fists of fury were all caught on camera and posted on YouTube. "It was about to escalate," said Gary Felton, the man who recorded the melee. "You could almost tell, the energy was growing."

At one point, you can see women standing on table tops and jumping over chairs. Several security guards moved in and attempted to break up the fight. It's not clear is anyone was arrested.

MotorCity Casino Hotel officials released a statement to FOX 2, which in part reads: "This is a highly unusual, very isolated incident. The individuals responsible for this situation have been permanently banned from our property."

It always starts with the question "do these pants make me look fat?"///

270 JEA62  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:32:34am

This isn't borderline - this is full blown needs-a-heavy-dose-of-thorazine-loony-tune freaking insane.

271 Douchecanoe and Ryan Too  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:32:58am

re: #267 RayFerd

Well, I did a quick internet search and I have found that the repub party is actually a cabal of alien pod people that are pushing a galactic invasion to steal our valuable resources. THEY MUST BE STOPPED!

I think your theory has more merit than the one in the article.

272 Fat Bastard Vegetarian  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:33:33am

re: #258 RogueOne

What cracked me up was the exact timing schedule. 6:49, 7:52, 2:03, etc..

GET OFF THE BUS YOU LITTLE BRAT!! TRAFFIC'S ABOUT TO SPEED BACK UP!

273 Eventual Carrion  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:37:11am

re: #4 Lidane

The idea that the Girl Scouts are anything evil or sinister is laughable.

[snip]

There's nothing evil about the Girl Scouts. They're a good organization that does good work in empowering young girls. These people are crazy for believing otherwise.

"empowering young girls" might be their problem with the scouts. Can't have them wimmin gettin' all uppity and such. Next they'll want shoes and contraceptives.

274 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:38:32am

Franklin Graham is on Morning Joe and he's stepping on his dick pretty badly.

275 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:40:19am

re: #274 RogueOne

Basically it boiled down to "obama and his wife are wonderful people, you can't help but love him, but I'm not sure he's a christian"....."and neither is Romney" but he'd make a great president anyway

276 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:43:13am

re: #275 RogueOne

Basically it boiled down to "obama and his wife are wonderful people, you can't help but love him, but I'm not sure he's a christian"..."and neither is Romney" but he'd make a great president anyway

Who's that? Sounds like another cultist. No wait. Isn't that Billy Graham's son?

One track minds these cultists.

277 A Mom Anon  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:44:49am

Early morning OT thingy:

My kid is supposed to graduate this year and is about to turn 18. Despite my best efforts he's not very sharp in the critical thinking skills dept. I've always taught him to ask why? and then what? when confronted with issues,problems or just wanting to learn about something. Some of this is just being a teenager and some of it is having Asperger's. Are there any books or teaching materials that I could use to help him? Things I could do or projects I could involve him in that would help? Any ideas would be much appreciated.

278 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:45:43am

This country is almost like South America in the 1930s or something. Maybe a lot like Italy. "He's not a Catholic!" Or in this case "he's not a Christian" and blah, blah, blah.

279 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:51:19am

re: #277 A Mom Anon

Early morning OT thingy:

My kid is supposed to graduate this year and is about to turn 18. Despite my best efforts he's not very sharp in the critical thinking skills dept. I've always taught him to ask why? and then what? when confronted with issues,problems or just wanting to learn about something........

This won't be any help but asking "Why?" is a great start. When I was placed in my first unit as a brand new 2nd LT I asked "Why?" so many times my sergeants nicknamed me "Lt. Why".

280 Archangelus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 5:56:24am

'The Derp is strong with this one...'

/Vader

281 Mocking Jay  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 6:07:48am

re: #260 The Tsarist Guitarist

Michael Ruse lost it:

Yeah, first of all Mormon does not equal a creationist, second, really? "I don’t want someone who takes seriously the golden plates stuff"? If he wants an atheist as a President that's OK, but surely he is just being picky about what religious claims he dislikes.

Anything beyond conversations with flaming shrubbery just stretches the suspension of disbelief a little too far.

282 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 6:10:09am

In this world we may all be of the same species as people yet we interact with each other as though each one of our sub-groups and cultures are aliens from different planets.

283 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 6:15:11am

How these tax-exempt churches get involved in politics so deeply in this country without facing scrutiny from the authorities is beyond me.

284 Douchecanoe and Ryan Too  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 6:15:33am

Ack. Higher-level math this early in the morning makes my brain hurt.

285 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 6:16:20am

The zealots complain about the separation of church and state? Well I think we need to increase that separation. We need further separation from religion and politics and government.

286 Obdicut  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 6:24:31am

re: #283 Gus

How these tax-exempt churches get involved in politics so deeply in this country without facing scrutiny from the authorities is beyond me.

Because a very large amount of people in this country belong to a church of one form or another, and the vast majority of those that don't are still vaguely religious. Religion gets a pass on a lot of things, because of the place it holds in our culture.

Religion makes a moderate amount of sense to me when it's about thinking about the relationship between god and man-- I don't believe in god, or anything supernatural, but I do think it's very biologically built into our brains to seek a greater pattern, and that belief in God is not based solely in hope or need or fear of death but in the human tendency to agency, to anthropomorphize, the same way we say that the wind sounds angry.

Religion makes no sense to me when it's rules that you try to make other people live. When you try to make yourself live them, that's fine, it's odd but no odder than any other pattern of discipline, really. But when you say that not only you but other people have to adhere to moral rules that were supposedly revealed to someone, I don't get that. None of those rules that are good are ones that couldn't be arrived from just from reason and empathy, and they're chock full of obviously bad and ridiculous ones. They only make sense from a standpoint of personal observance and discipline.

Want to not have sex before marriage? Go right ahead. Try to force others not to have sex before marriage? What the fuck, you nutjob, you're crazy.

So I think religion gets thought of as the former-- as that fervent hope, that searching for something greater-- whereas in public life, religion is far more of the latter, of the weird rules, the strange denials, the detritus of religion.

287 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 6:41:58am

re: #286 Obdicut

Nature versus nurture. I believe it is caused through nurture and is a choice. People are not born religious.

288 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 6:43:40am

re: #281 I Am Jack's Medulla Oblongata

Anything beyond conversations with flaming shrubbery just stretches the suspension of disbelief a little too far.

I would say golden plates are more believable than talking shrubbery.

289 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 6:49:01am

Nice.

Atheist teen who sued over school prayer banner to get $40,000 scholarship

An atheist blogger said this week that his online fundraiser has brought in more than $40,000 to support a scholarship fund for a girl in Rhode Island who sued over a public prayer display at her state-run school and won.

The Cranston School Committee voted last week against an appeal of a U.S. District Court’s January decision, which determined that a banner promoting Christian theology would not be allowed to remain.

The girl, 16-year-old Jessica Ahlquist, told the court the banner made her feel “ostracized and out of place,” according to The Associated Press. School officials had argued that since the banner had been in place since 1963, it was “historical” and “artistic.”...

290 AK-47%  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 6:51:23am

re: #289 Gus

Nice.

Atheist teen who sued over school prayer banner to get $40,000 scholarship

"School officials had argued that since the banner had been in place since 1963, it was “historical” and “artistic.”...

So is a Confederate battle flag...

291 Obdicut  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 6:51:49am

re: #287 Gus

Nature versus nurture. I believe it is caused through nurture and is a choice. People are not born religious.

Nature and nurture aren't separate. All our nurture comes from our nature. Nothing can exist without a biological basis.

Human beings are great at spotting order in the chaos. They're also good at making mistakes. Combine the two, and you get the belief in the unreal.

292 AK-47%  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 6:54:41am

re: #291 Obdicut

Nature and nurture aren't separate. All our nurture comes from our nature. Nothing can exist without a biological basis.

Human beings are great at spotting order in the chaos. They're also good at making mistakes. Combine the two, and you get the belief in the unreal.

What our Constitution seeks to avoid is people taking their theological views (from their choice of scripture and their choice of interpretation) and turning it directly into law.

People may well base their views of justice and morality on their religious beliefs - and most of them certainly do - we just do not elevate clergy to the level of lawmakers/judges by virtue of their position in a church hierarchy.

293 Douchecanoe and Ryan Too  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 6:55:55am

I better bow out now and leave the discussion to my atheist brethren. Enjoy the day, Lizardim.

294 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 6:56:22am

re: #291 Obdicut

Nature and nurture aren't separate. All our nurture comes from our nature. Nothing can exist without a biological basis.

Human beings are great at spotting order in the chaos. They're also good at making mistakes. Combine the two, and you get the belief in the unreal.

None of this changes the fact that religious institutions are abusing the tax-exempt as it applies to political involvement of churches in this country. I don't care what the cause is of religion nor the evolutionary characteristics. If I want to understand that I'll listen or read Daniel Dennett. It's a distraction from the problem at hand. This isn't a debate about biology and the huge limitations of the human brain. It's a question of law and abuse of the system.

295 prairiefire  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 6:56:27am

re: #286 Obdicut

When reading the Bible, I think of the laws given by God to his chosen people, the Jews, makes a lot of biological sense. Many of them being simple but vital to sanitation and hygienic, sexual health. I think if a man doesn't sleep with his brother's wife, he has a stronger chance of staying alive.

296 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 6:57:39am

I don't see why religious institutions should be tax exempt.

297 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 6:58:44am

re: #288 The Tsarist Guitarist

I would say golden plates are more believable than talking shrubbery.

"burning bush"....wink, wink, nudge, nudge

298 RadicalModerate  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 6:59:09am

Oh boy. Wingnut heads are gonna be all explody over this one. LZ Granderson's column over on CNN hits this one out of the park, simply by stating an obvious point.

Does 'secure the border' mean 'keep America white'?

Now there will be plenty of other buzz words and euphemisms that will be tossed around during the debate, but since it is being held in Arizona, chances are the most popular phrase will be "secure the border."

We must secure the border.

The candidates will argue that it's a matter of national security. That it isn't just the friendly illegal immigrants looking for work we must worry about, but terrorists, drug lords and other criminals who seek to make their way through our porous border. They will say if they were president they would build walls, add troops, even commission a Death Star to keep this country safe.

Newt Gingrich has promised to build a double fence along the entire southern border, adding, ""The United States must control its border. It is a national security imperative,"

Ron Paul said "If elected president, I would move to quickly end foreign nation building efforts and use many of the resources we waste playing world's policemen to control our southern border."

They all will receive applause, and it will all sound great ... until you realize that "secure the border" is slang for "keep the Mexicans out."

Oh boy, here comes the black guy playing the race card again.

Yep, that's me -- pointing out that the Canadian border is largely ignored in this dialogue despite being more than twice the size of the Mexican border and less than 1% secure, according to a 2011 report by the Government Accountability Office. Even if we were to disregard the 1,538 miles between Alaska and Canada, the 3,987 mile border connecting the lower 48 to our neighbors up north is still much larger than the 1,933-mile stretch that connects us to Mexico.

And yet the attention we give the northern border is miniscule at best when compared to the resources we allocate to the south. There are definitely reasons for serious concern about safety along the Mexican border, but according to our own intelligence, Mexico should hardly be our only concern.

299 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 6:59:25am

re: #297 RogueOne

"burning bush"...wink, wink, nudge, nudge

Nothing Moses' magic staff cannot deal with.

300 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:00:35am

re: #296 The Tsarist Guitarist

I don't see why religious institutions should be tax exempt.

There you go. Keeping it simple. There's no need for a "discovery phase" regarding religion. It's a distraction and one that the churches use to defend their abuse of the system. It almost become the "intelligent design" of religion and law. Or as Judge Judy would probably say, "I don't care what motivates your faith, just show me the contract!"

301 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:00:57am

re: #299 The Tsarist Guitarist

Nothing Moses' magic staff cannot deal with.

Is that covered somewhere under "improper contraceptive usage" laws?

302 Eventual Carrion  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:01:11am

re: #290 Ministry of Fairness and Balance

"School officials had argued that since the banner had been in place since 1963, it was “historical” and “artistic.”...

So is a Confederate battle flag...

So are the statues of Justice in the Justice Department, but they had to be 'draped' because it was offensive to someone afraid of the female body (hint, the person that did this was beaten in an election by a dead person). And those statues had been in place since the 1930's.

303 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:01:25am

re: #288 The Tsarist Guitarist

I would say golden plates are more believable than talking shrubbery.

Let's see. For the golden plates we know that Joseph Smith did exist. And we have affidavits of numerous witnesses who claimed to have seen the plates. And we know these witnesses existed too.

For the talking shrubbery: we don't even know that Moses existed.

Simple choice ;)

304 Obdicut  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:01:32am

re: #292 Ministry of Fairness and Balance

People may well base their views of justice and morality on their religious beliefs - and most of them certainly do -

See, I don't think they do. I think they exist independtly of religion, but that religion has sometimes been the repository of moral law-- but there's always been philosophy, common sense, empathy, and moral reasoning outside of religion.

The 10 commandments, for example, are interesting because of how they totally can't form the basis of law or how to live your life. They're sparse, and immediately you come up against the hard questions: Thou shalt not kill? What if someone is going to try to kill you? What if they're dying of a terminal disease and ask for a quicker death? What if you have to kill one person to save 20?

So I think people may think they're basing a lot of their ethics and morals on religion, but it's more just that religion tends to reflect some very basic beliefs that humans have about morality and ethics. It's not from the religion, religion is just one of the ways it gets encoded, along with law, nursery rhymes, novels, plays, folk tales, rock songs, etc.

305 Interesting Times  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:01:37am

re: #298 RadicalModerate

Oh boy. Wingnut heads are gonna be all explody over this one. LZ Granderson's column over on CNN hits this one out of the park, simply by stating an obvious point.

Does 'secure the border' mean 'keep America white'?

306 Obdicut  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:02:20am

re: #294 Gus

None of this changes the fact that religious institutions are abusing the tax-exempt as it applies to political involvement of churches in this country.

Did you somehow think I was arguing otherwise?

I don't care what the cause is of religion nor the evolutionary characteristics. If I want to understand that I'll listen or read Daniel Dennett. It's a distraction from the problem at hand. This isn't a debate about biology and the huge limitations of the human brain. It's a question of law and abuse of the system.

Sorry, didn't realize you were defining what the debate was these days.

I'll go do some work.

307 AK-47%  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:02:39am

re: #298 RadicalModerate

There is a much lower incidence of smuggling and crime connected with the Canadian border. Hard to see a dogwhistle in this one.

But it is clear what a lot of people mean by "imimigration reform".

308 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:07:51am

One more reason why dogs are awesome. This one is helping by pulling this car out of the ditch
[Link: www.buzzfeed.com...]

Image: enhanced-buzz-15544-1329749020-16.jpg

309 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:08:53am

re: #308 RogueOne

One more reason why dogs are awesome. This one is helping by pulling this car out of the ditch
[Link: www.buzzfeed.com...]

Image: enhanced-buzz-15544-1329749020-16.jpg

You don't know that. I think it's an evil dog trying to push it back into the ditch while simultaneously biting it. //

310 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:10:33am

re: #306 Obdicut

Did you somehow think I was arguing otherwise?

Sorry, didn't realize you were defining what the debate was these days.

I'll go do some work.

Because the comment was:

How these tax-exempt churches get involved in politics so deeply in this country without facing scrutiny from the authorities is beyond me.

Which is not a debate about biology or evolution. And because the abuse by charities in this country doesn't only focus on religions -- Heartland Institute being the latest example as is Komen for the Cure. So having just awoken from my slumber I was a little perplexed how this evolved into pontificating about the neural foundations for religions.

311 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:10:38am

re: #309 The Tsarist Guitarist

Haven't you heard the good news? Dog saves!

312 PhillyPretzel  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:11:00am

re: #308 RogueOne
To me it looks like he is bitting the bumper.

313 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:11:25am

re: #311 RogueOne

Haven't you heard the good news? Dog saves!

Sorry, I don't believe in dog.

314 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:13:02am

re: #312 PhillyPretzel

To me it looks like he is bitting the bumper.

2Rogue: see! You're the one confused. /

315 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:13:18am

re: #312 PhillyPretzel

re: #313 The Tsarist Guitarist

Non-believers! you shall surely burn!

316 prairiefire  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:13:43am

Tomorrow's Ash Wed.! Happy Mardi Gras/Carnivale, everybody!

317 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:14:05am

Geert Wilders Launches Anti-Immigrant Website

Radical anti-Muslim Dutch lawmaker Geert Wilders has started a new website promoting his party’s anti-immigrant platform. The website, called “Hotline for Reporting Central and Eastern Europeans,” allows visitors to submit a complaint if they have “lost [their] job to a Pole, Bulgarian, Romanian or other Central or Eastern European.” Wilders claims the website, which has been widely condemned by several EU nations, has already received 40,000 submissions.

318 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:14:53am

re: #317 Gus

It wasn't long before he spread his hatred from Muslims to others.

319 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:14:57am

re: #317 Gus

Geert Wilders Launches Anti-Immigrant Website

In the last several years, Wilders has been embraced by U.S.-based anti-Muslim bigots like Pamela Geller and Robert Spencer, and has served as the keynote speaker at demonstrations organized by Stop Islamization of America (SIOA), an organization led by Geller and Spencer...

320 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:16:13am

re: #318 The Tsarist Guitarist

It wasn't long before he spread his hatred from Muslims to others.

Seething rage!

321 lawhawk  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:16:26am

re: #317 Gus

Xenophobia run amok. And Geller and Spenser tout him as a paragon of virtue, which tells you all you need to know about their motivations.

322 RadicalModerate  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:17:25am

re: #307 Ministry of Fairness and Balance

There is a much lower incidence of smuggling and crime connected with the Canadian border. Hard to see a dogwhistle in this one.

But it is clear what a lot of people mean by "imimigration reform".

I agree somewhat, but here's the deal - there is less than 1% coverage of the Canadian border with the lower 48 states - and even less with the Canada/Alaska border. Although a majority of the drug trade comes from Mexico, there is a significant amount that is imported via our northern border. Also, human trafficking victims from Eastern European and Asian nations come into the US via Canada, not Mexico.

323 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:20:09am

32,000-year-old frozen remains used to grow ancient Arctic flower
[Link: news.nationalpost.com...]

The Russian-grown campion is suspected to be the oldest plant ever grown from ancient tissue. If so, it would trounce the previous record held by a date palm grown from a 2,000-year-old seed recovered from Masada, Israel, site of a mass suicide of Jewish rebels in 73 AD.

The Russian-grown campions are extremely similar to their modern-day descendants, although 32,000 years of evolution have given contemporary campions wider, less splayed-out petals.

A long-dead Arctic ground squirrel is credited with unwittingly creating the ancient seed bank.

[Link: nationalpostnews.files.wordpress.com...]

324 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:22:19am

Sasquatch

325 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:23:02am

re: #323 RogueOne

32,000-year-old frozen remains used to grow ancient Arctic flower
[Link: news.nationalpost.com...]

[Link: nationalpostnews.files.wordpress.com...]

It's one if those omphalos flowers that the Lord created in situ, as if they were ancient, but they're really not - like those supernovae that never really exploded, but are still visible. Fascinating!

/

326 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:24:01am

re: #323 RogueOne

32,000-year-old frozen remains used to grow ancient Arctic flower
[Link: news.nationalpost.com...]

[Link: nationalpostnews.files.wordpress.com...]

Impossible! No plant, frozen or otherwise, can be older than 5,000* years!

//

*YMMV

327 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:24:21am

re: #324 Gus

Sasquatch

Quatsch.

328 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:24:51am

Almost had to pull out the "jam" video.

//

329 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:24:56am

Iran would pre-emptively strike enemies if national interests ‘endangered’
[Link: news.nationalpost.com...]

TEHRAN — Iran would take pre-emptive action against its enemies if it felt its national interests were endangered, the deputy head of the Islamic Republic’s armed forces was quoted by a semi-official news agency as saying on Tuesday.

“Our strategy now is that if we feel our enemies want to endanger Iran’s national interests, and want to decide to do that, we will act without waiting for their actions,” Mohammad Hejazi told Fars news agency.

Iran is facing increasing international pressure and isolation over its disputed nuclear activity. Expanded Western sanctions aim to block its economically vital oil exports and Tehran has said it could retaliate by shutting the Strait of Hormuz shipping lane vital to global energy supplies.

I wonder if they ever stop to think how these statements are going to be viewed by their neighbors and the rest of the world?

330 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:25:03am

re: #326 Gus

Impossible! No plant, frozen or otherwise, can be older than 5,000* years!

//

*YMMV

With love, everything is possible.

331 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:26:48am

re: #329 RogueOne

Iran would pre-emptively strike enemies if national interests ‘endangered’
[Link: news.nationalpost.com...]

I wonder if they ever stop to think how these statements are going to be viewed by their neighbors and the rest of the world?

Iran adopts the Bush doctrine? Fascinating!

//

332 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:27:00am

re: #330 The Tsarist Guitarist

With love, everything is possible.

Says the "fundie Darwinist!"

//

333 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:27:48am

re: #331 The Tsarist Guitarist

Iran adopts the Bush doctrine? Fascinating!

//

Image: BushFinger.gif

334 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:28:00am

re: #326 Gus

Impossible! No plant, frozen or otherwise, can be older than 5,000* years!

//

*YMMV

Godless commies playing god again with GM flowers. The pollen from that flower could be the cause of the upcoming zombie apocalypse.

335 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:28:25am

re: #334 RogueOne

Godless commies playing god again with GM flowers. The pollen from that flower could be the cause of the upcoming zombie apocalypse.

Don't you care about the children?!?!

336 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:29:42am

It's time for...

Youtube Video
337 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:30:14am

"When do we send an airmail message to Eyeran?"

338 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:31:14am

re: #331 The Tsarist Guitarist

Iran adopts the Bush doctrine? Fascinating!

//

Touché. OTOH, I don't think Canada and Mexico were all that worried about catching a nuke if Bush woke up in a bad mood one day.

339 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:31:59am

re: #332 Gus

Says the "fundie Darwinist!"

//

Actually I meant something pretty socially-darwinist.

Image: PBF077-Bunny_Pit.jpg

//

340 Killgore Trout  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:32:10am

re: #329 RogueOne

Iran would pre-emptively strike enemies if national interests ‘endangered’
[Link: news.nationalpost.com...]

I wonder if they ever stop to think how these statements are going to be viewed by their neighbors and the rest of the world?

I think that's the point.They want to be a regional superpower and are already working on establishing allies like Syria. The last thing the want is for someone to interrupt arms shipments to their dictator pals or start arming the opposition.

341 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:32:47am

re: #339 The Tsarist Guitarist

Actually I meant something pretty socially-darwinist.

Image: PBF077-Bunny_Pit.jpg

//

[Insert block of Latin text gibberish here.]

//

342 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:33:09am

re: #338 RogueOne

Touché. OTOH, I don't think Canada and Mexico were all that worried about catching a nuke if Bush woke up in a bad mood one day.

Well, that was independent of what policy Bush declared, just as like Iranian danger is pretty independent of what policy they publicly adopt ;)

343 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:34:00am

Ahmadinejad sure knows how to play the West. Like a fiddle.

344 Coracle  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:34:35am

re: #329 RogueOne

Iran would pre-emptively strike enemies if national interests ‘endangered’
[Link: news.nationalpost.com...]

I wonder if they ever stop to think how these statements are going to be viewed by their neighbors and the rest of the world?

I'm guessing "unseriously". Most of the rest of the world has been "threatening Iran's national interests" for quite a long time already with sanctions and containment policies. It depends on how they choose to define their national interest.

346 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:37:13am

My dogs watch too much tv. It sounded like someone was trying to break into the house the way they were going off. Stupid "beggin' bits" commercial.

347 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:37:50am

re: #345 Gus

Image: freedom-fries-freedom-fries-demotivational-poster-1208730678.jpg

These fries are not sufficiently pixellated.

348 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:38:06am

re: #345 Gus

Image: freedom-fries-freedom-fries-demotivational-poster-1208730678.jpg

Freedom tasted better when they used trans-fats.

349 Killgore Trout  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:38:15am

re: #343 Gus

Ahmadinejad sure knows how to play the West. Like a fiddle.

Maybe. There's a good chance all this will pay off for him. I don't think the sanctions will hurt them much and diplomacy is just a stalling tactic. If they end up with the bomb and a strongly worded letter then it's a big win for them.

350 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:39:17am

Used to be that gunboat diplomacy meant a battleship and an associated battle group. Now it's one aged destroyer and a garbage scow supply boat and everyone is shivering in their boots. Part of the "New American Century" mentality that people have come to accept.

351 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:40:03am

re: #349 KT Smells like Roses and Rainbows

Maybe. There's a good chance all this will pay off for him. I don't think the sanctions will hurt them much and diplomacy is just a stalling tactic. If they end up with the bomb and a strongly worded letter then it's a big win for them.

When they get theirs the Sauds will buy one from the Indians and the race will be on. I don't think Israel is being overly paranoid about this situation at all.

352 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:40:48am

re: #349 KT Smells like Roses and Rainbows

Maybe. There's a good chance all this will pay off for him. I don't think the sanctions will hurt them much and diplomacy is just a stalling tactic. If they end up with the bomb and a strongly worded letter then it's a big win for them.

There is no maybe. The guy plays the right-wingers like a fiddle.

353 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:41:18am
Youtube Video
354 Feline Emperor of the Conservative Waste  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:41:32am

re: #350 Gus

Used to be that gunboat diplomacy meant a battleship and an associated battle group. Now it's one aged destroyer and a garbage scow supply boat and everyone is shivering in their boots. Part of the "New American Century" mentality that people have come to accept.

"I'm not saying that the Enterprise should be hauling garbage. I'm saying that it should be hauled away *as* garbage."
(cue tavern brawl)

355 Eventual Carrion  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:42:36am

re: #331 The Tsarist Guitarist

Iran adopts the Bush doctrine? Fascinating!

//

That is what I was thinking, "This is different than the way we (USA) do/did things?". I really don't get why we get all bent out of shape when 'other' people do things EXACTLY like we would/do.

Like those damn Iraqis fighting and bombing us while we were 'liberating' them (many of them were liberated from their lives, but I digress). If that had been THEM over here in my neighborhood, I would have been planting IED's every fucking place I knew they would hang out, day in and day out I would be blowing their shit to kingdom come until they fucking left MY country or caught me and kille me. But they do it and they are scumbag, [bigoted word] terrorists. Sure many of them were just stooges for someone, but there were many that just wanted the US out of their country, or were VERY pissed we bombed/shot-up their grandparents at their cousins wedding party.

356 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:44:45am

Sanctions won't work. Diplomacy won't work. "Strongly worded letters." What is this 2003 again?

357 Feline Emperor of the Conservative Waste  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:45:03am

re: #355 RayFerd

That is what I was thinking, "This is different than the way we (USA) do/did things?". I really don't get why we get all bent out of shape when 'other' people do things EXACTLY like we would/do.

Like those damn Iraqis fighting and bombing us while we were 'liberating' them (many of them were liberated from their lives, but I digress). If that had been THEM over here in my neighborhood, I would have been planting IED's every fucking place I knew they would hang out, day in and day out I would be blowing their shit to kingdom come until they fucking left MY country or caught me and kille me. But they do it and they are scumbag, [bigoted word] terrorists. Sure many of them were just stooges for someone, but there were many that just wanted the US out of their country, or were VERY pissed we bombed/shot-up their grandparents at their cousins wedding party.

But, but, America is *different* when we occupy your country!
/

358 sattv4u2  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:46:19am

re: #356 Gus

Sanctions won't work. Diplomacy won't work. "Strongly worded letters." What is this 2003 again?

Perhaps
[Link: www.ediblearrangements.com...]

hey ,,, it hasn't been tried ,, worth a shot!

359 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:49:47am

re: #358 sattv4u2

Perhaps
[Link: www.ediblearrangements.com...]

hey ,,, it hasn't been tried ,, worth a shot!

Some of those have male and female fruits in the same basket...you trying to start a war?

360 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:50:46am

re: #358 sattv4u2

Perhaps
[Link: www.ediblearrangements.com...]

hey ,,, it hasn't been tried ,, worth a shot!

Sanctions barely got started. We wait. Iran does not have a nuclear weapon. Israel does not have the capability to carry out a successful air strike on those facilities. The USA will certainly not attack during this election year. The reality is that we wait and there's nothing we can do about it. Getting hysterical about Ahmadinejad's obvious little mind games isn't going to help us. Additionally, it's not like Obama and the Pentagon aren't on top of things. I'm not going to sit here and get all hysterical about bombing Iran much like people did at the end of Bush's last term.

361 sattv4u2  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:51:19am

re: #359 RogueOne

Some of those have male and female fruits in the same basket...you trying to start a war?

I don't think calling them "fruits" is allowed anymore!

362 lawhawk  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:51:28am

re: #340 KT Smells like Roses and Rainbows

I think that's the point.They want to be a regional superpower and are already working on establishing allies like Syria. The last thing the want is for someone to interrupt arms shipments to their dictator pals or start arming the opposition.

They're already allied with Syria. Right now, they're doing what they can to keep Assad in power both in terms of overt support, such as having a pair of warships train the Syrian Navy, and covert support, including the use of proxy forces in Syria to go after Assad's enemies.

If Assad falls, Iran loses a significant ally and loses political pressure into the Levant. That's a vacuum likely to be filled by the Saudis and to a lesser extent the Jordanians and Egyptians (especially given their current turmoil). It puts the Shi'ite backed groups in Syria at a disadvantage and increases the chances of sectarian conflict.

It is interesting that they're claiming to take a preemptive doctrine against attacks on Iran - particularly since they're the ones who keep threatening to attack Israel when the opportunity presents itself - forcing Israel to contemplate a preemptive attack of its own to thwart what could be a devastating first strike.

As Iran continues to inch closer towards the capability to put together a nuclear weapon using its own enrichment capabilities, expect the rhetoric to be dialed up even further - especially since the situation in Syria means that Iran's options become more limited and the domestic situation may mean that Ahmadinejad and the mullahs have to resort to demonizing Israel and/or the West for all their woes.

363 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:51:29am

More Buzzfeed:

The Problem With Late Night Sexting
[Link: www.buzzfeed.com...]

Image: enhanced-buzz-8303-1329767151-59.jpg

364 Killgore Trout  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:52:39am

re: #351 RogueOne

When they get theirs the Sauds will buy one from the Indians and the race will be on. I don't think Israel is being overly paranoid about this situation at all.

I'm trying to think of who else the Iranians can befriend in the region. The Iran-Syria alliance opens up the possibility that they'll go back to meddling in Lebanon. They could make friends with Egypt but I don't know what their relationship with the Muslim Brotherhood is like. They are friendly With Chavez but he's a long ways away.

365 Killgore Trout  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:56:41am

re: #362 lawhawk

Good points.

It is interesting that they're claiming to take a preemptive doctrine against attacks on Iran - particularly since they're the ones who keep threatening to attack Israel when the opportunity presents itself - forcing Israel to contemplate a preemptive attack of its own to thwart what could be a devastating first strike.

I originally interpreted their remarks to be regarding gulf nations who may offer assistance or airspace to US or Israel but I think you're correct. They are probably hinting at a first strike policy directly at Israel.

366 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:58:40am

Required reading for the War Council here:

Iran Raid Seen as a Huge Task for Israeli Jets

367 sattv4u2  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:58:43am

re: #364 KT Smells like Roses and Rainbows

I'm trying to think of who else the Iranians can befriend in the region.

Depends what happens with Karzi and the negotiations with the Taliban.

368 Killgore Trout  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:58:54am

Outrageous outrage!
Official: Books burned in Afghanistan extremist

A military official says Muslim holy books that were burned in a pile of garbage at a U.S. military base in Afghanistan had been removed from a library at a nearby detention center because they contained extremist messages or inscriptions.
A military official with knowledge of the incident told The Associated Press on Tuesday that it appeared the Qurans and other Islamic readings were being used to fuel extremism, and that detainees apparently were leaving notes for one another inside them.

369 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:59:29am

Time for the morning Jawa report again.

370 Daniel Ballard  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 7:59:53am

I guess I can't help but think of Poland in '39, the US in '41, South Korea in the 50's and Kuwait in the '90's as nations that did not preemptively strike when their national interests were at stake.

That could be the real parallel.

371 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:00:03am

re: #364 KT Smells like Roses and Rainbows

They've never stopped meddling in lebanon/syria. Israel is still #1 on everyone's hate list but tossing a nuke into the mix changes everything. This could lead to a serious shia/sunni war with Israel stuck in the middle.

372 Douchecanoe and Ryan Too  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:00:17am

re: #369 Gus

Time for the morning Jawa report again.

OOGA BOOGA.

373 Killgore Trout  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:00:51am

re: #369 Gus

Time for the morning Jawa report again.

Fearful news and current events! Don't worry, I'm sure a Republican somewhere is saying something stupid right now.

374 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:01:00am

re: #372 thedopefishlives

OOGA BOOGA.

War drums and military experts galore! Get your Freedom Fries! Get 'em while they're hot!

375 sattv4u2  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:01:29am

re: #373 KT Smells like Roses and Rainbows

Fearful news and current events! Don't worry, I'm sure a Republican somewhere is saying something stupid right now.

I'm keeping MY mouth shut!

376 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:01:43am

re: #373 KT Smells like Roses and Rainbows

Fearful news and current events! Don't worry, I'm sure a Republican somewhere is saying something stupid right now.

Damn you really put me in my place. You're quite the alpha-male.

Derp.

377 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:02:07am

Jawa report.

378 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:02:55am

re: #373 KT Smells like Roses and Rainbows

Fearful news and current events! Don't worry, I'm sure a Republican somewhere is saying something stupid right now.

That's probably a safe bet.

379 Douchecanoe and Ryan Too  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:05:00am

re: #374 Gus

War drums and military experts galore! Get your Freedom Fries! Get 'em while they're hot!

I like them topped with cheese curds and gravy. I guess that makes me un-American.

380 Daniel Ballard  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:05:03am

re: #366 Gus
As long as we are speculating...
That bombing plan is far from their only option. Imagine they safely test a ballistic missile at a range that coincides with the distance to Tehran, or the most distant nuclear facility. Or test a nuke underground.

Israel has a history of surprising it friends and it's enemies. I would expect something not from the usual toolbox if anything at all.

381 Our Precious Bodily Fluids  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:08:08am

re: #295 prairiefire

When reading the Bible, I think of the laws given by God to his chosen people, the Jews, makes a lot of biological sense. Many of them being simple but vital to sanitation and hygienic, sexual health. I think if a man doesn't sleep with his brother's wife, he has a stronger chance of staying alive.

And every single "transgression" punished by death; either immediately or slowly through starvation after being "cut off from his people".

Or gems like Deuteronomy 22:23-24 wherein we learn that if a virgin is raped but didn't yell loudly enough, she's to be killed along with her rapist. For health purposes, presumably.

382 lawhawk  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:13:22am

re: #366 Gus

It's also instructive to know just how difficult it was for the Israeli airstrike against Osirak in 1981. That was an extremely complex mission and covered only a fraction of the distance required for a round trip to just one of Iran's suspected nuclear weapons development sites (enrichment sites, missile development sites, Natanz nuclear reactor, etc.).

Iran learned from the Osirak site attack to disperse their facilities to multiple underground locations making discovery of all sites more difficult and making attack more complex and difficult.

Going after a single target is tough, we're talking nearly 2,000 miles for a round trip between Tel Aviv and Natanz. Add the Bushehr facility and others known to exist around Iran, and you've got a difficult task that would severely test any country trying to eliminate Iran's nuclear capabilities - not just Israel, but the US or a combined NATO mission.

That's why Iran is so worried about the ongoing assassination efforts of its nuclear scientists. Eliminate the guys who know how to build, operate, and run the centrifuges and enrichment facilities, and you limit the enrichment capabilities.

And there are plenty of countries in the region that don't want to see Iran with nuclear weapons - Israel is just one of several in that camp, including Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Kuwait, the Gulf States, etc. Saudi Arabia has already signaled its intention to go nuclear if Iran tests a nuclear weapon.

383 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:14:27am

re: #380 Daniel Ballard

Israel is already capable of hitting Tehran with a nuke, and the Iranians know it, but I don't see any scenario short of an imminent attack by Iran that would make the Israelis push the button.

They're in a tough spot. Do they trust that the MAD theory will keep Iran honest? It's easy from the middle of Indiana to say "sure" but not so much when you're sitting in Tel Aviv. I'd love to be a fly on the wall during the Obama/Netanyahu meeting next week.

384 Killgore Trout  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:14:33am

Azerbaijan arrests 'Iran-linked' attack plotters: report

Police in Azerbaijan have arrested an unspecified number of people linked to Iran and to Lebanese militant group Hezbollah suspected of planning attacks in the country, state television said Tuesday.

State broadcaster AzTV, quoting the National Security Ministry, said police had detained people linked to Iranian intelligence services and Hezbollah who intended to stage attacks on foreign citizens in the country.

The report said the suspects had gathered intelligence on targets and bought explosives, guns and ammunition, but gave no further details.

385 kirkspencer  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:16:21am

re: #362 lawhawk

(snip)
It is interesting that they're claiming to take a preemptive doctrine against attacks on Iran - particularly since they're the ones who keep threatening to attack Israel when the opportunity presents itself - forcing Israel to contemplate a preemptive attack of its own to thwart what could be a devastating first strike. (snip)

Point of information, Israel's been contemplating a preemptive attack since Iran first made plans for the nuclear reactor public. Various leaders have said that the option is on the table and, if other means don't work, is a likely event.

there are two dancers in this tango.

386 Killgore Trout  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:18:19am

re: #383 RogueOne

I'd love to be a fly on the wall during the Obama/Netanyahu meeting next week.

I was thinking about that recently. There aren't many people who really know what's going on and they aren't talking to the press. If they are talking they are probably lying. We'll find out someday what's happening. I hope they make the right choice.

387 Killgore Trout  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:21:23am

CSM has been doing a very good job with their Iran coverage. Here's another good one: Israel's ex-spy chief sees opportunity in Syria crisis

In an interview, former Mossad chief Efraim Halevy says a collapse of the Assad regime in Syria could deal a blow to Iran's regional ambitions and nuclear program

388 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:21:48am

re: #386 KT Smells like Roses and Rainbows

I don't know that there are any good outcomes. Every scenario feels like a lose-lose situation. If the Israelis sit on their hands (which I think they will) then Iran gets a nuke and the race for the other ME nations to get their hands on one starts. That can't end well. If the Israelis decide they can't take the risk of a nuclear Iran and attack, that probably starts a good sized war and that won't end well either.

389 Killgore Trout  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:24:56am
Q. There have been a lot of fears that Assad might try to move Syria’s arsenal of chemical weapons and sophisticated missiles to Hezbollah in Lebanon. Though everyone is talking about a military strike against Iran, what are the chances of such an Israeli strike in Syria to prevent weapons from falling into the wrong hands?

A. I don’t want to preempt Israeli operations or planning. All I can say is that there are certain things, if carried out in Syria or Lebanon, that would be matters of grave concern to Israel, and Israel would not be able to accept.

Interesting.

390 Lidane  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:25:54am
391 kirkspencer  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:26:04am

re: #389 KT Smells like Roses and Rainbows

Interesting.

From the same people who claim that Saddam had all those weapons but moved them to Syria when the invasion was pending.

Pardon my skepticism.

392 Coracle  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:26:17am

re: #388 RogueOne

I don't know that there are any good outcomes. Every scenario feels like a lose-lose situation. If the Israelis sit on their hands (which I think they will) then Iran gets a nuke and the race for the other ME nations to get their hands on one starts. That can't end well. If the Israelis decide they can't take the risk of a nuclear Iran and attack, that probably starts a good sized war and that won't end well either.

This assumes Iran's government is unchangeable. The best - and possibly only remotely practical - way to diffuse the situation is for Iran to change from within.

393 Killgore Trout  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:27:01am

re: #388 RogueOne

I don't know that there are any good outcomes. Every scenario feels like a lose-lose situation. If the Israelis sit on their hands (which I think they will) then Iran gets a nuke and the race for the other ME nations to get their hands on one starts. That can't end well. If the Israelis decide they can't take the risk of a nuclear Iran and attack, that probably starts a good sized war and that won't end well either.

I'm sure there are possibilities of "good" outcome but it seems pretty unlikely. I guess we have to hope for the best.

394 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:27:07am

Rand Paul Opposed Synthetic Drug Prohibition To Protect You From Radical Islam

Late last year Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) cited the fact that many prisoners convert to Islam as cause for blocking legislation that would make synthetic drugs illegal.

Paul explained in a December letter sent to Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) recently obtained by the Bowling Green Daily News that he was blocking the bill because the “stigma of incarceration can make it practically impossible for many people to find work after they are finally released from prison.”

But there was also another reason.

“In addition, there has been much discussion in the Senate regarding combatting radical Islam. Notably, Islam is currently the fastest-growing religion among prisoners in the United States. Sending people - often young people - who may already come from broken homes and difficult family situations into a brutal prison environment is potentially a breeding ground for radicalization,” Paul wrote.

395 Douchecanoe and Ryan Too  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:27:23am

re: #390 Lidane

B-b-but fear-mongering! Price of oil! Nuclear Iran! BAD THINGS!

396 RogueOne  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:29:06am

Dead whale washes ashore in Va.
[Link: www.wtop.com...]

NORFOLK, Va. - Scientists with the Virginia Aquarium are planning a necropsy on the body of a 42-foot whale that washed ashore over the weekend on a Norfolk beach.

The aquarium's stranding response team examined the male Sei whale and discovered that he suffered a 1.5-foot gash on the back of his head, a fractured skull, and traces of orange and brown rust that suggest that a boat hit him.

Susan Barco, senior scientist with the stranding response team, tells WAVY-TV that the whale hadn't been dead for long before washing up on the beach in Ocean View on Sunday.

I have an idea on how to get rid of it:

Youtube Video
397 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:31:11am

Cue the Republican butthurt.

398 AK-47%  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:31:59am

re: #394 Gus

Rand Paul Opposed Synthetic Drug Prohibition To Protect You From Radical Islam

We have one of the biggest prison populations in the world and now Rand is worried it could become a breeding ground for radical Islam?

399 Lidane  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:34:18am

re: #395 thedopefishlives

B-b-but fear-mongering! Price of oil! Nuclear Iran! BAD THINGS!

Worst. Socialist. EVER.

Doesn't he know we're supposed to be on the edge of financial ruin so that the Republicans can run on a shitty economy? Now they're going to have to run a social issues campaign. =/

400 Coracle  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:34:51am

re: #390 Lidane

BREAKING: Dow hits 13,000. The Dow has not been above 13,000 since May 2008. Quote: cnb.cx/sBh06E #Dow13K

— CNBC (@CNBC) February 21, 2012

Curse this anti-business administration.

401 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:35:49am

re: #398 Ministry of Fairness and Balance

We have one of the biggest prison populations in the world and now Rand is worried it could become a breeding ground for radical Islam?

It's a never ending stream of dysfunction in Republican world.

402 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:36:08am

re: #400 Coracle

Curse this anti-business administration.

Marxist-Crony-Capitalism!

403 Lidane  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:38:00am

re: #401 Gus

It's a never ending stream of dysfunction in Republican world.

Case in point:

404 Douchecanoe and Ryan Too  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:39:37am

The Circle of Derp has been restored.

405 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:39:40am

re: #403 Lidane

Case in point:

I was just looking at that. Hard to believe that in 2012 this rhetoric is still around. Just like the birth certificate nuts.

406 NJDhockeyfan  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:40:50am

Good morning lizards!

407 Killgore Trout  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:42:56am

re: #396 RogueOne

Dead whale washes ashore in Va.
[Link: www.wtop.com...]

I have an idea on how to get rid of it:

[Video]

Oregon's proudest moment.

408 Eventual Carrion  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:43:23am

re: #403 Lidane

Case in point:

Well I guess that is fair. I can't categorically say that Franklin Graham isn't a homosexual, inbred, product of his sister and father mating. I really don't know the family that well. But being the magnanimous atheist that I am, I will give him the benefit of the doubt since I have seen nothing that would lead me to that conclusion (except some nut I heard saying it on the interwebs).

409 Lidane  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:48:12am

Haha:

410 lawhawk  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:50:09am

re: #409 Lidane

The numbers 4, 8, 15, 16, 23 and 42 are Lost to me (except 42, which is both Jackie Robinson and Mariano Rivera's number).

411 Charleston Chew  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:50:24am

re: #403 Lidane

Case in point:

[Video]

In that same interview Graham laid down a classic Christian humble brag:

"All I know is I'm a sinner, and God has forgiven me of my sins..."

412 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:51:41am

Chevrolet Volt Gun Rack Installation

Youtube Video
413 Lidane  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:52:13am

re: #410 lawhawk

The numbers 4, 8, 15, 16, 23 and 42 are Lost to me (except 42, which is both Jackie Robinson and Mariano Rivera's number).

Heh. I never made it past the first season of Lost. On that note, Damon Lindelof's tagline on Twitter:

Yeah, I'm one of the idiots behind LOST. And no, I don't understand it either.

415 Shiplord Kirel  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:54:49am

We can't categorically say that Franklin Graham is not a Muslim. True, he does profess Christianity, attends church, and has never been observed to bow toward Mecca and pray; but all of that is also true of Obama. Graham does not in fact imbibe alcohol in public (not anymore at any rate), where Obama is known to do so; so Graham may actually be more suspect than the President.

416 compound_Idaho  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:54:58am

re: #410 lawhawk

The numbers 4, 8, 15, 16, 23 and 42 are Lost to me (except 42, which is both Jackie Robinson and Mariano Rivera's number).

and the answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything

417 sagehen  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:56:05am

re: #410 lawhawk

The numbers 4, 8, 15, 16, 23 and 42 are Lost to me (except 42, which is both Jackie Robinson and Mariano Rivera's number).

42 is *always* the answer.

Now to find the right question...

418 ReamWorks SKG  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:56:59am

That's like saying the Boy Scouts of America is becoming the tactical arm of the LDS Church.

419 Lidane  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:57:22am

Cue the 'splodey heads:

420 lawhawk  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 8:58:58am

re: #418 reuven

Not the same, unless you can show me the BSA equivalent of saying "You can have my Thin Mints when you pry them from my cold dead hands?" /

421 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:02:20am

Derp! Warning: Links to Big Government.

422 NJDhockeyfan  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:04:05am

Iran left presents for Syria...

Iranian warships leave Syria through Suez Canal

Feb 21 - Two Iranian warships have left the Syrian coastal town of Tartous and headed back to Iran through Egypt's Suez Canal, a source at the strategic waterway said on Tuesday.

Syrian opposition activists based in Lebanon said the warships, which arrived in Tartous at the weekend, delivered "sophisticated weapons and tapping equipment to the Syrian authorities to help them trace activists and opposition figures."

423 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:04:37am

I think if we found a way to collect all of the wingnut energy into one energy cell we could have the ultimate weapon. Perhaps one that can destroy an asteroid that's threatening the Earth. We can call it the Derp Gun™.

424 Charleston Chew  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:05:09am

re: #412 Gus

Chevrolet Volt Gun Rack Installation

[Video]

The moment Gingrich said that, I thought, "Get to work on that, Internet." And, of course, here it is. Thanks for the link.

425 Killgore Trout  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:08:54am

re: #422 NJDhockeyfan

Iran left presents for Syria...

Iranian warships leave Syria through Suez Canal

Hmmm. I wonder if US, NATO or the UN are going to get involved. It looks like an opportunity to get rid of Assad but it will probably need action before he crushes the opposition. I'm not sure if anyone is too excited to get involved.

426 NJDhockeyfan  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:09:27am

Iraq officials: Violence drops as al Qaida group moves to Syria

BAGHDAD — The departure of al Qaida-affiliated fighters from Iraq to join the rebellion against Syrian President Bashar Assad in Syria has had one benefit, Iraqi officials say: Violence has dropped in this country, in some areas by as much as 50 percent in just a few months.

Iraqi officials declined to provide precise figures for the drop-off or to estimate how many al Qaida-affiliated fighters have left the country for Syria. But the impact of the departure, they said, has been especially apparent in Ninewah province, which borders Syria and has long been the scene of some of al Qaida in Iraq's most violent bombings and assassinations.

The province's capital, Mosul, Iraq's second largest city, was once home to as many as 800 al Qaida-affiliated fighters, U.S. officials estimated last summer. But one provincial security officer said al Qaida in Iraq attacks in Mosul have become infrequent this year, and the attacks that do occur generally are small or are detected before they can be carried out. The officer spoke only on the condition of anonymity because regulations prohibit him from talking to reporters.

427 Feline Emperor of the Conservative Waste  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:10:20am

re: #412 Gus

Chevrolet Volt Gun Rack Installation

[Video]

Borrring. Needs to have the mini-gun installation mounted in a turret on top.
/

428 sattv4u2  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:10:39am

re: #396 RogueOne

I have an idea on how to get rid of it:

OR ,, ABC could give it it's own talk show!!

429 Killgore Trout  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:12:02am

Russia continues arms sales to Syria despite Western protests

The biggest importer of arms to Syria, Russia sold Damascus nearly $1 billion worth of arms including missile systems last year, while shipments of hard-to-track Russian small weapons have risen since the uprising against Assad started, government defectors say.

In January, the Russian ship Chariot, loaded with arms and ammunition, turned off its radar and sailed quietly to Syria to avoid attracting the attention of world powers increasingly frustrated by Russia and China's refusal to back U.N. Security Council resolutions aimed at ending 11 months of violence.

430 NJDhockeyfan  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:12:08am

re: #425 KT Smells like Roses and Rainbows

Hmmm. I wonder if US, NATO or the UN are going to get involved. It looks like an opportunity to get rid of Assad but it will probably need action before he crushes the opposition. I'm not sure if anyone is too excited to get involved.

It looks like Assad's days are numbered. The big question is who will replace his regime? Worst case scenario would be Al Qaeda.

431 sattv4u2  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:12:28am

re: #407 KT Smells like Roses and Rainbows

Oregon's proudest moment.

Sushi For All

432 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:14:02am
433 ReamWorks SKG  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:14:23am

re: #427 Feline Emperor of the Conservative Waste

Borrring. Needs to have the mini-gun installation mounted in a turret on top.
/

Thanks for this! We own two volts:

Image: 6842110965_4d453b711b_z.jpg

and we keep saying, "Gee, if only we had gun racks."

434 sattv4u2  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:17:20am

re: #433 reuven

We own two volts

What happened,, you lose a bet?
/

435 Shiplord Kirel  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:17:36am

If you had told me, say, three years ago, that the right wing would be going after the ACLU and Planned Parenthood in 2012, I would have said naturally, that is what they do.
If you had told me they would be going after the military and the CIA, as Paulians and the Alex Jonesers do, I would have been mildly surprised, though not astonished given their deep history (isolationism, etc.) and their suspicion of the military's role in integration.
If you had told me they would go after the Girl Scouts, though, I would have told you that you were delusional and talking like a crazy person.
It has come to this: A sizable part of the electorate is stark staring mad and opportunistic politicians are falling over themselves to pander to it.

436 Lidane  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:17:54am

The stupid, it burns:

437 ReamWorks SKG  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:19:58am

re: #434 sattv4u2

They make absolutely no economic sense. But we've barely gone through a gallon of gas in the month that we've had them. And since we have Solar PV on the roof of the house, there's no cost to keep them charged.

Chevy did a great job on these cars; they drive well.

438 Shropshire_Slasher  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:20:31am

re: #434 sattv4u2

Must be the Chevy volt is the new Jaguar.

439 lawhawk  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:21:27am

Santorum isn't conservative. He's reactionary. I think Jennifer Rubin has a point but doesn't quite go far enough. His positions aren't conservative by any stretch, but seek a wholesale rollback of womens rights to the 20s (the 1820s IMO).

Meanwhile, John Podhoretz thinks that Santorum has a shot of winning, but lacks the sunny disposition it takes to win. He notes that McCain lost to Obama in 2008 all while getting 62 million votes nationally. He would forget that it wasn't really that close and none of Obama's potential opponents have the track record that Obama can now point to (ending US deployment in Iraq, killing OBL, Awlaki, et seq., the health care bill, preventing a bad economic situation from getting far worse). The GOP may quibble over that the economy could have been further along and that the health care provisions are misguided, but Obama did carry through on those promises.

Yet, Santorum is looking to substitute his own religious judgments and positions for positions that most Americans ascribe to (take womens' rights, role in the workplace, contraception, etc.). That's nothing like what McCain ever proposed or contemplated. It's a wholesale rollback of womens rights. It's reactionary and is wholly out of step with most Americans - but seems to play quite well with the reactionary right (a term that I think more closely defines what we're seeing than conservative).

440 Douchecanoe and Ryan Too  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:22:14am

re: #437 reuven

They make absolutely no economic sense. But we've barely gone through a gallon of gas in the month that we've had them. And since we have Solar PV on the roof of the house, there's no cost to keep them charged.

Chevy did a great job on these cars; they drive well.

If you do a lot of short-distance driving, they're ideal. I have nothing against hybrid technology, only clueless owners who have no idea what it's good for and expect it to be the be-all, end-all of automotive tech.

441 NJDhockeyfan  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:22:19am

Baku reports arrests linked to Iran's Revolutionary Guards

Azerbaijan's National Security Ministry says it has arrested a gang with links to Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps and Lebanon's Hezbollah.

"Individuals, acting in an organized group, who handled firearms and explosives in order to commit terrorist attacks against foreign nationals, have been arrested in Azerbaijan," state-run AzTV reported on Tuesday, quoting the Ministry of National Security.

The group was created by someone by the name of Hamid from Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps and Haji Abbas, a leader of the Moqavemat intelligence brigade of the armed wing of Lebanese group Hezbollah, AzTV continued, according to Trend news agency.

Responsibilities had been divided between members of the gang in order to carry out the terror attack, the TV said.

442 ReamWorks SKG  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:22:33am

re: #438 Tommy

Here in Silicon Valley, "status cars" are different from the rest of the country. The pecking order is Tesla, then Leaf, then Volt. The greenies hate the Volt because it has a gas engine. I'd rather not get stranded.

443 iossarian  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:22:51am

re: #439 lawhawk

I'm looking forward to the vast number of conservatives who will vote Democratic in the forthcoming election.

/

444 NJDhockeyfan  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:23:37am

re: #442 reuven

Here in Silicon Valley, "status cars" are different from the rest of the country. The pecking order is Tesla, then Leaf, then Volt. The greenies hate the Volt because it has a gas engine. I'd rather not get stranded.

How far do those electric cars go before the battery dies?

445 sattv4u2  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:24:47am

re: #442 reuven

Here in Silicon Valley, "status cars" are different from the rest of the country. The pecking order is Tesla, then Leaf, then Volt. The greenies hate the Volt because it has a gas engine. I'd rather not get stranded.

100 of these in the trunk, and no problem!!

Image: extension_cord.jpg

446 iossarian  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:25:15am

re: #444 NJDhockeyfan

How far do those electric cars go before the battery dies?

Not far enough to buy shotguns and see women strip down to their stars'n'stripes undies, that's fer sure.

YEEHAW!

447 NJDhockeyfan  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:26:19am

re: #446 iossarian

Not far enough to buy shotguns and see women strip down to their stars'n'stripes undies, that's fer sure.

YEEHAW!

I live 25 miles from town. I don't think that would work for me.

448 Shiplord Kirel  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:27:08am

It has also come to this:
A fossilized Ken doll who doesn't drink coffee, let alone alcohol, and who avoided Vietnam service by going to France as a missionary, is by far the sanest and most responsible candidate the GOP can muster this year. AND HE'S LOSING!
We are truly through the looking glass here.

449 Shropshire_Slasher  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:27:58am

re: #442 reuven

I was trying to yank your chain a little. The old saying was if you bought a Jaguar, buy two, so you have something to drive while the other was in the shop. Now you have two Volts, one to drive while the other charges. I haven't purchased any gas since I got my VW!

450 ReamWorks SKG  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:28:35am

re: #444 NJDhockeyfan

How far do those electric cars go before the battery dies?

In theory, the Tesla (which feels to me like a cheap English roadster) has a 100 mile range, and the Leaf has an 80. That's not enough for me to feel comfortable; I couldn't make it to SF and back reliably. The greenies will say "well, rent a car when you need to do that." I also don't want to have to tell someone "sorry! I can't meet you today in the City because I forgot to charge the car last night.

The official EPA electric range of the Volt is 35 miles. I can get about 40. And when the battery runs out, the gas motor starts. You don't even notice it. with the battery depleted, it runs like a "Prius", reclaiming braking and deceleration energy, and stopping the engine at red lights, etc. (And because there's a gas engine, I can run the battery 'til it's dead. Most Leaf and Tesla owners leave about 10 miles reserve so they don't get stuck!)

451 iossarian  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:29:06am

re: #447 NJDhockeyfan

I live 25 miles from town. I don't think that would work for me.

If on most days you drive around 50 miles, you are almost exactly in the Volt sweet spot, where you are maximizing your electrical range/usage without having to go much into the gas engine fallback.

452 Coracle  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:29:52am

re: #447 NJDhockeyfan

I live 25 miles from town. I don't think that would work for me.

EPA range on the Leaf is 73 miles per charge. Nissan says 47 to 105, depending how you drive it, I suppose.

453 ReamWorks SKG  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:30:44am

re: #452 Coracle

I also wouldn't get one in the Northeast, when you need to melt ice of your windshield, etc. They're much better in California or mild weather areas.

454 Douchecanoe and Ryan Too  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:30:51am

re: #451 iossarian

If on most days you drive around 50 miles, you are almost exactly in the Volt sweet spot, where you are maximizing your electrical range/usage without having to go much into the gas engine fallback.

And I drive a little farther than that, more on the order of 75 miles. That's a little too close for comfort on most of the electric cars. I much prefer my little diesel smoker, whose 11-gallon tank can easily stretch me 500 miles if I wanted to push it.

455 sattv4u2  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:30:54am

re: #452 Coracle

EPA range on the Leaf is 73 miles per charge. Nissan says 47 to 105, depending how you drive it, I suppose.

105 vs 47

depends on if you play the radio or not, I guess!!!
//

456 simoom  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:30:57am

Sheldon Adelson Forbes interview:
[Link: www.forbes.com...]

... the criticisms that he’s trying to personally buy the presidential election for Newt Gingrich are met with a roll of the eyes. “Those people are either jealous or professional critics,” Adelson tells me during his first interview since he and his wife began funneling $11 million, with another $10 million injection widely expected, into the former speaker’s super PAC, Winning Our Future. “They like to trash other people. It’s unfair that I’ve been treated unfair—but it doesn’t stop me. I might give $10 million or $100 million to Gingrich.”

...

"I’m against very wealthy ­people attempting to or influencing elections,” he shrugs. “But as long as it’s doable I’m going to do it. Because I know that guys like Soros have been doing it for years, if not decades. And they stay below the radar by creating a network of corporations to funnel their money. I have my own philosophy and I’m not ashamed of it. I gave the money because there is no other legal way to do it. I don’t want to go through ten different corporations to hide my name. I’m proud of what I do and I’m not looking to escape recognition.”

I wish Forbes had asked a follow-up question there -- if he's really against massive money in politics what sort of reforms would he support?

457 PhillyPretzel  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:31:23am

OT: I just posted a page on Stephen Colbert. He's back. [Link: littlegreenfootballs.com...]

458 kirkspencer  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:31:50am

With a week to go, Santorum's lead in Michigan is evaporating. As David Levinthal at Politico points out, however, Romney's spending supertankers of cash to stay there.

As of the end of January, Romney was "down" to about $7.7 million, and he's been buying craploads of Michigan spots during February. He wants to go into Super Tuesday (in two weeks) as the putative leader. Doing so is worth burning his bank account, as if he can get a clear win in two weeks it'll come back. If he's in a tight contest, a lot of money will go to the other guy(s) instead.

The frustrating thing has to be that Obama's campaign has just under $100 million on hand right now.

Note that both sets of money are excluding superPAC contributions, which will dwarf both accounts.

459 iossarian  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:32:36am

If you're getting 25 miles to the gallon currently, drive 50 miles a day, and replace your current car with a Volt, you probably wind up saving a little over $5 a day on fuel costs.

460 dragonfire1981  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:33:23am

This is interesting, I just did some poking around on Rick Santorum's official site and came aross this:

Apparently Rick Santorum wants to ban Porn

For many decades, the American public has actively petitioned the United States Congress for laws prohibiting distribution of hard-core adult pornography.

Congress has responded. Current federal “obscenity” laws prohibit distribution of hardcore (obscene) pornography on the Internet, on cable/satellite TV, on hotel/motel TV, in retail shops and through the mail or by common carrier. Rick Santorum believes that federal obscenity laws should be vigorously enforced. “If elected President, I will appoint an Attorney General who will do so.”

The Obama Administration has turned a blind eye to those who wish to preserve our culture from the scourge of pornography and has refused to enforce obscenity laws. While the Obama Department of Justice seems to favor pornographers over children and families, that will change under a Santorum Administration.

I proudly support the efforts of the War on Illegal Pornography Coalition that has tirelessly fought to get federal obscenity laws enforced. That coalition is composed of 120 national, state, and local groups, including Morality in Media, Family Research Council, Focus on the Family, American Family Association, Cornerstone Family Council of New Hampshire, Pennsylvania Family Institute, Concerned Women for America, The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, and a host of other groups. Together we will prevail.

461 NJDhockeyfan  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:35:14am

re: #459 iossarian

If you're getting 25 miles to the gallon currently, drive 50 miles a day, and replace your current car with a Volt, you probably wind up saving a little over $5 a day on fuel costs.

I drive much more than that. I am all over town all day. I'll just keep my Jeep.

462 Douchecanoe and Ryan Too  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:35:15am

re: #460 dragonfire1981

I'll be honest, I didn't even know there were obscenity laws on the books. Really? I mean, who honestly thinks this stuff is a good idea? I'm a conservative Christian and somewhat prudish by modern standards, and even I think it's a damn bad idea to ban porn.

463 Coracle  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:35:59am

re: #453 reuven

I also wouldn't get one in the Northeast, when you need to melt ice of your windshield, etc. They're much better in California or mild weather areas.

The converse for A/C in the summer, I imagine. If the price came down some, the Volt would be an eminently practical car for me. I'd never need gas except for rare extended trips, but then I would have the capability. A Leaf would take care of 95% of my driving needs, but would certainly cramp that last 5%.

464 iossarian  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:37:13am

re: #454 thedopefishlives

And I drive a little farther than that, more on the order of 75 miles. That's a little too close for comfort on most of the electric cars. I much prefer my little diesel smoker, whose 11-gallon tank can easily stretch me 500 miles if I wanted to push it.

To be fair to the Volt, it also gets very good mileage (compared to most US cars with similar other performance characteristics) on the gas engine.

The upfront cost of the diesel is going to be a fair bit lower though.

I find it very depressing that it's impossible* to buy cars with good mileage in the US.

* By which I mean it's very expensive and there is very little choice. Neither of these needs to be true.

465 Shropshire_Slasher  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:37:27am

re: #460 dragonfire1981

Porn isn't good for you, it objectifies women. But what you do isn't any of my business. Sorry just a thought. When I went thru AA counseling they advised you to avoid drugs, alcohol and porn, go figure.

466 sagehen  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:38:14am

re: #449 Tommy

I was trying to yank your chain a little. The old saying was if you bought a Jaguar, buy two, so you have something to drive while the other was in the shop. Now you have two Volts, one to drive while the other charges. I haven't purchased any gas since I got my VW!

I haven't purchased any gas since I moved to a city where you're always within 1/4 mile of a subway, there's buses on every block, and 30,000 cabs.

467 lawhawk  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:38:22am

re: #444 NJDhockeyfan

60-100 miles depending on the car in question and driving conditions. The Volt has a range of 300 miles or so, because of the ICE.

There are a couple of comparison tables to see range/costs for hybrids versus ICE and plug ins. Depending on your driving habits/needs, a pure plug in like the Leaf might make sense as a commuter car if you're doing under 60 miles a day (if you have a fast charger at work, you could potentially do 120 comfortably). A car like the Volt might let you do significantly more driving but a bunch of factors come into play comparing costs that would allow a hybrid like the Prius to end up being more cost effective (including credits, price per gallon of gas, price per kwh, etc.) on a per mile basis since the Prius has a more efficient ICE than the Volt.

468 ReamWorks SKG  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:38:37am

re: #464 iossarian

They need to get the all-electric range to about 80 miles for it to make sense for more people.

It works well for us because we both have chargers at the office.

469 Douchecanoe and Ryan Too  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:39:07am

re: #464 iossarian

To be fair to the Volt, it also gets very good mileage (compared to most US cars with similar other performance characteristics) on the gas engine.

The upfront cost of the diesel is going to be a fair bit lower though.

I find it very depressing that it's impossible* to buy cars with good mileage in the US.

* By which I mean it's very expensive and there is very little choice. Neither of these needs to be true.

This is the problem I run into. I am completely sold on the Volkswagen TDI's, simply because their fuel economy blows away the rest of the field here in the US. Even though diesel is more expensive, the operating cost of a Jetta TDI is lower than any competitive sedan in its class, especially the Detroit brands. My dad thinks I'm a VW nut, but honestly, I just want something with great efficiency and a low operating cost.

470 Eventual Carrion  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:40:33am

re: #465 Tommy

Porn isn't good for you, it objectifies women. But what you do isn't any of my business. Sorry just a thought. When I went thru AA counseling they adivised you to avoid drugs, alcohol and porn, go figure.

Yeah, but the guy that founded AA also thought that alcoholism was an allergy too. I kinda liked the idea. If I am an alcoholic then what I need to do is desensitize my system by ingesting more and more of it until my body got used to it.

471 kirkspencer  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:40:39am

re: #460 dragonfire1981

Part of it is their definition of obscenity. Consider that the group (which coordinates through Morality in Media) considers Saving Private Ryan obscene because of the vulgarity and sex talk. A good and important movie, mind you, but which would be made much better and no longer obscene by removal of that talk. (No sarcasm, see their letter.)

I have decided that religious fundamentalism is an enemy of liberty.

472 Shropshire_Slasher  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:41:47am

re: #470 RayFerd
I tried that, trust me, it doesn't work.

473 lawhawk  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:42:07am

re: #469 thedopefishlives

Since the EPA increased the fuel economy standards, the fleet fuel economy standards have gone up 16% - mostly due to the elimination of some of the biggest gas guzzlers from carmaker inventories, but hybrid fuel economy has dropped slightly as hybrid tech is being added to SUVs and other low fuel economy vehicles to boost their gas mileage.

Complicating matters further is that people are holding on to their older cars for longer (either can't or wont buy new cars - and they're lasting longer in any event).

474 iossarian  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:42:26am

re: #465 Tommy

Porn isn't good for you, it objectifies women.

Not to nitpick, but this is not a logical argument. The fact that it objectifies women (which is evidently true for a lot of porn) does not in itself make it "bad for you".

In fact, there is some research to suggest that societal acceptance of porn is correlated with lower incidences of violence against women, though it's certainly a more complex argument than "porn is a good thing overall".

When I went thru AA counseling they adivised you to avoid drugs, alcohol and porn, go figure.

All three things are difficult to deal with in terms of their consequences for the individual, but disastrous when banned outright.

475 NJDhockeyfan  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:42:46am

Harvard to Host Conference of Hate

Harvard University to host conference based on a "one state solution," calling for dismantling the Jewish state of Israel.

Here is their website.

476 lawhawk  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:44:23am

re: #471 kirkspencer

But that's no way to gripe. I don't gripe to *you*. I'm a captain. There's a chain of command. Gripes go up, not down. Always up. You gripe to me, I gripe to my superior officer, so on, so on, and so on. I don't gripe to you. I don't gripe in front of you. You should know that as a Ranger.
/

477 kirkspencer  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:44:30am

If any of the currently lab-only revolutions/evolutions in battery/capacitor technology prove themselves, they'll be the game-changer in electric drive vehicles.

Unlike the holy grail of fusion tech, we may see these within the next five years. Faster if necessity prevails.

478 iossarian  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:44:44am

re: #469 thedopefishlives

This is the problem I run into. I am completely sold on the Volkswagen TDI's, simply because their fuel economy blows away the rest of the field here in the US. Even though diesel is more expensive, the operating cost of a Jetta TDI is lower than any competitive sedan in its class, especially the Detroit brands. My dad thinks I'm a VW nut, but honestly, I just want something with great efficiency and a low operating cost.

I would love it if there was a choice in the US between 5 or 6 models of car getting 40-60 miles to the gallon. Perfectly possible.

479 Douchecanoe and Ryan Too  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:46:58am

re: #478 iossarian

I would love it if there was a choice in the US between 5 or 6 models of car getting 40-60 miles to the gallon. Perfectly possible.

It is. The European automakers do it regularly. The Asians are pretty good at fuel economy too. Detroit automakers are just reluctant to build a "fuel-efficient" model for whatever reason. Chrysler is at least making an attempt on that front by offering smaller engine packages (I think I saw one of their cars even had an inline-4 in it!) and their new 8-speed transmission.

480 dragonfire1981  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:47:27am

re: #465 Tommy

Porn isn't good for you, it objectifies women. But what you do isn't any of my business. Sorry just a thought. When I went thru AA counseling they advised you to avoid drugs, alcohol and porn, go figure.

I don't watch porn anymore. I prefer to focus my desires on my wife now. I did some math awhile and calculated that I've spent over an ENTIRE YEAR of my life watching porn. I thought about all the other things I could have done in a year and it seemed like kind of waste to me.

Having said that, if other people want to watch porn all day long, I'm fine with that. That's their choice and the consequences will be theirs to deal with. I have no desire to force my beliefs on others.

That is not what I believe and that is not (in my opinion) what the Bible says.

481 Shropshire_Slasher  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:47:32am

re: #474 iossarian


Okay, but me personally, I'm much happier not watching that stuff. Like I said in my first post, I'm not here to judge.

482 Our Precious Bodily Fluids  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:48:11am

re: #469 thedopefishlives

This is the problem I run into. I am completely sold on the Volkswagen TDI's, simply because their fuel economy blows away the rest of the field here in the US. Even though diesel is more expensive, the operating cost of a Jetta TDI is lower than any competitive sedan in its class, especially the Detroit brands. My dad thinks I'm a VW nut, but honestly, I just want something with great efficiency and a low operating cost.

Until you need to get it repaired, then you learn that modern VWs are made from metals forged from ore mined from an asteroid that orbits Neptune once every 537 years, and that the only mechanics who know what to do with them have to go through 7 years of training with the League of Shadows in a monastery in deep rural Mongolia. This explains why an oil change at a VW dealership costs $750.

483 ReamWorks SKG  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:48:38am

What about pictures of kittens and puppies?

484 dragonfire1981  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:49:27am

Oh, I almost forgot: Happy Mardi Gras everyone!

I know this day means little to folks that aren't in the South, but it's a good excuse to have a few drinks and a little party. Here's a live cam of Bourbon st:

[Link: www.icorp.net...]

485 Douchecanoe and Ryan Too  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:49:32am

re: #482 Pope Ron Polyp XXXVII

Until you need to get it repaired, then you learn that modern VWs are made from metals forged from ore mined from an asteroid that orbits Neptune once every 537 years, and that the only mechanics who know what to do with them have to go through 7 years of training with the League of Shadows in a monastery in deep rural Mongolia. This explains why an oil change at a VW dealership costs $750.

I don't go to the stealer for much of anything, as I'm pretty handy with a wrench. Oil changes, air filters, even brake pads are old hat. Growing up on a farm with farm trucks and tractors has its advantages. I have even fabricated solutions to problems that were forged from Unobtainium.

486 Our Precious Bodily Fluids  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:50:22am

re: #478 iossarian

I would love it if there was a choice in the US between 5 or 6 models of car getting 40-60 miles to the gallon. Perfectly possible.

Cars could get more than that without doing anything special if consumers didn't insist on weighing them down with automatic everything. Power windows, mirrors, de-foggers, seat heaters, etc. All that weight adds up.

487 iossarian  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:51:20am

re: #480 dragonfire1981

I don't watch porn anymore. I prefer to focus my desires on my wife now. I did some math awhile and calculated that I've spent over an ENTIRE YEAR of my life watching porn. I thought about all the other things I could have done in a year and it seemed like kind of waste to me.

re: #481 Tommy

Okay, but me personally, I'm much happier not watching that stuff. Like I said in my first post, I'm not here to judge.

I have zero disagreement with either of these statements.

488 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:52:45am

re: #475 NJDhockeyfan

Harvard to Host Conference of Hate

Here is their website.

Classic right wing propaganda. No, it's not a hate conference. If people want to support a one-state solution that's their right and Harvard is free to host this conference.

489 iossarian  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:53:34am

re: #488 Gus

Classic right wing propaganda. No, it's not a hate conference. If people want to support a one-state solution that's their right and Harvard is free to host this conference.

No, there should be no discussion of possible solutions to conflict that anyone might have a disagreement with.

That's the best way to bring about peace.

490 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 9:55:21am

re: #489 iossarian

No, there should be no discussion of possible solutions to conflict that anyone might have a disagreement with.

That's the best way to bring about peace.

Right. Yeah, we should be more like Putin's Russia. In fact lets toss the 1st Amendment in the trash while we're at it and arrest people that have opinions conflicting to the state. That is if slandering them on baseless accusations doesn't work. I'm sure Avigdor Lieberman would approve.

//

491 Lord Baron Viscount Duke Earl Count Planckton  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 10:09:26am

re: #490 Gus

Regardless of what one might say about the conference - there are certainly many bad things that can be said about the one state solution - it is ironic that one link is to Arutz Sheva, which is a hate site.

[Link: www.google.com...]

492 Gus  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 10:23:30am

re: #491 The Tsarist Guitarist

Regardless of what one might say about the conference - there are certainly many bad things that can be said about the one state solution - it is ironic that one link is to Arutz Sheva, which is a hate site.

[Link: www.google.com...]

Yes. At the same time though there are those that argue for a two state solution in how do I put it. Some rather telling rhetoric in with word "national purity" in full display. There are already enough divisions (religious and secular) existing within Israel itself even if one were not to consider the so called "outside" influences. That's the reality of Israel which is distinct from the stereotypical right wing view of Israel that doesn't really exist. There are even some members of the Likud Party that support a one state solution. It's more complicated then people are led to believe.

That being said I also wonder if this isn't also yet another attack on "liberal academia" and more specifically Harvard both of which is the typical derpish whipping boy of the right-wing. "Hurr, hurr. Those lefties at Harvard are hosting a hate [sic] conference."

493 Feline Emperor of the Conservative Waste  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 10:45:17am

re: #492 Gus

Yes. At the same time though there are those that argue for a two state solution in how do I put it. Some rather telling rhetoric in with word "national purity" in full display. There are already enough divisions (religious and secular) existing within Israel itself even if one were not to consider the so called "outside" influences. That's the reality of Israel which is distinct from the stereotypical right wing view of Israel that doesn't really exist. There are even some members of the Likud Party that support a one state solution. It's more complicated then people are led to believe.

That being said I also wonder if this isn't also yet another attack on "liberal academia" and more specifically Harvard both of which is the typical derpish whipping boy of the right-wing. "Hurr, hurr. Those lefties at Harvard are hosting a hate [sic] conference."

I'm sure the original commenter that included the link will be around shortly to discuss the fine details with you.
/

494 Obdicut  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 10:53:50am

re: #310 Gus

Which is not a debate about biology or evolution.

Yes, it is. You asked how. I was explaining how. The 'how' is that human beings have an innate pattern-matching instinct that tends to express itself in religion, and people tend to think about religion in those positive terms, rather than in the negative terms of the rules and strictures of religion.

Many 'religious' people would never think of imposing their laws on other people, but they're still anti-atheist because they (wrongly) believe that atheists want to stop religious people from being religious. Well, some atheists do, but most don't. These people also are often conflicted or confused about the separation of church and state because they think of religion as a good thing, because it is for them. They think that the overreach of some religious people is a problem, but they also think that religion has a role to play in our civilization.

It's important to understand why people are religious if you want to address the problems created by religion.

If you don't understand it, how the hell are you going to ever do anything about it?

495 BeenHereAwhile  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 12:15:38pm

re: #430 NJDhockeyfan

It looks like Assad's days are numbered. The big question is who will replace his regime? Worst case scenario would be Al Qaeda.

Think that's highly unlikely.

Shi'a Iran (remember these guys are *not* Arabs) would never tolerate Wahhabi-Sunni Al Qaeda becoming the ruling political fraction in Syria.

That is also not an outcome any Western nation would view as better than Shi'a-Alawiti Assad.

IIRC, Sir Richard Burton wrote that other Arabs characterized Syrians as "spoilers of the salt," and were generally mistrusted, even when during Hajj.

496 BeenHereAwhile  Tue, Feb 21, 2012 12:35:44pm

re: #438 Tommy

re: #434 sattv4u2

Must be the Chevy volt is the new Jaguar.

Jeremy Clarkson of Top Gear UK drove an 18 gal tank Jaguar twin turbo diesel from Basel CH to Blackpool UK, 820 miles (including distance on the chunnel train), on one tank of diesel. According to Clarkson, a subsequent inspection found the tank had approx one gal of diesel remaining.

IIRC, this worked out to 45 MPG.

This same model Jaguar also lapped the 13 mile Nürburgring track in less than 10 minutes with Jeremy Clarkson driving. The Nürburgring being open to the public for personal testing of cars.


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