Overnight Short Sci-Fi: AMP

Arts • Views: 15,262

Vimeo

Written and Directed by Adam Marisett
Produced by Gabriel Paul Napora / Triton Films Inc.
Cinematographer / Co-Producer: Cliff Hokanson
Co-Producer: Lux
Music by Sean Beeson and Pontus Rufelt
Starring Matthew MacCaul and Elysia Rotaru

Short Synopsis: 10 years after leaving a war his father started, Quinn and Amp live in the slums selling illegal custom-tech just to afford the batteries that keep Amp alive.
When an old childhood friend tracks him down, Quinn is confronted with the dilemma of choosing to remain idle in a city run by the corrupt Coreley Corporation or finally finish the war he never wanted to be a part of.

Produced for a budget of a few thousand dollars.

tritonfilms.net, gabriel@tritonfilms.net

Jump to bottom

373 comments
1 Kragar  Mon, Aug 12, 2013 10:01:33pm

U.S. Air Force to shut down space surveillance system over budget cuts

The U.S. Air Force will shut down its space surveillance system that tracks satellites and other orbiting objects by October 1 due to budget constraints caused by automatic federal budget cuts known as the sequestration, it announced Monday.

Deactivating the system by October 1 would save the Air Force Space Command $14 million annually starting in fiscal year 2014.

The surveillance system got the nickname “Space Fence” because it transmits a “fence” of radar energy vertically into space that can detect any object or debris that crosses it without being cued to do so.

2 freetoken  Mon, Aug 12, 2013 10:22:58pm

re: #1 Kragar

So, the aliens can now land undetected?

3 freetoken  Mon, Aug 12, 2013 10:28:17pm

Now, for some piano, an early 20th century composition, Prokofiev’s ““Suggestion Diabolique”:

MP3 Audio

When Glenn Beck is scribbling frantically on his chalk board just mute his voice out and play this in the background instead.

4 darthstar  Mon, Aug 12, 2013 10:41:25pm

CNN Gets it wrong…again

I think CNN must be hiring Amish kids on Rumspringa for its motorsports writers. That’s really the only way you could explain the rich, lavish ignorance of how cars work as demonstrated in this article about turbo engines returning to F1

5 freetoken  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 12:02:42am

re: #4 darthstar

Well, at least he didn’t say it was caged white mice running the engine.

6 freetoken  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 12:05:46am

Contrasting styles - another early 20th century piano piece:


MP3 Audio

7 freetoken  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 1:49:06am

One reason why progress against the entrenched atavism is so hard:

Why Arguing With A Wing-Nut Is Actually More Than Just A Waste of Time

You almost certainly know that it’s a waste of time to argue with wing-nuts. If not, you’ll soon learn, but there is actually solid scientific evidence that not only does it not do any good, it actually makes the conspiracy lover even more certain of their belief. It’s called the “back-fire” effect.

I am reading an excellent book You Are Now Less Dumb by David McRaney. He goes deeply into the backfire effect which he sums up this way in his very popular online blog You Are Not So Smart:

The Misconception: When your beliefs are challenged with facts, you alter your opinions and incorporate the new information into your thinking.

The Truth: When your deepest convictions are challenged by contradictory evidence, your beliefs get stronger.

Physicist John Cook (who writes the excellent blog Skeptical Science about climate change myths) wrote about the back-fire effect in his Debunking Handbook. Over the last couple of days alone, I’ve seen at least three crazy internet posts about HAARP, chemtrails, and watched a congressman declare climate change as a giant hoax. Oh, and I’ll let you read about Donald Trump on ABC Sunday.

[…]

8 freetoken  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 2:06:49am

Looking around for piano music, I was surprised to find that Deutsche Gramaphone put on Soundcloud the first movement of one of the most played warhorses of classical piano concertos, as part of a promotion of a massive 82 CD collection of Herbert Von Karajan recordings:

SoundCloud

The pianist was Sviatoslav Richter, and in light of the Olympic controversy it is enlightening to read the Wiki entry:

It was rumored that Richter was homosexual and that having a female companion provided a social front for his sexual orientation, because in the Soviet world homosexual behavior was illegal.[6][7] Richter had a tendency to be private and withdrawn and was not open to interviews. He never publicly discussed his personal life until in the last year of his life filmmaker Bruno Monsaingeon convinced him to be interviewed for a documentary.

Some things don’t change very quickly.

9 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 2:19:38am

re: #7 freetoken

One reason why progress against the entrenched atavism is so hard:

Why Arguing With A Wing-Nut Is Actually More Than Just A Waste of Time

The thing is, it can’t always be true that having your beliefs challenged makes them stronger. Otherwise we’d never get anywhere. It’s a simplification.

10 freetoken  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 2:29:16am

re: #9 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

The question is, why do beliefs change?

Do they change because someone confronts you with contradictory evidence?

Or, do they change because eventually you become disenchanted with them, upon an event in which you discover they are no longer sufficient?

11 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 2:46:10am

re: #10 freetoken

The question is, why do beliefs change?

Do they change because someone confronts you with contradictory evidence?

Or, do they change because eventually you become disenchanted with them, upon an event in which you discover they are no longer sufficient?

I think there’s a lot of different paths.

I’m heading back to school, first to pick up a sociology BA and then do social work. I really think I want to do clinical social work, one-on-one therapy because I firmly believe the efficacy of that, that that is something that can change people’s minds.

But at the same time, I’m kind of leaning to going the research route, and asking two main questions: 1. How do people decide what is ‘true’ or ‘right’? 2. What effects does environment or speech acts have on this? (voting in a church, identifying your race before taking a test).

I think the main problem with talking about people learning or rejecting information is that the same person might reject something at one point, but accept it at another. Someone forced to attend a sensitivity training seminar with no real teeth to it other than having to show he participated may not learn anything from it. Someone forced to actually write an essay on male privilege tends to actually come away with better outcomes.

My dad is a very stubborn guy who is a bit of a dilettante in how he reads stuff— he thought Climategate was real— and I’ve found the only way to make progress with him is to be forceful, to present my side in very strong terms and to take immediate issue with factual errors he’s presenting. Engaging with his actual argument makes him happy because he likes arguing, not because he’s reflexively rejecting my position. So there’s a confounder.

12 freetoken  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 3:14:55am

Speaking of Soundcloud, the CSO in the past week has dumped quite a few recordings, including this concert of choral works by Brahms, Schoenberg, and Cherubini. The notes and titles are incorrect but it was just posted yesterday so maybe they’ll be changed. Anyway, quite a gift for choral music lovers:


SoundCloud

13 freetoken  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 3:15:42am

The Cherubini Requiem starts around 37:50 and is highly recommended.

14 Sol Berdinowitz  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 3:26:57am

I think it often has to do with personality: for a lot of people, backing down is a sign of weakness, one which they are afraid to show.

So they might even agree internally, they will just continue shouting their objection to you and everything you stand for.

15 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 3:35:57am

re: #14 Sol Berdinowitz

The writer Madeleine L’Engle said that when her husband would criticize her writing, if she smiled and said it was a good point, then she knew she wasn’t going to change the writing. When she got upset and railed at him and argued and told him to shut up, that’s when she knew he’d found a place she’d really have to address.

16 Justanotherhuman  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 3:39:07am

re: #10 freetoken

T
Or, do they change because eventually you become disenchanted with them, upon an event in which you discover they are no longer sufficient?

Not always just one event, but sometimes the milieu and conditions in which you are living. In my case, I started becoming a Catholic at age 8, when we moved north, after having been exposed to fundie Baptist beliefs earlier, making my first communion, attending parochial school, becoming completely immersed on a day to day basis, confirmed at age 12 (at which point I was thinking of becoming a nun). By age 15, I had been out of that situation, family having moved, was attending public school, no longer attending church, examining other ideas, reading widely, becoming an atheist, no longer able to reconcile church teaching to life and learning I was encountering, discovering facts and discarding myths (although I might not have described it that way at the time).

The Catholic religion may have become a substitute for losing my mother at age 7, and being under the tutelage of nuns. When my mother died, my sister and I were sent to live in a Baptist orphanage for a year, which was a complete authoritarian horror show. Inadvertently, those same nuns opened my mind to real learning and more liberal ideas, while I saw the priests as enforcing the religion. Oddly, it might have also been my first exposure to a developing feminism and the kind of independence that allows for on-going change and new ideas in an evolving world. And I’m still learning, still curious about everything, even though I’ve had little formal education. I’ll defer to those with more knowledge and education, but I always turn my bullshit meter on, too. : )

17 Justanotherhuman  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 3:42:42am

re: #9 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

The thing is, it can’t always be true that having your beliefs challenged makes them stronger. Otherwise we’d never get anywhere. It’s a simplification.

Simplification of complicated human beings. Always wrong. : )

18 freetoken  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 3:48:36am

Speaking of weakness, the CBS series Under the Dome has more than its share. It still gets decent if not great ratings, but I really wonder what people see in it. It has that Spielberg (and he is one of the producers) touch - dumbing down. Yeah, Spielberg usually has a serious project going on in the background, some small art-film or documentary that gets limited release, but most of his stuff has been trash for decades. Yet he knows how to make money in selling to the lowest common denominator.

Anyway…

Spoiler

… the complete idiocy of some of the protagonists makes me root for their demise. You just can’t write to make your protagonists too stupid, or else they become parodies, like big breasted blondes in horror flicks.

In this case, the discovery of the "egg" wouldn’t be something a supposedly curious and bright young man wouldn’t want to share or discover more of. Writing an allegedly intelligent late teenager like he was an 8 year old just makes him another mindless character with silly dialogue.

Oh, and something about underground water flow - you just can’t redirect the flow by blowing up a well and all of a sudden water shows up thousands of yards away.

These are just two of the reasons I find the whole exercise a silly writing of unreal characters forced into a situation that is becoming a shaggy-dog story.

Shows like Under the Dome are designed by the marketing departments, and characters are added to appeal to the demographics of those advertisers who are paying for the show.

This is not a way to make a good fiction story.

19 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 3:49:29am

re: #18 freetoken

Shows like Under the Dome are designed by the marketing departments, and characters are added to appeal to the demographics of those advertisers who are paying for the show.

What’s your source for this?

20 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 3:56:53am

In my experience with the TV industry, the standard is that the producers and show-runners (and to a varying extent, the writers and the directors) are the ones who decide on characters. The showrunner is normally more of a creative director, with the producers being the one communicating “Marketing thinks we need a woman angle” “Marketing says this story line is falling flat with the public”. The production team responds to these concerns, but but the claim that the show is designed by the marketing department would be a departure from normal TV production.

The showrunner for Under the Dome is Neal Baer, who is also an EP and the owner of one of the production houses involved in making the show (shows are often made by a conglomeration of production houses rather than the actual network showing them). He’s a big weight, a heavy-hitter, and it’d stretch credulity to think he’s simply adding and removing characters at the behest of the marketing department.

Show sounds like it kind of blows with a bunch of plot holes, from what I’ve heard.

21 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 4:19:26am

re: #7 freetoken

One reason why progress against the entrenched atavism is so hard:

Why Arguing With A Wing-Nut Is Actually More Than Just A Waste of Time

You would think I might have figured that out by now.

Yesterday I got into a twitfight with some wingnuts whose idea of a solid argument was just to call me LIBTARD and UR AN IDIOT over and over. The end result was blockage by both sides.

I just don’t understand this hatred that wingnuts have for poor people, it’s just as bad as their racism. Were they never poor, and do they really think they can never become poor, or ARE THEY POOR and they hate themselves?

22 Romantic Heretic  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 4:22:37am

re: #6 freetoken

Contrasting styles - another early 20th century piano piece:

[Embedded content]

DeBussy. Nice.

23 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 4:32:21am

Uh Bryan:
“Bush’s head on a stick” nobody even noticed when that scene was broadcast on “Game of Thrones” only later somebody said “Hey that head on a stick kinda looks like Bush!” and then everybody had to look at the scene frame by frame.

24 Romantic Heretic  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 4:32:24am

re: #21 Vicious Babushka

You would think I might have figured that out by now.

Yesterday I got into a twitfight with some wingnuts whose idea of a solid argument was just to call me LIBTARD and UR AN IDIOT over and over. The end result was blockage by both sides.

I just don’t understand this hatred that wingnuts have for poor people, it’s just as bad as their racism. Were they never poor, and do they really think they can never become poor, or ARE THEY POOR and they hate themselves?

It’s like H. L. Mencken said, “Socialism never caught on in America because in America there are no poor people. Just temporarily embarrassed millionaires.”

Plus, as I’ve noted before, the poor are sinners. Since The Faith, that odd conglomeration of Christianity and capitalism that permeates The West, states clearly that honest, hard work is the path to success it’s obvious to the wingnuts that the poor are making a deliberate choice to not be honest and not work hard. Such behaviour is a sin and sinners should not be encouraged to sin.

25 A Mom Anon  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 4:33:00am

re: #21 Vicious Babushka

If they are poor, they just had some bad luck, they’re not one of “those” people.

If they’ve never had to struggle, then they simply lack empathy. They listen to too much conservative nonsense they find on the internet, radio and television and they lack bullshit filters.

Americans pride ourselves on being a melting pot and integrated society and to some degree we are. But, there are places in this country where you literally do not have to see anyone not like you ever if you don’t want to. We call them suburbs, lol. Seriously though, there are rural areas like this too. Hell, Forsyth county,GA had no one who wasn’t white living there until at least the 1990’s, it may still be that way.

I have a dear friend who is a democrat, but I swear to god she falls for every dumbass thing conservatives pass around facebook and I’ve had to slap down her putting down of poor people on assistance. This morning she’s passing around some stupid photoshopped ATT bill that says there’s a surcharge on it for spying on it’s customers. You would think that by now she’d develop some critical thinking, but nooo. Of course she also puts and apostrophe in every plural word that ends in S so who knows what the hell is going on in her head. I’m about to lose patience with her though, this crap is getting tiresome and I don’t mean the spelling and grammar errors.

26 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 4:36:59am

re: #24 Romantic Heretic

It’s like H. L. Mencken said, “Socialism never caught on in America because in America there are no poor people. Just temporarily embarrassed millionaires.”

Plus, as I’ve noted before, the poor are sinners. Since The Faith, that odd conglomeration of Christianity and capitalism that permeates The West, states clearly that honest, hard work is the path to success it’s obvious to the wingnuts that the poor are making a deliberate choice to not be honest and not work hard. Such behaviour is a sin and sinners should not be encouraged to sin.

Really, the wingnuts honestly believe that if they hate Teh Poors and worship the Koch’s and the Waltons that some of it might rub off on them. How then do you explain the hate for TEH YOONYUNZ whose goal is to get higher pay and better working conditions? Because they are “taking money away” from the “rightful earners” (the Kochs and the Waltons) and “giving” it to the “lazy moochers & takers” (the production line workers and the store associates who, uh, DO THE ACTUAL WORK)

Just like the wingnut yesterday who was attempting to Kochsplain that Teh Poors who work at Walmart are lazy, illiterate and inefficient and don’t even know how to make change. Could not explain why it is such a good business plan to hire “illiterates.”

27 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 4:42:20am

ACTUAL WINGNUT BELIEFS

28 Pavlovian Hive Mind  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 4:49:18am

“I believe in an America where millions of Americans believe in an America that’s the America millions of Americans believe in. That’s the America I love.” -Mitt Romney

29 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 4:51:47am
30 Justanotherhuman  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 4:58:51am

I’m poor, if you only mean my assets or income, but I run into lots of other “poors” who actually think that there are those who are beneath even them, even while they themselves are receiving some form(s) of govt aid or just aren’t trying very hard because their thinking is so set in stone—it never occurs to them that they don’t have to be just like their daddy or mommy, that they truly are individuals with a brain.

We all know who they are and they’re who the right wing attracts. The mentality is that you always have to have someone to dump your own failures on, and who qualifies for that in a racist society? They actually think that a minority could never be smarter than they are, more talented, more skilled, more educated, more compassionate, more anything, even the man living in the White House.

31 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 5:00:21am

re: #30 Justanotherhuman

They actually think that a minority could never be smarter than they are, more talented, more skilled, more educated, more compassionate, more anything, even the man living in the White House.

BUT PRUDENCE IS SPAMMING THIS PICTURE OF DR. BEN CARSON ALL OVER TEH TWITTERS WHICH PROVEZ TAHT PRUDENCE IZ NOT TEH RACISST LIBRULS IS TEH RACISSTS!!!1111!!!!

32 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 5:01:23am

A marriage that is based on oppressing the poor and homeless?

33 Justanotherhuman  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 5:04:11am

re: #32 Vicious Babushka

A marriage that is based on oppressing the poor and homeless?

[Embedded content]

So, I take it there is no oral sex in the Fischer marriage? Wow, how many tens of millions of people does his statement cover in the US? Esp all those christian kids who think oral and anal sex isn’t “real sex” because it doesn’t lead to pregnancy?

34 Pavlovian Hive Mind  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 5:05:01am

Well, damn. Good on ya.

We’ll see what happens in September when we get back, but my instinct is, you won’t win that fight. It won’t be popular. Never polls popular. What do you tell the people you’re inconveniencing? Most of the people that argue this point are not thinking, why would you shut down the National Weather Center that just saved a whole lot of lives in central Oklahoma by giving us 16 minutes of warning instead of two. Why would you put 15,000 families — that’s families — out of work at Tinker Air Force Base. There are four million important national defense workers. Why would you go to Sulphur, where there are guys in their 80s and 90s who gave this country everything they possibly had in its darkest moment, and say, “sorry, there’s not going to be anybody here showing up to fix your meals or look after you or do the commitments we made.” I don’t think it’s smart politics. Anytime you hurt millions of people, and inconvenience tens of millions more, I don’t think you usually achieve your end. I think they wonder why you did that to them.

Rep. Tom Cole (R-OK)

35 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 5:09:23am
36 Justanotherhuman  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 5:17:03am

re: #35 Vicious Babushka

[Embedded content]

Snowden: “…and I’m famously paranoid.” He also mentioned that GG can go without sleep for “days at a time”. I guess that explains a lot about him. “I was particularly impressed by Glenn’s ability to operate without sleep for days at a time.”

These are the people who think we should believe them? Cheeeez.

37 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 5:25:03am

re: #36 Justanotherhuman

Snowden: “…and I’m famously paranoid.” He also mentioned that GG can go without sleep for “days at a time”. I guess that explains a lot about him. “I was particularly impressed by Glenn’s ability to operate without sleep for days at a time.”

These are the people who think we should believe them? Cheeeez.

How does he do that?

Oh, Red Bull and cocaine.

38 Justanotherhuman  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 5:41:20am

If you’ve read Marxist theory, it’s not a great leap for those who actually think that the State will wither away after the rule of the proletariat is established to a dual belief in libertarianism. Neither will ever happen anyway, or get much of a foothold in a constitutional republic in which there will always be left-right tension. Both schools of political thought are much too radical for most people and only appeal to absolutist idealists who haven’t observed much in the real world.

Thus, we have the marriage of Snowden and Greenwald, the convergence of ideology and lack of experience, and the statements of RW politicians like Santorum, and pundits like Grover Norquist who talk of reducing govt enough to drown it in a bathtub.

This type of convergence, and the spectrum of political thought, was taught to me by a poli-sci instructor 40 years ago at the local community college.

39 kirkspencer  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 5:42:31am

re: #11 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

I think there’s a lot of different paths.

I’m heading back to school, first to pick up a sociology BA and then do social work. I really think I want to do clinical social work, one-on-one therapy because I firmly believe the efficacy of that, that that is something that can change people’s minds.

But at the same time, I’m kind of leaning to going the research route, and asking two main questions: 1. How do people decide what is ‘true’ or ‘right’? 2. What effects does environment or speech acts have on this? (voting in a church, identifying your race before taking a test).

I think the main problem with talking about people learning or rejecting information is that the same person might reject something at one point, but accept it at another. Someone forced to attend a sensitivity training seminar with no real teeth to it other than having to show he participated may not learn anything from it. Someone forced to actually write an essay on male privilege tends to actually come away with better outcomes.

My dad is a very stubborn guy who is a bit of a dilettante in how he reads stuff— he thought Climategate was real— and I’ve found the only way to make progress with him is to be forceful, to present my side in very strong terms and to take immediate issue with factual errors he’s presenting. Engaging with his actual argument makes him happy because he likes arguing, not because he’s reflexively rejecting my position. So there’s a confounder.

In part it’s an intersection of trust, betrayal, and coping with information loads.

Coping first. One of the ways we deal with lack of or excess and conflicting information is through people we trust. (Why we trust someone is a separate and in this case important issue that I am not going into.)

The thing is that once we grant trust we have an investment. Betrayal costs us something and so we work hard at excusing and denying that we have misplaced our trust.

Add compounding trust, where those we also trust trust our key trust, and the cost is more than most want to face.

40 Feline Fearless Leader  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 5:53:50am

Good morning from “damp” Philadelphia. Rumor has it that SEPTA is issuing oars and that the commuter trains are rowing themselves into the stations.

A nice basic deluge. Little wind though, which was good since I then only got soaked from the knees down.

Unfortunately no sighting of Gene Kelly.

41 Eventual Carrion  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:04:35am

re: #40 Feline Fearless Leader

Good morning from “damp” Philadelphia. Rumor has it that SEPTA is issuing oars and that the commuter trains are rowing themselves into the stations.

A nice basic deluge. Little wind though, which was good since I then only got soaked from the knees down.

Unfortunately no sighting of Gene Kelly.

Nice morning her in NW PA. Should be heading your way.

42 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:05:05am

re: #39 kirkspencer

I think that’s why you get a lot of congregations, organizations, etc. defending sex offenders. They can’t handle having a source of trust knocked away, so they deny that it has been. This is foolish for the main reason that someone can be a sex offender and still be right about other stuff, but it hits at the whole mechanism we use for valuation of truth.

43 lawhawk  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:07:46am

Rule #1 of firearms use - treat all guns as though they’re loaded.

Rule #2 - see rule 1.

Apparently, even gun instructors get this wrong, and with tragic consequences. A gun instructor in Ohio shot and injured one of his students after the gun he was using discharged and the bullet ricocheted and injured the student.

Michael Piemonte was attending a concealed-carry class with his wife Alison in central Ohio’s Fairfield County over the weekend. Such classes are required for anyone wanting carry a concealed weapon in the state.

There were 29 students in the lecture-type class, Piemonte said. He was sitting in the front row.

While the instructor was demonstrating a self-defense techniques, the gun went off.

The bullet struck Piemonte in the arm. Even he didn’t realize what had happened.

“Everyone was in shock,” he told CNN. “It took me a couple of seconds to realize that I had been shot.”

The 26-year-old said he’s in good spirits. “I’m just glad my wife did not get hit.”

The instructor did not return a call for comment, but Piemonte said he has been calling him regularly to check in.

“It makes me feel good that he is so concerned,” he said.

The Fairfield County sheriff’s deputy who responded to the scene described the shooting as accidental, The Columbus Dispatch newspaper reported.

44 lawhawk  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:13:42am

Meanwhile, this is a rather puzzling news report. Alvin Green, who shocked the political establishment by winning the Democratic nomination for US Senate in NC was arrested on trespassing charges. But the report indicates that he was found wandering an apartment complex seeking medical assistance. He’s still in jail on misdemeanor charges after not posting the $282 in bail.

Alvin Greene, who as an unemployed Army veteran stunned the political world in 2010 by winning the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate in South Carolina without campaigning or spending money, has been arrested on a trespassing charge in Myrtle Beach.

But the details of the arrest and why Green has been behind bars for four days on a misdemeanor charge with a $100 fine remain a mystery, much like his sudden emergence into politics three years ago and his quick disappearance after being trounced by Republican Sen. Jim DeMint.

Police said Greene, 35, was arrested Friday at an apartment complex after he was found walking around disoriented and asked for paramedics. They checked on Greene, according to a police report, and he was then taken into custody.

Greene remained at the Horry County jail Monday afternoon, held on a $282 bond. Trespassing is a misdemeanor that carries a $100 fine or 30 days in jail.

The police report gives no detail as to why Greene was in Myrtle Beach or why has was told to stay away from the apartment complex. Myrtle Beach Police spokesman Capt. David Knipes had no additional information about Greene’s arrest. He said trespassing charges are normally handled with a ticket.

No one answered the phone at Greene’s Manning home and his brother did not return a message.

In 2010, Greene seemingly came out of nowhere to defeat Vic Rawl, a four-term state lawmaker from Charleston. Greene did no campaigning and spent almost no money outside of the $10,440 filing fee he hand-delivered to party headquarters with a hand-written check.

45 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:14:01am

re: #43 lawhawk

Imagine how many accidents of this kind we’d have if we tried to train every teacher, janitor, etc. to carry.

46 lawhawk  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:17:59am

re: #35 Vicious Babushka


The actions and motivations of both Manning and Snowden are quite similar, so I wouldn’t be surprised if Snowden’s got a similar psychological profile.

47 A Mom Anon  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:19:20am

re: #37 Vicious Babushka

A manic phase of his illness? I have a family member who is bipolar, she can do this, I think her record was 11 days without any sleep before she got the help she needed. Most people thought she was just energetic and productive(she’d do these giant projects, often beautifully during these episodes). Until she crashed, and then it was even more scary. With meds, she’s still that bright creative person, but she doesn’t have the extreme highs and lows.

Not that GG is bipolar, but man, that’s a huge red flag doctors look at. Or, it could be Red Bull and meth,lol. I kid, I kid.

48 Ian G.  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:19:32am

re: #32 Vicious Babushka

A marriage that is based on oppressing the poor and homeless?

[Embedded content]

Heh. Sort of OT, but what’s your reaction, VB, to the term “Judeo-Christian”, given that it’s almost exclusively used by right-wing Christians?

I mean, my reaction, as an ex-Catholic atheist, is to gag: “Hey there, Jews, yeah, you know those blood libels and pogroms and inquisitions and all that stuff that was central to right-wing Christian culture for 1900 years? Sorry about that. But now you’re part of our right-wing political movement whether you like it or not, OK?”

49 lawhawk  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:19:48am

re: #45 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

Imagine how many accidents of this kind we’d have if we tried to train every teacher, janitor, etc. to carry.

But but… Abortion

50 lawhawk  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:22:48am

re: #40 Feline Fearless Leader

Yeah, the skies have turned black in Lower Manhattan and we’re about to get that deluge you were alluding to. Flash flood watch in effect.

51 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:24:05am

re: #48 Ian G.

Heh. Sort of OT, but what’s your reaction, VB, to the term “Judeo-Christian”, given that it’s almost exclusively used by right-wing Christians?

I mean, my reaction, as an ex-Catholic atheist, is to gag: “Hey there, Jews, yeah, you know those blood libels and pogroms and inquisitions and all that stuff that was central to right-wing Christian culture for 1900 years? Sorry about that. But now you’re part of our right-wing political movement whether you like it or not, OK?”

I see “Judeo-Christian” used less frequently now, as the RWNJ’s become more open about Christian exclusivism. When it is used, it’s used mainly by Judeolapdogs of the Christianists, people like Pamela.

My son thinks “Abrahamic” (to include Jewish-Muslim cooperation) should be used more frequently.

52 Ian G.  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:32:30am

re: #51 Vicious Babushka

My son thinks “Abrahamic” (to include Jewish-Muslim cooperation) should be used more frequently.

That’s another one of my reactions. If Judaism and Christianity are kin, Islam has to be too, right?

53 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:35:09am

re: #52 Ian G.

That’s another one of my reactions. If Judaism and Christianity are kin, Islam has to be too, right?

I think Judaism and Islam are similar in terms of religious practices, dress codes, dietary laws, festival observance, that Jews and Muslims can accomplish more by focusing on what they have in common.

Idiots like Pamela scream about TEH SHARIA!!11!!! not realizing that Jews follow similar traditions.

54 Political Atheist  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:41:39am

re: #45 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

Every a.d. is is literally inexcusable.
We want there to be lots of classes like these for all those millions of gun owners. Even at the established very, very low accident rate, the number of incidents will rise with the volume. We looked at that carefully at our local range where classes happen all the time, something like 4 or 5 per day. The insurer had some numbers we saw at a BOD meeting.

Add the media fact it’s only news when something goes seriously wrong and the public might get the impression a gun safety class is not all that safe, not a fair, accurate or helpful impression. Does show it pays to go to pros. Insured certified pros.

55 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:44:06am

Did I behave myself?

56 Decatur Deb  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:44:39am

re: #16 Justanotherhuman

Not always just one event, but sometimes the milieu and conditions in which you are living. In my case, I started becoming a Catholic at age 8, when we moved north, after having been exposed to fundie Baptist beliefs earlier, making my first communion, attending parochial school, becoming completely immersed on a day to day basis, confirmed at age 12 (at which point I was thinking of becoming a nun). By age 15, I had been out of that situation, family having moved, was attending public school, no longer attending church, examining other ideas, reading widely, becoming an atheist, no longer able to reconcile church teaching to life and learning I was encountering, discovering facts and discarding myths (although I might not have described it that way at the time).

The Catholic religion may have become a substitute for losing my mother at age 7, and being under the tutelage of nuns. When my mother died, my sister and I were sent to live in a Baptist orphanage for a year, which was a complete authoritarian horror show. Inadvertently, those same nuns opened my mind to real learning and more liberal ideas, while I saw the priests as enforcing the religion. Oddly, it might have also been my first exposure to a developing feminism and the kind of independence that allows for on-going change and new ideas in an evolving world. And I’m still learning, still curious about everything, even though I’ve had little formal education. I’ll defer to those with more knowledge and education, but I always turn my bullshit meter on, too. : )

Had nuns 24/7 for 5 years. Mine were black and white and red all over—daughters of coal miners and steelworkers from SW Pennsylvania and WV. Best people I knew, but their cosmology was wrong.

57 Pavlovian Hive Mind  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:44:59am

re: #55 Gus

Did I behave myself?

No.
100 pushups.

58 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:45:24am

re: #36 Justanotherhuman

Snowden: “…and I’m famously paranoid.” He also mentioned that GG can go without sleep for “days at a time”. I guess that explains a lot about him. “I was particularly impressed by Glenn’s ability to operate without sleep for days at a time.”

These are the people who think we should believe them? Cheeeez.

Seriously?

59 Bulworth  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:47:07am

Teabaggers haz a sad fewer congresscritters holding townhall meetings.

My outrage. Let me show you it.

60 Decatur Deb  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:48:14am

re: #46 lawhawk

[Embedded content]


The actions and motivations of both Manning and Snowden are quite similar, so I wouldn’t be surprised if Snowden’s got a similar psychological profile.

Hundreds of late-night emails between Manning and the guy who rolled over on him are on the Internet. Guy was ridiculously unfit and his unit was a mess. Don’t care what happens to him, but I’d like the same for his commander and unit security officer.

61 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:49:42am

I’m going to get called a LIBTARD and BLOCKED by these wingnuts:

62 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:49:55am

re: #54 Political Atheist

Every a.d. is is literally inexcusable.
We want there to be lots of classes like these for all those millions of gun owners.

When you say ‘we’, who do you mean? Because I don’t. I want all the people who have guns who don’t actually need them to realize that, and stop owning them.

Add the media fact it’s only news when something goes seriously wrong and the public might get the impression a gun safety class is not all that safe, not a fair, accurate or helpful impression. Does show it pays to go to pros. Insured certified pros.

Are you saying this guy wasn’t an insured, certified pro?

63 Bulworth  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:50:19am

re: #32 Vicious Babushka

A marriage that is based on oppressing the poor and homeless?

Well, that’s it. Bryan’s got us beat. //

64 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:51:50am

MORON. David Duke didn’t win an election until he ran as GOP.
NewsNinja has already blocked me for pointing this out.

65 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:59:05am

re: #60 Decatur Deb

Hundreds of late-night emails between Manning and the guy who rolled over on him are on the Internet. Guy way ridiculously unfit and his unit was a mess. Don’t care what happens to him, but I’d like the same for his commander and unit security officer.

Apparently the NSA can’t find those. //

66 CuriousLurker  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:00:17am

re: #62 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

FYI, the asshole who’s enjoying tossing around Pali-whatever words is responding to you without using “reply”, so you may not be aware of it unless you’re subscribed to all comments.

67 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:00:28am

re: #46 lawhawk

[Embedded content]


The actions and motivations of both Manning and Snowden are quite similar, so I wouldn’t be surprised if Snowden’s got a similar psychological profile.

Narcissistic personality traits, i.e. being a douche bag, is now a disease. //

68 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:01:03am

re: #47 A Mom Anon

A manic phase of his illness? I have a family member who is bipolar, she can do this, I think her record was 11 days without any sleep before she got the help she needed. Most people thought she was just energetic and productive(she’d do these giant projects, often beautifully during these episodes). Until she crashed, and then it was even more scary. With meds, she’s still that bright creative person, but she doesn’t have the extreme highs and lows.

Not that GG is bipolar, but man, that’s a huge red flag doctors look at. Or, it could be Red Bull and meth,lol. I kid, I kid.

I don’t know if GGis bipolar. It would just seem to me that a bipolar person in a manic state would be more likely to use drugs to stay awake. I don’t think it is physically possible to stay awake for that long without drugs.

69 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:03:22am

Cocaine
— Eric Clapton

70 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:03:49am

re: #66 CuriousLurker

FYI, the asshole who’s enjoying tossing around Pali-whatever words is responding to you without using “reply”, so you may not be aware of it unless you’re subscribed to all comments.

I stopped reading these Israel/Palestine pages when it became clear to me that no honest conversation was taking place, just a bunch of screaming.

71 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:06:15am

re: #70 Vicious Babushka

I still poke my head in to wearily say that those who want a Palestinian state don’t all want the destruction of Israel, and those building settlements aren’t all vicious racists who want to expel all Palestinians.

It’s tiring, but probably not as tiring as it is for Israelis and Palestinians.

72 CuriousLurker  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:10:14am

re: #70 Vicious Babushka

I stopped reading these Israel/Palestine pages when it became clear to me that no honest conversation was taking place, just a bunch of screaming.

Yeah, they’re almost always a useless mess. The only reason I entered this one was because rosiee said I’d probably vouch for him not being a bigot—after he’d basically accused Political Atheist of being an anti-Semite, and then got offended when he got called a bigot by someone else. Ugh. *headdesk*

73 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:10:54am
74 Justanotherhuman  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:11:33am

re: #58 Gus

Seriously?

Seriously. nytimes.com

“In the course of reporting his profile of Laura Poitras, Peter Maass conducted an encrypted question-and-answer session, for which Poitras served as intermediary, with Edward J. Snowden. Below is a full transcript of that conversation.”

75 lawhawk  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:11:38am
76 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:11:52am

re: #72 CuriousLurker

Yeah, they’re almost always a useless mess. The only reason I entered this one was because rosiee said I’d probably vouch for him not being a bigot—after he’d basically accused Political Atheist of being an anti-Semite, and then got offended when he got called a bigot by someone else. Ugh. *headdesk*

There are some commenters here at LGF who are on permanent GAZE. Rosiee is one of them. (in spite of the girly moniker I think he is a dude)

77 CuriousLurker  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:12:53am

re: #76 Vicious Babushka

There are some commenters here at LGF who are on permanent GAZE. Rosiee is one of them. (in spite of the girly moniker I think he is a dude)

Yep, he’s a male. He had his photo as his profile pic at one point. Odd nic.

78 lawhawk  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:13:33am

re: #74 Justanotherhuman

They’re now in the reporting on the reporters phase of the story, which usually precedes the final act of the story. That, of course, missed the point that the reporting was seriously flawed and got basic and fundamental aspects of the NSA programs wrong. GG would make statements alleging misconduct that are flatly rebutted by the very documents he purports to show the misconduct.

79 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:13:50am

re: #77 CuriousLurker

Yep, he’s a male. He had his photo as his profile pic at one point. Odd nic.

I don’t trust these men with female names oh how you doing, Decatur Deb, didn’t see you there, how about them Steelers?

80 CuriousLurker  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:14:19am

re: #79 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

I don’t trust these men with female names oh how you doing, Decatur Deb, didn’t see you there, how about them Steelers?

LOL

81 b.d.  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:16:21am

re: #58 Gus

Snowden: “…and I’m famously paranoid.” He also mentioned that GG can go without sleep for “days at a time”. I guess that explains a lot about him. “I was particularly impressed by Glenn’s ability to operate without sleep for days at a time.”

Jeeez.

I am impressed with the way Glenn Greenwald washes his hands 75 times a day and bottles his own urine.

82 CuriousLurker  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:16:46am

re: #73 Gus

Gah, that photo makes me gag.

83 Decatur Deb  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:18:04am

re: #74 Justanotherhuman

Seriously. nytimes.com

“In the course of reporting his profile of Laura Poitras, Peter Maass conducted an encrypted question-and-answer session, for which Poitras served as intermediary, with Edward J. Snowden. Below is a full transcript of that conversation.”

“I personally hate cameras and being recorded, but at some point in the working process, I realized I was unconsciously trusting her not to hang me even with my naturally unconsidered remarks.”

Amateur model hates cameras? He can’t even remember his own BS.

84 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:18:08am

Somebody should Photoshop this to say “MOAR DEAD MARINES”

85 b.d.  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:18:34am

re: #82 CuriousLurker

Gah, that photo makes me gag.

I think that pose is the opposite of Heroin Chic, it makes its viewers need some. Medusa had a more appealing head shot.

86 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:19:34am

re: #81 b.d.

Jeeez.

I am impressed with the way Glenn Greenwald washes his hands 75 times a day and bottles his own urine.

None of this really surprises me. Kind of odd that they make this public.

87 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:19:59am

re: #83 Decatur Deb

“I personally hate cameras and being recorded, but at some point in the working process, I realized I was unconsciously trusting her not to hang me even with my naturally unconsidered remarks.”

Amateur model hates cameras? He can’t even remember his own BS.

Seriously weird.

88 Sol Berdinowitz  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:20:58am

re: #84 Vicious Babushka

Somebody should Photoshop this to say “MOAR DEAD MARINES”

I miss a fuzzy, nostalgic feeling of how our nation was somehow in much better shape than it is now

89 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:21:48am

“Bush dummies” used in rodeos in 1994? ISTR that Bush was not President in 1994, maybe he was working as a rodeo clown?

90 CuriousLurker  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:23:36am

Ugh, clients calling. Time to get to work. Later, lizards.

91 Justanotherhuman  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:24:25am

re: #78 lawhawk

They’re now in the reporting on the reporters phase of the story, which usually precedes the final act of the story. That, of course, missed the point that the reporting was seriously flawed and got basic and fundamental aspects of the NSA programs wrong. GG would make statements alleging misconduct that are flatly rebutted by the very documents he purports to show the misconduct.

Could these “whistle blowing” jerks be any more self-absorbed and puffed up with their own importance?

As Decatur Deb said, “He can’t even remember his own BS.” I don’t think Greenwald does much better. Serious lack of sleep. : )

92 darthstar  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:25:10am

re: #89 Vicious Babushka

“Bush dummies” used in rodeos in 1994? ISTC that Bush was not President in 1994, maybe he was working as a rodeo clown?

[Embedded content]

Shorter wingnut: IF BUSH WAS BLACK YOU WOULD ALL SOUND JUST AS RACIST AS WE ARE!!!

93 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:27:06am

Mr. Greenwald! Can you tell us about your family life?

94 Justanotherhuman  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:31:11am

“As one might imagine, normally spies allergically avoid contact with reporters or media, so I was a virgin source — everything was a surprise.” Snowden

nytimes.com

Odd use of the word “virgin”. Snowden pure as the driven snow?

This guy is actually pretty easy to figure out. See “model pose” above, too. It could be titled, “Young innocent.”

I rather think he has been this kind of poseur all his life.

95 darthstar  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:32:20am

re: #93 Gus

Mr. Greenwald! Can you tell us about your family life?

NYTImes Magazine has a story on Poitras…it has plenty of Glenn, of course.

nytimes.com

96 darthstar  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:33:08am

re: #94 Justanotherhuman

Well, he’s fucked now!

97 geoffm33  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:34:24am

re: #61 Vicious Babushka

I’m going to get called a LIBTARD and BLOCKED by these wingnuts:

[Embedded content]

You should also mention that the 14th amendment formed the basis for Roe v Wade. So, thanks!

98 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:34:29am

re: #94 Justanotherhuman

nytimes.com

This guy is actually pretty easy to figure out. See “model pose” above, too. It could be titled, “Young innocent.”

I rather think he has been this kind of poseur all his life.

U want fries with that shit sandwich:

The weight of the situation actually made it easier to focus on what was in the public interest rather than our own.

99 darthstar  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:34:49am
100 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:35:36am

re: #95 darthstar

NYTImes Magazine has a story on Poitras…it has plenty of Glenn, of course.

nytimes.com

Will save that later. This is too rich.

101 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:37:17am

THIS IS NOT ABOUT SNOWDEN OR ME!

Oops.

102 NJDhockeyfan  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:37:33am

Good morning lizards.

The latest on Alexis Murphy is that she is still missing this morning. Randy Taylor who was arrested yesterday will be in Nelson County court this afternoon for an advisement hearing. They are also looking into another missing teen case that he could be connected to.

Suspect in Murphy Case Has Touched At Least One Other Missing Teen Case

Samantha Clarke has been missing since September 13, 2010. Her mother says the suspect in Alexis Murphy’s case, Randy Taylor, was the same man who called her daughter six times in the hours before she disappeared.

Barbara Tinder, Samantha’s mother, has only anger and bad thoughts about Randy Taylor.

He’s the man she thinks last saw her daughter on that September night at his home in the Ehearts Court trailer park in Orange County. Police heavily questioned Taylor back in 2010 about Samantha because he called her several times the night she never came back to her family’s Lindsay Drive home.

Taylor was never charged with any connection to Samantha’s case but was charged with other crimes.

103 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:37:55am

This is hilarious. He’s angry at JoshTPM…

105 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:39:11am

The Greenwald!

106 Pavlovian Hive Mind  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:39:38am

re: #105 Gus

The Greenwald!

Rob Schneider!

107 Feline Fearless Leader  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:39:52am

re: #94 Justanotherhuman

“As one might imagine, normally spies allergically avoid contact with reporters or media, so I was a virgin source — everything was a surprise.” Snowden

nytimes.com

Odd use of the word “virgin”. Snowden pure as the driven snow?

This guy is actually pretty easy to figure out. See “model pose” above, too. It could be titled, “Young innocent.”

I rather think he has been this kind of poseur all his life.

In Soviet Russia pure snow drive you!
/ ;)

108 lawhawk  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:41:48am

Youtube Video

109 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:43:22am

North Carolina has signed their oppressive anti-voter act into law. That’s what I’m going to be calling this bullshit, because that’s what it is. It’s anti-voter laws.

cbsnews.com

They have been immediately sued.

110 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:43:31am

re: #106 Varek Raith

Rob Schneider!

Starring Rob Schneider, as The Greenwald.

111 Feline Fearless Leader  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:44:22am

nbcnews.com

I see this and just wonder how far the money spent doing this “jet-set” pet care would stretch towards doing pro bono clinic work to help pets of people with low incomes, no-kill animal shelters, or education programs to help people care for pets better and getting their animals vaccinated, ID chipped, and spayed.

112 Dr Lizardo  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:45:11am

re: #102 NJDhockeyfan

Good morning lizards.

The latest on Alexis Murphy is that she is still missing this morning. Randy Taylor who was arrested yesterday will be in Nelson County court this afternoon for an advisement hearing. They are also looking into another missing teen case that he could be connected to.

Suspect in Murphy Case Has Touched At Least One Other Missing Teen Case

I’ve been following it; I’m sure the authorities are looking at a few mysterious disappearances in the Central VA region. I’m not sure he could be tied to the Route 29 Stalker, as it looks like Taylor was in the slammer when Alicia Reynolds was killed. But I’m sure the FBI is looking at everything at this point. My spidey-sense tells me there’s a chance this guy could be a serial killer.

113 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:46:14am
114 bratwurst  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:46:44am
115 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:49:55am

“Mr. Greenwald, I see you have two dogs. Do you own a cat?”

117 Justanotherhuman  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:51:41am

re: #103 Gus

This is hilarious. He’s angry at JoshTPM…

[Embedded content]

Particularly hilarious: “I think everyone was reassured by the obsessive attention to precaution and bona fides.”

What fucking “attention to precaution” and what bona fides?

Look, does Snowden think we don’t know he had been in touch with Poitras and Greenwald before he even went to work at NSA?

This guy must think he’s a fucking genius for pulling the wool over so many eyes, esp the Great Greenwald.

118 Pavlovian Hive Mind  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:52:55am

re: #116 Varek Raith

Lol.

The_C_a_t
• 26 minutes ago

Oh, hahahahahahahahaha! Russia’s moral compass. Um, they’re godless commies, Pat. Don’t you remember?

119 b.d.  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:53:40am

Glenn Greenwald’s cat hates Obama and is fluent in Portuguese.

120 bratwurst  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:53:41am
121 NJDhockeyfan  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:53:42am

re: #112 Dr Lizardo

I’ve been following it; I’m sure the authorities are looking at a few mysterious disappearances in the Central VA region. I’m not sure he could be tied to the Route 29 Stalker, as it looks like Taylor was in the slammer when Alicia Reynolds was killed. But I’m sure the FBI is looking at everything at this point. My spidey-sense tells me there’s a chance this guy could be a serial killer.

A question going around is did he act alone or is there another person involved. He grabbed her in Nelson County. Her car ended up in Charlottesville. How would he have be able to kidnap her, at some point drop her car off in Charlottesville and get back home (or wherever he ended up that night) without someone else giving him a ride? It’s not like he could have taken the bus or a taxi.

122 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:56:10am

re: #119 b.d.

Glenn Greenwald’s cat hates Obama and is fluent in Portuguese.

Glenn Greenwald’s cat memes!

123 b.d.  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:58:08am

re: #122 Gus

Glenn Greenwald’s cat memes!

Glenn Greenwald has blocked Glenn Greenwald’s cat on twitter.

124 Dr Lizardo  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:58:23am

re: #121 NJDhockeyfan

A question going around is did he act alone or is there another person involved. He grabbed her in Nelson County. Her car ended up in Charlottesville. How would he have be able to kidnap her, at some point drop her car off in Charlottesville and get back home (or wherever he ended up that night) without someone else giving him a ride? It’s not like he could have taken the bus or a taxi.

Good point. Her car ends up in the parking lot of movie theater in Charlottesville; granted, Taylor has that Suburban, but if he kidnapped her, then drove her car to the parking lot and ditched it, how did he get back home?

One possibility is that Taylor had his Suburban pre-positioned at the theater parking lot. But then in that scenario, how did he get back to Nelson County?

125 Justanotherhuman  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:58:24am

re: #111 Feline Fearless Leader

nbcnews.com

I see this and just wonder how far the money spent doing this “jet-set” pet care would stretch towards doing pro bono clinic work to help pets of people with low incomes, no-kill animal shelters, or education programs to help people care for pets better and getting their animals vaccinated, ID chipped, and spayed.

I love pets, but jesushchristonabicycle, this is just the empty kind of monied degeneracy I detest in the wealthy whose bubbles protect them from the insanity they inflict on the world.

126 Decatur Deb  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:59:24am

re: #100 Gus

Will save that later. This is too rich.

It’s well worth a long read. Most significantly the timeline shows Snowden meets the definition of ‘spy’, not ‘whistleblower’. (Or else he was BS’ing GG and Poitras too.)

127 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:01:04am

re: #126 Decatur Deb

It’s well worth a long read. Most significantly the timeline shows Snowden meets the definition of ‘spy’, not ‘whistleblower’. (Or else he was BS’ing GG and Poitras too.)

Looks like a lot of fluff too. No?

128 Pavlovian Hive Mind  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:01:20am

What’s the matter Glenn, cat got your tongue?

129 Internet Tough Guy  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:01:51am

I’m sorry Glenn; Josh is too busy documenting the destruction of minority voting rights to lick your nuts.

130 Decatur Deb  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:02:46am

re: #127 Gus

Looks like a lot of fluff too. No?

Fan magazine crush.

131 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:02:56am

*FACE PALM*
Cherry picking at its finest.

132 Pavlovian Hive Mind  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:08:20am

Sick of Snowden/GG.
So here’s an upside down car.

i.chzbgr.com

133 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:08:21am

Another Tweep death. Heart attack. Didn’t know the man much but I recognize the avi.

134 NJDhockeyfan  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:08:35am

re: #124 Dr Lizardo

Good point. Her car ends up in the parking lot of movie theater in Charlottesville; granted, Taylor has that Suburban, but if he kidnapped her, then drove her car to the parking lot and ditched it, how did he get back home?

One possibility is that Taylor had his Suburban pre-positioned at the theater parking lot. But then in that scenario, how did he get back to Nelson County?

That’s the question. She left home heading to Lynchburg. Her car end up in Charlottesville. Something ain’t right.

135 lawhawk  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:09:12am

re: #122 Gus

Greenwald’s cat simultaneously spies on everyone and no one.

Greenwald’s cat is Schrodinger’s cat in disguise, except we know the contents of the NSA files if the cat dies.

136 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:09:43am
137 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:12:39am

re: #135 lawhawk

Greenwald’s cat simultaneously spies on everyone and no one.

Greenwald’s cat is Schrodinger’s cat in disguise, except we know the contents of the NSA files if the cat dies.

I guess this means Greenwald is not only up for a Pulitzer but also an Emmy.

138 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:14:09am

re: #137 Gus

I guess this means Greenwald is not only up for a Pulitzer but also an Emmy.

Why not name him Miss Universe while we’re at it?

139 Feline Fearless Leader  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:16:17am

re: #138 Vicious Babushka

Why not name him Miss Universe while we’re at it?

Nobel, Obie, Pulitzer, Emmy. Award Grand Slam.

NOPE. ;)

140 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:16:47am
141 Pavlovian Hive Mind  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:17:08am

re: #140 Gus

[Embedded content]

Whut.

142 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:17:55am

re: #141 Varek Raith

Whut.

Exactly.

143 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:18:39am

Friday was a bad day for LG as 20 people were injured at an event the company held to promote its latest smartphone.

LG announced the new G2 earlier this month, and last week, it reportedly held an event at a public park in northern Seoul where it released balloons with coupons attached. According to the Korea Times, there were 100 coupons for free G2 smartphones.

The coupons attracted quite a motivated crowd, with some attendees showing up with BB guns to shoot the balloons down so they could get one of the coupons, according to the report.

Happened in South Korea.

144 geoffm33  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:19:54am

re: #142 Gus

Exactly.

If they had just voted for Obama they would have gotten a free phone anyway.

145 Mattand  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:20:57am

re: #131 Vicious Babushka

*FACE PALM*
Cherry picking at its finest.

[Embedded content]

I got much laughter out of a conservative pretending he gives a shit about people earning a livable wage.

146 b.d.  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:20:59am

re: #139 Feline Fearless Leader

Nobel, Obie, Pulitzer, Emmy. Award Grand Slam.

NOPE. ;)

Greenwald should have his own seat on the UN Security Council.

147 Dr Lizardo  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:21:10am

re: #134 NJDhockeyfan

That’s the question. She left home heading to Lynchburg. Her car end up in Charlottesville. Something ain’t right.

Yes, and to the best of anyone’s knowledge, Taylor isn’t talking. That leaves it to the authorities to put it all together.

148 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:21:23am

re: #144 geoffm33

If they had just voted for Obama they would have gotten a free phone anyway.

OBAMA’S DRONE POLICY HAS LED TO ZIMMERMAN AND A STAND YOUR GROUND MENTALITY WHICH HAS MADE ITS WAY TO THE SOUTH KOREAN CULTURE AND GONE GLOBAL NO THANKS TO OBAMA DRONES.

149 Feline Fearless Leader  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:22:17am

re: #148 Gus

OBAMA’S DRONE POLICY HAS LED TO ZIMMERMAN AND A STAND YOUR GROUND MENTALITY WHICH HAS MADE IT’S WAY TO THE SOUTH KOREAN CULTURE AND GONE GLOBAL NO THANKS TO OBAMA DRONES.

Doesn’t standing your ground make it easier for the drone to target you?
O_O

150 Mattand  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:22:43am

Speaking of laughter:

Paging through the comments section at the TPM talking about Snowden’s recent NYT interview. Looking like the bloom is off of the rose for many people. I’m honestly getting the impression that people may be waking up to the Greenwald’s Glenn Beck impersonation.

151 Dr. Matt  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:22:56am

re: #136 Vicious Babushka

Bo, stop trying to make fetch happen. pic.twitter.com/Ez6hWGFpFc

— The White House (@whitehouse) August 13, 2013

I’m sure the teahadists will someone believe the president is threatening them or attacking their freedumbs.

152 geoffm33  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:24:57am


re: This…

Obama’s Dirty Dishes

153 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:24:59am

re: #145 Mattand

I got much laughter out of a conservative pretending he gives a shit about people earning a livable wage.

BUT LOOK TEH CONTAINER STORE PAYS ITS WORKERS A LIVING WAGE AND THERE PRICES RR 4 TIMES MOAR EXPENSIF THEN WALMART!!!11!!!!

No mention of Costco or that other store (Winco?) that is underpricing Wallyworld.

154 Pavlovian Hive Mind  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:26:27am

Still processing that one….

155 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:27:00am

Now wingnuts *HEART* Vlad Teh Putin, he is MOAR MANLY than Ronald Reagan even.

156 Pavlovian Hive Mind  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:27:19am

i.chzbgr.com

157 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:27:55am

THANK YOU FRACKING!!!1

158 Pavlovian Hive Mind  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:28:35am

Protip, we’d still kick Putin’s autocratic ass.

159 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:29:22am

re: #152 geoffm33

[Embedded content]

re: This…

Obama’s Dirty Dishes

Markos Moulitsas | CATO Unbound

160 Sol Berdinowitz  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:29:26am

re: #153 Vicious Babushka

BUT LOOK TEH CONTAINER STORE PAYS ITS WORKERS A LIVING WAGE AND THERE PRICES RR 4 TIMES MOAR EXPENSIF THEN WALMART!!!11!!!!

No mention of Costco or that other store (Winco?) that is underpricing Wallyworld.

It is assumed that humans = copier paper and staples in that, the less you pay for said items, the lower your costs, it is the sort of linear function they can get their pea brains wrapped around.

They do not begin to grasp the cost that labor costs and producticvity (and therefore the costs of production/operation) are not connected on a directly linear scale.

161 geoffm33  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:32:58am

re: #155 Vicious Babushka

It could be worse….
Mom Jeans Mitt

162 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:33:13am

re: #152 geoffm33

[Embedded content]

re: This…

Obama’s Dirty Dishes

Also. Stupid cartoon.

163 Dr Lizardo  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:33:41am

re: #134 NJDhockeyfan

And I just saw on Twitter than contrary to earlier reports, the FBI is saying that Ms. Murphy’s cellphone has not been found.

164 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:35:29am

re: #162 Gus

Yeah. That one is just.. confused.

165 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:36:24am

re: #156 Varek Raith

You know that’s reversed, right?

166 Decatur Deb  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:36:34am

re: #164 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

Yeah. Tomorrow can be brilliant, but that one is just.. confused.

And pointlessly insulting.

167 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:37:30am

re: #166 Decatur Deb

Any time you find yourself drawing a woman with her hands on her hips and you’re not being, like, super-ironic, you’re fucking up.

168 bubba zanetti  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:38:10am

re: #164 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

Yeah. Tomorrow can be brilliant, but that one is just.. confused.

That’s Matt Bors.

169 Internet Tough Guy  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:38:33am

re: #159 Gus

Oh wow. I did not know that.

Shit. Is anyone in progressive blogosphere trustworthy?

Should I demand to see Charles’ tax forms and bank statements to make sure he ain’t a Koch whore?

170 Pavlovian Hive Mind  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:38:43am

re: #165 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

You know that’s reversed, right?

Do now.
Heh.

171 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:40:47am
172 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:41:26am

Strange bedfellows…

173 geoffm33  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:41:42am

WTF? I don’t even.

174 NJDhockeyfan  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:41:48am

re: #163 Dr Lizardo

And I just saw on Twitter than contrary to earlier reports, the FBI is saying that Ms. Murphy’s cellphone has not been found.

[Embedded content]

There are some assholes out there who will spread false reports just to see what happens. I saw a few tweets stating Alexis Murphy was found while her mother was crying in front of the cameras during the news conference yesterday. These people need to get a life.

175 geoffm33  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:43:22am

No, you would have called him much worse than that. And still do in the comfort of friends.

176 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:43:33am

re: #168 bubba zanetti

That’s Matt Bors.

Oh, thanks. Don’t know why I thought it was Tomorrow. Glad to hear Tomorrow didn’t do it, actually.

177 Pavlovian Hive Mind  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:44:08am

re: #172 Vicious Babushka

Strange bedfellows…

[Embedded content]

Mostly because a lot of you guys still call it the Soviet Union???

178 Internet Tough Guy  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:44:10am

I like this newfound right-wing love for a former Soviet KGB agent/current Russian dictator. It really shows everyone where their loyalties truly lie.

179 Mattand  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:44:16am

re: #155 Vicious Babushka

Now wingnuts *HEART* Vlad Teh Putin, he is MOAR MANLY than Ronald Reagan even.

[Embedded content]

180 Interesting Times  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:44:41am

re: #164 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

Yeah. Tomorrow can be brilliant, but that one is just.. confused.

The cartoon was by Matt Bors, not Tom Tomorrow - check the signature in the bottom-right corner: Image: 1019.png

Comments to the original dKos article clarified this as well (and yes, there are people in the comments objecting to the cartoon itself)

181 geoffm33  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:44:42am
182 Dr Lizardo  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:44:48am

re: #174 NJDhockeyfan

There are some assholes out there who will spread false reports just to see what happens. I saw a few tweets stating Alexis Murphy was found while her mother was crying in front of the cameras during the news conference yesterday. These people need to get a life.

I agree; I despise that kind of BS.

I really do wonder whether this Taylor fellow has done something like this before, and as you pointed out, if he had an apprentice/accomplice. Like I said, my gut says “serial killer”.

183 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:46:02am

re: #181 geoffm33

[Embedded content]

So, who came up with that hashtag?

184 lawhawk  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:47:07am

re: #179 Mattand

They fetishizing support for Putin, who’s running Russia as an autocrat, and stomping on civil and human rights at every opportunity.

Figures.

185 Dr Lizardo  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:47:08am

re: #181 geoffm33

[Embedded content]

Seeing that kind of twaddle makes me reconsider the whole re-education camp idea, as in maybe it’d be a good thing.

*headdesk*

186 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:47:10am

re: #182 Dr Lizardo

We had something like this during the storms, where Twitter filled up with almost as much disinformation as real information. It really showed that Twitter is not a net positive unless you organize it and work at it, in emergency situations. You have to use it right, both as the people putting info out and the people looking for info.

187 Lidane  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:47:58am


ZOMG! Obummer missed a putt! Putin wouldn’t miss.

////

188 geoffm33  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:48:47am
189 Pavlovian Hive Mind  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:49:00am

re: #187 Lidane

[Embedded content]


ZOMG! Obummer missed a putt! Putin wouldn’t miss.

////

FFS…

190 Dr Lizardo  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:49:16am

re: #186 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

We had something like this during the storms, where Twitter filled up with almost as much disinformation as real information. It really showed that Twitter is not a net positive unless you organize it and work at it, in emergency situations. You have to use it right, both as the people putting info out and the people looking for info.

An excellent point. I can’t even imagine what Twitter would be like if there were another major terrorist incident in the US; a big one, like 9/11.

Hoo boy.

191 Pavlovian Hive Mind  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:49:35am

WTF is with wingnuts and their new found love of Putin!?
Jesus…

192 geoffm33  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:49:53am

re: #183 Gus

So, who came up with that hashtag?

No Idea. But it’s got a lot of people showing their asses.

193 Lidane  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:50:25am

GOHMERT!

194 Dr Lizardo  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:50:45am

re: #191 Varek Raith

WTF is with wingnuts and their new found love of Putin!?
Jesus…

They’re simply revealing their inner love for authoritarian leaders, which really shouldn’t come as any surprise.

195 Lidane  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:51:04am

re: #191 Varek Raith

WTF is with wingnuts and their new found love of Putin!?
Jesus…

Putin arrests people for being gay. Conservatives love that. They wish we’d do it here.

196 NJDhockeyfan  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:53:16am
197 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:53:40am

WEN U CALLS US A RASSICT IT PRUVZ TAHT U R TEH RACISST!!11!!

198 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:54:35am

How can this much stupid stay alive?

199 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:55:05am

He represents the interests of both Wall Street and Silicon Valley, two very prosperous industries full of incredibly arrogant rich men who believe that the world’s problems would be solved if arrogant rich men exactly like themselves were given free rein to make as much money as possible by any means necessary!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

200 Justanotherhuman  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:57:02am

re: #198 Vicious Babushka

How can this much stupid stay alive?

[Embedded content]

Too long for my sensibilities. : )

201 Dr Lizardo  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:57:57am

re: #196 NJDhockeyfan

[Embedded content]

Maybe he was stalking her?

202 Targetpractice  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:59:12am

re: #191 Varek Raith

WTF is with wingnuts and their new found love of Putin!?
Jesus…

Same reason they slobbered over Tony Blair and still to this day think that Pinochet was a great guy: Because they don’t live under his rule.

203 NJDhockeyfan  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 8:59:53am

re: #201 Dr Lizardo

Maybe he was stalking her?

Possible. It doesn’t say if he was seen getting in her car.

204 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:00:30am

#mockobamaday is just the worst of the worst.

205 Mattand  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:00:49am

re: #188 geoffm33

[Embedded content]

Assuming it hasn’t already happened, it’s just a matter of time before the really racist Photoshop jobs start popping up on this hashtag.

EDIT: changed “thread” to “hashtag”.

206 Mike Lamb  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:01:34am

MockObamaDay? Isn’t that every day for these jerkoffs?

207 geoffm33  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:02:17am

re: #206 Mike Lamb

MockObamaDay? Isn’t that every day for these jerkoffs?

Just like White History Month.

208 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:02:17am

re: #206 Mike Lamb

MockObamaDay? Isn’t that every day for these jerkoffs?

Yeah, but now it is concentrated into a superduper collection of crazy.

209 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:03:09am

re: #206 Mike Lamb

I asked one, and he basically admitted, that yeah, that’s the case. Seriously.

210 Lidane  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:05:33am
211 Dr Lizardo  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:06:51am

re: #203 NJDhockeyfan

Possible. It doesn’t say if he was seen getting in her car.

Yeah; I wonder if Taylor is holding out for a plea deal and that’s why he hasn’t said anything that anyone knows of.

213 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:07:35am
214 Mike Lamb  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:08:01am

re: #208 Vicious Babushka

Yeah, but now it is concentrated into a superduper collection of crazy.

I take it we were just at “super” and can only add the “duper” when the day is designated for shenanigans?

215 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:09:23am
216 geoffm33  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:09:48am

re: #214 Mike Lamb

I take it we were just at “super” and can only add the “duper” when the day is designated for shenanigans?

I swear to God I’ll pistol whip the next guy that says ‘Shenanigans’

Youtube Video

217 Carlos Diggler  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:11:26am

Rep. Louie Gohmert says Obama is promoting jealousy, envy and “racial tension and violence

Black people cause white people to be racist.

Black people, white liberals, and the MainStweamMediuh are the real racists.

Slutty wimmens cause rape.

Evil liberal scientists want to establish a new world order by lying about global warming because they want to control you.

Tax breaks on the 1% will make the rest of us wealthy.

Orwell’s only flaw in his epic vision is that it took a cunning and sinister group of intelligent people to subvert the targeted population. In reality, a bunch of fucking morons can pull it off as long as the targeted population is that stupid and there’s a fair amount of money spent promoting it.

218 Targetpractice  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:11:50am

re: #215 Vicious Babushka

[Embedded content]

Watching the monkeys throw shit at each other and then laughing about it. Not that that’s different from any other day, Glenn, but ya’ll make it so much fun to watch regardless.

219 Bulworth  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:12:01am

re: #212 geoffm33

Skewed!!!

220 Targetpractice  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:12:49am

re: #217 Carlos Diggler

Rep. Louie Gohmert says Obama is promoting jealousy, envy and “racial tension and violence

Black people cause white people to be racist.

Black people, white liberals, and the MainStweamMediuh are the real racists.

Slutty wimmens cause rape.

Evil liberal scientists want to establish a new world order by lying about global warming because they want to control you.

Tax breaks on the 1% will make the rest of us wealthy.

Orwell’s only flaw in his epic vision is that it took a cunning and sinister group of intelligent people to subvert the targeted population. In reality, a bunch of fucking morons can pull it off as long as the targeted population is that stupid and there’s a fair amount of money spent promoting it.

Right ideas, wrong author. Check out Huxley and Brave New World.

221 Bulworth  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:12:53am

re: #215 Vicious Babushka

Stay classy, Glenn

222 Lidane  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:14:13am
223 Bulworth  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:17:26am

re: #215 Vicious Babushka

I see. Beck has gone from “On Monday I’ll reveal the double super secret behind the Saudi National and the Boston Bombing that will take down this administration” to “I got nothing. Let’s just do a Mock Obama Day, hardee-harr-harr.”

224 Justanotherhuman  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:18:15am

“Many of those from the extreme left are using scare tactics…”

Our idiot governor of NC on why he obeys Art Pope and the fear-mongering Republicans running the General Assembly.

Youtube Video

225 Lidane  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:19:33am

Heh.

226 Political Atheist  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:19:56am

re: #62 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

When you say ‘we’, who do you mean? Because I don’t. I want all the people who have guns who don’t actually need them to realize that, and stop owning them.

By “we” I mean those who actually understand how gun safety training happens, want it to happen and who appreciate the desire for a gun, not just the need. Want and need are personal decisions by the individuals or families involved. There is self defense and then there is all those target and hunting sports. And subsistence hunting in our remote areas.

Beyond that it would be great for school employees to get a particular kind of gun safety class. There is no live ammo or shooting. It’s a pure safe handling class designed for people like teachers or parents who may find a gun and need to handle it enough to unload it or open it safely then take out of harms way. Like from a confiscated backpack or a locker. Or as we have seen a lost gun in a bathroom. Pure safety and handling, not shooting and certainly not promoting the sport.

Are you saying this guy wasn’t an insured, certified pro?

Absolutely not. I am saying the chances of an accident in class are far less with a trained, certified and insured pro instructor than with a casual shooter friend or online or from a book.

227 NJDhockeyfan  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:20:44am
228 lawhawk  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:23:19am

re: #215 Vicious Babushka

#MockingtheMockers

229 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:24:10am

re: #228 lawhawk

#MockingtheMockers

No Tweet results for #MockingtheMockers.

230 geoffm33  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:24:49am
231 geoffm33  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:25:14am

re: #229 Vicious Babushka

No Tweet results for #MockingtheMockers.

Yet.

232 lawhawk  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:26:21am
233 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:26:47am

Oh wait, 96% of new cars ALREADY HAVE THEM.

234 Lidane  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:29:02am
235 geoffm33  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:30:12am
236 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:32:29am


Butthurt.

237 lawhawk  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:33:04am

re: #233 Vicious Babushka

According to NHTSA data, 96% of model year 2013 cars already have them installed. The rule would make it mandatory (in other words, getting the remaining 4% of cars sold annually) to include the data recorders, which have been critical tools in how insurance companies and manufacturers can assess collisions, survivability, and even liability.

238 Carlos Diggler  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:35:03am

Beck and his minions don’t understand mockery.

It is OK for sane and rational people to mock idiots.

Idiots need to act sane and appear rational to have a conversation with other sane people.

Otherwise, when idiots mock sane people, it’s just more idiocy.

There is a double standard. And there should be.

239 Lidane  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:35:59am
240 Dr Lizardo  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:37:06am

re: #227 NJDhockeyfan

[Embedded content]

Creepy. As in a Norman Bates level of creepiness.

241 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:38:27am


Spineless! Derp.

242 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:39:30am

re: #237 lawhawk

According to NHTSA data, 96% of model year 2013 cars already have them installed. The rule would make it mandatory (in other words, getting the remaining 4% of cars sold annually) to include the data recorders, which have been critical tools in how insurance companies and manufacturers can assess collisions, survivability, and even liability.

I totally want a dashcam on my next lease!

243 lawhawk  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:40:48am

re: #242 Vicious Babushka

Where do you think you are? Russia? /

In Soviet Russia, dash cams you.

244 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:40:51am

re: #226 Political Atheist

By “we” I mean those who actually understand how gun safety training happens, want it to happen and who appreciate the desire for a gun, not just the need. Want and need are personal decisions by the individuals or families involved. There is self defense and then there is all those target and hunting sports. And subsistence hunting in our remote areas.

I appreciate the desire for a gun, I just don’t think it’s very important compared to the safety implications. The ‘self-defense’ argument is what I’m particularly talking about, since most people do not have any need of a gun for self-defense.

I wonder how many people actually know crime rates have plummeted?

245 NJDhockeyfan  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:41:02am

re: #240 Dr Lizardo

Creepy. As in a Norman Bates level of creepiness.

She has a pretty active Twitter account. This was her last tweet:

246 Dr Lizardo  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:42:45am

re: #245 NJDhockeyfan

She has a pretty active Twitter account. This was her last tweet:

[Embedded content]

Interesting. The timestamp shows August 4 at 12:40 a.m. for that Tweet. Yet she was last seen August 3rd, several hours earlier. Where was she when she sent that Tweet?

247 Justanotherhuman  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:44:07am

Don’t have enough attention deficit? I suppose you could conceivably also watch 2 programs yourself at one time…

Samsung brings dual view feature to OLED TV

A new OLED high definition TV from Samsung delivers vibrant video, but also has a “marriage saver” feature that lets two people watch different programs simultaneously.

usatoday.com

I hardly think that this TV will be “saving marriages” when everyone is totally absorbed in their electronics and not talking to each other.

248 Dr Lizardo  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:45:21am

re: #245 NJDhockeyfan

She has a pretty active Twitter account. This was her last tweet:

[Embedded content]

Finally, the story seems to have made national news. Though I confess, I’m not exactly the messengers biggest fan.

249 Political Atheist  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:45:58am

re: #244 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

I appreciate the desire for a gun, I just don’t think it’s very important compared to the safety implications. The ‘self-defense’ argument is what I’m particularly talking about, since most people do not have any need of a gun for self-defense.

I wonder how many people actually know crime rates have plummeted?

Okay, wishing lots of people would get rid of the guns is fine of course. There is so much overlap between defensive and sporting use and there are so many guns out there already…. Do you support or oppose the handling & safety training I suggested above for those teachers and janitors you mentioned that would volunteer to attend?

250 lawhawk  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:46:03am

re: #246 Dr Lizardo

Note that this time is local time to you, depending on your Twitter timezone settings. In other words, it reflects the time zone you’re viewing the twitter post in. More here.

251 NJDhockeyfan  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:47:41am

re: #248 Dr Lizardo

Finally, the story seems to have made national news. Though I confess, I’m not exactly the messengers biggest fan.

[Embedded content]

Nancy Grace has been bombarded with tweets since yesterday morning about this case. I’m glad she finally responded. Maybe some of the other cable news channels will do the same.

252 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:47:46am

re: #249 Political Atheist

Okay, wishing lots of people would get rid of the guns is fine of course. There is so much overlap between defensive and sporting use and there are so many guns out there already…. Do you support or oppose the handling & safety training I suggested above for those teachers and janitors you mentioned that would volunteer to attend?

I don’t want teachers or janitors to be armed at all, so I guess oppose? I’m not really sure what you’re asking.

253 Dr Lizardo  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:47:56am

re: #250 lawhawk

Note that this time is local time to you, depending on your Twitter timezone settings. In other words, it reflects the time zone you’re viewing the twitter post in.

Ah, ha; I didn’t know that about the Twitter. I thought it would reflect the local date/time when the Tweet was originally sent.

254 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:48:15am

re: #246 Dr Lizardo

Interesting. The timestamp shows August 4 at 12:40 a.m. for that Tweet. Yet she was last seen August 3rd, several hours earlier. Where was she when she sent that Tweet?

I’m seeing a timestamp of 22:40 UTC, offset to the Eastern time zone would make it Aug 3, 6:40 PM, maybe you are seeing a different offset because you are in Europe?

255 geoffm33  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:48:24am

re: #250 lawhawk

Note that this time is local time to you, depending on your Twitter timezone settings. In other words, it reflects the time zone you’re viewing the twitter post in.

Correct. Says “6:40 PM - 3 Aug 2013” for me. If you hover over the timestamp it shows UTC time.

256 Dr Lizardo  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:49:52am

re: #254 Vicious Babushka

re: #255 geoffm33

OK. Well, I learned something new today and a new wrinkle has formed in my brain. :)

257 Lidane  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:50:07am

Does anyone have experience dealing with parents and/or in-laws with Alzheimer’s? Been talking to my uncle via text today and it seems like my mom’s condition is getting worse. I’m at a loss here.

258 geoffm33  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:52:27am

RE: Par Gate:

259 Justanotherhuman  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:54:28am

re: #258 geoffm33

RE: Par Gate:

[Embedded content]

So yawn-worthy, isn’t it?

260 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:55:34am

re: #257 Lidane

I’m so sorry. I have experience with my grandfather and grandmother, but not with an immediate parent.

261 NJDhockeyfan  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:56:00am

re: #248 Dr Lizardo

Finally, the story seems to have made national news. Though I confess, I’m not exactly the messengers biggest fan.

[Embedded content]


Yup.

262 Political Atheist  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:57:03am

re: #252 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

I don’t want teachers or janitors to be armed at all, so I guess oppose? I’m not really sure what you’re asking.

Did you read the nature of the class I described above? I think not. It’s pure safety and handling so a person could safely pick up, unload or check it and move a gun out of harms way. NOT about arming them. It’s for the adult in the “stop, don’t touch, tell an adult” lesson given children that might someday find one or be with a friend that finds one.

263 geoffm33  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:57:15am

re: #259 Justanotherhuman

So yawn-worthy, isn’t it?

Very much so.

264 Feline Fearless Leader  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:58:55am

re: #194 Dr Lizardo

They’re simply revealing their inner love for authoritarian white leaders, which really shouldn’t come as any surprise.

FTFY.

265 Carlos Diggler  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 9:59:15am

re: #247 Justanotherhuman

Don’t have enough attention deficit? I suppose you could conceivably also watch 2 programs yourself at one time…

Samsung brings dual view feature to OLED TV

A new OLED high definition TV from Samsung delivers vibrant video, but also has a “marriage saver” feature that lets two people watch different programs simultaneously.

usatoday.com

I hardly think that this TV will be “saving marriages” when everyone is totally absorbed in their electronics and not talking to each other.

That’s really more of a gaming feature similar to Sony’s Simulview. But it’s cool either way. For that price it won’t move that fast and you still have to wear glasses.

Love the PressReleaseSpeak:

Samsung’s new 55-inch curved display, priced at $9,000 (actually $8.999.99)

Samsung says it improved its manufacturing process enough to yield displays more efficiently and decided to drop the price, undercutting LG in the process.

Yeah, riiiight.

Consumers have coveted OLED TVs since the first were shown more than five years ago, because the super-thin displays reproduce super-saturated colors, ultra-distinct blacks and whites and virtually no motion blur. But they have been hard to manufacture.

Analyst Ken Park of DisplaySearch projects that as few as 20,000 OLED displays will be shipped globally this year…

Sounds like coveting to me.

266 Lidane  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:00:12am

re: #260 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

I’m so sorry. I have experience with my grandfather and grandmother, but not with an immediate parent.

Yeah, my mom has it. My aunt and uncle are the primary caregivers since they live five minutes from her house and I’m 300+ miles away, but I keep in touch with them a lot and try and stay in the loop. We hired a live in caretaker for her who has experience with Alzheimer’s patients, but I’m thinking that mom is moving into the later stages of the disease, just based on what my uncle is telling me today.

I might have to face the decision of putting her in a nursing home soon if things don’t improve. There’s only so much care that can be done at home, you know?

267 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:00:36am

re: #262 Political Atheist

Okay, then no, i don’t think people who don’t own guns should have a handling and safety course on guns.

268 Mattand  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:02:27am

re: #266 Lidane

Yeah, my mom has it. My aunt and uncle are the primary caregivers since they live five minutes from her house and I’m 300+ miles away, but I keep in touch with them a lot and try and stay in the loop. We hired a live in caretaker for her who has experience with Alzheimer’s patients, but I’m thinking that mom is moving into the later stages of the disease, just based on what my uncle is telling me today.

I might have to face the decision of putting her in a nursing home soon if things don’t improve. There’s only so much care that can be done at home, you know?

Sorry to hear that. That’s one disease I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy.

Hang in there.

269 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:02:31am

Salon: don’t vote for Cory Booker because he has rich friends in Silicon Valley. Just like Salon.

270 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:03:49am

Dim Jim is still Derping about the Rodeo clown.

271 Dr Lizardo  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:04:14am

re: #261 NJDhockeyfan

[Embedded content]


Yup.

On the one hand, I’m glad that she’s covering it, because she’ll bring her powers of hype to the issue.

There’s still something about Nancy Grace that just rubs me the wrong way.

272 Dr Lizardo  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:04:42am

re: #264 Feline Fearless Leader

FTFY.

Heh; how could I forget that? Silly me.

273 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:04:43am

re: #266 Lidane

We were able to keep my grandmother in her house until basically the end, for which I’m very glad because her state went down horribly whenever she was away from familiar things. But that required 24 hour home nursing at the end, from an amazing team of nurses.

My grandfather had my grandmother taking care of him up to a point, and then when the memory issues became absolutely severe— repetition of actions, mostly, so he’d spend all morning taking showers, etc— we found a really wonderful home that actually had good, caring people.

Through an admixture of fate and my grandfather’s personality, the parts of him that fell away left behind his graciousness and politeness and warmth towards others, so he was very well-loved there. But he couldn’t have been cared for at home, and he was causing my grandmother too much distress as she began her slide, too.

These are not happy or comfortable subjects and it all sucked and made me feel bad. Make sure you take care of yourself during this and don’t exhaust yourself or guilt yourself.

274 Justanotherhuman  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:05:23am

Oops: Billboards list wrong date for Detroit’s Nov. 5 general election

freep.com

275 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:06:24am

re: #274 Justanotherhuman

Oops: Billboards list wrong date for Detroit’s Nov. 5 general election

freep.com

Everybody hates Detroit.

I haz a sad. :(

276 geoffm33  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:06:26am

Here is what everyone on twitter and in comments of Voter ID Law articles are missing:

277 geoffm33  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:08:05am

re: #274 Justanotherhuman

Oops: Billboards list wrong date for Detroit’s Nov. 5 general election

freep.com

At least the wrong date was earlier than the right one.

278 Political Atheist  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:08:49am

re: #267 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

Okay well we see that very differently. I see no good reason to oppose pure gun safety classes from anyone that wants it. Teachers, parents and janitors do sometimes run across a gun that is way out of place, in harms way. If a principal is searching lockers and finds a loaded gun, it would be good for him or a trained person short of a cop to be able to image, handle, unload and remove it.

279 Interesting Times  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:08:52am

re: #266 Lidane

Yeah, my mom has it.

Talk to Floral Giraffe the next time she’s online - I’m pretty sure she dealt with a similar situation.

280 Charles Johnson  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:09:33am
281 lawhawk  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:09:47am

re: #266 Lidane

I’m real sorry to hear about this. Don’t have any experience with this particular situation, but you might try contacting a local Alzheimer’s disease support group.

On this next bit, I unfortunately have a whole lot more experience.

You, your aunt and your uncle might want to review various legal documents (living will, health care proxies, and a will if previously done) - to make sure that they’re current and that everyone understands what’s to be done in various health outcomes and who will speak for your mom on those health care decisions.

A living will and/or health care proxy can give health care decisions to an individual or to a group of people to make the decision in consultation with each other.

I know it’s a difficult thing to talk about at a time like this, but definitely needs to be discussed so that your mom gets the kind of care/treatment that she deserves.

These documents, including a HIPAA release, can let you (or the people chosen) have access to her medical records, treatment options, and discuss the situation with her doctors.

282 Bulworth  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:10:22am

re: #276 geoffm33

Here is what everyone on twitter and in comments of Voter ID Law articles are missing:

people voting early come back on election day and vote again derp derp derp

283 Sol Berdinowitz  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:12:10am

re: #282 Bulworth

people voting early come back on election day and vote again derp derp derp

we could solve a lot of problems related to voter fraud, social security/benefits fraud and illegal immigration if we simply introduced a national ID card for all citizens and one for all legal resident aliens.

any takers on that?

(crickets)

284 Justanotherhuman  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:13:00am

re: #275 Vicious Babushka

Everybody hates Detroit.

I haz a sad. :(

I don’t hate Detroit at all. It supposedly was the billboard co’s fault—are they Republicans over there at International Outdoors?

285 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:13:45am

re: #284 Justanotherhuman

I don’t hate Detroit at all. It supposedly was the billboard co’s fault—are they Republicans over there at International Outdoors?

HURR HURR U KNOW EVERY THING TAHT GOEZ WRONG IN DETROIT IT TEH LIBRULZ FAULT!!!11!!!

286 Charles Johnson  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:14:10am

It’s almost funny that the tech outlets most responsible for relentlessly promoting the spread of the gadgetry that enables NSA surveillance to work are some of the loudest, most hysterical voices yelling about NSA surveillance.

287 Feline Fearless Leader  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:14:22am

re: #283 Sol Berdinowitz

we could solve a lot of problems related to voter fraud, social security/benefits fraud and illegal immigration if we simply introduced a national ID card for all citizens and one for all legal resident aliens.

any takers on that?

(crickets)

The crickets are not interested in moving the dead horse, they are more interested in flogging it further as a incitement for their followers. Or perhaps the dead horse is simply an *obvious distraction* to cover for some other purpose.
//

288 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:15:15am

re: #278 Political Atheist

Okay well we see that very differently. I see no good reason to oppose pure gun safety classes from anyone that wants it. Teachers, parents and janitors do sometimes run across a gun that is way out of place, in harms way. If a principal is searching lockers and finds a loaded gun, it would be good for him or a trained person short of a cop to be able to image, handle, unload and remove it.

I’d rather that the teachers spent that time learning something related to teaching kids, and the janitor about fixing boilers.

And no, if a gun is found you’re not supposed to touch it before calling the cops, if you can secure the area, especially if you think the gun was involved in a crime— and if it’s in a kid’s locker, it’s immediately involved in a crime.

289 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:15:36am

Leave it to Pamela to find a link between the Racist Rodeo Clown and TEH SHARIA!!11!!

290 lawhawk  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:15:37am

re: #269 Gus

The opposition to Booker boils down to the fact that he’s got some rich and powerful Hollywood types backing him, and that he sought out the Senate seat while Lautenberg was still alive and hadn’t yet chosen to not run again.

His opponents in the race are a bunch of nondescript folks who don’t have much going for them.

Sheila Oliver thinks that we should pick her because she’s a woman and there aren’t enough women in the Senate. Sorry, but her achievements aren’t such to warrant her being there.

Pallone and Holt? Both Congressmen have done a decent job representing their districts, but can’t champion the state in the way that Booker can. Booker has a charisma that none of the others in the race have.

And Lonegan (his presumptive GOP opponent in the general election), is an ass who thinks that Booker’s only going to win because he’s black. Lonegan ignores that he’s lost statewide elections to Christie and that’s with substantially the same demographics as the general election. He’s got a racist operating his twitter account and doesn’t understand that he’s looking worse and worse every time he goes near the issue. Even Christie said that Lonegan’s wrong for doing what he’s done re: that racist tweet, but Christie will back Lonegan in the general election - though I don’t expect him to campaign vigorously for him.

291 Ian G.  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:18:02am

Good afternoon, lizards. I was busy at work and am checking in during my lunch break to see what’s going on in wingnut land. Oh, I see a former KGB colonel who imprisons and murders his political opponents is now a hero to the right because he hates teh gay.

Remind me again why the right doesn’t like Iran? They actually execute their gays, unlike the Russians.

292 lawhawk  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:19:33am

re: #280 Charles Johnson

Coming to a southwestern state if the precipitation patterns don’t change for the better (and wetter).

293 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:20:21am

Matt Bors cartoon at Daily Kos.

294 Targetpractice  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:21:08am

re: #291 Ian G.

Good afternoon, lizards. I was busy at work and am checking in during my lunch break to see what’s going on in wingnut land. Oh, I see a former KGB colonel who imprisons and murders his political opponents is now a hero to the right because he hates teh gay.

Remind me again why the right doesn’t like Iran? They actually execute their gays, unlike the Russians.

Putin’s the right kinda authoritarian in their book, namely that he claims to be a religious guy, but his religion is based on the Bible. They can gets behind that kinda theocracy.

295 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:22:09am

re: #293 Gus

It’s just not even funny. I don’t get if he’s trying to satire the analogy that Obama used, or… it’s just not actually funny.

The personilzation of all this “Obama’s reading my emails” has been nutty, and again, I’ve been unpleasantly surprised to see wider amounts of racism in the tech industry than among my non-techy friends.

296 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:22:45am

re: #295 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

It’s just not even funny. I don’t get if he’s trying to satire the analogy that Obama used, or… it’s just not actually funny.

The personilzation of all this “Obama’s reading my emails” has been nutty, and again, I’ve been unpleasantly surprised to see wider amounts of racism in the tech industry than among my non-techy friends.

Some Tweeps are saying it’s racist.

297 Bulworth  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:23:25am

re: #293 Gus

What RWNJ site is this Kos? ///

298 Charles Johnson  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:24:16am
299 Interesting Times  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:24:21am

re: #296 Gus

Some Tweeps are saying it’s racist.

The “creepers gonna creep” line treads pretty damn close - it reminds me of the wingnut who drew cartoons portraying Obama as a gangbanger thug.

300 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:27:25am

re: #296 Gus

Some Tweeps are saying it’s racist.

I don’t think it is racist, I think that it’s so bad that you look for meaning in it and the hands-on-the-hips thing and the ‘please baby’ bit start looking racist. But I don’t think there’s any real racism, just a failed joke about a black guy that kind of looks racist because, most of the time, unfunny jokes about black guys are racist.

301 Sol Berdinowitz  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:27:56am

re: #294 Targetpractice

Putin’s the right kinda authoritarian in their book, namely that he claims to be a religious guy, but his religion is based on the Bible. They can gets behind that kinda theocracy.

Don’t forget that Russia also has laws making it punishable to offend people’s religious sensibilities. The theocrats here just drool over the prospect of legislation like that…

302 Charles Johnson  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:28:57am
303 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:29:09am

re: #300 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

I don’t think it is racist, I think that it’s so bad that you look for meaning in it and the hands-on-the-hips thing and the ‘please baby’ bit start looking racist. But I don’t think there’s any real racism, just a failed joke about a black guy that kind of looks racist because, most of the time, unfunny jokes about black guys are racist.

I remember Ted Rall used to draw these really stupid cartoons of Condi Rice as a parrot perched on GWB’s shoulder, and FReepers thought this was “racist” but it was just lame.

304 Dr Lizardo  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:30:05am

re: #301 Sol Berdinowitz

Don’t forget that Russia also has laws making it punishable to offend people’s religious sensibilities. The theocrats here just drool over the prospect of legislation like that…

The theocrats drool until they find out such legislation would also apply to MUZLIMZ!

305 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:31:15am
306 Carlos Danger  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:31:32am

re: #290 lawhawk

…
And Lonegan (his presumptive GOP opponent in the general election), is an ass who thinks that Booker’s only going to win because he’s black. Lonegan ignores that he’s lost statewide elections to Christie and that’s with substantially the same demographics as the general election. He’s got a racist operating his twitter account and doesn’t understand that he’s looking worse and worse every time he goes near the issue. Even Christie said that Lonegan’s wrong for doing what he’s done re: that racist tweet, but Christie will back Lonegan in the general election - though I don’t expect him to campaign vigorously for him.

Lonegan sounds like a real piece of work. It came to my attention last month that he was trying to block the candidacy of a primary opponent by alleging fraud.

Lonegan Challenging Eck’s Petitions

It’s a real dick move because the person trying to enter the race has no real poll support or big backers.

307 Charles Johnson  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:32:22am
308 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:32:27am

Also, life expectancy at that time was like 50something.

309 Justanotherhuman  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:32:43am

re: #295 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

It’s just not even funny. I don’t get if he’s trying to satire the analogy that Obama used, or… it’s just not actually funny.

The personilzation of all this “Obama’s reading my emails” has been nutty, and again, I’ve been unpleasantly surprised to see wider amounts of racism in the tech industry than among my non-techy friends.

I don’t want to necessary typecast here, but I’ve noticed from visiting techie sites that this tends to be true:

Techies seem to be more libertarianian minded white boys, thus, more racism. Unless—there are an awful lots of techie posers out there.

Edward Snowden, anyone?

310 engineer cat  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:33:03am

re: #302 Charles Johnson

[Embedded content]

will presidential candidates in 2016, both republican and democratic, have to promise to repeal the “patriot” act?

311 jaunte  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:33:09am

re: #307 Charles Johnson

Cesca: “Liberals ought to be far more suspicious of for-profit corporations handling our private data than the government’s handling of considerably less of it. But that doesn’t appear to be the case, and this is where everything gets wacky.”

312 engineer cat  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:34:24am

re: #311 jaunte

“Liberals ought to be far more suspicious of for-profit corporations handling our private data than the government’s handling of considerably less of it. But that doesn’t appear to be the case, and this is where everything gets wacky.”

roger that!

313 Political Atheist  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:37:22am

re: #288 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

I’d rather that the teachers spent that time learning something related to teaching kids, and the janitor about fixing boilers.

And no, if a gun is found you’re not supposed to touch it before calling the cops, if you can secure the area, especially if you think the gun was involved in a crime— and if it’s in a kid’s locker, it’s immediately involved in a crime.

That’s often not practical. There are countless circumstances of a misplaced, not crime related gun that needs moving. For brevity I just picked one. Each can be nitpicked by a devout critic I suppose. But the hard critics view usually carries an agenda with it rather than objective practicality.

Is your opposition based on the supposed safety risks of a pure safety class? Remember there is no live ammo in the room with that class.

What substantive harm would come of it? Each day has 24 hours, I’m certain a safety class can be taken without shortchanging other training or work to be done. It’s really not that time consuming.

This sounds to me like a crypto or camouflaged anti gun ownership kinda thing. Respect for the right technically but actually opposed in many circumstances. Calling for a “need” by your criteria as the proper standard of ownership. Hoping I’m mistaken about that.

314 Lidane  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:40:20am

re: #281 lawhawk

On this next bit, I unfortunately have a whole lot more experience.

You, your aunt and your uncle might want to review various legal documents (living will, health care proxies, and a will if previously done) - to make sure that they’re current and that everyone understands what’s to be done in various health outcomes and who will speak for your mom on those health care decisions.

A living will and/or health care proxy can give health care decisions to an individual or to a group of people to make the decision in consultation with each other.

I know it’s a difficult thing to talk about at a time like this, but definitely needs to be discussed so that your mom gets the kind of care/treatment that she deserves.

These documents, including a HIPAA release, can let you (or the people chosen) have access to her medical records, treatment options, and discuss the situation with her doctors.

Before I started grad school in 2010, my uncle and I sat down with mom’s attorney. We also brought mom in when things were still reasonably good for her health-wise.

While I was there in his office, we made sure mom’s will was updated and current, and got a general, durable power of attorney for me alone. Also, because I live hundreds of miles away, I pushed to get medical and financial PoA forms signed, naming me, my aunt, and my uncle in them. I wanted my aunt and uncle to be able to make doctor appointments and get medical information right away, and also let my uncle handle getting mom’s bills and taxes and bank accounts and whatever else in order.

I still remember mom resisting the medical and financial PoA’s, since she’s not a fan of my aunt for whatever imagined slight she thinks happened. She wanted me to handle all her financial and medical decisions by myself. But I remember telling her that the medical and financial PoAs were needed because I was going to be in Austin and if there was an emergency or a problem I wanted my aunt and uncle to be able to immediately take care of anything that had to be done.

We also made sure she signed a living will. Mom had sworn for years that she had one, but the attorney pointed out she’d only talked about it but had never done it. I have a copy of it, along with all the PoA forms, in my personal files here in Austin.

I wasn’t about to start grad school without all those things in place. Hell, I almost didn’t go to grad school at all. I was already stressed out at seeing how mom’s health was declining, and I was about to just quit before I started, but my aunt and uncle and mom’s attorney all told me it would be better if I went ahead with the degree. I didn’t see it at the time, but they were right.

315 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:46:25am

re: #313 Political Atheist

That’s often not practical. There are countless circumstances of a misplaced, not crime related gun that needs moving. For brevity I just picked one. Each can be nitpicked by a devout critic I suppose. But the hard critics view usually carries an agenda with it rather than objective practicality.

How likely is this? If some place has a rash of guns left in lockers, sure. If it’s just some normal school, it’s really not worth it. And it’s not ‘nitpicking’ when the specific example you gave, a gun in a locker, is a situation where you don’t want to touch it.

Is your opposition based on the supposed safety risks of a pure safety class? Remember there is no live ammo in the room with that class.

I’m not opposed to it because of risk. I’m opposed to it as a waste of time. Teachers don’t have oodles of spare time, and what extra training they get should be directly relevant, not for ‘what if’ scenarios that don’t crop up that often.

If a school has a big problem with it? Sure. Otherwise, why the hell consider it important?

316 lawhawk  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:49:07am

re: #314 Lidane

Glad that you had this taken care of, and it sounds like you’re on top of the situation.

Still, I’d just reread through the papers to make sure they’re current and that contact information is updated.

317 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:50:04am

Oh, I forgot about how the far-left hates Booker. He’s got a good relationship with TEH JUICE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

318 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:50:07am

DERP

319 jaunte  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:51:20am

re: #318 Vicious Babushka

You have NO IDEA how hurtful it is to be called white privileged. NO IDEA.

High-larious.

320 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:51:22am

Por ejemplo.

321 Targetpractice  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:52:00am

re: #318 Vicious Babushka

DERP

[Embedded content]

Methinks the lady doth protest too much.

322 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:52:17am

re: #319 jaunte

High-larious.

It’s not a parody account, it’s a for-reals batshit crazy RWNJ teabagger, like Prudence, but with MOAR RACISM & CRAZY (and twice as many followers)

323 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:52:48am

Cory Booker’s connection to Zionism steeped in religious fundamentalism and ties to the Jewish community!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

324 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:53:02am

Mondoderp

325 jaunte  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:53:51am

re: #322 Vicious Babushka

She does a nice, unfiltered job of expressing their internal thought process.

326 jaunte  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:54:12am

re: #323 Gus

ties to the Jewish community

OMG!!!!

327 Lidane  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:54:37am

re: #316 lawhawk

Glad that you had this taken care of, and it sounds like you’re on top of the situation.

Thanks. It gave me a lot of peace of mind when I started grad school just knowing that we had clear lines of who would handle what situations when they came up.

Still, I’d just reread through the papers to make sure they’re current and that contact information is updated.

That’s a good point. I’ve moved since we filled out the forms originally. Does that mean they have to be redrafted, or is there some kind of supplemental form I can fill out on my own to update my contact information?

328 jaunte  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:56:58am
You have NO IDEA how hurtful it is to be called white privileged. NO IDEA.

It’s like humidity, on your wedding day…

329 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:57:21am

re: #326 jaunte

OMG!!!!

Actual Mondoweiss title. I got trolled by some nut last week and quickly dissolved into his Juice! connections

330 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 10:58:58am

re: #328 jaunte

It’s like humidity, on your wedding day…

It’s like a Bad Hair Day!

331 Dr Lizardo  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 11:00:31am

re: #318 Vicious Babushka

DERP

[Embedded content]

LOLOLOLOLOLOLOL

Yeah, it’s so hurtful; it’s right up there with the worst racial epithets.

332 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 11:00:36am

Guess who?

Unlike the other two, Booker is a true believer, involved with Israel and AIPAC since his early 20′s, in large part due to his close friendship with ultra-Orthodox Rabbi Shmuely Boteach. Boteach is a right-wing Republican who is currently running as such for Congress in New Jersey. Here is a video of the two together at an AIPAC fundraiser. Boteach’s description of Booker’s involvement with Israel is extraordinary.

333 jaunte  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 11:01:21am

re: #332 Gus

ultra-Orthodox

Sounds scary!

334 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 11:02:24am

re: #333 jaunte

Sounds scary!

Mjay!

335 Vicious Babushka  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 11:02:56am

re: #332 Gus

Guess who?

Shmuley! (rolls eyes)

336 Gus  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 11:04:23am

re: #335 Vicious Babushka

Shmuley! (rolls eyes)

Image: jackson_boteach.jpg

337 Political Atheist  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 11:13:48am

re: #315 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

If a school has a big problem with it? Sure. Otherwise, why the hell consider it important?

I would use the phrase “well worthwhile” for the time investment.
Added edit-And it appears we agree there is no substantial harm in these classes.

338 GeneJockey  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 11:17:32am

re: #318 Vicious Babushka

DERP

[Embedded content]

Ho-Lee Shit.

“You have NO IDEA how hurtful it is to be called white privileged. NO IDEA.”

Cry me a fuckin’ river.

339 CuriousLurker  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 11:17:33am

re: #317 Gus

Oh, I forgot about how the far-left hates Booker. He’s got a good relationship with TEH JUICE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I don’t know about the far-left as I try to avoid them, but the people I’ve met here who live/lived in Newark and can’t stand Booker have never mentioned anything to do with Jews. They don’t like what they see as his extreme ambitiousness, and they feel that his concern is fake because (they say) he only helps people when he’s sure there are news cameras or reporters around to publicize it.

Also, since he’s not a Newark native, he’s seen as an outsider. I guess you could say people feel like he doesn’t really care about Newark or its people, he’s just using it as a stepping stone in his climb up the political ladder.

340 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 11:18:22am

re: #337 Political Atheist

I would use the phrase “well worthwhile” for the time investment.

Do you have any actual reason for thinking this? Like, how likely is the scenario of ‘you find a gun and need to secure it and can’t wait for the police’ going to crop up in a school setting?

341 lawhawk  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 11:25:29am

re: #327 Lidane

You you might want to check with the lawyer who drafted them originally; it might be updated with simply attaching a notarized affidavit to the forms to provide updated contact information, but the process differs from state to state.

342 GeneJockey  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 11:28:32am

re: #340 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

Do you have any actual reason for thinking this? Like, how likely is the scenario of ‘you find a gun and need to secure it and can’t wait for the police’ going to crop up in a school setting?

You know what might be worthwhile? More people having actual experience with what guns can do, and how easily they can do really bad shit. For example, most people don’t have any clue just how poorly they’d handle a gun if they ever ‘needed to’.

Most people, from years of watching TV and movies, and playing with toy guns as a kid, are overconfident of their own abilities - I know I was. It’s like every clown who picks up a guitar thinks he can be Hendrix, but with potentially fatal consequences.

Go to a range, rent a revolver, and try to put 6 rounds in a good group from 20 feet. Notice just how light a touch on the trigger can fire the gun. Find out just how many people have been killed with ‘unloaded’ guns, like the kid in the East Bay who shot himself in the head because he worked the slide THEN dropped the magazine, rather than the other way around.

The problem with teaching “don’t touch” OR teaching “how to secure a gun” is that neither one does anything to disabuse people of the notion of their own competence.

343 Political Atheist  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 11:30:32am

re: #340 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

To me the time invested and risk is so minor that the odds of any individual school/library worker needing it is unimportant. The benefit potential is literally life saving. By my admittedly rough analogy it’s a bit like vaccination for a really rare disease.

There is a certainty that guns do get misplaced, not as part of a crime and a non gun owner being in the right spot to safely take it from harms way where a kid could find it or a passerby steals it. Of course those accidental misplacement happen at homes too. The safety skills are then with the trainees 24/7. That’s more people that can speak up if they see any unsafe mishandling correctly in any ordinary circumstance like where one person might be showing a gun to another at a home.

344 lawhawk  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 11:32:51am

re: #339 CuriousLurker

He grew up just north of Newark in Harrington Park and Old Tappan. He went and lived in Newark while in law school and got involved in politics at that point - running and winning a city council seat. He’s been involved in Newark politics since the late 1990s.

But what got attention was running and eventually beating longtime mayor Sharpe James (who ultimately ended up in prison on fraud charges - 27 months in prison). Booker lost in 2002 to James - who claimed Booker was a carpetbagger in cahoots with the Joos, the KKK and Taliban (quite the trifecta) to take over Newark. That run was turned in to a documentary - the Oscar winning Street Fight.

The 2006 rematch saw Booker beat James’ hand-picked successor pretty handily. James, instead of running against Booker again, went to the State Senate.

So lovely to see the old tropes rolled out…

345 Lidane  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 11:33:05am

re: #341 lawhawk

You you might want to check with the lawyer who drafted them originally; it might be updated with simply attaching a notarized affidavit to the forms to provide updated contact information, but the process differs from state to state.

Good to know. I’ll make sure to ask about it. I’m hoping to go visit mom soon, so I’ll get in touch with the attorney before I go down there and see what I have to do.

346 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 11:34:26am

re: #343 Political Atheist

To me the time invested and risk is so minor that the odds of any individual school/library worker needing it is unimportant. .

I’m not talking about the risk of it. And when you add together millions of man-hours, well, they’re millions of man-hours.

347 CuriousLurker  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 11:38:14am

re: #339 CuriousLurker

This 2009 documentary, Brick City, featuring Booker as the “star” (or at least one of them) didn’t exactly endear him to lifelong residents either.

348 GeneJockey  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 11:38:15am

re: #343 Political Atheist

To me the time invested and risk is so minor that the odds of any individual school/library worker needing it is unimportant. The benefit potential is literally life saving. By my admittedly rough analogy it’s a bit like vaccination for a really rare disease.

There is a certainty that guns do get misplaced, not as part of a crime and a non gun owner being in the right spot to safely take it from harms way where a kid could find it or a passerby steals it. Of course those accidental misplacement happen at homes too. The safety skills are then with the trainees 24/7. That’s more people that can speak up if they see any unsafe mishandling correctly in any ordinary circumstance like where one person might be showing a gun to another at a home.

From my own experience, I know this isn’t quite true. Any training you take that isn’t implemented right after will be lost in the ‘intellectual memories’ part of your mind, rather than the ‘learned skills’ part. I took a two-day course in using MS Project, including alls sorts of in depth stuff on resourcing etc. Did really well. Two months later, all I could remember was how to do a Gantt chart.

Gun safety is like that. Folks who grow up around guns and who are trained from an early age in how to shoot (and how not to shoot when you don’t want to) generally but not invariably, internalize the lessons, and know at a deep level things like ‘every gun is loaded until you personally have cleared the action’, and ‘never point a gun at anything you don’t want to shoot’. For the rest of us, it’s just intellectual memories, and yes, I fall into that category.

349 Political Atheist  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 11:39:29am

re: #346 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

I meant risk of actually finding a misplaced gun. Not risk of taking the class. Millions of man hours. Among millions of teachers, who are volunteers? I’m not seeing that as a waste at all. I’d say we not decide that for them, have a good program and suit the volunteers. Lots to gain nothing substantial to risk.

The most responsible position might be the more gun safety training happens the safer we all are. Not calling you irresponsible here, just going for all the increased gun safety skills that we can manage to apply.

350 Political Atheist  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 11:41:45am

re: #348 GeneJockey

The class can be voluntarily repeated of course. Finding a place to safely practice is easy too. Yes practice always matters. “finger away from trigger at all times” ain’t that hard to remember. The need for practice or refresher courses hardly reduces the validity of a good program.

351 CuriousLurker  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 11:42:27am

re: #344 lawhawk

He grew up just north of Newark in Harrington Park and Old Tappan. He went and lived in Newark while in law school and got involved in politics at that point - running and winning a city council seat. He’s been involved in Newark politics since the late 1990s.

But what got attention was running and eventually beating longtime mayor Sharpe James (who ultimately ended up in prison on fraud charges - 27 months in prison). Booker lost in 2002 to James - who claimed Booker was a carpetbagger in cahoots with the Joos, the KKK and Taliban (quite the trifecta) to take over Newark. That run was turned in to a documentary - the Oscar winning Street Fight.

The 2006 rematch saw Booker beat James’ hand-picked successor pretty handily. James, instead of running against Booker again, went to the State Senate.

So lovely to see the old tropes rolled out…

The Joos, the KKK and Taliban, huh? LOL

I dunno, like I said, I’ve never heard anyone mention Jews when bitching about him—and being that I’m Muslim, I would think many would make certain assumptions and not hesitate to express anti-Semitism if the Jewish connection was really bothering them—they seem to just flat out dislike and distrust him.

352 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 11:43:57am

re: #349 Political Atheist

I meant risk of actually finding a misplaced gun. Not risk of taking the class. Millions of man hours. Among millions of teachers, who are volunteers? I’m not seeing that as a waste at all. I’d say we not decide that for them, have a good program and suit the volunteers. Lots to gain nothing substantial to risk.

Why not have them all learn something about better teaching methods for the same time? Wouldn’t that be more beneficial for the nation?

We don’t have infinite time. Teachers really don’t.

The most responsible position might be the more gun safety training happens the safer we all are. Not calling you irresponsible here, just going for all the increased gun safety skills that we can manage to apply.

That’s not an argument, that can be dismissed instantly. “All that we can manage”? We could manage two hours of gun safety for every citizen in the US per day. It’d be wildly costly and impractical, but we could ‘manage’ it. You don’t want everyone to have 2 hours of training per day, do you?

353 GeneJockey  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 11:50:30am

re: #350 Political Atheist

The class can be voluntarily repeated of course. Finding a place to safely practice is easy too. Yes practice always matters. “finger away from trigger at all times” ain’t that hard to remember. The need for practice or refresher courses hardly reduces the validity of a good program.

The problem comes in the difference between having to think about it, and doing it automatically. I grew up not handling guns, but have hunted a bit, and I can tell you that I had to constantly think about proper handling, muzzle discipline, use of the safety, not trusting the safety, etc.

354 Political Atheist  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 12:06:19pm

re: #352 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

You are putting words in my mouth. Obviously by manageable I was not meaning obligatory classes. I meant what I said-Voluntary. All we can manage to practically offer to volunteers.
 I think we should let the teacher decide how to spend that time.

And you are opposing voluntary gun safety classes just over the time used. I think that an unwise position, but okay opinions vary.

355 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 12:10:03pm

re: #354 Political Atheist

You are putting words in my mouth. Obviously by manageable I was not meaning obligatory classes. I meant what I said-Voluntary. All we can manage to practically offer to volunteers.

Why not instead have a voluntary class teaching about teaching, which is directly relevant to what they do, and we’re not exactly doing awesome in that regard right now?

356 Political Atheist  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 12:12:45pm

re: #355 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

Why not simply let them decide? You are not really disproving my point by pointing out there are many possible ways to upgrade their knowledge in any given time frame.

357 Political Atheist  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 12:17:26pm

re: #353 GeneJockey

I don’t find the imperfect to outweigh the good in this instance. All the flaws you mention can be overcome by a mere modicum of diligence.

re: #355 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut
re: #353 GeneJockey

Since my slight lean to the right politically is known here-Just to be extra clear this is not in any way to be taken as support for arming teachers or anyone short of a cop or licensed guard at schools. I’m not pulling a camels nose under the tent trick.

I’m advocating the appropriate gun safety class being available for law abiding volunteers. No matter where they work or live.

358 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 12:18:14pm

re: #356 Political Atheist

Why not simply let them decide?

Because there has to be a whole infrastructure and logistical effort for this to happen. You can’t just have Ol’ Man McGruthers volunteer to come down and teach them gun safety, it has to be a licensed pro. You have to do the due diligence to make sure the guy is qualified. If they’re all doing it free out of the goodness of their hearts, that part is swell, otherwise this costs money, too. But anything extraneous is always a scheduling hassle.

You are not really disproving my point by pointing out there are many possible ways to upgrade their knowledge in any given time frame.

I feel I am. Teachers should be teaching, as their primary responsibility. Teaching them how to react in dangerous situations that are likely to come up, depending on where they are, makes sense. If they’re not likely to come across the situation— which would be in most cases— then it’s not a good use of time. A better use of time would be to give them some training useful for their job.

359 Political Atheist  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 12:25:38pm

re: #358 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

The classes are already decades long established, the curriculum proven over and over again. And yes of course it’s not “Ol’ Man McGruthers”, as I have clearly put forth above-Certified insured pros are who should do the training. Unless of course there is a certified instructor somewhere by that name who is kind enough to volunteer. :-)

Now twice you have twice taken what I said to a place that is far removed from a very clear intent. Please, please refrain. I know we disagree here, I’m not trying to annoy you just answering a string of inquiry and questioning of my points.

360 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 12:36:12pm

re: #359 Political Atheist

The classes are already decades long established, the curriculum proven over and over again.

I doubt that actual efficacy studies have been done. If they have, can you show them?

Now twice you have twice taken what I said to a place that is far removed from a very clear intent. Please, please refrain. I know we disagree here, I’m not trying to annoy you just answering a string of inquiry and questioning of my points.

I haven’t moved far away from what you said at all. This is what you said:

Beyond that it would be great for school employees to get a particular kind of gun safety class. There is no live ammo or shooting. It’s a pure safe handling class designed for people like teachers or parents who may find a gun and need to handle it enough to unload it or open it safely then take out of harms way. Like from a confiscated backpack or a locker. Or as we have seen a lost gun in a bathroom. Pure safety and handling, not shooting and certainly not promoting the sport.

First, as I said, in most cases, specifically being in a backpack or in a locker, you should not touch it and ‘get it out of harms way’, you should call law enforcement. There is almost no case where, on school property, you can’t just have the gun stay where it is and watch over it without touching it until the cops come.

Second of all, this is what I’m objecting to. Sure, every free class sounds great. Why not teach them how a quick primer on delivering babies, dealing with rabid animals, how to treat snakebite, how to deal with feral dog attacks, the best way to get a noose off someone, how to perform a tracheotomy, how to disarm someone with a knife, etc. etc.?

361 Political Atheist  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 12:55:30pm

re: #360 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut


So let’s review. This is what I’m seeing.
Your best argument put forth against these classes is time consumed.
You object to the logistics, despite the pieces being in place.
You dismiss the idea that more people taking gun safety is a good thing, despite calling for very extensive training for gun owners in past comments.
You took “manageable” to mean two hours for everyone.
And my call for pro instructors got turned into a caricature twice now.

At this point I think I have made my case to you, and more would just be repetition of restating.

Does any one else have an issue or question on my contention here?

362 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 1:07:35pm

re: #361 Political Atheist

Your best argument put forth against these classes is time consumed.

Time and effort and money.

You object to the logistics, despite the pieces being in place.

What pieces are in place?

You dismiss the idea that more people taking gun safety is a good thing, despite calling for very extensive training for gun owners in past comments.

Yeah. Because we’re not talking about gun owners.

You took “manageable” to mean two hours for everyone.

No, that was my example that ‘manageable’ renders that statement meaningless.

At this point I think I have made my case to you, and more would just be repetition of restating.

You’ve failed to address my central problems: Teachers don’t have an infinite amount of time. Sure, there’s all kinds of safety shit we could teach them, but how about we only teach them stuff they’re likely to run into? If they’re likely to run into unsecured guns in some way that means they can’t call the cops, let’s get ‘em trained. If they’re not, let’s not waste their time and the administrative assistant at the school’s time and the school’s lawyer’s time and the principal’s time.

363 Political Atheist  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 1:51:54pm

re: #362 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

What pieces are in place?

A curriculum. Classrooms. Graphics. Booklets. Instructors, properly certified and experienced. “Red” (meaning non firing but functional for training, and literally made in red plastic) mock guns. Fake plastic ammo. Insurance. Other than those essential things not much.

364 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 2:27:03pm

re: #363 Political Atheist

A curriculum. Classrooms. Graphics. Booklets. Instructors, properly certified and experienced. “Red” (meaning non firing but functional for training, and literally made in red plastic) mock guns. Fake plastic ammo. Insurance. Other than those essential things not much.

I meant the logistics on the schools end— having to clear it through legal, having to communicate what the class is to teachers, having to explain that yeah, it’s unlikely they’ll ever run into this situation but what the heck, why not, the logistics of determining which classroom is open, of dealing with the trainers, for a benefit that probably seems pretty remote to any school system where this has never happened or any school where they just say “Thanks, but we’ll just call the cops if there’s a gun, rather than picking it up and doing stuff with it.”

Again: If this is a likely scenario, training makes sense. If it’s not, then it doesn’t. As with most things.

365 Political Atheist  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 5:12:31pm

re: #364 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

The bigger the bloated systems are the less likely anything better gets in. LAUSD? Far too self centered and self assured to ever listen to anyone outside the GOB club. Small dynamic school systems? No problem. You know Eddie Eagle is welcome at a lot of school systems right? That’s the program you once claimed won’t work. Along with Smoky The Bear.

Awards and Recognitions

The National Sheriffs’ Association formally endorsed the Eddie Eagle Program. (March 2002)
A study published in the Journal of Emergency Nursing Online named Eddie Eagle the best of more than 80 gun safety programs evaluated. (October 2001)
The program has been reviewed and recommended by the U.S. Department of Justice (through its Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention). The Clinton Department of Justice reviewed more than 400 safety programs in preparing its February 1999 report, Promising Strategies to Reduce Gun Violence. Of the 400 programs reviewed, only 60 were recommended in the report. The Eddie Eagle GunSafe(r)Program was one of these 60 programs, and was described as “an outstanding education initiative.”
The American Legion passed a resolution encouraging its Posts and Departments to introduce Eddie Eagle to elementary schools and law enforcement agencies in their communities. (May 1995)
The American Legion Child Welfare Foundation awarded a $25,000 grant to The Eddie Eagle Program. (October 1995)
The Youth Activities Division of the National Safety Council awarded its silver Award of Merit to The Eddie Eagle Program for its efforts to “promote safety and health, save lives, lessen injury and reduce economic loss.” (October 1996)
The Community Service Division of the National Safety Council presented its Citation for Outstanding Community Service Award to program creator and NRA President Marion P. Hammer. (October 1993)
The National School Public Relations Association presented its Golden Achievement Award to the program. (April 1994)
Recently endorsed and commended by the Association of American Educators, saying, “On behalf of the many thousands of teachers belonging to the Association of American Educators, we would like to commend the Eddie Eagle GunSafe(r) Program.”

In Eddie Eagle’s target age group, the annual number of fatal gun accidents has dropped over 80 percent since the program’s nationwide launch. Gun accident prevention programs such as Eddie Eagle are a significant factor in that decline.

The Eddie Eagle safety mascot is available for purchase by law enforcement agencies only. A signed application must be approved by the NRA prior to shipment.

Stand in opposition to all the safety programs you don’t like. Just understand that we disagree.

366 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 5:36:34pm

re: #365 Political Atheist

One unlinked study from 2001 is not really that convincing.

And isn’t the Eddie Eagle program for kids? And weren’t we talking about classes for teachers and janitors? Why are we suddenly talking about programs for kids when this whole time we’ve been talking about programs for teachers and janitors?

367 Political Atheist  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:05:23pm

re: #366 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

One unlinked study from 2001 is not really that convincing.

And isn’t the Eddie Eagle program for kids? And weren’t we talking about classes for teachers and janitors? Why are we suddenly talking about programs for kids when this whole time we’ve been talking about programs for teachers and janitors?

1. Eddie Eagle is a program you have said does not really work. It is the or an origin of “Stop, Don’t Touch, Tell an Adult”, which means it might be an adult who is not a gun owner.

2.It’s an example of your skepticism on steroids about certain gun issues, even voluntary safety classes FFS.

That post I have in #365 is a lot more than just one study though. It’s eight or so positive reviews of the Eddie Eagle program, which relates to that adult stepping up safely to unload and remove a gun from harms way.
How about the Clinton DOJ review? Or the National Safety Council? Association of American Educators? Did those all escape your skeptical view?

After seeing your contention some time ago that the guy with an unregistered gun in DC that saved a life from a violent dog was only “technically” not a vigilante… Technically!? These things just reinforce my impression that despite enjoying a little shooting yourself, you by and large are quite negative about too many aspects of gun ownership. I’m glad you respect the law of the land enough to see the 2nd as such. And you do recognize (in a very narrow opening) that some of us need them sometimes.

That’s fine Obdi, your opinion is understood. The bulk of your posts about guns are negative. Some exceptions of note but by and large you are more against them than appreciating the legitimate place they do occupy among responsible shooters be they CCW, hunters, collectors or target shooting fans.

368 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:15:33pm

re: #367 Political Atheist

1. Eddie Eagle is a program you have said does not really work. It is the or an origin of “Stop, Don’t Touch, Tell an Adult”, which means it might be an adult who is not a gun owner.

Why are we talking about it, though?

2.It’s an example of your skepticism on steroids about certain gun issues, even voluntary safety classes FFS.

Yeah, and I’d like to see efficacy studies to see if it works. I’m not opposed to gun safety education, I just want to actually measure how we’ll we’re doing at it.

That post I have in #365 is a lot more than just one study though. It’s eight or so positive reviews of the Eddie Eagle program, which relates to that adult stepping up safely to unload and remove a gun from harms way.

Yeah, it’s one study (not linked) and a bunch of things that aren’t studies. When determining the efficacy of a program that teaches people stuff, the only thing that matters is studies of the outcomes. It doesn’t matter if Mr. Clinton thinks it’s really rad.

This is the weird thing to me because I feel like I’m a conservative here: I want to know that stuff actually works rather than just doing it on good vibes.

That’s fine Obdi, your opinion is understood. The bulk of your posts about guns are negative. Some exceptions of note but by and large you are more against them than appreciating the legitimate place they do occupy among responsible shooters be they CCW, hunters, collectors or target shooting fans.

I’ve never said anything about those groups except for those portion of CCW people who carry a gun even though they live and work in safe neighborhoods, who I think are being dumb.

Can you show me ever saying word one against hunters? Really?

369 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:24:14pm

And again, you just suddenly threw this huge curveball. We were talking about classes for teachers and janitors, and now suddenly we’re talking about fucking everything else but that.

I think teachers and janitors who have any high likelihood of finding a gun should, well, I still think that most of the time they should leave it there and call the cops and you don’t really know how to handle a gun. But say for some bizarre reason you need to disarm the gun right away. I think that teachers and janitors who are likely to run into that scenario, should learn how to do that. I don’t think that’s a very high number. Do you have any reason to believe this is a frequent scenario?

370 Political Atheist  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:36:55pm

re: #368 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

I don’t suppose you looked to see if all those alternative teacher training items you suggested have had extensive efficacy studies?

I made no specific accusation about you speaking against hunting. They simply have fallen into some of your more vague objections about gun ownership. as I recall about the AR 15, though not sure about that detail. I made a general observation that holds up just fine.

Your “conservatism” here is a poison pill. Insist on proof of efficacy? Shall we pull Smokey The Bear too for the same reason? Because it’s not proven to work in your estimation? Shall we do that with OSHA programs too? Play it across the board or it’s unfair. Lot’s of safety programs go on the abundance of caution basis rather than strict efficacy studies. Safety programs go on outcome.

Do you recognize the drop in gun accidents per capita as reality? If so, then the safety programs in total deserve some portion of credit for that change. Like gun laws we can debate which did the job. But the numbers are compelling.

The idea that safe handling instruction is inappropriate for school employees via the time consumed is weak tea.

371 Political Atheist  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:38:01pm

Is the horse dead yet?

372 Political Atheist  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 6:49:59pm

re: #369 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut

Why is the likelihood standard so high? The cost benefit ratio flies in the face of your argument. Frequent is not required. Cost vs benefit. For a little time spent, taking a gun safely out of harms way, and not just at school. The skills are 24/7.

Curve ball? Well I did tie the logic in as these safety programs work together. So call it part of our 9 innings we have played today. I say that not as snark but to lighten the moment. Shall we call this one done? I’m about to start making dinner. 6:49 here.

373 Absalom, Absalom, Obdicut  Tue, Aug 13, 2013 7:47:33pm

re: #370 Political Atheist

I don’t suppose you looked to see if all those alternative teacher training items you suggested have had extensive efficacy studies?

If you mean the ones about teaching new and better methods to teach: Yes, I have.

I made no specific accusation about you speaking against hunting. They simply have fallen into some of your more vague objections about gun ownership. as I recall about the AR 15, though not sure about that detail. I made a general observation that holds up just fine.

Okay, well, try to stay on point and not start alleging random crap.

Your “conservatism” here is a poison pill. Insist on proof of efficacy? Shall we pull Smokey The Bear too for the same reason? Because it’s not proven to work in your estimation? Shall we do that with OSHA programs too? Play it across the board or it’s unfair. Lot’s of safety programs go on the abundance of caution basis rather than strict efficacy studies. Safety programs go on outcome.

Efficacy and outcome are the same thing. And yeah, I would like to junk anything that isn’t efficacious.

Do you recognize the drop in gun accidents per capita as reality?

Yes, gun accidents dropped.

The idea that safe handling instruction is inappropriate for school employees via the time consumed is weak tea.

You haven’t even made a counterargument.


This article has been archived.
Comments are closed.

Jump to top

Create a PageThis is the LGF Pages posting bookmarklet. To use it, drag this button to your browser's bookmark bar, and title it 'LGF Pages' (or whatever you like). Then browse to a site you want to post, select some text on the page to use for a quote, click the bookmarklet, and the Pages posting window will appear with the title, text, and any embedded video or audio files already filled in, ready to go.
Or... you can just click this button to open the Pages posting window right away.
Last updated: 2023-04-04 11:11 am PDT LGF User's Guide RSS Feeds

Help support Little Green Footballs!

Subscribe now for ad-free access!Register and sign in to a free LGF account before subscribing, and your ad-free access will be automatically enabled.

Donate with
PayPal Cash.app
Recent PagesClick to refresh
Texas County at Center of Border Fight Is Overwhelmed by Migrant Deaths EAGLE PASS, Tex. - The undertaker lighted a cigarette and held it between his latex-gloved fingers as he stood over the bloated body bag lying in the bed of his battered pickup truck. The woman had been fished out ...
Cheechako
3 days ago
Views: 148 • Comments: 0 • Rating: 1