Got this from my sister-in-law - had to share!
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention has issued a warning about a new virulent strain of sexually transmitted disease. The disease is contracted through dangerous and high-risk behavior.
The disease is called Gonorrhea Lectim and pronounced "gonna re-elect him." Many victims contracted it in 2004, after having been screwed for the past four years. Cognitive characteristics of individuals infected include: anti-social personality disorders, delusions of grandeur with messianic overtones, extreme cognitive dissonance, inability to incorporate new information, pronounced xenophobia and paranoia, inability to accept responsibility for own actions, cowardice masked by misplaced bravado, uncontrolled facial smirking, ignorance of geography and history, tendencies towards evangelical theocracy, categorical all-or-nothing behavior.
Naturalists and epidemiologists are amazed at how this destructive disease originated only a few years ago from a bush found in Texas .
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
Monday, October 30, 2006
Poor Wolf Blitzer - Patriotism 'Sniped'!
That poor, maligned Wolf Blitzer - his patriotism has been impugned by a Cheney.
Welcome to Democrat World.
Sorry to hear that you're miffed, Wolfie. That's what we Democrats have been dealing with for the last 6 years.
So, how does it feel? Not so great, huh?
But it's okay for war-hero Democrats to have their patriotism questioned by military-avoiding chicken-hawks.
Think about that, Wolf, the next time some Republican starts throwing around the 'unpatriotic' label.
Just think about it.
Welcome to Democrat World.
Sorry to hear that you're miffed, Wolfie. That's what we Democrats have been dealing with for the last 6 years.
So, how does it feel? Not so great, huh?
But it's okay for war-hero Democrats to have their patriotism questioned by military-avoiding chicken-hawks.
Think about that, Wolf, the next time some Republican starts throwing around the 'unpatriotic' label.
Just think about it.
Friday, October 27, 2006
Surprise! I'm Writing A Book!
I wanted to wait until paper was signed before I made any noise about it, but I'm writing a book! It's going to be about why Americans vote against their own best interests.
How did this come about? In a very strange but interesting way.
I started blogging almost 2 years ago (blog-i-versary coming up!) just to save my own sanity and connect with others who felt the way I did, so I wouldn't feel so alone and crazy. Along the way I've made many fine friends and learned more about my country, my government, and the world than I ever imagined I would know. It also propelled me into action outside the blogosphere, as I realized that it was necessary to do more than write and talk.
Occasionally, I'd send something I had written to Mike Malloy, who would read it on his show. Not too long before his Air America show was cancelled, he read one of my articles on the air. He mentioned the Hooterville address, and I got some very nice e-mails.
One of those e-mails came from someone at a publishing company who asked if I would be interested in discussing writing a book about why Americans vote against their own best interests. At first I thought it was a hoax or a vanity-press thing ('for only $2500, you can be a published author!') but upon using the Google, I found out that the company was a real publisher. The person who contacted me said that they had been looking for someone to write this kind of book, and my writing apparently fit the bill.
So we talked about it, and they asked me to submit a book proposal. I went out and bought a book on how to write a book proposal, put one together and sent it to them. They liked it and sent me a contract, and here I am - an author-in-progress!
I'm really, really excited about this, as you all know how I feel about this subject. I'm hoping to be able to explain this in a way that regular people (non-bloggers or non-political junkies) will understand. But what blows me away about this is that it came about strictly from blogging. It didn't happen because I 'knew' anyone or had any literary contacts whatsoever. In fact, before I became a blogger, I never wrote at all. But I figure, if literary professionals think I can write a book, who am I to doubt them? They know more about it than I do!
It is a testament to the egalitarian nature of the Internet that I'm writing this book - that simply putting one's work out there - casting your bread upon the waters - can result in it finding a home and an audience. So I have to include all of you in this - all of you who have come here to comment and allowed me to get to know you; all of you whose own writing and passion for making our country better have inspired me; all of you who have shared your own selves on your blogs, and have become personal friends as well as blog friends.
I may not be posting as much while I'm working on this book, but I will be here and checking in regularly, so I hope you all won't forget about me. It would be so great to write something that may make a difference, open someone's eyes, or at least make them think. And I will be striking back at these venomous blowhards who have been dominating the media. I'll show them some 'liberal media', by God!
How did this come about? In a very strange but interesting way.
I started blogging almost 2 years ago (blog-i-versary coming up!) just to save my own sanity and connect with others who felt the way I did, so I wouldn't feel so alone and crazy. Along the way I've made many fine friends and learned more about my country, my government, and the world than I ever imagined I would know. It also propelled me into action outside the blogosphere, as I realized that it was necessary to do more than write and talk.
Occasionally, I'd send something I had written to Mike Malloy, who would read it on his show. Not too long before his Air America show was cancelled, he read one of my articles on the air. He mentioned the Hooterville address, and I got some very nice e-mails.
One of those e-mails came from someone at a publishing company who asked if I would be interested in discussing writing a book about why Americans vote against their own best interests. At first I thought it was a hoax or a vanity-press thing ('for only $2500, you can be a published author!') but upon using the Google, I found out that the company was a real publisher. The person who contacted me said that they had been looking for someone to write this kind of book, and my writing apparently fit the bill.
So we talked about it, and they asked me to submit a book proposal. I went out and bought a book on how to write a book proposal, put one together and sent it to them. They liked it and sent me a contract, and here I am - an author-in-progress!
I'm really, really excited about this, as you all know how I feel about this subject. I'm hoping to be able to explain this in a way that regular people (non-bloggers or non-political junkies) will understand. But what blows me away about this is that it came about strictly from blogging. It didn't happen because I 'knew' anyone or had any literary contacts whatsoever. In fact, before I became a blogger, I never wrote at all. But I figure, if literary professionals think I can write a book, who am I to doubt them? They know more about it than I do!
It is a testament to the egalitarian nature of the Internet that I'm writing this book - that simply putting one's work out there - casting your bread upon the waters - can result in it finding a home and an audience. So I have to include all of you in this - all of you who have come here to comment and allowed me to get to know you; all of you whose own writing and passion for making our country better have inspired me; all of you who have shared your own selves on your blogs, and have become personal friends as well as blog friends.
I may not be posting as much while I'm working on this book, but I will be here and checking in regularly, so I hope you all won't forget about me. It would be so great to write something that may make a difference, open someone's eyes, or at least make them think. And I will be striking back at these venomous blowhards who have been dominating the media. I'll show them some 'liberal media', by God!
Monday, October 23, 2006
I'm Working The Polls On Nov. 7. You Can, Too!
Hey, fellow patriots! It's not too late to sign up to be a poll worker!
This is an action that you can take right now to be a part of the process. They're accepting people right up to the last day, I believe. You also get paid!
Here's the site for the Election Assistance Commission, with the info about how to sign up in your state.
I'm a clerk, and my inspector called me up the other day to make sure I was on board and getting training. We ended up talking for about a half hour - we realized that we're going to have to make an effort to actually do our jobs, and not just chatter to each other all day long! Of course, we're both really committed to doing the best job we can, so we will have to contain ourselves, but I'm glad to be doing this with a kindred spirit. And, the more progressives we have with our eyes on the process, the better.
One thing she said to me that I wanted to pass on to you all is that poll workers are needed! I hadn't thought about there being lots of room for volunteering. In fact, I never knew how exactly you got to work at a polling place.
So, here's a few things I know so far (I'll have more info tomorrow, after I take my training class):
You can sign up right up until voting day.
High school students are eligible to be poll workers (at least in California - check your state).
You get paid, both for working and for training - I'd do it for free if necessary, but I'm glad that it makes it possible for those of us for whom every day's pay matters to be able to be part of the process.
They offer training on the machines - a 90-minute class, but it is not mandatory. So, if your schedule would prevent you from getting to a training class (and there are a lot of them, all the way up to Sunday the 5th), don't let an inability to get training keep you from volunteering on Election Day.
I can't think of a more patriotic thing to do on this November 7th. And, as we know, this may well be the most important election of our lifetime. This may be our last chance to stop these thugs, or at least keep them from driving us over the cliff into the abyss. We need to be able to hold onto the 'freedoms' that have been left to us, and try to get back the ones they've stolen from us.
This is an action that you can take right now to be a part of the process. They're accepting people right up to the last day, I believe. You also get paid!
Here's the site for the Election Assistance Commission, with the info about how to sign up in your state.
I'm a clerk, and my inspector called me up the other day to make sure I was on board and getting training. We ended up talking for about a half hour - we realized that we're going to have to make an effort to actually do our jobs, and not just chatter to each other all day long! Of course, we're both really committed to doing the best job we can, so we will have to contain ourselves, but I'm glad to be doing this with a kindred spirit. And, the more progressives we have with our eyes on the process, the better.
One thing she said to me that I wanted to pass on to you all is that poll workers are needed! I hadn't thought about there being lots of room for volunteering. In fact, I never knew how exactly you got to work at a polling place.
So, here's a few things I know so far (I'll have more info tomorrow, after I take my training class):
You can sign up right up until voting day.
High school students are eligible to be poll workers (at least in California - check your state).
You get paid, both for working and for training - I'd do it for free if necessary, but I'm glad that it makes it possible for those of us for whom every day's pay matters to be able to be part of the process.
They offer training on the machines - a 90-minute class, but it is not mandatory. So, if your schedule would prevent you from getting to a training class (and there are a lot of them, all the way up to Sunday the 5th), don't let an inability to get training keep you from volunteering on Election Day.
I can't think of a more patriotic thing to do on this November 7th. And, as we know, this may well be the most important election of our lifetime. This may be our last chance to stop these thugs, or at least keep them from driving us over the cliff into the abyss. We need to be able to hold onto the 'freedoms' that have been left to us, and try to get back the ones they've stolen from us.
Friday, October 20, 2006
Thursday, October 19, 2006
The Earth Is Not Enough...
I swear, folks - you can't make this stuff up!
Update - I know it sounds incredible, so here are a couple of other sources.
Read the official document.
NYT editorial.
From the U.K.
The Google search.
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
Katherine Harris - The Gift That Keeps On Giving®!
Ahhh yes. When I'm down and out - when I'm on the street - when evening falls so hard...there's always a sunshiny face to cheer me up! Who else but that politician's politician, Miz Katherine Harris!! Her relentless optimism in the face of disaster (especially that of her own making!) is nothing short of inspirational. Just take a gander at the happy news on her website!
TAMPA, FL- Congresswoman Katherine Harris, the Republican candidate for the United States Senate, soundly defeated Bill Nelson this evening by a 54% to 45% margin in the straw poll conducted at the Lakeland Bi-Annual Politics in the Park. The Harris campaign continues to build momentum, engendering tremendous grassroots support throughout the state with a pro-growth, pro-family message that resonates across the political spectrum.Kiddies, I'm from Florida. I know Lakeland - I used to work there on a regular basis. It is a lovely area and I can tell you that it is a roiling sea of fundamentalism - some of the local preachers make Jerry Falwell look like a Unitarian-Universalist. So if Bill Nelson is getting 45% of the vote in Lakeland - well, let's just say that if I were Katherine I wouldn't be bragging about that.
Kathy, Kathy, Kathy - you're the best!
Monday, October 09, 2006
Who's The Enemy?
I am sick, sick, sick to death of being treated like the enemy by the person who is supposed to be my president.
For that matter, I don't like that word 'enemy', period. It's too easy to go from 'the person or country we're currently fighting against' to the 'personification of evil', thereby removing all traces of humanity from said 'enemy' and transforming them into faceless monsters to be eliminated at any cost without guilt. And when you indiscriminately use the word 'war' for anything you oppose, the corollary to that is there has to be an 'enemy' to fight and hate.
Of course, when you're running for office, you're supposed to be partisan. Everyone expects that. But once you've 'assumed' the Presidency, you are in charge of the entire country, not just Republicans. You're supposed to make decisions that are in the best interests of everyone, Democrats as well as Republicans.
But the Resident, from the moment he seized office, has treated Democrats the same way he treats 'the terrorists' (another convenient buzz-word). He talks about us as enemies to be vanquished and silenced. And we're paying for him to do so.
He ran for office in 2000, among other things, on a platform of being 'a uniter, not a divider'. What became immediately apparent was that, by 'uniter' he meant 'getting everyone to do what he says'. Bipartisanship simply meant forcing his agenda upon Democrats. It's always a one-way street.
By 'Americans' he seems to add 'who agree with me' under his breath, like some kind of mental signing statement. And now, with this latest travesty of a bill that he shoved through Congress last week, he's merely formalizing it.
Eery time he gets in front of a microphone, he's blasting Democrats. And I'm sick of paying him to do that. Once you're in office (however you got there), you're on my dime.
I don't often wax eloquent on the charms of the Democrats, because lord knows there's a lot I'd like to see us do that doesn't happen. But I'll tell you one good thing about us (since I'm one), and this is a signal difference between the two parties:
Our platform does not specifically include the elimination of the opposing party!
Republicans have just come out and said it. This is a specific goal - to nullify Democrats and liberals entirely. As bumbling as Democrats can be, by virtue of our relative independence, we don't seek to eliminate a two-party government. We don't want to eliminate checks and balances. Sure, we want to implement our agenda, but that agenda does not include silencing all who disagree with us.
Not so the Republicans. Not so George W. Bush.
They are not in favor of a democracy. They couldn't care less about the Constitution, unless it's twisted around to bludgeon someone with who disagrees with them. They are opposed to liberty and justice for all. They only want 'the best' people to be in charge, 'the best' being the richest or most powerful. Certainly they don't want 'the brightest' anywhere near - that has been painfully obvious. And 'one man, one vote' is a dated, outmoded concept. Quaint, you might call it.
So, who's the enemy? You tell me.
For that matter, I don't like that word 'enemy', period. It's too easy to go from 'the person or country we're currently fighting against' to the 'personification of evil', thereby removing all traces of humanity from said 'enemy' and transforming them into faceless monsters to be eliminated at any cost without guilt. And when you indiscriminately use the word 'war' for anything you oppose, the corollary to that is there has to be an 'enemy' to fight and hate.
Of course, when you're running for office, you're supposed to be partisan. Everyone expects that. But once you've 'assumed' the Presidency, you are in charge of the entire country, not just Republicans. You're supposed to make decisions that are in the best interests of everyone, Democrats as well as Republicans.
But the Resident, from the moment he seized office, has treated Democrats the same way he treats 'the terrorists' (another convenient buzz-word). He talks about us as enemies to be vanquished and silenced. And we're paying for him to do so.
He ran for office in 2000, among other things, on a platform of being 'a uniter, not a divider'. What became immediately apparent was that, by 'uniter' he meant 'getting everyone to do what he says'. Bipartisanship simply meant forcing his agenda upon Democrats. It's always a one-way street.
By 'Americans' he seems to add 'who agree with me' under his breath, like some kind of mental signing statement. And now, with this latest travesty of a bill that he shoved through Congress last week, he's merely formalizing it.
Eery time he gets in front of a microphone, he's blasting Democrats. And I'm sick of paying him to do that. Once you're in office (however you got there), you're on my dime.
I don't often wax eloquent on the charms of the Democrats, because lord knows there's a lot I'd like to see us do that doesn't happen. But I'll tell you one good thing about us (since I'm one), and this is a signal difference between the two parties:
Our platform does not specifically include the elimination of the opposing party!
Republicans have just come out and said it. This is a specific goal - to nullify Democrats and liberals entirely. As bumbling as Democrats can be, by virtue of our relative independence, we don't seek to eliminate a two-party government. We don't want to eliminate checks and balances. Sure, we want to implement our agenda, but that agenda does not include silencing all who disagree with us.
Not so the Republicans. Not so George W. Bush.
They are not in favor of a democracy. They couldn't care less about the Constitution, unless it's twisted around to bludgeon someone with who disagrees with them. They are opposed to liberty and justice for all. They only want 'the best' people to be in charge, 'the best' being the richest or most powerful. Certainly they don't want 'the brightest' anywhere near - that has been painfully obvious. And 'one man, one vote' is a dated, outmoded concept. Quaint, you might call it.
So, who's the enemy? You tell me.
Friday, October 06, 2006
Clash Of The Titans?
The Washington Post says that the GOP hold on evangelicals is weakening. DownWithTyranny! has a great post on it with lots of numbers to back it up!
That's the danger of the Rovian strategy - pulling together groups who have little in common and promising each one that their agenda will be implemented. That strategy, so far, has been overwhelmingly successful. But it can't hold together indefinitely, because there is an innate conflict between evangelicals and plutocrats, which till now has been brushed aside in the common pursuit of power. The problem arises when the bill comes due.
They've put it off for as long as they can, but it's time to pay the piper, and the moral bank account is empty.
I'm hoping against hope that this is the beginning of the crumbling of that unholy alliance. Of course, it never pays to underestimate the power of power-mongering, and I know that the Republicans (and those who profit by them) are in no way ready to relinquish the reins. So let's hope that this will be the blast that starts the avalanche.
Whatever it takes to pull us back from the abyss...
That's the danger of the Rovian strategy - pulling together groups who have little in common and promising each one that their agenda will be implemented. That strategy, so far, has been overwhelmingly successful. But it can't hold together indefinitely, because there is an innate conflict between evangelicals and plutocrats, which till now has been brushed aside in the common pursuit of power. The problem arises when the bill comes due.
They've put it off for as long as they can, but it's time to pay the piper, and the moral bank account is empty.
I'm hoping against hope that this is the beginning of the crumbling of that unholy alliance. Of course, it never pays to underestimate the power of power-mongering, and I know that the Republicans (and those who profit by them) are in no way ready to relinquish the reins. So let's hope that this will be the blast that starts the avalanche.
Whatever it takes to pull us back from the abyss...
Tuesday, October 03, 2006
A Drunk? You Wish!
Someone must be spiking the Konservative Kool-Aid. Lately it seems that everyone wants to join my club - A.A.
Hate-mongering, corruption, child molesting? Off to rehab with you! Mark Foley is only the latest member of the "I'm not a criminal - I'm a drunk" contingent. It's just like the "Jesus in the jailhouse" club, except that these guys are already Bible-thumpers, so they have to play the next 'Get Out Of Jail Free' card - the Alcoholic card.
Sorry, fellas. It ain't that easy.
They all have some idea that, if you call alcoholism a disease, then you're not responsible for what you've done. It was the booze's fault.
As a recovering alcoholic, I can tell you that it doesn't work that way. Having a disease does not absolve you of responsibility for managing that disease. Mel, it wasn't the booze that made you anti-Semitic. Bob, it wasn't the booze that made you a corrupt congressman-on-the-take. Mark, it sure as hell wasn't the booze that made you a pedophile. So if you think that you can boo-hoo your way into rehab instead of jail, go ahead and give it your best shot. But to blame it on the booze?
This drunk ain't buying it.
Update - thanks to the scintillating Blue Gal and Crooks and Liars for the mention!
Hate-mongering, corruption, child molesting? Off to rehab with you! Mark Foley is only the latest member of the "I'm not a criminal - I'm a drunk" contingent. It's just like the "Jesus in the jailhouse" club, except that these guys are already Bible-thumpers, so they have to play the next 'Get Out Of Jail Free' card - the Alcoholic card.
Sorry, fellas. It ain't that easy.
They all have some idea that, if you call alcoholism a disease, then you're not responsible for what you've done. It was the booze's fault.
As a recovering alcoholic, I can tell you that it doesn't work that way. Having a disease does not absolve you of responsibility for managing that disease. Mel, it wasn't the booze that made you anti-Semitic. Bob, it wasn't the booze that made you a corrupt congressman-on-the-take. Mark, it sure as hell wasn't the booze that made you a pedophile. So if you think that you can boo-hoo your way into rehab instead of jail, go ahead and give it your best shot. But to blame it on the booze?
This drunk ain't buying it.
Update - thanks to the scintillating Blue Gal and Crooks and Liars for the mention!
Monday, October 02, 2006
"Naughty"? And, Yes, It's ABC - Always Blame Clinton!
I am simply sputtering. I am aghast. Are you motherfucking kidding me?
I have had it with these sick, twisted hypocritical perverts.
This is where one of the fundamental flaws of the so-called 'Family Values' raises its hideous, ghoulish, misshapen head.
All this talk about how 'evil' homosexuality is - and, make no mistake, this is a central tenet in the Rovian scheme to keep Republicans in power forever by mobilizing the fundamentalist base - and all this finger-pointing and demonizing of liberals as godless. hellbound profligates who have no respect for the 'sanctity of marriage', and smugly congratulating themselves on their own holiness. Hell, they're practically walking around with their arms in a cast from patting themselves on the back.
Yet, they continue to willfully ignore the fact that being gay is something that you are born with - that is, may I say, 'God-given' - and is not abnormal. immoral, or unnatural, and thereby force anyone who is not able to express their natural sexuality (hetero or homo - priests come to mind) into perversion - child molesting.
Well, fuck you. Let me spell it out for you.
Being gay is not perverted.
Being a pedophile is perverted.
Being a pedophile is a CRIME.
You can be gay and be a pedophile.
You can be straight and be a pedophile.
It is not your sexual orientation that is at issue.
It is molesting children that is at issue.
And it is covering up for those who molest children that is at issue.
The Republican party is completely to blame here because they knew about it for 5 years!!! But - oh, no - can't lose a Republican seat over a few molested pages. Hey, boys will be boys! Simply a matter of human failing - nothing sexual, says Newt (why is he all over the airwaves every time you turn around? He's not even in office anymore. Gearing up for '08? Yeah, Mr. Serial Philanderer is just the guy to call when you want the low-down on Family Values)...you know, a couple of naughty e-mails; no big deal.
It's difficult to know where to start with this - so much perfidy, so little time.
Denny "Refrigerator" Hastert is spinning like a top. scrambling to deflect blame. And. predictably, the mouth-breathers at the major media are tripping all over themselves to spread blame everywhere except where it really belongs. Favorite target? Who else but the Big Dawg! And gays! And liberals for tolerating gays!
And then that faux-balance - "Let's not judge him till all the facts are in..." Yeah - I can't wait to see the e-mails that are coming. The ones talking about asking about the kid's genital measurements are just 'overly friendly'.
Nobody in media has the stones to come out and admit that it is almost always exclusively conservative Republicans that are doing this shit! And they have the nerve to brand themselves morally superior on top of it.
This is one reason why the conservative message is flawed. Legislating morality, denying normal human nature (not perversion), 'do as I say, not as I do'...it's all so very wrong.
I have had it with these sick, twisted hypocritical perverts.
This is where one of the fundamental flaws of the so-called 'Family Values' raises its hideous, ghoulish, misshapen head.
All this talk about how 'evil' homosexuality is - and, make no mistake, this is a central tenet in the Rovian scheme to keep Republicans in power forever by mobilizing the fundamentalist base - and all this finger-pointing and demonizing of liberals as godless. hellbound profligates who have no respect for the 'sanctity of marriage', and smugly congratulating themselves on their own holiness. Hell, they're practically walking around with their arms in a cast from patting themselves on the back.
Yet, they continue to willfully ignore the fact that being gay is something that you are born with - that is, may I say, 'God-given' - and is not abnormal. immoral, or unnatural, and thereby force anyone who is not able to express their natural sexuality (hetero or homo - priests come to mind) into perversion - child molesting.
Well, fuck you. Let me spell it out for you.
Being gay is not perverted.
Being a pedophile is perverted.
Being a pedophile is a CRIME.
You can be gay and be a pedophile.
You can be straight and be a pedophile.
It is not your sexual orientation that is at issue.
It is molesting children that is at issue.
And it is covering up for those who molest children that is at issue.
The Republican party is completely to blame here because they knew about it for 5 years!!! But - oh, no - can't lose a Republican seat over a few molested pages. Hey, boys will be boys! Simply a matter of human failing - nothing sexual, says Newt (why is he all over the airwaves every time you turn around? He's not even in office anymore. Gearing up for '08? Yeah, Mr. Serial Philanderer is just the guy to call when you want the low-down on Family Values)...you know, a couple of naughty e-mails; no big deal.
It's difficult to know where to start with this - so much perfidy, so little time.
Denny "Refrigerator" Hastert is spinning like a top. scrambling to deflect blame. And. predictably, the mouth-breathers at the major media are tripping all over themselves to spread blame everywhere except where it really belongs. Favorite target? Who else but the Big Dawg! And gays! And liberals for tolerating gays!
And then that faux-balance - "Let's not judge him till all the facts are in..." Yeah - I can't wait to see the e-mails that are coming. The ones talking about asking about the kid's genital measurements are just 'overly friendly'.
Nobody in media has the stones to come out and admit that it is almost always exclusively conservative Republicans that are doing this shit! And they have the nerve to brand themselves morally superior on top of it.
This is one reason why the conservative message is flawed. Legislating morality, denying normal human nature (not perversion), 'do as I say, not as I do'...it's all so very wrong.
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