Authoritarians

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I grew up reading Vonnegut. This is one of his best.

HARRISON BERGERON
by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.

I want to write a similar story, replacing “equal” with “safe”, and “2081″ with “in 2013, to allow the actions of a deranged individual to rule the country…”.

“They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.” Ben Franklin

The fuckin’ nutters on the left just don’t understand the rule of unintended consequences, much less how US law works. Once laws are on the books, they’re there until a court rules them unconstitutional. The left has proven that they are authoritarian, and I don’t like authoritarians, so I’m clearly not a liberal.

Which doesn’t mean that Sarah Palin and the teabaggers aren’t idiots…

Read the rest of this entry »

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I was at work, so when she asked for me by name my first question was “may I ask who’s calling?” I’ve been getting a lot of “spam” calls, lately, so I wanted to know who I was talking to before I launched into a profanity laced tirade.

“This is (I don’t remember) from (the Democratic something or other).”

I brightened. “Oh, hi”, I said, adding “Can we make this quick? I’m at work.” If my change in tone didn’t tell her that we have the same goals, I don’t know what else I could have done or said. Clearly, she knew I was someone who had donated before, and wanted me to do so, again.

“I’ll try to be quick”, she assured me, then said something along the lines of “Will you join us in standing on the dead bodies of dead children to support an agenda we had the day BEFORE the (abominable) killings in Newtown?”

I said “I’m sorry, but this is one thing I don’t stand with the Democrats on. We have too many other problems; continuing long term unemployment, the economy, things that affect people every minute of every day.” That’s as near as I can get to a verbatim transcript without a recording.

I added “We’ve had a vote. It’s time to move on.”

She was polite. She said something like “OK” before I said “I’m going to let you go.”

Yeah, I know, who cares, but here’s the interesting part.

An hour or two later I was talking to a co-worker in DC, arguably the most liberal city in America, who thinks he’s more liberal than I am. I told him this same story.

He replied, “I told my parents the same thing last week! They couldn’t believe I felt that way.” He thinks he’s more liberal than I am, and he thinks his parents are more liberal than he is. He agreed with me, BTW.

I can’t read the liberal blogs, any more. I don’t think I’m a baby killer. At least, I’ve never killed one, even by accident. I don’t think I’m the guy who wants boyfriends to murder their girlfriends, the way I’m accused of being on liberal blogs, EVERY DAY. I’m not in love with guns. At least, I’ve never fucked one, or masturbated thinking about one, or even had one in bed with me when I made love to a real live human being, so it’s not a “fetish” for me, as I’m accused of being some kind of pervert, EVERY SINGLE GODDAMNED DAY.

I don’t know the answer. “Liberals” aren’t my allies. I know that. Ron and Rand Paul sure as fuck aren’t my allies (Rand, the little baby, recently came out in favor of using drones to kill liquor store robbers as they leave the store, fercrhissakes.) And it’ll be a cold day in hell when I agree with a Republican on ANYTHING else.

But I know (for sure) that as long as “my side” continues to push this losing issue in spite of all the REAL problems this country faces, I’m going to be on the outside looking in. Virtually EVERYONE hates me for my point of view.

I know this. This isn’t conjecture.

I don’t know who my allies are, any more. Some days I feel like the last sane man in the universe.

And “pro-gun” people will vote, while anti-(drones, chained CPI, “not using the bully pulpit enough”, etc.) people won’t, so we’re move even further to the right on everything else.

P.S.-her politeness spoke volumes to me. Mostly, that she’s getting so many sycophantic responses that toe the “stand on the bodies of children to further the gun-grabbing agenda” party line that I wasn’t worth trying to get a few bucks for “the cause”.

If it’s not obvious, I’m really disgusted with politics, right now.

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I don’t really have time to code all 4 sites (twice), so I’m not going to make this site dark, but I support this:

Anonymous Calls For Internet Blackout On April 22 To Protest CISPA

We are going dark on MONDAY April 22nd at 6 AM GMT for 24 hours to protest your illogical and terrorizing bill against the Internet itself. Even with the whole Internet crying out to stop this BILL, the US House of Representatives failed to do so blinded by lobbyist’s money and cum in your eyes. So we will take action ourselves and open your eyes. Every popular/mainstream websites will be black until you, Mr. DronObama promise us to use your VETO power to stop this bill at Senate. Take this as a protest or a warning, as you wish. One thing is for certain, neither you or anyone else in this world can control the Internet, so don’t even try.

That’s starting at 11PM Sunday night, East coast time, so I won’t be posting from 11P tonight until 11P Monday night.

Ya’all are free to do whatever you want.

I’ll respond to whatever needs responding to outside those hours.

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Texas college stabbing: 14 injured, 2 in critical condition

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Film director Ken Loach gives his assessment of Margaret Thatcher, and offers a suggestion for her funeral.

Margaret Thatcher was the most divisive and destructive Prime Minister of modern times.

Mass Unemployment, factory closures, communities destroyed – this is her legacy. She was a fighter and her enemy was the British working class. Her victories were aided by the politically corrupt leaders of the Labour Party and of many Trades Unions. It is because of policies begun by her that we are in this mess today.

Other prime ministers have followed her path, notably Tony Blair. She was the organ grinder, he was the monkey.

Remember she called Mandela a terrorist and took tea with the torturer and murderer Pinochet.

How should we honor her? Let’s privatize her funeral. Put it out to competitive tender and accept the cheapest bid. It’s what she would have wanted.

It’s nice to have people who remember actual history, instead of the happy, happy, joy, joy pablum “the media” was vomiting onto carpets all over America, today.

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…is currently doing a “Mr. Smith Goes To Washington” style filibuster of CIA head nominee Brennan over WH transparency on just who can be killed by drone strikes inside US borders.

He’s joined in this filibuster by Ron Wyden, who, among other things, voted against the ODIOUS AUMF that we need to get rid of, NOW. (Um, dudes, even if you agree with that it was right to attach the Taliban in Afghanistan for their support of al Qaeda, 9/11 happened TWELVE FUCKING YEARS AGO! Get real. They’re not gonna “regroup”.)

I’m not even going to say “a broken clock is right twice a day” about Rand Paul. He’s one of the biggest pieces of shit to ever hold the office of Senator. He’s on the wrong side of EVERYTHING ELSE that matters.

But on this, he’s right.

Including doing the “Mr. Smith Goes To Washington” style filibuster. That makes it extra tasty.

So, I support Ron Wyden.

But I’ll never support Rand Paul. Not even for dog catcher. Not for anything.

He’s a piece of shit.

Who just happens to be right, at the moment.

And it’ll get him re-elected and, it will erode confidence in and the popularity of Barack Obama, AS IT SHOULD.

Claiming the “right” (of a POTUS) to make an individual decision about which American Citizen can live, and who should die is WRONG.

WTF is wrong with this country the American people?

What will it take to get the masses pissed off?

Have you seen this viral video?

(Uni warning: Kos link): Just answer the freakin’ question, Mr. President.

Oh, did I mention that I think Rand Paul is a huge piece of shit who makes me want to vomit throw up in my mouth, a littel, is among the 10 worst Senators we have, right now, among the worst Senators we’ve ever suffered through, and should have zero chance of re-election if there was any sanity left in America?

Rand Paul makes his batshit crazy dad look sane, but on this…

…I support him, too.

But we shouldn’t re-elect him. Never, never, never.

===~===

Boy, it’s hard to give a shit about the craziness the teabaggers have brought to our government, any more…

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Attribution (you may want to read this, first, NEW VIDEO CRUSHES MYTH ABOUT LARGE CAPACITY MAGAZINES, SAYS CCRKBA).

Look, even though I’m opposed to passing new laws under the general principle of “the law of unintended consequences, I ended up supporting Obamacare because I think we can make that law better, and I’m all for “sensible gun regulation”, but before we pass any new laws, shouldn’t we judge our support for them on whether or not these new regulations will actually reduce the possibility of a fucking lunatic like Adam Lanza committing his crime? By even 10%? Shouldn’t our criteria be, a new law must make a difference (n the issue we care about, and hopefully in a way that doesn’t benefit the already wealthy)?

Or is it enough that we just take guns away from citizens (and leave them in the hands of “our protectors”, the police and the military who serve the interests of the abundantly wealthy)?

And I’m not arguing that we should “make perfect the enemy of good”.

But if a new law accomplishes NOTHING FUCKING AT ALL other than disarming me and my neighbors, why should we support it?

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The SCOTUS UNANIMOUSLY (that’s a strong opinion, folks) grants cops even more power to search unreasonably.

Expressing considerable confidence that trained drug-sniffing dogs are reliable, and showing specific respect for one Florida police dog — Aldo — the Supreme Court on Tuesday made it quite easy for police officers to search a car or truck for drugs once a canine snooper has “alerted” to a smell on the vehicle. If the police offer evidence that a dog has been trained, or got a certificate from a training agency, that may well be enough to give police permission to turn an “alert” into a search of a vehicle, the Court said in a unanimous decision written by Justice Elena Kagan (Florida v. Harris, docket 11-817).

The Court specifically rejected a very detailed checklist of proof of a dog’s reliability that the Florida Supreme Court had drawn up before a court could treat a dog’s signaling of the presence of a drug odor as the equivalent of “probable cause” to search. In place of such a checklist, the Court set up a “reasonably prudent person” test — that is, a common-sense review of all of the facts about a dog’s alert, to see if such a prudent person would think that a search would turn up evidence of illegal drugs. “A sniff is up to snuff when it meets that test,” Kagan cleverly summed up.

Did your buddy leave a roach in your ashtray? Do not pass “GO”, go directly to jail. Loaned the car to your kids and “a friend” smoked a joint in it? You’d better hope your spouse didn’t leave a prescription container in the glove box, cuz buddy, that ain’t yours and you’re now guilty of illegal possession of drugs.

I’m amazed by dumb-fuck liberals currently calling for the cops to outgun citizens. Especially when there’s shit like this going on, too.

If you want to disarm citizens, try it. Institute the “reasonable” limits on magazine capacity.

Just don’t expect us to all go along when you make an exception for cops. Their lives aren’t worth more than mine, or my wife’s, or my child’s, or my grand-childs…

Any limit on guns should apply to cops equally to the rest of us.

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Nobel prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz on ‘The Price of Inequality’.

There may be nothing that’s more important than ending the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy. Raising my taxes will really hurt me, right now, but I’d be willing to make that sacrifice if the only solution the GOP allows is to let them all expire.

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Garry Wills

Republican operatives describe this year’s presidential election in apocalyptic terms. It will determine our future. It will seal our national fate. Well, they are probably right, but not for the reason they give. They tell Republican voters that President Obama, in a second term where he does not have to face re-election, will reveal and follow the full socialist agenda he has been trying to hide.

Only the gullible will swallow that. But the right does know that the future is at stake. That is because this election year gives Republicans one of their last chances—perhaps the very last one—to put the seal on their plutocracy. They are in a race against time. A Democratic wave is rising fast, to wash away the plutocracy before it sets its features in concrete, with future help from the full (not just frequent) cooperation of the Supreme Court.

It may seem odd to speak of the plutocracy as endangered. Surely it has established itself in every important political arena. Wealth is concentrated in a small fraction of the populace, the cosseting of whom with the Bush tax cuts plunged us into the great recession. Yet while the rest of the populace was suffering, the rich just got richer. In 2009 and 2010, years in which millions were unable to find work, the top one percent reaped 93 percent of the “recovery” income, and corporations are making more than they ever did. And the Republicans can still propose even further cuts in the taxes of “job creators” whose only job creation has been for their own lawyers and lobbyists.

Much more at the link.

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