Ode to my iBook

Here's an exploded view:

Lunatic Fringe, I know you're out there

Wow, are they out there!

Lawmaker: Disabled kids are god's punishment

Western Prince William Del. Bob Marshall, R-13th, says disabled children are God’s punishment to women who have aborted their first pregnancy.

He made that statement last Thursday at a press conference to oppose state funding for Planned Parenthood.

“The number of children who are born subsequent to a first abortion with handicaps has increased dramatically. Why? Because when you abort the first born of any, nature takes its vengeance on the subsequent children,” said Marshall, a Republican.
[...]
According to Marshall, Planned Parenthood receives “about $500,000 a year” from the state.

But Jessica Honke, director of public policy for Planned Parenthood Advocates of Virginia, said the only state funding Planned Parenthood receives is from Medicaid reimbursements. That amount was about $35,000 in the 2009 fiscal year, according to the Department of Medical Assistance Services.

Planned Parenthood provides a wide range of gynecological and other health services, from cancer screening and HIV prevention to birth control for low-income women.
[...]
[Rev. Joe] Ellison said he was “declaring war against Planned Parenthood.”

Yep, nothing more Christain than god punishing children for their parent's actions, lying, & declaring war.

Fearing Obama Agenda, States Push to Loosen Gun Laws

When President Obama took office, gun rights advocates sounded the alarm, warning that he intended to strip them of their arms and ammunition.

And yet the opposite is happening. Mr. Obama has been largely silent on the issue while states are engaged in a new and largely successful push for expanded gun rights, even passing measures that have been rejected in the past.

In Virginia, the General Assembly approved a bill last week that allows people to carry concealed weapons in bars and restaurants that serve alcohol, and the House of Delegates voted to repeal a 17-year-old ban on buying more than one handgun a month.
[...]
"The watchword for gun owners is stay ready," said Wayne LaPierre, chief executive of the National Rifle Association. "We have had some successes, but we know that the first chance Obama gets, he will pounce on us."

So let me get this straight, cars and alcohol=bad, guns and alcohol=good. With any luck these morons will shoot each other and raise our collective IQ. Virginia ain't for lovers anymore.

Missile Defense Agency Logo Angers Right

The Drudge Report and other conservative sites are highlighting a newly-unveiled logo for the U.S. Department of Defense's Missile Defense Agency and complaining that the new logo is reminiscent of both the Obama campaign logo and an Islamic flag.

"the new MDA shield appears ominously to reflect a morphing of the Islamic crescent and star with the Obama campaign logo," writes Big Government's Frank Gaffney. "… Team Obama is behaving in a way that -- as the new MDA logo suggests -- is all about accommodating that 'Islamic Republic' and its ever-more aggressive stance."

Jesus Christ on a toasted muffin, is there anything they can't read anything into?

Republicans Voting Against Stimulus Then Asked Obama for Money

Alabama Republicans Jo Bonner and Robert Aderholt took to the U.S. House floor in July, denouncing the Obama administration’s stimulus plan for failing to boost employment. “Where are the jobs?” each of them asked.

Over the next three months, Bonner and Aderholt tried at least five times to steer stimulus-funded transportation grants to Alabama on grounds that the projects would help create thousands of jobs.

They joined more than 100 congressional Republicans and several Democrats who, after voting against the stimulus bill, wrote Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood seeking money from $1.5 billion the plan set aside for local road, bridge, rail and transit grants. The $862 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act passed last year with no Republican votes in the House and three in the Senate.

I was trying for a pithy comment, but these people are lying, armed, hating, christofascist, paranoid, hypocrites ... and given all the fits that's news to print. What's wrong with this picture!?

Now for some brain bleach:




Cross posted at VidiotSpeak

Kick out the jams, Martin Bosworth

Update:

When I got to the Memorial service yesterday, I opened the door to the already crowded lobby. An older gentleman wearing a yarmulke asked who I was. I told him I was a friend of Martin's. He introduced himself as Marty's father Larry, and asked if I knew Martin in real life or just cyperspace, I told him I'd hung out with Martin several times.

He then leaned toward me and asked if I would like to see Martin. I might have said no, but I sensed this man was offering me a gift that was valuable him.

So I said "Yes, of course". He took me by the hand, led me back into some corridors, into the wood-paneled room off the chapel where the casket was placed. He asked the attendant to raise the lid one last time. He did so, pulled back some of the pure white shroud around Martin, and I was looking at a friend one last time.

Martin looked beautiful, that's the only word I can use. His father said: "I'm done crying, I'm done praying, I've cried all I can."

I told Larry that Martin looked beautiful, he said "Well, you know he had 2 embolisms, so now he's with his uncle. What a talent, what a writer, what a blogger!" I could only agree.

The rest of the service was poignant, sometimes people laughed at a fun memory, sometimes they cried. Martin's step sister spoke lovingly, as did his sister Leah, who sang a'cappella one of Martin's favorite songs. Martin's mother also spoke. The memorial ended with the 23rd Psalm and The Kaddish prayer.

_______

About 2 years ago, someone I knew only from a political activist email list posted that he was moving from DC to L.A. due to work, and asked for any list members in L.A. to get back to him, discuss neighborhoods and other issues. While he had visited L.A. many times, and his father lived in the San Fernando Valley, he wasn't really aware of the micro-regions and neighborhoods, as well as traffic patterns & commuting. In short, he was asking for help in finding a place to stay.

I, and several other local list members responded, and shortly I felt like I had a great new friend. And early on in 2009, after Martin made a harrowing drive across the US from DC to L.A., we actually met face to face at a Brave New Films meet-up for Tom Geoghegen, who was running for the IL-5 House seat. We listened to Tom, we chatted, talked about his epic trip through awful winter weather conditions, his overnight stops in towns that made Bates Motel seem cool, and really got along.

We stayed in touch, debated, argued politely, and I pointed out his one obvious flaw, that he wasn't a Mac guy. But he was a great guy.

If you've noted the use of the past tense of the verb "be", that's because Martin Bosworth did pass yesterday, suddenly. He had had health issues, had been hospitalized last year, but just Monday night we exchanged messages on Twitter, just like good friends do. About comic book characters, of all things.

His sister posted on his Facebook page:

Hello, everyone. I could only wish this was Martin posting, that this was some type of over the top joke. I am his sister Leah. He gave me all his account information and such when he first was feeling ill. I want so badly for a TARDIS to appear and take us all back to a point in time where things could play out differently.

Shouldacouldawoulda and all that. I do know that He, his life, love, and work lives on through the Internet and through the lives of all that he has touched. Please continue to post your thoughts and wishes here. He would want donations in lieu of anything else to go to the Electronic Frontier Foundation, OneLegacy.org, your local Humane Society, or whatever cause you know that he would stand for. Thank you for being his friends and allies. Martin, I love you!!!

At the end of the day, the WHY of it doesn't matter. All that counts is that Martin is gone. He left a challenge for all progressives: stand up straight for what we espouse, call BS when it's appropriate, work for a better tomorrow.

So Martin, my friend, may you eternally have a better tomorrow.


2nd update: Corrected cause of death to embolism, not aneurysm. Not that it really matters.

And I see your true colors

No one can call Glenn Greenwald a pollyanna, at least, not usually. But this time, I think he's being too hopey-changey:

There's a major political fraud underway: the GOP is once again donning their libertarian, limited-government masks in order to re-invent itself and, more important, to co-opt the energy and passion of the Ron-Paul-faction that spawned and sustains the "tea party" movement. The Party that spat contempt at Paul during the Bush years and was diametrically opposed to most of his platform now pretends to share his views. Standard-issue Republicans and Ron Paul libertarians are as incompatible as two factions can be -- recall that the most celebrated right-wing moment of the 2008 presidential campaign was when Rudy Giuliani all but accused Paul of being an America-hating Terrorist-lover for daring to suggest that America's conduct might contribute to Islamic radicalism -- yet the Republicans, aided by the media, are pretending that this is one unified, harmonious, "small government" political movement.

Indeed. Please read the rest of the article. As usual, Glennzilla nails it, and nails the hypocrites in the Conservative & Tea Party movements to the wall.

But at the end, Glenn drops the ball a little:

There literally is no myth more transparent than the Republican Party's claim to believe in restrained government power. For that reason, it's only a matter of time before the fundamental incompatibility of the "tea party movement" and the political party cynically exploiting it is exposed.

Yes, it's only a matter of time before we have a functioning press & media, and opposition politicians with the cojones to make these points loudly and often.

And curiously, during the Bush43 regime, the only supporters of Ron Paul were Ron Paul and a small band of Libertarians. Now we have 1000's of Paulites, all united by what? Dislike of mainstream conservatives?

Maybe. But what else changed Jan. 20, 2009? Could it be the color of the President's skin?

Poll Dancing

I'd like to point out some news today that got eclipsed by a white, upper middle class, college educated male who had a problem with the IRS and flew an airplane into a building that housed the IRS and left a manifesto behind and who matches the FBI's definition of terrorism, but wasn't a terrorist, but just happens to match a CNN poll of folks who make up the Tebaggers.

Nope, I'm not going to point that out at all. I just want to point out what CNN didn't in their article about their own poll; Teabaggers are 80% white.

Color me surprised. Not.

The teabaggers' constant claims that they cross party and racial lines has always been a cover for the facts; they didn't object to Bush trashing the Constitution, they didn't object to Bush taking a surplus and driving it into deficit due to tax cuts for the rich, they didn't object to illegal wars, they didn't object to torture, they didn't object to anything ... until the new sheriff, umm Obama, was in town

Now for some brain bleach:

Love the one you're with

It's a precious thing to be able to say "I love you with all of my heart"

I hope everyone had a happy Valentine's Day.

Misunderstanding all you see

Last Tuesday night Rachel Maddow showed a list of hypocritical Republicans who voted against the Stimulus Bill, yet climbed all over themselves to get the money & take credit for it back home. Bobby Jindal, for example, gave out Publishers' Clearing House-sized checks with his own name at the bottom, trying to take credit for what he voted against & denounced at socialism. And acknowledged that the $$ were creating jobs.

I went on the YouTubes™ that night, and it seemed no one had that clip up yet, so using the awesome magical powers of Safari, I downloaded it, and put it back up at my YouTube page.

Here it is:



I didn't blog about it that night as I was damn tired by that point, and went to bed.

By the next day, many other people had posted the same clip; I was not alone. But by this evening my YouTube has been viewed 19,662 times, and has generated 123 comments.

Some commentors get it, others, well . . . some are geniuses:

jrubin22 (5 hours ago) Show Hide

$100 REWARD to any Republican that can create a rational rebuttal to this. I can afford it, go for it!

sonygvf (5 hours ago) Show Hide

Hey jrubin22,
I'll add an additional $100, so there ya go, it's now $200.

DillonX (9 hours ago) Show Hide

We let almost anybody cross our state line here in Texas and sell health insurance policies.

Some of them sell for as little as $50-$100 per month.

But the catch is their policies are written so they seldom ever pay out even a dime...They are total scam artists.

Don't let this happen in your state.

Bolgernow (13 hours ago) Show Hide

This is excellent journalism right here. She is not making it personal, she is explaining the factual hypocrisy in these peoples actions vs. specific words.

Putting an actual face & name with facts hammers home the ideal of people running from rhetoric & facts in favor of hate

I've seen her do the same to Dems Pelosi, Dodd, & Max Baucus...

But then we have, well, these folks:

puff2111 (38 minutes ago) Show Hide

republicans, republicans, republicans, republicans, republicans, republicans. she should have said SOME republicans. site your sources maddow. don't just make blankets comments you horrible stinky c*nt. the hypocrisy goes both ways.

jane5457 (1 hour ago) Show Hide

both sides are the same, they all have the same tricks, and always i mean always the one in power will always claim to want and i say want to do better than the previous one, but alas it is the same shit just differebt party, and in media same shit just different newscasters, now its msnbc, only difference ..dont remember any of the fox people having chills down thier legs, or showing the adoration these people do.i think it embrasses even obama,but well what can he do ? but bare it sheepiisy

Nice to see the loyal opposition is staying classy, staying on point.

Bastards.

Little games are for little boys

Little questions for little minds:

Why would I believe a career politician who tells me "government doesn't work"? Doesn't work for whom?

Why would I believe a Climate Change denier basing their opinion on cold weather right now? That's as logical as granddaughter Isabella hiding her face behind the curtain and thinking I can't see her. She has an excuse: she's 3.

Why should I take relationship and family values advice from politicians who divorce wives who are on their sickbeds, so they can marry their mistresses?

Or from politicians who use hookers and wear diapers during sex?

Why should I believe that for-profit health insurance is best, when the guy telling me that has government-paid health care and loves it?

Why would I believe a need for war, when the person telling me is dishonest about how they dodged the draft?

Why should I bank with institutions whose management gives bonuses to executives who cause bank failure and insolvency? That's like sending a Christmas present to the guy who mugged me.

Why should I take spiritual and religious advice from a multimillionaire cleric?

Why should I respect the 1st Amendment rights of an off-shore corporation?

Why should I believe Republicans are fiscal conservatives when the national debt rose higher under Reagan, Bush 41 & Bush 43 than all other presidencies before?

Ok, that's enough for now.

Caption Contest!

Bump & Update


What does the pictograph above symbolize?

Thanks everyone for playing. It's actual meaning is "No Climbing, No Jumping" off of the pier.

But with a little Photoshop magic it could mean "No Teabagging!"

The Byrds

McGuinn and McGuire couldn't get no higher
But that's what they were aimin' at.
They so totally posed for me they were Vogueing.