x
A man with a Samurai sword in Modesto is shot and killed by a police officer. Does Modesto not have Tasers? Oh, they do? He ignored being shot by the Taser? I hope so... Hmmm...
I did some research. Number of police officers killed in this country in the last 10 years by Samurai Swords: zero.
Taser once; Taser twice; Shoot gun...
Monday, January 12, 2009
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Secret Government?
x
The proponents of Proposition 8 have now filed a lawsuit in Federal Court to change California's law requiring disclosure of campaign contributions.
Hmmm. Can't stand the heat? They want to discriminate in private, huh?
They don't like being fired as my dentist after 31 years?
They don't like their businesses being boycotted because the are bigots?
They don't like being held accountable for imposing their religious beliefs on others, a violation of the very principle upon which this country was settled by white people- or, as history tells us, stolen from the Native Americans?
Too bad. And remember, there is a $100 threshold- below that, no disclosure is required, so you have to be a pretty committed bigot, at that.
So, not only are these people bigots, they are cowards. That being said, I do not condone violence against people over their political beliefs, whether they are left or wrong.
Open government is critical, as we have seen over the last eight years, years that are unlike any eight before them- and hopefully any one after!
And remember, there is a $100 threshold- below that, no disclosure is required.
And what about my rights? Don't I have the right to know if my dentist is laundering my money into something I find abhorrent, like taking away the rights of gay people to get married, making black people sit in the back of the bus, keeping women barefoot, pregnant, and in the kitchen, or stealing land and property from Japanese-Americans and sending them to Internment Camps? I know, I know- at least there were no ovens, right?
That being said, there are parts of the campaign law that should be tossed out by the Courts.
First is the requirement that people's employer be identified. Employers should not be associated with the political views of their employees any more than employees should be presumed to agree with the views of their employers.
The phone number requirement should also be tossed. Knowing the complete name and address of a donor is sufficient to preserve democracy.
A layer of security would also be added. It does take effort, gas, and/or money to send something to somebody, or to go to their home and picket.
It takes no effort to pick up the phone and harass somebody or their employer, and in the case of folks who get charged for incoming calls, it would cost them money.
Complete name and address- period. Anything beyond is an invasion of privacy.
Keep the baby- toss the bathwater.
The proponents of Proposition 8 have now filed a lawsuit in Federal Court to change California's law requiring disclosure of campaign contributions.
Hmmm. Can't stand the heat? They want to discriminate in private, huh?
They don't like being fired as my dentist after 31 years?
They don't like their businesses being boycotted because the are bigots?
They don't like being held accountable for imposing their religious beliefs on others, a violation of the very principle upon which this country was settled by white people- or, as history tells us, stolen from the Native Americans?
Too bad. And remember, there is a $100 threshold- below that, no disclosure is required, so you have to be a pretty committed bigot, at that.
So, not only are these people bigots, they are cowards. That being said, I do not condone violence against people over their political beliefs, whether they are left or wrong.
Open government is critical, as we have seen over the last eight years, years that are unlike any eight before them- and hopefully any one after!
And remember, there is a $100 threshold- below that, no disclosure is required.
And what about my rights? Don't I have the right to know if my dentist is laundering my money into something I find abhorrent, like taking away the rights of gay people to get married, making black people sit in the back of the bus, keeping women barefoot, pregnant, and in the kitchen, or stealing land and property from Japanese-Americans and sending them to Internment Camps? I know, I know- at least there were no ovens, right?
That being said, there are parts of the campaign law that should be tossed out by the Courts.
First is the requirement that people's employer be identified. Employers should not be associated with the political views of their employees any more than employees should be presumed to agree with the views of their employers.
The phone number requirement should also be tossed. Knowing the complete name and address of a donor is sufficient to preserve democracy.
A layer of security would also be added. It does take effort, gas, and/or money to send something to somebody, or to go to their home and picket.
It takes no effort to pick up the phone and harass somebody or their employer, and in the case of folks who get charged for incoming calls, it would cost them money.
Complete name and address- period. Anything beyond is an invasion of privacy.
Keep the baby- toss the bathwater.
Sarah, your 15 minutes are over...
x
Sarah Palin believes Caroline Kennedy is getting kid-glove treatment because of her "class" status.
Huh?
We have known Caroline Kennedy for almost 50 years.
She has never claimed to be an expert on New Jersey because she can see it from her apartment building in New York.
We know she selects her own newspapers, and can remember their names after she reads them.
We have never seen her wink repeatedly on national TV, nor have we ever seen her go to a debate only to tell the moderator that she does not intend to answer the questions, but to just talk directly to the American people- which most people would call a s-p-e-e-c-h.
Caroline Kennedy has never been involved in a scandal, but if she were she would not describe an investigation conducted by her own employees as "vindication".
Neither would Caroline Kennedy describe e-mails from her government e-mail account to her husband as "privileged" or "official confidential business".
Caroline Kennedy's husband was never a member of a group advocating New York's secession from the Union, nor did she ever give the keynote address at one of that group's conventions.
New York has 18 million people. Those are the people she will represent, and she will have to run for re-election when the partial term is over.
Yet, she has gotten more than 18 million people's worth of press coverage and critique.
Class difference? Oh, yes, Sarah, there definitely is a class difference between the two of you- in fact, there is a WORLD of difference.
However, that's not the reason for any variation in the way she is being treated.
The difference is that she is not scary, not an embarrassment, her position will be representing one state and not all fifty, and she will not be a heartbeat away from the presidency of the United States- in line behind a 70-year old multiple-cancer survivor.
Remember the Donny Osmond song, "Go Away Little Girl"? Give it a try.
Sarah Palin believes Caroline Kennedy is getting kid-glove treatment because of her "class" status.
Huh?
We have known Caroline Kennedy for almost 50 years.
She has never claimed to be an expert on New Jersey because she can see it from her apartment building in New York.
We know she selects her own newspapers, and can remember their names after she reads them.
We have never seen her wink repeatedly on national TV, nor have we ever seen her go to a debate only to tell the moderator that she does not intend to answer the questions, but to just talk directly to the American people- which most people would call a s-p-e-e-c-h.
Caroline Kennedy has never been involved in a scandal, but if she were she would not describe an investigation conducted by her own employees as "vindication".
Neither would Caroline Kennedy describe e-mails from her government e-mail account to her husband as "privileged" or "official confidential business".
Caroline Kennedy's husband was never a member of a group advocating New York's secession from the Union, nor did she ever give the keynote address at one of that group's conventions.
New York has 18 million people. Those are the people she will represent, and she will have to run for re-election when the partial term is over.
Yet, she has gotten more than 18 million people's worth of press coverage and critique.
Class difference? Oh, yes, Sarah, there definitely is a class difference between the two of you- in fact, there is a WORLD of difference.
However, that's not the reason for any variation in the way she is being treated.
The difference is that she is not scary, not an embarrassment, her position will be representing one state and not all fifty, and she will not be a heartbeat away from the presidency of the United States- in line behind a 70-year old multiple-cancer survivor.
Remember the Donny Osmond song, "Go Away Little Girl"? Give it a try.
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Hebrew Blockade 1A
x
The Israelis are vulnerable to legitimate criticism for their blockade of Gaza, which goes way beyond security concerns, and is really preventing the Gazans from receiving the basic necessities of life.
Is there a legitimate need for a blockade? Yes. Is there a legitimate reason do deny basic needs? No.
Look at the map. For the most part, Israel surrounds Gaza- by land, or by naval blockade. Except for the 20% of their land border that they share with Egypt.
The Israelis' concerns about what is going into Gaza can be handled very simply- let everything Gaza needs go THROUGH/FROM Israel. Inspections can handle the security concerns, and prevent weapons and contraband from getting through. And no goddamn price-gouging of the Arabs by the Jews.
The Israelis are vulnerable to legitimate criticism for their blockade of Gaza, which goes way beyond security concerns, and is really preventing the Gazans from receiving the basic necessities of life.
Is there a legitimate need for a blockade? Yes. Is there a legitimate reason do deny basic needs? No.
Look at the map. For the most part, Israel surrounds Gaza- by land, or by naval blockade. Except for the 20% of their land border that they share with Egypt.
The Israelis' concerns about what is going into Gaza can be handled very simply- let everything Gaza needs go THROUGH/FROM Israel. Inspections can handle the security concerns, and prevent weapons and contraband from getting through. And no goddamn price-gouging of the Arabs by the Jews.
The Central Ineptitude Agency
x
Leon Panetta is a central California Democrat of unimpeachable integrity and reputation. Oddly, he is being criticized by some Democrats over his selection by BO to head the CIA.
What all of our national and international law enforcement agencies are in dire need of right now is integrity- not experience, not "history", not skeletons- but leaders with integrity and a fresh, independent view.
Leon Panetta brings just that and, with the exception of Rick Warren as Chief Invocator, is just the latest in a series of good or great picks BO has made.
The fact that Lady Di has gotten her feelings hurt that she was not consulted, and that she doesn't really like the choice, is just the latest example that she has lost perspective, has forgotten her early days, and is really more DeCaf Republican than Caffeinated Democrat.
I felt a tinge in my heart when I saw her in Milk when I realized how far she had strayed from her roots as she has gotten older...
Leon Panetta is a central California Democrat of unimpeachable integrity and reputation. Oddly, he is being criticized by some Democrats over his selection by BO to head the CIA.
What all of our national and international law enforcement agencies are in dire need of right now is integrity- not experience, not "history", not skeletons- but leaders with integrity and a fresh, independent view.
Leon Panetta brings just that and, with the exception of Rick Warren as Chief Invocator, is just the latest in a series of good or great picks BO has made.
The fact that Lady Di has gotten her feelings hurt that she was not consulted, and that she doesn't really like the choice, is just the latest example that she has lost perspective, has forgotten her early days, and is really more DeCaf Republican than Caffeinated Democrat.
I felt a tinge in my heart when I saw her in Milk when I realized how far she had strayed from her roots as she has gotten older...
Monday, January 5, 2009
Jeeeezus Christ
x
The Catholic Church has published a paper stating that the evidence is conclusive that the birth control pill is processing through women's bodies, polluting our environment, and causing sterility amongst the men of the world. The report was published in the Vatican newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano, and authored by Pedro Jose Maria Simon Castellvi, president of the International Federation of Catholic Medical Associations.
Every time you think an institution can sink no lower...
We are supposed to take the Roman Catholic Church seriously on something like birth control? The same folks who are telling people in Africa that condoms do not stop the spread of AIDS?
How about we let the Nazis weigh in on Kosher food? Or the Israelis on which material makes the best Islamic Prayer Rugs? Or have the Mormons tell us the easiest and simplest ways to integrate a religion before its 200th birthday?
I am one of the few Atheists that believes he is right, but hopes he is wrong. I would love to stand there and watch as these morons, these strayward souls, those who could not do God's work if it was printed backwards on their foreheads so they could read it every morning in the mirror, stand in front of their God and try and explain themselves.
It would be a great reality show: Blasphemy TV.
The Catholic Church has published a paper stating that the evidence is conclusive that the birth control pill is processing through women's bodies, polluting our environment, and causing sterility amongst the men of the world. The report was published in the Vatican newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano, and authored by Pedro Jose Maria Simon Castellvi, president of the International Federation of Catholic Medical Associations.
Every time you think an institution can sink no lower...
We are supposed to take the Roman Catholic Church seriously on something like birth control? The same folks who are telling people in Africa that condoms do not stop the spread of AIDS?
How about we let the Nazis weigh in on Kosher food? Or the Israelis on which material makes the best Islamic Prayer Rugs? Or have the Mormons tell us the easiest and simplest ways to integrate a religion before its 200th birthday?
I am one of the few Atheists that believes he is right, but hopes he is wrong. I would love to stand there and watch as these morons, these strayward souls, those who could not do God's work if it was printed backwards on their foreheads so they could read it every morning in the mirror, stand in front of their God and try and explain themselves.
It would be a great reality show: Blasphemy TV.
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Saracens, and Hebrews, and War, Oh My!
x
I am not a blind supporter of Israel, nor am I an Israeli apologist. I am an Israeli kindred spirit, but integrity and reason must be brought to bear, and I think and hope that reasonable minds and hearts prevail, and all can live side-by-side as they have at other times in history.
However, we have seen the recent chronology so many times since 1948, there should be a name for it. Maybe Sullahadeen Syndrome- not in recognition of any parallel with the great King of Islam, but simply in recognition of his greatness.
Here's how it works: Arabs (in this case, Hamas) attack Israel; Israel says stop; Israel is ignored; Israel attacks with bigger sticks, and stones, and planes, and ground troops, and tanks, and ultimately invades source of rocket attacks; Arabs clamor for UN mandated cease-fire.
Stirring a Hornet's Nest will get you stung- every single time.
Maybe next time you want a Rocket show, watch a Houston NBA game, or shoot at the goddamn Mediterranean- it won't shoot back.
I am not a blind supporter of Israel, nor am I an Israeli apologist. I am an Israeli kindred spirit, but integrity and reason must be brought to bear, and I think and hope that reasonable minds and hearts prevail, and all can live side-by-side as they have at other times in history.
However, we have seen the recent chronology so many times since 1948, there should be a name for it. Maybe Sullahadeen Syndrome- not in recognition of any parallel with the great King of Islam, but simply in recognition of his greatness.
Here's how it works: Arabs (in this case, Hamas) attack Israel; Israel says stop; Israel is ignored; Israel attacks with bigger sticks, and stones, and planes, and ground troops, and tanks, and ultimately invades source of rocket attacks; Arabs clamor for UN mandated cease-fire.
Stirring a Hornet's Nest will get you stung- every single time.
Maybe next time you want a Rocket show, watch a Houston NBA game, or shoot at the goddamn Mediterranean- it won't shoot back.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)