Quote of the Day

From an article about the British defeat and retreat from Afghanistan:

“These are the last days of the Americans,” said the other elder. “Next it will be China."

Heh. Always thinking ahead, them Afghans. To the 19th century.

Original Intent

Thanks to PreventGunViolence.

The Conservative Paranoid Mind

Michael Tomasky

There’s a common thread linking conservatives’ positions on gun control, immigration, and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev: the constant need to stoke fear.

Yep. There's an article, but that's the gist of it. Fearmongerers suck.

Headline of the Day

What to Do with G.W. Bush?

The short answer is leave me alone with him for two minutes. Problem solved.

"Our repellent ride of self-inflicted wounds will just continue"

El Rude-o, back from Germany, on the Boston bombing and its aftermath.

You're gonna hear conspiracy heaped upon conspiracy, from the evil Moooslim connection to the wacky Chechen/Russian/Kyrgyz cover-ups of something or other to, inevitably, the Lizard People, but here's what we all know happened: A couple of brothers, one with a wife and kid, who were ball cap-wearing bros watched too much jihadi shit on the internet, perhaps met a person or two in a visit to the homeland, and decided to act stupidly, which is what stupid young men do. And, oh, hey, an older brother got his younger brother to go along with a plan because it's cool to blow shit up. We won't find out anything useful from Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. It was an isolated incident, no different than Newtown, Columbine, or any other crime where assholes got a shit-ton of guns and bullets, something that makes them awfully American at this point. Hell, if their last name had been Smith, we wouldn't even be talking about it as anything more than one more tragedy in our carousel of carnage, another time we won't learn or do a goddamn thing.
...

It's goddamn embarrassing to see the Senate's prettiest debutante, Lindsey Graham, more or less standing at Tsarnaev's bedside, cock out, ready to fuck the bullet hole in the guy's neck while Kelly Ayotte and John McCain fondle each other and watch as Peter King jacks off in the corner, all sweaty in anticipation of a declaration that Tsarnaev's an "enemy combatant" so he can be Gitmo'd or some such shit.

It's depressing beyond words to hear people say, as Graham did, that "The homeland is the battlefield" and call for surveillance, more surveillance, on the ground, in the sky, surveillance of every space, every orifice, give up more freedom, always be a suspect, always make sure the authorities are watching. Who gives a fat monkey fuck about your Fifth Amendment rights when there might be a single terrorist out there?
...

Now, we're gonna have another freak-out over Who Knew What When, with the FBI's questioning of Tamerlan Tsarnaev in 2011 becoming the new Benghazi.

Our repellent ride of self-inflicted wounds will just continue.

Of course it will. Sigh.

Oh, the irony...

Ironic Times

Senate Blocks Background Checks for Gun Buyers
Keeps them for voters.

I wonder if we'll have to show a gun to vote?

Foreign Students Balk at Coming To U.S., Fearing Country Full of Lunatics Armed With Automatic Weapons
Fortunately, country also full of lunatics armed with automatic weapons to protect us.

The danger is not so much getting caught in the crossfire because by and large they're the same lunatics, but rather getting caught at the intersection of two hot air fronts.

Average Age of Fox News Viewers: 65
Average IQ of Fox News viewers: 65.

On the bright side, that's an energy-saving room temperature.

Study Finds Most-Frequent Texters Shallow, Money-Obsessed, Bigoted
Least-frequent texters, deep, spiritual, tolerant.

Never texted nor will I. Patting self on back for being deep, spiritual, tolerant. 2 out of 3 ain't bad!

By 2020, Tourists From China Will Outnumber All Others
Wealthy Chinese will come here to buy luxury goods made by poor Chinese.

Exhaustive Nonpartisan Report: U.S. Use of Torture After 9/11 Ordered by Those at Top
So long ago no one remembers who was in charge at the time.

I sure as hell do.

How to blow up a town and get away with it in the most dangerous state to work in

Reuters

The fertilizer plant that exploded on Wednesday, obliterating part of a small Texas town and killing at least 14 people, had last year been storing 1,350 times the amount of ammonium nitrate that would normally trigger safety oversight by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
...

Fertilizer plants and depots must report to the DHS when they hold 400 lb (180 kg) or more of the substance. Filings this year with the Texas Department of State Health Services, which weren't shared with DHS, show the plant had 270 tons of it on hand last year.
...

Failure to report significant volumes of hazardous chemicals at a site can lead the DHS to fine or shut down fertilizer operations, a person familiar with the agency's monitoring regime said.

I do believe "fertilizer operations" have been effectively self "shut down".

"That's just a god awful amount of ammonium nitrate," said Bryan Haywood, the owner of a hazardous chemical consulting firm in Milford, Ohio.

Under the heading of grim irony, Governor Goodhair (R-TX) had not long ago returned from visits to other states to steal businesses from them, promising lower taxes and less regulation.

Kos

In a press conference today about his trip to lure California businesses to Texas, Gov. Rick Perry boasted of statistics demonstrating Texas’ superior job climate, but bristled when a California reporter brought up a less flattering ranking: Texas’ top position among all states for worker deaths and injuries.

After Perry touted Texas’ low tax and low regulatory burden on businesses, an Orange County Register reporter mentioned Texas’ poor record of worker safety, asking, “Can you speak to safety in your lower-regulation state?”

“I don’t think it has anything to do with the regulation side,” Perry said. “You all in California are not very knowledgeable about the energy industry” which, he said, “is a fairly dangerous workplace’ compared to other industries. He argued that worker injuries and deaths would not be reduced by better safety regulations: “It’s not because of lack of regulations.”

Yes it is because of lack of regulations Governor!

And for Governor Perry's information California has a large and long standing oil industry.

Yes we do. I think Goodhair doesn't know jack shit about much of anything.

He is also trying to get gun manufacturers to leave Connecticut in the wake of their new firearms regulations.

He does know to ask for federal disaster assistance even though he tried to get it denied to the victims of Hurricane Sandy. A hypocritical asshole who done got karma-bit on the ass.

Note to Perry: Just secede already. Take the rest of the Confederate "takers" with you so can have an East Coast, and YOU prop 'em up. We're tired of it.

Saturday Emmylou Blogging

Mark Twain is still hot stuff Out West Here and I live right between his old stomping grounds of Gold Country and The Comstock. I saw a 2-CD album of his life and times in word and song at WalMart for ten bucks and grabbed it. This is Emmylou's only song on the album and I never heard it before. "When Halley Came To Jackson" is on YouTube by Mary Chapin Carpenter, who wrote it, but not by Emmylou so I whupped it onto some footage and here it is.

Scene is CA SR 152 from Casa de Fruta eastbound toward Pacheco Pass. Shot with Active-i glasses/vidcam

95 more videos at my YouTube channel! {/shameless whoring}

The Vermin Surface

Just one more reason I hate right-wingers. It's a long list...

LATimes

Nearly as soon as I heard about the bombings on Monday, I was certain that somewhere in the nutty right-wing blogosphere someone was already concocting a storyline that would blame the crime on President Obama and the federal government. Alex Jones came through with impressive rapidity.
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Jones is asking Americans to believe that their own government is responsible for all of the worst terrorist attacks in the country’s history and that the motivation for the latest one is a desire to grope sports fans. All of this is, of course, total ping-pong-balls-for-brains nonsense. It would be laughable if it were not for the fact that this conspiracy kook claims 2 million radio listeners and more online followers than Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh combined.

Jones is a purveyor of the neo-Confederate brand of “patriotism” that has gained currency on the far starboard side of American politics. I do not think he should shut up or be shut down; he has the same 1st Amendment rights as I do. But he deserves to be exposed for what he is: a delusional, self-promoting bully who is slandering the very people who are right now doing the truly patriotic work of bringing the Boston bombers to justice.

Some people will say anything for money and fame, never mind the damage they do. I hope he chokes on it.

Hypocritical Asshole Headline of the Day

Cruz called Sandy aid ‘pork’ but wants ‘all available resources’ after Texas blast

Figures.

A Senate in the Gun Lobby’s Grip

Gabby Giffords in the NYTimes. Not bad for a gal who almost had her head blown off.

I watch TV and read the papers like everyone else. We know what we’re going to hear: vague platitudes like “tough vote” and “complicated issue.” I was elected six times to represent southern Arizona, in the State Legislature and then in Congress. I know what a complicated issue is; I know what it feels like to take a tough vote. This was neither. These senators made their decision based on political fear and on cold calculations about the money of special interests like the National Rifle Association, which in the last election cycle spent around $25 million on contributions, lobbying and outside spending.
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They looked at these most benign and practical of solutions, offered by moderates from each party, and then they looked over their shoulder at the powerful, shadowy gun lobby — and brought shame on themselves and our government itself by choosing to do nothing.

They will try to hide their decision behind grand talk, behind willfully false accounts of what the bill might have done — trust me, I know how politicians talk when they want to distract you — but their decision was based on a misplaced sense of self-interest. I say misplaced, because to preserve their dignity and their legacy, they should have heeded the voices of their constituents. They should have honored the legacy of the thousands of victims of gun violence and their families, who have begged for action, not because it would bring their loved ones back, but so that others might be spared their agony.
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Mark my words: if we cannot make our communities safer with the Congress we have now, we will use every means available to make sure we have a different Congress, one that puts communities’ interests ahead of the gun lobby’s. To do nothing while others are in danger is not the American way.

Fuckin' A, lady.

‘Oopsie Daisy Homophobe’

Funny. Via Raw Story.

The Colbert Report
Get More: Colbert Report Full Episodes,Indecision Political Humor,Video Archive

11,000,000 New Dems!

Gee, the right-wingers are saying this like it's a BAD thing! :-)

I knew that...

Study: Belief in an angry God associated with variety of mental illnesses

People who believe in an angry, punishing God are much more likely to suffer from a variety of mental illnesses, a scientific study published in the April edition of Journal of Religion & Health finds.
...

In keeping with prior studies on this very subject, she queried the data on three types of believers: those who see God as angry, those who see God as neutral and those who see God as loving. Controlling specifically to weed out the non-believers, Silton found that a belief in a forgiving, loving God is associated with positive psychological traits, “almost protecting against psychopathology,” she told Raw Story.

No specific data on those whackos who believe in God in the first place. Probably have to define "God" to do that. Lotsa luck. Heh.

My personal definition of God is simply the wonder of the universe. My church is everywhere.

Calling Out The Scumbags

He's right again.

Thanks to oldfartrants.

Exploding your emotional bandwidth

If it's Wednesday it must be Morford on the Boston bombing.

Besides, despite the horrific images, there was plenty to be heartened by. Did you notice? While the bombings were likely accomplished by a single person or small number of people, the wild outpouring of love and support, the hundreds if not thousands of first responders, police, fireman, medical personnel, various citizens who rushed to help, who donated blood, not to mention the millions who poured out love and support via messages and blogs, kind words and non-partisan stories? That was sort of staggering. That was sort of a wonder. As debilitating and depressing as the bombings were, the reaction was just the opposite, and far larger.

This is the most essential reminder of all, is it not? A handful of violent sociopaths will never match, much less defeat, the support and care of tens of millions. Those who wish harm and damage upon humanity will never outnumber those who enable, empower and heal. The odds are in our favor. They always are. This is why we are still alive. Maybe the only reason.

It’s easy to pluck out the imbeciles and opportunists, the conspiracy nuts, ones who light up the chat rooms with anti-Islamic hate, who instantly politicize the bombings, who cannot wait to find an enemy or leverage the tragedy to hammer some petty political point. Is the Boston bomber some local, small-time sociopath who used the Internet to make explosives? Was it a terrorist splinter group? Was it a Saudi? Some Tea Party anti-abortionist? A pro-NRA redneck? Militant vegan? Who can we blame?

What an odd, charged, fascinating moment, this space of not knowing.
...

Make no mistake, we will almost certainly find out who did it. Then the frantic political blogs and talking heads will finally get to embark upon some heated, semi-intellectual conversation about insanity, or domestic terrorism, or racism, or some new form of the same old demons we haven’t considered yet.

Will it help? Will we learn anything new? Maybe. Doubtful. Maybe we’ll just re-learn the old chestnut that America must have its demons. We must have our enemies. If we can’t find any, we invent them. It’s what we do.

More.

The Teabaggers Can Go Fuck Themselves

Tea Party Officially Blames Obama For Boston Marathon Bombing

In the hours after yesterday’s Boston Marathon attack, the right wing was quick to blame Muslim extremists despite the lack of a single indication of the identity of those involved. Similarly there were those on the left, like me, who were just as quick to point out that a bombing on Tax Day/Patriot’s Day at a marathon dedicated to the families of the Newtown Massacre smacked of a right wing Timothy McVeigh style “protest” (aka right wing terrorism). Time will tell which of us is correct but rather than wait for the facts to surface, the Tea Party Nation founder Judson Phillips has decided that President Obama is clearly to blame in an email sent out on Tuesday.

The second purpose of all this anti-Muslim screeching is even more disgusting: That this attack occurred on Tax Day as well as Patriot’s Day (the third Monday in April) at an event in which several of the Newtown families were running is a giant red arrow pointing, not at Muslims, but at right wing extremists steeped in Tea Party rhetoric of revolution, Second Amendment solutions and “watering the tree of liberty with the blood of patriots and tyrants.” They know this. They also know that if this turns out to be the case, the nation’s eyes will look to them just like they did after the Oklahoma City Bombing. Back then, the silent guilt they carried was enough for them to tone down the proto-Tea Party insanity that is fully realized today. As a preemptive move, they are loudly blaming Obama and Muslims because if (when) the other shoe drops and the country finds out that, yes, Fox News and Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh and the entire conservative entertainment complex that oozes violence and eliminationist rhetoric had a hand in egging on the bomber(s), they will already have millions of conservatives ready to defend them and even refute that it wasn’t a Muslim. Keep in mind, this is the political movement that still has a large percentage of people that believe Obama is a secret Muslim, Iraq was behind 9/11 and that we found the WMDs. A year from now, they will still be absolutely convinced that Muslims attacked Boston and Obama “let it happen.”

The right wing media knows its audience and they know how tight a grip they have on how that audience (mis) perceives reality. Expect to see a lot more of the kind of self-serving trash that the Tea Party Nation is selling to its easily manipulated audience in the next couple of days and weeks. They have to get in there and shape public opinion before reality rears its ugly head.

The story lies in between those quotes. Go read it even though you know just about what it says. The Teabagger pukes make me sick.

Heh

I think the graphic is one of the times Fry didn't stay away from the brown acid. Or maybe it was bathtub soju. Heh. Good point, though.

A tip o' the Brain to God of the week.

City Lights

From a photo gallery at the LATimes. 10 more. Way cool. I live in the dark spot west by southwest of the dot signifying Reno NV. I can also see why there's so much trouble back east. Heh.

Click to embigdazzle!

Prejudices

When I heard about the Boston Marathon bombing, my first thought after it was determined not to be a natural gas explosion, was that it was home-grown right-wing terrorists. Local Patriot's Day, Income Tax day, etc. To me, it fits.

Other people have their prejudices too. One of the first reactions I heard was "Burn all the mosques! It's Obama's fault!"

I'm ashamed to have to call those assholes Americans.

Who do you think is closer?