tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-272799782024-02-19T10:37:47.230-05:00Logical NegativismHere's how the site got its name - it was, in my view, logical to be negative about the way the Republicans ran the country under GWB.
Well, here we are in 2013, and .not much has changed. The reason why, IMHO, is that Republicans have hung on to enough power that no one of sound mind and positive intent can get anything beneficial done. So we keep slogging on. I hope you'll find something of value for yourself here. If so, or even if not, leave a comment.
- Rich Miles, March 2013Rich Mileshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05282761344764663722noreply@blogger.comBlogger214125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27279978.post-34096165901012264042013-05-20T19:19:00.000-04:002013-05-20T19:19:53.171-04:00<h1 class="entry-title">
<span style="font-size: small;"><i><span style="font-weight: normal;">Intro by Rich Miles<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;">; </span></span>Article b<span style="font-size: small;">y A<span style="font-size: small;">llen <span style="font-size: small;">Clifton</span></span></span> </span></i></span></h1>
<h1 class="entry-title">
<span style="font-size: small;"><i><span style="font-weight: normal;">I am disgusted at Republicans. I have had it with them. They are not human. They are non compos mentis. They do not deserve to have a part in the national conversation. Below is a piece that explains, in part only, why this is true. Photographic evidence of the allegations re: our last THREE presidents is somewhere to be had - I didn't make a copy of it because I never thought for a moment that it would reach the level it has. If you are a Dem, read this with a shot of whiskey or a blood pressure pill at hand. If you are a Rep, how can you remain one after an episode like this? Do you really want your elected representatives to be this unrelentingly stupid?</span></i></span></h1>
<h1 class="entry-title">
<span style="font-size: large;">Attacking Obama Because of an Umbrella, Republicans Reach New Lows</span></h1>
<div class="post-info">
<span class="date published time" title="2013-05-17T21:13:16+00:00">May 17, 2013</span> By <span class="author vcard"><span class="fn"><a class="fn n" href="http://www.forwardprogressives.com/author/allen-clifton/" rel="author" title="Allen Clifton">Allen Clifton</a></span></span> <span class="post-comments"><a href="http://www.forwardprogressives.com/attacking-obama-because-of-an-umbrella-republicans-reach-new-lows/#comments"><span class="dsq-postid" rel="1714 http://www.forwardprogressives.com/?p=1714">348 Comments</span></a></span> </div>
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<a href="http://www.forwardprogressives.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/patheticrepubs-e1368843011933.jpg?768572"><img alt="patheticrepubs" class="alignright size-medium wp-image-1718" data-cfsrc="http://www.forwardprogressives.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/patheticrepubs-300x212.jpg?768572" height="212" style="display: none; visibility: hidden;" width="300" /><noscript><img class="alignright size-medium wp-image-1718" alt="patheticrepubs" src="http://www.forwardprogressives.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/patheticrepubs-300x212.jpg?768572" width="300" height="212"/></noscript></a>I thought I had seen every possible kind of ridiculousness when it came to the desperation of Republicans attacking President Obama—but then just yesterday I logged onto Facebook. There, I saw a picture posted by some of my Republican friends of Obama giving a speech with an umbrella being held over his head by a Marine.<br />
<br />
And at that moment I lost all hope for these people. Not that I had much to begin with, but when you’re reaching so far as to attack the President for something as meaningless as a Marine holding an umbrella for him (and the Turkish prime minister) while he gave a speech in the rain—it’s just sad.<br />
<br />
<strong>Attention all Republicans: This is not something new. Ronald Reagan, George H. Bush, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush <em>all </em>had somebody hold umbrellas over their heads at one point or another. </strong>It’s a pretty safe bet previous presidents did as well.<br />
When you become “outraged” over an image of a Marine holding an umbrella for the President (implying he’s some elitist who refuses to even hold his own umbrella) you simply prove how desperately pathetic your party has become.<br />
<br />
It isn’t enough you’ve tried recklessly for months to create some kind of Benghazi conspiracy that’s <a href="http://www.forwardprogressives.com/benghazi-epic-republican-failure/">only proven to be absolutely nothing</a>. Or that I know you’ll blow this <a href="http://www.forwardprogressives.com/irony-republicans-in-congress-calling-the-irs-incompetent/">IRS situation</a> up into “evidence” of the corruption of our tax system, and dig until you can find someone at that department that might have watched Obama on television once to use as concrete proof that the President had something to do with it.<br />
<br />
No, that wasn’t enough. Now they’re pushing “umbrellagate.”<br />
How dare a proud Marine stand in the rain and hold an umbrella for the <em>President of the United States? </em> You people do realize serving the President is an honor, right? Just because you cretins don’t like him doesn’t negate the fact that he <em>is </em>the President (and a damn good one at that) and it’s an honor to be a Marine standing beside him.<br />
<br />
Conservative blowhards and websites like The Daily Caller <a href="http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entry/daily-caller-accuses-obama-of-breaching-marine-umbrella">are trying to spin it</a> as a violation of Marine Corps regulations regarding umbrellas. Oh no! Impeach!!<br />
<br />
First of all, the regulation in question states that a male marine cannot carry an umbrella while in uniform. The marines in question weren’t carrying the umbrellas, they were holding them in place. Secondly, even if under normal circumstances that would have been questionable behavior (it’s not, but let’s play along), <em>it becomes an obsolete point considering it was the President of the United States making the request. </em><br />
<br />
It’s attacks like this which make me lose any amount of respect I had for 95% of Republicans<em><br /></em><br />
<br />
Because when you’re so desperate that these are the depths at which your party will sink to attack a President, it shows a couple of things:<br />
<ol>
<li>He’s winning</li>
<li>You’re running out of options</li>
</ol>
And Republicans have become pathetically sad.<br />
<br />
What’s next?<br />
<br />
BREAKING FOX NEWS EXCLUSIVE: President Obama refuses to drive his own motorcade and forces trained pilots to fly Air Force One.<br />
<br />
Wouldn’t shock me…</div>
Rich Mileshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05282761344764663722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27279978.post-32645937230050205602013-04-12T15:38:00.000-04:002013-04-12T15:39:00.577-04:00The God Reagan speaks from the graveby Rich Miles <br />
<br />
Finally! After hours of research, I have found the video that I KNEW existed, of the God Reagan saying that Social Security has nothing to do with the deficit. Here is the address, and you can see it for yourself:<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ihUoRD4pYzI&noredirect=1" target="_blank">Reagan says the deficit has nothing to do with Social Security</a><br />
<br />
Ol' Ronnie seems to be the only politician since FDR who is honest enough to admit this. If you eliminate SocSec, it will not affect the deficit one thin dime - except if, as has been the case almost since its inception, the Congress continues to steal from the Trust Fund to attempt to balance their hideously overdrawn budgets.<br />
<br />
And please, Republicans, try to curtail that awful habit most of you seem to have where you blame the entire current deficit on Obama, as if Bush never spent a dime in 8 years. Have you no memory, no sense of history about you? GEORGE W. BUSH created this deficit by invading Iraq, a country that had done nothing to us, and despite its mouthy leader's rhetoric, was not likely to EVER do anything to us. Our invasion of Iraq was a personal vendetta of George W Bush, and more than 4000 of our young men died to let him avenge his uninjured but insulted daddy. MORE than four thousand!! Dead! And countless thousands wounded! GWB is the foulest war criminal since Hitler, or at least Pol Pot. But that's a story for another time.<br />
<br />
So please, I know how repugnant reality is to most of you Republicans, but face this much - the God Reagan said it! It has to be true! Social Security has nothing to do with the Federal or any other deficit!!!<br />
<br />
Get it! Got it? Good. Rich Mileshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05282761344764663722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27279978.post-15313314813053800602013-04-05T10:48:00.000-04:002013-04-05T10:48:14.828-04:00Don't be stupid, America!!I've spoken of this in previous posts, but it bears repeating: the Republican party is trying to "rebrand" itself as a kinder, gentler bunch of fascists - DON'T FALL FOR IT!!! Rand Paul, the little twit of a junior senator from my state, is trying to spearhead this effort. I am here to tell you, it is NOT SINCERE!! It is nothing but a public relations ploy designed to make us think that they are not the selfish Nazis they have been for most of their history, after Lincoln (I wonder if Lincoln would BE a Republican if he were alive today).<br />
<br />
Do some reading - you will see that it is not real. I'll try to post some examples of what I am talking about in the days to come. But it's bullshit, America! They do not care about you, or me, or anything but getting elected so they can enrich themselves and their cronies at OUR expense. Believe it.Rich Mileshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05282761344764663722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27279978.post-60553005888583242762013-03-27T13:04:00.001-04:002013-03-27T13:04:43.833-04:00Here's what marriage isby Rich Miles <br />
<br />
You people are beginning to annoy me.<br />
<br />
You claim things about the Bible that simply ARE. NOT. TRUE. <br />
<br />
Jesus never said one word about homosexuals or same sex marriage. I already ranted on about that.<br />
<br />
But - BUT - it seems some people need a little remedial explanation of what marriage is in the abstract.<br />
<br />
Marriage IS mentioned in the Bible. Not sure what-all the book has to say about it, but it's mentioned. BUT...<br />
<br />
It is NOT an institution of god. It is, purely and simply, a way to try and prove who the father of any individual baby is, so that inheritances may be determined more fairly and equitably. If a man could believe that his wife had sex only with him, then he could believe that her offspring is his child, and would feel better about leaving his entire estate to that (usually male) child. Never mind the bastards he fathered, and usually KNEW he fathered, never mind the daughters he needn't leave anything to.<br />
<br />
Marriage is for that purpose and that purpose alone - to (try to) ensure that a woman stayed faithful to her husband.<br />
<br />
Of course, we know now, as they knew then, that it didn't always work. Ever hear the expression "Her baby, his maybe"? No man EVER knows for certain who fathered his wife's baby. We can only trust. I'm fairly certain that my father really WAS my father, because we looked almost exactly alike. But I don't really know, now do I? Nothing against my mom, she was almost certainly faithful to my dad. But I don't really KNOW, do I?<br />
<br />
And within the above definition, it doesn't matter that gay marrieds can't reproduce - in the traditional sense anyway. Lots of straights who marry can't have babies, or choose not to, or have miscarriages and never a live birth. Should we deny them the right to marry? Should reproductive status have anything to do with the question? I say no. <br />
<br />
But in fine, marriage is a social construct, dressed up and tricked out as an institution of god. But it ain't really so.<br />
<br />
I mention all this to try, probably futilely, to get the radical rightwing anti-gay marriage morons to get off their high horses, and shut up about same-sex marriage. I am farting in a whirlwind, but it's worth trying, I guess.<br />
<br />Rich Mileshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05282761344764663722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27279978.post-63890185286817835022013-03-27T12:41:00.000-04:002013-03-27T12:41:03.543-04:00You are wrong! So just SHUT UP!!!by Rich Miles <br />
<br />
You're wrong, OK? Jesus never said ANYTHING about gay marriage, or homosexuals, or anything of the sort. NOTHING. Got it? And most especially not in the Book of Romans, as one self-righteous moron alleged earlier today.The full name of that book is, variously, St. Paul's Epistle to the Romans, or the Epistle of Paul to the Romans, or the Letter of Paul to the Romans. See? It says right there in your Bible that Paul wrote it - and a bit of critical reading will show that it was written after the Crucifixion - so Jesus could NOT have written it.<br />
<br />
So as a sign I saw yesterday read, "As Jesus said about homosexuality and same sex marriage, " ". NOTHING. Not ONE WORD. So get over it. See the next post for the once and for all explanation of what marriage is.Rich Mileshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05282761344764663722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27279978.post-7127116334124352272013-03-23T17:47:00.001-04:002013-03-23T17:48:01.647-04:00Why Liberals and Atheists are Smarterby Rich Miles<br />
<br />
Would you like to know why liberals and atheists are more intelligent than conservative religionists ? Or perhaps more accurately, why intelligent people tend to become liberals and atheists?<br />
<br />
Read <a href="http://www.asanet.org/images/journals/docs/pdf/spq/Mar10SPQFeature.pdf">this article</a> by internationally renowned evolutionary psychologist Satoshi Kanazawa.<br />
<br />
He pretty well demonstrates that, the higher the level of intelligence in a person, mostly men, the more likely that person is to be a liberal, an atheist, or both. I can't explain why it's not as often so in women, but that's what he maintains.<br />
<br />
It's from a respected professional journal, and it's a little dry in spots. But if you have ever wondered why this appears to be so, this article will help to clear up the mystery. I will be surprised if even one conservative Christian reads this.<br />
<br />
Please comment. But keep it clean and respectable, or I'll delete you.Rich Mileshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05282761344764663722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27279978.post-49011036532655422712013-03-23T11:11:00.000-04:002013-03-23T11:12:12.978-04:0017 Reasons Why I can't support McConnellby Rich Miles <br />
<br />
Just want you to see this - it's a comment at the bottom of an article on Daily Kos called: <br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/03/12/1193125/-17-Reasons-Why-I-Can-t-Support-Senator-Mitch-McConnell-s-2014-Re-Election-Bid">17 Reasons Why I Can't Support Senator Mitch McConnell's 2014 Re-Election Bid</a><br />
To wit:<span class="nw"> </span><br />
<a class="de" href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=27279978"><span class="nw">* [new] </span> </a><b><span class="cu">McConnell serves money...</span>
</b>
<span class="crd ntb">(<a href="http://www.dailykos.com/comments/1193125/49612961#c2?mode=alone;showrate=1#c2">3+ / 0-</a>)</span>
<br />
<div class="ct">
...not the people of Kentucky or this country. McConnell has always
craved power, and money is the means to his power: money he provides to
others through legislation and money they provide back to him. I have
never understood why so many in Kentucky willingly sacrifice their
economic security for the leader of the party that wants to end
medicare, gut social security, reduce unemployment insurance, eliminate
workplace safety regulations, gut public education, and push wages and
benefits of average people to where they are "competitive" with the
cheapest source of foreign labor in the undeveloped world. I appreciate
the facts you provide, but, as you know, facts don't matter to most
people here. They believe what they believe, and they only believe what
they hear from Rush, Fox, or their preacher/politician.</div>
<div class="cb">
by <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/user/uid:144104">KYrocky</a> on <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/comments/1193125/49612961#c2">Tue Mar 12, 2013 at 01:14:12 PM PDT</a></div>
Rich Mileshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05282761344764663722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27279978.post-23534500480446336892013-03-23T10:47:00.001-04:002013-04-12T15:51:50.964-04:00Some little bit of truth among the liesby Rich Miles <br />
<br />
One of the downsides of the Internet is that it's just so gol-darned big, you know? A group of 100,000 people could spend 12 hours a day reading articles and gleaning info, and in 40 years, could not get 1/10000 of it read, much less committed to memory.<br />
<br />
The second sentence of the above paragraph is totally made up. I have no idea if it's true - but it seems <i>plausible</i>. It <i>could</i> be true. There's no way to check the figures, though.<br />
<br />
And that is how the Republican misinformation machine works - they give us stuff that seems like it could be true, and then they dare us to prove them wrong. Most people, in fact almost everyone, fails to do so. And a certain percentage of the blithering idiots among us actually <i>believe </i>the crap completely uncritically. And I am getting tired of it. I am getting sick of my future, and that of my country, being decided by morons who are not only ignorant, but actively <i>proud</i> of their ignorance!<br />
<br />
Well, I can't fight the millions of such mental dung beetles all by myself, but I can occasionally offer something a bit more concrete and provable, and that's what I am doing today. From the Fiscal Times, a more reasoned and well-presented analysis of an issue in which we all, or almost all, should have an interest:<br />
<br />
From The Fiscal Times:<br />
<a href="http://www.thefiscaltimes.com/Columns/2013/01/25/Why-Government-Spending-Is-Not-Out-of-Control.aspx#page1"> Why Government Spending Is Not Out of Control</a><br />
<br />
And last but not etc., there are articles all over Hell that are still conflating Social Security spending and federal deficits. For the umpteenth time, Social Security does not add ONE THIN DIME to the federal deficit. In fact, because of the way politicians have been stealing from it for decades, it actually functions to <i>reduce</i> the deficit, just like the USPS. But only by a small amount.<br />
<br />
See, what the Republicans want is not to reduce deficits, but to starve poor people to death. Whatever deficit reduction may be had is going to go to cronies and campaign contributors anyway.<br />
<br />
Read the article. Please. <br />
<br />
<br />Rich Mileshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05282761344764663722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27279978.post-62793408582501936802013-03-17T14:59:00.000-04:002013-04-12T15:53:19.005-04:00Paul Ryan is not paying attention - nor are his partymates<i>Update: Another example of the premise of this piece was reported last night: Karl Rove and Sarah Palin are currently having a contretemps. Palin accuses Rove of being a rotten political consultant, with most if not all of his premier candidates getting creamed in November 2012; and Rove mocks Palin's brief term (only two years) as governor of Alaska. Read about it <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/17/karl-rove-sarah-palin_n_2895684.html">here.</a></i> <i>Can you imagine this happening 7 or 8 years ago?</i><br />
<br />
<i>Also, as much as I enjoy having commenters here, and don't wish to piss them off, the one comment that is here as of 3/18/13, which is actually from a friend of mine, is just wrong. It's not just my opinion that this is happening. I'm not just following the opinions of others of my political bent. It is really happening.How far it will go remains to be seen, but it's definitely happening. It's my opinion that it is happening BECAUSE the Republicans are losing so much lately - they're losing and it's making them testy. Please proceed:</i><br />
<br />
by Rich Miles<i> </i><br />
<br />
OK, one point that has to be made: no matter how much one may dislike this little pencil-neck geek Paul Ryan and his budget plans, he is chair of the House Budget Committee. He's supposed to produce budget proposals. He's just not supposed to do it this badly.<br />
<br />
Now - we are in an interesting historical era right now. We are, or can be, witness to the death of a political philosophy, where the owners of that philosophy are too blind/stupid/arrogant/pick one or more to note that the death of the way of thought is happening.<br />
<br />
If you read carefully, in every single news source you can stand, you will see undeniable evidence that the Republican Party is falling apart. They are off-message, they are disagreeing with each other, they are calling other factions names, they are failing to see the handwriting on the wall that tells them (or would if they paid attention) that Americans no longer think the way they did, no longer fall into lockstep with the fascistic ideology that they once did.<br />
<br />
I don't say there are NO more Republican believers - it's just that there are far fewer of them than there were in the Bush interregnum. If I live to be 150, I will never understand how America was so hoodwinked by Bush the Younger, but it seems that it's now over, recovery has well and truly begun, and we can only hope it's true. We will have to deal with the Republicans a while longer - but I believe it's possible that in 20 years or less, there will be NO Republican party as we know it today, and quite likely its offshoot the Tea Party will have disappeared as well.<br />
<br />
Read your news well - you will likely see this phenomenon as well. If so, I hope you'll come here and report it as you see it.<br />
<br />
Y'see, those who tend to gravitate to thought lines like the Repugs have espoused since at least 1980* and likely well before, do not function well when no one is telling them what to think, say and do. They are either controllers, or ones who need to be controlled. So any measure of confusion in the ranks, especially as much as is evident now, just knocks the troops in a cocked hat and leaves them wandering about like the robots in Woody Allen's "Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex...".<br />
<br />
*<i>Actually, 1968 would probably be more accurate.</i> <br />
<br />
That's my opinion. That's what I'm seeing. Take a look and see if perhaps you don't see the same. <br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Rich Mileshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05282761344764663722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27279978.post-9084601934630341642013-03-11T12:44:00.001-04:002013-04-12T15:50:12.581-04:00This is beginning to keep me awake nights...by Rich Miles <br />
<br />
Look, folks, if the events of the past 14 years or so have taught me nothing else, they have shown me unequivocally how STOOOPID the American people can be.<br />
<br />
Not you, of course, but all those OTHERS!<br />
<br />
But it is looking almost definite that the Repugs are going to try to run Jeb Bush for preznit in 2012. His name and image have shown up in numerous places after a long silence, and he is making observations on things that would only be of interest to a presidential candidate.<br />
<br />
I am willing to work VERY hard to keep this from happening, keep him from winning. But if there is one statement that proves that Jeb Bush is too addled to be president, it is this one:<br />
<br />
During a tour of Sunday morning talk shows, Jeb Bush said, "No, I don't think there's any Bush baggage at all."<br />
<br />
(Now see, the correct answer to this is, "Well sure, there is for Democrats, but most of them won't vote for me anyway.")<br />
<br />
Do we want, can we afford, a man who is that deluded in our highest office? Work hard to keep this from happening. It could finally mean the end of America. Didn't Little Bro almost put us away from 2001-2009? If they start marketing Jeb as "the smarter Bush brother" or "the compassionate Bush brother", or words to that effect, they are aiming him at the White House. And the irony of 41-43-45 is just too much for me to stand. You?<br />
<br />
AND if he starts making war noises even before he gets in, then that is a certainty. The Repugs have learned the lesson of how hard it is to lose an election for Prez if there is a war on. Shrub showed 'em.<br />
<br />
You know, most of what I said about GWB turned out to be true - go back in this blog to about 2000, 2001 and check. That is not observed to make me look like a smart guy, but merely to point out that, if I was right before, I might be right again.<br />
<br />
It's tough being Cassandra.Rich Mileshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05282761344764663722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27279978.post-54373887967435505632013-03-06T10:43:00.002-05:002013-03-06T10:43:43.991-05:00Somehow, this will turn out to be Obama's faultby Rich Miles<br />
<br />
This sequester thing is just total
bullshit. I mean, just totally! First off, it only cuts off about $80-85
billion, which is an infinitesimal percentage of the
multi-trillion-dollar federal bloat, er, budget.<br />
<br />
And
secondly, the things that are being cut are (quite purposely, I believe)
things that will inconvenience the most individual Americans. Things that will cause the most pain.<br />
<br />
But
as stated in the following article, at least we know now who has been
responsible: the Koch Bros. That's right, the people who tried, and
almost succeeded, to buy the US presidential election last year. One
would think that after pouring that much money into the election and
losing, they would stop pouring, but apparently not. They are apparently
compulsive gamblers, who cannot stop playing no matter how much they
lose.<br />
<br />
Can there any longer be any doubt that to Republicans, their money is more important than the wellbeing of average Americans? I don't think it would be too farfetched to say that they (Republicans) want all of the poor people (poorer than them, anyway) simply to die so they no longer have to be taken care of. This article certainly speaks to that idea:<br />
<br />
So anyway, take a look - straight from the horses' mouths (text <b>bolding </b>and <u>underscoring</u> mine - <i>italics</i> from the author):<br />
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The Koch Brothers Take Credit for Imposing Economic Hardship on Millions of Americans </h1>
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<span class="author-byline">By: Rmuse<span style="padding-left: 15px;">Mar. 4th, 2013</span></span></div>
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<img alt="austerity Kills" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-117436" data-project-passioni="true" height="189" src="http://cdn.politicususa.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/austerity-Kills.jpg" width="267" /><br />
One of, but not limited to, the symptoms of depression is a feeling of hopelessness that can be exacerbated by unrelenting bad news, and for the past two weeks, Americans were bombarded with portents of doom and gloom over the Republican sequester. On Sunday, there was a glimmer of good news in the form of a reminder Willard Romney is not the president, and although he said it “<i>kills him</i>” he cannot “boss people around,” he is still alive enough to run his lying mouth about the President and how he handled the sequester. Now that the sequester is signed into law, as bad as it is, Romney preferred Paul Ryan’s budget that was four times as damaging as the sequester and increased the deficit by at least $4 trillion. One of Willard’s biggest supporters is cheering the sequester and claiming credit for its enactment, and looks forward to imposing more economic hardship on the people and the nation in their never-ending assault on government.<br />
In an <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/03/02/1191063/-Americans-for-Prosperity-Cheers-on-Sequester-claims-Ownership">email</a>, Koch brothers’ front group, Americans for Prosperity (AFP), sent congratulations to Republicans and their supporters around the country for helping push sequester cuts AFP says are “<i>an <b>important step</b> forward for economic growth</i>.” The email continued, “<i>Americans for Prosperity thanks Speaker John Boehner and House Republicans for standing up to President Obama and making sure the $85 billion in much-needed sequester spending cuts took effect</i>,” and it proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that the Koch brothers and Republicans own the sequester and are giddy at the prospect of a recession and killing millions of jobs. One aspect of sequester cuts little mentioned is that <b><u>the devastating $85 billion for 2013 is just the beginning of greater domestic spending cuts, devastating effects on anti-poverty programs, Medicare, and without cessation, the end of recovery.</u></b><br />
The sequester is a ten year plan that cuts $1.2 trillion across the board, and because they began in March, $85 billion is about 70% of the next nine years of cuts coming in at about $123.88 billion every year. It spells the end of recovery because experts estimate that by the end of 2013, $85 billion in cuts means nearly a million jobs will vanish, and GDP will fall between .7% and 1.7% in the first year alone. Kochs, AFP, teabaggers, and Republicans are celebrating austerity that deliberately tanks the economy, creates massive poverty, <b><u>and all to avoid closing tax loopholes for the richest people in America.</u></b> Republicans claimed 2013 sequester cuts would devastate the economy, and yet <u><b>they are celebrating nine more years of 30% higher cuts, and are a reminder of the damage Willard Romney would have imposed.</b></u> Romney took time to weigh in on the sequester and accuse the President of campaigning instead of working with Republicans to avert the cuts they were destined to enact.<br />
According to Willard, “<i>The president brings people together, does the deals, does the trades…the president leads, and I don’t see that kind of leadership happening. He’s campaigning</i>.” Romney also suspected President Obama blamed Republicans for rejecting attempts to avert the sequester because “<i>there may be more interest in showing pain in saying, See what the other guys did</i>?” President Obama did attempt to trade, deal, lead, and bring Republicans together, but the sequester was the means Republicans used to impose austerity, and unless Obama agreed to void defense cuts and replace them with more austerity and domestic cuts, the sequester was going forward as part of Republicans’ four-year war on the economy.<br />
<br />
Real economic experts cited ways Republicans are deliberately killing recovery; self-inflicted austerity, cuts to under-funded social programs, cut Social Security and Medicare benefits by slashing “entitlements,” and the sequester. Republicans and their supporters at Americans for Prosperity encouraged their base to campaign to “<i>keep the cuts</i>” so we can “<i>get our economy moving again</i>” in spite of overwhelming evidence that killing a million jobs and slashing domestic spending will cut GDP between .7-1.7% in the first year of a ten year program. Austerity already cost a reduction in growth in the fourth quarter, and combined with the Eurozone’s austerity-caused recession increases the risk to America’s economy because Europe is the nation’s leading trading partner. Austerity is decimating economies all over the world and all the while, Republicans, Koch brothers, and teabaggers are celebrating.<br />
Americans for Prosperity parroted a right-wing canard that America has a spending crisis and said, “<i>For the first time in a long time, genuine substantive spending reductions actually took effect and the government is running just a bit leaner</i>,” and it belies President Obama’s reduced spending that already cost a reduction in GDP in the last quarter of 2012. America cannot recover, much less thrive, with perpetual spending cuts that kill jobs and retard growth, but that has been the Republican plan all along. It is unfortunate that Republicans were successful creating a false deficit crisis because it has ensnared Democrats who cannot speak about the economy without first trumpeting the virtue of “<i>reducing the deficit</i>” and it will lead the nation into a downward economic spiral that no-one, not even the President, can prevent regardless the people’s overwhelming support for his storied “<i>balanced approach</i>” to…deficit reduction.<br />
Republicans won the austerity battle, and Americans will now know what it feels like to live in “socialist Europe” that imposed austerity, massive unemployment, negative growth, double and triple-dip recessions, and no hope for recovery anytime soon. Maybe there were two bits of good news yesterday after all; Willard is not president, and sequester damage in 2013 will be the least for the next ten years. Because if $85 billion is devastating, kills a million jobs, and cuts GDP by a percentage point, then nine years of $123.88 billion each will certainly eviscerate the economy; it was Republicans’ plan all along. It is just tragic, though, that they imposed austerity by injecting two words into every discussion about the economy; deficit reduction. It’s no wonder teabaggers, Republicans, and Americans for Prosperity are celebrating and congratulating each other; they won with two words.<br />
Rich Mileshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05282761344764663722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27279978.post-19810770505527279632013-02-13T15:12:00.000-05:002013-02-13T15:12:24.133-05:00Land of the free? Home of the brave?By Rich Miles <br />
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<i>I wrote the following on a Facebook post today, in answer to a question posted there, to wit: </i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>"Should the Republican Governors who are refusing to implement the Affordable Care Act lose their taxpayer-funded health insurance?"</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Pretty much all the posts, including mine, said yes, that the governors have no right to make such decisions, on at least a moral if not a legal basis. There was not even one that said no. </i><br />
<br />
<i>But after I said that, the following occurred to me. See what you think:</i><br />
<br />
Ya know, this brings up an overarching point: The main problem in this country today - and I mean the MAIN problem, from which so many other problems spring - is that politicians believe they are infallible. They don't think they can be called to task for their errors and stupidity, for their obstructionism and malfeasances. And so far, they have been right for the most part.<br />
<br />
What we need to do is impeach a couple thousand of the worst of them, at all levels of government, put a thousand or so of them in jail, and then wag our fingers at the rest, and say, "Let this be a lesson to you. We can do this whenever we want if you don't serve us! We hired ya, we can fire ya." Are we brave enough, as individuals and as a nation, to do this? I mean, I can count on my fingers and toes ALL the "good" politicians I've ever known or heard of. The rest are arrogant shitbags who need to be reminded who they work for. So I ask again, are we brave enough?<br />
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<i>Whattaya think? Are we?</i>Rich Mileshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05282761344764663722noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27279978.post-62771458839758706602013-01-24T12:32:00.001-05:002013-04-12T15:57:51.678-04:00This could be huge!!Post by Rich Miles; text by John Tomasic at <i>Colorado Independent</i><br />
<i>======================================== </i><br />
<i><b><a href="http://www.denverpost.com/recommended/ci_22445064">Update #2 - March 18, 2013 - not much of an update, but nonetheless.</a> </b></i><br />
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<br />
<b> </b><i><b>Update #1</b>: This thought just occurred to me: If the US Supreme Court decides to take the case (see last paragraph here), then they too will be in the position of deciding whether fetuses are people or not. If they give the win to Catholic Health Initiatives, they will in effect be agreeing that CHI is correct, and that fetuses are NOT people. Kinda hard to go any higher in US jurisprudence than that.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>My guess is SCOTUS , or at least the conservative majority thereof, will be too cowardly to even touch the case, or at least Chief Justice Roberts will try everything he knows to keep it from happening. </i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>I wonder if this law firm will ever represent any Catholic organization again.</i><br />
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<i></i>
<i>Naaaah!</i><br />
<br />
Yes, huge. In an argument that had seemed likely to continue well into the next millennium, and may yet, one side has, intentionally or otherwise, defected to the other side.<br />
<br />
A legal representative of the Catholic Church has argued officially in a Colorado court of law that FETUSES ARE NOT PEOPLE!!<br />
<br />
I was going to provide a link for you to read about this for yourself, but read about it here instead. Here it is.<br />
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Geez, this is just amazing. There seems no other way to interpret the following except that fetuses are only people to the Catholic Church when it doesn't cost them anything to say so. Talk about your legal precedents:<br />
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Catholic Hospital Argues Fetuses Are Not People In Malpractice Suit</h1>
<i><a href="http://coloradoindependent.com/126808/in-malpractice-case-catholic-hospital-argues-fetuses-arent-people" target="_hplink">From The Colorado Independent's John Tomasic</a></i><br />
<br />
Lori Stodghill was 31-one years old, seven-months pregnant with twin boys and feeling sick when she arrived at St. Thomas More hospital in Cañon City on New Year’s Day 2006. She was vomiting and short of breath and she passed out as she was being wheeled into an examination room. Medical staff tried to resuscitate her but, as became clear only later, a main artery feeding her lungs was clogged and the clog led to a massive heart attack. Stodghill’s obstetrician, Dr. Pelham Staples, who also happened to be the obstetrician on call for emergencies that night, never answered a page. His patient died at the hospital less than an hour after she arrived and her twins died in her womb.<br />
<br />
In the aftermath of the tragedy, Stodghill’s husband Jeremy, a prison guard, filed a wrongful-death lawsuit on behalf of himself and the couple’s then-two-year-old daughter Elizabeth. Staples should have made it to the hospital, his lawyers argued, or at least instructed the frantic emergency room staff to perform a caesarian-section. The procedure likely would not have saved the mother, a testifying expert said, but it may have saved the twins.<br />
<br />
The lead defendant in the case is Catholic Health Initiatives, the Englewood-based nonprofit that runs St. Thomas More Hospital as well as roughly 170 other health facilities in 17 states. Last year, the hospital chain reported national assets of $15 billion. The organization’s mission, according to its promotional literature, is to “nurture the healing ministry of the Church” and to be guided by “fidelity to the Gospel.” Toward those ends, Catholic Health facilities seek to follow the Ethical and Religious Directives of the Catholic Church authored by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. Those rules have stirred controversy for decades, mainly for forbidding non-natural birth control and abortions. “Catholic health care ministry witnesses to the sanctity of life ‘from the moment of conception until death,’” the directives state. “The Church’s defense of life encompasses the unborn.”<br />
<br />
The directives can complicate business deals for Catholic Health, as they can for other Catholic health care providers, partly by spurring political resistance. In 2011, the Kentucky attorney general and governor <a href="http://www.courier-journal.com/article/20110723/BUSINESS/307240044/0/NEWS/University-Hospital-merger-stirs-end-of-life-care-fears?gcheck=1" target="_hplink">nixed a plan</a> in which Catholic Health sought to merge with and ultimately gain control of publicly funded hospitals in Louisville. The officials were reacting to citizen concerns that access to reproductive and end-of-life services would be curtailed. According to <a href="http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_19073448#ixzz2ImBsVbLU" target="_hplink">The Denver Post</a>, similar fears slowed the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth’s plan over the last few years to buy out Exempla Lutheran Medical Center and Exempla Good Samaritan Medical Center in the Denver metro area.<br />
<br />
But when it came to mounting a defense in the Stodghill case, Catholic Health’s lawyers effectively turned the Church directives on their head. Catholic organizations have for decades fought to change federal and state laws that fail to protect “unborn persons,” and Catholic Health’s lawyers in this case had the chance to set precedent bolstering anti-abortion legal arguments. Instead, they are arguing state law protects doctors from liability concerning unborn fetuses on grounds that those fetuses are not persons with legal rights.<br />
<br />
As Jason Langley, an attorney with Denver-based Kennedy Childs, argued in one of the briefs he filed for the defense, the court “should not overturn the long-standing rule in Colorado that the term ‘person,’ as is used in the Wrongful Death Act, encompasses only individuals born alive. Colorado state courts define ‘person’ under the Act to include only those born alive. Therefore Plaintiffs cannot maintain wrongful death claims based on two unborn fetuses.”<br />
<br />
The Catholic Health attorneys have so far won decisions from Fremont County District Court Judge David M. Thorson and now-retired Colorado Court of Appeals Judge Arthur Roy.<br />
In September, the Stodghills’ Aspen-based attorney Beth Krulewitch working with Denver-based attorney Dan Gerash appealed the case to the state Supreme Court. In their petition they argued that Judges Thorson and Roy overlooked key facts and set bad legal precedent that would open loopholes in Colorado’s malpractice law, relieving doctors of responsibility to patients whose viable fetuses are at risk.<br />
<br />
Whether the high court decides to take the case, kick it back down to the appellate court for a second review or accept the decisions as they stand, the details of the arguments the lawyers involved have already mounted will likely renew debate about Church health care directives and trigger sharp reaction from activists on both sides of the debate looking to underline the apparent hypocrisy of Catholic Health’s defense.<br />
<br />
At press time, Colorado Health did not return messages seeking comment. The Stodghills’ attorneys declined to comment while the case was still being considered for appeal.<br />
<br />
The Supreme Court is set to decide whether to take the case in the next few weeks.<br />
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Rich Mileshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05282761344764663722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27279978.post-2643742270207187232012-12-19T09:54:00.001-05:002013-01-24T12:39:32.138-05:00The Angels Have Been Taken From Usby Rich Miles<br />
<br />
I have wanted, since last Friday night, to say something about the tragedy in Newtown CT, but I have not been able to because I have been deeply in mourning - as we all have, or at least all of us who hold any humanity in our hearts.<br />
<br />
But <i>en fin</i>, I must say something: As is often the case, it may not be original, someone else may have gotten to these thoughts before me, but they are <i>my</i> thoughts. I hope they will speak to you somehow.<br />
<br />
Never mind how the sick bastard who did this came to such action. He is dead, he deserves to be dead, and if there is a Heaven and Hell, I sincerely hope he is already roasting in Hell, for eternity if there is any divine justice. But I don't really believe in Heaven or Hell, so the shit bag is just - dead, I guess.<br />
<br />
I keep being confronted with the pictures of those beautiful little children on TV. Of course I can avoid them by simply turning off the set. But something makes me keep looking, despite the pain it causes me. And of course, my pain is nothing compared to the parents and siblings and friends and families of those lovely babies. They had not truly lived at all yet. Who can even reasonably speculate on what any of those children would have become in future years?<br />
<br />
See, that is what always occurs to me when I hear of death among young people: what would they have become? How might the planet have become a better place, or at least an altogether different place, if they had been allowed to live to as much of their full potential as any of us ever do? How much will NOT happen now, what children of theirs will now never be born? No one can say of course, but it always makes me wonder. As perhaps it does you.<br />
<br />
The worthless piece of shit who committed this heinous act deserves none of our sympathy - perhaps one could speculate that he too was a beautiful child once, but circumstances conspired to create of him a monster killer, and he took all those lovely babies from their parents and friends - from their lives. I will not even mention his name once, because I want him to be forgotten forever, I do not want him to garner any fame or immortality from these acts.<br />
<br />
I am unable to be as profound on this topic as I might have been, because the tears keep getting in the way - I am not exaggerating, every time I think of the pain and fear those sweet children must have suffered just before the end, I can't keep it together any longer. Tears fill my eyes, and my heart hurts almost to stopping.<br />
<br />
I cannot say "god bless them", because I cannot believe in a god who would allow this to happen to these innocents. I certainly do not believe in the god of Mike Huckabee - if that is the god who rules this universe, I wish he'd go away and leave us - including the sweet innocents - alone to manage it ourselves. As Garry Trudeau once said, he sure is stinking the place out. If there is a god, I certainly hope he skewers Huckabee and leaves him dangling there for all eternity, perhaps with a copy of his inhuman words dangling right in front of him so he will know why he is there. Forever.<br />
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I have lots more to say, but the rest would just be some sort of repetition of what I've said above.<br />
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The real sadness of this, aside from the killing sadness of the deaths of these babies, is that there will never be justice done for this. If you think about it, what justice could there be? What justice would make it better? Nothing I can think of. <br />
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Merry Christmas. Not for its religious significance, but for its importance as a time for us to love one another and be together in peace.<br />
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"Imagine there's no heaven, it's easy if you try. No hell below us, above us only sky." - John Lennon, another beautiful victim of gun violence by a mentally ill asshole.<br />
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I think he wanted us to be responsible for ourselves, and not expect god to fix everything for us. That's just my opinion, of course. If I'm wrong, boy am I in trouble after I'm gone. Especially if Huckabee's bloodthirsty god is in charge.<br />
<br />
But do me a favor - don't even THINK about telling me so. It won't change anything. And one last thing: Huckabee tried to back off of his remarks several days after the massacre. Apology most definitely NOT accepted. You moron. And that's putting it nicely.Rich Mileshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05282761344764663722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27279978.post-11309711483664989482012-12-15T19:26:00.001-05:002013-01-24T12:41:36.660-05:00This makes my heart hurtby Rich Miles <br />
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<b>UPDATE 12/19: I have written a more cogent piece on this topic, or so I believe. It is right after this one. </b><br />
<br />
Yesterday, Dec. 14, 2012, 20 FIRST-GRADERS, and 7 adults died in Newtown, CT, the result of a shooting rampage by a total loser of a young man, who had no chance of ever being remembered for anything except murdering children. His guns had quite a range on them, because the murdering bastard killed my soul as well, and no doubt that of millions of others across our nation. FIRST-GRADERS!!! Children who had barely lived, in fact in some sense had NOT lived at all yet - gunned down. What else can one call it, but gunned down?<br />
<br />
Our nation, with the exception of the worthless piece of shit Mike Huckabee and some few who agree with him, mourns. Huckabee said that god allowed this massacre to take place because god had been removed from the classrooms of our nation's schools - that's a paraphrase of what the unconscionably cruel bastard said. And the thing that really wounds my heart and makes me angry is that there are almost certainly some people - hopefully, few of them - who agree with him. Who agree that god, that the supposed supreme deity who controls the entire universe, allowed LITTLE CHILDREN, all of them 7 or under, to DIE because his vanity had not been assuaged by being worshiped with a short rote prayer every day. Children DIED because of this, says Huckabee the Hitlerian shitbag!! Can he ever be taken seriously again?<br />
<br />
I can only hope not!<br />
<br />
I wish peace for the parents of Newtown, and those all across our country. I will NOT say may god bless them. According to Mike Huckabee the walking sack of useless pus, such a blessing is no blessing at all.Rich Mileshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05282761344764663722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27279978.post-3158212914532445772012-11-28T14:37:00.000-05:002013-01-24T12:43:12.765-05:00Rachel Maddow shows us a thing or two about Republicansby Rich Miles <br />
<br />
<a href="http://front.moveon.org/rachel-maddow-on-how-the-republican-party-hasnt-learned-one-damned-thing/">http://front.moveon.org/rachel-maddow-on-how-the-republican-party-hasnt-learned-one-damned-thing/</a><br />
<br />
Rachel Maddow has rapidly become my favorite lesbian. Her lesbianism has little or nothing to do with why I like her. Mostly, I like her because she has a perspective on American politics that is similar to mine - she doesn't go after the mainstream thought. She goes after the odd thought (usually), and wears it out like a pit bull going after a rat.<br />
<br />
So it is with the link at the top of the page. It's listed online as "Rachel Maddow on how the Republican Party hasn't learned one damned thing. '' In the video, she spends about 7 minutes discussing how the Republicans, who in case you didn't hear LOST the bulk of the last national elections including the Preznitcy, have decided that the reason they lost was that they weren't Republican ENOUGH, and should be more so in order to win in the future. <br />
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So that's what they're going to do. Doubling down, eff. immediately, on being even more controlling, anti-female, etc. Repug assholes than they already are.<br />
<br />
Watch the video and see what Rachel means. And whether you're Republican or Democrat, write a comment to this post, and tell me if you think this is an effective electoral strategy.<br />
<br />
As if.Rich Mileshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05282761344764663722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27279978.post-30327907775659613112012-11-17T16:53:00.000-05:002012-11-18T14:08:06.622-05:00Repugs engage in cannibalismby Rich Miles <br />
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<b>Update below: It's not really cannibalism. It's just being a whiny-ass titty baby loser.</b><br />
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Not gonna go into detail on this, because the details are easily available if you're interested, but: The repugnican party is on a wild and hairy hunt for who to blame for the loss to President Obama a couple weeks ago. So far, they've come up with: Romoney's aides, and most recently, Fox News. I mean, the very news strategy that has been in operation since at least 2000 is now - not a good electoral strategy.<br />
<br />
What total whores these people are. If they had won, Fox News would have been the golden source of all wisdom. But since Romoney bit the big one, it simply HAS to be someone else's fault. It just can't be that Mittens was simply an unconvincing candidate to lead a country in such financial straits as we are. It has to be something else.<br />
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I am sincerely hoping that, as predictions have it these days, all the old farts who make up the base of the Repug party these days will indeed die off. Unfortunately, it will probably be another 40-60 years or more until they're all gone - but we can hope, can't we?<br />
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UPDATE: Comes today, 11/18, the news that Romoney is whining that the Repug primary debates were too many, and exposed the candidates to "gaffes" and other awful stuff that could be used against them to prove them stupid asses later. OK, he didn't say that last bit, but it was the gist of what he said.<br />
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Also, CNN and PBS were liberal networks that "beat the heck out of" Repug candidates, including of course, him.<br />
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Big stupid pussy. Is no part of his internal dialogue or public statements that HE was a big, disgusting plutocrat? And that eventually, even Repugs figure out that they are voting against their own interests, financial and otherwise?<br />
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Aren't you glad he didn't win? He would have spent 4 years whining like this every time something went wrong, count on it. If you go back and listen to his speeches, you'll hear the tone that would have led to it. Listen especially to his direct criticisms of Obama - THAT is whiny-ass titty baby stuff!<br />
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My only regret from this election is that he didn't lose by a far larger margin. I mean, 59 million Americans were just plain stupid enough not to see through the bastard. <br />
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My advice to the former governor: Shut up. Nobody cares why YOU think you lost. You are irrelevant and useless now. And don't even THINK about 2016, unless Pres. Obama shits himself on the White House lawn, and bombs Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. And maybe even Houston. And even then, you'll be running against the next Dem, NOT Obama.Rich Mileshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05282761344764663722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27279978.post-633149539824599252012-11-10T14:24:00.001-05:002012-11-18T14:02:53.084-05:00How Republicans Lost<h1 class="singlePageTitle">
<span style="font-size: x-small; font-weight: normal;"> I've been trying to write something that said adequately how I feel about Republicans, both before and since the recent election. And come to find out, this guy Ellsworth has already written it. IMHO, this piece should be spread all over the Internet, and copied and distributed to every right-wing radical in the country. But probably, just reading it and living in its philosophies is enough for now. If the following does not make you proud to be a Democrat and an American, then I don't know what will. Oh, and BTW, I knew this was going to happen. I even predicted it in past posts. I'm just a little surprised it happened this soon. I thought 2016, maybe 2020 might be the year for it. Perhaps this earlier date will allow for a little more healing before we do it all again in '16. </span></h1>
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<span style="font-size: x-small; font-weight: normal;">In essence, this piece says "Shut up, radical righties". And rightly so. </span></h1>
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<span style="font-size: x-small; font-weight: normal;">Get it? <u>Rightly</u> so...oh never mind.</span></h1>
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<span style="font-size: x-small; font-weight: normal;">Enjoy.</span></h1>
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<span style="font-size: x-small; font-weight: normal;">Rich Miles</span><span style="font-size: x-small;"> </span></h1>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">
</span>==================== </h1>
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Cry Babies And Sore Losers</h1>
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<span style="font-size: large;">by Rob Ellsworth </span></h1>
<span style="font-family: georgia,serif;"><span style="font-family: georgia,serif;"><a href="http://samuel-warde.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Candy-Ass-Sore-Loser-Abound-SM.jpg"><img alt="Cry Babies And Sore Losers" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-5205" data-project-passioni="true" height="161" src="http://samuel-warde.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Candy-Ass-Sore-Loser-Abound-SM.jpg" title="Candy-Ass-Sore-Loser-Abound-SM" width="223" /></a>I’m
seeing Americans post photos of our Flag hung upside down because the
President won reelection. They’re defending this action as a “Naval sign
of distress”. Let me tell you something: you are not on a battleship,
you are a manager at McDonalds in Follansbee, WV, and you are in fact, a
lunatic.</span></span><br />
<br />
I’ve avoided “spiking the football” over a great night for the
President and for common sense in the Senate – Richard Mourdock and Todd
Akin deserved more than a loss. But I’ve held off, because I respect, am
friends with, and on certain issues agree with, many patriotic
Republicans who work hard to make this country a better place and simply
disagreed with who should be Commander in Chief. That’s fair and
healthy.<br />
<br />
<div>
And, I also didn’t spike the football because I’ve lost elections before and I know how terrible it feels.<br />
<br />
It’s called maturity and not enough people in either party have it.<br />
<a href="http://samuel-warde.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Candy-Ass-Sore-Loser-Abound.jpg"><img alt="Cry Babies And Sore Losers" class="alignright size-medium wp-image-5204" data-project-passioni="true" height="111" src="http://samuel-warde.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Candy-Ass-Sore-Loser-Abound-300x111.jpg" title="Candy-Ass-Sore-Loser-Abound" width="300" /></a>The
following jaw punch is not directed at common sense Republicans, nor
does it condone radicals on the Left. It is directed at the right wing
fanatics who put party before country, conspiracy before reality, and
ideology before science and intellect.<br />
<br />
To Tea Party Patriots and hardcore Religious Engineers:<br />
Republicans lost because their party leadership and most candidates
feared you, listened to you, and looked the other way on important
issues as you picked the dumbest, craziest nominees in key primaries
(Murdock and Akin), or converted otherwise sensible, experienced
candidates to Crazy Town (Romney).<br />
<br />
There’s nothing wrong with wanting limited government. I do.<br />
<br />
There’s
nothing wrong with believing in God, the Golden Rule, or wanting to
reduce abortions. I do, too. But you’ve taken it too damn far and scare
the shit out of people you could otherwise persuade.<br />
Yes, the message and messenger matter (you’re failing at both, BTW),
but no Madison Avenue P.R. firm, K Street lobbying firm, Fox News
“analyst”, or local chapter of “Freedom Works” can sell the flaming dung
you’re slinging.<br />
<br />
Smart people can lose. But smart people always learn.<br />
You didn’t lose because you “weren’t conservative enough” or because
the country has become full of lazy “takers” who don’t want to earn a
living or just want America to “turn in to Europe”.<br />
You didn’t lose because of Hurricane Sandy or because Chris Christie
hugged the President on TV – they were both doing their jobs.<br />
<br />
You didn’t lose because of a liberal media, liberal college campuses,
liberal polls that were “weighted to Democrats” (mostly because they
were accurate), or because of “election fraud”… actually, that probably
benefited you this time.<br />
<br />
No. You lost because your policies, tone, conspiracies, rigid
inflexibility and irrational rhetoric helped align enough moderates,
swing voters, and minority groups whom otherwise could be persuaded by
Republicans, to align with Democrats and a beatable incumbent.<br />
<br />
It’s not that you didn’t get your message out, it’s that we all actually heard it and threw up a little in our mouths.<br />
<br />
There isn’t a mandate for Democrats in this election. Liberalism
wasn’t rewarded in this election. However, calm pragmatism, compassion,
working together, compromise and sincerity were rewarded. People may not
have agreed with President Obama, but more felt he was sincere and that
he understood their daily problems, fears, and dreams. If you don’t
trust what the polls say, take a look at who is sworn in on January
20th. I thought you’d at least believe in Math when it came to counting
to 270.<br />
Sincerity is the only thing in politics you can’t fake. You can’t
teach it. No matter how shiny a candidate’s bio is, how smooth he is, or
how perfect the gray hairs rest on his temples — any average Joe on the
street can spot a bullshitter.<br />
<br />
Mitt is a generous and good man, but he didn’t know who he was or
“needed” to be at any given time in that campaign. That’s largely his
fault for lacking core convictions or personal toughness (Ronald Reagan
and George W. Bush possessed both traits – that’s why they won).<br />
<br />
But you, the right wing base of the party, who drove so many of us
moderate republicans out the door years ago, were the main catalyst.
Your inability to reason, compromise, or let new facts and evidence
challenge your predetermined outcomes led millions of moderates to no
longer be able to stand on stage with you.<br />
Frankly, you’re embarrassing – more so than a crazy family member at
dinner, or having your mom drop you off at a high school dance.<br />
<br />
You say stupid shit and look stupid saying it.<br />
<br />
You pass amendments to ban flag burning and then hang it upside down and post it on Facebook when you lose.<br />
<br />
You preach limited government in the economy when Democrats are in charge and then look the other way when you’re in charge.<br />
You want a government small enough to stay out of corporations and
banks but big enough for bedrooms and hospital respirators (see Schiavo,
Terri).<br />
<br />
There’s a hatred inside of you that burns in a way that scares normal people.<br />
<br />
You made unlikely allies in large corporations who are more
interested in tax breaks and loopholes even if the government has to cut
your Medicare and Social Security or cut education to a point where
states and local governments have no financial choice but to educate
your children in portable trailer classrooms with 35 other students.<br />
<br />
Would these corporations do this just to help pad their quarterly
earnings reports with certain tax and regulatory policies? You bet your
sweet ass they do. And you better believe they’re happy to have you make
the “freedom” argument as “concerned citizen patriots” on their behalf.<br />
<br />
Yet, after those corporations spent billions on TV ads and herded
you like sheep over the last half decade to discredit Barack Obama for
everything from being a “Godless communist” — to his “being born in
Kenya and hatching a secret plot to take down America” — to Obamacare’s
“death panels and job killing regulations” -<br />
YOU still lost.<br />
<br />
After having a Senate Republican Leader state that his party’s top
priority in Congress was to make “Obama a one term President” and a
House of Representatives that blocked everything he tried to do and then
had the brass to criticize him for “not getting anything done” -<br />
<br />
YOU still lost.<br />
<br />
After attacking gay people who want equal protection under the law
(BTW, I’m referring to the 14th amendment to the constitution, I know
you forget most of the amendments after the 2nd one) -<br />
YOU still lost.<br />
<br />
After attacking the Hispanic community who’s tired of being spoken
“at” like criminals, attacking low income women who rely on Planned
Parenthood for services of which 98% have nothing to do with abortion,
and attacking relatively trivial things like PBS that children and
adults enjoy as “1″ damn television channel that doesn’t include Honey
Boo Boo or a “Fox News Breaking Alert” announcing Obama’s latest “Czar”
appointment -<br />
YOU still lost.<br />
<br />
And after throwing all the red meat in your warped political base out
to the rest of the country to eat, the majority of Americans weren’t
hungry for it and didn’t trust ordering from your unhealthy,
de-regulated menu -<br />
<br />
YOU still lost.<br />
<br />
You can read me the constitution, but you clearly don’t have a
practical understanding of what you’ve read, heard on television, or
forwarded to your entire email list of like minded xenophobes.<br />
This country is great because our founders were smart enough to limit
the government’s power and give the people enough freedom and authority
to correct their own mistakes in pursuit of a “more perfect union”
(it’s in the first damn line of the Preamble, in case you can’t find it
in your Tea Party Constitution Cliffs Notes).<br />
Our founders were utterly brilliant and sophisticated. I don’t like
to speak for them, but I doubt they would have been friends with Glenn
Beck or Rush Limbaugh or Sarah Palin. Nah, they wouldn’t have made the
guest list at Mt. Vernon or Monticello.<br />
<br />
But let’s be clear, our founders weren’t perfect. They owned slaves.
Only White male property owners had a say in things. Women, blacks,
native Americans, and other constituencies had to wait for an American
dream and in many cases, are still waiting and working for it. Speaking
of work, children were working 12-16 hour days with zero safety
protections in statute. Zero.<br />
The constitution, subsequent amendments and Supreme Court rulings and
opinions since 1800 aren’t perfectly clear (those who think they are
tend to have had a healthy serving of Kool-Aid and have never watched
oral arguments at the Supreme Court).<br />
The founders knew that they, and the constitution they drafted,
weren’t perfect. This is why they added a Bill of Rights and why they
created a Supreme Court and a process that has allowed us to add 27
amendments to their work of art.<br />
<br />
Their imperfection is what led to a Civil War to prove that human and
civil rights aren’t a “states’ rights issue” – they’re endowed by our
creator, not by legislatures in Mississippi or Alabama, and they’re
protected equally in our constitution, but also in our democratically
passed laws.<br />
<br />
I run from the Capitol steps to the Lincoln Memorial most mornings
that I’m in Washington. I may not be fast or smart, but I can read
what’s carved in stone.<br />
<br />
Please. I welcome a challenge to what I’ve said. If you think because
I voted for President Obama that I’m a socialist or that I don’t want a
better America, I’m happy to take time from running a business I’ve
co-founded and time from money I’m trying to raise for Big Brothers Big
Sisters of America to pause and give you a fresh one. At no charge.<br />
<br />
But I do ask this: be a real Patriot. Look at that flag you’ve hung
upside down. Look at what you’ve done to it and what that means.
Thousands of our bravest men and women, braver than me, just lost limbs
and in many cases their lives so that Iraqis and Afghanis could vote
however they see fit. I did that on Tuesday and so did you. That’s what
that flag stands for – equal access to a process, not a guarantee for
any of our desired outcomes.<br />
<br />
A country that defeated Hitler, Mussolini, and bin Laden won’t crumble because the guy you wanted to be President got beat.<br />
<br />
You lost. Now learn from it.<br />
<br />
Sincerely,</div>
Guest Contributor, Rob Ellsworth, “A Proud AmericanRich Mileshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05282761344764663722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27279978.post-3115325367478588722012-11-03T15:02:00.001-04:002012-11-03T15:20:28.850-04:00This guy will say ANYthing!!by Rich Miles<br />
<br />
I haven't written much in the past few months. That's unusual for me in a presidential election year. It's just that I really couldn't get inside the head of anyone who is planning to vote for the Mittster. It's just such an illogical fallacy to vote for him that I found it impossible to address remarks to such a person.<br />
<br />
I remember back in 2004, when John Kerry was accused of, among other things, being willing to "say anything" to get votes. It wasn't true, of course, Kerry was relatively honest compared to most pols, and especially compared to Bush - but as was the common tactic with Karl Rove, they attacked Kerry at his strongest point, not his weakest - he's a fairly honest guy? said Rove, good, then let's call him a liar. Remember all the people at the Repug National Convention carrying flipflop sandals with Kerry's face on them? Cute, but inaccurate. Kerry mixed up a few facts, but most of the time when he did he admitted it and tried to fix it. But the Repug outrage knew no bounds when they caught him at something - never mind that their candidate couldn't open his mouth without lying.<br />
<br />
And now we have a candidate who really will say anything, and has - he's reversed positions he's held publicly for his entire political life, and expects that no one will remember, or notice that he's lying, and that people will thus vote for him because he's saying all the right things.<br />
<br />
And while I find it difficult to picture, there really do seem to be a lot of people who are going to vote for the SOB. Enough to make it a close race, when it should be about a 70-30 rout for Obama, and Romoney only gets the 30% because some people will vote their party no matter how crooked the candidate clearly is.<br />
<br />
But the thing that really frightens me - and I can't figure out for what reason - is that he might actually get elected! And I don't know if I fear that because he is evil, or because he is simply incompetent. Because he (Romoney) is most assuredly both. He almost totally lacks compassion for his fellow man. Now prove me wrong.<br />
<br />
Let me wrap this up with one small observation: Romoney was governor of Massachusetts. And up there where they know him best, he is losing by a margin of 63-33% (3% undecided, however that may be) according to a recent poll. It ain't just a little margin, you see. Massachusetts is admittedly a fairly liberal state, but they elected HIM! And now, they hate him by 30 percentage points.<br />
<br />
Still thinking about voting for him?Rich Mileshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05282761344764663722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27279978.post-81843196804633980892012-10-19T19:28:00.001-04:002012-10-19T19:28:55.458-04:00Sundance has a few words for us<div id="blog_author_info">
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Hi, Gentle Readers - I admit I haven't been posting regularly, esp. considering that this is an election year. So here's a little number plus video from a well-known celeb. Enjoy! I'll try to find some interesting things to say in the next couple weeks.</div>
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<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-redford" rel="author">Robert Redford</a></h2>
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Why I'm Supporting President Obama </h1>
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<span class="arial_11 color_696969">Posted: 10/19/2012 8:04 am</span></div>
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I was in the early days of my acting career in 1962, when Rachel Carson's <em>Silent Spring</em> made its way onto best-seller lists and college campuses and into living rooms across America and sowed the seeds of today's environmental movement. The story of that movement still represents for me who we are as a country: a people dedicated to something greater than ourselves, and a nation that recognizes our responsibility to each other.<br />
In this election, only President Obama shares those values and the belief that our kids and grandkids should grow up with living, natural places to explore. Yosemite, the Great Lakes and the Everglades should always be places we can visit and wonders that inspire -- not just photos of what used to be.<br />
Shortly after taking office, President Obama signed one of the largest expansions of wilderness protection in a generation, setting aside more than 2 million acres as protected wilderness, conserving more than 1,000 miles of rivers, authorizing a 26-million-acre conservation system of historically significant landscapes and adding thousands of miles of trails. He's helping restore treasured landscapes from coast to coast that support local economies and communities through tourism and outdoor recreation.<br />
The President has set historic standards that by 2025 will double the distance our cars and trucks will be able to go on a tank of gas, reducing our reliance on foreign oil by 2.2 million barrels per day and saving each of us thousands of dollars at the pump. <br />
He made the single largest investment in clean energy of any other president, helping to double the amount of electricity we generate from wind and solar, strengthening our global economic competitiveness and supporting nearly a quarter of a million American jobs. <br />
And that's one of the biggest differences in an election brimming with them. While President Obama is moving us forward, Mitt Romney would take us back. He'd roll back every step of progress we've made -- not just in the last four years, but the last 40 years. <br />
We've seen in the last stretch of this campaign that Romney will say anything to win, even if it's flat-out false. But we know what the real Mitt Romney would do. He'd gut investments in renewable energy -- including the wind production tax credit that 37,000 American jobs depend on -- while giving $4 billion a year in wasteful taxpayer subsidies to Big Oil, even as they reap near-record profits. It's no coincidence that those same special interests have donated nearly $11 million to Romney's campaign and the super PACs behind it. <br />
Even more revealing, Romney would undermine President Obama's commitment to our national parks and undo the crucial steps the President has taken to reduce toxic pollutants like mercury and address carbon pollution -- change that protects the health and prosperity of our children now and for generations to come.<br />
We simply can't let Mitt Romney buy the keys to the White House and let the special interests write our nation's energy plan behind closed doors, like it did in the previous administration. That old saw didn't work then, and it won't work now. <br />
I hope you'll join me in supporting President Obama and stopping others from reversing our progress. If you care about Great Lakes restoration in Ohio, or the Everglades in Florida, wind energy in Iowa or Colorado, vote. All of those states, and many others, have early voting -- don't wait until Election Day. Check out <a href="http://vote.barackobama.com/" target="_hplink">vote.barackobama.com</a> and head over to the polls now. <br />
This is one of the most important campaigns in our lifetime. The choice is clear, and it's up to all of us to join with President Obama to fight for continuing the significant progress he's made.<br />
But don't take my word for it, watch this video about President Obama's environmental accomplishments and see for yourself our progress that's at stake:<br />
<br />
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-redford/obama-energy-policy_b_1985714.html <br />
<br />
(NOTE: The above link is to the entire article plus the video, because I don't know how to cut and paste only the video. If you've read the article, scroll down to the bottom and view the video. Sorry, I'll try to upgrade my tech skills ASAP.)<br />
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Rich Mileshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05282761344764663722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27279978.post-71414226930149912462012-09-07T08:58:00.002-04:002012-09-07T09:05:47.607-04:00Now About this 'Citizens United' thing<div id="blog_author_info">
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by Rich Miles</div>
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<br />
Just
in case there is one uninformed boob in this country who does not yet know what
'Citizens United' refers to, here's a tip: it's nothing less than the
downfall of democracy as we've always thought we've known it here in the
United States. It's a Supreme Court decision from January 2010 that
held, in essence, that corporations are permitted to contribute
virtually unlimited funds to the election campaigns of whoever the hell
they want. That's not actually what the decision held - but it was the
net effect of the decision.<br />
<br />
The
net result has been that literally huuuuge amounts of money have been
flowing from these corporate coffers into the campaigns of - you guessed
it - Republican candidates who will bend over and grease up on any
issue their corporate sponsors instruct them to. It has taken the
democratic process out of our democratic process, and has in essence
given a number of elections to candidates who have the most money,
regardless of qualification, simply because those candidates can afford
to buy far more advertising than their opponents, and because many of us
remain stupid enough to sell our votes to the most-advertised.<br />
<br />
I
trust I have made myself perfectly vague.<br />
<br />
No, seriously, boiled down to
its essence, Citizens United means that our democracy has been bought
and sold to he (or more rarely, she) who has the most money. Which
should scare, and in reality, anger any person who still believes in
"one person, one vote". Yeah, you know who you are, all 477 of you.<br />
<br />
So anyway, why am I telling you all this? Well, I'm glad you asked me that question.<br />
<br />
Remember
Roseanne Barr? She of the scratched crotch while mangling "The
Star-Spangled Banner" some years ago at an MLB game? Or of the eponymous
comedy series, if you want to go back that far.<br />
<br />
Well
guess what? She's become something of a political commentator, and
truth be told, she ain't half-bad at it. So what follows is a commentary
she published on Sept. 6, 2012. It has a few things to say to us. And
is at least mildly funny, too. Here it is<span class="arial_11 color_696969">: </span></div>
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I Approve This Message... </h1>
<span class="arial_11 color_696969">by Roseanne Barr</span><br />
<span class="arial_11 color_696969">Posted: 09/06/2012 9:24 am</span></div>
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<a href="http://www.blogger.com/news/campaign-finance-reform"> Campaign Finance Reform </a> , <a href="http://www.blogger.com/news/citizens-united"> Citizens United </a> , <a href="http://www.blogger.com/news/shadow-conventions-2012"> Shadow Conventions 2012 </a> , <a href="http://www.blogger.com/news/sheldon-adelson"> Sheldon Adelson </a> , <a href="http://www.blogger.com/news/corporations"> Corporations </a> , <a href="http://www.blogger.com/news/money-in-politics"> Money In Politics </a> , <a href="http://www.blogger.com/news/shadow-conventions"> Shadow Conventions 2012 </a> , <a href="http://www.blogger.com/celebrity"> Celebrity News</a></div>
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(Italics mine - RM)<br />
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I'm glad I have a chance to say a few words about money in Politics, because this issue is really at the heart of it all, like a clogged, throbbing artery. More than ever, freedom of speech has become freedom to buy enough media to drown out just about everybody else's freedom of speech. I was driving, yesterday, and as I clicked past one Right Wing radio show after another, for some reason it all was drowned out by a voice in my head that kept repeating the words, "Liberal Media." It seemed sad and funny at the same time. Maybe that's because I am, among other things, a comedian. A fair amount of the time I'm a pissed-off comedian. Why? Because an old quote also pops into my head, more than I'd like it to. It goes: "There are two things that are important in politics. The first is money, and I can't remember what the second one is." <br />
<br />
I found out that it's a quote from a super-rich guy named Mark Hanna who managed the campaign of William McKinley back in the dark ages of Media. He strong-armed his loaded industrialist pals and raised enough bank to outspend Democrat, William Jennings Bryan, by ten to one. Guess who got to be President? It still works like that, and, in fact, it's getting worse because of a recent development known as <i>Citizens United</i>. "Citizens United," it sounds a lot better than "A handful of the mega-rich who own politicians and can swing some Supreme Court Justices." The real takeaway here is that we've turned the word <i>bribery</i> into the more respectable word, <i>contribution</i>. Now that we've been force-fed the bizarre idea that a corporation is basically a person, I hope Haliburton and Blackwater and Lockheed-Martin don't get upset stomachs if they're denied their God-given right to attack Iran. Poor rich guys, all they want is a little free market opportunity, a chance to work the same magic they used to transform Iraq into the peaceful, democratic wonderland it is today. <br />
<br />
I have to admit: It really takes some world class bullshitting skills to claim that handing politicians gigantic checks in return for favors is simply free speech. I'll tell you what's not bullshit, though: they actually rammed it through with a straight face. It's one more slap in the face for the 99%, but the Romneys of the world don't see it that way. They don't see it as arrogance and/or hubris or whatever word you can use to better describe their arrogance and hubris. No, they see it like, "Look, God doesn't make mistakes -- he's 'blessed' me with five-hundred million dollars, and if that doesn't prove that I'm qualified and deserve to wear the pants around here, I don't know what does!" <br />
In the same category as Romney and hateful uber-nerds like the Koch brothers, we have Sheldon Adelson, casinos-in-China magnate and who knows what else, who can casually toss an extra hundred million bucks at the Romney machine so it can buy ads telling people that they're going to Hell along with what's left of America if they don't kick the Black Communist from Kenya out of the Lily White House. Unfortunately, Adelson also thinks that America exists primarily to provide money and muscle to Israel and do the bidding of Benjamin Netanyahu. Jeez, you'd think Israel had oil the way our "leaders" keep their/our lips on its ass. What they do have is a sweetheart Foreign Aid deal with supposedly cash-strapped America whereby we give them money and they buy weapons from us so they can remain the sheriff in town in the part of the world that does have oil. They're our special friends, like Saudi Arabia, only they're Jewish, and they don't have oil. Get it? Me either, but they both buy tons of weapons from American Arms merchants, because, after all, all God's children need expensive, high-tech weapons. But don't get me started on The Middle East. My point is that Sheldon Adelson has about a million times more freedom of speech than you or anybody you know. And, he can affect decisions like who we attack next or who becomes President. That's just plain crazy, and that's the problem with big money in Politics. <i>It's making more and more people feel like powerless strangers in their own country, and I don't mean that in a good way.</i> <br />
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Campaign Finance Reform may not sound like a burning, hot-button issue, but it is, and all of us citizens better get united behind that, or <i>pretty soon there won't be anything left worth fighting for. </i>That's why I'm running for president and that's why I approved this message.</div>
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Rich Mileshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05282761344764663722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27279978.post-3956994038889679982012-08-17T18:25:00.000-04:002012-08-17T18:25:07.080-04:00Lies, damn lies, and statistics, Part IIby Rich Miles<br />
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Apropos of nothing really, Blogger has some mildly interesting statistics on this site that I wanted to share with you.<br />
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One list of stats is the countries from which my site is visited. Needless to say, the majority of my visitors are from the U.S.<br />
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But guess what nation is second place, with approximately 18% of the visits?<br />
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Russia!! That's right, Russia, the former Soviet republic. I confess I have no idea what to make of that fact, but fact it is.<br />
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If you'd care to offer an opinion about why about 1/3 as many people from Russia as the U.S. visit this site, I would be happy to read it.<br />
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But if you use the word "Communist", you will be deleted and blocked. Unless you use it in reference to something besides me.Rich Mileshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05282761344764663722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27279978.post-63698501105254653892012-08-16T11:02:00.000-04:002012-08-16T11:02:45.797-04:00The Biggest Conspiracyby Rich Miles <br />
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OK, my friends - I have danced and jigged around this topic for several years now, without ever coming right out and saying what I believe, because it sounded too paranoid to put out there. But finally, available evidence just speaks too loudly. I cannot HELP but believe that what I am about to say here is true. See if you agree.<br />
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The basic premise here is this: our country is nearly hopelessly screwed up on a number of levels, notably the fiscal, a large portion of the screwing up took place during the George W. Bush administration, and we - all of us, of all parties - are now stuck with the net results.<br />
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And it is MY belief that the Bush administration DID IT ON PURPOSE!! That the Bushies set out to make our country weak and impoverished and all other manner of ills, and here's why:<br />
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First off, everywhere in this essay that I say "George Bush" or "GWB" or "Bush" or "Shrub", what I mean is the Bush administration, the Bush cadre, including Karl Rove, Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, and dozens more who conspired with them to create this effect. What effect? I'm glad you asked me that question...<br />
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So anyway....Bush set out to make things horrible in this country. He set out to put us in hideous debt. Set out to destroy our national prestige, to trash our credibility overseas, SET OUT to weaken our military capabilities, reduce employment, and dismantle our national social safety net. He, they, did all this, and MORE, on purpose.<br />
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And why did they do this, you may ask? What would be the reason behind such nefarious acts?<br />
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Have you ever heard the term "permanent Republican majority"? Have you heard the term "vast right-wing conspiracy"?<br />
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Follow me on this: Bush knew that things had gotten sooo screwed up on his watch that the next president was unquestionably going to be a Democrat.<br />
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And he also knew that this Democrat was going to make every effort to UNfuck everything Bush had fucked up. He would have no choice but to make a valiant effort to do so.<br />
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But he also knew that if the Congress, either or both houses, were controlled by Republicans, a simple program of knee-jerk obstructionism, and the very occasional evil-intended legislation would at least put a stick in the spokes of any corrective programs, and would possibly simply draw it all to a standstill.<br />
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Soooo....Bush et al. set out to screw everything up that he could get his hot little monkey paws on, and succeeded to a large degree, and then - handed it all off to the Democratic successor, Mr. Obama.<br />
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And Barack has been hamstrung at every turn, has proposed while the Repugs disposed (of), and in general has been made to look as weak and ineffectual as possible.<br />
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And it has all WORKED!! With the intention of making the electorate vote for a Repug in 2012, or in the event of a total moron like Romoney, 2016, and beating the drum of partisan lies, the Repugs would hold the White House, and probably one or both houses of Congress, for years to come. <br />
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Voila! (Near) permanent Repug majority. There would have to be the occasional Democratic interregnum of 4 or perhaps in a pinch 8 years, just because people like change, or because the fucking-up gets a bit out of hand for a generation or so, but by and large, there will be nothing but Repugnicans for as far as the eye can see, for the foreseeable future!<br />
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And it's all intentional! These people care more about their own political careers and personal fortunes than they do the well-being of the nation. By a long CHALK, they care more. They enrich themselves and their cronies at the taxpayer's expense, and will continue to do so for a hundred years or more. And if we, the electorate, won't help them enough, they'll jigger the voting laws or vote counts until they win anyway. George W. Bush was the first experiment in this game, and IT WORKED!! The conservative majority on the Supreme Court was a part of the plan, and IT WORKED!!<br />
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It worked. It all worked or is working, even Obama being elected in '08. One of the net results aimed for is the redistribution of the nation's wealth upward, and THAT is working too. At the end of a century, there will be a couple thousand multi-trillionaires, and the rest of us will be begging for food in the streets, if the Repugs have their way. And they might.<br />
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Now, dear reader - tell me none of this makes sense, I dare you. You may say it's paranoid, too suspicious by half, whatever you wish. But you CANNOT say with certainty that I'm wrong. And if you examine what I say here, you may find yourself saying, "Ya know, he could be right!"<br />
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As monstrous as it is, I could be right. And you know it. Wish I could offer suggestions on what to do to stop it, but short of violence, which I cannot advocate, I don't have one.<br />
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I could be right...couldn't I?Rich Mileshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05282761344764663722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27279978.post-65660937887037632662012-08-12T18:15:00.001-04:002012-08-17T18:31:24.080-04:00The Blecchh of the Irishby Rich Miles <br />
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UPDATE: See at bottom of this post for info on Ryan's legislative record over 13 years in Congress.<br />
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UPDATE #2 - This guy has attracted all sorts of negative attention in no time at all. In order to save time on him, take a look at <a href="http://www.propublica.org/article/paul-ryan-reading-guide-the-best-reporting-on-the-vp-candidate">The Paul Ryan Reading Guide: The Best Reporting on the Republican VP Candidate</a>, and then share that link with the whole rest of the left-leaning world. And maybe even a few righties as well. Seriously, Ryan is proving to be every bit as much an a-hole as I thought Mittens was. Mitt is nothing like as virulent as his running mate.<br />
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You know, they keep mentioning that Mitt is still the "presumptive" candidate for the Repugnicans - but he'd better watch his ass, because Ryan is MUCH more of a right-wing loony than Mittens. They might decide they like Ryan much more than Mittens. Can they do that?<br />
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Update #3 - <a href="http://words-of-power.blogspot.com/">Words of Power</a> Here is a most amusing, but also cogent essay on Ryan that I thought you might find informative. If you are much in the future, look for the Saturday August 11, 2012 entry. <br />
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<b>Here is the original post: </b><br />
The Irish are known as a race with much compassion for the less fortunate in the world. In fact, if you websearch "most famous Irish-Americans" or simply "Notable Irish persons", you'll get more hits than you can handle, and lots of them will be philanthropists, or people who did philanthropic things in their chosen professions. In general, they're good people, and I suspect a large portion of this is because they were so sorely and cruelly persecuted in centuries past. Those tales are history, and are as easily websearched as their notable compatriots.<br />
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But then, along comes a feller named Paul Ryan. Among other things, he disgraces the whole concept of being Irish. I mean to say, the man is toxic!!<br />
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Let's go back to the start of his life, and see how his hypocrisy has carried over to the present day: Paul's father, Paul Sr., died when Paul was 16. A sad fact for any young man. But THIS young man received Social Security benefits as a surviving child, and used that money to live on, and later to go to college - thus surviving a tough time in his life because of government bennies.<br />
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But today, about 26 years beyond that time, Paul Jr. has decided to make it his life's work to dismantle Social Security so that no one else can benefit as he did. He hasn't managed it yet, but he has stated repeatedly that it's what he wants to do, and the famous Ryan Budget says so, too. Hell, it's part of the reason he was selected as the Mittens' running mate.<br />
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(BTW, speaking of his father's death, there seems to be a family trend afoot there - Paul's great-grandfather, grandfather, and father all died of cardiac disease in their 40's and 50's. Medicine is better today, and Paul gets the excellent benefits that go with being a congressdog, but is this a medical history we want a heartbeat away from the preznitcy? Normally, I would consider this a private matter, but "normally" and "running for VP" do not go together.)<br />
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Add to this the fact that Ryan has repeatedly expressed his desire to dismantle Medicare, and one sees an ideal Ryan futuretopia with dead old and poor people lying in the streets because they couldn't get or afford adequate medical care. <br />
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And he wants more tax cuts for the wealthy, and tax INCREASES for the middle class (read: anyone making under $250K)<br />
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He wants to cut veterans' benefits. He wants to cut Pell Grants, and food stamps, and probably every other program that actually helps PEOPLE, instead of corporations. <br />
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He wants to increase military spending, even as two wars are being wound down under Pres. Obama. BTW, military spending is the single largest contributor to our indescribable multi-trillion-dollar national debt. More than medical malpractice suits (HA!!), more than Medicare/Medicaid, more than Social Security, and so on and so forth. And who started the longest and most expensive war in the nation's history? <b>REPUBLICAN</b> George W. Bush, who you may notice no one is mentioning or consulting on the right. And DAMN sure not on the left!<br />
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Let me just state upfront that I recognize that our country is in a helluva fiscal mess. I have pointed out before, and I will do so again, that I think the Repugs did this on purpose - made the fiscal mess we're in now - so as to make the Democrats look bad when they got elected, as they were, to fix the problem. And the Repugs have done their best to block everything the Democrats have done to try to fix it. The term "obstructionist Republicans" is not only true, it's redundant!<br />
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I say, try every Republican holder of public office on charges of treason - but only in courts presided over by genuinely non-partisan judges. There are probably 3 or 4 such courts somewhere in America!<br />
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But in any case, Paul Ryan is a disgrace to the Irish, and to America. And as soon as the aged among us hear the word "voucher" and the word "Medicare" in the same sentence, there may just be an uprising.<br />
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UPDATE: Just now on "60 Minutes" Romoney referred to Ryan as a "real leader". Given that Ryan does have some expertise in the budget process, he has been in Congress for 13 YEARS, and had authored TWO bills - one a renaming of a post office, the other a tax bill adding some 15 cents to the cost of an archery arrow. In 13 YEARS!<br />
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Is this the record of a "real leader"??Rich Mileshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05282761344764663722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27279978.post-23048252626635262682012-08-10T14:16:00.001-04:002012-08-12T17:06:09.170-04:00Tell this to everyone you know!by Rich Miles <br />
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Know what <a href="http://www.barackobama.com/tax-calculator">this</a> is?<br />
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It's a tax calculator.<br />
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Now don't get excited all over yourself. It's a tax calculator that will tell you something very important.<br />
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It will tell you what your tax will be this year under the tax proposals of President Obama, and what it will be under the proposals of Mitt 'the Mutt' Romoney.<br />
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And the results are pretty astounding. In my family's case, we saved over $4400 with the Obama plan.<br />
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Of course, that's nothing compared to the approx. $87K I would save with Romoney's plan If I were a millionaire. And a member of the 1-2% club. And an unconscionable bastard, who cares only for myself and my money. Yes, if I were all those things, I could get a MUCH larger cut of the pie. <br />
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But I'm not. I'm just a middle-class pensioner.<br />
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If you're a millionaire, vote for Romoney! If you're an American, vote for Obama. It's that simple!<br />
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Fortunately, there aren't enough millionaires to swing the vote to Romoney. At least, unless they cheat. Which they've been known to do. <br />
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Gawd, what's happening to this country?Rich Mileshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05282761344764663722noreply@blogger.com0