Image via Wikipedia![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_t_bzYuP0c7nqWkKVdhM2u8zpatTHHNYetEHG1190xEzPF1SBLkTc5xAViHSnSnB3o0JwOUtCsPw_74z9UYhDQ1m4-v6LO3ieNWZT9JVfC1G_sKUVnto3Zqtr6DWLVgGBG3PvYZx2vu7KuQpM-wQF1y=s0-d)
Image via Wikipedia
Of course the people who make their livings off of the worst instincts of the right wing base are anxious to deflect any blame for the most recent murder by a far right extremist. And given their propensity for opposite logic it’s not a big surprise that they’ve decided that Von Brunn is a leftist.
Ironically, the voices of vitriol – Limbaugh, Beck, Hannity, O’Reilly, right wing bloggers and the rest might be less responsible for this individual’s actions than the other murders that have taken place in recent months. It’s complicated. Von Brunn’s world view intersects with the birthers and tea baggers who are encouraged by the right wing punditizers. He would meet kindred spirits at any Palin rally. But still and all,he’s 88 years old. He’s been who he is for a long, long time. He’s done reckless things before, even serving time in jail. It’s just possible that something as simple as having a black president could have sent him out to do this murder. That doesn’t mean they don’t have real responsibility for the violent climate that’s been emerging since the election. Their rhetoric is dangerous. And they should be very afraid that a critical mass of people will finally call them on it. Much more of this and that could happen.
By people, I mean the Republicans that line up to genuflect to them. I mean mainstream media which treats them as voices on one side of the political spectrum instead of the irresponsible shock jocks that they are. That includes the media that we mostly like. Why does Frank Gaffney get a platform on Hardball, for instance? The things he’s said recently should completely marginalize him, and yewe pretend he has something to say? When it comes to Limbaugh and Beck, maybe we’re all guilty. They’re such trainwrecks that it’s hard to look away, but perhaps we should all try.
When I read about the murder a few hours ago, I was going to post something to the effect that the apologists should be making statements shortly. There was always a script for it. Pro-life groups would condemn the act and after about 24 hours or so there’d be a“but” attached to the condemnation. It’s always something to the effect that the victim of the murder was, after all, someone who took innocent life, but killing is never, ever acceptable. Well, things are moving a lot faster these days and not everyone is quite so delicate about it.Statements have been pouring out from pro-life groups, abortion rights groups and everyone else who will make a statement. Randall Terry, for one, does not seem to feel constrained to express any condemnation other than to regret that Dr. Tiller was not afforded time to meet his Maker.
Grandpa Eddie reminds us of that report that had some right wing panties in a bunch. The one that referred to home grown terrorists. Sounds like it was right on to me. He also provides a retrospective of violent acts of terrorism targeting abortion providers.
Fitness for the Occasion makes the very simple, but insightful, point that things like this are the problem with calling abortion murder.
So, there are lessons about domestic terrorism, lessons about rhetoric and how not to use it, and I’d hope there is a lesson about thinking hard about how a public message might affect persons who have serious mental health issues.
You really can't have "gay marriage," you know, irrespective of what a court or a legislature may say.
You can have something some people call gay marriage because to them the idea sounds worthy and necessary, but to say a thing is other than it is, is to stand reality on its head, hoping to shake out its pockets.
Such is the supposed effect of the Iowa Supreme Court's declaration last week that gays and heterosexuals enjoy equal rights to marital bliss. Nope. They don't and won't, even if liberal Vermont follows Iowa's lead.
The human race -- sorry ladies, sorry gents -- understands marriage as a compact reinforcing social survival and projection. It has always been so. It will always be so, even if every state Supreme Court pretended to declare that what isn't suddenly is. Life does not work in this manner.
Here’s the thing - that’s crazy talk. What Mr. Murchison is saying that gay marriage won’t be real to him. He can’t accept it. OK, he doesn’t have to. For a long time I didn’t really believe in Wyoming because I’d never met anyone who’d even been there. I mean it was the only one! The fact that Dick Cheney was supposed to come from there only served to convince me it didn’t really exist. Well, now I’ve met credible people who’ve been to Wyoming and even lived there and I’ve come around to accepting that I was wrong. So it is with gay marriage. Pretending it isn’t real is what’s fantasy.
Image by Getty Images via Daylife
Vermont was out in front with civil unions, but with three states legalizing gay marriage ahead of Vermont, something had to be done and they did it. With Vermont being the first state to legalize gay marriage by way of legislation they’re out in front again. Go Vermont! You’ve got brains and heart as well as beauty.
So, let’s look at the scoreboard. Massachusetts, Connecticut, Iowa and now Vermont have legal same-sex marriage and those marriages are also recognized in New York and as of today the District of Columbia. You’d really have to say that same-sex marriage is happening and it will not be stopped. Wedding planners are celebrating. And, of course, so are divorce lawyers. That’s just nature’s balancing act.
Social conservatives might want to take note. Social progress just keeps happening in a free nation, no matter how much it bothers you. Working your little black hearts out to prevent others from pursuing happiness in their own ways will never be rewarding.
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_s7g4l9OGewv1XQS5LkxbTusywl6p4e9yMze5ZicUS4Gln6f0l108nsDWGpxoEMQrIMrWBXDGknQElolM_XxrT7LU7IffdVSqo06GJfjmdZsFWSAArVhlUmr7BL2aKo9d5R9XqR8tBALyutKPIeSrnF=s0-d)
Q.First of all, I'd like to thank you for virtually sitting down with
me today, Nate. Here on Long Island you don't meet so many WASPs. It's my hope that this opportunity to learn about your culture and your people will help us all to understand each other a little better.
A. No blog has done more than Thatsrightnate.com to try and bridge understanding between WASPs and non-WASPs. I think we have a lot more in common that you'd think. If you could ever be admitted into our clubs and organizations I think you'd see that.
Q.Now, as well as being a WASP, you're a male, so are you angry? Very angry? Do you currently own any assault weapons or explosives?
A. LOL, no I've barely even begun researching my manifesto. I think a lot of the whole white male anger thing is overblown by the media. A lot of this is because WASPs are very quickly disappearing from local media markets. You have two anchors and one of them needs to be a woman and one needs to be a minority. Most television stations go with the black male and white female anchor team so you don't hear our viewpoints much.
Q.Thank you for clearing that up. Now, about St. Jing-Tao-Wow Day -This is a new holiday, suggested by Lou Dobbs and promoted by you, correct? And all that had something to do with ethnic holidays and the St. Patrick's Day parade. There are quite a few ethnic parades in New York now, especially if you count the Gay Pride parade, but no WASP parade as far as I know. I see you come from Illinois. There have been some WASP parades there, particularly in Skokie if I recall correctly. Did you attend or participate in those? How do WASP parades differ from, say, the Puerto Rican Day parade, if at all?
A. Wow, there are a lot of questions that you're asking there. There are no WASP parades. The problem is we hate walking. That's why when we build a new suburb or subdivision we don't bother putting in sidewalks. We also hate bumper to bumper traffic. We're not really a parade people. We do picnics though and we quite enjoy them.
Q. What kind of food is your people's soul food? If we wanted to go
out for some WASP, what sort of restaurant or fast food place should we look for?
A. It’s funny because most WASP foods are white. We're big consumers of marshmallow fluff, mayonnaise, white bread, and mashed potato flakes. We also love Fresca, but its hard to get anymore. As a culture I would say that our main contribution to food though is that we are able to take from other cultures and adapt them. Olive Garden, Panda Express, and Taco Bell are great examples of ethnic cuisine that we've transformed.
Q. Is there one particular person that you'd say is the epitome of a
WASP cultural icon? African-Americans have MLK, Jr. and now, President Obama, Irish-Americans still have John F. Kennedy plates on their walls, Jews have Paul Newman (he was a nice looking man with a social conscience who stayed married for about a hundred years to a woman who wasn't a pretty as he was) and Italians have Frank Sinatra. So who is absolutely IT for White Anglo Saxon Protestants?
A. Wow, I had no idea Paul Newman was Jewish. In entertainment we have a few that really stand out. Pat Boone did a lot to make black culture accessible to us without frightening. As actors go, I've really been fond of Jack Webb who was also quite a musician in his own right. In terms of a social figure like Martin Luther King, I'd have to hold up Henry Ford who united the car manufacturers against the workers.
Q. This comes from someone else. She wants to know if you have any native dances. I said that according to my research that would be line dancing, but feel free to correct me if I'm wrong. We're here to learn.
A. Line dancing is a good answer, but it does have ethnic moves in it. The dance form that I think is purely ours is called the overbite. It is actually a dance used by WASP males to court our females. We also do it at a lot of weddings. The nice thing is it is a versatile dance that can be done to most popular music.
Q. How do you feel about having a president who is not one of your
people? That's only happened one other time, I believe, and at least
JFK was pale. Do you think your best days are over?
A. Not at all. One of the things that we have come to believe in is that minorities and women should be allowed into our most exclusive organizations. The key is limiting their membership. My hope is that my grandchildren will never have to listen to anybody say that all the Presidents have been white males because he can just point to Obama's picture and remind people we had a black President too. I hope that in the next 40 or so years we will even have a woman President.
Q. Is there anything you'd like to tell us about the experience and
struggles of being a White Anglo Saxon Protestant in America?
Something that you'd like the rest of us to understand.
A. First, we are the largest minority group in this country. We're not going anywhere either. Without us there wouldn't be dinner theatre, golf pants, lawn ornaments, or jazzercise. I really think we need a WASP history month. Last year on my blog I tried to designate white males of distinction who had done something to truly stand out. You'd be surprised how few students even study the lives of people like Robert C. Baker who in my mind was the Thomas Edison of poultry. He not only invented turkey ham, but also the chicken nugget. Our textbooks and liberal teachers would rather spend their time on Pocahontas or George Washington Carver, but I think if you asked most people they'd rather have chicken nuggets than a peanut butter sandwich any day of the week and you also have what the nugget did for the whole honey mustard industry.
Q. If you were a tree, what kind of tree would you be?
A. I'd definitely be an ash. Thanks for interviewing me. Have a joyous Saint Jing-Tao-Wow Day! I'm going to take my daughter out to Olive Garden to celebrate.
I’d just like to thank Nate again, for helping us out. I feel like I learned quite a lot from that and I hope others did as well. I’d also like to wish all of you a happy, safe and healthy St. Jing-Tao-Wow Day. I look forward to getting back here tomorrow night and learning about the different ways that people have celebrated.
Image by omnia_mutantur via Flickr
It seems that quite a few people in the financial industry are being driven to drink or drugs, or maybe in some cases they can’t afford their habits any longer. They’re hung over, brung down and strung out and showing up in rehab to come to terms with their drug and/or alcohol problems.
"You're supposed to be a master of the universe, you're supposed to be on top of everything," said one financial services executive who began alcohol rehab in August.
At the risk of sounding callous, life isn’t so easy for those who never, ever had delusions of being masters of the universe either. I don’t want to kick these people when they’re down. At least not all of them. But it would be refreshing if, seeing as these monied pillars of society can develop substance abuse issues upon meeting with adversity, perhaps there could be just a little more understanding of the problems that some people develop when born into adversity. Like, just for starters, stop imprisoning people for non-violent drug offenses and provide more support for getting off drugs even if you never once managed a hedge fund. Just a thought.
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_u5SznSpYvhzdklQcJnrf8WBBn6Ckf_Xnmvu4K-f-ri2Wr5XwgGa8cm91IzywTCOak3jLtdyNVksYS2A8gDZQkr9rA_TUpdtCkvSdsYUTWZ127AMy-PfEjo_NOxUgyoVtCmQOa4mS4JCwF0cjfWvhvk=s0-d)
Nate’s at it again. He’s been watching Lou Dobbs go off on his annual anti-St. Patrick’s Day rant and Nate is taking a sarcastic suggestion on Dobbs’ part and running with it. He’s pushing for a new holiday. Nate is starting a movement to make March 31st Saint Jing-Tao-Wow Day. It seems, according to Nate, that Saint Jing-Tao-Wow is the patron saint of ethnic and racial stereotyping. Personally, I wouldn’t swear to that, but then, I’m no theologian. He thinks we should be as stereotypical as possible on the 31st. I’m working on it. I’m Irish-Italian-Jewish myself. Since the first thing I think of when you say “ethnic” is food, all I could come up with at first was pizza bagels and Guinness. Problem is, while I love pizza and I’m partial enough to a nice everything bagel with a schmear and on special occasions, like Christmas morning, some lox, I don’t like pizza and bagels as one food. And as far as Guinness goes, I like a nice diet cola. So I’ll have to give the whole thing a little more thought. Nate has provided a video, to watch and/or post, promoting his great idea.
Apart from the issue of illegal immigration, which seems to be his personal white whale, I don’t really get what Lou Dobbs finds so troublesome about diverse cultural influences. Where I was born, in New York City, even in the Leave It To Beaver fifties a normal day’s errands involved encountering people from at least three different continents with all kinds of different accents. Some spoke English, others were just learning. It all seemed perfectly natural. That was a long time ago. There’ve been changes, as there always are, in which groups of people are arriving here. What doesn’t change is that each ethnic group finds its way to fit in and adds something new to our culture. So, I don’t know about stereotypes, but there might be something in the idea of having one day to celebrate our different heritages. Best case scenario – a day off. At the very least, though, there should be great food and maybe some sales.
Image via Wikipedia
Everybody’s been talking about Going Galt these days. Our conservative friend, Nate, commented about it on his blog just last night.If you’re late to the tea party the NYT Opinionator posted a rundown on the movment which is inspired by the late Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged a week or so ago.
I just have a couple of quick observations.
First of all, this idea that the wealth creators, as they like to think of themselves, are going to sit back and make less money is problematic at the moment. Less than what? Haven’t they noticed what’s been going on?
Secondly, it seems to me that if anyone has demonstrated how the world would suffer for their absence, it’s the American consumer. Frankly, I’ve been a little worried about that for years. For this whole decade it’s seemed like the aim of business has been to hire their labor wherever they can be had for cheap. It seemed pretty obvious to any school child that the American middle class was shrinking and becoming increasingly weighed down with debt as a result of these policies. Therefore, it seemed reasonable to assume that the business world had taken that into account and was counting on creating new markets across the globe, and that they could continue on that way – creating and destroying markets by turns, for decades.
As it turned out – no, they really didn’t have a plan and it turns out that American consumer dollars are really missed now that they’re in short supply. It may turn out that you can replace a CEO a lot more easily than you can replace the consumer.
First we learned that red states have more divorces than blue states. And it seems they tend to to have more teen pregnancies. And now it turns out they download more porn per broadband connection. Seeing a pattern here? Yeah, me, too. And these are the people who are worried about our morality? Maybe they should try out ours for a while. See how it works.
The 11 percent increase would bring funding for the Corporation to a total of $390 million,the third consecutive year (emphasis mine) that the House has supported additional funding to provide civil legal assistance to low-income individuals and families. Most of the funding, $365.8 million, would be awarded as competitive grants to 137 nonprofit legal aid programs across the nation.Rep. Alan B. Mollohan (D-W.Va.), chairman of the Commerce, Justice and Science Appropriations Subcommittee that oversees LSC, said the Corporation "is an important, significant program that provides legal assistance to people who are unable to afford it. We know that the poor are hit hard during economic downturns, and this funding will help more low-income Americans faced with unlawful evictions, domestic violence and other serious legal problems"
Legal Services Corporation programs are often - usually - the only legal representation available to low income people in non-criminal cases. Other than that, it's just them against whatever system they're up against. Just figuring out how to navigate the courts or a hearing situation can be an impossible task without help, let alone actually going to court, if it should come to that. Demand almost always exceeds resources, so most agencies have to limit their services to cases related to basic sustenance - food, shelter, income and safety - and even then they can't always help everyone who might be eligible for services. Republican administrations have been at war with Legal Services since Reagan's time. After all, Legal Services represents poor people and poor people are not popular with the GOP. Democrats fund Legal Services. Note that this is the third consecutive year that the House has voted an increase in funding. What else is happening in the House for the third consecutive year? Yes, that's right. Democratic majorities. Let me tell you, by 2006 things were really bad for some Legal Service agencies and lack of funding was really hampering them in their ability to represent clients. This current economic climate has been a huge worry, too, because some of the funding for LSC comes from interest on escrow accounts that private lawyers hold for clients. Naturally enough, these days there's considerably less being held in escrow. Budget cuts from the states have also cut funding for legal help for the poor. This news is very welcome and is yet another reason to have warm, fuzzy feelings for the Dems.
The service comes as bad news to advocates for domestic violence victims, who fought hard to make free blocking an option in the early days of Caller ID. "I have huge concerns about that,” says Cindy Southworth, director of technology at the National Network to End Domestic Violence, in Washington, D.C. Southworth fears that abusers will use the new service to locate partners fleeing a violent relationship.You can see where there can be real problems as a result of this service.What worries me about it is the sort of person who'd bother with this. Because you know what? If you're not sure you want to take call you can...just not answer it. Really. I do it all the time with call from unfamiliar area codes. I figure that they're most likely sales calls and if the caller really wants to communicate with me he'll leave a message - and a phone number. Works great and requires no effort on my part. It works for Blocked ID calls too. Trapcall also offers paid upgrades which allow the user to gather more information about victims....er...callers.In a notable case in 1995, a Texas man named Kevin Roberson shot his ex-girlfriend to death after locating her through the Caller ID device on her roommate's phone line.
TelTech is no stranger to controversy. Its Spoofcard product lets customers send any phone number they want as their Caller ID. Among other things, the spoofing service has been used by thieves to activate stolen credit cards, by hackers to access celebrities’ voicemail boxes, and by telephone hoaxsters to stage a dangerous prank called "swatting," in which they spoof an enemy’s phone number while calling the police with a fake hostage situation. The goal of swatting — realized in hundreds of cases around the country — is to send armed cops bursting into the victim's home.Just what the world needs. But the new service creates a whole new market for the first service which is not lost on TelTech CEO, Meir Cohen.
The only way to block your number after this is released is to use Spoofcard,” he says with a laugh.Mr. Cohen wears his dickishness proudly. This seems very much like a protection racket doesn't it. Maybe TelTech could go full circle and allow us to pay to protect our numbers from being spoofed. Or maybe someone will be seriously damaged and sue these buggers for everything they've got. Whatever that may be.
