The cost of health care reform is outrageous.
It is also important to note that the security personnel did not know that the individual they detained was a blogger who reporting on the campaign. To them, the blogger appeared irrational, angry and potentially violent.
Way to sack up and take responsibility, G.I. Joe With Real Life Hair and Beard.
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If only this was in America ...
English communities secretary, Eric Pickles, has proposed that the government may want to withdraw tax breaks for the Church of Scientology — noting controversies over the Church's activities and alluding to the general view in England that it is more of a cult than a religion.
Scientology is not treated as a religion in England but still receives financial benefits as a charity. In 1984, the organization was described as a cult by a high court judge. http://jonathanturley.org/2010/10/17/oh-pickles-scientology-could-face-lost-of-tax-exemptions-in-england/#more-27271
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IOWA: (TAX EXEMPT) Christianists Launch Ad Comparing Gay Marriage To Legalized Incest
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Photos That Make the Rude Pundit Wonder if Parents Can Be Aborted:
Oh, sweet little Allan Taylor of Silver Springs, Nevada. One or both of your parents have fed you a bundle of lies as surely as they have fed you a steady diet of frozen, lard-filled chicken nuggets and high fructose corn syrup-infused Sam's Choice cola. The 8 year-old in the yellow hoodie and running pants of elastic comfort holds a sign that reads "HANDS OFF MY MONEY OBAMA" in his little hands. And the inevitable question ought to be "What the EFF'S a 'Money Obama'"?
However, other than the rules of punctuation, someone ought to explain a simple thing to Allan and his teabagger Mom and/or Dad who dragged the child to a Sharron Angle rally: money that you pay in taxes ain't your money. Oh, sure, it's a good line, the kind of delicious hairy sack that Angle devours constantly. The Nevada Republican candidate for Senate did it last night at her "debate" (if by "debate," you mean, "Inarticulate tortoise fight") with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. Discussing the Bush tax cuts, Angle said, "First of all, let's really talk about whose money that is. It's not the federal government's money, it's our money. And when he says we're squandering the federal money, the federal government's money, it's really squandering our money."
Listen, Allan: your parents are idiots who probably shouldn't have bred in the first place, but since your they did, you may as well learn a thing or two. Angle seems to believe that taxes are an investment in the government and that, like if you put money into stocks or gold, you can take that money out and have the money again. That's not the way it works. Taxes are actually fees the government collects so that you can have nice things like Interstate 80, just north of you, which one day you'll hop on while telling your parents to kiss your ass. Once you pay 'em, it's not your money anymore. If you don't like how it's spent or how much is collected, well, that's what elections like this are for. But no matter how low taxes are, it ain't your money. (And if your sign means that you think Barack Obama is taking cash from your future, well, you should ask your parents where your money is gonna come from if taxes don't go up.)
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A reportedly over-sexed unmarried GOP spokesman, who should be the last person accusing others of sexual impropriety - after all, he is the public face of a family values party - is now emailing rumors to reporters about a Democratic congressman and possible adultery.
A funny accusation, considering that adultery rumors have been swirling for a while about GOP Rep. John Boehner (even more here), who presumably would be Speaker if the Republicans take the House. Mike Stark interviewed both Boehner and a woman some allege to also be involved, and both gave a "no comment." Stark thinks that it's a bit of an odd response to give if the accusation were absurd.
So we have Gingrich on his third marriage (with two adulteries thrown in), Palin with a kid who got pregnant out of wedlock (and, according to the NYT, whose own first pregnancy appears to have happened a tad early with respect to her wedding day, shall we say), Limbaugh on God knows how many marriages now (it's four, I believe), a party chairman who holds events at S&M bars, the party chairman before him is gay and raising money for gay marriage, a GOP spokesman who reportedly gets more "tail" (that's promiscuous unmarried sex) than anyone in DC, and a possible incoming Speaker whose response to charges of cheating on his wife is simply "no comment."
Heck of a party.
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False idols
A libertarian opens his eyes:
In trying to understand how so many Americans adore people like Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity, Sarah Palin and Rush Limbaugh I have come to this critical understanding: Poorly educated, terribly informed, intellectually deficient and downright stupid people need idols. They feel angry, frustrated, ignored, cheated and disillusioned by so much going on in American society. They find the emotional, political and philosophical rants by talk show, loud mouth celebrities matching and justifying their feelings. Of course, those celebrities work hard to fan the flames of all that unhappiness and discontent, and also perpetuate ignorance. They sell stupidity to gullible dummies, teaching them who to blame for their misery.
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This guy probably wants a different result than I do, but at least he realizes that most of the conservative 'base' are gullible lemmings and are being used by the right wing 'power players'.
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I can easily relate to the many people treated unfairly, unjustly and even brutally by the political and economic system. But those who have drifted over to the dark side of the right-wing, conservative arena and become addicted to the rhetoric of delusion have nothing in common with those that once made the United States a noble nation worthy of respect. Their idols talk a lot about the Founders and Constitution, but share none of the fine qualities of those that created our republic. They also pick and choose what parts of the Constitution to adore, mocking the rule of law.
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Seems, if the TV 'pundits' predictions are correct, we're in for a whole lot more stupidity after 1 January.
Here's one of the gagglefuck of wackaloons who participated in the New York governor's debate last night.
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Sam Alito not going to the State of the Union if he can't yell at Obama
"On the show on Friday, I was talking about Bill O'Reilly's appearance on the View and I said this: 'Not all Muslims are terrorists but all terrorists are Muslims.' Well, I misspoke. I don't believe all terrorists are Muslims. I'm sorry that my being such an asshole offended or hurt anybody's feelings. But that's it."
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Barry loves him some wiretapping
I've said it before: Governments never give up power without a fight. I have yet to see an attorney general, let alone a president, with the stones to tell the organs of state security "no, you cannot do that."
Smirky gave George Tenet the Medal of Freedom, so why not? "President Dmitry Medvedev has handed top state honours to Russian spies deported from the US earlier this year, reports say. Russia's Interfax news agency quoted a presidential spokeswoman as saying the spies received the awards at a ceremony in the Kremlin. Ten spies had admitted in a US court to being agents for a foreign country."
No, the episode won't be about his birth certificate. Or that he's a Muslim. Or hates America. Or that he's never been bipartisan. Or that he thinks he's Jeebus. Well, the Muslin version of Jeebus, anyway. Or that his terrist fistbumping baby-mama wife hates whitey.
The President's appearance on Discovery Channel's MythBusters, airing on December 8, will focus on the legend that Archimedes set fire to a Roman fleet using only reflected sunlight. According to a White House press release, Obama's appearance on the show will "[showcase] his personal commitment to inspire young people to excel in math and science," and will be announced Monday at the White House Science Fair. In each episode, the MythBusters crew uses science to test an urban legend.
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What do you think?
Had the Chilean miners truly subscribed to the tea party view of the world, they would have first rejected any rescue attempt as a big government bailout, perpetuating the moral hazard problem of miners who went underground knowing full well the risks of their actions! Then, having refused rescue, they would also have ruled out collective action to survive, since that sounds like socialism. Only then would they have killed each other.
-Eric Liu, Author and former Clinton White House adviser
