A Pile of Words

Which Newser is it?

2010-07-10T10:33:00.000-07:00

I have my own ideas.

Thanks to Newsbusters and TV Newser

Health Care Bill Pummels Small Businesses Even More Than You Already Thought!

2010-05-21T21:36:00.000-07:00

Face Melting.

Just saw this a couple of hours ago on Drudge it was a link to this story on CNN.com. Read the whole article, but it's in the 2nd half where things get interesting. We find out that the Democrats have laid a big hurt on small business by making you 1099 every entity you do business with if the total is $600 or more in a year.

"Just with business travel it would include hotels, rental cars," Henschke says. "Phone service: 1099. Computer service: 1099. Whoever does your postage meter: 1099. You do a little advertising, Yellow Pages: 1099. Your landlord: 1099. You might as well just keep them in your pocket and hand them out as you go around every day."

My favorite part is that "no one knows" who put these growth strangling measures in place. And it's possible that this was a bipartisan effort.

No one is willing to take credit for introducing the new legislation, which appeared in the Senate Finance Committee's version of the health bill last fall. Committee chairs Don Baucus, D-Mont., and Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, both referred calls to committee staffers, who wouldn't comment on the record.

You see, this is one of the ways that they can grow revenue and still claim that they haven't raised your taxes. Technically true, and I have no problem with the theory of the first half of the article. However, the brain trust who decided that requiring small businesses to 1099 all corporations that they pay for goods and services has done a great harm to small businesses and will scare off many who were considering starting a small business. A tremendous burden in paperwork, tax preparation costs, potential fines...

Some politicians need to be made to own this legislative debacle.

Weaponry Porn: Coming to a Cave on a Mountainside Near You

2009-04-22T22:01:00.000-07:00

US Army Tests Flying Robot Sniper.
Controlled with modified XBox 360.
Giggedy.

My mind reels at the possibilities. A hundred million teenagers on XBox 360 hunting Osama Bin Laden through caves and mountains. We could open a thousand factories to do nothing but make these beautiful, beautiful things. The War on Man Made Disasters Caused by Misunderstanders of Islam could be fought as a video game. It could be better than Grand Theft Auto.

I'm getting verklempt. Talk amongst yourselves.

Gay Marriage, Miss California or Whatever, Etc.

2009-04-22T20:33:00.000-07:00

I know that the two of us who read this blog have been waiting with baited breath for my sagacious pronouncement on the subject of gay marriage. "Oh, Great Sage," none of you have cried, "Enlighten us as to the truths of this issue, that we may heal the blah, blah, blah" I can't even continue.

First of all, let me opine on the subject of Miss California. She has a case for religeous discrimination. You're asking a christian if they approve of gay marriage as a litmus test for their fitness to the lofty office of Miss America? Really? Why don't you try next asking christians if they think gays, muslims, atheists, et. al. go to heaven as proof of their fitness for the office?

"Shocked, shocked I am that this callous woman would condemn millions to the fiery pit! I think her ignorance and bigotry are reprehensible! We can't tolerate this sort of intolerance!"

Lets see. Californians (christian, muslim, black, white, hispanic, homeless, asian, legal, illegal, buddhist, atheist) voted overwhelmingly to oppose gay marriage. Miss California is in fact a Californian (and a christian) going to Christ's Own Christian School of Christianity in Heaven, California. Where she is majoring in Propriety. Hmm, I'm not sure where she'll come down on this issue. She was honest, and the mau-mau'ers are trying to make her pay for it. Even though she was completely respectful, the hatred that boiled over because she didn't give the "correct" answer is an obvious attack on her right to her own opinion.

The pageant sponsors, in a belated and feeble attempt at ass covering, are now backpedaling away from their rabid hate-filled early reactions where they were actually truthful.

One of the most egregious lies (and remember that you heard it here first) is that the question was one of several random questions randomly chosen to be asked by a random judge. What a load of crap. Are you saying that Perez Hilton won the Donald Trump Lotto and drew out of the hat the chance to ask Miss Jesus Christ University about her opinion on gay marriage? Really? If you believe that, you are a complete idiot. It was probably a condition of his appearing as a judge. It's a win-win for the pageant, as only gay folks and relatives of the contestants actually pay any attention to this drivel.

Oh, and I love that we're trotting out hollywood starlets who claim to be christian on Twitter to proclaim their righteous indignation. Miley Cyrus and what's-her-name from "the Hills?" Please. The credibility of hollywood types to explain to the unwashed masses about the true meaning of the sanctity of marriage is a little thin, wouldn't you say? That's like Nancy Pelosi claiming to be Catholic. You either believe what you religeon tells you is true, or you don't. Catholics believe abortion is a sin. And that contraception is a sin. Christians believe that sex out of wedlock is a sin. And that homosexual behaviour is a sin.

And this brings us down to the nitty gritty, boys and girls. Let's tell the truth, and shame the Devil. The fight being fought isn't the one that either side will admit to because it will make them both sound bad. My personal preference would be a nationwide law supporting civil unions. As far as I'm concerned that's part of your right to free association. If my family were a bunch of assholes and I wanted my best friend to have power of attorney in the event of my hospitalization, I should be able to name him or her as such. This would be a person that I loved who loved me and I trust them with my wishes in a way that I do not trust my family. Fine. But neither side really wants that. Rabid anti-gay activists don't really want defense of marriage. My buddy Bob got married in the church and these people don't give a crap that he cheated on his wife with the chick who worked in the mail room. They do want some gay guy's old maid sister to be able to refuse his lover access to his deathbed. Tell the truth and shame the Devil. Rabid gay activists don't give a crap about the story I just told you. They want a written apology and certificate of legitimacy from Christiandom. They want religeon to accept them. And not Unitarian Universalist Church of Everything is Groovy. They basically want the Pope to have to agree to a sort of reparation program. Not gonna happen.

Marriage is a religeous sacrament. It shouldn't be something the government has any involvement in. Civil unions should be a contract involving the right of free association between two consenting adults, and none of religeon's business.

Since the Christians should know better, be better, and do the right thing, but will not, I support gay marriage. I don't think anyone could do a better job of demeaning the sanctity of the institution of marriage than heterosexuals have. Look at the number of single mothers. Look at the divorce rate. Give the gays a chance, say I. And do you know why? Because the religeous right will use any ridiculous argument to deny gay folks rights that they should enjoy as free Americans.

"You'll have to allow polygamy."
"If you give them gay marriage, we have to let people marry chickens!"
"They'll make your son a gay!"

Umm, no.

Your college tuition (and life savings) at work. Laugh or cry as you see fit.

2009-04-22T20:27:00.001-07:00

So, I was reading a blog post regarding the 420 marijuana smoke out at the University of Colorado yesterday. This anti-legalization screed had a number of good points to make, all by this guy who wasn't the blog author ( Blog author: El Marco. El Marco Talking Points Author: Theodore Dalrymple). More on Theodore Dalrymple Later. Interesting dude. The blog author had this point to make: "I saw Bob Marley. He was an idiot who died of cancer. Marjuana is bad mmmKay?" Fine. I like Bob Marley's music, but I was never the kind of asshole college student who actually thought the man had valid social commentary. I didn't want to listen to him talk. And although I think marijuana should be legalized, I agree that marijuana will not make you a genius. Mostly it makes doing nothing and being boring more tolerable. But I digress. One excellent point made over and over in the article is what a pack of narcissistic douchebags most college students are, and how you pay obscene amounts of money per year so that they can get away with acting like animals until they flunk out or graduate with a degree in social work and $100,000 worth of debt and a criminal record.

Here is a YouTube video of the University of Colorado festivities:

http://www.lookingattheleft.com/2009/04/420-boulder/

The idea that someday I may be paying 40 large a year so my kid can learn that:
1) America is bad.
2) Anyone of European descent is bad.
3) Capitalism is bad.
4) Communism is good.
5) Che, Mao, Stalin, Castro = good.
6) Columbus = bad.
7) Terrorists = Good.
8) Israel = Bad.
9) Men = Bad.
10) Women = Good, if they're leftists. Otherwise, bad.
12) Christianity = bad.
13) Every other belief system = definitely better than Christianity.
14) Diversity = Good. If by diversity you mean agree with what we think.

The very idea makes me sick. I don't want my children to "go to college." I want them to be well educated. I want them to be prepared for real life. I want them taught practical fundamentals to assure that they will be able to choose their own path to happiness with confidence. Increasingly, schools are not the places that instill these values. I have any number of differences with much of conservative orthodoxy, and yet I still identify myself as conservative. Why? Because I believe in right and wrong. Good guys and bad guys. Smart and stupid. That doesn't mean I have to think like you.

Then, I came upon this article, quite by accident. This article, and one of the websites that follows, disputes society's worship of the college degree. It gives some hard numbers that question the return on your investment, the disgustingly shady practices of student loan hucksters, and the difficulties facing many who were told that a college degree is how to buy happiness and success. Obviously I was supposed to write about this issue. I am uniquely qualified to do so because I do not have a college degree, due to the fact that I flunked out. This flunking occurred because of my continued unwillingness to do things like "studying" and "going to class." And yet with my high school education, I have been able (through a great deal of luck) to succeed in my chosen career, marry well above my station, and in general have a terrific life. I know personally at least 50 people, who make no more money than I do, are less happy than I am, and spent untold tens of thousands of dollars more for the privilege. It's axiomatic that people go to college for one thing, and end up doing something completely different. I know people who went to college and ended up being happy as storekeepers, clerks, musicians. It wasn't college that made them successful. They themselves did that. And don't get me started on the type of drone that works at a job where your success is based solely on what a company tool you are. Stab people in the back because it's politically useful. Lie to someone's face if your company tells you to. You can't do too much personal web stuff, because they track that kind of thing. You can't post a Dilbert cartoon on the company bulletin board, because they have security cameras. You can't visit websites that aren't PC for your company, because someone might find out. If you are living that kind of life, you are no kind of conservative American. If you are one of the toolbags who police this gray, lifeless workforce, you are no kind of conservative American. If I do my job well, shut up and pay me. If you disagree, I'll go somewhere else to make my money. No job is worth sacrificing my dignity. Haven't you seen the movie Office Space?

Read. Watch. Think on these things.

Forbes article from January 2009
The Great College Hoax
http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2009/0202/060.html

www.valueofcollege.com

Love me the Motivators II

2009-04-16T06:19:00.000-07:00

John McCain: Thank you for your service to our country. But you're a dick.

2009-04-15T23:11:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Diana West:

I voted for this guy, can you believe it? What a douchebag. He goes on Leno last night and when asked about the names of the Republican party's future bright lights specifically leaves out Sarah Palin. He listed Mitt Romney for crying out loud! He wouldn't stop to um...throw a bucket of water on Mitt Romney if Mitt were on fire in the street! McCain goes on to say "I've left somebody out. And I'm going to hear about it." Yes, you are.

I am so sick of Republican establishment types, Beltway elitists, smug media 'analysts', and know it all pundits discounting what Sarah Palin brings to the Republican party. These are all the same clowns who want conservatives to stop standing up for their beliefs so much because it alienates those all-important 'undecided' voters. Meanwhile your constant betrayals of your conservative priciples erode your base until you have no chance of getting elected. Because you don't really stand for anything except getting elected. McCain and his shameless pandering to the illegal immigrant lobby. Disregard for small government. Abandonment of free market principles. Traits shared by George W. Bush before him. The reason why the Republicans are on the run is because they've spent the last eight years alienating CONSERVATIVES! Sarah Palin, in a remarkably short time, brought conservatives out of their collective depression and gave us a politician we liked.

Despite her obvious popularity with, and ability to generate enthusiasm in, mainstream American conservatives, these snobs want to sneer at and belittle Sarah Palin. It shows an important part of their fundamental disconnect with ordinary Americans who are tired of politicians and their cowardice and opportunism. Senator McCain, it's been established that you can't lead. So follow, or get out of the way.

I Love Motivators!

2009-04-15T22:57:00.001-07:00

Damn Funny. Hat Tips: US Naval Institute Blog, the Other McCain.

Tax Day Tea Party from Prince William County, VA

2009-04-15T10:16:00.000-07:00

It was cold and raining, and I was really impressed with how many people showed up.
There should have been some kind of "stage" type setup with some sound reenforcement for the speakers, though. Nothing fancy, but there ended up being a crowd surrounding some people you could neither see nor hear. Oh, well. Next time I'll volunteer to help with that.

Barack Obama shamelessly tries to steal limelight from Tea Parties.

2009-04-15T10:09:00.000-07:00

Calling a last minute press conference right when the Tea Parties were to begin was one of the lowest political moves I've ever seen. This sums it up for me.

Calderon Blames U.S. 'Corruption' for drug trade, guns, violence, and other stuff.

2009-03-30T07:40:00.000-07:00

Did you know that it's impossible to smuggle tons of cocaine without the help of corrupt U.S. officials? Or that 90 percent of the guns used in the current drug violence came from the U.S? I do, because Felipe Calderon and the BBC told me so:

In an interview with the BBC, Mexican President Felipe Calderon and the BBC continue the 'Blame America First' game currently making the rounds in the mainstream media. It seems that the main obstacle to fixing Mexico's problems is, uh, us. This is hardly news, and a number of bloggers have noticed how the MSM just seems to be swallowing this whole. But as the media continues their assertions unchallenged, the statements can become bolder as the public begins to accept the lie. If you can get the public to accept this lie as truth, then you can make other arguments based on that untruth. This is the kind of lie that got the Assault Weapons Ban passed in the first place.

President Calderon said it was impossible to smuggle tonnes of cocaine into
the United States without the complicity of some American authorities.
"There is trafficking in Mexico because there is corruption in Mexico," he
told the BBC.
"But by the same argument if there is trafficking in the
United States it is because there is some corruption in the United States... It
is impossible to pass tonnes of cocaine to the United States without the
complicity of some American authorities."
President Calderon complained
about the smuggling of American guns into Mexico. Ninety per cent of the guns
used in the current wave of drugs violence came from the US, he said, and he
pointed out that there were 11,000 gun stores in towns and cities close to the
Mexican border.

It's those Americans and their guns. If America would just take away their citizen's guns like everyone else, Mexico would be just fine. Drug lords would have to settle their differences with dialogue, and would eventually come to realize that they're not so different after all.

And of course it's the corruption of U.S. officials that allows tons of coke to be smuggled into the U.S. After all, it's the corruption of Mexican officials that allows smuggling of coke through Mexico. Note the relativism there? Yeah, not buyin' it.

And if the Americans didn't enforce their borders, drug lords wouldn't have to fight over trade routes. And if those Americans didn't like their blow so much, we couldn't have drug lords running our country.

Never mind that each of the points raised by Calderon could be turned around to ask some tough questions of the Mexican 'government.' Never mind that having a spotlight turned on the cockroach infested socioeconomic structure of Mexico might actually spur some constructive dialogue. Media finds it much easier to blame the U.S. than to ask any insensitive questions.

The Subtle Dhimmitude of the Media

2009-03-25T12:06:00.000-07:00

On the Fox News website today, I happened to notice this headline: Pilot Who Stopped to Pray During Crash is Sentenced. I thought that was weird enough to grab my attention, so I read the article. The Fox News article was so devoid of actual information that I followed their link to the Reuters story. Again, the article contained little more information than the headline. No name for the pilot, nothing about what he actually did wrong. Are you suspicious yet? I was. I did a quick Google search and finally the Guardian was able to clarify things for me a bit. Here are the articles, if you would like to play the game at home. I'll wait.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,510460,00.html
http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSTRE52N63B20090325
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/mar/25/tunisian-plane-crash-pilot-prayed

Now, I know what you're thinking, this guy must've been one of those Baptists. Or maybe a Buddhist. No? Hmm...oh, I know! You guessed Catholic! No? Ok I give up. What did you guess?
Yes ladies and gentlemen, you guessed it! Captain Chafik Gharby is a Muslim. And when quick thinking could have apparently allowed the captain to glide into Palermo airport, he apparently panicked. Praying to Allah and Muhammad, he crashed into the ocean, killing 16 people.

Now, I don't care that Mr. Gharby is a Muslim. And the problem with the plane wasn't his fault. I suppose I don't want my pilots to have an In'Sh'Allah attitude about my landings, but this man obviously just cracked under pressures I can't even imagine.

But if he had been a Christian, I'll bet the first two articles would have mentioned it.

Update! Good news from Steve Dolge:

2008-06-03T11:41:00.000-07:00

Scott,

While you will never convince me this is anywhere close to a First Amendment issue, I will likely turn the comments back on with the next related story. Thanks again.

Steve

Steve Dolge
Manager, Internet Operations and Programming
sdolge@wtopnews.com
202-895-5122

So, we'll see if they do. Thank you to all who joined me in voicing our opinion on this issue.

Update! WTOP tells me very politely to pound sand:

2008-06-02T21:01:00.000-07:00

My reply from the eminently polite and professional Steve Dolge at http://www.wtopnews.com/ :

"Scott, I appreciate your thoughtful feedback and you make some valid points. I disagree that turning the comments off favors one side. Frankly, I have no opinion on what side of the fence anyone is on immigration, global warming, gun control, abortion or anything else. Thats why the comment boards are there to begin with. Nor do I have any problem with readers taking issue with our stories and how we report them. It was never my intention to make this a permanent policy on stories about immigration, illegal or otherwise. I simply want to give it a rest for a bit. I have the entire audience to think about, not just a segment of it. And yes, we have turned off comments on other stories in the past. Thanks again for writing,"

And my reply:
"Mr. Dolge, again I thank you for your attention. If politicians as a whole paid this much attention to their constituents, there wouldn't be an illegal immigration problem. And I must continue to disagree, hopefully making enough extra good points to change your mind.

1) If you want to allow comments on news stories and you don't have a problem with people who disagree with how you report them, why turn the comments off at all?

2) And if you don't think turning the comments section off favors one side, why are you turning the comments off at the request of people who want to portray the pro immigration enforcement majority of your readers as "xenophobic" racists?

3) While I believe that you may have turned off the comments for particular articles before, I don't believe that you have censored commentary on a subject before.

4) At what point will you feel that enough of a "rest" has been given? Tomorrow a Prince William County Board of Supervisors meeting will feature discussion on the Rule of Law resolution that fuels the crackdown. Can I assume that the story will be covered on WTOP? Will the story be as accurately portrayed without the comments from people like myself? I don't think it will.

I'm very disappointed in WTOP's lack of support for their readers' First Amendment rights on this issue. But I really would like to thank you for your professionalism and courtesy in replying to my concerns. Thank you for your time."

Yeah, I'm going to let this go. Sure.

Haven't heard anything from ol' Hank Silverberg. I think I'll not hold my breath.

WTOP News Silences Comments on Illegal Immigration

2008-06-02T07:51:00.000-07:00

Supporters of the crackdown on illegal immigration in Prince William County, VA will no longer have a voice in the comments section of wtopnews.com, a popular local news radio station's website.

It started like any other day, with WTOP running another sympathy piece (by the Associated Press) about the plight of PWC businesses that used to feed off of illegal aliens. As usual, it was was laughed off and lambasted in the comments section by the overwhelming majority of commenters, who support the crackdown. I threw in my two cents here and there, and moved on.

The next day there was another story, almost identical in subject and tone, by WTOP's resident illegal alien PR guy Hank Silverberg. But no "Post a Comment" button existed on this page. I figured it was an awfully convenient "mistake." Nope. Turns out it was a new policy. Stories about the crackdown on illegal immigration in Prince William Couty will no longer be allowed a comments section. Hey, if that works, maybe they can shut down the comments on all illegal immigration stories. That would sure make it easier to ignore the fact that 99% of their readers think their articles read like a press release from La Raza.

Here's the email conversation so far. Links to the stories and WTOP and a bit more on Mr. Silverberg's opinion about illegal immigration follow.

From Scott:
I noticed that WTOP/Hank Silverberg's latest pro illegal immigration story (nearly identical in content and purpose to one that ran the day before, strangely) was lacking a comments link. That seems like an odd coincidence, given that the popular sentiment of the comments sections never seem to align with WTOP's editorial position against immigration enforcement. Tired of the criticism?

From Steve Dolge:
Scott,Illegal immigration, more than any other single topic, brings out some of the worst comments and people who post them on this website. These stories seem to attract the same small set of people who shed more heat than light. The day before your email, we got another one:"Why does WTOP continue to open the comment post for news items concerning PWC and imigration. There is no longer any useful thoughts being discussed. Its become, more or less, a place where xenophobic hate mongers congregate to bash anyone who isn't white or think like they do. The comments have become hateful and disgusting."I'm not sure I agree completely with that, but it's not the first we have received and I do think it's time to give those stories a rest.

From Scott:
Thank you for your prompt reply. I have several disagreements with WTOP not allowing comments on this one issue, and with your reply.
1) Any issue reported on your site that people feel passionately about will attract people with nothing intelligent to add to the discussion. I haven't seen any censorship of any other issue, no matter how inflammatory the comments may become. I can provide you with examples, if you like, from stories about police officers, anything involving presidents and/or presidential candidates, the war, schools and violence, etc.
2) The comments sections are monitored/moderated to the extent that racial epithets and other foul language are not allowed. While I have seen many ignorant comments from both sides, I don't see that as a reason to stifle only one side of the debate. The emails requesting that you stifle all speech on this issue aren't coming from people who want our immigration laws enforced, or people who support the crackdown.
3) If you make this issue unavailable for comment, you are in effect giving only the pro illegal alien lobby a voice at WTOP. All of the articles on this issue at WTOP contain many quotes from Mexicanos sin Fronteras, the Woodbridge Workers Committee, Nancy Lyall, and hispanic people legal and illegal and citizen alike if they are FOR illegal immigration and amnesty. Then there will be a quote from Corey Stewart that does nothing to show the support that the majority of voters in Prince William County have for this crackdown. Comments sections like this are meant to give us a voice, even if some people don't like what we're saying.
4) Obviously I believe Hank Silverberg to be partisan on this issue. The tenor of his articles on illegal immigration are heavily spun to engender sympathy. His anti-immigration enforcement views are obvious in everything he writes. On this issue he doesn't report news objectively, he writes opinion pieces. A perfect example from your Inside the Glass Enclosed Nerve Center page:
http://www.wtopnews.com/?sid=&nid=682
I don't expect Mr. Silverberg's writing to change because of anything I say here. But I do believe that the pro enforcement side, which seems to include the majority of your readers on this issue, should have their say as well.

the AP article dated May 27th, by Karen Mahabir, Associated Press writer:
http://www.wtopnews.com/?nid=730&sid=1410316

The Hank Silverberg story dated May 28th, unencumbered by those pesky comments that might distract you from the sympathetic spin:
http://www.wtopnews.com/?nid=730&sid=1411457

Steve Dolge
Manager, Internet Operations and Programming
sdolge@wtopnews.com
202-895-5122

Hank Silverberg
hsilverberg@wtopnews.com

WTOP, a news station here in the D.C. Metro area, has a long history of being pro-illegal immigration. One of their reporters on this issue is Hank Silverberg, a staunch supporter of illegal aliens and an anti-enforcement spinmeister. I think that this condescending piece from wtop's website captures his views on the issue.
http://www.wtopnews.com/?sid=&nid=682

Playing the soccer Americans don't want to play, or taking their ball and going home?

2008-03-13T07:27:00.000-07:00

Possibly the dumbest of the Washington Post's staunchly pro-illegal alien sympathy articles.
Take a moment to read about the plight of the Illegal Alien Soccer League (or IASL) in Prince William County:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/11/AR2008031103288.html?referrer=emailarticle
I'm really broken up that enforcing our country's laws has had such an impact on the revenues of the IASL and soccer in general in Prince William County. Because that's so much more important that our sovereignty.

Man Fired for posting 'Dilbert' Cartoon

2008-02-22T08:48:00.001-08:00

Good Lord, I hate coporate stooges with no sense of humor. When did it become a good business practice to take away your employee's right to act like a free American, steal their dignity, and act like a lying, soulless weasel? The sins of businesses and bosses are legion in this regard, from monitoring employee internet and email use with smug, self righteous fervor to going out of business without actually telling your employees. But it is the Catfish Bend Casino in Burlington, Iowa that has won the dubious honor of having their managment be an inspiration for Scott Adams' Dilbert cartoon, and having themselves portrayed by Dilbert characters. Indeed, one of Adams' characters refers to the managers' avatar as being "a humorless stain on the soul of humanity." What have they done to deserve this, you may ask?

Well, the management of the Catfish Bend Casino fired Dave Steward for posting a Dilbert cartoon comparing managers to drunken lemurs (this is called "not being a team player"). After the company announced some layoffs and I guess a possible closing of the casino (which of course would be great for both morale and worker/management relations), Mr. Steward posted a Dilbert comic on a company bulletin board in the absolutely correct belief that his fellow workers would get a lift from the strip. The management of the casino actually used the surveillance video to figure out who had posted the comic strip, and fired him when he returned to work on Monday. Imagine being such a weasel that you would pore through the day's tapes just so you could find the fiend who was responsible. Mr. Steward has since become the inspiration for a storyline in the brilliant comic strip.

Read today's Dilbert here.

Read the DesMoines Register story with more info on the storyline here.

This has nothing to do with capitalism, so don't give me some tired crap about the business having the right to blah, blah, blah. This isn't something that would concern a healthy business under good management. This is something you do if you are a pompous incompetent tightass with delusions of grandeur made hysterical by underlying knowledge that you are a pathetic loser.

Get this. These miserable creatures didn't even want Mr. Steward to receive unemployment benefits. They sent a representative to a hearing to claim that posting the cartoon was a malicious act that he knew would get him fired. Fortunately the judge disagreed.

Steve Morley was at best the spokesperson for the company. Here's the company's contact info.
http://www.1funcity.com/office/contact.asp

steve.morley@catfishbendcasino.com taken from the casino's website http://www.catfishbendcasino.com/

The Merida Initiative and other reasons why Republicans deserve to lose.

2008-02-13T09:25:00.000-08:00

When I originally read this story on Michelle Malkin's website, my head almost exploded. I mean, are you serious?!? We're giving 1.4 Billion dollars to Mexico to help them with their southern border security. Many of our representatives in congress don't even know about it. Mexico has stated that it cannot accept any conditions attached to the money, and that it just wants the money right now.

It makes me feel like the whole concept of the Republican party is a joke. They would really like it if they just had to say the word "abortion" every four years and have everyone just fall in line like sheep. They bungle our wars at a high cost in soldier's lives by not supplying armor, not deploying enough troops, and making them obey rules of engagement that were written by the liberal media. They don't take good care of those troops when they return home. They won't secure the border. They pretend they will use the National Guard to help, and then don't let them do anything. They pretend they will build a fence, then gut it's funding. They say "no amnesty." They mean "No meaningful action at all unless you let us pass amnesty." Knowing that the Mexican subversion of our national security and sovereignty is important to us, they sneak this Merida Initiative travesty past public scrutiny and then put up a rogues gallery of do-nothings on immigration from which we get to choose our next President.

Fine. I'll vote for McCain for president because I have no choice. Iraq, Iran, Russia, etc. don't give me any choice but to vote solely on the basis of who will protect my family better. But I think we'll lose. The conservative majority of actual voters are too disheartened by the GOP's complete disregard for conservative principles, and their refusal to field candidates that represent the values of their constituents.

I believe Barack Obama is going to win simply because conservatives are tired of rallying around people that don't really want to do the right thing. Republicans want to bitch about other people not doing the right thing. That is the behavior of a party that is in the minority, one that does not occupy the White House. That's why one of the only things you hear about Obama from conservatives is the ubiquitous mockery of the word "change." It's all that many of these pundits have, and it's pathetic. We're in a war that may last generations, our economy is tanking, banks are in trouble, our housing market is in shambles, our country is being overrun by illegal immigrants, we may or may not be destroying the planet, and the price of oil is skyrocketing.

Oh and mostly it's our enemies who make oil into gasoline.

The oil companies who aren't our enemies are making so much profit that oil executives fall into fits of giggles during congressional hearings.

Oh, and oil companies are working on those alternative fuels for us, so we'll be out of this little mess in no time, you betcha.

People want their government to change, they want to believe in something hopeful. The Republicans could be that something if they had the fire for it, but they don't. They have nothing hopeful to tell the American people, only the usual scare tactics:

"If you don't vote for us Hillary Clinton will come to your house, steal your xmas decorations, redistribute your wealth to the New Collective, make your sons gay, and then marry them (to each other, of course)! Oh, and the terrorists will have won."

And that's not how you make people proud of their party, or of their country. It's not how you rally your people, by telling them the same lies over and over. America is stronger than Hillary, or Obama, or pulling out of Iraq. It's stronger than moonbats and troofers and nutroots. And it is colossal hubris to think America isn't strong enough to survive the Republicans losing big to the Democrats for the next 4-8 years. Maybe that would serve as an object lesson to the Republican Party on the subjects of honesty, principle, and integrity.

I think were going to find out.

Sammenhold and Freedom of Expression

2008-02-13T08:35:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Michelle Malkin for the pic and for her daily inspiration.

Those wacky, fun-loving boys over at the Religeon of Peace just never quit, do they? Plotting to kill 73 year old Danish cartoonists, now. Two years after muslims rioted in the streets like murderous animals and killed 50 people, three courageous representatives of the Religeon of Homicide have been arrested in connection with a plot to kill Kurt Westergaard, one of the illustrators of the now famous cartoon.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/02/12/denmark.cartoon/index.html
And, of course, lets get a balanced view from our pals at Al-Jazeera:
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/2E604AB4-C6E2-4455-A6B9-00539BBB035F.htm

To show my solidarity ( or 'sammenhold' in Danish ) with everyone who had the courage to reprint this picture, I give you Mohammed the Bombhead in all his glory.

Now, I'm not some hypocrite who will turn around tomorrow and lambaste somebody for doing a caricature of Jesus. I think that everyone has the right to be funny. No matter how many people you offend thereby. I'm a big fan of many cable and internet based comedians, cartoonists, animated programs, and sketch comedy programs that are routinely offensive to people based on their race, religeon, sexual orientation, whatever. The free market, not the people who lack any sense of humor about their pet axe to grind, should determine whether these things are allowed to continue.

But some folks disagree. Not just crazed mobs of muslims who would like to shoot old ladies for naming teddy bears Mohammad, either. And that's what gives the fanatics a foot in the door. Every time Political Correctness wins another victory for hypocrisy, or race baiting hustlers like Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson succeed in undermining the First Amendment, we slide a little bit further away from being America. Even oranizations that I despise, whose members should be fed to rabid Chihuahuas ( Code Pink, the congregation of the Westboro Baptist Church, Nazis, CAIR, the KKK ) have the right to express their beliefs here. They don't have to be good beliefs. They don't have to respect your race, creed, religeon, sexual orientation, culture, disease, handicaps, or your pet. They don't have to be right, or even close. It may be annoying, but it's one of the things that makes this America.

And America is better than the alternative.

Sometimes "Change" Does Happen from the Bottom Up

2008-02-04T21:45:00.000-08:00

So, immigration is definitely one of my hot button issues. Especially ILLEGAL immigration. Not to be confused with LEGAL immigration. And many of our politicians here in the Commonwealth of Virginia have noticed that they can get reelected by saying the right things about illegal immigration. Time will tell if they succeed in doing anything. But many of them do seem to be trying. And that's what seems to be irritating all the newspapers, many TV news programs, various race-baiting pro illegal immigrant groups like La Raza, and of course our politicians. They would love it if we went back to being easily distracted by classic red herrings that they can use to get elected without having to produce.
Our Governor (Tim Kaine) was concerned that all of these laws would make our state seem unfriendly to "New Americans."

http://www.inrich.com/cva/ric/news.apx.-content-articles-RTD-2008-01-13-0148.html

"New Americans?" Is that what were calling illegal aliens now? I wish those in favor of amnesty for illegal aliens would admit it, instead of confusing the issue by:
1) Changing the language as if we were so stupid we might not notice: illegal alien to undocumented worker, immigrant (as if there were no LEGAL immigrants), and now "new american" - that just keeps getting funnier every time.
OR
2) Charging everyone with racism who wants our government (whether federal, state, or local) to do their job and enforce the law. This is just another smokescreen. The fact that the KKK gets excited about this doesn't make you right. They hate me too, and you'd call me white. They hate African Americans, Jewish Americans, Latin Americans, and illegal immigrants who aren't Aryan, get it?

Most Americans want this problem solved despite its inconvenience to our government, businesses, foreign governments, or citizens of other countries.

Again from the Richmond Times-Dispatch:
"It is very disappointing to see this avalanche of bills that focuses on a community whose only objective is to earn a living and to abide by our laws," said Andres Tobar of Arlington County, chairman of the Virginia Coalition of Latino Organizations. Tobar will bring a group to Richmond Tuesday to lobby legislators.

Now of course by "community" Mr. Tobar can't be speaking of America, Virginia, or even Arlington. He means race, by implication, but that's a lie too. He actually means "Stop actually trying to enforce existing immigration laws for yourselves." This "avalanche" started from the bottom up. It's a concern in every real community. The majority of Americans (including a number of hispanic- and latin- American citizens who started as legal immigrants) want nothing more than for people to "abide by our laws." On our terms, not theirs.