The Republican Formula

These transcripts from Fox News (of all places) show perfectly the Republican Formula of Discourse.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,226120,00.html?sPage=fnc.politics/youdecide2006

Throughout the entire interview Elizabeth Dole uses bait and switches, outright lies, subject changes and in general, rudeness to control the interview. The host Chris Wallace actually even attempted to rein her in. Now here's the rub. Why does this work? Why can a candidate go on T.V. lie openly about established facts, stubornly obfuscate the discussion, mix fact with fiction, and just be a (to be clean)... downright rude guest? Why do voters still vote for these candidates?


B

A sad statement....

Here is a sad statement on our nation's leadership. To hell with special interest it so '90s ...I know lets go for straight Self-Interest !!!


http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/docs/doj-congress/

Perhaps we can make it Capitol Hill Penitentiary and just skip all the nonsense of courts and stuff. Maybe they could add that to the Military Commission Act of 2006 since it's kinda in theme.

The push to self regulate in this country has finally come full circle. Many industries are now "self regulated" which of course is a lot like giving crack to a crackhead and expecting him not to smoke it. (or Rush Limbaugh some OxyContin and expect him not to eat em) Well the time has finally come to self regulate the criminal industry. To that end...we have Congress!


B

Well ATM this is a good laugh

I found this earlier today. I have to try to find these comments to make sure they are real and not ENTIRELY out of context. But really, how could some of these things possibly have a good context?

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2001/0111.coulterwisdom.html

I can't believe someone can actually get away with saying all these things and still have a career as ANY kind of intellectual. Here's some of the better ones....


"God gave us the earth. We have dominion over the plants, the animals, the trees. God said, 'Earth is yours. Take it. Rape it. It's yours.'"---Hannity & Colmes, 6/20/01

The "backbone of the Democratic Party" is a "typical fat, implacable welfare recipient"---syndicated column 10/29/99

To a disabled Vietnam vet: "People like you caused us to lose that war."---MSNBC

"Women like Pamela Harriman and Patricia Duff are basically Anna Nicole Smith from the waist down. Let's just call it for what it is. They're whores."---Salon.com 11/16/00

"Let's say I go out every night, I meet a guy and have sex with him. Good for me. I'm not married."---Rivera Live 6/7/00

"Anorexics never have boyfriends. ... That's one way to know you don't have anorexia, if you have a boyfriend."---Politically Incorrect 7/21/97

"I think [women] should be armed but should not [be allowed to] vote."---Politically Incorrect, 2/26/01

Coming from woman who is a political commentator. One thought comes to mind right away....
"Tis better to remain quiet and be thought a fool, than to open your mouth and remove all doubt"



B

Rush Limbaugh....

this sack of slag has GOT to be one of the most repulsive and disgusting personalities available on the airwaves today.

Just another proof of it.....

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/10/24/politics/main2121910.shtml

"I think this is exploitative in a way that's unbecoming of either Claire McCaskill or Michael J. Fox," Limbaugh said on his syndicated show.

Exploitative? Like getting a medical deferment from Viet Nam for a pilodinal cysts? A fairly minor discomfiture from an incomplete closure of the base of the spine.

I myself suffer from fibrous dysplasia. If there was a science working on a cure for this and some group of morons was outlawing it on rhetoric alone... I too would make any efforts to counteract them.

As to whether Fox was magnifying his illness for effect.... This is somehow worse than magnifying "WMD" from non-existant to TARGETED ON YOUR HOMES? Funny how Rush has not stood up for Americans when it came to Bush.

I guess what do you expect from a celebrity whose following proudly displays their inability to think for themselves. Ditto Heads....


B

Ah technology....

well, I had written a nice post. The spellchecker ate my post though :(

I don't feel like re-writing it so I'm not gonna ~! But! I will post a link to something everyone should read and think about (now more than ever with the election nearing).

http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/200601019_after_pats_birthday/

It is written by Kevin Tillman, Pat Tillman's brother. Have at er!


B

Catastrophe!!

No, I haven't quit blogging already lol. It's sorta a longish story. Suffice it to say that electronic (or motorized) goods and I don't mix well.

Thursday as I was finishing up some work my primary computer began a 5 day death march. I was getting windows stop errors within 5 minutes of boot up and all the fun that that brought. Groaning (I have already replaced the power supply, modem, and graphics card this year...and the comp is only 18 months old) I began messing with it. Microsoft OCA was very helpful (gags) and informed me that it was a driver error. So I began attempting to update stuff (in small time intervals with a 28 kbps connect FUN!!). Graphics card, modem, virus scanner, even java over the next couple DAYS (yes...days) to no avail. Next I tried removing items (softwares, old drivers, disabling hardware, registry errors, dust, lol everything)...no avail. Ok so here I am now broken crap and tried almost everything I could without gutting my tower. So with a sigh I try windows restore which has NEVER once worked for me. Hours later and 4 restore points still no dice. By now I'm just wishing for the weekend to get the hell over so I can take it in.

Oh ya, in the middle of that (about saturday am) I booted up my second comp. which already had a broken modem and graphics card. I was attempting to test some other theories about my primary comp. When, my secondary monitor dies. #Sigh#

So, now it is Monday finally. I pack both of my cpu towers into my truck and head to Madison (about an hour drive away). I had a huge list of items to fix and problems to track down. I also wanted to get a couple new software aps. and a flat panel monitor. All day long I spend in Madison waiting. They got comp. 2 fixed up but couldn't track down anything causing the windows stop errors.

Tuesday, back again to Madison. Turns out to be my motherboard. By now I'm assuming a LARGE repair bill. It takes the rest of the day to download, re-window, update, install, etc etc etc.


WARNING! ENDORSEMENT FOLLOWS!!

If you live anywhere near Madison Wisconsin, THE BEST repair, upgrade (hardware or soft or even custom systems), or anything computer shop I have found. I'd try these folks first.

RAVEN COMPUTERS
(608) 661-1372


These guys bent over backwards to get me up and running asap. As for the bill...it was nearly half what I was expecting! They put my concerns first and were very good on value. [A business ethic absent in todays world for the most part]


SO....(told ya it was a long story...glad I didn't add the background aren't ya !) the point is....
I'm back :)
If I do have any readers (despite my blogs name) I apologize for the lack of any updates for the past week.

As for this week I intend to add to my list of initial contacts (Democratic Party and Russ Feingold atm). I intend to add some media, business, non-profit, and individuals to the list soon.
Fox News and Wal-Mart I want to get to for sure this week if possible. This won't probably be a fast process as it takes quite a bit of work to write a decent letter. Unlike most crap available to read today, I actually do research to know what I'm talking about. I also try to think a little about who, what, and why I'm writing to whomever I am. Though as you can see...my structure doesn't get a whole lot of time...

B

Action?

Well, I'm not hopeful that this will do more than make me feel a little better but I have also decided to start a letter and email writing campaign. I went to the Dem. Party website earlier to drop a line....

"I have been, in the past, a supporter of your party. Not because I agree with your platforms, but because we as Americans have almost NO choice in elections, and your platforms are far closer to my (and MOST of YOUR constituents)beliefs than are the Republican "ideals". This restrictive email form alone tells VOLUMES of how little the common man has a say in the new Dem. party.

The last thing this country needed was a "follower" party that would try its damndest to emulate its competition and match its levels of corruption and disconnection from the actual citizenry. The Clinton ideal of chasing after corporate cash instead of attacking and removing it from politics is not only disgusting and depressing it is WRONG.

We are a nation that was founded for the people are we not? CORPORATIONS ARE NOT PEOPLE! It disgusts me to track down the cash that floods not only the Republican coffers....but your own.The even more disgusting part is watching the legislation that is then enacted FOR those contributors (buyers) of THE PEOPLE'S representatives. Funny word that, representatives, as few represent anything remotely like their constituents belief. At best they represent a handful of their constituents... the priveledged people who contribute to their campaigns.

I have so many questions...Why do you allow what has happened since the 2000 elections? In our democratic society how can the SUPREME COURT throw out our constitutionally protected right to vote (AND HAVE THEM COUNT)? Worse, how can the Dem. Party sit so quietly by? How could the USA PATRIOT act EVER pass in this country? Where is the USDA? SEC? FEC? Why do we subsidize immensely wealthy corporations to take high paying American jobs overseas? Why are my tax dollars going into the treasury so that they can be bundled up and sent to some wealthy person with a nice new tax break? Why is self-regulation even considered (it is the most idiotic fallacy)? Why are we allowing the richest citizens to keep their money all their lives tax free (capital gains) and then allowing it to pass on after they die tax free? Why are the few who make the most use of the infrastructure we all pay for the ones who are given the most in tax protection (they use it and abuse it we pay for it)? Why have we lost so much in freedoms, environmental protections, job protections, consumer protections, and actual (non drug) crime fighting to just name a few? For that matter, why are we killing state budgets with the highly unsuccessful drug war? Or, why are we cutting into education funding while still fighting this lost war on our own citizens?

These are just a few of the many questions I have. I know the answers. Do you? Can you admit them to yourselves? Your loved ones? Your children?
If you would like to know more, maybe get a pulse for what the country REALLY cares about, contact me. You have my contact information. Isn't it time to truly start a national and honest dialog with the REAL citizens of this nation? Or is the new millenium new America only one of "Corporate Citizens"? "

Sorry for the format it didn't copy paste well. Their site wasn't exactly friendly towards email as it was (I hate forced email forms...). I will check out the Republican site later methinks :)

I have also started contacting my senator and intend to start on my rep. I guess I could add some state offices as well but then I would have to get more form lettery (no way I'm composing and writing 20 original letters a week).

Gotta do something right? Or should I just forget it and go shopping as Bush advises?



B

Dollars bring change?

...and I don't mean the jingly kind.

I used to like Wal-Mart. Back before Sam died and "Made in the USA" went ever so quietly away. Sam was an aspiring monopolist no doubt, but at least his multitude of stores were at least selling U.S. goods (thus supporting American labor). I might be mistaken but I think I remember a time when they bragged about the high percentage of US to imported goods on their shelves.

But those days are LONG gone. Not so long in years but VERY long in terms of how far from that ideal Wal-Mart has come. Today, Wal-Mart is an enormous employer in the U.S. As a matter of fact, they are the numero uno private employer in the U.S. Only the U.S. government employs more. Their website has a link to http://www.walmartfacts.com/FactSheets/ that stated

"Wal-Mart is the nation’s largest private employer and a leading employer of minorities, with more than 225,000 African American associates; more than 150,000 Hispanic associates; and more than 240,000 seniors who are 55 or older." and "Wal-Mart employs 1.8 million associates worldwide, including 1.3 million in the United States."

Now to my point. You would think that this company that supported the American worker would be a provider of good paying jobs with good benefits.
Alas, it is not so. Their main site claims

"Our average hourly wage for regular full-time associates in the U.S. is $9.68 an hour, almost double the federal minimum wage."

while their propagan...errr, fact site claims

"Wal-Mart’s average, full-time hourly wage is $10.11 and is even higher in urban areas, where the cost of living is higher."

While this might sound like its not so low let me make a couple of observances.

1. This is ONLY an average of FULL time employees (they won't say what their average is for part-time employees).
2. This INCLUDES their store managers and floor managers (to a large degree considering the exclusion of part time labor).
3. Full time to Wal-Mart is not a 40 hour work week. This means in order to claim that they hire xyz number of full time employees (a major argument that Wal-Mart uses to help open stores) they have lowered their consideration of full time to 25+ hours per week. This means an Full-Time employee earns between $252.75 and $404.40 a week or $13,143-$21,028.80 a year for full time employment. [Assuming $10.11/hour] Now this is before Payroll Taxes, Income Taxes, and Insurance payments are deducted. Not exactly even a living wage is it? But isn't it great!! There are 1.8 million of these Poverty level full time employees out there!!!

This post is starting to lose its way. So I'll have to wrap it up and continue at another time about the WONDERFUL WALLY WORLD!!

B

P.S. The thread title "dollars bring change?" refers to the boycotting of Wal-Mart that myself and so far one friend have agreed to. My receipts per month there were around $500 per month alone (they killed the local grocery store). I now drive 20 miles to a nearby town to shop in a local market. The extra cost per item and gas to get there is FAR less than WE are losing by getting Wal-Mart goods so cheap. But I'll get into that in a later post.

Am I Alone....

Am I alone in....

• .... thinking we (as a nation) are not moving forward?
• .... thinking we are actually digressing?
• .... the belief that we ALL deserve clean air, water, environment in general, and food supplies?
• .... the belief it doesn't HAVE to be this way?
• .... my utter shock at what has become of our government?
• ....or our electoral system?
• .... my disgust of the wholesale theft of our rights of late?
• .... my belief that the government IS responsible for its citizens access to basic needs?
• ....and that this DOES include health care?
• .... my belief that subsidizing markets takes the free out of "free markets"?
• .... my belief that citizens should come first?
• .... my fear that Wal-Mart IS the evil empire?
• .... my confusion that what has been happening is real?
• ....we impeach a president for oral sex and lying under oath...but not the one who lied to every citizen, not of the US ...the world, on world television?
• .... my belief that we could have shot down the planes on 9/11?
• ....and to suggest otherwise of our military is, well, preposterous?
• ....and that he should have, over the rivers, after he had known of the first?
• ....and is saddened that the world has come to this?
• .... my desire for REAL answers?
• ....and thinking its bout damn time for some?
• .... my disgust at what patriotism is being used to shroud?
• .... my belief that the freedom of speech is "A big one" as far as amendments go?
• ....not to be coarse but WTF is a FREE SPEECH ZONE!?
• ....my amazement that these BLATANT crimes against our constitutional right to free speech have gone unchallenged for the most part?
• .... my belief that journalism does not work as a few big massive corporate outlets?
• .... my belief that both parties are really one business party?
• .... my belief that dissent IS patriotic?
• .... my thinking that our military personnel are underpaid, over exploited, and deserving of more respect and support?
• ....

Don't Read This Crap

Warning: Don't Read This Crap !!

This blog is meant as a forum for me to regurgitate some thoughts when I need to. As it's URL will attest this blog will be political thought mostly. Don't read this crap if you don't want to be pissed off. If your offended by attacks on entitlement (by me)... you'll be pissed. If you like the earth....you'll be pissed (at them). If you believe in core values.... health, fairness, safety, civil and human rights... you'll be pissed (at them). So...basically this is a place for me to vent when this surrealistic Orwellian nightmare gets to be to much...(if it pisses me off I'm bringing it here in other words).

Still here huh..

Well, Ok then here's a few more things to expect.

This is NOT structured writing in any way. I write as I think (as opposed to composing each and editing yada yada before publishing) - That's the whole point to me. This isn't to say I won't correct things I find to be wrong factually later. Just that there will be mistakes.

If I were to be submitting this to a newspaper or book publisher I would be sure to use correct grammar and spelling and not make a mess of my writings with mistakes that i should have corrected or deleted and i would make sure that all things like capitalization and structure were also followed so as to make my writing as clear as possible but this isn't to be submitted and i wont submit something like this without edits now as it is getting more difficult to stretch this wordy run on any longer i will consider my point made on spelling, grammar, structure, rambling, wordiness and move on.

I do try to be factual. The reason that sounds squishy is because it is. Not through any fault of my own. Ok, maybe a little. But mostly because a lot of what I read about and want to vent about is deliberately jumbled information that Washington works very hard to confuse. Ever read the patriot act? I have....and rest my point.

I won't be flashy... for now anyway. I live in Wisconsin which is a fairly modern state (in the USA - a fairly modern country). However, the phone company here won't fix our phone lines (despite legally being required) unless I first fix mine inside the house. My line sounds like a freight train regardless if it is attached in the wall jack or their box on the side of the house (thus removing my lines from the equation). Besides this I live 2 miles outside town and 1500 ft. from the terminus of cable service. I connect at roughly 26.4 kbps so don't expect much beyond text.

Also, I'm extremely new to this....I'll be learning as I go.

If you made it this far (WHY?!) welcome to Don't Read This Crap.


B