What are you thankful for?

I suppose, since it's turkey day, we all need to reflect on the things we are thankful for. Me? I'm thankful for the fact that I can dangle a participle. I'm thankful that I have this outlet for preaching about how wrong everyone and everything are.

You should be thankful for the fact that (chances are) you are not a Native American living in 17th century America, or decendent from them. Because (chances are, again) that you would not be here. You would have been extinguished in the American chapter of the Great Christian Genocide.

I'm thankful that I did not end up a turkey on a factory farm in this life. Because again, chances are, that I would not be alive today to tell you what I am thankful for. (Dangling participles)

Check out the Reverend for a Thanksgiving sermon.

IFILM - Short Films: The O'Reilly Tapes

IFILM - Short Films: The O'Reilly Tapes

Bill the butt plug.

IFILM - Viral Videos Channel

IFILM - Viral Videos Channel

Check out the Bush v. Cheney debate. Funny stuff.

Rethinking Ethical Behavior in the GOP

CNN.com - House GOP change rules to shield DeLay - Nov 17, 2004

No GOP crime will go punished in the second Bush term. One bad deed deserves another.

Why don't we let the courts decide whether these charges are frivolous? Until that time, why should DeLay not step aside? How could it do anything but help his image if he were to do the right thing?

I think a million good questions will also go unanswered.

Finally, Another Good Prediction

Scott Peterson was found guilty. I was beginning to think that up is down, left is right and blue is red in this new bizarro world. At least we can still convict a guilty man of a heinous crime once in a while.

Justice is being served. I hope he gets what is coming to him in the hooscow.

An Election Poem - from my inbox

The election is over,
The results are now known.
The will of the people
Has clearly been shown.

We should show by our thoughts,
Our words and our deeds
That unity is just what
Our country now needs.

Let's all get together...
Let bitterness pass
I'll hug your elephant...
You kiss my ass.

author unknown

I've been taking some time off again

To let my typing fingers (all three of them) have an opportunity to heal. I think I was getting stress fractures from typing in such a frustrated tone...

For all of you who come back from time to time (I know there's at least one of you) I thank you for your diligence. Keep coming back, I have a lot of catching up to do, and plan to keep it going. I may even do other topics, much like I used to before I became fixated on the election.

From my inbox

A friend predicted a 7% Kerry margin of victory. Obviously that did not happen. He asked himself why:


So...I've been mulling this whole thing over, and
thought I'd share with you something I wrote to
another friend of mine and see what you think...
As I have begun mulling over the "what happened to my
7% popular vote margin?" question, a couple of
scenarios/explanations have come to mind:

a) Somehow, all the conventional political wisdom,
from voter turnout levels all the way down to silly
things like the Redskins losing have for some reason
been totally upended, heralding some kind of new,
scary age in American politics in which the votes of
the rural and exurban contingent of Jesus Freaks
(a.k.a. the American Taliban), manipulated by shysters
like W. into voting against their own true best
interest, combine with the corporate crowd to have
enough votes to consistently maintain Republican
control of both the executive and legislative branches
of government.

This is the "Damn, these Americans
really *are* stupid, ignorant fools" scenario.


b) If you lie about every single damn thing under the
sun, and use every avenue available to you to keep the
facts secret (or even claim, when presented with the
facts, that your failures aren't even failures but
successes, the world is really flat, and 2+2=48,000),
lie about anyone who disgrees with you to the point of
practically accusing them of treason and sedition, and
then lie some more with the goal of scaring the shit
out of the populace, you can capture 51% of the vote
even if a majority of the public doesn't even believe
you deserve to win or that you're doing a good job.

This is the "Well, I guess these Americans are
severely lacking in critical thinking skills if they
managed to get fooled by this shit but I can cut them
some slack because it takes quite a bit of work to see
through the propaganda screen" scenario. Or maybe one
could call it the "The
Good Germans" scenario.

Good Germans, eh? I edited a book for a prof in grad school titled "The Path to Collective Madness" which is exactly what this line of reasoning is about. A shared delusion which allows us to short circuit our own good sense in order to rationalize the most evil of deed, such as the holocost, the Rwandan genocide, Bosnia, etc.

The trouble with this is that this episode of collective madness is domestic. I say keep on eye on your neighbors, especially the ones who voted for Bush.

What's the matter with a little random senseless disinformation?

CBS News | Blogging As Typing, Not Journalism | November 8, 2004�15:30:22

What a rant. Why doesn't he take a pill for that parasite of his? Testy little bugger, ain't he?

I think that news was priceless. The look on W's face when he thought he had lost! The high point of the day was when we all thought Kerry was a runaway winner.

A coup for truth, justice and the American way...alas, no. President StupidHead again.

Some predictions down the toilet

I guess it's time to concede that the Patriots did not win 25 straight. I was right all the way up to last Sunday. 21 and 0 is not bad.

It seems I should concede a Bush victory, also. But, no. Just like it took a year to prove that Gore won last time, I will wait another year before deciding that Bush is our legitimately elected leader. Even then I do not truly think I will ever come to accept it.

Hedge: I did say this one looks fair and square, but I did not say I was convinced.

I want to renew my prediction that Saddam Hussein will not be out of power for the long-term. This may be some time away, but it could easily happen before Bush finishes serving a second term.

Hedge: I have had a so-so year for predictions of a political nature.

In other news, Scott Peterson is guilty as sin. We will see if the jury agrees. (My history of predicting notable verdicts: I won money on the OJ verdict. Have yet to lose money on one.) My bet this time is that the jury will put Scott in jail for the rest of his life.

Hedge: It may take a retrial.

I don't remember if I stated my prediction of Martha's trial. I was and forever will be on her side, but I was wrong about the verdict. I made no bets, because I was not that sure. I still do not think that the evidence supported the verdict.

I think she still may be vindicated in the courts. Nonetheless, her career will continue, probably even more successful than before. She will have the last laugh.

Hedge: None. Of this you can be sure.

As for the second Bush term, hypothetically speaking, of course, I am holding back specifics until they become more clear. Bad things are what I feel in general.

The economy will continue to grow, I will stipulate that. But four years from now I think more people will be part of the working poor class, under educated, over worked, under employed, underrepresented against the rule of corporations, and growing tired of living on the underbelly of a New Gilded Age.

Hedge: Again, no doubt here, Bush has promised this. And I know he can deliver.

I think progressivism will grow stronger at the grass-roots level, yet remain politically hamstrung by the tyranny of the silent majority and a concentrated effort to write rules favoring their neo-conservative values. The New Gilded Age could last a half century, if allowed to accrete power unchecked.

Hedge: grass-roots conservatism may realize that their interests are not really represented by the GOP. A schism between New Republicans and Old Republicans could bog their party down, spark infighting common to such a bloated organization and allow the other parties to gain traction.

More specifics to come as I make them up.

The jury is back: Democracy doesn't work

MSNBC - No-show 'mystery candidate' wins election

Power to the ignorant, I guess. Rocco is a cool name.

This gives me an idea.

The jury is still out on free & fair

t r u t h o u t - Thom Hartmann Evidence Mounts that the Vote Was Hacked

Sure this is a biased piece. But the truths behind the conspiracy theory here need to be ferreted out.

Let's get to the bottom of this, fast. All the major news outlets, including FOX have reported on the machine in Ohio that had more votes for Bush than voters in the precinct. Isolated incidents may not be as isolated as we would be led to believe.

We would like to think that Bush has a huge interest in seeing this through to the end also, because the political map will be greatly changed if we end up finding out that this election was a sham, too.

And People Wonder Why I Sill Think Democracy Doesn't Work

MSNBC - No-show 'mystery candidate' wins election

Power to the Ignorant, it seems. Rocco is a cool name.

This gives me an idea.

Did John Forbes Kerry Fail Us?

In a word, no. John Kerry did not fail us. This loss was bigger than any one or all of us, obviously.

The silent majority has spoken at the polls. They have suddenly come alive and effectively shifted the course of our government to the right.

At the extreme right, despotism is about the most natural form of government. It is the easiest to set up and run. At the left is democracy, the most difficult type of government to run.
At the right, one person is vested with unbridled power. At the left, equality.
Over on the right, freedoms are few. On the left, well, you get the picture.

Our Nation was founded just to the right of absolute democracy - a representative free republic. This week, the silent majority has spoken: they do not want to have to think or choose. They want one man controlling all three branches of our government. They do not want freedom. Our foundation shifted measurably to the right. Fully one-half of Americans would rather have a dictator. That is the will of the people today.

Somehow we need to convince these people that they need to keep out of the polls.

This is a call to action we cannot afford to ignore. Now is the summer of our discontent.

YEEHAW! Hail to the Chief!

YEEHAW! I just had to say it again. I am using it to cover my tracks for today. I don't want no GOP operative snooping by looking for subversive content. Hail to the Chief!

YEEHAW! In between bouts of uncontrollable sobbing for our poor desperate, morally and financially bankrupt nation, I have a few seconds to ponder what exactly has happened. Hail to the Chief!

YEEHAW! Have we, as an electoral body, really paved a yellow brick road to the removal of our beloved Checks and Balances for little w to saunter up, waggling his Texass swagger at our puny civil rights as they fall one by one to September 11? Hail to the Chief!

YEEHAW! Have we really opened up ANWAR to the probing proiscus of oil exploration? Have we really given Halliburton a blank check to write us deeper into debt? Have we failed the test of values so badly that a raving megalomanic who talks regularly to the voice of Jesus in his head, who values corporate profit over the health and welfare of the people is now legitimately in charge of our government? Hail to the Chief!

YEEHAW! I guess we have. Hail to the Chief!

Hail to the big pile of bull guano who sits in our Oval Office. Let me tell you something about governance, folks. This is addressed to those of you who stabbed us in the back and voted for Bush.

Governance is about the people. It is our government, dammit! Your personal beliefs have no relevance to how the people need to be governed. None whatsoever. If you would have absorbed that into your soft head we would not be sitting here anxiously on the eve of god knows what sort of hellish horrors Bush will stir up in the next four years.

God, guns and gays. I've seen that analysis of the election a number of times. Funny thing is, though, two of those issues have nothing to do with a government of free people. God and gays are no business the government ought to interfere with. And by extension, they certainly should have no relevance to the laws we pass.

Anyone who uses a god as a reason to support passing a law has no right being in government. Similarly, anyone who expresses bigotry towards gays, has no place in our government, either. But somehow, that's what we have for a majority.

This problem is not just with Republicans, the Democrats have not really distinguished themselves as the champions of the freedom to fuck men in the ass or hot dyke on dyke love.

Personally, I do not give the Rat's Ass who screws who or how. Bill O'Reilly is just as free to use his anal plug as I am to decide that that thought is repulsive. In good governence, the state has no business in the bedroom.

And for marriage, a state marriage is just that, a state marriage. Did you know that you do not have to get the state to sanction your marriage? You can have your church wedding and never have to worry about filing with the state. After a few years you will probably get the protections of a civil marriage, if you even care.

It seems to me that if someone really believes in the authority of the church would not care if the state thinks they are married. The benefit is your god's blessing, isn't it? And if your church decides to not marry fags, then so be it. I can probably find a dozen or so that will. And if all else fails, I will perform them myself.

I have been ordained for several years now, and I take my responsibility seriously as a minister. My church is based on the teachings of Jesus. I respect that. Hell, I've studied Jesus extensively. I've heard he died because you all sin.

I'm taking the blame for my sins, so no sale on the Christianity. And God just doesn't do anything for me. The Holy Spirit, on the other hand, gave me my lack of doubt about what it is that separates "man" from "God." And taught me how I can go to my grave comfortable with my karmic accumulations. And freed me of the need for faith. It was just that simple.

"Creation" has taught me that a good god loves gays just as much as he loves straights. Why else would he "create" them? Boy dogs hump each other. Dogs are man's best friend. Hmmm.

Furthermore, in creationist thinking, God created everything. That means: God created gay people. If man is created in God's own image, then, dare I say? You know the conclusion.

As for Jesus, he would embrace homosexuals, especially if they were the outcasts of society. I would gladly marry two men or women in the name of Jesus if they asked me to, knowing full well that the Jesus of the Gospel would fully approve.

But I have digressed away from the point. The point about a state marriage is this: it offers legal protections and obligations to a couple who choose to enter into this state sponsored contract. The state is bound by the equal protection clause of the Constitution. The only logical conclusion is that the state cannot offer marriage to only heterosexual couples.

And no one needs reminding about the church and the state. Do they?

So much for another epic presidential drama...

CNN.com - Kerry calls Bush to concede - Nov 3, 2004

It seems like this is it folks. We did not win. Not only did we give up the White House, we gave up our legislature, too. Now the Republicans have carte blanc to maraude for at least two years.

That means no criminal act will go punished. That means we have just ceded our rights to a party who would rather put you to death than listen to you.

Reflecting on the results since last night, I am torn between going negative or positive with my reaction. There are many ways to look at this, but the bottom line is that we lost. And we lost big.

Good news comes in one form only: The process worked, at first glance. What's most important in our republic is that the process delivers a true winner when the election is run fair and square. We won that battle this time. As Americans, the pride we feel for the system should supercede, in all instances, partisan rhetoric.

This one seems fair and square, although I still have a great amount of disbelief regarding the numbers. Maybe irregularities will begin to rear their ugly heads, but Kerry has ceded, so it matters little.

What a revolting development

CNN.com - High court clears�way for Ohio�poll challengers - Nov 2, 2004

At least there are limits to who they can harass, and we always have provisional balloting. The inherent strength and fairness of our democratic republic will prove to be as healthy as ever. Irregardless of what happened four years ago.

Hogwash! New York Post Online Edition: news

New York Post Online Edition: news

You right wing idiot! By state he means country. He is bad news for Bush, since Bush couldn't capture him. This story is one of the biggest loads of crap out there today.

Election Anxiety

The New York Times > Washington > Campaign 2004 > The Polls: In Final Days, Divided Electorate Expresses Anxiety

Sometimes it's comforting to know I am not imagining these things. My boss did not understand my citation of election anxiety as a good reason for me to take the election off for vacation.

I go back to work Thursday, so I can stay up late tomorrow night. But in the meantime, I am working my way through the anxiety by walking the precinct yesterday, hitting the web today and who knows what tomorrow.

The gravity towards the issue at hand and the work needed to be done draws me in. Not acting fuels the anxiety. The cure is to do something to aid in the cementing of the Our Victory.

Direct action works best. On this campaign, I have seen all ages of citizens out pounding the beat in some way for Kerry. That's how we won Oregon. I know the same actions are underway in more exotic regions like Ohio and Florida, Wisconsin, Iowa and New Hampshire. Wherever you are, the call is the same. Colorado, Louisiana, California, Maine and Ohio: cure your Bush fear by making your vote count, and helping others make sure theirs count, too. Even the states we can't win have the same rights, and we must guarantee that we get the leader we deserve as a nation.

NYUK NYUK NYUK

CNN.com - Bill Mitchell cartoons - October 1, 2004

Steve Bell of The Guardian UK

Jim Borgman of Zits

Registered Voters prefer Kerry through October

White House 2004

Kerry registers 20 points through the month, while Bush registers 16.

From 10/30 on, Kerry registers 7 to Bush's 0, for registered voters.

36 Hours from now, the battle will be over. Let's carry our victory through to the end.

Now that's nine: we walloped the GOP on registering new voters.

No GOP bullies at the Ohio polls

MSNBC - Judges bar party challengers at Ohio polls

This development has the potential to crack the GOP strategy for a Bush win, namely the elimination of legal ballots from the final tallies.

Jeb pulled this ruse in Florida four years ago, in the form of disenfranchising tens of thousands of voters who turned out to be mostly racial minority, democratic leaning and perfectly eligible to vote. With Ohio as the premier battleground state this year, the GOP decided to go after racial minorities in Cleveland. Now, for those of you who are unfamiliar with Cleveland, the facts to know are simple: it has a large proportion of racial minorities and has an unemployment rate through the roof. Furthermore, poverty is high and wealth is low.

The picture of Cleveland seen through the GOP's eyes: a sure loss for Bush in a fair election where every eligible ballot is counted. By using attack dogs at the polls challenging every voter in precincts destined to poll Kerry, the GOP figured it could use a few good old boys to keep Jim Crow away from the polls. Thank God for the courts, who answer to the highest authority in the land: the Constitution.

the rat sass

the rat sass

I wonder if a link to myself will help me with Google? I've registered a few times with them, but their crawler never seems to get around to me.

My thoughts this morning are naturally on the election. I haven't yet surfed the news sites, but the TV so far says all signs point to an incumbent defeat. There's eight.