Politics: You Owe It To Yourselves

To keep up with the GOP-originated ruckus surrounding Judge Sonia Sotomayor. Why? Because the naked, rampant racism and ugliness must be fought before it becomes part of the national mindset again. Because we watched this sort of "inciting the mob" behaviour for eight years and most of us were afraid and sick inside and we did nothing because we were afraid. Well, now's your chance. Say something. Do something. Read about it. Get involved. Talk to your friends, your neighbours, your fellow churchgoers, your book club, your cousins who live a thousand miles away. We've got to stay on top of this thing. We've got to keep it from getting ugly — well, any uglier than it already is.

Oh, yeah, and write your Congresscritters, especially the Republicans. Tell them to take a stand against this sort of incitement.

ICHC

A commenter over at HuffPo had this to say about Tom "I R Teh Racist" Tancredo, who is doing teh head spin while spouting pea soup along with some very dubious yawp:

In Colorado, Tancredo is associated with the Rocky Mountain Foundation, which is dedicated to limiting and perhaps totally ending immigration. They are known for their bigotry. I called this afternoon to complain about Tancredo, but the woman who answered said she "didn't know anything about his appearances on TV)" and that, of course, no one else was their to come to the phone!" I sent them an email instead. There is a "visitors' book" where a number of conservatives have left supportive comments for Tancredo AND their email addresses! I would like to send my comments to tthe supporters also, but I don't know if I will have time. How about you?

Give 'em hell, people, it's what they're there for. How else will you get your blood pressure to safe levels when listening to the shit conservatives spew daily?

Here's what Judge Sotomayor's said that got these weeny-wavers so excited they can't stop waving their peeners:

"Justice O'Connor has often been cited as saying that a wise old man and wise old woman will reach the same conclusion in deciding cases. I am not so sure Justice O'Connor is the author of that line since Professor Resnik attributes that line to Supreme Court Justice Coyle. I am also not so sure that I agree with the statement. First, as Professor Martha Minnow has noted, there can never be a universal definition of wise. Second, I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn't lived that life."

"Let us not forget that wise men like Oliver Wendell Holmes and Justice Cardozo voted on cases which upheld both sex and race discrimination in our society. Until 1972, no Supreme Court case ever upheld the claim of a woman in a gender discrimination case. I, like Professor Carter, believe that we should not be so myopic as to believe that others of different experiences or backgrounds are incapable of understanding the values and needs of people from a different group. Many are so capable. As Judge Cedarbaum pointed out to me, nine white men on the Supreme Court in the past have done so on many occasions and on many issues including Brown."

Anybody find anything unacceptable about that? If so, here's something Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito said during his confirmation hearings:

In an exchange with Sen. Tom Coburn, who had asked Alito to discuss how his personal experiences shows that "he cared for the little guy," Alito said that his family"s experience as immigrants influenced his outlook on immigration cases.

Alito: "And that"s why I went into that in my opening statement. Because when a case comes before me involving, let"s say, someone who is an immigrant " and we get an awful lot of immigration cases and naturalization cases " I can"t help but think of my own ancestors, because it wasn"t that long ago when they were in that position.

When I get a case about discrimination, I have to think about people in my own family who suffered discrimination because of their ethnic background or because of religion or because of gender. And I do take that into account."

If this is acceptable to you, as it apparently was to all the Congresscritters who voted to confirm Alito, then you should be the first to whup Slimy Reptile Gingrich upside the head for having the guts to ask Judge Sotomayor to step aside. She should not step aside unless, not even if Alito does.

Mind you, the fact that Slimy Reptile Gingrich texted his comments about Judge Sotomayor being a racist from fucking Auschwitz, jesus christ, do these motherfuckers have the first fucking clue about irony? — is just icing on the cake.

Update: Jesus Christ. Now G. Gordon Liddy, the guy who made "bobbing for French fries" part of our national consciousness, is trying to monitor Judge Sotomayor's menstrual flow. Or something. From the inimitable Maru's site, some unbelievable WhatTheFuckery for your reading pleasure. Thanks to UndieLib for the ass-kicking of Liddy that follows.


Of course, you have to ask what a wrinkled saggy old sack like Gee, Gordon, "Could You Get Your Nutsack Lifted?" Liddy has to say about anybody else's naughty bits. Gordie in a thong is a scary sight indeed, and if that doesn't keep the lot of ya chaste and celibate for a month, you must've rushed for the brain-and-eyeball bleach.

Pseudocentrist blog Politico (no link, sorry), meanwhile, referred to Judge Sotomayor as a Latina single mother, until it was pointed out to them that in order to be a single mother, one must first have children, which Judge Sotomayor apparently does not. Without so much as a by-your-leave, they removed the offending words, but did not apologize for the stupid mistake.

No doubt in a couple of days or weeks rightwing nutcases will be screaming about how Judge Sotomayor is a Latina cannibal single mother who has devoured her nonexistent children.

As for those pendejos yawping on endlessly about how La Raza is a racist organization, here is some basic information about La Raza for anyone who doesn't yet know what the organization is and does.

ICHC

And for those who don't want to clicky the linky, a summary:

The National Council of La Raza (NCLR) – the largest national Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization in the United States – works to improve opportunities for Hispanic Americans. Through its network of nearly 300 affiliated community-based organizations (CBOs), NCLR reaches millions of Hispanics each year in 41 states, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia. To achieve its mission, NCLR conducts applied research, policy analysis, and advocacy, providing a Latino perspective in five key areas – assets/investments, civil rights/immigration, education, employment and economic status, and health. In addition, it provides capacity-building assistance to its Affiliates who work at the state and local level to advance opportunities for individuals and families.

Founded in 1968, NCLR is a private, nonprofit, nonpartisan, tax-exempt organization headquartered in Washington, DC. NCLR serves all Hispanic subgroups in all regions of the country and has operations in Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, Phoenix, Sacramento, San Antonio, and San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Translation of the name National Council of La Raza:

Many people incorrectly translate our name, “La Raza,” as “the race.” While it is true that one meaning of “raza” in Spanish is indeed “race,” in Spanish, as in English and any other language, words can and do have multiple meanings. As noted in several online dictionaries, “La Raza” means “the people” or “the community.” Translating our name as “the race” is not only inaccurate, it is factually incorrect. “Hispanic” is an ethnicity, not a race. As anyone who has ever met a Dominican American, Mexican American, or Spanish American can attest, Hispanics can be and are members of any and all races.

The term “La Raza” has its origins in early 20th century Latin American literature and translates into English most closely as “the people” or, according to some scholars, as “the Hispanic people of the New World.” The term was coined by Mexican scholar José Vasconcelos to reflect the fact that the people of Latin America are a mixture of many of the world’s races, cultures, and religions. Mistranslating “La Raza” to mean “the race” implies that it is a term meant to exclude others. In fact, the full term coined by Vasconcelos, “La Raza Cósmica,” meaning the “cosmic people,” was developed to reflect not purity but the mixture inherent in the Hispanic people. This is an inclusive concept, meaning that Hispanics share with all other peoples of the world a common heritage and destiny.

From An Open Letter To The Public, NCLR Answers Critics

So there ya go, peoples. Incidentally, you might want to let La Raza know you support them. And if you're a conservative, please remember that G. Dumbya and his daddy both had nothing but good things to say about La Raza.

Further update: Texas Republican congresscritter John Cornyn is making little squeaky noises about how all those conservatives attacking Judge Sotomayor should please stop already. Who's taking bets on when he has to grovellingly apologize to Rush Limbaugh, who's already attacking him?

Stumble It!

Politics: There's Dawgs

And then there's ... OMG, WTF, LOL? I'm sorry. Please feel free to laugh your fucking ass off because otherwise you might have to do vast quantities of drugs to forget that you ever saw this:



Is this, what, like young white conservatives are taking Michael Steele seriously about the hip-hop revolution in the Republican Party or what? OMG. Can you say "we ain't got no style?" Jesus wept.

Or he would if he was still around to see this.

Your regular Caturday programming will return — as soon as we at La Casa de Los Gatos recover from the hideousness that is teh Young Cons (I do believe that is their name). Lawdy!

Stumble It!

Ebony Ivory ...

Have you read this article in the NTTimes about separate proms: black folks' prom, white folks' prom. Sad. Twenty first century.

Stumble It!

Politics: From The Department of

The Stupid Never Stops.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor

Now that President Obama has announced his nomination of Sonia Sotomayor for the Supreme Court vacancy left by resigning Justice David Souter, the Republicans are out in full — or should I say FOOL — force, yipping their little puppy heads off about Judge Sotomayor.

Here, for example, perennial pouty jowled loser Newt (what kind of person has a nickname that means "slimy reptile"?) Gingrich calls Judge Sotomayor a racist. Wow, Newtie, considering that some of your best friends have said things that would make a full-throated racist blush for shame, that takes some brass cojones, buddy. Hope they're nailed on tight, coz something tells me my Latino y Latina buddies will be aiming for those low-hanging fruit right soon. You, the friend of racists galore, do not, buddy, not diss a respected Latina candidate for the Supreme Court by calling her petty names.

Although the GOP itself isn't attacking Sotomayor, relying on these hunchmen, as Frank Zappa might have called them, to do their dirty work, some of them were happy to give Newt the reptile's message a helping, as it were, tweet.

Pat Buchanan went on MSNBC's Hardball to call Judge Sotomayor "an affirmative action pick. [...] Clearly the president was down to four choices, all of them woman, and he picked the Hispanic." Given that Pat has the IQ of a turnip, and would only be admitted to Princeton or Yale as a working janitor, cum grano salis, kids. Consider the fucking source.

Republican Party Leader Rush Limbaugh called Sotomayor "a reverse racist" who was appointed by "the greatest living example of a reverse racist" -- Obama. For a list of racist remarks by this paragon of enlightenment and virtue, take your anti-nausea medication and then go here. All I can say is, if I had a hammer, I'd hammer in the morning, I'd hammer in the evening and flatten his peener. Naturally, Rush would be my first choice of sources to help me determine if a person was racist. So not.

Sad loser and perennial Presidential candidate who has yet to win anything, Tom Tancredo, is heaping on the abuse with a shovel. He started off by calling Judge Sotomayor a racist. Considering that he spouted some of the most outrageously racist rhetoric of any Presidential candidate in decades, you'd think the man would have the decency to keep his festering gob buttoned. But that's never how it is with Republicans, is it?

Since that last attack, he's grown even more rabidly spittle-flecked and is now accusing the Judge of being a member of La Raza, which he likens to the KKK. Uh, hello, Tomaso? First of, you're lying, buddy. La Raza is an organization more like Catholic Charities than, say, the Knights of Columbus, or some of the more recondite (and bloody-handed) Catholic organizations, one of which could probably claim you as a member, no? Secondly, I know, and YOU know you're Italian, but you look awfully, uh, "coloured," my friend. And I mean that in a not-so-good way. You know, as in, should a bunch of skinheads be looking for some "Messican" to mess with, and come across you, I reckon you'll be trying to take the bus back from Tijuana, broken limbs and all.

Students at UNC apparently think about as highly of Tancredo as do your hosts at this fine blog. They sent him running for cover during his most recent gob-flabbing visit.

Meanwhile, Senatorial embarrassment Jeff Sessions of Alabama has shot a hole in the GOP banner held up by the whiny "legislating from the bench, waaah, waaah!" faction by agreeing that judges legislate from the bench. Jeff, apparently, didn't read the GOP talking points. Maybe he doesn't know how.

ICHC Catertainment

Other Republicans, having been bitten badly by the Irony Vampire, have taken to referring to Judge Sotomayor as the Democratic version of Harriet Miers. It's a sad day indeed when the worst thing you can say about your opponent is that he picked someone who's kinda sorta maybe like the dreadful twit your dreadful twit of a leader picked for the same position, once.

"I would point you to the Harriet Miers nomination under the second President Bush," Levey said. "She was also many people felt and intellectual lightweight, picked because she was a woman, people felt. And even though Republicans controlled the senate, she ultimately had to withdraw. And that could happen here. This is someone who clearly was picked because she’s a woman and Hispanic, not because she was the best qualified. I could certainly see red and purple state Democrats gawking at it and she may very well have to withdraw her nomination."

— Curt Levey, executive director, Committee for (Conservative) Justice.

Yeah, right, Mr. Levey. How insulting can you get? Harriet Miers went to some cowpat school followed by some cowpat law school. Judge Sotomayor did her undergraduate work at Princeton, and got her law degree at Yale. (Naturally, the shrieking harpies of the right (and perenially wrong) wing will start beating that tired old drum about how Sotomayor, like Obama, got an affirmative action free ride to two of the top schools in the world. Let me remind them that the competition for those schools is intense, and (1) they're not government-funded, so they are not required to implement affirmative action; (2) even if they do so, they do not lower their standards to accept intellectually deficient candidates for reasons relating to the exoticism of their colour, background, or ethnicity. In other words, they might admit Latina or African-American candidates because they want a more diverse campus, but they pick the best African-American and Latina candidates, not the worst, and not the average mooks, either. Moreover, both schools are sufficiently intellectually rigorous that a candidate who did not work hard and did not have the intellectual heft required would soon drop out. Neither Princeton nor Yale give "charity" grades, except to the children of their alumni who donate huge sums. You know, like Gee Dumbya Bush.)

Also, not to belabour the point, unless it's on Levey's head, not one Democrat has hitherto said one critical word about Judge Sotomayor. They seem to like her. So do the proles. Wrong again, Levey. Miers was so bad, even the party faithful threw up their hands in horror. Sotomayor is so superior to Miers that their names should never occur in the same sentence. But tell Mr. Levey that.

From the article:

On Tuesday, Fox News’s Andrew Napolitano claimed on his radio show that Sotomayor “has a reputation for not being a very hard worker.”

Damn, Faux Noise sure does love that stereotype of the "lazy Latina," huh? Someone should take those mouthy shills out into the fields and have them pick our lettuce and tomatoes for whatever pathetic nickel-and-dime wage we're paying our Latino/Latina field workers these days. Doesn't it chap your hide that some soft-palmed greaseball who has never done any work harder than pulling their pud in their whole fucking life has the gall to opine on someone else's hardworkingness or lack thereof? Faux Noise, y'all should buy your shills a copy of Syed Husain al-Atas, The Myth of The Lazy Native. But what am I saying? Y'all lack the intellectual heft for that.

Also from the article, some pathetic weeny commenter waves his around:

“Conservative politico” likely working on the nomination: “Substantial questions also persist regarding Judge Sotomayor’s temperament and disposition to be a Supreme Court justice. Lawyers who have appeared before her have described her as a ‘bully’ who ‘does not have a very good temperament’ and who ‘abuses lawyers’ with “inappropriate outbursts.’”

Wait, what??? I thought Republicans were all like, "We hate hate hate dem lawyers"?? Don't I remember a ton of Republican political ads accusing various Democrats of "being in the pocket of trial lawyers"? And quivering-jowled Republicans wailing endlessly about how lawyers were the veritable scum of the earth, ate their own children for breakfast, had been filmed killing puppies, kitties, and bunnies, and were Satan's very own spawn? So, now they're crying because Judge Sotomayor "bullies" lawyers? Hello? I R confoozed.

ICHC for teh Catertainment

Also, gee, after Nino Scalia flips off the press repeatedly and mutters something sounding suspiciously like "Va'fan'culo" while giving the sign of "up your booty with a ten-foot pole," "Conservative politico" might want to quit flapping his gob about suitable judicial temperament and what-all. We won't even raise the Long Dong Silver and pubic hair on a Coke can business of Justice Clarence Thomas.

Nino Scalia's "suitable" judicial temperament

Mind you, it does sort of shoot a hole in the right, I mean, wrong wing's arguments against the judge when some right-wing shills and whores (some of whom work for the same organizations as the decriers)admit that Judge Sotomayor brings very impressive credentials to the position. More impressive, in fact, than any other candidate over the past 100 years:

Coming from a housing project in the Bronx, Sotomayor ended up graduating summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Princeton. She also was a co-recipient of the M. Taylor Pyne Prize, the highest honor Princeton awards to an undergraduate. Sotomayor then went to Yale Law School, where she served as an editor of the Yale Law Journal and managing editor of the Yale Studies in World Public Order. Rep. Jose Serrano (D-NY) said on Fox News this morning that of all the nominees, Sotomayor “brings the most in terms of judicial experience — in terms of serving on a federal court — in 100 years.”

Anyone want to raise the case of Supreme Court Justice Byron "Whizzer" White? Methinks Justice White's primary qualification for the position, other than some less-than-memorable lawyering, was, um, having been a football star, kinda? OK, Whizzer (urk) White had impressive academic qualifications, but no more impressive than Sotomayor's, with the sole exception of the Rhodes Scholarship. In fact, she outdid him, in that she accepted editorship of both the Yale Law Journal and the World Public Order Studies. Moreover, Sotomayor has been a judge for nearly two decades — which is more judicial experience than Clarence Thomas, Chief Justice John Roberts, or most of the rest of the court had when appointed.

Matt Yglesias, writing over at ThinkProgress, pokes another hole in the tattered Republican argument:

I recall a lot of issues being raised during the Samuel Alito confirmation fight, but at that time I don’t remember anyone raising questions about the intelligence of a Princeton/Yale Law graduate who’d done time on an Appeals Court.

But, see, it's DIFFERENT because Alito has dangly bits! He's a boy, she's a girl, end of story. Or something. Media Matters is keeping track of all the lies being trumpeted by various crooks and liars in attacking Judge Sotomayor. No blame if you no clicky the linkies. It made me so mad I had to lie down with a glass of wine and a book of pretty pitchers for twenty minutes.

Cthulhu Hats For Cats

Meanwhile, even as these spawn of Cthulhu* bay and howl about how Sotomayor's every remark and every blood corpuscle is all about race, race, race, therefore rendering her unfit to genuflect in the hallowed halls of the Supreme Court to such worthies as Scalia, who is reported and demonstrated to have flipped reporters off in public, including immediately after leaving a church (Nino! How could you!). Or Alito, who said the following:

In an exchange with Sen. Tom Coburn, who had asked Alito to discuss how his personal experiences shows that "he cared for the little guy," Alito said that his family"s experience as immigrants influenced his outlook on immigration cases.

Alito: "And that"s why I went into that in my opening statement. Because when a case comes before me involving, let"s say, someone who is an immigrant " and we get an awful lot of immigration cases and naturalization cases " I can"t help but think of my own ancestors, because it wasn"t that long ago when they were in that position.

When I get a case about discrimination, I have to think about people in my own family who suffered discrimination because of their ethnic background or because of religion or because of gender. And I do take that into account."

And, in fact, if y'all remember that far back, when Alberto Gonerzales was nominated for the AG position, Republicans couldn't make enough noise about his Hispanicity. (Yeah, I made that word up, so what.)

From the article:

"Look, this is not just any nomination," Hatch, then Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman declared on February 1, 2005. "This is a nomination for the Attorney General of the United States of America. This is the first Hispanic ever nominated for that position, or for any of the big four positions in the Cabinet of any President. ... We work with Hispanic people all over America who are every bit as devoted to our country as any citizen who has ever been in this country. I personally love Hispanic people. Frankly, I know my friends in the Hispanic community, and Hispanic people all over America, are watching this debate, and they are sensing something very unfair going on here."

Of course, Gonerzales had no qualifications for anything, except maybe dogcatcher, unlike Sotomayor, who is a highly qualified individual. We all know the Republicans like to keep their pet "cullud" folks around for patronization purposes, and prefer that these be singularly stupid or lacking in accomplishments, as it helps them to bolster their arguments against equal rights for people who are not rich, old, white, and, preferably, male. Methinks Judge Sotomayor would not put up with patronizing attitudes. She probably scares the holy shit out of all those head-patting yobs of the Republican party, no?

Scotusblog, a blog maintained by a large group of practising attorneys and others with some actual knowledge of the legal profession, has a heartening take on the Judge:

Objectively, her qualifications are overwhelming from the perspective of ordinary Americans. She has been a prosecutor, private litigator, trial judge, and appellate judge. No one currently on the Court has that complete package of experience.

Scotusblog decries the attacks on previous nominees and makes its case in reasonable terms. You might find the post eminently readable. It also cautions those attacking Judge Sotomayor to remember that there is a cost to their insubstantive attacks, with which point I agree heartily in fact, but would hope that the overwhelming pother of idiots currently dictating the fate of the Republican Party will pay absolutely no attention to the voice of reason and continue their headlong rush over the cliff.

The White House has not been silent in the face of Republican noisemaking. And Judge Sotomayor herself is not one to take crap from anybody, so Nino, consider yourself warned. Vanity Fair has a nice whup upside the head of the baying few in their current issue.

If you're wondering what YOUR role might be in this unfolding drama, consider these words of wisdom from a commenter at HuffPo:

Michellemlm

To those who are angry about this:

Our representatives aren't reading the comment sections on here. Write your rep in your district, especially the republican reps and let them know how you feel about Sotomayer's record and how you feel about the attacks on her. Let them know that your vote will count on election day. here's the link to contact your senator my email, phone or mail. Activism means taking action.

http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm

She's right, yaknow. Gedoff your ass and write those jerks, not just one email but one email per day, or one letter or postcard per day for the next four, five, or six weeks. They won't listen without a couple of righteous whacks upside the head with the trademarked Golden Bat o'Clue. It's your job to give it to 'em.



* Longtime commenter and friend McBlogget insisted in a private missive that no reference to Cthulhu was acceptable without a picture of a Cthulhu hat; and even found an example of same, for which reason we forthwith edited this post. Note that Cthulhu appears to be eating the cat, whose expression of long-suffering patience has won our admiration.

Stumble It!

Human Rights: Why Reproduction Should Be

A licensed activity.


This 34-year-old woman, Theresa Platt, is homeless. She sleeps where she can, depending on the kindness of strangers who will let her bed down in their garage or carport, or wherever.

The problem is, she has three children, all under the age of 10 years. She doesn't want them. She doesn't take care of them. Their father is in prison. Hardly surprising, you say? You've heard lots of loser/hard luck stories like that, you say?

Florida sheriff's deputies recently arrested Ms. Platt on charges of child neglect, and took the children into state custody. However, she has apparently been released.

What do you do with people like this? What do we, as a society, do? Her oldest child is six. The other two are three-year-old twins. So she's not exactly a case of teenage pregnancy. Do you think she's a junkie? Or just a person with perhaps a less-than-average IQ, or poor coping skills? An adult who was abused as a child? An alcoholic? She doesn't look like a bright-eyed, bushy-tailed cheerleader, that's for sure. But really, what do you do with her?

Jailing her is not an option if she hasn't committed a crime. So far, her main "crime" appears to be her failure as a mother. She is neglectful and abusive. But couldn't that have been avoided by ensuring that NOBODY has a child without a prior certification for fitness?

The civil liberty crew (of whom I'm often one) will howl about how this would be an infringement on basic rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. They have a good point. But we live in an increasingly crowded and overexploited world, and your right to reproduction as part of your search for liberty or happiness might well conflict with MY right to curtail your reproduction in the interest of my greater enjoyment of my own earnings (as opposed to paying for the city, county, or state to raise your already abused and traumatized sprogs), not to mention my enjoyment of not having to compete with your sproggen for clean drinking water, air, land or space, jobs - the resources of a reasonably happy life, in other words.

Mainly, it's about the sproggen. This is a child-centric world we live in, but only in the most hypocritical meaning of the word. That is to say, we glorify the act of reproduction, we "adore" children by making them the centre of our materialistic focus, as "things" to have, adorn, display, and talk about. We don't give a fuck about their actual welfare. When it comes to their physical safety, their need for emotional fulfilment or security, then we get all self-righteous about parents' right to discipline their children however they wish. Then we whine about how the state has no right to interfere. Then we shriek about the nanny state.

When it comes to adults' right to get stoned on a little weed, or play bouncy-bouncy with the naughty bits of a same-gender pal, or decide not to play host to another life, we want a nanny state. We want the state to peer into your bedroom, check your genitalia for evidence of disallowed use, stick its collective nose into your vagina to ensure that a cell or two that might be attached to what normally equates to gooey menstrual blood "has a right to life," even though everybody (with a working brain) knows that more than two thirds of those cells end up plopping out with blackish clots of menstrual tissue.

But where we really need the state — to ensure that those with the "right to life" don't live a hideous life filled with beatings, bitings, torture, cruelty, indifference, neglect, emotional, physical, and mental stress, suffering, and pain — then we're all on the side of individual rights to liberty and freedom and deity alone knows what other shit.

Well, I'm sick of it. I'm sick of those moronic "right to lifers," or "pro-forced-birthers" wanting to interfere any time a woman spreads her legs. They're the last to oppose war, the death penalty, the hideous foster system that exploits children. They won't support realistic measures to ensure that every pregnancy is a wanted, safe pregnancy, every child a wanted child. They just want to root through women's panty collections.

Fuck you, you self-righteous ass-sucking shills. I don't want to read another story like this. Why the hell should a 19-year-old girl be forced to bring to term the baby of her 20-year-old boyfriend? Two children having a child? This is the result. They beat their weeks-old baby, and break its leg in two places. What kind of person beats a child barely one month old?

The kind of person who never wanted that child, who lacks the means to cope with that child but has been forced to have it anyway, and is filled with rage and frustration and gets no training or help on how to deal with it. You self-righteous godbags, how do you deal with this? Jail the mother, or the father, or both? Put the baby into foster-care? That's really helpful. We end up paying for the care and feeding of one to three people for varying lengths of time instead of having one to three economically productive citizens who contribute to society.

Here's another 19-year-old mother whose kid got squashed by a falling TV set. Why? Because the girl's a kid herself, and had two other kids in the room to deal with. The article doesn't say how old the other kids were, and whether the teenager was supposed to be keeping an eye on all the kids, but adults find it hard enough to watch three children, why is a teenager supposedly better equipped to do so? Chances are the baby will die or be seriously injured.

And here's a kid whose story you do not want to read. This sweet little boy's father, Angel Vidal Mendoza, is wheelchair-bound. He OD'ed on PCP while his wife was not around, attacked the four-year-old, who may be blind for life as a result, and then hacked at his own legs with an axe. Who knows what was going through his head. No, I don't have a whole lot of sympathy for him, except that I sure as hell can understand why someone in a wheelchair might want to do some drugs. What happens to the kid? Will the state take him away from his parents? He probably should not be allowed around his father ever again without adult supervision. His mother is probably a poor working woman who relies on his father's disability income to help around the house. Certainly, the single mother of a blind child is going to be severely economically disadvantaged

Alma Beatriz Frias

And what about this paragon, a mother of a two-year-old and a two-month-old? She is wanted on charges of child abuse and neglect, for beating her two kids. Beating a two-month-old? What kind of madness is that? If you see her with or without her two little girls, you might want to let the police know.



Or what about this cute little kid? Malachi Magana was allegedly abused, tortured, and murdered by his mother and her boyfriend. Not that ugly kids don't deserve just as much protection from torture as cute kids, but how could someone look at this kid's face and then hit him? The kid was TWO years old at his death.

Or this loving soul who threw her four-year-old and seven-year-old into a river? The boy is dead, the girl is recovering at a local hospital. The mother is alleged to have "a history of domestic violence" and is in the process of separating from her children's father, with whom she shared custody of the children.

Tell me if you think any one of these tragedies could have been prevented if all human beings were rendered reversibly sterile at birth. In order to reproduce, they would have to take between two and three years' worth of classes, resulting in a certificate or diploma. This would include things like child development; nutrition; basic health and hygiene; life skills including job interviews; sufficient math to balance a checkbook, and create and live within a budget; anger management; conflict resolution; food preparation; diagnosis and management of common childhood ailments; and the like. People would have to be drug- and alcohol-free for five years, including before conception and during the first three years of a child's life; and would have to show that they had sufficient resources to raise a child.

I don't believe that only the rich should reproduce. Some of our finest human beings, including Albert Einstein and Carl Sagan, were the children of poor families. And, in fact, I'd rather have a hundred Carl Sagans than a single Paris Hilton. However, there is no denying that some resources are required to raise a child. Perhaps we could make it possible for certain types of government subsidies to be paid on behalf of a child to would-be parents who had the courage and persistence to take such courses and excel in them. Perhaps we could give them financial incentives to offer part-time childcare to other parents in return for an assumption of their childraising expenses by society at large.

All I know is, I don't want to see one more kid have their head chopped off with a hoe, or their eyes bitten out, or their leg broken because these fucking pro-forced-birthers want to put a padlock on a woman's uterus while baying like pie dogs about the sacred right to fucking reproduction. You lot, the world would have been better off if alla youse had been aborted. Unless you're willing to do something about this type of domestic tragedy, shut your fucking pie-holes.

We need real solutions.

Stumble It!

Caturday!

ICHC, Cattitude, Inc.

Yes, it's that time of week again. Today we're doing much better here at Casa de Los Gatos, despite excruciating pain (we're cutting back on the brain-destroying medication. Bugger the pain).

Today's posts have been pretty uniformly depressing. Therefore we pronounce today Caturday, in which we feature the usual conglomeration of cats and cattitude. Fuck it. Who needs to be depressed? We need fucking barbeque, goddam it. It's Memorial Day weekend, and even though we at La Casa de Los Gatos are freezing our fucking combined ass off, we've got the heat on, the fluffy covers, our warm sox, and five snoring schnorrer cats hulking about in various stages of sleep all over the giant bed.

The working stiffs among us get Monday off. The military families get to honour and remember their lost loved ones. The rest of us are just getting drunk off our ass and eating whatever we can stuff in our gobs. (Hey, take a few minutes out of your sozzled day to remember those veterans who served their country, OK?)

Enjoy your barbeque, y'all. I'm gonna drink some nice wine and read and work on my art project.

Meanwhile, for your enjoyment, much felinitude:

Gustav and Gojira forget their animosity in the interest of mutual body heat conservation

Gustav is the Japanese bobtail in the front. Gojira looks like she's saying, "Hey, what's your ass doing in my face?"

Gustav and Bandicoot, The Buddha Cat

Bandicoot: Go ahead and use my fluffy belly as a source of warmf. I'z used to it.

What a sweet kid. He's a surrogate Papa to all the other cats, even total stranger cats who drop by to eat his kibble and revel in his catnip. Even skunks and raccoons are fine in his book.

Madu, rear view

Madu: Dis mai good side. Boy does not like his picture taken. I have no idea why, but a vast collection of blurry shots and pictures of his tail as he leaps out of the frame have convinced me. Schmuck.

Zingiber

Zingiber likes to sleep with his head on a pillow. Of course, he just likes to sleep, period, and if there is no pillow, he'll make do. Fatass.

Regards from La Casa de Los Gatos, everyone. Enjoy your time off. And remember, kittehs like teh barbeque, even if it's not teh cheezbrgr.

ICHC, your source for teh Cat Funny

Stumble It!

Memorial Day

It's the day to remember all those who served in their nation's military forces. We tend to blame soldiers for the crimes of war, but in reality, soldiers are drilled into obeying orders, mostly without thought. "I was only following orders" ceased to be a defense to charges of war crimes after World War II, when the victorious Allied nations tried their military counterparts of the Axis nations and put them to death for doing some of the same things we — or our nation's leaders, rather — are doing today. Waterboarding used to be called "Japanese" or "Chinese" "water-torture," an indication that our forebears knew quite well what it was and did not hesitate to call it by its proper name. What would they think of us, their descendants, and Dick Cheney's "enhanced interrogation"? Methinks they would weep for a nation that has so lost its moral compass.

To all the families of the soldiers who have died in service of their nation, thank you for your sacrifice. May you find peace. May we all find peace, and soon.

“War is just when it is necessary; arms are permissible when there is no hope except in arms.”

— Niccolo Machiavelli

Stumble It!

Monsters of the 20th and 21st Centuries

Frightening Announcement of the Day: Dick "dickless" Cheney is negotiating a book deal. Is that scary, or what? To think that this asshole, who has profited by war and death, treason, war crimes, profiteering, and outright lies, is angling to be paid money to lie yet again, on paper.

Of course, the Huffington Post, which carried a link to the story, censors any comments against Bushes, I can't help wondering why. In the event, I found a comment by some idiot that must be reproduced to be believed:

mesmerised I'm a Fan of mesmerised I'm a fan of this user permalink

The book will be a monster bestseller. The New York Times will hate having the book on its best seller list. Contrary to what the War Inc. conspiracy theorists believe, it will illuminate the facts and rub the truth into the faces of the Bush Derangement Syndrome people (MSM, Democrat extremists, indoctrinated doofuses.) Of course, flaming progressive ideologues will reject every word, and MSM and Democratic party operatives will take things out of context in order to further fool the fools who follow them.

Hint: Guilty people shut up, unless they're crazy like Drew Peterson. People who have nothing to hide write tomes explaining everything. Sorry, but if Cheney et al had committed crimes of any kind, the matter would have been resolved years ago. But it's fun to watch wackos like Lawrence O'Donnell and Keith Olbermann lather up with their insane reactions to things like this.

One barely knows where to begin to respond to this level of idiocy. It is sad and frightening that people this deluded nevertheless have the capacity to breathe without assistance. Is this person stupid? Ignorant? (Well, apparently.) Incredibly self-deluded? Is there a cure?

In the event, the stupid motherfucker functioned as inspiration, allowing me to remove some of the bile that would otherwise have accumulated in my system and done me ill.

This comment is pending approval and won't be displayed until it is approved.

Monster bestseller: how apt. A bestseller about a monster. Of course, the "bestseller" figures will be fudged by the Regnery Foundation and other rightwingnuttia millionaires buying millions of copies, which they will then dispose of by offering them "free" with subscriptions to various magazines and athlete's foot remedies. Just like MAnn Coulter's literary (??) offerings, available the day after release for $2.97 or less at your local fishwrap dealer.

Cheney *has* committed crimes. Lying your country into an unnecessary war that brings you, personally, millions in profits through no-bid contracts is called "treason" and "war profiteering." We don't even have to discuss the magnitude of war crimes involved, the doctoring of evidence, the million dead many of them women, children, the disabled and elderly. Five million refugees would put Mr. Cheney right up there with the great monsters of the 20th century whose names would invoke Godwin's Law, and who are too well-known to require introduction.

Note that Huffpo insists on censoring so mild a comment. They should only know what I really say in the privacy of my own home.

Stumble It!

Labour: Why It's Good

To have a strong labour movement and good labour policies:

From chillycrap, obviously

Yet while Europe may be worse off statistically, most Europeans are not feeling the crisis to the same level as most Americans. Millions of European workers have been spared the full impact because of strict labor laws that make it profoundly difficult for a company, in, say, France, to lay off employees in times good or bad. And those workers who lose their jobs in Europe often receive generous unemployment benefits, covering the lion's share of their lost salaries for many months.

And when those rightwingnuttians start whining about how taxing the rich at a fairer rate will "drive them away," be sure to ask them where the fuck those exploitative bastids will be driven. Because most Third World countries lack the infrastructure to support large-scale business investment, not to mention the stable political climate necessary to doing business. The risk of being kidnapped, murdered, or having one's assets nationalized are far worse than having to pay a couple of percentage points more on the tens of millions or billions those bastards already have.

Those Third World nations that have the required political stability and infrastructure also have strict laws on pollution, stronger labour laws, and high taxation.

Eastern Europe is currently in such a slump that taking one's business there is not a sensible move. Needless to say, the political climate is unstable, and the cost of doing business is NOT minimal. Believe it or don't, employees in Eastern Europe have far more generous vacation and sick-leave and time-off policies than most Americans. In Russia, for example, most people take a good part of the summer off, which can sort of put a crimp in one's deliverables.

So where exactly are the wealthy capitalists going to put their money? The USA is the best bet, for low taxes, lots of tax cheating, a highly industrialized and efficient infrastructure, and truly shitty labour policies. Nowhere else do workers get a lousy 2 weeks in vacation time per year (if that). Nowhere.

Stumble It!

World: Former President Commits Suicide

President Roh

Auntie Beeb tells us that South Korea's former president, Roh Moo-hyun, has committed suicide over recent allegations that his family took $6 million in bribes.

That President Roh was loved by his countrymen was evinced by the numbers of people lining the road down which his body was transported to his hometown for the funeral. People also gathered at the capital to light incense and place flowers before his picture. Roh apparently never personally took money from anyone. However, his wife accepted $1 million from a wealthy magnate who has since been convicted on separate charges of bribery and tax evasion. Roh has stated that he believed the money was to help his wife settle a debt, and did not involve him. Another relative took $5 million from the same magnate, but Roh thought it was in the nature of a business investment rather than a bribe, apparently.

Roh did accept responsibility for these actions, according to the report:

The former president later apologised for the scandal.

"I feel ashamed before my fellow citizens. I am sorry for disappointing you," he said in a televised statement on 30 April.

My, oh my. Wouldn't it be nice if we could hear that lying sack o'shit Dick "dickless" Cheney hike his fat ass before a microphone and say something similar? OK, he has no sense of shame whatsoever, but couldn't he get one transplanted or something?

Roh left a note, a rather sad, impressive note, for his family. This excerpt touched me, so I reproduce it:

Don't be too sad. Isn't life and death all part of nature? Don't be sorry. Don't blame anybody. It's fate. Please cremate me. And please leave a small tombstone near home. I've long thought about that.

Dick Cheney, Gee Dumb-diddy, why can't y'all be more like President Roh? Believe me, your fellow-citizens would be grateful.

Don't y'all think seppuku (the Japanese ritual disembowelment also known as hara-kiri) was invented for just such a reason? So that those who wrecked such devastating harm on their fellow-citizens and their nation could, to a small extent, at least, make up for their sins?

Akashi Gidayu writing his death poem before committing seppuku

Of course, the asshole Cheney would first have to disgorge the millions he made in war profits, but hey.

Note: I'm well aware that Korea and Japan are two separate nations with entirely different histories, customs, and culture. I just happen to find seppuku an irresistible concept when coupled with Cheney.

Stumble It!

Entertainment: Too Funny!

But — how true.



Woof.

Stumble It!

Health: Meat Recall

Dammit! Be careful out there, people. Huffpo informs us that Valley Meats LLC of Coal Valley, Illinois, is recalling 96,000 lb of meat that might have been contaminated with E. coli. Some people have already fallen ill. Here's the pertinent info:

The USDA said the beef was produced in March and distributed in 10-pound to 40-pound packages, sold under brand names including Grillmaster, J&B, Thick 'N Savory, 3S, Klub and Ultimate.

All of the recalled beef products bear the establishment number "EST. 5712" inside the USDA's inspection mark.

Consumers with questions can contact the company at 309-799-7341.

Careful handling does not diminish the risk of E. coli, which, as I've said before, has many unpleasant consequences. Little kids and the elderly are most at risk.

How do you avoid E. coli? No more factory farms would be one good way. Better slaughterhouse procedures. Unfortunately, Americans are addicted to meat, which means we're probably not getting rid of factory farming any time soon. The only way to protect yourself, really, is to buy from trusted butchers rather than Mall*Wart, or other big corporations who buy the cheapest crap and don't bother inspecting or certifying their suppliers. Buy organic, if you can. Eat less red meat, and less meat all around. Between 1 and 2 pounds of beef can make twelve meals, when properly augmented with vegetables.

Some cities worldwide are announcing "meatless days" in an effort to control both the spread of food-borne diseases (including those incidentally related to food, such as Creutzfeld-Jacob Syndrome (a brain-wasting disease), diabetes (linked to obesity), and heart damage) and the negative impact on the planet of eating meat in quantity. Some people are going vegan or vegetarian, a healthy alternative indeed. We each need to do what we can to ensure that our food supply is clean and healthy and doesn't make the planet we live on unlivable.

I'll never give up steak completely, but I don't currently eat it more than six times a year or fewer. Certainly, I don't want to die because of my love for steak - or even have lingering bouts of the nasties.

Stumble It!

Politics: President Obama and The Lying Liars of the RNC

ICHC For All Your Cattitude Needs

Gee, guess what? The RNC, which is totally full of FAIL and PWN, has to resort (once again) to LYING OUTRIGHT (like they've never done THAT before) to smear President Obama.

What's got today's RNC's knickers in a knot? It seems, (they say), that President Obama (according to them, known liars that they are) has said the constitution is flawed.

Well, now, according to the RNC that's like saying God has no underwear on, or something. Except, oops, Gee Dumbya Bush and Condi Rice and a whole buncha other people kinda said the same thing.

See, our President was referring to slavery. And if that ain't a flaw in the constitution, I don't know what is. Michael Steele, Rush Limbaugh, whyn't y'all go back to deciding whose teeny peener is bigger, guys, cos this is the biggest "no-story" story I've heard in years.

What a bunch of fucking losers.

Stumble It!

Books: Beauty and Boiling Blood

Over at CultureVultures, our sisterblog. I'm looking for feedback, peoples.

Also the latest book list review. Mild bragging.

Stumble It!

Entertainment: Advanced Cat Yodeling

For Brian:



Note: Mildly annoying the cat is very different from seriously irritating the cat. We do not recommend the latter unless you have medical insurance and one or more friends willing to drive you to and from the hospital.

The cats are awfully cute, though, aren't they?

Stumble It!

Do you want our government to torture so that politicians can justify thier lies?

David Waldman, I love your perserverance!

Stumble It!

President Obama: There's always more to do

I really can't wait to see what President Obama says at Notre Dame in his commencement speech. Man oh man, he turned that whole controversy around at Arizona State University. Some folks were angry -- thought he was being dissed -- because a school spokesperson said they weren't going to give him an honorary degree. (You can read about it at www.politicsdaily.com.) Did he get all huffy and get a dig in at the administration? Nope. He's a visionary. He agreed with their reasoning: he's got a lot ahead of him, he shouldn't get the honorary degree just yet. And he used it in his speech to encourage the graduates to keep on keepin' on.

So, is he gonna get all righteous and stick it to the Catholics tomorrow because some folks are saying it's a disgrace that he's the speaker at Notre Dame ... him bein' pro-choice and all? I don't think so. He's gonna tell us somethin' G-O-O-D. Can't wait.

He's not perfect. I don't agree with him on everything. And sometimes I get pissed. But he's getting a lot right.

Stumble It!

Caturday! The one that got away ...

Willy, heard to mutter: "Nuttin' lik fresh fish"

Stumble It!

Encouraging Words from Michelle Obama

Doug Mills/The New York Times

That First Lady of ours is a very swell person. Make sure you catch this article about how she visits schools around Washington, D.C. Here's an excerpt:

Her office sends signed photographs to the children she has met and has invited some, including Akrem, to visit the White House. And her aides responded affirmatively when Jasmine Williams, a high school senior from a crime-ridden neighborhood, invited the first lady to address her graduation from a charter school dedicated to math and science.

Jasmine burst into tears when she heard the news. For many of these children, Mrs. Obama has provided an incredible boost.

Tiara said Mrs. Obama persuaded her to go to college, though she had not applied yet. Akrem said he was working harder in school. Ashleigh Cannon, 17, said the first lady persuaded her to ignore negative voices.

Regime change indeed.

Stumble It!

Politics: Telling It Like It Is

In case you hadn't already heard, our President has just warned Binyamin Netanyahu, Israel's current and rabidly rightist leader, NOT to carry out a preemptive strike on Iran without the agreement thereto of the United States (my paraphrase — his exact words, according to Ha'aretz, were: "Don't surprise me with (an) Iran strike.")

Naturally, the rightwingnuttia of America is foaming at the mouth with their unconsidered, rageful, and rabid reaction. Loud cries of "fuck him," and "bomb 'em anyway," with no thought of the consequences. Although I suppose putting "thought" and "rightwingnuttia" in the same post ought to be the best example of oxymoronia.

Which leads me to believe that rightwingnuttia could not care less if the state of Israel and all its people, and all Jews whereever they may live, were to be wiped off the face of the earth tomorrow. They are just an excuse for the more rabid among them, to be used as a catspaw, with no value inherent in themselves except the ability to be used as a whipping post, as an excuse for military posturing, as a tool to permit this or that action against others, for example, the Muslims, or those who live in countries with vast oil resources. Because should Israel carry out ANY military action without the full support and military commitment of the United States, death and destruction for our Israeli brothers and sisters is sure to follow.

Sickened by the howling of these wretched beasts, I dug around and found within myself the wherewithal to post this comment on HuffPo, where I found the link to the Ha'aretz story:

This is a warning, not a request. One does not warn another without invoking consequences. What are the consequences if you warn someone not to do something and they do it anyway? You take away any privileges you might have previously afforded them, or any future benefits that you might award them. What does America have that Israel wants? Money. American money supports the troubled Israeli economy. Arms - American arms and armaments enable Israel to protect itself against hostile neighbours.

Israel engaged in two wars recently and lost them both. Israel's security is a matter of grave concern. Yet that concern must not outweigh pressing humanitarian concerns. President Obama has shown that he supports Israel by refusing to attend the recent conference at which Israel was vilified (in my opinion, not without grounds) for crimes against humanity. However, President Obama is not going to allow Israel to determine American foreign policy. This is a good thing. The tail should not wag the dog.

It is not unreasonable for President Obama to take such a stand. Many Americans do not wish to continue to support, financially, in a difficult economic time, an Israeli policy of expansion that continues to take land, water, and resources from Palestinian residents and give them to Israeli settlers. We all respect Israel's right to exist - with the exception of the most rabid anti-Israelis. But most of us also want peace in the Middle-East according to the agreements made half a century ago, signed and ratified by all parties thereto. Shalom, Salaam, let us live in peace. For peace benefits all, whereas war benefits only a few, and that few the worst among us.

Thanks to extreme pain (still?!) and the resulting heavy doses of medication, I'm not sure this makes much sense to me, much less anyone else.

Still, I think our President has done something most American leaders of past decades have been unable to do: he has told Israel, nay, warned Israel, that American support is not to be unconditionally assumed, and that American public opinion is tired of Israel's (1) refusal to engage in a good-faith process towards implementing the solution that Israel itself agreed to lo, these many years ago; (2) shameless meddling in American policy, domestic and foreign; (3) unwarranted assumption of unconditional access to the American taxpayer's assets; (4) acting as if laws agreed to by the entire international community do not apply to Israel alone, although everyone else should be bound by them. Well, this was long overdue. As a lifetime supporter of Israel, I am glad of this.

Israel must find a peaceful solution, because the martial solution puts the entire Israeli citizenry, and the Jewish people everywhere, at risk. Not all Jews are Israelis. Not all Jews want to live in Israel. Many have made their home elsewhere for generations, and have no wish to give it all up to return to Eretz Israel. Not all Jews support the policies of the Israeli government. Yet all Jews will pay the price for Israel's shortsighted policies, for some of those who oppose Israel will not hesitate to kill a Jew. Or many Jews.

Not even all Israelis support the Israeli government's policies, and many among them are courageous enough to call them what they really are, which is, mad, short-sighted, self-destructive. For the sake of the Children of Israel, the leaders must make peace with their brothers and neighbours, the Arabs. For are they not all the children of Abraham, and brothers belike?

I am very proud of my President today, for his courage and lucidity in speaking the truth to leaders who have so little care for their own people, who seek only to frighten them into perpetuating a cycle of hate and fear laid down a long time ago.

Enough!

Stumble It!

Wanda Sykes at the Corresponent's Dinner

PolCat and I very much enjoyed Stephen Colbert at the Correspondent's Dinner ... was that two years ago? And now, I just watched Wanda Sykes give her talk. I *love* Wanda Sykes. She just cracks me up so much!

Excerpt:

And Dick Cheney ... now he's scary. I'm scared of him. I tell my kids, if you're walking down the street and two cars pull up and inside one is a stranger and inside the other is Cheney -- go with the stranger.

If you want to watch Wanda Sykes at the Corresponent's Dinner, just double-click on this:



And, if you want to watch highlights of President Obama's talk at the Corresponent's dinner, go here.

Stumble It!

Caturday! Persians ...

The San Francisco Chronicle has a great article on Persians today, go here, you obedient human!

Here's an excerpt:

The Persian is thought to be the oldest breed of domestic cat in the world. They appear in hieroglyphics dating back to 1684 B.C. and although they are called Persian for their assumed country of origin, their exact beginnings remain somewhat shrouded in mystery.

Stumble It!

Entertainment: Today's Attack onTeh Ghey

Congratulations, LGBTQ brothers, sisters! Maine has become the fifth state to recognize full marriage equality for gay people.

And North Carolina legislator Virginia Foxx has written a letter of apology to Matthew Shepard's mother, Judy, after calling Matthew's cruel murder "a hoax" in her ludicrous argument against hate-crime legislation that would (finally!) afford gay people the same rights and protections straight people have. Needless to say, it's a non-apology sort of apology. You know, "I'm sorry if you were offended," as opposed to "I realize that my use of the word "hoax" was inaccurate and inappropriate and that it must have hurt you very deeply. I apologize for my insensitivity and my lack of empathy." That's OK, you stupid beast. Eventually, you, like the rest of your queer-hatin' cohorts, will go the way of the dinosaur or the dodo.

Meanwhile, Marion Barry unleashes his inner hypocrite by being the sole holdout in the DC vote for gay marriage — on the grounds that Teh Ghey is immoral and ol' Marion is simply trying to be the good ol' MORAL politician that he's always aspired to be. Fortunately, there IS a Jon Stewart, Marion, you pathetic asshole. And Jon ain't about to let Marion get away with that bullshit. See for yourself.

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	M - Th 11p / 10c
Gaywatch - Marion Barry
thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Economic Crisis Political Humor

Because, of course, the God of the Bible hates Teh Ghey way more than he hates adultery, deception, cheating, drug usage, and betrayal of the public trust. Why, just look, right here in the bible he rails against Teh Ghey all of ... er, a couple of times. As opposed to adultery and lying, which both the Old and the New Testaments condemn repeatedly. So much for that. Oh, yeah, and the lobster. Don't forget about the lobster. And ham. Pork. Scallops. Shrimp. Catfish. All that stuff Marion Barry's probably been eating for years in defiance of God's Word.

Moral my ass.

Stumble It!

It would matter if Joe the Plumber mattered ...

says Joe Solmonese, president of the Human Rights Campaign, a national gay rights organization based in Washington.

Joe Solmonese, president of the Human Rights Campaign

In today's www.sfgate.com:

Samuel Wurzelbacher, the Ohio man hailed as "Joe the Plumber" by Republican John McCain's presidential campaign last year, said he believes gays are "queer" and said he won't allow them near his children.

"People don't understand the dictionary — it's called queer," Wurzelbacher told Christianity Today in an interview published this week. "Queer means strange and unusual. It's not like a slur, like you would call a white person a honky or something like that. You know, God is pretty explicit in what we're supposed to do — what man and woman are for."

He added, "I've had some friends that are actually homosexual. And, I mean, they know where I stand, and they know that I wouldn't have them anywhere near my children. But at the same time, they're people, and they're going to do their thing."

Joe Solmonese, president of the Human Rights Campaign, a national gay rights organization based in Washington, dismissed Wurzelbacher's comments.

"It would matter if Joe the Plumber mattered," Solmonese said. "One thing among many things we learned in the 2008 campaign is that he doesn't."

Hee hee ha ha ho ho love it ... the perfect response. Way to go Solmonese!

If you want to read more, go here.

Stumble It!

Politics: Goodbye To The Old

ICHC FailBlog *

No, wait, that's "Goodbye to the new, Hello to the old." If you haven't already heard, Michael Steele, former Lt. Governor of Maryland, and the only Black Republican who's gotten more than the crumbs off the Republican table in its entire history — is now back to getting crumbs off the table.

Yep. What did YOU think when Steele got elected Chair of the RNC? Did you think, "Wow, the Republican Party is wising up, they can see they need to be more inclusive, yada, yada, yada?" Of course not. Because YOU have something between your ears, like a brain. La Casa de Los Gatos had a reaction alright. We here at this fine blog, your hosts for the evening, we said, "Whoa, that man is a fool. Doesn't he know the only reason the Republicans are putting him out there is so they can take potshots at President Obama without being called racist to their face?"

They're hiding behind the Black guy taking shots at another Black (well, we know he's biracial, but those Republicans, they still think a single drop of Black blood in your ancestry makes you BLACK!) guy. They're putting brown Piyush ("Bobby" for those Texan legislators who can't pronounce his name) Jindal up as the shining new star who will be on the 2012 ticket for President. Well, they were, until he made a total ass out of himself with his rebuttal to Obama and his mocking of the money budgeted for volcano research right before that Alaskan volcano blew up.

ICHC, your source of LOLcattitude

So while the rest of us were cringing at the sight of Michael Steele being forced to retract his comments about Flush Rimbowl as an "ugly, incendiary" radio entertainer, while we watched him teabag Rushbo, the True Leader of the Republicans, while we wondered how many insults the Repubs could dump on him before he quit, Steele himself was joyously donning kneepads without complaint.

Well, OK. We all KNOW Rush runs the Rethug Party these days. Steele backed down because he didn't have the guts to take on that blubbery swine. Not many Republicans do. But when the Good Ol'boys Party announced that they didn't trust Steele with the money, we thought, this is it. Fer sure, he's gonna quit now and walk away with what's left of his dignity intact. But Newt Gingrich pretended to support him and it looked like he was going to sail on for a while. Still, the fact that these racist old bastards could even suggest "spending controls" on Steele that they didn't suggest to the last bunch of crooks and thugs who cleaned out their treasury should have been a hint to Steele, don't you think?

Uh-uh. No, sirree. I don't know what-all is wrong with that man, but it is soul-deep. Today, we learn from the official Moonie paper, the Washington Times, that Steele has made a backdoor deal with those same racist old bastards. They're taking control of the money away from him. Note: The link is to the Huffington Post story. I refuse to link to the Moonie times. You wanna get brainwashed by Sun Myaung Moon, do it on your own damn time.

I can understand the Repukes wanting some controls on Steele. After all, he's still under investigation for supposedly paying his sister's defunct company for work that was apparently never done, along with other questionable expenditures. And the Rethugs' repeated experiences with their dubiously-ethical fellow travelers have surely inspired them to err on the side of prudence. One hopes.

But when they force the man to rehire some of the weaselly backstabbers that he fired for using his nether side as a pincushion, you have to wonder.

The agreement, proposed by several current and former RNC officials, ... [makes] 33-year RNC veteran Jay Banning, who was fired by Mr. Steele along with his deputy last month, an on-call adviser to the RNC treasurer. Mr. Banning was seen as a trusted liaison to RNC members critical of Mr. Steele's tenure and financial management.

"I regard them - the Steele administration - bound by it," former Republican National Committee General Counsel David Norcross told The Times on Tuesday.

So, Michael, it's time to get up on your hind legs and walk off, before they rub your face so deep in the crumbs you turn a glorious shade of beige.

I've never liked Steele, but I do feel sorry for him. The fact that he's accepting the indignities heaped upon his head makes him complicit in his own humiliation and makes me wonder where the fuck his self-respect is, but, you know, people who grew up in an era where racism was rife learned to bow and scrape to get by, and maybe this is just a manifestation of old, painfully-learned habits. Maybe. Because, you know, if not, I don't know. Just, durr, I guess.

The only joy to be derived from this is in the comments by the many Republicans who post at the Moonie Times. Therefore I offer herewith a small sample for your LOLment:

[Name removed]

how dumb. once again, the narrow-minded leaders of our party have shown their stupidity. when will it stop? when we are merely a hate-bating cult with narrow interests and appeal to match our narrow-mindedness. pitiful.


[Name removed]

I don't know who Norcross, Pullen, Kaufman or Poitevint are, but they sound like dinosaurs. This power play is petty and self-defeating. You either have values or you don't and if these people want to compromise their values, then they can do a "Specter". To make Mr. Steele re-hire someone he fired....is the height of insult and arrogance. I don't know Mr. Banning either, but my guess is he is a Rino just like the four already named. I am an Independent with conservative leanings and these men make me want to tell them all where to go because THEY are the problem, not the cure.


[Name removed]

I think it's great that there are people putting a short leash on Steele. What's wrong with having some sort of checks and balances on expenditures?


[Name removed]

We lost to Scott Murphy in NY because "insiders" played power games rather than concentrating on winning an election. If they kick Steele out my monthly contributions will stop and I'll just concentrate on state races. What are they trying to do, show how effectively they can repeat McCain 08?


[Name removed]

Michael Steele, an impressive self-made man has now been punked twice by the Republican party. First, someone bamboozled him into a suicidal senate campaign against Benjamin Cardin, a long-time Democrat apparatchiki in a state dominated by yellow-dog Democrats. If he'd stayed on as LT Governor of Maryland, he was a virtual shoo-in to succeed Bob Ehrlich, who, without Steele at his side, threw away his re-election. Next, someone convinced this bright but gullible man that he could make a difference as Chairman of the RNC. I suspect the appointment was made with the full knowledge the committee would castrate him as they've done. What a waste.


[Name removed]

I can't figure out why the chose him only to take away his powers and why he accepted the job, he looks and is so weak in his position, he is just a Republican joke now.


[Name removed]

[Name removed] says-- "I think it's great that there are people putting a short leash on Steele" A short leash-huh? Where no leash has ever been put before; around the neck of the RNC Chairman. This has further made the GOP seem petty and suicidal.


[Name removed]

I say the hell with running an election to win. It's time we either retake the Republican Party from the "ELITES" or create our own new one. Our forefathers, as well as great Americans today, have and are laying their lives down for principle. Without principles the REPUBs have degenerated into DEMOs light, manipulated by George Soros as he is the pupetmaster for Sen McCain and President Obama. Secure the borders Drill and Build Re-establish American Manufactoring Fair Tax NOW Quit bankrupting our Nation!


[Name removed]

In addition, I will NEVER again vote for any globalist, International, New World Order, CFR member again. American Independence from Trans National Kapitalist! The two party system has evolved into a TOTAL joke.


[Name removed]

I have not followed the RNC until lately, but to date I am not impressed with anything they have done. Mr Steele is a moderate to my opinion and I disagree with that stance. I am becoming more of the opinion we need a new party - Fiscal Conservative Constitutionalists. It used to be the RNC was that party, but not for a very long time.


[Name removed]

I am for the right of citizens to carry and possess guns. That right evidently includes foot shooting by the leaders of the few.This is the same group that pushed in McCain and Dole and maintains the election of candidates by the minority within the circle. Bring back leadership and say so long to the old white mens party of the few.


[Name removed]

Interesting comments here, I don’t believe anyone could argue the fact that McCain is a Fiscal Conservative. I really wish he would have won the election because he is not one of the few radical right extremists’ left over from last century. As a republican living here in Pa. surrounded by mostly democrats, I know Mr. Steele is very correct not wanting to label all democrats as “socialists”. Do you realize how many people would be highly insulted? Don’t we want to build and strengthen the Republican Party?


[Name removed]

haha hello mr. figurehead they should just elect a new chairman and make it official

Incidentally, if it makes you happy, Piyush Jindal is groveling at Rushbo's rear end awaiting the moment when he can plant those puffy fish lips (obligatory Salman Rushdie reference) in the required kiss, truly an osculum obscaenum.

* For those who didn't get the Pizza Picture: the whilom leaders of the Republican Party — Jeb Bush (AIIIEEE!! Another scion of that cursed house?!?), Eric Cantor, John McCain, and some other weasel whose name I've already forgotten — met last weekend at a pizza parlor to "rebrand" the Republican Party. It's now the National Council for a New America. It would have been less full of FAIL and PWNAGE if they hadn't handed out press releases that got the name of the group wrong — National Cabinet for a New America. Further FAIL and PWN was assertively solicited by Cantor when he brayed about how this bunch of punks was gonna get on a campaign bus or something and go on a Listening Tour. Until Flush Rimbowl heard about it. Since Rush is deaf due to some serious drug abuse, he doesn't want nobody doin' no listening. So he abused Cantor in no uncertain terms. Now Cantor has withdrawn all them listeninging and announced that he will, as Rushbo ordered, be taking a teaching tour. Good work, GOP!! Tell the sheeple what to think. Why bother listening to the masses, that bunch of woolly-brained baaa-lambs?

No, this is not El Blobbo, just some random cute, grubby, rude brat

In other heart-cockle-warming news, Teh Blobular Bigot gave Arlen Specter the rigid-digit salute for a goodbye gesture and told him to get out (of the Republican Party) and "take McCain and his daughter with you." To my utter amazement, McCain, who is famous for losing his volatile temper and shoving little old ladies in wheelchairs apparently fears El Blobbo just as much as the other weak-kneed maiden aunts of the Republican Party. Even Meghan McCain, who has had all of one job in her whole life, and needn't fear being fired or blacklisted (not with Mommy's hundred million dollar estate) fails to deploy her acid tongue in response. Is there a single courageous individual in the Republican Party? No, of course not.

And I'm glad.

Stumble It!