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General/Misc. Archive

Saturday

24

September 2011

0

COMMENTS

Who Do These Scientists Think They Are?

Written by , Posted in General/Misc.

More crazy deniers challenging established theories:

Scientists at CERN, the world’s largest physics lab, announced a startling finding yesterday that would be enough to make Albert Einstein roll over in his grave: Subatomic particles, called neutrinos, have been found to be traveling faster than the speed of light.

If true, this development would break a fundamental pillar of physics. Einstein’s special theory of relativity has always told us nothing is supposed to move faster than the speed of light, 299,792,458 meters per second.

CERN scientists are now asking others to verify the measurements before claiming the discovery to be true.

How quaint! Somebody obviously forgot to tell these so-called physicists that real science operates via consensus, not experimentation, observation and replication.

Wednesday

27

July 2011

0

COMMENTS

The Left’s Smear Campaign Against ALEC

Written by , Posted in General/Misc.

An orchestrated campaign is underway to attack and discredit a prominent free-market organization. The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) is the latest target of the left-wing smear machine, no doubt singled out for its effectiveness in advancing free-market principles and limited government at the state level. The Center for Media and Democracy (CMD), a far-left organization founded by anti-capitalist activists, is leading the charge with their “ALEC Exposed” project, which insinuates that through ALEC, corporations are given undue influence over the legislative process. Nothing could be further from the truth, and their attacks on ALEC should be considered an attack on all who support free-market capitalism and limited government.

The Nation magazine is prominently featuring the attack on ALEC in its August 1-8 issue, including a cover that describes ALEC as “the right-wing group subverting our democracy.” The left-wing magazine is putting on a full court press, publishing half a dozen separate attacks on ALEC and their efforts. These attacks are not only baseless, they are a dishonest attempt to pass off what amounts to ideological objections from a far-left viewpoint under the guise of concern for democratic legitimacy.

In the interests of full disclosure, I interned at ALEC in the fall of 2009. I am not currently affiliated with the organization in any way, but I know from first-hand experience what ALEC is all about, and it has nothing to do with the nonsense being generated by CMD and disseminated by The Nation and other liberal outlets.

ALEC is a membership organization that brings the public and private sectors together in the common cause of limited government. Both public and private sector members work together to draft state level model legislation tackling common issues with solutions based upon organizational principles of “free markets, limited government, federalism, and individual liberty,” which members can then introduce in their states if they so choose.

According to a hit piece by Mary Bottari of the Center for Media and Democracy published at the Huffington Post, this amounts to “corporations hand[ing] legislators the law changes they desire that directly benefit their bottom line.” Never mind that all legislation must go through the same, public legislative process as any other bill, and can only make it into law if lawmakers, who are held accountable by the public through the election process, first introduce and then pass the legislation. The same piece then recounts a list of “horrors” pushed by ALEC, including efforts to lower taxes or make it harder on politicians to raise tax rates, reforming the failed government monopoly on education, addressing policies that promote unemployment such as minimum wage laws, and cutting off the gravy train to unions and other beneficiaries of Democratic Party largess. Congratulations, Mary, you’ve successfully convicted ALEC of being conservative.

That is, ultimately, what the left is trying to do here. If they can convince people that advancing conservative positions is beyond the pale simply on its face, then they are conveniently free to dismiss conservatives without addressing the merits of any arguments. Common Cause, another participant in the anti-ALEC crusade, has even demanded a baseless IRS investigation into their 501(c)3 status. So while they are trying to shut down the marketplace of ideas, we are supposed to believe that is ALEC which is subverting democracy?

The left has largely succeeded in getting government involved in all matter of private affairs. It only makes sense then to include in the discussion those affected by government action. In doing so ALEC is promoting both good government and the very essence of democracy.

Do we not want our state legislators communicating and sharing best practices across borders? If an idea has already been tried somewhere else, don’t you want your own legislators to know whether it has failed or succeeded before attempting to address the same issue? The left certainly thinks so when it comes to their own ALEC-like organization, Progressive States Network (PSN), which they have not similarly attempted to discredit. In fact, according to their website, PSN has their own “Task Forces” just like ALEC, which include groups such as the AFL-CIO, SEIU, ACORN, and the Sierra Club. I guess it’s perfectly fine for these special interest groups to work with state lawmakers and have influence over the legislative process, but not the businesses that create jobs and understand how regulations will actually impact the economy.

Left-wing “good government” groups are clearly not about good government per se. They are about left-wing government. Their attacks are coming not because ALEC is doing anything wrong, as the left engages in the same tactics without drawing the ire of these so-called watchdogs, but because the ideas ALEC advances are “wrong” in the eyes of the left. In so doing, they reveal that they don’t really believe in the actual principles of democratic society, like the free flow of ideas. Those of us who do hold such principles have an obligation to push back against the self-serving bullying and intimidation of the left. Their attacks on ALEC are an attack on all of us.

Cross-posted at Big Government.

Friday

15

July 2011

2

COMMENTS

NLRB Writes Script for Weekend at Bernie's III

Written by , Posted in General/Misc., Labor Unions

This is one of those stories that you can’t make up. And even with as low a view of the union racket as I have, I still found this difficult to believe. The National Labor Relations Board has declared a dead man in violation of labor law, and ordered him, a dead man, to comply. The NLRB issued a summary judgment against a dead man for failing to reply to a complaint filed by a union that was certified after he died, which complained that the zombie CEO was in violation of the law by failing to negotiate with the union on demand.

I. Kid. You. Not. Labor Union Report has the details.

Remind me again why we want these people in charge of our healthcare.

Monday

11

July 2011

0

COMMENTS

Local Michigan Yard Nazi Threatens Woman with Jail Time Over Vegetable Garden

Written by , Posted in General/Misc.

Think you own your property? Think you can do with it as you please? Think again, little plebe:

“We thought it’d be really cool to do it so the neighbors could see. The kids love it. The kids from the neighborhood all come and help,” she said.

Bass’ cool garden has landed her in hot water with the City of Oak Park. Code enforcement gave her a warning, then a ticket and now she’s been charged with a misdemeanor.

“I think it’s sad that the City of Oak Park that’s already strapped for cash is paying a lot of money to have a prosecutor bothering us,” Bass told FOX 2’s Alexis Wiley.

The story goes on, with the local petty tyrant (a person who I imagine also performs the role of village idiot) making up definitions and claiming popular support that doesn’t exist.

I know there are plenty of lefties outraged by stories like this just as I am. But this always seems odd to me, as the left has spent 80 years constantly attacking property rights under the guise of egalitarianism, while growing the authority of the state to determine what is and is not proper use of said property, or whether it should even be allowed to remain in a person’s possession at all. How can they balk when government officials do what the left believes they should be empowered to do?

From the left’s point of view, Ms. Bass should probably consider herself lucky that they didn’t decide someone else deserved her garden more than she does, and kindly “redistributed” it to them on her behalf.

So for those lefties that actually do find this sort of story outrageous, consider a bit of insight from some obscure old book:  “Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.” Congratulations, between threats to pack the Supreme Court and “creative” interpretations of plain meaning Constitutional controls, you have successfully sowed the power of government to infringe on basic property rights. Now reap it.

Friday

17

June 2011

0

COMMENTS

About That “At Least He’s No Hypocrite” Defense

Written by , Posted in General/Misc.

Anthony Weiner was finally forced to face the reality that accepting the consequences for ones behavior requires that there be actual consequences, so he finally stepped down. But all along the way, he was defended by a certain segment of the left which claims that it’s worse and more newsworthy when Republicans are caught in sex scandals, you see, because they constantly preach about all that family values stuff. Meanwhile, when Democrats do it, we really shouldn’t be talking about it because they keep their opinions on family values to themselves (not that this contrast is even necessarily true). But while we’ve heard that refrain in response to the latest Democrat caught with his pants down and his tweet out, so to speak, it’s certainly nothing new. It seems to pop up any time the double standard between the treatment of Republican and Democrat sex scandals becomes too obvious to ignore, as happened in this case. Yet there are two massive holes in this argument of convenience.

For one thing, such arguments typically draw no distinction between trying and failing to live up to a principle, and simply not believing at all in the principles that one preaches. The latter is hypocrisy, the former is simply being weak, otherwise known as being human. More often than not, what the left claims to be hypocrisy, such as a Republican engaging in an affair, is actually just a failing. They never really prove that the person doesn’t believe in their principles (thus is a hypocrite), so much as they failed to live up to them. Contrary to what they then conclude, this is not a strong case against having any principles or codes of behavior.

If we were to take the left’s logic to its own conclusion, it would mean that it’s more acceptable to have no principles or codes of behavior at all, because then you will never be a hypocrite. They don’t actually criticize the behavior itself, because in the world of the moral relativist, anything is permissible under the right circumstances – like when you’re a “good Congressman,” which really just means a liberal Congressman. Seemingly without any moral code or core principles, whether someone is a hypocrite or not then becomes the most important criteria by which they seem to judge a person, even when what they are criticizing is not real hypocrisy.

The second reason that this line of defense fails is because it is itself hypocritical (a meta-hypocrisy?). You see, the left never criticizes Al Gore for preaching that we must all reduce our standard of living to protect Gaia, while he lives in a giant mansion and jet-sets around the world. The left doesn’t charge tax-hikers who skimp out on their own bills, like Charlie Rangel, with hypocrisy. Again they reason, why be mad at Charlie, when at least he’s doing the good work of raising everyone else’s taxes?

Failing to hold your side to the same standard you try to hold the other? Now that’s hypocrisy.

Saturday

23

April 2011

8

COMMENTS

Feminist Professor Freaks Out Over Conservatives on Campus

Written by , Posted in General/Misc.

The story:

A University of Iowa professor who studies same-sex relationships was so upset by a mass email from a campus Republican group promoting “Conservative Coming Out Week” that she fired off a vulgarity aimed at all Republicans.

Ellen Lewin, a professor of Anthropology and Gender, Women’s & Sexuality Studies in the Department of Gender, Women’s & Sexuality Studies, responded to the email by writing, “F*** YOU, REPUBLICANS” from her official University of Iowa email account.

First of all, what a ridiculous title. Why do we need “Gender, Women’s & Sexuality Studies” professors, much less whole departments. Second, this isn’t the worst of the story. She was scolded for her left-wing hate, but rather than simply apologize and take responsibility, she offered this blame shifting non-apology:

Lewin later wrote back to explain, “This is a time when political passions are inflamed, and when I received your unsolicited email, I had just finished reading some newspaper accounts of fresh outrages committed by Republicans in government. I admit the language was inappropriate, and apologize for any affront to anyone’s delicate sensibilities. I would really appreciate your not sending blanket emails to everyone on campus, especially in these difficult times.”

In a later email to the group, Lewin wrote the following:

“I should note that several things in the original message were extremely offensive, nearly rising to the level of obscenity. Despite the Republicans’ general disdain for LGBT rights you called your upcoming event ‘conservative coming out day,’ appropriating the language of the LGBT right movement. Your reference to the Wisconsin protests suggested that they were frivolous attempts to avoid work. And the ‘Animal Rights BBQ’ is extremely insensitive to those who consider animal rights an important cause. Then, in the email that Ms. Ginty sent complaining about my language, she referred to me as Ellen, not Professor Lewin, which is the correct way for a student to address a faculty member, or indeed, for anyone to refer to an adult with whom they are not acquainted. I do apologize for my intemperate language, but the message you all sent out was extremely disturbing and offensive.”

It turns out that professor of Gender, Women’s & Sexuality Studies really just means professor of victimology. Let’s count how many times she wrapped herself in a cloak of victimhood while blaming the real victims.

This is a time when political passions are inflamed, and when I received your unsolicited email, I had just finished reading some newspaper accounts of fresh outrages committed by Republicans in government.

One. Republicans in government are doing horrible things (read: things she disagrees with), and therefore her reaction is justified. And her claim that “this is a time when political passions are inflamed” is tellingly self-centered. Political passions are always inflamed; hers are just particularly inflamed right now because the Democratic experiment failed in spectacular fashion, and the inherent contradictions of the tax and spend liberal society are making themselves increasingly apparent.

I admit the language was inappropriate, and apologize for any affront to anyone’s delicate sensibilities.

Two. Her language was “inappropriate,” but only because of “delicate sensibilities.” But really, it wasn’t so much her language that was the problem as her ridiculous, overwrought reaction when faced with the prospect that there might be more than one point of view represented on a campus ostensibly devoted to higher learning. So much for “diversity.”

I would really appreciate your not sending blanket emails to everyone on campus, especially in these difficult times.

Three. How dare she be sent an email which had to first be approved by UI Student Services before it could be sent to the mass list. That’s especially true “in these difficult times,” when the peasants are rebelling against their intellectual superiors and rightful overlords. Tea Partiers tossing Pelosi on her rump, unions being defanged in Wisconsin, cats and dogs living together…mass hysteria!

I should note that several things in the original message were extremely offensive, nearly rising to the level of obscenity.

Obscenity!

Despite the Republicans’ general disdain for LGBT rights you called your upcoming event ‘conservative coming out day,’ appropriating the language of the LGBT right movement.

Four. I can’t imagine what would ever give UI conservatives the idea that they must stay in hiding, or face vitriol and intolerance.

Your reference to the Wisconsin protests suggested that they were frivolous attempts to avoid work.

Five. How dare you suggest that people should show up to work, or not be allowed to pilfer the public coffers at will.

And the ‘Animal Rights BBQ’ is extremely insensitive to those who consider animal rights an important cause.

Six. Merely having a position that someone might disagree with is now “insensitive.” Meanwhile, this woman’s entire pathetic existence is insensitive to those of us against identity politics, or just worthless human beings in general.

Then, in the email that Ms. Ginty sent complaining about my language, she referred to me as Ellen, not Professor Lewin, which is the correct way for a student to address a faculty member, or indeed, for anyone to refer to an adult with whom they are not acquainted. I do apologize for my intemperate language, but the message you all sent out was extremely disturbing and offensive.

Setting aside the fact that Ellen’s specialty is a joke, she has demonstrated nothing to warrant either respect or presumption of adulthood, which requires more than mere age. Ellen is an intemperate child who reacts violently when faced with the slightest prospect that the world does not revolve around her and her failed ideology.

She is so ingrained in her victimology, she blamed others for her outrageous behaviors 6 times in her supposed apology. Her liberalism is clearly her religion, and we dissenters are heretics deserving of being burned at the stake.

Thursday

21

April 2011

0

COMMENTS

Mexico: A Feminist Utopia?

Written by , Posted in General/Misc.

Mexican men beware – if you cross an arbitrary line for the acceptable levels of jealousy allowed to be exhibited, show “indifference” toward your wife, or neglect her carnal needs, you might just find yourself behind bars:

Mexican men who display extreme jealousy or avoid sex with their wives could be tried in court and punished under a new law, the special prosecutor for crimes against women told a local newspaper on Friday.

Men who phone their wives every half hour to check up on them, constantly suspect them of infidelity or try to control the way they dress are committing the crime of jealousy, special prosecutor Alicia Elena Perez Duarte told Excelsior newspaper.

Those who stop talking to their wives, avoid sex or try to convince suspicious spouses they are “crazy” even if they are caught red-handed having an affair, are guilty of indifference, she said.

Men found guilty of jealousy or indifference could face up to five years in prison, the newspaper said. Mexico’s individual states will determine the punishments, it said.

Controlling women, presumably, are just keeping their philandering men in line. Or so we are left to surmise.

From what I gather, the law is ostensibly designed to reduce domestic violence by criminalizing sometimes correlated behaviors, but that is simply sloppy lawmaking. The result is a law patronizing women by presuming they cannot deal with civil disputes on their own like adults, and subjects men to a ridiculous double-standard, effectively codifying in the criminal code the already existing social view in Western societies that anything men do is immediately suspect.

I’d say this is a feminist Utopia, but it’s not quite. If that were true, merely being married would be evidence of criminal patriarchal oppression.

Wednesday

20

April 2011

0

COMMENTS

That's Embarrassing

Written by , Posted in General/Misc.

The Post Office is commemorating the 125th anniversary of the Statute of Liberty with a first-class stamp. Here it is:

 

Anything seem off to you? Well, it should. You see, that’s not the real Statute of Liberty. It’s the one in Vegas.

I’m sure glad we gave these guys a monopoly on mail delivery, aren’t you? Hmm, I wonder if they do health care, too…

Wednesday

23

March 2011

0

COMMENTS

Libya War Coalition Falling Apart

Written by , Posted in General/Misc.

Bad news for President Obama’s shining example of multilateral humanitarian war-making. If this report is to be believed, the Coalition is beset by infighting:

Deep divisions between allied forces currently bombing Libya worsened today as the German military announced it was pulling forces out of NATO over continued disagreement on who will lead the campaign.

A German military spokesman said it was recalling two frigates and AWACS surveillance plane crews from the Mediterranean, after fears they would be drawn into the conflict if NATO takes over control from the U.S.

The infighting comes as a heated meeting of NATO ambassadors yesterday failed to resolve whether the 28-nation alliance should run the operation to enforce a U.N.-mandated no-fly zone, diplomats said.

…President Barack Obama, seeking to avoid getting bogged down in a war in another Muslim country, said on Monday Washington would cede control of operations against Muammar Gaddafi’s forces within days, handing the reins over to NATO.

But Germany and European allies remain unwilling to have NATO take on a military operation that theoretically has nothing to do with the defence of Europe.

Today the German defence ministry announced Berlin had pulled out of any military operations in the Mediterranean.

…Adding pressure to the already fractured alliance, Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini has also reiterated a warning that Italy would take back control of airbases it has authorised for use by allies for operations over Libya unless a NATO coordination structure was agreed.

In a shock admission, U.K. ministers have admitted the intervention in Libya could last for up to ’30 years’.

Asked for an estimate, British Armed Forces Minister Nick Harvey said: ‘How long is a piece of string? We don’t know how long this is going to go on.

The President’s Libyan experiment in leaderless leadership has reached its inevitable end.

Thursday

10

March 2011

0

COMMENTS

Here Comes the Medicare Demagoguery to Seniors

Written by , Posted in General/Misc.

If this budget battle has done anything, it’s demonstrated just how completely unserious are Democratic lawmakers about dealing with the most important issue of this generation. When a measly $61 billion in cuts is “draconian,” you can safely conclude that they will not be participating in cleaning up the mess which they are largely responsible for creating. But if that wasn’t enough, this has cemented it:

The Obama administration escalated a fight with Republicans over spending on Wednesday, warning that millions of seniors could see their Medicare payments blocked under the House GOP plan.

Seniors could also see Social Security payments delayed if the measure backed by the GOP cutting another $57 billion in spending this year is enacted, the administration said.

The administration’s attempts to portray the House budget as harmful to seniors — a powerful voting bloc — represent the White House’s most aggressive step yet to try to gain the upper hand in a battle with House Republicans that for a second time in two months threatens to lead to a government shutdown.