Open Thread–3/9/2012

 Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Mar 092012
 

Yesterday I slept late, defeated a mountain of mail, and did some extra research.  I’m current with replies.  Today I have a lunch meeting with a former prisoner, who was released a couple months ago, to review his progress and determine what additional assistance he may need.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today it took me 3:45 (average 4:37).  To do it, click here.  How did you do.

Short Takes:

From Alternet: UN women leaders on Thursday called for greater equality between the sexes on the occasion of International Women’s Day amid demonstrations and marches for female rights.

Thank you to all the wonderful women, without whom life would not be livable.

From Right Wing Watch: Senator James Inhofe (R-OK) appeared on Voice of Christian Youth America’s radio program Crosstalk with Vic Eliason yesterday to promote his new book The Greatest Hoax: How the Global Warming Conspiracy Threatens Your Future, where he repeated his recurrent claim that human influenced climate change is impossible because “God’s still up there.” Inhofe cited Genesis 8:22 to claim that it is “outrageous” and arrogant for people to believe human beings are “able to change what He is doing in the climate.”

What is really outrageous and arrogant is having a US Senator ignoring the Establishment Clause, and trying to legislate Republican Supply-side pseudo-Christianity.

From Common Dreams: The Canadian military has had a close relationship for years with Xe Services, formerly known as Blackwater, and was paid $2.4 million to train Canadian soldiers in 2011.

In case you have not heard, Xe, aka the Republican SS, is now owned by Monsanto the GMO company.

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Open Thread–3/2/2012

 Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Mar 022012
 

Yesterday I still felt well short of 100%, but I just wasn’t willing to get further behind.  If I had to be sick, I picked a good week, because the prison cancelled both volunteer days this week, due to venue scheduling conflicts.  I’m current with replies, but took big shortcuts to get there.  Today I’ll try to catch up with my email.

Jig Zone Puzzles (5):

Monday’s took me 3:42 (4:52 average).  To do it, click here.  Tuesday’s took me 4:40 (5:50 average).  To do it, click here.  Wednesday’s took me 5:15 (6:25 average).  To do it, click here.  Yesterday’s took me 3:50 (4:35 average).  To do it, click here.  Today it took me 3:50 (average 4:32).  To do it, click here.  How did you do?

Short Takes:

From CNN: Andrew Breitbart, the conservative blogger whose posting of a sexually explicit photo of former U.S. Rep. Anthony Weiner led to the congressman’s downfall, has died, his attorney confirmed Thursday.

He was 43.

Early in life I learned to never speak ill if the dead, but for every rule there is an exception.  While I would not wish death on anyone, I would be a liar not to say that the world has become just a little less vile.  Nevertheless, condolences to any who might have loved him.

From Washington Post: Montana’s chief federal judge said Wednesday that he forwarded an email that contained a joke involving bestiality and President Barack Obama’s mother, but he did so because he dislikes the president and not because he’s racist.

Judge Richard Cebull, of Billings, forwarded the email from his chambers to six other people on Feb. 20, The Great Falls Tribune reported.

 

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Of course he’s not a racist, the Pope is not Catholic, and bears never, ever shit in the woods.

From NY Daily News: Conservative radio host [Rush Limbarf] declared Georgetown Law School’s Sandra Fluke "a slut" for arguing that birth control should be covered by health insurance at religious institutions.

Republicans attack the messenger whenever the message overwhelms them, and do so with unmitigated hatred.

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Open Thread–2/15/2012

 Open Thread, Personal, Religion
Feb 152012
 

Yesterday I felt so tired when I returned home from the prison that I wrote this, set it to be published right after midnight, and went to bed.  The meeting was excellent.  Three new men joined our CoDA group there.  We did some insightful digging and made excellent progress.  I cannot say more without violating confidence, except that I could not be more proud of my guys.  I am not current with replies.  Today is a day for catch-up and recovery.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

It was not out yet.  I’ll put up two tomorrow.

Short Takes:

From MoveOn: What If Everyone Saw This Message From Robert Redford?

 

Keep saying NO to Big Oil!

From Business Week: The New Jersey Senate passed a bill that would allow gay and lesbian couples to marry, in the face of Republican Governor Chris Christie’s promise to veto it.

The Senate voted 24-16 in favor of the measure, sending it to the Assembly, which plans to consider it Feb. 16. Democrats, who control both houses of the Legislature, have made gay marriage a priority for 2012, two years after they failed to pass a similar bill supported by then-Governor Jon Corzine.

When Christie vetoes it, pass it again!

From Truth Dig: The prolonged Republican primary campaign appears to be taking a toll on independent voters’ faith in Mitt Romney. According to the latest Pew poll, only a minority of independents now describe Romney as “honest and trustworthy” and slightly more than half of independent voters now favor Barack Obama in a race against Romney, who led the president in that category only a month ago.

As is pointed out every four years or so, so-called independent voters typically decide presidential elections.

It’s still way too early to depend on polls, but this is positive news, especially since Obama does even better compared to the Frothmeister.

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Open Thread–2/14/2012

 Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Feb 142012
 

Yesterday I spent most of the day doing prep work for today.  I’m current with replies.  Today is a volunteer day for me in prison.  I will return home late, having missed a sleep cycle, so there may be no new articles on Wednesday, and if there are, they may be late.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today it took me 4:13 (average 4:59).  To do it, click here.  How did you do?

Short Takes:

From MoveOn: In Which States Can Ellen Get Fired For Being Gay?

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That’s obscene!  To correct this, we need to clean out Republicans at the state level.

From CBS: Seven members of a Midwest militia group accused of plotting to overthrow the government are in Federal Court in Detroit for the start of their trial, in which jurors will decide whether federal authorities prevented an attack by homegrown extremists or simply made too much of the boasts of weekend warriors who had pledged to "take our nation back."

Opening statements were set for Monday in the trial of the militia members, known as Hutaree, who are charged with conspiring to commit sedition, or rebellion, as well as weapon crimes.

I guess this is what Republicans mean when they call for Second Amendment solutions.

From Think Progress: In a bid to fast-track approval of the Canada-to-Texas Keystone XL tar sands pipeline, Senate Republicans plan to attach an amendment mandating the pipeline’s construction onto a must-pass highway funding bill. The amendment — developed by Sens. John Hoeven, Richard Lugar, and David Vitter — is but the latest congressional push to advance TransCanada’s $7 billion project, which was rejected by President Obama last month.

Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus has publicly raised objection to the measure, arguing that it will ultimately “kill the bill.”

If you have not called both of your Senators to demand this be rejected, please do.  Republicans are holding hundreds of highway jobs hostage to blackmail America.

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Open Thread–2/13/2012

 Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Feb 132012
 

Yesterday I mourned the absence of light from the Ellipsoid Orb.  The timing of my day was fouled up, because one of the sites, where I post my articles, was down for maintenance, and I had to do it after I woke up.  I ran behind for the rest of the day.  I’m current with replies.  Today I organize for Tuesday’s volunteer day in prison.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today it took me 3:18 (average 4:18).  To do it, click here.  How did you do?

Short Takes:

From NY Times: Where Americans Most Depend on Government Benefits

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The darker the map color, the greater the portion of people’s personal income comes from government benefits. Note that the darkest colors are almost exclusively Republican dominated areas. The original map is interactive, so click through for much more.

From CNN: GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney won the close-watched Conservative Political Action Conference presidential straw poll on Saturday.

Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts, took 38% of the vote in the poll. Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum received 31%, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich was at 15% and Texas Rep. Ron Paul stood at 12%.

They wouldn’t let Rabid Ron buy it this year.

From Daily Kos: It’s that the Republicans have staked out a position that requires that they lie, 24/7, 365. Not shade the facts their way. Not put their own spin on the situation. Lie. Big, sloppy, and constantly.

This is one of those articles were you have to read the whole thing to understand it.  Click through for an excellent read.

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Open Thread–1/31/2012

 Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Jan 312012
 

Yesterday, I wrote a letter to the Parole Board on behalf of one of the prisoners I serve.  I also worked on the website of the non-profit group behind my prison activities.  I made a big kettle of rice and beans.  It is responsible for the green cloud that proves I support green energy.  I’m current with replies.  Today I plan to get a haircut.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today it took me 3:43 (average 4:32).  To do it, click here.  How did you do?

Short Takes:

From realrepubs.com: Who wants to build a risky, dirty 1,700 mile oil pipeline across America’s heartland? Big Oil and their lobbyists, that’s who. Guess who else? Their political puppets.

The Republican presidential candidates have a lot to say about how much they love the proposed Keystone XL tar sands pipeline. But there’s a few crucial facts that just don’t seem to come out of their mouths. They don’t say that the pipeline is hauling highly toxic crude over some of our nation’s most critical water sources. They fail to mention how the first Keystone pipeline caused fourteen oil spills since 2010. And they NEVER say how much money Big Oil companies have given their campaigns.

 

Hat-Tip: CaityJ (aka Caitlin)

There can be no doubt that one party, with exceptions, opposes Keystone XL, and one demands it.

From The Onion: WAR FOR THE WHITE HOUSE!!! Diebold accidently leaks 2012 election results

 

The reality behind this issue is what makes the clip effective satire.

From PRWatch: South Carolina is again considering a bill from the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) to limit access to the ballot box. A nearly identical version of an ALEC voting bill is moving through the state Senate and comes on the heels of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) blocking South Carolina’s ALEC-inspired voter ID law as discriminatory against people of color.

It appears that there is nothing Republicans won’t do to steal the votes of students, workers, the elderly, the disabled, and especially minorities.

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Open Thread–1/28/2012

 Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Jan 282012
 

My trip to prison on Thursday was a meeting of over 100 men.  I was pleased to learn that two of the men, that I have known for over twenty years, are coming up for parole.  I have absolute confidence that both have learned the skills they will need to stay free, as law abiding citizens, and the motivation to use them, if the parole board releases them.  I feel intense pride in and hope for them.  Yesterday I slept for most of the day.  I’m current with replies.  Today is a day of recovery and catching up.

Jig Zone Puzzles:

Yesterday it took me 4:32 (average 5:46).  To do it, click here.  Today it took me 4:49 (average 5:38).  To do it, click here.  How did you do?

Short Takes:

From News OK: A state lawmaker [Oklahoma] said Tuesday he wants a serious discussion on his bill that would make it illegal in the state to manufacture or knowingly sell food or any other product intended for human consumption that contains aborted human fetuses.

This is nothing but a highly disingenuous Republican attempt to frighten voters with a totally manufactured issue.  It has absolutely no basis in reality.

From Raw Story: Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul wants to abolish all income taxes — but he says he’ll have to completely destroy the “welfare system” to do it.

During CNN’s Republican debate in Florida on Thursday, moderator Wolf Blitzer asked Paul if he agreed with the tax policies that former President Ronald Reagan put in place.

“He taxed too much,” Paul replied. “My goal is to get rid of the 16th Amendment and the only way you can do that is not run a welfare system and a warfare system.”

Ronnie the Racist includes Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid in the welfare system. in addition to food stamps and other programs to aid the needy.  He would replace income tax with a sales tax that would decrease taxes on the rich and increase them on everyone else.

From LA Times: But the secretary of state said Thursday that after decades of "being on the high wire of American politics," it’s about time for some R & R.

"It would be probably a good idea to just find out how tired I am," she joked. Then she teased: "Everyone always says that when they leave these jobs."

Clinton, during an event with State Department employees, had been asked, "What could we do to persuade you to run for vice president?" Clinton said she has enjoyed her time as the nation’s top diplomat and would continue to serve only as long as it takes for a replacement to be selected and confirmed after the election.

This may be a good thing, but I’m concerned.  She would draw a lot of support if she becomes Obama’s running mate, but the cost would be high.  She and Bill have been adept at influencing Obama to the right.  I’m not optimistic about her replace, because Senate Republicans are likely to block any choice that is not a bad one.

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