Can We Stop With the Illegals Shit?

Tags

Hispanics, immigration, racism

Ben Carson says we are drowning in a sea of “political correctness.” Which seems to mean nothing more than that being POLITE and RESPECTFUL interferes with his ability to appeal to the racist, nativist needs of his constituency.

No doubt, some will see my appeal to stop using the terms “illegal” or “illegal aliens” as an attempt to “pretty up” a bad situation by alluding to people’s sense of decency.

Well I am in some ways doing just that. I’m trying to appeal to your sense of decency, if such a thing is still to be found in the body politic of twenty-first century America.

I come by this opinion honestly, meaning that it is not something that I have suddenly acquired, but rather it is the product of a lifelong interest and pursuit of what it means to be an immigrant in America. It starts out in one of those silly situations of life that appear meaningless–being a teen.

We hung out with a bunch of boys from another high school, one more racially diverse than our own, which boasted no African-Americans and as far as I can remember, no notable members of any other ethnic group either. We were all pretty much white folk of one variety or another. Anyway, with my other friends, I was from time to time exposed to “others”. One of them was a kid named Valentine Rodriguez. I can’t remember a thing about him, nor what he looked like, (other than CUTE), but his name I never forgot. I found him as exotic as his name.

Being a resident of Michigan it was not unusual at certain times of the year to see trucks full of brown-skins moving from farm to farm, picking crops. As a lawyer, I also came in contact with migrant workers from time to time as they fell victim as do we all, to various driving infractions that required a court appearance.

When I was in serious  examination as to whether I should continue with my entry into the Dominican Order, I contemplated and talked with people from various organizations in D.C. and locally about possible ministries I might engage in once I had reached that point in the convent. I wrote on the topic of Hispanic issues and thrilled to one of the more enticing of theologies–liberation theology, which had developed in the Medellin Conference in the 50’s led  by such notable theologians as Gutierrez, Sobrino, and Boff. I devoured their books.

Ultimately I ended up retiring with my husband to Las Cruces, New Mexico, I small city on the southern border of New Mexico, one where the population is fairly evenly split between Anglos and Hispanics.

From all such experiences I have learned a great deal, and my passion, respect, and enjoyment of Hispanic culture in all its multiplicities continues to delight me. My neighbors are so diverse that it truly is a place of no majorities. My life, as you might expect is so thoroughly entwined in the native cultures I live in, that there is a true blending and it would be hard to separate one cultural experience from another, as we adopt bits and pieces from each other and construct a new paradigm that is “New Mexican” in nature.

The need for immigration reform is apparent to all yet the manner of that reform divides white American into deep chasmic chaos. For growling in the depths of the American scene is a harshness and anger that recurs as the continuing call, by a small segment, for the draconian answer to it all being deportation.

While most everyone but the hateful few, know this is both immoral and impractical, it doesn’t stop the arguments. And it doesn’t stop the hurt that is inflicted both upon the undocumented worker him/herself, but also those of us who know them intimately and feel their pain.

It HURTS to hear this sort of talk.

These people first of all, possessed this land long before we did. We here in New Mexico, as well as parts of Texas and Arizona and California, were once Mexico’s lands, and were peopled by them and other natives in the region. That changed when Anglos discovered value in these lands (New Mexico was something of an exception. The land is not so valuable, and so it developed with less of the usual American swagger and power. Today we are a constitutionally bilingual state, and we guard our cultural richness carefully.)

Beyond that historical fact, we must turn to the horrific record of American involvement in South America per se. We have continuously through multiple administrations supported vicious dictatorships who willingly allowed American business interests to rape the country financially (as long as they shared in the stealing) while their populations suffered in poverty. (Thus the rise of Liberation theology to offset the Church’s real past assistance to the dictators in maintaining order.)

So in some real ways the situations in many Latin countries today is one created by Americans, who now it seems are upset that these populations often flee their native lands in search of some hope of a future for their families. They cross the border because we in part are responsible for the fact that their native countries are a wasteland of poverty and crime.

Look, people from South America are no different from you. If they come here destitute, unskilled, and with nowhere to turn, it is no fault of their own. If they send their children across hundreds of miles of lands to reach America, they do it because it is far safer for them this way than to remain in their countries. They love their kids, and want the best life possible for them. They are no different from you.

And when they come here, the vast majority find friends or relatives who have come before. They seek employment. They work hard jobs that you probably don’t want, at wages you would not tolerate.

Yet, there is an ugliness that surrounds the issue as people like Donald Trump, Ben Carson, Ted Cruz, Bobby Jindal and others demand that more severe alternatives be considered other than what most see as humane and fair–a process that will lead to citizenship for people who have lived here for decades.

And it results in awful statements by folks with little actual data suggesting that they are taking stuff that belongs to “us”. The facts are otherwise.

Much is made about the supposed “fact” that undocumented people “get government freebies”. This is not true. They don’t. They are not eligible for welfare, food stamps or Medicaid. They pay into the SS through their taxes and do not become eligible to receive any of the benefits. They do this to the tune of $100 billion in the last decade alone.

They do not take American jobs. As pointed out, most Americans won’t do the jobs they will. Any number of studies show this to be true. Ask Alabama what happened when it became illegal to hire anyone who was undocumented. Their crops rotted in the field as white workers found the work “too hard” or “boring” and walked off the job after a few hours.

Current estimates are that they pay in between 10-11 BILLION more taxes than they receive through any source. They thus add a positive to the economy that is numbered at about 10 billion annually. The is above and beyond what they send back to their home countries to help remaining relatives.

They are told to get to the “end of the line.” The “line” is now 4.4 million people long, and there is no real hope that any of them could enter legally for years. In 2013, nearly 73,000 parents were deported from their so-called anchor babies. They will not be allowed to return until their child is 21 and can petition for their return.

Worse yet, in a climate that claims that they are a strong criminal element in the country, the studies and numbers show otherwise. In the ten-year period between 96-06, statistics show that crime was lower in the states with the highest illegal immigration rates.

Those are facts.

Just for fun ask yourself this: Do you think the Canadians referred to Americans who fled to their country to avoid the draft as “illegal aliens”? The answer is no. They were referred to as “immigrants” and processed accordingly.

What must be admitted or realized is that all the scary stuff is designed to make you afraid. And fear motivates people to vote. And they want you to vote for them, not because their words are true, but simply because fear of ANYTHING works for them.

We, down here in the borderlands (yes, that’s the term we actually use), find your hysteria silly and amusing and sad and disgusting all at once.

It needs to stop. These are real people, just like you and I. And it’s time we give them the help and compassion they deserve. They pull their weight and then some. It’s time to recognize your misdirection and seek the real source of your misery–the sleight-of-hand-artists who depend on your acquiescence in their desire for power and money.

Up to My Ass in Shit

Tags

crap conversations with the stupid, Ferguson, immigration

I keep going back for more, because I can’t believe that people can say these things, let alone think them.

Let’s be blunt. I can believe that people think these things but not  stupid enough to voice them.

Let’s be brutal. I can’t believe you can be on the Far Right and be this unable to even see how stupid what you say sounds.

I mean, seriously. Be a flaming conservative. Hate people by the train-load full. But no finesse in at least pretending otherwise to the world? Do you have to Rambo deliver your stupid?

I’m admonished from time to time to be gentle, to be kinder, to be more willing to assume that people are NOT the image that they so studiously work to portray. Forgive me if I don’t have time for niceties. It’s the looks, acts, talks, walks, lika. . . . Am I supposed to assume otherwise? Why are you entitled to the benefit of the doubt?

I had two fairly long conversations this week with idiots. I am not gonna quote verbatim because that would be boring, but I’ll give you a good idea of what transpired. Names have been changed to protect the children of these bastions of extreme stupid.

One of the “discussions” involved immigration. Peggy Sue was against all that stuff. Peggy Sue said the key word was “illegal”, in fact Peggy Sue just made the whole process simple,

“They are illegals,” she said in exasperation, “they have entered the country ILLEGALLY.”

“So, what’s that mean to you? I mean illegal is a word that describes some state of mind you have. It’s illegal to drive over the speed limit, to not pay your fair share of taxes, to litter. What does entry across the border without papers mean to you?”

“THEY CROSSED ILLEGALLY,” she shouted.

I get that, besides breaking a law, which we all do, why does that bother you so much? You see I see the term “illegals” as a code word for (a) they are brown and I don’t like that, (b) they will take our jobs, (c) they will change our way of life. I see that as racist, coming to you from Fox Noise and their hate machine.

After a few hours, I got this response:

“I’ll make this clear. They are breaking the law, and it’s important to know who crosses our borders because they may be carrying diseases to infect our children,  they may be criminals, or they may be terrorists. I’m not a racist. The only racists are liberals playing the race card,” she suggested in her best recall of what Fox said.

Tens of thousands of children are born in this country every year. Do you know which ones will be criminals or get diseases, or become terrorists? If you get a new neighbor do you know this? Your neighbor is not legally required to vaccinate their children. Why do you impose this on others? Did you know that South American countries on a whole have better rates of vaccination than this country? Are there ANY verifiable reports of terrorists crossing the southern border? Do you worry about the northern border ever?

Jack Sprinkle popped in at that point with “you’re wordy. You baffle with bullshit.”

Thanks Jack, that certainly enlightened the fly on the wall.

“Typical liberal. If you disagree with them it’s because you watch Fox News!” shouted Peter Pooch. And then to emphasize the point, he added, “I watch Fox and I’m proud of it.”

Later, we gave thanks for Thanksgiving, brought to us by all those hard-working migrants across the land who pick your food so you can celebrate. Thank you Jesus, for this food. Jesús, the worker, says da nada.

Peggy Sue scrunches up her forehead, denoting that she’s thinking hard, and asks, “they don’t celebrate Thanksgiving do they?”

FACEPALMS ALL AROUND at that one. Yeah, Peggy Sue they do. Oh triple sigh.

We move on to Ferguson.

Peter Pooch is all to excited to discuss this one.

Michael Brown is described as “a criminal, a thug, a giant, or better yet Giant Thug, a 6’5″ 270 pound charging cigar stealing police attacking criminal “. It’s all summed up this way:

“Giant Thug robs store
Attacks police officer
Gets shot for it
Cop was in the right”

Um except for the fact, that the Officer was the same height, so giant is perhaps a bit much. Except that he was never convicted of a thing, so “thug and criminal” is not correct. Except that there is conflicting evidence as to whether he attacked the officer. Your conclusion that the “cop was right” is your conclusion, not the facts there.

Peter Pooch was not done, “I will take the word of a police officer over a known criminal any day of the week.”

No doubt you will, and that disqualifies you Pete from sitting on a jury anywhere in the US of A. Got that?

It got worse:

If the black community wants to get ahead in this world they need to learn about education they need to learn that the leaders they have now such as Rev. Al have been lying to them for many years There may be some racism in this country but it’s very little compared to air to 50 years ago we have black senators black congressman black police officers black fireman black politicians by the way have a black president which it entire group of white people voted for There are more black racist than there are white racist these days

I gotta hand it to ya Pete, you don’t miss a beat of the Fox News distortion. And the African-American community thanks you for all that good advice on how to be white. I’m sure they will have family discussions and implementation strategies soon employed now that they understand how to be as you wish them to be.

African-American friends I have don’t listen to L Sharpton and And they teach their children to respect the laws of this country they teach their children to get an education and they teach their children to have respect for themselves I don’t riot and they don’t loot and I don’t attack police officers they have respect for each other for themselves for the walk

Which I take to mean that Peter Pooch’s African-American friends, are just like him. I can imagine them all calling Michael Brown a “giant thug”. But then I snap back into reality. African-American “friends” my ass.

As I was telling my husband, I’m not a really nice person. I sorta like poking sticks at caged animals if you get the metaphor. But it’s awfully sad too. Knowing that racism is so much a part of our daily lives still. At least in large parts of our country. Such conversations no doubt occur down here in New Mexico, but in much more isolation I believe.

I don’t meet many in my daily life here.

There are so many errors. The conclusion that is held by so many uber right wingers that liberals and Blacks are the real racists today, because they don’t understand what the word racist means. Pretending that whites are the new “oppressed” “race”. Pretending that racism can be masked by “criminal” and “disease” and “illegal”.

Going about daily lives sanctimoniously, because you are “Christian” and “good” and “law-abiding”. Manipulating the world to reflect how you want it to be because it is what you envision as safe.

Life is mean, ugly, dirty, and freakin’ complicated. There are no answers that are definitive about most anything. There are things that are better or worse than some alternative. Life is unstable. It always was always will be. If you find a place of quiet, where life is serene, consider yourself lucky. Seek out good people and cling to them for the crazies are numerous and will drive you insane otherwise.

People are people everywhere and every time. There are not bad people, only bad situations that some find themselves in. Some of the fault is theirs, a lot of it is not. You’re not better just different. God favors no one. You don’t have any right to anything, you have only the privilege of certain advantages. If you spent half the time helping others attain your advantages instead of trying to protect your stuff, we’d all be better off by twice.

If it sounds like hate, it usually is. If you start using the word them, you are hating somebody. Stop it.

Get over yourself. You’re gonna die and be forgotten, in probably no longer than three generations.

Smell a flower. Drink a glass of wine. Watch a sunset. Smile at a stranger.

And get over yourself.

Wish I’d Said That Thursday 7/17/14

Tags

border issues, GOP, immigration, refugee children, tea drunks

Wannabe Arizona Congressional candidate Adam Kwasman (RedicuOP’er), was out ya know, showin’ the fine people of his state how we deal with these menacing brown children who are invadin’ the home land and posing such a threat to all we hold dear in Merika, like with their strange African-diseases Ebola, and their vaccination-less bodies.

And he made this remark in pointing out, that giving these children temporary homes and food and care until legal processes are complete is well, just not compassionate according to the very high standards so far established by the GOP in general, and the Tea suckers in particular.

And he said:

I was actually able to see some of the children in the buses. The fear on their faces… This is not compassion.”

Nod, nod.

Except these children were all Americans and were from the YMCA and they were on a their way to a camping trip, until forcibly scared half to death by the likes of Kwasman and his band of merry idiots.

I wish I’d said that–in some horrible nightmare……

 

Hold Your Prayers, God is Busy in the Southwest These Days

Tags

immigration, religious right, right wing, teaparty

See, God is a little bit busy these days. If you hadn’t heard, a lot of children have been making their way to Merika these days, fleeing, you know, violence. Although nobody seems to talk much about that, the violence that is.

A vocal if hopefully small herd of mean people call them “illegals” and scream at the kids, telling them to “go back home”. Some have suggested that a well aimed firearm at the border might do the trick just fine, and no one of course should think they are meaning anything violent by that call to arms.

While not going quite this far, but *nudge nudge, wink wink* maybe they are, a couple of our pious types have ‘splained to us, the spiritually lacking, that this is all part of God’s plan. Brian Fischer, blasphemer-erradicator in charge of American values said thusly:

“Our southern border is there by God’s design. To disregard it, to treat it as if were not there, to regard it as something not worth respecting and defending, is an insult to the God who put it there for our benefit.”

Just forgettabout that “bring the little children unto me”. You missed the damn footnote: “unless they are from another country and *ick* brown or black, and are entering unto me illegally”.

 

Nodding in agreement is Texas *cough* Pastor Robert Jeffress who points out that God wants a fence between them and us, because, God was always clear about boundaries:

 

“Yes, Jesus loved children, but he also respected law. He said, render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s,” Jeffress clarified for the faithful on Fox News. “So, we need to do both. Show compassion, but secure the borders.”

 

Just forgettabout that stuff in the early part of the bible, about welcoming the stranger and hospitality and so forth. All that, we know, is made irrelevant by Jesus, oh except for that little part about not suffering men who lay with men to live. And maybe that part about witches too. That might stay in too.

 

What the religious right who pushes this vile push back against children, is that it was one of their own, George W., that “compassionate conservative” who signed into law the requirement that these kids can’t be returned to their country of origin without proper legal proceedings.

 

Just before leaving office, on Dec. 23, 2008, George W. Bush signed into law the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act. This bipartisan measure, named for a 19^th century British abolitionist, was aimed at extending and beefing up efforts to prevent and prosecute human trafficking and protect the victims of trafficking.  More importantly, it described exactly how unaccompanied children crossing the border must be treated.

 

The crazies on the Right have of course ignored their own complicity in this legislation, and find it more profitable to insinuate that the President has in fact invited these kids from their violence-wracked homelands to America for some nefarious purpose:

 

I have to believe that when you don’t respond in any way that you are either inept or you have some ulterior motive of which you are functioning from,” Perry said during an interview on ABC’s “This Week.”

 

Ricky (I can’t believe these glasses haven’t made me smart yet) Perry actually said that, although what the conspiracy is for or about, is beyond his meager brain power to discern.

 

Meanwhile, the Right continues to live in cognitive dissonance which prompted one comedienne to suggest that the children should paste the name “fetus” on their forehead. That sounds harsh, but these are the same people who are willing to go to extreme lengths, i.e., Hobby Lobby, to protect the rights of a “fertilized egg”. To turn children away who are fleeing violence and possible death in their own country, seems a interesting juxtaposition to say the least. 

 

To say nothing of our sanctimonious lip service paid to all those poor Syrian children who are living in makeshift tent cities all over the Middle East, having fled the murderous bombardments of Bashar Al-Assad. No finer example is John S. McCain and his wringing of hands at the “humanitarian tragedy” that is going on. Yet we hear nothing from the old fart when it comes to protecting these poor children arriving frightened and alone because their families believe that the trek to Merika is far safer than allowing them to remain at home.

 

No, in fact McCain says no to authorizing money to the President to deal with the crisis, finding it:

 

“It would cost us very little to fly them back, as compared with the cost of taking care of them while they were here,” he said.

 

Mostly McCain has whined about not being allowed to take his cell phone with him in viewing the detainment camps in Arizona. His Senatorial rights, he claims trump these kids right to privacy. Change the policy, he bellowed.

 

We in America are again caught in that position we so often find ourselves in–telling the rest of the world how to behave, all the while doing the in-opposite at home. Another shaming moment in the US of A.

 

A Typhoon in the Bathtub Only Threatens the Rubber Ducky

Tags

America, Health care, Humor, immigration, life in the foothills, Politics, satire, state of the freakin' world, teabaggers, the GOP

Excuse me if I’m a bit confused here.

The GOP has agreed on one thing–to a man and woman they HATE Obamacare. I mean they don’t just think it’s not a good program, they see it, also to a man and woman as the singularly one piece of legislation that will be known historically as the only and complete cause of the demise of the Republic and like a domino, will precipitate the collapse of Western civilization (which is the only one worth discussing of course) as we know it.

They have worked tirelessly since its passage to repeal it, defund it, and/or otherwise make it ineffective. They have sued it, screwed it, and otherwise squeezed it until every bit of blood was drained from its carcass. This they have tried.

They have warned the public that the plug would be pulled on grandma, that death panels would deny their precious precocious preteen the very treatment needed for life, all in the name of communistic commune-style equality. They have said that the doctor you love so much that you never forget her birthday, will be ripped from your arms to be replaced by automatons spitting forth paper check-off symptomatic lists and nurses that cackle in the hallway as you sit drenched in sweat and shivering dressed in your paper suit awaiting the verdict from a committee of cost-cutting psychopaths.

They have, in the guise of their governorships and GOP-controlled state houses, refused to participate in enlarging their own Medicaid rolls, even when guaranteed that for the first three years the Federal government would pick up the entire tab and 90% of the tab thereafter. They have sat with arms crossed and refused to set up exchanges to allow their citizens easier sign-up.

They have threatened the very economy of the entire country rather than give up on their pipe dream of ending this law–all in the name of stopping the vicious damage they have predicted would ensue to Ma and Pa Kettle and all their lil’ childrens across the great American landscape.

Sooooooo.

It strikes me as odd, that when your constant refrain to folks is, by golly gee wiz, doncha dare sign up for that devil-inspired, dripping with communistic red health care plan, that when there are problems, as there always are, with the website and sign-up procedures, you are not jumping for joy at how many people are being saved from the evil law, but rather you are complaining about how difficult it is for people to sign up as if that is evidence that the law is all kinds of bad.

I mean my head is turning around faster than Regan in the Exorcist. Aren’t they glad the sign-up is not working? Instead all I see are properly “horrified” members of Republican rectitude moaning about how this “has got to be fixed” or defunded, or repealed, whichever.

Has there been ONE SINGLE offer of a solution?

Has there been ONE SINGLE offer of an alternative to insure those presently uninsured?

Oh, yeah, I forgot, this is the party of NO. This is the party of destruction. This is the party of no government is good government.

Except where you and my uteruses are concerned. Except where who I sleep with is concerned. Except where who I pray to is concerned. Except to what I learn as science is concerned. Except there. Oh yeah and except where there are enough cheap junk F-18+ how ever many more there are today that still don’t work worth a damn but until there are enough of them to have one in every damn driveway of America–Strength Through Massive Military Might–. Except where it concerns black and brown people and their pesky determination to continue having children and making me sooo uncomfortable that they might not want to the same things I do, so I need to keep them marginalized with voter suppression laws. Have I left anything out?

Now, the President has called once again for the House of Representatives of Big Business to get off their yawning asses and get on with some immigration reform. And the response of  Speaker out of both sides of his mouth, Boehner and his wanna be speaker next, Eric Cantor, has been, why sure we need some of that, cuz as rational? Republicans we know that we gotta placate those brown faces EVENTUALLY or we will never win a damn election again. But the rank and file? Oh my heavens no.

The same crazy that brought you 16+ days of glorious “screw America” can’t wait to bring you more of that sort of crap, because “I can’t stand to even look at your face” and you know that means that we can’t do a thing that would make this BLACK Demon look good. We enjoy cutting off our noses to spite our ugly faces doncha know? Course it ain’t got a thing to do with our fear that we as pasty white dudes are losing control of the reins of power. We are wearing Depends all the time now, cuz we are so scared you will do unto us as we have traditionally done unto you. But you’re being Black? Why that’s irrelevant to our cause, and besides you are only half-black which means something even worse to hear it from the TeaLegions of Crazy.

Which all goes to say, that I am expecting nothing to change.

Did you know these lazy asses have only 19 more days to work for the whole rest of the year?

And I am so very sick and tired of talking points.

And I’m in favor of taking a lottery system and putting everybody’s name in the drum, and drawing out the requisite number of sending them forth to Washington. It could not seriously be worse. I mean can you imagine worse at this point? Don’t you feel rather Italian? Or Greek? Hurrah, we now have governments just as chaotic and worthless as much of Europe. Or truthfully, are we more like China, with only the illusion of government meant to mimic real ones?

I’m going back to bed. At least my dreams involved palm trees, and warm sands and softly brushing waves upon the shore of my sanity.

The Stupid Chronicles for April 20, 2013

Tags

2nd Amendment, Arkansas, crap I learned, gay rights, green energy, Humor, immigration, Iowa, Louis Gohmert, Maine, racism, Stupid Chronicles, Texas

Oh don’t mind me, I’m just acting like a Hispanic. Yes dear Louis the Lunatic tops our list today. But it was a close call I tell ya. Louis never fails to deliver the one two punch of stupid all wrapped up in crazy nearly every week. We sometimes wonder if Louis has a bank of writers who dream up his lines, but on reflection that would surely tip the balance and throw civilization into a retrograde orbit.

Louis dear Louis has a gem for us today. Let me put it thusly. Louis viewed Rodin’s the Thinker, and opined, “why is that dude taking a shit in public?”

Louis doesn’t have a pet rock, he’s the pet rock’s pet.

Louis knows his terrorists and he is here to tell you what he has learned. Islamic terrorist organizations are busy helping their Arab folks “act Hispanic” so they can cross the border from Mexico into America. (added joy: there is a video!)

Yes you heard it here.

Although Louis had no opinion of who caused the Boston Marathon bombings at the time he said this, he was pretty darn sure that a fence is the way to go. After all, Israel’s suicide bombings stopped when they built their fence, he offered, unaware that that is not at all true. A good guess is always good enough for Louis.

Compatriot idiot Steve King (R-IA) nodded in agreement and said that the immigration reform bill should be held up, because surely this bombing was caused (he thinks) by some student on a visa.

Louis offered no ideas about how one “acts” Hispanic. Several racist theories comes to mind, but Louis stopped short of asking people to be on the watch for the “typical” Hispanic behaviors. He did whisper that a dead giveaway that you were dealing with a “pretend” Hispanic was to offer him a jalapeño pepper and see if he cries out in anguish and calls for water after taking a bite.

Texas takes our number two spot as well, which isn’t a big surprise–it’s a big state with big idiots in it.

This is Ms. Ester Irene Stokes. She’s a school teacher in Texas. Or was, or confound it, she probably got herself a medal now.

Anyway, she was accused of fondling one of her female students. Now Ms. Stokes is 61 and the child in question was seven. So that is very bad stuff.

So Ms. Stokes tells police and anyone else who will listen that she is not guilty.

You probably assumed that didn’t ya?

Yes, well she has a rather unique defense.

She says that she is such a racist that she can barely stand to touch those little black girls in her class. The mere touch of their hands gives her the heebie jeebies and sends her off to wash off that black skin feel. I mean she actually cringes when the little nappy heads try to hug here, which must happen once every ice age at least.

There have been no responses by the school in question as to whether Ms. Stokes was still employed. What ya wanna make a bet she won’t have any trouble finding another job in some parts of the country at least.

No doubt that face will be forever seared in your brain.

Third on our hit parade for the week is Maine’s governor Paul LaPage.

Now Paulie has come to our attention before as you can note from some of his best work at the right.

But he kinda ran out of material for a little while. After the last couple of days though, I think he’s back in fighting form.

The Bangor News seems to have a particularly low opinion in the Guv, suggesting that he “makes things up” a lot.

Well, Paul is at it again. Paul doesn’t like wind power. He thinks it’s somehow un-American, being all cheap and non-polluting and such. Oil and Gas don’t like air power and that’s enough for big Paul.

So Paul said, “Now, to add insult to injury, The University of Maine, Presque Isle – anybody here been up there to see that damn windmill in the back yard? Guess what, if it’s not blowing wind outside and they have somebody visiting the campus, they have a little electric motor that turns the blades. I’m serious. They have an electric motor so that they can show people wind power works. Unbelievable. And that’s the government that you have here in the state of Maine.”

Of course, no such thing is true. The University says there is no “little motor”.

All this would be funny, and it is, but the answer to Paulie’s nonsense is that he’s touched in the head. Read crazy as a loon. Read, coming up on Louis’s shoulder and threatening to pass.

Paulie intends to run for re-election. He predicts that the teacher’s unions better watch out, cuz he’s coming for them. And his new idol? Well that ever-favorite of Wisconsin, Scott Walker.

“I will guarantee you that you will see the most vicious education campaign ads that you’ve ever seen in your life next year, because I am going to be the next Scott Walker in this country, because I am challenging the status quo.”

No, Paulie is challenging the all-time low IQ in the USA. I am putting my bets he will win.

Fourth is a new face for us, GOP House Representative from Iowa, Dennis Guth.

Guth is one of those self-styled experts on the issue of homosexuality.

Guth first focused on the media and accused them of making that homosexual lifestyle seem good and nice, when we all know it’s really yucky.

See, Guth says, homosexuals are like “second-hand” smoke, they cause harm to those around them who are normal. They cause health risks to his family he says, by their increased invitation to transmittable sexual diseases. He opines that there are “more medical tests required” before you can give blood or birth. He thinks they are connected but forgot to say how.

Other than that, Guth was unable to explain why their diseases would “harm” his family, unless of course one posits that either he or members of his family regularly engage the services of willing homosexuals for ummm, sex.

Guth is an idiot, and his Democratic colleague told him so.

Our fifth and last entry for the week comes from good old Arkansas, a state that often shows us the butt end of humanity.

Nate Bell, is (you guessed it) a REPUBLICAN state rep from good old Ar-KANSAS, who is a protector of the 2nd Amendment, which he neither understands, nor defends with anything other than yippie-ki-yo-ki-yay blather.

Well, inside that fun face is a very human and very empathetic individual. So as soon as he heard about the manhunt going on in Boston and its environs, wondered via Twitter:

I wonder how many Boston liberals spent the night cowering in their homes wishing they had an AR-15 with a high-capacity magazine?

I mean how sympathetic can a guy be?

I mean really?

Nate withdrew the Tweet once it was pointed out to him that he was being a total douche. Of course it was up long enough for a long list of people to tell him that.

Good luck Nate on re-election.

And if you have not run into these videos (YouTube has several by the same guy), then sit back and for a couple of minutes, just chortle your little heart out. Dry up your tears at the above and replace with belly laughs.

Related articles

• LePage Spins Windmill Conspiracy Theory (thetippingpoint.bangordailynews.com)
• Outrage as Rep. Gohmert says radical islamists being trained to act Hispanic (nbclatino.com)

 

Whee It’s the Weekend!

Tags

2016 election, activist judges, immigration, Israel, life in the foothills, obesity in America, rebranding the GOP, Ryan budget

Now that is something a decent retired person should not have to say, yet I find myself doing it. It’s been a busy week and today is the first day that I have not had some errand, or several to run. I’m fairly ecstatic.

The Contrarian is off to buy potting stuff, I bought a bunch of flowers and plants yesterday. I also got most of my herbs. Hopefully I can get them in later today. I’m waiting for the lemon curd to get cold and stiffen up before I finish the lemon cake. I’m not busy as you can see.

Diego continues to astound. He takes his job as paper boy very seriously, now waking us at 5:00 am should he hear a car go by. He is still having trouble differentiating the delivery man from the casual driver out for a spin before dawn.

He races eagerly out to the drive, looks around, finds nothing, then heads for the neighbors to see if there is a paper there. Finding none, he returns home, only to insist upon going through this scenario about every fifteen minutes.

Today, a new breakthrough occurred. After his first two trips were unsuccessful, it being Saturday and all, he had the fortuitous luck to meet the delivery guy on his third trip. As the guy pulled up to stop and extended his arm to through the paper, Diego bounded forth and took it from his hand. The guy thought this enormously fun, and waved and chuckled as he drove off.

Diego, of course will now want to sit out from about 4 am  waiting his delivery. It is still unclear whether the Contrarian shares his eagerness to await the grand arrival.

There is nothing “new” about the New Ryan Budget. Just more of the same.

Seriously repeal Obamacare?

Seriously?

Yet Boehner the Orange will claim that it’s another “passed” budget out of the  House.

We can pass one that says unicorns are now free to buy property too, and that stands as likely a chance of getting passed in the Senate.

They keep running the mantra that the “American people” wouldn’t have elected a majority of Republicans to the House if they didn’t believe in Republican fiscal principles.

No, franking the word gerrymandering comes to mind when I look for an explanation of why the GOP retained the House.

Bloomberg’s attempt to reduce the size of sugary drinks in NYC, didn’t fare too well before the courts.

Sarah of course appeared at CPAC carrying and sucking on her Big Gulp, all to show victory over stupid liberals and their attempts to control what we stuff in our mouths.

It wasn’t that many decades ago when getting fit was a national event, and nobody suggested that the government shouldn’t play a part.

Now it’s some conspiracy.

The Right thrive on conspiracies. I’m sure some bright Republican entrepreneur will soon open a shop for selling conspiracies. “We will design the conspiracy that’s right for you!” “Everything you don’t like can be explained by a conspiracy. Get your’s now!”

Meanwhile (god I love that segue), Republicans are busy rebranding themselves.

Trouble is, they are still caught up in the shall we drink tea or return to good scotch?

CPAC was a perfect example of speaker after speaker coming forth and starting with “Forget what he/she said, what we really need to do is. . . .”

I think it’s best if the scotch drinkers just lock the doors and refuse admittance to the tea boat folks. After all, they are none too smart, and surely cold turkey is best doncha think? (NO not wild turkey!)

Republicans have yet to learn the lesson that judges appointed for life, tend to have a mind of their own.

Your concerns are theirs about as long as it takes to confirm them. Then, well they have other concerns.

Sometimes those concerns don’t involve your petty social bigotries.

It’s funny to hear the Right lament their “conservative” judicial appointments as now activitists.

Some are so angry and so utterly devoid of constitutional knowledge that they suggest that the SCOTUS, after all is just an “opinion”, and one they need not follow.

Yeah, like evolution is just a “theory”.

The GOP can’t seem to find its way on immigration either. The Tea People want them all deported.

The GOP wants to win an election someday that is larger than a state.

Never the twain shall meet.

The compromise is permanent residence status, or as South Africa calls it, “the good old days.”

On a side note, I hear tell, (have no confirmed, but heck it’s too good not to be true) that Michelle Malkin is an anchor baby herself, born in this country to ” immigrants” who were then allowed to apply for citizenship because their daughter was a natural citizen.

Hypocrisy, thy name is Right-Wing pundits. Malkin is known for her rabid hatred of immigrants who have children and then apply for citizenship through the child. She opposed citizenship for anyone simply by being born in this country. Doncha just love it?

Oh please, even the GOP can do better than this.

Santorum ain’t done yet. And perhaps we can get Sarah to make a run.

Please this can’t be all they can come up with.

They are just salivating for Hillary.

Funny thing, is so are we.

She beats every one of them in head to head polling.

Maybe an Allen West will stick his black heart in (and I do no black not Black). Oh please God, do have a sense of humor once more.

The far right thought the Obama trip to Israel would go badly. If you don’t believe me, fast backward to the crazy sites in anticipation of the trip and read the comments.

It’s a bit like Bill Clinton. The right was chewing towels when Clinton escaped the “trap” laid by the GOP and his popularity soared.

The reactionary Right continues to predict disaster in Obama’s relationship with Israel, except that by all accounts he wowed them as usual.

It must make them mad. I bet they spend the evening loading rounds in the basement and checking once again if they have enough spam to withstand the “insurrection” that is coming any day now.