I’m On Planet Quaintly Backward, Yes?

Tags

America, Good Samaritan laws, GOP, immigration, Jeb Bush, Latinos, medical care

I would sure like to know who drugs me and transports me without my agreement to these other planets in the galaxy. I mean, I go to sleep one place, and get up and everything seems normal.

Until of course something so outrageously insane happens, and I look skyward, knowing of course that that sun up there is not my sun, but rays down upon this alien landscape that just looks like my earth.

How do I tell?

Oh. It’s the outrageously insane thing that happens. I mean it ain’t human the thing that happens. It belongs to a foreign and utterly insane race of people who do the opposite of anything any NORMAL human would do. I pity that poor planet. It’s not like mine.

On this planet, a “nurse” who works at a senior assisted living facility, calls emergency services (oddly also called 911 here) to announce that an 80-something lady has collapsed in the dining area and is “barely” breathing. The operator, sends off help and then instructs the nurse to go over and begin doing CPR (apparently they have a similar heart-lung circulatory system as we do). The nurse refuses telling the operator that the company she works for doesn’t allow her to do that.

We are told that the facility doesn’t “do” medical care as part of its services, and prohibits the nurse (whose purpose there is never explained) from rendering assistance to a resident in distress. The operator becomes more and more excited, begging the nurse to find “somebody” who can. The nurse says nobody (except presumably her) knows how to do it. The operator says that’s fine, she can teach them over the phone. The nurse says the company doesn’t allow that either.

The woman of course dies.

The state (also oddly enough called California) has a law that says one is not required to come to the assistance of another. There are plenty of states with such a rule. There are also states that have rules that are called “good Samaritan” laws that protect well-meaning people who help from being sued for causing harm during the helping.

It begs the question I guess to wonder if a nurse has a duty beyond “obeying orders” that might be above the inhuman (obviously because this planet’s inhabitants must not be human like us), order of a company who cares nothing more than for the bottom line–profits shall not be diluted by lawsuits.  It begs the question too why there is a “nurse” employed in the first place if not to at least imply to residents and their families that medical care is only a “step away.”

I sure was glad to learn that I had been secretly kidnapped to this draconian planet. Nothing like this could happen on my earth, and certainly not in my country. Nobody would be that cold and, well, inhuman. No, never in my America.

If that wasn’t enough to assure me that I was no longer in Kansas or anywhere nearby, I saw another thing on this nutsy planet that make it clear it was not mine.

I heard a guy (I swear this is true) who called himself Jeb Bush, just like our Jeb Bush  in America. Only this one, he didn’t have any love for the Latinos like our Jeb. No this one, (not sure he is married to a Latino woman likes ours) he is against allowing undocumented workers a path to citizenship. He is, (believe it or not) in favor of creating them as a permanent underclass in this country they call America, although I think the correct spelling is AmerIKA. No citizenship for them, for as he put it, the last time they did amnesty, why a whole bunch of them didn’t take advantage of it anyway, so they must not really want to be citizens, doncha know.

Yeah, he didn’t mention that maybe some of them were still afraid, and many even more couldn’t afford to pay those fines that you had to pay first to apply.

Our Jeb would never think of such a thing. He’s the smarter of the Bushes (yes they have a passel of  Bushes here too) and that is such an ugly idea that nobody who cares about immigrants would ever suggest that we start defining a whole class as some slave labor reservoir.

They say that this Jeb here, why he is thinking about running for president in 2016. And they tell me that a tiny minority of really nasty mean people hate Latinos for all kinds of imagined things, and this Jeb is courting them for votes.

Our Jeb ain’t like that. He has principles. That Jeb could learn a thing or two from our Jeb.

So, anyway, I gotta run. I’m heading down to the airport and find the next transport back to the third rock from the sun. I sure hope to be back by tomorrow. The food here sucks.

**I learned after the posting of this that the woman in the first instance may have signed a DNR order and may well have been informed that staff were prohibited from offering any medical assistance. I am wrong to castigate the nurse in question if that is so, although I find it odd that she made no mention of this fact when talking to the 911 operator. I apologize to anyone I offended by my attempt at humor. I will not withdraw the post since it’s important to publicly admit one’s errors and not try to erase them in my opinion. I stand by my opinion that the company should have no such “rule” in place.

Related articles

• Jeb Bush: Legal Residency, Not Citizenship, For Illegal Immigrants (mexicoinstitute.wordpress.com)
• Jeb Bush backs pathway to failure (maddowblog.msnbc.com)
• Care home death: Nurse refuses to do CPR on 87-year-old who died at California home (standard.co.uk)
• Jeb Bush rejects path to citizenship, says immigrants don’t want it (voxxi.com)
• California CPR case shines light on what retirement facilities offer (kansascity.com)
• A retirement home is defending one of its nurses who refused to perform CPR … – Detroit Free Press (freep.com)
• ‘We always start CPR,’ local medical official says in response to Calif. case (seattletimes.com)

Held Hostage By the NFL

Tags

agnosticism, Bill O'Reilly, Christians, Contitution, faith, farm workers, gravity, Health care, Humor, immigrants, John Boehner, Latinos, Literature, Mark Twain, Muslims, NFL, physics, Politics, religious doubt, Sports, Steve King, teabaggers, terrorism

Shhh. Be very quiet. This is a house of where now we whisper. “It’s the Playoffs!” Shhhh. Turn around three times, and blink twice. Rub the rabbit’s foot and wiggle your toes. Avoid the black cat.

Negativity be banned. The Packers are poised. They are coming to a TV near you soon. They will prevail. They will overcome.

Okay. Get my drift. My house is in a tizzy all because a bunch of overpaid prima donnas are about to take to the fields of America and cheat, beat each other to a win, all entitling them to advance to the next round.

Everything under heaven and on earth stopped this morning as the Contrarian frantically searched the TV guide looking for THE teams’ game day and time. “I can’t find the early game!” he moaned, nearly swooning with fear.

“Try the Internet,” I mumbled, making the bed.

“Oh God, that will take forever!” he intoned.

“Try NFL Playoffs,” I suggested helpfully.

“I know what to put in!” he huffed.

Ten minutes later, he was pouting, “It’s taking so long!”

“Welcome to my world,” I chuckled.

Suffice it to say that the early game was the late game, and the late game was an even later game, and I get to watch football tonight and then, joy of all joys, do it all over again tomorrow. Whew. I’m sharpening my knitting needles for all the fun!

Now I admit, I can watch football with the best of them, but gee wiz, this is a bit obsessive dontcha think?

Oh, and if there is any question in your mind, the Packers are gonna win the whole thing. You can bet on that literally. Now personally, I have my reservations, but God, I sure ain’t gonna utter them around this house. I’m lucky I got the old goat   Contrarian to go out and bring in some wood to keep my tootsies warm today!

***

Bringing another voice to the Huckleberry Finn controversy, I give you one Roger Ebert. His take is I think worth your while. The more I read of Mr. Ebert, the more I respect this man.

***

Political Irony has your late night political humor here.

***

Don’t know if you heard or not, but Steve King (R-IA) put foot in mouth again. Chastising a Democrat on the floor of the House, for criticizing Speaker Boehner, King regaled that Boehner was full of mendacity, not knowing what the word meant. Boehner indeed is a liar when he claims that the Affordable Heath Care Act is a job killer and costs too much.

Actually it’s working pretty darn good. And that is according to no less than Forbes Magazine. There has been a major uptick in small business buying health insurance for their employees, many for the first time ever, made affordable by the tax credits within the Act.

No doubt Boehner will call that an “opinion” just as he did the CBO estimates that repeal of the act would cause deficits in the area of 230 billion within ten years.

***

Since it doesn’t fuel the narrative offered by Faux News and the GOP, you might have missed this story. Egypt, rift with Al Qaeda like attacks on Coptic Christians, and not confident that their government could protect the latter, saw fit to unite to protect Christians worshiping on Christmas. Yes,  that’s right, Muslims  protecting Christians.

It is essential that we report, and spread the word, that Americans who have an agenda that includes vilifying Muslims must be met with facts. Muslims are not to be another “excuse” to blame some “other” for our own failings.

***

I’ve tried in the past to interact with atheists, but the NeoAtheists are a different breed, younger, and arrogant, and unwilling to discuss issues on any other plane but from a fundamentalist outlook. I know not where to find agnostics, who by their very nature aren’t usually of such a serious bent as to blog on their questions.

James McGrath, does an admirable job of addressing such concerns, with lots of links to atheists, believers and those in-between. I found the discussion heartening and informative.

***

Border Explorer has a very important post on migrant workers in this country. It’s a must read. We owe a great debt to our Latino brothers and sisters for all the work they do. Please read.

***

Inexplicably, Billo the Clown (Bill O’Reilly) seems to believe that the fact that the sun rises and sets and that the tides go in and out, is evidence that God exists. Inexplicable because although I believe that O’Reilly is a horses butt and rather uniformed by choice, I didn’t think he was flat-out stupid. Both Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert have had occasion to query how Billo seems to not understand the concept of GRAVITY?  I mean junior high kids could explain that one to Billo. (H/T to James McGrath.

***

We mentioned the other day that the GOPers in reading the Constitution in the opening session of the House, omitted the 3/5ths clause, because it had been “amended” out. In reality it doesn’t fit with their narrative that the Founding Fathers were perfect and only instituted a limited government. Forgetting of course that the Articles of Confederation were a “limited federal government” and scrapped as unworkable. Of course the 3/5ths clause suggested that our FF were flawed humans as we all are. An excellent article to that effect is by Paul Harvey, teacher of history at University of Colorado. (H/T to James McGrath)

***

What’s on the stove: hotdogs, hash browns and coleslaw.

US Politics for Dummies

Tags

Congress, DADT, Democrats, Dream Act, economy, GOP, Latinos, lobbyists, social security, Susan Collins, tax cut bill, teabaggers, Unemployment insurance, US Politics for Dummies, voting

No, we really don’t have to practice US politics for dummies here at AFeatherAdrift, for the simple reason that you readers are both sophisticated and knowledgeable. Those that need to be reading, aren’t of course. That would be the GOP, in case you were unsure.

The Dream Act passed the House. The Dream Act has, of course, no chance of passing the Senate. The brilliant requirement of having to have a super majority on any vote means that little gets done there. And most assuredly, even less than little gets done, when the GOP is about the business of “just saying no.”

The Democrats don’t have the votes to invoke cloture, so they are tabling the Dream Act. But The Reaction makes a good point, and one that at least won’t be lost on some GOPers, if there are any sane ones left that is.

Even in losing, the Democrats go down on record as the party who favors the sane, moral, and rational position, that young Latinos who were brought to this country as children, and who have completed high school, and either military service or college, can get legal residency in this country and move forward to citizenship. The GOP, on the other hand, continue to favor nativism and the cruel  and harsh persecution of undocumented aliens in this country.

The GOP continues to show the country deliberately and with clear intent, that it is the party of the rich and the white. Tell us how that works for you come 2012.

***

I thought that as part of the cave-in on tax cuts for the rich, we were getting an extension of unemployment benefits for an additional 13 months. According to Crooks and Liars, that just ain’t so, and the cap is still 99 weeks and you’re through. That is no compromise at all, as I see it. Read the link and see what you think. I’m completely unclear and now see the Democratic House anger as very justified. Guess I’m ready to oppose this damn bill too.

***

Can’t say as I’m surprised. It turns out that a slew of newly elected GOPer’s have hired lobbyists to run their congressional offices. Teabuggers ran on the argument that Washington was broken and a den of iniquity peopled with corruption and special interests who no longer did the people’s will. It seems to be business as usual, and that is exactly what we expected to happen. The poor teabuggers will soon find out that they have been taken for the proverbial ride. So much for “we the people” and all that rot. We warned ya, ya know.

***

I just want to personally thank GOPer’s in both the House and Senate for blocking a measly one-time payment of $250 to those who collect social  security and have been denied cost of living increases for two years running. Add another group that the GOP has lost in 2012. But do protect the right of the obscenely rich to avoid taxes Repukelicans.

***

I read this, but can’t find the link. It seems that teabuggers are mighty unhappy with the compromise tax cut extensions. They had been taken in by the promises of fiscal responsibility promised by the GOPers. Does the word sucker come to mind? Anyway, the novel answer being given by some Restuplicans, is that all that fiscal responsibility doesn’t start until the new Congress is sworn in, so it’s still business as usual until then. Now that’s an argument you can believe in! Enjoy your new master, teabuggers!

***

We all talk a lot about economic things, but frankly, most of us, (myself included) don’t understand this stuff all that well. Corrupting Conservatives, gives us a good primer on what all this tax business and economic growth actually mean. This is truly US politics for dummies in an economic nutshell. Do stop by and learn.

***

Was it just a week ago or so that Susan Collins said she was in favor pretty much of repealing DADT but couldn’t unless there was a tax cut bill negotiated, the “holy grail” of the GOP? Yes, well, now it seems that Ms. Collins has been instructed to stop that talk, and to get in marching line with the GOP. She is reconsidering her position. Olympia Snow, already did her bit to be immoral and unprincipled, she helped kill the Dream Act in the Senate. These people have no shame, and it proves that you can’t trust any Resucklican. They all lie.

Collins continues to make more demands on Reid, and the we shall see. Some are optimistic, but I’m too used to being screwed to expect the right outcome. Time will tell.

We all know why this is happening of course. Collins is being targeted by the teabuggers and well, re-election trumps principles doesn’t it? I mean, of course, nothing can be more important than retaining my government job.

***

What’s on the stove? Ribs in the oven with some smoky paprika mac and cheese and homegrown corn on the side. I’m getting hungry even as I type. It’s Iowa food today!

Related Articles

• Senate Tables DREAM Act, House Rebuffs Tax Cut Extension Deal (lezgetreal.com)
• Senate delays ‘Don’t Ask Don’t Tell’ vote – msnbc.com (news.google.com)
• Biden urges Dems to embrace Obama’s tax-cut plan (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
• Paul Abrams: Democrats (and Bloggers): Stop Arguing, Unite Behind “Hostage” Banner, and Win. (huffingtonpost.com)

Channeling Shirley Temple and Butterfly McQueen

Tags

Anita Hill, Christine O'Donnell, Clarance Thomas, election 2010, Harry Reid, Latinos, Nevada, racism, Sarah Palin, SCOTUS, Sharron Angle, voting

“My Gooonnesss, my goooness,” and “Miss Scarlet, Miss Scarlet!”

I think there are actually important things to talk about in this world, but how CAN you ignore the tomfoolery (who is tom and who is he foolin’ with?) goin’ on in the e-lex-shun run-up.

I mean, geeesh, how many folks can you offend in one week Ms. Angle? First she claims that Latinos are sort Asian, and can’t you see that she looks pretty darn Asian herself.

Then, in defending an ad aimed at dirty Hispanic illegals crossing from Mexico, she claims it was really aimed at dirty Hispanic looking Asians crossin’ from Canada. The Foreign Minister from Canada awaits in vain an apology that his country is acting like a sieve for terrorists.

And then she finishes it all off with an ad that implies that Harry Reid is in a “conga line with Michelle Obama.” I looked this photo over real good, (it being a WH conga line, I’m assured) and I can’t see either one of them. Can you? Inexplicable, but then we are talking about Sharron Angle after all.

Oh and get this. One of those shadow groups, “Latinos for Reform” (yeah right) is urging Latino Nevadans to stay home on election day to teach them dirty Democrats that they can’t take you for granted. I mean the cahones for goooooness sake! They don’t even have the nerve to ask Latinos to vote for Republicans. . . . They simply urge them to not be good citizens. The ad has since been taken down. Pundits everywhere think Harry just got the gift from heaven.

***

Think about how many times you have heard or read male Sarah supporters mention how good-looking she was. As if that trumped her stupidity. (intentional stupidity albeit. Sarah is not actually dumb, she just is so lazy that she doesn’t find it necessary to learn anything beyond what she thinks necessary to make that next buck.) Maureen Dowd speaks to the issue of brains versus beauty in her latest NYTimes piece, Making Ignorance Chic.

***

Pope Benedict XVI has appointed a whole bunch of new cardinals. I have something to say about that, but I think I will post it over at Walking in the Shadows. Look for it in the next day or two.

***

Ginni Thomas is the wife of Associate Justice Clarence Thomas, the ultra conservative justice who I believe thinks that the states have a right to set up “State” churches, not believing apparently that the 14th amendment is applicable. Be that as it may, his wife is a real piece of work.

Ginni is politically active, something that few if any spouses of the SCOTUS are for obvious reasons. The members of SCOTUS try mightily (Alito’s head shaking and silent words at a State of the Union speech were a shocking  failure of protocol) to appear above politics.

Inexplicably, Ginni left Anita Hill a voice mail asking her to finally apologize for her treatment of Ginni’s main-man, Clarence. She later, in explaining, claimed she was reaching out to heal old wounds–though a tape of the message hardly bespeaks that. Hill has never retracted her testimony, and Clarence has slapped at her in his book about his life. This one makes no sense, except to say that there is something “in the water” when it comes to the right-wing.

***

After perusing some 200 entries, I’ve yet to see anything amounting as a defense by Witchypoo about her “where is separation of church and state in the Constitution.” The only thing reported so far, is a lame “she meant that the actual words were no where in the Constitution.” Well, yeah, we all know THAT. Anyone who has watched the video knows better in any case. Her demeanor was smirky and just oozed “gotcha” as she pretended to taken down verbatim Coon’s answer. As the audience snickered she turned, puzzled, then smiled broadly looking for backup that she was right, and clearly quite afraid she was wrong.

I’m guessing the girl has decided to just shut up. It’s a cooked goose, and it’s still a month until Thanksgiving. It’s Ovah Witchypoo. Course it always was, but we needed one phenomenal GAFFE of monumental proportions to seal the deal so the MEDIA can move on to something that matters.

***

And to close ‘er out, we have this from the Salon.

Related Articles

• The Galling Thomas: 20 Years Later, Ginni Thomas Calls Anita Hill To Demand An Apology (crooksandliars.com)
• FBI Contacted After Clarence Thomas’ Wife Ginny Calls Anita Hill Asking For An Apology (mediaite.com)

Lies, Lies, Damnable Lies

Tags

Bruce Braley, Carl Paladino, Catholic Church, Democrats, food stamps, fundamentalism, gay rights, GOP, immigration, Iowa, Latinos, Nazis, Newt Gingrich, Ohio, patriarchy, Politics, right-wing crazies, social issues, violence, women

Private monies funding attack ads are favoring GOPers about seven to one. And there are no reins on them either. Truth, Smuth. Who cares. It’s winning that counts.

Here in Iowa, they are out in force against Bruce Braley (D-IA), from the 1st district. The little dweeb running against him, just bought his first suit, or so it looked at their debate. Yet something like $800,000 is being spent by outside sources to defame Braley, telling Iowa voters that he is responsible for their individual taxes going up a cool $1600 per person next year. A bold-faced lie, but of course his opponent need only shrug and disclaim any responsibility.

This is taking place all over America. The GOP is not funding these “loser” races, because it cannot, but big business can. And they are. Further, as was noted on PBS News Hour, candidates in the future know what they will face.

Of course ads besmirching the character and actual policies and actions of  Democratic incumbents and candidates is only a part of the problem.

The other is the character and policies of the GOP-Teabagger candidates themselves. Paladino, in New York continues to try to walk back his ugly comments about gays.

”I just think your children and my children would be better off and much more successful getting married and raising a family, and I don’t want them brainwashed into thinking that homosexuality is an equally valid and successful option–it isn’t.”

What he included in his written speech but didn’t actually say, and later denounced was this:

“There is nothing to be proud of in being a dysfunctional homosexual. . .[which] is not how God created us.”

Paladino has since tried to walk back his comments claiming a great love for all things gay, except marriage,  but his campaign manager continues to defend his statements as “exactly equivalent to the Catholic church.”  As David Wilson points out in the Commonweal piece, whether Paladino is in line with Catholic teaching or not, is this the way it should be expressed? He asks whether the hierarchy owes some statement about the tone being set by Mr. Paladino.

It is no secret that the Catholic church does not support active homosexuality. In this I would argue that it is categorically wrong and probably on some level realizes it among its scholars at least. However, having painted itself it a corner on many of these issues (the Church being protected by the Holy Spirit and being incapable of error on matters of doctrine and morality), She is having a mighty hard time figuring out how to get in step with modern exegesis and ethics.

To hide behind the Church’s skirts, if you will, is no defense at all to Mr. Paladino. Two wrongs don’t make a right as they say.

***

I had to laugh yesterday when I was perusing the political blogs and came upon a reference to Cantor and his claim that the Ohio wannabe congressman who participates as a Nazi in WWII re-enactments had gone a bit too far. The writer, and I have no clue who it was now, suggested that FINALLY we have found something so outrageous that even Republicans are offended! Not the desire of such folks as Angle and Miller to disband and social security, medicare and Medicaid, and unemployment benefits. Nay, that is just forcing folks to look out for themselves. Not gay bashing, and treating undocumented workers as criminals who deserve hanging. Nay, that is just upholding morality and homeland security. But Nazi sympathizers? That just might be too much.

Cantor probably should speak to DeMint and the cuckoo clock in Delaware, I’m not so sure they would agree with him.

***

Oh Newt the Snoot is at it again. Newt is another of those GOPers who still doesn’t GET that what he said before is actually written down and SAVED. Newty is urging his fellow slugs to start calling the Dems the “party of food stamps.” Except there Newty, you forget! Perhaps there is a limited brain capacity of the average sluggo, and that explains Newty’s failure to recall how he supported  Bush’s rather blatant attempt to increase food stamps for immigrants in the hopes of enlarging the Hispanic vote for the GOPers. Oh Think Progress, don’t miss a thing!

***

It seems to awful to be true, but it is true. And Ahab at Republic of Gilead has done a great job in investigating and reporting on the strong ties between violence against women and children to the religious right. Indeed, it is their screwy interpretation of scripture that endangers women and children every day in this country. Read this and know thy enemy.

***

Hope the day is finding you well and happy.

Related Articles

• Paladino offended gay pride parades’ bumping and grinding (nydailynews.com)

All I Feel is Shame

Tags

ABC News, Fox News, GOP, immigration, Latinos, Muslims, NAACP, Obama, racism, right wing, Shirley Sherrod, Vilsack

It has been the position of this blog that racism is endemic in this country. Further, I have claimed that the GOP harbors its fair share of racists. The percentages go up as you look to the teabaggers and the religious right. Remember it was the religious right in the South who apparently found solace in the Old Testament for continuing it’s opposition to full rights to African Americans in the US.

I have argued, I think fairly, that much of the criticism against Obama is so visceral and so ugly that it must stem from bigotry alone. You do not attack a man about silly stuff such as teleprompters and birth certificates, you do not attempt to align him with hated figures of history and stereotypical renditions of natives of the “dark continent” unless you have more in mind than simple policies.

That said, the Shirley Sherrod affair should cause deep shame to more groups than just the usual suspects. Surely Fox Propaganda is deeply involved, although they continue to lie, claiming they never touched the story until Ms. Sherrod resigned. This is simply not true, as Media Matters proves. It was after Fox carried an article about the infamous Breitbart tape, that she was actually asked for her resignation. You can see the actual Fox article here.

Mr. Breitbart, claiming now that he only wanted to show not the truth of Ms. Sherrod’s alleged racism, but rather the applause she received in her comments about her early desire not to help white folk, is also lying. Mr. Breitbart has admitted that he only received this small snippet that he played on his site. It was done, so he admitted, to respond to the NAACP’s demand that teabaggers purge racists from their midst, something of course that they have now done.

He in effect wanted to stick it to the NAACP for being hypocrites. He claims he was unaware of the rest of the speech. The National Review Online, chooses to believe him on that, and yet they, even given that, claim he owes Ms. Sherrod an apology for his atrocious journalism, if nothing else.

It only gets worse. The NAACP jumped on the bandwagon, and today Julian Bond, Chairman Emeritus claims they were “snookered” by Fox Propaganda. That Fox lies is new to you Mr. Bond? Pulllleeeez. You have got to be kidding me? Fox has been caught at least twice that I am aware of in bald-face lying designed explicitly to deceive. (the incidents I recall from Jon Stewart’s Daily Show, examined Sean Hannity’s selective editing of remarks Obama made, and then accusing him of saying the direct opposite, not of what he implied, but of what he said directly two sentences later, which were left out. The second was a change in video of a teabagger event where footage was used of a much bigger event some months earlier to give the impression that the event was much larger than it actually was.)

And of course we have the embarrassing and shameful behavior of the Administration and Vilsack in asking for Ms. Sherrod’s resignation without bothering to investigate. They too cannot be under the impression that Fox can be believed, yet they are apparently so nervous around the Faux News group that they jump without thinking.

The whole matter makes me simply sick. Obama has served, sadly as a lightening rod to make racism “okay” again. It started with the atrocious and vile openly vicious bigotry toward Muslims. Somehow, we are to feel bad for the bigot, but at least “understand” that 911 has “hurt” people and they want revenge.

Bullshit. In a word. I am sick of people like Sarah Palin and all her minions of race-baiting insecure jackasses using 911 as their basis for  prejudice.

The issues involved with an virtually open  and  long border with a poorer nation has played into a scenario where it is more than okay to be slightly less overt, but still leveling insulting remarks against Latinos and Hispanics in this country. Unless you are in Miami, where being Latino is okay, because it’s still worse to be in Cuba and those who “escape” are to be commended and felt sorry for.

Getting behind the rhetoric of “border” safety (the statistics of course belie that crime is worse. If anything it is down), you find the real issue is the GOP’s fear that all these “illegals” will become citizens and vote Democratic.

So, bullshit I say. Racism has not disappeared in America. It had only been hiding away until such time that “shit happens” and we need somebody to blame for our own inadequacies. We are told that we can be anything we are willing to work hard enough for. That’s the mantra of the uber rich to keep us small folks in line.

Course it’s all a lie, and we don’t do so good, and we need somebody else to blame, and then along comes troubles and bingo, we can unleash what has been simmering in our little sick minds all along.

The Sherrod affair is but  the latest in a long list. And she will not be the last. Obama has so far shown a remarkably thick skin to all the not so subtle attempts to belittle him. He has risen above the affray. I’m not sure that is wise any more. I think it’s time, to call a racist a racist. We need desperately to confront our failings as human beings to each other and to ourselves. We need to at least acknowledge that there is an ugly undercurrent in this country.

If we do not, well, infections seldom heal themselves. They usually get worse, and I’m sure nobody wants to talk amputation. Wake up America. Shame on us all.

**As an aside, I have decided to end my relationship with ABC news. George Stephanopolus’s interview with Breitbart this morning was lazy at the very least. He failed to get Breitbart to admit he never had the full tape, and worse he never questioned Breitbart about where he got the tape. Coupled with their evening news continuing to call the GOP filibuster of the unemployment comp bill “Congress’s” refusal to pass a bill without funding, I’m done with them.

Lazy Blogging or Appropriating the Work of Others

Tags

Arizona, Art Andy Goldsworthy, Evangelical Christianity, Franklin Graham, Glenn Beck, immigration, Latinos, Liberty University, Mormons, Muslims, racism, social concerns

Okay, not really, it’s pretty much the usual short takes, which I haven’t done in a while, but it does lend to the idea that I’m really letting others do the talkin’ for me. Sometimes, (rare, I know) others actually say it better.

The weather is lovely in terms of the sun, but way cool, only 61 at the max today. Tomorrow I must shop before the next deluge which is due sometime Thursday or Friday.

I’m otherwise occupied with the usual stuff.

Actually, I’m not a bathroom hermit myself. Never have been, and never figured out how people can read in the darn place. My butt would get cold sitting there. I go in there for a reason, and get ‘er done.

So here goes, hope you find a thing or two worth your attention.

My first inclination is to say that such a beautiful sunset shouldn’t be wasted on a bunch of elderly dried up old prune faces, but that would be mean. My second inclination is that the entire state could easily be scraped into the Grand Canyon with room to spare.

But if you want to read a rather thoughtful  post about current issues in Arizona and Israel, slip over to read Matty Boy’s take on racism–yeah, now I got your attention don’t I?

I’m an adult, I know we usually take baby steps to correct the wrongs of the world, but for liver-lovin’ sake, has Arizona lost it’s mind? And beware sanctimonious remaining 49, it’s an infectious disease, make sure you get your immunization shots soon.

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And if that only whetted your interest, then read on. Dusty, never one to parse a expletive when needed, offers some background into the admittedly racist history of those who pushed forward this ugly piece of law.

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And then there is the political angle that this is all really a ploy to stop the rise of Democratic voting Latinos from living in the state and disrupting the Rethuglican look of things. Jill at Brilliant at Breakfast researches and brings you that story.

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I’ve mentioned more than once my concerns about the rather blatant racism that is espoused throughout America against other Americans, namely Muslims. Not to say that we should reserve that for Muslims who are not Americans of course.

I was happy to hear that the Pentagon rescinded it’s offer to Franklin Graham to speak at the National Prayer Day ceremonies. The Reverend, son of the famous Billy Graham, expressed the usual racist claptrap in the name of God no less.

While VJack at Atheist Revolution was “disturbed”and “disappointed” that the President visited the elder Graham and also met Franklin, I pointed out in a FB entry that, well fundies would would have been just as disappointed and disturbed had Obama visited Dawkins or Hutchens. The point being, I guess intolerance is something that both fundies and atheists can have in common.

I’ve just started reading Sharp Iron, an admittedly evangelical conservative blog. I was pleased to see that Christian Beyer seems to agree that the Pentagon did the right thing.

Interestingly, Franklin claims that Muslims have a different God than his. That argument always seems odd to me, coming as it always does, from a  monotheist. If there is only one, well, however defined, the Muslim God is indeed the same God as the Christian God, and the Hindu, and the Shinto, and well, you get the picture.

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I’ve been a believer that nature is God’s canvas upon which he creates the most beautiful of art for us, free of charge. Andy Goldsworthy, seen here in one of his creations, seems to agree. In fact he works in tandem with God (okay that’s my opinion of course) in creating some really beautiful pieces.

If your soul has been battered lately by personal or civic problems, then do stop by and take a look. I promise that you will come away feeling lighter and more at peace. Beauty is a gift of God, at least that is how I see it.

A H/T to Experimental Theology.

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Liberty University, love child of the late Jerry Falwell, is back in the news as we mentioned a few days ago.

It seems they have invited the renowned intellectual and all around great expounder of Christianity, the one and only, Glenn Beck to be their commencement speaker.

You might remember Liberty from the fact that the Bushites enlisted a goodly number of their law graduates into the Justice Department, where they soon got in hot water by mixing their Repuglian politics with doing their jobs. We are guessing that ethics don’t play a big part in Liberty’s law curriculum.

Anyway, we pondered the incongruity of Beck, who is an avowed Mormon, being asked to speak at a ultra conservative evangelical university. You know, they often claim that said Mormons are not really Christians at all, and if you don’t believe me on that just ask Mitt Romney.

It all seemed mighty crazy, in any event. And I figured, crazy is as crazy does. Beck has called for a boycott of any church that does social justice ministry, and well, we figured Liberty must agree with all that anti-Jesus stuff too. (My Jesus is not their Jesus I would guess.)

Matt Kelley, pastor and blogger has a take on the issue, well worth your reading. And the usual H/T to Prof. James McGrath at Exploring Our Matrix for this link.

That’s it for today. A first–all links are to regular bloggers and I’m as always just amazed at the talent out there. Hope you find something to read!