WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report)—People should get in the habit of thoroughly disinfecting their televisions after Donald J. Trump has been on, a cross-section of experts confirmed on Tuesday.
“If you have access to disinfectant wipes, thoroughly clean the television,” Dr. Davis Logsdon, of the University of Minnesota, said. “If the television is on your kitchen counter, wipe down the counter and put any dishes and other kitchen items that were exposed to Trump in the dishwasher. This won’t eliminate all traces of Trump, but it can’t hurt.”
Dr. Carol Foyler, of U.C.L.A. advised that “disinfecting your television is good as far as it goes, but everyone needs to be aware that, if Trump has been on TV, it is possible that Trump has been transmitted to you through the air.”
“I would take off your clothes, put them in the wash, and take a shower,” she said. “After you get out of the shower, if you have hand sanitizer, slather your naked body with it. This is what I do after Trump has been on.”
Logsdon agreed with Foyler’s recommendations but added, “I burn my clothes.”
Dr. Harland Dorrinson, of Wake Forest, agreed with the other experts but called disinfecting one’s television and burning one’s clothes “half-measures.”
“Last week, I had the TV on, and suddenly they cut away for a Trump briefing,” he said. “I put on latex gloves and unplugged the television. I carefully placed the television in a garbage bag, sealed it securely with duct tape, and put it out on the street. Everyone should do this right now.”
New Effort by Drumpf to escape responsibility for Trump Recession caused by Trump Virus
Dr. Fauci Reports That Alcohol May Help People Survive Coronavirus Briefings
Satire from The Borowitz Report
WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report)—Calling it a “promising development,” Dr. Anthony Fauci said on Sunday that alcohol may help people survive the most severe effects of coronavirus briefings. Noting that millions of Americans have been exposed to the daily briefings of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, Fauci said that he had voluntarily submitted to a preliminary trial of the alcohol-based therapy. “What we have found is that a single dosage before the briefing and as much as a double dosage after the briefing do much to alleviate the most acute suffering,” Fauci said. The esteemed virologist said that if Americans are able to administer additional doses during the briefings, “Consider yourself lucky.” But, even as Fauci hailed the benefits of the new treatment, he sounded a note of caution. “The effect of this medication is temporary,” he said. “Sadly.” Fauci’s findings are in line with anecdotal reports indicating that Americans have been alleviating symptoms in a similar manner since November, 2016.
Dr. Trump reaches a startling conclusion about coronavirus
So, here’s the response of the Trump team and its allies to the coronavirus, at least so far: It’s actually good for America. Also, it’s a hoax perpetrated by the news media and the Democrats. Besides, it’s no big deal, and people should buy stocks. Anyway, we’ll get it all under control under the leadership of a man who doesn’t believe in science. Paul Krugman, The New York Times
WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report)—The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Friday that significant progress in battling the coronavirus could be achieved by quarantining Mike Pence.
Speaking to lawmakers on Capitol Hill, the C.D.C. director said that, given Pence’s record as a science denier who mishandled an aids outbreak while he was the governor of Indiana, an immediate quarantine of the Vice-President was “an essential first step.”
“Mike Pence should be sealed off in a secure area, where he will have no access to a phone or computer,” the director said. “That will go a long way toward containing the harm he might otherwise cause.”
The C.D.C. chief added that there were a number of places ideal for quarantining Pence, all of them in Antarctica.
Shortly after the C.D.C. director’s testimony, Pence forcefully took issue with the assessment. “The threat I pose to the nation has been wildly overstated, and I do not know how to use a computer,” he said. The Borowitz Report
As of Dec. 10, 2019, Trump has made 15,412 false or misleading claims since being in office, according to The Washington Post's Fact Checker database. "That's an average of more than 32 claims a day," the fact-checkers write, noting that his false and misleading statements increased as impeachment grew more likely.
Guess what? Guns kill people; more guns kill more people.
Trump's lies top 12,000 by Aug. 5. More to come!
Trump welcomes Russian military into USA by Ruben Bolling
The Experts Explain Abortion by Tom Tomorrow
If you missed it, here is a link to the Twitter feed that showed FOX News host Bret Baier asking the audience whether they would support Bernie's plan for Medicare for All
"Plainly put: These are the hallmarks of terrible human beings. People who you would not trust with your children. People you would go out of your way to avoid, if you did care about honesty or family values. These are the people who press their mistresses for abortions but who also are not vexed by abortion-providing doctors being murdered in their Kansas churches; they are confederate flag-wavers in Union states, miffed that new civil rights laws a half century ago slighted their own ne’er-do-well families in some never-quite-describable way; these are people who are so obsessed with the thought that someone better is looking down on them that they are willing to punch whatever kittens need punching in order to prove they're at least better at kitten-punching than the rest of you. The opioid epidemic is centered in Trump-supporting counties. The demand that brown-looking children be placed in detention camps for fear that a terrified 8-year-old might be a hardened gang leader is a phenomenon of Trump-Supporting counties. The insistence that Treason Might Be Good Now is peddled by Fox News celebrities to die-hard Trump supporters who will repeat and retweet it willing and eagerly; it was Trump supporters, Jesus-punchers every one, who gave Alabama crapsack Roy Moore their votes even after his exposure as a child molester—complete with Bible citations from “conservative” pastors arguing that Roy Moore trolling the malls for a child bride was, in fact, in fine Old Testament tradition."Source
Richard Painter, Chief White House ethics lawyer in the George W. Bush administration
Which is worse: Trumpkin policies or the Rethuglican congress that passes them?
Yes, the game must go on! (Rogers, Pittsburgh Post Gazette)
Republicans in Senate: Let's just ram this through before anyone notices!
Bob Mankoff, The New Yorker
The San Bernardino Shooter Was A Christian Pastor: Wonder why this didn't make the news around here. I guess a killer's religion is only important if they are not Christian. Source: Patheos Nonreligious Newsletter
Robert Reich nails it again: a list of a few of Trump's unkept promises (i.e., lies):
1. He said he wouldn’t bomb Syria. You bought it. Then he bombed Syria.
2. He said he’d build a wall along the border with Mexico. You bought it. Now his secretary of homeland security says “It’s unlikely that we will build a wall.”
3. He said he’d clean the Washington swamp. You bought it. Then he brought into his administration more billionaires, CEOs, and Wall Street moguls than in any administration in history, to make laws that will enrich their businesses.
4. He said he’d repeal Obamacare and replace it with something “wonderful.” You bought it. Then he didn’t.
5. He said he’d use his business experience to whip the White House into shape. You bought it. Then he created the most chaotic, dysfunctional, back-stabbing White House in modern history, in which no one is in charge.
6. He said he’d release his tax returns, eventually. You bought it. He hasn’t, and says he never will.
7. He said he’d divest himself from his financial empire, to avoid any conflicts of interest. You bought it. He remains heavily involved in his businesses, makes money off of foreign dignitaries staying at his Washington hotel, gets China to give the Trump brand trademark and copyright rights, manipulates the stock market on a daily basis, and has more conflicts of interest than can even be counted.
8. He said Clinton was in the pockets of Goldman Sachs, and would do whatever they said. You bought it. Then he put half a dozen Goldman Sachs executives in positions of power in his administration.
9. He said he’d surround himself with all the best and smartest people. You bought it. Then he put Betsy DeVos, opponent of public education, in charge of education; Jeff Sessions, opponent of the Voting Rights Act, in charge of voting rights; Ben Carson, opponent of the Fair Housing Act, in charge of fair housing; Scott Pruitt, climate change denier, in charge of the Environmental Protection Agency; and Russian quisling Rex Tillerson as Secretary of State.
10. He said he’d faithfully execute the law. You bought it. Then he said his predecessor, Barack Obama, spied on him, without any evidence of Obama ever doing so, in order to divert attention from the FBI’s investigation into collusion between his campaign and Russian operatives to win the election.
11. He said he knew more about strategy and terrorism than the generals did. You bought it. Then he green lighted a disastrous raid in Yemen- even though his generals said it would be a terrible idea. This raid resulted in the deaths of a Navy SEAL, an 8-year old American girl, and numerous civilians. The actual target of the raid escaped, and no useful intel was gained
12. He called Barack Obama “the vacationer-in-Chief” and accused him of playing more rounds of golf than Tiger Woods. He promised to never be the kind of president who took cushy vacations on the taxpayer’s dime, not when there was so much important work to be done. You bought it. He has by now spent more taxpayer money on vacations than Obama did in the first 3 years of his presidency. Not to mention all the money taxpayers are spending protecting his family, including his two sons who travel all over the world on Trump business.
13. He called CNN, the Washington Post and the New York Times “fake news” and said they were his enemy. You bought it. Now he gets his information from Fox News, Breitbart, Gateway Pundit, and InfoWars.
So why do Republicans hate Obamacare so much? It’s not because they have better ideas; as we’ve seen over the past few weeks, they’re coming up empty-handed on the "replace" part of "repeal and replace." It’s not, I’m sorry to say, because they are deeply committed to Americans’ right to buy the insurance policy of their choice. No, mainly they hate Obamacare for two reasons: It demonstrates that the government can make people’s lives better, and it’s paid for in large part with taxes on the wealthy. Their overriding goal is to make those taxes go away. And if getting those taxes cut means that quite a few people end up dying, remember: freedom!Paul Krugman
No one since 9/11 has been killed in the United States in a terrorist attack by anyone who emigrated from or whose parents emigrated from Syria, Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen.Source
New Yorker daily cartoon, Jan 5, 2017
Two important facts about Obamacare: 1. Most ACA enrollees who have used their plans are getting health care they previously would have gone without. 2. 82% of adults with ACA marketplace coverage or newly enrolled in Medicaid are satisfied.Source
New Yorker cover Nov. 14, 2016
"The election of Donald Trump to the Presidency is nothing less than a tragedy for the American republic, a tragedy for the Constitution, and a triumph for the forces, at home and abroad, of nativism, authoritarianism, misogyny, and racism. Trump's shocking victory, his ascension to the Presidency, is a sickening event in the history of the United States and liberal democracy. On January 20, 2017, we will bid farewell to the first African-American President—a man of integrity, dignity, and generous spirit—and witness the inauguration of a con who did little to spurn endorsement by forces of xenophobia and white supremacy. It is impossible to react to this moment with anything less than revulsion and profound anxiety." Read the rest of David Remnick's Nov. 9 New Yorker article here
2016 - 2020: RUN FOR COVER!.
Science is agnostic and liberal: it starts with questions and seeks to end with answers, rather than the other way around. If you want something that affirms your beliefs, gather each Sunday with a group of people who believe what you do. If you want to question your beliefs and learn about the world and how it works, try science.
Ah, how we love our guns. And just look at how well they keep us safe!
Yes, it's another week full of self-inflicted, accidental gunshot wounds. Because all weeks are full of self-inflicted, accidental gunshot wounds. I found 24 this time, including a two-fer at the Ohio Gun Collectors Association Show in Wilmington. The media reports of the accident danced around the issue of whether or not anyone actually shot themselves, but the gun enthusiasts in attendance were quick to report it. Though it should also be noted that the discussion eventually devolved into that recurring conspiracy theory in which “anti-gunners” are to blame for purposefully sabotaging the show by secretly loading rounds into other people's previously safely cleared weapons when they're not looking. Also among the count for the week: 12 accidental fatalities, 11 kids accidentally shot, five rounds accidentally fired into neighbors' homes and properties, three guns accidentally fired while being cleaned, two hunting accidents, two people accidentally shot with guns brought to work, and two accidental discharges by law enforcement officers (one during firearms training). Amazingly, that's not a terrible week! The flat-out dumbest story of the week is surely the one from Terre Haute, Indiana, where local gun hobbyists reserved space in the public library for a get-together, on the premise, of course, that their guns would be safely unloaded, rendering them harmless, inanimate objects. And even if they had failed to obey that simple rule, there's always the never-fail one about not touching the trigger unless you're ready to fire. Surely there was no way both of these inviolable rules would be broken at once! Ah, but they were. What rotten luck! And what a surprise for the folks enjoying the library's quiet in the adjacent room! Of course, there was nothing to be done but to honor the group's request, since the library board is powerless to restrict weapons from the building in any way beyond the provisions of state law. Which is to say, not at all.
Also fits every other Republican nut running for president this time around. Daily Kos
In the U.S. we average nearly one mass shooting per day. Almost three times as many are by right-wingers (e.g., Soverign Nation, etc. as by Islamic extremeists).
(Rob Rogers, Pittsburgh Post Gazette, Dec. 4, 2015).
Wanna know who the 1% is? And why they own our country (and our Congress)? Look no further:.
Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, 11/27/2011
(Click for full pdf file) Unclear on the concept.
Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, 11/18/2011
Dear Dr. Laura, can I have a slave?
On her radio show, Dr. Laura said that, as an observant Orthodox Jew, homosexuality is an abomination according to Leviticus 18:22, and cannot be condoned under any circumstance. The following response is an open letter to Dr. Schlesinger, written by a US man, and posted on the Internet. It's funny, as well as quite informative:
Dear Dr. Laura,
Thank you for doing so much to educate people regarding God's Law. I have learned a great deal from your show, and try to share that knowledge with as many people as I can. When someone tries to defend the homosexual lifestyle, for example, I simply remind them that Leviticus 18:22 clearly states it to be an abomination. End of debate. I do need some advice from you, however, regarding some other elements of God's Laws and how to follow them.
1. Leviticus 25:44 states that I may possess slaves, both male and female, provided they are purchased from neighboring nations. A friend of mine claims that this applies to Mexicans, but not Canadians. Can you clarify? Why can't I own Canadians? 2. I would like to sell my daughter into slavery, as sanctioned in Exodus 21:7. In this day and age, what do you think would be a fair price for her? 3. I know that I am allowed no contact with a woman while she is in her period of menstrual uncleanliness - Lev.15: 19-24. The problem is, how do I tell? I have tried asking, but most women take offense. 4. When I burn a bull on the altar as a sacrifice, I know it creates a pleasing odor for the Lord - Lev.1:9. The problem is my neighbors. They claim the odor is not pleasing to them. Should I smite them? 5. I have a neighbor who insists on working on the Sabbath. Exodus 35:2 clearly states he should be put to death. Am I morally obligated to kill him myself, or should I ask the police to do it? 6. A friend of mine feels that even though eating shellfish is an abomination, Lev. 11:10, it is a lesser abomination than homosexuality. I don't agree. Can you settle this? Are there 'degrees' of abomination? 7. Lev. 21:20 states that I may not approach the altar of God if I have a defect in my sight. I have to admit that I wear reading glasses. Does my vision have to be 20/20, or is there some wiggle-room here? 8. Most of my male friends get their hair trimmed, including the hair around their temples, even though this is expressly forbidden by Lev. 19:27. How should they die? 9. I know from Lev. 11:6-8 that touching the skin of a dead pig makes me unclean, but may I still play football if I wear gloves? 10. My uncle has a farm. He violates Lev.19:19 by planting two different crops in the same field, as does his wife by wearing garments made of two different kinds of thread (cotton/polyester blend). He also tends to curse and blaspheme a lot. Is it really necessary that we go to all the trouble of getting the whole town together to stone them? Lev.24:10-16. Couldn't we just burn them to death at a private family affair, like we do with people who sleep with their in-laws? (Lev. 20:14)
I know you have studied these things extensively and thus enjoy considerable expertise in such matters, so I'm confident you can help. Thank you again for reminding us that God's word is eternal and unchanging.
Your adoring fan, James M. Kauffman, Ed.D. Professor Emeritus, Dept. Of Curriculum, Instruction, and Special Education University of Virginia Woolf P.S. (It would be a damn shame if we couldn't own a Canadian.) Oh, Lord, Please Don't Burn Us
O Lord, please don't burn us. Don't grill or toast your flock. Don't put us on the barbecue Or simmer us in stock. Don't braise or bake or boil us Or stir-fry us in a wok
Oh, please don't lightly poach us Or baste us with hot fat. Don't fricassee or roast us Or boil us in a vat, And please don't stick thy servants, Lord, In a Rotissomat.
1God defined in a traditional Christian sense as a “personal God” that may answer prayers. Belief numbers are slightly (a few points) higher for belief in human immortality” 2Persons listed in “American Men and Women of Science” (http://www.gale-edit.com/amws/): 1000 surveyed, 600 responded (Larson, E. J. & Witham, L. Nature 386, p. 435-436 (1997)) 3Members of the National Academy of Science (Larson and WithamLeading scientists still reject God in Nature, Vol. 394, No. 6691 (1998), p. 313)
WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report)—People should get in the habit of thoroughly disinfecting their televisions after Donald J. Trump has been on, a cross-section of experts confirmed on Tuesday.
“If you have access to disinfectant wipes, thoroughly clean the television,” Dr. Davis Logsdon, of the University of Minnesota, said. “If the television is on your kitchen counter, wipe down the counter and put any dishes and other kitchen items that were exposed to Trump in the dishwasher. This won’t eliminate all traces of Trump, but it can’t hurt.”
Dr. Carol Foyler, of U.C.L.A. advised that “disinfecting your television is good as far as it goes, but everyone needs to be aware that, if Trump has been on TV, it is possible that Trump has been transmitted to you through the air.”
“I would take off your clothes, put them in the wash, and take a shower,” she said. “After you get out of the shower, if you have hand sanitizer, slather your naked body with it. This is what I do after Trump has been on.”
Logsdon agreed with Foyler’s recommendations but added, “I burn my clothes.”
Dr. Harland Dorrinson, of Wake Forest, agreed with the other experts but called disinfecting one’s television and burning one’s clothes “half-measures.”
“Last week, I had the TV on, and suddenly they cut away for a Trump briefing,” he said. “I put on latex gloves and unplugged the television. I carefully placed the television in a garbage bag, sealed it securely with duct tape, and put it out on the street. Everyone should do this right now.”
New Effort by Drumpf to escape responsibility for Trump Recession caused by Trump Virus
Dr. Fauci Reports That Alcohol May Help People Survive Coronavirus Briefings
Satire from The Borowitz Report
WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report)—Calling it a “promising development,” Dr. Anthony Fauci said on Sunday that alcohol may help people survive the most severe effects of coronavirus briefings.
Noting that millions of Americans have been exposed to the daily briefings of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, Fauci said that he had voluntarily submitted to a preliminary trial of the alcohol-based therapy.
“What we have found is that a single dosage before the briefing and as much as a double dosage after the briefing do much to alleviate the most acute suffering,” Fauci said.
The esteemed virologist said that if Americans are able to administer additional doses during the briefings, “Consider yourself lucky.”
But, even as Fauci hailed the benefits of the new treatment, he sounded a note of caution. “The effect of this medication is temporary,” he said. “Sadly.”
Fauci’s findings are in line with anecdotal reports indicating that Americans have been alleviating symptoms in a similar manner since November, 2016.
Dr. Trump reaches a startling conclusion about coronavirus
So, here’s the response of the Trump team and its allies to the coronavirus, at least so far: It’s actually good for America. Also, it’s a hoax perpetrated by the news media and the Democrats. Besides, it’s no big deal, and people should buy stocks. Anyway, we’ll get it all under control under the leadership of a man who doesn’t believe in science.
Paul Krugman, The New York Times
WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report)—The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Friday that significant progress in battling the coronavirus could be achieved by quarantining Mike Pence.
Speaking to lawmakers on Capitol Hill, the C.D.C. director said that, given Pence’s record as a science denier who mishandled an aids outbreak while he was the governor of Indiana, an immediate quarantine of the Vice-President was “an essential first step.”
“Mike Pence should be sealed off in a secure area, where he will have no access to a phone or computer,” the director said. “That will go a long way toward containing the harm he might otherwise cause.”
The C.D.C. chief added that there were a number of places ideal for quarantining Pence, all of them in Antarctica.
Shortly after the C.D.C. director’s testimony, Pence forcefully took issue with the assessment. “The threat I pose to the nation has been wildly overstated, and I do not know how to use a computer,” he said.
The Borowitz Report
You’ve Got to Admit, It’s Getting Dumber
Another great cartoon by Tom Tomorrow
Donald Trump, Whiner in Chief
By Paul Waldman, Washington Post
Christmas Freedom Fighters
by Joey Alison Sayers
As of Dec. 10, 2019, Trump has made 15,412 false or misleading claims since being in office, according to The Washington Post's Fact Checker database. "That's an average of more than 32 claims a day," the fact-checkers write, noting that his false and misleading statements increased as impeachment grew more likely.
You Have Been Defeated By Logic
Another great cartoon by Tom Tomorrow
The Obstetrician Inquisition
By Jen Sorensen
Vlad Putin & Gang: the Power of Imagination
The United States Is Starting to Look Like Ukraine
Excellent opinion piece by Wall Street Journal Staff writer
Actual Trump records.
Trump: Murder is fine if you are a U.S. soldier.
Guess what? Guns kill people; more guns kill more people.
Trump's lies top 12,000 by Aug. 5. More to come!
Trump welcomes Russian military into USA by Ruben Bolling
The Experts Explain Abortion by Tom Tomorrow
If you missed it, here is a link to the Twitter feed that showed FOX News host Bret Baier asking the audience whether they would support Bernie's plan for Medicare for All
Excellent Op-Ed from TruthOut
Electoral College Dropouts by Tom Tomorrow
Another great New Yorker cartoon:
We all knew it would come to this:
Link to Borowitz Report story
For latest update see: Trump's lies: an interactive counter
"Plainly put: These are the hallmarks of terrible human beings. People who you would not trust with your children. People you would go out of your way to avoid, if you did care about honesty or family values. These are the people who press their mistresses for abortions but who also are not vexed by abortion-providing doctors being murdered in their Kansas churches; they are confederate flag-wavers in Union states, miffed that new civil rights laws a half century ago slighted their own ne’er-do-well families in some never-quite-describable way; these are people who are so obsessed with the thought that someone better is looking down on them that they are willing to punch whatever kittens need punching in order to prove they're at least better at kitten-punching than the rest of you. The opioid epidemic is centered in Trump-supporting counties. The demand that brown-looking children be placed in detention camps for fear that a terrified 8-year-old might be a hardened gang leader is a phenomenon of Trump-Supporting counties. The insistence that Treason Might Be Good Now is peddled by Fox News celebrities to die-hard Trump supporters who will repeat and retweet it willing and eagerly; it was Trump supporters, Jesus-punchers every one, who gave Alabama crapsack Roy Moore their votes even after his exposure as a child molester—complete with Bible citations from “conservative” pastors arguing that Roy Moore trolling the malls for a child bride was, in fact, in fine Old Testament tradition."Source
Richard Painter, Chief White House ethics lawyer in the George W. Bush administration
Pretty nicely captures our fake president.
“There should be a background check before the NRA can buy a politician.”
Sign at March for our lives demonstrationFacebook ad [Tom Tomorrow]
Paul Krugman shows Rethuglican / Trumkin tax plan to be fraud on middle class to provide tax breaks for super-rich.
Trump's Lies
Is anybody keeping track of Trump's lies? Turns out that someone is. Check it out. See also: The Lies Project page
Which is worse: Trumpkin policies or the Rethuglican congress that passes them?
Yes, the game must go on! (Rogers, Pittsburgh Post Gazette)
Republicans in Senate: Let's just ram this through before anyone notices!
Bob Mankoff, The New Yorker
The San Bernardino Shooter Was A Christian Pastor: Wonder why this didn't make the news around here. I guess a killer's religion is only important if they are not Christian.
Source: Patheos Nonreligious Newsletter
Robert Reich nails it again: a list of a few of Trump's unkept promises (i.e., lies):Source: Update for Trump Voters
So why do Republicans hate Obamacare so much? It’s not because they have better ideas; as we’ve seen over the past few weeks, they’re coming up empty-handed on the "replace" part of "repeal and replace." It’s not, I’m sorry to say, because they are deeply committed to Americans’ right to buy the insurance policy of their choice.
No, mainly they hate Obamacare for two reasons: It demonstrates that the government can make people’s lives better, and it’s paid for in large part with taxes on the wealthy. Their overriding goal is to make those taxes go away. And if getting those taxes cut means that quite a few people end up dying, remember: freedom!Paul Krugman
No one since 9/11 has been killed in the United States in a terrorist attack by anyone who emigrated from or whose parents emigrated from Syria, Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen.Source
New Yorker daily cartoon, Jan 5, 2017
Two important facts about Obamacare:
1. Most ACA enrollees who have used their plans are getting health care they previously would have gone without.
2. 82% of adults with ACA marketplace coverage or newly enrolled in Medicaid are satisfied.Source
New Yorker cover Nov. 14, 2016
"The election of Donald Trump to the Presidency is nothing less than a tragedy for the American republic, a tragedy for the Constitution, and a triumph for the forces, at home and abroad, of nativism, authoritarianism, misogyny, and racism. Trump's shocking victory, his ascension to the Presidency, is a sickening event in the history of the United States and liberal democracy. On January 20, 2017, we will bid farewell to the first African-American President—a man of integrity, dignity, and generous spirit—and witness the inauguration of a con who did little to spurn endorsement by forces of xenophobia and white supremacy. It is impossible to react to this moment with anything less than revulsion and profound anxiety." Read the rest of David Remnick's Nov. 9 New Yorker article here
2016 - 2020: RUN FOR COVER!.
Science is agnostic and liberal: it starts with questions and seeks to end with answers, rather than the other way around. If you want something that affirms your beliefs, gather each Sunday with a group of people who believe what you do. If you want to question your beliefs and learn about the world and how it works, try science.
Ah, how we love our guns. And just look at how well they keep us safe!
More Republican Politicians Than Trans People Have Been Arrested For Sex Acts in Bathrooms
-- PatheosFirearms Law and Policy
Yes, it's another week full of self-inflicted, accidental gunshot wounds. Because all weeks are full of self-inflicted, accidental gunshot wounds. I found 24 this time, including a two-fer at the Ohio Gun Collectors Association Show in Wilmington. The media reports of the accident danced around the issue of whether or not anyone actually shot themselves, but the gun enthusiasts in attendance were quick to report it. Though it should also be noted that the discussion eventually devolved into that recurring conspiracy theory in which “anti-gunners” are to blame for purposefully sabotaging the show by secretly loading rounds into other people's previously safely cleared weapons when they're not looking.
Also among the count for the week: 12 accidental fatalities, 11 kids accidentally shot, five rounds accidentally fired into neighbors' homes and properties, three guns accidentally fired while being cleaned, two hunting accidents, two people accidentally shot with guns brought to work, and two accidental discharges by law enforcement officers (one during firearms training). Amazingly, that's not a terrible week!
The flat-out dumbest story of the week is surely the one from Terre Haute, Indiana, where local gun hobbyists reserved space in the public library for a get-together, on the premise, of course, that their guns would be safely unloaded, rendering them harmless, inanimate objects. And even if they had failed to obey that simple rule, there's always the never-fail one about not touching the trigger unless you're ready to fire. Surely there was no way both of these inviolable rules would be broken at once! Ah, but they were. What rotten luck! And what a surprise for the folks enjoying the library's quiet in the adjacent room! Of course, there was nothing to be done but to honor the group's request, since the library board is powerless to restrict weapons from the building in any way beyond the provisions of state law. Which is to say, not at all.
Guns don't kill people, people with guns kill people. Maybe it's time to get a handle on who gets guns?
Something else to make you madder than hell
Daily Kos
How guns protect families
-- Detroit Free Press
Trump's Toddler menace
Also fits every other Republican nut running for president this time around. Daily Kos
In the U.S. we average nearly one mass shooting per day. Almost three times as many are by right-wingers (e.g., Soverign Nation, etc. as by Islamic extremeists).
(Rob Rogers, Pittsburgh Post Gazette, Dec. 4, 2015).
And then there's this...
When May I Shoot a Student?
How the 1% got to be and still remain the 1%.
(Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, 11/28/2011).
Wanna know who the 1% is? And why they own our country (and our Congress)? Look no further:.
Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, 11/27/2011
(Click for full pdf file)
Unclear on the concept.
Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, 11/18/2011
Dear Dr. Laura, can I have a slave?
On her radio show, Dr. Laura said that, as an observant Orthodox Jew, homosexuality is an abomination according to Leviticus 18:22, and cannot be condoned under any circumstance. The following response is an open letter to Dr. Schlesinger, written by a US man, and posted on the Internet. It's funny, as well as quite informative:Dear Dr. Laura,
Thank you for doing so much to educate people regarding God's Law. I have learned a great deal from your show, and try to share that knowledge with as many people as I can. When someone tries to defend the homosexual lifestyle, for example, I simply remind them that Leviticus 18:22 clearly states it to be an abomination. End of debate.
I do need some advice from you, however, regarding some other elements of God's Laws and how to follow them.
1. Leviticus 25:44 states that I may possess slaves, both male and female, provided they are purchased from neighboring nations. A friend of mine claims that this applies to Mexicans, but not Canadians. Can you clarify? Why can't I own Canadians?
2. I would like to sell my daughter into slavery, as sanctioned in Exodus 21:7. In this day and age, what do you think would be a fair price for her?
3. I know that I am allowed no contact with a woman while she is in her period of menstrual uncleanliness - Lev.15: 19-24. The problem is, how do I tell? I have tried asking, but most women take offense.
4. When I burn a bull on the altar as a sacrifice, I know it creates a pleasing odor for the Lord - Lev.1:9. The problem is my neighbors. They claim the odor is not pleasing to them. Should I smite them?
5. I have a neighbor who insists on working on the Sabbath. Exodus 35:2 clearly states he should be put to death. Am I morally obligated to kill him myself, or should I ask the police to do it?
6. A friend of mine feels that even though eating shellfish is an abomination, Lev. 11:10, it is a lesser abomination than homosexuality. I don't agree. Can you settle this? Are there 'degrees' of abomination?
7. Lev. 21:20 states that I may not approach the altar of God if I have a defect in my sight. I have to admit that I wear reading glasses. Does my vision have to be 20/20, or is there some wiggle-room here?
8. Most of my male friends get their hair trimmed, including the hair around their temples, even though this is expressly forbidden by Lev. 19:27. How should they die?
9. I know from Lev. 11:6-8 that touching the skin of a dead pig makes me unclean, but may I still play football if I wear gloves?
10. My uncle has a farm. He violates Lev.19:19 by planting two different crops in the same field, as does his wife by wearing garments made of two different kinds of thread (cotton/polyester blend). He also tends to curse and blaspheme a lot. Is it really necessary that we go to all the trouble of getting the whole town together to stone them? Lev.24:10-16. Couldn't we just burn them to death at a private family affair, like we do with people who sleep with their in-laws? (Lev. 20:14)
I know you have studied these things extensively and thus enjoy considerable expertise in such matters, so I'm confident you can help.
Thank you again for reminding us that God's word is eternal and unchanging.
Your adoring fan,
James M. Kauffman,
Ed.D. Professor Emeritus,
Dept. Of Curriculum, Instruction, and Special Education University of Virginia Woolf
P.S. (It would be a damn shame if we couldn't own a Canadian.)
Oh, Lord, Please Don't Burn Us
O Lord, please don't burn us.
Don't grill or toast your flock.
Don't put us on the barbecue
Or simmer us in stock.
Don't braise or bake or boil us
Or stir-fry us in a wok
Oh, please don't lightly poach us
Or baste us with hot fat.
Don't fricassee or roast us
Or boil us in a vat,
And please don't stick thy servants, Lord,
In a Rotissomat.
-- Composed by Eric Idle and John Du Prez, authored by Graham Chapman and John Cleese
From a really informative organization that I belong to, the "Freedom From Religion Foundation" (3/29/2008)
"There is no such source and cause of strife, quarrel, fights, malignant opposition,persecution, and war, and all evil in the state, as religion.Let it once enter our civil affairs, our government would soon be destroyed.Let it once enter our common schools, they would be destroyed."
Weiss v. District Board
March 18, 1890
"I believe in an America where the separation of church and state is absolute, where no Catholic prelate would tell the President (should he be Catholic) how to act, and no Protestant minister would tell his parishioners for whom to vote, where no church or church school is granted any public funds or political preference. . . . I believe in an America that is officially neither Catholic, Protestant, nor Jewish, where no public official either requests or accepts instructions on public policy from the Pope, the National Council of Churches, or any other ecclesiastical source, where no religious body seeks to impose its will directly or indirectly upon the general populace or the public acts of its officials."
Mixing religion with education is a lot like mixing sewage with fine wine:
"If you have a barrel of sewage and add a teaspoon of fine wine, you get sewage. But if you have a barrel of fine wine and add a teaspoon of sewage,you still get sewage."
"Mixing politics and religion is like mixing manure and ice cream. It doesn't do much to the manure, but it surely does ruin the ice cream."
"When fascism comes to America it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross." Sinclair Lewis. It's here, folks. (2/18/2006).
(Click for readable PDF image)
Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, 02/18/2008
By Erica Jong (1/27/2008)
"I urge you to learn the harsh facts that lurk behind the mask of official illusion with which we have concealed our true circumstances, even from ourselves. Our country is in danger: not just from foreign enemies; but above all, from our misguided policies--and what they can do to the nation that Thomas Jefferson once told us was the last, best hope of man. There is a contest on, not for the rule of America, but for the heart of America." --Robert F. Kennedy, 1968. Source (4/5/2007)
Flat Earth wingnuts at it again. Once again anti-science, anti-progress, socio-cultural retardates are trying to take us back to the pre-Scopes era. Apparently acting on the hope that the less our students know, the more likely they will be to vote Republican, right-wing evangelicals are again trying to force their religious views on children as part of the school curriculum through legislation to allow their religious views (and nobody else's) about "intelligent design" to be taught as "science." If it's so damn "scientific," why aren't they trying to persuade scientists by sending their "theories" to be reviewed by scientists for publication in scientific journals, instead of attempting to persuade the least knowledgeable among us, our legislators and school boards? (Story) Just for the fun of it, you might take a look at the following data on belief in God by prominent scientists.
Top Scientists3
2Persons listed in “American Men and Women of Science” (http://www.gale-edit.com/amws/): 1000 surveyed, 600 responded (Larson, E. J. & Witham, L. Nature 386, p. 435-436 (1997))
3Members of the National Academy of Science (Larson and Witham Leading scientists still reject God in Nature, Vol. 394, No. 6691 (1998), p. 313)
Nazi Rifle Association supports giving terrorists access to .50 cal. assault rifles. And since Bu$hCo will do anything the N.R.A. says, the next plane shot down may be your own, thanks to these thugs (Story). Speaking of which, I'm sure the N.R.A. will join our Wisconsin "sportsmen" who are pressing for a bill to legalize the shooting of stray cats; just oodles of fun for these sadistic cowards. But if shooting mourning doves was too challenging for these tiny minds, I doubt that cats will have anything to worry about; thankfully, the gun nuts are more likely to shoot each other before they hit a cat, and the world will be a better place for it. (Humane Society reaction.) (3/12/2005)
Concerned about media bias? You should be. Here are a couple of corrective URLs. MediaMatters.com and Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting (fair.org) FAIR puts out a great magazine called EXTRA, something everyone ought to read every month. (1/12/05)
Some new blogs I found at Crooksandliars.com (an interesting site itself): Americablog, Digby (Hullabaloo), Rude Pundit, Daily Kos, Brad Blog, Talk Left, Liberal Oasis, Talking Points Memo, Surburban Guerrilla, Wonkette, BuzzFlash news (Headline News at left). I don't know anything about most of these other than that I found at least one or two interesting paragraphs. (12/20/04)
Blogs? A couple of pretty good ones. I have to admit that I just don't have enough time to read all of these. MyDD allows you to add your own blog to the site. The DailyKos is very popular, and interesting. I just found the following one: it has Links to several other interesting blogs, too: Hullabaloo for lots of facts, see DigbysBlog
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