The Argentinian

Ferfal may or may not have fallen for the fear-ridden flop-sweat oozing from the fingers of one Jeffey Kuhner writing for the *cough* Washington Times. As Phil Agre used to grumble, it takes a fair amount of time, effort and attention on the part of the listener to un-pack the lies and confusion that make up today's so-called conservatism.

I'm no expert and I'm kind of in a hurry since I do have other things that deserve my attention. Hence I took only a single paragraph and made an attempt to refute its errors, leaving nothing but the period at the end untouched. Like Phil said, it's a chore. I wish I got paid to do this so I could justify a more reasoned and well-rounded delivery. Until then....

Liberalism champions huge entitlements, expensive social programs and the regimentation of nearly every aspect of people's lives - from smoking bans and university admissions policies, to prayer in schools and how much right-wing talk-radio one can listen to. It seeks to dominate not only politics and the economy, but culture and the arts as well.

This description of the USA is merely a neocon's wet-dream. Take the smoking example: there are few who favor an outright ban on tobacco products. The no-smoking movement is undeniably libertarian in its opposition to *your* smoke getting into *my* lungs. And that's pretty much the entire smoking story here in Reality, U.S.A.

The hoary old "liberal media" joke doesn't hold up either. Are Rush, Hannity, et al still on the radio? Is Rupert Murdoch's global media conglomeration still bribing English phone company stooges for a license to "go fishing" in government's voice mail system? Okay, then listen all you want. Near as I can tell, the only right-winger to be taken off the air recently is Hal Turner and that because of his urging people to kill specific government officials. There's no history lesson since incitement to murder is a crime now and was a crime in the 1930s.

Religion in government schools? Sure. Which religions did you have in mind? Oh, just one? Sorry, that doesn't fit with the Constitution. Thanks for playing, though.

The author is carrying water for the segregationists nearly a half-century after George Wallace stood on the front steps to prevent "black" people from entering the front door of the University of Alabama. Nice. That's a class act we can all still enjoy.

And the war entitlement? All good conservatives tend to gloss over the fact that on average their U.S. Congressman has about 1.5 Billion U.S. dollars to spend in his district, building war toys. Of course it's not distributed evenly throughout the 435 districts but as near as I can tell there isn't a single congressional district that does *not* have at least one "defense" contractor. Isn't it odd that of the top three slices of the U.S. Budget pie chart, the author whines about smaller two and ignores the largest one?

Ferfal, you can read whomever you want and espouse pretty much anything you think is worthy but please, don't take this author's bitter ramblings as anything remotely related to reality in these United States. The sad fact is that there are a lot of two-dimensional, racist ideologues here in the U.S., who are having a hard time adjusting to the fact that they are a minority at best, and come the next election cycle, face the possibility of contracting even smaller into the lunatic fringe.

The trouble with setting the Argentinian back on the path is that I'm way overdue for a Fort Report. He's done things that deserve a verbal spanking and surprisingly one thing that actually deserves praise. Unless I've mis-understood his position. Sigh. Need more time; need more attention.

Mac to Mac on Iran Elections

Re-Tweeting Sara Robinson

Because eeeks is on summer holiday.

Memo to the Right Wing: Put Up or Shut Up

Dear Conservatives:

Your fellow Americans demand an answer -- and we want it now. Just one simple question:

Are you deliberately trying to start a civil war?

Just answer the question. Yes or no. Don't insult us with elisions, evasions, dithering, qualifications, or conditional answers. We need to know what your intentions are -- and we need to know NOW. People are being shot dead in the streets of America at the rate of several per month now. You may not want responsibility for this -- but the whackadoodles pulling the triggers make no bones about who put them up to this.

You did.

Update: PalMD weighs in with a memo of talking points. As the weekend simmers and the Fortstaffers prepare for another week of duelling pinheads, eeeks will be rehearsing her lines, she will. Eeeks likeses the telephoneses.

The Responsible Right (if such a thing still exists) needs to show itself, needs not to distance itself from hate, but to acknowledge it, then condemn it. Instead, the mouthpieces of conservatism are finding excuses.

But they don't get a pass for their excuses, for being "patriotic" or whatever else. They don't get to use tu quoque arguments to justify their own bigotry. They need to remember one of their favorite buzzwords: "responsibility". They will be held accountable for their words and actions one way or another, so they might as well own up to them.

If God doesn't matter to him, do you?

[R]eligion fails to provide a reasonable framework for morality, since it is so easily and regularly subverted to rationalize evil.

Biologist and Professor PZ Myers.

Is our school children learning?

Perhaps. But the minority party in Congress aren't: the rudderless Republicans doggedly continue piling up epic PR blunders such as this FAIL:

=================================================================
Recent House Votes:
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21st Century Green High-Performing Public School Facilities Act
Vote Passed (275-155, 3 Not Voting)

The House passed this bill that intends to modernize, renovate, and repair public school facilities.

Rep. Jeff Fortenberry voted
NO

-----------------------------------------------------------------
Supplemental Appropriations, FY 2009
Vote Passed (368-60, 5 Not Voting)

The House approved this bill to provide funding for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, security improvements in Pakistan and the national pandemic flu response.

Rep. Jeff Fortenberry voted
YES
-----------------------------------------------------------------

Plenty of money to fight torture-justified, wet-dream wars in Eurasia but no money to edjucate our childrens. Sad. Pathetic.

Won't somebody give this man a pineapple?

OMAHA — U.S. Sen. Mike Johanns visited the Navy’s prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and he says the conditions are more than adequate for the detainees held there.

He says facilities are modern and the detainees are given food, excellent medical care and time to pray daily.

Johanns says he fears pretty much anything that walks, talks and thinks for itself. Especially worrying to the freshman senator is the prospect of a U.S. foreign policy based on diplomacy instead of terror. Because Jebus is all about terror and brutality. Especially the brutality. And the terror.

Copied mostly from the Lincoln Journal-Star - thanks for the press release; sorry to hear about the recent negative income. Get back to me when there's a journalist on staff and the ad department is holding a bake sale.

I'm sure the good senator wasn't the least bit worried about the American citizen recently sentenced to eight years in an Iranian prison. I'm equally sure he's already preparing his annual Christ Mass gifts for American citizens still held in North Korea since, by his peculiar brand of justice, holding foreign citizens in prison indefinitely is okay as long as they have food, medical care and time to pray.

Where's Bernie?

...and where's Brownie? Not to mention Turd Blossom and leader of the Republican Party, Dick'n'Rush.

Mr. A, 39, 216 Street, was arrested on suspicion of four counts of felony theft by receiving stolen property and one misdemeanor theft charge.

Officer K.F. said on Tuesday police went to Mr. A.'s home and he consented to a search.

She said police found more than 29 items believed to have been stolen in residential and business burglaries, even a church, in the past two years. The stolen items included a computer, a MIG welder, a riding lawn mower stolen from a church, an all-terrain vehicle, a snowblower.

Flood alleged Mr. A. had bought the items far below their estimated value. A reasonable person should have known they'd been stolen, she said.

I guess that settles it then. If the reasonable person test is sufficient to send someone to jail....