World News Korner

Courtesy of KBOI2:

Idaho lawmakers and conservative Christian allies who contend faith is under siege by gays, lesbians and the government are launching a "pre-emptive" strike to bolster rights of licensed professionals to refuse service or employment to those they conclude violate their religious beliefs.

On Tuesday, Rep. Lynn Luker outlined a plan to shield religious people from the threat of having their professional licenses - issued for everything from midwives and doctors to physical therapists and nurses - revoked.

Luker, a Boise Republican, knows of no example in Idaho of an actual challenge to a professional's license on these grounds. Still, he points to efforts by gays and lesbians elsewhere seeking to end what they contend is discrimination against them as a sign Idaho must act quickly to protect the faithful before something similar arises closer to home.

"This is pre-emptive," Luker said. "The issue is coming, whether it's 10 years, or 15 years, or two years."

Yeah it's never too early to go into a full blown homophobic panic. I mean if you wait the next thing you know some queer couple will want to gas up at your service station and YOU WILL HAVE TO GIVE IT TO THEM!

I swear these idjits act like homosexuality is an air born virus like influenza.

First you rent a room to a gay couple and the next thing you know you've opened a cake decorating business.

All I have to say is that there are few books that I know of that make my gay-dar go off as intensely as the New Testament. I mean the guy had long hair, wore a smock, hung out with 12 male "friends," and never once tried to bang Mary Magdalene.

In my book that suggests that somebody may have been a little light in the sandals.

Not that there is anything wrong with that. You know, unless you are a conservative homophobe from Idaho that is.

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Damn, now that was awesome!

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You know I hate to tell Christians this but their religion has been changed by science and social change as well. That's why the majority of them go to the doctor rather than praying to be healed, and don't stone women for adultery, or panic when there is a severe change in the weather.

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Today Bristol's ghostwriter thought it would get the blog some hits by attacking Michelle Obama.


Beneath this it said:

Our economy is in the toilet — due largely to Obama’s terrible policies. That’s why I thought the First Lady’s tweet showing her dogs eating off china and drinking out of crystal was a bit much!!

Actually the economy is on the mend thanks to this President, and absolutely NO thanks to the obstructionist Republicans in Congress.

This is a truly pedestrian attempt to smear a very accomplished person by taking fake umbrage at a sweet and innocuous tweet. In other words like a toddler's version of Karl Rove.

And to be clear if Sarah, Bristol, and Nancy French think that this somehow helps the Chin gain some supporters of her own for a future career in politics, well they better quickly speed things up. Because the people who respond to this kind of crap are a rapidly aging demographic of Fox News viewers who will be too old to mark a ballot by the time Bristol learns to bullshit her way through a speech like dear old mom.

On a similar note Bristol's Facebook page featured this birthday message to the crazy lady who screwed up her life.

You know if only more young women took pictures of themselves holding fish instead of taking selfies, this would be such a better world.

Gee, I wish I could remember who said that.

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Courtesy of TPM:

After House Republicans conceded on Tuesday that they would bring a debt ceiling bill to the floor for a vote without attaching policy concessions, the tea party seemed in open revolt, calling for the replacement of Speaker John Boehner (R-OH). Meanwhile, incumbent Republican senators have quietly been working behind the scenes to cut off their funding sources.

"I've been told by a number of donors to our 'super PAC' that they've received calls from senior Republican senators," FreedomWorks President and CEO Matt Kibbe told The New York Times. Those donors would then say to FreedomWorks, per Kibbe, that "'I can't give to you because I've been told I won't have access to Republican leadership.'"

It was a sentiment echoed by The Madison Project's policy director Daniel Horowitz to TPM on Tuesday: "It’s almost as if McConnell and his allies are acting like the IRS with intimidation."

When asked if they'd experienced a similar phenomenon to FredomWorks, Horowitz replied, "I'm sure they tried. Our model never relied upon big donors who are well connected to the D.C. political establishment."

Conservative groups have thrown a lot at the establishment in return. On Tuesday, after every single attempt to exact policy concessions from Democrats over the debt ceiling, conservative groups Club For Growth and the Senate Conservatives Fund immediately rallied their supporters.

"These leaders have telegraphed weakness to the Democrats and sabotaged conservative efforts so many times that Republicans now have no leverage. There's only one solution," SCF Executive Director Matt Hoskins wrote in an email to supporters. "John Boehner must be replaced as Speaker of the House."

You know I am usually not a fan of reality TV but this latest version of the Hatfield and McCoys is riveting!

And the best part is that the more they fight among themselves the less damage they can do to the country as a whole.

Man popcorn stocks are going to skyrocket!

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Courtesy of The Post and Courier:

An education committee approved new science standards for students except for one clause: the one that involves the use of the phrase "natural selection." The South Carolina Education Oversight Committee met Monday to review and approve the new set of science standards that the Department of Education will begin implementing by the fall of 2014 for students. Sen. Mike Fair, R-Greenville, argued against teaching natural selection as fact, when he believes there are other theories students deserve to learn.

"Natural selection is a direct reference to Darwinism," Fair said after the meeting. "And the implication of Darwinism. is that it is start to finish."

Fair argued South Carolina's students are learning the philosophy of natural selection but teachers are not calling it such. He said the best way for students to learn is for the schools to teach the controversy.

"To teach that natural selection is the answer to origins is wrong," Fair said. "I don't have a problem with teaching theories. I don't think it should be taught as fact."

Ultimately, the committee approved all measures except that clause, which now gets sent back to the committee level for review.

Oh and don't think the State Superintendent of Education is going to be of any help in this are either.

State Superintendent of Education Mick Zais said after the meeting he was not surprised by the debate that took place.

"This has been going on here in South Carolina for a long a time," Zais said. "We ought to teach both sides and let students draw their own conclusions."

And that is the freaking superintendent!

God this kind of think makes me insane!

For those on the short bus, when scientists refer to something as a "theory" they essentially mean a fact that is still being modified with the introduction of new evidence, not something that they just imagined and have no proof to back up.

The closest to that would be a "hypothesis" which is defined as "A supposition or proposed explanation made on the basis of limited evidence as a starting point for further investigation."

If scientists were calling Evolution a scientific hypothesis this Fair guy might have a point. However even if they did there is still NO room for the introduction of religious mythology to be introduced as science.

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This image showed the other day on Reddit.

I actually wasn't going to post this until I read the comments that accompanied it, and found a small yet aggressive group of trolls trying desperately to suggest that this was unfair because it was Tina Fey, and not Palin, who said "I can see Russia from my house," and that in fact living so close to Russia DID give Palin foreign relations experience.

On the first part, yes that is true, but Palin made a slight exaggeration like that incredibly easy, which is why it stuck. And on the second part, no it didn't!

Palin's interactions with Russia were virtually non-existent, and in her own words really only amounted to the scrambling of American jets when Russian jets would penetrate our air space, which happens occasionally, and which the Governor of the state has NOTHING to do with.

However the point of this Reddit post is was that Palin is a joke. Not only a joke but a joke so recognizable that her name itself is often the punchline.

So the handful of pro-Palin trolls can grind their teeth and pull their hair all they want, but over the years Palin has proved her detractors right repeatedly, and proved that the wishful thinking of her supporters is simply a fantasy based on nothing but wishful thinking.

By the way just to demonstrate how split the Republican party is these days, Palin has been invited to speak at CPAC again.

And the sad fact is that she will NOT be the craziest person there.

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State Rep. Steve Hurst.

Courtesy of Raw Story:

An Alabama lawmaker has proposed legislation that would allow public school teachers to lead students in a daily prayer.

State Rep. Steve Hurst (R) introduced the bill last month to allow teachers to read verbatim one of the opening prayers recited by chaplains or their guests before sessions of the U.S. Congress.

“If Congress can open with a prayer, and the state of Alabama Legislature can, I don’t see why schools can’t,” Hurst said.

This could take up to 15 minutes each day, according to House Bill 318.

Hurst said the quarter hour would not be wasted, because it would help students learn about history and civics.

“They could read the prayer from the day war was declared in World War II (or) they could read the prayer the day after Sept. 11,” he said.

Or, they could use that fifteen minutes to actually learn history, instead of being indoctrinated into this idiot's religious belief!

No child should have to be subjected to the prayers from a religion to which they do not belong, assuming they belong to any at all.

This knuckle dragger does bring up one good point though. It really is not fair that schools get to avoid being subjected to prayer, and Congress still has to listen to them.

So I think the only fair thing is to outlaw them there as well.

There fixed it for you.

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Courtesy of TPM:

Bashing former President Bill Clinton for the Monica Lewinsky scandal isn't a good strategy to use if Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) wants to position himself as a presidential contender in 2016, according to election oracle Karl Rove.

The veteran Republican strategist said Tuesday in an appearance on Fox News that Paul needs to shelve personal ambition and focus on a bigger message if he wants to field a viable campaign.

"Frankly, Rand Paul spending a lot of time talking about the mistakes of Bill Clinton does not look like a big agenda for the future of the country," he said.

Paul has lobbed a series of attacks at Clinton in recent weeks, ranging from calling him a "serial philanderer" to suggesting Democrats return money they raised with his help.

Rove said the Kentucky Republican ought to focus on strengthening his "skills" as a candidate, rather than on a White House affair that's already 15 years old.

"I'm not certain again that beating up on Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky is a particularly good thing to strengthen your skills for the 2016 contest," he said.

Okay I don't trust Karl Rove as far as I can roll him, so I am not sure if he is really trying to help Paul here, or if he doesn't like him for a candidate so he is undermining him publicly.

Whatever the reason, Rove is right. (Did I just write that?)

Trying to defeat Hillary by bringing up Bill's dalliances is going to be about as effective as calling Obama a Kenyan socialist was to stopping his reelection.

I wonder if this means that Rove is giving up on 2016, or that he has something he considers much more effective up his sleeve to use against Hillary?

Like I said, I don't trust ole Turdblossom.

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