World News Korner

Fred Phelps -- the founding pastor of a Kansas church recognized for its virulently anti-gay protests at public occasions, including military funerals -- has died, the church stated Thursday.
Phelps founded Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kansas, in 1955 and molded it in his fire and brimstone picture. Many members of the tiny congregation are related to Phelps through blood or marriage.

Muppet hater Michael Comstock

Courtesy of Southern Poverty Law Center:

Democratic primary voters in some Montana legislative districts will see new and unfamiliar names on the ballot this year. That’s because at least eight Democratic candidates are actually far-right “constitutionalists” and Tea Party activists. One of them is the current Republican vice-chairman for Sanders County. Two of the others have turned out to be homeless.

Most of the activity has occurred in Gallatin County, where Bozeman is the main population center and county seat. The county is home not only to Montana State University but also a variety of extremist elements. Key members of the radical Montana Freemen group were active there in the 1990s.

Chief among the new crop of candidates is Michael Comstock, a well-known local Tea Party activist and antigovernment “Patriot” movement organizer who has run previously as a Republican. This year, he filed to run in the Democratic primary for the state Senate seat in District 24, a seat currently held by Republican incumbent Roger Webb, who is running for re-election.

Comstock claimed during an interview with KCFW-TV in Bozeman that he’s a mainstream Democrat in the tradition of John F. Kennedy and Montana icon Mike Mansfield, and more mainstream than his primary opponent, Democratic activist and educator April Buonamici. But as the blogger Montana Cowgirl observed in her posts calling out Comstock and the other candidates, no one in Bozeman who knows Comstock is fooled by this, since he has been a colorful figure on the local political scene for many years:

Comstock’s main focus is his concern about a possible takeover by ‘a one-world UN controlled government,’ the Bozeman Chronicle has reported. In his campaign literature and on Facebook, he says he is worried about the impending collapse of civilization. He proudly calls himself ‘a Tea Party extremist’ and believes the Muppets have ‘sold out to socialism and bad behavior.’

Yes, well everybody knows that the Muppets are tools of the radical Left Wing. Right?

So here's a question.

If the Democrats are in such trouble in 2014, and the Republicans have such clear sailing ahead, WHY are they resorting to all of these dirty tricks in order to sabotage the Democratic primary, and suppress turnout?

No everything indicates that they are the ones that are worried, and that we are the ones who need to recognize that we are the ones in the catbird's seat.

Of course if we don't have that confidence we could still shoot ourselves in the foot.

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The picture that has the Sea O'Pee wetting their panties.

Courtesy of The Washington Times:

Sarah Palin is hitting the road with her guns, fishing rods and “Mama Grizzly” persona.

The former Alaska governor is returning to reality TV as host of “Amazing America,” a weekly series on the Sportsman Channel set to begin in April.

According to its billing, Mrs. Palin “takes viewers coast-to-coast where the American spirit and the great outdoors are celebrated in equal measure.”

“It takes a certain kind of pizzazz for a politician to make the move into reality television,” said Jeffrey McCall, professor of communication at DePauw University. “Harry Reid, for example, could never find a reality television platform that would catch on. The Sportsman Channel, however, has found a great fit with Sarah Palin. Palin has a special attraction for her fans, many of whom are likely viewers for Sportsman Channel.”

Okay let's stop right there.

These people DO realize that the goal of most politicians is not to move from public service into a realm of entertainment dominated by the likes of Honey Boo Boo and the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills right?

Since when does anybody believe that successful politicians are actually jealous of a half term governor, who has lost all political credibility, and is now appearing at the opening of carpet stores and calling into low rated radio talks shows in a desperate attempt to stay relevant?

Answer: Never.

At least the Washington Times got this part right:

The show is Mrs. Palin’s second direct attempt at reality television. In 2010, she and her family were the focus of TLC’s “Sarah Palin’s Alaska.” The series premiere was the network’s most-watched with nearly 5 million viewers, though the show lost roughly half of that audience after four episodes.

Yep, much like everything Plain does the curious showed up to check the show out and then were driven away by the inherent stupidity and lack of entertainment value.

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And I will be willing to bet my house that THIS time out will be even LESS successful.

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Courtesy of WIBW:

Fred Phelps Sr., the former head of the Westboro Baptist Church, died late Wednesday night, according to a family member.

Phelps' son, Timothy told 13 News that his father died just before midnight. Timothy Phelps works at the Shawnee Co. Jail.

Ironically, another son who is a member of the church, attorney Jonathan Phelps told us Thursday morning, "Pastor Phelps is doing just fine." That, of course, could have been a spiritual reference.

Margie Phelps, Phleps daughter, told WIBW-AM that there will be no funeral for him.

This is not exactly news as we had already been made aware that he was on death's door.

What is interesting is that there will be no funeral. Possibly due to fear that there would be protests or some kind of insensitive disturbance that would embarrass or upset his family members.

And we all know how hateful people can be, right?

I think the world has suddenly become a much nicer place to live.

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Courtesy of Political Carnival:

WI GOP State Senator Dale Schultz was on on The Devil’s Advocates radio show discussing voter suppression, specifically bills that cut back on early voting. Schultz's own party, the party o' dirty tricks, has been doing whatever it can to make voting harder, because when turnout is high, it usually translates into Democratic wins.

So of course, rather than fighting for victories in the good old fashioned, all-American, patriotic, apple pie honest way, Republicans resort to cheating, because they know they'd never win by approaching elections, you know, fairly.

Schultz:

“I began this session thinking that there was some lack of faith in our voting process and we maybe needed to address it. But I have come to the conclusion that this is far less noble...

"We are not encouraging voting, we are not making voting easier in any way shape or form by these bills...

"I don't see how you can claim to be improving things by actually reducing hours... but maybe this is Never Never Land, who knows?

"It’s just, I think, sad when a political party — my political party — has so lost faith in its ideas that it’s pouring all of its energy into election mechanics. And again, I’m a guy who understands and appreciates what we should be doing in order to make sure every vote counts, every vote is legitimate. But that fact is, it ought to be abundantly clear to everybody in this state that there is no massive voter fraud.

"The only thing that we do have in this state is we have long lines of people who want to vote. And it seems to me that we should be doing everything we can to make it easier, to help these people get their votes counted. And that we should be pitching as political parties our ideas for improving things in the future, rather than mucking around in the mechanics and making it more confrontational at our voting sites and trying to suppress the vote...

“I am not willing to defend them [his colleagues] anymore. I’m just not and I’m embarrassed by this...

"[Voter suppression is] plain wrong...

"It is all predicated on some belief there is a massive fraud or irregularities, something my colleagues have been hot on the trail of for three years and have failed miserably at demonstrating.”

This kind of internal turmoil is happening all over the Republican party, in state after state, and yet there are numerous reports that Democrats are feeling insecure about our chances in 2014.

I just don't get it. This is our chance to take advantage of real dissension among the conservatives, and if we do not get motivated to mobilize now and get out the vote before they work out their differences then when will we?

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Courtesy of Julia Childish's Facebook page:

“W.H. pastry chef quits: ‘I don’t want to demonize cream, butter, sugar and eggs’” I love this person.

Palin then offers a link to a Washington Times article with the above headline.

Oooh, bitchy! Right?

Of course if she had bothered to read the article, she would have read this:

“[She’s] definitely an inspiring boss,” he said, to The New York Times. “She has done [her campaign] with humor and good will, without preaching, just the way you would hope.”

Not exactly a slam on the First Lady now is it?

The chef, Bill Yosses, is also going to move to New York to teach people some "healthy eating tactics." So clearly he was incredibly upset about Michelle Obama's focus on healthy eating, don'tcha know?

So ridiculous is the assertion, that Yosses is leaving due to a conflict with Michelle Obama, that even Glenn Beck's media outlet, The Blaze, could not let it stand:

The quote he gave the Times about not wanting to “demonize” sugary foods appears to have been said more in good humor instead of as a scathing remark against Obama’s healthy foods campaign.

As for Michelle Obama being “partly to blame” for Yosses leaving? That was simply a clever opening lede to the Times’ story.

Technically, the Times said the first lady is partly to blame — but that’s because it said she inspired him to teach others about healthy foods, not because Yosses was unhappy working under her.

If evidence exists that Yosses left for other reasons, none has been presented thus far.

You know when you are so wrong that The Blaze feels the need to correct you, you KNOW you have gone off the deep end.

By the by Palin also uses this middle school girl attack to congratulate Piper on her birthday. You know, why not?

And HAPPY, HAPPY BIRTHDAY PIPER INDI GRACE! We love you!

Nothing like having your happy birthday wishes wrapped in a giant fuck you to the First Lady, isn't it Piper?

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Courtesy of The New Civil Rights Movement:

America is the only highly developed country where a majority of citizens think you have to believe in God in order to live a moral life.

Here’s a portion of the international breakdown in response to the question, “is belief in God essential to morality?”

China: 14%
France: 15%
Spain: 19%
Australia: 23%
Britain: 20%
Italy: 27%
Canada: 31%
Germany 33%
Israel: 37%
Japan: 42%
America: 53%

As many of you know the name of this blog is essentially to spit in the eye of those who claim that only those who embrace a certain religious belief are capable of being moral people.

It has always been my position that Steven Weinberg was right when he said:

“With or without religion, you would have good people doing good things and evil people doing evil things. But for good people to do evil things, that takes religion.”

Besides it is incredibly arrogant to suggest that any one group have the market cornered on morality, and in fact morality itself is a rather mercurial concept, that shifts and changes based on circumstances and needs.

Are Christians. Jews, or Muslims willing to say that they are the moral superior to the Hindus? The Buddhists? The Sikhs? The Jains?

What incredible egos it must take to believe that out of all of the thousands of religions and gods that mankind has worshiped throughout our history that you have figured out the one true religion, and the one true God.

And how convenient that it is, more than likely, the most readily accessible religion for you to access in your community.

In so many ways our country is a shining example of progress, tolerance, and acceptance. But in other ways it is anything but.

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I am almost embarrassed to admit that I was virtually unaware of the many talents of the great Stephen Fry before seeing him in "V for Vendetta."

I loved that film and loved his character in it.

Since then I have learned a great deal about his vast body of work, and even follow him on Twitter.

This video is exceedingly well done and explains exactly why testing theories against evidence is the only true pathway to truth.

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This is a school book from 1937.

Did you notice anything missing?

Despite Right Wing protests to the contrary, some things have not always been the way they are today.

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You may remember Everest Wilhelmsen from a post I did at the end of last month:

Well since then his plans have become even more specific:

Another member posted a "member list" which conveniently lists all of the individuals who have signed on to be part of this force, from all over the country.

So the question I have is WHY is this guy still allowed to be running free, essentially orchestrating the assassination of our President?

By now the Secret Service HAVE to know this guy exists.

So is he so insignificant that they simply cannot be bothered?

Or is he, whether he knows it or not, helping to flush out other enemies of the state, so that the Federal government can gather their names and keep an eye on them as well?

I kind of think the latter.

How about you?

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Judge Eric Smith, the gentleman sitting in the middle.

According to Court View the judge appointed to this case, Kari Kristiansen, has now been replaced by Judge Eric Smith, a Tony Knowles appointee.

Does this help Levi?

Well it certainly can't hurt to have a judge that does not owe their position to the mother of the defendant.

By the way, as of this post, Bristol has still refused to return to the state with Tripp, despite there being a motion of contempt filed for her refusal to do so.




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Apparently this is Palin's new "thing." Impulsively calling into talk shows in order to gain some notice, and keep her name out there.

She did the same thing last week.

This time it is so unexpected that the guy who screens calls simply refuses to believe that Palin has become so inconsequential that she no longer has a staff persona arranging interviews and instead calls into insignificant local radio programs on a whim.

Of course once they establish that it really IS Palin (At the 1:45 mark), and that takes a while, they become all fan girl and start to gush over her.

Palin claims to be in Scottsdale visiting Bristol, and that she listens to the show on her way home form "hot yoga." (Personally I think she is confusing hot yoga with the hot flashes she gets while struggling to put on her shoes.)

Palin claims that she understand their reticence in believing it was her, because she has been punked a number of times herself. (Ahh, the memories.)

When asked how often she gets to Arizona (3.35 mark) Palin says she gets to "zip in" when she is headed to a speech or event, because it is a "jumping point" for her to use before heading out to other states. (Of course we know that is bullshit, and that she has a house down in Scottsdale and spends the majority of her time there these days. Woman lies about EVERYTHING.)

Palin is also asked about her new streaming program (4:16) which she describes as "an app" and that the information leaked about it was not completely accurate. She claims that the app will provide unfiltered access to her message and help with distributing endorsements to candidates. (Because you know having a service that only a handful of people will be willing to pay for, is going to be SO much better at getting out her message than Facebook or Fox News, where millions can see it for free.)

Palin also uses this as an opportunity to pimp her new "huntin" show on the Sportsman Channel (5:14) which she claims she is filming in a Phoenix studio. (What? No location shooting for the "Queen of the Outdoors?")

The host then asks the obligatory question about whether she is running for office again (6:05). She of course responds with her usual song and dance about not being sure, and that she continues to support certain candidates. Like Ted Cruz, who is the only one that she mentions by name.

Ultimately this is nothing but fluff, which is really all Palin offers anymore, along with the red meat she occasionally throws out to feed the ravenous Right Wing.

However what I learned is that Palin is now essentially a full time resident of Arizona, as evidenced by the fact she is now as familiar with THEIR conservative talk shows as she once was with Alaska's conservative talk shows such as Bob and Mark on KWHL. A show she used to call into with some regularity, even while Governor of the state.

I also learned that Palin is essentially adrift for the most part without the SarahPAC paid staff helping her make decisions about who she should talk to, and when she should talk to them.

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Courtesy of The Friendly Atheist:

Susanne Atanus, the 55-year-old Republican who told a local newspaper that God put autism and dementia on Earth as punishment for marriage equality and abortion, just won her primary for a seat in the House of representatives. She will face off against incumbent Democrat Rep. Jan Schakowsky this November:

Voters in the Republican primary will have two very different candidates to choose from in the 9th Congressional District, as David Earl Williams III and Susanne Atanus vie for the right to face Rep. Jan Schakowsky in the fall… “I am a conservative Republican and I believe in God first,” Atanus said. She said she believes God controls the weather and has put tornadoes and diseases such as autism and dementia on earth as punishment for gay rights and legalized abortions.

Apparently Illinois party leaders tried to get Atanus to drop out, but nope, she was on a mission. And apparently that mission is to hand the Illinois 9th District House seat back to Jan Schakowsky.

For once the Democratic agenda matches well with the agenda of the Republican fringe.

This morning I listened to Reince Priebus on MSNBC telling Chuck Todd that the party cannot be held for every strange thing uttered by a Republican.

But what he fails to understand is that these comments are not outliers among the Republicans, THIS is how a great number of them see the world.

These elections are now increasingly defined as between the rational and the irrational.

For the sake of America's future let's hope that the majority of the country sits on the side of the rational.




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Pretty impressive wasn't it?

I'm a huge Superman fan so that kind of blew my mind.

If you want to destroy the fantasy and find out how they really pulled this off just click here.

That is the problem with possessing critical thinking skills, we can never simply accept that a man can fly.

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Courtesy of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

As the same-sex marriage debate rages, one person says he won’t be weighing in on the subject anymore: Dan Cathy, CEO and president of Chick-fil-A.

Almost two years after he made headlines by throwing his support behind traditional marriage and later decried a pair of Supreme Court decisions that favored same-sex unions, Cathy hasn’t changed his mind. But he said Atlanta-based Chick-fil-A has no place in the culture wars and regrets making the company a symbol in the marriage debate.

“Every leader goes through different phases of maturity, growth and development and it helps by (recognizing) the mistakes that you make,” Cathy said. “And you learn from those mistakes. If not, you’re just a fool. I’m thankful that I lived through it and I learned a lot from it."

Yeah okay.

He may have decided to keep his homophobia on the down low, but it will be a long time before he can live down things like this.

I don't care how good your chicken is, this kind of stomach churning stench can last for decades.

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Courtesy of Star Tribune:

Wyoming is the first state to block a new set of national science standards, but a week after Gov. Matt Mead signed off on the change, education advocates are still digesting what the action means for the state.

Some say the provision, which came through a last-minute budget footnote, blocks the state from considering any part of the Next Generation Science Standards, a set of K-12 standards developed by national science education groups and representatives from 26 states. Others, including the provision's author, say it prevents the wholesale adoption of the standards as they are written.

And why do Wyoming lawmakers have a problem with the new science standards which were introduced to upgrade the old standards that were over fifteen years old and terribly outdated?

Religious objections to he teaching of evolution?

Concern over instruction about the Big Bang that some Fundamentalists consider an affront to their belief system?

Nope.

One of lawmakers' big concerns with the Next Generation Science Standards is an expectation that students will understand humans have significantly altered the Earth's biosphere. In other words, the standards say global warming is real.

That's a problem for some Wyoming lawmakers.

"[The standards] handle global warming as settled science," said Rep. Matt Teeters, a Republican from Lingle who was one of the footnote's authors. "There's all kind of social implications involved in that that I don't think would be good for Wyoming."

Teeters said teaching global warming as fact would wreck Wyoming's economy, as the state is the nation's largest energy exporter, and cause other unwanted political ramifications.

Micheli, the state board of education chairman, agreed.

"I don't accept, personally, that [climate change] is a fact," Micheli said. "[The standards are] very prejudiced in my opinion against fossil-fuel development."

To be clear this is a decision based solely on a fear that teaching that climate change is both real, and impacted by the actions of mankind, will have political repercussions and a short term financial impact.

One could perhaps understand the argument against evolution, based on fear that it will undermine religious belief, but this one is based solely on the fact that the politicians fear that children learning about climate change will grow up to be too informed to support oil drilling and fossil fuel exploitation.

It is really rare to have an argument against science education be quite this transparent.

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Courtesy of Americans Against the Tea Party:

Since Monday, the scientific community has been celebrating the discovery of what seems to be “smoking gun” evidence of the Big Bang. In a discovery that is touted as being on par with that of the Higgs boson in 2012, scientists now have found the first direct evidence of the Big Bang.

About 14 billion years ago, when the Big Bang created our universe, it produced gravitational waves and, of course expanded at about the same rate at which advertisers are fleeing Rush Limbaugh.

Data from the BICEP project, which deployed a special telescope in the south pole between 2005-2008 previously said that reading “strongly hinted” at inflation, but were “not sufficient to rule out other models of the early universe.” Something was missing.

If you guessed that it is the detection of the gravity wave background–something that could only result from inflation–you are correct!

This is exciting news! In fact, it was so exciting that FOX News actually reported it!

Apparently now that the Fox network is broadcasting the new Cosmos series, which is already freaking out the science deniers, they figured they might as well go all in with reporting on scientific breakthroughs.

Now if you think that the Fox News viewers are now suddenly enlightened and ready to accept the scientific explanation for the origin of the universe, well you don't know Fox News viewers now do you?


There are many more at the AATP link I posted at the top, and every one seems crazier than the last.

Let's face it science is moving forward at an increasingly rapid pace, but these people are hanging onto the door frame of religion and refusing to budge beyond their superstitious foundations.

P.S. If you want to see something both historic and heartwarming here is the video of Professor Andrei Linde, who first formulated the inflation theory, learning that he has been proven correct.

This is an incredible discovery, and it moves us much closer to understanding how we all got here, and how everything around us came into existence.

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"The first lady of the outdoors?"

There are people all over Wasilla bent over and clutching their stomachs with laughter right now.

After watching this I am guessing it is aimed at the same group of inbreds who enjoy "Hillbilly Handfishing," "Lady Hoggers," and "My Big Redneck Wedding."

Nice to see that Palin has finally found her demographic.

You know, morons.

Mediaite is calling this "Jackass for Conservatives."

Sounds about right to me.

Update: Palin pimps the trailer on her Facebook page. (Where else?)

Red, Wild, and Blue – we'll never back down!"

Oh man, we're going to have fun encouraging you with stories of overcomers who make America so amazing! Thank God for our freedom to get outdoors to enjoy His creation, to provide for our families by working so hard, and to care for our fellow man enough to voluntarily and enthusiastically help them whenever the need arises. If these unique opportunities don't drive you to defend liberty and make America exceptional again, then you could use some inspiration!

Uh, what's an "overcomer?"

Is that somebody who ejaculates too much, or something?

I'm just asking.

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This weekend, on Meet the Press, former White House Press Secretary Robert Gibs expressed concerns for the 2014 elections:

Appearing on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Gibbs said “there’s no doubt that the rollout for healthcare is still providing a huge hangover” for Democrats. But that’s not the biggest problem that Democrats face as an emboldened GOP seeks to seize six Senate seats and retake the majority for the first time in eight years.

Democrats are worried, he said, that the electorate could be more like the tea party wave election and less like the 2012 defeat of Mitt Romney and a sustained GOP push for the Senate.

In that event, “there’s a real, real danger that the Democrats could suffer big losses,” Gibbs said.

“If we lose the Senate, turn out the lights. The party’s over,” he said.

This vocalization of his concern, not one necessarily shared by other Democrats by the way, has encouraged certain elements within the conservative party to start their victory dance early.

Courtesy of the Tundra Twit's Facebook page:

"…if [Democrats] lose the Senate, turn out the lights because the party's over." - Robert Gibbs

Well then! America, let's not wait! Push back their blundering agenda that's made us less secure by adding an additional $7 trillion dollar I.O.U. to the nation's outstanding bills; jump on offense to reverse course even before the elections; and let's get this party started!

Damn does she piss me off!

Unlike Gibbs I really don't think the Republicans have a very clear shot at victory, even if the President does not jump into the races aggressively.

Overall the feeling in the country about Republicans in general is less than stellar, and Obamacare, which just signed up five million people, is not the open wound it was six short months ago. In fact it could serve as a positive if the numbers keep going up, and truthful testimonials are used in political advertisements during the campaign cycle.

Since this whole thing comes down to turnout, I do believe that with their numbers slipping away, and a feeling of impending doom for the party, that the Republicans have substantial motivation to get to the polls this time out.

But so do Democrats.

Especially Democrats who realize that with more support in the Senate and the House, the President could make his second term far more productive than his last, and that losing the Senate would be the death knell for anymore progress until 2016.

So come on people, let's not fail this President now.

And whatever we do, let's NEVER make Sarah Palin right about anything!

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Courtesy of HuffPo:

The head of RedState Women, a new Republican PAC in Texas aimed at rallying women voters for GOP gubernatorial candidate Greg Abbott, got a little tripped up on Sunday trying to explain the GOP's alternatives to the equal pay laws they oppose.

Cari Christman, executive director of the PAC, told WFAA that Republicans oppose the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act because "women want real-world solutions to this problem, not more rhetoric." The law, signed by President Barack Obama in 2009, allows women to file a claim against pay discrimination when she discovers it, not a limited amount of time after the unequal pay began.

When asked what her proposed solution to the gender pay gap might look like, she began repeating the point that women are "busy."

"If you look at it, women are extremely busy," she said. "We lead busy lives, whether working professionally, whether working from home, and times are extremely busy. It's a busy cycle for women, and we've got a lot to juggle. So when we look at this issue we think, what's practical? And we want more access to jobs. We want to be able to get a higher education degree at the same time we're working or raising a family."

Well that..uh...that makes..uh.....what just happened?

And since when does Sarah Palin wear a blonde wig?

I think Greg Abbott's new campaign slogan should be, "Vote Greg Abbott, the perfect candidate for those who just don't know WHAT the hell is going on."

P.S. Just in case you don't realize that the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act is a whole lot more than simply "rhetoric."

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Photo courtesy of Facebook

Courtesy of Post Star:

Nearly a thousand gun registration forms were turned into ashes Sunday.

The forms are used for people to register with New York State Police firearms that meet the state’s definition of military-style assault weapons. The deadline is April 15. Gun rights advocates gathered at the Saratoga-Wilton Elks Lodge 161 to burn the papers in a symbolic protest.

E.J. Stokes, leader of the Warren County chapter of New York Revolution, said he was participating because he believes in the U.S. Constitution.

“Once the Second (Amendment) falls, the rest will go with it. It’s an unconstitutional law, done in the middle of the night with no input from the public,” he said.

The event was organized by the NY2A Grassroots Coalition. NY2A co-founder Jake Palmateer said the goal is for people not to register their assault weapon as an act of civil disobedience.

“We are opposed to registration because the evidence is clear that registration leads to confiscation,” he said.

This fear of confiscation has apparently been given new life by a Canadian broadcaster who claimed that the same thing had happened there. He works for Sun News, which unsurprisingly in referred to as "Fox News North."

In fact Canada DOES have fairly aggressive gun registration policies. Which has resulted in an incredibly low number of gun deaths.

This from Business Insider:

The U.S.'s neighbor to the north also has outstandingly low gun casualty statistics. In 2009, there were 0.5 deaths per 100,000 from gun homicide — only 173 people. Still, the ownership is comparatively high — there are 23.8 firearms per 100 people in the country.

There is no legal right to possess arms in Canada. It takes sixty days to buy a gun there, and there is mandatory licensing for gun owners. Gun owners pursuing a license must have third-party references, take a safety training course and pass a background check with a focus on mental, criminal and addiction histories.

Licensing agents are required to advise an applicant's spouse or next-of-kin prior to granting a license, and licenses are denied to applicants with any past history of domestic violence. Buyers in private sales of weapons must pass official background checks.

Canadian civilians aren't allowed to possess automatic weapons, handguns with a barrel shorter than 10.5 cm or any modified handgun, rifle or shotgun. Most semi-automatic assault weapons are also banned. As a result of exemptions, several kinds of assault weapons are still legal in Canada, although this has been the source of some controversy.

And guess what, so far losing access to those automatic weapons has NOT resulted in martial law or the emergence of a police state in Canada, which is the conspiracy theory used by the NRA and 2nd Amendment fetishists in this country to argue for no gun registration or control at all.

Call me crazy, but the idea of having fewer automatic weapons on the streets, and low gun casualty statistics like those enjoyed by Canada, does not exactly make me terribly sensitive to the concerns of the chubby old guys who fear that losing their shiny black penis extender will negatively impact their manhood.

We need to make a change in this country, and it needs to happen now.

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As all of you know the idea that the religious community is under attack by liberals, and that their rights are being trampled on repeatedly, is a constant theme on conservative and religious websites and news outlets.

However Robert Boston of Salon has listed all of the special rights afforded to religious organizations in this country, and why the truth is quite the opposite.

Here is that list:

• Religious groups enjoy complete tax exemption, a very powerful and sought-after benefit.
• Unlike secular nonprofit groups, houses of worship are not required to apply for tax-exempt status. They receive it by mere dint of their existence.
• Houses of worship are assumed to be tax exempt as soon as they form. This exemption is rarely examined again and is revoked only in cases of extreme fraud (such as someone claiming that the entity he or she has formed is a church when it’s really a for-profit business). Houses of worship are free from the mandatory reporting obligations that are imposed on secular nonprofit groups. For example, secular groups that are tax-exempt must fill out a detailed financial form and submit it to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) every year. This document, called a Form 990, must be made available for public inspection. Houses of worship and ministries are not required to fill out and submit these forms.
• Religious entities are not required to report their wealth to any government agency. The question often comes up about how much money houses of worship raise every year or what the value of the land they hold is. There is no way of knowing this because they are not required to tell anyone.
• The IRS has the power to audit individuals and secular groups at the merest suspicion of wrongdoing or financial irregularities. Houses of worship, by contrast, are very difficult for the IRS to audit. This is so because Congress passed a special law governing church audits that requires the IRS to show heightened scrutiny before initiating such procedures. In addition, church audits must be approved by highly placed IRS officials.
• Religious groups enjoy a loud and robust public voice. They own television and radio stations all over the country (all tax exempt, by the way). They own publishing arms, and they maintain various outreach sites on the Internet. The ability of religious groups to proselytize and spread their theology is limited only by the imaginations of their leaders.
• Across the country, religious groups own a network of hospitals, secondary schools, colleges, social-service agencies, and other entities that often enjoy a cozy relationship with the government. Many of these institutions are subsidized directly with tax funds—even though they may promote religion. In recent years, religious groups that sponsor charitable services have seen themselves open to a host of new taxpayer assistance through the so-called faith-based initiative.
• Religious groups are often exempt from laws that secular organizations must follow. A house of worship or a ministry can fire employees at will if those workers violate (or are merely suspected or accused of violating) some tenet of the faith. A religious school, for example, could fire a woman who becomes pregnant out of wedlock. A corporation or a secular nonprofit would not be able to do this. In many cases, religious groups are free from following even basic laws designed to promote health, safety, and general welfare. Houses of worship are routinely exempted from laws designed to improve access to facilities for those with disabilities, for example. In some states, daycare centers and other facilities sponsored by religious groups are wholly exempt from routine inspection laws.
• Many religious groups engage in extensive lobbying on Capitol Hill and in the state capitals. Under federal law, there is virtually no regulation of their lobbying activities. Federal law exempts from oversight “a church, its integrated auxiliary, or a convention or association of churches that is exempt from filing a Federal income tax return.” This means that, unlike other groups, religious organizations are not required to report the money they spend attempting to influence legislation or to register their lobbyists. In rare cases, some states have tried to impose minimal regulations, such as public financial-disclosure reports, on houses of worship. The religious groups often fight such laws and call them an infringement of their religious-liberty rights.
• Many legislators are quick to placate religious groups and the clergy. The results of their lobbying campaigns are often successful. In the 1990s, when some religious groups began to complain about experiencing difficulties with zoning issues and the ability to build houses of worship where they pleased, Congress was quick to pass a special law called the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act. This law essentially trumps local zoning regulations with a federal fiat—even though, for many years, zoning had been considered a matter best handled by local officials.
• Religious groups are often treated with special deference in cases of suspected law breaking. Anyone who doubts this need not look beyond the experience of the Roman Catholic Church during the pedophilia scandal. A secular corporation that engaged in such a massive cover-up and acts of deception would have found its top leaders behind bars. Yet in that scandal, only a handful of relatively low-level clergy were held accountable.

Boston tacks this disclaimer at the end of his list:

I have created this list not necessarily to criticize or call for changing these policies (although some of them are overdue for scrutiny) but to make the point that the leaders of religious organizations have very little reason to complain. Their position is an exalted one. They are well regarded by lawmakers, and their institutions are not only tax supported in some cases but are also beyond the reach of secular law. What they are experiencing is not persecution; it is preferential status.

I have always been aware of the special rewards and privileges enjoyed by organized religions in this country, but I have to say that seeing them all listed out like this is making me sick to my stomach.]

All that, and STILL they demand more, while demanding that others have less.

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Courtesy of Wired:

Car dealers fear Tesla. In states across the country, powerful car dealer associations have lobbied to ensure the electric car maker and its direct-sales model are kept out. This movement claimed another victory this week when New Jersey banned Tesla stores in the state.

On the surface, the fear is hard to fathom. In New Jersey, for instance, sales of Tesla’s $70,000 Model S reportedly number in the hundreds. But if you dig a little deeper, it becomes obvious why dealers are worried. They don’t just fear Tesla’s cars. They fear Tesla’s plan to create a world where you never have to bring your car into the shop again.

The first and most striking way Tesla kills the dealer service department cash cow is downloads. As part of its sales pitch, Tesla says you should think of its Model S sedan as “an app on four wheels.” That may sound like vacuous Silicon Valley marketing copy, but the company isn’t just being metaphorical. Software is at the heart of what keeps Teslas running. These internet-connected cars are designed to self-diagnose their problems. The vehicles can also download software fixes or updates — even new features — much like an iPhone when Apple puts out a new version of iOS. When fixes happen over the air, there’s no need for a shop in the first place.

The ability to repair a car via software is especially important when the vehicle itself consists of so much new technology that traditional mechanics don’t know how to fix. The flip side is that without an internal combustion engine, there’s not as much to fix. I’ve written before that a Tesla without its outer shell looks like a cell phone on wheels. It’s basically just a big battery. That means no spark plugs, no air filters, no fuel pumps, no timing belts. In short, Teslas don’t have any of the parts that force you to take your car in for “regularly scheduled maintenance” — services that can cost dearly at the dealer. But it’s hard to charge for an oil change when there’s no oil to be changed.

As you can imagine a vehicle that requires no gasoline and no oil changes, would drive the oil companies into a near panic.

And so it has. Enough so that it has a long history of working against the electric car industry.

I think there is little doubt that this is the wave of the future, and speaking just for myself, the idea of a car that can self diagnose and solve problems via the internet is incredibly attractive.

However, and I almost hate to bring this up, before this country puts all of its eggs in the electric car basket, we need to completely overhaul our electrical grid, beef up security, and move to more solar power to meet our energy needs.

Right now we are incredible vulnerable to sabotage, and before we dispense with fossil fuel powered cars altogether that must be addressed.

However in the meantime I am looking forward to helping my daughter purchase a car that will NOT leak oil all over my driveway, and one which I can plug into the wall to charge rather than to stand in the freezing cold at a gas station spending money to support oil producing countries in the Middle East.

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You know I realize that was kind of comical looking but there are heavy lights hanging over the heads of those anchors and diving under the desk like cowards could have been the only thing that saved their lives.

It kind of reminds me of when I was kid and we had a substitute teacher from out of state, who reacted to a short, but rather powerful, underground jolt by screaming, diving under her desk, and yelling at the class to do the same.

Instead we sat there laughing at her.

She never really did get our attention again for the rest of that class.

By the way Dennis Zaki is in LA right now working on some TV deals, and when I e-mailed him to ask if he had felt the quake he wrote back, "Nope, sleeping."




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Judge Elizabeth Foote

Courtesy of Raw Story:

The parents of a Buddhist student in Louisiana ridiculed by a creationist teacher won their lawsuit against the school district, the American Civil Liberties Union revealed Friday.

The student, known as C.C., was asked by sixth-grade teacher Rita Roark to answer the following question on a test: “ISN’T IT AMAZING WHAT THE _____________ HAS MADE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

When C.C. failed to respond “Lord,” Roark responded “you’re stupid if you don’t believe in God.” She also frequently denigrated his Buddhist faith, as well as the Hindu faith, referring to both as “stupid.” When his parents complained to Sabine Parish Superintendent Sara Ebarb, they were told that “this is the Bible belt,” so they should expect to find the Christian God in the classroom. Ebarb advised them that if they wanted an ungodly classroom, they should transfer C.C. to a school where “there are more Asians.”

Judge Elizabeth Foote of the U.S. District Court, Western District of Louisiana sided with C.C. and his parents, citing that Roark’s behavior — and the school’s decision to defend it — clearly violated “the Free Exercise and Establishment Clause of the First Amendment.”

With regard to the specific behavior of Roark, Judge Foot wrote that “[t]he District and School Board are permanently enjoined from permitting School Officials at any school within the School District to promote their personal religious beliefs to students in class or during or in conjunction with a School Event.” Furthermore, “School Officials shall not denigrate any particular faith, or lack thereof, or single out any student for disfavor or criticism because of his or her particular faith or religious belief, or lack thereof.”

The judge also ordered all the members of the school board to undergo training to make them more sensitive to their responsibilities with respect to the First Amendment.

And remember THIS happened in Louisiana, home of Bobby Jindal who has been pushing Creationism into the public school system for some time now.

This is a huge reality check for them, and hopefully for others in the religious right that they can no longer force their belief system onto others with impunity.

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