Tuesday, November 23, 2004
Whose Blood Runneth Orange
So let's see--Ukraine has an election in which exit polls show the opposition candidate winning by a substantial margin, yet the "official" tally shows a 3-point win for the incumbent party's candidate. Reports of widespread fraud come in.
So do the opposition candidate's supporters take the "loss" sitting down? No--200,000 of them stand up and march on the capital. They flood the streets and stay for days on end. They plan nationwide civil disobedience.
(I won't even mention the throat-slitting irony of the Bush administration supporting the opposition candidate in Ukraine and calling for the overturning of the election results.)
Maybe people who have actually lived in undemocratic societies feel more strongly about defending their democracy once they have it.
Americans just take every goddamn thing for granted. Everything. And we're going to lose it all.
Give thanks!
posted by Blicero : 11/23/2004 09:23:00 PM
So do the opposition candidate's supporters take the "loss" sitting down? No--200,000 of them stand up and march on the capital. They flood the streets and stay for days on end. They plan nationwide civil disobedience.
(I won't even mention the throat-slitting irony of the Bush administration supporting the opposition candidate in Ukraine and calling for the overturning of the election results.)
Maybe people who have actually lived in undemocratic societies feel more strongly about defending their democracy once they have it.
Americans just take every goddamn thing for granted. Everything. And we're going to lose it all.
Give thanks!
posted by Blicero : 11/23/2004 09:23:00 PMTurkee Cat Blogging
I won't be able to cat-blog this Thursday, so here it is now:
The tussle is on!
posted by Blicero : 11/23/2004 01:48:00 AM
The tussle is on!
posted by Blicero : 11/23/2004 01:48:00 AM"That's What You Get" Blog
Well, Thanksgiving is upon us, and in the spirit of collective celebration of what's good in us and for national healing, I was thinking of an idea. It would be a sub-blog or annex-blog--linked from the AmCop sidebar--which would be devoted to celebrating the misery of those people in red states who have voted against the interests of themselves, their friends and families, their communities, and the nation.
My idea is that readers could send me links to stories (whenever you come across them) about bad things happening to red states that are the result of (or at least connected to) policy decisions of the Bush administration. Topics could include:
--Lost jobs; factory/plant closings; termination of unemployment and other work-related benefits.
--No health care, loss of health care, people being fucked over by insurance companies.
--The decline of public schools.
--The poisoning of communities and public lands by corporations who pollute the environment.
--Unfair tax burdens (e.g. sales taxes, payroll taxes) being placed on working people.
--Shitty life in general that just seems to get more shitty.
I was also thinking of possible names for the blog. Some possibilities:
Sorry, Fuckers!
The Public Gets What the Public Wants
Count Yer Blessings
If You Don't Like the Taste of Shit, Why Did You Choose to Eat the Shit?
You Stupid, Stupid Dipshits
Love It or Leave It!
So, what do you all think? Any other suggestions/preferences for a name? Comments on the general concept?
Happy Thanksgiving!
posted by Blicero : 11/23/2004 01:33:00 AM
My idea is that readers could send me links to stories (whenever you come across them) about bad things happening to red states that are the result of (or at least connected to) policy decisions of the Bush administration. Topics could include:
--Lost jobs; factory/plant closings; termination of unemployment and other work-related benefits.
--No health care, loss of health care, people being fucked over by insurance companies.
--The decline of public schools.
--The poisoning of communities and public lands by corporations who pollute the environment.
--Unfair tax burdens (e.g. sales taxes, payroll taxes) being placed on working people.
--Shitty life in general that just seems to get more shitty.
I was also thinking of possible names for the blog. Some possibilities:
Sorry, Fuckers!
The Public Gets What the Public Wants
Count Yer Blessings
If You Don't Like the Taste of Shit, Why Did You Choose to Eat the Shit?
You Stupid, Stupid Dipshits
Love It or Leave It!
So, what do you all think? Any other suggestions/preferences for a name? Comments on the general concept?
Happy Thanksgiving!
posted by Blicero : 11/23/2004 01:33:00 AMOhio Turkee
Oh, and give some turkee to the Recount Ohio effort. They're trying to raise $10,000 for their media campaign. They need $4,000 more, quickly. And they're practically begging for $20 donations. Can you give 'em a holiday hand?
posted by Blicero : 11/23/2004 01:09:00 AM
posted by Blicero : 11/23/2004 01:09:00 AMMonday, November 22, 2004
Draft Howard for DNC Chair
New is the new Old. In with it already.
See the petition here.
posted by Scats : 11/22/2004 11:15:00 PM
See the petition here.
posted by Scats : 11/22/2004 11:15:00 PMThe Doctor Responds
Heymann Bredt writes:
Unfortunately for the future of modern medicine, the idea--that people who advocate against the prerequisites to the continued existence of medicine (e.g. anti-stem cellers, PETA activists, creationists) should be deprived the contraindications of their philosophies--is against the Hippocratic oath.
And admittedly, this doctor in training is embarrassed about his temptation to deprive medical care to those who unknowingly campaign against it. It's just that modern medicine is now a philosophy under attack, and it's destined by lose--meaning quite literally that it will become a "thing of the past" if dollar-pursuit continues to dominate the wonderful traditions of freedom of press and speech (which it inevitably will).
In fact, all [help the weak even if they are not your self-image] philosophies are under attack, and all will necessarily lose the war in time because such thought systems cannot compete with force, fear and greed.
In short, the Enlightenment is most likely ending, but enlightenments come and go. The last hope for this one is that scientific progress in the programming of social behaviors will enable us (me) to eradicate conviction from the population-at-large.
The downside of this is that there will be no such thing as love, but religion, intolerance, and violence will be pre-empted.
I could go either way--love is a large price to pay--it's a reason to live. On the flip side, there's the temptation of being so comfortable that there's no reason to wonder 'why live' and I like the Lennonesque harmony in that. We'll have to see how this all unfolds.
I'm game either way.
posted by Blicero : 11/22/2004 03:40:00 PM
Unfortunately for the future of modern medicine, the idea--that people who advocate against the prerequisites to the continued existence of medicine (e.g. anti-stem cellers, PETA activists, creationists) should be deprived the contraindications of their philosophies--is against the Hippocratic oath.
And admittedly, this doctor in training is embarrassed about his temptation to deprive medical care to those who unknowingly campaign against it. It's just that modern medicine is now a philosophy under attack, and it's destined by lose--meaning quite literally that it will become a "thing of the past" if dollar-pursuit continues to dominate the wonderful traditions of freedom of press and speech (which it inevitably will).
In fact, all [help the weak even if they are not your self-image] philosophies are under attack, and all will necessarily lose the war in time because such thought systems cannot compete with force, fear and greed.
In short, the Enlightenment is most likely ending, but enlightenments come and go. The last hope for this one is that scientific progress in the programming of social behaviors will enable us (me) to eradicate conviction from the population-at-large.
The downside of this is that there will be no such thing as love, but religion, intolerance, and violence will be pre-empted.
I could go either way--love is a large price to pay--it's a reason to live. On the flip side, there's the temptation of being so comfortable that there's no reason to wonder 'why live' and I like the Lennonesque harmony in that. We'll have to see how this all unfolds.
I'm game either way.
posted by Blicero : 11/22/2004 03:40:00 PM"...that all men [except queers] are created equal."
This is a truly sick story. The Washington Post sold a special advertising supplement--presented as an edition of something called "Both Sides Magazine"--written by a bunch of fundie winguts (including Fred Dobson) and intended to stir up rabid homophobia among the city's black churchgoers.
Divide and conquer. Freedom is on the march.
posted by Blicero : 11/22/2004 03:52:00 AM
We ask ourselves, "Where were the water hoses, attack dogs and midnight rides to terrorize the marriage registrants in Massachusetts and San Francisco?"
Divide and conquer. Freedom is on the march.
posted by Blicero : 11/22/2004 03:52:00 AMThe Good Doctor
Hee-hee. "Dr." Ernie Fletcher, governor of the state-sized piece of dogshit known as Kentucky, is at risk of losing his medical license, because he participates in the form of State Murder euphemistically called capital punishment.
(The AMA, like Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), is clearly an enemy of Christ, who as we know demands blood sacrifice, and the more the better.)
Some responses to Fletcher's predicament:
On another medically-related note: a friend of mine who has a Ph.D. in neuroscience and who is currently completing his M.D., came up with a brilliant solution to our current health-care crisis. In short: the patient's world-view should be a determining factor in the treatment they receive when in hospital. Each patient could complete a short survey, including questions like:
Which is right, evolutionary theory or creation science?
Do you prefer faith-based, or science-based, medical treatment?
Is it actually the people's money or the government's money? (If it's the people's money, can I, um, see yours?)
Then the patient would receive treatment in strict accordance with his/her "values."
As Scats brilliantly summed it up over the weekend:
"Iron Lung: $10,000. Holy Bible: $10. The courage to stand by your convictions: priceless."
posted by Blicero : 11/22/2004 03:36:00 AM
The AMA guidelines forbid doctors to actively take part in an execution or to take any "action which would directly cause the death of the condemned" or "which would assist, supervise or contribute" to the death of the inmate.
(The AMA, like Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), is clearly an enemy of Christ, who as we know demands blood sacrifice, and the more the better.)
Some responses to Fletcher's predicament:
Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., worked as a heart surgeon before being elected to the Senate. Frist, who supports the death penalty, had no comment on Fletcher's decision.
State Rep. Jim Wayne, a Democrat, said of the governor: "It's curious he will keep his no-new-taxes pledge but will violate his Hippocratic oath. I'm not sure how he sleeps at night with this kind of decision."
On another medically-related note: a friend of mine who has a Ph.D. in neuroscience and who is currently completing his M.D., came up with a brilliant solution to our current health-care crisis. In short: the patient's world-view should be a determining factor in the treatment they receive when in hospital. Each patient could complete a short survey, including questions like:
Which is right, evolutionary theory or creation science?
Do you prefer faith-based, or science-based, medical treatment?
Is it actually the people's money or the government's money? (If it's the people's money, can I, um, see yours?)
Then the patient would receive treatment in strict accordance with his/her "values."
As Scats brilliantly summed it up over the weekend:
"Iron Lung: $10,000. Holy Bible: $10. The courage to stand by your convictions: priceless."
posted by Blicero : 11/22/2004 03:36:00 AM
