Principia Discordia

Principia Discordia => Aneristic Illusions => Topic started by: Cain on September 13, 2009, 03:10:36 PM

Title: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on September 13, 2009, 03:10:36 PM
To stop me from clogging up the Apple Talk thread with my spaggotry

QuoteProbably the weirdest thing about the Glenn Beck / Tea Party nexus to me is that it tends to rely so heavily on libertarian rhetoric and fear of incipient authoritarianism. These kind of sentiments would be a lot easier to take seriously if not for the fact that we didn't see these people marching out in the streets when George W. Bush used the threat of terrorism to justify secret, illegal warrantless surveillance, detention without trial, torture, etc. Indeed, the very same people who spend Monday, Wednesday, and Friday complaining that Barack Obama's "czars" are a threat to liberty not only weren't worried about czars in the Bush years, they spend Tuesday and Thursday worrying that Obama's not doing enough to ensure that intelligence operatives can break the law with impunity.

Jonah Goldberg, it seems to me, was the real pioneer in this brand of hypocrisy-driven hysteria—holding captives in secret where they're hung by shackles from the ceiling and occasionally beaten to death is fine by him, but efforts to curb smoking are "liberal fascism." And now this line of thinking seems to have completely taken over the right.

http://yglesias.thinkprogress.org/archives/2009/09/the-new-libertarians.php
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Sir Squid Diddimus on September 13, 2009, 06:11:43 PM
Wow.

Also- this thread is a good idea :thumb:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Elder Iptuous on September 13, 2009, 08:29:17 PM
Goddamn, ain't that the fuckin' truth?!
and it equally surprises me how many libertarian minded folks who did bitch and moan about the trampling of civil liberties under the GWB years are suckered by this clown (Beck) into thinking that he is really on 'our side' now, rather than just catering to sentiment for market share....
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on September 13, 2009, 08:55:59 PM
Its actually really easy to categorise Republican rhetoric, with the use of a flow chart.

Is the President a Democrat:

-> Yes -> Steal Libertarian rhetoric, ignore all contradictions arising from previous policy
-> No -> Use National Security State rhetoric, ignore all contradictions arising from previous rhetoric

I think its a victimhood thing.  The need to be a victim runs strong in the GOP, probably due to the religious influence (Christians shrieking endlessly about how the other 20% are oppressing them), so when out of power, they have to present themselves as mavericky little rebels, fighting against The Man.

Also

QuoteI've been thinking this through, and I've come to the the amazing realisation that Al-Qaeda are working on the Father Ted model - one schemer, one blubbery drunk and one ignoramus. Obviously, the schemer does the plotting, the drunk builds the bombs that don't go off and the idiot is in charge of fucking everything up beyond belief so that the lot of them spend the next two decades fantasising about virgins in a prison cell.

I can just see scheming one explaining to the idiot how these painted harlots are small, but the ones at Tiger Tiger are far away, while the drunk sits in the corner shouting Arse! Vorgins! Cretinous plans for mass morder! at the television.

That would leave obliterated Pakistan-dweller Rashid Rauf as some kind of beardy Bishop Brennan, forever sweeping into the room roaring and demanding to know why everybody is watching Hollyoaks instead of martyring themselves. Come on, schemer Ted will say, I know we're supposed to love death more than life, but while Rauf shoots them a blazing, disapproving eye**.

Anybody got a number for MI5? I think I'm onto something here...

http://flyingrodent.blogspot.com/2009/09/this-weeks-faces-of-evil.html
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Halfbaked1 on September 15, 2009, 01:05:38 AM
I hated Bush, I don't trust Obama.  I feel that both sides play the victim card when they are on the down side of things so that they get the pity points needed for people to listen to them about how wrong the other side is.  Please note, neither side wants to talk about where they could be wrong, just the other guys.  This is the Machine boys and squirrels, they hold up a piece of kibble for the sheep to cluster to while they bugger their fluffy asses from behind.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Golden Applesauce on September 15, 2009, 06:02:38 AM
Quote from: Cain on September 13, 2009, 08:55:59 PM
Its actually really easy to categorise Republican rhetoric, with the use of a flow chart.

Is the President a Democrat:

-> Yes -> Steal Libertarian rhetoric, ignore all contradictions arising from previous policy
-> No -> Use National Security State rhetoric, ignore all contradictions arising from previous rhetoric

I think you can generalize this to most political group's relationship with governmental power.  If government is doing something they don't like, expect lots of "Don't tread on me!" and similar comments - by the same people who championed broader powers as long as they were for some other cause.  Mainstream Democrats here have mostly shut up about domestic spying and secret prisons now that their guy is running them.  The same people who want states to be able to decide abortion and drug issues on their own would gladly insist that the federal government should handle that matter if only the Feds agreed with them.  "States Rights" has nothing to do with the relationship between federal and state governments and everything to do wanting your state to agree with you on a matter you can't convince the rest of the country.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on September 15, 2009, 01:36:28 PM
MOST Dems...except Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert and Bill Maher.  Bill Maher laid into the Democrats something awful (as in:  brilliantly!) this past Friday night.  It was a treasure trove of "here's your lail, you rat bastards!" and he's been on that kick since Obama was elected and came to office.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on September 15, 2009, 03:01:34 PM
Yeah, I have to agree more with Jenne here.  Maybe its because the people I read who are mostly on the progressive wing of the Democrats, but they're not happy at all with Obama over the wiretapping business, bailouts or war in Afghanistan, for example. 

That said, the Blue Dog democrats and their press supporters do cheer these things on, but they also cheered them on when they were out of power.  The New Republic and Joe Klein being prime offenders, though there are others.  Jay Rockerfeller was on board with the wiretapping, Zell Miller was getting a hardon over militarization and Hillary Clinton was all up for bombing the shit out of Iran.

So the way I see it, the progressives are mostly still where they were in 2000-2008, and so are the centrist Democrats.

Anyway, a quote for you:

Quote"The United States is also a one-party state," Julius Nyerere, the first president of Tanzania, once observed in defending his own  one-party system. "But with typical American extravagance, they have two of them."
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on September 15, 2009, 03:52:35 PM
I totally agree, Cain.

Also:

QuoteThe Web site StopSunstein.com catalogues statements by Obama's "radical anti-hunting, anti-gun, animal rights law professor." Many attendees at Saturday's 9/12 protest in Washington echoed Beck's concerns. "He thinks rats should have the right to an attorney, to sue humans," said Davy Reeves of Kalamzaoo, Mich. "Rats have no right to live in my house."

From here (http://www.slate.com/id/2228259/).
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Requia ☣ on September 15, 2009, 04:28:39 PM
I cannot imagine a less intimidating figure than Cass Sunstein.  How paranoid do you need to be to want the man stopped?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: AFK on September 15, 2009, 05:40:45 PM
There was some idiot on Hannity's radio show, a few days ago, that actually suggested Cass Sustein would eventually make it a crime to eat meat.  Even if he philosophically thought it was a crime, does anyone in their right mind think he is stupid enough to try to push such a policy through?  OR, that anyone in the Obama administration would be stupid enough to agree to push such a policy through. 
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on September 15, 2009, 07:36:26 PM
The idea that Cass Sustein is any sort of radical is deeply misguided.

His most well known idea is, IIRC, "paternal libertarianism".  Oh gee, I wish I could've thought of an idea like "provide financial incentives for people to do good stuff."  Oh wait, we already do that, its called a "tax system".  FFS.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Iason Ouabache on September 15, 2009, 10:25:20 PM
Quote from: Rev. What's-His-Name? on September 15, 2009, 05:40:45 PM
There was some idiot on Hannity's radio show, a few days ago, that actually suggested Cass Sustein would eventually make it a crime to eat meat.  Even if he philosophically thought it was a crime, does anyone in their right mind think he is stupid enough to try to push such a policy through?  OR, that anyone in the Obama administration would be stupid enough to agree to push such a policy through. 
WTF? He's the head of Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. He couldn't do that even if he wanted to.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Halfbaked1 on September 16, 2009, 01:51:25 AM
Quote from: Iason Ouabache on September 15, 2009, 10:25:20 PM
Quote from: Rev. What's-His-Name? on September 15, 2009, 05:40:45 PM
There was some idiot on Hannity's radio show, a few days ago, that actually suggested Cass Sustein would eventually make it a crime to eat meat.  Even if he philosophically thought it was a crime, does anyone in their right mind think he is stupid enough to try to push such a policy through?  OR, that anyone in the Obama administration would be stupid enough to agree to push such a policy through. 
WTF? He's the head of Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. He couldn't do that even if he wanted to.

Truth is irrelevant to the telling of the story man.  The monkeys applaud and that makes it all okay...NOT.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: AFK on September 16, 2009, 02:50:37 AM
Quote from: Iason Ouabache on September 15, 2009, 10:25:20 PM
Quote from: Rev. What's-His-Name? on September 15, 2009, 05:40:45 PM
There was some idiot on Hannity's radio show, a few days ago, that actually suggested Cass Sustein would eventually make it a crime to eat meat.  Even if he philosophically thought it was a crime, does anyone in their right mind think he is stupid enough to try to push such a policy through?  OR, that anyone in the Obama administration would be stupid enough to agree to push such a policy through. 
WTF? He's the head of Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. He couldn't do that even if he wanted to.

Yeah, but somehow he has super secret executive powers to influence the FDA.  I did say it was Hannity's show, right? 
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on September 16, 2009, 06:25:53 AM
Quote from: Jenne on September 15, 2009, 01:36:28 PM
MOST Dems...except Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert and Bill Maher.  Bill Maher laid into the Democrats something awful (as in:  brilliantly!) this past Friday night.  It was a treasure trove of "here's your lail, you rat bastards!" and he's been on that kick since Obama was elected and came to office.

I don't think Maher is a Democrat though, is he?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on September 16, 2009, 03:33:26 PM
Quote from: Nigel on September 16, 2009, 06:25:53 AM
Quote from: Jenne on September 15, 2009, 01:36:28 PM
MOST Dems...except Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert and Bill Maher.  Bill Maher laid into the Democrats something awful (as in:  brilliantly!) this past Friday night.  It was a treasure trove of "here's your lail, you rat bastards!" and he's been on that kick since Obama was elected and came to office.

I don't think Maher is a Democrat though, is he?

Used to be--but he's been pulling away in a big way due to the Iraqi war and their generaly wussiness.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Bebek Sincap Ratatosk on September 16, 2009, 03:40:36 PM
 :lulz:

MEAT IS MURDER!

No seriously, you get 20 to life for Chicken Soup!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on September 16, 2009, 04:20:43 PM
(http://www.toothpastefordinner.com/091409/vegetarian-conspiracy-theories.gif)
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on September 16, 2009, 09:52:24 PM
From Jim Newell at Wonkette

QuoteThe term "war room," which was once used to describe actual rooms from which powerful people went about warring, has now been watered down to the point where it just refers to some 9-year-old intern in an undisclosed Washington dungeon linking to articles about Bob Corker, on Twitter. This is the macho macho new Senate Democrats' War Room! Look at how buff 'n' tuff they are, the Senate Democrats. Ha ha, nice try. An accurate "Senate Democrats' Twitter Page" would feature a picture of an exasperated Ben Nelson and only one message, "Whoa whoa whoa, let's slow things down and think this through," reposted every hour on the hour.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on September 17, 2009, 03:08:28 AM
Quote from: Jenne on September 16, 2009, 03:33:26 PM
Quote from: Nigel on September 16, 2009, 06:25:53 AM
Quote from: Jenne on September 15, 2009, 01:36:28 PM
MOST Dems...except Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert and Bill Maher.  Bill Maher laid into the Democrats something awful (as in:  brilliantly!) this past Friday night.  It was a treasure trove of "here's your lail, you rat bastards!" and he's been on that kick since Obama was elected and came to office.

I don't think Maher is a Democrat though, is he?

Used to be--but he's been pulling away in a big way due to the Iraqi war and their generaly wussiness.

I thought I remembered him being a libertarian in the 90's. Not the shitty kind, though... more of the liberal idealist type which is more or less extinct now.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on September 17, 2009, 05:41:47 AM
Yeah, he's stated on his show multiple times he's more of a Democrat "sympathizer" or something to that effect.  His libertarian leanings tend to be more on the side of pot decriminalization, but he's definitely for public welfare, etc.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on September 18, 2009, 06:02:18 PM
Martin: Hey dude, did you happen to be watching Sky News about an hour ago?
Me: No, why?
Martin: they had footage of someone playing DEFCON during a report on the US's Central Europe missile shield.
Me: WTF?
Martin: yeah, I know, both slightly inappropriate and yet rather awesome. Oh, Sky News, you suck so hard.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on September 26, 2009, 03:50:34 PM
QuoteWhen someone publishes an op-ed, longer essay, or book, they have to write a tagline.  It's usually two sentences describing their title and affiliation, and whatever big projects are associated with them. 

After watching the preview for The Invention of Lying, however, I began to wonder what these tag lines would look like if they were brutally honest.  With a nod to Megan Mcardle's "Full Disclosure" post from a few years ago, here's fifteen examples I came up with: 

- Jack Silver is a fellow at the Institute for Strategic Studies.  He has been Henry Kissinger's bitch for something like three decades, so when Henry passed on writing something for us, he was the next logical choice.     


- Suzie Wong has never been to the country about which she is writing.  What's in this op-ed is culled from a quick perusal of the Economist and a few phone calls.     


- Cass Bunstein is a law professor.  He dashed off this essay in his head while commute to work this morning, wrote it in under thirty minutes, and it's still smarter than anything, my dear reader, that will ever pop into your brain. 


- Augustine Cornington has been teaching at an obscure state school for two decades, lying in the tall grass, waiting for her archnemesis to make a mistake in print.  This book review is her chance to completely eviscerate him. 


- Joe Schlub Jr. is a law professor.  This essay is a badly mangled version of an interesting idea he heard Cass Bunstein riff on at a cocktail party last week. 


- Andrew McClutchen is a former governor.  He hopes that this op-ed is the first step in getting beyond that horrible sex scandal from a few years ago. 


- Madeleine McFadden is a former cabinet secretary, and did not write a single word of this policy essay.  It is possible she read the first few paragraphs of it, but that's being really optimistic.


- Jane Babbington has no extraordinary policy expertise.  She does have an awesome book jacket photo, however, and will have better hair and skin than you do until the day she dies.   


- Lou Marston is a very smart professor at Princeton University.  This op-ed is woefully underplaced because he took his own sweet time writing it, and this issue is from last week's news cycle.   


- Robert Knaus lost the capacity to write long-form essays years ago - what you just read is what an intern scraped together from one year's worth of Twitter tweets. 


- Ann Stoneham is the foremost expert on this topic, and cannot write her way out of a paper bag.  Her uber-competent editor busted her ass for the last 48 hours to try and convert this essay into semi-readable prose


- Gwen Pollard is an area expert at a prominent DC think tank.  She fervently hopes that everyone has forgotten how completely wrong she was about this topic just five short years ago.


- C. Thomas Pope is a professor at the University of Chicago, and his worldview hardened into an inpenetrable black mass the day he turned twenty-four.  As no amount of contradictory evidence will cause him to change his mind, he is perfectly willing to make absurd, idiotic statements without worrying that he is wrong. 


- Richard Jensen is a professor at Harvard University.  He has the Mother of All Balloon Payments due on his mortgage next year, so any extra income helps. 

And, of course.....

- Daniel Drezner is a professor at Tufts University, and is publishing the fifth version of exact same idea with this essay.  Seriously, the man would be nothing without the cut and paste function.

http://drezner.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2009/09/25/what_if_author_bios_were_brutally_honest
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on September 28, 2009, 04:51:35 AM
DAY-YUM.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Remington on September 29, 2009, 08:54:09 PM
PEPSI CEASES ALL ADVERTISING

http://www.theonion.com/content/news/pepsi_to_cease_advertising?utm_source=a-section (http://www.theonion.com/content/news/pepsi_to_cease_advertising?utm_source=a-section)



Quote"Look, Coca-Cola is a terrific product," Nooyi continued. "Millions of people choose it over Pepsi every day. Are those people wrong? Of course not. Concepts like 'right' and 'wrong' shouldn't even apply. It's a soft drink."

Nooyi told reporters the company's $1.3 billion annual advertising budget would be put into Pepsi's savings account, spread among various charitable organizations, and divvied up into generous bonuses for the company's minimum-wage factory employees.

Claiming that "taste is subjective," Nooyi further stated that those who hadn't already heard of Pepsi were unlikely to begin drinking it now, and that the company was perfectly content to rely on word of mouth to sell its product.

"You can't taste an ad, anyway," Nooyi said. "People are going to make up their own minds regardless of whether we spend millions trying to inform them that Taylor Swift drinks Pepsi. I mean, seriously, does it really matter if Taylor Swift drinks Pepsi? She's just a human being like everybody else."
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Iason Ouabache on October 03, 2009, 05:02:29 PM
http://scienceblogs.com/dispatches/2009/10/greatest_press_release_ever.php

Quote"Vitter Seeks Investigation of ACORN for Assisting Fake Prostitution Ring. CREW Seeks Investigation of Vitter for Role in Real Prostitution Ring."
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on October 05, 2009, 03:48:39 PM
Andrew Exum wins for all enternity at Israeli passport control:

QuoteHer: Have you ever been to Iraq?

Me: Yes.

Her: What were you doing there?

Me: Overthrowing the government.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on October 05, 2009, 03:49:26 PM
:mittens:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: La Terrorista on October 07, 2009, 04:48:43 AM
Quote from: Iason Ouabache on September 15, 2009, 10:25:20 PM
Quote from: Rev. What's-His-Name? on September 15, 2009, 05:40:45 PM
There was some idiot on Hannity's radio show, a few days ago, that actually suggested Cass Sustein would eventually make it a crime to eat meat.  Even if he philosophically thought it was a crime, does anyone in their right mind think he is stupid enough to try to push such a policy through?  OR, that anyone in the Obama administration would be stupid enough to agree to push such a policy through. 
WTF? He's the head of Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. He couldn't do that even if he wanted to.
I wonder if they realize THEY'RE the only ones who actually take him seriously?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on October 07, 2009, 10:10:47 AM
Two quotes today.

One, in praise of conservatism Chinese Communism:

Quote[These days,] people who build their family fortune without a background or a patron are numerous, those who rely on their hard work to buy cars and houses are also many. So what injustice and corruption are you talking about? If you aren't taking care of yourself, how can you complain about others? Society has provided enough opportunity and space for everyone, if you are capable you can [succeed]! If you haven't been able [to succeed], it's because you're incapable, it's that simple!

[...]

Common people's patriotism can't always be on a large scale, but at least don't complain, oppose, or betray. Tolerate more, support more, understand more, dependably take care of your own issues, this is the greatest kind of patriotism...

http://sun-zoo.com/chinageeks/2009/10/02/a-little-reflection-on-patriotism/

And one on the Lisbon Treaty, and the hilarious reactions it has promoted

QuoteImagine for a moment that the EU is some faceless provider of goods and services which you find yourself signed up to. One day it delivers this thing called the Lisbon treaty. It's a great big ugly thing you never asked for and it seems to serve no useful purpose. It just sits there like this big lump. There, say the faceless providers of goods and services, take this thing. It's yours. It's what you signed up for. It's all part of the service.

Anyway, I don't want this thing sitting in the front garden and I'd rather have it taken away or just vanish or something. But then the neighbour comes round. See that thing he says. It's a thing of horror, an alien thing. It's a doomsday machine. It's signalling to the aliens and poisoning your thoughts. It's the death of love and the end of history and the shriveling of hope and the tears of little children. We should live together, you and I, in pure communion... without this thing. And then he wanders off weeping and cursing, before sitting in the street and throwing dust over his head.

So I look at this thing and think, well maybe it's not so bad after all when you consider the likely alternatives.

http://bloodandtreasure.typepad.com/blood_treasure/2009/10/the-thing-is.html
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on October 14, 2009, 03:41:05 PM
hxxp://tabloid-watch.blogspot.com/2009/09/littlejohn-doesnt-do-research-shock.html

The whole article was great, but this in particular stood out:

Quotein his curious rant about John Prescott and climate change he [Richard Littlejohn] includes the admission:

QuoteI've no idea what a rapporteur does

Well Google it and the first result will give you a definition Richard.

Of course, it's almost impossible to believe he doesn't know what a rapporteur is (although it is one of those dirty foreign words that come over here and take the meanings of indigenous British words) but he just wants to say that to pretend someone has got a meaningless, do-gooding job that Guardian readers do.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: The Good Reverend Roger on October 14, 2009, 03:48:17 PM
What is this Lisbon Treaty, anyway?  We ignorant colonials don't get much news from outside our nation, these days.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on October 14, 2009, 04:01:46 PM
Basically it makes the EU a bit more like a real country, and a bit less useless.  Its designed to replace all the years of trade agreements and treaties into one single document, and add some powers to things like the European Parliament and the Presidency, and give it a foreign minister.

In actuality, I doubt much will change.  However, watching the Tories lose their minds over it has been amusing.  The Tories secretly like the EU, because, well, its a free trade organisation which benefits their backers and they approve of that.  But they are also willing to use nationalist sentiment against the EU to gain support for their party, and then when in power, wring their hands about how "there is no clearly defined process for leaving, so we will have to stay in for now".

Only, the treaty has provisions for how countries can easily and freely leave the EU, so the Tories are on a mad dash around Europe to try and stop other nations voting for it.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: The Good Reverend Roger on October 14, 2009, 04:02:47 PM
Quote from: Cain on October 14, 2009, 04:01:46 PM
Basically it makes the EU a bit more like a real country, and a bit less useless.  Its designed to replace all the years of trade agreements and treaties into one single document, and add some powers to things like the European Parliament and the Presidency, and give it a foreign minister.

In actuality, I doubt much will change.  However, watching the Tories lose their minds over it has been amusing.  The Tories secretly like the EU, because, well, its a free trade organisation which benefits their backers and they approve of that.  But they are also willing to use nationalist sentiment against the EU to gain support for their party, and then when in power, wring their hands about how "there is no clearly defined process for leaving, so we will have to stay in for now".

Only, the treaty has provisions for how countries can easily and freely leave the EU, so the Tories are on a mad dash around Europe to try and stop other nations voting for it.

So, it's like our original Articles of Confederation?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on October 14, 2009, 04:12:02 PM
Not even that strong, I think.  But in terms of impact it could be, I wouldn't be surprised if the Lisbon Treaty formed the basis for a far more united Europe at some point in the future.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: The Good Reverend Roger on October 14, 2009, 04:23:36 PM
Quote from: Cain on October 14, 2009, 04:12:02 PM
Not even that strong, I think.  But in terms of impact it could be, I wouldn't be surprised if the Lisbon Treaty formed the basis for a far more united Europe at some point in the future.

Gonna have to get the French and Germans to play nice.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on October 15, 2009, 04:16:47 PM
That's easy, just show them a way to shaft the British.

Also, apparently not theo-homo-erotica but a serious piece of political writing, from Pastor J Swank

QuoteNo wonder the devil's Islam threatens the Holy Land. Just as the devil has always salivated to take the throne of God in heaven, the devil seeks to rule from God's Holy Land.

Therefore, Iran's rule screeches out threats against Israel, Satan actually being the voice thrusting forth from Iran's throat.

Demons don't stand a chance. God is God. God tops demons.

God totally tops Iranian voice thrusting demons. 

http://truthinconviction.us/weblog.php?id=P3217
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on October 15, 2009, 04:19:05 PM
Once again, they're doing it wrong.


You thrust into the throat, not from it.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Iason Ouabache on November 01, 2009, 04:00:23 AM
http://rebirthofreason.com/Articles/Landauer/The_Scourge_of_Public_Libraries.shtml

QuoteLibraries are a nice "end." I think libraries are great. But ends cannot be divorced from means. And the means of any public library is tax dollars -- dollars that were extorted under the principle of "Your money or your life." Pay your tax or go to jail. Nothing about them is free. Understand that while the driving force of the private sector is the creation of value, the driving force of libraries is the destruction of value. People are forced, if not at the point of a gun, then at the threat of the point of the gun, to pay for libraries whether or not they want to. And the difference between what they wanted to buy with their money and the library that they are forcibly stuck with is a destruction of value. Not only that, but the difference between the excellent private libraries that would probably exist if the market weren't flooded by inferior government libraries is a further loss of value.

Public libraries, as institutions that destroy value, destroy in some small way our ability to live our lives to the fullest. They represent houses of death and should be spat upon and cursed in the most creative language possible.

Public libraries are a scourge because they masquerade as a benevolent government program, a program that seemingly only the most extreme radical could oppose. Educate the public. Provide "free" books, movies, CDs, and Internet connections to anyone who wants or needs them. Provide reference material and disseminate knowledge to the public. Combat illiteracy. In short, public libraries supposedly better society and make the world a nicer place for everyone. And if public libraries are so great, then why not a public "this" or public "that," by extension?

:horrormirth: I think he's actually serious too!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Requia ☣ on November 01, 2009, 06:43:28 AM
If they take my libraries from me there will be blood.  :argh!:

*Not actually any better than the TV addicts, just prefers different pills.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Kai on November 01, 2009, 12:42:24 PM
Quote from: Iason Ouabache on November 01, 2009, 04:00:23 AM
http://rebirthofreason.com/Articles/Landauer/The_Scourge_of_Public_Libraries.shtml

QuoteLibraries are a nice "end." I think libraries are great. But ends cannot be divorced from means. And the means of any public library is tax dollars -- dollars that were extorted under the principle of "Your money or your life." Pay your tax or go to jail. Nothing about them is free. Understand that while the driving force of the private sector is the creation of value, the driving force of libraries is the destruction of value. People are forced, if not at the point of a gun, then at the threat of the point of the gun, to pay for libraries whether or not they want to. And the difference between what they wanted to buy with their money and the library that they are forcibly stuck with is a destruction of value. Not only that, but the difference between the excellent private libraries that would probably exist if the market weren't flooded by inferior government libraries is a further loss of value.

Public libraries, as institutions that destroy value, destroy in some small way our ability to live our lives to the fullest. They represent houses of death and should be spat upon and cursed in the most creative language possible.

Public libraries are a scourge because they masquerade as a benevolent government program, a program that seemingly only the most extreme radical could oppose. Educate the public. Provide "free" books, movies, CDs, and Internet connections to anyone who wants or needs them. Provide reference material and disseminate knowledge to the public. Combat illiteracy. In short, public libraries supposedly better society and make the world a nicer place for everyone. And if public libraries are so great, then why not a public "this" or public "that," by extension?

:horrormirth: I think he's actually serious too!

What a fucking IDIOT.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Precious Moments Zalgo on November 01, 2009, 01:56:21 PM
Quote from: Iason Ouabache on November 01, 2009, 04:00:23 AM:horrormirth: I think he's actually serious too!
You could replace "public libraries" in that rant with anything else the government provides, including police and fire protection, and it wouldn't change the argument.

I read the whole thing.  The comments are pretty nutty too.  (emphasis in original)
QuoteSocialised education and socialised libraries have prevented the market from delivering innovative mechanisms to provide all people -- from the most disadvantaged to the most affluent -- with quality education and information. Market-driven education and libraries would enrich learners both materially (by providing relevant and marketable knowledge and skills) and spiritually (by spreading the life-affirming values that are intimately connected with the quest for knowledge).
What incentive does "the market" have to provide quality education to people without the means to pay for it?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on November 01, 2009, 02:05:09 PM
Oh, there are benefits to having a somewhat educated workforce for any company...exactly the quality of that education and how stratified it may be between the worker/managerial level and across different sectors is certainly questionable though (for example, a "well-rounded" education would probably be dismissed in favour of more employment-needs based one).  No doubt they'd want some form of reimbursement, whether through a contract to work with them for a specified period or tuition fees, so your point still stands.

Unsurprisingly, Landauer ran as a Libertarian Party candidate in California (in 2002) and lost quite badly, securing about 3% of the vote.  Probably because the voters of California had more pressing issues than whether or not Government Storm Troopers were Stealing Their Money to build Evil Communist Value Destroying Libraries.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on November 03, 2009, 09:53:31 AM
Quote from: Who Is IOZ?According to Thomas Friedman, President Obama has a narrative problem. I completely disagree. I think he has a characterization problem. No, a world-building problem. No, a continuity error problem. A dialogue problem? No, a description problem. A gameplay problem? A user interface problem? A design problem? I think there is a script on his page that is causing errors on this page. I think that a misprint on the RSVP page accidentally listed the event as the Tuesday after when it actually occurs. I think those black shoes clash with that navy suit.

Amusingly posted with the tag "metafiction will save democracy"
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Kai on November 03, 2009, 12:39:11 PM
Quote from: Cain on November 03, 2009, 09:53:31 AM
Quote from: Who Is IOZ?According to Thomas Friedman, President Obama has a narrative problem. I completely disagree. I think he has a characterization problem. No, a world-building problem. No, a continuity error problem. A dialogue problem? No, a description problem. A gameplay problem? A user interface problem? A design problem? I think there is a script on his page that is causing errors on this page. I think that a misprint on the RSVP page accidentally listed the event as the Tuesday after when it actually occurs. I think those black shoes clash with that navy suit.

Amusingly posted with the tag "metafiction will save democracy"

:lulz: Yeah, I liked that one.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on November 06, 2009, 08:46:36 AM
I've been reading Doug Feith's book.  Why?  Because I wanted to see what "the stupidest fucking guy on the planet (http://www.nndb.com/people/100/000047956/)" had written in defense of himself.  Plus his utter sociopathy and disregard for his own actions is kind of amazing.  For example:

QuoteWhite House officials understandably preferred to declare affirmative messages about Iraq's future, rather than rehash the government's intelligence embarrassments. Even so, I thought it was a strategic error for the president to make no effort to defend the arguments that had motivated him before the war.

Shorter Doug Feith: "if only Bush had stuck to my lies about WMD and terrorists, instead talking about all this democracy crap, no-one would be protesting the war."  Seriously, this guy is a moron.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on November 11, 2009, 10:45:03 AM
The Guardian and Times Literary Supplement writer, Steven Poole, on Melanie Phillips:

Quote'Tis the season of goodwill and cheer to all — except, of course, to frothing hate-puppet "Melanie Phillips". In a devastating recent post, "she" demonstrates the evils of "human rights culture", on the grounds that:

Quote1) The 'rights' that that it claims are universal are nothing of the kind. Because they are balanced by competing rights they are highly contingent on the whims and prejudices of individual judges to decide which of them comes out on top.

The post is about Britain's Human Rights Act, which makes the European Convention on Human Rights British law. So which rights in ECHR are, as "Melanie" says, "balanced by competing rights"? Let's see. The rights announced by ECHR include:

   1. A right to life — this is, of course, balanced by my right to kill people.
   2. A right not to be tortured or subjected to inhuman or degrading treatment — this one is balanced by the right of "Melanie Phillips" to continue writing "her" columns, even though they inflict inhuman and degrading treatment on their readers.
   3. A right not to be subject to slavery or forced labour — balanced by the right of "Melanie Phillips" to exist only as a fictionsuit entirely under the control of a mad satirist.
   4. A right to liberty and security of person — balanced by the government's right to lock people up without trial and export them to foreign countries for torture.
   5. A right to a fair trial (see above).
   6. A right not to be punished for an act that was not a criminal offence at the time it was committed — perhaps this one is also "balanced" by the right to punish someone for an act that was never committed at all (see 4).

It's an open-and-shut-case so far, isn't it, readers? Only an idiot would think that a right not to be tortured or arbitrarily killed can possibly be called "universal", ie applying in all circumstances.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Iason Ouabache on November 17, 2009, 04:44:21 PM
Matt Staver of Liberty Counsel accidentally said: the case is typical of the ACLU in that "anything that is anti-moral, anti-religious liberty, and anti-freedom, you can always find them on the other side." So Staver agrees that the ACLU is pro-moral, pro-religious liberty and pro-freedom. Thanks, Matt!

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Culture/Default.aspx?id=765588
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on November 21, 2009, 12:43:29 PM
Matt Taibbi

http://trueslant.com/matttaibbi/2009/11/20/sarah-palin-wwe-star/

QuoteAt the end of this decade what we call "politics" has devolved into a kind of ongoing, brainless soap opera about dueling cultural resentments and the really cool thing about it, if you're a TV news producer or a talk radio host, is that you can build the next day's news cycle meme around pretty much anything at all, no matter how irrelevant — like who's wearing a flag lapel pin and who isn't, who spent $150K worth of campaign funds on clothes and who didn't, who wore a t-shirt calling someone a cunt and who didn't, and who put a picture of a former Vice Presidential candidate in jogging shorts on his magazine cover (and who didn't).

It doesn't matter what the argument is about; what's important is that once the argument starts, the two sides will automatically coalesce around the various instant-cocoa talking points and scream at each other until they're blue in the face, or until the next argument starts
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on November 24, 2009, 11:09:33 AM
Matt Taibbi, again, explaining how the media works, in the form of haiku, to Teabagger morons:

QuoteJournos are pussies
Only attack when it's safe
Lay off entrenched pols

In fact, the whole thing is worth reading for such wonderful sentences as:

QuoteWhat the people who are flipping out about the treatment of Palin should be asking themselves is what it means when it's not just jerks like us but everybody piling on against Palin. For those of you who can't connect the dots, I'll tell you what it means. It means she's been cut loose. It means that all five of the families have given the okay to this hit job, including even the mainstream Republican leaders. You teabaggers are in the process of being marginalized by your own ostensible party leaders in exactly the same way the anti-war crowd was abandoned by the Democratic party elders in the earlier part of this decade. Like the antiwar left, you have been deemed a threat to your own party's "winnability."

And do you know what that means? That means that just as the antiwar crowd spent years being painted by the national press as weepy, unpatriotic pussies whose enthusiastic support is toxic to any serious presidential aspirant, so too will all of you afternoon-radio ignoramuses who seem bent on spending the next three years kicking and screaming your way up the eternal asshole of white resentment now find yourself and your political champions painted as knee-jerk loonies whose rabid irrationality is undeserving of the political center. And yes, that's me saying that, but I've always been saying that, not just about Palin but about George Bush and all your other moron-heroes.

What's different now is who else is saying it. You had these people eating out of the palms of your hands (remember what it was like in the Dixie Chicks days?). Now they're all drawing horns and Groucho mustaches on your heroes, and rapidly transitioning you from your previous political kingmaking role in the real world to a new role as a giant captive entertainment demographic that exists solely to be manipulated for ratings and ad revenue. What you should be asking yourself is why this is happening to you. Even I don't know the answer to that question, but honestly, I don't really care. All I know is that I find it extremely funny.

http://trueslant.com/matttaibbi/2009/11/23/yes-sarah-there-is-a-media-conspiracy/
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on November 24, 2009, 01:02:37 PM
I think I'm falling in love with Matt Tabbi.

There was some pundit on NPR yesterday who predicted Obama would be fucked in 2012 because he's pissed off both the wingnuts and the moonbats, and we might see an amazing mix of the marginalized joining together to oust him.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: The Good Reverend Roger on November 24, 2009, 02:11:41 PM
Quote from: LMNO on November 24, 2009, 01:02:37 PM
I think I'm falling in love with Matt Tabbi.

There was some pundit on NPR yesterday who predicted Obama would be fucked in 2012 because he's pissed off both the wingnuts and the moonbats, and we might see an amazing mix of the marginalized joining together to oust him.

Mr Tabbi is shaping up quite nicely for the crown of Gonzo journalism.

And what's happening to Obama is the same thing that happens to everyone who tries to please everybody.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Iason Ouabache on November 24, 2009, 05:56:00 PM
Quote from: LMNO on November 24, 2009, 01:02:37 PM
There was some pundit on NPR yesterday who predicted Obama would be fucked in 2012 because he's pissed off both the wingnuts and the moonbats, and we might see an amazing mix of the marginalized joining together to oust him.
Not gonna happen. The Republicans have moved too far to the right and are actively kicking out anyone with half a brain. They've alienated every single moderate and don't have any star power left. Huckabee, Romney and Palin aren't going to win in an election against Obama.

And seriously, who are the Moonbats going to vote for instead of Obama? Nader??? They talk a big game but they'll fall in line when the time comes.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: The Good Reverend Roger on November 24, 2009, 06:04:31 PM
Quote from: Iason Ouabache on November 24, 2009, 05:56:00 PM
Quote from: LMNO on November 24, 2009, 01:02:37 PM
There was some pundit on NPR yesterday who predicted Obama would be fucked in 2012 because he's pissed off both the wingnuts and the moonbats, and we might see an amazing mix of the marginalized joining together to oust him.
Not gonna happen. The Republicans have moved too far to the right and are actively kicking out anyone with half a brain. They've alienated every single moderate and don't have any star power left. Huckabee, Romney and Palin aren't going to win in an election against Obama.

And seriously, who are the Moonbats going to vote for instead of Obama? Nader??? They talk a big game but they'll fall in line when the time comes.

They are now instituting a "purity pledge", which anyone who wants election funding will have to take.

:lol:

I'll post a link tonight.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on November 24, 2009, 06:11:43 PM
The problem will more likely come in 2016*, by which time the GOP will...well, probably have still purged everyone, since the Movement is now master, but will likely have better narrative and media presence, and maybe even a couple of rising stars, at the same time everyone will be tired of Obama's shit and the Democratic Congress basically signing off on every law designed to run the country into the ground.

That is where thing's get interesting, once the Democrats manage to de-legitimize themselves.  Will people turn back to the GOP then?  It's a possibility that can't be ruled out.  Third parties will likely gain something, but the idea that the ONLY VALID CHOICES EVAR are the GOP or Dems are so hardwired into the media and current political landscape the only people I can see benefitting from a Democratic collapse would be the Republicans.

*Or wont, because the earth blows up
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: The Good Reverend Roger on November 24, 2009, 06:17:13 PM
Quote from: Cain on November 24, 2009, 06:11:43 PM
The problem will more likely come in 2016*, by which time the GOP will...well, probably have still purged everyone, since the Movement is now master, but will likely have better narrative and media presence, and maybe even a couple of rising stars, at the same time everyone will be tired of Obama's shit and the Democratic Congress basically signing off on every law designed to run the country into the ground.

That is where thing's get interesting, once the Democrats manage to de-legitimize themselves.  Will people turn back to the GOP then?  It's a possibility that can't be ruled out.  Third parties will likely gain something, but the idea that the ONLY VALID CHOICES EVAR are the GOP or Dems are so hardwired into the media and current political landscape the only people I can see benefitting from a Democratic collapse would be the Republicans.

*Or wont, because the earth blows up

Duverger's Law.  No exceptions.  Ask Pat Robertson and Ralph Nader about that.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on November 24, 2009, 06:22:09 PM
Hurrah for first past the post!

But yeah.  Basically, once the Democrats fuck up bad (and they will, in fact, they already have, but you know and I know and Matt Taibbi knows the media isn't very smart, and also only attacks when it can sense weakness) then BAM! Teabaggers will be deciding whether to negotiate with Iran or drop tac-nukes on it.

Hurrah!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: The Good Reverend Roger on November 24, 2009, 06:38:35 PM
Quote from: Cain on November 24, 2009, 06:22:09 PM
Hurrah for first past the post!

But yeah.  Basically, once the Democrats fuck up bad (and they will, in fact, they already have, but you know and I know and Matt Taibbi knows the media isn't very smart, and also only attacks when it can sense weakness) then BAM! Teabaggers will be deciding whether to negotiate with Iran or drop tac-nukes on it.

Hurrah!

I think I'm gonna love the next decade even more than this one.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on December 13, 2009, 06:10:45 PM
QuoteI can't keep track of how many books Cass Sunstein has written. Fortunately, they all follow the same format: trendy poindexter sociology, partial understanding of real social phenomena, lots of concern trolling and a solipsistic elision of the role his class plays in the creation of perverse incentives, double binds, pyrrhic antipathy, etc. There's no mystery to the tin foil hat hysterics of the wingnuts. They live in a society in which the Sunsteins have limitless opportunity to indulge their passive aggression and misanthropic control freaking. The wingnuts' opportunities to vent are highly circumscribed, by their own vicious collectivism, and by a society arranged for the comfort of banksters and double-domed, extravagantly credentialed concern trolls. Things like the teabagging and birth certificate tantrums are all they've got. If the big shot pwogs were really worried, they could try addressing some of the material concerns and insecurities that drive and attract people to the cretinous outbursts. The hard core is probably implacable but the impact of their behavior would fade into a minor freak show in a country less dedicated to violent managerialism, stupid authoritarian mind games and kleptocracy. There'd be fewer Sunstein books, too, but I'm sure we'd find a way to go about our daily tasks.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on January 24, 2010, 08:08:30 PM
Some theocracy quotes:

"Freedom requires religion."
-- Republican Candidate Mitt Romney

"I would probably have to say yes, that the Constitution established the United States of America as a Christian nation."
-- John McCain

"Just before us is a nuclear countdown with Iran, followed by the final battle: the battle of Armageddon . . . . The end of the world as we know it is rapidly approaching. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad. The best is yet to be."
-- Televangelist and McCain endorser John Hagee

"Americans must be 'Christocrats' -- citizens of both their country and the Kingdom of God"; "And that is not a democracy; that is a theocracy"; "That means God is in control, and you are not."
-- Televangelist and McCain supporter Rod Parsley

Secular schools can never be tolerated because such a school has no religious instruction and a general moral instruction without a religious foundation is built on air; consequently, all character training and religion must be derived from faith.... We need believing people.
-- Adolf Hitler, April 26, 1933

I've heard the call. I believe God wants me to run for president.
-- George W. Bush, quoted in George Magazine, September, 2000

"I would like to thank Providence and the Almighty for choosing me of all people to be allowed to wage this battle for Germany."
-- Adolf Hitler

A person who is guided by God will never be misguided by anyone.
-- Osama Bin Laden

We're being guided by God.
-- Bush speechwriter Michael Gerson

George Bush was not elected by a majority of the voters in the United States. He was appointed by God.
-- Lt. Gen. William Boykin, the defense undersecretary in charge of hunting down top terrorists in Iraq and Afghanistan

Nothing [Bush] does can be challenged on moral grounds, however unethical or evil it might appear, because all of his actions are directed by God. He can twist the truth, oppress the poor, exalt the rich, despoil the earth, ignore the law--and murder children--without the slightest compunction, the briefest moment of doubt or self-reflection, because he believes, he truly believes, that God squats in his brainpan and tells him what to do.
-- Chris Floyd, CounterPunch, 7/30/03

"He [Rumsfeld] leads in a way that the Good Lord tells him is best for our country."
-- Marine General Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

"Government authorities, police and the military = God's Ministers"
--Frank Bussey, director of Military Ministry at Fort Jackson

I had a student ask me, "Could the savior you believe in save Osama bin Laden?" Of course. We know the blood of Jesus Christ can save him, and then he must be executed.
-- Rev. Jerry Falwell

The "wall of separation between church and state" is a metaphor based on bad history, a metaphor which has proved useless as a guide to judging. It should be frankly and explicitly abandoned.
-- William Rehnquist, Supreme Court

I want you to just let a wave of intolerance wash over you. I want you to let a wave of hatred wash over you. Yes, hate is good.... Our goal is a Christian nation. We have a Biblical duty, we are called by God, to conquer this country. We don't want equal time. We don't want pluralism."
--Randall Terry, quoted in The News-Sentinel, Fort Wayne, Indiana, August 16, 1993

We have no king but Jesus.
--John Ashcroft, May 8, 1999

We're going to bring back God and the Bible and drive the gods of secular humanism right out of the public schools of America.
--Pat Buchanan, at an anti-gay rally in Des Moines, Iowa, February 11, 1996

The idea that religion and politics don't mix was invented by the Devil to keep Christians from running their own country.
-- Rev. Jerry Falwell

After the Christian majority takes control, pluralism will be seen as immoral and evil and the state will not permit anybody the right to practice evil.
--Gary Potter, president of Catholics for Christian Political Action

The Christian community has a golden opportunity to train an army of dedicated teachers who can invade the public school classrooms and use them to influence the nation for Christ.
--D. James Kennedy, Coral Ridge Ministries, 1993

The Constitution of the United States, for instance, is a marvelous document for self-government by the Christian people. But the minute you turn the document into the hands of non-Christian people and atheistic people they can use it to destroy the very foundation of our society. And that's what's been happening.
--Pat Robertson

The feminist agenda is not about equal rights for women. It is about a socialist, anti-family political movement that encourages women to leave their husbands, kill their children, practice witchcraft, destroy capitalism, and become lesbians.
--Pat Robertson

I think we ought to close Halloween down. Do you want your children to dress up as witches? The Druids used to dress up like this when they were doing human sacrifice... [Your children] are acting out Satanic rituals and participating in it, and don't even realize it.
--Pat Robertson

Get the few liberals out. If you don't do it, it ain't gonna be done. You will be doing the Lord's work, and he will richly bless you for it.
--Sen. James Inhofe, R-Oklahoma, Christian Coalition's Road to Victory Conference, 2002, Washington D.C

The urge to save humanity is almost always only a false-face for the urge to rule it.
-- H. L. Mencken
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Iason Ouabache on January 25, 2010, 01:44:13 AM
 :walken:


Also: http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20100124174346AAb1UNM

:lulz:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on January 25, 2010, 03:26:49 PM
How much did the DNC pay you, by the way?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on January 26, 2010, 09:31:27 PM
From the blog of that guy who did Get Your War On:

QuoteTim Geithner Wants Bernanke Confirmed.

We better make sure it happens! Or else the stock market will have a bad week and people's faith in capitalism would be shaken and we'll wind up hunting squirrels with sticks.

He then followed that up with

QuoteI'm trying to organize a telethon to save Ben Bernanke's job. Does anyone have Beyonce's phone number? (I thought she'd be a great addition to the lineup, because "Beyonce" almost looks like "Bernanke.")

In fact, now that I think of it, why not give the job of Chairman of the Federal Reserve to Beyonce? I bet she could do as good a job as Bernanke. I mean, how hard can it be to keep unemployment in the double digits? I bet I could do that. Plus I can fill out a Brooks Brothers suit as well as anyone, believe that.

But seriously, guys, this telethon is gonna be amazing. I'm looking for a juggler and an R-rated hypnotist and a bear that can ride a bicycle. And Coldplay. If you have any leads, let me know. The future of the stock market depends on it!

Because OMG what happens to the stock market if Bernanke doesn't get confirmed? It'll go down lower and lower and lower until there's no more money left and people might lose their jobs!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Idem on January 26, 2010, 10:08:47 PM
 :lol:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on January 30, 2010, 01:07:33 PM
Joe Biden on why Obama ran for President:

Quote"Well, you know, look, that's the reason he ran for president, to separate the future from the past."

Perhaps we need a pention, to stop Kenyan Presidents splitting the time stream and using it against us, or  :?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Telarus on January 30, 2010, 09:00:43 PM
 :lulz:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Iason Ouabache on January 31, 2010, 05:30:35 AM
Reminds me of Dan Quayle's "We don't want to go back to tomorrow, we want to go forward."
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jasper on January 31, 2010, 05:51:25 AM
Quote from: Cain on January 30, 2010, 01:07:33 PM
Joe Biden on why Obama ran for President:

Quote"Well, you know, look, that's the reason he ran for president, to separate the future from the past."

Perhaps we need a pention, to stop Kenyan Presidents splitting the time stream and using it against us, or  :?

The metaphor kind of works, but still more funny to take it literally. :lol:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on January 31, 2010, 08:23:04 PM
LOL, history

Quote from: Ivan Arreguin-ToftThis new approach to understanding asymmetric conflicts allows us to makes sense of how the United States was able to win its war in Afghanistan (2002) in a few months, while the Soviet Union lost after a decade of brutal war (1979—1989).

A lot of books on this topic published from 2003-7 seem to say things like this.  They seem to think occupation isn't part of the war now.  Ah, misguided foolishness and naivity.  Of course, it would be much less worrisome if this guy wasn't former Military Intelligence.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jasper on January 31, 2010, 08:30:52 PM
If he was actually in the military, it makes sense that he doesn't see the occupation as part of a larger war.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on February 05, 2010, 09:24:31 PM
Why do conservative bloggers always sound like such douches?

http://americanpowerblog.blogspot.com/2010/01/scott-eric-kaufman-if-you-smear-my.html

QuoteI also abhor irrationalism in argumentation. I welcome comments and debate, and I'll defend my positions vigorously. Yet in friendship, you'll find no one more trustworthy nor loyal; in battle you'll find an umatched competitor whose tactical elan would make Machiavelli proud.

"Tactical elan"?  For real?  Not to mention the pretentious, faux-18th century sentence structure thing going on.  Srsly.  The above quote is even funnier in context, btw.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Iason Ouabache on February 05, 2010, 10:17:47 PM
"Irrationalism" is not a real word. Well, it is a real word but he is very clearly misusing it. I'm sure he meant "irrationality".
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on February 05, 2010, 10:24:56 PM
Yes, but like "argumentation" and "elan" it sounds pompous, which he seems to think lends an air of education and expertise to his writing.  Like his claims to being a PhD
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on February 06, 2010, 12:55:50 AM
I, can't, get, no....ARGUMENTATION...
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Iason Ouabache on February 09, 2010, 12:13:58 AM
"Trust me, after taxes, a million dollars is not a lot of money." - RNC Chairman Michael Steele.

http://thinkprogress.org/2010/02/06/steele-million-not-alot/
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Dysnomia on February 09, 2010, 05:22:29 AM
Quote from: Cain on January 30, 2010, 01:07:33 PM
Joe Biden on why Obama ran for President:

Quote"Well, you know, look, that's the reason he ran for president, to separate the future from the past."

Perhaps we need a pention, to stop Kenyan Presidents splitting the time stream and using it against us, or  :?

It's official.  President Obama is the COOLEST. PRESIDENT. EVER.   :lulz:  He should ride around in a DeLorean. 
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on February 09, 2010, 03:17:22 PM
Quote from: Jason Wabash on February 09, 2010, 12:13:58 AM
“Trust me, after taxes, a million dollars is not a lot of money." - RNC Chairman Michael Steele.

http://thinkprogress.org/2010/02/06/steele-million-not-alot/

...I see it's been a while since the good chairman's been middle class.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on February 09, 2010, 03:19:48 PM
Well if its not a lot, then Steele wont mind giving me a million dollars, after taxes.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Doktor Howl on February 09, 2010, 04:10:03 PM
Glenn Beck was on at the gym last night.  Check this out:

"Progressives are a cancer.  When you get cancer, a doctor isn't going to tell you to smoke filtered cigarettes, you have to get rid of them.  And I'm saying that progressives are a national cancer.  You tell me the solution."

:lulz:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on February 09, 2010, 04:13:49 PM
Ah, Beck.  Nothing like directly aping the language of fascism to get your audience going, is there?

"The Jews are a Cancer on the breast of Germany"
- Adolf Hitler
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Doktor Howl on February 09, 2010, 04:19:05 PM
Quote from: Cain on February 09, 2010, 04:13:49 PM
Ah, Beck.  Nothing like directly aping the language of fascism to get your audience going, is there?

"The Jews are a Cancer on the breast of Germany"
- Adolf Hitler

Even working the word "solution in.  That should be bonus points.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on February 09, 2010, 04:44:59 PM
I actually overlooked that.  Oh yes, bonus points certainly.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on February 12, 2010, 04:52:25 PM
John Caruso pwns pwog idealists who bemoan the lack of a "viable alternative" to the Democrats

QuoteLiberals like Feffer (and he's far from being the only one) apparently want to see a new "progressive" party spring to life fully formed like Athena popping out of Zeus's skull, somehow instantly gaining ballot access in all 50 states and going directly from non-existence to 16% of the national vote in a single election cycle—though they themselves won't actually vote for this miracle party until the next election cycle, once it's a known "viable" quantity.  And until all of that happens, they refuse to throw their vote away!  On anyone but the Democrats, that is.

I sometimes imagine a dialog with a drowning liberal:

DROWNING LIBERAL: Help!  Help!

ME: You seem to be drowning.  Here, let me throw you this life preserver.

DL: No!  How do I know that life preserver is viable?  It might dissolve on contact with salt water!  I won't grab it unless I see twenty million other people use it first!

ME: Well, that's up to you.  But I have to say that no matter what, I think it'd be better than what you're holding on to now.

DL: You mean this anchor?

ME: Yeah, that.

DL: Well, it's very easy to say that, but how can I be sure?  That life preserver may never have been tested in the water, whereas this anchor is obviously a viable seafaring device!  Sure, in some ideal world the life preserver might be better, but this anchor is serving its intended purpose in the actual ocean right now!  And furthermore <glub glub glub>.

You might be tempted to feel sorry for poor DL, but don't worry—there are millions more exactly like him.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jasper on February 12, 2010, 07:56:21 PM
I think I'm going to start 'throwing my vote away'.  Things won't improve unless I vote for who I really want.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Iason Ouabache on February 15, 2010, 05:58:00 PM
"Libertarianism. A simple-minded right-wing ideology ideally suited to those unable or unwilling to see past their own sociopathic self-regard." Iain Banks

This thread is about to explode, btw: http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2010/02/libertarianism_defined.php
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Doktor Howl on February 15, 2010, 06:07:40 PM
Quote from: Jason Wabash on February 15, 2010, 05:58:00 PM
"Libertarianism. A simple-minded right-wing ideology ideally suited to those unable or unwilling to see past their own sociopathic self-regard." Iain Banks

This thread is about to explode, btw: http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2010/02/libertarianism_defined.php

Woot.  I'll hit it after the gym tonight.  I like the quote a bunch, and I plan to use it.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Doktor Howl on February 15, 2010, 06:08:32 PM
Except, of course, for the fact that Libertarianism is not in the slightest self-interest of Libertarians.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on March 23, 2010, 11:17:04 AM
QuoteIt's perhaps the biggest threat to the nation's mental wellbeing, yet it's freely available on every street – for pennies. The dealers claim it expands the mind and bolsters the intellect: users experience an initial rush of emotion (often euphoria or rage), followed by what they believe is a state of enhanced awareness. Tragically this "awareness" is a delusion. As they grow increasingly detached from reality, heavy users often exhibit impaired decision-making abilities, becoming paranoid, agitated and quick to anger. In extreme cases they've even been known to form mobs and attack people. Technically it's called "a newspaper", although it's better known by one of its many "street names", such as "The Currant Bun" or "The Mail" or "The Grauniad" (see me – Ed).

In its purest form, a newspaper consists of a collection of facts which, in controlled circumstances, can actively improve knowledge. Unfortunately, facts are expensive, so to save costs and drive up sales, unscrupulous dealers often "cut" the basic contents with cheaper material, such as wild opinion, bullshit, empty hysteria, reheated press releases, advertorial padding and photographs of Lady Gaga with her bum hanging out. The hapless user has little or no concept of the toxicity of the end product: they digest the contents in good faith, only to pay the price later when they find themselves raging incoherently in pubs, or – increasingly – on internet messageboards.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/mar/22/charlie-brooker-newspapers-dangerous-drug

Charlie Brooker wins an internets.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: bds on March 23, 2010, 11:43:49 AM
:mittens:

I love Charlie Brooker.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Triple Zero on March 23, 2010, 04:46:54 PM
:mittens:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Suu on March 23, 2010, 05:28:51 PM
Thirded on the mittens!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on March 24, 2010, 09:59:28 PM
I <3 The Editors

QuoteI gather that the new health care bill does not require insurers to cover Chronic Butthurt Syndrome (CBS):

QuoteGOP senators emerged Monday to caution that the health debate had taken a toll on the institution, warning of little work between parties the rest of this year.

"There will be no cooperation for the rest of the year," McCain said during an interview Monday on an Arizona radio affiliate. "They have poisoned the well in what they've done and how they've done it."

"BAWW," added the Arizona Senator and former Presidential candidate.  "My friends, BAAAAAWWWWWWW."  This is because Democrats used a highly obscure and controversial parliamentary maneuver known as "voting a bill into law," rather than just having the President issue signing statements as called for in the Constitution.  As a result: Adolph Hitler, Stalin, death camps, the collapse of the economy, doctors cruelly whipped with wet noodles, Alan Ginsberg coaching the 8th grade varsity football team, die grandma die, ladies with hairy armpits, Charlie Manson, and the End of the World.  Did I leave anything out?  Oh, yes, baby killers, faggots and niggers.  Naturally.

What have we learned?  Well, if democracy is the best system of government ever invented, all other systems of government must involve dipping my testicles into a Fry-O-Lator.  Watching laws being made is much like watching your parents make love: psychologically damaging, grotesque, awkward, full of screaming, recriminations, unorthodox maneuvers, cynical and manipulative displays of pantomime passion, and threats to take one's balls and go home; but the results, while certainly imperfect, are probably worth all the unpleasantness.  And why do you suppose God gave you a perfectly good set of eyelids?  Use 'em.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on March 25, 2010, 01:52:13 PM
Awesome.

I need more of this kind of stuff.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Doktor Howl on March 25, 2010, 02:17:36 PM
Quote from: Cain on March 24, 2010, 09:59:28 PM
I <3 The Editors

QuoteI gather that the new health care bill does not require insurers to cover Chronic Butthurt Syndrome (CBS):

QuoteGOP senators emerged Monday to caution that the health debate had taken a toll on the institution, warning of little work between parties the rest of this year.

"There will be no cooperation for the rest of the year," McCain said during an interview Monday on an Arizona radio affiliate. "They have poisoned the well in what they've done and how they've done it."

"BAWW," added the Arizona Senator and former Presidential candidate.  "My friends, BAAAAAWWWWWWW."  This is because Democrats used a highly obscure and controversial parliamentary maneuver known as "voting a bill into law," rather than just having the President issue signing statements as called for in the Constitution.  As a result: Adolph Hitler, Stalin, death camps, the collapse of the economy, doctors cruelly whipped with wet noodles, Alan Ginsberg coaching the 8th grade varsity football team, die grandma die, ladies with hairy armpits, Charlie Manson, and the End of the World.  Did I leave anything out?  Oh, yes, baby killers, faggots and niggers.  Naturally.

What have we learned?  Well, if democracy is the best system of government ever invented, all other systems of government must involve dipping my testicles into a Fry-O-Lator.  Watching laws being made is much like watching your parents make love: psychologically damaging, grotesque, awkward, full of screaming, recriminations, unorthodox maneuvers, cynical and manipulative displays of pantomime passion, and threats to take one's balls and go home; but the results, while certainly imperfect, are probably worth all the unpleasantness.  And why do you suppose God gave you a perfectly good set of eyelids?  Use 'em.

I think I just saw God.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Suu on March 25, 2010, 03:05:27 PM
Wow.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on March 25, 2010, 05:45:34 PM
More of The Editors works can be found at http://thepoorman.net  He's well worth bookmarking.

Also, in a surprise move, the Joint Parliamentary Committee on Human Rights said something quoteworthy today:

Quote"In our view it devalues the idea of a 'public emergency' to declare it in 2001, and then to continue to assert it more than eight years later."

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/8583643.stm

By the current standards of western politics, the JPCoHR is dangerously subversive and radical.  I know, not hard.  But still, they're about the only MPs still worth listening to.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Da6s on March 25, 2010, 06:20:39 PM
A right-wing email that's apparently circling around the tubes:


QuoteFW: fw: fw: Lock 'n Load

MY FRIENDS,

The time has come to take action into our own hands! The washington democrats no longer represent the people of America and its time we take action to stop these socialists before they ruin this great nation. Obamacare took this to the next level, as now we are no longer dealing with just socialists, but murderers. Under these new laws, the unborn will be slaughtered by the thousands, the elderly will be killed based on their "perceived" value to society. THIS MUST STOP

So what can we do, they took away our voice, they took away our rights. But we still have force. We are angry and we can fight. Keep your arms hidden, and keep many of them. If you don't have any, buy while you still can. We will hit them where it hurts and we will do it together. They cannot stop a network of us when we fight as one, so be prepared.

We fight back in the name of Gods children and all others who will suffer due to our dictators demands. Those lives are worth the same as the arrogant men and women who sit in our capital, and we are prepared to prove it.

There have been some great stories about bricks being thrown, calls being made, and gas lines being cut. Good. We should keep it up, pay a visit to any Dems in your area who voted for it. Use this email as a thread to exchange their personal contact information so we can keep getting to them. They can't stop us, and they have waged a war they will not win.

If they won't listen to us, we will make them listen. Damn it, this is our country, and I would sooner die than see it continue to fall at the hands of these murderers. Whose with me? Who will stand with me, and be prepared to fight when the time comes? Lock 'n load my friends, we're taking our country back, one dirtbag at a time if we have to.

God bless


:horrormirth:



Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on March 25, 2010, 06:22:09 PM
That explains the teabaggers committing minor crimes all over the place recently. 
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on March 25, 2010, 07:10:33 PM
Quote from: Da6s on March 25, 2010, 06:20:39 PM
A right-wing email that's apparently circling around the tubes:


QuoteFW: fw: fw: Lock 'n Load

MY FRIENDS,

The time has come to take action into our own hands! The washington democrats no longer represent the people of America and its time we take action to stop these socialists before they ruin this great nation. Obamacare took this to the next level, as now we are no longer dealing with just socialists, but murderers. Under these new laws, the unborn will be slaughtered by the thousands, the elderly will be killed based on their "perceived" value to society. THIS MUST STOP

So what can we do, they took away our voice, they took away our rights. But we still have force. We are angry and we can fight. Keep your arms hidden, and keep many of them. If you don't have any, buy while you still can. We will hit them where it hurts and we will do it together. They cannot stop a network of us when we fight as one, so be prepared.

We fight back in the name of Gods children and all others who will suffer due to our dictators demands. Those lives are worth the same as the arrogant men and women who sit in our capital, and we are prepared to prove it.

There have been some great stories about bricks being thrown, calls being made, and gas lines being cut. Good. We should keep it up, pay a visit to any Dems in your area who voted for it. Use this email as a thread to exchange their personal contact information so we can keep getting to them. They can't stop us, and they have waged a war they will not win.

If they won't listen to us, we will make them listen. Damn it, this is our country, and I would sooner die than see it continue to fall at the hands of these murderers. Whose with me? Who will stand with me, and be prepared to fight when the time comes? Lock 'n load my friends, we're taking our country back, one dirtbag at a time if we have to.

God bless


:horrormirth:

This will prove to be more effective as a left-wing troll, due to minor crimes being much easier to police than group actions.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jasper on March 25, 2010, 07:15:40 PM
They have all lost their minds.  I'm kind of relieved, actually.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Triple Zero on March 26, 2010, 09:49:09 PM
dunno where else to put it, sarcastic but accurate:

http://www.ip-global.org/archiv/exclusive/view/1267102448.html

The Bomb for Beginners

A do-it-yourself guide to going nuke in a few easy steps

by Michael Rühle | 25.02.2010


Building a nuclear weapon has never been easier. NATO's Michael Rühle provides step-by-step instructions for going nuclear, from discretely collecting material to minimizing the fallout when caught. These simple steps have worked for the likes of Israel, Pakistan, and North Korea, among others. The nuclear club is open to your country, too.



Tired of being bossed around? Want your neighbors to treat you with more respect? Want to play in the majors? If so, you have to have your own nukes.

Impossible? Not really. Granted, if your country is a signatory of the Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT), as most countries are, the constraints on your bomb building are considerable. Inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) are difficult to circumvent. And the IAEA can no longer be fooled as easily as in the 1980s, when it failed to uncover Saddam Hussein's military nuclear program in Iraq despite regular inspections.

The IAEA's increased awareness means that you have to be imaginative. Here are some steps to consider.

First, begin developing a civilian nuclear program. Under the NPT, you are not only entitled to a civilian nuclear program, you may even ask for help from the IAEA. The IAEA will provide you with the basic ingredients and much of the know-how for a military program. Moreover, you can legally buy reactor fuel, and thus do not have to acquire it by performing hair-raising stunts like those the Israelis pulled in 1968, when they [... (http://www.ip-global.org/archiv/exclusive/view/1267102448.html)]
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Reginald Ret on March 26, 2010, 10:12:30 PM
I am quite glad i am a eurospag in this decade.
I'm relatively safe here.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Doktor Howl on March 27, 2010, 04:37:41 PM
Quote from: Regret on March 26, 2010, 10:12:30 PM
I am quite glad i am a eurospag in this decade.
I'm relatively safe here.

It's OUR turn to have the Nazis!   :lulz:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Triple Zero on March 27, 2010, 07:03:32 PM
Hm... that sucks. At least, I was thinking, Europeans culture got quite the backlash from nazis (it's been waning a bit lately, especially in Italy), a lot of NEVER AGAIN sentiment, which is good. But I wonder, would we have learned that lesson as hard if they had not killed 6 million Jews and Gypsies and whatnot? Like, I mean, if you get Nazis (like a disease), will it really take another genocide before people wake the fuck up?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Doktor Howl on March 27, 2010, 07:05:15 PM
Quote from: Triple Zero on March 27, 2010, 07:03:32 PM
Hm... that sucks. At least, I was thinking, Europeans culture got quite the backlash from nazis (it's been waning a bit lately, especially in Italy), a lot of NEVER AGAIN sentiment, which is good. But I wonder, would we have learned that lesson as hard if they had not killed 6 million Jews and Gypsies and whatnot? Like, I mean, if you get Nazis (like a disease), will it really take another genocide before people wake the fuck up?

Naw.

We're just going to gut ourselves and collapse like a house of cards.

Um, yeah, we'll be dragging everyone with us.  Sorry about that.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on March 28, 2010, 01:54:18 PM
When you guys go down though, I give it two years before fascist parties start winning elections here.

Cuz when the US goes down, the international chaos will lead to mass migration, which will put more stress on "Fortress Europe" and necessitate cutting down on social benefits and rebuilding militaries.  And the collapse will be blamed on US "decadence" as opposed to the actual causes (a bunch of clowns with Harvard Business School degress).  The rhetoric around all that aligns nicely with the Third Positionists, such as the BNP and various Italian parties.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on March 28, 2010, 01:56:04 PM
Assuming we don't collapse first, which is a very real possibility (thanks, irresponsible loans to dodgy post-Communist states!).

But then we get to have a re-run of the whole Weimar Republic thing, across the entire continent!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on March 31, 2010, 05:03:26 PM
John Robb on the militia arrests last week in the US:

QuoteThe arrest of a heavily armed Christian militia in Michigan, beyond what it tells us about where the US is headed, provides a great example of how NOT to conduct insurgency.   Lots of small unit training (weapons and camouflage), a Web site (including YouTube videos) that states intent/shows preparations, and the planning of fantasy attacks on police with IEDs will result in one thing: rapid arrest/death.  It's just pathetic. 
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on March 31, 2010, 07:07:00 PM
This got David Frum fired from the American Enterprise Institute, a Conservative think-tank:
http://www.frumforum.com/waterloo-page Posted 3/22/10

Waterloo

Conservatives and Republicans today suffered their most crushing legislative defeat since the 1960s.

It's hard to exaggerate the magnitude of the disaster. Conservatives may cheer themselves that they'll compensate for today's expected vote with a big win in the November 2010 elections. But:

(1) It's a good bet that conservatives are over-optimistic about November – by then the economy will have improved and the immediate goodies in the healthcare bill will be reaching key voting blocs.

(2) So what? Legislative majorities come and go. This healthcare bill is forever. A win in November is very poor compensation for this debacle now.

So far, I think a lot of conservatives will agree with me. Now comes the hard lesson:

A huge part of the blame for today's disaster attaches to conservatives and Republicans ourselves.

At the beginning of this process we made a strategic decision: unlike, say, Democrats in 2001 when President Bush proposed his first tax cut, we would make no deal with the administration. No negotiations, no compromise, nothing. We were going for all the marbles. This would be Obama's Waterloo – just as healthcare was Clinton's in 1994.

Only, the hardliners overlooked a few key facts: Obama was elected with 53% of the vote, not Clinton's 42%. The liberal block within the Democratic congressional caucus is bigger and stronger than it was in 1993-94. And of course the Democrats also remember their history, and also remember the consequences of their 1994 failure.

This time, when we went for all the marbles, we ended with none.

Could a deal have been reached? Who knows? But we do know that the gap between this plan and traditional Republican ideas is not very big. The Obama plan has a broad family resemblance to Mitt Romney's Massachusetts plan. It builds on ideas developed at the Heritage Foundation in the early 1990s that formed the basis for Republican counter-proposals to Clintoncare in 1993-1994.

Barack Obama badly wanted Republican votes for his plan. Could we have leveraged his desire to align the plan more closely with conservative views? To finance it without redistributive taxes on productive enterprise – without weighing so heavily on small business – without expanding Medicaid? Too late now. They are all the law.

No illusions please: This bill will not be repealed. Even if Republicans scored a 1994 style landslide in November, how many votes could we muster to re-open the "doughnut hole" and charge seniors more for prescription drugs? How many votes to re-allow insurers to rescind policies when they discover a pre-existing condition? How many votes to banish 25 year olds from their parents' insurance coverage? And even if the votes were there – would President Obama sign such a repeal?

We followed the most radical voices in the party and the movement, and they led us to abject and irreversible defeat.

There were leaders who knew better, who would have liked to deal. But they were trapped. Conservative talkers on Fox and talk radio had whipped the Republican voting base into such a frenzy that deal-making was rendered impossible. How do you negotiate with somebody who wants to murder your grandmother? Or – more exactly – with somebody whom your voters have been persuaded to believe wants to murder their grandmother?

I've been on a soapbox for months now about the harm that our overheated talk is doing to us. Yes it mobilizes supporters – but by mobilizing them with hysterical accusations and pseudo-information, overheated talk has made it impossible for representatives to represent and elected leaders to lead. The real leaders are on TV and radio, and they have very different imperatives from people in government. Talk radio thrives on confrontation and recrimination. When Rush Limbaugh said that he wanted President Obama to fail, he was intelligently explaining his own interests. What he omitted to say – but what is equally true – is that he also wants Republicans to fail. If Republicans succeed – if they govern successfully in office and negotiate attractive compromises out of office – Rush's listeners get less angry. And if they are less angry, they listen to the radio less, and hear fewer ads for Sleepnumber beds.

So today's defeat for free-market economics and Republican values is a huge win for the conservative entertainment industry. Their listeners and viewers will now be even more enraged, even more frustrated, even more disappointed in everybody except the responsibility-free talkers on television and radio. For them, it's mission accomplished. For the cause they purport to represent, it's Waterloo all right: ours.

Follow David Frum on Twitter: @davidfrum
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on March 31, 2010, 07:10:13 PM
While Frum is generally right in this article, is anyone else nauseated that the man who coined the phrase "Axis of Evil" is now suggesting overheated rhetoric may be a bad thing?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on March 31, 2010, 07:12:02 PM
Methinks it very interesting that a rat like him jumped ship.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on March 31, 2010, 07:12:09 PM
@ Cain:  :lulz:

As far as the article goes, I like how he points out how one half of the movement requires the other half to fail.


Political ouroborous, ITT.


Hmmm... Now I am making connections between this and Dok's thread about economy and complexity....
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on March 31, 2010, 07:18:58 PM
I just like how he calls out Rush Limbaugh and the fact that the listeners of Rush and Fox News by association are sheep, led by their overreacting masters, who have no thought about the longevity of the Conservative movement.

Ourobouros indeedy.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cramulus on March 31, 2010, 07:31:05 PM
greate poste, Jenne

Quote from: Jenne on March 31, 2010, 07:07:00 PM
The real leaders are on TV and radio, and they have very different imperatives from people in government.

It'd be nice if the populists reached this conclusion too
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on March 31, 2010, 07:34:58 PM
Quote from: Cramulus on March 31, 2010, 07:31:05 PM
greate poste, Jenne

Quote from: Jenne on March 31, 2010, 07:07:00 PM
The real leaders are on TV and radio, and they have very different imperatives from people in government.

It'd be nice if the populists reached this conclusion too

Thanks, Cram...I was worried about oversaturation since it was all over the teevee this past weekend.  But when I saw no mention of it here, thought I'd give it a swing, even if it missed.  The fact that an insider like Frum is agitated makes me wet, just a wee bit.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cramulus on April 02, 2010, 05:17:55 PM
X-Post

QuoteTHE PRESIDENT:Now, over the last year, there's been a lot of misinformation spread about health reform. There's been a lot of fear-mongering, a lot of overheated rhetoric. You turned on the news, you'd see that those same folks who were hollering about it before it passed, they're still hollering, about how the world will end because we passed this bill. (Laughter.) This is not an exaggeration. John Boehner called the passage of this bill --

AUDIENCE: Booo!

THE PRESIDENT: -- no need to -- we don't need to boo, I just want to give the facts -- called this passage of this bill "Armageddon." You had others who said this is the end of freedom as we know it.

So after I signed the bill, I looked around. (Laughter and applause.) I looked up at the sky to see if asteroids were coming. (Laughter.) I looked at the ground to see if cracks had opened up in the earth. You know what, it turned out it was a pretty nice day. (Laughter and applause.) Birds were still chirping. Folks were strolling down the street. Nobody had lost their doctor. Nobody had pulled the plug on Granny. (Laughter.) Nobody was being dragged away to be forced into some government-run health care plan.



Quote from: Barack Obamademocracy is a messy business. It is the worst form of government except for all the other ones that have been tried.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Freeky on April 02, 2010, 05:20:19 PM
Amazing amounts of troofiness from a politician, ITT.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mangrove on April 02, 2010, 05:28:49 PM
So after I signed the bill, I looked around. (Laughter and applause.) I looked up at the sky to see if asteroids were coming. (Laughter.) I looked at the ground to see if cracks had opened up in the earth. You know what, it turned out it was a pretty nice day. (Laughter and applause.) Birds were still chirping. Folks were strolling down the street. Nobody had lost their doctor. Nobody had pulled the plug on Granny. (Laughter.) Nobody was being dragged away to be forced into some government-run health care plan.


Does Obama have Bill Hicks on his i-Pod?

Reminds me of Bill's 'have you ever watched CNN for more than say....24 hours continuously?' bit. WAR DISEASE, AIDS, FAMINE, DEATH!!! etc
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jasper on April 02, 2010, 05:50:38 PM
He will be remembered as the most likable president in history, regardless of anything else.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on April 03, 2010, 02:21:58 PM
Doubt it, he'll be remembered as the Peanut Farmer 2.0.  Clinton, on the other hand...there is a guy with some serious charisma.

Also, lol, Bush Snr haet wingnuts:

QuoteBush's condescension toward the movement had occasionally seeped out. "I'm a conservative, but I'm not a nut about it," he had said. And he once classified the right wing as the "extra chromosome set."
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on April 07, 2010, 08:29:26 PM
This was nice, I thought.  Certainly an antidote to the usual political rhetoric one has to put up with:

QuoteCome on now. She [Pelosi] is nice. How many of y'all have met her? She is a nice person. She's a nice person. You know, let me give you a little lesson here. I hope you will listen to me. Just because somebody disagrees with you doesn't mean that they're not a good person. And I want to tell ya, I've been in the Senate for five years and I've taken a lot of that because I've been on the small side, both in the Republican Party and the Democrat Party. Just because I don't agree with them, it doesn't mean I'm bad. It means I have a legitimate point of view that's different than theirs. And what we have to have is make sure we have a debate in this country so that you can see what's going on and make the determination yourself. So, don't catch yourself being biased by Fox News that somebody's no good. The people in Washington are good. They just don't know what they don't know.

That was Senator Tim Coburn (http://thinkprogress.org/2010/04/06/coburn-fox-news-biased/) (R-OK) discussing Fox News style political hysteria.

I mean, he's wrong, of course.  The "people" in government are actually twisted and evil servants of the Old Ones, plotting our eventual doom, but at least it's not partisan political stupidity, and that's a start.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: AFK on April 07, 2010, 08:41:33 PM
Of course this is one of the guys who was holding up legislation to extend unemployment benefits.  It's also hard not to wonder when he shows up on Fox News to profusely apologize and backpedal.  But I'd love to be pleasantly surprised. 
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: BADGE OF HONOR on April 12, 2010, 08:34:15 AM
http://www.newsmap.jp/#/n/us/view/

Shows a visual representation of the popularity of news stories, sortable by country/topic.

(Didn't know where else to put this and didn't feel like making a new thread)
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Triple Zero on April 12, 2010, 10:56:56 AM
Interesting. Good visualisation, too.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on April 12, 2010, 11:10:41 AM
That's pretty cool.  Didn't Kai post it a while back?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on April 12, 2010, 03:37:37 PM
I think so.  I check it out every so often at work, it can be both amusing and depressing, depending on what minor think takes up most space (Tiger Woods at the Masters rather than PedoPope or Dead Polacks).
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: BADGE OF HONOR on April 12, 2010, 08:50:46 PM
Quote from: Cain on April 12, 2010, 11:10:41 AM
That's pretty cool.  Didn't Kai post it a while back?

I have no idea.  I was a little skeptical at first but it seems to have a good spread of sources.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on April 13, 2010, 04:26:43 PM
QuoteRepublican teabagger hero Carl Paladino is running for governor of New York, because he's the kind of asshole always forwarding vulgar racist emails to everybody. And like all of these assholes, now that he's been called out for it, he's "sorry if you were offended" because of course he is not a racist, it's just funny to send racist emails about Barack Obama, because lol coloreds. If this story sounds familiar, that's because approximately every 10 days another teabagger/Republican is publicly shamed for sending racist garbage to colleagues and subordinates, and then there's the usual "oh sorry if YOU were offended by my latest forward of Obama with a bone through his nose eating watermelon or whatever."

TPM reports:

   
QuoteAn online news outlet in New York state has obtained dozens of emails, many of them racist and sexually graphic, which it reports were sent by Carl Paladino, the Tea-Party-backed Republican candidate for governor of New York, to a long list of political and business associates. One email shows a video of an African tribal dance, entitled "Obama Inauguration Rehearsal," while another depicts hardcore bestiality.

... as opposed to the more romantic "couples bestiality" porn, where the guy *kisses* the horse before he schtups it.

Anyway, go Carl Paladino!

http://wonkette.com/414771/tea-party-hero-and-ny-gov-candidate-always-sending-racistporno-emails#more-414771
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Requia ☣ on April 14, 2010, 01:13:28 AM
Quote
Glenn Beck is the new Abbie Hoffman
The out-of-power right has built a counterculture, just as the left did in the '60s

:lulz:  :lulz:
http://www.salon.com/news/politics/republican_party/index.html?story=/opinion/feature/2010/02/23/counterculture
:lulz: :lulz: :lulz:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on June 22, 2010, 06:17:22 AM
QuoteThe Taliban will probably develop like the Saudis did. There will be Aramco, pipelines, an emir, no parliament and lots of Sharia law. We can live with that.

Unnamed American diplomat in 1996, quoted in Ahmed Rashid's book, Taliban.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Requia ☣ on June 22, 2010, 06:26:57 AM
So the dictatorship, general brutality and harboring of terrorists would have been perfectly acceptable to the politicians as long as they sold us oil?

I have a really hard time not believing that  :horrormirth:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on June 22, 2010, 06:52:45 AM
Works for Saudi Arabia, doesn't it?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on August 05, 2010, 09:15:38 PM
LAWL

QuoteAftergood, who is affiliated with the Federation of Americna Scientists, is basically a liberal good-government type, a technocratic apologist who believes that civic officers and public servants with generally good intentions sometimes go astray; that secrecy is a sort of pathogen attacking the body politic; that "sunlight is the best medicine." Were the principle focus of his work the operations of the local school board or county council, it would be less laughable, certainly less naive.

Marc Thiessen is a 500-lb. child-raping, blood-addicted reptilian shapeshifter come to this earth to sup upon the tender marrow of little girls.

IOZ, with his usual charming prose.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Adios on August 05, 2010, 09:17:03 PM
OMG, That was funny!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cramulus on August 11, 2010, 03:36:29 PM
from our favorite, IOZ: http://whoisioz.blogspot.com/2010/08/darth-nader.html

QuoteThe "activist base" . . . oy, you've got to love this self-conception: the scurrying loyalists of a top-down factional hierarchy perceiving themselves as engaged in activism, like the catering staff considering themselves titans of industry because they lay out the water bottles before a meeting of the board of directors. The "activist base" persists in believing that The Obama is An Historic Candidate who was handed An Historic Moment and is in the process of squandering it, when plainly Obama is a very ordinary administrator at a fairly ordinary moment doing an entirely ordinary job. Empires get embroiled in simmering conflicts in the provinces. Recessions happen. The imperatives and intertia of the empire are larger than the current emporer. He'll probably get drummed out after this term, and the next guy will probably benefit from a modest economic recovery that will ensure him eight years, even if he's got bad table manners. You heard it hear first. The motto of this blog bears repeating: plus ça change, motherfuckers.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on August 15, 2010, 09:35:45 PM
Glenn Greenwald just scored a critical hit on White House Press Sec Robert Gibbs

QuoteYou may think that the reason you're dissatisfied with the Obama administration is because of substantive objections to their policies:  that they've done so little about crisis-level unemployment, foreclosures and widespread economic misery.  Or because of the White House's apparently endless devotion to Wall Street.  Or because the President has escalated a miserable, pointless and unwinnable war that is entering its ninth year.  Or because he has claimed the power to imprison people for life with no charges and to assassinate American citizens without due process, intensified the secrecy weapons and immunity instruments abused by his predecessor, and found all new ways of denying habeas corpus.  Or because he granted full-scale legal immunity to those who committed serious crimes in the last administration.  Or because he's failed to fulfill -- or affirmatively broken -- promises ranging from transparency to gay rights.

    * Continue reading

But Robert Gibbs -- in one of the most petulant, self-pitying outbursts seen from a top political official in recent memory, half derived from a paranoid Richard Nixon rant and the other half from a Sean Hannity/Sarah Palin caricature of The Far Left -- is here to tell you that the real reason you're dissatisfied with the President is because you're a fringe, ideological, Leftist extremist ingrate who needs drug counseling:

   
QuoteThe White House is simmering with anger at criticism from liberals who say President Obama is more concerned with deal-making than ideological purity.

    During an interview with The Hill in his West Wing office, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs blasted liberal naysayers, whom he said would never regard anything the president did as good enough.

    "I hear these people saying he's like George Bush. Those people ought to be drug tested," Gibbs said. "I mean, it's crazy."

    The press secretary dismissed the "professional left" in terms very similar to those used by their opponents on the ideological right, saying, "They will be satisfied when we have Canadian healthcare and we've eliminated the Pentagon. That's not reality."

    Of those who complain that Obama caved to centrists on issues such as healthcare reform, Gibbs said: "They wouldn't be satisfied if Dennis Kucinich was president."

    The White House, constantly under fire from expected enemies on the right, has been frustrated by nightly attacks on cable news shows catering to the left, where Obama and top lieutenants like Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel have been excoriated for abandoning the public option in healthcare reform; for not moving faster to close the prison at Guantánamo Bay; and for failing, so far, to end the ban on gays serving openly in the military. . . .

    Gibbs said the professional left is not representative of the progressives who organized, campaigned, raised money and ultimately voted for Obama.

    Progressives, Gibbs said, are the liberals outside of Washington "in America," and they are grateful for what Obama has accomplished in a shattered economy with uniform Republican opposition and a short amount of time.

So, to recap:  (1) The Professional Left are totally irrelevant losers who speak for absolutely nobody, and certainly nobody in Real America who matters; but (2) they're ruining everything for the White House!!!  And:  if you criticize the President, it's only because you're such a rabid extremist that you harbor a secret desire to eliminate the Pentagon -- that's how anti-American you are!  You're such a Far Left extremist that Dennis Kucinich isn't far enough Left for you, you subversive, drug-using hippies!  You're so far to the Left that you want to turn the U.S. into Canada.  As David Frum put it today:  "More proof of my longtime thesis, Repub pols fear the GOP base; Dem pols hate the Dem base."

The Democrats have been concerned about a lack of enthusiasm on the part of their base headed into the midterm elections.  These sorts of rabid, caricatured, Fox-News-copying attacks on the Left will undoubtedly help generate more enthusiasm -- more loud clapping -- for the Democrats.  I know I'm eager to go canvass and clap for Democrats after reading Gibbs' noble, inspiring vision.  If it were Gibbs' goal to be as petulant and self-pitying as possible, what could he have done differently?

Perhaps one day the White House can work itself up to express this sort of sputtering rage against the Right, or the Wall Street thieves who destroyed the American economy, or the permanent factions that control Washington.  Until then, we'll have to satisfy ourselves with White House explanations that the Real Culprits are not (of course) them, but the Professional Left, that is simultaneously totally irrelevant and ruining everything.  I'll give credit to Gibbs for putting his name on this outburst:  these are usually the things they say anonymously and then deny afterward on the record that it's what they think.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Iason Ouabache on August 26, 2010, 07:47:03 AM
"It all makes sense when you realize this is a country that wanted to have a beer with an alcoholic. TWICE." - @OTOOLEFAN
Title: Meanwhile, inside the Nixon White House...
Post by: Cain on August 26, 2010, 11:27:38 PM
http://edgeofthewest.wordpress.com/2010/03/13/great-moments-with-mr-nixon/#more-13316

QuoteNixon: I still think we ought to take the North Vietnamese dikes out now. Will that drown people?

Kissinger: About two hundred thousand people.

Nixon: No, no, no, I'd rather use the nuclear bomb. Have you got that, Henry?

Kissinger: That, I think, would just be too much.

Nixon: The nuclear bomb, does that bother you?...I just want you to think big, Henry, for Christsakes.

Incidentally, I have a copy of Kissinger's White House Years Diary.  All 2000+ pages of it.  If Henry had a problem beyond sociopathy on a scale barely matched by Genghis Khan, it was that he never stopped writing.  Harvard introduced a rule about dissertation length after being forced to read his 600 page doctoral thesis, as well.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Juana on August 28, 2010, 07:59:17 PM
QuoteJust because it's worth remarking on how deeply perverse it is for Glenn Beck to want to "reclaim the civil rights movement" because "we were the people that did it in the first place," here's Beck's take on civil rights counterposed with a marginally important figure within the movement, Martin Luther King, Jr:

   
QuoteBeck: "the movement of the 1960s has been perverted and distorted" by people "like the Reverend Al Sharpton telling people that Martin Luther King's dream was really about redistribution of wealth...I don't remember that. Really?"
    King: "...we are dealing with issues that cannot be solved without the nation spending billions of dollars — and undergoing a radical redistribution of economic power."

    Beck: "Who were the civil rights marchers?...They weren't crying for social justice, they were crying out for equal justice."
    King: (in his speech "Social Justice") "we will be able to go this additional distance and achieve the ideal, the goal of the new age, the age of social justice."

    Beck: "They have infiltrated our churches" and "confused the gospel with government-run programs."
    King: "If America does not use her vast resources to end poverty ... she too will go to hell."

http://zunguzungu.wordpress.com/2010/08/28/reclamation/
For a supposed history buff, he's awful ill-informed, assuming he means it and isn't just doing it for ratings, etc.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on September 06, 2010, 04:23:18 AM
Well given the Regency press Wingnut Approved version of history, not to mention his love of Cleon Skousen, I'm surprised his take on historical events isn't approaching LaRouchite/Icke levels of wackiness.

Anyway, it seems America suffers from complexity addiction.  An old quote, from Containing Arab Nationalism:

Quote from: Gamel NasserThe genius of you Americans is that you never made clear-cut stupid moves, only complicated stupid moves which makes us wonder at the possibility that there may be something to them we are missing.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Don Coyote on September 06, 2010, 04:37:52 AM
America, our politics are a Rube Goldberg machine.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on September 06, 2010, 05:23:11 AM
Also this (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0609804618/qid=1093991483/sr=ka-1/ref=pd_ka_1/102-9751422-5964903):

QuoteJapan Forms Alliance With White Supremacists in Well-Thought-Out Scheme

    From the East Asian Correspondent, Sept 1, 1939. -- In a course of action praised by many as "far-sighted" and "tactically brilliant," the Japanese government has sworn its allegiance to the Axis powers led by white-supremacist Nazi Germany. In a formal statement, Japanese leaders declared, "We wish to be counted among the loyal allies of this back-stabbing, racist hate nation."

    Following the announcement, Japanese General and military leader Hideki Tojo told reporters, "We are pleased to enter into an alliance with the paranoid, xenophobic government of Nazi Germany. We anticipate a deeply enriching exchange of our military aid with their deep-seated hated of our non-white heritage."

    Tojo went on to say that the "unbeatable team" of Germans and Japanese will one dominate the industrialized world as "Aryans and those hated by Aryans, working together."

    Likening their war instincts to those of "a very advanced clan of yellow apes," German Chancellor Adolf Hitler praised the government and military of Japan.

    "I salute you, chinky-dinky rat men, who have been given life by the confused hand of some long-dead pagan deity," he said. "When Germany stands victorious on a conquered Earth, and Aryan supermen wipe out the undesirable mud races one by one, your like will surely survive to be among the last to be exterminated."
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Triple Zero on September 06, 2010, 11:31:22 AM
Quote from: Cain on September 06, 2010, 05:23:11 AM
Also this (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0609804618/qid=1093991483/sr=ka-1/ref=pd_ka_1/102-9751422-5964903):

QuoteJapan Forms Alliance With White Supremacists in Well-Thought-Out Scheme

    From the East Asian Correspondent, Sept 1, 1939. -- In a course of action praised by many as "far-sighted" and "tactically brilliant," the Japanese government has sworn its allegiance to the Axis powers led by white-supremacist Nazi Germany. In a formal statement, Japanese leaders declared, "We wish to be counted among the loyal allies of this back-stabbing, racist hate nation."

    Following the announcement, Japanese General and military leader Hideki Tojo told reporters, "We are pleased to enter into an alliance with the paranoid, xenophobic government of Nazi Germany. We anticipate a deeply enriching exchange of our military aid with their deep-seated hated of our non-white heritage."

    Tojo went on to say that the "unbeatable team" of Germans and Japanese will one dominate the industrialized world as "Aryans and those hated by Aryans, working together."

    Likening their war instincts to those of "a very advanced clan of yellow apes," German Chancellor Adolf Hitler praised the government and military of Japan.

    "I salute you, chinky-dinky rat men, who have been given life by the confused hand of some long-dead pagan deity," he said. "When Germany stands victorious on a conquered Earth, and Aryan supermen wipe out the undesirable mud races one by one, your like will surely survive to be among the last to be exterminated."

:mittens:

I'm trying to think of someone I could give this book who might appreciate it
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: the last yatto on September 08, 2010, 05:11:52 AM
      Washington's toleration for differing religions was made evident by
      his order to the Continental Army to halt the observance of Pope's Day.
      Pope's Day was the American equivalent of Guy Fawkes' Day in England. A
      key part of Pope's Day was the burning of the effigy of the Pope. In his
      order, Washington described the tradition as, "ridiculous and childish"
      and that there was no room for this type of behavior in the Continental
      Army. www.deism.com/washington.htm


Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on September 14, 2010, 11:25:40 PM
From a 2004 governmental report on Iraq:

QuoteThis report will also attempt to broaden understanding by recalibrating the perspective of the reader. The Regime was run by Saddam and the calculations he made concerning WMD were based on his view of relevant related factors not ours. Optimally, we would remove the reader temporarily from his reality and time. We would collect the flow of images, sounds, feelings, and events that passed into Saddam's mind and project them as with a Zeiss Planetarium projection instrument. The reader would see the Universe from Saddam's point in space. Events would flow by the reader as they flowed by Saddam.

I'm not sure if the author of this particular paper is a poet or a madman.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Kai on September 15, 2010, 11:48:33 AM
Jesus christ.

We really ARE fucked, if that's the sort of insanity people take for granted.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on September 15, 2010, 01:58:48 PM
Why the hell don't I have his job? 
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on September 15, 2010, 02:23:57 PM
That was Charles A. Duelfer, by the way, author of the Duelfer Report by the Iraq Survey Group on why Saddam doesn't have any WMDs.

He also goes on to say

QuoteIdeally, the reader would see what Saddam saw. Such a transmutation is impossible. However, this report will provide the reader a handrail to grasp in the form of a time line that will also serve as a constant reminder of contemporaneous events that filled the field of Saddam's view.

and

QuoteAnalysts were asked to look for something they may not expect or be able to see. A challenge like that faced by scientists engaged in the search for extraterrestrial intelligence.

I know Paul William Roberts once accidentally took Ecstasy before interviewing Saddam, so I'm wondering if there is some rogue Iraqi intelligence agent drugging people responsible for writing reports on the country and making them look like dumb stoners.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cramulus on September 15, 2010, 06:15:55 PM
"In fairness, we've been building 'ground zeros' near Iraqi mosques since March 2003. "
                — Twitter / Jason Mustian
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on September 15, 2010, 07:41:39 PM
Quote from: Cramulus on September 15, 2010, 06:15:55 PM
"In fairness, we've been building 'ground zeros' near Iraqi mosques since March 2003. ”
                — Twitter / Jason Mustian

SUH-NAP.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on October 05, 2010, 01:15:03 PM
A truly righteous rant from HTML Mencken

QuoteIOZ is articulate on a subject near and dear to me:


QuoteEvery farmer I've known, and there are a lot of them in Western PA, has loved farming and sacrificed greatly in order to keep farming despite the best efforts of state-subsidized industrial agriculture to deprive them of their vocation. The idea that families gave up their farms because "manual agricultural labor sucks" is laughable. The fact that your evidence of this is dubious publicity stunt designed to highlight the no-duh truth that people habituated to a certain level of income will refuse to work rather than accept work paying them too far below their accustomed wage is indicative that you don't know what the fuck you're talking about. The whole sordid history of neoliberal intervention in the "developing world" is the decimation of subsistence economies, in which peoples produce locally most of what they need (subsistence doesn't necessitate "poverty," except to Nice Liberals and World Bank officials), via economic, environmental, and actual warfare, and the subsequent forced replacement of self-provision with economies of consumtion, in which people leave "manual agricultural work" for the sweat shop and the rural farm for the urban slum. The idea that you chalk these things up to individual choice rather than appreciating how they are necessitated by political and economic context only displays that it is you who holds the romantic notions, and the fact that any fifth-grader with a half-read copy of his Steinbeck can see the glaring flaws at the heart of the notion that agriculture stinks and it's great to get people off the farm and on the road ought to embarrass you.


A-fucking-men.

*By Brad DeLong I do mean the personally decent but ideologically execrable blogger/economist/free trade-enthusiast. But I also use "Brad DeLong" as an ankle-biting (at least to him, I hope) synecdoche to personify the type of cultural elitist Democrat whose "libertarianism with a human face" political economy, ethnocentrism (hypocritical at that: they love to accuse non-fans of their preferred policies of bigotry to the third worlders those policies make miserable but allegedly more wealthy), relative wealth (by which I mean personal insulation to the economic stresses their preferred policies have put on their less-fortunate countrymen) and total intolerance of anyone to their political left has, due to this type's total hegemony among the Democratic Party, utterly destroyed its ability to pursue the populist agenda needed to restore this country.

Why does the Democratic Party in general and the Obama Administration in particular suck? "Brad DeLong"!

Why has "social democracy" been so dumbed-down that it now means little more policy-wise than a progressive income tax and increased education spending? "Brad DeLong"!

Why does America not make anything any more? "Brad DeLong"!

How did the terms "leftist" and "liberal" get so diluted that they now mean, basically, "anyone who isn't a bigot -- at least, based on gender, ethnicity, race, or sexual orientation; beating up the lower classes is okey-dokey -- and who also agrees with the no-duh fact that Donald Luskin and Jonah Goldberg are stupid fucking idiots"? "Brad DeLong"!

Why does the Democratic elite constantly kick the Democratic base in the teeth? "Brad DeLong"! Why does it politically kiss the collective ass of the Wealthy Criminal Class at every opportunity? "Brad DeLong"! Why does it constantly search for a "good faith" opponent on the right with whom it can compromise -- or to whom it can cave -- but at the same time demonize, stonewall, or betray everyone to its left? "Brad DeLong"!

Why are desperate immigrants from Latin America pouring into our country? What happened to their countries' economies? "Brad DeLong"!

Why are western companies moving their manufacturing base to China where goods are made in working conditions somewhere between those of 19th century Dickensian squalor, the Gulag, and some Nineteen Eighty-Four nightmare? "Brad DeLong"! Have you seen the pollution in China? What kind of ecocidal nutbag would want to help export our basest model of production and consumption, the most wasteful on Earth, to a country of two billion people? "Brad DeLong"!

Why is 2010 gonna be a disaster for the Democrats? "Brad DeLong"! Why is the Tea Party able to gain the sympathy of so many economically-shafted Americans whose welfare it obviously will not improve? "Brad DeLong"!

Etc. Etc.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cramulus on October 05, 2010, 02:58:40 PM
FROM http://eyeofthestorm.blogs.com/eye_of_the_storm/2010/09/if-i-were-going-to-seewaiting-for-supermani-think-i-would-need-to-see-it-alonemy-reaction-is-likely-to-be-severe-and-no-on.html via IOZ:

helpin janie with her homework last night; she was working on the mason-dixon line, which more or less runs through my house (well a couple miles south). but the procedure was simply mechanical. the first sentence re-states the question. re-state this, fuckhead. the next three give details from the text, in support (of your restatement of the question?). she didn't actually get to compose a single sentence, much less express some sort of independent response. it has to be mechanical to be measurable: the tests seek to create their takers in their own image. illiteracy is preferable, or this just is a new form of illiteracy.

by the time i'm teaching them as freshmen, they just want to be told what procedures to follow to get their 'A.' they really are often disappointed that i don't tell them how to compose each sentence. ( a few weirdos still slip through, of course.)
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Adios on October 05, 2010, 03:25:03 PM
Quote from: Cramulus on October 05, 2010, 02:58:40 PM
FROM http://eyeofthestorm.blogs.com/eye_of_the_storm/2010/09/if-i-were-going-to-seewaiting-for-supermani-think-i-would-need-to-see-it-alonemy-reaction-is-likely-to-be-severe-and-no-on.html via IOZ:

helpin janie with her homework last night; she was working on the mason-dixon line, which more or less runs through my house (well a couple miles south). but the procedure was simply mechanical. the first sentence re-states the question. re-state this, fuckhead. the next three give details from the text, in support (of your restatement of the question?). she didn't actually get to compose a single sentence, much less express some sort of independent response. it has to be mechanical to be measurable: the tests seek to create their takers in their own image. illiteracy is preferable, or this just is a new form of illiteracy.

by the time i'm teaching them as freshmen, they just want to be told what procedures to follow to get their 'A.' they really are often disappointed that i don't tell them how to compose each sentence. ( a few weirdos still slip through, of course.)

A teacher wrote that?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cramulus on October 05, 2010, 03:27:36 PM
his bio says

Prof of political science at Dickinson College and opinion columnist distributed by Creators Syndicate.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Adios on October 05, 2010, 03:32:27 PM
A spokesman for Sen. Jim DeMint tells CNN the South Carolina Republican was merely stating his position that school boards should be in control of hiring decisions when the senator reportedly said Saturday that gays and unwed mothers should be banned from teaching.

"Senator DeMint believes that hiring decisions at local schools are a local school board issue, not a federal issue. He was making a point about how the media attacks people for holding a moral opinion," a spokesman for DeMint said Tuesday.

Speaking at a church rally in Spartanburg, South Carolina, DeMint told attendees people quietly told him he should not back down from a position he took in 2004 that openly gay individuals and single mothers who are involved in a sexual relationship should not be allowed to teach. He did not weigh in on whether unwed men should be allowed to teach.

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/

I wonder when he will get caught in a gay act?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Adios on October 05, 2010, 03:33:33 PM
Quote from: Cramulus on October 05, 2010, 03:27:36 PM
his bio says

Prof of political science at Dickinson College and opinion columnist distributed by Creators Syndicate.

Wow. Is it just me or did that read like it was written by a drunken monkey?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cramulus on October 05, 2010, 03:35:18 PM
well he didn't take a lot of care with grammar or capitalization but I think that sort of underscores his point: We are teaching form, not substance.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Adios on October 05, 2010, 03:41:45 PM
Quote from: Cramulus on October 05, 2010, 03:35:18 PM
well he didn't take a lot of care with grammar or capitalization but I think that sort of underscores his point: We are teaching form, not substance.

Okay, if he was making a point then I get it.  :)
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Juana on October 06, 2010, 12:57:46 AM
I definitely agree with his assessment. I used to grade papers for my old boss (both as a student and her assistant), who taught English, and I wanted to kill things after each essay. They all expected the formula for the A and refused to write proper essays...which is what she required. The seniors she taught from my graduating class almost all failed, or would have if the principal hadn't forced her to pass them, because they never wrote the papers they were supposed to and they had time in class to do so.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Juana on October 06, 2010, 04:29:41 AM
QuoteIt's cute that modern political backroom dealings are now "I spent all morning working on a Facebook post about you. But now I'm not going to use it and I'm also not going to help you level up in Mafia Wars."
A comment on Gawker's article on some leaked emails (http://gawker.com/5656514/leaked-emails-sarah-palin-doesnt-give-out-endorsements-for-nothing) between Todd Palin, Joe Miller, and one of Sarah's underlings.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on October 14, 2010, 06:15:08 PM
I love this quote.  I cherish and protect it, only quoting it when someone is not ready for it, to ensure maximum impact:

QuoteFrom the mid-1990s, bin Laden funded Chechen guerrilla leaders Shamil Basayev and Omar ibn al-Khattab to the tune of several millions of dollars per month, sidelining the moderate Chechen majority. US intelligence remained deeply involved until the end of the decade. According to Yossef Bodanksy (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yossef_Bodansky), then-Director of the US Congressional Task Force on Terrorism and Unconventional Warfare, Washington was actively involved in 'yet another anti-Russian jihad, 'seeking to support and empower the most virulent anti-Western Islamist forces'. US Government officials participated in 'a formal meeting in Azerbaijan' in December 1999 'in which specific programmes for the training and equipping of mujahidin from the Caucasus, Central/South Asia and the Arab world were discussed and agreed upon', culminating in 'Washington's tacit encouragement of both Muslim allies (mainly Turkey, Jordan and Saudi Arabia) and US "private security companies"... to assist the Chechens and their Islamist allies to surge in the spring of 2000 and sustain the ensuing jihad for a long time.' The US saw the sponsorship of 'Islamist jihad in the Caucasus' as a way to 'deprive Russia of a viable pipeline route through spiraling violence and terrorism'.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Telarus on October 15, 2010, 08:23:08 AM
I fucking knew it. Johnny Brainwash and I had discussed the probability a while ago when it hit the news again.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on October 15, 2010, 12:53:00 PM
Remember after Beslan, when Putin was pissed at America and the media were like "lol, Putin is spazzing out over conspiracy theories"?

Yeah, exactly.

Incidentally, Russia picked up Ayman al-Zawahiri in 1996, travelling on a fake passport.  They didn't know who he was though, so they let him go.

Also, if you look into the relationship of Neoconservatives with Azerbaijan, and Azerbaijan's relationship with the Mujahideen it transported over to fight their war with Armenia (aided by the ISI, and Turkish Grey Wolves), and who later formed the core of the Chechen sepratists, a very nasty picture begins to emerge...
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on October 27, 2010, 09:49:13 AM
One of these things is not like the other:

QuoteThe smile, affable and empty, could be that of a small-town gas-station attendant or a hired assassin."

The man in question?  White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs (http://www.gq.com/news-politics/politics/201011/robert-gibbs-obama-white-house-press-secretary).
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Iason Ouabache on October 28, 2010, 05:53:10 AM
http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-10-12/sharron-angle-and-the-anti-muslim-scare-about-sharia-law-in-america/full/

QuoteNow I admit that we Muslims are a pretty powerful bunch. But in all the secret Muslim gatherings I have attended to discuss our plans for destroying democracy and taking over the White House (we meet every Friday night directly atop Ground Zero), we have come to the conclusion that we will need to raise our numbers from the 1% of the US population we currently represent, to at least 2% before we can begin stoning people at random.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Salty on October 28, 2010, 05:59:30 AM
 :lulz: :lulz: :lulz:
Yoinked.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Iason Ouabache on November 07, 2010, 07:18:54 PM
http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/11/bush_i_was_a_dissenting_voice_on_iraq_war.php

Quote"Not everybody thought you should go to war, though," Lauer said. "There were dissenting voices."

"I was a dissenting voice. I didn't want to use force," Bush said. "I mean force is the last option for a President. And I think it's clear in the book that I gave diplomacy every chance to work. And I will also tell you the world's better off without Saddam in power. And so are 25 million Iraqis."

:argh!: He's trolling us again!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: AFK on November 08, 2010, 06:08:57 PM
I guess he's made the calculation that it's better to go down in history as a pussy/pushover President rather than a neocon warmonger hawk. 
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cramulus on November 08, 2010, 09:09:24 PM
the current motto for any tea partier: "No no, I was one of the good republicans that opposed Bush."

hilarious that Bush is trying to jump onto that platform too  :lol:


anybody found any good tidbits re: his memoirs?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on November 08, 2010, 09:25:31 PM
Quote from: Cramulus on November 08, 2010, 09:09:24 PM
the current motto for any tea partier: "No no, I was one of the good republicans that opposed Bush."

hilarious that Bush is trying to jump onto that platform too  :lol:


anybody found any good tidbits re: his memoirs?

http://tvbythenumbers.com/2010/11/02/excerpts-from-nbc-news-matt-lauer-reports-interview-with-george-w-bush-airs-monday-november-8-at-8pm-et/70650

A few of those made me lol.  His basic answers to Matt Lauer were, of course, "I don't care about any criticism" and "Read the book."
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on November 09, 2010, 02:58:24 PM
Also http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-11715577

QuoteBritish lives were saved by the use of information obtained from terrorist suspects by "waterboarding", according to former US President George W Bush.

In his memoir, he said the simulated drowning technique helped break plots on Heathrow Airport and Canary Wharf.

Number 10 declined to comment directly on the claims but said it considered waterboarding to be torture.

"We don't condone it [torture], nor do we ask others to do it on our behalf," a spokeswoman said.

Mr Bush's memoir, Decision Points, is being serialised in the Times.

In an interview with the paper the former president said: "Three people were waterboarded and I believe that decision saved lives."

He confirmed he had authorised the use of waterboarding to extract information from Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the al-Qaeda mastermind behind the 9/11 attack.

Mr Bush tells the paper: "Damn right!

"We capture the guy, the chief operating officer of al-Qaeda, who kills 3,000 people. We felt he had the information about another attack.

"He says, 'I'll talk to you when I get my lawyer'. I say, 'What options are available and legal?'"

In the book, Mr Bush writes: "Their interrogations helped break up plots to attack American diplomatic facilities abroad, Heathrow airport and Canary Wharf in London, and multiple targets in the United States."

Note there is currently a lot of controversy in the UK due to an investigation showing there was systematic prisoner abuse by British soliders in Iraq, along with information that "unauthorized" manuals were being distributed by the Joint Intelligence Centre in the run-up to the Iraq War (none of which have been found, however their existence is well established).
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cramulus on November 09, 2010, 03:02:26 PM
Quote from: Jenne on November 08, 2010, 09:25:31 PM
Quote from: Cramulus on November 08, 2010, 09:09:24 PM
the current motto for any tea partier: "No no, I was one of the good republicans that opposed Bush."

hilarious that Bush is trying to jump onto that platform too  :lol:


anybody found any good tidbits re: his memoirs?

http://tvbythenumbers.com/2010/11/02/excerpts-from-nbc-news-matt-lauer-reports-interview-with-george-w-bush-airs-monday-november-8-at-8pm-et/70650

A few of those made me lol.  His basic answers to Matt Lauer were, of course, "I don't care about any criticism" and "Read the book."



oh man ...



BUSH ON KANYE WEST:

MATT LAUER:
About a week after the storm hit NBC aired a telethon asking for help for the victims of Katrina. We had celebrities coming in to ask for money. And I remember it vividly because I hosted it. And at one part of the evening I introduced Kanye West. Were you watching?

PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH:
Nope.

MATT LAUER:
You remember what he said?

PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH:

Yes, I do. He called me a racist.

MATT LAUER:
Well, what he said, "George Bush doesn't care about black people."

PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH:
That's — "he's a racist." And I didn't appreciate it then. I don't appreciate it now. It's one thing to say, "I don't appreciate the way he's handled his business." It's another thing to say, "This man's a racist." I resent it, it's not true, and it was one of the most disgusting moments in my Presidency.

MATT LAUER:
This from the book. "Five years later I can barely write those words without feeling disgust." You go on. "I faced a lot of criticism as President. I didn't like hearing people claim that I lied about Iraq's weapons of mass destruction or cut taxes to benefit the rich. But the suggestion that I was racist because of the response to Katrina represented an all time low."

PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH:
Yeah. I still feel that way as you read those words. I felt 'em when I heard 'em, felt 'em when I wrote 'em and I felt 'em when I'm listening to 'em.

MATT LAUER:
You say you told Laura at the time it was the worst moment of your Presidency?

PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH:
Yes. My record was strong I felt when it came to race relations and giving people a chance. And– it was a disgusting moment.

MATT LAUER:
I wonder if some people are going to read that, now that you've written it, and they might give you some heat for that. And the reason is this–

PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH:
Don't care.

MATT LAUER:
Well, here's the reason. You're not saying that the worst moment in you're Presidency was watching the misery in Louisiana. You're saying it was when someone insulted you because of that.

PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH:
No — that– and I also make it clear that the misery in Louisiana affected me deeply as well. There's a lot of tough moments in the book. And it was a disgusting moment, pure and simple.


(http://www.boingboing.net/images/ko_bush.jpg)
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on November 09, 2010, 03:16:49 PM
It's a good reminder of how shallow Bush really is.  The "worst moment of his presidency" wasn't when 3000 people burnt or leapt to their deaths while he was reading "My Pet Goat", it wasn't launching two wars, nor the destruction of New Orleans, the financial collapse, authorizing torture etc etc it was that KANYE WEST, also noted for his statements on gay fish, thought he was a racist.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on November 09, 2010, 03:19:47 PM
Matt Lauer tried real hard to get at the "but the people in NOLA suffering wasn't WORSE?" bit, but Bushie would have none of it.  :lol:

Yeah, so much lail & fail.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cramulus on November 09, 2010, 03:25:14 PM
(http://imaletyoufinish.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/bush-kanye-obama.jpg)
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: AFK on November 09, 2010, 04:44:48 PM
Geez, I wonder if Taylor Swift holds a grudge that long. 
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on November 10, 2010, 09:15:32 AM
Bush does at least have a Freudian Excuse as to why he is kinda fucked up:

http://feeds.wonkette.com/click.phdo?i=676760942dd9f04e36290f588a52fd8f

QuoteSome people give lame reasons to be pro-life, but George W. Bush really has a pretty good excuse. While on his current "Say Anything To Get People To Buy My Book Nobody Would Read Otherwise" tour, Bush revealed to Matt Lauer the reason he dislikes abortion: His mother had a miscarriage when he was a teenager and liked to parade around her dead offspring in a jar. Holy hell, this family. "Junior, please pass sister fetus jar the mashed potatoes." "Junior, please drive your brother the fetus jar to school." "Junior, doesn't your sister the fetus jar look beautiful in her prom dress? Pull her out of the goo and pin that corsage on her, wouldn't you? Then give her a kiss goodbye. She'd best be going or she'll be late!"

Quote"She said to her teenage kid, 'Here's the fetus,' " the shockingly candid Bush told NBC's Matt Lauer, gesturing as if he were holding the jar during the TV chat, a DVD of which The Post exclusively obtained.

"There's no question that affected me, a philosophy that we should respect life," said the former president [...]

But "the purpose of the story wasn't to try show the evolution of a pro-life point of view," Bush insisted to Lauer.

It was to scare children on Halloween?

Quote"It was really to show how my mom and I developed a relationship."

Oh Lord, did the two of them have sex? This almost excuses the whole torture thing.

Also, Jonah Goldberg, he of Liberal Fascism fame, has a new book out.  Thers (http://whiskeyfire.typepad.com/), one of the people who ensured that Liberal Fascism got exactly the kind of literary recognition it deserved (ie; unending mockery across the net) has gained a copy of this magical and exciting tome which delves deep into the philosophy of current day American conservatism (http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WhiskeyFire/~3/Kga51-uUGgc/vast-fashions.html):

QuoteOver the next week I'm going to go contemplate this issue in some detail. Are the contributors to this book smart?

Perhaps surprisingly, they are not.

We shall begin with Micahel Warren's "Prosperity: The Choice of a New Generation," which wittily recalls the advertising slogan of a soft drink corporation.

Warren says he went on a study abroad program in Ireland, where he learned that Irish teenagers are very similar to American teenagers, in that they go to school, listen to music, and wear clothing. Also he explains that even though he has no actual understanding of modern Irish history, economic or otherwise, Ireland needs to do what he says because he has Seen the Light of True Religious Economic Policy.

Among the howlers: after 1921, in Ireland, the "Anglo-American political tradition was not particularly welcome." This makes no sense. The Saorstat for openers swallowed whole the corpus of British law for purposes of precedents. The civil service barely burped at the change of sovereign governments. Kevin O'Higgins... ahrg! I could go on, oh Lord could I go on, but the point is, Warren clearly has no idea what he's talking about whatsoever. Even after de Valera came to power, this is nuts. And it leads to even more abject nonsense like this, about Ireland's current desperate economic straits:

QuoteA victim of the entrnched feudal system in Europe and its own self-immolation by refusing to co-opt the capitalist traditions of its hated British neighbors, the Emerald Isle does not have the institutions from which to gain inspiration and fortitude.

If only Ireland had "institutions" like the Electoral College and the House of Lords, it would be properly equipped for the 21st century.

The "capitalist" stuff is fantastic. Since '21 Ireland has always hewed closer to the currently fashionable capitalist line, regardless of whether or not it made any particular sense to do so. And the results have usually been pretty brutal. Here is Current Reality.

What Warren says in his piece is, flatly, crazy.

But in terms of ideological purity, it's purely ideological, so whatever.

And that's the point; Goldberg's young geniuses are talking incomprehensible crap except to each other, but have no idea why they should even think this even matters.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Juana on November 11, 2010, 08:51:12 PM
Republicans Are Really Weird, Chapter CCVII (http://delong.typepad.com/sdj/2010/11/republicans-are-really-weird-chapter-ccvii.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+BradDelongsSemi-dailyJournal+%28Brad+DeLong%27s+Semi-Daily+Journal%29&utm_content=Google+Reader)
QuoteBen Armbruster:

    In 2008, Bush Said He 'Probably Won't Vote For' McCain: With stories about President Bush's new memoir dominating the headlines this week, Financial Times Westminster correspondent Alex Barker reports on his "favourite Bush anecdote," which he writes, "for various reasons we couldn't publish at the time. Some of the witnesses still dine out on it":
       
QuoteThe venue was the Oval Office. A group of British dignitaries, including Gordon Brown, were paying a visit. It was at the height of the 2008 presidential election campaign, not long after Bush publicly endorsed John McCain as his successor.

        Naturally the election came up in conversation. Trying to be even-handed and polite, the Brits said something diplomatic about McCain's campaign, expecting Bush to express some warm words of support for the Republican candidate.

        Not a chance. "I probably won't even vote for the guy," Bush told the group, according to two people present."I had to endorse him. But I'd have endorsed Obama if they'd asked me."

    Barker said that British officials looked "dumbfounded" and that Brown's "poker face gave way to a flash of astonishment."
:lulz:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on November 12, 2010, 07:50:46 AM
Breaking Brown's poker face should be considered just another international crime Bush has caused.  Have you ever seen Brown when he isn't scowling?  Not a pretty sight, not at all.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: E.O.T. on November 12, 2010, 08:19:06 AM
BUSH jr/ "W"

          a f*kng moron, so extremely. that's (IMO) why they gave him the job, when that was the job what needed to be done. he believes it all, to a ridiculous degree
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on November 22, 2010, 05:30:25 PM
The Flying Rodent (http://flyingrodent.blogspot.com/2010/11/how-peasantry-took-up-torches-and.html), on teabaggers and the banking crisis:

QuoteGood fun as usual with MattTaibbi, documenting the atrocities as the major US banks' intergalactic rip-off moves into the mopping-up phase by crushing homeowners with the club of the state.

It'd be difficult to find a finer example of modern democracy's total inability to control the monster it's created.  On the micro level, here's how the scam worked -

- The major US banks buy politicians with campaign contributions, in exchange for rights to expand into more markets and a reduction in regulations;

- Freed from effective oversight, the banks proceeded to aggressively lend to hundreds of thousands of home-buyers, entirely aware that they were lending to people who couldn't afford repayments;

- The banks then took all those shit mortgages, bundled them up into impenetrable finance packages, and sold them off to pension funds, trade unions etc. as top-notch, ultra-secure investments rather than the near-worthless bags of cowshite they actually were;

- After a few years of making out like bandits, their pockets stuffed with fraudulently-earned cash, the financial crisis finally exposed the scam, causing major financial institutions around the world to explode like staked vampires.  Those that survived did so by robbing taxpayers at gunpoint - give us fifteen bajillion dollars, or we take the entire planet down with us.  

- Engorged with taxpayers' cash, they then refused to lend it back to citizens - theoretically the reason they were given it in the first place - and awarded themselves another round of massive bonuses instead, before enlisting the aid of the state to repossess the very homes they'd used to cause the disaster in the first place.

Result - giganti-bonuses all round at Goldman Sachs; a lifetime of crushing debt and exploding government programmes for you and your offspring.

It'd be funny, if a peasant uprising in the US hadn't just sent a flock of angry retards barking and snarling into Congress and the House to protect the banking aristocracy under the hilarious euphemisms of "smaller government" and "resisting socialism".  It'd be hilarious, if the British government's response to private sector malfeasance wasn't an entirely ideological assault on government spending.  

It's a real laugh riot, in short, that the near-destruction of the western world's economy by Croesus-rich corporate thieves has been deliberately propagandised as an overabundance of social outreach officers - that the total discrediting of modern capitalism is somehow the fault of a non-existent socialism, an ideology that hasn't been a force in world politics for more than twenty years.

That's the micro explanation - on the macro scale, the problem begins in 1979, when a beige cadre of unsmiling Randroid lunatics decided to totally restructure the American and British economies by slicing and dicing the power of labour.

Long story short - the public were sold an appealing picture of personal responsibility and individual freedom.  What they got was an all-out, militarised assault on the working class, on the promise of call centre jobs, wide-screen TVs and a fortnight a year in Greece...  And then the call centre jobs were outsourced to India, and the bailliffs showed up at the door.  

Thus it was that governments that regarded the words "wealth redistribution" as Stalinist oppression proceeded to redistribute wealth to themselves and the class that spawned and sustained them - royalty.  For the great mass of the people, the new restructured economy meant one thing - debt.  Lots of debt.

And here we are in 2010, with a new breed of hairy-palmed Conservative revolutionaries making the world safe for royalty with an entirely ideological crackdown on public spending, pledging to create a bajillion jobs by hurling half a million onto the dole and forcing the unemployed to work for a bowl of rice a day.  Out of the self same wizardry that just hurled all of us into the shitter will be fashioned a brave new world of magical ponies.

Well, I don't think you have to think be Sherlock Holmes to work out why this story hasn't been broadcast from the rooftops, and exactly cui is bonofitting from it.  The British public didn't suddenly decide on its own that the financial crisis was caused by tossing too much government cheese into tower blocks;  the electorate of the United States didn't suddenly come to the conclusion unassisted that this disaster was caused by their dark-skinned neighbours borrowing too much money.

As Keyzer Soze says in The Usual Suspects, the greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist.  Our present situation strains satire, and represents the absolute failure of our democracy to analyse and tackle its most life-threatening problems.  It shows that collectively, we'll swallow anything so long as there's a lazy civil servant or a black homeowner to pay for our sins; that we're delighted to have the privilege of selling our birthright for a car boot full of snazzy electronics bought on the never-never

BERNARD MATTHEWS: Anyone for more Christmas?

TURKEYS:  Yes please!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Iason Ouabache on November 23, 2010, 09:49:18 AM
Daaaaaamn.

:mittens:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on November 24, 2010, 07:58:00 PM
I'm becoming one of that guy's biggest fans.  Heard an NPR interview with him about his book and saw him on "The Daily Show," re: same thing.  He's got some SCARY knowledge about what has been going on, but he's not the only one.  There are a lot of people coming out of the woodwork with stories of horror like the above.  

The thing is, I'm not quite sure how the situation will be made better.  JOBS need to be created, but the banks are NOT doing their part in helping that.  I don't see WHO is going to make them, any time soon.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Reginald Ret on November 24, 2010, 09:55:18 PM
You don't NEED jobs, they are just a means to an end.
What you NEED is food, water and temperature regulation(aka The Roof).

Jobs are the preferable way of getting those things though, otherwise shit gets complicated.
Still, if people need food, water and houses; get people to create/collect/clean/transport those things and you will have the basis for a society.

The usual method for this is economic incentives.
Banks are apparently the wrong dudes to give complete control over this.

As i see it the question is:
How can we convince people to create/collect/clean/transport neccesaries?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on November 30, 2010, 07:47:03 PM
Jason Sigger

QuoteI don't understand the Arab world, but let me say that I'm quite annoyed by this Machevelian scheming where the Gulf States all seem to expect the US military to act as their bitches to achieve their political objectives, while they sit back on their billions of dollars in defense systems and do... nothing. Listen, you fat fucks, you oil-bloated family dynasties, if you want Iran's regime toppled, get some skin in the game. Form an Arab military coalition and attack Iran. You'll make Israel really happy. I'm sure the US government will give you all the targeting data you could want. But really. Fuck off with your suggestions to the US government that we act as your bully boys.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on December 01, 2010, 08:56:16 PM
Robert Gates

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_us_north_korea;_ylt=AomqTT03DkTyOrBQ11LN53qs0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTNoazFsdTZmBGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMTAxMTI0L3VzX3VzX25vcnRoX2tvcmVhBGNjb2RlA21vc3Rwb3B1bGFyBGNwb3MDMQRwb3MDMgRwdANob21lX2Nva2UEc2VjA3luX3RvcF9zdG9yeQRzbGsDb2JhbWFwbGVkZ2Vz

QuoteI don't know the answer to any question about North Korea that begins with the word 'why.'
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Nephew Twiddleton on December 01, 2010, 09:04:58 PM
Quote from: Cain on December 01, 2010, 08:56:16 PM
Robert Gates

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_us_north_korea;_ylt=AomqTT03DkTyOrBQ11LN53qs0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTNoazFsdTZmBGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMTAxMTI0L3VzX3VzX25vcnRoX2tvcmVhBGNjb2RlA21vc3Rwb3B1bGFyBGNwb3MDMQRwb3MDMgRwdANob21lX2Nva2UEc2VjA3luX3RvcF9zdG9yeQRzbGsDb2JhbWFwbGVkZ2Vz

QuoteI don't know the answer to any question about North Korea that begins with the word 'why.'

:lulz:

I imagine most North Koreans couldn't answer those either.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Iason Ouabache on December 01, 2010, 09:14:20 PM
Quote from: Cain on December 01, 2010, 08:56:16 PM
Robert Gates

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_us_north_korea;_ylt=AomqTT03DkTyOrBQ11LN53qs0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTNoazFsdTZmBGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMTAxMTI0L3VzX3VzX25vcnRoX2tvcmVhBGNjb2RlA21vc3Rwb3B1bGFyBGNwb3MDMQRwb3MDMgRwdANob21lX2Nva2UEc2VjA3luX3RvcF9zdG9yeQRzbGsDb2JhbWFwbGVkZ2Vz

QuoteI don't know the answer to any question about North Korea that begins with the word 'why.'
Why? Because bitches be crazy.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: AFK on December 02, 2010, 01:27:59 PM
Heh, I love that answer. 
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Prince Glittersnatch III on December 02, 2010, 07:48:41 PM
QuoteAsked by King for his response to the assessment of the US defence secretary, Robert Gates – revealed earlier by WikiLeaks – that "Russian democracy has disappeared and that the government is being run by the security services," Putin replied: "I am personally acquainted with Mr Gates, I have met him on several occasions. I think he is a very nice man and not a bad specialist. But Mr Gates, of course, was one of the leaders of the US Central Intelligence Agency and today he is defense secretary. If he also happens to be America's leading expert on democracy, I congratulate you."

King also asked about the 10 Russian "sleeper agents" caught in the US in June and later deported to Moscow. Putin claimed that they had not harmed US interests, adding: "The methods employed by our special services differ in a good way from those used by US special services. Thank God, neither the agents in question or any other Russian intelligence officers are known to have been involved in creating secret prisons, kidnappings, or torture.

Oh snap.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Nephew Twiddleton on December 02, 2010, 07:51:16 PM
Quote from: Lord Glittersnatch on December 02, 2010, 07:48:41 PM
QuoteAsked by King for his response to the assessment of the US defence secretary, Robert Gates – revealed earlier by WikiLeaks – that "Russian democracy has disappeared and that the government is being run by the security services," Putin replied: "I am personally acquainted with Mr Gates, I have met him on several occasions. I think he is a very nice man and not a bad specialist. But Mr Gates, of course, was one of the leaders of the US Central Intelligence Agency and today he is defense secretary. If he also happens to be America's leading expert on democracy, I congratulate you."

King also asked about the 10 Russian "sleeper agents" caught in the US in June and later deported to Moscow. Putin claimed that they had not harmed US interests, adding: "The methods employed by our special services differ in a good way from those used by US special services. Thank God, neither the agents in question or any other Russian intelligence officers are known to have been involved in creating secret prisons, kidnappings, or torture.

Oh snap.

Suddenly I found myself feeling sympathetic to Putin there. Then I remembered Litvinenko and his salt shaker full of polonium.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on December 02, 2010, 07:52:25 PM
:putin:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on December 02, 2010, 08:27:23 PM
No, they don't need secret prisons for their Chechen terrorists.  Just a quiet place with a basement in downtown Grozny, some pliers, knives, lighter fuel and matches.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cramulus on December 07, 2010, 07:32:47 PM
Sen Bernie Sanders goes on a great tirade about the class war between the richest 1% and the rest of us.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H5OtB298fHY
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: AFK on December 07, 2010, 07:46:42 PM
He wouldn't have a shot in hell of winning but I'd love to see Sanders run for President. 
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on December 07, 2010, 07:48:01 PM
Given the right thinks Obama is a socialist, I'd love to see what they'd make of Sanders, a self-confessed socialist of the old school.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cramulus on December 10, 2010, 11:51:49 PM
http://cspan.org/Watch/C-SPAN2.aspx

holy shit! Sanders is filibustering live on CSPAN right now. He's been going for eight and a half hours!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Requia ☣ on December 10, 2010, 11:54:05 PM
I've been watching, the first 7 hours are pure rage and horrible truth, he starts to repeat himself a bit after that.   :lulz:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on December 14, 2010, 12:32:06 PM
"You've got to stop this war in Afghanistan"

- final words of Richard Holbrooke before he died.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on December 14, 2010, 04:40:33 PM
Quote from: Cain on December 14, 2010, 12:32:06 PM
"You've got to stop this war in Afghanistan"

- final words of Richard Holbrooke before he died.

:(
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: The Good Reverend Roger on December 21, 2010, 08:00:08 PM
http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2010/12/21/5690082-barbour-walks-back-comments-on-civil-rights-era
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Phox on December 21, 2010, 08:03:14 PM
Quote from: The Good Reverend Roger on December 21, 2010, 08:00:08 PM
http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2010/12/21/5690082-barbour-walks-back-comments-on-civil-rights-era

I do not know how to process that.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on December 21, 2010, 08:45:56 PM
I can top that

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/21/us/politics/21barbour.html?_r=1&hpw

QuoteIn 1982, as Mr. Barbour ran unsuccessfully against Senator John C. Stennis, an article in The New York Times quoted Mr. Barbour as chiding an aide for a racist comment by saying that if the aide made similar remarks he would be reincarnated as a watermelon and placed at the mercy of blacks.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Phox on December 21, 2010, 09:15:07 PM
Quote from: Cain on December 21, 2010, 08:45:56 PM
I can top that

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/21/us/politics/21barbour.html?_r=1&hpw

QuoteIn 1982, as Mr. Barbour ran unsuccessfully against Senator John C. Stennis, an article in The New York Times quoted Mr. Barbour as chiding an aide for a racist comment by saying that if the aide made similar remarks he would be reincarnated as a watermelon and placed at the mercy of blacks.
:lulz:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jasper on December 21, 2010, 09:30:35 PM
Christ, what an asshole.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on January 06, 2011, 07:43:18 PM
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/01/steele-cites-tolstoy-quotes-dickens-rnc-debate/

QuoteDuring a debate with all the candidates vying for the RNC chairmanship, Steele told the audience that his favorite book was Tolstoy's 1869 epic "War and Peace," one of the most celebrated books ever published.

But, then he followed up his answer with a peculiar quote: "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times."

A wave on uneasy laughter swept across the room.

That's because his quote is the most famous line from Dickens' classic 1859 novel "A Tale of Two Cities."
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Phox on January 06, 2011, 07:44:14 PM
Quote from: LMNO, PhD on January 06, 2011, 07:43:18 PM
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/01/steele-cites-tolstoy-quotes-dickens-rnc-debate/

QuoteDuring a debate with all the candidates vying for the RNC chairmanship, Steele told the audience that his favorite book was Tolstoy's 1869 epic "War and Peace," one of the most celebrated books ever published.

But, then he followed up his answer with a peculiar quote: "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times."

A wave on uneasy laughter swept across the room.

That's because his quote is the most famous line from Dickens' classic 1859 novel "A Tale of Two Cities."


:lulz:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: hooplala on January 06, 2011, 07:46:28 PM
Damn.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: AFK on January 06, 2011, 07:48:51 PM
Christ, what a dumbass. 

Someone should make a movie about his life someday.  Would be a hilarious comedy. 
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on January 06, 2011, 08:48:34 PM
Well, that was quick.


QuoteMere hours after taking control of the House, the new GOP leaders are already imposing exceptions to their promises. Democrats say Republicans are "exempting more than 1 trillion dollars in proposed tax cuts and higher spending over the next 10 years from a promise to cut federal deficits," writes the Associated Press.

In order to help fulfill their campaign promises to cut the deficit and increase transparency the Republican lawmakers passed a series of changes in House rules yesterday, but they exempt several specific bills from that effort. "The new majority is already showing these promises aren't exactly set in stone," notes Politico. The bill that would repeal the health care law, for example, will not go through a regular committee process. Same goes for the promise to have a more open amendment process. Plus, initial promises to post committee-attendance lists online were all but ditched. Republicans defend the moves, but many have been quick to point out that they show how difficult it will be to keep campaign promises when faced with the realities of running the House.

Meanwhile, Democrats have also accused the new majority of making it clear through their rules rewrite that the Republicans are "more interested in cutting taxes for monied special interests than in restoring the government's fiscal health," reports the Washington Post. "Those with long memories may have the feeling they've seen this movie before," writes the Associated Press. After the GOP victory in 1994,  most of the promises outlined in the "Contract With America" failed to get anywhere.

http://slatest.slate.com/id/2280214/entry/2/
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Aucoq on January 06, 2011, 08:55:24 PM
Quote from: LMNO, PhD on January 06, 2011, 08:48:34 PM
Well, that was quick.


QuoteMere hours after taking control of the House, the new GOP leaders are already imposing exceptions to their promises. Democrats say Republicans are "exempting more than 1 trillion dollars in proposed tax cuts and higher spending over the next 10 years from a promise to cut federal deficits," writes the Associated Press.

In order to help fulfill their campaign promises to cut the deficit and increase transparency the Republican lawmakers passed a series of changes in House rules yesterday, but they exempt several specific bills from that effort. "The new majority is already showing these promises aren't exactly set in stone," notes Politico. The bill that would repeal the health care law, for example, will not go through a regular committee process. Same goes for the promise to have a more open amendment process. Plus, initial promises to post committee-attendance lists online were all but ditched. Republicans defend the moves, but many have been quick to point out that they show how difficult it will be to keep campaign promises when faced with the realities of running the House.

Meanwhile, Democrats have also accused the new majority of making it clear through their rules rewrite that the Republicans are "more interested in cutting taxes for monied special interests than in restoring the government's fiscal health," reports the Washington Post. "Those with long memories may have the feeling they've seen this movie before," writes the Associated Press. After the GOP victory in 1994,  most of the promises outlined in the "Contract With America" failed to get anywhere.

http://slatest.slate.com/id/2280214/entry/2/

That sounds about right.  :horrormirth:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Phox on January 06, 2011, 09:02:27 PM
Quote from: LMNO, PhD on January 06, 2011, 08:48:34 PM
Well, that was quick.


QuoteMere hours after taking control of the House, the new GOP leaders are already imposing exceptions to their promises. Democrats say Republicans are "exempting more than 1 trillion dollars in proposed tax cuts and higher spending over the next 10 years from a promise to cut federal deficits," writes the Associated Press.

In order to help fulfill their campaign promises to cut the deficit and increase transparency the Republican lawmakers passed a series of changes in House rules yesterday, but they exempt several specific bills from that effort. "The new majority is already showing these promises aren't exactly set in stone," notes Politico. The bill that would repeal the health care law, for example, will not go through a regular committee process. Same goes for the promise to have a more open amendment process. Plus, initial promises to post committee-attendance lists online were all but ditched. Republicans defend the moves, but many have been quick to point out that they show how difficult it will be to keep campaign promises when faced with the realities of running the House.

Meanwhile, Democrats have also accused the new majority of making it clear through their rules rewrite that the Republicans are "more interested in cutting taxes for monied special interests than in restoring the government's fiscal health," reports the Washington Post. "Those with long memories may have the feeling they've seen this movie before," writes the Associated Press. After the GOP victory in 1994,  most of the promises outlined in the "Contract With America" failed to get anywhere.

http://slatest.slate.com/id/2280214/entry/2/

Raise your hand if you are surprised.

...

....

....

I thought not.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Juana on January 07, 2011, 01:20:26 AM
:lulz: Go figure.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on January 12, 2011, 03:11:21 PM
Ah, National Review.  I return to your articles like a dog returneth to his vomit, and a fool to his folly

http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/256043/mother-nature-vs-nanny-charlotte-hays

QuoteThe blizzard is definitely a force for conservatism...

That on it's own is crazy sounding, but with context it only becomes more so.

Quote... and not only because it has had the global-warming crowd scrambling for explanations. The blizzard reveals something basic: Liberals in government want to tell us what to eat, counsel us about how and when to die, and in general attempt to engineer our lives. But when reality knocks, they can't do the basic stuff such as clearing the streets so that newborns don't die in bloody apartment-building lobbies. Mayor Bloomberg may be receiving an unfair amount of criticism for his lackluster performance in coping with Mother Nature, given the almost unprecedented nature of the storm, but the unplowed city streets provide a metaphor for the nanny state: It can order us to do anything, but it can't take care of the basic obligations of government.

At least those who died in the Great Blizzard of 1888 can take solace in the fact they were not killed by socialism.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Phox on January 12, 2011, 04:40:06 PM
Quote from: Cain on January 12, 2011, 03:11:21 PM
Ah, National Review.  I return to your articles like a dog returneth to his vomit, and a fool to his folly

http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/256043/mother-nature-vs-nanny-charlotte-hays

QuoteThe blizzard is definitely a force for conservatism...

That on it's own is crazy sounding, but with context it only becomes more so.

Quote... and not only because it has had the global-warming crowd scrambling for explanations. The blizzard reveals something basic: Liberals in government want to tell us what to eat, counsel us about how and when to die, and in general attempt to engineer our lives. But when reality knocks, they can't do the basic stuff such as clearing the streets so that newborns don't die in bloody apartment-building lobbies. Mayor Bloomberg may be receiving an unfair amount of criticism for his lackluster performance in coping with Mother Nature, given the almost unprecedented nature of the storm, but the unplowed city streets provide a metaphor for the nanny state: It can order us to do anything, but it can't take care of the basic obligations of government.

At least those who died in the Great Blizzard of 1888 can take solace in the fact they were not killed by socialism.

That entire statement is contradictory and stupid. I love it.  :lulz:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on January 25, 2011, 06:52:05 PM
Oho!  http://transparency.aljazeera.net/document/2003

Israel's former foreign minister, Tizipi Livini, speaking with members of the Palestinian Authority in 2007

QuoteI was the Minister of Justice. I am a lawyer...But I am against law -- international law in particular. Law in general.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Adios on January 25, 2011, 06:56:00 PM
No. Just no. How......
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cramulus on January 25, 2011, 07:02:01 PM
(http://images46.fotki.com/v1483/photos/5/1222605/7387422/ifyoufearsomething_full-vi.jpg)
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Juana on January 26, 2011, 02:51:27 AM
Quote from: Cain on January 25, 2011, 06:52:05 PM
Oho!  http://transparency.aljazeera.net/document/2003

Israel's former foreign minister, Tizipi Livini, speaking with members of the Palestinian Authority in 2007

QuoteI was the Minister of Justice. I am a lawyer...But I am against law -- international law in particular. Law in general.
:lulz: and :horrormirth:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Nephew Twiddleton on January 26, 2011, 04:15:16 PM
Quote from: Cramulus on January 25, 2011, 07:02:01 PM
(http://images46.fotki.com/v1483/photos/5/1222605/7387422/ifyoufearsomething_full-vi.jpg)

Dude that's awesome. Is it yours?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cramulus on January 26, 2011, 08:05:35 PM
no, I found it while researching postergasm


This quote is from facebook, in reply to a quote from Cain:

"Twitter is not driving the revolution. FFS. Get over the social media fetish, people, it's a fucking tool. Telegrams did not incite WWI and Twitter does not 'cause' anything."

James: Remember the election protests in Iran all thanks to Twitter? It was all a load of shit: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jun/09/iran-twitter-revolution-protests (the money quote being that there were only about 1k twitter users in Iran... at that time). Twitter was fantastic for keeping abreast of the news while traditional news outlets took their routine time to publish developments.

So, no. I don't think Twitter has significantly influenced events in Iran, Tunisia, or Egypt. Why are we talking about Twitter's influence when it was Wikileaks the revealed Tunisia's dictator to be corrupt and supported by the US. The same has been common knowledge regarding the Mubarak regime.

Americans have a lot of fucking gall to wonder why many Muslims nations hate us when we support dictators who should be tried for crimes against humanity, and then when they do revolt we wank off about how our Twitter helped those poor backwards sods finally shake off the yolk.

Twitter is great for keeping up with Roger Ebert's new chin, or finding out what Sarah Silverman thinks about her vagina today. But the revolution is not yet tweeted.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on March 01, 2011, 06:03:31 PM
QuoteA unionized public employee, a teabagger, and a CEO are sitting at a table. In the middle of the table is a plate with a dozen cookies on it. The CEO reaches across and takes 11 cookies, then looks at the teabagger and says "Watch out for that union guy—he wants a piece of your cookie!"

Source unknown.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Telarus on March 02, 2011, 02:56:15 AM
Quote from: Cain on March 01, 2011, 06:03:31 PM
QuoteA unionized public employee, a teabagger, and a CEO are sitting at a table. In the middle of the table is a plate with a dozen cookies on it. The CEO reaches across and takes 11 cookies, then looks at the teabagger and says "Watch out for that union guy—he wants a piece of your cookie!"

Source unknown.

I've been seeing this everywhere. A very very good meme/joke.

I wonder if we can dig up a source with Google timeline, or anything like that.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Requia ☣ on March 25, 2011, 06:41:24 PM
Quote from: Sasha VolokhI think there's a good case to be made that taxing people to protect the Earth from an asteroid, while within Congress's powers, is an illegitimate function of government from a moral perspective.

Apparently there is no limit to the insanity of libertarianism.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Prince Glittersnatch III on March 25, 2011, 09:50:27 PM
Quote from: Requia ☣ on March 25, 2011, 06:41:24 PM
Quote from: Sasha VolokhI think there's a good case to be made that taxing people to protect the Earth from an asteroid, while within Congress's powers, is an illegitimate function of government from a moral perspective.

Apparently there is no limit to the insanity of libertarianism.

Source?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Requia ☣ on March 25, 2011, 10:19:14 PM
Volokh

Or possibly you aren't all as familiar with crazy law blogs as I am, so link: http://volokh.com/2011/02/15/asteroid-defense-and-libertarianism/
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Freeky on March 25, 2011, 10:29:51 PM
wayt, wat
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Lord Cataplanga on March 26, 2011, 01:01:52 AM
I think I read something like that in The Onion the other day?

EDIT: here it is:
http://www.theonion.com/articles/republicans-vote-to-repeal-obamabacked-bill-that-w,19025/

Life imitating art?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Adjective Noun on April 18, 2011, 06:29:50 PM
QuoteToo often debates about AV are less like political arguments, and more like scientific discussions, where people get lost in a language of proportionality and preferences, probabilities and possibilities.

Of course, some of these things are important. But for me, politics shouldn't be some mind-bending exercise. It's about what you feel in your gut - about the values you hold dear and the beliefs you instinctively have. And I just feel it, in my gut, that AV is wrong.

This from the debate on changing our voting system in the UK ... from our current Prime Minister, David Cameron. Because politics is about not challenging your instinctive, knee-jerk "beliefs", don't you know?

Edit to add source - http://uk.news.yahoo.com/14/20110418/tpl-cameron-i-know-av-is-wrong-in-my-gut-81c5b50.html
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Prince Glittersnatch III on April 18, 2011, 08:07:31 PM
You say Rachel Maddow, I say Glenn Beck
You say Keith Olbermann, I say Bill O'reilly
You say Jon Stewart, I say Stephen Colbert
You say Cenk Uygur,I say Michael Savage
You say Ed Schultz,I say Rush Limbaugh
You say Obama,I say Reagan
You say MSNBC, I SCREAM Fox News
You say George Soros, I fucking punch you in the face
92% of teens have turned to socialism and communism.If you are part of the 8% that still believe in freedom, copy and paste this message to 5 other threads. DONT LET OUR REPUBLIC DIE!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on May 14, 2011, 02:55:47 AM
Quote from: Cain on April 04, 2008, 04:48:53 PM
When Obama wins, the only change will be that his supporters will be eaten first

Fucking called it.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on May 19, 2011, 08:53:54 AM
Quote from: General Rehavam "Gandhi" Ze'eviFarm out Snickers commercials to fugitive Serbian war criminals, and we'll have moved only half a step away from our mere trucknuts-lovin' jingoism toward the hypernationalism we are destined to embrace, like Rwandan Hutu Power. This murder was a state-sanctioned revenge killing with all the legal pretext a Sicilian would need to avenge a dirty look on the street. Nothing more, nothing less. Bin Laden deserved what he got, but then, if that Old West logic was also the guiding ethos in domestic affairs, Donald Trump should've been shot in the face by Navy SEALs the same week. Don't pretend this was justice, when it only exists in DC Comics. The eagle shrieked for blood, and so blood was served. And it won't even help Obama win reelection — won't make people love him any more than they already did or did not. Some major organ is thoroughly rotten, riddled with abscesses and blisters, if the one "big thing" America can accomplish is the tawdry, soul-sapping killing of a dilettante porn-addicted rich killer.

Bin Laden was clearer than is commonly believed in elucidating his oxygen-deprived "theology." In his last interview with journalist Robert Fisk, in the wilds of his Afghan fiefdom, Osama slowly explained the future: "From this mountain, Mr. Robert, upon which you are sitting, we beat the Russian army and helped break the Soviet Union. And I pray to God that he allows us to turn America into a shadow of itself." He wanted to embroil the U.S. in an endless global war that would enrage all Muslims, kill Americans, and batter the Treasury. He wanted us to writhe with fear in the absence of any sustained threat. We are shadows of ourselves, scanning the horizons for the next looming threat, even as we liquefy our eyes staring into the sun.

All of it available at http://www.mrdestructo.com/2011/05/wailing-walls-bela-lugosis-dead-part-i.html#more
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Telarus on May 19, 2011, 09:49:01 AM
wow
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on May 19, 2011, 04:25:41 PM
Et tu Mr Destructo is one of the best blogs on the internet written by a dead, former Central African dictator, Alan Greenspan, Idi Amin Dada and an assassinated Israeli Minister for Tourism.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Prince Glittersnatch III on May 19, 2011, 11:58:43 PM
Quote from: Cain on May 19, 2011, 04:25:41 PM
Et tu Mr Destructo is one of the best blogs on the internet written by a dead, former Central African dictator, Alan Greenspan, Idi Amin Dada and an assassinated Israeli Minister for Tourism.

Seems pretty cool.

Bookmarked.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Pope Lecherous on May 20, 2011, 01:02:19 AM
Quote from: Cain on May 19, 2011, 04:25:41 PM
Et tu Mr Destructo is one of the best blogs on the internet written by a dead, former Central African dictator, Alan Greenspan, Idi Amin Dada and an assassinated Israeli Minister for Tourism.

Truly thank you for this Cain.

btw your avatar reminds me of Roland from the Dark Tower series
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Prince Glittersnatch III on May 20, 2011, 01:33:31 AM
Quote from: Blackfoot on May 20, 2011, 01:02:19 AM
Quote from: Cain on May 19, 2011, 04:25:41 PM
Et tu Mr Destructo is one of the best blogs on the internet written by a dead, former Central African dictator, Alan Greenspan, Idi Amin Dada and an assassinated Israeli Minister for Tourism.
btw your avatar reminds me of Roland from the Dark Tower series

That makes sense. Stephen King said that the Dark Tower was the result of him reading the Lord of the Rings and then watching The Good the Bad and the Ugly. So Roland is essentially a fantasy Clint Eastwood.

Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Pope Lecherous on May 20, 2011, 01:49:21 AM
Quote from: Lord Glittersnatch on May 20, 2011, 01:33:31 AM
Quote from: Blackfoot on May 20, 2011, 01:02:19 AM
Quote from: Cain on May 19, 2011, 04:25:41 PM
Et tu Mr Destructo is one of the best blogs on the internet written by a dead, former Central African dictator, Alan Greenspan, Idi Amin Dada and an assassinated Israeli Minister for Tourism.
btw your avatar reminds me of Roland from the Dark Tower series

That makes sense. Stephen King said that the Dark Tower was the result of him reading the Lord of the Rings and then watching The Good the Bad and the Ugly. So Roland is essentially a fantasy Clint Eastwood.


I'm excited but afraid for the movie.  [/that]

I'm searching through the blog now for more enlightening material.  This should make work more tolerable.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on May 26, 2011, 06:07:55 PM
http://imdb.com/title/tt0060665/

WILLIAM ROPER: So, now you give the Devil the benefit of law!

SIR THOMAS MORE: Yes! What would you do? Cut a great road through the law to get after the Devil?

ROPER: Yes, I'd cut down every law in England to do that!

MORE: Oh? And when the last law was down, and the Devil turned 'round on you, where would you hide, Roper, the laws all being flat? This country is planted thick with laws, from coast to coast, Man's laws, not God's! And if you cut them down, and you're just the man to do it, do you really think you could stand upright in the winds that would blow then? Yes, I'd give the Devil benefit of law, for my own safety's sake!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: The Good Reverend Roger on May 26, 2011, 06:08:51 PM
Quote from: Cain on May 26, 2011, 06:07:55 PM
http://imdb.com/title/tt0060665/

WILLIAM ROPER: So, now you give the Devil the benefit of law!

SIR THOMAS MORE: Yes! What would you do? Cut a great road through the law to get after the Devil?

ROPER: Yes, I'd cut down every law in England to do that!

MORE: Oh? And when the last law was down, and the Devil turned 'round on you, where would you hide, Roper, the laws all being flat? This country is planted thick with laws, from coast to coast, Man's laws, not God's! And if you cut them down, and you're just the man to do it, do you really think you could stand upright in the winds that would blow then? Yes, I'd give the Devil benefit of law, for my own safety's sake!

NICE.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Adios on May 26, 2011, 06:14:39 PM
I like that one very much.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Telarus on May 26, 2011, 10:47:50 PM
Me too.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on May 27, 2011, 07:31:33 PM
I like reading Krugmsn's NYT Blog (http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/).

QuoteEzra Klein points us to the House GOP's rather pitiful jobs manifesto. Ezra describes it as "now more than ever": the GOP's response to the employment crisis is to demand exactly the same things it demands when the economy is doing well.

Actually, the same is true of the Ryan plan: when the GOP claimed that deficits don't matter, it called for privatizing major social insurance programs while cutting taxes on the rich, and now that it claims to be deeply concerned about deficits, it calls for privatizing major social insurance programs while cutting taxes on the rich.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Disco Pickle on May 27, 2011, 07:41:43 PM
Quote from: LMNO, PhD on May 27, 2011, 07:31:33 PM
I like reading Krugmsn's NYT Blog (http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/).

QuoteEzra Klein points us to the House GOP's rather pitiful jobs manifesto. Ezra describes it as "now more than ever": the GOP's response to the employment crisis is to demand exactly the same things it demands when the economy is doing well.

Actually, the same is true of the Ryan plan: when the GOP claimed that deficits don't matter, it called for privatizing major social insurance programs while cutting taxes on the rich, and now that it claims to be deeply concerned about deficits, it calls for privatizing major social insurance programs while cutting taxes on the rich.


:horrormirth:  That Cheney quip that preceded the firing of Paul O'Neill still gets me to this day.  They got rid of possibly the only really useful guy in the entire administration because he wouldn't toe that line and instead pointed out that water is in fact the cause of wetness.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on May 29, 2011, 12:21:16 PM
I've always been somewhat wary of Krugman, mainly because of the way certain liberals idolize him (and that he thinks Brad DeLong is worth paying attention to, which he isn't)....but I have to say, on reading, he's not only a pretty good writer, he also seems to use a lot more established political science than any other mainstream writer I could name.

Anyway, someone a little less contemporary:

Waste no time with revolutions that do not remove the causes of your complaints but simply change the faces of those in charge.
- Francesco Guicciardini

The fact is, you can get a lot further in life by paying attention to 15th century Italians.  They understood power.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on June 02, 2011, 07:46:59 PM
Quote from: Ron PaulPeople who point this out and fight the tax code and fight the monetary code are heroic. I compare them to people like Gandhi, who's willing to speak out and try to bring about change in a peaceful manner; Martin Luther King fought laws that were unfair and unjust, and he suffered, too.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Disco Pickle on June 02, 2011, 08:49:37 PM
Anatomy of a Weiner roast:

QuoteLuke Russert: "That's not a picture of you?"

QuoteRep. Weiner: "You know, I can't say with certitude. My system was hacked. Pictures can be manipulated. Pictures can be dropped in and inserted,"

QuoteRep. Weiner: "I will say that we're trying to figure out exactly what happened here. Whether a photograph was manipulated that was found in my account, whether something was dropped in to my account."

During Wolfman Blitzer interview suggesting he should be able to recognize his own underwear:

QuoteRep. Weiner: "Photographs can be manipulated, doctored. I want to be sure we know. It certainly doesn't look familiar to me but I don't want to say with certitude to you something that I don't know to be the certain truth."

When asked if he has ever taken a picture like this of himself:

Quote"I can tell you this. There are... I have photographs. I don't know what photographs are out there in the world of me. I don't know what things have been manipulated and doctored. And we're going to try to find out what happened."  --Rep. Weiner, Photo and computer forensics specialist


Really, if he would just stand firm and hose this fire down with a "No, that's not my junk", it wouldn't be popping up all over the internet.  
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Luna on June 02, 2011, 09:28:39 PM
Quote from: Disco Pickle on June 02, 2011, 08:49:37 PM
Really, if he would just stand firm and hose this fire down with a "No, that's not my junk", it wouldn't be popping up all over the internet.  

Except, of course, it is, most likely, his junk, taken on his smartphone to send to somebody NOT his wife, and accidentally attached to a tweet rather than an IM...
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Disco Pickle on June 02, 2011, 09:36:47 PM
Quote from: Luna on June 02, 2011, 09:28:39 PM
Quote from: Disco Pickle on June 02, 2011, 08:49:37 PM
Really, if he would just stand firm and hose this fire down with a "No, that's not my junk", it wouldn't be popping up all over the internet.  

Except, of course, it is, most likely, his junk, taken on his smartphone to send to somebody NOT his wife, and accidentally attached to a tweet rather than an IM...

Well yeah, or he'd have gotten the FBI involved and gotten someone indicted for hacking across state lines.  I've seen the guy speak, he doesn't like Republicans one bit and if he was hacked by someone trying for a smear campaign I don't see him as the type to let it go.  But him admitting it wouldn't allow me to make such lame innuendo with little to no effort at all, and I thank him for that.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on June 08, 2011, 02:20:46 PM
More from Ze'evi

Quote from: General Rehavam "Gandhi" Ze'eviIt's hard to get a justification for this wanton globetrotting shooting spree out of the White House, since they simply never talk about it. The scum — John Brennan, Tom Donilon, Jay Carney, Leon Panetta, Tyrannosaurus Dem ad infinitum — mugged for the cameras for days, perfecting their mock sobriety over the pulverizing of a fifty-four year-old dilettante with the physical presence of Jessica Tandy. They've waxed lyrical about Justice and Closure with all the persuasion of a country drunk at harvest time, boorishly pressing his thumb on the scale. Of course there was never any debate in the Obama White House about capturing him — where have you been the past two years? This junta is addicted to assassination, the Phoenix Program and Operación Cóndor taken global, and they will not be taking any questions about it, thank you very much.

But if they won't talk, the true masters of this system of poison control will. America is just copying this style of play from the global champion of assassination: Israel. And boy, has it done wonders for them. Since they started whacking their enemies in some fairly complex and cinematic rub-outs, they've had nothing but peace dividends, like when they killed Hamas spiritual godfather Sheikh Ahmed Yassin. And of course, after Yassin was dead, they had to hit his successor, Abdel Aziz al-Rantissi. And naturally one of Rantissi's successors in the Gaza Hamas triumvirate, Said Siam. Simple — eliminated the problem right there. Though those are just the political guys. Naturally, they first had to take out operations guys, like Yehya Ayyash. It goes without saying that that edifying hit obviously also required the death of the next operations and weapons chief, Adnan al-Ghoul. And of course al-Ghoul's successor, weapons buyer Mahmoud al-Mabhouh. But still, that's decimation. Though of course, that's just Hamas. Islamic Jihad was certainly dealt a blow with the death of their founder, Fathi al-Shikaki, the same way Fatah had been greviously wounded by the loss of that bastard Raed Karmi, a move that naturally followed the killing of previous Fatah military martinet Khalil al-Wazir a couple decades prior. Apart from that, assassination has been a pretty easy recipe for peace. Though of course they also had to remember the Marxist terrorists, like Abu Ali Mustafa. And of course Hezbollah's heavy hitters, like Imad Mugniyeh.

It's an effective, efficient weapon in the right hands. Peace in our time.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on June 08, 2011, 02:31:02 PM
Yowch.  Is this Lo5, or is there good evidence that these are systematic assasinations for the benefit of Israel?

The way that Netanyahu is acting doesn't seem to jibe.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Disco Pickle on June 08, 2011, 02:31:35 PM
Is he being facetious?  I honestly can't tell.  
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on June 08, 2011, 02:44:23 PM
Quote from: LMNO, PhD on June 08, 2011, 02:31:02 PM
Yowch.  Is this Lo5, or is there good evidence that these are systematic assasinations for the benefit of Israel?

The way that Netanyahu is acting doesn't seem to jibe.

There is no good evidence assassination per se as a tactic is useful in combating terrorism.

Quote from: Disco Pickle on June 08, 2011, 02:31:35 PM
Is he being facetious?  I honestly can't tell.  

Yes, he is.  In the article he is mocking the American government's addiction to assassination as a "solution" by pointing out it doesn't actually work for one of the world's greatest exporters of state-sponsored assassination.

The simple fact is asssassination only works if the next guy in the chain of command is your guy, or is going to do things in such a way that benefit you.  I'm an advocate of a quick knife in the ribs or sniper rifle as anyone...but only when it will actually work.  Otherwise, it is fairly useless and to be honest, introduces a level of instability and unpredictability into what may be an otherwise predictable group (see: South Vietnam, where Diem's assassination meant eventually that the Presidency was up for grabs by any general with enough loyal thugs and caused massive shifts in war and domestic policy every time a coup was launched).
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on June 08, 2011, 02:47:01 PM
Ah... I seem to be a bit slow this morning.  Thanks for helping me along.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on June 08, 2011, 02:54:17 PM
Incidentally, interbutts rumours suggest intelligence provided by Bin Laden's second in command, Ayman al-Zawahiri, may have been instrumental in Bin Laden's assassination.

Since Zawahiri is living free, and was the man who convinced Bin Laden to pursue the strategy of global jihad against the USA (and indeed, was something of a mentor to Bin Laden), this means his death probably wasn't a case of "killing someone as part of a strategic campaign to dissolve Al-Qaeda" and more like "a vicious and cunning second-in-command uses his enemies to bump off his largely symbolic and ineffective leader in order to manouvere his own chosen candidate into the spotlight".

Who that candidate is remains to be seen, though before his death Syed Saleem Shahzad had several good ideas.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on June 08, 2011, 02:59:28 PM
"A Game of Thrones - IRL Edition"
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Disco Pickle on June 08, 2011, 03:00:01 PM
Quote from: Cain on June 08, 2011, 02:44:23 PM
Quote from: LMNO, PhD on June 08, 2011, 02:31:02 PM
Yowch.  Is this Lo5, or is there good evidence that these are systematic assasinations for the benefit of Israel?

The way that Netanyahu is acting doesn't seem to jibe.

There is no good evidence assassination per se as a tactic is useful in combating terrorism.

Quote from: Disco Pickle on June 08, 2011, 02:31:35 PM
Is he being facetious?  I honestly can't tell.  

Yes, he is.  In the article he is mocking the American government's addiction to assassination as a "solution" by pointing out it doesn't actually work for one of the world's greatest exporters of state-sponsored assassination.

The simple fact is asssassination only works if the next guy in the chain of command is your guy, or is going to do things in such a way that benefit you.  I'm an advocate of a quick knife in the ribs or sniper rifle as anyone...but only when it will actually work.  Otherwise, it is fairly useless and to be honest, introduces a level of instability and unpredictability into what may be an otherwise predictable group (see: South Vietnam, where Diem's assassination meant eventually that the Presidency was up for grabs by any general with enough loyal thugs and caused massive shifts in war and domestic policy every time a coup was launched).

on a good re-read it's a deal more clear that's the case as he mentions them taking out the top guy, which then necessitates taking out his successor, etc. etc. on down the line with what must be some faint hope that eventually the Hydra will stop growing heads.  I could see some merit in the tactic of attaching a psychological aspect to taking the helm of these groups = it will be the last thing you ever do, and you'll never see it coming.  If you're consistent in assassinating whoever steps into the boots, there being no "maybe" but a "we will do this every single time someone steps forward and assumes control" then maybe, eventually, no one will be willing to do it.  

But the likely reality is what you've already said: You can't predict their actions from one person to the next, and likely someone is directing but it becomes less and less centrally directed until you're never sure who is telling who what the targets are.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on June 08, 2011, 03:08:11 PM
The thing is, most terrorists view themselves as warriors anyway, so while they want to avoid death, at some level they accept it could happen and are mentally prepared for it.  They're not going to go out and try and get themselves killed, not if they can find a way to avoid it, but if they have to die, they're going to try and go down fighting.

That's why I found the propaganda about Bin Laden cowering and pleading for his life so hard to credit - people forget towards the end of the Afghan occupation by the Soviets, he took to the front lines and was involved in some of the most brutal fighting there.  A man willing to take up arms against the Red Army at its most brutal probably isn't especially fazed by Special Forces breaking into his place.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Slyph on June 08, 2011, 06:34:04 PM
Quote from: Cain on June 08, 2011, 03:08:11 PM
The thing is, most terrorists view themselves as warriors anyway, so while they want to avoid death, at some level they accept it could happen and are mentally prepared for it.  They're not going to go out and try and get themselves killed, not if they can find a way to avoid it, but if they have to die, they're going to try and go down fighting.

That's why I found the propaganda about Bin Laden cowering and pleading for his life so hard to credit - people forget towards the end of the Afghan occupation by the Soviets, he took to the front lines and was involved in some of the most brutal fighting there.  A man willing to take up arms against the Red Army at its most brutal probably isn't especially fazed by Special Forces breaking into his place.

You reminded me of this: http://www.slate.com/id/1008268/ (http://www.slate.com/id/1008268/)

QuoteIn truth, notions of "cowardice" and "bravery" are entirely irrelevant when we contemplate the horrors of terrorism. To call a terrorist "cowardly" is to substitute testosterone for morality. Somehow it isn't enough to abhor an act of terrorism or even to promise to make the terrorist pay dearly. The rules demand that the terrorist be branded a sissy. This is not only a childish reflex, but one that weakens the moral force of the condemnation and thereby dishonors terrorism's victims. After all, we don't want brave people to slaughter innocent people any more than we want cowardly people to do so. Still, the public seems to demand that our presidents call terrorists cowards, and our presidents are too--well, cowardly--to deny them.

Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on June 08, 2011, 06:41:16 PM
He's 100% correct.  It is propaganda, nothing more.  Good enough to get the home crowd fired up, I suppose, but utterly useless if you want to know the reality of the situation.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on July 11, 2011, 06:59:14 PM
LOL NO (http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2011/07/09/birth-of-a-nation.html)

QuoteThe United States gains a great ally with the birth of the Republic of Southern Sudan.

Just like America's other great allies - you know, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Libya, Egypt etc etc

I wonder how pissed the guys at the FCO and in Quai d'Orsay get, every time some tinpot third world dictator gets compared to the trans-atlantic alliance, implicitly or otherwise?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on July 11, 2011, 07:55:53 PM
Also

Quote from: Joseph FoucheIf the last decade should have taught Americans anything, it should have taught them that contemporary American can't predict the future. However, the correct solution (stop treating false prophecy as gospel) has been widely ignored in favor of the wrong solution (bet everything on false prophecy, only this time more aggressively). Just yesterday, we once again saw U.S. financial markets tumble because a significant number of investors had gambled, wrongly, on predictions of higher unemployment being in its last throes. Billions are lost and made based on the illusion that Benjamin S. Bernanke of Washington, D.C. is any better at predicting U.S. economic indicators than John X. Smith of Duluth, Iowa.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on July 11, 2011, 07:57:47 PM
They just don't have enough confidence.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on July 11, 2011, 08:00:48 PM
Indeed.

There is actually a well established political science study which shows professional "futurologists" and other experts (historians, economists, political scientists) make guesses no better than the general population about future trends, when averaged out. 

I like to think my average is somewhat higher, but I make so many contradictory predictions and haven't mathematically broken them down, so I couldn't honestly say.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: BadBeast on July 14, 2011, 03:48:48 PM
""I can stand here and ask questions about Tom Baldwin, but I think the public want us to rise above this".

David Cameron, scrabbling to keep his head above water.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on July 14, 2011, 05:14:04 PM
Quote from: BadBeast on July 14, 2011, 03:48:48 PM
""I can stand here and ask questions about Tom Baldwin, but I think the public want us to rise above this".

David Cameron, scrabbling to keep his head above water.

Yeah.  As a self-appointed spokesman for the public, I would like to wallow in this, get outraged over every gritty detail, drag it out for as long as possible and make every fucker pay.

Voice of the People, innit?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: BadBeast on July 14, 2011, 06:09:32 PM
Actually David, (Or shall I call you "Dave"?)  :fap:  I think the public would have preferred it, if you had "risen above it" at some point before you agreed to suck the festering old cock ofRobert Maxwell Roo part- Murdoch.

Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: P3nT4gR4m on July 14, 2011, 06:44:44 PM
Quote from: BadBeast on July 14, 2011, 06:09:32 PM
Actually David, (Or shall I call you "Dave"?)  :fap:  I think the public would have preferred it, if you had "risen above it" at some point before you agreed to suck the festering old cock ofRobert Maxwell Roo part- Murdoch.



If he'd done that the public would never have heard of him in the first place so they couldn't very well prefer it. Woulda caused a rift or fart in the space time continuum or something
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: BadBeast on July 14, 2011, 07:12:11 PM
No doubt someone else would have risen to the occasion. Maybe Boris would have challenged Cameron for Party Leader, and ended up PM. Then Mandelson would have waltzed back into the Labour opposition, like butter wouldn't melt in that stinkhole of a mouth of his. Just in time to challenge for Leadership before the next election.

You were right in the first place. We're fucked five ways 'til Friday, whichever contingent of Lizards are currently slithering through the carpeted corridors of Whitehall, and the cold, stone flags of Westminster. I say let's burn the whole fuckin' show down now, and be done with it. Flush those fuckers out like a nest of vampire rats, and feed them to the Belgians. Elect David Icke as King, and cut all ties to the rest of the World. Soon they will forget we are here, and that's the time to strike. From the mists of nowhere, We shall rise, to dominate the World and once more take our rightful place at the helm of Good Ship Empire!  Who's with me on this?  :argh!:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: P3nT4gR4m on July 14, 2011, 07:48:32 PM
Quote from: BadBeast on July 14, 2011, 07:12:11 PM
No doubt someone else would have risen to the occasion. Maybe Boris would have challenged Cameron for Party Leader, and ended up PM. Then Mandelson would have waltzed back into the Labour opposition, like butter wouldn't melt in that stinkhole of a mouth of his. Just in time to challenge for Leadership before the next election.

You were right in the first place. We're fucked five ways 'til Friday, whichever contingent of Lizards are currently slithering through the carpeted corridors of Whitehall, and the cold, stone flags of Westminster. I say let's burn the whole fuckin' show down now, and be done with it. Flush those fuckers out like a nest of vampire rats, and feed them to the Belgians. Elect David Icke as King, and cut all ties to the rest of the World. Soon they will forget we are here, and that's the time to strike. From the mists of nowhere, We shall rise, to dominate the World and once more take our rightful place at the helm of Good Ship Empire!  Who's with me on this?  :argh!:

We park our cars in the same garage. I've always maintained that the problems inherent in democracy, which in turn led to the bastard sham that currently masquerades as Democracytm will never be solved by democratic process. Yes I'll grant that it may well be the least evil system we currently have but it's still a pack of shit and the only way to fix it is to burn it to the ground.

Problem is I still don't have a solution that will work and if you did manage to blow the whole shooting match to kindom come, you can bet your ass what happened next would make the third reich look like the fucking Tufty Club. Problem is humanity doesn't work. As a species we're a fucking walking disaster. Paradoxically, it's our crazed, power-mad, lazy, dysfunctional meanness that keeps us in our position as lords and masters of this backwater planet and able to exploit the shit out it's resources til the last drop of clean air has been given a half life.

Personally I'd be all for taking over the whole rock by force and enslaving the whole stupid race, using a mixture of torture and threat and just kicking back and living the high life. It's what they deserve and it'd work better than giving the stupid fucks any say whatsoever in how things are run but, to be perfectly honest, I can't be arsed. maybe when I was a teenager but I'm too old for that shit now.

It's way more fun watching the whole thing go down in flames, all by itself. Kick back, grab a bucket of popcorn and see what happens when the human race reaches the finish line. I used to be bitter, when I thought we had a chance but now I just think it's funny, in a - kicking the crutches out from under a cripple - kinda way.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: BadBeast on July 15, 2011, 01:00:56 AM
Yeah, age brings it's own pragmatism to to the ideals of youth. There's only so long you can keep sprinkling more sugar on the dogshit before the stink gets impossible to ignore. I'd have thought, but obviously some people have no sense of smell.
Or morality. But we give them the power. You won't stop a Tiger from stalking you by throwing lumps of meat at it. . . . They've made the transition from
"Predators, occasionally slay each other in stupid ways" (like the rest of us) to "Apex Predator, predates wholly upon it's own species".

A few strains of that in the genepool go a long fucking way.  That psychodynamic has been around selected bloodlines for long enough to make them a completely different species to Homo Sapiens by now. Time to slay the Dragon? Not me Mate. I got me head cracked enough back in the day to let some other naive example of an hero have a shot.

But today's youth have no fire in them. It's been slowly leached out by a constant onslaught of low level, non specific dread. Piped into every corner of our homes. That shitpump we call TV rinsed the brains of every generation it encountered. Desensitising children using over exposure to screen violence. So the idea of War won't be quite so abhorrent 20 years down the line. Gradually shaping our National identity towards a more submissive and biddable populace.
But you can't just tell people shit like that, the only people who would listen would be sharing the same secure ward. And that's no place to keep the sane ones apart from the rest of the rabble. . . . . Fuck it, give us a bucket of that Popcorn then. Laughing at the stupids isn't really very funny, but a laugh's a laugh, and it's better than the constant, sorry sobbing of the brokens, mourning their own lives, because they're too afraid to live them. . .  Fuck them too. No balls.
Let it all burn, and whatever I can find that isn't ashes at the end of it all, I can call that "mine".        
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on July 15, 2011, 09:22:56 AM
The UK has only ever grudgingly accepted democracy in the first place, usually when overseas democrats were gutting aristocrats or throwing bombs at hereditary leaders.

No other system in the world, to my knowledge, has the Parliamentary whip system, excluding some Commonwealth states.  A three-line whip essentially creates an elected dictatorship, because so long as one party has the majority, it can force through almost any legislation it wants (though not without significant political repurcussions down the road).  A lack of a written constitution gives the Prime Minister extraordinary leeway in a number of situations (incidentally, most of the Royal Perogatives the King used to have, back in the day, were passed onto the office of Prime Minister.  Gordon Brown attempted constitutional reform of these, to a degree, but the Prime Minister is still closer to a President without the checks than a PM in most other systems).  Almost all of our leadership went to the same schools, to the point that you can pretty much guarantee any highly ranked Tory went to Eton, went to Cambridge, joined the Tory Party while in Cambridge and studied PPE (or Modern History), while Labour have a similar lockdown on LSE and Political Science/Economy.  The media are in some kind of twisted incestuous relationship with government, to the point that the only jobs you can get without having some kind of political affiliation giving you a boost are those doing international news, investigative news or financial reporting.

And so on and so forth.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: SmokeyMcChickenson on July 22, 2011, 09:48:28 PM
The Left wing and Right wing are attached to the same fucking vulture . And they will pick our corpse clean until  the zombie apocalypse.

Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on August 01, 2011, 01:02:47 PM
Lyndon B Johnson, practicing the noble art of diplomacy, in 1964:

QuoteThen listen to me, Mr. Ambassador, fuck your parliament and your constitution. America is an elephant. Cyprus is a flea. Greece is a flea. If those two fleas continue itching the elephant, they may just get whacked by the elephant's trunk, whacked good... We pay a lot of good American dollars to the Greeks, Mr. Ambassador.  If your Prime Minister gives me talk about democracy, parliament and constitution, he, his parliament and his constitution may not last very long.

Afterwards, the Greek ambassador sent a coded telegram to the Prime Minister.  Shortly afterwards, he got a phone call from Johnson:

QuoteAre you trying to get yourself into my bad books, Mr. Ambassador? Do you want me to get really angry with you? That was a private conversation me and you had. You had no call putting in all them words I used on you. Watch your step.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Freeky on August 01, 2011, 06:34:13 PM
Christ.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Juana on August 02, 2011, 07:05:42 AM
 :lulz:

"I have six times as many Twitter followers as all the other candidates combined, but it didn't count because if it counted I'd still be a candidate; since I can't be a candidate that can't count." - Newt Gingrich

And apparently a good portion of those (he's got well over a million) are fake. (http://gawker.com/5826645/most-of-newt-gingrichs-twitter-followers-are-fake)
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on August 08, 2011, 02:24:35 PM
From Bruschettaboy, a British blogger:

QuoteI just realised that plenty of mainstream US Democrats, having spent the last however long castigating people to the left of them for perceiving some progressive tendencies in the government of Fidel Castro, are now reduced to supporting the re-election of a President who imprisons people without human rights in Cuba, but who has made excellent advances in the field of bringing healthcare to the poor.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: BadBeast on August 08, 2011, 02:58:06 PM
Quote from: Cain on August 01, 2011, 01:02:47 PM
Lyndon B Johnson, practicing the noble art of diplomacy, in 1964:

QuoteThen listen to me, Mr. Ambassador, fuck your parliament and your constitution. America is an elephant. Cyprus is a flea. Greece is a flea. If those two fleas continue itching the elephant, they may just get whacked by the elephant's trunk, whacked good... We pay a lot of good American dollars to the Greeks, Mr. Ambassador.  If your Prime Minister gives me talk about democracy, parliament and constitution, he, his parliament and his constitution may not last very long.

Afterwards, the Greek ambassador sent a coded telegram to the Prime Minister.  Shortly afterwards, he got a phone call from Johnson:

QuoteAre you trying to get yourself into my bad books, Mr. Ambassador? Do you want me to get really angry with you? That was a private conversation me and you had. You had no call putting in all them words I used on you. Watch your step.
And now it turns out Jackie O believes LBJ ordered the assassination of JFK.
But then, it's no surprise that the Job of Premier (whether in a little Banana Republic like Uganda or Zimbabwe, or a major Superpower like the US) tends to attract candidates who fall into the "Sociopathic monster" category.
Especially from the middle of the 20th C, when the post WWII availability of arms co-incided with the West's willingness to sell them them to just about anyone.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cramulus on August 16, 2011, 09:47:28 PM
source: http://blog.urbanomic.com/sphaleotas/archives/000489.html

In the summer of 2002, after I had written an article in Esquire that the White House didn't like about Bush's former communications director, Karen Hughes, I had a meeting with a senior adviser to Bush. He expressed the White House's displeasure, and then he told me something that at the time I didn't fully comprehend — but which I now believe gets to the very heart of the Bush presidency.

The aide said that guys like me were "in what we call the reality-based community," which he defined as people who "believe that solutions emerge from your judicious study of discernible reality." I nodded and murmured something about enlightenment principles and empiricism. He cut me off. "That's not the way the world really works anymore," he continued. "We're an empire now, and when we act, we create our own reality. And while you're studying that reality — judiciously, as you will — we'll act again, creating other new realities, which you can study too, and that's how things will sort out. We're history's actors ... and you, all of you, will be left to just study what we do."


-------------from http://blog.urbanomic.com/sphaleotas/archives/without-a-doubt/without-a-doubt.html
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Juana on August 16, 2011, 09:54:04 PM
:horrormirth:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on August 17, 2011, 09:27:11 AM
It's widely believed that aide was Karl Rove, though those involved will not say for certain.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on August 18, 2011, 08:40:11 PM
QuoteRick Perry told a 9-year-old boy Thursday that evolution is "a theory that's out there" but that "it's got some gaps in it."

The GOP hopeful's comments came after the boy's mother prompted him to ask Perry whether he believes in evolution. "In Texas we teach both creationism and evolution, because I figure you're smart enough to figure out which one's right," Perry told the boy.
http://slatest.slate.com/posts/2011/08/18/rick_perry_on_evolution_gop_hopeful_says_theory_has_some_gaps_in.html?wpisrc=twitter_socialflow
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Elder Iptuous on August 18, 2011, 08:54:06 PM
good lord. what an embarrassment.
:oops:
i didn't know they actually taught creationism in TX now....

"In Texas we teach both phlogiston and oxidation, because I figure you're smart enough to figure out which one's right,"
"In Texas we teach both lamarckism and genetics, because I figure you're smart enough to figure out which one's right,"
"In Texas we teach both luminiferous aether and relativity, because I figure you're smart enough to figure out which one's right,"
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on August 18, 2011, 09:02:15 PM
"In the GOP we advocate theocratic fascism and representative, limited democracy because we believe voters are smart enough to figure out which one's right"?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Luna on August 18, 2011, 09:05:40 PM
:facepalm:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Elder Iptuous on August 18, 2011, 09:09:52 PM
 :lol:
:|
:lulz:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Triple Zero on August 18, 2011, 09:40:20 PM
Quote from: Cain on August 18, 2011, 09:02:15 PM
"In the GOP we advocate theocratic fascism and representative, limited democracy because we believe voters are smart enough to figure out which one's right"?

ZING
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Don Coyote on August 19, 2011, 02:22:50 AM
Quote from: Iptuous on August 18, 2011, 08:54:06 PM
good lord. what an embarrassment.
:oops:
i didn't know they actually taught creationism in TX now....

"In Texas we teach both phlogiston and oxidation, because I figure you're smart enough to figure out which one's right,"
"In Texas we teach both lamarckism and genetics, because I figure you're smart enough to figure out which one's right,"
"In Texas we teach both luminiferous aether and relativity, because I figure you're smart enough to figure out which one's right,"


I've been saying for years that oxidation is a myth started by the Relative Genetics Movement.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on August 19, 2011, 03:18:30 AM
Quote from: Cain on August 18, 2011, 09:02:15 PM
"In the GOP we advocate theocratic fascism and representative, limited democracy because we believe voters are smart enough to figure out which one's right"?

Fucking YEAH.

Cain, wins yet again.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: PopeTom on August 19, 2011, 04:07:27 AM
In America we offer you both Republican and Democrat because we figure you're not smart enough to figure out they are pretty much the same thing.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Luna on August 21, 2011, 01:41:50 AM
Interviewer:  "Governor, why does Texas continue with abstinence education programs when they don't seem to be working?  In fact, I think we have the third highest teen pregnancy rate in the country."

Governor Perry:  "Abstinence works."

Interviewer:  "...  But...  We have the third highest teen pregnancy rate among all the states in the country.  The question's point is, it doesn't seem to be working."

Perry:  "It...  It...  It WORKS..."

http://littlegreenfootballs.com/article/39050_Video-_Rick_Perrys_Abstinence_Problem
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on August 21, 2011, 02:49:07 AM
Quote from: Luna on August 21, 2011, 01:41:50 AM
Interviewer:  "Governor, why does Texas continue with abstinence education programs when they don't seem to be working?  In fact, I think we have the third highest teen pregnancy rate in the country."

Governor Perry:  "Abstinence works."

Interviewer:  "...  But...  We have the third highest teen pregnancy rate among all the states in the country.  The question's point is, it doesn't seem to be working."

Perry:  "It...  It...  It WORKS..."

http://littlegreenfootballs.com/article/39050_Video-_Rick_Perrys_Abstinence_Problem

Wow, that was uncomfortable...
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: PopeTom on August 21, 2011, 01:33:24 PM
Why do they act like abstinence isn't part of a more realistic sex-ed program?

"OK kids, the only way to 100% guarantee that you won't get pregnant1 or an STD is to not have sex.  However since that's entirely unrealistic here are some other methods to keep you from becoming a parent before your time and/or giving yourself toxic lumpy genitals."

1Unless of course God wants to knock you up to bring Jesus back.  Nothing is going to stop that shit.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: BadBeast on August 21, 2011, 04:16:45 PM
On the new film about the reign of the Witch Queen of Grantham.

Friends of Lady Thatcher are furious at the timing of the film starring Meryl Streep, which is due to be released in January. The former Prime Minister has  been forced to give up public appearances following a series of strokes Political mistakes 9going back over 30 years) and is so poorly incontinent and  widely  hated, she was unable to attend the unveiling of a statue of her political ally Pet Gimp, Ronald Reagan in London last month.

"Any portrayal of Margaret Thatcher that does not show her as one of the titans of British politics in the 20th Century will be a travesty"  Tory MP, Conor Burns (I hope he does)

"I didn't come here to see a film about granny going mad."  One un-named "Viewer"

"There is no such thing as Society"





Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: BadBeast on August 21, 2011, 08:25:02 PM
On the new film about the reign of the Witch Queen of Grantham.

Friends of Lady Thatcher are furious at the timing of the film starring Meryl Streep, which is due to be released in January. The former Prime Minister has  been forced to give up public appearances following a series of strokes Political mistakes 9going back over 30 years) and is so poorly incontinent and  widely  hated, she was unable to attend the unveiling of a statue of her political ally Pet Gimp, Ronald Reagan in London last month.

"Any portrayal of Margaret Thatcher that does not show her as one of the titans of British politics in the 20th Century will be a travesty"  Tory MP, Conor Burns (I hope he does)

"I didn't come here to see a film about granny going mad."  One un-named "Viewer"

"There is no such thing as Society" M.Thatcher

"It's insufferable that she (Thatch) put her career before me and the children" Denis Thatcher.

"We are a Grandmother" Some crazy old bitch.

"I have every confidence in Jeffrey (Archer) both as a colleague, and as a friend". Thatch, again showing remarkable judgement of character.

"Bring me more kittens, I've run out of kittens!"  Lady Thatcher yesterday, from her rubber room.





Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cramulus on August 22, 2011, 06:26:37 PM
Neil Degrasse Tyson: The Smartest Man in the Room

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSJFbOfA4SE&feature=youtu.be

a quick quote from him about what's wrong with politicians: they're all lawyers!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Doktor Howl on August 22, 2011, 06:29:29 PM
Quote from: Luna on August 21, 2011, 01:41:50 AM
Interviewer:  "Governor, why does Texas continue with abstinence education programs when they don't seem to be working?  In fact, I think we have the third highest teen pregnancy rate in the country."

Governor Perry:  "Abstinence works."

Interviewer:  "...  But...  We have the third highest teen pregnancy rate among all the states in the country.  The question's point is, it doesn't seem to be working."

Perry:  "It...  It...  It WORKS..."

http://littlegreenfootballs.com/article/39050_Video-_Rick_Perrys_Abstinence_Problem

This would have been better if he'd throttled the interviewer, screamed at the camera, and jumped out the studio window, running amok through Downtown Dallas.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on August 22, 2011, 06:52:03 PM
Quote from: Cramulus on August 22, 2011, 06:26:37 PM
Neil Degrasse Tyson: The Smartest Man in the Room

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSJFbOfA4SE&feature=youtu.be

a quick quote from him about what's wrong with politicians: they're all lawyers!

Wow, it's so obvious, and he's SO FUCKING RIGHT.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Luna on August 22, 2011, 07:37:18 PM
Quote from: Doktor Howl on August 22, 2011, 06:29:29 PM
Quote from: Luna on August 21, 2011, 01:41:50 AM
Interviewer:  "Governor, why does Texas continue with abstinence education programs when they don't seem to be working?  In fact, I think we have the third highest teen pregnancy rate in the country."

Governor Perry:  "Abstinence works."

Interviewer:  "...  But...  We have the third highest teen pregnancy rate among all the states in the country.  The question's point is, it doesn't seem to be working."

Perry:  "It...  It...  It WORKS..."

http://littlegreenfootballs.com/article/39050_Video-_Rick_Perrys_Abstinence_Problem

This would have been better if he'd throttled the interviewer, screamed at the camera, and jumped out the studio window, running amok through Downtown Dallas.

I could have RESPECTED that.  The deer in the headlights, thumb up his ass response of "but... butwe just aren't teaching it RIGHT, or they're doing it WRONG" made me want to reach through the screen and throttle him with his own dick.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: BadBeast on August 22, 2011, 09:25:48 PM
If you come from Somerset, there is no audible distinction between the words "Lawyer" and "Liar". And they have a reputation for being a bit rustic and simple.   :lulz:
(No doubt started as a pre-emptive disclaimer from some old liar)
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Freeky on August 23, 2011, 01:33:53 AM
Quote from: Luna on August 21, 2011, 01:41:50 AM
Interviewer:  "Governor, why does Texas continue with abstinence education programs when they don't seem to be working?  In fact, I think we have the third highest teen pregnancy rate in the country."

Governor Perry:  "Abstinence works."

Interviewer:  "...  But...  We have the third highest teen pregnancy rate among all the states in the country.  The question's point is, it doesn't seem to be working."

Perry:  "It...  It...  It WORKS..."

http://littlegreenfootballs.com/article/39050_Video-_Rick_Perrys_Abstinence_Problem

To be honest, I thought you were hyperbolising Perry's floundering, but no.  I was so totally wrong.  :lulz:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Luna on August 23, 2011, 02:00:07 AM
Quote from: Jenkem and SPACE/TIME on August 23, 2011, 01:33:53 AM
Quote from: Luna on August 21, 2011, 01:41:50 AM
Interviewer:  "Governor, why does Texas continue with abstinence education programs when they don't seem to be working?  In fact, I think we have the third highest teen pregnancy rate in the country."

Governor Perry:  "Abstinence works."

Interviewer:  "...  But...  We have the third highest teen pregnancy rate among all the states in the country.  The question's point is, it doesn't seem to be working."

Perry:  "It...  It...  It WORKS..."

http://littlegreenfootballs.com/article/39050_Video-_Rick_Perrys_Abstinence_Problem

To be honest, I thought you were hyperbolising Perry's floundering, but no.  I was so totally wrong.  :lulz:

Sadly, no...  If anything, my transcript downplays it.  You don't get the wide-eyed "but... but I'm RIGHT" expression.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: BadBeast on August 23, 2011, 02:58:57 AM
In a twisted kind of way, he's right. Abstinence *does* work. No-one who abstained from sex, ever did get pregnant. Not ever. (Unless you count IVF, and that doesn't have the appeal to today's youth that good old "fucking like a dog with two dicks" does)
Unfortunately, trying to get kids to abstain from what is, after all, more fun than a box of puppies, is pretty much impossible. Not to mention impracticle, unworkable, and unethical. It might be lulzy to watch people try, but it's a bit of a tired old joke, isn't it? Everyone knows the punchline, it wears nappies, and screams a lot. And it's not even very funny. 

  Sometimes, you just have to accept powerlessness, and stop making everything worse than it has to be. This is our kids we're talking about, not some tribe of aliens who need to learn how to exist on Earth without rocking the leaky old boat we're all sat in. Fuck this mad old cunt, it's about time *he* learned to shut his sorry face flaps, and sit the fuck down somewhere. For the rest of his life. 
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on August 23, 2011, 05:17:05 PM
"Hey kids, this thing you're biologically programmed to be driven to do... just don't do it. See? It's that simple!"
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: P3nT4gR4m on August 23, 2011, 05:53:22 PM
Abstinence: 100% effective, 200% improbable
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cramulus on August 23, 2011, 05:53:59 PM
Quote from: P3nT4gR4m on August 23, 2011, 05:53:22 PM
Abstinence: 100% effective, 200% improbable

:mittens:

sums it up perfectly
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: PopeTom on August 23, 2011, 06:02:58 PM
Quote from: P3nT4gR4m on August 23, 2011, 05:53:22 PM
Abstinence: 100% effective, 200% improbable

If God didn't want us to have sex then why did he make us all a bunch of dirty whores?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Chairman Risus on August 23, 2011, 06:19:42 PM
Quote from: PopeTom on August 23, 2011, 06:02:58 PM
Quote from: P3nT4gR4m on August 23, 2011, 05:53:22 PM
Abstinence: 100% effective, 200% improbable

If God didn't want us to have sex then why did he make us all a bunch of dirty whores?
:spit:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on August 23, 2011, 07:53:12 PM
Quote from: IOZCole is a fine example of a liberal, and when I say a liberal, I mean a conservative. Insofar as there is a liberalism in America today, it represents conservatism far more than the brunch-buffet nativism of the ostensible right in this country. It is fidelity to the fixed institutions and authority of the past; its philosophy of progress is a strict diet of revanchism; its lodestar is traditional authority.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cramulus on August 23, 2011, 08:00:43 PM
 :lulz: I read that this morning. Did you see his rant about Zizek? hilarious
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on August 23, 2011, 08:05:34 PM
Yeah, just read it.  I'm more or less in agreement with it, but I've always said Zizek is a very philosophically fluent troll, and that detracts nothing from such a thesis.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on August 23, 2011, 08:25:53 PM
Quote from: Nigel on August 22, 2011, 06:52:03 PM
Quote from: Cramulus on August 22, 2011, 06:26:37 PM
Neil Degrasse Tyson: The Smartest Man in the Room

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSJFbOfA4SE&feature=youtu.be

a quick quote from him about what's wrong with politicians: they're all lawyers!

Wow, it's so obvious, and he's SO FUCKING RIGHT.

I alluded to this in another thread awhile back--but yes, he's totally right.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cramulus on August 23, 2011, 08:49:19 PM
Quote from: Cain on August 23, 2011, 08:05:34 PM
Yeah, just read it.  I'm more or less in agreement with it, but I've always said Zizek is a very philosophically fluent troll, and that detracts nothing from such a thesis.

yeah I am amused by Zizek... I have really enjoyed watching his videos, mainly because I find him challenging & thought provoking. Can't agree with a lot of his conclusions ("Love is inherently selfish"? Everybody in the world should be able to vote in American elections?), but I love the path he takes to get there.

here's some unrelated Ioz from this morning

http://whoisioz.blogspot.com/2011/08/hegelling-at-market.html
Charles Davis (here's some more traffic, buddy) notes that Radley Balko, who, I agree, is a highly commendable and admirable writer on civil liberties, is also basically nuts when it comes to understanding how taxes work, who pays them, and what they pay for.  But this is only symptomatic of the bigger problem with libertarianism, which ever seeks to return to the foundational principles that led inexorably to the militarized system of state capiral in which we now find ourselves.  Libertarianism looks at the mess we're in and says we need to seek its better beginnings in a constitutionally limited government and constrained social compact and so on, which is sort of like hopping in the time machine in order to relight the fuse on the stick of dynamite that keeps blowing you up.  The problem with the American experiment, as we self-flatteringly call it, is not that it failed to fulfill its promise but rather that it promised us this gaudy empire all along.  The founders, not for nothing, had their eyes on Rome.



and this image is titled

Why I am not Christian Libertarian

(http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vLjm3ZF3kVM/TlPqJD6-TsI/AAAAAAAABRk/DgDMQMcdKv4/s1600/libertarianism.jpg)
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on August 24, 2011, 03:39:23 PM
The bit about the US and voting is a jab at it being "the leader of the free world".  If it's gonna claim leadership of the world, it should, uh, actually have a mandate for that.  Other than lots of bombs, which the Russians and Chinese also have.

Since it doesn't, it is vacuous ideological posturing.

Some of his actual philosophizing is quite interesting, once you get past the Hegelian and Lacanian jargon.  And his last book, on the financial crisis, toned down those and made some fairly decent points.  But at the same time, I often feel he is trying to say counterintuitive things merely to shock his left-leaning progressive/socialist readers.

Somewhat like IOZ, in fact.  :lol:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cramulus on August 24, 2011, 04:38:18 PM
where would you place IOZ on the political spectrum?

Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on August 24, 2011, 07:35:38 PM
Cynical nihilist doing it for the lulz.

I know from reading him he tends towards individualist anarchism with some mutualist threads.  But mostly the cynical nihilist bit.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on September 12, 2011, 03:33:33 PM
Heh.  In Nir Rosen's book, Aftermath, a Dawa Party insider explains why he thinks the Americans allowed Maliki to become Prime Minister of Iraq:

Quote"He is more rural or tribal, not urban.  He's from the Hashmiya District outside Karbala.  It was a Dawa hotbed.  His upbringing was rural, a son of the tribes, urbi [with Arab traditions] with certain ethical codes, sacrifice your self-interest for the code.  The urbanized are different; self-interest comes first.  He is tribal in a general way.  He doesn't have ideological or theological issues with Sunnis, just practical ones: if they attack us, we will attack them.  Maliki has more political appeal; he is what Iraqis need.  Saddam was urbi too, so he could mobilize tribal Arabs against Iran.  If you ignore ideology and just look at what he did, it's like Saddam, but he's not as smart as Saddam.

Emphasis mine.  A more controllable, dumber Saddam Hussein.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Iason Ouabache on September 13, 2011, 07:31:06 AM
Quote from: Cramulus on August 16, 2011, 09:47:28 PM
source: http://blog.urbanomic.com/sphaleotas/archives/000489.html

In the summer of 2002, after I had written an article in Esquire that the White House didn't like about Bush's former communications director, Karen Hughes, I had a meeting with a senior adviser to Bush. He expressed the White House's displeasure, and then he told me something that at the time I didn't fully comprehend — but which I now believe gets to the very heart of the Bush presidency.

The aide said that guys like me were "in what we call the reality-based community," which he defined as people who "believe that solutions emerge from your judicious study of discernible reality." I nodded and murmured something about enlightenment principles and empiricism. He cut me off. "That's not the way the world really works anymore," he continued. "We're an empire now, and when we act, we create our own reality. And while you're studying that reality — judiciously, as you will — we'll act again, creating other new realities, which you can study too, and that's how things will sort out. We're history's actors ... and you, all of you, will be left to just study what we do."


-------------from http://blog.urbanomic.com/sphaleotas/archives/without-a-doubt/without-a-doubt.html
If this was from Rove it is very ironic that in 2008 he also said:

http://www.pollster.com/blogs/karl_roves_math.php?nr=1
QuoteROVE: I'm looking at all of these Robert and adding them up. I add up to a Republican Senate and Republican House. You may end up with a different math but you are entitled to your math and I'm entitled to THE math.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on September 13, 2011, 11:02:57 AM
Compare and contrast:

Quote from: President ObamaThey wanted to terrorize us, but, as Americans, we refuse to live in fear.

And

Quote from: ABC News, 9/11/11Fighter planes were scrambled, bomb squads were called, FBI command centers went on alert and police teams raced to airports today, but in the end two separate airline incidents were caused by apparently innocent bathroom breaks and a little "making out," federal officials said.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Luna on September 20, 2011, 12:38:42 AM
"I refuse to believe that corporations are people until Texas executes one."
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Juana on September 20, 2011, 01:14:50 AM
I like that one! :lulz:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Scribbly on September 20, 2011, 09:05:59 AM
One of the headlines in the FT seems to sum up American politics as I understand it. I haven't read the story (don't have time, busy busy today!) But:

"Obama offers stark choice to Republicans

President says conservative lawmakers must choose between higher taxes on the wealthy or gutting the education and health systems."

Am I the only one who reads this and thinks 'so what that says is that Obama is giving the Republicans a choice between what he wants and what they want?'  :?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Luna on September 20, 2011, 10:30:24 AM
Quote from: Demolition_Squid on September 20, 2011, 09:05:59 AM
One of the headlines in the FT seems to sum up American politics as I understand it. I haven't read the story (don't have time, busy busy today!) But:

"Obama offers stark choice to Republicans

President says conservative lawmakers must choose between higher taxes on the wealthy or gutting the education and health systems."

Am I the only one who reads this and thinks 'so what that says is that Obama is giving the Republicans a choice between what he wants and what they want?'  :?

Actually, Obama's speech was, essentially, "look, assholes, I ain't signing anything that crosses my desk that drops all the burden on the middle class and the poor, your rich donors ARE going to pony up and start paying some fucking taxes."
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Scribbly on September 20, 2011, 10:38:57 AM
Haaah. That got me to go and read the article. Seems I misunderstood the quote.

The FT are saying that what he said was he would veto any cuts to healthcare and education if it wasn't coupled with more taxes for the rich.

So they can either have no tax rises BUT spending stays the same, OR they can have tax rises AND spending cuts.  :?

QuoteMr Obama said he would veto any bill from Congress that cuts healthcare for seniors if it did not include higher taxes on the wealthy

This still doesn't seem much better, but at least there is a reason for the Republicans to not want to go for gutting social spending on instinct.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cramulus on September 20, 2011, 02:56:11 PM
Quote from: Luna on September 20, 2011, 12:38:42 AM
"I refuse to believe that corporations are people until Texas executes one."

:mittens:

yoinked!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Luna on September 20, 2011, 10:41:10 PM
I found a goldmine.

"The U.S. Government should change its emblem from an eagle to a condom to more accurately reflects the government's political stance: condoms stand up to inflation, halt production, destroy the next generation, protect pricks, and give a sense of security while actually screwing you."

"What Jefferson should have said was 'Life, liberty, and the pursuit of intelligence', for the latter has never been a recognizable goal of our nation."

"If you pick any major problem in the world, chances are that the root cause is people feeling special."

"I keep hearing the argument that some things are constitutional while other things are not. The idea is that we should be in favor of all the things that were decided over 200 years ago by a bunch of slave-owning cross-dressers who pooped in holes."

"Monica Lewinsky had more President in her than George Bush ever will."

"Q: Why did Australia get the criminals and the USA get the religious zealots ?
A: Australia was allowed to choose first !"

"I think there would be a severe reduction in stupid laws if politicians (but not other members of the public) were subjected to them during a trial period, with the general public being able to see the results."

"It's always saddened me that of all the freedoms granted to American citizens, most of us choose to practice the right to be stupid and ignorant."

"It is more profitable for your congressman to support the tobacco industry than your life."

"Mr. Candidate, sir, given the overwhelming body of evidence from hundreds of different scientific fields ranging from archeology to physics to zoology, can you explain to us how you can seriously believe that the world was created 2000 years after the Babylonians invented beer ?"

"'Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty' used to mean we watched the government — not the other way around." 

"Opinions are like assholes — everyone's got one, but nobody wants to look at the other guy's."

"Politics /n/: from 'poly ticks', short for 'many small bloodsucking insects'."

"My favorite conspiracy theory is the one that says the world is being run by a handful of ultra-rich capitalists, and that our elected governments are mere puppets. I sure hope it's true. Otherwise my survival depends on hordes of clueless goobers electing competent leaders. That's about as likely as a dog pissing the Mona Lisa into a snow bank."

http://www.gdargaud.net/Humor/QuotesPolitics.html
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Precious Moments Zalgo on September 21, 2011, 03:05:03 AM
Quote from: Cramulus on September 20, 2011, 02:56:11 PM
Quote from: Luna on September 20, 2011, 12:38:42 AM
"I refuse to believe that corporations are people until Texas executes one."

:mittens:

yoinked!
double-yoinked.

Two corporations merge, and then the combined corporation merges with a third corporation.  If corporations are people, then how come nobody gets charged with bigamy?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Triple Zero on September 21, 2011, 10:33:08 AM
Quote from: Luna on September 20, 2011, 10:41:10 PM
"Politics /n/: from 'poly ticks', short for 'many small bloodsucking insects'."

Finally, I understand Cain's sticky :)
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Telarus on September 23, 2011, 11:08:31 AM
"They may want to insist that corporations are 'people', but corporations certainly are not Americans." -Jon Stwewart, Daily Show Sept 22, 2011 (28:20), quoting himself from the night before speaking to Gov. Daniels of Indiana.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Elder Iptuous on September 23, 2011, 04:02:06 PM
Quote from: Precious Moments Zalgo on September 21, 2011, 03:05:03 AM
Quote from: Cramulus on September 20, 2011, 02:56:11 PM
Quote from: Luna on September 20, 2011, 12:38:42 AM
"I refuse to believe that corporations are people until Texas executes one."

:mittens:

yoinked!
double-yoinked.

Two corporations merge, and then the combined corporation merges with a third corporation.  If corporations are people, then how come nobody gets charged with bigamy?

The third company was joined in a 'spiritual merger'...
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Doktor Howl on September 23, 2011, 05:14:58 PM
Anyone catch the teabaggers at last night's GOP debate?

A Gay soldier was mentioned as currently serving in Afghanistan.  The teabaggers booed and jeered.

Good thing the tea party isn't all about hate.   :lulz:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: maphdet on September 23, 2011, 05:28:44 PM
The government today announced that it's changing its symbol to a CONDOM because it more accurately reflects the government's political stance.
A condom allows for inflation, halts production, destroys the next generation, protects a bunch of dicks, and gives you a sense of security while you're actually being screwed!


If this belongs to a different quote/whatnot thread, feel free to move. My lazy ass couldn't find where else to put it.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Luna on September 23, 2011, 05:31:05 PM
Quote from: Doktor Howl on September 23, 2011, 05:14:58 PM
Anyone catch the teabaggers at last night's GOP debate?

A Gay soldier was mentioned as currently serving in Afghanistan.  The teabaggers booed and jeered.

Good thing the tea party isn't all about hate.   :lulz:

If anyone has an issue with a gay soldier serving in a war zone, I humbly submit that they should take that soldier's place.

Shitheads.

ETA:
http://m.newyorker.com/online/blogs/closeread/2011/09/gop-debate-a-brave-soldier.html
http://slog.thestranger.com/slog/archives/2011/09/23/he-had-it-coming-all-along

Christ.  The soldier wasn't mentioned, he was on live feed from a goddamn war zone.  And not one of the bastards on the podium said shit.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Doktor Howl on September 23, 2011, 07:43:09 PM
Quote from: Luna on September 23, 2011, 05:31:05 PM
Quote from: Doktor Howl on September 23, 2011, 05:14:58 PM
Anyone catch the teabaggers at last night's GOP debate?

A Gay soldier was mentioned as currently serving in Afghanistan.  The teabaggers booed and jeered.

Good thing the tea party isn't all about hate.   :lulz:

If anyone has an issue with a gay soldier serving in a war zone, I humbly submit that they should take that soldier's place.

Shitheads.

ETA:
http://m.newyorker.com/online/blogs/closeread/2011/09/gop-debate-a-brave-soldier.html
http://slog.thestranger.com/slog/archives/2011/09/23/he-had-it-coming-all-along

Christ.  The soldier wasn't mentioned, he was on live feed from a goddamn war zone.  And not one of the bastards on the podium said shit.

Holy shit.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on September 23, 2011, 07:47:58 PM
SUPPORT THE TROOPS!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on September 23, 2011, 07:48:41 PM
Quote from: Cain on September 23, 2011, 07:47:58 PM
SUPPORT THE TROOPS!

EXCEPT FOR THE FAGGOTS!


New bumper sticker: "I Support More Gay Troops Than You."

BRB.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on September 23, 2011, 07:52:09 PM
(https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-nfRh7u-xyJo/TnzVKCYlgDI/AAAAAAAAAJI/D7F5dQTAwbg/gAY%252520tROOPS.JPG)
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Salty on September 23, 2011, 07:56:19 PM
NICE.
Oh that one is going to go far and wide.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on September 23, 2011, 08:00:11 PM
Quote from: LMNO, PhD (life continues) on September 23, 2011, 07:52:09 PM
(https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-nfRh7u-xyJo/TnzVKCYlgDI/AAAAAAAAAJI/D7F5dQTAwbg/gAY%252520tROOPS.JPG)

Credit to the Marines, they can actually probably plausibly claim this.  The Marine response to DADT is "we're going to be the best damn recruiters of homosexuals out of all five branches of the military!"  And to prove it, they decided on the day DADT was cancelled to go recruiting in a gay community centre in Tulsa.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on September 23, 2011, 08:07:41 PM
Ok, that's fairly incredibly awesome.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on September 23, 2011, 08:13:56 PM
Here we go:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/21/us/marine-recruiters-visit-gay-center-in-oklahoma.html?ref=politics&pagewanted=all

QuoteThe Marines were the service most opposed to ending the "don't ask, don't tell" policy, but they were the only one of five invited branches of the military to turn up with their recruiting table and chin-up bar at the center Tuesday morning. Although Marines pride themselves on being the most testosterone-fueled of the services, they also ferociously promote their view of themselves as the best. With the law now changed, the Marines appear determined to prove that they will be better than the Army, Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard in recruiting gay, lesbian and bisexual service members.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on September 23, 2011, 08:29:34 PM
Quote from: maphdet on September 23, 2011, 05:28:44 PM
The government today announced that it's changing its symbol to a CONDOM because it more accurately reflects the government's political stance.
A condom allows for inflation, halts production, destroys the next generation, protects a bunch of dicks, and gives you a sense of security while you're actually being screwed!


If this belongs to a different quote/whatnot thread, feel free to move. My lazy ass couldn't find where else to put it.


This has been circulating on Facebook for at least two years. No one seems to have an attribution for it, though.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on September 23, 2011, 08:36:48 PM
Quote from: LMNO, PhD (life continues) on September 23, 2011, 07:52:09 PM
(https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-nfRh7u-xyJo/TnzVKCYlgDI/AAAAAAAAAJI/D7F5dQTAwbg/gAY%252520tROOPS.JPG)

YOINK
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Luna on September 23, 2011, 09:01:10 PM
Quote from: Doktor Howl on September 23, 2011, 07:43:09 PM
Quote from: Luna on September 23, 2011, 05:31:05 PM
Quote from: Doktor Howl on September 23, 2011, 05:14:58 PM
Anyone catch the teabaggers at last night's GOP debate?

A Gay soldier was mentioned as currently serving in Afghanistan.  The teabaggers booed and jeered.

Good thing the tea party isn't all about hate.   :lulz:

If anyone has an issue with a gay soldier serving in a war zone, I humbly submit that they should take that soldier's place.

Shitheads.

ETA:
http://m.newyorker.com/online/blogs/closeread/2011/09/gop-debate-a-brave-soldier.html
http://slog.thestranger.com/slog/archives/2011/09/23/he-had-it-coming-all-along

Christ.  The soldier wasn't mentioned, he was on live feed from a goddamn war zone.  And not one of the bastards on the podium said shit.

Holy shit.

That did it, Dok.  Rage rediscovered.

Who in the fucking hell do these "patriots" think they are fooling?  "USA, revenge for 9/11, WAR!"

"Oh but not the faggots!  Boo!  I must boo louder than ANYONE, or they might think I'm one of THEM!  So what if he's serving his country, putting his life on the line? I don't agree with him, he's WRONG, so FUCK HIM!"

Jesus H. CHRIST on a broomstick, what is WRONG with people?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on September 23, 2011, 09:15:45 PM
I'd expect homophobia to ramp up a bit in the next few weeks as Islamophobia did with Barack Obama's election to president.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Luna on September 23, 2011, 09:22:22 PM
Quote from: Jenne on September 23, 2011, 09:15:45 PM
I'd expect homophobia to ramp up a bit in the next few weeks as Islamophobia did with Barack Obama's election to president.

An old friend broke it down for me. There are three types of homophobes (with sime interbreeding).

First, you've got the ones who were TAUGHT that hating homosexuals is right.  Odds are they've never even known one... or at least KNEW they knew one, other than as a target.

Then there are the deep closet cases, lashing out at what they most hate about themselves.

Then there are the men who are terrified thay men will treat THEM like THEY treat women.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Doktor Howl on September 23, 2011, 09:23:28 PM
Quote from: Luna on September 23, 2011, 09:01:10 PM
Quote from: Doktor Howl on September 23, 2011, 07:43:09 PM
Quote from: Luna on September 23, 2011, 05:31:05 PM
Quote from: Doktor Howl on September 23, 2011, 05:14:58 PM
Anyone catch the teabaggers at last night's GOP debate?

A Gay soldier was mentioned as currently serving in Afghanistan.  The teabaggers booed and jeered.

Good thing the tea party isn't all about hate.   :lulz:

If anyone has an issue with a gay soldier serving in a war zone, I humbly submit that they should take that soldier's place.

Shitheads.

ETA:
http://m.newyorker.com/online/blogs/closeread/2011/09/gop-debate-a-brave-soldier.html
http://slog.thestranger.com/slog/archives/2011/09/23/he-had-it-coming-all-along

Christ.  The soldier wasn't mentioned, he was on live feed from a goddamn war zone.  And not one of the bastards on the podium said shit.

Holy shit.

That did it, Dok.  Rage rediscovered.

Who in the fucking hell do these "patriots" think they are fooling?  "USA, revenge for 9/11, WAR!"

"Oh but not the faggots!  Boo!  I must boo louder than ANYONE, or they might think I'm one of THEM!  So what if he's serving his country, putting his life on the line? I don't agree with him, he's WRONG, so FUCK HIM!"

Jesus H. CHRIST on a broomstick, what is WRONG with people?

This county is depraved.

And I don't mean that in the good way.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on September 23, 2011, 09:25:36 PM
Quote from: Luna on September 23, 2011, 09:22:22 PM
Quote from: Jenne on September 23, 2011, 09:15:45 PM
I'd expect homophobia to ramp up a bit in the next few weeks as Islamophobia did with Barack Obama's election to president.

An old friend broke it down for me. There are three types of homophobes (with sime interbreeding).

First, you've got the ones who were TAUGHT that hating homosexuals is right.  Odds are they've never even known one... or at least KNEW they knew one, other than as a target.

Then there are the deep closet cases, lashing out at what they most hate about themselves.

Then there are the men who are terrified thay men will treat THEM like THEY treat women.

Interesting, though I'd posit some are combinations of what's up there as well...anyway, knowing prejudice as well as I do (family FULL of them), I'd expect to see MORE of that behavior, and expect it publicly applauded as long as the GOP keep putting their idiots on display during their fuckfest pre-election-election.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Luna on September 23, 2011, 09:27:37 PM
Quote from: Jenne on September 23, 2011, 09:25:36 PM
Quote from: Luna on September 23, 2011, 09:22:22 PM
Quote from: Jenne on September 23, 2011, 09:15:45 PM
I'd expect homophobia to ramp up a bit in the next few weeks as Islamophobia did with Barack Obama's election to president.

An old friend broke it down for me. There are three types of homophobes (with sime interbreeding).

First, you've got the ones who were TAUGHT that hating homosexuals is right.  Odds are they've never even known one... or at least KNEW they knew one, other than as a target.

Then there are the deep closet cases, lashing out at what they most hate about themselves.

Then there are the men who are terrified thay men will treat THEM like THEY treat women.

Interesting, though I'd posit some are combinations of what's up there as well...anyway, knowing prejudice as well as I do (family FULL of them), I'd expect to see MORE of that behavior, and expect it publicly applauded as long as the GOP keep putting their idiots on display during their fuckfest pre-election-election.

That'd be the "interbreeding."  I believe you're right, sadly.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Doktor Howl on September 23, 2011, 09:52:39 PM
"There is no basis in text, tradition, or even in contemporary practice (if that were enough), for finding in the Constitution a right to demand judicial consideration of newly discovered evidence of innocence brought forward after conviction."
- SCOTUS Justice Scalia

Translated, this means:

"Mere factual innocence is no reason not to carry out a death sentence properly reached"
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on September 23, 2011, 09:57:58 PM
Yeah, I saw that one the other day, as well.

Scalia is one of those guys who delights in finding technically legal yet morally abhorrent positions to take, no matter what the topic.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: deadfong on September 23, 2011, 09:59:34 PM
Homophobia reminds me of an argument I had years ago with my grandparents.  It was about HIV/AIDS, and at one point my grandfather seriously argued that HIV came from Africans having sex with gorillas.*

Anyway.  I don't remember how it came around to this, but toward the end of the argument, my grandmother said, "Well, I hope you don't have too many gay friends."

Naturally I immediately latched on to that and asked, "How many is too many?"

I don't think she was expecting that, because her eyes got wide, and she blurted out, "Two."

So, yeah, according to my grandmother, you're allowed a token gay friend, but no more.

* That side of the family is from South Carolina, and I am ever thankful that my mother married my father, in part, because he was moving back to New Mexico after getting out of the Navy and she wanted nothing more than to be 2000+ miles away from her parents.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on September 23, 2011, 10:09:04 PM
Quote from: Doktor Howl on September 23, 2011, 09:52:39 PM
“There is no basis in text, tradition, or even in contemporary practice (if that were enough), for finding in the Constitution a right to demand judicial consideration of newly discovered evidence of innocence brought forward after conviction.”
- SCOTUS Justice Scalia

Translated, this means:

"Mere factual innocence is no reason not to carry out a death sentence properly reached”


Yeah, I read that the other day.  Scalia can go take a long walk off a short pier anytime.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on September 23, 2011, 10:10:15 PM
Quote from: deadfong on September 23, 2011, 09:59:34 PM
Homophobia reminds me of an argument I had years ago with my grandparents.  It was about HIV/AIDS, and at one point my grandfather seriously argued that HIV came from Africans having sex with gorillas.*

Anyway.  I don't remember how it came around to this, but toward the end of the argument, my grandmother said, "Well, I hope you don't have too many gay friends."

Naturally I immediately latched on to that and asked, "How many is too many?"

I don't think she was expecting that, because her eyes got wide, and she blurted out, "Two."

So, yeah, according to my grandmother, you're allowed a token gay friend, but no more.

* That side of the family is from South Carolina, and I am ever thankful that my mother married my father, in part, because he was moving back to New Mexico after getting out of the Navy and she wanted nothing more than to be 2000+ miles away from her parents.

Welp, prejudice is one of those things you can RARELY fight successfully when folks have it so ingrained in them.  It takes a lot of experience and education, for starters.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Luna on September 23, 2011, 10:19:55 PM
http://www.rawstory.com/rawreplay/2011/09/bachmann-proposes-to-eliminate-all-taxes/

She hurt my brain.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on September 23, 2011, 10:25:33 PM
Quote from: Luna on September 23, 2011, 10:19:55 PM
http://www.rawstory.com/rawreplay/2011/09/bachmann-proposes-to-eliminate-all-taxes/

She hurt my brain.

She doesn't take the time to connect the dots of "logic" of what she is saying.  It's rather fucking pathetic.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Doktor Howl on September 23, 2011, 10:36:16 PM
Quote from: Luna on September 23, 2011, 10:19:55 PM
http://www.rawstory.com/rawreplay/2011/09/bachmann-proposes-to-eliminate-all-taxes/

She hurt my brain.

KEEP FUCKING THAT CHICKEN, BACHMANN!   :lulz:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jasper on September 23, 2011, 11:21:10 PM
She plans to eliminate taxes, but realizes that it can't be done without ceasing the US government, but still wants to do it.

The Anarchist Party has a hero!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Prince Glittersnatch III on September 24, 2011, 12:23:35 AM
Quote from: Doktor Howl on September 23, 2011, 09:52:39 PM
"There is no basis in text, tradition, or even in contemporary practice (if that were enough), for finding in the Constitution a right to demand judicial consideration of newly discovered evidence of innocence brought forward after conviction."
- SCOTUS Justice Scalia

Translated, this means:

"Mere factual innocence is no reason not to carry out a death sentence properly reached"


Obviously he doesnt want to appear soft on the wrongfully convicted.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Prince Glittersnatch III on September 24, 2011, 11:20:03 AM
(http://i56.tinypic.com/255j495.jpg)
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: kingyak on September 24, 2011, 11:58:47 AM
Quote from: Lord Glittersnatch on September 24, 2011, 11:20:03 AM
(http://i56.tinypic.com/255j495.jpg)

Obviously, Crowe is a fine upstanding citizen who is willing to work with the police by confessing his crime. Davis, on the other hand, refused to admit he was guilty (I mean, he's black, so he's obviously guilty), which meant the police and DA had to spend a lot of man-hours "reminding" people that they saw him commit the crime and shoehorning the facts into their narrative in order to get a conviction. If Davis had been a little more cooperative and gone along with the official story, maybe he'd still be alive today.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jasper on September 24, 2011, 03:26:49 PM
I think if you manage to use four different weapons killing one person, there should be no pardon.

I could easily see two; Sometimes you just gotta mix things up.  But four different weapons (I'm counting the paint because yikes), that's like using more than three exclamation marks.

It's a telltale sign of criminal insanity.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: PopeTom on September 25, 2011, 02:29:21 PM
Quote from: Lord Glittersnatch on September 24, 2011, 12:23:35 AM
Quote from: Doktor Howl on September 23, 2011, 09:52:39 PM
"There is no basis in text, tradition, or even in contemporary practice (if that were enough), for finding in the Constitution a right to demand judicial consideration of newly discovered evidence of innocence brought forward after conviction."
- SCOTUS Justice Scalia

Translated, this means:

"Mere factual innocence is no reason not to carry out a death sentence properly reached"


Obviously he doesnt want to appear soft on the wrongfully convicted.

Nothing says 'tough on crime' like executing a potentially innocent man.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on September 25, 2011, 08:00:38 PM
Quote from: Dr Leo StraussFeel the excitement.

There's much to be said that the White House now seems to be ripping off Liz Warren's impromptu, unscripted, passionate articulation for why she is running. Much like Biden and Neil Kinnock, but with more awareness. The irony speaks for itself.

The wealth destruction and transfer are an accomplished fact – not psychologically realized by those whose self-image is still 'middle class'. The middle class already lost a war they didn't even realize started. Mimicking Warren and feigning to stand for the vanquished now on a blasted battlefield? It might yield positive personal results for Obama the individual? It's still playing with shadows flitting behind the abstract and disconnected kabuki that is contemporary politics.

How timely. Let slip the tweets of war!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Luna on September 28, 2011, 10:59:05 AM
Quote from: Doktor Howl on September 23, 2011, 09:23:28 PM
Quote from: Luna on September 23, 2011, 09:01:10 PM
Quote from: Doktor Howl on September 23, 2011, 07:43:09 PM
Quote from: Luna on September 23, 2011, 05:31:05 PM
Quote from: Doktor Howl on September 23, 2011, 05:14:58 PM
Anyone catch the teabaggers at last night's GOP debate?

A Gay soldier was mentioned as currently serving in Afghanistan.  The teabaggers booed and jeered.

Good thing the tea party isn't all about hate.   :lulz:

If anyone has an issue with a gay soldier serving in a war zone, I humbly submit that they should take that soldier's place.

Shitheads.

ETA:
http://m.newyorker.com/online/blogs/closeread/2011/09/gop-debate-a-brave-soldier.html
http://slog.thestranger.com/slog/archives/2011/09/23/he-had-it-coming-all-along

Christ.  The soldier wasn't mentioned, he was on live feed from a goddamn war zone.  And not one of the bastards on the podium said shit.

Holy shit.

That did it, Dok.  Rage rediscovered.

Who in the fucking hell do these "patriots" think they are fooling?  "USA, revenge for 9/11, WAR!"

"Oh but not the faggots!  Boo!  I must boo louder than ANYONE, or they might think I'm one of THEM!  So what if he's serving his country, putting his life on the line? I don't agree with him, he's WRONG, so FUCK HIM!"

Jesus H. CHRIST on a broomstick, what is WRONG with people?

This county is depraved.

And I don't mean that in the good way.

Maybe I was stupid.  Maybe I was naive.  I didn't think it would get worse.

Trust Fox "We're becoming more moderate, honest" "News" to chime in.

QuoteFox News anchor Megyn Kelly defended members of last Thursday's GOP debate audience who booed after watching a video of a gay soldier asking about the don't ask don't tell law.

The moment drew widespread attention and, on Tuesday, Vice President Joe Biden called the booing "reprehensible" during an appearance on "The View."

Kelly objected to Joy Behar's criticism that the panel did not criticize the members of the crowd who booed. She said that there were "perhaps a total of two boos," and questioned the premise that the audience was booing the man because he was gay.

"Were the boos directed...at the gay soldier, or at his question?" she asked. "Do they boo when they see he is a gay soldier, or when he makes clear that he wants gay rights protected?"

Kelly concluded by defending the audience in general. "Those attending these debates are entitled to their point of view," she said. "...If an audience is disruptive, that's one thing, but this audience was respectful with virtually no exceptions."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/27/megyn-kelly-defends-debate-boo-gay-soldier_n_983925.html?ncid=edlinkusaolp00000003
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cramulus on September 28, 2011, 02:47:38 PM
That's some amazing slicing she's doing with that analytical knife

"They're not booing the fact that he's gay. They're booing the controversial question."
                                       /
(http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/files/original/MegynKelly_1-20.jpg)

which is semantically similar but rhetorically different than

"They're not booing gays, they're booing gay rights. THERE'S A DIFFERENCE, PEOPLE."
                                       /
(http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/files/original/MegynKelly_1-20.jpg)
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on September 28, 2011, 02:51:11 PM
It is amazing how Fox discover and then discard precise, analytical debate.

2003:  "Anti-war protestors are, by protesting the war, booing the troops!"

2011: "They're not booing a soldier, they're booing a gay guy who happens to be soldier!"

2016:  "Anti-war protestors are, by protesting the war, booing the troops!"
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cramulus on September 28, 2011, 02:54:45 PM
            I was saying "boo-urns"
                /
(http://worldwide-web.com/JeffreyBabad/Simpsons/Moleman/moleman.gif)
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on September 28, 2011, 04:59:44 PM
Quote from: Cramulus on September 28, 2011, 02:54:45 PM
            I was saying "boo-urns"
                /
(http://worldwide-web.com/JeffreyBabad/Simpsons/Moleman/moleman.gif)

:lulz:  :mittens:

Oh, Fux News is always going to come back with shit like this with their dimwitted Barbie dolls spitting out the excrement of their so-called logic on air as if they're spinning golden truths instead.

Their air of patronizing self-righteousness in the face of ignorance and pitiless, merciless bigotry just makes me hate everything they stand for even more.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Doktor Howl on September 28, 2011, 05:21:37 PM
(http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/files/original/MegynKelly_1-20.jpg)

Look at that shit.  She's not even a real person.  Her face is all wrong.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on September 28, 2011, 06:19:22 PM
(https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-dLa0VsvQKeQ/ToNW90Y64yI/AAAAAAAAAK0/lSwOoBPAv18/h301/11%2B-%2B1)
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cramulus on September 28, 2011, 06:22:10 PM

:potd:

:fap2:

LMFAO
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Luna on September 28, 2011, 06:28:03 PM
Quote from: LMNO, PhD (life continues) on September 28, 2011, 06:19:22 PM
(https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-dLa0VsvQKeQ/ToNW90Y64yI/AAAAAAAAAK0/lSwOoBPAv18/h301/11%2B-%2B1)

Much better...
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on September 28, 2011, 07:04:10 PM
Quote from: LMNO, PhD (life continues) on September 28, 2011, 06:19:22 PM
(https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-dLa0VsvQKeQ/ToNW90Y64yI/AAAAAAAAAK0/lSwOoBPAv18/h301/11%2B-%2B1)

Alphapance's WOMPrage is strong today.  I approve.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Telarus on September 28, 2011, 09:03:54 PM
 :lol:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Chairman Risus on September 29, 2011, 01:20:27 AM
Quote from: LMNO, PhD (life continues) on September 28, 2011, 06:19:22 PM
(https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-dLa0VsvQKeQ/ToNW90Y64yI/AAAAAAAAAK0/lSwOoBPAv18/h301/11%2B-%2B1)

:baby:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on September 29, 2011, 02:42:40 PM
Quote from: Stephen M. WaltI scan the political horizon, and I don't see anyone remotely like George Marshall, Dwight Eisenhower, or even Dean Acheson. We are in the midst of the biggest strategic challenge since the end of World War II, but where is our Kennan or Kissinger? Neither of them were infallible, but each had a genuine strategic vision for the United States, its position in the world, and the actions that needed to be taken to preserve vital interests. And make no mistake: what is needed now is a foreign policy that is based on a clear and hard-headed strategy, one that identifies key priorities, writes off liabilities, and marshals the relevant elements of power to preserve what is vital first and foremost. Instead, we get a foreign policy based on wishful thinking, lofty ideals, or an endless list of global projects offered up by policy wonks and special interest groups, along with more bad advice from the people who got us into our present circumstances. And the latest GOP presidential aspirant -- Governor Rick Perry of Texas -- seems to think that all our problems can be solved if we just pray hard enough. I don't want to tread on anyone's beliefs, but if that isn't a sign of desperation and policy bankruptcy, I don't know what is.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on September 30, 2011, 05:40:38 AM
Quote from: LMNO, PhD (life continues) on September 28, 2011, 06:19:22 PM
(https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-dLa0VsvQKeQ/ToNW90Y64yI/AAAAAAAAAK0/lSwOoBPAv18/h301/11%2B-%2B1)

:cramstipated:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Luna on October 02, 2011, 11:53:37 AM
Quote from: Cain on September 28, 2011, 02:51:11 PM
It is amazing how Fox discover and then discard precise, analytical debate.

2003:  "Anti-war protestors are, by protesting the war, booing the troops!"

2011: "They're not booing a soldier, they're booing a gay guy who happens to be soldier!"

2016:  "Anti-war protestors are, by protesting the war, booing the troops!"

Obama responded to this.

QuoteBarack Obama last night hit out at his Republican rivals for staying silent when a GOP debate crowd booed a homosexual soldier who asked a question.
During a highly combative speech to an audience of 3,000 gay rights activists, the president said: 'You want to be commander in chief?
'You can start by standing up for the men and women who wear the uniform of the United States, even when it's not politically convenient,'
Recalling the boos soldiers Steven Hill received on September 22 during his videotaped question, which was filmed in Iraq, Mr Obama said: 'We don't believe in standing silent when that happens.'


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2044249/Obama-says-stand-sex-marriage-evolving-headlines-gay-rights-dinner.html#ixzz1ZcWyq742

Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Luna on October 02, 2011, 10:56:31 PM
Herman Cain has apparently decided to, very carefully, state a position on a soldier being booed:

Quote"In retrospect, because of the controversy it has created and because of the different interpretations that it could have had, yes, that probably — that would have been appropriate," Cain said, when asked if he should have asked the audience to respect the soldier.

McCain also spoke out:

QuoteSeparately, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said that the GOP candidates at the debate should have defended the soldier. "The fact is we should honor every man and woman who is serving in the military and should in no way treat them with anything but the highest regard," he told CBS' "Face the Nation."

McCain added that the GOP candidates may have been thinking about how to respond to the soldier's question rather than paying attention to the booing. "I would bet that every Republican on that stage did not agree with that kind of behavior," he said.

http://news.yahoo.com/cain-says-spoken-gay-soldier-151321869.html

In my book, "because it caused controversy" is a lame-ass reason to decide, after the fact, "hey, I should have said something," but, maybe that's just me.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on October 03, 2011, 07:48:57 AM
Actually, I think the worst part is that no-one is making the argument "a gay person shouldn't be booed for their sexuality" but instead everyone is making the argument "the GOP shouldn't boo a gay soldier, because they claim to support the military".

Yes, it highlights their hypocrisy, but in the long run, it plays into Republican framing of the issues.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Precious Moments Zalgo on October 03, 2011, 06:21:17 PM
Quote from: Cain on October 03, 2011, 07:48:57 AM
Actually, I think the worst part is that no-one is making the argument "a gay person shouldn't be booed for their sexuality" but instead everyone is making the argument "the GOP shouldn't boo a gay soldier, because they claim to support the military".

Yes, it highlights their hypocrisy, but in the long run, it plays into Republican framing of the issues.
A Republican audience would boo anyone making that argument.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Doktor Howl on October 03, 2011, 06:50:03 PM
Quote from: LMNO, PhD (life continues) on September 28, 2011, 06:19:22 PM
(https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-dLa0VsvQKeQ/ToNW90Y64yI/AAAAAAAAAK0/lSwOoBPAv18/h301/11%2B-%2B1)

THAT'S BETTER.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on October 03, 2011, 06:51:13 PM
Quote from: Precious Moments Zalgo on October 03, 2011, 06:21:17 PM
Quote from: Cain on October 03, 2011, 07:48:57 AM
Actually, I think the worst part is that no-one is making the argument "a gay person shouldn't be booed for their sexuality" but instead everyone is making the argument "the GOP shouldn't boo a gay soldier, because they claim to support the military".

Yes, it highlights their hypocrisy, but in the long run, it plays into Republican framing of the issues.
A Republican audience would boo anyone making that argument.

And is any other argument swaying Republicans?

No, exactly, so why bother pandering to their framing of events?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Scribbly on October 05, 2011, 02:12:22 PM
From the FT coverage of the riots in Greece.

Quote from: FT
The youths who clashed with police were throwing chunks of marble prised off building facades but compared with last June's riots the mood among protesters outside parliament seemed almost relaxed.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on October 17, 2011, 02:13:37 PM
Charlie Brooker, today's Guardian

QuoteArcher writes vividly and from the heart and, if his byline photo is anything to go by, appears to be a perfectly reasonable man (specifically, Ross Kemp). He deserves the benefit of the doubt. But I fear in his rush to reprimand the "Modern Left", he has overlooked one key fact: David Cameron is a lizard.

Yes, David Cameron is a lizard. A lizard that devours live foals in its lair. And as far as Archer is concerned, it's perfectly fine for this limbless, non-human, Cameron-reptile-beast-thing to squirm across the stone floor of its den merrily excreting the bones of its victims, yet I'm "depraved" simply for writing about it. This is the tragedy of the Modern Right. They're idiots.

Well, let me spell it out: You cannot dehumanise a lizard. Not without humanising it first, by giving it a little top hat, say, or a monocle. Maybe put some lipstick on it. And a wig. Teach it to walk sexy. That's the way. Now confess: you already feel like getting to base three with the thing. But don't! It's still just a creature.

But that's a standard lizard we're talking about. Sadly Cameron is no standard lizard. He can't even be classified as a conventional reptile, because that would require him to have some kind of quantifiable earthly form – which, as a malevolent paranormal entity continually shifting between dimensions, he simply doesn't have.

I know this sounds crazy. But don't take my word for it. Last week I asked the online community if it had further proof of Cameron's true nature. I was immediately inundated with terrifying eyewitness accounts.

Twitter enthusiast @djamesc wrote: "I went to school with Cameron. He used to curl up next to the radiator during lunch. He only ate once a week."

Steve Hogarty said: "I once saw him behind a branch of Waitrose using both hands to squeeze a swollen pulsating neck gland (or 'sac') into a dustbin."

Pianist Stephen Frizzle "witnessed Cameron slice off his finger whilst preparing vegetables, and it just grew back. No word of a lie."

Rob Carmier from Brighton recalled that on the day the lift wasn't working at the G8 summit, Cameron "merely climbed the glass exterior with flattened palms".

Gareth James explained the recent hot weather was caused when Cameron "surrounded the UK with glass walls because he needs to live in a vivarium".

While a few of Cameron's lizard properties sound almost charming – as Betsy Martian pointed out: "if ever he thinks his backbenchers are conspiring against him, he can turn his head a full 180 degrees to check" – others are less attractive.

For instance Paul Yates recalled: "I went to a business lunch with Cameron once and he ordered spiders. We all laughed, but he just stared at us."

This chilling behaviour was merely the tip of a deeply unsettling iceberg. Pete Strover encountered "a pack of feral dogs gathered in an underpass" which "barked Cameron's name in unison", Dave Probert "once saw Cameron vomit up his entire skeleton to avoid having to admit he doesn't know where Wales is", Tom Bain "saw Cameron put his entire hand through the hole in the middle of a CD", while perhaps most damningly of all, Darren Smith said: "I heard he strips completely naked to have a shit."

Hundreds of similar reports flooded in. I did my best throughout the week to alert everyone on Twitter to Cameron's reptilian ways, but after several hours of unrelenting lizard warnings from me, they grew bored. Some begged me to "be funny again". Others asked me to "drop the lizard shit" or "change the record" or "STFU". Undeterred, I bravely persisted, all week long, repeatedly tweeting that Cameron was a lizard. Or maybe two lizards. Or some sort of ghost. But definitely evil and definitely not human. Yet still, thousands unfollowed me. It was almost as if they simply didn't want to be told that David Cameron is a reptilian daemon that enters our realm each morning by slithering through a haunted mirror in order to feast on human souls.

No one wants to know. They're in denial, or maybe hypnotised by the sulphurous mind-control gas Cameron emits from a series of gummy, puckering apertures along his underbelly. At least here you get the truth. Which is that he is a lizard. And by "he", I mean Cameron. David Cameron. Who is a lizard. David Cameron is a lizard.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on October 17, 2011, 03:12:22 PM
Wow.  That's seven kinds of awesome.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Doktor Howl on October 17, 2011, 03:19:47 PM
HST lives!  :lulz:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Eater of Clowns on October 17, 2011, 03:48:21 PM
That's god damned hysterical.   :)
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jasper on October 17, 2011, 05:08:07 PM
Quote from: Doktor Howl on October 17, 2011, 03:19:47 PM
HST lives!  :lulz:

We need to send this man a variety of random objects including aviator shades, an acapulco shirt, and a cigarette holder.  If he picks up those items first, we will be sure that he is the incarnate.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on October 17, 2011, 09:00:00 PM
Thanks, Cain--needed that laugh.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cramulus on October 27, 2011, 03:28:20 PM
Did Paul Krugman really write this article??? (http://www.theonion.com/articles/this-sure-is-a-spooky-time-for-the-economy,26442/)

(http://o.onionstatic.com/images/personalities/personality/1/1213/This_Sure-R_jpg_90x150_upscale_q85.jpg)

This Sure Is A Spooky Time For The Economy

By Paul Krugman
October 25, 2011 | ISSUE 47•43

Greetings...it's your favorite dead-itorial writer, Paul "Bearer" Krugman, here to talk to you again about some rather, shall we say, chilling developments in the national economy. Ah, yes, it is a very dark and stormy night indeed for our financial system, dear readers, the kind of night that sends shivers up one's spine and sends the national unemployment rate soaring to nearly 10 percent. So curl up under your covers, and keep the candlelight close, because I will now tell a tale of economic woe so terrifying it may just make your hair stand on end.

Remember when the economy was BOO-ming? When predatory lenders were sucking the blood of homeowners and confidence in the market was ghoulishly high? Little did we know about the creeping, malevolent spirit of fiduciary calamity that lurked in the dark shadows, ready to pop out and gut the $230 billion federal surplus reported by the Congressional Budget Office for fiscal year 2000. What poor, damned fools we were over the next decade to let our national balance sheet slip so far into the deep, bloody red! Now it seems our economy has been buried alive, and the day may never come when it will once again rise from the dead.

Or should I say rise from the debt?

Sometimes I lie awake in bed having frightful nightmares about the demons and monsters that creep and crawl through Wall Street. Even holy water can't ward off these depraved madmen, I'm afraid. I ask you, how long must the American people pay for the spooktacular failures of the Bush administration? Until we find a way to wrest power away from the top 1 percent favored by the Bush-era tax cuts, I'm afraid we may be headed for a grave calamity that would make John Maynard Keynes himself spin in his coffin...

Once the witching hour comes for the U.S. economy, beware! Who knows what sort of evil forces might go bump in the night. (And by "night," I am referring to what most economists predict will either be a double-dip recession or what I would characterize as a "lesser depression," defined as a prolonged period of high unemployment and economic stagnation following the initial recession—less dire perhaps than the depression of the 1930s but still, I would argue, bloodcurdlingly frightening!)

Am I scaring you, readers? Am I chilling you to the bone with my tales of the supernaturally minimal government spending initiatives engineered to remedy decreased revenues both domestically and abroad?

If we're ever to have a ghost of a chance for recovery, the federal government will have to invest heavily in the economy again, and the American people will have to be reassured they won't be R.I.P.-ped off again. Obama may have cobbled his Frankenstein's monster of a jobs plan together from spare parts, but it is nevertheless monstrously important that a bill like this passes.

But don't take my word for it. After all, I am just one lone voice in the darkness. In fact, perhaps none of this is real. Perhaps it's all just a bad dream. A very, very bad dream, indeed. That is...you hope. Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha!

Sweet dreams, readers...
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Jenne on October 27, 2011, 04:08:30 PM
:lol:  :lulz:  Say what you want about him, but at least this economist has imagination.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on October 30, 2011, 10:54:23 AM
Jonathan Schwarz does some historical comparison:

QuoteThe book Confidence Men by Ron Suskind describes an Obama interview with Rolling Stone from September, 2010 that I didn't read at the time. Here's some of it:

RS: There's also a concern when it comes to financial reform that your economic team is closely identified with Wall Street and the deregulation that caused the collapse. These are the folks who were supposed to have had oversight of Wall Street, and many of them worked for or were close to banks like Goldman Sachs...

OBAMA: I read some of the articles that Tim Dickinson and others have produced in Rolling Stone. I understand the point of view that they're bringing. But look: Tim Geithner never worked for Goldman; Larry Summers didn't work for Goldman. There is no doubt that I brought in a bunch of folks who understand the financial markets, the same way, by the way, that FDR brought in a lot of folks who understood the financial markets after the crash, including Joe Kennedy...


This is from the book The Money and the Power by Sally Denton and Roger Morris:

Through purloined information and speculative connivance, what a later generation outlawed as "insider trading," [Joe Kennedy] took millions from Wall Street before the Crash...For helping to finance Franklin Roosevelt's presidential commission in 1932, he was rewarded with the chairmanship of the new Securities and Exchange Commission, which began to police some of the same stock exchange abuses he had just practiced so profitably, "a crook to catch a crook," as Roosevelt once quipped to his adviser James Farley.

It would be nice if we had presidents, or music magazines, who were able to remember the past. But then we wouldn't get this kind of accidental honesty, so I guess it all works out in the end.

Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on December 06, 2011, 08:22:59 AM
Oh, those Egyptian security services and their wacky ways...

Quote from: Lawrence Wright, The Looming TowerTo deal with Zawahiri, Egyptian intelligence agents devised a fiendish plan. They lured a thirteen year-old boy named Ahmed into an apartment with the promise of juice and videos. Ahmed was the son of Mohammed Sharraf, a well-known Egyptian fundamentalist and a senior member of al-Jihad. The boy was drugged and sodomized; when he awakened, he was confronted with photographs of the homosexual activity and threatened with the prospect of having them shown to his father. For the child, the consequences of such a disclosure were overwhelming. "It could even be that the father would kill him," a source close Zawahiri admitted.

The Egyptians used these tactics on two boys and made them spy on Zawahiri.  Predictably, Zawahiri figured out they were spying on him, and had them both shot.

This plot was devised as a response to the 1995 plot to assassinate Murbarak while he was visiting Ethiopia.  This is the same Murbarak who is a "close family friend" of Hillary Clinton and whom Joe Biden "would not refer to...as a dictator".
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Scribbly on December 06, 2011, 08:53:45 AM
Quote from: Cain on December 06, 2011, 08:22:59 AM
Oh, those Egyptian security services and their wacky ways...

Quote from: Lawrence Wright, The Looming TowerTo deal with Zawahiri, Egyptian intelligence agents devised a fiendish plan. They lured a thirteen year-old boy named Ahmed into an apartment with the promise of juice and videos. Ahmed was the son of Mohammed Sharraf, a well-known Egyptian fundamentalist and a senior member of al-Jihad. The boy was drugged and sodomized; when he awakened, he was confronted with photographs of the homosexual activity and threatened with the prospect of having them shown to his father. For the child, the consequences of such a disclosure were overwhelming. "It could even be that the father would kill him," a source close Zawahiri admitted.

The Egyptians used these tactics on two boys and made them spy on Zawahiri.  Predictably, Zawahiri figured out they were spying on him, and had them both shot.

This plot was devised as a response to the 1995 plot to assassinate Murbarak while he was visiting Ethiopia.  This is the same Murbarak who is a "close family friend" of Hillary Clinton and whom Joe Biden "would not refer to...as a dictator".

Fucking...  :x
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on December 13, 2011, 03:43:34 PM
Quoth IOZ:

QuoteWell now apparently the great moral angoisse à propos Iraq is not whether or not an immense and powerful nation ought to instigate an unprovoked invasion and occupation of another country, killing many thousands through direct military action and a million or more as an immediate consequence of those actions, but whether or not the people we conquered will, upon our partial withdrawal, will express sufficient gratitude for having been billeted with a gang of well-armed fatamericans lo this past decade. But we got rid of Saddam! It's like date-raping your girlfriend and then being upset that she didn't thank you for not doing anal.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on May 22, 2012, 11:15:34 PM
One of my favourite quotes, from the introduction to Anti-Oedipus:

QuoteThe major enemy, the strategic adversary is fascism (whereas Anti-Oedipus' opposition to the others is more of a tactical engagement). And not only historical fascism, the fascism of Hitler and Mussolini - which was able to mobilize and use the desire of the masses so effectively - but also the fascism in us all, in our heads and in our everyday behavior, the fascism that causes us to love power, to desire the very thing that dominates and exploits us.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on October 14, 2012, 02:48:09 PM
Russian political writing!

Quote from: Yulia LatyninaIt is possible that Georgia will get one more chance. In that one short moment, when a confused people will look on with astonishment as the band of thieves returning to power brings back its lawlessness – but at a point of time when the army and police are not yet wholly purged of respectable people, who care for the fate of their country – in that moment, Georgia will get another window of opportunity. Like the one, for instance, that Pinochet got on September 11, 1973. But maybe, this chance will never come.

Republican Americans and certain Russians are pissing themselves in fear since the fall of Saakashvili in Georgia - who was becoming increasingly bizarre and authoritarian in his rule.  But this is a new low - opening agitating for a bloody coup.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on October 17, 2012, 01:36:02 PM
American justice (http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/guantanamo-hearing-grows-heated-at-mention-of-torture)!

QuoteMohammed's lawyer, Air Force Captain Michael Schwartz, said forcibly removing them from their cells and hauling them into court would subject them to physical and emotional strain reminiscent of their time in CIA custody.

"We have to talk about torture," Schwartz said.

"No we don't," the judge replied.

"I think we do," Schwartz said.

"I'm telling you I don't think that's relevant to this issue. That's the end of that," Pohl snapped.

When Schwartz persisted, Pohl said angrily, "Are you having trouble hearing me? Move on to something else!"

Unlike previous sessions at the high-security war crimes courtroom at the Guantanamo base in Cuba, the court security officer did not muffle the audio feed that spectators hear when the word "torture" was uttered.

Colonel Pohl is sounding a little shrill....also, nice move by the court security officer.

One would almost think the American political elite are being tortured, their reaction to the word "torture".  Don't talk about it!  Don't even mention it by name!  Time to move on!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on October 25, 2012, 09:04:43 AM
Robert Gibbs, on the targeted assassination of Anwar al-Walaki's 16 year old son (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7MwB2znBZ1g):

Quote"I would suggest that you should have a far more responsible father."

I think Jehovah said it better

Quote from: Exodus 20:5You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me,

Quote from: Exodus 34:6-7"The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, 7 maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation."

Al-Walaki's hated God America so much they had to kill his son for his crime.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on October 25, 2012, 01:40:33 PM
I hate the majority of humanity.  There, I said it.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on October 25, 2012, 02:06:25 PM
This might make you feel better, then.

Paul Carr - Travis Shrugged: The creepy, dangerous ideology behind Silicon Valley's Cult of Disruption (https://www.nsfwcorp.com/dispatch/travis-shrugged) (subscription needed).

QuoteLaws don't exist merely to frustrate the business ambitions of coastal hipsters: They also exist to protect the more vulnerable members of society. Back home in London (where such statistics are available), 11 women a month are attacked in unlicensed cabs, and unlicensed drivers are responsible for a horrifying 80 percent of all stranger rapes. If Uber doesn't have to follow licensing laws, then neither does any Tom, Dick, or Harry who chooses to paint the word "TAXI" on the side of his car, and start offering rides via the Internet. A disruptive CEO will shrug (and there's a foreshadowing word) and insist that it's not his fault that such criminals exist. "Just because there are people who want to rape, murder, or rob you shouldn't prevent me from making another million dollars," he'll argue.

Remarkably, a large part of the Internet community — by which I mean that tiny number of social media fanatics who spend their days on Twitter, looking for the next cause to rally behind or the next bad guy to boycott — will agree with him.

Sure enough, when I Retweeted Mott's PandoDaily post, I was immediately inundated with @replies accusing me of being "anti-free market" and insisting that the only thing the government should do for technology companies is "get out of the way." What was curious about those most loudly defending Kalanick -- apart from the fact that they all were idiots -- was that almost all of them directly or obliquely referenced the same author in their Twitter bio...

Ayn fucking Rand.

I'm actually embarrassed that it took me until then to make the connection, particularly given I used to host the startup competition at a technology conference called "TechCrunch Disrupt." The original Silicon Valley meaning of a disruptive company was one that used its small size to shake up a bigger industry or bloated competitor. Increasingly, though, the conference stage was filled with brash, Millennial entrepreneurs vowing to "Disrupt" real-world laws and regulations in the same way that me stealing your dog is Disrupting the idea of pet ownership. On more than one occasion a judge would ask an entrepreneur "Is this legal?" to which the reply would inevitably come: "Not yet." The audience would laugh and applaud. What chutzpah! So Disruptive!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Juana on October 25, 2012, 04:50:40 PM
Oh fun.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on February 07, 2013, 04:20:30 PM
The single best quote (http://bloodandtreasure.typepad.com/blood_treasure/2013/02/vulgar-republicanism.html) on the whole "Richard III was a pretty-boi cruelly buried in a car-park" saga that is currently engulfing UK papers and television:

Quotehalf the country – and the twee half at that – seems to be getting in a tizzy about a man who, given the medieval level of state formation, was basically a fucking gangster; and what's more a gangster among gangsters: the royals were all gangsters until Cromwell taught them a little circumspection. That little princes in the tower wet job should be a clue with Richard, but there seems to be a general feeling that it was dignified by being done as statecraft. Or maybe it's a Kray twins thing: 'they only murdered their own', etc

Sure, he was a lawgiver: so was Lucky Luciano. And sure, there was that time in 1215 when the underbosses ganged up on a weak capo and took a bunch of diabolical bleeding liberties. But Richard 'Snakey Spine' Plantagenet played the same role in Our Island Story asJake 'Greasy Thumb' Guzickdid in the history of Chicago. Under a car park is exactly the right place for him, at least in the absence of a flyover or a crocodile filled swamp.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on February 26, 2013, 05:17:27 PM
The blogger formerly known (http://jacobbacharach.wordpress.com/2012/12/17/the-end-of-the-affair/) as IOZ:

QuoteWhat you will not hear in the crushingly predictable debate about guns, "freedom," and security that we're about to endure for the thousandth time is that our society is so terrifically violent because we don't really value human life except as instrumental to other ends—economic production, the global war on terror, winning the future against China, whatever. Life has little value in and of itself; in the American worldview, we are all either future middle managers or future terrorists, depending mostly on the chance of the geography of our birth; the death of the former is to be lamented, the latter, if not cheered, ignored. But what makes them similar, those extinguished lives, is that for all our protestations to the contrary, we cannot value life as life; the very idea is antithetical to the manner in which our culture assigns value.

One of our more popular current entertainments features the specter of a desiccated future North America in which children are pitted against each other in gladiatorial combat; the rich are rewarded with exaltation, the poor with grief, but for everyone, the result is entertainment, diversion from their gray and daily lives. As the news continues and you find yourself diverted and horrified by the dreadful, inevitable drip-drip of grotesque forensic and psychological detail, well, are you not entertained?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: The Good Reverend Roger on February 26, 2013, 05:19:58 PM
Quote from: Cain on February 26, 2013, 05:17:27 PM
The blogger formerly known (http://jacobbacharach.wordpress.com/2012/12/17/the-end-of-the-affair/) as IOZ:

QuoteWhat you will not hear in the crushingly predictable debate about guns, "freedom," and security that we're about to endure for the thousandth time is that our society is so terrifically violent because we don't really value human life except as instrumental to other ends—economic production, the global war on terror, winning the future against China, whatever. Life has little value in and of itself; in the American worldview, we are all either future middle managers or future terrorists, depending mostly on the chance of the geography of our birth; the death of the former is to be lamented, the latter, if not cheered, ignored. But what makes them similar, those extinguished lives, is that for all our protestations to the contrary, we cannot value life as life; the very idea is antithetical to the manner in which our culture assigns value.

One of our more popular current entertainments features the specter of a desiccated future North America in which children are pitted against each other in gladiatorial combat; the rich are rewarded with exaltation, the poor with grief, but for everyone, the result is entertainment, diversion from their gray and daily lives. As the news continues and you find yourself diverted and horrified by the dreadful, inevitable drip-drip of grotesque forensic and psychological detail, well, are you not entertained?

This person has a real grasp on America.  Nail/head.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on February 26, 2013, 05:28:04 PM
Wow.  Totally.  These days, it's not who you are, it's what you do.

And what most of us do, is not rock the boat.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: The Good Reverend Roger on February 26, 2013, 05:31:31 PM
Quote from: LMNO, PhD (life continues) on February 26, 2013, 05:28:04 PM
Wow.  Totally.  These days, it's not who you are, it's what you do.

And what most of us do, is not rock the boat.

Well, sure.  If you're up to your bottom lip in poop, you have only one thing to say..."Don't make waves".
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on February 26, 2013, 05:51:34 PM
Quote from: The Good Reverend Roger on February 26, 2013, 05:19:58 PM
This person has a real grasp on America.  Nail/head.

That's IOZ for you.  Or Jacob, as it turns out he is called.  He had some pithy lines regarding the recent election, too:

QuoteAmong the many tonal contradictions of all this gala pomposity is the relentless self-reassurances we seem to require that what's special, what's unique is how regular our elections are, how our uninterrupted history of electing lawyers, rich guys, and Indian killers every four years, come war or come war, is business as usual. Well, if that were the case, what's with the flyovers and drum-and-fife bands and floats and the presence of Beyoncé? In fact, we seem slightly shocked as a nation each time we manage to pull this off, a shock that we then sublimate into a grotesquely puritanical Washington bacchanal, which suggests to me at least an underlying ambivalence about the whole system. The President-elect then gets up and praises the national bylaws: "Fourscore and a bunch of other years ago, our forefathers brought forth this corporation based on a pre-cash valuation of ten million to be issued as follows: 3,000,000 Series A preferred shares to . . . Please see non-dilution language in Appendix A . . . Board of Directors to be composed of . . ." And so on.

Then they all drink crap wine, eat an underdone steak and overboiled lobster, and tomorrow the French will still be bombing Mali, the drones still attacking Pakistan, the Rockaways still a mess, the prisons still full, the Mexican civil war still raging, and the Congress still angling for jobs as Canadian Tar Sands lobbyists or whatever. It is futile to get worked up about these things. Your friends are all posting Proud to Be messages in their Facebook feeds, but you are bigger than that. Your soul is bigger. You walk into the kitchen. You put the music on loud and you get the nice fish out of the refrigerator. You give the dog some crackers, and you kiss your boyfriend, and you open a nice IPA, because you feel like a beer tonight. Martin Luther King, Jr. isn't rolling in his grave, guys. He's dead. And the dead have one up on us, for they are constitutionally incapable of giving a fuck. You kiss your boyfriend again on the lips, and you pay all those assholes exactly the attention they deserve, which is none at all.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: The Good Reverend Roger on February 26, 2013, 05:53:40 PM
Holy shit.   :lulz:  That's some Goddamn GOSPEL, is what that is.

I love this guy.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Anna Mae Bollocks on February 26, 2013, 07:10:48 PM
Quote from: Cain on February 07, 2013, 04:20:30 PM
The single best quote (http://bloodandtreasure.typepad.com/blood_treasure/2013/02/vulgar-republicanism.html) on the whole "Richard III was a pretty-boi cruelly buried in a car-park" saga that is currently engulfing UK papers and television:

Quotehalf the country – and the twee half at that – seems to be getting in a tizzy about a man who, given the medieval level of state formation, was basically a fucking gangster; and what's more a gangster among gangsters: the royals were all gangsters until Cromwell taught them a little circumspection. That little princes in the tower wet job should be a clue with Richard, but there seems to be a general feeling that it was dignified by being done as statecraft. Or maybe it's a Kray twins thing: 'they only murdered their own', etc

Sure, he was a lawgiver: so was Lucky Luciano. And sure, there was that time in 1215 when the underbosses ganged up on a weak capo and took a bunch of diabolical bleeding liberties. But Richard 'Snakey Spine' Plantagenet played the same role in Our Island Story asJake 'Greasy Thumb' Guzickdid in the history of Chicago. Under a car park is exactly the right place for him, at least in the absence of a flyover or a crocodile filled swamp.

Yeah, the best you could probably say about him is that he was a man of his times.

Heads on spikes downtown, etc.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Juana on February 26, 2013, 07:24:15 PM
[ulr=http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/heather/texas-secessionist-kilgore-hitler-and]Just...this.[/url]

"One of the things that Texas allows...you can still talk the cell phone or text while you're driving...that's how much freedom Texans want to keep."
"Tyrant to me would be like Hitler or Lincoln, who come in and murders the people for their own political gain. ...Lincoln and Hitler are very similar. Most Americans aren't aware of it."
"Hitler was the one who killed six million Jews. Lincoln was the one who killed 600,000 Americans."
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Junkenstein on February 26, 2013, 07:36:32 PM
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/02/22/1189043/-John-McCain-tells-grieving-mother-you-need-some-straight-talk-because-he-s-a-very-bad-man

QuoteThe mother of a young man killed in the Aurora, Colo. movie theater massacre told TPM on Thursday she was appalled at the way Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) handled her question about an assault weapons ban at a town hall event in Phoenix. [...]
At Wednesday's town hall, Teves told McCain that her son, Alex, was killed in the massacre, and she urged the senator to support a ban on assault weapons. McCain responded: "I can tell you right now you need some straight talk. That assault weapons ban will not pass the Congress of the United States."

While direct and most likely true, this will fuel the GUNS+GUNS+DRUGS sideshow for a while.



Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Junkenstein on February 27, 2013, 09:51:12 AM
http://www.salon.com/2013/02/26/bachmann_i_didnt_get_anything_wrong_in_wh_run/

The whole fucking thing.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on March 08, 2013, 01:41:29 PM
I know we have a TV Tropes entry for Magnificent Bastard, but if there was ever to be one for Magnificent Dickery, Henry Kissinger would be at the top of the list for inclusion:

QuoteOne oft-told tale about Kissinger...involved a report that Winston Lord had worked on for days.  After giving it to Kissinger, he got it back with the notation, "is this the best you can do?" Lord rewrote and polished and finally resubmitted it; back it came with the same curt question.  After redrafting it one more time - and once again getting the same question from Kissinger - Lord snapped, "Damn it, yes, it's the best I can do." To which Kissinger replied: "Fine, then I guess I'll read it this time."
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on March 08, 2013, 07:54:17 PM
Quote from: Cain on March 08, 2013, 01:41:29 PM
I know we have a TV Tropes entry for Magnificent Bastard, but if there was ever to be one for Magnificent Dickery, Henry Kissinger would be at the top of the list for inclusion:

QuoteOne oft-told tale about Kissinger...involved a report that Winston Lord had worked on for days.  After giving it to Kissinger, he got it back with the notation, "is this the best you can do?" Lord rewrote and polished and finally resubmitted it; back it came with the same curt question.  After redrafting it one more time - and once again getting the same question from Kissinger - Lord snapped, "Damn it, yes, it's the best I can do." To which Kissinger replied: "Fine, then I guess I'll read it this time."

:lulz: That's masterful.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on March 13, 2013, 07:03:16 AM
Corey Robin (http://coreyrobin.com/2013/03/12/the-us-senate-where-democracy-goes-to-die/), using the power of political science to troll his students:

QuoteEvery once in a while I teach constitutional law, and when I do, I pose to my students the following question: What if the Senate apportioned votes not on the basis of states but on the basis of race? That is, rather than each state getting two votes in the Senate, what if each racial or ethnic group listed in the US Census got two votes instead?

Regardless of race, almost all of the students freak out at the suggestion. It's undemocratic, they cry! When I point out that the Senate is already undemocratic—the vote of any Wyomian is worth vastly more than the vote of each New Yorker—they say, yeah, but that's different: small states need protection from large states. And what about historically subjugated or oppressed minorities, I ask? Or what about the fact that one of the major intellectual moves, if not completely successful coups, of Madison and some of the Framers was to disaggregate or disassemble the interests of a state into the interests of its individual citizens. As Ben Franklin said at the Constitutional Convention, "The Interest of a State is made up of the interests of its individual members.  If they are not injured, the State is not injured." The students are seldom moved.

Then I point out that the very opposition they're drawing—between representation on the basis of race versus representation on the basis of states—is itself confounded by the history of the ratification debate over the Constitution and the development of slavery and white supremacy in this country.

As Jack Rakove argued in Original Meanings, one of the reasons some delegates from large states ultimately came around to the idea of protecting the interests of small states was that they realized that an equal, if not more powerful, interest than mere population size bound delegate to delegate, state to state: slavery. Virginia had far more in common with South Carolina than it did with Massachussets, a fact that later events would go onto confirm.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on April 01, 2013, 04:26:47 PM
Quote from: Terrorism, A Challenge to the StateThe central error of the Red Brigade consists precisely in believing that they can succeed in striking at the heart of the State. The heart of the Italian State does not exist. Neither, any longer, does its brain. And it is that which paradoxically is its strength, or at least its capacity to resist.

Harsh and funnily enough true.

Of course, the central error of the Red Brigades was believing that they were not doing what the state wanted.

Like Sanguinetti said:

Quote from: On Terrorism and the StateThe State has been declaring for years that it is fighting the R.B.'s, it infiltrated them several times without ever attempting to dismantle them, therefore the State makes use of the R.B.'s as a cover, because the R.B.s are useful to this State, therefore R.B. = the State.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on April 01, 2013, 06:01:33 PM
Quote from: Cain on March 13, 2013, 07:03:16 AM
Corey Robin (http://coreyrobin.com/2013/03/12/the-us-senate-where-democracy-goes-to-die/), using the power of political science to troll his students:

QuoteEvery once in a while I teach constitutional law, and when I do, I pose to my students the following question: What if the Senate apportioned votes not on the basis of states but on the basis of race? That is, rather than each state getting two votes in the Senate, what if each racial or ethnic group listed in the US Census got two votes instead?

Regardless of race, almost all of the students freak out at the suggestion. It's undemocratic, they cry! When I point out that the Senate is already undemocratic—the vote of any Wyomian is worth vastly more than the vote of each New Yorker—they say, yeah, but that's different: small states need protection from large states. And what about historically subjugated or oppressed minorities, I ask? Or what about the fact that one of the major intellectual moves, if not completely successful coups, of Madison and some of the Framers was to disaggregate or disassemble the interests of a state into the interests of its individual citizens. As Ben Franklin said at the Constitutional Convention, "The Interest of a State is made up of the interests of its individual members.  If they are not injured, the State is not injured." The students are seldom moved.

Then I point out that the very opposition they're drawing—between representation on the basis of race versus representation on the basis of states—is itself confounded by the history of the ratification debate over the Constitution and the development of slavery and white supremacy in this country.

As Jack Rakove argued in Original Meanings, one of the reasons some delegates from large states ultimately came around to the idea of protecting the interests of small states was that they realized that an equal, if not more powerful, interest than mere population size bound delegate to delegate, state to state: slavery. Virginia had far more in common with South Carolina than it did with Massachussets, a fact that later events would go onto confirm.

DAMN that's good.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Juana on April 08, 2013, 07:59:34 PM
Relevant to VZ's turdery:
"We are often told that the poor are grateful for charity. Some of them are, no doubt, but the best amongst the poor are never grateful. They are ungrateful, discontented, disobedient, and rebellious. They are quite right to be so. Charity they feel to be a ridiculously inadequate mode of partial restitution, or a sentimental dole, usually accompanied by some impertinent attempt on the part of the sentimentalist to tyrannise over their private lives. Why should they be grateful for the crumbs that fall from the rich man's table? They should be seated at the board, and are beginning to know it. As for being discontented, a man who would not be discontented with such surroundings and such a low mode of life would be a perfect brute. Disobedience, in the eyes of anyone who has read history, is man's original virtue."
---Oscar Wilde, The Soul of Man Under Socialism
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: The Good Reverend Roger on April 08, 2013, 08:03:08 PM
Quote from: Juana Go? on April 08, 2013, 07:59:34 PM
Relevant to VZ's turdery:
"We are often told that the poor are grateful for charity. Some of them are, no doubt, but the best amongst the poor are never grateful. They are ungrateful, discontented, disobedient, and rebellious. They are quite right to be so. Charity they feel to be a ridiculously inadequate mode of partial restitution, or a sentimental dole, usually accompanied by some impertinent attempt on the part of the sentimentalist to tyrannise over their private lives. Why should they be grateful for the crumbs that fall from the rich man's table? They should be seated at the board, and are beginning to know it. As for being discontented, a man who would not be discontented with such surroundings and such a low mode of life would be a perfect brute. Disobedience, in the eyes of anyone who has read history, is man's original virtue."
---Oscar Wilde, The Soul of Man Under Socialism

NICE.

Also:

Quote from: RAW (I think)
"Trickle down theory states that the sparrow may feed on the undigested oats in any given pile of horseshit."
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on April 24, 2013, 04:32:49 PM
The man formerly known as IOZ

QuoteIf you asked me to describe in one word a culture that dispatches the black helicopters and assault vehicles in response to a dyadic pair of wayward, violent youth, I'd say, decadent. London kept the dance halls open during the Blitz, but Boston shut Fenway because of a pipe bomb. There's some truth to the claim that Americans are uniquely deferential to authority and prone to authoritarian solutions, but we've also become a culture that's largely adopted the values of an aristocracy: we want perfect safety and perfect comfort, although we'll complain mightily about the cost of service these days. For all the John McCains looking up from their thin soup to demand that we Torquemadize the surviving brother in order to discover whether or not this was all part of Cobra Commander's plot, the predominant sentiment behind the desire to prevent the kid from "lawyering up" and fitting him for concrete boots instead seems to me to be that putting him to trial would just be such a bother, and so expensive.

For all the praetorian hoo-hah on display all day in Boston, the thing that broke the case was some dude going outside to burn a square once the cops gave everyone the all clear. What purpose, then, did the lockdown serve? Well, yinz ever hear of a little thing called The Society of Spectacle? A culture of universal surveillance is a karaoke civilization; the lockdown of Boston was demanded by its own image; CNN's et al.'s fake reporting wasn't just the result of an immense, confused official response, but also in a very real sense its cause. Not for nothing does the footage resemble an action flick. The line between reality and fantasy is blurring, yes, but which is really shading into the other?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on April 24, 2013, 05:32:14 PM
That was some good shit, right there.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on April 25, 2013, 01:59:36 AM
Kind of tangentially related: http://www.ted.com/talks/philip_zimbardo_on_the_psychology_of_evil.html

Say what you want about TED, Zimbardo is a brilliant researcher and his insights are invaluable. One thing I'm really excited about is that after researching evil for the last 40 years or so, he's changing his focus to the study of heroism, which is an area we know very little about.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: P3nT4gR4m on April 25, 2013, 11:51:46 AM
Quote from: Cain on April 24, 2013, 04:32:49 PM
The man formerly known as IOZ

QuoteIf you asked me to describe in one word a culture that dispatches the black helicopters and assault vehicles in response to a dyadic pair of wayward, violent youth, I'd say, decadent. London kept the dance halls open during the Blitz, but Boston shut Fenway because of a pipe bomb. There's some truth to the claim that Americans are uniquely deferential to authority and prone to authoritarian solutions, but we've also become a culture that's largely adopted the values of an aristocracy: we want perfect safety and perfect comfort, although we'll complain mightily about the cost of service these days. For all the John McCains looking up from their thin soup to demand that we Torquemadize the surviving brother in order to discover whether or not this was all part of Cobra Commander's plot, the predominant sentiment behind the desire to prevent the kid from "lawyering up" and fitting him for concrete boots instead seems to me to be that putting him to trial would just be such a bother, and so expensive.

For all the praetorian hoo-hah on display all day in Boston, the thing that broke the case was some dude going outside to burn a square once the cops gave everyone the all clear. What purpose, then, did the lockdown serve? Well, yinz ever hear of a little thing called The Society of Spectacle? A culture of universal surveillance is a karaoke civilization; the lockdown of Boston was demanded by its own image; CNN's et al.'s fake reporting wasn't just the result of an immense, confused official response, but also in a very real sense its cause. Not for nothing does the footage resemble an action flick. The line between reality and fantasy is blurring, yes, but which is really shading into the other?

The rest of the world, outside the Retarded States of America. Pissing themselves laughing at a couple of teenagers with some firecrackers, putting a whole city on lockdown. There's only one way to go from here, guys. Some day soon a  preschooler will drop a bubblegum wrapper on the sidewalk and your whole country will sink!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on May 04, 2013, 12:43:26 PM
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/25/online-sales-tax-senate_n_3153669.html

QuoteAs one moderate Democratic senator put it during the swipe fee fight, "I'm surprised at how much of our time is spent trying to divide up the spoils between various economic interests. I had no idea. I thought we'd be focused on civil liberties, on education policy, energy policy and so on."

"The fights down here can be put in two or three categories: The big greedy bastards against the big greedy bastards; the big greedy bastards against the little greedy bastards; and some cases even the other little greedy bastards against the other little greedy bastards," the senator said, requesting anonymity so as not to alienate any of the bastards, regardless of size.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on May 13, 2013, 06:37:28 PM
Next time someone argues for the US intervening in some strategic and geopolitical backwater because it will "lose credibility" otherwise, feel free to quote this (http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/139376/jonathan-mercer/bad-reputation) at them:

QuoteFor their part, the French were indeed worried, but not because they doubted U.S. credibility. Instead, they feared that American resolve would lead to a major war over a strategically inconsequential piece of territory. Later, once the war was underway, Acheson feared that Chinese leaders thought the United States was "too feeble or hesitant to make a genuine stand," as the CIA put it, and could therefore "be bullied or bluffed into backing down before Communist might." In fact, Mao thought no such thing. He believed that the Americans intended to destroy his revolution, perhaps with nuclear weapons.

Similarly, Ted Hopf, a professor of political science at the National University of Singapore, has found that the Soviet Union did not think the United States was irresolute for abandoning Vietnam; instead, Soviet officials were surprised that Americans would sacrifice so much for something the Soviets viewed as tangential to U.S. interests.

But, you know, South Sudan is a critical American ally who cannot be abandoned, lest other US allies also fear for their safety!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on May 13, 2013, 07:02:52 PM
Heh.  It's amazing how much pundits "know" about the intentions of other countries without, you know, asking them.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on May 13, 2013, 07:04:58 PM
Well, you know, failing to intervene in Syria will show the US lacks resolve and credibility and OMGWTFROFL, suddenly Iran is Germany, Amadinejad is Hitler, and it is 1938.  We are all attendees at the Munich Conference now.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Lenin McCarthy on September 05, 2013, 02:41:54 PM
Translated a pretty amusing radio interview with the leader of the right-wing Progress Party in Norway, Siv Jensen.
Quote from: http://www.indregard.no/2013/08/22/norsk-kultur/Bjørn Myklebust: What is Norwegian culture?

Siv Jensen: Heh. We've often had this debate. What is the basis of the report that we're going to discuss today is that the Norwegian immigration policy is not sustainable. Therefore, we have had an internal committee that has been working to look at various measures to strengthen Norway's ability to cope with this in the future, to reduce costs. We must, in other words, turn all stones.

Many of the proposals put forth by the committee are Progress Party policy already, but some of them are new. And these are measures that we intend to discuss thoroughly and see whether - and if - and when, we plan to implement [them] as the Progress Party's policies.

But I am very happy to see that someone dares to try out new ideas, and I'm not very surprised, then, that our proposals get dismissed almost without anyone having had time to think through what they actually imply.

It's always been like this in the discussion about Norwegian asylum and immigration policy, every time we've gone ahead and thought new thoughts, the others compete to denounce it, then ten-fifteen-twenty years afterwards they all agree anyway.

BM: That was a long answer to something that was not the question. What is Norwegian culture?

SJ: Yes, well, the baseline in this report is that we must dare to be proud of the Norwegian simultaneous to being generous with other cultures. I think it is an important starting point. We must dare to highlight our heritage, our uniqueness, our origins, our history. I think it strengthens every nation, in their encounter with other cultures.

BM: But Siv Jensen, this is also an answer to a question I didn't ask. I asked: What is Norwegian culture?

SJ: But I don't really understand why you're asking about that...

BM: [Interrupts] Because a central concept in this report that you have ordered is "cultural sustainability". And then maybe you have to define what Norwegian culture actually is?

SJ: No, that is a contribution that has come to us in this process, and which we gladly will discuss. But what is the Progress Party's starting point in this discussion, is that we highlight and dare to be proud of our origins. And that's what culture discussion is about. It's about our cultural history, our identity, our ancestry. And unfortunately, it has been ...

BM: [Interrupts] But what Norwegian culture is, you don't want to say?

SJ: Yes, but, hehe, that's the definition we have of our cultural heritage that has evolved over many generations ...

BM: But what is it?

SJ: ...that very many now believe that is okay to put aside in a sort of misunderstood tolerance towards other cultures.

BM: But what is it?

SJ: Norwegian culture is defined by our longstanding background and history, that is ... that maybe ... highlights Norway and Norwegians more than one will find corresponding features in other countries.

BM: Is Norwegian culture threatened?

SJ: It is certainly so that the more we focus on putting this aside, the less we think, maybe, of the importance of remembering our own history. And I hear more and more politicians who say that this is not so important. The Progress Party believes that is important to be proud of one's history, one's origins and one's culture.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on September 05, 2013, 02:50:56 PM
How dare that journalist repeatedly ask questions he does not want to answer!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Nephew Twiddleton on September 05, 2013, 02:55:34 PM
Quote from: Lenin McCarthy on September 05, 2013, 02:41:54 PM
Translated a pretty amusing radio interview with the leader of the right-wing Progress Party in Norway, Siv Jensen.
Quote from: http://www.indregard.no/2013/08/22/norsk-kultur/Bjørn Myklebust: What is Norwegian culture?

Siv Jensen: Heh. We've often had this debate. What is the basis of the report that we're going to discuss today is that the Norwegian immigration policy is not sustainable. Therefore, we have had an internal committee that has been working to look at various measures to strengthen Norway's ability to cope with this in the future, to reduce costs. We must, in other words, turn all stones.

Many of the proposals put forth by the committee are Progress Party policy already, but some of them are new. And these are measures that we intend to discuss thoroughly and see whether - and if - and when, we plan to implement [them] as the Progress Party's policies.

But I am very happy to see that someone dares to try out new ideas, and I'm not very surprised, then, that our proposals get dismissed almost without anyone having had time to think through what they actually imply.

It's always been like this in the discussion about Norwegian asylum and immigration policy, every time we've gone ahead and thought new thoughts, the others compete to denounce it, then ten-fifteen-twenty years afterwards they all agree anyway.

BM: That was a long answer to something that was not the question. What is Norwegian culture?

SJ: Yes, well, the baseline in this report is that we must dare to be proud of the Norwegian simultaneous to being generous with other cultures. I think it is an important starting point. We must dare to highlight our heritage, our uniqueness, our origins, our history. I think it strengthens every nation, in their encounter with other cultures.

BM: But Siv Jensen, this is also an answer to a question I didn't ask. I asked: What is Norwegian culture?

SJ: But I don't really understand why you're asking about that...

BM: [Interrupts] Because a central concept in this report that you have ordered is "cultural sustainability". And then maybe you have to define what Norwegian culture actually is?

SJ: No, that is a contribution that has come to us in this process, and which we gladly will discuss. But what is the Progress Party's starting point in this discussion, is that we highlight and dare to be proud of our origins. And that's what culture discussion is about. It's about our cultural history, our identity, our ancestry. And unfortunately, it has been ...

BM: [Interrupts] But what Norwegian culture is, you don't want to say?

SJ: Yes, but, hehe, that's the definition we have of our cultural heritage that has evolved over many generations ...

BM: But what is it?

SJ: ...that very many now believe that is okay to put aside in a sort of misunderstood tolerance towards other cultures.

BM: But what is it?

SJ: Norwegian culture is defined by our longstanding background and history, that is ... that maybe ... highlights Norway and Norwegians more than one will find corresponding features in other countries.

BM: Is Norwegian culture threatened?

SJ: It is certainly so that the more we focus on putting this aside, the less we think, maybe, of the importance of remembering our own history. And I hear more and more politicians who say that this is not so important. The Progress Party believes that is important to be proud of one's history, one's origins and one's culture.

Wowwwww.....

Also, he seems to be under the impression that history and culture are static things, and that the present and future should reflect those static things. Wasn't that the same rationale that Varg Vikernes used to defend his arson spree? This is a Heathen country, Christianity is an alien religion?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: EK WAFFLR on September 05, 2013, 02:57:52 PM
 :lulz:

Oh Siv, y u no smrt?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on September 05, 2013, 03:09:24 PM
Has anybody noticed that the heart of racism is, once again, controlling who people fuck?

Controlling who people fuck is something that authoritarian types spend a huge, huge amount of time worrying about. Can't let women go around fucking the wrong people, now!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on September 05, 2013, 03:54:58 PM
For some reason, this sprang to mind...

(http://i.imgur.com/Aa6MoYr.gif)
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Kai on September 05, 2013, 05:14:27 PM
Quote from: Facemeat on September 05, 2013, 03:09:24 PM
Has anybody noticed that the heart of racism is, once again, controlling who people fuck?

Controlling who people fuck is something that authoritarian types spend a huge, huge amount of time worrying about. Can't let women go around fucking the wrong people, now!

But but NIGEL!!!! If people from different god-created races started having /sex/ with each other, it might give people the crazy idea that they aren't immutable and forever separate, really /different/ biological magisteria! Which, of course, they totally /are/.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on September 05, 2013, 05:41:28 PM
Quote from: LMNO, PhD (life continues) on September 05, 2013, 03:54:58 PM
For some reason, this sprang to mind...

(http://i.imgur.com/Aa6MoYr.gif)

:lulz:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on September 05, 2013, 05:43:41 PM
Quote from: Kai on September 05, 2013, 05:14:27 PM
Quote from: Facemeat on September 05, 2013, 03:09:24 PM
Has anybody noticed that the heart of racism is, once again, controlling who people fuck?

Controlling who people fuck is something that authoritarian types spend a huge, huge amount of time worrying about. Can't let women go around fucking the wrong people, now!

But but NIGEL!!!! If people from different god-created races started having /sex/ with each other, it might give people the crazy idea that they aren't immutable and forever separate, really /different/ biological magisteria! Which, of course, they totally /are/.

We can't have the kids going around thinking that adaptive regional differences in coloration isn't an actual species division! THEREFORE, control all the vaginas.

IT IS URGENT THAT WE CONTROL ALL THE VAGINAS!
:omg:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Salty on September 19, 2013, 09:39:53 PM
http://nbclatino.com/2013/09/18/activists-arrested-after-obama-nixes-stopping-deportations/

Barack Obama on legality and how to handle it.
Quoteessentially, I would be ignoring the law in a way that I think would be very difficult to defend legally.

Oh, well, I dunno, with the proper motivation I'm sure he could work something out...legally.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on September 19, 2013, 11:12:05 PM
Quote from: Alty on September 19, 2013, 09:39:53 PM
http://nbclatino.com/2013/09/18/activists-arrested-after-obama-nixes-stopping-deportations/

Barack Obama on legality and how to handle it.
Quoteessentially, I would be ignoring the law in a way that I think would be very difficult to defend legally.

Oh, well, I dunno, with the proper motivation I'm sure he could work something out...legally.

AHAHAHAHAHAHA OMG all of a sudden Obama cares about ignoring the law in an indefensible manner? REALLY?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Salty on September 19, 2013, 11:32:35 PM
Quote from: Mean Mister Nigel on September 19, 2013, 11:12:05 PM
Quote from: Alty on September 19, 2013, 09:39:53 PM
http://nbclatino.com/2013/09/18/activists-arrested-after-obama-nixes-stopping-deportations/

Barack Obama on legality and how to handle it.
Quoteessentially, I would be ignoring the law in a way that I think would be very difficult to defend legally.

Oh, well, I dunno, with the proper motivation I'm sure he could work something out...legally.

AHAHAHAHAHAHA OMG all of a sudden Obama cares about ignoring the law in an indefensible manner? REALLY?

Well, they're just brown peo-oh right.

Huh. I've got nothing.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Junkenstein on September 19, 2013, 11:34:47 PM
Quote from: Mean Mister Nigel on September 19, 2013, 11:12:05 PM
Quote from: Alty on September 19, 2013, 09:39:53 PM
http://nbclatino.com/2013/09/18/activists-arrested-after-obama-nixes-stopping-deportations/

Barack Obama on legality and how to handle it.
Quoteessentially, I would be ignoring the law in a way that I think would be very difficult to defend legally.

Oh, well, I dunno, with the proper motivation I'm sure he could work something out...legally.

AHAHAHAHAHAHA OMG all of a sudden Obama cares about ignoring the law in an indefensible manner? REALLY?

Well yeah. Got to leave the machine running nicely for the next guy. Give him something to promise to abolish and so on. It won't be, but the promise will win you an election or two.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Salty on October 18, 2013, 06:23:02 PM
More choice words from Obama:

Quotenow that the government is reopened, and this threat to our economy is removed, all of us need to stop focusing on the lobbyists and the bloggers and the talking heads on radio and the professional activists who profit from conflict,

:lulz: :lulz: :lulz:

Oh, we wouldn't want to profit on conflict now.

I basically read this as, PLEASE STOP READING ABOUT THE HORRIBLE SHIT ME AND MY CREW ARE DOING, AND FUCK YOU YVES SMITH.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: popeurmom on March 04, 2014, 02:14:19 PM
Quote from: Nigel on September 05, 2013, 03:09:24 PM
Has anybody noticed that the heart of racism is, once again, controlling who people fuck?

Controlling who people fuck is something that authoritarian types spend a huge, huge amount of time worrying about. Can't let women go around fucking the wrong people, now!

Please tell me you're kidding.

A black dude is president, and you're still crying racism.

Cry me a river bro
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on March 04, 2014, 02:16:32 PM
I think someone's suffering from a painful posterior, and he's here to show Nigel what's what
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: popeurmom on March 04, 2014, 02:20:29 PM
Quote from: Cain on March 04, 2014, 02:16:32 PM
I think someone's suffering from a painful posterior, and he's here to show Nigel what's what.

Oh my, of course. Because I'm the one who can't get laid and so is crying about how there's a huge conspiracy to close off girls vaginas to me. Of course!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on March 04, 2014, 02:28:42 PM
More like because you took a shot at Nigel less than a minute after being activated on the forums.

But I can already tell from your posts that reading comprehension isn't your strong point, so I'm willing to help you along.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: popeurmom on March 04, 2014, 02:31:50 PM
This was the top thread - is it not natural to reply to it first? Also, his comment was so out of whack with the rest of the thread that I just kind of recoiled at it... Really, some kind of huge conspiracy to control access to free, grown women's vaginas? LOL!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on March 04, 2014, 02:38:35 PM
Yeah, because it's not like that has (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catholicism) ever (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V._C._vs._Slovakia) happened (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women%27s_rights_in_Saudi_Arabia) in (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_Reconstructionism) history (http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/india-gang-rapes-persist-despite-growing-awareness-of-womens-rights/2013/12/15/4c12f58c-6359-11e3-a373-0f9f2d1c2b61_story.html) before.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: popeurmom on March 04, 2014, 02:42:50 PM
Quote from: Cain on March 04, 2014, 02:38:35 PM
Yeah, because it's not like that has (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catholicism) ever (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V._C._vs._Slovakia) happened (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women%27s_rights_in_Saudi_Arabia) in (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_Reconstructionism) history (http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/india-gang-rapes-persist-despite-growing-awareness-of-womens-rights/2013/12/15/4c12f58c-6359-11e3-a373-0f9f2d1c2b61_story.html) before.

"Past performance is no guarantee of future success"

Not to mention that almost all of your arguments, Catholicism, Saudi Arabia, Christianity, all involve CHASTITY in total, not just "Don't go fucking any brown people, missy!"

So we live in a day and age where a black man can rise to the top office in our country, but a dude who can't get laid still believes his inability to perv on bitches is a huge racist conspiracy.

Boo hoo hoo.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on March 04, 2014, 02:47:40 PM
 :lulz:

Nigel's a woman, and probably gets more pussy than you.

And no.  Try reading the quote she was responding to.  I'll give you a clue - it has to do with Norway.  So your comment about Obama is even more meaningless than it originally was, which is an achievement in and of itself.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: popeurmom on March 04, 2014, 02:56:39 PM
I read the quote, and it has nothing to do with sex.

And if she feels her right to fuck whoever is being kept down, I mean, all she has to do is walk outside and pick who she wants to fuck.

That should prove her feeling wrong.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Faust on March 04, 2014, 02:58:26 PM
Quote from: popeurmom on March 04, 2014, 02:56:39 PM
That should prove her feeling wrong.
Depends if they see the mallet coming or not.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: popeurmom on March 04, 2014, 03:10:13 PM
Quote from: Faust on March 04, 2014, 02:58:26 PM
Quote from: popeurmom on March 04, 2014, 02:56:39 PM
That should prove her feeling wrong.
Depends if they see the mallet coming or not.

if there were upvotes on this forum... this post would so get one. :)
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on March 04, 2014, 05:23:40 PM
Quote from: popeurmom on March 04, 2014, 02:14:19 PM
Quote from: Nigel on September 05, 2013, 03:09:24 PM
Has anybody noticed that the heart of racism is, once again, controlling who people fuck?

Controlling who people fuck is something that authoritarian types spend a huge, huge amount of time worrying about. Can't let women go around fucking the wrong people, now!

Please tell me you're kidding.

A black dude is president, and you're still crying racism.

Cry me a river bro

:lulz: So what forum did I hurt your feelings on prior to you registering here?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on March 04, 2014, 05:24:09 PM
Quote from: popeurmom on March 04, 2014, 02:20:29 PM
Quote from: Cain on March 04, 2014, 02:16:32 PM
I think someone's suffering from a painful posterior, and he's here to show Nigel what's what.

Oh my, of course. Because I'm the one who can't get laid and so is crying about how there's a huge conspiracy to close off girls vaginas to me. Of course!

:um: 

:lulz:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: The Good Reverend Roger on March 04, 2014, 05:25:24 PM
This one will go far.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: The Good Reverend Roger on March 04, 2014, 05:26:40 PM
Quote from: popeurmom on March 04, 2014, 02:20:29 PM
Quote from: Cain on March 04, 2014, 02:16:32 PM
I think someone's suffering from a painful posterior, and he's here to show Nigel what's what.

Oh my, of course. Because I'm the one who can't get laid and so is crying about how there's a huge conspiracy to close off girls vaginas to me. Of course!

This is the funniest thing said on PD since Number 6 ran off.  :lulz:

Not for the reason he intended, of course, but still...That has to count for something.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on March 04, 2014, 05:30:30 PM
Quote from: popeurmom on March 04, 2014, 02:56:39 PM
I read the quote, and it has nothing to do with sex.

And if she feels her right to fuck whoever is being kept down, I mean, all she has to do is walk outside and pick who she wants to fuck.

That should prove her feeling wrong.

Try reading the article, and then think about what, exactly, it is that Siv is trying to protect. The statement is that it is the purity of Norwegian "culture", but the implication is that by "culture" he means "bloodlines", ie. preventing miscegenation, which is reliant on controlling reproduction.

I am sorry that is too much nuance for you to follow, but you should get more adept with practice.

If you want to, which I kind of doubt because I don't think critical thinking and discourse is what you're here for.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Telarus on March 04, 2014, 05:32:08 PM
 :lulz: :lulz: :lulz:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on March 04, 2014, 05:56:20 PM
Quote from: popeurmom on March 04, 2014, 02:31:50 PM
This was the top thread - is it not natural to reply to it first? Also, his comment was so out of whack with the rest of the thread that I just kind of recoiled at it... Really, some kind of huge conspiracy to control access to free, grown women's vaginas? LOL!

So, your method of approaching a new forum is to find someone to try to pick a fight with in the first thread you see?  :lol: You'll go far, son.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: The Good Reverend Roger on March 04, 2014, 05:59:58 PM
Quote from: Nigel on March 04, 2014, 05:56:20 PM
Quote from: popeurmom on March 04, 2014, 02:31:50 PM
This was the top thread - is it not natural to reply to it first? Also, his comment was so out of whack with the rest of the thread that I just kind of recoiled at it... Really, some kind of huge conspiracy to control access to free, grown women's vaginas? LOL!

So, your method of approaching a new forum is to find someone to try to pick a fight with in the first thread you see?  :lol: You'll go far, son.

Weren't we just talking about what the first generation out of tumblr will look like?

Now we know.   :lulz:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Junkenstein on March 04, 2014, 06:01:05 PM
Quote from: Nigel on March 04, 2014, 05:56:20 PM
Quote from: popeurmom on March 04, 2014, 02:31:50 PM
This was the top thread - is it not natural to reply to it first? Also, his comment was so out of whack with the rest of the thread that I just kind of recoiled at it... Really, some kind of huge conspiracy to control access to free, grown women's vaginas? LOL!

So, your method of approaching a new forum is to find someone to try to pick a fight with in the first thread you see?  :lol: You'll go far, son.

PD.com - Treat it like Prison and you'll be OK.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on March 04, 2014, 06:06:19 PM
Quote from: The Good Reverend Roger on March 04, 2014, 05:59:58 PM
Quote from: Nigel on March 04, 2014, 05:56:20 PM
Quote from: popeurmom on March 04, 2014, 02:31:50 PM
This was the top thread - is it not natural to reply to it first? Also, his comment was so out of whack with the rest of the thread that I just kind of recoiled at it... Really, some kind of huge conspiracy to control access to free, grown women's vaginas? LOL!

So, your method of approaching a new forum is to find someone to try to pick a fight with in the first thread you see?  :lol: You'll go far, son.

Weren't we just talking about what the first generation out of tumblr will look like?

Now we know.   :lulz:

Quote from: Junkenstein on March 04, 2014, 06:01:05 PM

PD.com - Treat it like Prison and you'll be OK.

:lol: Both of these statements are true.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: The Good Reverend Roger on March 04, 2014, 06:07:41 PM
I am reminded of someone.  Remember the internet tough guy that ranted about beating up bouncers, etc?

Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on March 04, 2014, 06:08:24 PM
Graviel?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: The Good Reverend Roger on March 04, 2014, 06:27:41 PM
Quote from: Cain on March 04, 2014, 06:08:24 PM
Graviel?

Yeah, that guy.  Where was he from, again?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on March 04, 2014, 06:31:19 PM
Some podunk town in Mississippi.  Like, 5000 people live there or something. 

BUT HE'S THE TOP DOG IN A SMALL TOWN.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: The Good Reverend Roger on March 04, 2014, 08:03:35 PM
Quote from: Cain on March 04, 2014, 06:31:19 PM
Some podunk town in Mississippi.  Like, 5000 people live there or something. 

BUT HE'S THE TOP DOG IN A SMALL TOWN.

Oh, yeah, right.  Somewhere near Jackson, IIRC.

Which ain't exactly NYC itself, if you know what I mean.  And I think you do.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on March 04, 2014, 08:26:40 PM
Yeah.  I mean, my town is bigger than that, and I live in a backwater shithole where every drinking establishment is owned by the same guy.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: The Good Reverend Roger on March 04, 2014, 09:38:24 PM
Quote from: Cain on March 04, 2014, 08:26:40 PM
Yeah.  I mean, my town is bigger than that, and I live in a backwater shithole where every drinking establishment is owned by the same guy.

"England"?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on March 04, 2014, 09:52:31 PM
Quote from: The Good Reverend Roger on March 04, 2014, 09:38:24 PM
Quote from: Cain on March 04, 2014, 08:26:40 PM
Yeah.  I mean, my town is bigger than that, and I live in a backwater shithole where every drinking establishment is owned by the same guy.

"England"?

:spittake:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on May 19, 2014, 04:29:57 PM
Jacob Bacharach, aka Who is IOZ? has some of what he calls brief thoughts (http://jacobbacharach.wordpress.com/2014/05/18/a_sulz_on_women/#rssowlmlink) on the New York Times-Sulzberger-Abramson affair. I'll quote a few, but you really need to read the whole thing:

QuoteIt's awfully difficult to feel badly for income discrepancies where people are making hundreds upon hundreds of thousands of dollars. Beyond a certain income level, which I would set at significantly less than $100,000 per year, it's all just surplus value; its only purpose—if that word applies—is luxury purchasing for purposes of status signaling. This is not to say that women executives should be paid less than their immediate male counterparts; rather, no one should be paid so much money to be a general manager

QuoteIn other words, yes, it is a problem in a narrowly defined sense that a woman reporter for the Times is making eighty grand a year while her male colleague is making ninety-five, or what have you, but it is a problem in a much broader sense that she went to Bryn Mawr and he went to Brown and both of their New York rents were floated by their parents for 4-5 post-undergraduate years of internships and sub-$30K reporting gigs; that these two employees consider this a natural state of affairs; that their employer considers it so (obviously) as well.

QuoteOkay, I want you to imagine the Times, or any similar publication, publishing an editorial that says women should not make as much as men for the same work because of the fundamental damage that "some Republicans" or "some economists" say that "equal pay" would do to our old friend, the economy.

QuoteCapitalism is a system of surpluses, and it allocates them upward. It gives more rations to people who already have a pile. Should women make as much as men, blacks as much as whites? Yes. But these debates are moral proxies for debates that we are not having, at least, not in the pages of the Times. The answer to the question of whether a woman line worker should make as much as the guy next to her is yes. The answer to the question of whether Jill Abramson should have made as much as Bill Keller is smash the system of state capital and reallocate the surpluses in the form of lifetime guaranteed housing, clothing, food, and study for everyone.

QuoteThis debate has to do with the question of why it is that women in leadership roles are pushy and opinionated while men are strong and decisive, or, well, you pick the opposing pairs of adjectives—why, in short, is the behavior of women judged on measures of temperament, and men's on measures of will? It strikes me that the actual question being asked here is: why, upon achieving a position of dominance, aren't women as free to act like monstrous dickheads as men? The management behaviors ascribed to both Abramson and her predecessors are the worst kind of B-school blowhard psychopathy: management based on fear; power maintained by its own inconsistent application. These sorts of hard-driven, hard-driving, chair-tossing, dressing-down applications of personal power within a rigid hierarchy of authority are, like that big ol' salary, a kind of surplus; an excess; an overage.

Also, Jacob has written his first nove (http://www.amazon.com/Bend-World-Novel-Jacob-Bacharach/dp/0871406829/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1400517164&sr=1-1&keywords=the+bend+in+the+world+jacob)l, at long last.  I've not read it, but I will.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on May 20, 2014, 06:05:49 PM
I'm sure a lot of you already know, but Corey Robin's blog (http://coreyrobin.com/) is really good.

QuoteHere in the US, we don't need to force people to confess to crimes they didn't commit (though we certainly do that, too). No, to truly validate our system, we conscript the defendant's soul in a different way.

In the same way that the Stalinist show trial was meant to model the virtuous comrade—so dutiful to the ideals of communism that he would sacrifice his very life in order to validate the cause—so does the American criminal justice system model the virtuous capitalist: so committed to the ideals of the free market that he's willing to pay the price, in both senses of the word, of his crime.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on June 06, 2014, 08:27:05 PM
Moar (http://jacobbacharach.com/2014/06/05/goodbye-normal-genes/#rssowlmlink) Jacob Bacharach:

QuoteThe desire to ratify scientifically our moral and social and economic postures and preferences is part of a generally cowardly morality that takes a look at some vile human prejudice and goes off searching for a pipette and a bell curve as a counter-scripture to whatever Bronze-Age prejudice a misunderstood God re-dredged up every time a louche Hellenism threatened to make Western civilization vaguely civilized. I'm glad that this fuzzy evidence is being wielded in favor of gay equality; I'm gay, after all. But I can't help but see it as the boneheaded inverse of all the The New Republicans, Dark Enlightenment dweebs, and other direly self-afflicted determinist assholes forever trying to prove with the modern-day phrenology of intelligence testing that The Blacks Are Stupider. "We're just asking the questions!" Yeah, yeah. Some of my best friends are black.

I'm sure genetic inheritance and gene expression do influence sexuality; likewise, intelligence and hair color and the desire to eat, or not to eat, cilantro; but the desperate reductivism that keeps popping up to declare that this or that immensely complex trait is the result of some butterfly-pinned nucleotide—and the attendant desire to draw some kind of socioeconomic conclusion therefrom—reeks of both the alchemical and the eugenic. God, remember the study about the genetic basis of American political affiliation? That's what I'm talking about.

This is like when that weird-looking National Review gnome appeared a few days ago to declare that Laverne Cox is biologically not a woman and the Internet bravely rushed in to declare that scientifically she is. "He doesn't understand the complexity . . ." And we were all treated to a series of semi-coherent expostulations on various human intersex conditions, as if that has anything to do with the social right of an autonomous human individual to decide whether she wants to live her life as a man or a woman or both or neither, less yet to determine against which physical expression of our species rather aesthetically unfortunate genital she wishes to press her own. If we make the concretized and inevitably temporary axioms of popular (I emphasize) science the preconditions of moral acceptability, then we are in big trouble, people. If Laverne Cox decides tomorrow that she wishes to be referred to by the pronoun Qfwfq  and that her gender is henceforth Parthogenetic Quintsexual Proteus Universal then it's still no skin off my ass, whether ratified by double-blind or by dungeon-master.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on June 06, 2014, 08:40:28 PM
Mind if I share that on Facebook?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on June 06, 2014, 08:46:57 PM
Go for it.  The link is in the post.  Be interesting to see who gets outraged first.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Reginald Ret on June 07, 2014, 11:49:46 AM
Quote from: Cain on May 19, 2014, 04:29:57 PM

QuoteCapitalism is a system of surpluses, and it allocates them upward. It gives more rations to people who already have a pile. Should women make as much as men, blacks as much as whites? Yes. But these debates are moral proxies for debates that we are not having, at least, not in the pages of the Times. The answer to the question of whether a woman line worker should make as much as the guy next to her is yes. The answer to the question of whether Jill Abramson should have made as much as Bill Keller is smash the system of state capital and reallocate the surpluses in the form of lifetime guaranteed housing, clothing, food, and study for everyone.


I love this so much.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on January 12, 2015, 03:15:56 AM
So, someone on /r/conspiracy suggests that, just possibly, Jews are not responsible for all the world's woes, and asks for peer-reviewed links showing otherwise.

One such person responds "So guy who just created his account... Tell us your story. Why do you care? Suddenly you've a keen interest in protecting racist jews and GMO and vaccines. Its a little shilly in here...", to which the original poster responds:

QuoteSure thing.

I was hired by the JIDF yesterday. They told me:

"Make up lies, but make sure that they are all backed out by scientific organizations across the globe! Because us sneaky jews payed off all those scientists already! Then, go onto websites where the actual truth is disseminated in the form of Low quality 'news' sites with a history of distorting information and no mechanisms for fact checking or peer review."

And I said to my Jewish puppet masters. "YES SIR, because despite the billions you've already apparently spent in paying off hundreds of thousands of academics, I am an important cog in the machine of disinformation. I will go onto a conspiracy forum that has never been able to actually prove anything independently and sabotage their already fruitless efforts."

Or maybe I had a few too many beers tonight and foolishly thought some good would come out of expressing my opinion on scientifically proven subjects and their relation to the baseless fear-mongering that I saw in this thread.

But I guess Jew-Shill may make it easier for you to discount and ignore (without providing any evidence contrary to mine), so I would go with that one.

And /r/SubRedditDrama adds to the fun:

QuoteSo, where do we sign up to become paid shills? I wanna get paid to just browse Reddit all day.

QuoteDon't bother. I have a lot of gripes with current shilling scene.

For starters, pay isn't that great. But worse, actually, is how disarranged the whole process is. At the end of the month I have to submit the links (np of course) of all my comments and posts that contain shilling content along with the ShillID tag of who I was shilling for. All of this goes strait to the SRSHQ who then let members of the first tier organizations (BanksRS, Cultural Marxism INC, Big Pharma, The Holocaust Memorial Foundation, ect. ) value my comments on how much it pushed their particular agenda. Then, the rest goes to Hobby Lobby (not the craft store, but an actual place where Lobbying firms pay shilling enthusiasts to do their work). The lobbyists work for second tier organizations like the Democratic-Republican group who distracts us from the actual politics going on behind closed doors, The Fed, Telecom Companies, and GoPro (Don't ask me why. I was just as confused.)

So I get a check at the end of the month along with offers to let an SRS bot (written in Python) to hive downvote content that moderators deem too suspicions to ban (this is a pretty recent development; thanks a lot /r/undelete). There are also offers from individual companies to let their bots upvote content for you.

All of that combined, and I only get paid about 40,000 a year. Pretty pathetic for the hard work I put in.

That's why I'm trying to get in good with the mods of /r/badhistory. Securing a modship in an SRS satellite easily nets you 500,000 a year.

Which then led to this amazing subreddit http://www.reddit.com/r/JustShillThings
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Doktor Howl on January 12, 2015, 03:31:37 AM
 :lulz:

Anti-Semitism is the endgame for all conspiracy theorists.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on January 12, 2015, 01:47:08 PM
Oh wow, that is simply amazing.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Eater of Clowns on January 12, 2015, 01:55:28 PM
I wish the Jews had a hand in keeping me down so that I had someone to blame all my failures and shortcomings on. Conspiracy theorists have all the luck.   :cry:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on January 12, 2015, 02:48:37 PM
I just want to know why it's always Jews? Is no other minority deemed capable of orchestrating a global conspiracy?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Eater of Clowns on January 12, 2015, 02:54:38 PM
Quote from: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on January 12, 2015, 02:48:37 PM
I just want to know why it's always Jews? Is no other minority deemed capable of orchestrating a global conspiracy?

They would be, if the goddamn Jews weren't stopping it.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on January 12, 2015, 02:55:10 PM
Quote from: Eater of Clowns on January 12, 2015, 02:54:38 PM
Quote from: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on January 12, 2015, 02:48:37 PM
I just want to know why it's always Jews? Is no other minority deemed capable of orchestrating a global conspiracy?

They would be, if the goddamn Jews weren't stopping it.

:potd:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on January 12, 2015, 02:57:46 PM
Quote from: Eater of Clowns on January 12, 2015, 02:54:38 PM
Quote from: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on January 12, 2015, 02:48:37 PM
I just want to know why it's always Jews? Is no other minority deemed capable of orchestrating a global conspiracy?

They would be, if the goddamn Jews weren't stopping it.

(https://dubsism.files.wordpress.com/2011/06/spit-take.jpg)
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Junkenstein on January 12, 2015, 07:21:26 PM
 :mittens:

Can I request a redone Nike Logo with "Just shill it" ?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Junkenstein on January 12, 2015, 07:23:38 PM
That subreddit is really good:

(http://i.imgur.com/UWa4fch.jpg)
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Demolition Squid on February 18, 2015, 09:33:10 PM
This is old, and from a satirical show (Listen Against - November 2008) but it made me chuckle.

Quote from: Kirsty YoungFor those unfamiliar, waterboarding is not a winter sport - well at least not for most people - it is a technique used to 'encourage' conversation, in the same way that a machinegun is used to 'encourage' death.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Demolition Squid on June 02, 2015, 01:22:25 PM
This quote seemed to sneak past with little notice in the media.

Quote from: David Cameron"For too long, we have been a passively tolerant society, saying to our citizens: as long as you obey the law, we will leave you alone. It's often meant we have stood neutral between different values. And that's helped foster a narrative of extremism and grievance.
"This Government will conclusively turn the page on this failed approach. As the party of one nation, we will govern as one nation, and bring our country together. That means actively promoting certain values."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/terrorism-in-the-uk/11600927/David-Cameron-to-fast-track-tough-anti-terror-laws.html

Just about sums it up, really.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Junkenstein on June 02, 2015, 02:23:41 PM
Quote from: Demolition Squid on June 02, 2015, 01:22:25 PM
This quote seemed to sneak past with little notice in the media.

Quote from: David Cameron"For too long, we have been a passively tolerant society, saying to our citizens: as long as you obey the law, we will leave you alone. It's often meant we have stood neutral between different values. And that's helped foster a narrative of extremism and grievance.
"This Government will conclusively turn the page on this failed approach. As the party of one nation, we will govern as one nation, and bring our country together. That means actively promoting certain values."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/terrorism-in-the-uk/11600927/David-Cameron-to-fast-track-tough-anti-terror-laws.html

Just about sums it up, really.

The utter irony is that that obeying the law in the UK has been no guarantee of being left alone at all. For reference, see use and abuse of stop and search laws.

Such laws and their enforcement on particular demographics (No prizes for guessing which) have obviously nothing to do with the general situation.

Additionally, which values has any government "stood neutral" about? Is this some kind of odd way of stating that they haven't directly opposed the dictats of the city and press barons?

On the plus side, Switzerland is about to become part of IS by the above logic which should be entertaining.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Demolition Squid on June 02, 2015, 02:35:36 PM
I just find it amusing how much of this language you could lift verbatim and put into the mouths of fictional tyrants.

For too long, we have been a passively tolerant society.

As the party of one nation, we will govern as one nation.

One vision, one purpose!

Peace through power! Peace through power!

(http://media.moddb.com/images/groups/1/5/4454/kane_time.jpg)
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Junkenstein on June 02, 2015, 02:48:14 PM
 :lulz:

Close, but wrong. As I recall, Kane got shit done.

We're talking closer to:
(http://www.thezorklibrary.com/history/image/yannick_poster1.jpeg)

Seriously.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Reginald Ret on June 02, 2015, 03:56:10 PM
Quote from: David Cameron"For too long, we have been a passively tolerant society, saying to our citizens: as long as you obey the law, we will leave you alone.

Hang on, he is implying that he will do it different, but does he mean:
QuoteAs long as you don't obey the law, we will leave you alone.
Or:
QuoteAs long as you obey the law, we won't leave you alone.
Or:
QuoteAs long as you obey the law, we will leave you with friends.
Or:
QuoteAs long as you obey the law, we will be your friend so you won't have to be lonely.

Inquiring minds want to know.

I like the 3rd and 4th versions best.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Junkenstein on June 02, 2015, 05:10:29 PM
I think he's probably trying to say:

QuoteObey the Law. Or not. Either way we're not going to leave you the fuck alone.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Doktor Howl on June 02, 2015, 05:19:26 PM
Quote from: Reginald Ret on June 02, 2015, 03:56:10 PM
Quote from: David Cameron"For too long, we have been a passively tolerant society, saying to our citizens: as long as you obey the law, we will leave you alone.

That's the most beautiful thing I've ever heard.   :cry:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Reginald Ret on June 02, 2015, 05:22:41 PM
Quote from: Doktor Howl on June 02, 2015, 05:19:26 PM
Quote from: Reginald Ret on June 02, 2015, 03:56:10 PM
Quote from: David Cameron"For too long, we have been a passively tolerant society, saying to our citizens: as long as you obey the law, we will leave you alone.

That's the most beautiful thing I've ever heard.   :cry:
You meant like this, right?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Doktor Howl on June 02, 2015, 05:35:02 PM
Quote from: Reginald Ret on June 02, 2015, 05:22:41 PM
Quote from: Doktor Howl on June 02, 2015, 05:19:26 PM
Quote from: Reginald Ret on June 02, 2015, 03:56:10 PM
Quote from: David Cameron"For too long, we have been a passively tolerant society, saying to our citizens: as long as you obey the law, we will leave you alone.

That's the most beautiful thing I've ever heard.   :cry:
You meant like this, right?

No, I meant what I said.  If my country is turning into the 4th Reich, I don't see why anyone else should get over.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Reginald Ret on June 02, 2015, 06:10:36 PM
Quote from: Doktor Howl on June 02, 2015, 05:35:02 PM
Quote from: Reginald Ret on June 02, 2015, 05:22:41 PM
Quote from: Doktor Howl on June 02, 2015, 05:19:26 PM
Quote from: Reginald Ret on June 02, 2015, 03:56:10 PM
Quote from: David Cameron"For too long, we have been a passively tolerant society, saying to our citizens: as long as you obey the law, we will leave you alone.

That's the most beautiful thing I've ever heard.   :cry:
You meant like this, right?

No, I meant what I said.  If my country is turning into the 4th Reich, I don't see why anyone else should get over.
Ah, I forgot about spite again, the primary motivator behind almost all human endeavors.

Well don't worry, it is happening everywhere.
I just read that my Mayor is fighting as hard as she can to keep a "hate-speaker" from entering our city.
Just ignore the fact that the guy has no criminal record and has legal travelling papers and an invitation from the religious centre where he will be speaking. He is a smudgy-skinned Muslim and therefore must be kept out at all costs!
Personally, I would counter any hate-speechifying with stand-up comedians.
That way you get to not break the law; take the moral high ground; provoke your ideological enemies; hear jokes; convince young people that free speech is worthwhile; and all that without creating more enemies.

Everyone is welcome here to promote their views, but we will pair them with someone with very different views and a good sense of humour.
From what I've read from Middle-eastern philosophers they can tell some great jokes, so I have hope this will become a comedy-battle instead of a real one.

Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Doktor Howl on June 02, 2015, 07:24:28 PM
Quote from: Reginald Ret on June 02, 2015, 06:10:36 PM

Ah, I forgot about spite again, the primary motivator behind almost all human endeavors.


Did you just call me a human?  :crankey:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on June 02, 2015, 09:38:37 PM
Its even better than that.

David Cameron said this while moving to scrap the Human Rights Act and moving to use Banning Orders against "extremists" in public spaces.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Reginald Ret on June 03, 2015, 07:11:44 AM
Quote from: Doktor Howl on June 02, 2015, 07:24:28 PM
Quote from: Reginald Ret on June 02, 2015, 06:10:36 PM

Ah, I forgot about spite again, the primary motivator behind almost all human endeavors.


Did you just call me a human?  :crankey:
:lol: Nono, the two sentences are unrelated. I merely said you are motivated in the same way as humans.
I wouldn't call you exactly the same, your mind just works exactly the same.
Also, your face. I mean, seriously? That is the face an alien infiltrator chose?! The uncanny valley just got a little bit deeper.

You could achieve humanity if you weren't so... flawed. Chin up though! You're close!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on June 03, 2015, 11:53:19 AM
And...

(http://i.imgur.com/vwMin.gif)

QuoteThe production, supply, offer to supply, import and export of any "psychoactive substances" will carry potential 7 year gaol sentences. Oddly enough, in the current draft, simple possession without any intent to supply will remain legal, although it may be that this rare flash of apparent common sense, like large swathes of the rest of the Bill, merely reflects the draftsman's incompetence.

The heart of the Bill is S. 3 which defines a "psychoactive substance" as a substance which:

(a) is capable of producing a psychoactive effect in a person who consumes it, and

(b) is not an exempted substance.

It is the definition of "psychoactive" which, rightly, has attracted the most comment.

" ... a substance produces a psychoactive effect in a person if, by stimulating or depressing the person's central nervous system, it affects the person's mental functioning or emotional state."

Any substance which gives pleasure, of course, "affects a person's emotional state." The starting point of the Bill is that giving pleasure is sufficient justification for prohibition.

QuoteThe position is less clear for pharmaceutical companies trying to develop new drugs. Whilst "investigational medicinal products" to be used in clinical trials are exempt, the bill appears to render the production of any new psychoactive drug for research purposes unlawful. The rationale for criminalising research into much needed new psychiatric drugs is obscure.

As if to highlight the Bill's absurdity, whilst bona fide drugs researchers are turned into criminals, homeopaths are left unaffected. A pointless exemption has been given to homoeopathic preparations, even though there is no chance whatever that the silly little pills of nothingness and quackery would have any effect on your brain anyway, except as a placebo.

Teresa May wants to ban pleasure. (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/general-election-2015/politics-blog/11645354/Theresa-May-wants-to-ban-pleasure.html)  Note the Telegraph is normally considered a pro-Conservative newspaper, yet even it is pointing out the glaringly obvious flaws in government legislation.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Reginald Ret on June 03, 2015, 12:25:33 PM
 :lulz: :lulz: :lulz: :lulz: :lulz:

Can't... Breathe!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Demolition Squid on June 03, 2015, 12:33:37 PM
That is... impressive.

I assume the list of exceptions will be long. They can't give a blanket pass to all 'energy drinks' or similar, though, because then the actual targets of the bill (those legal highs) will just reclassify themselves as sports supplements of varying kinds.

I wonder if chocolate and Mountain Dew will be outlawed as a result.  :lulz:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Junkenstein on June 03, 2015, 12:50:50 PM
Quote from: Demolition Squid on June 03, 2015, 12:33:37 PM
That is... impressive.

I assume the list of exceptions will be long. They can't give a blanket pass to all 'energy drinks' or similar, though, because then the actual targets of the bill (those legal highs) will just reclassify themselves as sports supplements of varying kinds.

I wonder if chocolate and Mountain Dew will be outlawed as a result.  :lulz:

QuoteA pointless exemption has been given to homoeopathic preparations, even though there is no chance whatever that the silly little pills of nothingness and quackery would have any effect on your brain anyway, except as a placebo.

The final list of exemptions and exceptions will be fucking hilarious. It's amusing me no end that they've caved to crazy people before even starting. Or it's outright stating that such shit has no effect. Either way, hilarity ahead. All this overkill because a couple of stupid kids wanted to huff compost and cat shit.


Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Demolition Squid on June 03, 2015, 01:56:54 PM
Well, the doubly impressive thing is that it won't cut down on the legal highs at all - because they aren't sold as items to be consumed, they are sold as 'collectors items' or 'novelty items' with NOT FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION stamped all over them.

I also believe they've added 'all food' to the exemption list, so they may just reclassify themselves as sports snacks or something. Either way, lawl.  :lulz:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Junkenstein on June 03, 2015, 02:08:27 PM
So what do we reckon then? Laughed at, swept under the rug and reintroduced by the end of the year with tweaks and new name?

Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Demolition Squid on June 03, 2015, 02:14:13 PM
Not sure. They've fucked up, but Call Me Dave is at a very tenuous stage of his term - he's constantly facing questions about his ability to actually push stuff through. If it goes to vote, he may try and force it through just because a bad law is less embarrassing than a failed vote.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Junkenstein on June 03, 2015, 02:28:18 PM
While his position isn't exactly solid, I suspect he's not stupid enough to try and shove it through as-is. I'd guess at May getting a little slap on the wrist (for acting as instructed) and he can fuck it off for a couple of months while it gets shoved into something resembling a real law.

Forcing a vote on an obviously bad law is no way to get ahead. I'd suggest that this is pretty well planned and orchestrated. No-one would vote for that thing as it stands because it's essentially sending everyone to prison unless you avoid anything and everything. Who-ever is bothering to lead Labour gets to flex a little bit and the con rolls smoothly on.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Doktor Howl on June 03, 2015, 05:00:58 PM
Chocolate is now illegal in the UK.   :lulz:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: hooplala on June 03, 2015, 06:51:25 PM
Quote from: Doktor Howl on June 03, 2015, 05:00:58 PM
Chocolate is now illegal in the UK.   :lulz:

What?!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Junkenstein on June 03, 2015, 06:54:26 PM
Quote from: Hoopla on June 03, 2015, 06:51:25 PM
Quote from: Doktor Howl on June 03, 2015, 05:00:58 PM
Chocolate is now illegal in the UK.   :lulz:

What?!

Proposed to be, technically.

Give us a few more weeks to blame immigrants over this whole thing first.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on June 03, 2015, 06:55:35 PM
Or rather chocolate will only be legal by virtue of an exemption.

Cameron wasn't kidding about this whole "if you follow the law we'll leave you alone business". 
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Junkenstein on June 03, 2015, 07:04:02 PM
Ahem:

Quote from: Junkenstein on June 02, 2015, 05:10:29 PM


QuoteObey the Law. Or not. Either way we're not going to leave you the fuck alone.

Seems more accurate the more I see on this. I'm surprised they didn't just whip out ID cards again. I thought that was the go-to for proposals that are designed to distract and disappear.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on June 03, 2015, 07:06:37 PM
Quote from: Junkenstein on June 03, 2015, 07:04:02 PM
Ahem:

Quote from: Junkenstein on June 02, 2015, 05:10:29 PM


QuoteObey the Law. Or not. Either way we're not going to leave you the fuck alone.

Seems more accurate the more I see on this. I'm surprised they didn't just whip out ID cards again. I thought that was the go-to for proposals that are designed to distract and disappear.

They're bringing them in again via the back door (http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2013/oct/10/immigration-bill-would-mean-identity-checks-for-all).  From before the election, but making the point:

QuoteA system of identity checks for all, including British citizens, would have to be introduced to enforce the government's moves to curb access for illegal migrants to privately rented housing and to tackle alleged health tourists, leading immigration lawyers have told the home secretary.

The warnings came as Theresa May publishes her flagship immigration bill on Thursday, which will require immigration checks to be carried out before anyone can open a new bank account, be issued with a driving licence or access routine health treatment.

The Home Office bill will include measures spanning six other Whitehall departments including justice, transport, business, health, local government, and work and pensions, and is designed in May's words to "create a really hostile environment for illegal migrants". "What we don't want is a situation where people think that they can come here and overstay because they're able to access everything they need," May has said.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on June 03, 2015, 07:11:21 PM
And just to add to the fun:

http://www.theguardian.com/education/2015/may/28/fury-after-primary-pupils-are-asked-to-complete-radicalisation-seeking-surveys

QuoteParents of children as young as nine have reacted angrily after schools in an east London borough asked pupils to complete surveys designed to provide clues to possible radicalisation. Waltham Forest council has been piloting the scheme in five primary schools with large Muslim intakes. The questionnaire, circulated among year 6 pupils, asks how much they trust the police and people from another race or religion.

They are also asked whether they agree that it is acceptable to marry someone from outside their race or religion and whether women are just as good as men at work. Another question asks if the pupils believe their religion is the only correct one. About 22% of the population in Waltham Forest, one of the most deprived local authorities in England, are Muslim.

Quote"The Brit project is a council programme that works with primary school pupils and their families to develop community cohesion. We're glad this has sparked a debate, as our aim is to encourage people to talk about the importance of cohesion at all ages."
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Doktor Howl on June 04, 2015, 04:55:59 AM
Holy shit.

DEAR BRITAIN:

WE GOT NOTHING.  YOU WIN.

YOURS TRULY,
The USA
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Demolition Squid on June 05, 2015, 03:43:30 PM
Incidentally, my company used to do some work for the Waltham Forest Children's Services department.

We got the fuck out of there because they are all crazy.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Bu🤠ns on June 11, 2015, 05:27:31 PM
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2015/mar/04/ben-carson/ben-carson-many-prisoners-go-straight-come-out-gay/

Quote
In a March 4 interview, the likely 2016 presidential contender said he believes that legalizing same-sex marriage is a decision that should be left to the states. He also argued that homosexuality is a choice, rather than biological.

"Because a lot of people who go into prison go into prison straight -- and when they come out, they're gay. So, did something happen while they were in there? Ask yourself that question," said Carson, a former head of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital.

You know, I was hoping Carson wasn't going to be a dingbat seeing as how he's a former neurosurgeon. I guess the best hope is an educated idiot.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Rev Thwack on June 11, 2015, 06:17:38 PM
So, nonconsenting sex in prison means all parties are gay, nonconsenting sex in the rectory doesn't count as having happened... Got it.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on June 11, 2015, 06:23:07 PM
And nonconsenting sex in the bedroom is, no doubt, merely between a married man and woman.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Rev Thwack on June 11, 2015, 07:05:00 PM
Or sometimes just between a married man and his daughter.



... or dog.



... or son.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on June 11, 2015, 07:11:32 PM
Or between his son and his daughters, in the case of the Duggars.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Rev Thwack on June 11, 2015, 07:48:22 PM
Hey, if God can tell two chicks to rape their father when he's drunk, why couldn't it be God's will for a guy to molest his sisters?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Doktor Howl on June 12, 2015, 03:09:15 AM
Quote from: Bu☆ns on June 11, 2015, 05:27:31 PM
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2015/mar/04/ben-carson/ben-carson-many-prisoners-go-straight-come-out-gay/

Quote
In a March 4 interview, the likely 2016 presidential contender said he believes that legalizing same-sex marriage is a decision that should be left to the states. He also argued that homosexuality is a choice, rather than biological.

"Because a lot of people who go into prison go into prison straight -- and when they come out, they're gay. So, did something happen while they were in there? Ask yourself that question," said Carson, a former head of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital.

You know, I was hoping Carson wasn't going to be a dingbat seeing as how he's a former neurosurgeon. I guess the best hope is an educated idiot.

He's always been a dingbat.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Bu🤠ns on June 12, 2015, 03:56:13 PM
Quote from: Doktor Howl on June 12, 2015, 03:09:15 AM
Quote from: Bu☆ns on June 11, 2015, 05:27:31 PM
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2015/mar/04/ben-carson/ben-carson-many-prisoners-go-straight-come-out-gay/

Quote
In a March 4 interview, the likely 2016 presidential contender said he believes that legalizing same-sex marriage is a decision that should be left to the states. He also argued that homosexuality is a choice, rather than biological.

"Because a lot of people who go into prison go into prison straight -- and when they come out, they're gay. So, did something happen while they were in there? Ask yourself that question," said Carson, a former head of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital.

You know, I was hoping Carson wasn't going to be a dingbat seeing as how he's a former neurosurgeon. I guess the best hope is an educated idiot.

He's always been a dingbat.

I'm gathering.  He seemed relatively intelligent in a podcast interview i listened to recently but so much for that.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on June 13, 2015, 06:59:02 AM
Quote from: Bu☆ns on June 12, 2015, 03:56:13 PM
Quote from: Doktor Howl on June 12, 2015, 03:09:15 AM
Quote from: Bu☆ns on June 11, 2015, 05:27:31 PM
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2015/mar/04/ben-carson/ben-carson-many-prisoners-go-straight-come-out-gay/

Quote
In a March 4 interview, the likely 2016 presidential contender said he believes that legalizing same-sex marriage is a decision that should be left to the states. He also argued that homosexuality is a choice, rather than biological.

"Because a lot of people who go into prison go into prison straight -- and when they come out, they're gay. So, did something happen while they were in there? Ask yourself that question," said Carson, a former head of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital.

You know, I was hoping Carson wasn't going to be a dingbat seeing as how he's a former neurosurgeon. I guess the best hope is an educated idiot.

He's always been a dingbat.

I'm gathering.  He seemed relatively intelligent in a podcast interview i listened to recently but so much for that.

Intelligent people can hold bad ideas.

It's difficult to internalize that, because it is far easier to assume that people who hold bad ideas are simply stupid, and that therefore you cannot hold bad ideas because you are intelligent.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on June 13, 2015, 07:01:35 AM
The reason this is important to me is because IMO it is crucial to be able to recognize that intelligent people whom we admire, and in fact ourselves as intelligent people, can hold bad ideas.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Demolition Squid on June 13, 2015, 07:42:01 AM
Quote from: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on June 13, 2015, 07:01:35 AM
The reason this is important to me is because IMO it is crucial to be able to recognize that intelligent people whom we admire, and in fact ourselves as intelligent people, can hold bad ideas.

:mittens:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Bu🤠ns on June 13, 2015, 10:52:03 PM
Quote from: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on June 13, 2015, 06:59:02 AM
Quote from: Bu☆ns on June 12, 2015, 03:56:13 PM
Quote from: Doktor Howl on June 12, 2015, 03:09:15 AM
Quote from: Bu☆ns on June 11, 2015, 05:27:31 PM
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2015/mar/04/ben-carson/ben-carson-many-prisoners-go-straight-come-out-gay/

Quote
In a March 4 interview, the likely 2016 presidential contender said he believes that legalizing same-sex marriage is a decision that should be left to the states. He also argued that homosexuality is a choice, rather than biological.

"Because a lot of people who go into prison go into prison straight -- and when they come out, they're gay. So, did something happen while they were in there? Ask yourself that question," said Carson, a former head of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital.

You know, I was hoping Carson wasn't going to be a dingbat seeing as how he's a former neurosurgeon. I guess the best hope is an educated idiot.

He's always been a dingbat.

I'm gathering.  He seemed relatively intelligent in a podcast interview i listened to recently but so much for that.

Intelligent people can hold bad ideas.

It's difficult to internalize that, because it is far easier to assume that people who hold bad ideas are simply stupid, and that therefore you cannot hold bad ideas because you are intelligent.

I know this internally but I hate to admit it. I have too much hope i think.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Junkenstein on June 13, 2015, 11:00:12 PM
Quote from: Demolition Squid on June 13, 2015, 07:42:01 AM
Quote from: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on June 13, 2015, 07:01:35 AM
The reason this is important to me is because IMO it is crucial to be able to recognize that intelligent people whom we admire, and in fact ourselves as intelligent people, can hold bad ideas.

:mittens:
QuoteIntelligent people can hold bad ideas.

It's difficult to internalize that, because it is far easier to assume that people who hold bad ideas are simply stupid, and that therefore you cannot hold bad ideas because you are intelligent.

That needs to be slapped on pictures of people and shoved around a bit.

Dawkins, for one, I think. Results should amuse.


Big words?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on June 14, 2015, 05:50:29 PM
Quote from: Junkenstein on June 13, 2015, 11:00:12 PM
Quote from: Demolition Squid on June 13, 2015, 07:42:01 AM
Quote from: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on June 13, 2015, 07:01:35 AM
The reason this is important to me is because IMO it is crucial to be able to recognize that intelligent people whom we admire, and in fact ourselves as intelligent people, can hold bad ideas.

:mittens:
QuoteIntelligent people can hold bad ideas.

It's difficult to internalize that, because it is far easier to assume that people who hold bad ideas are simply stupid, and that therefore you cannot hold bad ideas because you are intelligent.

That needs to be slapped on pictures of people and shoved around a bit.

Dawkins, for one, I think. Results should amuse.


Big words?

I am in favor of this course of action.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Q. G. Pennyworth on June 14, 2015, 08:48:04 PM
Quote from: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on June 14, 2015, 05:50:29 PM
Quote from: Junkenstein on June 13, 2015, 11:00:12 PM
Quote from: Demolition Squid on June 13, 2015, 07:42:01 AM
Quote from: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on June 13, 2015, 07:01:35 AM
The reason this is important to me is because IMO it is crucial to be able to recognize that intelligent people whom we admire, and in fact ourselves as intelligent people, can hold bad ideas.

:mittens:
QuoteIntelligent people can hold bad ideas.

It's difficult to internalize that, because it is far easier to assume that people who hold bad ideas are simply stupid, and that therefore you cannot hold bad ideas because you are intelligent.

That needs to be slapped on pictures of people and shoved around a bit.

Dawkins, for one, I think. Results should amuse.


Big words?

I am in favor of this course of action.

I will add it to the big doc
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Bu🤠ns on October 14, 2015, 03:52:55 AM
Hillary Clinton: "President Obama and I were literally hunting the Chinese."
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on October 14, 2015, 05:00:16 AM
 :lulz:

I'm not sure I want to know the context...
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Meunster on October 14, 2015, 05:17:47 AM
I just imagine them together in some Vietnamese war theater. Deep in the forest listening for voices, cleaning their m16's, covering each other when their guns jam. Looking for the Chinese supplying the vietcong with guns. Sharing a smoke after a long day.

I've probably been reading too much jungle jim.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: minuspace on October 14, 2015, 09:05:33 AM
(http://i.imgur.com/XsILag3.jpg)
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Bu🤠ns on October 15, 2015, 03:04:21 AM
Quote from: Cain on October 14, 2015, 05:00:16 AM
:lulz:

I'm not sure I want to know the context...

Okay true story: I was watching the Demcratic debate last night live streaming on cnn.  Right around the 2½ hour mark my feed started getting stupid until eventually, right at this precise time in the show (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=niu5FWNZ7c4#t=3h9m42s) my feed began freezing up.  And then Hillary uttered those remarks--which I happened to get incorrect.  She said it even better, because she emphasized the word LITERALLY--literally at the beginning of the quote. i fucked it up.  She literally says, "LITERALLY, President Obama and I were HUNTING for the Chinese." and my stupid feed kept screwing up and i kept gut laughing.     
:lulz:

Then she gets all Chuck Norris about it if you keep listening. 
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: xXRon_Paul_42016Xxx(weed) on November 11, 2015, 12:42:07 AM
QuoteI don't want to debate. I want to talk about my pain.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on November 11, 2015, 01:29:48 AM
That's some out of context bullshit, right there. Go pound sand.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: xXRon_Paul_42016Xxx(weed) on November 11, 2015, 01:38:53 AM
Quote from: LMNO on November 11, 2015, 01:29:48 AM
That's some out of context bullshit, right there. Go pound sand.
Please explain the context where it doesnt translate to "Bawwwwwwwwww" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QqgNcktbSA#t=19)

Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: xXRon_Paul_42016Xxx(weed) on November 11, 2015, 01:41:26 AM
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:http://yaleherald.com/op-eds/hurt-at-home/

QuoteAs a Silimander, I feel that my home is being threatened. Last week, Erika Christakis, the associate master of Silliman College, sent an email to the Silliman community that called an earlier entreaty for Yalies to be more sensitive about culturally appropriating Halloween costumes a threat to free speech. In the aftermath of the email, I saw my community divide. She did not just start a political discourse as she intended. She marginalized many students of color in what is supposed to be their home. But more disappointing than the original email has been the response of Christakis and her husband, Silliman Master Nicholas Christakis. They have failed to acknowledge the hurt and pain that such a large part of our community feel. They have again and again shown that they are committed to an ideal of free speech, not to the Silliman community.

Today, when a group of us, organized originally by the Black Student Alliance at Yale, spoke with Christakis in the Silliman Courtyard, his response once again disappointed many of us. When students tried to tell him about their painful personal experiences as students of color on campus, he responded by making more arguments for free speech. It's unacceptable when the Master of your college is dismissive of your experiences. The Silliman Master's role is not only to provide intellectual stimulation, but also to make Silliman a safe space that all students can come home to. His responsibility is to make it a place where your experiences are a valid concern to the administration and where you can feel free to talk with them about your pain without worrying that the conversation will turn into an argument every single time. We are supposed to feel encouraged to go to our Master and Associate Master with our concerns and feel that our opinions will be respected and heard.

But, in his ten weeks as a leader of the college, Master Christakis has not fostered this sense of community. He seems to lack the ability, quite frankly, to put aside his opinions long enough to listen to the very real hurt that the community feels. He doesn't get it. And I don't want to debate. I want to talk about my pain.

My dad is a really stubborn man. We debate all the time, and I understand the value of hearing differing opinions. But there have been times when I have come to my father crying, when I was emotionally upset, and he heard me regardless of whether or not he agreed with me. He taught me that there is a time for debate, and there is a time for just hearing and acknowledging someone's pain.

I have had to watch my friends defend their right to this institution. This email and the subsequent reaction to it have interrupted their lives. I have friends who are not going to class, who are not doing their homework, who are losing sleep, who are skipping meals, and who are having breakdowns. I feel drained. And through it all, Christakis has shown that he does not consider us a priority.

Christakis attended the forum on Erika's email at the Afro-American Cultural Center on Wed., Nov. 4, where students were vulnerable and shared deeply personal stories. After leaving the event early, Christakis tweeted an article on his personal account about the importance of free speech. Then, he retweeted his tweet using the Silliman Twitter handle. This is a clear and flagrant violation. No one should use the Silliman Twitter as a personal platform. The residential college Twitters are a place to share information relevant to everyone in the community; no one consented to having Christakis' personal view published in a manner that indicated that the community was behind him. The event was indicative of a bigger issue: Christakis is using Silliman college as his intellectual sparring ground.

Further, Christakis has yet to truly acknowledge to the entire Silliman community that he has hurt people. The closest he has gotten to this is sending out an open invitation to brunch at his house to further discuss the issue. Essentially, it was an invitation to debate more. But we don't want to debate more. We want to be able to go home at night in a place where we feel welcome and wanted.

Christakis' actions have not been aimed at healing a divided community. Instead, they continue to frame the issue in an "us against them" split. Christakis needs to stop instigating more debate. He needs to stop trying to argue with people who are hurting, regardless of his personal opinions. Being the Master of Silliman is a position of power. To use it to marginalize so much of the student body is deplorable.

Today, when many of us, mostly students of color and Sillimanders, confronted Nicholas Christakis in the Silliman Courtyard, he said he was sorry that we were feeling pain. But is he really? I don't think he understands what many Sillimanders are going through, nor has he tried.

Christakis hasn't checked in on any of us. He hasn't given us any indication that he is going to or wants to heal the community. If you know I'm in pain and you aren't doing anything to try to help me, then how can you be sorry? Christakis is the Master of Silliman College, it is his job to take care of us, and he is failing.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: xXRon_Paul_42016Xxx(weed) on November 11, 2015, 01:45:30 AM
Quote
I have had to watch my friends defend their right to this institution. This email and the subsequent reaction to it have interrupted their lives. I have friends who are not going to class, who are not doing their homework, who are losing sleep, who are skipping meals, and who are having breakdowns.

The email in question:

QuoteDear Sillimanders:

Nicholas and I have heard from a number of students who were frustrated by the mass email sent to the student body about appropriate Halloween-wear. I've always found Halloween an interesting embodiment of more general adult worries about young people. As some of you may be aware, I teach a class on "The Concept of the Problem Child," and I was speaking with some of my students yesterday about the ways in which Halloween – traditionally a day of subversion for children and young people – is also an occasion for adults to exert their control.

When I was young, adults were freaked out by the specter of Halloween candy poisoned by lunatics, or spiked with razor blades (despite the absence of a single recorded case of such an event). Now, we've grown to fear the sugary candy itself. And this year, we seem afraid that college students are unable to decide how to dress themselves on Halloween.

I don't wish to trivialize genuine concerns about cultural and personal representation, and other challenges to our lived experience in a plural community. I know that many decent people have proposed guidelines on Halloween costumes from a spirit of avoiding hurt and offense. I laud those goals, in theory, as most of us do. But in practice, I wonder if we should reflect more transparently, as a community, on the consequences of an institutional (which is to say: bureaucratic and administrative) exercise of implied control over college students.

It seems to me that we can have this discussion of costumes on many levels: we can talk about complex issues of identify, free speech, cultural appropriation, and virtue "signalling." But I wanted to share my thoughts with you from a totally different angle, as an educator concerned with the developmental stages of childhood and young adulthood.

As a former preschool teacher, for example, it is hard for me to give credence to a claim that there is something objectionably "appropriative" about a blonde-haired child's wanting to be Mulan for a day. Pretend play is the foundation of most cognitive tasks, and it seems to me that we want to be in the business of encouraging the exercise of imagination, not constraining it. I suppose we could agree that there is a difference between fantasizing about an individual character vs. appropriating a culture, wholesale, the latter of which could be seen as (tacky)(offensive)(jejeune)(hurtful), take your pick. But, then, I wonder what is the statute of limitations on dreaming of dressing as Tiana the Frog Princess if you aren't a black girl from New Orleans? Is it okay if you are eight, but not 18? I don't know the answer to these questions; they seem unanswerable. Or at the least, they put us on slippery terrain that I, for one, prefer not to cross.

Which is my point. I don't, actually, trust myself to foist my Halloweenish standards and motives on others. I can't defend them anymore than you could defend yours. Why do we dress up on Halloween, anyway? Should we start explaining that too? I've always been a good mimic and I enjoy accents. I love to travel, too, and have been to every continent but Antarctica. When I lived in Bangladesh, I bought a sari because it was beautiful, even though I looked stupid in it and never wore it once. Am I fetishizing and appropriating others' cultural experiences? Probably. But I really, really like them too.

Even if we could agree on how to avoid offense – and I'll note that no one around campus seems overly concerned about the offense taken by religiously conservative folks to skin-revealing costumes – I wonder, and I am not trying to be provocative: Is there no room anymore for a child or young person to be a little bit obnoxious... a little bit inappropriate or provocative or, yes, offensive? American universities were once a safe space not only for maturation but also for a certain regressive, or even transgressive, experience; increasingly, it seems, they have become places of censure and prohibition. And the censure and prohibition come from above, not from yourselves! Are we all okay with this transfer of power? Have we lost faith in young people's capacity – in your capacity – to exercise self-censure, through social norming, and also in your capacity to ignore or reject things that trouble you? We tend to view this shift from individual to institutional agency as a tradeoff between libertarian vs. liberal values ("liberal" in the American, not European sense of the word).

Nicholas says, if you don't like a costume someone is wearing, look away, or tell them you are offended. Talk to each other. Free speech and the ability to tolerate offence are the hallmarks of a free and open society.

But – again, speaking as a child development specialist – I think there might be something missing in our discourse about the exercise of free speech (including how we dress ourselves) on campus, and it is this: What does this debate about Halloween costumes say about our view of young adults, of their strength and judgment?

In other words: Whose business is it to control the forms of costumes of young people? It's not mine, I know that.

Happy Halloween.

Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on November 11, 2015, 02:42:38 PM
Quote from: xXRon_Paul_42016Xxx(weed) on November 11, 2015, 01:38:53 AM
Quote from: LMNO on November 11, 2015, 01:29:48 AM
That's some out of context bullshit, right there. Go pound sand.
Please explain the context where it doesnt translate to "Bawwwwwwwwww" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QqgNcktbSA#t=19)

1. There is a persistent and serious problem of racism at Yale.
2. The Master's job is different than a professors'.  Their job is to counsel, guide, and support the students living in their houses.
3. The email you attached, from the wife of the Silliman Master, is a response to a prior email that requested, among other things, students not dress in blackface.
4. That means the email you attached says, "I think blackface is acceptable at Yale".
5. This pissed of a lot of the minority students who have directly suffered racism at Yale.
6. The Master, rather than support the students, instead said he agrees with the email; keep in mind, this means he's also saying blackface is ok.
7. The quote you pulled, then, is from a student addressing the Master, asking him to do his fucking job and support the students.



Asshole.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on November 11, 2015, 04:01:26 PM
Quote from: LMNO on November 11, 2015, 02:42:38 PM
Quote from: xXRon_Paul_42016Xxx(weed) on November 11, 2015, 01:38:53 AM
Quote from: LMNO on November 11, 2015, 01:29:48 AM
That's some out of context bullshit, right there. Go pound sand.
Please explain the context where it doesnt translate to "Bawwwwwwwwww" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QqgNcktbSA#t=19)

1. There is a persistent and serious problem of racism at Yale.
2. The Master's job is different than a professors'.  Their job is to counsel, guide, and support the students living in their houses.
3. The email you attached, from the wife of the Silliman Master, is a response to a prior email that requested, among other things, students not dress in blackface.
4. That means the email you attached says, "I think blackface is acceptable at Yale".
5. This pissed of a lot of the minority students who have directly suffered racism at Yale.
6. The Master, rather than support the students, instead said he agrees with the email; keep in mind, this means he's also saying blackface is ok.
7. The quote you pulled, then, is from a student addressing the Master, asking him to do his fucking job and support the students.



Asshole.

Don't forget that this is the guy who freaked out and accused Twid of pandering because Twid was like "huh, maybe I should consider what black people think about this issue that primarily affects them".

He's as racist as his namesake.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: xXRon_Paul_42016Xxx(weed) on November 11, 2015, 07:22:00 PM
Quote from: LMNO on November 11, 2015, 02:42:38 PM
Quote from: xXRon_Paul_42016Xxx(weed) on November 11, 2015, 01:38:53 AM
Quote from: LMNO on November 11, 2015, 01:29:48 AM
That's some out of context bullshit, right there. Go pound sand.
Please explain the context where it doesnt translate to "Bawwwwwwwwww" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QqgNcktbSA#t=19)

1. There is a persistent and serious problem of racism at Yale.
2. The Master's job is different than a professors'.  Their job is to counsel, guide, and support the students living in their houses.
3. The email you attached, from the wife of the Silliman Master, is a response to a prior email that requested, among other things, students not dress in blackface.
4. That means the email you attached says, "I think blackface is acceptable at Yale".
5. This pissed of a lot of the minority students who have directly suffered racism at Yale.
6. The Master, rather than support the students, instead said he agrees with the email; keep in mind, this means he's also saying blackface is ok.
7. The quote you pulled, then, is from a student addressing the Master, asking him to do his fucking job and support the students.



Asshole.
Quote from: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on November 11, 2015, 04:01:26 PM
Quote from: LMNO on November 11, 2015, 02:42:38 PM
Quote from: xXRon_Paul_42016Xxx(weed) on November 11, 2015, 01:38:53 AM
Quote from: LMNO on November 11, 2015, 01:29:48 AM
That's some out of context bullshit, right there. Go pound sand.
Please explain the context where it doesnt translate to "Bawwwwwwwwww" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QqgNcktbSA#t=19)

1. There is a persistent and serious problem of racism at Yale.
2. The Master's job is different than a professors'.  Their job is to counsel, guide, and support the students living in their houses.
3. The email you attached, from the wife of the Silliman Master, is a response to a prior email that requested, among other things, students not dress in blackface.
4. That means the email you attached says, "I think blackface is acceptable at Yale".
5. This pissed of a lot of the minority students who have directly suffered racism at Yale.
6. The Master, rather than support the students, instead said he agrees with the email; keep in mind, this means he's also saying blackface is ok.
7. The quote you pulled, then, is from a student addressing the Master, asking him to do his fucking job and support the students.



Asshole.

1) Ok.
2) So, what in this situation should he have done counsel guide and support these student? Someone LITERALLY DISAGREED WITH THEM IN AN EMAIL.
3)This is the email right here, read it:
QuoteYale is a community that values free expression as well as inclusivity. And while students, undergraduate and graduate, definitely have a right to express themselves, we would hope that people would actively avoid those circumstances that threaten our sense of community or disrespects, alienates or ridicules segments of our population based on race, nationality, religious belief or gender expression.
Do you see one mention of blackface? One mention of institutionalized racism? Its vague. The kind of vague rules against "cultural appropriation" which have lead to shit like this, http://www.mrctv.org/blog/ontario-high-school-halloween-costume-can-t-appropriate-your-own-culture#.qurkbmx:xrxT

4) Wow. Reading comprehension. "I dont think its the schools job to tell people what to dress as" = "It is morally ok to dress in blackface."
5) Yeah that email literally triggered half the student body.
6) So The Master, disagreed with the students, and is therefore racist. Because again, the school not instituting ridiculously draconian and poorly defined regulations of costumes to protect the delicate fee-fees of the student body = YALE IS ONE HUNDRED PERCENT DOWN WITH BLACKFACE GRAB YOUR GREASEPAINT GRAB YOUR FRIED CHICKEN AND WATERMELLON ITS A MINSTREL HOLLOWEEN.
7) The demands of the protestors is that the person who sent TRIGGERING email either apologize or step down. Is there any reasonable response to that other than "free speech"?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on November 11, 2015, 07:28:23 PM
Yeah, you really didn't read the entire email, right? (http://pastebin.com/TLGSdaTg)

QuoteHowever, Halloween is also unfortunately a time when the normal thoughtfulness and sensitivity of most Yale students can sometimes be forgotten and some poor decisions can be made including wearing feathered headdresses, turbans, wearing 'war paint' or modifying skin tone or wearing blackface or redface. These same issues and examples of cultural appropriation and/or misrepresentation are increasingly surfacing with representations of Asians and Latinos.


So, you know, fuck off.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: xXRon_Paul_42016Xxx(weed) on November 11, 2015, 07:45:20 PM
Quote from: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on November 11, 2015, 04:01:26 PM

Don't forget that this is the guy who freaked out and accused Twid of pandering because Twid was like "huh, maybe I should consider what black people think about this issue that primarily affects them".

I didnt accuse him of pandering, I accused him of being a tool. Which is what he is. Hey remember in that thread what eventually resolved this deep existential crisis for Twid? It was any kind of examination of the values that he supposedly held, the only people arguing for free speech having any kind of value was me which was ignored by everyone but Roger. It was Roger making the very reasonable point that regardless of what the Black Hivemind of Black people who think identical Black thoughts and are the final word on all matters of Blackness thought, all that these laws would amount to is giving the powerful more power. Most people in Twids position( again the position of being manipulated) do not have that insight. They will gladly sign away what little rights they have left because someone threw a bunch of buzzwords around.

Whats really insidious about this whole affair, and that isnt hyperbole, is how this teaches people to think. Not what to think, HOW to think. In LMNO's mind the overtone window is, "Childish limits on adult behavior OR rolling out the red carpet for the clan." The idea that any of these people actually believe the words that are coming out of their fucking mouths is unthinkable. He immediately frames them as being PRO-RACISM. You cant be for Free Speech and against Blackface. Youre either for giving the school(the same one LMNO says is institutionally racist) the power to police the details of peoples lives, or youre a racist shitlord. Speaking of:

Quote
He's as racist as his namesake.

Excellent meme. Again, it is impossible for someone to actually believe the words I am speaking therefore they must have an ulterior motive and that motive is that I am one of THOSE FUCKERS who are AFTER OUR SHIT. The games up. You caught me. I thought I would get the drop on all of you by thinking out my worldview and trying to explain it, but the truth is I just fucking hate niggers. I guess Ill return to my homeplanet now that my secret plot to be a stealth racist has been exposed.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: xXRon_Paul_42016Xxx(weed) on November 11, 2015, 07:50:53 PM
Quote from: LMNO on November 11, 2015, 07:28:23 PM
Yeah, you really didn't read the entire email, right? (http://pastebin.com/TLGSdaTg)

QuoteHowever, Halloween is also unfortunately a time when the normal thoughtfulness and sensitivity of most Yale students can sometimes be forgotten and some poor decisions can be made including wearing feathered headdresses, turbans, wearing 'war paint' or modifying skin tone or wearing blackface or redface. These same issues and examples of cultural appropriation and/or misrepresentation are increasingly surfacing with representations of Asians and Latinos.


So, you know, fuck off.

Sorry. The place I got that from implied that it was the whole email.

Still waiting to hear the reply to everything else. Especially how suggesting that grown adults can police their own halloween costumes is racism.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Prelate Diogenes Shandor on November 11, 2015, 08:45:40 PM
Quote from: LMNO on November 11, 2015, 02:42:38 PM4. That means the email you attached says, "I think blackface is acceptable at Yale".

Blackface being unacceptable is an obsolete reaction to their use in a form of entertainment which no longer exists and is only remembered in explanations of why blackface is offensive. There is no reason why it is inherently offensive and with minstrel shows dead and buried and decayed into a skeleton no good reason why it should currently be offensive at all.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on November 11, 2015, 08:50:28 PM
 :um:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Prelate Diogenes Shandor on November 11, 2015, 09:30:51 PM
It's what you're using the blackface for that should make the difference. If they've decided it's a necessary part of a crackhead or burglar costume then yes, that's very offensive and should be strongly discouraged, but if someone's using it as part of a President Obama costume then it should be ok
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on November 11, 2015, 09:41:22 PM
Quote from: LMNO on November 11, 2015, 08:50:28 PM
:um:
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: xXRon_Paul_42016Xxx(weed) on November 12, 2015, 01:55:16 AM
Quote from: Prelate Diogenes Shandor on November 11, 2015, 09:30:51 PM
It's what you're using the blackface for that should make the difference. If they've decided it's a necessary part of a crackhead or burglar costume then yes, that's very offensive and should be strongly discouraged, but if someone's using it as part of a President Obama costume then it should be ok

is this a new guy?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: The Good Reverend Roger on November 12, 2015, 02:22:52 AM
Quote from: Prelate Diogenes Shandor on November 11, 2015, 08:45:40 PM
Quote from: LMNO on November 11, 2015, 02:42:38 PM4. That means the email you attached says, "I think blackface is acceptable at Yale".

Blackface being unacceptable is an obsolete reaction to their use in a form of entertainment which no longer exists and is only remembered in explanations of why blackface is offensive. There is no reason why it is inherently offensive and with minstrel shows dead and buried and decayed into a skeleton no good reason why it should currently be offensive at all.

You're a cunt.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: The Good Reverend Roger on November 12, 2015, 02:23:44 AM
Quote from: xXRon_Paul_42016Xxx(weed) on November 12, 2015, 01:55:16 AM
Quote from: Prelate Diogenes Shandor on November 11, 2015, 09:30:51 PM
It's what you're using the blackface for that should make the difference. If they've decided it's a necessary part of a crackhead or burglar costume then yes, that's very offensive and should be strongly discouraged, but if someone's using it as part of a President Obama costume then it should be ok

is this a new guy?

No, he's a longstanding member of the kook squad.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on November 12, 2015, 07:44:51 PM
Quote from: xXRon_Paul_42016Xxx(weed) on November 11, 2015, 07:50:53 PM
Quote from: LMNO on November 11, 2015, 07:28:23 PM
Yeah, you really didn't read the entire email, right? (http://pastebin.com/TLGSdaTg)

QuoteHowever, Halloween is also unfortunately a time when the normal thoughtfulness and sensitivity of most Yale students can sometimes be forgotten and some poor decisions can be made including wearing feathered headdresses, turbans, wearing 'war paint' or modifying skin tone or wearing blackface or redface. These same issues and examples of cultural appropriation and/or misrepresentation are increasingly surfacing with representations of Asians and Latinos.


So, you know, fuck off.

Sorry. The place I got that from implied that it was the whole email.

Still waiting to hear the reply to everything else. Especially how suggesting that grown adults can police their own halloween costumes is racism.

"Grown adults" in campus housing, where they are subject to a number of campus rules which are not in effect off campus. This is not about American Freedom, but about campus policies.

Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on November 12, 2015, 07:46:48 PM
I can't smoke or grow pot on campus, for example. Nor can I have guns or smoke cigarettes. Thankfully, because I actually AM a grown adult, I don't live on campus.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: xXRon_Paul_42016Xxx(weed) on November 12, 2015, 08:13:36 PM
Quote from: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on November 12, 2015, 07:46:48 PM
I can't smoke or grow pot on campus, for example. Nor can I have guns or smoke cigarettes. Thankfully, because I actually AM a grown adult, I don't live on campus.

And if someone opposed the weapon ban would you say that makes them pro-school shooting? Does disagreeing with campus wide smoking bans make you pro-cancer?
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on November 12, 2015, 08:30:10 PM
Quote from: xXRon_Paul_42016Xxx(weed) on November 12, 2015, 08:13:36 PM
Quote from: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on November 12, 2015, 07:46:48 PM
I can't smoke or grow pot on campus, for example. Nor can I have guns or smoke cigarettes. Thankfully, because I actually AM a grown adult, I don't live on campus.

And if someone opposed the weapon ban would you say that makes them pro-school shooting? Does disagreeing with campus wide smoking bans make you pro-cancer?

No. Stop with the red herrings. The way you treated Twid purely for reexamining his beliefs was fucking reprehensible. I definitely think less of you and am skeptical of your motives now, and this instance appears to be more of the same bullshit.

Deal with it.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on November 12, 2015, 08:30:59 PM
Person A: Hey, try not to be a racist asshole on Halloween.

Person B: Hold on now.  Is there no room anymore for a child or young person to be a racist asshole?



Is Person B a racist asshole for saying it should be ok to be a racist asshole?


Remember, the initial email didn't ban racist outfits.  It reminded people that it would be a good idea not to wear offensive costumes, like blackface.  The response email said, "Is there no room anymore for a child or young person to be a little bit obnoxious... or, yes, offensive?"  She is flat out saying it should be OK for students to wear racially offensive costumes if they want to.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on November 12, 2015, 08:38:06 PM
It also has not escaped my notice, although it may have escaped yours, that you seem to have a hotbutton reaction wherever issues of racism arise. All of a sudden, individual freedom becomes tremendously important to you, and you're ready to put someone down for being a sheeple and kowtowing to political correctness. That raises some red flags.

And I'm someone who got into it with Roger over banning someone just for calling me nigger, so don't go trotting out the old tired accusations you used on Twid. I agreed with you about freedom of speech; what I didn't agree with is you attacking someone and calling them names purely for re-evaluating their position in light of evidence they hadn't yet considered. That's some cowardly, insecure behavior, right there.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on November 12, 2015, 08:39:13 PM
Quote from: LMNO on November 12, 2015, 08:30:59 PM
Person A: Hey, try not to be a racist asshole on Halloween.

Person B: Hold on now.  Is there no room anymore for a child or young person to be a racist asshole?



Is Person B a racist asshole for saying it should be ok to be a racist asshole?


Remember, the initial email didn't ban racist outfits.  It reminded people that it would be a good idea not to wear offensive costumes, like blackface.  The response email said, "Is there no room anymore for a child or young person to be a little bit obnoxious... or, yes, offensive?"  She is flat out saying it should be OK for students to wear racially offensive costumes if they want to.

So much this.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: The Good Reverend Roger on November 12, 2015, 08:40:29 PM
Quote from: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on November 12, 2015, 08:38:06 PM
It also has not escaped my notice, although it may have escaped yours, that you seem to have a hotbutton reaction wherever issues of racism arise. All of a sudden, individual freedom becomes tremendously important to you, and you're ready to put someone down for being a sheeple and kowtowing to political correctness. That raises some red flags.

And I'm someone who got into it with Roger over banning someone just for calling me nigger, so don't go trotting out the old tired accusations you used on Twid. I agreed with you about freedom of speech; what I didn't agree with is you attacking someone and calling them names purely for re-evaluating their position in light of evidence they hadn't yet considered. That's some cowardly, insecure behavior, right there.

Actually, I banned him for calling anyone that.  This is still something which I disagree with most of the admins on.  Freedom of speech does not imply that I have to let a Nazi preach his shit in my living room.  I don't believe in giving blatant racists house room.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on November 12, 2015, 10:06:23 PM
Quote from: The Good Reverend Roger on November 12, 2015, 08:40:29 PM
Quote from: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on November 12, 2015, 08:38:06 PM
It also has not escaped my notice, although it may have escaped yours, that you seem to have a hotbutton reaction wherever issues of racism arise. All of a sudden, individual freedom becomes tremendously important to you, and you're ready to put someone down for being a sheeple and kowtowing to political correctness. That raises some red flags.

And I'm someone who got into it with Roger over banning someone just for calling me nigger, so don't go trotting out the old tired accusations you used on Twid. I agreed with you about freedom of speech; what I didn't agree with is you attacking someone and calling them names purely for re-evaluating their position in light of evidence they hadn't yet considered. That's some cowardly, insecure behavior, right there.

Actually, I banned him for calling anyone that.  This is still something which I disagree with most of the admins on.  Freedom of speech does not imply that I have to let a Nazi preach his shit in my living room.  I don't believe in giving blatant racists house room.

Right, I just happened to be the person that he chose to direct his bigoted vomit at.

I wasn't even here that day, if I recall.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on November 12, 2015, 10:10:45 PM
Anyway, the thing about screeching "freedom of speech!" every time an individual or institution says "Bigotry is unwelcome on my property" is that the First Amendment simply doesn't apply to a lot of situations. This board, for example. People are still free as ever to be giant, moronic, frothing bigots, but that doesn't  mean they can stand in my living room and scream their bigotry in my ear.

Sounds like Yale wasn't even trying to prohibit bigoted costumes, it was merely discouraging them. FFS.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on November 12, 2015, 10:25:43 PM
Not to mention, while a person is legally allowed to be an asshole racist, it is also legally allowed for someone else to berate, insult, protest, and yell at that person.

Which, it should be pointed out, is exactly what happened.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on November 12, 2015, 11:06:35 PM
Quote from: LMNO on November 12, 2015, 10:25:43 PM
Not to mention, while a person is legally allowed to be an asshole racist, it is also legally allowed for someone else to berate, insult, protest, and yell at that person.

Which, it should be pointed out, is exactly what happened.

Yeah, I kinda hate people who are all "YARRRRRGH FREEDOM OF SPEECH! I mean, for racist speech. Not for anti-racist speech though".
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Cain on November 12, 2015, 11:34:17 PM
I'm pretty sympathetic to the students.  I think the original request from the student body regarding Halloween costumes was well-phrased and not especially objectionable, in fact I'd say it was the very model of a good approach to take.  That said, I think in the response to the letter from Christiakis, they've missed something fairly important and that is how by invoking the administration of the university, they are opening the door to greater political control over University students by their administration.

In fact, Christiakis referenced this in her own letter "in practice, I wonder if we should reflect more transparently, as a community, on the consequences of an institutional (which is to say: bureaucratic and administrative) exercise of implied control over college students."  I can't say I especially support the context in which she is placing that sentence, nor do I think it was the case with the original email, but in the larger scheme of things and the way things are going at American universities of late, I think it is an important point.

The problem I see, in the long term, is that Universities are corporations, with corporate interests and corporate practices.  Discontent will be managed in accordance with those corporate interests, and not necessarily in any larger sense, and it is quite likely that allowing University administrations greater control over political and social expression can and will backfire on those most in favour of it.  The next time a war like Iraq is on the cards, I can see such administrative power being abused very effectively for example.

That has little to do with the actual situation at Yale itself, but it what I've been thinking about recently.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: xXRon_Paul_42016Xxx(weed) on November 13, 2015, 02:30:47 AM
Quote from: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on November 12, 2015, 08:30:10 PM
Quote from: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on November 12, 2015, 08:38:06 PM
It also has not escaped my notice, although it may have escaped yours, that you seem to have a hotbutton reaction wherever issues of racism arise. All of a sudden, individual freedom becomes tremendously important to you, and you're ready to put someone down for being a sheeple and kowtowing to political correctness. That raises some red flags.

And I'm someone who got into it with Roger over banning someone just for calling me nigger, so don't go trotting out the old tired accusations you used on Twid. I agreed with you about freedom of speech; what I didn't agree with is you attacking someone and calling them names purely for re-evaluating their position in light of evidence they hadn't yet considered. That's some cowardly, insecure behavior, right there.
Because I notice that a lot of people, not necessarily the people here, are mindless sheeple kowtowing to political correctness and I enjoy breaking the circlejerk. And just to get this out of the way, my main objection to Political Correctness isnt that its going to take over everything and stomp out all badwrong thought but that its mostly pointless. Its pointless little superficial rituals that serve no purpose but alleviating the anxieties of the well off so that they can go back to perpetuating a system based on literal slavery.

This is entirely too late, but yeah I did flip out on Twid. I still disagree with him for the same reasons I laid out there, but the response was completely out of proportion.

Quote from: xXRon_Paul_42016Xxx(weed) on November 12, 2015, 08:13:36 PM
Quote from: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on November 12, 2015, 07:46:48 PM
I can't smoke or grow pot on campus, for example. Nor can I have guns or smoke cigarettes. Thankfully, because I actually AM a grown adult, I don't live on campus.

And if someone opposed the weapon ban would you say that makes them pro-school shooting? Does disagreeing with campus wide smoking bans make you pro-cancer?

No. Stop with the red herrings. The way you treated Twid purely for reexamining his beliefs was fucking reprehensible.
[/quote]

What red herrings? Im defending the exact same point that you responded to.

Quote
I definitely think less of you and am skeptical of your motives now, and this instance appears to be more of the same bullshit.

What motives? What do you think is the secret master plan behind me posting opinions you disagree with on a half dead political forum? If I were a racist I would be 100% open about it because I give zero fucks. Also notice how no one has yet to point out exactly where I expressed a racist opinion, just that I expressed an opinion that sounds like something a racist might say maybe. Which puts me in a position where it is absolutely impossible to defend myself because I have to prove a negative. Not just that but a SECRET racist, which means that the lack of racism in my posts becomes evidence for my racism. How do I prove that Im not, against every word that I have typed here, racist? How do I prove that Im not hyper-intelligent walrus that learned to type with its flippers? How do I prove that Im not secretly a stealth Mormon and all my posting is just PRETENDING to be a stealth racist to cover up my plot to convert all of PD? 

Quote from: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on November 12, 2015, 11:06:35 PM
Quote from: LMNO on November 12, 2015, 10:25:43 PM
Not to mention, while a person is legally allowed to be an asshole racist, it is also legally allowed for someone else to berate, insult, protest, and yell at that person.

Which, it should be pointed out, is exactly what happened.

Yeah, I kinda hate people who are all "YARRRRRGH FREEDOM OF SPEECH! I mean, for racist speech. Not for anti-racist speech though".

And I am all for the rights of the protestors. I just thought that letter was whiny and stupid and posted what I thought was a funny quote from it here. Then I found out that Im a racist.

Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Meunster on November 13, 2015, 02:51:59 AM
you guys still talking racism politics?

Wake up guys, the flavor of the week is immigration in europe.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=44vzMNG2fZc

Also using freedom of speech for any kind of hatred or person attacking in a rude and unpleasant manner is pretty retarded.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: The Good Reverend Roger on November 13, 2015, 02:54:01 AM
Quote from: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on November 12, 2015, 10:06:23 PM
Quote from: The Good Reverend Roger on November 12, 2015, 08:40:29 PM
Quote from: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on November 12, 2015, 08:38:06 PM
It also has not escaped my notice, although it may have escaped yours, that you seem to have a hotbutton reaction wherever issues of racism arise. All of a sudden, individual freedom becomes tremendously important to you, and you're ready to put someone down for being a sheeple and kowtowing to political correctness. That raises some red flags.

And I'm someone who got into it with Roger over banning someone just for calling me nigger, so don't go trotting out the old tired accusations you used on Twid. I agreed with you about freedom of speech; what I didn't agree with is you attacking someone and calling them names purely for re-evaluating their position in light of evidence they hadn't yet considered. That's some cowardly, insecure behavior, right there.

Actually, I banned him for calling anyone that.  This is still something which I disagree with most of the admins on.  Freedom of speech does not imply that I have to let a Nazi preach his shit in my living room.  I don't believe in giving blatant racists house room.

Right, I just happened to be the person that he chose to direct his bigoted vomit at.

I wasn't even here that day, if I recall.

No, you were off doing whatever you neuroscience people do when nobody is looking.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: LMNO on November 13, 2015, 01:23:07 PM
Quote from: Cain on November 12, 2015, 11:34:17 PM
I'm pretty sympathetic to the students.  I think the original request from the student body regarding Halloween costumes was well-phrased and not especially objectionable, in fact I'd say it was the very model of a good approach to take.  That said, I think in the response to the letter from Christiakis, they've missed something fairly important and that is how by invoking the administration of the university, they are opening the door to greater political control over University students by their administration.

In fact, Christiakis referenced this in her own letter "in practice, I wonder if we should reflect more transparently, as a community, on the consequences of an institutional (which is to say: bureaucratic and administrative) exercise of implied control over college students."  I can't say I especially support the context in which she is placing that sentence, nor do I think it was the case with the original email, but in the larger scheme of things and the way things are going at American universities of late, I think it is an important point.

The problem I see, in the long term, is that Universities are corporations, with corporate interests and corporate practices.  Discontent will be managed in accordance with those corporate interests, and not necessarily in any larger sense, and it is quite likely that allowing University administrations greater control over political and social expression can and will backfire on those most in favour of it.  The next time a war like Iraq is on the cards, I can see such administrative power being abused very effectively for example.

That has little to do with the actual situation at Yale itself, but it what I've been thinking about recently.

Cross-reference with what happened at Mizzou -- things started happening as soon as the (massive revenue producing) football team announced they were going to forfeit their upcoming games unless the protesters were heeded.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on November 14, 2015, 05:06:36 PM
Quote from: The Good Reverend Roger on November 13, 2015, 02:54:01 AM
Quote from: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on November 12, 2015, 10:06:23 PM
Quote from: The Good Reverend Roger on November 12, 2015, 08:40:29 PM
Quote from: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on November 12, 2015, 08:38:06 PM
It also has not escaped my notice, although it may have escaped yours, that you seem to have a hotbutton reaction wherever issues of racism arise. All of a sudden, individual freedom becomes tremendously important to you, and you're ready to put someone down for being a sheeple and kowtowing to political correctness. That raises some red flags.

And I'm someone who got into it with Roger over banning someone just for calling me nigger, so don't go trotting out the old tired accusations you used on Twid. I agreed with you about freedom of speech; what I didn't agree with is you attacking someone and calling them names purely for re-evaluating their position in light of evidence they hadn't yet considered. That's some cowardly, insecure behavior, right there.

Actually, I banned him for calling anyone that.  This is still something which I disagree with most of the admins on.  Freedom of speech does not imply that I have to let a Nazi preach his shit in my living room.  I don't believe in giving blatant racists house room.

Right, I just happened to be the person that he chose to direct his bigoted vomit at.

I wasn't even here that day, if I recall.

No, you were off doing whatever you neuroscience people do when nobody is looking.

Shhhhhh

The pigs are fine, and those kids will never remember the surgeries.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: minuspace on November 14, 2015, 07:55:05 PM
And I would be hard pressed to believe that the Ministry of Good Costumes at Yale is a veil for the Fabian agenda trying to subvert corporate power over elite academic institutions.
 








(I just wanted to use the word Fabian in a sentence)
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Prelate Diogenes Shandor on November 15, 2015, 06:21:34 AM
Quote from: LMNO on November 12, 2015, 10:25:43 PM
Not to mention, while a person is legally allowed to be an asshole racist, it is also legally allowed for someone else to berate, insult, protest, and yell at that person.

Hell yeah!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: xXRon_Paul_42016Xxx(weed) on November 25, 2015, 07:33:53 PM
http://www.guilfordian.com/news/2015/11/22/student-list-of-demands-for-guilford/

QuoteWe suggest that every week a faculty member come forward and publicly admit their participation in racism inside the classroom via a letter to the editor in the Guilfordian.

Struggle sessions when?

Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on November 25, 2015, 11:29:34 PM
Quote from: xXRon_Paul_42016Xxx(weed) on November 25, 2015, 07:33:53 PM
http://www.guilfordian.com/news/2015/11/22/student-list-of-demands-for-guilford/

QuoteWe suggest that every week a faculty member come forward and publicly admit their participation in racism inside the classroom via a letter to the editor in the Guilfordian.

Struggle sessions when?

You must feel very threatened.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Q. G. Pennyworth on March 16, 2017, 03:07:19 PM
Quote from: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on June 13, 2015, 06:59:02 AM
Quote from: Bu☆ns on June 12, 2015, 03:56:13 PM
Quote from: Doktor Howl on June 12, 2015, 03:09:15 AM
Quote from: Bu☆ns on June 11, 2015, 05:27:31 PM
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2015/mar/04/ben-carson/ben-carson-many-prisoners-go-straight-come-out-gay/

Quote
In a March 4 interview, the likely 2016 presidential contender said he believes that legalizing same-sex marriage is a decision that should be left to the states. He also argued that homosexuality is a choice, rather than biological.

"Because a lot of people who go into prison go into prison straight -- and when they come out, they're gay. So, did something happen while they were in there? Ask yourself that question," said Carson, a former head of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital.

You know, I was hoping Carson wasn't going to be a dingbat seeing as how he's a former neurosurgeon. I guess the best hope is an educated idiot.

He's always been a dingbat.

I'm gathering.  He seemed relatively intelligent in a podcast interview i listened to recently but so much for that.

Intelligent people can hold bad ideas.

It's difficult to internalize that, because it is far easier to assume that people who hold bad ideas are simply stupid, and that therefore you cannot hold bad ideas because you are intelligent.

Only very late:

(http://i.imgur.com/cgHGq8B.jpg)
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on March 16, 2017, 04:03:53 PM
That is lovely!

I thin the top quote came from Salty. I am pleased about having them both together on one image, it works really well.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: The Wizard Joseph on March 16, 2017, 05:20:38 PM
Yeah that's some mighty fine pamphlet right there!
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Q. G. Pennyworth on March 16, 2017, 06:02:26 PM
The mayo and bleach was definitely Salty. I'm close to wrapping up all the random bits-and-bobs pages, it was really great having this one land together so neatly.
Title: Re: Political quotes of the moment
Post by: Mesozoic Mister Nigel on March 16, 2017, 08:13:01 PM
I love this project of yours. So much.