School Vouchers = Gun Vouchers

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Monday December 31, 2012 · 6:13 AM PST

2012/12/31 · 06:13

The basic premise of most conservative policy arguments is Milton Friedman's The Role of Government in Education (1962), with the issue du jour swapped in for the term education. Energy production, bank regulation, food safety, air quality -- it makes no difference. Just let the market in question figure itself out for the good of all. Given the most pressing issue facing American society today, swap in the terms "defense" or "guns" or "militarization" for the terms "education" or "learning" and the dystopian absurdity of Wayne Lapierre and the NRA's recent proposals are made laughably clear. To wit:

thingsthatfall

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Wednesday August 15, 2012 · 9:42 AM PDT

2012/08/15 · 09:42

It would be amusing that so many Republicans want to base their social policy on a ponderous work of dystopian science fiction--Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged--if it weren't so frightening. Frightening not only in their hyperreactionary reading of it, but also in their seeming inability to understand it as a work of fiction.
But it does beg a fun question: What work(s) of fiction would you base YOUR social policy on?

If only Fraser Robinson III had had a dressage horse!

thingsthatfall

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Friday July 27, 2012 · 8:26 AM PDT

2012/07/27 · 08:26

In remarks shared with Olympic athletes in London today, Michelle Obama made fond mention of her father, Fraser Robinson III, who was an aspiring athlete until he was stricken with MS and lived the remainder of his life on crutches

Obama spoke about watching the Games with her father, who boxed and swam in his youth, but was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. “He wasn’t able to walk without the assistance of crutches,” she said, “But he retained his love of sports.”

If only he had had a dressage horse to cure him of his ailments. I mean, the horror. Not of his disease or the pain it caused, but of living one's entire life without a six figure dancing horse. Read More

on hypocrisy

thingsthatfall

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Tuesday July 24, 2012 · 4:55 PM PDT

2012/07/24 · 16:55

I get a little (okay, a lot) tired of how many front page stories on dailykos are motivated by pointing out a hypocrisy. Gasp! A candidate said one thing and did / supported / was involved with its opposite. Gasp indeed.
The American public has never demonstrated that it gives a rat's ass about hypocrisy as a trait that will doom a candidate. If anything, it demonstrates a desperate will to win at any cost, which is held in higher esteem than whatever negatives, if any, accrue to being a hypocrite.

Poll

10 votes Show Results

Do you think the average american voter cares whether politicians are hypocritical?

10 votes Vote Now!

Do you think the average american voter cares whether politicians are hypocritical?

yes

3 votes

4 votes

yes and no

3 votes

Note to Trump Bashers

thingsthatfall

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Wednesday May 30, 2012 · 5:44 PM PDT

2012/05/30 · 17:44

I hate to even write this for the sake of blowing his cover, but, Donald Trump is not the total idiot we think he is. He is playing a double game, acting the birther fool and sidling up to Romney just for the sake of keeping wingnut extremism--and yes, his own image--in the news. The more successful he is at making Republicans froth and squirm, the better for Obama.
What's not to like? He just completely trashed the fact that Mitt Romney sealed the Repubican nomination and, if Romney's behavior is any measure, Trump's not going away as a visible "Republican" any time soon. He can ride it all the way to November as far as I'm concerned. The more he's in the news spouting the views of the Republican party, the better it gets for Democrats. And he knows it.

Poll

68 votes Show Results

Donald Trump is:

68 votes Vote Now!

Donald Trump is:

a bloviating ignoramus

21 votes

a cynical double agent

2 votes

a practical businessman looking out for his best interests

2 votes

a suckling at the bovine teet of Democratic principles

1 vote

an egomaniac

7 votes

all of the above

34 votes

Voter Fraud Peacocks

thingsthatfall

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Wednesday April 27, 2011 · 6:03 AM PDT

2011/04/27 · 06:03

An editorial in today's New York Times outlines efforts by Republican governors and state legislatures to make it harder for people to vote without first having to prove they are citizens to register and having to produce a valid government issues photo ID in order to cast a ballot. For example:

Kansas’ new law was drafted by its secretary of state, Kris Kobach, who also wrote Arizona’s anti-immigrant law. Voters will be required to show a photo ID at the polls. Before they can register, Kansans will have to produce a proof of citizenship, such as a birth certificate.

Governor Sam Brownback says this is necessary to "preserve the sanctity of the vote."

Poll

7 votes Show Results

Do you think the United States should have mandatory voting?

7 votes Vote Now!

Do you think the United States should have mandatory voting?

Yes

5 votes

1 vote

Not sure

1 vote

NY Times: It's only news if you're an exception

thingsthatfall

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Thursday May 06, 2010 · 10:12 AM PDT

2010/05/06 · 10:12

What's up, New York Times? When Republicans are of color it is a novelty worthy of headlines -- but when Democrats of color legitimately promise to change the political landscape?

thingsthatfall

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Tuesday November 17, 2009 · 6:55 PM PST

2009/11/17 · 18:55

I was strolling through the new modern wing at the Art Institute of Chicago when I stumbled onto this premonitory portrait of Joe Lieberman -- from 1913!

Poll

68 votes Show Results

What part of this painting is most like Joe Lieberman?

68 votes Vote Now!

What part of this painting is most like Joe Lieberman?

The pursed, church lady lips

21 votes

The bony, death-panel hands

10 votes

The shit green suit

1 vote

The bogus crucifix ascot

0 votes

The cocked head

0 votes

The condescending glare

30 votes

The elephant ears

6 votes

The Center of the Shrinking GOP Universe: Bluegrass edition

thingsthatfall

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Monday October 27, 2008 · 12:20 PM PDT

2008/10/27 · 12:20

As the Republican Party continues its trend toward being a regional party, this recurring feature plots the ever-shifting, every collapsing centers of the GOP Universe. The center of the GOP universe is any city or town that is equidistantly as far as possible from the nearest blue states. So follow along in the days and years ahead! It's fun geography and a pleasant entree into parts of the country you never new existed--places to avoid, or places to target for future Progressive expansion--in this great country of ours. It's also a handy service for all those Republican trolls and lurkers out there, lest you be in need of hamlets to retreat to after November 4.

Although today's center of the GOP universe is still holding, and will likely remain a red state at the presidential level, senatorial candidate Bruce Lunsford's amazing rise against troglodyte Mitch McConnell will not only be payback for Tom Daschle, but hopefully start a shift to be fully realized by 2012. For now:

Today's center of the GOP Universe: SCOTTSVILLE, KENTUCKY

Poll

79 votes Show Results

Who plays (or played) your favorite version of Bluegrass?

79 votes Vote Now!

Who plays (or played) your favorite version of Bluegrass?

Flatt & Scruggs

21 votes

Ralph Stanley

12 votes

Bill Monroe

11 votes

The Louvin Brothers

2 votes

Ricky Skaggs

2 votes

Rhonda Vincent & The Rage

1 vote

Allison Krauss & Union Station

22 votes

J D Crowe

2 votes

Johnson Mountain Boys

3 votes

Vassar Clements

3 votes

The incredible shrinking GOP universe: part II, Rocky Mountain Edition

thingsthatfall

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Tuesday October 21, 2008 · 1:09 PM PDT

2008/10/21 · 13:09

As a special service to all those GOP trolls and lurkers out there, this recurring feature will highlight the shifting centers of the incredible shrinking GOP universe. The center of the GOP universe is any city or town that is equidistantly as far as possible from the nearest blue states. So follow along in the weeks ahead! It's fun geography and you'll learn about new places--new places to avoid, or to target for future Progressive expansion--in this great country of ours.

Although today's center of the GOP universe is still holding, I am confident that Governor Schweitzer, Senator Tester, Senator Baucus, and all the other fine democrats throughout the state of Montana will soon gleefully re-center it somewhere down Salt Lake City way. But for now:

Today's center of the GOP Universe: HARDIN, MONTANA

Poll

36 votes Show Results

Are tombstones a fitting metaphor for senate seats the Republicans have lost?

36 votes Vote Now!

Are tombstones a fitting metaphor for senate seats the Republicans have lost?

Absolutely!

4 votes

Yes, especially around Hallow's Eve.

5 votes

Maybe, but I would prefer that they be pushed over and have grafitti sprayed on them as well.

7 votes

No, it's disrespectful--to the tombstones.

10 votes

No, that would make me a socialist, anti-american, terrorist, celebrity.

2 votes

What does frozen pizza have to do with it?

8 votes

The Incredible Shrinking GOP Universe: New!

thingsthatfall

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Friday October 17, 2008 · 7:00 AM PDT

2008/10/17 · 07:00

Over the past few weeks I've watched the blue portion of the electoral college map expand beautifully, and that only feeds my diligence toward this election.

Nonetheless, it occurred to me that as we continue to toss anvils and leave everything on the road there may not be many places left for a Republican to feel at home in the weeks and years ahead.

So, as a special service to all those GOP trolls and lurkers out there, this recurring feature will highlight the shifting center of the GOP universe. The center of the GOP universe is any city or town that is as equidistant and far as possible from the nearest blue states. So follow along in the weeks ahead! It's fun geography and you'll learn about new places--to avoid, or target for future Progressive expansion--in this great country of ours.

And if you really are a Republican, don't fret: there's always Alaska. Well, at least for now . . . Go Begich!

Today's center of the GOP Universe: NACOGDOCHES, TEXAS

Poll

47 votes Show Results

Have you ever been to Nacogdoches?

47 votes Vote Now!

Have you ever been to Nacogdoches?

No, never.

26 votes

Yes, I drove through once on my way to South by Southwest.

12 votes

Yes, I was relocated there temporarily after Hurricane Katrina.

0 votes

Yes, I live there now for Christ's sake.

3 votes

Gesundheit!

6 votes

Do facts sometimes get the best of us?

thingsthatfall

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Friday September 12, 2008 · 5:34 PM PDT

2008/09/12 · 17:34

The Republicans -- unwittingly or not -- seem to have a much greater grasp of how language works than Democrats do, how willfully untrue statements can function like so much debris thrown out the back of a truck to clog the road. Through instinct or desperation they realize that by the time the road gets cleared -- BY US -- they will have already achieved their destination.

I want to continue the premise of a diary I wrote the other day about the relative value of facts and telling the 'truth' in this election, and my belief that the facts alone will not carry the day. Was it David Byrne who sang that Facts / Get the best of us?

Newer
Older

RSS

School Vouchers = Gun Vouchers

Fiction as Social Policy: a survey

If only Fraser Robinson III had had a dressage horse!

on hypocrisy

Note to Trump Bashers

Voter Fraud Peacocks

NY Times: It's only news if you're an exception

Portrait of the Senator as a Douchebag

The Center of the Shrinking GOP Universe: Bluegrass edition

The incredible shrinking GOP universe: part II, Rocky Mountain Edition

The Incredible Shrinking GOP Universe: New!

Do facts sometimes get the best of us?