Encounter with a Bernie Bro

On 3/19, I posted on FaceBook an excerpt from Adam Parkemenko's daily BIG STUFF.  This led to an encounter with a Bernie Bro.

Adam Parkhomenko --

Remember when House Republicans were the worst people in Washington? Well, they’re still pretty awful, the title for worst has been claimed by Mitch and his cronies. Where to begin. Let’s start with Sen. Richard Burr, chairman of the Senate Intel Committee and someone who was busted in a recording obtained by NPR telling rich donors how bad the coronavirus would get even as Trump was telling Americans it was no big deal and it would just go away. Then we have Sen. John Cornyn, who used a racist diatribe to explain why calling it the Chinese Virus isn’t racist. Sen. Ron Johnson, one of the biggest scumbags of the Biden stuff, told his local paper that you just gotta keep it in perspective that a few million Americans might die. And then there’s Rand Paul. And really, ‘nuff said. Under Mitch’s leadership, or lack thereof, the U.S. Senate dragged its feet for days on the action the House took and now Mitch wants to cut Pelosi out of the negotiations. And for reasons we will never understand, there are many Democrats who want to take politics out of this current environment. These people must be new here and have never met a Republican. Like David Axelrod complaining because Democrats are running ads against Trump’s response? Seriously, Axe? Some of those first term capitulations are suddenly making a lot more sense. Trump fucked this up, and he and his party are going to be responsible for the deaths of many Americans. We sure as shit should be talking about that.

The Bernie Bro --

Just more bipartisan fuckfoolery. I'm immured to it, now. What will fall will fall.

JzB --

Both sides are not the same.

BB

They're not?

Could'a fooled me...

JzB

Sure, you can always find an example to validate a point of view. It's cherry picking, and it's not valid. You have to look at patterns of behavior, not isolated incidents. You have to look at policies and their effects.

Seriously, there are differences in any economic or social metric you can think of between when Rs and Ds are in control. And with the Ds it's always better.

Always.

Yes it's true that both parties have too much corporate interest. But that does not mean that they are equal. Frex: BHO had the backing of Wall St in '08, but they largely abandoned him in'12, because they didn't like what he was doing.

BB

Sorry [JzB}...I no longer believe this. I see them as two rival gangs in a kind of "Three families" criminal setup. The third family is the nonpartisan/bipartisan Deep State, which is actually more powerful than either gang. It allies itself with whichever gang seems most likely to continue to succeed in doing its bidding.

We've recently had a little shakeup of that system, because Trump surprised all THREE gangs and essentially took over the Ratpublicans. He is a rogue gang leader, and so far the other two gangs (and whatever parts of his own gang secretly wish him gone as well) have not been very successful in unseating him.

They DO keep trying, though.

We'll see in November...if of course there even IS an election in November. But never fear...we'll someday see who wins and who loses.

But...nothing substantive will change.

It's just the way things work.

Been that way since history began...

BEFORE it began, I'm sure.

It just didn't get written down.

JzB 

Well, you're entitled to your opinion. I've studied these things. Policies have consequences for people's lives, and R vs D policies are drastically different.

My dad told me something ca. 1962, and I never forgot it. Every once in a while, if a crumb falls off the plate, the Democrats might let you keep it. The Republicans won't even do that.

Also, ponder these things -- Would President Gore have ignored the screaming warnings from the intelligence communities like Shrub did - that allowed 9/11 to happen?

Would he have launched an illegal and pointless war against an uninvolved third-party country based on invalid, cooked intelligence?

Would he have cut taxes on the rich while launching this war - something no ruler in the history of the world has ever done?

Would President HRC have ignored the impending Covid-19 situation for months, while denying the reality of it to the American people in the hopes of personal gain?

Would she have signed into law yet another tax cut that benefited only the super rich and did squat for anyone else? And that, by the way, was completely unjustifiable on any economic terms and needlessly blew up the national debt?

Look at the history of criminal indictments in R vs D administration - dozens, maybe hundreds of Rs and a small hand full of Dems.

Look at the Rethug Senators who dumped millions in stocks just before the crash, while publicly saying Covid-19 was no big deal and we'd all be fine. The one from GA even made a huge investment in a tech company that might profit from people working from home. And her husband is Chairman of he New York Stock Exchange.

These are off the top of my head. Policies matter - to you and to me and to the rest of the world. 

Many of the things I listed were earth shaking.

Imagine how different it all would be without 9/11, ISIS, the disaster in Syria . . . Needless wars and ghastly foreign policy blunders have drained us of blood and treasure, and thoroughly destabilized an already fragile middle east.

And Trump and his cronies have gotten richer by many, many millions. To our detriment.

Ignoring these things for the sake of believing in a fictional both-sides-do-it duality might be satisfying in some way that I can't wrap my head around, but it is not an accurate depiction of the world we live in.

Think it over.

BB

You write: "Every once in a while, if a crumb falls off the plate, the Democrats might let you keep it. The Republicans won't even do that."

This in the biggest bakery of all time!!!

And you claim that they are "different?"

Not much more to say. I think that your father's statement pretty well sums up the difference between the two parties.

Minuscule.

Crumbs.

I could argue against every point that you make here.

You are as convinced as are the Trumpsters.

I will say this, though.

Don't worry. You have a lot of company.

JzB

It's pretty damned lame to dismissively hand wave away a long list of actual facts. In case you didn't notice, I put a lot of thought and careful planning into my response. Did you even read past the anecdote? I do commentary like this all the time, because I value the truth. You're welcome.

You could argue - but you don't. That says a lot, right there.

And, btw, comparing me to Trumpers is a blatant insult, because I actually fucking think things through; and I deeply resent it. You haven't done anything to earn the right to an attitude quite that superior.

If I'm convinced of something, it's because I've done the leg work to uncover actual facts and data. Years of technical training, along with my natural inclinations, lead me to make data-driven decisions. I have 463 posts on my blog with the tag "economics" and have actually put a bit of serious thought into some of them, with real graphs and detailed analysis.

What IS similar to Trumpers - and right wingers more generally - is a casual disregard for facts and data, with no attempt at rational discourse. I've experienced this hundreds of times. It's depressing as hell.

My posts are public on purpose. I welcome disagreement.

Note that it moves the discussion along in a more constructive way when the disagreement actually makes some sort of sense.

Prove to me that I'm wrong, and you will have done me a favor. The operative word here is PROVE.

But do it tomorrow. You've kept me up unit midnight, and I'm gong to bed

Think it over. Seriously.

BB

I am not going to even TRY to "prove" what I am saying to you.

The proof will be in the pudding.

We'll see what happens if Biden is elected with a majority in both houses. Or without.

Or if Trump remains.

Or...if some other outcome happens.

Gore?

HRC?

Bill Clinton?

Bush II?

Obama?

ALL willing supporters of the Permanent War state that has decimated this country on all levels and has simultaneously been the single most polluting environmental set of events of the last 30+ years. And all complicit in the selling of the country's industrial strength to the highest bidders, a sale that has totally wrecked the economies of the working class/middle class.

Biden?

Just another tool of the globalist corporate system for his entire career.

And yes, I did read your posts.

All of them.

I will read them no more.

Save your energy.

And at that point, he blocked me.  There was no attempt to engage any of my points, just spouting an extended sequence of naked assertions.

I'll concede that the Dems are far too close to big business and especially big finance.  And, to be sure, the history of humanity in a nutshell - always and everywhere - is the exploitation of the many by a small wealthy, privileged elite. But the mere fact that there are disturbing similarities between the two parties does not mean that there aren't also deeply significant differences. Our own history over that last hundred years, and especially the most recent decades, demonstrates that dramatically.

What the Frozen Hell?!? Friday

All those things that were going to happen when  .  .  .

Well - they can happen now.

Quote of the Day

Peter Dorman at Econospeak has some fun playing "guess who?" with this quote"

Probably it is true enough that the great majority are rarely capable of thinking independently, that on most questions they accept views which they find ready-made, and that they will be equally content if born or coaxed into one set of beliefs or another.  In any society freedom of thought will probably be of direct significance only for a small minority.

I certainly didn't know, and I won't spoil it it by revealing the author, who you can easily identify via teh googly.

And, though I am in full agreement with this quote, considering the author, it does strike me as ranking rather high on the irony scale.

Quote of the Day

Quote of the day, in reference to what is happening in Texas, N. Carolina and sadly many other places where Rethugs are in control of the legislatures:

"We're going back to the dark ages at light speed."
---- My Lovely Wife

What the Hell?!? Friday - Afterlife

In my fantasy of the perfect afterlife, when the Westboro Baptist Church people stand before god to receive their judgment, they're horrified to discover that the one man actually made in god's true image is Nathan Lane.

WTH?!? Friday, Ridiculous Facebook Thingie Edition

This is just too rich

The wonderfully hilarious thing about this is THAT THERE IS NO BIBLICAL DEFINITION OF MARRIAGE!   And - even better - in the Old Testament, a man could have multiple wives.

And isn't the point of the New Testament that it rendered the Old Testament obsolete?  Isn't that changing the laws of God?

But if you think not, then well -- as for those immutable laws - spend a little time with Leviticus and tell me how you feel about that.

Meanwhile, marriage is between one man, one woman, plus possibly her sister, and for sure his brother's widow, should such an opportunity arise.
 
Conservatives have no sense of irony, but I am forever wedded to mine.

What the Hell ?!? Friday - Signage That Speaks for itself Edition

Typical Michigan scene, nabbed from a Friend's FB page.

Libertarian Irony

Ron Paul appeals to the U. N. to get control of the domain name set up by a legion of his loyal followers.

They offer to sell it to him for $250,000.

You can't make this stuff up.

H/T to nanute

ALL IN!

Is it just me, or is this book title now an unfortunate double entendre?

UPDATE:  This takes it to a whole new - and unfortunately, much lower - level.

H/T to nanute. 

Source

Who are the 47%? Follow-up

Follow up to Afferent Input's post.

Ten states that are the highest in income tax non-payers are highlighted in (of all things) RED.

It just gets better and better

Via my former governor.

Quote of the Day

.   .   .   candidates on one side are contesting for the same base and working to outdo themselves in fealty to a narrow agenda.   Once that question is settled, the winning side will have to address the shared problems of the population. Even if the rhetoric doesn't show dramatic change, actions may well speak louder.
--- Dana Blankenhorn

You might think Mr. Blankenhorn is referring to the clown parade posing as the Rethug slate of prezdent wannabes.  But, no - his Seeking Alpha article  talks about a totally different situation on the other side of the world.

The Bizarro world of Rethug politics has a weird, also religioulsly motivated, image in the fun house mirror of radical Islam.

Somehow, I'm not surprised.

Jesus So Loved the Rich

I'm not a religious man, but occasionally I'll attend church service with family members who are considerably less heathen than I.  So it went on Christmas Eve, when the Lutheran pastor made rather a big deal about the baby Jesus.  Well, why not?  Tradition has it that this is his birthday, belief has it that he was God made flesh, and the whole salvation story revolves around this event.

And the circumstances into which Jesus was born are more than just detail and literary setting.  To a large extent, the entire Christian ethic builds on a foundation of the specifics of the birth of Jesus.

That's why it is really import to remember that Jesus, of the royal house of David, was born in the palace of Herod, amidst the wealth, pomp and splendor that befits one of his station.  His mother was surrounded by ladies in waiting.  His father was feasted by the royalty in attendance.  The new-born baby was exulted above all, and celebrated by the population as they welcomed the dawn of a new era.

So that this early message would not be lost, Jesus reinforced the idea of God bestowing his favor on the rich and powerful by all the actions of his adult public life.  These events stand out in particular.

Driving the beggars away from the Temple so that they would not annoy the money-changers, whom Jesus loved above all.

Healing the sick - but only among the elite, who alone were able to afford -or, to be sure, were even worthy of - his ministrations.

Traveling in splendor throughout the countryside, demanding homage from the poor, downtrodden and dispossessed, while seeking the company of and giving wise council and precious gifts to wealthy merchants and powerful politicians.

Demanding compensation in the form of loaves and fishes from the poor, unwashed masses who wished to hear him preach on a mountainside.

Matching word to deed, Jesus frequently reminded us that salvation is for those blessed with money and power, and thus able to buy their way into eternal paradise.  Most telling was his statement that it was easier for a camel to pass through the eye of the needle than for a poor person to get into heaven.

Thus has it ever been: the meek are downtrodden, while the rich inherit the earth.  Who can doubt the wisdom Jesus displayed in his choices of business partners, companions, and life style.

On the other hand, though, I guess it also explains why the common people demanded his death.  Why his rich friends allowed it to happen remains one of the great mysteries of faith.

Quote of the Day - Fourth of July Fireworks

The GOP seems to no longer be the "party of business", but a mad-dog populist gang that is running around chucking sticks of dynamite in all directions.   --   Noah Smith

OK - a dynamite stick isn't exactly the first thing you might think of when "fireworks" is mentioned.  But it does make a big flash and go "BOOM!"

Happy 4th of July, and remember Independence Day has somethin' or other to do with freedom, as we stumble blindly along - at the behest of mad-dog populists -towards corporate serfdom.

And there's more than a touch of irony here, since the independence of the Fed is just one more thing to be blown up.
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What the Hell?!? Friday -- "Unfortunate Choice of Words" Edition

"I'm just putting everyone on notice. A car is not a mobile device," 
--   David Strickland, administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

OK - I know the "mobile" in mobile device and the "mobile" in automobile are pronounced differently, but that's really just a phonetic accident.  First off, a car is definitely mobile.  And a car is most assuredly a device.

In fairness, here are the words that followed:   "I'm not in the business of helping people tweet better. I'm not in the business of helping people post on Facebook better."

And the headline of the article is "NHTSA administrator: Apps must take backseat to auto safety."

So, his basic meaning is that a car is not wireless communication hardware, like an i-Pad or Droid.

But, still . . .
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Quotes of the Day, with a Moment of Political Satire

Deep in my heart, I know the man's on the run, if he's alive at all.

.   .  .

Who knows if he's hiding in some cave or not.

.  .  .

I really just don't spend that much time on him, to be honest with you.

. . .

         ----  Dubya

This is from a press conference, approximately 6 months after 9/11.

Republicans won’t believe Osama bin Laden is dead until they see the long form death certificate….  First we had the birthers…now we’ll have the deathers…
     -----  Ed Shultz on Facebook, about 11:30 pm on 5/1/2011

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Repent and be Saved!

"If you have already repented, please disregard this notice."

Also sprach Kliban, in a cartoon that I unfortunately cannot track down anywhere on-line.  This quip is also variously attributed to George Carlin, and probably others, as well.

This is what repenting looks like.

This pic of a billboard in Connecticut comes from this website, tracked down via images on TEH Googly, but I've seen one just like it in Toledo, my old home town.  It seems there are people who, under the influence of  "a California radio station led by 89-year-old Harold Camping, who initially predicted the world would end in 1994,"  now believe the world will end on 5/21/11.   Check here for updates.  Well, maybe not - I might forget.  Just like Camping's believers have forgotten the 6 years of relative peace and prosperity that followed the world's last use-by date.

OTOH, what followed that was Bush the lesser's terms 1 and 2, and quasi-term 3, currently in progress; so maybe they are on to something.

But not very much.

Many May 21 believers say the Bible contains clues that brook no argument. God tells Noah the world will end in seven days; the Bible also equates a day to 1,000 years. The date of the flood has been set at 4990 B.C., so adding 7,000 years plus one for the missing year "0" produces the year 2011. Translating a biblical reference to a month and day, from the Hebrew calendar to the Gregorian, results in May 21.

"It's no other date. It's only that date," said Michael Garcia, special projects coordinator at Camping's Family Radio enterprise.

The gathering up of saved souls will begin, followed by five months of chaos and tribulation that will serve as a spiritual going-out-of-business sale. It will culminate with the end of the world on Oct. 21.

That is daunting to Anthony Hernandez, a 44-year-old technology worker from Chester Township who runs a monthly Bible study class in his home. Although he devotes himself to proclaiming the message of the May 21 date, he knows that doesn't guarantee his salvation.

"If I find myself here May 22, then I'll be unsaved, because all the believers will be taken," he said. Asked if that scared him, the father of seven answers, "It is scary. I don't know if my children are saved."

Hmmm.  I know that the bible, like the Q'ran and the Kama Sutra, is literal truth, and all that.  But, what if someone made a slight miscalculation?  And doesn't that missing year "0" thang look a bit like a fudged digit?   Look - 1 year out of 7000 is only 0.014%, relative.  Even literal, divine-inspired truth has to have that kind of a margin for error.

Which takes us to 2012!

You know, if the Aztecs and the Bible agree on an earthly expiration date within 0.014%, then you have to suspect something is up.

What I suspect is collusion.  I don't know how they got together on this, back in the day; but - you know - the Lord does move in mysterious ways.

Regardless, I predict a very troubled Anthony Hernandez will still be here on 5/22, which happens to be a Sunday.  So - according to the prediction, Jesus would come down to save his true believers on Saturday.   In Old Testament times, when God put the date stamp on the human race, Saturday was The Sabbath.  Saving the anointed sounds like a bit of servile work, and - if you remember - even God rests on the Sabbath.

The only thing I can conclude is that Camping hasn't thought all this through very well.   I'm leaning towards some random Thursday (I never could get the hang of Thursdays) in 2012, though even by then we'll be nowhere near having maximized entropy.

The thing that troubles me is that if we are supposed to have "five months of chaos and tribulation" before the curtain falls, how in the hell will we recognize it?

(H/T to the LW)

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What the Hell?!? Friday, Pt 2 - Best Headline EVAH! Edition

Seriously.

Truth is SO MUCH better than fiction.

Deputy: Strip Search Finds Crack Between Buttocks

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Bowl Game Theology

My theory that the twin humiliating losses suffered by Michigan and Michigan State in their respective bowl games was the almighty sky-deity punishing us for electing a Republican governor was put to a severe test in last night's Sugar Bowl.  (OK - if you contend that U of M has no business even being in a bowl game, you'll get no argument from me, but -- that State game -- OUCH!)

You see, Ohio also voted in a new Republican governor.  And not just any old Rethug - this is former congressman John Kasich, who spent his years nominally outside of government as a Faux Noise commentator, and from 2001-2008 was "employed by Lehman Brothers, the investment firm whose collapse precipitated the financial system collapse of 2008."   The exploits of job-exporting Rick Snyder pale in comparison.

You'd think that if anything deserves a 52-14 smack-down at the cloven hooves of an SEC opponent, this would be it.   But in the end the Buckeyes managed to cling to a razor(back) thin 31-26 victory.


In attempting to rationalize this outcome, I've come up with two not-mutually-exclusive theories.

1)  The sequence of early success and later dismay, followed by something close to despair and then near-cardiac arrest, watching the Razorbacks bore their way out of a 28-7 trough; coupled with the knowledge that 4 offensive stars plus the unlikely last-minute defensive hero of last night's game face suspension for committing the crime of free-market capitalism was punishment enough.   (Lesson: either graduate or lose academic eligibility first, sell the gold pants later.)

2)  This one to me is more convincing.  Consider the nature of the Arkansas loss - falling less than a touchdown short after a courageous second-half regrouping, with the prospect of a heroic come-from-behind victory tantalizingly dangled before their collective snout, then snatched away Lucy-like as they ultimately fell on their (razor)backs to defeat and disappointment.  

How can this be?  Not only did Ohio elect a particularly vile and heinous Rethug, Arkansas retained its incumbent Democratic Governor, Mike Beebe.  OTOH, they did split the ticket by electing Rethug Mark Darr as lieutenant governor.  But that can't possibly be enough.

Something must be truly rotten in the State of Arkansas to have pissed god off to this extent.  Could it be general corruption,  small town corruption,  police corruption, or public corruption?

We'll probably never know for sure.  The Lord moves in mysterious ways.  Not only did he allow the slaughter of the Arkansas hog, he's klling their birds and fish.
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Quote of the Day - Jesus H. Christ

In comments over at BT's place, bobby, who is "still looking for 'whirled peas'.. ;-)" asks:

I've always wondered.. what does the middle initial 'H' stand for??

Mimus Pauly has the answer.

The "H" stands for Hallmark -- because God cared enough to send the very best.

;-)

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What The Hell?!? Friday - Women of AARP Edition

The Nov - Dec issue of AARP magazine (yes, the actual hard copy edition is sittng on my kitchen table) has these three lovely ladies on the cover.

Betty White - Due to loss of short term memory, her most vivid recollections are of the Harding administration.  So, yeah - makes perfect sense.  (BTW - I have loved impish Betty White since I was a kid, watching her on the old-time LIFE WITH ELIZBETH TV show.  And, no - I am NOT ashamed of myself!)





Jamie Lee Curtis - At 52, Jamie achieved AARP eligibility two years ago, so I guess she can appear on the cover.  I mean, why not?  What's to not like?





Kristen Bell - Excuse me - KRISTEN BELL?  WTH?!?  Kristen Bell is 8 years YOUNGER than my DAUGHTER.  Kristen Bell is a CHILD!.  We're talking Veronica Mars here.



OK - she's 30 -and they're all in a movie together -- but still . . .


Anyway, that last clip DEMANDS an antidote.



Debbie Harry, by the way, is a year and a half OLDER then I am. Yeah!

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