Ugh. (Political)

"White House Releases Letters from Little Kids Pleading for Gun Control"

As usual, a classy move from a classy administration.
That's not cheap or manipulative at all.

Clearly, we're supposed to weep and wail.  "The children!  THE CHILDREN are asking for gun control!  Out of the mouths of babes... or something..."

I won't say that there should be no changes at all, but if people can't see this for what it is-- "never letting a crisis go to waste"-- scurrying to take advantage of raw emotions in the wake of tragedy-- they're just not paying attention.

Personally, I wonder how all these kids heard about the shooting, to begin with... Most young children don't watch or pay attention to the news, and I think that if I were a parent, I'd try to shield a young child from this kind of thing, as much as possible.  What I'm saying is this: I wonder if a single one of those kids wrote his or her letter without being prompted to do so by an adult.   

From the article:  "The White House appears not to have released a single letter to the AP in opposition to President Obama's gun proposal."

Such a Nice Guy.

It's nothing new.  We've known for a while that he has a tendency to be, well, a jerk...



Still, last night was a reminder (if any were needed):



So very... Presidential!

Losers.

(Warning:  Today I am on a grumping rampage.)

Here's the story, and here's the video:


 
Oh yeah, they're really concerned about the children.  I tell you one thing, if one of those kids near that shouting, angry man had been my son or daughter, I would not have been happy, and Mr. Idiot would've heard about it.  I know that if I'd been one of those kids with some big, angry stranger standing right next to me, shouting, I'd have been terrified.  (Ok, I'd still be scared, even as an adult.  Some people are crazy, and you never know what some complete stranger might be capable of doing, so small warning signs like yelling tend to make me nervous.)  Maybe he wasn't directing his comments to the kids, but to the adults behind them, but I doubt all the kids really understood what was going on.

It's disgraceful.

Also, to all those people who are so appalled to see children "used" this way for political purpose, what about this?



Or this?



And remember, the whole reason those kids were singing "God Bless the USA" at this protest was because they were banned from singing it at a graduation ceremony, because some stupid individual was afraid immigrants would be offended. (Never mind that apparently many immigrants with children in the school wanted the song to be sung.)

I'm sick to death of this bizarre idea that we should celebrate the different cultures of the world / multiculturalism in our own country but somehow simultaneously be ashamed of our own culture.  As if expressing pride in one's own country is an insult to everyone else!

You know what?  I'm not especially proud of my country-- or at least our modern, declining culture-- when I see absolute utter crap like this happening.  What's wrong with these people?

On a Darker Note...

This infuriates me, every time I think about it.

I don't understand how the concept of dogs being "unclean" animals ever came to be.  It's just... unfathomable to me.  How can anyone believe that an animal-- a whole species-- is not only categorically "unclean", but even deserves to be tortured?  They believe that dogs were created by their religion's god, correct?  (I assume.  I know little about their religious beliefs.)  Why do at least some of them believe their god would make something so entirely despicable as to deserve such treatment?   It's barbaric-- it's inhuman and inhumane-- it's just downright stupid-- and it fills me with white-hot rage and hatred (sorry, I'm not perfect) for anyone capable of such cruelty.  

Again, I don't know about that religion, but as a Christian, I can't believe that God would smile upon the torture of any animal.  (And there's a big difference between killing and torturing, to explain why I eat meat, use leather, etc.)

That story... It's enough to turn your stomach.

To Be Filed Under "Who Gives a Crap?"

I apologize for being crass, but really, who does think this is a worthy investment?

Your Tax Dollars at Work

Thank goodness we're paying our Fair Share™, 'cause this is important work they're doing with our taxes.  It's a huge relief to know that the federal government is on the cutting edge of such vital research.  Our lives will be infinitely improved by this study, for sure.

"Culturally Backward"?! Excuse Me?

From NewsBusters (with video):

"Chris Matthews determined that Democratic Congressman Anthony Weiner could be in danger of being forced out of Congress by Blue Dog Dems who face uphill battles in red states because, as he put it, 'people in the rural areas of this country who are Christian conservative culturally - you can say backward if you want...don't like this kind of stuff.'

...Yeah, because it's so "backward" to believe that a married man should be faithful-- in thought and deed-- to his wife. (Weiner's outright lies-- before he decided he had no choice but to confess and apologize-- when he was "caught" were a classy, oh-so-admirable move, too, for those who would argue that his personal life shouldn't have any effect on his political life.)  But what can you expect from Chris Matthews?  Every time you turn around, he's saying something like this.

ETA:  Wow.  I haven't paid much attention to Weiner before the recent scandal, but apparently the guy is not only a liar and a cheater, but also an incredible jerk.  He's the kind of person you feel you could cheerfully strangle (especially after watching that collection of clips).  But, hey, other than that, he seems like a really nice guy.  No wonder so many women have found him so enthralling.  (Gag.)

Pet Peeve of the Day

The Pet Peeve of the Day is a doozy, and I have to warn you, if you're eating breakfast, second breakfast, fika, lunch, dinner, supper, high tea, low tea, elevenses, or what-have-you, or if you have a weak stomach, you may not wish to read further.  ;o)

Basically, it's this-- people who think that watching someone vomit is hi-lar-ious and-- furthermore, because honestly, I don't mind if they sit guffawing at it all day long-- insist on inflicting it upon others.  They do this sometimes on AFV (the "funniest home videos" program), for instance, and in some movies.  Most TV programs I watch have the decency to at least provide the buffer of a waste basket, but the sound and mental image is bad enough.  Look, I felt a little queasy just seeing that hideous spot left on Don Draper's shirt after he tossed his cookies.  ~shudder~  (Considering how often the character drinks to excess, I have a feeling this may have happened more than once, so just choose your favorite instance.) 

Then there are people who use-- as their avatars-- animated gifs of someone vomiting.  I don't care if it's real or not-- why would I ever want to see it once-- much less over and OVER again in a loop?  It's horrifying, and it has to stop.  (Well, ok.  It doesn't have to, and I'm sure it won't, but I certainly wish it would.)

...This has been the Pet Peeve of the Day. 
And no, I don't intend to make this a regular feature of the blog.  You can thank me later. ;o)

Oh, Puh-lease.

I can't find a decent image of the Photoshopped "Obama ♥ Reagan" TIME cover, but you can find a small version of it here (or here).

Ugh.

Yeah, Obama just looooves him some Reagan.
It's so obvious in everything he says and does!

Political Post Re: the Wonderful Possible Tax Increase

Don't say I didn't warn you.  ;o)

These three tweets from Jamie Dupree last night elicited my finest grade of disgusted "ugh".  (Those unfamiliar with Twitter-- yes, there are still a few of them out there ;o)-- the older the tweet is, the further down the list it is... so read from bottom up.):

You can read about the subject at greater length here.

Wasn't that sweet of the (Democrat-dominated) Senate?  Gosh, I just love those guys!

Al Gore: God's Gift to Mankind (?)

From Vanity Fair, this gem:

Al Gore: The Poet Laureate of Climate Change (by Mark Hertsgaard)

You can read the entire article, of course, but the gist of it is that in his new book, Our Choice, Al Gore includes a poem of his own writing-- "21 lines of verse that are equal parts beautiful, evocative, and disturbing".

Apparently, Gore wanted his book to contain one more chapter-- one detailing "the impacts of climate change"-- but his editor refused, intent on keeping the focus on "solutions, not gloom and doom".

(*gasp*  No!  Say it ain't so!)

If you're anything like me, you'll be thrilled to read that, "undeterred by his editor’s ruling, Gore re-imagined his impacts chapter in poetic form."

(*whistling, cheering, clapping*)

More snippets from the article:

The result is a surprisingly accomplished, nuanced piece of writing. The images Gore conjures in his (untitled) poem turn a neat trick: they are visually specific and emotionally arresting even as they are scientifically accurate.

. . .

It’s usually a mistake to read too much literal meaning into poetry. But the final lines of Gore’s poem certainly apply to the governments that will gather in Copenhagen from December 7 to 18 for what is regarded as humanity’s last chance to avert absolutely catastrophic climate change.

. . .

. . .the hour of choosing has indeed arrived and, as documented in Our Choice, we do have the tools to survive—if we choose to employ them.

Well, after such high praise, surely you must be eager to read the magnificent poem.

Unfortunately (?), the article only shares fourteen of the twenty-one lines of sheer brilliance:

One thin September soon
A floating continent disappears
In midnight sun

Vapors rise as
Fever settles on an acid sea

. . .


Snow glides from the mountain
Ice fathers floods for a season
A hard rain comes quickly

Then dirt is parched
Kindling is placed in the forest
For the lightning’s celebration

. . .


The shepherd cries
The hour of choosing has arrived
Here are your tools

Ugh.  What a total gag-fest.

And if Al Gore's a poet, I must be a brilliant nuclear physicist.  (Which I'm most decidedly not, I assure you.)

Incredible (and Worrying) Video

Just saw this on Michelle Malkin's site:

Edit: The video has been removed. It's probably available elsewhere, but I'm too lazy-- er, busy to hunt it up. Basically, it showed a class of elementary school students rapping/singing about how wonderful "mm mm mm, Barack Hussein Obama" is. Part of it was set to the tune of "The Battle Hymn of the Republic", and one line was "borrowed" from the classic Sunday School song, "Jesus Loves the Little Children", with Obama substituted for Jesus.

If this happened in my (nonexistent) child's class, the teacher, principal, school board, superintendent, and so on would be getting an earful, the first I heard of it. (Plus I'd probably move him/her into another class... or a different school... or begin homeschooling.)

It's enough to make you feel physically ill.

Update:
Michelle Malkin writes today about the origins of the video.

The person filming the rap/song is someone named Charisse Carney-Nunes, and the auditorium has also been identified-- B. Bernice Young Elementary School in Burlington Township, NJ. (Yeah, I somehow figured it wasn't anywhere local. (g))

Charisse Carney-Nunes, "a graduate of Harvard Law School, where she was a schoolmate f President Obama", is the author of a 2009 book titled I Am Barack Obama, and there's a copy of it on an easel at the left-hand edge of the video.

. . . Still waiting to hear who "okayed" this charming (and oh-so-educational) event, and whether or not the parents of the children involved were aware of how their sons and daughters were spending the day.

Politics Again... (I know, I know...)

But I'll be brief this time. ;o)

Isn't it funny how Barney Frank can scarcely keep his composure in this "battle" with a lowly college student? Isn't it good to know that he's helping to make the big decisions in D.C.? What a joke! I particularly love his statement that "labels are important". (Hm. Back in school, some liberal professors were quite vehement that "labeling" someone was terribly wrong. I guess it depends on who's being labeled.)

Link:

That man makes me sick to my stomach. (No, I mean I literally get a stomachache from listening to him.)

Also: I know it's not nice to make fun of traits that people can't help, but in this case, I'll make an exception. When I first heard this guy speak, I could barely believe it wasn't a strange joke. Just the sound of his voice would be enough to make me feel ill, everything else aside. *shudder*

It's perfectly clear. . .

I can see right away that this is going to be an agonizing election year. I don't dare look too far into the future, because the "good" result isn't very promising-- and the "bad" result is terrifying.

If you have the stomach for it, you might like to read about how many "spiritually advanced people" have determined that Obama is an enlightened being. (It's funny. I've always thought he looks like a regular flesh-and-blood man, but I must have been mistaken.) If you can't be bothered to click, here's a taste:

"Many spiritually advanced people I know (not coweringly religious, mind you, but deeply spiritual) identify Obama as a Lightworker, that rare kind of attuned being who has the ability to lead us not merely to new foreign policies or health care plans or whatnot, but who can actually help usher in a new way of being on the planet, of relating and connecting and engaging with this bizarre earthly experiment. These kinds of people actually help us evolve. They are philosophers and peacemakers of a very high order, and they speak not just to reason or emotion, but to the soul."

Feeling queasy? You're not alone.

(I particularly loved the part where the author insinuates that if you're not overwhelmed by the godlike Obama, you must be a "scowler" or a "miserable, deeply depressed Republican". Ugh.)

And while I'm on this subject, have you heard about this (taken from this Politico article)?

Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-Ill.), son of the one-time presidential contender, said Obama’s victory overwhelmed him.

“I cried all night. I’m going to be crying for the next four years,” he said. “What Barack Obama has accomplished is the single most extraordinary event that has occurred in the 232 years of the nation’s political history. ... The event itself is so extraordinary that another chapter could be added to the Bible to chronicle its significance.”

I don't think any commentary on that is necessary. (g)

~~shudder~~

While refilling the dogs' food bowl (outside, on the back porch), I just found a black widow, lying belly-up not far from the bowl. I don't know if it was dying or just stunned by the cool weather, but it wasn't completely dead yet, as I discovered when I was trying to slide a piece of paper under it. (As for why I would so such a thing-- I wanted a closer look at it, but of course dogs always have to be right under your nose, and I didn't want them seeing it and nosing it-- or accidentally stepping on it.)

Anyway, at the first sign of motion I panicked and squashed it, so it's certainly dead now-- but I have to wonder if there are more (or an egg sac) in some nook or cranny of the porch. I guess I need to go spider hunting. Always lots of fun. ;o)