The latest "scandal" in the "climategate" saga is a carefully orchestrated release of another batch of stolen emails. And once again, the conservative media are eating it up ... just like the fossil-fuel industry knew they would.
But here's something you may not know: the key scientists who are spreading FUD (fear, uncertainty and doubt) about global warming were also behind the Tobacco industry's campaign to deny that cigarettes cause cancer! Seriously.
Not only that, but this same small group of scientists defended the use of DDT, denied the dangers of acid rain, and claimed there was no ozone depletion.
In other words, a small group of scientists have been the main force behind every major anti-science campaign in the last few decades. Does that sound like whacko conspiracy theory? It's not.
I just finished reading a truly great book, Merchants of Doubt. The subtitle says it all: How a Handful of Scientists Obscured the Truth on Issues from Tobacco Smoke to Global Warming. Authors Naomi Oreskes and Erik Conway present a
Everyone is laughing at Rick Perry for his latest gaffe: He told students in New Hampshire that if they were over 21, they should vote for him! They're saying Perry doesn't know that the voting age in the United States is eighteen.
I have news for you ... that's all backwards. It's the drinking age that matters. Perry must know that only drunks and fools will vote for him. It just slipped out in a weak moment.
Cut him some slack, folks! He just mixed up the drinking age with the voting age.
What ever happened to honest conservatives? You know, the ones that believed in minimal government, states rights and individual freedom?
It seems they're turning those tasks over to the liberals. When it comes to abortion, marriage, gay rights and religion, the Republicans are showing their true colors: the conservatives are one hundred percent in favor of taking away individual liberties and states' rights.
CBN (the Christian Broadcasting Network) got an exclusive interview with Herman Cain that perfectly illustrates how Republicans are advocating a federal takeover.
"Yes I feel that strongly about [a pro-life Constitutional amendment banning abortion]. If we can get the necessary support and it comes to my desk I’ll sign it. That’s all I can do. I will sign it. ... I think marriage should be protected at the federal level also. I used to believe that it could be just handled by the states but there’s a movement going on to basically take the teeth out of the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act ... we do need some protection at the federal level ... I would support legislation that would say that it’s between a man and a woman.
I just don't get how Republicans can talk out of both sides of their mouths with such ease. One minute
It seems that America's conservatives (who like to claim the moral high ground) like a good sex show as much as their Democratic opponents. But Republicans have more money! Unlike their Democratic counterparts, the Republicans can actually afford a good lap dance ... or more.
The strip clubs are expecting a huge surge in attendance and have created special private rooms and private entrances for their conservative guests, who have to fly under the radar when
OK everybody, I know you're incredulous at Texas Governor Rick Perry's idiotic pronouncements. But STFU! It's a secret! If we can just keep quiet and let Perry win the Republican nomination, the 2012 election will be ours!
Maybe when pigs fly. This kind of stuff scares even moderate Republicans. But don't tell the Tea Party! The evangelical right has hijacked the Republican party, and they're totally drunk on their success. They've become blind to Perry's hypocrisy and anti-science views. They're elated! They honestly think they can drag the entire country from the twenty first century back into the dark ages.
But they're going to have a really hard time getting Perry elected. The Governor of Texas doesn't even know what's going on in his own state! He recently claimed:
Remember how when you were young, there was always that one nerdy kid in the class that nobody really liked? Nobody wanted to go to his birthday party. But you and maybe one other kid felt bad for him so you went. Or maybe your mom made you go. He was so glad and thankful that somebody showed up that it was embarrassing. All you wanted was to get out of there.
Governor Rick Perry held his big prayer party (the "Response") on Saturday, and sadly, only one of his invited guests showed up. Oh sure, they had a whole bunch of evangelical Christians there, praying and singing. But Perry invited all forty-nine state governors to come pray with him, and only one showed up (Kansas Governor Sam Brownback). Just one. Just like that kid in elementary school.
Governor Perry and his supporters are trying to paint "The Response" as a big success. They had 20,000 to 30,000 evangelicals in attendance. They had people all over
Bill Maher's latest video pretty much nails Bachmann and Palin. Why don't liberals like Bachmann and Palin? "Because they're crazy people!" And that's just the beginning. As with most of Maher's videos, it's NSFW (not safe for work).
I think I would have skipped the "boobs" remark, but basically he says what everyone is thinking. These two presidential candidates are grossly and obviously unqualified for the job.
I particularly like his analysis of Bachmann's husband's role: we'd have a president (the one we elected) who believes God told her to follow her husband's orders. So who is the real president? This is a man who is homophobic and runs a faux clinic that purports to "cure" homosexuals. And according to news reports, he's been caught lying about it to government officials about his business. So we'd have an unelected man who is a liar and a homophobe running the country.
Why aren't conservatives embarrassed by this? Why is Bachmann getting any attention at all? She has more baggage than a moving truck.
For at least a century thoughtful people have supported the movement to slow the world's population growth to sustainable levels. It doesn't take a PhD in demographics or mathematics to realize that the population explosion, if left unchecked, will be the worst catastrophe to ever hit the Earth.
If we keep having babies at the current rate, we'll be shoulder-to-shoulder covering the entire Earth, oceans and all, in well under 800 years!
"If you [are an atheist], then you think that humans really need to control their fertility and population growth. ... But if you know that there is a God, who knows what He’s doing when He sends babies into the world, then you know not to worry about overpopulation. Those atheists live in a scary world. Without God, the scary stories of overpopulation make perfect sense. Only a knowledge of God can help us see that we don’t need to worry about it, just trust God.
This is lunacy. What this writer is saying is that logic and science prove
Pastor Terry Jones, the Koran-burning Baptist preacher, presents a real challenge to America. Is our right to free speech absolute, or are there limits? Is he to blame for several dozen deaths from riots that his actions caused, or are Muslim rioters entirely to blame?
If you know that exercising your constitutional rights will cause the death of innocents, should you do it anyway? When are our constitutional rights more important than human life?
These are not easy questions, and anyone who thinks there are black-and-white answers has his head in the sand.
Let's get the man himself out of the way: pretty much everyone agrees that Pastor Terry Jones is a complete jerk. Even those who defend his right to free speech think he's an ass. He's also a creepy old man, fixated on the bathroom and bathing habits of his students. But in America we're all equal in the eyes of the law, so we'll put our dislike for the man himself aside.
The real challenges to freedom and democracy don't come from easy cases. When terrorists fly an airplane into a building there are no
Would you be surprised to learn that the Tea Party isn't actually a good cross section of America? That in fact they're mostly a sock puppet for Evangelical Christian politicians?
The Tea Party likes to pretend that it's a grass roots salt-of-the-earth organization made up of average Americans who are sick of big government and taxes. They want to pretend that they represent black, white and brown, male and female, young and old.
But the facts are otherwise. The Tea Party is actually a stronghold
Did you know that God hates unions? Wow, I sure didn't. But thanks to Wisconsin's Governor Walker, I've been enlightened. God hates unions, and He wants Gov. Walker to chase them out of the state!
OK, that's a bit of an extrapolation from what Walker actually said in public. But it's probably not an exaggeration. Walker claims that God talks to him and tells him what to do. And we're not talking about some vague "I feel his guidance" thing. We're talking about real voices in his head.
If it weren't for the God Exemption for sanity, Gov. Scott Walker would be classified as mentally ill. He actually believes that God talks to him on a daily basis. He hears God's voice. Walker actually believes that God told him whom to marry, what jobs to take, and even dictated his political career. Walker prays to God about every decision, and God answers by telling him what to do.
Which is why it's clear that God hates unions, and God wants Scott Walker to chase them out of Wisconsin!
This is scary stuff. How can the rest of us argue with a guy who actually believes that he is doing God's bidding? How can a person like that
Apparently Romanian officials decided that fortune tellers, palm readers, astrologers and witches should pay income tax like everyone else. That's when the excrement hit the proverbial fan ... or in this case, the cat excrement and dead dogs hit the cauldron. The witches don't think they should have to pay taxes, and they're fighting back by casting evil spells on the politicians.
You might think this would give the politicians a good laugh, but no. According to the AP article, Romania is a country where "the president and his aides wear purple on Thursdays, allegedly to ward off evil spirits."
We'll be keeping a close eye on this story to see how many Romanian politicians succumb to these spells!
(To my faithful readers: I'm taking a bit of a break for a few days, so have fun with this short article. I'll be back in full swing next week – see you then!)
Reports are coming in about an atheist blogger in the Palestinian West Bank who was caught in a sting via Facebook and now faces the death penalty. It seems the best he can hope for is life imprisonment. Even members of his family say so.
This should completely dispel any doubts anyone might have about the importance of America's strong separation of church and state. The fact that in the year 2010 there are still people being put to death for their religious beliefs should be repugnant to every civilized human, regardless of faith.
But that's what happens when you mix government and religion. History proves it. Down through the ages, whenever the two mix you'll find that the zealots eventually get into power and persecute everyone who doesn't agree with their views. Not just their religion, but their particular sect. Without strong legal limits on religious coercion (such as in the UK) or an outright separation (like our Constitution), it seems inevitable. Is there even one place in the world that has religious tolerance and religious leaders who are superior to the elected leaders?
I hope the civilized people of the world, whether Christian, Jewish,
Ted Nugent is the poster child for why evangelical Christianity is the enemy of the American Constitution and why mainstream Christians, Jews and Muslims should join secularists and atheists to defend and honor the separation of church and state clause of our Constitution.
CNN was on the TV this weekend, and I happened to walk by as they were showing live coverage of Ted Nugent's rally for Republican Senate candidate John Raese in Charleston, West Virginia. Mostly it was the usual conservative Tea Bagger exhortations, but then he said this:
"It's not good versus bad ... it's good versus evil.
This sends a chill up my spine.
Any living, healthy, thriving society is full of strong opinions and dissent, and part of that dialog must include respect for those who disagree with you. I might argue vehemently that the Republican platform is wrong and will lead to catastrophe. They might counter that my politics will lead to socialism and a big-brother state. But as long as we keep arguing, we'll be OK. We'll rant and rail at each other, but somewhere in all the smoke and noise, we always manage to find a middle path that works.
But when Ted Nugent claims that God is on his side,
Congratulations to Alaskan senatorial candidate Joe Miller on his nomination to the Hypocrites Club.
Rachel Maddow of MSNBC managed to get a great interview. There's a lot of good stuff in the interview, but here's what jumped out at me:
Gay marriage is a states-rights issue that should be decided locally. "The fact of the matter is, it's a state issue."
But wait ... Miller also says, "There's the Defense of Marriage Act, which I support."
Got that? It's a states rights issue, but Miller will take away that right if he can.
Miller uses taxation, as his excuse. "As a consequence of the taxation structure [of] the federal government, there clearly is a role" for the federal government. This is quite amazing, double hypocrisy if you will, since taxes are like poison to Republicans and Tea Baggers.
So which is it Joe? Aren't Republicans all about limited government? Aren't states' rights part
I finally figured the Tea Baggers out. The problem isn't that Tea Baggers are wrong or stupid. They're not an evil mob hell-bent on returning us to the dark ages, even though that's exactly what their agenda would achieve.
No, the problem is the internet and cable TV, which have allowed them to build a new reality, a different reality than the one in which the rest of us reside. They live in one world, we live in another. Unfortunately, our two worlds occupy the same physical space.
We used to interact with our neighbors. We went to a few churches and schools, shopped at our local stores, and maybe joined a club or took dancing lessons. We had to rub shoulders with our neighbors, many of whom had political views quite different from our own. We were immersed in the diverse mainstream political culture. It was unavoidable.
On top of that, our TV and radio stations numbered just a few, and they were required by law to provide access to all viewpoints. Our newspapers might be liberal or conservative, but they never were radical.
In other words, we couldn't avoid hearing our neighbors' viewpoints.
But in a weird twist of irony, the information age has spawned a new new cultural phenomenon: deliberate ignorance. Instead of two or three TV stations and one newspaper, now we can select from hundreds of sources for our information. Why is that bad? Because we can listen only to what we want to hear. We can choose to be ignorant of other views. We can find a news station, a web site, and an online group of friends who will do nothing but reinforce and even amplify our world views.
It doesn't matter how nutty, outrageous or even factually wrong our views are, we can find a dozen web sites of self-congratulatory friends who will supply us with "facts" to strengthen our position and with moral support to make us feel good about ourselves. Worse, we can avoid encountering anyone who might have a different view of the world.
The internet and information age were supposed to bring the world together,
Syc.o.phant – a self-seeking, servile flatterer; fawning parasite (From dictionary.com)
I wrote off Sarah Palin the quitter, and decided she wasn't worth writing about ... but that speech at the Tea Party Convention was just too much to resist. What a circus of sycophants!
My favorite line from Palin's speech at the Tea Party convention: When asked what she'd do to improve national security, a key point in her strategic plan was to "pray for divine intervention." Seriously! She actually believes that asking for magical intervention from God should be part of our military and diplomatic strategy. If she is ever elected, we'll need some magic, that's for sure.
If Palin's fate as a non-candidate wasn't sealed before, it is now. The Republican old-boys network was really mad when she quit as governor of Alaska. They've been shunning her ever since as a viable political candidate. That's not to say they don't use her crowd-pleasing power and sexual attractiveness to pull in the votes and further their own agenda. But to the real power behind the Republican machinery, she's just a tool to be used as long as it keeps its shine, then discarded.
So, where does someone like Sarah Palin go? She's drawn, like a moth to a candle, to whoever will adore her, and now it's the Tea Party. They're the people who think in simple platitudes, the ones who dragged the Republican Party so far to the right that they lost the Presidency, the Senate, and the House, all in one vote. The Republican leadership, reeling from this disaster, is trying to get back to a more reasonable centrist platform. These Tea Baggers (didn't they even bother to learn what this means in modern slang?) started feeling ignored, so they're forming their own political party.
That's unforgivable to a mainstream political party. There's nothing worse in an election than having a third-party candidate split the vote. It's political suicide. Palin shot herself in the political head when she quit her job as governor of Alaska, now she's put another bullet through her political heart. She'll never be a Republican presidential candidate.
I guess it all makes sense. Simplistic politics, and a sexy bimbo to head your party. Why didn't I think of that?
Political persecution is an awful thing, a sign of a corrupt government that can't stand on its own two feet, and has to kill or torture its critics rather than foster democracy. That's why the United States, and all civilized democracies, have a long and honorable tradition of granting asylum to victims of persecution.
It seems that in Tennessee, teaching science also qualifies, along side torture and murder, and the German Government is guilty of this awful crime!
A German family was granted political asylum in the United States, justified because of political "persecution" by the German government. This persecution consisted of nothing more than the government teaching science and history, things that every child should know.
It's a double insult: the asylum process, which was designed to foster open democracies, dialog and to spread knowledge, is now being used to prevent children from learning. How sad.
This is a recurring theme in conservative religions. People who believe in impossible things, like creationism, have to shun honest dialog and real knowledge, because with real knowledge, their beliefs don't hold up. Again and again, I find myself writing on this topic, but it seems to be a never-ending story. In Saudi Arabia, a university is censored. In Texas (and many other states), Christians try to suppress real science. And fundamentalists actively claim that rational thinking is misguided.
This German family has fallen victim to one of religions oldest memes, which teaches its victims to shun learning. It's ironic, that religions are, in a sense, doing the same thing as corrupt governments: They stifle dissent, and block real learning.
The Tennessee judge who granted asylum to these Germans is almost certainly a fundamentalist Christian, and has mixed his religion with the law. I hope his decision is appealed and overturned. It sets a dangerous precedent for American science, and trivializes the whole idea of political asylum, which should be reserved for real political dissidents who are in genuine danger.
Fox "News" just announced they've signed Sarah Palin to join their crew of conservative news commentators. Good! Maybe that will get her out of politics ... forever.
But here's the part I don't get: "According to the multi-year deal, Palin will offer political commentary and analysis..." Wait a second. Analysis? Doesn't analysis require a brain? Hey Fox, I think you've made a mistake here.
But seriously, I am really concerned about this news. I was hoping that Sarah Palin would be a strong presidential candidate for the 2012 election, win the Republican nomination, and then go down in flames against Obama. But if she's going to be on Fox every day, she's going to make so many dumb and offensive remarks that she'll become unelectable.
The Republican leaders, those back-room guys who make the real decisions, aren't dummies. They want Sarah Palin to stir up the masses and rally the troops, but they would never let a loose cannon like her head their party. They'll use her while it suits them, but toss her aside when it comes to anything important.
That's too bad, because if she became the 2012 Republican candidate, it would have ensured Obama's reelection. Instead, the Republicans may find a strong centrist, then use Palin to calm down the angry right-wingers and bring them to the polls.
Maybe that's why Fox hired her – to ensure that she's unelectable. It's a great strategy. Those guys aren't dummies. In fact, I wouldn't be at all surprised to find that the guys running the Republican Party and the guys running Fox are the same guys.
I'm sorry, but I have to ask you to take me off of your mailing list. While I respect family, and enjoy a lively discussion, your recent emails are too much.
I put up with any number of times when you called my beliefs "unAmerican" or "unpatriotic." But this latest disrespectful video propaganda, which accuses the duly elected President of the United States of being a Muslim and traitor, goes beyond civilized discussion. It's hate speech, it's unpatriotic and disrespectful to both the President himself and the office of President, and it shows a remarkable ignorance of the plain facts.
It's sad that American conservatives have stooped to this low form of dialog. Rather than discussing policy, conservatives use character assassination. Rather than bipartisanship, conservatives have become obstructionists, even at the cost of hurting the American people. At every turn, conservatives are blocking progress, shouting "The sky is falling!", and throwing mud on everyone in sight.
Never forget, Jim, that every single problem that Obama is trying to fix was created by a Republican President. Two unfunded wars that will force huge increases in taxes, attacking Iraq while ignoring the nuclear programs in North Korea, Iran and Pakistan, letting the Talilban slip away from Afghanistan because Bush's oil friends needed Iraq ... the list goes on and on.
And since it was the "He's a Muslim" video that finally prompted me to write this letter, let's talk about that.
First, what if Obama is Muslim? All of those things he says in the video excerpts about the accomplishments of Islam and Muslims are true. Maybe you didn't read your history, but I did. The Muslims did, in fact, preserve much of civilization's knowledge through the Middle Ages, when the Christians were trying to snuff it out. The Dark Ages were a Christian creation. Algebra was invented by Muslims. Astronomy, philosophy, medicine ... Islamic scholars were way ahead of Christians during the Middle Ages. And all those other compliments Obama paid to Muslim history, they're actually true.
Why is that so hard for you to accept?
Second, where do you get the idea that the President can only be a Christian? Every American has the right to be part of our government, it's right there in the Constitution. If you were in the United States Navy, didn't you swear to defend that very same Constitution? Didn't you ever learn what's in the Constitution?
Third, I find it very ironic that while some conservatives accuse Obama of being Muslim, others accuse him of being an Atheist. Which is it? He can't be both, but I guess to a evangelical Christian, Muslims and Atheists are about the same. Still, it would be nice if you guys could coordinate your fabricated stories.
And finally, Obama is, in fact, a Christian. If you'd taken the time to watch the original videos of Obama's speeches, as I did, you'd see that he never once claimed to be Muslim. That hack piece of video propaganda you sent cut him off in mid-sentence many times, a stupid propaganda trick that any fool can see through. It's just plain dishonest.
I know you're sincere in your love for America, and I want you to know that I am too. But I consider your emails to be unAmerican. To be a true American, you have to accept that this is the land of freedom, the land where we respect one another's beliefs, and the land where our President is everyone's President. I didn't like George W. Bush, but I never once accused him of being unpatriotic, nor did I ever disrespect the office of the President. Obama was elected in an honest and fair election. Your side lost. Have some respect for your fellow Americans and take the loss gracefully.
When you sent that video, you wrote, "If you do not like this, don't let me know because it will cause me to question your patriotism to the United States of America and as a US Navy Veteran, that offends me more than you will ever know." Well, too bad, Jim. It goes both ways. Your right-wing unAmerican propaganda offends me more than you will ever understand. Family harmony has kept me silent, but no more.
I enjoyed some of the stuff you sent, especially good, fun jokes and stories. But I just can't ignore your intolerance and hate mail any more. So I hope you'll remove me from your mailing list. Thanks.
Your cousin, Craig
P.S. By the way, you were wrong about this picture, too. You called our President a "PIECE OF ANIMAL EXCREMENT" because he was being disrespectful to the veterans by not saluting. In fact, the President is not supposed to salute. He's a civilian, and only those in the armed forces are supposed to salute. The man with his hand over his heart was the one making the mistake, that gesture is for the Pledge. In fact, Obama is showing his respect correctly, by standing and bowing his head, as all civilians should. The President may be the Commander in Chief, but he is not in the military. That's one of the most unique things about our country, that our armed forces are headed by a civilian. So please don't call your President "ANIMAL EXCREMENT" when you haven't even checked the facts. Something smells like excrement here, but it's not the President.
The latest "scandal" in the "climategate" saga is a carefully orchestrated release of another batch of stolen emails. And once again, the conservative media are eating it up ... just like the fossil-fuel industry knew they would.
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