I don’t know about you, but when I woke up to discover that we’re having a refugee problem with Australia, it made my brain hurt for a bit. I mean, I know they’ve got this cane toad problem, and some of the most poisonous nasty creatures on earth live there — I mean, spiders and snakes, sure, but a snail? A deadly stinging tree? Gina Rinehart, for God’s sake?! — but that’s no reason to flee the country. Or maybe it is; I don’t know. I’ve never met the woman. (more…)
“You just can’t talk to some people!”
The number of times I’ve heard this before — it’s mindblowing. And for the most part, it’s not true. What is true is that there are some people out there who can never persuade certain other people.
Sometimes they just don’t like each other; whether it’s a class thing, or race, or gender, or what have you. Other times, people just (more…)
Warning: Not for the sensitive. Stop reading right now if you’re not a jaded cynic; there’s no shame in it.
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’re aware of the chaos caused by the recent seven-country immigration ban. Of particular interest to those pillars of rectitude, the unbiased press, was a picture of a five-year-old in handcuffs. Which, while indeed horrific, was only one of many stories told about the events (more…)
After 283 days, on January 3, 2017, Merrick Garland’s nomination for appointment to the United States Supreme Court expired, as the Senate refused even to consider his candidacy.
Despite persistent claims, this was not entirely unprecedented. However, it was indeed an undeniable abuse of partisan political power by one of the few individuals in history capable of getting away with it, Senator Mitch McConnell. That action revealed a dangerous weakness (more…)
I owe an explanation to my loyal readers: I’m not going Democrat or Republican, and I’m not suddenly anti-Trump any more than I am anti-Clinton.
The reason I’m here, saying the things I’m saying, is that nobody else seems to be doing it. CNN and Fox News have stopped reporting what is and are each now spinning absurd fictions — not, I think, because they want to sway our opinions, but because they honestly can’t come to grips with the actual truth long enough to put it into words.
And the horrifying truth is, we’re all terrified and angry and disgusted because President Donald Trump is keeping his campaign promises (more…)
It is now required that every new government regulation will require two to be marked for removal.
This is intended to reduce government bureaucracy and interference in existing systems. In principle, it’s perhaps a good thing; we do, after all, have far too many laws and regulations on the books. But in practice, this will be disastrous — which is why it’s never been successfully done before. (more…)
“I Hate This Place”
-Spider Jerusalem
“All government, in its essence, is a conspiracy… One of its primary functions is to regiment men by force, to make them as much alike as possible and as dependent upon one another as possible, to search out and combat originality among them. All it can see in an original idea is potential change, and hence an invasion of its prerogatives.
The most dangerous man to any government is the man who is able to think things out for himself, without regard to the prevailing superstitions and taboos. Almost inevitably he comes to the conclusion that the government he lives under is dishonest, insane and intolerable…”
-H.L. Mencken, “The Smart Set” (more…)
Let me tell you a story.
Once upon a time, there was a candidate for president who was doing daily interviews and talk shows, doing his level best to get his message out and to snag any publicity he could manage. His numbers were rising after a long slump, and he’d just gotten some good press from an over-the-top (more…)
It’s been half a week since the Inauguration, and I for one am finding it hard to keep up. Eventually, I hope to post an ongoing log of executive actions, signed bills, and other notable events, but for right now it’s still one by one, dealing with the most important things first.
And this is pretty important.
So it looks like the DAPL review is going forward at speed, and Keystone XL is semi-authorized. That’s thanks to three executive actions yesterday. They are three distinct (more…)
One of the dangers we presently face is that, with now-President Trump doing or saying something outrageous every couple of days, we’re likely to lose track of the national dialogue on policy. To resist that trend, let’s discuss something other than what’s happening right now but instead might happen soon.
The perennial Republican talking point on food stamps (actually SNAP these days) is that there’s widespread abuse. To be fair, this is what their constituents want; vast numbers of calls and letters show up in their offices every single day complaining about this person who was buying junk food at a convenience (more…)
The Not Fake News 
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