Dumbass Politician from Oklahoma Throws Snowball on the Senate Floor in an Effort to Prove That Climate Change Is a Hoax (VIDEOS)

Posted on February 27, 2015 by Elaine Magliaro
Sen. James Inhofe R-Oklahoma

Sen. James Inhofe
R-Oklahoma

By Elaine Magliaro

In January, climate change denier Senator James Inhofe (R-Oklahoma) officially took the gavel as chairman of the Senate’s Environment Committee. Later in the day, “he took the Senate floor for a long speech about how human-caused climate change is fake.”

Emily Atkin (ThinkProgress):

In sum, the speech has everything. References to the oft-debunked “ClimateGate” stolen e-mail “scandal”, a poster of a Time Magazine cover from 1974 claiming an ice age is coming, and multiple references to former Vice President Al Gore. It has a mention of a survey of weather-casters who think global warming is caused by natural variation, but does not mention that weather-casters are not climate scientists. It even includes the claim that the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change “started” the whole idea that climate change is happening, even though the idea was conceived about 200 years ago.

Inhofe was back at it again this week–trying to debunk the fact that climate change is real by throwing a snowball on the Senate floor.

Philip Bump (Washington Post) sarcastically claimed that Inhofe had, “once and for all, disproven climate change.” Bump wrote, “While ‘eggheads’ at ‘science laboratories’ were busy worrying about how the increase in heat-trapping gases in the atmosphere was leading to a long-term upward shift in temperatures and increased atmospheric moisture, Inhofe happened to notice that it was cold outside. Weirdly cold outside. So cold, in fact, that water falling from the sky had frozen solid.” Bump added, “So he brought some of this frozen water into the Capitol and onto the Senate floor to show everyone, but mostly to show the eggheads.”

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Posted in Climate Change Deniers, Climatology, Conservatives, Countries, Denialism, Energy Policy, Government, Government Propaganda, Humor, Logic, Media, Politics, Propaganda, Science, Short Video, United States | Tagged , , , , , , | 16 Comments

Live Long and Prosper: R.I.P Leonard Nimoy

Posted on February 27, 2015 by Gene Howington
(c) NBC Television Used w/o permission.

(c) NBC Television
Used w/o permission.

by Gene Howington

It is strange how we as humans can effect one another across time and space through the medium of art. Truly spooky action at a distance. If you are of a certain age and a certain bent of mind, you grew up surrounded by (hopefully) your family and the extended family that is the cast of the original Star Trek series. However, everything that has a beginning has an end. Today, February 27, 2015, the path of Leonard Nimoy came to an end. He was a talented actor, writer, poet, director and photographer. Nimoy also turned in memorable performances as Dr. David Kibner in the 1978 remake of Invasion of the Body Snatchers and the recurring part of William Bell on the series Fringe. He was 83 when he died from complications of end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

As a child, I learned a lot from Nimoy’s portrayal of Spock. The power of logic, the calm of reason, the value of compassion, friendship and comradery. Although those last three lessons took a bit longer to sink in than the first two, the list is far from complete. Spock was, and always shall be, an excellent role model.

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Posted in Art, Memorial, Movies, Television | Tagged , , | 13 Comments

POETRY FRIDAY: Bill O., A Rhyming Rant About Bill O’Reilly

Posted on February 27, 2015 by Elaine Magliaro

PoetryFridayButtonBy Elaine Magliaro

BillOReillyJesusPoor Bill O’Reilly! Everybody’s pickin’ on him…claiming he’s not telling the truth about a number of his intrepid escapades as a journalist. His former co-workers just keep piling it on!

All the news about Bill O’Reilly’s lies jogged my memory. I had forgotten that I had written some poems about him several years ago. Here’s one of them

Bill O.: A Rhyming Rant about Bill O’Reilly
By Elaine Magliaro

Bill O., Bill O., Bill O’Reilly
Thinks he’s savvy, brilliant, wily…
Thinks his TV program rocks
‘Cause he’s the ratings king at Fox!

He’s a blowhard; he’s dogmatic.
His verbal cancer’s metastatic!
Bill O. likes to sputter, rant—
But when he’s wrong, he won’t recant.

Bill’s his own best adulator.
He’s a pompous bloviator…
A smarmy, smug intimidator…
A nasty, vile expectorator
Of speech that’s meant to anger, rile.
He’s one great big bag of bile!!!

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Posted in Argentina, Celebrity, Heroism, History, Humor, Hypocrisy, Media, Poetry, Politics, Propaganda, Society, United States, World History | Tagged , , , | 19 Comments

Drone Cost Symptomatic of Larger DHS Issue

Posted on February 26, 2015 by Gene Howington
Military version of the MQ-9 Reaper drone similar to the ones used by CBT.

Military version of the MQ-9 Reaper drone similar to the ones used by CBT.

by Gene Howington

CNN is reporting that re-tasked military drone use by the Border Patrol (under the aegis of the Department of Homeland Security) is grossly expensive and of negligible benefit. According to figures derived from a report released on January 6, 2015 by the Office of the Inspector General of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), using drones for patrolling our borders costs $28,000 per single arrest. In 2013, operating nine (9) drones for this purpose cost taxpayers $62.5 million and resulted in the apprehension of just 2,272 suspects. This accounts for less than 2% of the total arrests by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) in the area where drones operate.  In toto, in its first eight (8) years of operations, the CBP drone program has cost $360 million.

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Posted in Big Brother, Campaign Finance, CBT, Civil Liberties, Corruption, Democracy, DHS, DNC, Fascists/Corporatists, George W. Bush, Law Enforcement, Neoconservatives, Neoliberals, Oligarchy, RNC, United States, War on "Terror" | 7 Comments

The Eighteenth Post in the “Oh My Achin’ Head” Series: Idaho Lawmaker Asks Doctor If a Swallowed Camera Could be Used for a Gynelogical Exam (VIDEO)

Posted on February 25, 2015 by Elaine Magliaro
Vito Barbieri

Vito Barbieri

By Elaine Magliaro

Here’s a story about an idiot politician from Idaho who is confused about female anatomy. Let me just say that Republican state representative Vito Barbieri sure ain’t an expert on “lady parts.”  Barbieri made news on Monday when he posed a truly dumb question to a doctor who was testifying before the House State Affairs Committee.

Tara Culp-Pressler (ThinkProgress) reported that the Idaho legislature “is currently considering a bill that would ban telemedicine abortion — emerging technology that allows a doctor to remotely prescribe the abortion pill over a video chat.” Pressler added, “Telemedicine has the potential to expand access to reproductive health care among rural women who live far away from the nearest abortion clinic.”

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Posted in Anatomy, Biology, Conservatives, Countries, Government, Health Care, Humor, Medical Technology, Pharmaceuticals, Physicians, Politics, Reproductive Rights, Science, States, Technology, United States | Tagged , , , , , | 15 Comments

Just Another Batshit Crazy Politician: Nevada Assemblywoman Claims Cancer is a Fungus That Can Be Flushed Out with Baking Soda

Posted on February 25, 2015 by Elaine Magliaro
Nevada Assemblywoman Michele Fiore (R)

Nevada Assemblywoman
Michele Fiore (R)

By Elaine Magliaro

Steve Benen (MSNBC) wrote today that “the relationship between Republicans and modern science has become strained lately. In recent months, we’ve seen GOP officials – including senators, governors, and presidential candidates – balk at climate science, contraception, vaccinations, post-bathroom hand-washing, and even evolutionary biology.” He noted that this week, it was “becoming especially egregious on this front” because we “were introduced to a Republican state lawmaker in Idaho who seemed quite confused about women’s anatomy, and Jon Ralston added a new addition to the collection yesterday, highlighting the latest from Nevada Assemblywoman Michele Fiore (R), who has a proposal to change existing rules on end-of-life care.”

Let me tell you about Michele Fiore: Fiore is the CEO of a healthcare company called Always There Personal Care of Nevada and Always There 4 You. Last December, the Las Vegas Sun reported that there were “more than $1 million in tax liens against Fiore. Liens dating back to 2003 show that she has unpaid payroll taxes from her home health care businesses…” Fiore has reportedly been stripped of her position as Chairman of the Tax Committee because of the tax lien allegations.

Josh Israel (ThinkProgress) said that Fiore “told listeners to her weekly radio show on Saturday, that she will soon introduce a ‘terminally ill bill,’ to allow more non-FDA-approved treatments for those diagnosed as having terminal illnesses.”

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Posted in Anatomy, Biology, Chemistry, Countries, Government, Health Care, Media, Political Science, Politics, Propaganda, Science, States, United States | Tagged , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Ukraine War: A Reverse Cuban Missile Crisis

Posted on February 24, 2015 by Bob Stone

Apparently I’m not alone in doubting that this ship is unsinkable.   Here’s a perspective on the Ukraine War from a member of JFK’s Cuban Missile Crisis Management Team; James R. Polk

In a rather ghastly Nineteenth Century experiment, a biologist by the name of Heinzmann found that if he placed a frog in boiling water, the frog immediately leapt out but that if he placed the frog in tepid water and then gradually heated it, the frog stayed put until he was scalded to death.

Are we like the frog? I see disturbing elements of that process today as we watch events unfold in the Ukraine confrontation. They profoundly frighten me and I believe they should frighten everyone. But they are so gradual that we do not see a specific moment in which we must jump or perish.

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Posted in Denialism, NATO, Propaganda, Russia, Ukraine, War | 116 Comments

Larry Wilmore Plays the Race Card Against “Colossal Prick” Rudy Giuliani on The Nightly Show (VIDEO)

Posted on February 24, 2015 by Elaine Magliaro
Larry Wilmore The Nightly Show

Larry Wilmore
The Nightly Show

By Elaine Magliaro

Back from a week’s vacation, Larry Wilmore tackled the subject of Rudy Giuliani’s controversial claim that President Obama doesn’t love this country. Last night on Comedy Central’s The Nightly Show, Wilmore straight out called New York City’s ex-mayor’s comments “racist.”

Wilmore said, “I don’t care, I used the race card, and you know why? Because Rudy, when you’re trying to explain yourself, you use the 9/11 card.”

Wilmore played a video clip of Giuliani telling Sean Hannity that Obama “didn’t live through September 11th” as he had. The Nightly Show host said that Giuliani’s invocation of the 9/11 terrorist attacks was bad form. He added, “Most of the world came together after that happened. In fact, it was such a powerful, intoxicating event that, for a brief shining moment, the entire world forgot what a colossal prick you are!” Wilmore continued, “Obama loves America. Just not as much as Giuliani loves 9/11.”

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Posted in American History, Barack Obama, Humor, Politics, Racism, United States | Tagged , | 2 Comments

John Oliver Digs into the “Bizarre” American Practice of Electing Judges

Posted on February 24, 2015 by Elaine Magliaro

By Elaine Magliaro

John Oliver took on the subject of electing judges on Last Week Tonight on Sunday. In most states, judges are elected–not appointed–“forcing many judges to pander to the electorate and accept campaign money in order to keep their jobs.” Oliver talked about judges “shaking down lawyers” for campaign contributions and using money from super PACs to produce campaign ads. Oliver said,  “The problem with an elected judiciary is sometimes the right decision is neither easy nor popular, and yet campaigns force judges to look over their shoulder on every ruling.”

Forest Wickham (Slate) said that the system of electing judges “often leads judges to solicit money from attorneys and defendants they might see later in court, and all in order to pay for campaign ads that frequently have nothing to do with the judges’ actual qualifications.”

Melissa Locker (Time):

The problem with an elected judiciary, according to Oliver, is that when it comes to judging people, the right decision is sometimes unpopular and unpopular decisions and elections are uneasy bedfellows. In fact, academic studies have shown that judges change their behavior in election years issuing harsher sentences to appear tough on crime. In Oliver’s opinion, that is unfair. Legal rulings, he said, should not be based on popular opinion but on rational jurisprudence.

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Posted in Courts, Government, Humor, Legal Analysis, Short Video, States, United States | Tagged , | 4 Comments

White Supremacist League of the South Plans to Honor John Wilkes Booth in April…Gears Up to Form Paramilitary Group in Hopes of Advancing a Second Southern Secession

Posted on February 22, 2015 by Elaine Magliaro

ConfederateFlagBy Elaine Magliaro

On February 12th, League of the South president Michael Hill wrote the following information on his organization’s website under a post titled Honoring John Wilkes Booth:

The League of the South looks to the present and future. However,  from time to time we do look back at our past.

This 14th of April will mark the 150th anniversary of John Wilkes Booth’s execution of the tyrant Abraham Lincoln. The League will, in some form or fashion, celebrate this event. We remember Booth’s diary entry: “Our country owed all her troubles to him, and God simply made me the instrument of his punishment.” A century and a half after the fact, The League of the South thanks Mr. Booth for his service to the South and to humanity.

Stay tuned . . .

Michael Hill and the League of the South

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Posted in American History, Equal Rights, Racism, United States | Tagged | 24 Comments