Who'll Stand Up for The American Other?

Re those Hutarree militia nutjobs, Instapundit takes hammer to head of nail:

[Christian apocolyptic warriors in the woods has] never been much of a theme here at InstaPundit, but with Balloon Juice looking out for their procedural rights, I’m sure those militiamen will be okay. And I’m sure top lawyers from top law firms on Wall Street and K street will be lining up to provide the Huttaree militia with a pro bono defense, too.

What Are They Thinking?

Here’s what their elected representatives think:

Senator Max Baucus 3/25/2010:

Too often, much of late, the last couple three years the mal-distribution of income in America is gone up way too much, the wealthy are getting way, way too wealthy, and the middle income class is left behind. Wages have not kept up with increased income of the highest income in America. This legislation will have the effect of addressing that mal-distribution of income in America.

Senator Dick Durbin:

Yes, if you’re making over $200,000 a year, you’re going to pay slightly more in taxes. It’s the cost, I think, of having the kind of America we want to have.

Congressman John Dingell:

Let me remind you this has been going on for years. We are bringing it to a halt. The harsh fact of the matter is when you’re going to pass legislation that will cover 300 American people in different ways it takes a long time to do the necessary administrative steps that have to be taken to put the legislation together to control the people.

Here’s what their moral arbiters think:

Al Sharpton – Presidential Emissary to the Black Community:

REV. AL SHARPTON, CIVIL RIGHTS LEADER: I think that this is — began to transform the country the way the president had promised. This is what he ran on.

GERALDO RIVERA, FOX NEWS ANCHOR: Some argue to socialism.

SHARPTON: Well, first of all, then we'd have to say that the American public overwhelmingly voted for socialism when they elected President Obama.

Here’s what their talk radio hosts think:

Ed Schultz:

SCHULTZ (30:58, initially responding to caller claiming "virtual war" between Dems and GOP): It is a cultural war that's taking place in America, you're exactly right. And it's being played out over the airwaves of America. And I hope the Democrats now turn to the Fairness Doctrine.It's time now for the Democrats to consider the Fairness Doctrine when you've got Rush Limbaugh out there saying, it's, we've got to defeat these bastards. He is now openly admitting that he is going to work against and campaign against the Republican, against the Democratic Party and campaign against Obama, and he is motivating people with the microphone and he's electioneering. Keep on talking, Rushsky! Hell, maybe I'll get on 600 stations too, or how many you own or whatever.

The fact is, look, it's not a level playing field when it comes to the audio culture of the country. Ownership has its privileges. When you own, I will be honest, if I owned 500 stations, the drugster wouldn't be on any of 'em. And that's just where it's at right now. But maybe we have reached the point where the Congress needs to equal it out. Equal out the audience.

SCHULTZ (32:51): Just keep in mind, there aren't any poor people with microphones.

SCHULTZ (33:56): And so, I think that, you know, hell, if we're going to be socialist, let's be socialist all across the board.

Here's what their celebrities think:

Jim Carrey:

Every construct we’ve built in American life is falling apart. Why? Because of personal greed and ambition. Capitalism without regulation can’t protect us against personal greed.. .

Gosh, then, what are we – the American people - to think?

Well, now we agree about something . . .

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Go For It!!!!!!!!!

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" . . . not contemplated by its creators."

James Madison:

“With respect to the two words ‘general welfare,’ [in Article I, Section 8 of the United States Constitution] I have always regarded them as qualified by the detail of powers connected with them. To take them in a literal and unlimited sense would be a metamorphosis of the Constitution into a character which there is a host of proofs was not contemplated by its creators.”

Orange You Afraid!?

Shutter your windows and bar the doors!

Right wingers are on the march!

From Homeland Security Today:

New Vigilance Needed in Wake of Healthcare Vote
by David Silverberg
Monday, 22 March 2010

Violent domestic extremism poses a real threat. In the wake of the divisive 219-212 House vote passing healthcare reform, authorities need to heighten vigilance against extremist violence against government facilities.

The year-long healthcare debate was emotional and divisive and while the vote may have resolved the issue legislatively the passions it aroused are unlikely to die down soon.

In such an atmosphere extremist violence is a real possibility, particularly directed against government installations or symbols of government authority. Coming on top of a census process that has also been infused with extremist charges, homeland security officials at all levels of government should be especially vigilant against
potential attacks from domestic sources.

Domestic extremist terrorism has long been on the homeland security radar. In 2009 a report by the Office of Intelligence & Analysis in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), titled, Rightwing Extremism: Current Economic and Political climate Fueling Resurgence in Radicalization and Recruitment noted that while there were no specific plots under way, "rightwing extremists may be gaining new recruits by playing on their fears about several emergent issues." These included the election of the first African-American president and the economic downturn. It also reported that extremists were recruiting returning Iraqi war veterans. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano later disavowed the report as having been released prematurely without proper vetting.

More recently, on March 2 the Southern Poverty Law Center released its own report, Rage on the Right , reporting that "The radical right caught fire last year, as broad-based populist anger at political, demographic and economic changes in America ignited an explosion of new extremist groups and activism across the nation." According to this report, 363 new "Patriot" groups formed in 2009, with 127 of them being militias and the formation of 136 new anti-immigrant groups.

As though to underscore the volatility of the current situation, yesterday, as the House of Representatives voted on healthcare reform legislation, tens of thousands of demonstrators descended on Washington to demand comprehensive immigration reform, an issue that may prove even more passionate and divisive than healthcare.

While debate is always healthy, violent extremism is not. The use of the color-coded terror alert system has fallen out of favor with the Obama administration, but any casual observer can see that the current situation calls for at least an orange level of alertness.

That's right, we shouldn't raise the alert level to Code Orange because judges are releasing hardened terrorists from custody and the Attorney General wants to try in civil courts here in the United States the ones who aren't released and our border is a collander with a single hole three states wide, but we should do it because a large majority of the country expresses a consistent and growing opposition to the federal government assuming control over 1/6th of the U.S. economy and hiring 16,000 IRS agents to enforce the new powers of the State against its citizens and because those citizens presented themselves in body and spirit and with the most corny of handmade signs outside the house of our constitutional republic to let their representatives know they were opposed.

And the authorities we will site for indicting 65% of the American people and for the federal government ramping up to a hightened risk posture against its own citizens are, first, a discredited DHS report on so-called Right Wing Extremism, expected to increase with an influx of discharged U.S. warriors who apprarently are under the influence of some blood lust not satiated on the immoral battlefields of American imperialism and, second, a discredited report from the hyper-partisan and derelict-from-its-original-mission SPLC that notes the formation of - gasp! - Patriot groups (which curiously may or may not include leftwing 9/11 truther squads) and "anti-immigrant groups," (scare quotes back at ya!) which may actually be anti-illegal alien groups (you know, those pesky rule of law types). Oh, and the racists. Don't forget the innate truth of America which is that most Americans are racists and cowards for not admitting it and are one caffeine buzz away from donning all black outfits and tossing bottles-and-cans-only trash bins through the windows of cop cars.

In any event and regardless of who is in these various groups and their actual numbers of members, a certain segment of our elite believes anyone who protests Hope and Change is suspect and needs active surveillance.

Now that causes SBD to raise his own threat level to Orange.

Repeal

Now we truly have something that is really "all about the children."

Repeal will not take place until we defeat these bastards, crush them during elections, and chase them out of town. This has to happen before they can construct the bureacracy that keeps them in power even when they are on the outs from election cycles.

Now is the time for hard and true idealogues.

No compromise.

No quarter.

No middle.

Freedom demands it.

Sunday of Shame

Cultured

The March cheeses have arrived.

The Roaring 40's Blue from King Island, located south of Melbourne at the Western end of Bass Strait. All of that is in Australia. Named both for the treacherous westerly winds that blow directly down 40 degrees S Longitude between King Island and the Australian mainland and the treacherous wind you'll be passing upon consumption of this honeyed, slightly nutty milk nougat, the basis for the culture is entirely cow's milk, assaulted by an injection of Roquefort style mold. To enjoy this delight, SBD shall allow the cheese to fully come to room temperature and cast forth its deep, treacherous aromas, and, upon the gasping departure from the house of Mrs. SBD, Sydney Brillo Daughter, and Sydney Brillo "Who Cut the Cheese" Junior, SBD shall smear a generous quantity on a fresh tear of still warm French bread. Being his own man, he will eschew the monger's recommendation to pair it with an Australian Shiraz, choosing instead to quaf a very cold, sweaty bottle of Budweiser.

The second wedge is the Morbier Du Livradois, a pretentious sounding piece of hard milk with peasant origins, as it was originally made by the cheesemaker for the cheesemaker. Two hundred years ago this means the cheesemaker taking the leftover crap from crafting more desirable cheeses, and if the pigs won't eat it, figuring out how to make something of it for whichever of his childre might have survived the winter. Thus, it is comprised of leftover curds from the production of Comte cheese. At the end of the day, the cheesemaker takes leftover curds, presses them into a round and then covers them with edible vegetable ash (!); the next morning, he presses another layer of unwanted curds on top of that. So, what appears to be a vein of "blue" in this cheese is actually ash, which in many countries would be considered a form of trash, but which in France becomes a key ingredient. To enjoy this invention, SBD shall prepare a number of robust slices, laid gently upon Original Triscuits. As its flavor is complex and fruity, and the ash layer is bold and complex, this snack shall be beaten into compliance by a Sam Adams Nobel Pils.

Lastly, our shipment contains the Cantal, one of the oldest European cheeses still produced, and, according to Pliny the Elder, a favorite of Rome. Essentially a French cheddar cheese, our variation is the Cantalete Dore, offering a soft, slightly sour hazelnut core. To enjoy this ancient truth, SBD shall thinly shave the wedge using his double-edge razor. As no cracker based on ancient Roman recipes is presently offered by Nabisco, SBD will eat the cheese without benefit of fiber. Always a dangerous thing when working with cheese, but for lubrication, SBD will pour what remains of the Budweiser and the Sam Adams into a Guinness branded pint glass.

These are but a few of life's offered pleasures.

Other

Happy Stereotype-the-Mick Day

The Great Observor of Humanity

Lileks takes a cruise:

Last of all, the old fat men who have spent a lifetime building their belly and walk around with it hanging out, white and hairy, like a trophy they won for finding their mouths with their hands. The biggest of them lie pasted in the deck chairs, basting in the Caribbean sun, looking like bombs waiting to go off and shower the rest with a spatter of guts and undigested cheesecake.

Read all of it. Hilarious and true.

File It Away

We read Economics of Transition so you don't have to:

What Do Russians Think About Transition?

[INSERT random Russian obscure professors name generator here]

Economics of Transition, Vol. 18, Issue 2, pp. 249-280, April 2010

Abstract:

We use data from the 2006 round of the Russian Longitudinal Monitoring Survey to describe perceptions of the Russian population about the transition process and the role of the state compared with that of free markets.

We find that about one-half of the Russian population is disappointed with transition and a large majority is in favour of high state regulation and state provision of goods and services. High demand for government regulation and increased state intervention coexists with a low level of trust in government institutions and recognition of high and rising levels of corruption.

The findings are consistent with the theory developed by Aghion et al. (2009). In an environment with poor social capital, private business imposes negative externalities on the society and society chooses to demand more state regulation and tolerate corruption to reduce these externalities. We also find that individual perceptions of social capital and corruption co-vary with the demand for regulation, as predicted by the theory.

Keep this study for your children; tell them to read it when they are adults and they'll understand their plight a little better.

Do Not Resign, Do Not Ignore

To DNR or not to DNR, that is the question:

I refuse to have a DNR or DNI order for myself. Go ahead, doctor and family, give me some comfort meds, then shock me, tube me and line me.

Life is precious and irreplaceable. Even severe incurable illness can often be temporarily fixed, moderated or controlled, and most discomfort can be made tolerable or even pleasant with simple drugs. In chess, to resign is to give up the game with pieces and options remaining. My version of DNR is "Do Not Resign." Don't give up on me if I can still think, communicate, create and enjoy life. When taking care of me, take care of yourself as well, to make sure you don't burn out by the time I need your optimism the most.

My DNI? It means "Do Not Ignore" early signs of trouble when my failing body and mind need support so I can continue to function in ways that matter. And Do Not Ignore my needs for companionship, stimulation and purpose, as these, too, make life worth living. To leave me in the hospital bed alone staring at the TV is torture. Surround me with people: Bring the kids so I can teach and talk to them. Discuss the news with me. Let me use my e-mail. Treat my depression, dehydration, malnutrition, muscle wasting and pain with potent pills, infusions, tubes and hormones.

Recall the great people of our time who thrived with disability and my willingness to savor life just like them. Give me a motorized wheelchair and a feeding tube if I need them, along with a tracheostomy to help me breathe and dialysis to filter out toxins. Those do nothing to stop a good mind and a strong spirit, while permitting both to overcome obstacles of blood and flesh.

It's so easy to let someone die, but it takes effort, determination and stamina to help someone stay and feel alive. Only after you made every effort to let me be happy and human, ask me again if my life is worth living. Then, listen and comply. At that point, if I wish to die, let me die. But until that happens, none of us realizes what I can accomplish with another day, another week, another month. So do it all for me. Then ask someone to do it all for you.

Unless we spend our lives fighting to live, when the Dark Embrace attempts to enfold us, we may lack the skill and discipline needed to make it very hard to move on.

Late Winter Chores

Smores Fuel

Sent from my iPhone

Posted via email from Sydney's posterous

Charlie Tuna Gets Canned

News Alert from The Wall Street Journal:

Rep. Charles Rangel said he is temporarily stepping aside as the chairman of the House Ways & Means Committee.

Mr. Rangel, a New York Democrat, has been battling a series of ethics charges in recent months. Last week, the House ethics committee found he broke congressional rules by not properly disclosing trips to the Caribbean that were paid for by companies.

Bullshit Bingo!!!!!!!!

Rules on how to play available over at Don Luskin's house.