Could There Be Some Fall Out From O’Donnall’s Nomination?

This week I was with my quilting friends at our quilt bee. We get together every two weeks to chat and work on quilting together. The usual gossip turned to politics which in itself is unusual. The last round of primaries wins had caught their attention. Most of these ladies are life long loyal republicans but this election cycle’s round of candidates had them bewildered and wondering if they should remain a republican. There was questions thrown out on the economy, jobs, international corporations, education and other issues. Not once was abortion, race, gays, 51 Park Ave, birth certificate of the President, and stem cells was mentioned. Watching clips of O’Donnell talk about masturbation had them upset. It just might have been one too many psychotic far right political candidate being paraded around on main street media for them.

I found this article through a link from reading The Nation Blog that I emailed to my quilting friends. It has some wonderful charts that show the economy over the past few decades. Maddow on her show Friday night used one of the charts from this piece on the elderly income. I would like to share this read from Economic Policy Institute with you.

http://www.epi.org/publications/entry/a_lost_decade_poverty_and_income_trends/


As far as my friends votes go, I really don’t know how they will finally vote but it is beginning to sink in the far right crazies are taking over the republican party.

Finesse

fi·nesse –noun
1. extreme delicacy or subtlety in action, performance, skill, discrimination, taste, etc.
2. skill in handling a difficult or highly sensitive situation; adroit and artful management: exceptional diplomatic finesse.
3. a trick, artifice, or stratagem.

—Synonyms
1, 2. tact, diplomacy, savoir faire, circumspection, sensitivity, sensibility.

I have always like this word. It says so much. This country lacks
finesse. And it's not a left/right east/west or north/south issue. Nor
is it a racial or gender issue. Maybe it's our frontier origins but we
seems to take a more brutal, antagonistic and overly emotional approach
to situations. The old cliche of the the guy banging on his television
to get it to work. Our foreign policy has always lacked tact and
finesse. We either ignore a situation or plow in to hit with guns
blazing and yellig at the top of our lungs. If there is a
societal behavior that people have a problem with, we make laws to ban
it completely or try to tax it to death.

But this over the top, in your face get a bigger sledge hammer approach
rarely, if ever, yields the intended results and generally just pisses
people off and can generate long term resentments. It is an
emotionally and mentally lazy approach. But to exercise the wisdom and
rationality necessary to have finesse requires work and thought
and understanding. And it also requires humility. But it is much
more likely to yield the results we want. As well as giving us a much
greater understanding of our selves and others.

FAUSTUS & THE MAN OF STEELE

• e

Why, this is hell, nor am I out of it

I found this gem at Huffpo today:

In an interview with CNN's John King today, Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele defended former House Speaker Newt Gingrich's recent comments that President Obama may hold a "Kenyan, anti-colonial" worldview.
Speaking to the National Review recently, Gingrich wondered, "What if [Obama] is so outside our comprehension, that only if you understand Kenyan, anti-colonial behavior, can you begin to piece together [his actions]? That is the most accurate, predictive model for his behavior."
When King mentioned the comments to Steele on Wednesday, the RNC chair rejected the idea that Gingrich was "race-baiting or playing to the birther crowd" and said that because Obama's dad is from Africa, he is "of Kenyan, African descent":
KING: Former Speaker of the House, the man who is moving around as if he might run for president, said that the President of the United States has a "Kenyan, anti-colonial" view of the world.
STEELE: Who said that?
KING: Newt Gingrich.
STEELE: Okay.
KING: Is that an appropriate way to have this conversation, as a Republican leader and as a black man? Is that how you want to have this conversation
STEELE: I don't know what being black has to do with it, but --
KING: You don't think saying the President has a "Kenyan, anti-colonial" worldview is perhaps trying to play to the lowest common denominator in politics?
STEELE: No, I don't think so, no. How do you make that stretch? Where's his dad from?
KING: What does that have to do with --
STEELE: He's of Kenyan, African descent. He has an African, continental descent. So I don't know where you're going with that. But let me just say --
KING: So you don't think it's race-baiting or playing to the birther crowd?

STEELE: No, I don't. I don't see that stretch. I know some folks out there want to, but I don't see that. I know Newt. I know that's not his mindset on that. He's talking about a worldview that comes from a different part, whether it's Europe, the African Continent.

This entire interview brought to mind an old play of yore by one known as Marlowe; which I bring to you in much abridged form:

FAUSTUS. Now that the gloomy shadow of the earth,
…Faustus, begin thine incantations,
And try if devils will obey thy hest,
Seeing thou hast pray'd and sacrific'd to them.


Enter MEPHISTOPHILIS…….
(Speaking to the devil’s rep, our hero Faustus tries out his new found strength of will)
I charge thee to return, and change thy shape;
Thou art too ugly to attend on me:
Go, and return an old Franciscan friar;
That holy shape becomes a devil best.


[Exit MEPHISTOPHILIS.]
How pliant is this Mephistophilis? (Ponders Faustus)


Re-enter MEPHISTOPHILIS like a Franciscan friar.
MEPHIST. Now, Faustus, what wouldst thou have me do?
FAUSTUS. I charge thee wait upon me whilst I live,
To do whatever Faustus shall command,
Be it to make the moon drop from her sphere,
Or the ocean to overwhelm the world.
MEPHIST. I am a servant to great Lucifer,
And may not follow thee without his leave:
No more than he commands must we perform.
FAUSTUS. Did not he charge thee to appear to me?
MEPHIST. No, I came hither of mine own accord.
FAUSTUS. Did not my conjuring speeches raise thee? speak.
MEPHIST. That was the cause, but yet per accidens;­
Nor will we come, unless he use such means
… Is stoutly to abjure the Trinity,
And pray devoutly to the prince of hell.
FAUSTUS. So Faustus hath
Already done; and holds this principle,
There is no chief but only Belzebub;
To whom Faustus doth dedicate himself.
This word "damnation" terrifies not him,


MEPHIST. Arch-regent and commander of all spirits.
FAUSTUS. Was not that Lucifer an angel once?
MEPHIST. Yes, Faustus, and most dearly lov'd of God.
FAUSTUS. How comes it, then, that he is prince of devils?
MEPHIST. O, by aspiring pride and insolence;
For which God threw him from the face of heaven.
FAUSTUS. And what are you that live with Lucifer?
MEPHIST. Unhappy spirits that fell with Lucifer,
Conspir'd against our God with Lucifer,
And are for ever damn'd with Lucifer.
FAUSTUS. Where are you damn'd?
MEPHIST. In hell.
FAUSTUS. How comes it, then, that thou art out of hell?
MEPHIST. Why, this is hell, nor am I out of it:
Think'st thou that I, who saw the face of God,
And tasted the eternal joys of heaven,
Am not tormented with ten thousand hells,
In being depriv'd of everlasting bliss?
O, Faustus, leave these frivolous demands,
Which strike a terror to my fainting soul!
FAUSTUS. What, is great Mephistophilis so passionate
For being deprived of the joys of heaven?
Learn thou of Faustus manly fortitude,
MEPHIST. I will, Faustus.
FAUSTUS. Had I as many souls as there be stars,
I'd give them all for Mephistophilis.
By him I'll be great emperor of the world,
And make a bridge thorough the moving air,
To pass the ocean with a band of men;
I'll join the hills that bind the Afric shore,
And make that country continent to Spain,
And both contributory to my crown:
The Emperor shall not live but by my leave,
Nor any potentate of Germany.
Now that I have obtain'd what I desir'd,
I'll live in speculation of this art,
Till Mephistophilis return again.
[Exit.]

http://classiclit.about.com/library/bl-etexts/cmarlowe/bl-cmarlowe-faust.htm

 AND THAT YOUR HONOR IS THE CASE FOR THE DEFENSE!

My New Million Buck Idea.

I was in a clicking frenzy this morning getting some materials together for one of my classes (I do little websites for them all). Somewhere, somehow, I reached Palin Bingo.  Once again I'm late to the party.  This has been around since 2008, but there is a new, improved version.

Inspiration struck.  Why not invent a live, on  time version for the internet.  --something similar to the  endless games available on Facebook. 

As usual, my genius exceeds my technical ability, so I'm not going to collect the million bucks.  But I'd play.  Think  of the endless variations--Rush Bingo, Teaparty Bingo, Boehner Bingo, and a whole new crop after the primaries.  Hairy Palms bingo--you know--in (dis)honor of the winner of the Republican Primary in Delaware. 

There could be the coolest of prizes.  Be the first to finish the card and never have to read another piece of trash by the subject again.  So those of you with a programming background, get busy.  I'm not going to patent the concept so get hopping on your way to riches. 

When you do strike it rich, please remain a progressive.  If  you do, you might double down  by becoming a target for the invective of the  Right Wing.

I collect mugs--so I'm going to get one to add to my collection.  The clothes, alas, don't come in my size, and I'm too old to thrill anyone with a bare midriff style.

Mike

How Bad is the Economy ??

From Progressive Review.

PMS Lives - The economy is so bad that-----

I got a pre-declined credit card application in the mail.

African television stations are now showing 'Sponsor an American Child' commercials.

Exxon-Mobil laid off 25 Congressmen.

I saw a Mormon polygamist with only one wife.

I bought a toaster oven. My free gift with the purchase was a bank.

If the bank returns your check marked "Insufficient Funds," you must call them and ask if they meant you or them.

Parents in Beverly Hills fired their nannies and learned their children's names.

A truckload of Americans was caught sneaking into Mexico .

Motel Six won't leave the light on anymore.

A picture is now only worth 200 words.

I was so depressed last night thinking about Obamanomics, Obamacare, taxes,unemployment, jobs, my savings, Social Security, retirement funds, the wars, etc., I called the Suicide Hotline. I got a call center in Pakistan, and when I told them I was suicidal, they got all excited and asked if I could drive a truck.

BATSHIT CRAZY WINS. ROVER ROLLS OVER

It is truly a poignant commentary on the state of the Republican Party when Bush’s Brain gets excoriated for daring to articulate what everyone this side of Wingnutistan realizes – Chris O’Donnell is BATSHIT CRAZY.

Its one thing when (semi) rational conservative thinkers like David Frum get driven out of the herd for pointing out that the tea-bagged loonies are savaging the GOP’s long term viability for some short term success – and by success I mean cable TV ratings.  But it’s something else entirely when Wingnutistan’s former Mufti of Misinformation gets a tea-bag Fatwa of Heresy for speaking the truth for the first time since he admitted that without the WMD lie, the Iraq war might never have happened.

To say O’Donnell is extreme is putting it mildly.  O’Donnell is, of course, famous for her Anti-Masturbation crusade, which would likely earn her the private enmity of her potential Congressional colleagues, many of whom frequently beat their own drums, so-to-speak.  But that's just a small taste of her crazy.

More disturbingly, O’Donnell has objected to calling sufferers of AIDS as “Victims” and has insisted that rather than lower the risk of infection, the use of condoms actually encourages more sex, thereby leading to more HIV infection.  To show contempt for people afflicted with a deadly disease is not just crazy, it's disgusting and completely hypocritical for someone who claims to be an ardent follower of Jesus Christ's teachings.  What would the would-be Senator say to the Lepers Christ attended to?

This is also a woman who once said that during WW2 it would have been more moral to turn over Jews to the Nazis than it would have been to ‘practice deception’ by hiding them.  God, she contended, would provide a way out for those unlucky Jews.  One can only assume that the she believes that Anne Frank and family were punished by death for the lies of their failed Gentile protectors.

Talk about Compassionate Conservatism.

The tea-bagged masses were appalled by Rove’s blasphemy, and immediately began a collective temper tantrum that continues as I write.  They called him a childish whiner and told him to shut up and jump on the bandwagon. Some demanded that he be suspended or even fired for his job at the Tea Bag Channel…I mean Fox News.  Sean Hannity looked like he wanted to cry. Michelle Malken didn’t mince words, calling Rove a ‘loser.’

And in a stunning bit of comic irony Rush Limbaugh invoked his own testicles when making his case for O’Donnell, urging Republicans join him in going ‘balls to the wall’ for her.  It will be interesting to see how El Rushbo can do that without breaking O’Donnell’s ‘hands off’ admonition. (How’s that for a brain searing image?)

Finally, the HMGIC (Head Momma Grizzly In Charge) of the Tea Party, former partial term Governor turned paid political infotainer, Sarah Palin mocked Karl Rove, chiding him to ‘buck up’ and join the circus or face his own unplanned obsolescence. 

Somewhere Dr. Frankenstein is shaking his head and saying ‘I told you so.’

How did Bush’s Brain fall so far so fast?  And how soon will he come to realize his new role in the Neo-Neo GOP and just pile into the car with the other sad old clowns, like John McCain, Mitch McConnell and John Boehner?

O’Donnell’s extreme views epitomize the wild-eyed insanity of the ultra-right.  She’s just another in Momma Grizzly’s herd of opportunistic political cannibals.  Obviously it would be worse if O’Donnell won her Senate race, but the prospect of her parlaying her new found rock-star status into a 7 figure ‘contributors’  gig with Fox or publishing her anti meat beat manifesto scares me even more.   Somewhere deep down, I think that O’Donnell would prefer take her show on the road become a highly compensated national spokesperson for the up-and-coming Chastity Belt industry.

The most crushing realization that I had yesterday was that I actually agreed with Sir Turd Blossom for once in my life.  Rove knows that in the past fringers from the right used the primaries to not-so-subtly pull errant politicians back to their base while not alienating moderate republicans and middle-of-the-road Independents.  But the moderate Republican is going the way of the Dodo as the big tend shrinks.  This year, the tea-baggers are unseating even the marginally moderate Republicans. The inmates are taking over the asylum.  And with every lurch to the right, the Republican Party gets scarier and more dangerous, especially if they are able to wrest control of Congress from the Democrats.   Let’s hope that rational voters understand what Rove understands – that many of these ideologues are not only unelectable, they are nuts.

UPDATE:

Almost as if on cue, Rover rolled over before his masters this morning, likely smacked in his snout by Uncle Rupert before being sent to the doghouse.  One can only presume that this morning, Rover was summoned early this morning to also fetch the slippers of Rush Limbaugh.  So much for him being the Boy Genius.

LATER UPDATE:  I think we may have a second round of GOP Establishment flogging on the horizon.  I just read that former Senator Al D'Amato did an interview this morning, saying the same things about  New York's Republican Gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino as Rove said about Christine O'Donnell.  Namely, that he's BATSHIT CRAZY!

"...anger overcame reason and enabled a fringe element to choose the Republican nominee. The end result was the selection of Mr. Paladino, a divisive figure simply not fit to lead this great state."

Stay tuned for a riveting night of coverage of this story on Fox News! 
msny091610

CyAnts' artwork

For those who knew him in chat, CyAnts did some great fractal artwork in his later days.

I've collected the stuff he sent me, and that others have sent, and I think everything is now up at this page:

Cy's Fractals

If there's any more of his work out there, the site is to gather it all for those who want to see it.