The "outreach" continues

Go ahead and click on the link and look at the picture of this moron. Could not be more of a cartoon, right down to the hideous tie...and his family looks full of both "happy pills" and loathing.

A Republican congressional candidate from Alabama with a history of combating homosexuality said on the campaign trail in 2002 that gays should return to California or Vermont or "wherever they came from." Mother Jones on Monday surfaced a Associated Press interview from 2002 with real estate developer Dean Young, who is vying for the Republican nomination in a runoff election Tuesday for Alabama's first congressional district, in which the candidate suggested gays must have moved to Alabama from other areas since they're not native to the state.

Yeah, gay people, they're just like pelicans or okra.

"Aha! Here's my chance!"

Sincerely, Brett Favre, and Brett Favre's camera-phone.

Voters, we can't have too many of those

Well it's another off-year election day, and what better day than for people who do not actually want voters to, y'know vote. Behold Virginia, where self-annointed as God's proxy Ken Cuccinelli and his Republican handlers have announced the secret to their victory:

...only Republicans are actively hoping that moderate floating voters stay home this time. “If turnout is in the 30s, the low 30s, we’re gonna win,” Virginia Republican party chairman Pat Mullins was reported to have told supporters this weekend. “If it gets higher up in Fairfax [in Democratic-leaning northern Virginia], say, like, 40, it’s likely we won’t. I don’t think it’s going to hit 40 anywhere. I’m looking at 32.”

If only their Party had a systemic plan to effectuate this dream? [cross-posted at Firedoglake]

American Nutrition: The latest example of "we just gave up"

*Sigh*

Sometimes you really need something salty and something sweet come dessert time. But it’s just so much work to combine those two mouth experiences. For those lazy snackers among us, Lay’s is rolling out chocolate-covered potato chips this week. The offering is a limited-time deal, meaning if you want to get yours hands on Lay’s Wavy Potato Chips Dipped in Milk Chocolate, you won’t have an eternity to get your hands on some. Each five-ounce bag goes for $3.49 and will be sold only at Target stores through the holidays.

There's a second video?

Apparently Rob Ford isn't just in a video smoking crack...he apparently is in another one. Perhaps he was doing the Whitman's Drug Sampler (available only in Canada I guess).

Broken Clock still one up on her...

Still, undoubtedly a hilarious scene involving Michele Bachmann last year after she bit the dust in the Iowa Caucus.

Sitting in her campaign bus, in the same seat where she cried with joy in August, she now sobbed over her drubbing. “God, I’m a loser,” Bachmann said.

The operative question on the NSA remains...

Who have they not spied upon?

Israel has been the target of spying by the U.S. National Security Agency and also collaborates on intelligence gathering with the United States, The New York Times reported.

Of course, the U.S. and Israel spying on each other is a long-standing tradition, ask Jonathan Pollard. But the answer to the question is, probably everyone except the people they should probably actually be spying on. This information comes through information provided by Russia's No. 1 IT hire, Edward Snowden. Meanwhile, as noticed by Digby, contributing as always to the self-parody that is the perpetual defense of the police state, Diane Feinstein actually stated: "...if Snowden had been a true whistle-blower, he could have reported it to her committee privately." Yeah, because there's been no lesser proponent of the privacy of American citizens and proponent of excusing spying excesses than good ol' DiFi. I'm sure Snowden considered that about a millisecond. [Cross-posted at Firedoglake]

It was 'The Lone Ranger' wasn't it?

Vanessa Paradis Breaks Silence About Johnny Depp Split

Still living but brain dead for a long, long time

With each passing year, the right-wings mouthpieces -- who are somehow still talked to -- become even worse.

In a radio commentary today Schlafly – who previously argued that the Bible’s mandate for “compassion” doesn’t apply to immigrants – commemorates the anniversary of the dedication of the Statue of Liberty by declaring that the statue “has nothing whatsoever to do with immigration.” Instead, she argued, “people who had nothing to do with this great gift from the French were allowed to paste a plaque on the base of the statue with a quotation that has misrepresented the statue as an invitation to open immigration.” 

“Remember, it’s the Statue of Liberty, not the Statue of Immigration,” she concludes.

Yeah, it's never come to have that value at all, other than every speech every politician ever made there.

Eagle Forum founder Phyllis Schlafly is sick and tired of people invoking the Statue of Liberty to advocate for fixing our immigration laws.
In a radio commentary today Schlafly – who previously argued that the Bible’s mandate for “compassion” doesn’t apply to immigrants – commemorates the anniversary of the dedication of the Statue of Liberty by declaring that the statue “has nothing whatsoever to do with immigration.” Instead, she argued, “people who had nothing to do with this great gift from the French were allowed to paste a plague on the base of the statue with a quotation that has misrepresented the statue as an invitation to open immigration.”
- See more at: http://www.rightwingwatch.org/content/schlafly-its-statue-liberty-not-statue-immigration#sthash.G2b9MqDx.22TZnmH2.dpuf

Eagle Forum founder Phyllis Schlafly is sick and tired of people invoking the Statue of Liberty to advocate for fixing our immigration laws.
In a radio commentary today Schlafly – who previously argued that the Bible’s mandate for “compassion” doesn’t apply to immigrants – commemorates the anniversary of the dedication of the Statue of Liberty by declaring that the statue “has nothing whatsoever to do with immigration.” Instead, she argued, “people who had nothing to do with this great gift from the French were allowed to paste a plague on the base of the statue with a quotation that has misrepresented the statue as an invitation to open immigration.”
- See more at: http://www.rightwingwatch.org/content/schlafly-its-statue-liberty-not-statue-immigration#sthash.G2b9MqDx.22TZnmH2.dpuf

Eagle Forum founder Phyllis Schlafly is sick and tired of people invoking the Statue of Liberty to advocate for fixing our immigration laws.
In a radio commentary today Schlafly – who previously argued that the Bible’s mandate for “compassion” doesn’t apply to immigrants – commemorates the anniversary of the dedication of the Statue of Liberty by declaring that the statue “has nothing whatsoever to do with immigration.” Instead, she argued, “people who had nothing to do with this great gift from the French were allowed to paste a plague on the base of the statue with a quotation that has misrepresented the statue as an invitation to open immigration.”
- See more at: http://www.rightwingwatch.org/content/schlafly-its-statue-liberty-not-statue-immigration#sthash.G2b9MqDx.22TZnmH2.dpuf

Eagle Forum founder Phyllis Schlafly is sick and tired of people invoking the Statue of Liberty to advocate for fixing our immigration laws.
In a radio commentary today Schlafly – who previously argued that the Bible’s mandate for “compassion” doesn’t apply to immigrants – commemorates the anniversary of the dedication of the Statue of Liberty by declaring that the statue “has nothing whatsoever to do with immigration.” Instead, she argued, “people who had nothing to do with this great gift from the French were allowed to paste a plague on the base of the statue with a quotation that has misrepresented the statue as an invitation to open immigration.”
- See more at: http://www.rightwingwatch.org/content/schlafly-its-statue-liberty-not-statue-immigration#sthash.G2b9MqDx.22TZnmH2.dpuf

Eagle Forum founder Phyllis Schlafly is sick and tired of people invoking the Statue of Liberty to advocate for fixing our immigration laws.
In a radio commentary today Schlafly – who previously argued that the Bible’s mandate for “compassion” doesn’t apply to immigrants – commemorates the anniversary of the dedication of the Statue of Liberty by declaring that the statue “has nothing whatsoever to do with immigration.” Instead, she argued, “people who had nothing to do with this great gift from the French were allowed to paste a plague on the base of the statue with a quotation that has misrepresented the statue as an invitation to open immigration.”
- See more at: http://www.rightwingwatch.org/content/schlafly-its-statue-liberty-not-statue-immigration#sthash.G2b9MqDx.22TZnmH2.dpuf

Oh no, how will they survive?

Better prepare another round of targeted tax cuts.

Exxon Mobil Corp.'s quarterly profit fell 18% from last year, but the oil and gas giant still made nearly $8 billion... It was Exxon's second-smallest quarterly profit since mid-2010, beating only this year's second-quarter earnings of $6.86 billion. Still, the results exceeded expectations.

But in these austere times, where will we find the money to help a poor multinational out? Oh, yeah.

...the food-stamp program is now set to downsize in the weeks ahead. There's a big automatic cut scheduled for Nov. 1, as a temporary boost from the 2009 stimulus bill expires. That change will trim about $5 billion from federal food-stamp spending over the coming year.

Funny how Exxon Mobil could pick up the tab on that and still have $3 billion in profit, yet I'm pretty sure we're going to find a way to give them even more. 

[cross-posted at Firedoglake] 

Modern 'murican media

Via Balloon Juice:

That's nice, can we have some jobs now?

I mean, that would actually be awesome...hello?  hello?

At $680 billion, the fiscal 2013 deficit is 51 percent less than it was in 2009, when it hit a record high nominally of $1.4 trillion. 

As a percent of the economy, it's also considerably smaller than it's been in the past five years, coming in at 4.1 percent of gross domestic product. By contrast, the annual deficit in 2009 topped 10 percent of GDP. And last year it was 6.8 percent.

One would say squandered opportunity...

But it's probably all part of the plan.

Unemployment is set to rise again in the US if the pace of jobs growth continues to erode, a top economist warned Wednesday. Mark Zandi, the chief economist of Moody’s Analytics and a former adviser to presidential candidate John McCain, made his comments as ADP, the giant payroll provider, said the private sector added 130,000 jobs from September to October. ADP revised September’s job gain down from 166,000 to 145,000. Moody’s helps compile the closely-watched poll. "The government shutdown and debt limit brinksmanship hurt the already softening job market in October. Average monthly growth has fallen below 150,000. Any further weakening would signal rising unemployment,” said Zandi.

And Mark Zandi should know, the people who organized the shutdown and the debt limit idiocy were the people who used to pay him.

But thanks the the sequester, for one example, it's all part of the bipartisan clusterfuck that will have everybody pointing fingers for the indefinite future while the bulk of the country struggles mightily.

Awesome.

[cross-posted at Firedoglake]

Oh happy day

As some readers may remember, I've been walking and walking (90 to 100 miles a week) the last eight months or so now and accompanying the walk have always been podcasts...mostly on four topics:  comedy, history, sports, and science.

But the best one, the one I look forward to the most is this one.

Best history podcast out there, maybe simply the best podcast out there...and the newest one just came out.

I have about 60 or so different podcasts in my i-Tunes que, but what do you listen to?

Suggestions appreciated, though I may already have the one you're thinking of in the list.

America October 2013

Hey, it's me "your Boss".

We're going to have to cut your hours indefinitely, but hey, today you can dress up in a silly costume.

And we are getting rid of our health insurance plans for non-essential employees, and guess what you are?   But hey, today and maybe even tomorrow, feel fee to dress up as the Hulk, as long as you don't smash.

And your annual bonus, will not be paid, for the seventh annual year.   But you do a great Snow White.

In addition, remember that cutting your hours thing we talked about above?  Yeeeeeaaah, we are simply changing those to "volunteer time" where we passively-aggressively ask you to stay late and come in on the weekends...if you'd like to keep working here.   But hey, you'll occasionally get a T-shirt, and the rest of this week, until casual Friday, you can dress up as Walter White (but not Miley Cyrus).

Thanks for being a relatively valuable member of our team.

Have a nice day, that Batman outfit isn't pathetic at all.

Your Boss

Clearly had better things to do, like cash a donor check

An inspiring tale of courage from our Congress...but then again, they are no different than our media or the rest of the nation. As those who read here and a few other select places the victims of drone attacks in Pakistan appeared before a Congressional Committee yesterday. This included this testimony:

The family of a 67-year-old midwife from a remote village in North Waziristan told lawmakers on Tuesday about her death and the "CIA drone" they say was responsible. Their harrowing accounts marked the first time Congress had ever heard from civilian victims of an alleged US drone strike.

' She was apparently one of the 900 or so civilians killed in drone attacks. So we are consistently killing civilians by the hundreds using drones. You'd think this would be a big story. You'd be wrong, at least in the country responsible for the killing.

The hearing was attended by only five members of Congress, and Grayson said such low numbers of lawmakers at hearings were not unusual. Those attending were all Democrats: Rush Holt of New Jersey, Jan Schakowsky of Illinois, John Conyers of Michigan, Rick Nolan of Minnesota, and Grayson, the Florida Democrat responsible for inviting the family to Washington and for holding the hearing.

Inspiring.

[cross-posted at Firedoglake]

Apparently it isn't worth a crap without collagen and silicon coverage!

Ladies and Gentlemen, who James Taranto believes qualifies as an "expert".

There's always money in stupidity

One need never worry about "merit" in the right-wing (nepotism, need not be mentioned thank you very much), for having the temerity to be a mean-spirited idiot apparently comes with the security of perpetual employment somewhere.

Jason Richwine, who parted ways with the Heritage Foundation over his research arguing Hispanics are intellectually inferior to whites, has quietly begun writing semi-regularly for the flagship conservative publication National Review.

"Let's give a gig to the guy too bigoted for the Heritage Foundation!" I believe he inherited the John Derbyshire endowned Chair.

Meanwhile, Ward Churchill is probably still looking for a job.

[cross-posted at Firedoglake]

Wayne LaPierre -- not a pedophile...but possibly just as bad

Ugh.

A new study says that each year approximately 7,500 children are admitted to U.S. hospitals with gunshot wounds and more than 500 children die during hospital admission from these injuries.

An abstract of the study, titled "United States Gunshot Violence--Disturbing Trends," was presented on Sunday by researchers at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference and Exhibition in Orlando, Fla. The study also found that states with higher numbers of firearm ownership had higher proportions of childhood gunshot wounds. 

"Handguns account for the majority of childhood gunshot wounds and this number appears to be increasing over the last decade," Arin Madenci, MD, MPH, the author's lead study, said in a statement issued by the AAP. "Furthermore, states with higher percentages of household firearm ownership also tended to have higher proportions of childhood gunshot wounds, especially those occurring in the home."

It doesn't matter the source, the head or the tail, it only matters that

The fish rots:

Three disclosures this week show that the United States is losing its way in the struggle against terrorism. Sweeping government efforts to stop attacks are backfiring abroad and infringing on basic rights at home.

CIA drone strikes are killing scores of civilians in Pakistan and Yemen.  The National Security Agency is eavesdropping on tens of millions of phone calls worldwide — including those of 35 foreign leaders — in the name of U.S. security.

And the Department of Homeland Security is using algorithms to “prescreen” travelers before they board domestic flights, reviewing government and private databases that include Americans’ tax identification numbers, car registrations and property records.

Will we create a Minority Report-style Department of Precrime next?

Obama administration officials have a duty to protect Americans from terrorism. But out-of-control NSA surveillance, an ever-expanding culture of secrecy and still-classified rules for how and when foreigners and even Americans can be killed by drone strikes are excessive, unnecessary and destructive.

Twelve years after September 11, 2001, the United States’ obsession with al Qaeda is doing more damage to the nation than the terrorist group itself.