Not with my money

Everybody knows that one of republicans (and not just their leaders, but their faithful voters as well) favorite "causes" is getting rid of all those crackheads who are getting welfare benefits.

A funny thing happened on the way to peeing in a cup:

• Before their drug testing of welfare recipients was stopped by the courts (that pesky 4th Amendment!), the state of Florida tested 51,000 people, and a whopping twenty-one tested positive.  Not 21,000.  Not 2100.  Twenty-fucking-one.  And the cost to Florida taxpayers, even after the twenty-fucking-one people's benefits were taken away?  They're $46,000 in the hole.
• The state of Arizona tested 87,000 of its welfare recipients, and one--that's right, the loneliest number--tested positive.  No figures on the cost to taxpayers but you can pretty much assume that this one is a money losing proposition as well.

After the financial boondoggles of the Afghanistan War, Iraq War, Medicare Part B, and so many, many others, there is no way republicans should be let anywhere near our money.  They'll just waste it...like some crackhead.

Peace,
emaycee

Thanks republicans!

Thanks to the Antoinettes, in 2010, a year in which Democrats peformed horridly nationwide electorally, we managed to hold on to control of the Senate.

In 2012, a year in which we had to defend twice the seats republicans did, again thanks to the Antoinettes, we still managed to keep control of the Senate.

I keep thinking--especially with the 2014 Senate campaign showing a long row to hoe once again for the Democrats to keep control--that eventually the republicans will wise up and our winning streak will come to a close.

Not so fast bucko....

Seems one Steve King--whackjob extraordinaire--though as yet undeclared, has climbed to the forefront for the republican nomination for the open seat in Iowa in 2014, even though he is already getting his clocked cleaned by the likely Democratic nominee, Bruce Braley.  Rep. Tom Latham yesterday anounced he would not seek the seat, which is bad news for republicans since he actually had a chance to win a seat that could be crucial to their chances of regaining control of the Senate.

It's of little surprise that the republicans are horrible at governing--they can't even run their own fucking party.

And we should be thankful for that every day.

Peace,
emaycee

Nobody knows the trouble I've seen

From the Nobody Gives A Shit But Me Files:

After a month of February in which it snowed nearly every day, when we saw the sun shine maybe twice the entire fucking month, two five plus inch snowfalls in the last week, and a weather forecast that shows the highs this weekend--the first fucking weekend end in March for fuck's sake--in the twenties with lows in the teens...the next fucker who tells me, "You know, this winter really hasn't been that bad," I'm going to puke on his or her head just to see if my stomach acid can melt his or her brain because the world would be a much more hospitable place without someone that clueless.

In other news, I've completely fucking had it with winter for this year.

Peace,
emaycee

Good news for the good guys, Part II

You know what really warms my heart?  Good Liberal Democrats kicking the shit out of bad conservadems.  Kind of like Robin Kelly--she of the "F" rating from the NRA and what a cross to bear that was--defeating Debbie Halvorson and her "A" rating by, give or take a point or two, 52-25, in yesterday's special primary in IL-02.

Nothing like giving a big fuck you to the NRA to put a smile on my face, nosiree.

Peace,
emaycee

Good news for the good guys, Part I

Isn't it nice when a potential congressperson you support, say, like, oh, Elizabeth Warren, lives up to everything you thought she might be?

Seriously, her questions toFederal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke yesterday about why American taxpayers are subsidizing too big to fail banks and yet they aren't paying us back--and Bernanke's response that yes, it is quite fucked up--was absolutely priceless.  Hell, I got a hundred percent return on my donation to her campaign just yesterday alone.

Sen. Warren is well on her way to being a Liberal Goddess.

Peace,
emaycee

Not missin' Mississippi

Seems that bastion of human compassion, the state of Mississippi, is trying to pass a bill that prevents its cities from setting their own minimum wage (the state itself has no minimum wage law and thus only follows the federal standard) because it isn't conducive to business.

Fucking really?  I mean fuck people having enough money to buy food, fuck them having enough to pay rent,  fuck them being able to afford health care, fuck them being able to send their kids to school in decent clothing...it's all about making sure that businesses with overpaid assholes running them are even more profitable at the expense of the working people who actually make these pathetic companies run.

Give me a fucking break.

Can someone please explain to me why I should give a shit if a shithole that's a drain on the American taxpayers like Mississippi secedes from the country?  Because at the moment, I'm having a hard time caring.

Peace,
emaycee

Be careful what you wish

Digby had a recent post in which she hoped that Hillary Clinton wouldn't run for President in 2016, because a) Digby would like the chance to vote for a Progressive female in the primaries, and b) because of the sexist nastiness sure to arise from the republican ranks over another Clinton heading for the White House.

While I share her sentiment for the former (it'd be nice to vote for a real Progessive, period, male or female), the latter seems a bit silly.  I'm sure that they could call her an atheist, a lesbian, and compare her to Eva Braun, but after the republican shenanigans over the first black President, it's not going to be any worse for the first female President.  The republican vitriol toward her sex might be equal in its fury, but, hey, what doesn't kill you only makes you stronger.  Not to mention that after all Hillary Clinton has been through (Lewinsky scandal, impeachment of her husband, republican spaceman conspiracy theories virtually daily), it's pretty obvious her shoulders can handle it.

The real question over Hillary Clinton's running for President should be whether or not she gives us the best chance to win.  2016 is a long way away, and other candidates might rise to the fore, but those pooh-poohing a Hillary bid need to take a serious looks at what happened in Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Florida, and Ohio (three solid blue states and two swing states) where republican majorities in their respective statehouses plus a republican in the governorship has led to the passage of numerous anti-worker, anti-labor, anti-union, and anti-women measures despite a majority of those state's constituents being against them.  The odds of us winning back the U.S. House before 2020 (if then) are infintesimal, and we stand a chance (again) of losing the Senate in 2014.  Anyone want to imagine an America where Republicans control the House, the Senate, and the White House (other than some numb nut Antoinette)?  It's truly shudder inducing.

We're still a few years away from the supermajority status current demographic trends are showing, but if republicans can wreak the havoc they have in the individual states in two years, one can only guess how much harm they can do to women's rights and working class Americans in four.

Hillary Clinton probably wouldn't be my first choice either, but if she gives us the best chance to win in 2016, I'll happily pull the lever for her while biding my time for the Presidential election when a true Liberal can win.

Peace,
emaycee

Preposterous assumptions

“Of all the preposterous assumptions of humanity over humanity, nothing exceeds most of the criticisms made on the habits of the poor by the well-housed, well- warmed, and well-fed."--Herman Melville (1819-1891)

I don't know how comforting it is, but it's good to know that the wealthy in America have been assholes for, oh, I don't know...forever.

Peace,
emaycee

Why I'm anti-guns, period

It's popular these days for Democrats to show their support for people's Second Amendment rights (whatever the fuck that means) while still trying to push sensible gun control measures.

Not me--I'm anti-guns, period.

To be perfectly honest, if you like to wake up at the crack of dawn, stand in the freezing cold, and pump Thumper full of buckshot, be my fucking guest.  Not my cup of tea, but if it makes you happy, go for it.

I also don't have a problem with gun collectors--personally I like to collect LPs and coins, and for the life of me, I can't really figure out why other than it's cool to look at all that I've amassed.

No, the reason I'm anti-guns is because there is not one single day--let me repeat that, not one single day--when I get behind the wheel of my car to go driving, and while I'm out, that some idiot doesn't do something that could get me or my family seriously injured or killed because of their abject stupidity.  And you want me to let these same morons have a gun?  You absolutely have to be shitting me.  If it were up to me, ninety percent of Americans wouldn't have a driver's license, let alone a fucking gun.

Think gun owners are more careful than your average American driver?  Guess a-fucking-gain--seems they're just as inept, especially considering the rash of recent accidental shootings at gun shows.

We wouldn't give a child a razor blade to play with; likewise, I don't think we should give guns to idiots.

Peace,
emaycee

POTUS on the 2013 State of the Union: Two minute version

President Obama makes a slew of sensible proposals that will make life in America safer, more economically viable, more democratic, and better prepared for the future for 99% of Americans.

Republicans throw usual shit fit, continue their obstructionism, make life considerably worse for 99% of Americans, and continue their never ending quest to turn America into the world's largest third world nation.

The end.

Peace,
emaycee

Aha!

I'm fifty-three years old, and for the most part, The Grammy Awards are lost on me--anymore I don't know most of the nominees or their songs, and I'm constantly amazed at the mediocrity that passes for "talent" (Justin Timberlake, Carrie Underwood, Kelly Clarkson, et al).  This from a man who spent 18 years in the music industry making peanuts because, for God's sake, I loved the music.

But on tonight's show, when they paid tribute to those in the music industry who had passed away over the past year by having an all star band of sorts perform The Band's "The Weight" (Levon Helm, their drummer and singer passed this year), I actually got out of my chair, stood right in front of the T.V., and smiled like I don't nearly often enough.

It was a joy to behold, and one of those musical moments that make you think, "Yup, this is exactly why I devoted so much of my life to pop music."

Peace,
emaycee

Viva la revolucion!

My beautiful daughter sent me this piece by Jonathan Chait about republican election rigging via gerrymandering, legislation, voter intimidation, and whatever else their puny little minds can come up with, and it reminds me of the old maxim that people learn from history that they learn nothing from history.

While this may well work for republicans and their wealthy benefactors in the short run, in the long run, from the American Revolution, to the French Revolution, to the Arab Spring (and just about any other revolution you can think of) the quickest way to provoke a violent and ultimately successful revolution is to take away a people's voice.

Disenfranchising voters while ramming your unpopular policies down a people's throat is not a recipe for a nation that will survive very long.

Peace,
emaycee

It is the economy stupid

Bill Clinton famously kept his first Presidential campaign on message with the constant reminder to his staff that the American people's main concern was their economic condition.  Thus his mantra to them:  "It's the economy, stupid."

I was reminded of this while reading Eric Alterman's piece on President Obama's inaugural address, which Alterman notes was full of Liberal issues and hopes, save one:  what to do to shore up the ever declining economic fortunes of the poor and the middle class.  Yes, Obama talked about Medicare and Social Security, but what the fuck are we supposed to do to survive economically until we get old?

I think about this economic plight every time I read someone ranting righteously about the drone strikes--I know they're right, but at a time when one in six Americans lives in poverty, one in five had trouble finding enough money to buy food, and almost 50% are one major economic shock from poverty, it's highly doubtful the American people are going to rise up in indignation.  Hell, I'm a dyed in the wool, old school Liberal but after thirty years of killing myself to make a living and still living paycheck to paycheck, I'm a hell of a lot more concerned with where my family's next meal is coming from than the effects of a drone strike thousands of miles away.  Call me a selfish asshole if you like, but if I feel that way can you even imagine how little those without my core beliefs feel?

I'm proud to be a member of a party that is at the forefront in civil rights, fights for the environment, and believes in peace first, war as a last resort, but if more and more of our fellow Americans keep falling into poverty and can't feed themselves, or pay the rent, or get a decent education for their kids, I don't think any of it is much going to matter.

Peace,
emaycee

A fine pair (of assholes)

Seems Phil Mickelson, professional golfer extraordinaire, got into a wee bit of a kerfuffle by proclaiming that California's tax rate was just too darn burdensome for a poor guy making $60 million dollars a year hitting a little ball into a hole with a stick.  Mickelson quickly apologized, perhaps realizing that the legion of golf fans who spend their hard earned dollars on the shit he endorses may not respond too empathetically to his, uh, dilemma.  Mickeson also threatened to retire, until reality snuck in and he realized that $60 million a year jobs are pretty darn rare.

Tiger Woods quickly offered support for Mickelson, saying the reason he had moved from California to Florida (where there is no state income tax, and unlike any other state, a tourist trade that makes this entirely possible) was because of tax issues.  Woods, as many heard, showed his true character when he cried into a phone asking his mistress to not tell Mommy that he'd been a bad boy.  Ever since, I can't look at Woods without thinking, "You should have manned up.  What a wimp!"

Apparently, it's never dawned on these two prima donnas that it takes taxes to build the roads their fans travel on, taxes to educate the people who build their expensive homes and cars, and that taxes have probably paid for many of the golf courses they play on.  But heaven forbid multi-millionaires should have to help pay for it--let the lowky shlubs making peanuts pay for all of it.  Because, you know, hitting a little ball into a hole with a stick has solved so many of the world's problems.

Listening to them about their money problems makes me very glad I believe in God--because I'm sure at the end of their days She's going to slap the living shit out of both of them for being such disgusting assholes.

Peace,
emaycee

emaycee's tolerance for bullshit is officially at zero

I'll admit upfront that I've been a 49ers fan since I was eight years old (45 years now) and that I fucking hate losing.  I'll also proffer that even had the 49ers scored on their last drive, there's a chance Baltimore would have won the game anyway--there was plenty of time left for them to score the go-ahead points.

Bad calls by officiating crews in sporting events happen.  I don't like it, you don't like it, nobody likes it.  And I can understand the NFL protecting its product.  The NFL, like all professionals sports leagues, is a multi-billion dollar enterprise.  It's no different than Toyota or Wal-Mart--defective products or poor public perception of your brand is not going to be admitted to and will be fought with an army of lawyers and PR personnel.  Make no mistake about it, though, the officials in yesterday's Super Bowl made a bad call that cost the 49ers a chance to win and the prevailing opinion on the web today (outside of Baltimore, anyway) is that their Super Bowl win is tainted by it.

But the worst part of this sad spectacle is the opinions espoused by one Phil Simms, color commentaror for CBS "Sports."  Simms, for those not familiar, is kind of like John Madden, except he's even dumber and considerably duller.  Simms spouted that it was a good "non-call" and that somehow it was the 49ers fault for not punching in that score, and besides, at the end of the game the players should just be allowed to play.

Is anybody else bothered by the fact that Simms literally told millions upon millions of American children that cheating is acceptable as long as it's at the end of the game?  And that it's the others guys fault if he loses after you cheat? That essentially, the rules don't matter? What kind of fucked up numbnuts brain thought that was a good idea?  I mean for fuck's sake, can you imagine a pitcher tossing a pitch into the dugout, the umpire calling it a strike, and the baseball announcer saying it was the batter's fault for not swinging?  Can you imagine a cashier taking a couple hundred dollars from his or her drawer at the end of his or her shift and telling the store manager that it's okay because it's the end of the day, and besides, he needs to just let him or her do his or her job?

So much of what is wrong with America today is summed up by idiots like Phil Simms whose only talent in the world is throwing a fucking football.  It's about integrity, and if there is any time every sport needs to respect the integrity of its game, it is at the end of the game when millions upon millions of fans are expecting the game to be decided fairly.  It is no time to "let players play."  It's time to make damn certain that the winner is the team most deserving, not the team that can get away with cheating.

Though perhaps this explains how the NFL can lionize and bestow millions of dollars on a double murderer and a serial sexual predator.

Peace,
emaycee

Electric avenue

The only thing I found shocking about learning that 44% of Americans are one financial shock (loss of a job, major medical disaster) away from poverty is that the percentage wasn't much higher than that.

Though I suppose when you add in the fact that one in six (17% for those of you not attending M.I.T.) Americans is already living in poverty it makes the total number a bit more representative of reality.

Not a damn pleasant reality, either, is it?

Peace,
emaycee

Marionettes

Reading this piece on Pret A Manger's policies with regard to their employees' behaviors--enforced happiness as the article suggests--I thought I was watching a movie called "The Stepford Employees."  Only it's real.  Bone-chilling real.

Pret A Manger--never heard of them before reading the article--is a chain of sandwich shops that began in England and has expanded to the east coast of the U.S.  They're big in what might be called Yuppievilles--those sections of large U.S. cities that cater to young professionals.  Apparently--and this is something I've felt for a long time, as one who spent nearly thirty years in the private sector--your mind and your body are no longer enough.  Corporations are more and more demanding your soul as well, in what is becoming known as "emotional labor."   It's not enough to get the customer what he or she wants, take their money, and thank them.  No, now they want you to make them feel special as well.

It's not surprising that this would be aimed at the wealthy--who else wouldn't just be satisifed with good customer serivice but think they're entitled to a back rub and a hand job, too?  And think those same employees who are damn well supposed to meet their every whim are overpaid at $7.25 an hour?

Perhaps Corporate America could start hiring more makeup artists--they could paint the smiles on our lips, the rosy round circles on our cheeks, and attach the strings to our arms and legs.  Then we could all be exactly what corporate employers are looking for:  inexpensive puppets.

And this has been another installment of "Why We Need Strong Labor Unions...."

Peace,
emaycee