Ruminations – 11sep13

George Rebane

9/11 - Today some of us remember that we are at war with a civilization whose belief system – evil by our standards - cannot survive along ours in an open and inter-connected international community.  And yet others believe that 11 September 2001 happened because of some fundamental misunderstanding between two peer cultures – an unfortunate mistake that is primarily the fault of America.

Last Sunday Nevada City held its annual Constitution Day Parade featuring all kinds of floats, people with banners and in costume, bands, and vehicles serious and silly.  It was a warm, late summer day for our community to celebrate the document that makes possible our society, and to give voice to all manner of ideas the expression of which the Constitution guarantees.  A fine day to celebrate our freedoms.

The Nevada County Friends of the Military (under Fred Buhler’s lead) assembled a march unit that consisted of four vehicles, two of which pulled trailers, and veterans that made up an honor guard and outlier.  On one trailer was a replica of a small bamboo cage with a ‘prisoner’ inside that the North Vietnamese used to punish American POWs.  The float and its honor guard drew a reverent applause as we proceeded down Broad Street.  I was privileged to pull that float.  Jo Ann marched with the NC Tea Party unit.

Our hard pressed ‘designated reader’ emailed me coverage of a local leftwinger’s (FUE’s) blog post and comment stream that took selected participants in the Constitution Day Parade to task.  It seems that the FUE was concerned that the parade has been “politicized”, and excessively so according to his lights.  The infraction was enlarged by the participation of the older generation who attended in excessive numbers, and seemingly with all the wrong politics.  Fortunately, some commenters were able to explain to the FUE that a seminal function of such parades is for people to express their diverse politics as part and parcel of celebrating the document that makes such public expressions possible.

I took away from that yet another example of and confirmation that it is the Left which continues its efforts to silence the Right for its politically incorrect beliefs, the number of which grows by the day.

Two anti-2nd Amendment politicians recalled in Colorado.  Hallelujah!  State senators Giron and Morse felt the ire of the voters for their anti-gun initiatives. Many Coloradans see such legislation as one more reason to feel that Denver (with its heavily progressive out-of-state immigrant population) no longer represents the longheld beliefs and values of the state's less densely populated regions.  I look forward to this kind of activism spreading across the land as evidence that more and more freedom loving people are beginning to pay attention to the rising autocracy of collectivism.

Comments

[Todd Juvinall]

Astutwe as usual George. You and JoAnne really do represent the heart and soul of the patriotic America and God Bless you both on this day of remembrance.

Here is a link on (among many) asking "where the hell did Syria get those chemical weapons?" I always though at the time that Sadaam moved them to Syria from Iraq. Maybe we will find the truth prevailing? Anyway, if someone can point me to the plabts in Syria where they made the poison gas I will then shutup anout it.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3064594/posts

I too read the FUE's ridiculous comments and pondered why this guy thinks he is a patriot. How can someone so self important be so stupid about the parade?

In Colorado, my sister and her family live in the area near Colorado Springs (home to the Air Force Academy) where one of those democrats as recalled. It is my opinion if the GOP wants to win then they must take a lesson from those recalls. It was not involved I guess because they were chicken shits but maybe they might take notice to the grass roots conservatives. Hope springs eternal.

On a personal note. Every time Michael Anderson comments he somehow works his way into saying something derogatory about me and as usual I am compelled to answer in kind. Having dealt for 35 years with nuts like him, may I suggest he simply come to my blog rather than yours. Perhaps you might suggest that as a way for him to get his jollies and leave your readers alone.

[Todd Juvinall]

Oh and here is a excerpt from a New York Sun article;e by a defecting Iraqi on "where did the WMD's go) written in 2006.

"In 2006, former Iraqi general, Georges Sada, who served under Saddam Hussein before he defected, wrote a comprehensive book detailing how the Iraqi Revolutionary Guard moved weapons of mass destruction into Syria, before the US-led action to eliminate Saddam Hussein’s WMD threat, by loading the weapons into civilian aircraft in which the passenger seats were removed.

As reported in the New York Sun on January 26, 2006:

“‘There are weapons of mass destruction gone out from Iraq to Syria, and they must be found and returned to safe hands,’ Mr. Sada said. ‘I am confident they were taken over.’”

“Mr. Sada’s comments come just more than a month after Israel’s top general during Operation Iraqi Freedom, Moshe Yaalon, told the Sun that Saddam ‘transferred the chemical agents from Iraq to Syria.’

“Democrats have made the absence of stockpiles of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq a theme in their criticism of the Bush administration’s decision to go to war in 2003...

“The discovery of the weapons in Syria could alter the American political debate on the Iraq war. And even the accusations that they are there could step up international pressure on the government in Damascus. That government, led by Bashar Assad, is already facing a UN investigation over its alleged role in the assassination of a former prime minister of Lebanon. The Bush administration has criticized Syria for its support of terrorism and its failure to cooperate with the UN investigation.”"

[fish]

coverage of a local leftwinger’s (FUE’s) blog post

FUE?

Two anti-2nd Amendment politicians recalled in Colorado.

Hahahahahaahahahahahahahahahahahahah.......inhale deeply........HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!

Love seeing these types get their noses bloodied.

[George Rebane]

ToddJ 1217pm - "... may I suggest (Michael Anderson) simply come to my blog rather than yours. Perhaps you might suggest that as a way for him to get his jollies and leave your readers alone."

An excellent idea Todd. I hereby forward your suggestion for kind consideration by Mr Anderson.

fish 1247pm - FUE (appropriately pronounced 'phooey') is the three letter acronym for Former Union Editor. For some years now it has served well as an emotionally vanilla but still precise appellation to refer to a self-appointed and -activated community metric who measures and reports on the values, mores, and ideologies of residents living in Nevada County and its environs. Several of his understudies also frequent these pages. We are blessed.

[Walt]

The Colorado news is bittersweet.
Yes, it made my night as I waited to see how things went.
THEN,, what do I find? CA. has passed the "weapons ban", and the other restrictions the anti gun gang have been drooling over.
OH JOY.....
Now my AR is on the hit list, and "must" be registered.
And on 9/11 no less.
I hope the NRA and others are filing papers to fight this TODAY.

[Michael Anderson]

Todd: "Having dealt for 35 years with nuts like him, may I suggest he simply come to my blog rather than yours."

Todd, you don't have a blog.

[Todd Juvinall]

Well I guess my 2 years and 150,000 views and comments has me fooled.

[Michael Anderson]

Clicks can be deceiving.

[Michael Anderson]

BTW Todd, the main reason I have been to every Burning Man since 1991 is because of the amazing people I have met there, and even become close friends with, over the years. I met a woman out there this year who wants to help us build our new airport, and it wasn't until I got back to the default world that I searched around to find out who she was...pretty amazing CV. I found an article she wrote at Huffington Post recently that I would love to have George and Greg comment upon: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/krisztina-holly/are-you-afraid-to-say-i-d_b_2775763.html

[Bill Tozer]

No surprise in Colorado. Shows what can happen when the constituency gets fed up with not being listened to and swept under the carpet. Locals get all riled up when their local elected representatives decide to take their marching orders from Washington DC and ignore those that voted them into office.

What makes this even more amazing is that the anti-recall side outspent the recall side by 5 to 1 in one recall and 6-1 in the other recall. Most astonishing is one incumbent in a heavy Dem district who carried the vote by some astronomical figure like 77% in the last election lost the recall by 12%. That is what I call popular grass roots movement. The people spoke. Yes, another reason to celebrate Constitution Day.

Wrong again Queen Nancy. It is grass roots not Astro-Turf. It is We the People. Go blame your fellow Democrat Party voters for the recall effort succeeding in a heavily Dem district. Would never have happened without your inspiration.

On this day of September 11th, I would like to forget Mr. Hee-Hee Boy's Big Boy look-a-like and focus on remembering this day and what it means to us Americans. I hope this day does not go the way of Pearl Harbor with Japanese Zeros flying over our skies and drive bombing our ships and sleeping sailors and is only mentioned on 50 year anniversaries. Never made page one of the 49th and 51st anniversay. Lest we forget.

We can remember 9/11 with emotion, yes, but more importantly we should remember the day intellectually with sober reflection of how the world became smaller and more dangerous and the day our real enemies became apparent to all but those who choose to remain blind. Shorty after Janet Nappy-pooh called conservatives right wing terrorists. On this day we all know who the terrorists are. They are the ragheads.

[Michael Anderson]

Bill,

I agree. There are lots of really annoying terrorists in the Middle East, and at this point I don't think giving them universal health care, or even jobs, will change anything. Same with the Sudan. Same with the outlier tribal areas of Syria. So be it. Let them not eat cake.

I am torn on entering into this civil war. On the one hand, I like smacking stupid. On the other hand, I hate tar babies.

This is a messy one. Day by day, most likely.

Michael A.

[Gregory]

From the article MA 9:50PM wanted thoughts on: "I recall 15 years ago when I worked on a documentary project about math education reform. At the time there was a great deal of pushback and fear about having students work in groups and expecting them to figure out math on their own. Many parents feared that their children would miss out on the basics. The teachers feared they were becoming obsolete."

A completely false framing of the Math Wars. My kid started in that cohort, they did miss out on the basics, and without fluency in the arithmetic of fractions, there's no chance of algebra proficiency, either.

Half the kids in my son's Hennessey class tested in the bottom quartile in the 3rd grade in both math and language (whole math and whole language was the rule in the GVSD), and the constructivist pedagogy of the true believers at Hennessey (like Merry Byles-Daly) are apparently still at it at the Grass Valley Charter, which recently tested 66% of their 7th graders as below proficient in 7th grade math, and 64% of 8th graders as below proficient in science.

The Grass Valley Charter is in the 7th decile (60-70%) for the state as a whole, but considering the demographics of the kids and their parents, they're in the 2nd decile (10-20% from the bottom) in their similar schools ranking. In effect, given the same kids about 85% of their similar schools do better.

California chucked the whole math and whole language standards for ones developed by folks who understand why the basics are called the basics, and reviewed textbooks for content, not pedagogy. However, reform math didn't go away; a number of proponents kept working away and the Common Core is reform math v.2. Not to worry, the California legislature has voted to solve the problem the same way they did in the early '90's... the STAR test and the Academic Performance Index is being shut down, that is, if the Feds withdraw their threat to withold all Federal funding if the testing is stopped. It's in flux, see today's SacBee.

A cute experiment that let poor kids in India play with an internet kiosk isn't a roadmap for actually finding a way kids can teach themselves and doing away with adults teaching them what they might not want to learn.

In short, Mike, regarding primary math education she's a compass pointing south who ignores past failures, which are both numerous and widespread.

[Gregory]

Our rocket scientists in Sacramento may be on the verge of passing legislation that redefines "assault weapons" as any centerfire rifle that accepts detachable magazines, and will require anyone who wishes to keep said weapon to pay a tax and re-register it as an "assault weapon" or become a criminal.

They are also considering banning all magazines in the state that hold more than 10 rounds, no matter how long the owner has legally possessed them. People who think "keep and bear arms" actually means a right to keep the arms they have may have a surprise coming this week.

Can what just happened in Colorado happen here?

[Douglas Keachie]

I see the COBOL comet is still preening himself here, instead of actively doing anything to improve the skill sets of the local teachers and tutors. Were I him, I'd have a blog, Facebook page or group, in which I'd be discussing best practices, instead of grumpy catting away, hoping for a few ego strokes.

Aside from that, I see folks really thrilled about the return of the Old West, even though I didn't see any of you in the audience Thursday night at the Nevada City Film Festival's screening of , "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly." You missed a chance a a great photo by Simon Weller, I'll show you mine later.

I will be looking forward to the day when Walt finally has to turn in his AR, for a good meat ration, as we move into the world in which, "Average is Over." If you didn't hear the interview with the author, on NPR this morning, you can listen here: http://www.npr.org/player/v2/mediaPlayer.html?action=1&t=1&islist=false&id=221425582&m=221637238

In a way, it's one possible look at what the Great Divide holds in store for us. Upper middle class educated, living on lower working class wages, creating only that which the 1% deems economically useful. Looks like mankind is indeed headed for the "New Feudalism" which I have noted many times. There will be many compromises, and probably a substantial number of folks living in near prison public housing feeding conditions in the middle of the Nevada desert, "you are free to go, but you'll have to walk out, carrying whatever food you've managed to horde." "Oh you noticed you can't get pregnant, pity, must be something in the air or water." Ironically, they might set the first one up at the Black Rock City site.

I wonder how smug the members would be if they could see how many of their grandchildren will wind up there, having failed to make the grade (cradle to grave entries on everything they do will be used to evaluate)and conform to the demands of their grandparents' peers?

[Douglas Keachie]

Here you go, Walt, now you can piss away money faster than you ever thought possible! http://money.cnn.com/2013/09/12/news/companies/slide-fire-gun/index.html?iid=Lead

[George Rebane]

Re MichaelA’s 950pm. I have been blessed to have spent most of my life on the shoreline of knowledge, and ‘I don’t know’ was always the first step in wading in to find the answer and extend the shoreline.

With that perspective I have serious problems with educational approaches that rely on students learning basics through their own explorations and discoveries. The purpose of schools is first to instill existing knowledge and teach how to get more of it. Civilization grows by the ignorant young standing on the shoulders of the experienced and learned old. Youth doesn’t last long, and the required knowledge base to become productive is ever larger.

Basing education on allowing students to rummage around trying to rediscover established facts and processes may be fun, but it is inefficient and wasteful. There are several good ways to quickly teach the notion of, say, the first derivative. Let’s do that when giving kids well established tools, then let them have the joy of discovery in applying those tools to solving interesting problems that expand their knowledge base, cement the tool’s usage, and expand critical thinking skills in applying what they already have in their expanding toolkit. (See SESF’s TechTest for an example of that.)

A measure of a society is how quickly it can get its young to the shoreline of its knowledge base so that the shoreline can be expanded for the benefit of all.

[Michael Anderson]

Thank you George and Greg, those were good answers. Appreciate you taking the time.

[Gregory]

George, the perspectives on education we apparently share are substantially missing in action in current US K-12 districts.

I saw the "I don't know" theme of MA's acquaintance to be a fairly standard denigration of parental involvement. Yes, there are parents incompetent in science, but it's unclear whether teachers as a whole are better at it. The parent who was said to have been making stuff up might have been, but it could also be someone who is remembering something they 'discovered' on their own and had no "sage on the stage" to notice their error and correct it before it had a chance to fester.

I recall a math education email forum in the late 1990's that I was frequenting... a young teacher, enamored of discovery methods, was ticked off at his landlady who had the hot water temperature turned down lower than he wanted. He set his class off on a project to demonstrate to his landlady how much money she would save if only the water was hotter. They devised experiments, they created charts. And that dense landlord just wouldn't believe it.

Smart landlord, as it violated the laws of thermodynamics. The teacher didn't understand math was distinct from science, that his project allowed kids to discover something that was patently false, and that "kids remember better when they discover something and construct the knowledge on their own" is a double edged sword.

Another denigration was the "sage on the stage" comment culled from current a educational dogmatic "deep thought", which goes, "Don't be a sage on the stage, be a guide on the side". In other words, don't present a lesson, watch the kids teaching themselves. It's the Socratic Method reinvented... with no Socrates needed or expected in the classroom.

[George Rebane]

Gregory 1227pm - Agreed. Good points.

[Russ Steele]

Walt@11 01:03PM

We better hope the NRA is on top of this. Note item one on this UN letter I am forwarding George for a more complete posting. They want to make any military grade guns illegal for possession. Who determines what is military grade? Any center fire gun?

[Walt]

Hope some have kept their nose clean for the past decade.
I'm surprised they didn't add a speeding ticket to the list
of offences that would keep a gun out of your hands for the NEXT
10 years.

SB 755, as introduced, Wolk. Firearms: prohibited persons.

(1) Existing law, subject to exceptions, provides that any person who has been convicted of certain misdemeanors may not, within 10 years of the conviction, own, purchase, receive, possess, or have under his or her custody or control, any firearm. Violation of this prohibition is punishable by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year or in the state prison, by a fine not exceeding $1,000, or by both that imprisonment and fine.

This bill would add to the list of misdemeanors, the conviction for which is subject to those prohibitions, misdemeanor offenses of threatening a peace officer, removing a weapon from the person of a peace officer, hazing, transferring a firearm without completing the transaction through a licensed firearms dealer, furnishing ammunition to a minor, possession of ammunition by a person prohibited from having a firearm, furnishing ammunition to a person prohibited from possessing ammunition, carrying ammunition onto school grounds, carrying a loaded or concealed weapon if the person has been previously convicted of a crime against a person or property, or of a narcotics or dangerous drug violation, or if the firearm is not registered, participation in any criminal street gang, a public offense committed for the benefit of a criminal street gang, disobedience to the terms of an injunction that restrains the activities of a criminal street gang. By changing the definition of a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

(2) Under existing law it is a felony for any person who has been previously convicted of any specified violent offenses to own or have possession or custody or control of any firearm.

This bill would additionally make it a felony for any person to own or possess a firearm if the person has been convicted of 2 or more crimes within a 3-year period and was found to have been under the influence of drugs or alcohol during the commission of the crimes, if the person has been convicted of possessing any controlled substance for sale, or if the person has violated any protective order that was issue due to a threat of violence. By expanding the definition of a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

(3) Existing law prohibits certain specified individuals, including a person who has been adjudicated a danger to others as a result of a mental disorder or mental illness, a person who has been adjudicated a mentally disordered sex offender, a person who has been found not guilty by reason of insanity, or a person who has been placed under conservatorship by a court, among others, from possessing firearms or deadly weapons.

Existing law authorizes a court to order a person to obtain assisted outpatient treatment if certain criteria are met, including that the person is suffering from a mental illness and is unlikely to survive safely in the community without supervision.

This bill would prohibit a person who has been ordered by a court to obtain assisted outpatient treatment from purchasing or possessing any firearm or other deadly weapon while subject to assisted outpatient treatment. The bill would require the court to notify the Department of Justice of the order prohibiting the person from possessing a firearm or other deadly weapon within 2 days of the order, and to notify the Department of Justice when the person is no longer subject to assisted outpatient treatment. Because a violation of this provision would be a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

(4) Existing constitutional provisions require that a statute that limits the right of access to meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies be adopted with findings demonstrating the interest protected by that limitation and the need for protecting that interest.

This bill would make a legislative finding and declaration relating to the necessity of treating reports to the Department of Justice as confidential in order to protect the privacy of individuals ordered to obtain assisted outpatient treatment.

(5) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

[Walt]

I do certainly hope the Ca. gun owners groups file the proper paperwork
before the ink is dry when Moonbat signs these Bills.
Then we have what the courts pulled not long ago. " You have no standing to file a lawsuit." ( remember that?)

Ca. has all but nullified the 2ND.
It seems even my Ruger 10/22 is on the mandatory registration list.

[fish]

We better hope the NRA is on top of this. Note item one on this UN letter I am forwarding George for a more complete posting. They want to make any military grade guns illegal for possession. Who determines what is military grade? Any center fire gun?

Military grade....? Whatever sends Lois Wolk to her fainting couch.

Any centerfire gun would include just about every hunting rifle in existence. I need to check my deer rifle to see if has a removable magazine...that's how long its been since I've been deer hunting!

[Todd Juvinall]

I was directed to the FUE's site and I went there holding my nose and read our Pal Steve Frisch call our next Republican President a "troglodyte" I think To McClintock should know this Truckee nutcase is losing his grasp.

[fish]

I was directed to the FUE's site and I went there holding my nose and read our Pal Steve Frisch call our next Republican President a "troglodyte" I think To McClintock should know this Truckee nutcase is losing his grasp.

I find that "proglodyte", "progtard", or "Empty headed lefty dimwit" are all adequate responses to the lisping troglodyte that the sensitive left seems to relish while feeling oh so superior!

[Account Deleted]

Douglas at 8:51 - I'm laughing at your vision of the future. Who would have the power and authority to inflict such a society? Only the govt. And yet you screech for more govt every day. Would the Tea Party folk live as this? You know they wouldn't. Our good friend Sen Reid from our neighboring desert state you mentioned has now called the Tea Party folk 'anarchists'. And Sen Reid is a serial child molester. Some one told me that. So I can repeat it, and I don't have to reveal my sources. As intelligent and respectful discourse breaks down into outright lying as a constant theme from our govt, firearms will become the arbiter of truth. One way or another. That is simply a matter of history. And that is why the govt is desperate to remove firearms not from criminal hands, but law abiding ones.

[Michael Anderson]

Wow, such a wonderful couple of posts the last few hours.

Todd, Steve Frisch has more intelligence in one of his ear lobes (which doesn't contain any brain cells, BTW) than exists in the entirety of your DNA lineage going back to the dinosaurs. Your branch is dying off, and we celebrate its removal from the gene pool. It's just nature, taking care of business. I am only the messenger, so please don't kill me.

Scott, I just have to ask you, WWJD? Would he post a comment in a blog claiming that Sen Reid was a child molester? I'll just let you think about that one, there's really nothing else to say.

[Bill Tozer]

I caught about 30 seconds of news today and it was ole Harry Palms Reid stating the the Tea Party wants to defund government. What a killjoy he is.

Nothing could be further from the truth. The Federal government now eats up 22-23% of the entire GDP. Add the state governments and municipalities and little special districts and counties and you have goberment eating up 45% of the wealth. The Tea Party folks (which I admire greatly) want sensible smart government, not no government. They want the government as spelled out in that awful thing called The Constitution of the United States of America.

The govberment is like fire. It only consumes and is never satisfied. Never. Cut one dollar from the libs and they start screaming like a thief that just got robbed.

Speaking of killjoys, Mr Anderson seems to have lost a tad of his jovial mood after his glorious uplifting spiritual experience in the desert of Nevada. He was so happy and positive just a week ago. Was it something somebody said, was it?? Things are getting back to normal.

[Account Deleted]

Michael - I merely passed along what I'd been told. It is the same exact standard Sen Reid uses and I don't seem to recall you being upset when the good Sen acted on what he had been told. Of course, your standards are very high. And very deeply held. And changed from minute to minute. Let us know what new deeply held standards you have tomorrow. There's a good boy.

[Gregory]

"Todd, Steve Frisch has more intelligence in one of his ear lobes (which doesn't contain any brain cells, BTW) than exists in the entirety of your DNA lineage going back to the dinosaurs. Your branch is dying off, and we celebrate its removal from the gene pool."

That's just the sort of ugly rhetoric that was so endearing of you on TheUnion blog, Mike. While Todd is rough around the edges, I don't see any evidence either you or Frisch are smarter than he, just a bit better educated and steeped in progressive lore which the left mistakenly think is an indicator of intelligence.

[stevenfrisch]

I think Todd, that you missed the point (placing you squarely in the funky little Jimmy castor Bunch video).

If you can pull yourself away from continuously going through the TSA scanner with hidden zucchini read the post over at Pelline's and think again.

[Todd Juvinall]

It cracks me up that I am in MichaelA's head and he can't shake me. SteveF, I think you think you are just too smart for everyone else and you have to tell us what the punchline really is every time. I think we all can read just fine.

True I am rough around the edges as Greg said, I did not think I was better than anyone else in my life. But now I can see what happens when liberals do. Glad I am rough around the edges. BTW, MichaelA, my gene pool came from a man who fought the fascists so you could spout your crap. I would suggest you should walk on the other side of the street when you see me since my dad is no longer here to defend his honor. Also, my three kids are passing along his DNA.

[stevenfrisch]

Funny Todd, my DNA came from men who fought the fascists too! See, we have something in common. I am sure your Dad fought the fascists so you could tell Michael to walk on the other side of the street. Sounds to me like if your Dad were the man you say he was he would kick your ass if were still alive.

[Todd Juvinall]

SteveF, why do you insist on involving yourself in others lives and conversations? Oh, a good liberal. Too funny.

[Walt]

Here is the overview of what we are facing from the soon to be gun laws.

http://www.nraila.org/legislation/state-legislation/2013/8/california-anti-gun-bills-now-go-to-the-state-senate-and-assembly-floors.aspx

At least two won't see daylight.( at least for now)

[Michael Anderson]

Hey, my DNA fought the fascists too. So we're all good. And I hope you all had a nice "kill the messenger" party. And just so we're clear Todd, it's your ideals that are branching off into the dustbin of history. And no, I'm not talking about your alleged love for Constitutional principles. I'm talking about pigeonholing people, calling them "dumb liberals" and "rent seekers." That's not rough around the edges, it's just bad behavior. Now, who was it I was talking about? Oh, I guess he's not occupying my head anymore. That's a relief.

[Joe Koyote]

"we are at war with a civilization...... " -- Who is included within this evil civilization? Do you mean this to be a general condemnation of Islam in general or specific sub sets (shia, etc.), or? Are the Saudis (practically all of the 911 terrorists were Saudi) included? The word "civilization" is a pretty broad term.

[George Rebane]

JoeK 259pm - This topic and question has been extensively covered in these pages. I invite your looking into it.

[George Rebane]

Administrivia - I unpublished a 'conversation' that followed my 358pm which was really over the top in every imaginable dimension. Nuff said.

[Michael Anderson]

Thank you George.

[Barry]

I was going to suggest a game of rock, paper, scissors, lizard, Spock...that would be a cool way to resolve the disputes.

[Gregory]

Mike, you do owe George for that one, big time. But it's OK, I've got a copy up to my last one at 5:59.

Mandersons who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones.

[Gregory]

I thought MAnderson's complaint about "rent seeker" being an epithet up there with "dumb liberal" (or maybe even "toadie for the evil life killers of the planet") was over the top but rent-seeker isn't an epithet, it's a real life term in economics that describes Frisch and the Sierra Business Council business plan to a "T". Without regulations (that iirc Frisch has boasted about helping to write) that drive customers his way, there probably wouldn't be a Sierra Business Council, not that there is a council of businesses at the SBC.

A tie in for Paul (who has apparently taken a break after his push for making drones illegal in Nirvana County went nowhere) might be this line from the wiki entry for rent-seeking:
"Rent ... is obtained when a third party deprives one party of access to otherwise accessible transaction opportunities, making nominally "consensual" transactions a rent-collection opportunity for the third party.

The high profits of the illegal drug trade are considered rents by this definition, as they are neither legal profits nor the proceeds of common-law crimes.

[Michael Anderson]

Just keep typing. You'll find yourself someday.

[Gregory]

Never lost, Mike, but having your compass pointing south doesn't hurt as a reminder.

[Walt]

I found these words vary interesting in regards to the recall in CO.

"While the gun control bills were before the Senate in March, President Morse urged his caucus to stop reading emails, to stop reading letters from constituents, to stop listening to voicemails, to vote for the gun bills and ignore the constituents."

The full context can be found here.
http://hotair.com/archives/2013/09/12/bad-news-colorado-democrat-defeated-in-recall-election-over-gun-control-not-taking-it-well/

This seems to be common practice in LIB state houses.

[Bill Tozer]

Walt, be careful next time you dig a hole:

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/09/14/armed-epa-agents-in-alaska-shed-light-on-70-fed-agencies-with-armed-divisions/?intcmp=latestnews