Saturday, July 14, 2012

Miscellaneous 128

1) President Obama can do no wrong for his supporters. But we also have to face the reality that neither can he seem to do anything right in terms of his detractors. I mean, just take a look at Sean Hannity, for example. The dude keeps referring to the fact that the President has created zero "net jobs" - never minding the fact that country was hemorrhaging jobs when the President initially took office and that his policies didn't immediately take effect. It's totally unfair. Add to that the fact that people like this Hannity never give Obama credit for smoking terrorists (Bill O'Reilly, to his credit, has) and it really does add up to an Obama Derangement Syndrome, I think.............2) I have a new favorite coffee, folks; Panamanian. Yep. I like it better than Brazilian Bourbon Santos. I like it better than Guatemalan Antigua. And I like it better than Nicaraguan. The stuff (enhanced, I gather, with just the proper amounts wind, rain, and volcanic soil) just has an incomparably smooth finish, delicious aroma, and a tiny hint of fruitiness that makes even me, a devout and hard-core tea drinker, want to savor it. Please, do yourself a favor and check it out sometime.............3) Bernie Sanders takes a lot of ribbing here, from me and from others. But let me take a minute to say something good about the fellow. I was just on opensecrets.org and of all the Congressmen and Senators in Washington who took campaign contributions from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, he took the absolute least, a paltry $250 (compare this to guys like Dodd and Obama who both took over $130,000). It's good to see that at least one fellow down there isn't completely bought and paid for.............4) The Virginia Tech Hokies have just landed themselves a dandy. Northgate High's (in Newnan Georgia), Brandon Facyson, a lock-down corner (who also plays wide receiver) with excellent speed (a sub 4.5 40) and range (at 6'2" he towers over most corners), has just this minute given a "verbal" to play his college ball in Blacksburg. It was an excellent get and strengthens even more so their recent success in states like Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, etc..

28 comments:

The Prophet Dervish Z Sanders said...

Will: Bernie Sanders takes a lot of ribbing here, from me and from others. But let me take a minute to say something good about the fellow.

Bernie Sanders is the BEST senator in Congress. He stands with the 99 percent. We need a LOT more like him.

dmarks said...

Real world correction: he stands with the Occupy movement, which represents less than 33%.

The Prophet Dervish Z Sanders said...

Real world correction: Bernie Sanders supports economic policies that would benefit 99 percent of Americans. Whether or not they agree is another matter... the economic policies he supports would still benefit them.

Les Carpenter said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Les Carpenter said...

Real world translation, he is a politician that is at least being forthright about his misguided mission.

Further Translation - He truly believes that his beliefs are right. Which of course means he is honest, a rare commodity in most politicians of the 21st century.

Other than that 'ole' Bernie should retire before he causes real damage to the 99%.

dmarks said...

WD said: "Real world correction: Bernie Sanders supports economic policies that would benefit 99 percent of Americans. Whether or not they agree is another matter."

Whether or not they agree is the important thing here. These people know their own lives, not you. I trust them; and most of them do not agree with the "Occupy" movement and know that the economic policies they support are not in their interest.

RN said: "Other than that 'ole' Bernie should retire before he causes real damage to the 99%."

If he had his way, there would be great damage indeed.

Will "take no prisoners" Hart said...

wd's favorite Senator also happens to be the only self-described Socialist down there. Gee, what a coinkydink. And he also has to realize that the top 1% in year A isn't going to be the same top 1% as in year A+10. The categories change over time and he really has to realize the dynamism here.

The Prophet Dervish Z Sanders said...

dmarks: Whether or not they agree is the important thing here. These people know their own lives, not you.

You keep lying about me thinking I know other people's lives. I've never claimed that I do. I only know which economic policies I think will work best for the country.

dmarks: I trust them...

Only if they agree with you, if not you condescend to them and call them "greedy" and "jealous".

dmarks: ...most of them do not agree with the "Occupy" movement and know that the economic policies they support are not in their interest.

The economic policies the Occupy movement supports ARE in their interest... in my opinion, of course, but unlike you I'm honest about it. I don't BS about "trusting the people".

Also, if Bernie Sanders had his way the wealthy might become a little less wealthy, but everyone else would become significantly more prosperous.

Will: wd's favorite Senator also happens to be the only self-described Socialist down there. Gee, what a coinkydink.

He is. What's your point?

dmarks said...

WD said: "The economic policies the Occupy movement supports ARE in their interest... in my opinion, of course, but unlike you I'm honest about it. I don't BS about "trusting the people"."

MOST of the 99% (the people, not the Occupy movement which represents a fraction of them) disagree. Their opinion trumps yours.

As I am not arrogant, I side with them. You may think that trusting the people is BS, but I don't. To do as you do is extremely arrogant.
You would make a terrible politician, with your extreme arrogance. You would be a lot like General Zod.

From his 2008 campaign web site:

"When I first came to your planet and demanded your homes, property and very lives, I didn't know you were already doing so, willingly, with your own government. I can win no tribute from a bankrupted nation populated by feeble flag-waving plebians. In 2008 I shall restore your dignity and make you servants worthy of my rule. This new government shall become a tool of my oppression. Instead of hidden agendas and waffling policies, I offer you direct candor and brutal certainty. I only ask for your tribute, your lives, and your vote."

Yeah, this fits in completely with your arrogant attitude, and the condescension of the Occupy movement in claiming to represent 99% of the people.

"Also, if Bernie Sanders had his way the wealthy might become a little less wealthy, but everyone else would become significantly more prosperous."

I doubt that very much, and if he ran for President, probably only about 3% would agree with him.

dmarks said...

And finally, WD said "Only if they agree with you, if not you condescend to them and call them "greedy" and "jealous".

This is completel;y untrue. I accurately describe anyone, rich or poor, as greedy and jealous if they think that the way to success is to beg and whine for handouts, as opposed to working for it and actually earning it.

The Prophet Dervish Z Sanders said...

dmarks: As I am not arrogant, I side with them. You may think that trusting the people is BS, but I don't.

You are arrogant. VERY arrogant (but more on that later).

I never said trusting the people is BS. I said you saying that is BS... because you don't believe it. You only "trust" them when they agree with you. Also, what I said originally is clear. You're just pretending that I said something I did not... something you do quite often.

Like when you pretended Al Gore said he invented the internet, or when you pretended Bill Maher said mentally challenged children should be put down like dogs, or when you pretended that Joy Behar said Romney had millions of homes when she was clearly making a joke.

I think dmarks lives in a world of make-believe... proof of that being his bringing a fictional character into this discussion.

That you belive that every one of your opinions is the opinion held by the majority is more proof of you living in a world of make-believe. Also, it's extremely arrogant. Not only does dmarks think he's almost always right, he thinks the majority of the people agree with him!

The Prophet Dervish Z Sanders said...

dmarks: This is completely untrue. I accurately describe anyone, rich or poor, as greedy and jealous if they think that the way to success is to beg and whine for handouts, as opposed to working for it and actually earning it.

It is 100 percent true. I've never said a damn thing about begging or whinning for "handouts" and you quite often call me jealous and greedy.

dmarks said...

WD said: "You only "trust" them when they agree with you."

Completely untrue. I know that most voters voted for Obama because it is in their interest, just as most oppose the Occupy movement, because it is not in their interest. I lack the arrogance you have.

"Like when you pretended Al Gore said he invented the internet"

He did say this, "Invent" is a correct paraphrse of "create". CHeck the thesaurus...

Next...

"...or when you pretended Bill Maher said mentally challenged children should be put down like dogs"

He said they were not people, and equated them with animals. I did not say that he specifically wanted to put them down. But once you dehumanize people like the Nazis did, that is a natural next step. And what Maher actually did was vicious and indefensible.

"...or when you pretended that Joy Behar said Romney had millions of homes when she was clearly making a joke."

Since it wasn't funny, she came across as a liar. Saying stuff about Romney without any regard to it being true. Like when you said that Romney outsourced more than Immelt, and then were caught flat footed when you were asked for numbers.


"It is 100 percent true. I've never said a damn thing about begging or whinning for "handouts" and you quite often call me jealous and greedy."

Not at all. You think people should be paid more than the value of the work just for the hell of it.

"That you belive that every one of your opinions is the opinion held by the majority is more proof of you living in a world of make-believe"

Actually, the opposite is true. I know that people hold different opinions than mine, and when they vote for someone I don't like, they do it out of their own interest. And I don't lie like you do when people like Alan Grayson receive the vote of a minority of the people and you insist that he represents the interest of a majority.

I know very well that Grayson represents the interests of the minority that voted for him.

The Prophet Dervish Z Sanders said...

dmarks: I know very well that Grayson represents the interests of the minority that voted for him.

You're so arrogant you probably trip and fall all the time due to you not looking where you're going (because your nose is stuck so far up in the air).

You've repeatedly claimed that the goal of Alan Grayson (while he was in Congress) was to acquire more power for the "ruling elites".

Now, if I lived in Florida I'd vote for Alan Grayson, but NOT because I want these "ruling elites" to have more power... that isn't in my interest at all. So, if I voted for Grayson thinking he wouldn't try to increase the power of the "ruling elites" then how can I not be mistaken (according to you)? You're doing the EXACT SAME THING as me, yet only I'm arrogant.

dmarks: Completely untrue. I know that most voters voted for Obama because it is in their interest...

Completely true... as I just proved.

dmarks: ...most oppose the Occupy movement, because it is not in their interest. I lack the arrogance you have.

They oppose it because they THINK it isn't in their interest. I think they're wrong... just like you think I'm wrong about Alan Grayson being a man of the people.

dmarks: He did say this, "Invent" is a correct paraphrse of "create". CHeck the thesaurus...

He did not. Check Snopes, they debuked this myth.

dmarks: [Bill Maher] said they were not people, and equated them with animals.

He never said they weren't people. You watched the YouTube video so you know that's a lie.

As for the "equating"... he only said mentally challenged children are like dogs... because both live in the "now", and, although his words certainly were insensitive and not anything I'd ever say, there actually is some truth in them. What part of "mentally challenged" don't you understand?

dmarks: I did not say that he specifically wanted to put them down. But once you dehumanize people like the Nazis did, that is a natural next step. And what Maher actually did was vicious and indefensible.

Baloney. There was no dehumanizing. What he actually said WAS indefensible... which is why I'm only defending him against your twisting of his words. There really is no reason to bring up Nazis and the holocaust. That is MORE vicious and indefensible, IMO.

dmarks: Since it wasn't funny, she came across as a liar.

I think it was funny, and I think it is extremely arrogant of you to tell me what I should find funny.

dmarks: Like when you said that Romney outsourced more than Immelt, and then were caught flat footed when you were asked for numbers.

I was not "caught flat footed" because I was only guessing based on recent reporting. I was originally going to add a question mark, but left it off. And it could very well be true... unlike what Joy Behar said... something that was not true but was a joke (something that everyone who isn't a halfwit recgonized).

dmarks: Not at all. You think people should be paid more than the value of the work just for the hell of it.

I don't think this. You're lying. I think people should be paid fairly and you think the wages should be a low as possible with no regard to the value of the work at all.

dmarks: I don't lie like you do when people like Alan Grayson receive the vote of a minority of the people and you insist that he represents the interest of a majority.

So he went from representing the interests of the majority (when he was elected) to representing the interests of a minority (when he was defeated)? How did that happen? Don't bother answering... I'll tell you: he didn't. Because you're lying about people always voting in their interests. They don't.

The difference between us is that I tell the truth about this and you lie about it.

Will "take no prisoners" Hart said...

My point, wd, is that he and you are both hard-core leftists and, hence, significantly outside the mainstream of even the Democratic party.

The Prophet Dervish Z Sanders said...

Bernie Sanders founded the Progressive caucus while in the House. The Congressional Progressive Caucus is the largest membership organization within the Democratic Caucus. I strongly disagree that the Democrat's largest Congressional caucus is "outside the mainsream" of the Democratic Party, let alone "significantly" outside it. They are a significant part of it.

Will "take no prisoners" Hart said...

He's a socialist, wd. He caucuses with the progressives simply 'cause there aren't any other socialists.

The Prophet Dervish Z Sanders said...

No backpeddling dmarks. No lies either. Romney invested in a company that specialized in outsourcing.

And nothing I said has been "disproved" before. You ignore what I said because you can't defend your arrogance.

Also, when you say, "you should realize you make yourself look like a whacko when you support the idea that handicapped children aren't real human beings" you're lying. I don't support that idea, I reject it, as does Bill Maher.

You make yourself look like a whacko when you say I support this idea when everyone can see what I wrote. We weren't even discussing handicapped children (in general)... we were discussing mentally challenged children. Shame on you for using mentally challenged children as a part of your lie to make me look bad.

Will: He's a socialist, wd. He caucuses with the progressives simply 'cause there aren't any other socialists.

He was ONE OF THE FOUNDERS of the Progressive Caucus for Christ! He has much more in common with them than not in common. Also, it sounds to me like you're using the term "socialist" as a slur. When I said we need more like him I meant more Socialists.

Will "take no prisoners" Hart said...

Of course I meant it as a slur! And if he, AN AVOWED SOCIALIST, has a lot in common with these other "progressives", then I want absolutely nothing to do with the lot of them.

dmarks said...

WD said: "Also, when you say, "you should realize you make yourself look like a whacko when you support the idea that handicapped children aren't real human beings" you're lying. I don't support that idea, I reject it, as does Bill Maher."

Actually, he put this forth in his rant bashing them.

And sorry, your lies supporting Maher's bashing of these children make you look bad..

dmarks said...

Will said: "And if he, AN AVOWED SOCIALIST, has a lot in common with these other "progressives", then I want absolutely nothing to do with the lot of them."

That is wise of you. Sanders is an extremist who has looked at the ideology of Hitler, Mao, Pol Pot, and Stalin, and said "yes, I want this in the US". It is an ideology that is all about top down control and centralization and diminishment of freedom.

Will "take no prisoners" Hart said...

The income of the actual people in the top 1% in 1996 went down 26%(!!!) by 2005.......We live in a country in which 6 guys and a computer can make a million dollars in less than a year.......Asian, African, and Caribbean immigrants come to this country with next to nothing and exceed to a degree higher that is whites.......The system isn't rigged, wd, and if you ever really want to get ahead you really need to lose that notion.

dmarks said...

European socialism, WD? That is what Hitler and Stalin were. Though Mao was not. Fascism is a left or right ideology.

Yes European Socialism 'works' if you want to kill and oppress people at unprecedented rates.

Fortunately, most people reject Sanders and his ideology, because it is not in their interest at all.

dmarks said...

Yes, Will the system is indeed rigged. Against the lazy, the indolent, the greedy who think everything should be handed to them, the jealous, those who seek to occupy rather than create/build/work, the shiftless, and those who ask what their country can do for them.

And it is rigged in favor of those who get up off their ass and do something productive, the achievers, the workers, the makers, the go-getters, and those who ask what they can do for their country.

Will "take no prisoners" Hart said...

I believe that you're referring to those 60-80 hour weeks and 6-8 years college preparation, and the fact that wd apparently thinks that these people are hatched or something.............Another point here, dmarks - the largest age demographic in the top 1% just happens to be 45-54. Yeah, that's right, this is something that happens gradually and because of those things that you mentioned.

The Prophet Dervish Z Sanders said...

dmarks muzzily said: European socialism, WD? That is what Hitler and Stalin were... Fascism is a left or right ideology.

Hitler hated the Communists. He blamed them for the Reichstag fire. Hitler used Communist paranoia to seize power. Nazism and Stalinism/Communism are on OPPOSITE ends of the political spectrum. Nazism = extreme Right and Communism = Extreme Left. You really need to educate yourself on this topic dmarks. You look extremely foolish every time you pontificate on it. The "socialism is the economic aspect of fascism" line is laugh out loud hilarious (laugh AT YOU and not with you).

dmarks: Yes European Socialism 'works' if you want to kill and oppress people at unprecedented rates.

Not at all. This kind of socialism leads to a healthier, happier, and more free population.

FDR: We have come to a clear realization of the fact that true individual freedom cannot exist without economic security and independence. Necessitous men are not free men. People who are hungry and out of a job are the stuff of which dictatorships are made.

dmarks: Fortunately, most people reject Sanders and his ideology, because it is not in their interest at all.

These people are called Republicans and Conservative Democrats and are not "most people". Proof of this is the fact that Bernie Sanders' constituents keep sending him back to Congress. If "most people" rejected him he wouldn't have served in both the House and the Senate.

dmarks said...

Nothing funny about my being informed about socialism and fascism and the major overlap between them. I just happen to know what the words mean. And the tyranny that both represent is anything but funny.

Hitler vs communists? A lover's quarrel between ideologies that had more in common than otherwise. Or everything in common, from the point of view of those languishing in the death camps of either side.

dmarks said...

As for European socialism leading to "healthier, happier, and more free population.", you have to be very selective and blind about history to say such a thing.

Most of Europe from Germany east was controlled strongly by European Socialism from the mid 20th century until the early 1990s. As a direct result of socialism, these countries were brutal squalid impoverished hellholes. They only got better when they swung away from socialism and more toward capitalism and personal liberty.

In the mid 20th century, within the lifetime of some our oldest people, Western and Central Europe also embraced European socialism in a strong way. As in the east, tens of millions died as a result.

The only health and happiness there is is due to moving away from socialism. And your inclusion of "free" is proposterious, since socialism is the opposite of freedom.