Reason Morning Links: Citizens Divided, Debt Ceiling Deceptions, Gay Sailors In Distress

• House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer opposes a White House executive order that would require government contractors to disclose every political donation made by their employees.
• The IRS has its eye on large anonymous donations to 501(c)(4) organizations.
• Like Senator Harry Reid and President Obama, Senator Charles Schumer was against raising the debt ceiling before he was for it.  
• The Navy wrote guidelines for marrying gay sailors in states where it's legal to get gay married, but decided last night to rescind those rules.
• Budgets, budgets every where, and all the votes did shrink. 
• PBS/Frontline investigates the kill/capture program that led to OBL's, uh, capture/kill.
• The Delta floods.

The latest from Reason.tv:"Governments vs. Markets: Julian Morris on Environmental Protection"

Comments

[Hoosan Furst]

Yay!

[J[o]h[nn]y L[o][n]gt[o]rs[o]]

Google search, The Golden Girls on Reason.com

[J[o]h[nn]y L[o][n]gt[o]rs[o]]

Google search, The Golden Girls on Reason.com

[J[o]h[nn]y L[o][n]gt[o]rs[o]]

Funny thing is I'm starting to see my own Golden Girls comments when searching for more GG links for your reading pleasure. I'm starting to lap myself.

[Teenage Girl]

I'm starting to lap myself.

Eeewwww!!

[proegg antichicken]

neat-o!

[J[o]h[nn]y L[o][n]gt[o]rs[o]]

Thank God for services that search Google for you w/o saving your IP addr. I'd hate to think anyone had a listing of the searches I use for my GG links.

[PS]

Trying suck our own, uhh, it's not very metal. I mean, not that we need any more reasons.

[J[o]h[nn]y L[o][n]gt[o]rs[o]]

PCUSA becomes faaaaabuloooouuuus!!!
Pastoral Conversation on the Passage of Amendment 10-A: for leaders of congregations within the PC(USA)

Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) clears way for gay clergy

Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) clears way for gay clergy

"Deawy Bewoved, ..."

[OO]

didnt know elmer fudd was gay

[Prince Humperdink]

Man and wife. Say man and wife!

[Man in the Black Mask]

If you didn't say "I do," it didn't happen.

[SugarFree]

Welcome To The Home Of The FUTURE! future.. future... future...

[proegg antichicken]

Negative, I am a meat popsicle.

[Madbiker]

win

[Tim]

Not going in there with that Hannibal Lecter looking guy.

[Madbiker]

ewww. I don't need a sprawling estate, but I don't want to live in the equivalent of a static RV either. A tent might be preferable to this, at least for my primitive minded self.

[SugarFree]

What's the problem? I mean, don't you want to learn a completely new way of climbing stairs to get to your 4ft bed?

[Madbiker]

Srsly I haven't climbed on blocks like that since I last visited Sesame Place when I was, like, 9 or something. And I need at least a queen sized bed for sexolympics and to accommodate the way I sprawl when I sleep.

JW is right; these homes are the new hairshirt for environmental penitents. Given the way Britain seems to be leaning lately, I wouldn't be surprised to see living in these initially incentived and eventually mandated for the sake of Gaia/TheChildren.

[SugarFree]

Environmentalists don't have sex, you silly goose. At most, they just smoosh their cloacae together.

[Teenage Girl]

I don't know what that is, but Eeewwww!!

[Barely Suppressed Rage]

It's how birds and reptiles do it.

[Barely Suppressed Rage]

Actually, I thought they reproduced by budding and fission.

[Ted S.]

And I need at least a queen sized bed for sexolympics

You're not imaginative enough if you think you need a queen-sized bed for sexolympics.

[JW]

Dr Mike Page, the originator of the The Cube Project, is giving you a tour in the ultra-compact eco-home in which one person could live a comfortable life with minimum impact on the environment.

Wouldn't his impact be a smidge less if he just offed himself?

What's the environmental impact of hairshirts? It's gotta be cheaper and just as fulfilling.

[SugarFree]

They should have put in one of those combo sink/toilets like in prisons. To complete the effect.

[JW]

Stainless steel hurts our Mother. Only dung and straw toilets will suffice.

[Madbiker]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Composting_toilet

I stayed in a cabin in Canada that had one of these. Stunk like shit, because, well...don't let your bacteria die or you'll regret it.

[JW]

For fuck's sake. What, do we have to go back to London cholera epidemics from open sewers and no sewage treatment for these dreamy-eyed idiots to go "Ohhhhhhh! THAT's why we have modern plumbing."

[SugarFree]

Operators of composting toilets commonly add a small amount of absorbent carbon material (such as untreated sawdust, coconut coir, peat moss) after each use to create air pockets for better aerobic processing, to absorb liquid, and to create an odor barrier.

So you take some enormous hippie dump, and then throw some sawdust on it? Sanitary.

I went to high school with "Coconut" Coir.

** stifles snort **

[OO]

fatties, not hippies, take enormous dumps & wouldnt fit into the qube anyway

[WTF]

Yes - people have managed to forget why we started using chemicals, pesticides and harsh detergents in the first place.

[John]

Public sanitation saved more lives than really any other invention, even more than antibiotics. How ignorant do you have to be to want to go back to the days before sewers?

[Enjoy Every Sandwich]

I suspect that some of them WANT the epidemics. Remember, humans are a cancer on Mother Gaia's Earth.

[John]

These people are just fucking animals.

[proegg antichicken]

fucking animals

Not the sheep again, augh.

[AAW]

These people are just fucking animals.

I'm warning you ...

[Tim]

What I want to know is: where's the closet for growing weed?

[SugarFree]

Under the toilet.

[Madbiker]

http://www.cooperator.com/arti.....Page1.html

Just do like my friend did, and call them "Mexican Tomato Plants" and grow 'em along with everything else.

[Madbiker]

Community rooftop gardens. You can use the compost from your toilet to fertilize.

Now that's smoking some shit!

[AU H20]

Actually, properly managed, composting toilets do work. Used to have a few where I used to go camping. But it needs to be the right model, constantly get sawdust, and be bumped weekly to bi-weekly.

Just, ya know, sayin'.

[Madbiker]

@AuH2O: true. But they are a pain in the ass to properly manage, especially if you are used to flush toilets.

Aside from my Canadian experience, I have a friend who has one of these. He's a die-hard Malthusian environmentalist who thinks I have two children too many (and I only have two). He struggles daily with his composting toilet but won't give up the fight, because he KNOWS they are the path to environmental salvation. On the occasions when he has made it work, the labor involved to clean them and cure the manure is lost opportunity cost on his part.

[Barely Suppressed Rage]

Composting toilets are not uncommon on sailboats. In fact, I own a sailboat that has a composting toilet. It actually works and has no odor.

[sloopyinca]

My old boat (haven't sailed in years now-frown) had a toilet that had a bilge attached to it to dump it in the ocean. Why would someone want a composting toilet on a seagoing vessel when the ocean uses your shit for good?

[SugarFree]

I don't think all composting toilets are bad idea. Camping or a boat, or anyplace else without easy sewer access, I think they make sense. But as a hairshirt appliance in your metropolitan holding pen, it's a silly penance to Gaia.

[Barely Suppressed Rage]

Why would someone want a composting toilet on a seagoing vessel when the ocean uses your shit for good?

Because:
(1) it's a violation of federal law to discharge your marine head overboard within the limits of the territorial sea (generally, 3 miles out from mean low water). Everywhere I sail is well within that limit.

(B) A traditional marine sanitation device (MSD) with a holding tank can be cantankerous. The electric macerator pump fails, the hoses leak, the tank leaks, they stink - you don't have composting; you've got a tank of raw, fetid urine and feces mixed.

(III) You sail around with that lovely tank until you get back to a dock with a pumping station, and then you have to pay to have it pumped out. Then you have to deal with the stinky pump-out hose and potential drips and spills.

There are advantages to the simplicy of the composting toilet. If you're on a very long cruise or in open water, it might be different. But for how I use my boat - 2-3 days on board at a time max - it works.

[sloopyinca]

Thanks, BSR. I learned something today.

/no snark

[SIV]

"It's truly unfortunate that you missed the overture."

[John]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/new.....tures.html

This slide show has to be seen to be believed. Say what you want about Berlusconi. That guy knows how to party.

[MNG]

Whenever pro-european friends of mine bitch about the supposed worse state of our political affairs in comparison to Europe I point to Berlusconi and say STFU. It's like if Rupert Murdoch gene spliced with Charlie Sheen and was elected President.

[John]

I think it is pretty awesome. When I compare to Clinton getting blowjobs from some star struck fat intern, I kind of feel a bit insecure about being an American.

[JW]

As I commented in our sexual harassment training last year, about the story of how a 50-something contractor of ours was hitting on a 20-year old intern, to a chorus of "Ewwwww!s", "He just wasn't rich enough."

No one argued the point.

[Montani Semper Liberi]

Think about JFK nailing Marilyn Monroe instead. Any insecurity should disappear.

[CaptainSmartass]

I picture that scenario often, except JFK always looks like me.

[proegg antichicken]

When I compare to Clinton getting blowjobs from some star struck fat intern, I kind of feel a bit insecure about being an American.

love it.

This John comment should be saved for posterity.

[Bunga Bunga!]

Bunga Bunga!

[Ted S.]

The Europeans didn't mind Clinton's sexual peccadilloes because he pissed off the Republicans. Berlusconi is of the right, so the bien pensant Brussels-types despise Berlusconi.

[Silvio Berlusconi]

Sar? in mio carbonile.

[Lord Humungus]

I would glady be arrested by such police. Bring on the police-state!

[MNG]

"a White House executive order that would require government contractors to disclose every political donation made by their employees."

Surely all those good government accountability champions who have been appearing around here championing such measures as the VA AG's attempt to get at government employee emails or the Wisconsin group doing the same to the Labor Studies department will champion this measure?

Surely.

[John]

Sorry but selling something to the government is not the same as using the government's email system. Basically this law says that if you do business with the government, you lose your right to privacy in all of your political affairs, not just those affairs that relate to your interaction with government. It is like telling government employees that they have to disclose their private email accounts if they want a government job.

[MNG]

How are these entities in a different position than government employee unions? Both do business with the government and then work to influence that same government, perhaps in a direction favorable to the business they do with it.

[John]

If it is on a government owned system or your activities relate to your job or business you are doing with the government, the government can see it. IF not, then no.

[MNG]

But we are not talking about looking at the private emails of the contractors employees but rather the donations made to those running for public office. If campagin donations=speech this is the equivalent of yelling "I want Joe Lieberman as Senator" in the streets. Expectation of privacy lower.

[Bunga Bunga!]

Riddle me this, fuckface, what would be the putative value of the government having this information. I mean really, fuckface, I want an answer to that.

[MNG]

The value is in the public having the information, so we can identify possible corruption and rent-seeking.

Oh, and fuck you.

[x,y]

I'm ok with that. And also with reviewing all those professor's e-mails on the university system.

[Bunga Bunga!]

You are one funny fuckface, Fuckface.

[MJ]

Is the expectation of privacy lower when defending a favorite politician on a political blog behind an acronym of a pseudonym? What rent do you seek from Obama that you defend him so vigorously here, but hide your identity behind "MNG"?

Anonymous political speech has a long and respected history in this country.

[WTF]

Um, because there is a difference between 'employee of the government' and 'employee of a company that sells something to the government'.

[MNG]

If your concern is about those getting public funds influencing the government why is that difference relevant?

[Bunga Bunga!]

Christ you are one boring droning fuck.

[Mo]

Aren't those affairs related? Let's say a Boeing exec and donates $100K to the reelect Joe Lieberman campaign. Don't you think that fact is sorta relevant if Vinegar Joe blocks the Airbus bid for jet refueling tankers?

[John]

But Viniger Joe isn't making the contracting decision. The contracting decision is supposed to be based on what is the best deal for the government. Why does the administration need to know the political habits of contractors other than so they can punish contractors that don't give them money? The administration, not Congress awards contracts. And it is not like they don't know when Boeing gives them money. They only don't know when Boeing gives money to the other side. The only reason they would need or want to know is to punish political speech.

[MNG]

Yeah, he just authorizes the entire project...

[John]

But he doesn't award the contract.

[MNG]

If you know you have a good shot at the contract he's an important man to influence.

[sloopyinca]

Nice how minge says nothing about putting the corrupt politician in the slammer for awarding contracts based on personal gain, which is a felony.

Oh no, but he wants to go after the company that might, might be donating money to help their project (which they believe is the best for the nation) win a bid and employ their workers and improve the value for their stockholders...basically what they're paid to do.

Moar power for the state, right minge? Dumbass.

[MNG]

Why in the world would you assume from my support for making the donations public that I don't want officials punished? The public display of the information would help expose such crooks.

[cynical]

Or, alternately, it could help partisans to punish contractors who are making competitive bids, but support the wrong party.

[CaptainSmartass]

The contracting decision is supposed to be based on what is the best deal for the government.

"supposed to be" != "always"

I'm having a hard time finding fault with this idea, or with Minge's arguments.

[MJ]

"Let's say a Boeing exec and donates $100K to the reelect Joe Lieberman campaign."

Unless that exec shares what he is doing with his colleagues, how does Boeing as a company know that that exec made such a contribution? Boeing cannot be made to divulge something it does not necessarily know about.

[Brett L]

I support either full disclosure or full anonymyzing (that plan where some third party takes all contributions and passes them on to candidates without the candidates knowing who gave how much). So yeah. You want to do business with the gummint? Show the public how much you gave to various campaigns.

[NoVAHockey]

as a registered lobbyist I have to disclose every contribution. i get around it by not contributing.

[DJF]

So is the White House going to release the names of all those anonymous small donors to Obama in the 2008 campaign?

[Jay Carney]

The President is giving this serious consideration.

[MNG]

What I love about the right is that nothing swerves them. They complained about big donations from Soros and such in 04, and then just as loudly about small donations in 08.

[DJF]

I am just trying to get "Mr Open Government" to reveal the donations to his own campaign before he starts mandating others to reveal their donations

[MNG]

Ah, but iirc the order does not apply to every donation by any employee, just donations of a certain size by certain officials in the corporation, so no inconsistency there.

[sloopyinca]

Yeah. Reminds me of the old Seinfeld episode where George gives his boss the Christmas card with the donation to the Human fund in it.

So, none of those small donations (is $1000 a small donation to most people?) that came on prepaid Visa cards could have possibly been made by companies through proxies?

ex: Company CEO offers a $2000 bonus to each employee who agrees to give half of it to Politician O or a $500 to each employee who does not. Voila, anonymous donations in the tens of millions.

Now, replace CEO with Union Leader and $500 with pink slip or broken femur, and you get the idea where a lot of those anonymous Obama donors with the prepaid cards came from.

[JD]

How are we supposed to know that when you post a quote (without a link) that say that they will "require government contractors to disclose every political donation made by their employees"?

That makes it sound like the government is going to be requiring the janitor who is cleaning the bathrooms at the Social Security office in Des Moines to report all his contributions.

[Enjoy Every Sandwich]

Slightly off-topic, but it's always irritated me that in discussions involving political donations the focus is always on those who make the donations. In any bribery there are TWO parties: the giver and the taker.

Why is the taker ignored?

[John]

Because it is the taker or one of their toadies who is usually complaining.

[cynical]

Just out of curiosity, do all direct federal employees have to disclose their political donations?

[MJ]

How is the government contractor supposed to comply with this executive order*? How is the company supposed to compel its employees to divulge something they can do without involving their employer or his facilities at all? This would be either unenforcable or the basis for harassing suits against companies that did not toe the administration's line.

*The fact that the administration thins it can mae an anti-privacy rule like this by a mere presidential decree is pretty scary.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Like Reid and Obama, Senator Charles Schumer was against raising the debt ceiling before he was for it.

"You mean when the ceiling is reached I would have to review and vote on every expenditure? Fuck that."

[rather]

RIP J sub D

[JW]

H&R regular J sub D seems to have died. He'll be missed.

[JW]

Sorry, direct link.

[Fist of Etiquette]

RIP

[Nipplemancer]

That really is a downer. RIP J sub D.

[proegg antichicken]

That is wow, I can remember reading him here, arguing here, a very sharp commenter. Sometimes it's easy to imagine the commenters here as somehow "not real people" but of course you all are (except maybe anonbot). Sometimes it's as if everythings a joke or a put on, sometimes there's honesty, and often you just can't tell. This feels, disquieting.

RIP, J sub D

[SugarFree]

I just found out as well. Terrible. I had noticed he hadn't been around much, but I figured he had just had his fill of our nonsense for a little while.

[JW]

Yeah, same here. A few weeks ago, I had wondered to myself why we hadn't heard from him in a while.

[Tim]

God Bless.

[Rich]

What I didn't know ? what none of us knew ? is that somehow, despite his military pension, John lived in a homeless shelter the last few months of his life. To go online, he'd walk to Wayne State University and use the library computers.

RIP, J sub D.

[John]

Even the Telegraphs' 24 picture slide slow on Belusconi's Bunga Bunga parties can't put me in a good mood this morning. That just sucks.

[Mo]

RIP J sub. Sad to see an old friend go like that.

[SIV]

RI

RIP

[robc]

This is proof that the internet creates REAL communities. I never met Jsub but I dont feel any less bad right now because of that.

BTW, folks, read Jennifer's tribute if you havent already.

[Citizen Nothing]

So sad. RIP J sub.

(And if I got to choose, I'd choose Jennifer to write my obit. Very moving and thoughtful observations, Jenn. But please, God, please don't let Albom get his claws into me.)

[The Other Kevin]

RIP. He will be missed around here.

[MNG]

Jesus, that is terrible, I was a big fan of J sub D. He was a principled man, he'll be missed.

[T]

RIP.

[Spoonman.]

A very sad story. Had no idea he had cancer. RIP.

[John]

http://www.businessinsider.com.....ram-2011-5

Keynesian economics really is a cult. Get this from the above story.

"Without the ability sell debt due to soaring interest rates, and with severe spending rules in place due to its EU-IMF bailout, Ireland has few ways of spending to stimulate the economy."

These guys have spent so much that they literally can't borrow another dime from the bank. But they refuse to even consider the possibility that there are ways of growing the economy besides stimulating it with government money much less consider that maybe spending doesn't stimulate it at all. What is that old saying by Einstein about insanity being continuing the same actions and expecting different results?

[DJF]

I always notice that they never care about what the money is to be spent on, as long as its spent. It's as though spending on anything is good for the economy. Which is strange since spending on anything got us into the present economy. McMansions and Luxury Condos for Everyone!!!!!!!!

[John]

It is a cult. No amount of spending is ever enough. And no results, no matter how poor, ever call the theory into question. If that is not a cult, what is?

[Enjoy Every Sandwich]

Yeah, this story is a good example of that. I mean, raiding pensioners? How can anybody think that will come out well? I realise that lefties think that anybody with a private pension is "rich" but you'd think that reality would eventually intrude.

[MNG]

Oh please, this works both ways John. Market fundies do the same thing. If government is lessened in one area and we get good results, it was the lessening that did it, if we get bad results they just look for any government left and blame it. Hell, many of them are quite open that they don't want or mean to be able to make any falsifiable predictions at all based on their theories, that is the raison d'etre of religious thinking.

[John]

They do it to, doesn't make your behavior any better. And is it okay to start calling you a government fundie now?

[MNG]

If a government fundie is someone who often criticizes government efforts but often recognizes they are justified, then yeah, go ahead.

[Lord Googoo]

LA!

[Tncm]

Hell, many of them are quite open that they don't want or mean to be able to make any falsifiable predictions at all based on their theories, that is the raison d'etre of religious thinking.

I take it that this a slur against the Austrian School? If so, it's a particularly bad one. People like Mises have said over and over again that due to how many variables there are in the economy, making accurate predictions is next to impossible. Mises used the example of a gambler rolling ten thousand die and hoping they all come up on one.

If what you're really talking about is a priori versus posteriori logical deduction, then you can falsify any claim using either methodology. Moreover, no science uses purely one or the other. After all, it's not like firms are philosophical constructs that only exist in the human mind, and theorems created from a priori deduction can be applied to real-life scenarios, like engineering with mathematics.

If any economist, or anyone for that matter, has made the claim that they can make non-falsifiable predictions about what will happen in a world that doesn't follow the rules of ceteris parabus, then he or she is a hack.

[Mike M.]

I always notice that they never care about what the money is to be spent on, as long as its spent. It's as though spending on anything is good for the economy.

These Keynesian whackadoodles cling to this bizarre believe that wealth is created by demand.

It's purge garbage of course; the kind of nonsense only an ivory tower academic could believe. People in dirt poor third world countries have tons of demands, what they don't have is the intellectual, production, and resource capacity to be able to meet the demand.

[wylie]

McMansions

Enough with the Irish slurs.

[Mike M.]

That whacky Steve Forbes channels his inner Ron Paul and predicts a return to the gold standard within the next five years.

[Tim]

Coupons. Government issued coupons redeemable in Rice, Flour and cooking oil. Urban areas will issue their own complementary coupons for scrap metal and rat meat.

[Rich]

I'll be getting enough cooking oil to power my GM flex-fuel car, right?

[Chinny Chin Chin]

Our good friends at Salon put the smack down on Austrian economics.

Evidently von Mises is the new darling of the GOP.

[tarran]

The comments are awesome: "Austrians are Economic Birthers"?

[Matrix]

I saw some of them refer to Austrians as Fixed Earthers. It's quite humorous. But seriously, time and time again, Kenyesians economics has led us to economic crises, but their followers still sway to the symphony of destruction.

[Night Elf Mohawk]

More borrowed money, more borrowed time.

[robc]

ARGH! I made the mistake of opening the comments. The stupid, it burns!

[Tim]

You'll never get it off.

[Fist of Etiquette]

The Navy wrote guidelines for marrying gay sailors in states where it's legal to get gay married, but decided last night to rescind those rules.

And yet the Village People continue to sing that song unimpeded by Navy policy.

Also, by "legal" do you mean recognized or do you mean not criminal?

[Tim]

At this rate, within two hundred years, Captain Kirk will be officiating at the marriage of Mr. Sulu and Ensign Chekov.

[George Takei]

Oh my!

[Morey Coffee]

LOL

[SFC B]

The training the Army received is that homosexual servicemembers can enter into any same-sex marriage their little hearts desire, however the service cannot recognize it because of Clinton's DOMA. Until the Federal Government recognizes SSM the Army will not be providing same-sex spouses with any spousal benefits.

[Jerry]

Acceptable for Boehner's budget cut demands to happen over five to ten years, says Capitol Hill source.

But of course they won't be voting on those spending cuts the same time they're increasing the debt limit. Boehner has put himself in a bad situation...

[Tim]

5 to 10 years + Washington DC = NEVER

[Mike M.]

This. There's no such thing as a binding five to ten year budget plan; it's just kabuki theater.

[x,y]

And I wish more media orgs would acknowledge this. Instead of talking about Obama's or Ryan's "plan," which inevitably looks many, many years into the future, they should say, "Obama has yet to release to a plan to cut the debt. Any 'plan' that purports to bind future Congresses and Presidents is no plan at all."

[cynical]

Fucking asinine. The debt cap is the only leverage he has; he should start pushing on it, but he's an establishment pussy.

[John]

You want your jetpack? I got you jetpack right here baby.

http://gizmodo.com/5800526/swi.....at-190-mph

[New guinness record!]

Man jumps to death off world's tallest tower in Dubai
DUBAI | Tue May 10, 2011 11:48am EDT
DUBAI (Reuters) - A man threw himself off the world's tallest building in Dubai, its developer said, plummeting to his death in the first suicide from Burj Khalifa tower.
>The man, believed to be in his twenties and of South Asian background, jumped from the 147th floor of the 828-meter (2,717 feet) skyscraper and landed on a terrace on the 108th floor, local daily The National reported, but those details were not confirmed by the building's developer.
http://www.reuters.com/article.....BP20110510

[proegg antichicken]

It really sucks that he didn't make it, all the way down that is.

[Barack Obama]

Let me be clear.

Photos, or it didn't happen.

[OO]

imagine a squished binLaden gaping head wound thingy

[Abdul]

I saw that story today, and it almost seems like the building developer is kind of proud.

"Yep, this tower is so lethal, you don't even have to fall all the way down it."

[sloopyinca]

God, I can only hope he yelled "Banzaii" all the way down just to maintain the stereotype.

But they said south Asian, so it's unlikely he's Japanese. I am disappoint.

[Enjoy Every Sandwich]

"Gay Sailors In Distress"...that would be a good name for a band. Well, a gay band.

[Bee Tagger]

So.. an emo band then?

[Joe M]

Re the budget nonsense: I really get a kick out of the idea of all those idiots in congress "flailing" about trying to persuade each other to vote for this or that bullshit budget. It's like rats on a sinking ship.

[R C Dean]

Those who support the mandatory disclosure rules for government contractors would do well to remember the Iron Law:

Me today, you tomorrow.

While you are not doubt looking forward to Republican contributors being punished and Democratic contributors being rewarded (because, if no decisions are going to be made based on the disclosures, why make them), remember that someday the situation will be reversed.

If I were God-King of America, I would make all political contributions anonymous, and any disclosure of a contribution would be considered attempted bribery. If your only motivation is to provide financial support, then the money does that. Making sure the candidate knows you gave money only serves the purpose of getting something in return later.

[Tim]

You're so practical. If I were god-king I'd make all farts smell like lilacs.

[Kool McMenthol]

They already do, if you're African-American.

[MNG]

Interesting in theory, but if Joe Lieberman talks to George Soros about support on a Sunday night and his blind PAC gets a 5 million dollar donation Monday morning I imagine he will have a good idea who gave it. Only regular joes like you and I would be anonymous to him and we already are.

[R C Dean]

Good point. We would have to treat any personal request for support by a candidate (or any member of their staff or campaign) as solicitation of a bribe.

[ZagYeeYoo]

Wow, OK dude that is exactly what I am talking about dude. Wow.

[bosty]

SE Cupp - America is a battered wife and Osama is the abusive husband

.. and she's going all J-Lo in Enough, or something. There's a lot of stupid with this one.

[Tim]

Pare us from ridiculous death Department:

"
She told police she found him and screamed. She said Standridge then ran out of the room with his pants around his ankles, tripped and fell down the stairs and died."

Read more: http://www.4029tv.com/news/278.....z1M3LEK7Om

[Spoonman.]

Do these apartments not have locks?

[MNG]

Neo-Nazi Father Is Killed; Son, 10, Steeped in Beliefs, Is Accused

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05.....l?_r=1&hp;

[MNG]

When Bears Attack!

The study also found, contrary to popular perception, that the black bears most likely to kill are not mothers protecting cubs. Most attacks, 88 percent, involved a bear on the prowl, likely hunting for food. And most of those predators, 92 percent, were male.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05.....s.html?hpw

[cynical]

For some reason that made me think of this.

[Tim]

The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want.

He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters.

He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness For His name's sake.

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You have anointed my head with oil; My cup overflows.

Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life, And I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

Psalm 23

[ghosts]

spooky

[Woody Allen]

And so I walk through the valley of the shadow of death. Actually, make that "I run through the valley of the shadow of death" - in order to get OUT of the valley of the shadow of death more quickly, you see.

[jesus]

running in simple leather sandals is tough so ur on ur own there buddy.

[Marine Corps]

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for we are the baddest motherfuckers in the valley.

[Nipplemancer]

http://www.tampabay.com/news/b.....es/1168680
The Kochtopus is everywhere!

[Brett L]

My friends here in Tallahassee, a large number of whom are either employed or enrolled at FSU, collectively shit themselves on Facebook yesterday about that. I just think its awesome that 20% of the Econ. Dept. consider themselves "free marketers".

[L4F]

It's a freaking chapel, if they can marry Satan worshipers, liberals, progressives, and people who drive hybrids, they can also marry gay sailors as long as nobody is forced to marry them.

CALIFORNIA LIFEGUARDS MAKE $120,00 A YEAR + OTHER STORIES.
http://libertarians4freedom.blogspot.com/

[B.P.]

Raising your baby to be gender-neutral:

http://www.milehighmamas.com/2.....sshomeblog

[Brett L]

What. The. Fuck. These people have a very high opinion of themselves.

[Disgruntled McD's Employee]

In fact, when I was in college I knew so much about sociological constructs that I smugly lectured a McDonald's clerk over the Barbie toys for girls and the Hot Wheels for boys in their Happy Meals

do you want fr--

do you want frie---

DOYOUWANTFRIESWITHTHAT?

*sigh*

[L4F]

Talk about f-cking up a kid. Parenting is about telling your kids what to do until they are smart enough to learn from themselves. If you let a kid choose then he's going to choose to watch TV and eat cookies all day. Ever seen Harry Potter's evil half-brother? That's what liberal parenting does.

http://libertarians4freedom.blogspot.com/

[cynical]

I'm going to raise my children to be species neutral by not exposing them to human-centric training, but just letting them choose on their own whether they would rather emulate a dog, or a bird, or a bug. If they want to walk upright and use tools, great, but I won't force it on them.

[John]

http://hurryupharry.org/2011/0.....hes-obama/

What the hell is wrong with Amnesty International?

[Brett L]

They're like MADD, they've been totally taken over by the fundies in their organization.

[L4F]

LOL. For once I like their work.

http://libertarians4freedom.blogspot.com/