A.M. Links: Putin Makes Statement on Situation in Ukraine, Western Republicans To Urge Court To Back Same-Sex Marriage, Obama To Release Budget Plan

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• In his first public statement since the Crimea crisis began Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Russia reserves the right to use "all means" to protect the interests of citizens living in eastern Ukraine. Putin added that "nationalists" and "anti-semites" are in the streets of Kiev.
• The head of Egypt's armed forces, Field Marshal Abdul Fattah al-Sisi, says that he cannot ignores call for him to run for president.
• Republicans from Western states are expected to urge the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit in Denver to rule bans on gay marriage unconstitutional today.
• Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has urged the Obama administration to insist that Palestinians recognize Israel as a Jewish state.
• President Obama is set to release his 2015 budget plan today. According to the White House, the budget proposal will include a $60 billion expansion of the Earned Income Tax Credit.
• An immigration reform group linked to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has criticized Republicans for not doing enough to work towards changing immigration policy.

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Comments

[Fist of Etiquette]

Putin added that "nationalists" and "anti-semites" are in the streets of Kiev.

Roaming the streets like stray dogs in Sochi.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

Hello.

[UnCivilServant]

ACK.

[wareagle]

haven't heard that since working for a company founded by an Army guy.

[UnCivilServant]

I've been using a TCP handshake for the past couple of days and no one seems to have noticed.

[NebulousFocus]

You're missing a SYN.

[UnCivilServant]

I sent it a few days ago.

[Raven Nation]

Well, how often does one need to refer to Acklington railway station?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A.....ay_station

[Atanarjuat]

You worked for Austin Canoe and Kayak?

[Lord Humungus]

Bill the Cat?

[hamilton]

Still the best presidential candidate of this century.

[Slammer]

Howdy.

[BigT]

Nationalists might be the Ukrainians, the anti-semites are probably his friends.

[UnCivilServant]

Or Agents of the ASA.

[waffles]

Are Russians known as one the the semitic peoples of the world? I guess that's why Germany tried so desperately to invade.

[Hillary's Clitdong]

No, but Arabs are Semitic.

[gaijin]

What about homosexuals? Are they roaming the streets of Kiev?

[waffles]

Homosexuals don't roam, they prowl.

[AlmightyJB]

I thought they gamboled?

[Ted S.]

They sashay and mince.

[Hillary's Clitdong]

The city-state prevents them from gamboling. The artificial violent construct that is the modern city-state illegitimately imposes "property" restrictions and uses them to prevent good people from fellating truckers in bathrooms, the way nature intended. Officer, am I free to gambol and swallow?

[Ted S.]

Your comment reminds me of the thread in which I asked if there's an app for cruising.

[AlmightyJB]

Don't get so excited. You probably don't want to visit there right now.

[Steve G]

Did Putin just Godwin the Ukraine?

[wwhorton]

Now that's an interesting twist on the Sudetenland analogy...

[Fist of Etiquette]

You know who else dealt with nationalists and anti-semites?

[UnCivilServant]

Golda Meir?

[Steve G]

Jesus?

[Snark Plissken]

Tulpa and his army of sockpuppets?

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

+ 347

[Entropy Void]

Da.

[Fist of Etiquette]

The head of Egypt's armed forces, Field Marshal Abdul Fattah al-Sisi, says that he cannot ignores call for him to run for president.

Ladies and gentlemen, we have our next future exiled president.

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

But Field Marshal's make excellent President's!

/The Ghost of Dr. Field Marshal President for Life Idi Amin Dada

[Bardas Phocas]

[Jeb Bush] says that he cannot ignores call for him to run for president.

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

Maybe if we put a sack over his head or smothered him with a pillow he could do so?

[DontShootMe]

If Jeb wants to be president of Egypt, more power to him.

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

Nice.

[BigT]

Don't ignore them, Just Say: "NO"

[Entropy Void]

Really.
Abdul Fatty al-Sissy?
Really.

[Snark Plissken]

In his first public statement since the Crimea crisis began Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Russia reserves the right to use "all means" to protect the interests of citizens living in eastern Ukraine. Putin added that "nationalists" and "anti-semites" are in the streets of Kiev.

Tanks for the memories, Vlad.

[Raven Nation]

Same argument the Russians used in the 19th century to occupy portions of the Ottoman Empire.

[BigT]

Same argument the Russians used in the 19th century to occupy portions of the Ottoman Empire.

Nazis ...20th ... Sudetenland

[DJF]

To be fare, at the time the Ottomans had a major slave system with many of the slaves captured in Russia, Ukraine, Poland etc, so there was a real danger from them

[BardMetal]

Liberating your people from centuries of bondage at the hands of the Ottoman Turks seems justified to me.

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

Hey?!

/Crimean Khan

[Don Mynack]

The only thing I know is that if we do invade, we can finally settle the question of who owns India once and for all.

[Snark Plissken]

In his first public statement since the Crimea crisis began Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Russia reserves the right to use "all means" to protect the interests of citizens living in eastern Ukraine. Putin added that "nationalists" and "anti-semites" are in the streets of Kiev.

Tanks for the memories, Vlad.

[UnCivilServant]

Deja Vu, it's like history repeating itself.

[A Frayed Knot]

You can say that again.

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

I forget, does that happen?

[VG Zaytsev]

Central planner and all around top man pronounces that no, you can't keep your insurance company if you like it.

The good news is you won't have insurance companies to kick around much longer. The system is changing. As a result, insurance companies as they are now will be going away.

And what will replace them? Glorified HMOs now rebranded as ACOs run by top men like Zeke.

[wwhorton]

Yeah, ACOs are kind of a joke. I used to work for an IT consultant that specialized in health care--hospitals and medical device distro, mostly--and our doofy management decided we needed to crack this whole ACO thing open. So we spent a month attending seminars on ACOs and so forth. Most people who hadn't drunk the Kool-Aid were basically like, "So...this is basically like an HMO." And it is.

The argument is that they aren't HMOs because they're provider-managed and there's nothing preventing patients from going outside of the system. Well, the latter was true of HMOs, provided you were willing to pay out of pocket. ACOs don't require that an insurance company join the org, but, guess what? Since people gotta get paid, and the point of these is to coordinate amongst members, insurance companies are coming into the fold.

So, yeah, an ACO is an HMO with maybe a wider range of care providers and different administration. As a customer it looks pretty much the same.

[Brett L]

Huh. My view from the inside is that this is a new scam for separating CMS from our money. The only people who care about it enough to spend their own money are healthcare groups that cater to Medicare/Medicaid already. We've sold two ACO management projects in a year, and one, I believe is going to come to a screeching halt because the company just lost a major lawsuit that essentially hulled their business model. ACOs in real-life? Who the fuck is going to pay you more to harass their customers?

[CatoTheElder]

Unlike the traditional doctor-patient relationship, the ACO has something more like the veterinary-pet relationship with the ACO acting like the pet's owner. On the plus side for egalitarians, Zeke Emanuel assures that care levels will be "standardized" so that all pets under the ACO system will receive consistent medical care. For the ruling elites, Zeke assures that such care will be "efficient" and that early identification of the chronically ill with "reduce costs" so that their pets' care will cost less than before.

[Fist of Etiquette]

According to the White House, the budget proposal will include a $60 billion expansion of the Earned Income Tax Credit.

They may be able to buy the White House with freebies, but the midterms can bring different types of voters.

[BigT]

but the midterms can bring different types of voters.

I think it's more the voters who stay home and save their vote for the big ones.

[UnCivilServant]

It's not like you can miss three elections and vote four times in the next one.

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

So... you have never heard of Cook County, IL?

[UnCivilServant]

Their rule was you can vote four times each election so long as you voted the right way.

[gaijin]

voted the right way.

which is to say, left.

[Lord Humungus]

crackers anyone?

Mummies' milk: World's oldest cheese found in China

Yellow chunks of the world's oldest "cheese" may have been discovered on the bodies of mummies buried in China's Taklamakan Desert.

The mummies, which are each about 3,800 years old, were buried with hunks of the dairy treat, presumably a tasty snack for the buried to enjoy in the afterlife. This particular cheese was also simple to make, nutritious and easily digestible, according to the study.

"Despite being extraordinary simple, it possessed the necessary qualities for supporting the economic expansion of ruminant animal herding into Eastern Eurasia," the authors write in the paper, which was published online Feb. 18 in the Journal of Archaeological Science.

[UnCivilServant]

"Cheese - Milk's leap for immortality"

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

*rises to applaud wildly*

[Snark Plissken]

This particular cheese was also simple to make, nutritious and easily digestible, according to the study.

Ie, the lactose was broken down to a large extent since the people probably didn't posses the gene for lactase persistence.

[gaijin]

the people probably didn't posses the gene for lactase persistence.

So this means the Egyptian beers would not have included milk stout, right?

[Snark Plissken]

Honestly I think any form of fermentation breaks down lactase and other anti-nutrients, which is why it is seen so often in traditional cooking (ie tofu is much better than soy milk).

[Matrix]

aged to perfection? Who wants to taste it?

[General Butt Naked]

crackers anyone?

Well...

That's about the most racist fucking thing I've seen today.

[UnCivilServant]

Just woke up then?

[waffles]

Russia reserves the right to use "all means" to protect the interests of citizens living in eastern Ukraine.

If say, Quebec engaged in a violent revolution would the USA reserve the right to use "all means"?

[Ted S.]

To paraphrase Charles de Gaulle, "Vive le Qu?bec! Vive le Qu?bec unilingue et anglophone!" 😉

[Rufus J. Firefly]

Look at what you've started Ted.

[UnCivilServant]

Of course, upto and including the annexation of Canukistan.

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

I just want to annex their poutine and the Quantico.

[Wasteland Wanderer]

How about all the parts of Canada that aren't Quebec?

[waffles]

Are they really a foreign country? You could argue that they are at least culturally annexed.

[UnCivilServant]

Well, that's what we're really after, but the Frenchie-Can revolt would be the excuse.

[Fr?ulein Nikki]

No, no. You'd need Canada in general to pivot toward France, then we invade the Prairies to protect them from the Quebecers.

[gaijin]

I saw some maps that show the historical alignments of Crimea...I think the better analogy would be if Puerto Rico had two factions fighting what would the US do...where PR isn't a territory or whatever we call it.

[gaijin]

or maybe even California or Texas...before it was annexed.

[BardMetal]

If the conflict started to spill over into our borders I would say yes. If there were a million U.S. citizens in Quebec being targeted by the revolutionaries then I don't know maybe.

Either way I would expect the U.S. to at least send troops to the border in case the situation started to get out of hand.

But then again I never understood all this talk about "right" when it comes to international affairs. Nations do what they want.

[waffles]

I can't really think of any foreign country that has a million U.S. citizens though. I guess the history and culture here isn't conducive to mass exodus.

[waffles]

Mexico is the most with 738,000. According to this.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

Interesting. Canada in 5th. You would think at least 2nd to Mexico given proximity. But then again, it goes to show how far-flinged the U.S. economic and financial empire goes.

[Atanarjuat]

Wow. Liberia?! I hope they're all in oil exploration or timber or something. If they're "back-to-Africa" dreamers like Nas' character in Belly, yikes.

[Zeb]

Is that guy who was in Liberia still around?

[SFC B]

Germany at 94k? Clearly they're not considering military dependents. There are about 50k US citizens (dependents and contractors) in the Rhineland-Pfalz area alone.

[wwhorton]

Well that's the thing, though. Those million US citizens have a country. If they don't like what's cookin' in someone else's country, they can always go home. So what's the deal with these Russians, then? If they're ethnic Russians, too bad Vlad, because their passports all say "Ukraine".

[Steve G]

Depends. How many nationalist/anti-semites are we talking about??

[BardMetal]

Actually if Quebec was our only warm water port, and we had our fleet based there. I would say that we had a very important interest in the region, one that would justify sending troops if it looked like the port, or the fleet was under threat.

I don't think the Ukrainian issue is as black and white as many people are making it out to be.

[waffles]

Yes, Russia has a historical and modern need to have access to Sebastopol. There's a ton of nuance that my American eyes just cannot see. Apparently there's a pretty big difference between ethnic Russians and Ukrainians. To me it's all the same.

[gaijin]

There's a ton of nuance that my American eyes just cannot see.

I agree. I think the tribal nature of mankind is somewhat moderated in America...where the best approximation we get is Sports teams and politics.

[BigT]

Don't Ukraine and Russia have an agreement about Russia using the naval base in Crimea? If so, yes, Russia has more than a passing interest in the Crimea.

[Steve G]

Oh Crimea river

[Steve G]

Agree, but then why would veer from that to the smokescreen of "nationalists" and "anti-semites" in Kiev? Why not just stick to the 'security of our fleet' angle? I mean if he's losing the world based upon a misperception, I'd focus on correcting that.

[BigT]

Perhaps Putin is looking at regime change to undo the coup. Simply protecting the fleet won't do that. Blaming faceless nationalists and anti-semites IN KIEV gives him license to undermine the current Kiev govt.

[wwhorton]

Because Ukraine also has a good bit of mineral wealth and is a famously productive agricultural region, I'm guessing, and ol' Vlad's not gonna let an opportunity to grab more control over a valuable region that's traditionally been part of the empire anyway. The concern over port security and any threat to ethnic Russians in the Crimea is, I suspect, a convenient excuse.

[Francisco d'Anconia]

I've yet to get a satisfactory answer as to why this is any of our concern at all. What is our national interest? At least in Iraq we made one up. We've convinced ourselves that every fight in the world is our fight?

[BigT]

We don't have a direct interest. But stability of trade and the potential for a wider conflict are legitimate concerns. Not enough for us to do more than make a few speeches and perhaps put some ships on alert, however.

[BardMetal]

It's not a U.S. concern at all. It's Russian, Ukrainian, and E.U. concern. They're the only ones this effects in anyway.

The Russians want to protect their port in the crimea, The Ukrainians don't want to be under the boot of Russia again, and the E.U. wants to protect it's gas pipelines.

Maybe the once great powers of Europe could man up one of these days, pay for it's only military, and stop calling team America world police everytime there is a situation in Europe's backyard.

[Francisco d'Anconia]

^^THIS^^

[Francisco d'Anconia]

You listen to the war boners and they make it sound like our very existence hinges on the outcome.

God we need a President Paul.

[wwhorton]

Well said, BardMetal. I think the only real legitimate policy position we should take on this is:

a.) "Invading other countries is bad and we don't think you ought to do it. We speak from experience," and,

b.) Any Ukrainians who would like to start over in the US are more than welcome to hop the next flight. We've got plenty of room.

[CampingInYourPark]

My wife flew home yesterday from Moscow and had a seat beside a Ukrainian woman. She got lucky with the visa lottery and works in VA as a dishwasher and a hotel maid. She leaves her children and husband behind to work those jobs and send money home. Needless to say, the Ukrainian economy sucks.

[TheZeitgeist]

Putin added that "nationalists" and "anti-semites" are in the streets of Kiev.

He forgot the bandits, Kulaks, and wreckists.

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

splitters and saboteurs!

[wareagle]

no hoarders?

[UnCivilServant]

No, the Oligarchs supported Putin.

[Hillary's Clitdong]

Spitters and quitters!

[Ted S.]

How come the alt-text gets to use non-ASCII characters and we don't?

[UnCivilServant]

They're employees, we're commentariat.

[Fist of Etiquette]

An immigration reform group linked to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has criticized Republicans for not doing enough to work towards changing immigration policy.

Maybe next year.

[Homple]

"An immigration reform group linked to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg...."

=

"An immigration reform group funded by CEO Mark Zuckerberg who likes cheap imported labor...."

[Lord Humungus]

Health Care Law
33% Say They've Been Personally Hurt by Health Care Law

One-in-three U.S. voters now says his or her health insurance coverage has changed as a result of Obamacare, and the same number say the new national health care law had a negative personal impact on them.

Forty percent (40%) of Likely U.S. Voters have at least a somewhat favorable opinion of the health care law, while 56% regard it unfavorably, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey. This includes 16% who view the law Very Favorably and 41% who have a Very Unfavorable opinion of it. (To see survey question wording, click here.)

on the other hand, 8% just loved it...

[Ted S.]

FAKE SCANDAL!!!111!!!

[General Butt Naked]

Wonder what the totally new guy rollo thinks about this.

[pan fried wylie]

Been watching southparkstudios recently, and they're running healthcare.gov commercials that refer to PPACA/Obamacare as "the health care law".

That aspect isn't as annoying as their claim that "finally, you can get the insurance you need" though. Yeah, by paying more for the same product you could have bought prior to the PPACA.

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED.

[gaijin]

Our local news yesterday evening had every commercial break go to a live phone bank (like the PBS drives) where navigators were standing by to answer your questions. They also had some radio personality talking with a young propogandist about why getting COvered made sense for 'young invincibles', was affordable and got you the healthcare you always wanted. Vomitous stuff.

[Mongo]

I'd call more often if those phone bank people wore gorilla suits.

[Lord Humungus]

RACCISSTT!

[Rasilio]

topless coeds breathily explaining just why that free birth control is .... just.... so....important

[wwhorton]

Or demonstrating why, perhaps...

[Homple]

...or Sandra Fluke wearing nothing but a Malthusian belt....

[Rasilio]

Nu uh those old policies weren't real insurance because they didn't give you free birth control and shit

[mad libertarian guy]

That aspect isn't as annoying as their claim that "finally, you can get the insurance you need" though. Yeah, by paying more for the same product you could have bought prior to the PPACA.

This, right the fuck here.

"You can finally get the insurance you need (by using government as a proxy to force others to pay more for it than it would have cost you just a year ago)."

[Steve G]

Do hurt feelings count?

[The Other Kevin]

I am the 33%.

[gaijin]

Denver to rule bans on gay marriage unconstitutional today.

Ban the bans! That's libertarian, eh?

[Fist of Etiquette]

Republicans from Western states are expected to urge the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit in Denver to rule bans on gay marriage unconstitutional today.

The GOP is in danger of pulling the rug out from under Dems on this issue. How could it be?

[AlmightyJB]

Who put the bans in place in the first place?

[Certified Public Asskicker]

Are you asking Tulpa?

[wareagle]

give the GOP time; never underestimate its capacity for turning chicken salad into chicken shit.

[DJF]

Or the Republicans could be pulling the rug out from under themselves by pissing off their base.

[Fist of Etiquette]

They're probably banking on the base having bigger fish to fry, such as everything but socon bullshit.

[waffles]

And as Lent approaches there will be plenty of Fish Fry Fridays!

[carol]

Who is the Republican base these days?

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

People clinging bitterly to religion or guns!

/O!

[Matrix]

More proof that public education is child abuse
Another student suspended for pointing fingers in the shape of a gun at another student in school
Why not just suspend principals and teachers who flip out over this shit? They are clearly incompetant.

[Certified Public Asskicker]

Devonshire Principal Patricia Price has warned students about pretend gun play numerous times this year

How does anyone take that sentence seriously?

[Matrix]

Well, kids were given fair warning right? Little bastard deserves to be executed for daring to disobey their AUTHORITAH!

[gaijin]

They may as well move on from pretend play if the penalties are the same.

[Ted S.]

Then they should pretend-play sacking the principal.

[wwhorton]

Thank god school administrators are protecting our children from all the pretend deaths and mock injuries that can result from playing with fake guns.

[Bee Tagger]

An immigration reform group linked to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has criticized Republicans for not doing enough to work towards changing immigration policy.

If I've learned anything from reading comment threads here, this makes Mark Zuckerberg a cosmotarian, right?

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

He has pretty much declared himself TEAM BLUE - so no chance for him to be excluded from COCKTAILPARTEEZ.

[Matrix]

What the rest of the world thinks of guns
The problem is that because powerful gangs, who are often better armed than the police, are the ones who dominate the gun industry at the country's border. With that in mind, citizens protect themselves from staying away from guns.
It's like the writer COMPLETELY ignored the first sentence of his/her own paragraph.
Even looking at Brazil who has strict gun laws and very high murder rate does not change the writer's opinions.

Guns are bad, mmkay. You shouldn't have a gun.

[wareagle]

well, he doesn't have a gun and no one he knows has a gun. Ergo, rational and decent people don't have guns. Just gang members.

[sarcasmic]

I'm trying to think of someone I know who doesn't own at least one firearm.

I'm coming up blank.

[Don Mynack]

Yeah, I don't know anybody who doesn't, and I'm hardly a gun nut.

[BardMetal]

So people are under threat from highly armed criminal gangs, and their response to protect themselves is to make sure they're completely unarmed and defenseless?

John is right, the anti-gun nuts really do treat guns like some sort of magical totem that generates it's own evil energy that turns people into murderers. They really are primitive animists when it comes to guns.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

The problem is, as far as I can tell, is even if you're armed and use a gun in a legit self-defense scenario, the cops come after YOU. It ain't over until the legal system says so and I gotta say, many victims get the cuffs slapped on them despite protecting their homes or lands.

[Zeb]

There is always that risk. But in the US at least, it seems that a lot of people manage to use guns in self defense without a lot of legal hassle.

[AlmightyJB]

"Guns are bad, mmkay. You shouldn't have a gun."

I'm sure this was a rational discussing about guns.

http://www.nbc4i.com/story/248.....n-columbus

[AlmightyJB]

discussion

[KB Check Release]

Get her the fuck out of my town. Er, our town.

I didn't even read the article.

[Pro Libertate]

The rest of the world is wrong about other stuff, too. That's one of the reasons there's no clear alternative for libertarian-minded people. Though the U.S. is trying very hard not to be the destination for such people.

[Auric Demonocles]

"If every other country built a bridge to nowhere, would you?"

[UnCivilServant]

No, because then nowhere would have too many bridges.

[wwhorton]

Free rider!

[UnCivilServant]

I thought these were toll bridges.

[wwhorton]

So, first off, proof that it actually is human agency and not a piece of metal that kills people can be found in the following experiment, which the writer should conduct on himself immediately.

1. Place a S&W .38 on a table in a room with a door.
2. Insert a Somali pirate in the room next to the table.
3. Place the author in an adjacent room and close the door.
4. Tell the pirate that the author is in possession of $50k in a briefcase and has been spreading the word that the pirate's mom is a filthy whore.

If the author's theory is correct, he should be fine.

And besides which, he should tell his story to vigilante groups in Michoacan who took it upon themselves to arm and organize against the regional cartel. With some considerable success, I might add.

[Red Rocks Rockin]

Yeah, you can tell that piece of ahistorical tripe was written by a college student. Just another prog trying to make the rest of society suffer for his daddy issues.

[Lord Humungus]

New ObamaCare delay to help Democrats in midterm elections

The Obama administration is set to announce another major delay in implementing the Affordable Care Act, easing election pressure on Democrats.

As early as this week, according to two sources, the White House will announce a new directive allowing insurers to continue offering health plans that do not meet ObamaCare's minimum coverage requirements.

Prolonging the "keep your plan" fix will avoid another wave of health policy cancellations otherwise expected this fall.

The cancellations would have created a firestorm for Democratic candidates in the last, crucial weeks before Election Day.

As the snark said - the hidden "Election Year Clause" in the Constitution.

[Longtorso, Johnny]

Dammit.

[Hillary's Clitdong]

Congress should just go ahead and pass an Enabling Act. "The President is hereby authorized to do whatever he wishes. Everything is now illegal, and the President has discretion to give immunity to any activity or person that he thinks deserves such favor."

[Homple]

Enabling Act? Enabling Act? I don't need no steenking Enabling Act!

Actually, the way Congress passes vaguely drafted laws whose enforcement is delegated to unelected bureaucrats obviates the need for an Enabling Act.

[waffles]

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has urged the Obama administration to insist that Palestinians recognize Israel as a Jewish state.

The Ukraine situation has made something abundantly clear to me. I just don't give a shit about the Israel/Palestine situation anymore.

[Tonio]

^This.

But unfortunately Israel is still the largest single recipient of US foreign aid money. Many other nations continue to see the USA as part of the problem because of that.

[Lord Humungus]

Vietnam sends blogger to prison for critical posts

The verdict against Truong Duy Nhat was the latest in an intensifying crackdown against advocates of free speech and greater democracy in the Communist-ruled country, where the Internet is enabling more opportunities for organizing and spreading dissent.

Following a half-day trial in the central city of Danang, Nhat was convicted of "putting the country's leadership in a bad light," in a series of articles on his blog, his lawyer Tran Vu Hai said. He said Nhat maintained his acts did not constitute a crime.

"I merely exercised my rights to freedom of speech," Hai quoted Nhat as saying.

You have no rights unless the state says so, comrade.

[waffles]

I will note that Vietnamese names can be pretty cool.

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

Pho sure.

[hamilton]

Unsportsmanlike comment. Fifteen yards, loss of HTML tags.

[BakedPenguin]

Banh mi? Banh him!

[Steve G]

Yu wan pedicur too?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92fD8Cy2zL0

[Rufus J. Firefly]

Good one.

[Tejicano]

I think you meant to say - "Goo Wan"

[Rufus J. Firefly]

D'oh!

[Matrix]

You have no rights unless the state says so, comrade.
Liberals (statists in general) actually believe this shit.

[Tejicano]

It is the center of Tulpa's universe.

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

And Tony.

[wwhorton]

I'm a little surprised Tony hasn't swooped in to explain how this story proves both that you only have the rights given to you by the state AND how this ties into the Bush administration.

[Ted S.]

Obama is jealous.

[Matrix]

I don't like your rules, so I'm moving out. But I still want you to pay for everything

Definitely going to vote Democrat.

[Brett L]

This chick is going to be the smartest stripper at the club.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

Hey. Sounds like Quebec. They want 'independent' BUT they want to retain the Canadian passport, military and currency while not carrying its own portion of the debt.

Sweet deal.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

'independence.'

[wwhorton]

I heard about this yesterday. According to NJ law, she actually has a viable case!!! And we're worried about Ukraine?

[Snark Plissken]

What a ugly precedent that would set.

From the Daily Fail:

Mr. Canning admits a state worker visited the home just prior to Rachel's alleged 'abandonment,' but that the official found the teen simply to be 'spoiled' and didn't pursue the abuse allegations.

[Brett L]

Jesus. That family won the social worker lottery.

[DJF]

So this is a contest on seeing who can take money from their own people to subsidize the Ukrainians, the Russians made the first offer and the US is counter offering

""""US prepares $1B aid package for troubled Ukraine"''

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/s.....TE=DEFAULT

[Lord Humungus]

Californ-i-ah

New microstamping law comes at the expense of improving consumer safety

But, as several independent, peer-reviewed studies have shown, this nascent technology is flawed. It is incapable of reliably, consistently and legibly imprinting the required identifying information in two locations on an expended cartridge casing. Even the patent holder in a 2012 study he co-authored acknowledged the problems with this technology and called for further study rather than mandating its use. A National Academy of Science review, forensic firearms examiners and a UC Davis study reached similar conclusions. Because of the technology's inherent limitations, no manufacturer can comply with this new law.

What the Legislature actually did was ban the innovation and stop the continuous improvement of today's manufacturing processes that would otherwise enhance firearms safety and other functionality.

[UnCivilServant]

Then there's this two dollar file to simulate years of wear on the stamps...

[Tejicano]

Hell, without even getting into the file/sandpaper/steel wool issue, cartridge cases can be numerous varieties of brass/bronze, aluminum, or steel. Forming the cases can result in a wide variation of hardnesses.

Whoever pretended they could fulfill these bureacrats' fantasy about microstamping were only trying to get government funding for a BS technology.

[General Butt Naked]

Are any of these laws gonna get Heller'd?

I keep seeing more and more strict laws coming into effect that are obvious violations of the Heller ruling. Is there any effective recourse for citizens of these banana republic states?

[Ted S.]

Didn't Heller include some mumbo-jumbo about "reasonable" regulations still being allowed?

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

Even I could write the brief showing the technologically impossible is "unreasonable".

[Ted S.]

You're dealing with people who think something can be a penalty and a tax at the same time.

[Fr?ulein Nikki]

Of course. I don't think we have tested those very much yet, as I don't think it came up in McDonald.

[General Butt Naked]

Yes, but they also made a note that citizens have a right to own commonly used weapons.

[Hillary's Clitdong]

Ah yes, the "Kennedy Clause". A legal device by which the fate of millions of people's rights is determined by which side of the bed Anthony wakes up on.

[mad libertarian guy]

How do they keep track of a case once it's been fired by the original owner? There is a lucrative secondary market for once-fired brass, because it costs only about 1/2 as much a new brass, and is fucking gold for reloaders, especially pistol brass that doesn't need nearly as much work as rifle brass.

So I buy a box of stamped bullets and fire them at the range. I sell the fired brass for a pretty good price. He turns around and uses the brass to make a bullet that is used in a shooting. Cops find the brass at the scene and lo and behold, I'm identified as the legal owner of said brass.

[UnCivilServant]

Or, it gets stamped by several different guns from being re-used, rendering the stamping just as worthless.

[CatoTheElder]

Duh.

The obvious, commonsense solution is to ban reloading.

Sometimes I'm amazed at how libertarians fail to grasp commonsense solutions.

[General Butt Naked]

The FSA descends on dahntahn pittsburgh to demand the regions largest retailer pay every window licker they hire fifteen clams an hour.

If you can't make it in p-burgh on 11 bux an hour, the lowest wage that UPMC pays their workers, you ain't gonna do much better with 15.

[Slammer]

How much dahs a jumbo sammich cahst nowdays?

[Lord Humungus]

related to the AM Link link:

Obama to offer new tax breaks for workers in election year budget pitch

President Barack Obama will propose an expansion of popular tax credits for middle class and working poor Americans on Tuesday in a fiscal 2015 budget designed to serve as a blueprint for Democrats in this year's congressional elections.

The budget, which would also create automatic retirement accounts known as IRAs for some 13 million workers, has little chance of getting enacted.

But it codifies the president's policy priorities ahead of the November race, in which Democrats hope to keep control of the U.S. Senate and Republicans hope to expand their majority in the House of Representatives.

It's almost like he doesn't give a shit about anything but elections.

[waffles]

This is what democracy looks like!

[Certified Public Asskicker]

Funny thing about the EITC, you have to have earned income.

[gaijin]

you have to have earned income.

In news out of Washington today, President Obama's head of Enforcement the IRS announced a rules change that would make earned income one of several factors in determining an individual's eligibility for the recently enhanced Earned Income Tax Credit, or Free Money, as it is known by supporters.

[Marshall Gill]

Funny thing about the EITC, you have to have earned income.

No, you don't. All you have to do is claim that you worked and made money.

Don't make a penny, and claim that you worked manual labor up to the amount of the personal deduction. You will receive a "refund" check for the entire amount of the EIC. It is even more if you have children. If the IRS were to ever ask where you worked, (they won't) you can claim that you made that much picking up cans and panhandling.

[Certified Public Asskicker]

Well ok, in theory you can make up anything and slap it on a tax return.

[Marshall Gill]

No, not just in theory. Do you really think that the IRS audits people who claim 10k in income but don't have any W-2s or 1099's?

[Rufus J. Firefly]

Tax credits. The sophistry of finance.

[sarcasmic]

Not taking is giving!

[Longtorso, Johnny]

New O-Care delay to help midterm Dems
The Obama administration is set to announce another major delay in implementing the Affordable Care Act, easing election pressure on Democrats.

As early as this week, according to two sources, the White House will announce a new directive allowing insurers to continue offering health plans that do not meet ObamaCare's minimum coverage requirements.

Prolonging the "keep your plan" fix will avoid another wave of health policy cancellations otherwise expected this fall.

The cancellations would have created a firestorm for Democratic candidates in the last, crucial weeks before Election Day....

[DJF]

So their plan is to never implement Obama Care so they can keep on winning elections?

[Slammer]

U.S. sues Sprint for overbilling wiretap expenses

[Steve G]

It's not sexy but it's got teeth.

[Steve G]

+1 Firm. ~shuffles off dejected~

[Ted S.]

And if Sprint refused to wiretap at all?

[gaijin]

And if Sprint refused to wiretap at all?

They'd only be able to bill half?

[Cdr Lytton]

Sprint should have followed Verizon's lead and sent a bill for between $0 and $21M to the feds.

Snark aside, feds are claiming overbilling of $7M a year. How much are they spendingl? That's only one carrier, and a smaller one at that.

[Lord Humungus]

Renewable Energy in Decline

Spending on renewables is in decline. From a record $318 billion in 2011, world renewable energy spending fell to $280 billion in 2012 and then fell again to $254 billion in 2013, according to Bloomberg. The biggest drop occurred in Europe, where investment plummeted 41 percent last year. The 2013 expiration of the US Production Tax Credit for wind energy will continue the downward momentum.

Today, wind and solar provide less than one percent of global energy. While these sources will continue to grow, it's likely they will deliver only a tiny amount of the world's energy for decades to come. Renewable energy output may have peaked, at least as a percentage of global energy production.

[mad libertarian guy]

The biggest drop occurred in Europe, where investment plummeted 41 percent last year.

Investment: that word doesn't mean what you think it means.

[Injun Joe]

Greetings from Soviet Ithacastan, bitches!

[Ted S.]

Ithaca College is higher atop Cayuga's waters.

[Spoonman.]

Both are painfully, painfully cold.

[UnCivilServant]

It's the natural chill generated by socialistic concern.

[Lord Humungus]

At White House, Israel's Netanyahu pushes back against Obama diplomacy

Obama assured Netanyahu of his "absolute commitment" to preventing Iran from developing atomic weapons, despite the Israeli leader's deep skepticism over U.S.-led efforts to reach a final international deal to curb Tehran's nuclear program.

But, warning that time was running out, Obama also urged Netanyahu to make "tough decisions" to help salvage a faltering U.S.-brokered peace process aimed at reaching a framework agreement with the Palestinians and extending talks beyond an April target date for an elusive final accord.

"The Israeli people expect me to stand strong against criticism and pressure," Netanyahu told the president.

[gaijin]

Obama also urged Netanyahu to make "tough decisions"

So Obama could see what that actually looked like.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

I'm getting the feeling that Obama applies the same sophomoric shtick of 'if you don't help me, you're the problem' in domestic affairs to diplomacy.

[mad libertarian guy]

Because we all know that economic diversity is the key to educating kids:

As officials determine new boundaries for Fayette County Public Schools, the goal will be not to have rich schools or poor schools.

[. . .]

Determining where students go to school will likely be a delicate issue, one parents will feel passionate about. That's largely why the school board adopted at a meeting Monday guidelines to assign students to a school.

Shelton noted at Monday night's board meeting that there are students in Fayette County who can see a school from their home that they don't get to attend. A redistricting committee, which will be named in the coming months, will try to find a way to assign students to schools that are as close to their homes as possible, Shelton said.

However, a top priority for the members of the redistricting committee will be to look at the current makeup of a particular school to ensure the students enrolled are economically diverse.

(cont)

[mad libertarian guy]

And the kicker . . .

A school that might be viewed as underperforming because of previously low scores, could now have a completely refurbished building and a principal and teachers who are excelling, he said.

Shelton said he encourages parents to visit a school and meet principals and teachers before they make a judgement.

"I respect a parent's right obviously to look for what they believe is best for their child, but I always want to make sure they've at least checked out the options," he said.

Yeah, like parents have options as to which school they send their children to. Does your kid goes to a shitty school, and you call the district looking for options? Too fucking bad, bitch, because we know that making sure he's in an economically diverse school is what's best for him.

[gaijin]

A school that might be viewed as underperforming because of previously low scores, could now have a completely refurbished building and a principal and teachers who are excelling, he said.

It is clear: it's all about new buildings, principals and teachers.

[DontShootMe]

Yeah, this sucks. In high school, I lived walking distance from a high school. because of crap like this, I had to endure a 45 minute bus ride to another high school.

[Apatheist ?_??]

The retardation of seeking economic diversity aside, this leads me to believe that there were shenanigans already going on:

Shelton noted at Monday night's board meeting that there are students in Fayette County who can see a school from their home that they don't get to attend.

[mad libertarian guy]

Of course there were. KY was a slave state, ergo, all Kentuckians are racist and need forced bussing programs to teach them the evil of their ways.

[hamilton]

Tyler Cowen sets up a meatball over the plate in his blog today:

Money, Status, and the Ovulatory Cycle

The authors propose that the ovulatory cycle actually has a much broader effect on women's economic behavior. Drawing on theory in evolutionary psychology, the authors hypothesize that the week-long period near ovulation should boost women's desire for relative status, which should alter their economic decisions. Findings from three studies show that women near ovulation seek positional goods to improve their social standing. Additional findings reveal that ovulation leads women to pursue positional goods when doing so improves relative standing compared with other women but not compared with men. When playing the dictator game, for example, ovulating women gave smaller offers to a female partner but not to a male partner. Overall, women's monthly hormonal fluctuations seem to have a substantial effect on consumer behavior by systematically altering their positional concerns, a finding that has important implications for marketers, consumers, and researchers.

[waffles]

I find it interesting that the study suggest women only want to increase their standing against other women, thus the biological imperative for bitchiness.

[Fr?ulein Nikki]

Well you wouldn't want to show up the men you are hoping will get you pregnant.

[Lord Humungus]

zomg - so sexist!!!!!!eleven!

[hamilton]

Yeah, I would expect this falls in that Harvard op-ed's definition of inappropriate research for its pursuit of "academic freedom" over "academic justice".

[The Late P Brooks]

The Obama administration is set to announce another major delay in implementing the Affordable Care Act, easing election pressure on Democrats.

The best part of all these stories is that the Democrats and their various mouthpieces will continue to make wildly bogus claims about the success of the Obamacare.

"We're driving down the cost of health care!"

[DEG]

NYT corrects article 161 years later. I wonder how long it will take them to correct Walter Duranty's work. I shouldn't hold my breath.

[Ted S.]

They've got another 80 or so years to go before Duranty's work reaches 161 years old.

[gaijin]

They'll revise it when Stalinism gets done the right way.

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

Who?

/NYT

[Rufus J. Firefly]

Damn. Wish there's more to it than just a spelling error.

Not that it's not significant - especially for the 'paper of record.'

[KB Check Release]

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has urged the Obama administration to insist that Palestinians recognize Israel as a Jewish state.

This guy just can't seem to put his own work in, homey. I would love for Obama to start saying that to foreign leaders.

So He'll probably just mumble in response. Or use the opportunity to talk about how Republicans are holding him back etc...

[Lord Humungus]

I've been into listening to Rowland S. Howard, the once guitarist for The Birthday Party
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqMuavjwb6M

who also had a group called These Immortal Souls
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKw5dRktWys

it's all a little dark and gothy, but that's okay by me.

[BigT]

In case this was overlooked:

[Detroit] Mayor Mike Duggan has declared March Affordable Care Act Enrollment Month and is opening some Detroit firehouses and recreation centers for residents to sign up health insurance.

[General Butt Naked]

Check out this Ukranian daredevil.

This shit is making me dizzy.

[Lord Humungus]

dizzy indeed. Now I feel nauseous.

[Tejicano]

Whoah - wild moves. No fear of heights - or maybe no fear at all - in that dude.

Which makes me wonder. If that is a genetic trait for the region maybe they were thinking : "Yeah, let's run Yanukovych out of here and back to Mother Russia. What's Putin gonna do about it? Invade?"

[Brett L]

Electrons and "holes" in semiconductors act as a particle-quantum fluid.

pulses created excitons?pairs of holes?in the material. When the density of excitons reached a certain threshold, the pairs dissolved and the electrons and holes arranged themselves in new formations. Inside the particle the electrons and holes flow around one another like particles in a liquid confined within a small droplet. "It's like a quantum form of a typical liquid," Kira says.

[Pro Libertate]

Can one synthesize beer from quantum fluid?

[Snark Plissken]

And if you could, would that beer offer a quantum of solace?

[gaijin]

If one drank quantum beer from a bottle, would the bottle ever be empty?

[UnCivilServant]

Would there even be beer in the bottle, or would observing it cause it to change to wine?

[Pro Libertate]

According to the Uncertainty Principle, you would never be sure what you did the night before after consuming quantum beer.

[wwhorton]

Wait, so this is that beer that gives you a hangover the morning before you drink it, right?

[Lord Humungus]

I think the word quaff would be better when drinking quantum fluids.

[mad libertarian guy]

Why I could never quite bring myself to align with the Tea Party:

A national Tea Party fundraising group aligned with Louisville businessman Matt Bevin plans to launch a radio ad Tuesday that blames Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell for a court ruling requiring Kentucky to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states.

U.S. District Judge John Heyburn II, who issued a final version of his ruling last week, was appointed by President George H.W. Bush on the recommendation of McConnell. Heyburn served as general counsel for McCon nell when McConnell was Jefferson County judge-executive during the early 1980s.

I have no problem with trying to primary the fuck out of McConnell (he is a statist of the highest order, after all), but blaming him for a decision made by a judge appointed 4 presidents ago because he recommended it is weak tea. That a supposed Tea Party candidate is bringing it up further shows that the TP is little more than cover for your average SoCon to pretend that government spending is his highest priority.

[tarran]

It really depends on the tea party group.

Like Al Queda's banner, the Tea Party banner is one that anyone can take up. It is more of a magnet for the disaffected. In certain regions, the disaffected will likely be incenced by both taxes *and* gay marriage or maybe the lack of the pure strength of will in the Ukraine.

If I were to start a tea party group, the focus would be very different than if my ex-father in law were to start one.

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

Curse you!

[mad libertarian guy]

Like Al Queda's banner, the Tea Party banner is one that anyone can take up.

Then it's useless.

And when one uses it as the banner for horseshit in politics (rather than as a banner of the disaffected), it's dangerous.

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

There is no "Tea Party" as a monolithic organization. It is an overarching label for a whole bunch of folks, who in general, think there is too much government involvement in [insert particular cause here]. If they were a single entity, this would be a very valid criticism.

[sarcasmic]

Depends. There's the TEA (Taxed Enough Already) Party, and there's the Tea (we all agree with Sean Hannity on everything) Party.

I've got no beef with the TEA Party. The Tea Party can shove off.

[Homple]

Yeah, agitate for smaller and fiscally responsible government all you want, but if you fail the Gay Marriage One True Litmus Test of libertarianism, I want nothing to do with you.

[mad libertarian guy]

It has nothing to do with Gay Marriage.

It has to do with playing nasty politics using a very shaky case for McConnell being the reason KY gay marriage was outlawed, when there are 10 gajillion other reasons that one could use against McConnell that don't reveal one as a statist.

[The Late P Brooks]

Drawing on theory in evolutionary psychology, the authors hypothesize

In other words, fairy tale.

[gaijin]

A theory based on a theory...sounds like Climate Science!

[UnCivilServant]

Isn't Climate "Science" a conclusion based on policy used to fabricate a "Theory"?

[gaijin]

yes, but that policy was based on a theory, so around and around we go...like the Sun around the earth.

[Slammer]

Giant virus revived from deep freeze in Siberian tundra

John Carpenter to direct?

[Ted S.]

Howard Hawks.

[gaijin]

Giant virus revived from deep freeze in Siberian tundra

OMG...can the rise of the undead be far behind?! Time to buy more ammo.

[UnCivilServant]

Don't be silly, the Society of Necromantic Advanced Research has been operating for years. Our successes include Zombie Teddy Roosevelt and Revenant Reagan, and we're working to reanimate Grover Cleveland. Do not ask about the Lich FDR incident. We also have a small army of less famous test subjects.

While New Yorkers are easier to animate, Virginians are nigh impossible. SoNAR is dedicated to improving the world through Undeath.

[gaijin]

^Nice!

[mad libertarian guy]

Legendary Kentucky Bourbon distiller tries his hand at sorghum rum aged in bourbon barrels.

What do you get when you mix a sorghum grower, a legendary distiller and a new distillery? Wilderness Trace's Harvest Rum, which was first shipped to stores in mid-February and will go to restaurants in March.

When Shane Baker and Pat Heist were getting their Wilderness Trace Distillery started, they planned to make bourbon and vodka. Then Danny Townsend came to see them and brought some of his award-winning sorghum from Mount Sterling.

"It tasted great," Heist said. But they couldn't put it in bourbon, which is restricted to grains, yeast and water.

So they started thinking of a rum. But federal definitions for rum specify using sugar cane. Could they get a molasses-based distillate classified as a rum?

Turns out, yes.

I don't drink (much), but if I did I'd try this.

[Lord Humungus]

Sally Kohn: Republicans Criticizing Obama are 'Practically Cheering for Putin'

aww....

[Brett L]

You know, these guys can go fuck right off. I'm not in favor of US action to "protect" the Ukraine, but two people on the last two Republican tickets got mocked for saying that Russian power would attempt to expand under Putin. Fuck these toadies who think we should close ranks now.

[wwhorton]

I heard that Obama was desperately trying to get the 1980s on the phone. Something about some foreign policy it had that might come in handy.

[Juice]

Just like the Dems were cheering for Saddam Hussein before.

[Notorious G.K.C.]

""Marriage is strengthened and its benefits, importance to society, and the social stability of the family unit are promoted" through nuptials between gay and lesbian couples, said a copy of the 33-page brief provided to Reuters.

"The Republican group cited constitutional guarantees of equal protection under the law, *proper limits to government's role in citizens' personal lives, and individual freedom,* among other reasons." [emphasis added]

Look, if you think this is the next frontier of equality, and you want to be praised in the New York Times as a respected elder statesman, then go ahead, but don't pretend that you're promoting individual freedom. Have you seen how the SSM debate is proceeding in the Western states and elsewhere? It's about conscripting bakers, florists, etc., etc. into the gay-marriage cause, which violates individual freedom, rather than extending it.

[Zeb]

You are right (and boring). It's not about individual freedom. It's about equal protection. Which is also important. Public accommodation laws exist with or without gay marriage.

[Brett L]

Msture liver cells made from skin cells.

Now, a new study reported in Nature shows how it may be possible, with a new method, to transform skin cells into mature, fully functioning liver cells that are practically identical to native cells in liver tissue.

Drink up.

[UnCivilServant]

Only when they manage to get the new cells to grow into a full liver. I forget the minimum volume needed for regeneration of the organ.

[Snark Plissken]

Plus the fifteen years and billions of dollars worth of trials to make sure it's safe.

[mad libertarian guy]

There's a new Barley Wine in town:

Need some extra warmth to see you through this last dose of winter? Alltech is bringing out its latest seasonal beer: Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Barley Wine.

If that sounds like something Bilbo Baggins would serve in the Shire, you might be right.

[. . .]

Like all barley wines, Alltech's version, a ruby red malty, almost chewy, ale is strong. Alcohol by volume is 10 percent, making it a hefty 20 proof. Suggested price will be about $15 for four bottles.

This is Alltech's second seasonal offering, following on its popular pumpkin ale, introduced last fall.

Like that one and Alltech's flagship beer, the barley wine is aged in freshly dumped bourbon barrels to pick up the caramel and vanilla notes of the bourbon.

Seasonal releases are popular with craft-beer drinkers who like to have something new to try, said Ken Lee, Alltech master brewer.

Alltech plans to bring out another seasonal ? a fruity wheat beer ? in the spring, Gervis said.

If you like local alcohol, KY is apparently the place to be right now.

[Lord Humungus]

Should government force businesses to hire felons? Obama nominee Debo Adegbile says yes

The Senate will soon vote on President Obama's nomination of former NAACP Legal Defense Fund official Debo Adegbile to head the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division. There are a number of reasons many Republicans oppose the nomination, most prominent among them Adegbile's passionate and continued advocacy on behalf of Philadelphia cop-killer Mumia Abu-Jamal. But one objection to the nomination has received little public notice, and it involves a quiet but growing controversy over the issue of criminal background checks.

It's not unusual for businesses to conduct a check before hiring new employees. If the check uncovers that the applicant has, say, a felony conviction in his past ? well, that can put a quick end to the application process.

But Obama's Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has ruled that the use of background checks in hiring is racially discriminatory. In 2012, the EEOC issued "guidance" to the nation's businesses, citing statistics showing blacks and Hispanics are convicted of crimes at significantly higher rates than whites. Therefore, the EEOC ruled, excluding job applicants based on their criminal records would have "a disparate impact based on race and national origin."

[Snark Plissken]

Goldman Sachs is more than glad to hire a raft of felons, provided they've served their time in the upper echelons of government, first.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

This is dangerous and scary.

It's not the same thing but we hired a welfare case at the request of someone.

Lemme tell ya, people are on welfare for a reason. The lies, deceit and plain flat out disregard for anything like punctuality was astonishing.

Never mind about the excuses.

Worse, this person would take the daycare tax credit and hand it off to her loser idiotic boyfriend who would spend it on booze and cigarettes.

Why should I be compelled to hire such people? We gave her all the opportunities and chances in the world (including forgiving debts) and she still messed it up. To the point she twisted the story to make it look like we're the ones who didn't 'giver her a chance.' Six months wasn't enough for her apparently.

Too bad, because the ultimate sadness is these people DO have potential but have been caught in a welfare vortex (enabled by the government) so long they can't get out.

[Marshall Gill]

Too bad, because the ultimate sadness is these people DO have potential but have been caught in a welfare vortex (enabled by the government) so long they can't get out.

Never, ever, forget this when someone is telling you how government dependency helps the poor. Turning people into cattle is evil.

[waffles]

Does this mean between two equally qualified candidates if one has a felony the business could be compelled to hire the felon? That is the most perverse hiring incentive yet. Time to go work on my resume.

[UnCivilServant]

No it'd work like Affirmative Action, an undefined quota of felons with a conviction overriding some portion of their competition's qualifications. Probably with years served counted as years of experience.

[gaijin]

And if a business failed to meet the quota, the owner could be convicted of a felony!

[Andrew S.]

And of course, nobody in Washington will think of the only decent solution to this, which is reducing the number of felonies we arrest people for, like all of the victimless ones, so there are fewer people caught up in that crap.

[DJF]

That is just crazy talk!!!!

[Notorious G.K.C.]

Yeah - "we shall punish businesses for a problem *we* helped cause!"

I mean, by their own logic, the Justice Department is presiding over the disproportionate number of black people getting convicted (if we accept their premises). So if anything, it's the Justice Department which should be held accountable!

[The Late P Brooks]

There is no "Tea Party" as a monolithic organization. It is an overarching label for a whole bunch of folks, who in general, think there is too much government involvement in [insert particular cause here].

And, of course, a lot of Democratic Party operatives willfully use
"Tea Party" as an epithet for anybody who disagrees with them on anything.

The "Tes Party" brand is pretty much useless, at this point.

[Snark Plissken]

That's not true.

They mostly use to cast their opposition as racists. And nutjobs.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

It's to the point the term is used up here. 'What are you, some sort of teabagger, eh?" is sprinkled here and there.

[Marshall Gill]

Teathuglican!

[mad libertarian guy]

And, of course, a lot of Democratic Party operatives willfully use
"Tea Party" as an epithet for anybody who disagrees with them on anything.

True. But can one really blame them when they people use their Tea Party credential to oppose things outside of the TP's reason d'etre?

[Auric Demonocles]

I'm not sure if that credit counts as alt-text.

[Brett L]

Everything old is (re)new(able) again. "bioengineering" turpentine pines to produce more "biofuel".

"Hallo? UF? World War I cabling, they need more turpentine." No, more seriously, good on them. We should be omnivores, not koalas in energy policy. Also, St. Joe paper company might regret selling all that great turpentine pine land in north Florida to the Mormons.

[Brett L]

From Wikipedia on turpentine:

The two primary uses of turpentine in industry are as a solvent and as a source of materials for organic synthesis. As a solvent, turpentine is used for thinning oil-based paints, for producing varnishes, and as a raw material for the chemical industry. Its industrial use as a solvent in industrialized nations has largely been replaced by the much cheaper turpentine substitutes distilled from crude oil. Turpentine has long been used as a solvent, mixed with beeswax or with carnauba wax, to make fine furniture wax for use as a protective coating over oiled wood finishes (e.g., lemon oil).

[Warty]

Because it's stuck in my head

[Tejicano]

Thanx.

But something between the scotch and the Anejo wouldn't let it stick with me (I'm on a different time zone too).

[sarcasmic]

Booooorrrriiinnnggg....

Because it's stuck in my head

[Tejicano]

OK. Maybe closer to my speed. But kinda like a clean, side-by-side 10-gauge when what I need is a chopped, belt-fed 7.62mm.

[sarcasmic]

How's about Iron Maiden's tribute to The Charge of the Light Brigade in the Crimean War?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4uq6Ax-zzkQ

[General Butt Naked]

Brooksy down there has a searing hatred for all things McMurty.

Go ahead, ask 'im about it.

[The Late P Brooks]

According to the White House, the budget proposal will include a $60 billion expansion of the Earned Income Tax Credit.

Maybe I'm crazy, but it seems to me every new "initiative" proposed by this administration is specifically and intentionally aimed at getting more and more people into the IRS database.

I wonder why.

[The Late P Brooks]

To Whom it May Concern:

Barley wine sucks. Also, insofar as faddy high alcohol content beers and ales are concerned, IF I WANTED TO GET SHITFACED, I'D GO BACK TO DRINKING TEQUILA.

That is all.

[Andrew S.]

I can't drink beer anymore. It's become a ridiculous fight to see who can stuff more of that horrible hoppy taste into the beer. I'm sticking to rum, vodka and whisky nowadays.

[Auric Demonocles]

There's certainly a ton of super strong IPAs, but if you were remotely interested in lower IBU beers they are also ridiculously easy to find.

[Pro Libertate]

One does not simply stop drinking tequila.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

On the other hand, barley espresso is decent.

[sarcasmic]

When I first started making my own beer I, like most, tried to make it all strong and shit. Now I make session ales and light pilsners.

[Zeb]

"I don't like barleywine"

"I don't like very hoppy beers"

Is it really so fucking hard to say?

[SIV]

Never talk to the cops

[Steve G]

...or kiss your sister while in custody.
eww

[Brett L]

My old stompin' grounds. Not that hard to believe.

[Matrix]

wincest?

No... just no... Oy. Seriously, how stupid can someone be?

[Homple]

In a few years they will be honored as the first advocates of the court-mandated right of sibling marriage.

[Sevo]

Hey, if they raised the price high enough, maybe the NSA couldn't afford it!

"U.S. sues Sprint, claims overbilled on conventional wiretaps"
[...]
"Telecommunications companies that comply with government orders to enable federal agents to eavesdrop on phone calls are entitled to reimbursement for their costs."
http://www.sfgate.com/nation/a.....286007.php

[Brett L]

Although this was covered above. I look forward to discovery.

[Brett L]

Governance by hypocrite -- not just an American trait.

A top British government aide who helped create 10 Downing Street's controversial policy to censor online pornography for the majority of British Internet users has resigned from his post on Monday after being arrested last month on charges of possessing child pornography.

[UnCivilServant]

"I can't be trusted around computers, so no one can."

Sounds familiar. Where else have I seen that philosophy at work?

[Slammer]

Nailed it. Textbook projection.

[Brett L]

You'd think the idiot would have bothered to learn the flaws in the system instead of blithely downloading AT WORK. I guess he thought they wouldn't watch the traffic at the PM's?

[Cdr Lytton]

He was just doing research. Sheesh..

[Steve G]

Wow, just po-fuckin-etic

[The Late P Brooks]

a searing hatred for all things McMurty.

You mean the whiny little crybaby who writes shitty music?

[Elspeth Flashman]

No, the cop from the Wire.

[Elspeth Flashman]

A 38 year old MSU student alleges in a lawsuit that two East Lansing police officers ordered him to sweep broken glass in the street, spread it in a parking lot and then later wrongfully charged him with urinating in public.

http://www.freep.com/article/2.....ing-police

[lap83]

Zombie Studies Gain Ground

http://online.wsj.com/news/art.....sNewsFifth

"Self-described "zombie scholar" Sarah Juliet Lauro, a Clemson University assistant English professor, acknowledges that some think it is silly or inappropriate to study the ghouls.

She counters that "it's a deeply important mythology that is specifically about slavery." She is finishing a book tracing zombie folklore to its 18th-century roots in the Haitian Revolution. Zombis were field laborers raised from the dead who led a slave rebellion.

Her book, "The Transatlantic Zombie: Slavery, Rebellion and Living Death," examines how zombies came to represent the struggles of slavery and colonialism."

That's a relief. I was worried that the topic was too silly for an academic setting, but fortunately they found a way to connect it with liberal victimology.

[UnCivilServant]

I thought zombies were urban liberals who've lost all self to the anti-human collective will that tries to devour our accomplishments as a species.

[UnCivilServant]

Also, no shout-out to our work at SoNAR? I feel cheated.

[Slammer]

Zombies partially come from the Haitian stories. The modern zombie comes from George Romero combining the risen dead with ghouls (eaters of the dead) into eaters of living flesh.

[Tonio]

Yeah, except all the currently-popular zombie stories are Romero-Falci zombies, that is, zombies who are reanimated by disease or other naturalistic causes. Other than sharing a name, these have nothing to do with Haitian zombies who are reanimated by voodoo spells (yes, I know that word is out of fashion with ethnographers, etc).

[sarcasmic]

Because correctness of an idea is determined not by the merits of the idea itself, but by who else agrees with it! World community! Majority! Consensus!

[Rufus J. Firefly]

The perception is the rest of the world is older, more experiences and thus wiser.

[Tejicano]

Ex-fucking-zactly.

The cool thing about this - to me - is that if I am the only one in the room who is armed (and I mean properly armed) then what they think doesn't matter.

"Guns R bad. That isn't nice. You shouldn't have that here."

So what? What can they and their bullshit do about it in the right-here-and-now? This is how reality works.

[Pro Libertate]

Which is why we left the rest of the world in the first place. To reject their "wisdom" and substitute our own.