A.M. Links: Rand Paul Threatens to Block Court Nominee Over Drone Memo, WHO Says Spread of Polio a Global Health Emergency, Pro-Russian Militants Retreat From Eastern Ukrainian City

Credit: Gage Skidmore/wikimedia

• The World Health Organization says the international spread of polio is a global health emergency and that Pakistan, Syria, and Cameroon pose a high risk of exporting the virus.
• Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) has told Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) that he will put a hold on one of President Obama's appellate court nominees who drafted at least one secret memo justifying the killing of U.S. national Anwar al-Awlaki in Yemen.
• Pro-Russian militants in the eastern Ukrainian city of Sloviansk have reportedly retreated from their positions following attacks by Ukrainian forces.   
• A new Pew Research poll shows that Republicans are favored over Democrats in the upcoming midterm elections, a reversal from two months ago.
• The Nobel Prize-winning economist Gary Becker has died at the age of 83.
• The Islamist militant group Boko Haram has claimed responsibility for the kidnapping of more than 200 girls from a village in northeast Nigeria last month.

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Comments

[Fist of Etiquette]

The Islamist militant group Boko Haram has claimed responsibility for the kidnapping of more than 200 girls from a village in northeast Nigeria last month.

And making them listen to A Whiter Shade of Pale.

[gaijin]

listen to A Whiter Shade of Pale.

Damn you!

[Gene]

Pro-Russian militants in the eastern Ukrainian city of Sloviansk have reportedly retreated from their positions following attacks by Ukrainian forces.

What they decided against self immolation this time.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

Hello.

[Fist of Etiquette]

A new Pew Research poll shows that Republicans are favored over Democrats in the upcoming midterm elections...

Despite their best efforts.

[WTF]

Don't worry, there's still time.

[Corning]

I read that as "till slime" no idea what that means...

aside from me being dyslectic.

[Swiss Servator, Gnomes FTW!]

"Despite their best efforts"

In Stupid Party v. Evil Party, stupid will be stupidin'.

[Rich]

BWAHAHAHAA!!

/Democrats

[Lord Humungus]

My Clitoris?

Your Clitoris Is the Size of a 'Medium Zucchini,' and Other Vagina Facts You Didn't Know

Here's a biology pop quiz question. What is the average size of a clitoris in a human female?

A. the size of a chickpea

B. the size of a mini pickle

C. the size of a medium zucchini.

Unless you've been paying particularly close attention to the gynecological literature, you're probably not going to say C. And yet that is the correct answer. Sure, the externally visible part of the clitoris is puny, but that is literally the tip of an iceberg that extends deep beneath the pubis, five inches down either wall of the vagina, consists of six separate parts, and carries more nerve endings than the penis.

[waffles]

So is the G-spot an extension of the clitoris or something else entirely?

[Drake]

That is the current theory.

[Francisco d'Anconia]

There is no such thing.

[waffles]

My artisinal pickling operation begs to differ.

[gaijin]

Never gonna stop, give it up
Such a dirty mind, always get it up
For the touch of the younger kind
mm, mm, mm, my clitoris

[Carl ?s his privilege]

carries more nerve endings than the penis

NOT FAIR!

[Steve G]

Matriarchy!

[Stormy Dragon]

It's because most of your nerve endings were in the foreskin and got hacked off when you were an infant.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) has told Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) that he will put a hold on one of President Obama's appellate court nominees who drafted at least one secret memo justifying the killing of U.S. national Anwar al-Awlaki in Yemen.

BECAUSE OBAMA IS BLACK.

[Fist of Etiquette]

-ish.

[Rich]

"Because Obama-ish is Black"?

[sarcasmic]

No one likes a soggy bottom: Krysten Ritter changes bikini for sunbathing session after body boarding in the ocean in Mexico

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvs.....exico.html
I so lust her.

[Scruffy Nerfherder]

Why? No muscle tone whatsoever.

[Lord Humungus]

Report: O-Care to save large corporations hundreds of billions

Corporations are expected to start out by dropping low-wage and part-time workers from their employer insurance plans since they are able to reap the benefits of government tax subsidies under ObamaCare, leading them to pick up new plans under the healthcare law. Eventually, the burden of healthcare coverage will shift from employers to employees.

"Neither lawmakers nor the White House originally anticipated the idea that the ACA could provide corporations with an enormous subsidy to earnings," say authors of the report. "However, once a few notable companies start to depart from their traditional approach to health care benefits, it's likely that a substantial number of firms could quickly follow suit."

[Ted S.]

There's an Iron Law about this....

[waffles]

Some about unintended consequences being totally awesome?

[Raven Nation]

Neither lawmakers nor the White House originally anticipated the idea that the ACA could provide corporations with an enormous subsidy to earnings

If that's true then the politicians are even stupider than I thought they were.

[Rich]

If that's false then the politicians are even eviler than I thought they were.

[DesigNate]

This started last year and will continue to happen.

[Corning]

So young healthy people are subsidizing politically favored too big to fail corporations...

Brilliant.

[Bee Tagger]

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) has told Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) that ....

You may need to spell that out in crop circles on Clive Bundy's land to get him to notice.

[Pathogen]

?sarc?You may need to spell that out in crop circles on Clive Bundy's land to get him to notice.?/sarc??

[sarcasmic]

School principal fired for 'having sex with security guard and parent during school hours and leaving dirty photos on department computers'
Annie Schmutz Seifullah, 35, was escorted from Robert Wagner Secondary School of Arts and Technology, in Long Island City, Queens, Thursday, where she was principal of the 7th-12th grade
Detectives investigating the allegations seized computers and other electronics from her office and home
According to the New york Post, contained pictures of her wearing only lingerie and engaging in various sex acts including a threesome

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/new.....hours.html
There's a pic of her in her undies. Be careful. Some things cannot be unseen.

[Ted S.]

Annie Schmutz Seifullah, 35, was escorted from Robert Wagner Secondary School of Arts and Technology, in Long Island City, Queens,

Do they have a school named after Natalie Wood, too?

[Mock-star]

Why is her arm larger than her leg?
Anyways, I'd hit it.

[Brett L]

So tragically New Yorker in the lingerie photo. Living in the South has completely spoiled me.

[DesigNate]

So totally this.

[Carl ?s his privilege]

Be careful. Some things cannot be unseen.

Meh. There's a lot of room for improvement, but she's not terrible.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

How come I never get lucky like this?

[Ted S.]

Be careful. Some things cannot be unseen.

You'll never see Sony the same way again

[sarcasmic]

Girl investigated after 'getting revenge on her bullies by feeding them cupcakes filled with hair, mayonnaise and bodily fluids'
Bakersfield police investigating 10th grade student at Centennial High School, California
She allegedly admitted she laced cupcakes with semen, pubic hair, condiments and pills
One student who ate a whole cupcake was too sick to attend school the next day
French food day at the school was cancelled

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/new.....luids.html

For one bullied teen, revenge is a dish best served laced with semen.

*grin*

[waffles]

Girls are gross.

[Rich]

"Jacob, I need a little help for a prank ...."

[Swiss Servator, Gnomes FTW!]

"French food day at the school was cancelled"

Quell horror!

[gaijin]

French food day at the school was cancelled

So no french fries were served?

[Elspeth Flashman]

It was the mayonnaise. Artisanal. Can't be trusted after the prank.

[Steve G]

My best friend's brother pulled the ol' exlax-cake-in-the-teachers-lounge prank back in the late 80s. He faced some trouble back then, but today he'd be in jail/permanently expelled instead of a bigwig in Intel as he is now.

[Corning]

Where did she get the semen?

[waffles]

put a hold on one of President Obama's appellate court nominees who drafted at least one secret memo justifying the killing of U.S. national Anwar al-Awlaki in Yemen

Sounds obstructionist to me.

[WTF]

And racist.

[Lord Humungus]

Australian mistook cockpit for toilet, triggering hijack scare

An Australian passenger mistook the cockpit door for the toilet, triggering Friday's hijack scare on a Virgin Australia flight from Brisbane to the Indonesian holiday island of Bali, police said.

Matt Lockley told Bali police after his arrest that he banged on what he thought was the toilet door for a last-minute bathroom break before the Boeing 737-800 aircraft landed. .

The door was actually the cockpit door and the pilot, Neil Thomas Cooper, responded by alerting Indonesian traffic controllers of a possible hijacking. Crew members then seized Lockley and handcuffed him.

[Ted S.]

The doors aren't clearly labeled?

[Rich]

Actually, he thought it was the door to the liquor store.

[Swiss Servator, Gnomes FTW!]

It used to say "Pilots" but some of the letters wore off so it simply read "lo"...he confused it for the loo?

[DJF]

It said Cockpit and he needed to piss.

[Tejicano]

Well, there's that...

[Brett L]

"Look, mate, you can't piss on the pilots and expect not get arrested."

[Swiss Servator, Gnomes FTW!]

"Have you ever been in an Indonesian prison, Jimmy?"

[Matrix]

Blood from young mice reverses aging brain and muscles in old mice

If this works for humans (like it did in The Simpsons), how long until children will be rounded up and be prey for the elites (well, we already know many of them use children as sex slaves) in order to harvest their blood?

[gaijin]

how long until children will be rounded up and be prey for the elites

Social Security, v2.0?

[Raven Nation]

This is parallel to a recurring theme in some of Larry Niven's early stories.

[Brett L]

Already showed this to my wife. Told her to ditch the birth control, we're breeding for science! And money!

[Corning]

If you are young enough to breed you could just sell your own blood. No children necessary.

[sarcasmic]

It was fought over repeatedly during the Crusades - now this amazingly preserved 900-year-old Syrian castle is being destroyed as war returns to its walls
The Crac des Chevaliers has fallen victim to the chaos of Syria'sm civil war following siege by Government forces
Residents of the village Hosn and rebels used the castle as a last refuge following heavy bombardment last winter
Government forces then seized the building March, damaging the walls and roof with heavy artillery and an airstrike

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/new.....tions.html

[Rufus J. Firefly]

Unbelievably sad how they ruin their own heritage. What happened to Beirut is a crime against humanity.

[Fist of Etiquette]

The World Health Organization says the international spread of polio is a global health emergency and that Pakistan, Syria, and Cameroon pose a high risk of exporting the virus.

It's always something with those people.

[WTF]

Jenny McCarthy says at least they're not getting sick from vaccines.

[Jordan]

They got sick from second hand vaccination.

/derp

[Pathogen]

Global warming makes viruses more... virulent, oh.. and income inequality that exacerbates the problem ten fold...

[sarcasmic]

Drones are BANNED from Yosemite because their buzzing upsets wildlife and disrupts the tranquility for visitors
Annoyed park officials say the drones pose a hazard to birds like bald eagles and peregrine falcons
Visitors use the high tech devices to film rock climbers, wildlife and to get bird's eye scenic views

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/new.....-park.html
Blah blah blah fuck you blah blah that's why blah blah blah

[waffles]

This sucks, mightily. Yosemite big wall climbing is just about a perfect use for drone cameras.

[Ted S.]

Electric-powered drones that make as little noise as electric cars!

[sarcasmic]

Boeing's vision of manned spaceflight revealed: Firm unveils concept for space transport set to launch in 2017
The aerospace giant has revealed a concept of its new spacecraft
The Crew Space Transportation (CST-100) is designed to fly into orbit
It will take crews of seven people to the ISS and other destinations
One of three vehicles being funded by Nasa to replace the Space Shuttle
It is expected to begin flights in 2017 at a similar time to its rivals

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sci.....-2017.html

[Ted S.]

I hope they don't have Hugo Drax overseeing it.

[Rasilio]

2017?

So like 2 years after SpaceX is scheduled to have Dragon Man rated? And I havn't looked it up but I think that is around the time that Orbital Sciences was scheduled to have their ship man rated too.

Hell throw in the usual NASA bureaucratic delays and there will probably be 1 or 2 more systems ready to take human payloads to orbit by the time this is ready.

So why is NASA funding this again?

[sarcasmic]

So why is NASA funding this again?

Cronies gonna crony.

[DJF]

Actually NASA vehicle is the SLS with the Orion capsule which is even farther behind and way more expensive.

[Rasilio]

I thought SLS was canceled and work was continuing on Orion at a slow pace because they had no real launch vehicle in place

[DJF]

No, SLS is still going, it was Constellation which was cancelled. Though parts of Constellation looks a lot like SLS

[sarcasmic]

Is this the CCTV which proves Amanda Knox is lying? Footage shows her near house where Meredith was murdered ? contradicting alibi she has stuck to through murder trial
Footage shows a woman resembling Knox in a car park in Perugia
It was time-stamped 20:53, 01/11/07 - the night of Meredith Kercher's murder
Knox maintains that at this time she was at her boyfriend's house
Knox was found guilty of Ms Kercher's murder in a third trial this year

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/new.....trial.html

[gaijin]

in a third trial this year

Triple jeopardy? How many times can you be tried in Italy?

[waffles]

Until they get it right apparently.

[Ted S.]

If you have mistrials, you can theoretically be tried three times in the US as well.

I've found all the coverage of the case repulsive, as the British media has had the attitude of "OMG how could anybody think Amanda Knox is not guilty!" while the Americans cosider it gospel truth that she's innocent and pure as the driven snow and how could anybody come to any other conclusion? And on both sides, facts be damned.

[Jordan]

I don't know whether or not she is innocent, but I wouldn't trust the Italian justice system anymore than I'd trust the Russian one.

[WTF]

Just because they sent some geologists to jail for not properly predicting an earthquake?

[Brett L]

Innocent? Guilty? It'd be a shame to waste that in prison.

[tarran]

She is innocent.

There was a plethora of DNA evidence. The murder was committed by a homeless bum who admitted breaking into the place hoping to burglarize it.

There was no DNA evidence that Knox or her boyfriend were present for the murder. The only witness placing her at the crime scene was another homeless bum who kept changing his story depending on what he thought the audience wanted to hear.

The entire case against Amanda Knox rests on
1) Italian Barney Fifes who are convinced that American women are whorish succubuses

2) The fevered dreams of an Italian prosecutor who thinks that he is the target of a satanic cult.

3) People like Pers Morgan who like makings inflammatory shit up to sell papers to the degraded stultified chattering classes that are the product of the misrule of Elizabeth II.

[Brett L]

Well, I mean, they say, "whorish succubus", I say healthy 19 year old studying abroad.

[invisible furry hand]

Whorish Succubi would be a great name for a band

[sarcasmic]

They better sing "The Morning After" backwards.

[Jordan]

You seem to be under the mistaken impression that there is anything resembling due process in Italy.

[Swiss Servator, Gnomes FTW!]

or justice.

[R C Dean]

Footage shows a woman resembling Knox in a car park in Perugia

Because I'm sure very few people in Italy would "resemble" Knox in super-low-def surveillance footage.

[Lord Humungus]

Citizens post their own traffic signs

"With my signs what I tried to do is cover 24 hours of the day to clearly state when you can and can't park," she says. "Green would be for you can park, red would be for when you can't park."

She posted her sign right under the DOT's parking sign in her Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn, neighborhood and left a spot for people to leave comments.

"The first person wrote like, 'The mayor should hire you. This is great,'" she says. "Things like that."

Projects like Nkki's are part of a growing trend called "tactical urbanism" in which regular citizens using tactics to try to improve the urban environment without the government's help.

[Matrix]

Projects like Nkki's are part of a growing trend called "tactical urbanism" in which regular citizens using tactics to try to improve the urban environment without the government's help.

Which is why it must never be tolerated. You must always require our help and our permission to do anything. /City councilmember

[mr simple]

Yes, I'm surprised they haven't been arrested and fined.

[waffles]

"We don't always need to wait for the government to do things for us," he says. "If we can do them ourselves, we could and should."

I thought we elected Obama to squelch this kind of dangerous thinking. And in NYC of all places!

[Swiss Servator, Gnomes FTW!]

in which regular citizens using tactics to try to improve the urban environment without the government's help.

INCONCEIVABLE!!!!

/progderp

[Brett L]

Obviously, this chick is going to be arrested and have the facts of bureaucracy beaten into her.

[Pope Jimbo]

Do these new signs meet the federal reflectivity requirements? Huh? DO THEY??!!!

http://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/roa.....gn_newreq/

Some poor sap is going to DIE because these signs aren't reflective enough. Then their family will sue.

[Emmerson Biggins]

I've always thought it'd be cool to assemble a team of commandos, who covertly remove speed bumps that just shouldn't be there.

Maybe hit places that have waayyyyy too many handicap parking sports too, but that would probably end up costing somebody in the private sector something. So I think that'd be off the table

[sarcasmic]

Killer hornets from China that eat up to 50 bees a DAY are the latest threat to Britain's hives
Asian hornet capable of wiping out entire hive within hours
There are now just 25 native species of bees left in the country
Numbers may be as low as 50,000 at the height of summer

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/new.....hives.html
Scary.

[Matrix]

Do like the Chinese do and kill them with fire!

[Brett L]

Fire isn't enough. We need something in the plasma category, just to be sure.

[Rasilio]

40 megawatt range?

[Brett L]

I was thinking temperature. Something slightly hotter than the Sun. Maybe 8000-10000C?

[Almanian!]

Just what's on the shelf, pal.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

Yeah. That's not good.

Bees are important.

[Ted S.]

Ah, those xenophobic Brits.

/sarcasm

[Pope Jimbo]

Yes, yes they are being xenophobic. They should take a page out of Sunny Minnesota's legislature's book and rename them to "invasive hornets" to avoid casting people from asian cultures in a negative light.

http://www.twincities.com/loca.....ota-senate

At least that is the reason that they decided to rename Asian Carp to Invasive Carp.

[The Late P Brooks]

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) has told Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) that he will put a hold on one of President Obama's appellate court nominees who drafted at least one secret memo justifying the killing of U.S. national Anwar al-Awlaki in Yemen.

Why does rand Paul hate America's patriots?

[Lord Humungus]

Small Town Mistakes Unity Sculpture For Giant Blue Orgy

Officials in a small Michigan town moved a city-approved public sculpture about the importance of relying on one another after residents complained that it was "disgusting" and an "abomination."

Mark Chatterley's "Blue Human Condition" was unveiled near Adrian City Hall last week as part of the city's public art program. But after objections from residents, officials moved the sculpture to a less visible section of a park on Tuesday.

[waffles]

A bunch of Tobias Funkes rubbing up on each other? I think it's a powerful statement on the human condition for sure.

[Rhywun]

Except these guys look nude.

[Lord Humungus]

Man Convicted of Assault on Roommate Who Drew a Penis on His Face

During trial, the jury was told that Watson and his two roommates were out drinking in Clarendon on a Friday night last March. When they returned to their Lyon Village home, Watson fell asleep on the couch with his shoes on, prompting the victim decided to prank him by drawing a penis on his face with a black dry erase marker, according to Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Ben Inman, who prosecuted the case.

Watson awoke and "felt a tingling on his face," leading him to use a mirror function on his phone. Upon seeing the cartoonish genitalia, Inman said, Watson went upstairs and began repeatedly punching the victim in the face. The victim testified that we awoke to Watson punching him, while Watson argued that a heated verbal argument preceded a physical fight between the two men. The third roommate corroborated the victim's story, said Inman.

[waffles]

Watson argued that he was aware of no such rule

This man is either lying or never had any friends growing up.

[SugarFree]

Season 5 of Workaholics just writes itself.

[Pl?ya Manhattan.]

Dry erase? You're supposed to do it with sharpie!

[Matrix]

Islamist militant group Boko Haram has claimed responsibility for the kidnapping of more than 200 girls from a village in northeast Nigeria last month.

Round him and his gang up, force them do dig their own mass grave, have all but the youngest among them stand in the grave and shoot them. Then have that youngest member bury his dead comrades. Let him live with that memory for the rest of his days.

[Lord Humungus]

What Americans really want in a foreign policy

It's true that after Iraq and Afghanistan, Americans have no appetite for more military adventures. A Pew Research Center poll last year found that 52% said the United States should "mind its own business" overseas, the highest percentage to endorse that proposition since the question was first asked in 1964.

But as foreign policy scholar Robert Kagan noted recently, there's a paradox in those polls: The same public that wants to stay out of foreign entanglements also thinks the president isn't doing a very good job on international affairs. A recent NBC-Wall Street Journal poll found that only 38% of those surveyed approved of Obama's handling of foreign policy; that was fewer than approved of his handling of the economy.

Why the apparent contradiction?

[Rufus J. Firefly]

Isn't Kagan a neo-con scholar? I think I own one of his military books.

[John]

Kagan is not a "neo-con" whatever that is. He is an internationalist.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

Neo-conservative.

Must be mixing him up with someone else. I will have to go pull that book up.

[John]

I know the term. I was just being sarcastic because it seems to mean "anyone I don't like" to a lot of people.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

Ah. My bad. Carry on.

[Harlequin]

Founder member of Project for the New American Century, so yeah, an OG neocon. He himself denies the label FWIW.

[Pro Libertate]

What paradox? I think we should be much less interventionalist that we are, but I also think this administration is positively abysmal at foreign policy.

[Zeb]

Yeah, not doing a good job on foreign policy doesn't necessarily mean not getting involved in enough military conflicts.

[Lord Humungus]

Kafka and the Guillotine
In the hands of our bureaucracy, execution becomes arbitrary, dehumanizing, time-consuming.

When police were called to a home in Boiling Spring Lakes, N.C., by parents seeking assistance in getting their mentally ill teen-aged son to the hospital for emergency treatment, two officers arrived and began attempting to calm down the agitated young man until a third officer, apparently an impatient one, showed up and ordered them to use their Tasers on the 100-pound teen, who was holding a screwdriver. Unsurprisingly, the tasing did not calm down the young man, who, according to his parents, was suffering from schizophrenia and had failed to take his medication. So he was shot to death by a police officer whose last words before pulling the trigger were: "We don't have time for this."

When I imagine the police officer in question, I don't hear the voice of Dirty Harry ? I hear the DMV lady and the clerks at the local IRS office, bloodless, officious little bureaucrats to whom the people they encounter every day are not citizens to be served but objects of contempt and problems to be endured until retirement, as though humanity stopped at the edge of the counter. The bureaucrats do not have life-and-death power over us in most cases, but when they do, they can be counted upon to misuse and abuse that power

[sarcasmic]

Did anything else happen?

[WTF]

Did anything else happen?

They learned a lesson about never calling the police.

[Notorious G.K.C.]

I've found my DMV ladies to be comparatively friendly.

[Jordan]

Some states contract their DMV functions out to private companies. In my experience, the different is night and day.

[Notorious G.K.C.]

Even when I get the govt employees they've treated me nice. Maybe it's just my charismatic personality which makes them want to be helpful.

Of course, I don't know what they'd do if I "wasted their time" with a complicated problem.

[John]

Shockingly, Maryland, which has one of the worst state governments in the country, has at least in my experience a fabulous DMV. The people are polite and the operations always efficient and generally painless.

[Idle Hands]

also you don't have to have a state inspection every year like VA, whose DMV is always a shitty experience.

[GotOutOfCali]

Your experience must have been outside Montgomery or Baltimore counties.

[John]

Mine was in Montogomery. Maybe I am just lucky, but I have registered five different cars and gotten and renewed my driver's license and never had an issue.

[Lord Humungus]

It depends. If I go to a DMV in the suburbs, they are quite nice. The one in downtown or near the mall, are the worst - but perhaps the customers there aren't very good either.

[The Late P Brooks]

Eventually, the burden of healthcare coverage will shift from employers to employees.

NTTAWWT

[Rich]

Eventually, the burden of healthcare coverage will shift from employers to employees to young taxpayers.

FTFY

[Jordan]

I think the White House Correspondents Dinner is just about the best illustration of the relationship between the press and the White House you could ask for. Reporters spending hours fawning over the Emperor, eating fancy food, and yucking it up about all the evil shit the government has done.

[Pro Libertate]

In a sane world, at least some people would politely decline, on ethical grounds.

[JW]

In a sane world, they'd securely lock the doors from the outside.

I'll leave the rest to your imagination.

[Pro Libertate]

In a sane world, virtually none of them would have the jobs they currently have.

[Tejicano]

Makes you wonder what would really happen if he he stood up and whipped it out as he stared handing out knee pads.

Is that idea any sicker than what actually transpired?

[Notorious G.K.C.]

"...church bells will ring across [Vermont] at 4 p.m. Monday, the hour the First Vermont Brigade was ordered into action [at the Battle of the Wilderness in the Civil War]. A wreath bearing the Freedom and Unit[y] seal of Vermont will also be laid at a monument to the Vermont Brigade on the battlefield in Virginia....

"About 3,000 Vermonters, part of a Union force of about twice that size, held off a Confederate force of about 14,000 for four hours, until it got dark. That first day Vermont lost 1,000 men..."

http://www.pressherald.com/new.....ttle_.html

[John]

The Wilderness is a much lesser known battle to non civil war geeks than Gettysburg or Antietam but it was probably the worst hell of any battle fought in the civil war. The entire battlefield was a nasty quagmire of scrub trees an nearly impenetrable undergrowth. There was little organization or maneuver. It was just a hellish bloody brawl among thousands of small units often in complete isolation from the rest of the battle. Brush fires erupted and swept the field burning thousands of wounded to death where they lay. It was a vision of hell equaled by very few other battlefields in history.

It also was when the South's doom was sealed. The South won the battle. Longstreet managed to flank Hancock's corps and roll it up like a rug. It was a more complete victory than Lee's more famous ones in the area at Chancelorsville and 2nd Manassas. Yet, it still spelled Lee's doom because Grant, unlike every other union commander up to that time, didn't lose his head and just kept coming.

[Rasilio]

Doritos stole their motto from Grant...

"Kill all you want, we got more"

It was Brutal, effective as hell given the technology of the time and probably saved more lives than it cost by shortening the war but it sure made for some bloody battles

[John]

Grant lost as many people in the summer of 1864 as the Army of the Potomac had for the three years of war to that point.

The difference was, all of the casualties suffered before Grant had accomplished nothing. Grant for that price in blood pushed Lee into a siege of Richmond and Petersburg and effectively ended any chance of Lee winning the war.

[robc]

Longstreet wanted to dig WW1 style trenches across northern virginia.

I think that was the only possible strategy that would have won the war for the south and not sure that would have guaranteed it.

[John]

I agree. Lee wasted people he couldn't afford to lose for three years winning tactical victory after tactical victory. Longstreet makes this point in his memoirs. He thought battles like Chancellorsville (considered one of Lee's master pieces) were actually disasters for the south since they came at such a high price in casualties and victory could have been achieved must more easily by digging in. Longstreet viewed Fredericksburg as the ideal southern victory. I think he was right.

Sadly, that is the minority view since most civil war people buy into the cult of Lee.

[Virginian]

I think that was the only possible strategy that would have won the war for the south and not sure that would have guaranteed it.

Nope, because then you just get Sherman coming up through NC to take Richmond from the South. The real issue in 1864 was you had two concentrated Union armies under two very competent generals able to make real decisive campaigns, while the South only had one.

Lee wasted people he couldn't afford to lose for three years winning tactical victory after tactical victory.

No, Lee understood that the only way to win the war was to capture Washington and force a treaty. To win a victory of politics, not a victory of annihilation. He came real close a couple times, but never quite made it. But it was his only viable strategy. The South simply could not win a war of attrition. They had to capture DC and the government, and get Lincoln to sign a treaty recognizing the CSA.

Oh and Grant gets unfairly pigeonholed as a plodder/meatgrinder type general. But out West, he could use maneuver better than most. He just recognized that Lee had interior lines, so any kind of maneuver he made would be checked, thus he decided to push straight through.

[PBR Streetgang]

Second reference to Petersburg in a week on HnR! First step to getting unemployment there under 25%

[Notorious G.K.C.]

Hillary Clinton receives Lincoln Award, calls Lincoln "the greatest president who ever served our country"

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/.....award.html

[Notorious G.K.C.]

I troll and I troll, and do you appreciate it? Noooo...

[Zeb]

Must be too early for the Lincoln haters.

[The Late P Brooks]

Projects like Nkki's are part of a growing trend called "tactical urbanism" in which regular citizens using tactics to try to improve the urban environment without the government's help.

RATBAGGING TEAFUCKERZ!!!!!

[Lord Humungus]

Keystone Pipeline - from a Rolling Stone article from 04/23:

Obama's Last Shot
The president came into office promising to make fighting climate change a priority. Now, he finally seems to be getting serious about it.

But Jane Kleeb, founder of Bold Nebraska and one of the leaders of the anti-pipeline movement, described the move to me as "a pretty brilliant move" that will give red state Democrats like Mary Landrieu and Mark Begich an easy and highly theatrical way to distance themselves from the president in the mid-terms, as well a rallying point for oil and gas money to support them. "Obama just used oil and gas to get red state dems elected," Kleeb wrote. "No way will gas and oil push against Landrieu and Begich."

[Lord Humungus]

and this

Big Coal is indeed in a death spiral, but what's killing them isn't the EPA ? it's cheap wind, cheap solar and cheap natural gas. Of course, that hasn't stopped coal-friendly politicians from throwing themselves on the tracks. Last fall, the attorney generals from 17 states wrote a letter to McCarthy, suggesting that the EPA was overstepping its authority in setting these rules. The House has already passed a bill to strip the EPA of authority to make these rules. And you can be sure that groups backed by the Koch brothers will get in on the action, too. Koch-related groups like Americans for Prosperity, American Future Fund and the American Energy Alliance, headed by former Koch Industries lobbyist Tom Pyle, spent some $400 million to influence the 2012 election...

[Ted S.]

Cheap wind and solar?

[Swiss Servator, Gnomes FTW!]

Curse you and your speedy typing!

[Ted S.]

For once I get to beat somebody else to the punch. 😉

[Corning]

Big Coal is indeed in a death spiral, but what's killing them isn't the EPA ? it's cheap wind, cheap solar and cheap natural gas.

They may as well have said "cheap zero point energy, cheap perpetual motion machines and cheap natural gas."

[Swiss Servator, Gnomes FTW!]

Cheap wind and cheap solar?

Where?

[JW]

That < 2% of total energy generated is totally kicking coal's ass, man.

[Carl ?s his privilege]

So...

The owners of a company that deals in petroleum and natural gas are shills for big coal?

Sounds legit.

[John]

it's cheap wind, cheap solar and cheap natural gas

Amazing how "cheap" something can be when the government is paying for it.

And I thought fracking was the evil. "Cheap gas" is going to be great right up until the are done destroying coal. And when they are done with gas, they will go after the home generators that people will buy to deal with the failing power grid. Then it will have to go. They will not be satisfied until all of the lights but theirs of course go out. They want the country cold, dark and hungry and preferably with a lot of people dead and out of the way and no longer polluting the mother earth goddess.

[Drake]

They are already after woodstoves and fireplaces. Serfs are expected to huddle in cold, dark hovels.

[John]

As the grid gets worse, expect more people to buy home run diesel generators. As that happens, expect the greens to suddenly discover what a threat home generators are as well as make it more difficult to buy large quantities of gasoline or diesel.

[Idle Hands]

"There is just to many people on the planet it is unsustainable and you'll never convince me otherwise." That is where you end up with talking to all these nuts its what they believe, maybe it's just antecedal but to man every person who is an environmentalist that I have ever had an extended conversation with believes it.

[Idle Hands]

"There is just to many people on the planet it is unsustainable and you'll never convince me otherwise." That is where you end up with talking to all these nuts its what they believe, maybe it's just antecedal but to man every person who is an environmentalist that I have ever had an extended conversation with believes it.

[Tejicano]

I've run into that every once in a while and it tempts me to unholster my handgun, unload it and make it obvious I am putting one round in the chamber - then invite the fool to help the rest of mankind out. (Using a dummy round just in case he really is that un-hinged)

Once we have established this as a poor option I wonder if said fool would consider a more practical, or even useful, line of thought to solve the problems he imagines.

[Zeb]

The article didn't comment on the goodness of natural gas, just noted that it is part of why coal is declining.

There may be some "they" who want what you say, but I think that most people don't think it through that far and buy the bullshit about wind and solar being able to replace nasty fossil fuels.

[Notorious G.K.C.]

"Embrace of Atheism Put an Indonesian in Prison

"...[Alexander Aan] had joined an atheist Facebook group started by Indonesians living in the Netherlands, and in 2011 he began posting commentaries outlining why he did not think God existed....

"He was released on parole on Jan. 27 after serving more than 19 months on a charge of inciting religious hatred....

"According to human rights organizations and various surveys, religious intolerance is on the rise in Indonesia, at least partly because of the growing influence of radical Islamic groups that use street protests and acts of violence to support their aims. Some of these radical groups demonstrated in Jakarta, the capital, before Mr. Aan's trial in West Sumatra in 2012.

"His case very much ties in with that whole trend," said Benedict Rogers, the East Asia team leader for Christian Solidarity Worldwide, a human rights organization founded in Britain. The group released a report in February warning that religious intolerance in Indonesia was spreading beyond traditionally conservative Muslim bases like West Java Province.

"Of course there would be religious people who would take offense about someone publicly expressing this view" about atheism, Mr. Rogers said. "But I think if it weren't for this growing Islamism and extremism, Alexander's case probably wouldn't have happened.""

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05......html?_r=0

[sarcasmic]

British girl in her 20s caught having sex in Virgin aeroplane toilets with male passenger she had just met - as her PARENTS sat nearby on flight to Las Vegas
Witness says woman 'got heated' with man while sitting next to parents
The pair then went into toilets before 'loud noises' were heard
When challenged over the romp the woman became abusive, witness says
She was questioned by US police but released with a warning

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/new.....t-met.html

[Notorious G.K.C.]

I appreciate the way the Daily Mail summarizes the story in its headlines - it used to be common practice with newspapers.

[waffles]

Last year, Virgin America launched a new service that allows passengers to send drinks, a meal or treats to fellow passengers in a move which many said encouraged mid-air flirting.

Virgin was asking for it.

[Notorious G.K.C.]

Yeah, I hope they weren't implying that Virgin is responsible for bathroom orgies.

[Ted S.]

An enterprising airline would consider allowing passengers to join the Mile High Club to be a selling point.

[Brett L]

Virgin strongly implies that even British-looking people could join the MHC with attractive people in their ads.

[mr simple]

Virgin was asking for it.

Always with the victim blaming in this rape-culture.

[Brett L]

"I'm British, I'm 25! How many more times do you think I'm going to get to have casual sex with a man?"

[SugarFree]

British girl in her 20s

Who was watching her four kids while all of this was going on?

[Fr?ulein Nikki]

Well it says her parents were right there.

[SugarFree]

*bzzt* Wrong answer. She's in her 20s. That means her oldest daughter was in the other bathroom with a random 12-year-old trying to have a council flat meal ticket of her own.

The other three were in overhead bins.

[Bo Cara Esq.]

Religious exemptions vs. contracts

"Religious institutions in Kentucky may hire and fire people from strictly ecclesiastical jobs as they see fit, but could face legal action if an employment contract is involved, the Kentucky Supreme Court recently ruled.

In two decisions, the justices reinstated lawsuits brought by two former staff members at the Lexington Theological Seminary. In both cases, Chief Justice John D. Minton concluded that the staff members had employment contracts with the school and should be able to pursue litigation over their dismissals, even though one of the men held a position that was primarily religious in nature.

Minton concluded that without the contracts, the seminary would be allowed to dismiss former professors Laurence H. Kant and Jimmy Kirby under what is known as the "ministerial exception" to labor laws. The exception allows religious institutions to make employment decisions based on the institutions beliefs and generally keeps a religious institution from being sued for employment discrimination."

http://www.insurancejournal.co.....326818.htm

[Rich]

*** scratches chin ***

/Boko Haram

[John]

Normally you can't fire someone because of their religious views. If you didn't exempt religious institutions from that rule, you couldn't have religious institutions. If an organization cannot force its employees to toe the line on whatever its religious views are, it can't in any meaningful sense be a religious institution. For example, if a Baptist church hires an education director and the education director turns out to be a Catholic and is telling the kids how they should be Catholics, firing them for that is firing them for their religion. If they can't fire them for it, then they really can't be much of a Baptist Church.

That said, if the religious institution signs a contract agreeing to let the person teach whatever they want, they have to live by it. Just because they get the exemption doesn't mean they can't contract it away.

It is puzzling you find this case surprising or noteworthy.

[Bo Cara Esq.]

The religious institutions were asking for the religious ministerial exemption to trump the contracts they had with the employees, barring lawsuits based on those contracts. That's a pretty scary place for religious exemption law to go I think.

[John]

They are arguing that no contract could ever be construed to bargain away their religious exemption. The court disagreed.

The church's position is not unreasonable. All they are saying is "whatever is in that contract, it couldn't be this".

This case is a good example of unintended consequences. You think it is great because you hate churches and are always happy to see them lose. The result of this will be churches will just stop giving their employees contracts of any kind and make all of their employees employees at will so that they are never in any danger of not being able to fire someone for religious reasons.

This case will end up screwing a bunch of church employees. Had it gone the other way, they would continue to have employment contracts and the ability to get something besides employment at will. Now they likely won't since no church will risk accidentally bargaining away its exemption.

[Bo Cara Esq.]

"The church's position is not unreasonable."

Unless you value contract rights and do not think people should be able to get out of contractual obligations by saying 'sorry, we are religious!'

[R C Dean]

This case is a good example of unintended consequences.

But hardly unforeseeable consequences, no?

[Swiss Servator, Gnomes FTW!]

C'mon, you know why...

[Bo Cara Esq.]

Because I value contract rights?

[John]

I have to give you credit there. That is funny.

[Bo Cara Esq.]

Well, I'm serious. This is where religious exemptions can and are going to be pushed. 'I know we signed a contract with that guy, but he works in our religious institution and our beliefs are against going to court, so we are exempt from his lawsuit.'

Also, as SugarFree has noted before, look for cases where an employee says 'my boss told me to serve that gay couple, but my religion is opposed to doing that, and he fired me, so I am suing under my religious rights.'

[Rhywun]

For example, if a Baptist church hires an education director and the education director turns out to be a Catholic and is telling the kids how they should be Catholics, firing them for that is firing them for their religion.

Sounds to me like it's firing them for not doing their job.

[Lord Humungus]

Liberal donors eye new long-term investments in states and new voters to boost Democrats

The plan, being crafted in private by a group of about 100 donors that includes billionaire hedge fund manager George Soros and San Francisco venture capitalist Rob McKay, seeks to give Democrats a stronger hand in the redrawing of district lines for state legislatures and the U.S. House.

The effort reflects a sense among many top donors on the left that Democrats missed opportunities in 2010 to shape the redistricting process and contain the tea party wave that helped propel Republican victories around the country.

[Jordan]

I thought money in politics was evil?

[Matrix]

Well, only if its the wrong money from the wrong people (libertarians and conservatives).

[Notorious G.K.C.]

Shadowy plotocrats!

Wait, they're helping Democrats, never mind.

[Swiss Servator, Gnomes FTW!]

You can't win the vote... fix it, shape it, twist it, distort it.

[John]

Remember, they are all about getting money out of politics and ensuring the country is not set up as a oligarchy.

[Lord Humungus]

The prison door keeps revolving

In the first major federal study of recidivism since 1994, statisticians tracked nearly 405,000 inmates in 30 states who were released from prison in 2005. Within six months, 28 percent of those freed prisoners had been arrested for a new crime. After three years, 68 percent had been arrested. By the end of the five years (the period covered by the study), the percentage had grown to a whopping 77 percent.

The report breaks down these new crimes by category. Five years after regaining their freedom, 29 percent of the prisoners had been arrested for a violent offense, 38 percent for a property crime, 39 percent for a drug offense, and 58 percent for public-order offenses. (Many released inmates were arrested on multiple charges.) Only 23 states could provide researchers with complete data on inmates who returned to prison; but among the released prisoners in those states, more than half ? 55 percent ? ended up behind bars once more.

[waffles]

It's almost as if being convicted of a crime makes it really hard to get a job and function in normal society.

[Jordan]

39 percent for a drug offense

Not a crime. "Public order" offenses are probably bullshit too.

[Brett L]

Violation of probation/parole. For bullshit, mostly.

[The Late P Brooks]

Cheap wind and cheap solar?

Where?

We paid for it with ObamaMoney. It's FREE.

[SugarFree]

It's the joy on their faces that make the images so inspiring.

[Jordan]

That is creeptastic.

[Idle Hands]

those are literally the creepiest photo's I've seen today.

[SugarFree]

I like the ones where the father has his hands over their uterus. As if to say "Back off! It's my baby that will be going in there!"

[Pl?ya Manhattan.]

I'm wondering if that one dad had to explain sex to his 3-year-old before getting her to take the vow of chastity.

Also, the dresses seem to be bridal themed.

[SugarFree]

There are supposed to be. Purity balls are symbolic weddings where you "gift" your virginity to your father until you can have a real wedding, during which your father transfers ownership of your hymen to whatever fast food employee you are marrying to get away from your psycho dad and his obsession with the state of your vagina.

[Bo Cara Esq.]

Oh my gosh, the creepiness.

[SugarFree]

*They are are supposed to be.* Damn typing.

[Idle Hands]

I like the ones where there eyes are half closed with the smug looks on their face imagining the depraved things they want to do to them.

[Ted S.]

David Thompson links to some creepy photos.

[SugarFree]

What the shit? The one where he's looking up her skirt? She should never stop macing him.

[invisible furry hand]

Once pedophiles master time-travel, what will stop them? The Doomcock of Doom?

[Brett L]

I'm just gonna say it. About half of those girls are gonna be the type of girl who feels she has to put out to keep male friends. Couple that with her obvious daddy issues, and you've got a lineup of girls who are one long diet away from being strippers.

[Lord Humungus]

"Have you seen my shotgun collection? And my bowie knife?"

[Pl?ya Manhattan.]

These pictures make me feel so goddamn good about myself and my family.

In a similar vein, I watch Hoarders whenever I feel like the house is getting too dirty.

[Brett L]

My wife throws away perfectly good shit after watching Hoarders. At least three times last week she said, "I wish we had..." something she threw away during a de-cluttering spree.

[sarcasmic]

Same here.

[Jordan]

Excellent. Looks like I need to get my wife to watch that show. Her packrat ways drive me insane. I've thrown away tons of shit without telling her (because she'll veto it), and not once has she missed any of it.

[Pl?ya Manhattan.]

Thank you. I've thrown so much shit away, and she has never noticed any of it missing.

[Red Rocks Rockin]

I've thrown away tons of shit without telling her (because she'll veto it), and not once has she missed any of it.

I think the show goes about things all wrong by having the person stay there while the cleaning is going on. All it does is give them anxiety about throwing away their completely pointless crap and it slows things down.

It sounds cruel, but I suspect the easiest way to at least give them a fresh start to build from would be to send them out of town for a week, have the cleaners move in and clear a bunch of shit out with the help of family members or close friends (leaving obviously older and family-related items in place) and then bring them back, Extreme Home Makeover-style. That way they could at least get places like the bathroom, kitchen, and bedroom cleaned up.

[Rhywun]

But then we wouldn't get the dramatic hissy fits they always pitch when someone throws out a forty year old newspaper or something.

[Pl?ya Manhattan.]

I wish my wife would do that.

[Hyperion]

My wife just gets on a cleaning and organizing frenzy and puts things that I need where it takes me forever to find them.

[Whahappan?]

Then she gets annoyed when you ask her where something is, right?

[Lord Humungus]

anyone see the Hoarders (or spin-off) episode with Ron Jeremy to an intervention for a friend? Ron plays a mean harmonica... and seems like a good fellow to boot.

[invisible furry hand]

If you were a dumpy hairy little dude who got as many women as your giant cock could cope with, you'd be full of bonhomie too

[John]

What dad, theist or not, rally wants their daughter out fucking around? Some I am sure but not a lot. This is like the conversation we had a few days about about the hot single mom kicked out of LA fitness for doing unauthorized training with her son. In the same way I feel sorry for boys with hot single moms, I feel bad for men with hot young daughters. You just don't want to think about all these men out trying to and in some cases banging your mom or daughter. Also, if your daughter gets knocked up by some dead beat she had a one night stand with, it is likely to be a big headache for you whether you like it or not.

[Pl?ya Manhattan.]

This is why I have boys.

[waffles]

How does one achieve this? We can't cull children like the Chinese have done.

[Brett L]

Sell them to the new VampirMedics group I'm starting up. They'll be well fed and healthy until 18, at which time they'll be, uh, allowed to roam free on farms. Sure, we'll harvest some "young blood" to inject into rich older people, but they'll be paying their own way.

[waffles]

Are you looking for investors? Please send me a pamphlet.

[Swiss Servator, Gnomes FTW!]

You need to talk to jesse about a supply of Adorphans. Sounds like some good synergy in the works.

[Pl?ya Manhattan.]

I just really, really wanted them, but I didn't tell anyone in case I was disappointed.

Of course, that makes for a very inappropriate reaction at the second ultrasound appointment. I chest-bumped a couple of the other dads in the waiting room.

[Idle Hands]

the women has to be on top and you need to tap her ass three times after the session is complete. not fool proof but I hear it works something like 49% of the time.

[Lord Humungus]

I would like to subscribe to your newsletter.

[Tejicano]

In all the trials and tribulations life has thrown in my path I will forever thank the stars and whatever gods that may be that I seem incapable of producing sperm with an X chromosome.

With all the problems related to pussy that I have had to bear I have no idea how I would raise female offspring.

[Brett L]

"Honey, sex is like any other powerful force. It can do great good, or ruin lives with amazing rapidity. Women are primarily in control of that power. Here are some guidelines that seem to work well for determining whether you are on the road to wise use of your power..."

I don't understand why this is any different than teaching your kids safe gun handling or driving other than you don't really get any supervised trials.

[John]

It is not. You can screw your life up, especially as a women, with sex faster almost any other way short of drugs, and that is only because drugs can get you arrested. It is worse for girls since STDs can make them sterile or do lots of nasty things to them but rarely do much more to men beyond making it hurt to piss. Even with boys, in the day and age of endless and punitive child support, getting a girl pregnant is pretty much a ticket to lifetime poverty for most boys.

[Brett L]

Right. Which is why you start presenting them with the real power of sex, and the overwhelmingly bad consequences that result from deciding to have sex on a whim. But still treating them like people with all of the intelligence and none of the experience of your peers.

[SugarFree]

What dad, theist or not, rally wants their daughter out fucking around?

The solution to this is to have a creepy fake wedding to your dad where you "gift" him your hymen?

[invisible furry hand]

so other orifices are A-OK?

[SugarFree]

Always have been, at least for Catholic girls.

[Lord Humungus]

I love me some Catholic girls - ended up marrying one.

[Brett L]

Technical is the best kind of virginity.

[John]

It wouldn't be for me but I won't judge.

[Idle Hands]

don't worry I'll be judgmental enough for the both of us.

[Idle Hands]

did you look at the photos?

[Rasilio]

Wants is the wrong question and fucking around is a loaded term that implies there is something inherently wrong with sex outside the bounds of a marriage contract.

I have 2 daughters, one is 11 the other is 5 so this is not an issue yet however when their time comes I want them to have sex on their own schedule with who they want for whatever purposes they want it, I want it to be healthy (mentally and physically), enjoyable, satisfying and fun for them. I do not want them to feel ashamed or embarrassed about their bodies or their desires.

If that means they give it up for the first time at 15 in the back seat of a car and average 3 different guys a week for the rest of their lives or they save themselves for marriage and only ever have sex with 1 person I don't care.

While that does leave open the possibility that they get "knocked up" by some deadbeat it really does minimize it because I will be teaching them to be responsible with their sexuality not hide from it, use protection and choose wisely. The majority of the girls who "get knocked up" by a deadbeat at a young age are the ones who were told to wait till marriage.

Honestly I am far more worried about their dating someone mentally or physically abusive than having sex

[Zeb]

Good for you. Way too many fathers of daughters go insane about that shit. Often with bad results. It seems like the people who have the most irresponsible sex either come from a bad home situation or are using it as a means of rebellion.

[Fr?ulein Nikki]

Also, if your daughter gets knocked up by some dead beat she had a one night stand with, it is likely to be a big headache for you whether you like it or not.

Why? Sounds like a headache for her, maybe.

[Red Rocks Rockin]

Why? Sounds like a headache for her, maybe.

That's begging the question that the girl is going to be 100% responsible for her kid and won't have any sort of existential emotional crises because her friends are all out partying while she's home taking care of a crying, puking, pooping baby, or won't slough off those same responsibilities to her siblings or parents so she can try to pretend that she doesn't have a kid at home that she has to keep clothed and fed every day(like my wife's sister did the first couple of years after her son was born).

Purity balls are creepy as hell, but that doesn't mean John doesn't have a point about the burdens a teenage pregnancy places on her other family members.

[lap83]

So much this. Parents have a right to guide their kids life choices while they're still responsible for taking care of them.

[lap83]

I agree. The photos may be creepy in style, but often the dad is the one thing between a naive hormonal girl and all of the guys who want to take advantage of her.

[Whahappan?]

How about all the girls who want to take advantage of a naive hormonal guy?

[Rufus J. Firefly]

Which of those will be first to do porn?

[invisible furry hand]

For a certain kind of mind, those photos are porn

[SugarFree]

The blond in pic three. Amateur Plumpers Vol. 8: Face In The Toilet

[Scruffy Nerfherder]

You win. That's unsettling to say the least.

[Fr?ulein Nikki]

What happens when they all realize Frenchie was wrong in Grease, and you can't trust your daddy either?

[Fr?ulein Nikki]

Am I the only one just straight creeped out by fathers touching their almost-adult daughters that much? Ugh what a bunch of sick fucks.

[SugarFree]

Ahem.

SugarFree|5.5.14 @ 9:40AM|#|?|filternamelinkcustom

I like the ones where the father has his hands over their uterus. As if to say "Back off! It's my baby that will be going in there!"

The girl that looks like someone kicked her puppy to death is also creepy. (Pic 2)

[Bo Cara Esq.]

The Case of the Green Tongue

"Officer Roy Holland ? stopped a truck for having defective tail lights?. Holland testified that he did not observe any erratic behavior to suggest that the truck's driver ? the defendant ? was under the influence of illegal substances or alcohol.
Holland approached the defendant's truck and requested his driver's license and vehicle registration. He noticed that the defendant had bloodshot eyes and trembling hands and concluded that the defendant was nervous ?. The officer testified that [the] license check was completed in approximately two to three minutes.
Holland then returned to the defendant's truck and asked to see his tongue. The defendant complied with the request, and Holland observed a green film coating the defendant's tongue. He believed this coating was consistent with marijuana use and asked the defendant when he had last smoked marijuana. The defendant initially denied smoking marijuana but subsequently admitted that he had smoked marijuana on the previous day?."

The New Hampshire Supreme Court threw out the fruits of the search ruling "Because the officer's request to examine the defendant's tongue was an impermissible expansion of the stop, the exclusionary rule bars admission of the result of the officer's examination of the defendant's tongue."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/.....amination/

[waffles]

Bad dental hygiene and smoking can cause oral thrush which would look like what officer friendly observed. But it's absurd to suggest that poor oral hygiene is related to the safe operation of a vehicle.

[Bo Cara Esq.]

So while I am not totally unfamiliar with the Demon Weed I guess I am not sufficiently experienced with it to wonder, does it really turn a person's tongue green to smoke marijuana? Because I have honestly never seen that.

[waffles]

Nope. But oral thrush can be a yelloey-green color much like good thick snot. This policeman was just looking to bust a stoner for stonerthings.

[Christophe]

Fuck yeah NH. Exclusionary rule FTW.

[Ken Shultz]

"A new Pew Research poll shows that Republicans are favored over Democrats[voters are racist] in the upcoming midterm elections".

[Jordan]

Hey Reason, any chance you guys could cover the uprising in Thailand? The mainstream media damn sure isn't interested, since it has been mostly peaceful.

[Lord Humungus]

The First Human Right
Without the right to life from birth till natural death, all other rights are meaningless.

If the state effectively asserts the power to declare some members of the human community ? the unborn, for example ? outside the circle of common concern and legal protection, then no one is safe, for no one has any "rights" the state cannot abrogate. The perverse German notion of Lebens unwertesleben ? "life unworthy of life" ? may have had a higher intellectual pedigree than the crudely materialistic Communist notion of "class enemies" to be liquidated; after all, the German authors of the influential 1920 book The Permit to Destroy Life Not Worth Living were an eminent legal scholar (Karl Binding) and an equally eminent physician (Alfred Hoche), not a maniac like Stalin. But the result of this denial of the first of human rights, the right to life, was the same under both German National Socialism and Marxism-Leninism: The result was genocide.

It is something of a mystery why this lesson from the lethal experience of the 20th-century totalitarianisms has been lost, as Western countries have debated their laws on abortion and euthanasia (a debate that now includes the possibility of euthanizing children).

[Bo Cara Esq.]

If we make any distinctions then all distinctions are equally open!

[Notorious G.K.C.]

Arbitrary outlawry - declaring someone outside legal protection without a proper judicial proceeding - was one of the abuses King John was forced to renounce in the Magna Charta. John* himself would be shocked at how we outlaw a whole category of human beings.

*The monarch, not the commenter

[Bo Cara Esq.]

Were non-quickened fetuses considered persons when John was king? Under common law they were not.

[Rasilio]

Nope, abortion was not a crime against the crown or the church in the middle ages

[Notorious G.K.C.]

"quick" means "alive." They wanted to protect living humans, but in those days, they thought an early-stage fetus wasn't alive. But applying their own principles to the scientific facts we know today, the fetus is "quick" from the moment of conception.

[Rasilio]

Actually no, quick does not exactly mean alive, it means infused with a soul. Can Science define the point when a soul inhabits the body?

Further science CANNOT define what it means to be alive because that is a moral/philosophical question.

Your attempts to draw science into a morality question are not actually any better than young earth creationists attempts to use sciencey terms to make their bullshit seem legitimate.

Abortion my be wrong, it may even legitimately be murder but science is useless to tell us that because the scientific definition of "alive" is meaningless to the philosophical and moral questions surrounding abortion

[robc]

The problem is the people who refuse to face the philosophical and moral questions because it isnt science.

Science alone cannot write laws.

This isnt a problem for the anarchist, obviously, but its something minarchists have to deal with.

On a somewhat related note, I mock those that oppose legislating morality. Thats the only damn things that should be legislated. If behavior is moral or amoral, then it shouldnt be legislated. Its only immoral behavior that falls within the domain for possible legislation. And though it shouldnt need to be said, some of you will misunderstand: not all immoral activity falls into that domain either.

I can think of nothing more evil than a government that makes moral behavior illegal.

[Rasilio]

The problem is those who believe there is an ironclad universal morality that just so happens to be perfectly in alignment with their own personal preferences and anything which makes them uncomfortable or feel icky in any way shape or form is inherently immoral and therefore should be illegal.

Yes things which are illegal should also be immoral but the fact that something is immoral should not be sufficient to make it illegal, it needs to have one or more direct discreet victims who can show actual harm (not merely potential harm)

[Palin's Buttplug]

The Mars candy company, in partnership with Sumitomo Corporation of Americas, announced an agreement on a new 200 MW wind farm that will generate 100% of the electricity needs of Mars' U.S. operations, which is comprised of 70 sites, including 37 factories and 25,000 associates.

http://www.windpowerengineerin.....wind-farm/

Wow, this type of thing really pisses off the science deniers.

[Ken Shultz]

tarran's right.

It isn't sentient.

I mean, you explain to me WTF that's supposed to mean.

It's just random pieces of a puzzle thrown together.

It makes no sense.

[Pl?ya Manhattan.]

Stop denying the science.

[alittlesense]

After puzzling over this, I think I have it figured out. All of Mars' facilities use a total of 200 MW (I guess per hour). So, as long as the wind is blowing and all the turbines are operational, this wind farm generates 200MW, which covers Mars' electricity use. Unfortunately, the wind dowsn't always blow, and the turnbines aren't always working. So either Mars only makes candy when the wind is blowing, or they use other, more reliable sources of electricity.

[Lord Humungus]

A nuclear plant that runs on M&Ms;?

[Zeb]

MW is power, so there is no per hour. MW*hour is the energy unit.

[Palin's Buttplug]

Science denier (or Dominionist) is a conservative position that believes AGW is a myth and the science behind it is a plot to raise taxes.

[Tejicano]

You are so unfatiguingly stupid that your right to use the term "science" has been revoked by simple logic.

AGW is dogma and nothing less.

You are dogshit and possibly less.

I will ignore your reply.

[califernian]

there can be a warming trend (for whatever reason) and yet still the panic behind it can be a plot to raise government control of everyone's lives.

This is in fact the case

[Bo Cara Esq.]

'Science deniers' is of course used to refer to anybody who falls somewhere in a very broad continuum with those who deny any warming is going on at one end to those who doubt mankind's role in that warming to those who just doubt the more catastrophic predictions and/or dubious policy recommendations put forward to addressing warming. I do not think anyone on that continuum necessarily opposes companies voluntarily opting for alternative energy sources.

[Ken Shultz]

It isn't sentient.

The statement underneath the quote could have just as easily been about the Ukraine.

[sarcasmic]

I do not think anyone on that continuum necessarily opposes companies voluntarily opting for alternative energy sources.

As long as there are no taxpayer funded subsidies.

[Bo Cara Esq.]

Of course.

[Hyperion]

What happened to the good old days when you could just burn those heretics and witches?

[Brett L]

'Mesquite Creek Wind,' a 118-turbine wind farm was jointly developed by Sumitomo and BNB Renewable Energy and is based near Lamesa, Texas with a footprint of 25,000 acres. With an annual output of over 800,000 MWh [91MW median - BL], the energy created from the wind farm will represent 24% of Mars' total global factory and office carbon footprint. The wind farm represents the biggest long-term commitment to renewable energy use of any food manufacturing business in the United States.

91MW/25000 acres. Yeah. No scale up problem.

[Certified Public Asskicker]

I can't wait to try a chocolate covered dead bird.

[Rasilio]

I once did calculations on converting to 100% wind power assuming a 50% increase in efficiency from tech gains and just went with the simple assumption that we could find areas with the right weather patterns to locate these systems.

I replace the global Fossil Fuel consumption for just electric generation (heating and transportation would stil be fossil fuel based) would have required covering every square inch of and area the size of Russia in Solar Panels, and for wind it was Russia + China.

Now laying out that many solar panels would radically alter the albedo of the planet and cause massive localized thermal hotspots completely altering global weather patterns. Similarly with wind power you would radically alter wind patterns leading to climate effects as bad or worse than Global warming.

And the kicker, we'd still need to build several hundred gigawatts worth of new Nuke plants to deal with the localized variability of the energy supply from wind and solar.

[Ken Shultz]

"The Mars candy company, in partnership with Sumitomo Corporation of Americas, announced an agreement on a new 200 MW wind farm"

Well, I don't know how the NRA is gonna deal with this!

[Jordan]

Wow, this type of thing really pisses off the science deniers.

[Citation needed]

The only people who I've seen opposed to wind farms are those opposed to government subsidies of wind farms. You know, like classical liberals.

[Ted S.]

Lefties oppose them too if they're in an area that blocks their view.

[Rasilio]

That is one I never understood. I actually think the modern wind turbines are rather pretty

[Zeb]

I think they look pretty cool silhouetted against the sky on top of a ridge.

[Brett L]

The approach to Lisbon is pretty cool with all those windmills on hills. But more because I was thinking of the xkcd cartoon.

[invisible furry hand]

There are two other categories, at least here in Australia:

* real environmentalists who hate them for killing so many birds
* people who have to live near the bloody things

[WTF]

First off, the retarded don't rule the night. They don't rule it. Nobody does. And they don't run in packs. And while they may not be as strong as apes, don't lock eyes with 'em, don't do it. Puts 'em on edge. They might go into berzerker mode; come at you like a whirling dervish, all fists and elbows. You might be screaming "No, no, no" and all they hear is "Who wants cake?" Let me tell you something: They all do. They all want cake.

[Rhywun]

How many tax dollars are propping up "Sumitomo Corporation of Americas"?

[The Late P Brooks]

An enterprising airline would consider allowing passengers to join the Mile High Club to be a selling point.

Oddly enough, Etihad says they are going to provide private compartments on their planes.

[Lord Humungus]

Get rid of midterms?

And midterms aren't exactly a display of democracy at its finest, given that far fewer voters turn out than in presidential years. For example, in the 2010 midterm elections, 89 million ballots were cast, compared with 129 million in 2012.

Yes, the founders believed that frequent elections would give House members, as James Madison put it, "immediate dependence on, and an intimate sympathy with, the people." But there's not much responsiveness to the public when more than 90 percent of House incumbents win their races.

So, onward with a constitutional amendment to expand House terms to four years. Voters would still be able to express midterm sentiments in elections for Senate and governors' offices. Meanwhile, Washington could get back to work.

[Bo Cara Esq.]

Wow, what rank elitism.

If only our leaders would not have to be bothered with so regularly answering to the voters they could get to work taking care of all of us.

[Jordan]

The solution to a 90% win rate for incumbents is fewer elections? What the hell...

[Rufus J. Firefly]

They want to get rid of the Constitution was what's the big deal? Once you kill the living document everything else is just a nuisance to be removed.

[Pro Libertate]

I suggest term limits and federal recall. We should be able to yank their asses while they're offending us.

[Rasilio]

Don't need term limits.

Just one simple change.

No person who takes the oath of office for any federal elected office shall be a valid candidate for any other federal election until after the term to which they were originally elected or appointed has expired.

In otherwords if you are an incumbent to any position you cannot run for election. You also cannot resign your position in order to run

[Pro Libertate]

One term, then you have to leave the country for a length of time equal to that term.

[Zeb]

I'd shorten presidential terms instead.

[robc]

How about 4 year terms but ONLY midterm elections.

Heck, we can expand Senate to 8 and do the same with them.

[Hyperion]

Anyone see this yet?

NH town residents terrorized by crazed libertarians trying to deprive them of their beloved government tyranny

But some local residents are speaking out in their stead by challenging the activists through a Facebook page with the unwieldy name of "Stop Free Keene!!!" One of its organizers, Andrea Parkhurst Whitcomb, is asking the relative newcomers a fundamental question:

"Who asked you to come free us?"

[Notorious G.K.C.]

""Is this not the word that we spoke to you in Egypt, saying, 'Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians '? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.""

[Notorious G.K.C.]

(I'm being a tad sarcastic)

[robc]

I dont see any reason to be sarcastic. That is the perfect quote for the situation.

[robc]

Same people (well, their descendents) who when Samuel told them all the horrible things a King would do to them, demanded one anyway.

[hamilton]

The movement, by the way, tends to attract white males, according to Carla Gericke, the group's president, a white South African who has lived for many years in this country. "I'm the token African-American," she joked.

Ah, the Times. Report the news and thrown in just a soupcon of RACIST!!!! to give it spice.

[Ted S.]

There have been several mentions of Free Keene in the comments over the years, and possibly an article or two.

In fact, Scott Shackford wrote about the meter reader case last May. So, unsurprisingly, the NYT is way late to the party.

[Zeb]

I live pretty close to Keene and know some of the Free Keene people. They tend toward the wacky anarchist end of things (which is fine with me) and have more than a few young women, so there's some hope.
It's funny that there are people organizing against them.

[The Late P Brooks]

91MW/25000 acres. Yeah. No scale up problem.

Get back to me when that power is 100% reliable and consistently available on demand.

[Brett L]

Why would I try to explain the laws of thermodynamics to people who can't understand simple concepts like fractions and orders of magnitude?

[The Late P Brooks]

So, onward with a constitutional amendment to expand House terms to four years. Voters would still be able to express midterm sentiments in elections for Senate and governors' offices. Meanwhile, Washington could get back to work.

Just go all the way, and establish a permanent hereditary political class. You know you want to.

[Hyperion]

The proggies and pseudo liberals are going insane after catching Rand hanging out with Rupert Murdoch.

[Notorious G.K.C.]

Isn't he the guy who once donated to Hillary's Senate campaign?

"Murdoch hosted a fundraiser for Hillary's Senate reelection campaign. She expressed her gratitude and appeared along with Murdoch at a Georgetown party for "Fox News Sunday."...

"Two years later, Murdoch donated the maximum $2,300 to Clinton's presidential primary campaign -- as did his son, James -- although the Post wound up endorsing Barack Obama."

[Notorious G.K.C.]

http://www.foxnews.com/politic.....tics-2016/

[Hyperion]

It's ok when their team does it, derp.

[The Late P Brooks]

Violation of probation/parole. For bullshit, mostly.

That's what I was thinking.

Have a couple of beers, and it's back to the slammer.

[Elspeth Flashman]

Agreed. +1 random urine test. Terms of probation are ridiculous.

[sticks]

depressing exchange last night between right and left libertarians. I
might not agree with most of c4ss but justin(antiwar.com) just comes off as an ass imo. interesting. maybe.maybenot

[The Late P Brooks]

"Who asked you to come free us?"

FREEDOM! HORRIBLE, HORRIBLE FREEDOM!

[Swiss Servator, Gnomes FTW!]

Those chains look lovely on her, I guess.

[Certified Public Asskicker]

According to President Obama, it is not too soon to joke about missing dead people:

I'm a little jet-lagged from my trip to Malaysia. The lengths we have to go to for CNN coverage these days. I think they're still searching for their table.

[Bo Cara Esq.]

Breaking: SCOTUS Upholds Opening Town Council Meetings With Prayers

Appears to be 5-4 along the usual lines

[Bo Cara Esq.]

They also again denied hearing Drake v. Jerejian (2nd Amendment right to carry case).

[Lord Humungus]

Vice: Can Former Gang Member Lucy Flores Become the New Face of the Democratic Party?

As far as campaigns go, the Nevada lieutenant governor's race is about as unsexy as it gets, ranking somewhere between a city council runoff and an American Samoa delegate selection on the list of political events that interest people. This year's race has national implications that could reverberate into 2016, because Nevada's Republican Governor Brian Sandoval is his party's best shot at beating Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid when the Nevada Democrat comes up for re-election in two years. But Sandoval is cruising to a second-term victory this fall, and he's unlikely to vacate the governor's mansion unless there is a Republican lieutenant governor to take his place. Reid, who is like Kevin Spacey's House of Cards character in the body of Grampa Joad, is fully aware that he needs a strong candidate in the lieutenant governor race if he wants to keep Sandoval, Nevada's most popular conservative, off his back in 2016.

Enter Flores. At 34 years old, the Las Vegas attorney doesn't look like most politicians. For one thing, she's a woman?a Latina one at that. She's kind of a babe, which basically makes her a unicorn in the powered halls of white, fleshy jowls and lady pantsuits.

[Brett L]

She's kind of a babe, which basically makes her a unicorn in the powered halls of white, fleshy jowls and lady pantsuits.

Right. Nikki Haley and Sarah Palin never happened.

[#]

It is true that Sandoval is the strongest GOP candidate to beat Reid, but I'm pretty sure even a mediocre candidate oculd beat him. It took someone as nuts and Sharon Angle for Reid to win last time and he only pulled that off by a point or two.

[SugarFree]

Finally gave up on Turn. I was bored. I see what they were trying to do, but bored I remained.

[Jordan]

I think I'll stick it out for the rest of the season. It's not as compelling as I'd like, but it's not bad.

[Pro Libertate]

As World Turn?

[SugarFree]

Slowly, it seems.

[Corning]

The jeopardy the characters were in seemed real...

But then I didn't give a shit about the characters.

When writers make a sub-villian gay in an attempt to make him more sympathetic you know you are in for a shitty ride.

[The Late P Brooks]

Speaking of prayers, every public meeting should open with this:

O Lord our God, help us tear their soldiers to bloody shreds with our shells; help us to cover their smiling fields with the pale forms of their patriot dead; help us to drown the thunder of the guns with the shrieks of their wounded, writhing in pain; help us to lay waste their humble homes with a hurricane of fire; help us to wring the hearts of their unoffending widows with unavailing grief; help us to turn them out roofless with their little children to wander unfriended in the wastes of their desolated land in rags and hunger and thirst, sports of the sun flames in summer and the icy winds of winter, broken in spirit, worn with travail, imploring thee for the refuge of the grave and denied it ?

For our sakes who adore Thee, Lord, blast their hopes, blight their lives, protract their bitter pilgrimmage, make heavy their steps, water their way with their tears, stain the white snow with the blood of their wounded feet!

[Mike M.]

Hold your horses: Nevada standoff reveals bigger fight over federally owned land.

DENVER ? Behind the hoopla surrounding Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy's standoff with the Bureau of Land Management is a growing resentment over the federal government's status as the largest landowner in the West.

"This is so much bigger than one rancher in Nevada," Utah state Rep. Ken Ivory, who heads the American Lands Council, said in an April 23 online debate sponsored by The Salt Lake Tribune.

How much land does the federal government own? A 2012 Congressional Research Survey said the federal government owns about 640 million acres, or 28 percent of the nation's land mass. Roughly 90 percent of that property is in the West.

Put another way, one out of every two acres in the West is federally owned. In Nevada, the figure is 81.1 percent; in Alaska, 61.8 percent; in Utah, 66.5 percent; in Oregon, 53 percent. In Connecticut and Iowa, the federal government owns 0.3 percent of the land.

"The federal estate is larger than France, Germany, Poland, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom combined," said Robert Gordon, a senior adviser for the Heritage Foundation. "It is too big and was never intended to be preserved as one big park, but the left is strangling use of it and with it, rural America."

[Lord Humungus]

I continue to watch The World At War at a fairly slow pace. The episode I watched yesterday was "Genocide" and detailed the days before and during the concentration camp. It was all, of course, grisly stuff that really struck home when they showed a massive collection of eye glasses... and two Russian soldiers, who after liberating Auschwitz, held up a single toddler's jacket from a big pile of clothing.

Afterward I had to sit on the back steps and watch my dumb cats prowl around in the grass.

[John]

There are some horrors that really are just too difficult to contemplate. Living in denial to at least some degree necessary for your sanity.

[Matrix]

Target CEO steps down after the customer data breach.

If only POTUS would step down after his massive failures...

[Rufus J. Firefly]

0-2, bro. 0-2. Blackhawks are hard!

[Notorious G.K.C.]

Thank you, I feel validated now.

[Rich]

Dude, that was like two years ago!

[Ted S.]

You like having From the Tundra throw up on you? There's an odd fetish. :-p

[Rufus J. Firefly]

Yeah, that's pretty much what I saw.

Problem for the Wild is the Hawks have Toews and Kane.

[Notorious G.K.C.]

No, he barfed on the tundra.

[Swiss Servator, Gnomes FTW!]

And Hossa. That guy is a beast.

I am still a very nervous fan, and won't take anything for granted.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

And Crawford and Seabrook.

Yup. A beastly team no doubt about it.

[TANSTaaFL]

You mean, Bryan "Can we just skip the regular season" Bickell?

Go Hawks!!