Some sweetness to brighten your day😊 pic.twitter.com/HEDFn4OLob
— Cute Black Babies (@Lilblackbabies) July 28, 2022
- The strategy worked for a while. The conservative movement, with their overt tax cut and implicit racism agenda, found a way to use the anti-abortion, anti-gay side of religion as a smokescreen.
Infidel753 looks at the conservative disaster in Kansas, followed by the flatfooted Republican attempt to oppose veteran’s health care, and concludes the smokescreen has eaten the original agenda and taken over the movement.
- Imani Gandy has a thought on Kansas:
Kansas demonstrates it is possible. Kansas is the birthplace of the antichoice terrorist movement. Operation rescue. The murder of George tiller. Summers of mercy.
Show these fascist fuckers what’s what. We’re gonna win this. Eventually. I’m positive. ✌🏾🫶🏾
— ⚓️Imani Two-Kitchens Gandy⚓️ (@AngryBlackLady) August 3, 2022
- Iron Knee at Political Irony looks at the Supreme Court changes to the Constitution affecting abortion, conservative activists pushing for even more, then Kansas – and suggests that maybe – well lets see how Iron puts it:
This is what overreach looks like.
- Andy Borowitz reports that Kansas Republicans are facing a dark future in a state where women have rights.
Best quote:
“If this kind of nightmare can happen in Kansas, it can happen anywhere,” one Republican said.
- Ted McLaughlin at jobsanger has the numbers. Reputable polling shows the Republican campaign to move abortion decisions from individual women to the hands of government bureaucrats, conservative politicians, and anti-abortion activists is depriving Republican candidates of their traditional off-year advantage. Currently, Democrats are even ahead.
- Darren Bailey is a candidate now catching a tsunami of flack after comparing abortion to the Holocaust. driftglass finds a lesson on how to tell what Republicans really stand for.
Turns out it isn’t that hard.
- Our favorite Earth-Bound Misfit sees the overturning of Roe v Wade as already endangering women.
- Julian Sanchez points out that a bogus accusation is suddenly turning real:
You might call them, oh I don’t know, “death panels.” https://t.co/4DRUpqw2Ti
— Julian Sanchez (@normative) July 31, 2022
- The Palmer Report considers how to limit a renegade Supreme Court apparently set to drastically slash basic rights, and comes up with an alternative to expanding the court.
- CalicoJack in The Psy of Life reminds us of the open plan of conservative activists to rewrite basic rights by Convention, replacing the US Constitution with something that fits a right-wing vision.
- Libertarian Michael A. LaFerrara makes a bad argument on his blog against a bad argument in an op-ed against a bad anti-vax argument accusing abortion rights advocates of hypocrisy.
Michael agrees with abortion rights, but objects to making a needlessly weak case. He believes he can do better.
He can’t.
His standard is simple. It is at the heart of libertarianism. If government tells you what to do, it is wrong. That includes prohibition of abortion. It also would include proscribing a mandatory vaccination.
Abortion prohibition is wrong.
My body, my choice.
Government mandated vaccination is wrong.
My body, my choice.
A private business vaccination requirement is absolutely right.
My business, my choice.
The weakness in his argument goes to definition:
Properly understood, a vaccine mandate issued by the state violates individual rights. An employer “mandate”—which is really a condition of employment to work at that company—violates no one’s rights. When the government mandates vaccines, it means get a vaccine, period. A business can not mandate a vaccine for anyone. It can simply say if you’re not vaxed, you can’t work here.
Aside from members of the military, there has never existed a government vaccine mandate in the US as Michael defines it. No private citizen has ever been forced to get a vaccine.
Although he does not say it here, Mr. LaFerrara does oppose actual vaccine mandates as they have existed: the government requirement that businesses impose mandates, it is easier to oppose what does not exist.
Government requirements on private businesses have been an integral part of American society since long, long before either Michael A. LaFerrara or I came into existence. Before Mr. Trump’s exaggerated influence, it was controversial only on the fringes.
Libertarians are against any workplace safety standards. The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in Manhattan in 1911 killed 146 workers who could not get out of the building. Libertarians say that since that sort of thing is bad for business, that should be cost enough. Same with vaccinations. Whether to protect employees who do not want exposure to a virus to be a job requirement should be a business decision, unaffected by government standards.
Libertarians are also against consumer safety standards. When the Bush administration relaxed food inspections, the Peanut Corporation of America sent out contaminated peanut butter to kids all over the nation. 8 people died. That sort of thing is bad for business, and that should be cost enough. Same with vaccination or masking requirements. Businesses should decide for themselves whether to protect their customers, whether we’re talking about a virus or Salmonella infection.
Arguing against any and all work safety and food safety standards is a heavy lift, but Libertarians should take it on. They occasionally do.
Arguing against government agents pushing needles into the arms of unwilling citizens is easier.
But it is a bogus argument against a bogus example.
- Wisconsin conservative James Wigderson reacts emotionally to Dick Cheney. Don’t we all?
I actually got choked up watching this. https://t.co/SNBu7XouPn
— James Wigderson (@jwigderson) August 4, 2022
- Dave Dubya finds hope in the January 6 Committee, newly revealed DOJ investigations, and public reaction. But he warns there is much more that must be accomplished.
- So Republicans reverse themselves and support healthcare for veterans after celebrating their success in blocking it. At The Moderate Voice Kathy Gill reads the bill and considers the Republican accusation that their opposition was misunderstood.
- Scotties Playtime has Rand Paul explaining why he opposes health care for veterans.
- In Hackwhackers two new documentaries will establish a record of war crimes Putin ordered against Ukrainian citizens.
- In Letters from an American, historian Heather Cox Richardson begins with why the Department of Justice was established in 1870:
… to protect civil rights in the southern states after state legislators and state law enforcement officers refused to treat their Black neighbors as equals. If the states would not honor the principle of equality before the law, the federal government would.
She applies that original intent to this week’s stories of DOJ actions.- federal charges against four police officers in the death of Breonna Taylor
- abortion rights
- leaks about a criminal probe into Mr. Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election:
spoiler alert: the leaks did not come from the DOJ
- At The Onion, police are experimenting with perhaps using nonlethal methods to give speeding tickets.
- M. Bouffant at Web of Evil remembers a race massacre that most of us don’t know about and which a Florida governor wants teachers never to mention.
- tengrain at Mock Paper Scissors says the Republican party recognizes the importance of largely ignored members of the electorate: young people, people of color, and unmarried women. So they plan to find ways to attract those voters. Right? Well, not so much, no. It’s another plan, actually.
- Tommy Christopher watches as Senator Ron Johnson(R-WI) tells an incredulous former Congressman of his plan to review every year whether, and how much, to continue funding Social Security.
- Frances Langum brings us one more prominent Republican candidate who says out loud what once was political suicide: that Social Security should be privatized.
- News Corpse notes that Joe Manchin is the Democratic Senator that Democrats love to hate. But when Fox said that President Biden’s proposals will raise taxes on the middle class, Senator Joe told them they were lying.
He didn’t mince words, either.
That’s a lie. A pure outright lie.
- Dave Columbo wishes we could renew the Alex Jones trial for a second season:
@davecolumbo I am so here for #alexjonestrial ♬ Fashionable and cool Parisian accordion(892415) – ricca - Ant Farmer’s Almanac contains the reason Ivana wanted to be buried in a golf course.
- Vixen Strangely at Strangely Blogged considers the significance of a life as Nichelle Nichols sets course for home.
- Max’s Dad misses Bill Russell and explains why we should as well. He was much more than a basketball legend.
- North Carolina pastor John Pavlovitz is acquainted with pro-life:
If the people at #CPAC had the same passion for migrant children, school shooting victims, sick toddlers, young black men, Muslim families, LGBTQ teens, the environment, and women that they claim to have for embryos—they'd actually be pro-life.https://t.co/nj1TvPBuzs
— John Pavlovitz (@johnpavlovitz) August 6, 2022
- In The Life and Times of Bruce Gerencser, atheist Bruce looks at objections we [yes, even some Christians] have to religious tax exempt status. He concludes that many of us don’t know what the hell we’re talking about.
Turns out it’s an issue worth attacking. Religion should not be government supported even by omission. Those who do not believe – and even those who do – should not be forced to carry a tax burden that ought to be shared.
But maybe, as Bruce suggests, we should voice objections that possess the virtues of clarity and accuracy.
- Vincent at A Wayfarer’s Notes once thought Muslim children had to be enticed to Madrasa, but now reconsiders as he sees eagerness to learn about the Qu’ran.
- Clickbait satirist Reductress explains how to love yourself even though you don’t know how you’re supposed to feel at art museums.
- Nan’s Notebook contains an adventure with air conditioning to which we can all relate.
- Oh NO! According to PZ Myers, you really cannot tell whether you have hooked up with a trans person by looking at your date’s ring finger.
Actually, back when I was single, that was not really why I might glance at her left hand.
- The Propaganda Professor occasionally meanders in a sort of wandering train of thought.
But it turns out to provide some of his best, most provocative posts.
Touring the United Arab Republic, the prof gets warned for wearing too much clothing while swimming. He begins to notice other strange arbitrary, often gender-based, rules – and extends his observation to rules and norms back in the US.
- You like earbuds? You like walking with earbuds? John Scalzi at Whatever tells us everything we want to know before investing in Google’s new Pixel Buds.
- @whiskeywhistle98 knows what to do when you’re mad at your husband:
@whiskeywhistle98 #duet with @heather_alers #husbandwife soo…:Yeah….#nourisheveryyou #ReTokforNature #tiktokmom #fyp #foryourpage #husbands #thatslove ♬ You Found Me – Instrumental Pop Songs - YellowDog Granny has depressing news about George Jetson.
- Sarah Cooper comes to an insight about a camera-happy emu:
I think Emmanuel was a cinematographer in a past life pic.twitter.com/09alGZxYVG
— Sarah Cooper (@sarahcpr) August 4, 2022
Holy crap this is wonderful pic.twitter.com/kSUiQd0XQP
— David (lvl 13 chaotic good bogan) (@p4ndr_) July 15, 2022
- SilverAppleQueen has a cool cat looking for a spot in the sun. Aren’t we all?
A few tweets I thought worthy:
Imagine dodging bullets and bombs for years only to come home and be killed by Pat Toomey.
— Smite⚡️ (@7Veritas4) July 29, 2022
Tell me again who was disrespectful to the vets/flag 🧐🤔 pic.twitter.com/W0XNgOjlRC
— Wu-Tang Is For The Children (@WUTangKids) July 30, 2022
Pass It On 🤣😂😭😂🤣🤣🤣😂😂😂😂🤣 pic.twitter.com/IW793MRdub
— David Crowley (@crowleyd399) July 30, 2022
What was Bill Russell's life like while he was racking up 11 rings? His daughter writes: pic.twitter.com/ETKKvEbDfX
— austin walker (@austin_walker) July 31, 2022
After four years of a United States President on a daily basis condemning our intelligence community, it’s so damn nice to hear a President praise these men & women who work tirelessly to help keep America safe.
— Joe Walsh (@WalshFreedom) August 1, 2022
He’s running to oversee elections in Arizona. https://t.co/5ZtELDoprz
— Ron Filipkowski 🇺🇦 (@RonFilipkowski) August 2, 2022
Donald Trump gets covid and joyrides around Walter Reed in his Superman Underoos.
Joe Biden gets covid and kills the leader of al Qaeda without fanfare.
— Leonard (@Le202nard) August 2, 2022
Black lives matter is not an anti-white movement. Police brutality is not an anti-police movement. Feminism is not an anti-men movement. This isn’t about you.
— Mohamad Safa (@mhdksafa) August 2, 2022
While Schumer and Manchin wrote the biggest climate bill in history, Nancy Pelosi passed an assault weapons ban & headed to Taiwan, & VP worked with state legislators on abortion, Joe Biden killed the head of al-qaeda.
tell me more about the failed democratic leadership.
— Florida Chris (@chrislongview) August 1, 2022
Q: Will you commit to a peaceful transfer of power after the election?
TRUMP: "We're gonna have to see what happens." pic.twitter.com/Dzj7Q9ZJqv
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) September 23, 2020
— Regy (@ReginaWilhelmi1) August 1, 2022
Don’t forget that he was claiming that the election was rigged months *before* the election even happened. It was a strategy, not a good faith belief based on the outcome of the actual election
— Asha Rangappa (@AshaRangappa_) August 1, 2022
I'm writing a piece on the missing Secret Service texts and I *really* wish that every time you clicked on an article covering the story it would play the creepy Unsolved Mysteries theme music 😂
— Asha Rangappa (@AshaRangappa_) August 1, 2022
TV: "Hello, I'm Mike Lind…"
Me: *click*
— *…* (@ImpteeSpayce) August 3, 2022
lauren boebert says she wants a biblical citizenship test in the US pic.twitter.com/64REbZyCEl
— Owen Morgan (Telltale) (@telltaleatheist) August 2, 2022
And I once thought an eighteen-and-a-half-minute gap was a big deal.
— Michael Beschloss (@BeschlossDC) August 2, 2022
Man, a whole bunch of folks in trump’s administration deleted a heck of a lot of texts related to a totally regular tourist visit, huh?
— Jo 🌻 (@JoJoFromJerz) August 2, 2022
Right now the KS abortion vote has 140,000 more votes than the two governor primaries combined, which means nearly 20% of voters came out just to vote on the amendment
— David Beard (@dwbeard) August 3, 2022
Sandy Hook parent Scarlett Lewis is directly speaking to Alex Jones, who is now in the courtroom, as she testifies on the stand.
"Jesse was real," Lewis tells Jones. "I am a real mom."
She says she wanted to tell Jones this to his face.
— Oliver Darcy (@oliverdarcy) August 2, 2022
Sad but seems true… pic.twitter.com/avxPWXST8q
— Diana (@jstmeinmo) August 3, 2022
Does anyone else want to know more about that time Lauren Boebert ate her dog because she couldn’t find her gun?
— Kyle Keegan (@realKyleKeegan) August 2, 2022
Put it on a billboard with the Heading We Know You Approve of this as there is nothing Trump can do to change you. Do you act like this to your family, church, boss, children, police, and everyday people you run into.
If you don’t you are a hypocrite! https://t.co/Itsbrs5nFs— This is rocket science (@rocket_this) August 1, 2022
Hard to imagine Mr Trump showing this compassion.
Hard to imagine Mr Trump even understanding this. https://t.co/SPR98BWzaJ— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 4, 2022
IN state Rep. Davisson (R) argues for requiring forced birth of non-viable fetuses.
Asked what he would tell children of a mother going through pregnancy resulting in stillbirth: "[None] of us are guaranteed tomorrow. We must accept death as a consequence of life." pic.twitter.com/cAUEDEOZ8n
— Heartland Signal (@HeartlandSignal) August 4, 2022
A Farleyism pic.twitter.com/580AboCbha
— Twang (@SoldierofResist) August 4, 2022
You music lovers will get it … pic.twitter.com/FJD0Kt9mOe
— Dorian Rudnytsky (@JABat49) August 5, 2022
NEVER FORGET: Senator Ron Johnson went on record AGAIN this week that he wants to END Social Security and Medicare. TELL EVERYONE!
— Peter Morley (@morethanmySLE) August 5, 2022
They've removed the student center at Texas A&M as a voting location. They did this at Texas State in 2018. It lead to the highest turnout in San Marcus history & flipped Hayes County to blue for the first time. Voter suppression will backfire again, this time in College Station.
— Turn Texas Blue🇺🇦🇺🇦 (@TurnTexas_Blue) August 5, 2022
Rick Scott just called Democrats “book burners.” Republicans are banning books on slavery & the Holocaust in red state schools. Rick Scott has fully embodied Joseph Goebbels: accuse Democrats of what the Republican Party is doing themselves. CPAC is a Fascist Cult. See below:
— Dash Dobrofsky (@DashDobrofsky) August 5, 2022
And I’m allowed a few of my own:
Of course.
We are limited by legal restrictions and simple ethics from administering anything that harsh.
— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) July 31, 2022
This is getting too common.
Republican candidates are increasingly extreme.
Way off the definition of normal.Republicans Nominated 9/11 Denier in Marylandhttps://t.co/dnyhl7qxAV
— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) July 31, 2022
Tell them to identify as you.
That way their neighbors can regard them as Putin sellouts.— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) July 31, 2022
The Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion.
— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 1, 2022
The current state of the contemporary conservative version of "patriotism."
— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 1, 2022
Biden’s Plan Does Not Raise Taxes on the Middle Class
No, Jonathan, Republicans did not "inaccurately claim".
They lied.https://t.co/VgrAwC5nVp— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 1, 2022
And of course:
Trump Sides with Russia Over Brittney Grinerhttps://t.co/qvMxSzzFwQ
— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 1, 2022
2/
"They want to climb higher, and they think if they just make one more deal with the Devil, then they’ll be able to do the right thing. But oftentimes, by then, they’ve forgotten what the right thing is. The Devil has a mortgage on the soul, and they’ve got to make the payment"— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 1, 2022
Please God, save us and our children
from such as these. https://t.co/dgoY0YkOrq— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 1, 2022
Oh, Tudor, Tudor, Tudor.
You really have to make your case that way?
The truth itself won't do?Biden’s Plan Does Not Raise Taxes on the Middle Classhttps://t.co/VgrAwC5nVp
— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 1, 2022
She's absolutely right.
Also, buses won't run on time and paint will dry slower.
Because that's what happened in Australia.— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 1, 2022
this is the one pic.twitter.com/V8Y55sydqi
— matt (@mattxiv) July 30, 2022
Now that's a massive reach.
Funny how it's always the Christians who think about things like that. Much experience?
— Sïstēr Märy Bäphømēt🇺🇦 (@marybaphomet) August 1, 2022
Not so funny to see such blatant false witness committed by someone who advertises their piety.
— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 1, 2022
Sorry.
I suppose I'm easily distracted from whatever point he is making.But…
What is with the frenetic hand flutters?— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 1, 2022
They put themselves in harm's way whenever called to battle
They are medically harmed by their service on our behalf.And she gives them:
*It's for your own good. You'll thank me someday.*Imagining what she'll say next:
*This hurts me more than it hurts you.*— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 2, 2022
A human rights outrage
"Because the Trump administration did not keep records of which children were separated and where they were sent … difficult time identifying families to offer them the chance of reunification."https://t.co/EgLDatYMrd
— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 2, 2022
They're not in Kansas anymore.
— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 3, 2022
Provide some sandpaper.
— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 3, 2022
Cautiously
— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 3, 2022
Ron Johnson Wants Social Security to Be Renewed Each Yearhttps://t.co/lAAlvrCkDr
— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 3, 2022
Whew!
— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 3, 2022
But we're so much bigger than they are.
Imagine how scared they must be.— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 3, 2022
Have you ever heard of compassion?
— InfiDale (@InfiDale3476) August 3, 2022
What a strange, counterfactual comparison.
Nothing to it except desperate name calling.— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 4, 2022
Churchgoers sharing coffee in Fellowship Hall will occasionally hear some hothead proclaim that any woman who needs an abortion is committing genocide.
I imagine that tweet was an attempted permutation of that sentiment.
— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 4, 2022
I'm considered elderly by some, possibly because of age.
Please explain more carefully.From here in Missouri it looked less like a decision forced on Kansans, and more like Kansans rejecting a decision you tried to impose.
— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 4, 2022
Agree.
We can walk or we can chew gum.
We can't do both.We can incite insurrectionists
or we can run away from them in panic.
We can't…Okay, okay, so we CAN do both.
— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 4, 2022
My loved one tells me I can't afford it.
— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 4, 2022
I'm considered elderly, an unfortunate by product of age. Sometimes things need to be more explicitly explained.
For example:
You cast your vote based on sexual fantasies?— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 4, 2022
Obama.
Before that, RFK.
JFK when I was a kid.— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 4, 2022
The evidence shows it is far from a witch hunt.
The polls show it is succeeding in swaying public opinion,which may inhibit future attempts to seize the government violently.
Together they show you are talking through your hat.
— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 5, 2022
Should illustrate.
Putin is a bully.— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 5, 2022
He's sitting on a pin.
With nowhere to put his feet.— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 5, 2022
And then make you apologize for all the publicity from shooting you in the face.
— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 5, 2022
Viktor Orbán:
[Hungarians "are not a mixed race…and we do not want to become a mixed race""[W]here European and non-European peoples live together… are no longer nations, they are nothing more than a conglomeration of peoples"
So of course:https://t.co/hrLGKPzedO
— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 5, 2022
Impressive.
You and your package must be very important.The FBI really should brush up on standard English.
I especially like the "Christopher wary" at the bottom.— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 5, 2022
From what I have read, the number of Americans living paycheck to paycheck who will pay more in taxes is approximately…
.
zero.Am I incorrect?
— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 5, 2022
"Venezuela, Australia, they’re gone. You don’t get to vote out the machines once they’re there."
Mike Lindell Says Machines Are Taking Overhttps://t.co/5dZX5BVC7N
— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 5, 2022
Those excusing one of those contacts as an accidental butt-dial might want to reconsider.
Seems to be a highly selective butt with an established pattern of behavior.
Trump Still Talking to Witnesseshttps://t.co/lKfPZiMOK4
— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 5, 2022
I like the quote:
I'm not afraid of dying.
I just don't want to be there when it happens.— Burr Deming (@BurrLand01) August 6, 2022
– Podcasts –
LaFerrara’s argument epitomizes the practical problem with libertarian ideology — it would actually give the average person less freedom, not more. An infringement on freedom is an infringement on freedom regardless of whether it comes from the government or an employer, and in practice your boss gives you more orders in a week than the police do in a year. Libertarianism removes any constraints on an employer’s power to exploit his position to infringe on your freedom.
The argument that you could switch jobs if you don’t like your employer’s rules is true only in an abstract technical sense. For most people, switching jobs is a huge and risky upheaval; in practice, they’re stuck. For that matter, one could equally well claim that if you don’t like the government’s rules, you’re free to emigrate to some other country you like better. A freedom which can only be exercised at the cost of a hugely difficult procedure is a freedom that barely exists in practice.
Libertarianism would reduce most people’s freedom by putting them at the mercy of powerful non-state entities (employers, polluters, almost any business you deal with) no longer restrained by the state.
What a great compilation, again, Mr. Demming! Now my husband (not on WordPress) is a reader, too. He got drawn in with your response tweet to our US Senator Dr. Sen. Roger Marshall. (He’s very slimy, btw.) He ended up scrolling down, then up. So, now I’ll forward him my email, and he’ll click through and read, too. Thanks again!
Oh, gosh. DH is not slimy, but will read your emails. This one doesn’t have to go up.
[Note: We did get permission from Alison to publish. I thought it was funny and sweet – Aunt Tildy]
lolol Italica is as much for word & font lovers