Florida Republi-CONs, and Their Corrupt Relationship With Their Corporate Overlords

You remember former Florida House Speaker Ray Sansom -- over 2½ years, a 25-year-old junior Sansom staffer, who was given a party American Express card, spent nearly $1.3 million. Thousands were spent "on jewelry, sporting goods and in one case $15,000 for what's listed as a monthlong stay at a posh Miami Beach hotel." The Florida Republi-cons spent "$650,000 in lodging, $60,000 in airfare — mostly commercial airlines — and $66,000 for charter planes."

Now, more than two years after first calling for his prosecution, the show will soon begin. Read the St. Petersburg Times, Corrupt capital culture exposed from the inside, which notes that "[s]ome in Tallahassee, inured to the capital's corrupt culture, have defended Sansom and argue that he has paid a price for doing nothing more than what many other lawmakers do to help their districts and benefactors. But . . . testimony now lays bare a conspiracy to defraud taxpayers."

I remind you that Florida government is dominated by those waskly Republi-cons.

Witticisms!

From an email. The first and last two regard Congress:

It 's not whether you win or lose, but how you place the blame.

You are not drunk if you can lie on the floor without holding on.

We have enough youth. How about a fountain of "smart"?

The original point and click interface was a Smith & Wesson.

A fool and his money can throw one heck of a party.

When blondes have more fun do they know it?

Five days a week my body is a temple. The other two it's an amusement park.

Learn from your parents' mistakes, use birth control.

Money isn't everything, but it sure keeps the kids in touch.

Don't drink and drive, you might hit a bump and spill something.

If at first you don't succeed skydiving is not for you..

Reality is only an illusion that occurs due to a lack of alcohol.

Time's fun when you're having flies. --Kermit the Frog

We are born naked, wet and hungry. Then things get worse.

Red meat is not bad for you Fuzzy green meat is bad for you.

Ninety-nine percent of all lawyers give the rest a bad name..

One good thing about Alzheimer's is you get to meet new people every day.

Xerox and Wurlitzer will merge to produce reproductive organs.

Alabama state motto: At least we're not Mississippi

Artificial intelligence is no match for natural stupidity.

The latest survey shows that three out of four people make up 75% of the population

You know why a banana is like a politician? When he first comes in he is green, then he turns yellow and then he's rotten.

I think Congressmen should wear uniforms like NASCAR drivers so we can identify their corporate sponsors.

So Many Lies, So Little Time to 'Refudiate'

The latest Republi-con lie: "Assertions by Republican lawmakers and in the press that dairy farmers will have to build containment facilities are 'fictions,' the E.P.A. chief says." Read The New York Times, Spilled Milk Regulations a Myth, E.P.A. Says.

A School Teacher, Tea Party Member and CEO

First seen at Rick's Blog.biz:

A school teacher, Tea Party member and CEO are sitting at a table. In the middle of the table there is a plate with a dozen cookies on it. The CEO reaches across and takes 11 cookies, looks at the Tea Party member and says, "Look out for that school teacher, she wants a piece of your cookie."

Patriotic Affair(s)

UPDATE: "Thanks to Newt Gingrich, we have learned of the link between patriotism and adultery." Read The New York Times, Eye of the Newt.

Gingrich explains the reason for his marital affair(s), giving new meaning the phrase 'in service to our country.' Read the Washington Post, Newt Gingrich: 'Passion for the country' led to personal indiscretion.

Sub Today at NoBullU on WEBY

Usually on Thursdays you can listen to me, the voice of wisdom and reason in a wilderness of partisan rhetoric -- no political insanity, no conservative hypocrisy, no liberal foolishness -- just straight talk, straight at you, and that’s no bull!!

But I can't make it today. I'll be back next week to deprogram you.

Quiz for the Know-It-All

This is a quiz for people who know everything! These are not trick questions, they are straight questions with straight answers.

1. Name the one sport in which neither the spectators nor the participants know the score or the leader until the contest ends.

2. What famous North American landmark is constantly moving backward?

3. Of all vegetables, only two can live to produce on their own for several growing seasons. All other vegetables must be replanted every year. What are the only two perennial vegetables?

4. What fruit has its seeds on the outside?

5. In many liquor stores, you can buy pear brandy, with a real pear inside the bottle. The pear is whole and ripe, and the bottle is genuine; it hasn't been cut in any way. How did the pear get inside the bottle?

6. Only three words in standard English begin with the letters ' dw' and they are all common words. Name two of them.

7. There are 14 punctuation marks in English grammar. Can you name at least half of them?

8. Name the only vegetable or fruit that is never sold frozen, canned, processed, cooked, or in any other form except fresh.

9. Name 6 or more things that you can wear on your feet beginning with the letter 'S.'

For the answers to the quiz, click on comments.

The End of America's Zenith?

UPDATE X: "Americans seem unable to grasp the magnitude of the challenges that face us. Despite the hyped talk of China's rise, most Americans operate on the assumption that the U.S. is still No. 1." Read Time, Are America's Best Days Behind Us?


UPDATE IX: "Napoleon is famously said to have declared, 'When China wakes, it will shake the world.'" Read The New York Times, China Rises, and Checkmates.


UPDATE VIII: "China is playing games with its foreign-exchange policy at the world’s expense." Read The New York Times, The Renminbi Runaround.


UPDATE VII: The title says it all. Read Newsweek, It’s China’s World We’re Just Living in It.

Thanks again to Wal-Mart and the Republi-cons.


UPDATE VI: Thanks to Wal-Mart, "China has the United States about where it wants it. You can make your own calculation of President Obama’s leverage over Beijing — and it’s heading south." To understand why, read The New York Times, The World’s Watchmaker.


UPDATE V: For yet more proof of the growing power of China, read the Washington Post, China's strident tone raises concerns among Western governments, analysts.

And there is not much that can be done about it since the Republi-cons' war on the middle class and unfair trade policies gave China a $2.4 trillion slush fund to "create a world economy that serves China's interests."


UPDATE IV: Tell your kids to learn a new language of business. Read The New York Times, Foreign Languages Fade in Class — Except Chinese.


UPDATE III: After yesterday's fireworks, read The New York Times, Chinese Fireworks Display, about the future of Chimerica, the tightly integrated China-America symbiotic relationship.


UPDATE II: Will the dollar soon be worth less (pun intended)? Read The New York Times, The Almighty Renminbi?

And if you doubt the growing power of China, read The New York Times, China’s Heart of Gold, in which the writer, the executive director of the Beijing Private Equity Association and a director of the China National Association of International Studies, demands "inflation-protection measures for China’s existing investments in America, and [requests] additional security or collateral for its continued investments. America should also provide its largest creditor with greater transparency and information."

This is a stunning demand and challenge to American sovereignty.

This is also the beginning of the end of America's debt addiction, and the withdrawal/detox of the American economy is going to be ugly.

All thanks to Republi-con unfair trade policies as part of their war on the middle class.


UPDATE: Read The New York Times, America the Tarnished.

Will this decade prove to be America's zenith? I predict that the economic mess will be the event leading to the emergence of Chinese economic and military dominance.

Read Washington Post, In Downturn, China Sees Path to Growth.

Another Four Pinocchios for the Republi-CONs

"Congress already has appropriated some spending in future years [for the new health care law], but [Bachmann's] claim that this money was 'hidden' does not have credibility. The money for these programs was clearly described and analyzed by the Congressional Budget Office before the legislation was voted into law." Read the Washington Post, Michele Bachmann's 'bombshell' on a 'hidden' $105 billion.

Cut Federal Government Pay and Benefits

UPDATE III: Reports suggest that "federal employees are paid too generously when compared to private sector workers." Read the Washington Post, Federal pay and benefits back in the spotlight.


UPDATE II: Better less and late than none and never. Read the Washington Post, Obama announces 2-year pay freeze for federal workers.


UPDATE: Another I told ya so, my idea to cut all federal government payments is catching on. Read the Washington Post, Freshman from Utah is making a name for himself.

A bill would furlough federal workers for 2 weeks. That would be a start. I've suggested a 10% pay reduction for all government payees (workers, retirees, veterans, social security recipients, etc.), 50% for any payment over $100k/year.

Don't Read Your Spouse's Email

UPDATE: Also, be careful when you 'wiretap' (record) your spouse in Nebraska, or probably anywhere else in the U.S. Read arstechnica.com, Modern divorce: Wiretapped teddy bears, $120,000 in fines.

And read the federal court order to understand why.

Don't read your spouse's email, especially in Michigan. Read the Washington Post, Michigan man to could go to jail for reading his wife's e-mail.

BE AFRAID!

UPDATE: My, my, it seems that it's a case of the pot calling the kettle black. "Representative Peter T. King, whose committee is holding hearings on the radicalization of American Muslims, once fervently supported a terrorist group, the Irish Republican Army." Read The New York Times, For Lawmaker Examining Terror, a Pro-I.R.A. Past.

Republi-cons have no shame.

"This week’s scheduled hearing into the Muslim community is an affront to America’s most precious ideals." Read The New York Times, Flailing After Muslims and the Washington Post, Rep. Peter King's hearings on Islamic radicalization: Fuel for the bigots.

No More Human Labor

UPDATE: Of course, it is important to understand that the Industrial Revolution and "the overwhelming automation of the business of providing us with calories, warmth, and dryness has not left us short of things to do, and not feeling as though we have suffered status degradation." Read Brad DeLong's Grasping Reality with All Ten Tentacles, Did the Singularity Already Happen?

It sounds Utopian. But what will the middle-class do? Read The New York Times, Degrees and Dollars.

The Benefits of a Modern Secular Legal System

In "the year 1000 the Middle East’s share of the world’s gross domestic product was larger than Europe’s—10% compared with 9%. By 1700 the Middle East’s share had fallen to just 2% and Europe’s had risen to 22%." Why? Tammy might not like the answer. Read The Economist, The crescent and the company.

Flee-ocrats

UPDATE: Democratic state legislators are also fleeing the party in record numbers.

"The 2010 election was devastating for Democrats across the country, but the South was at the epicenter of the destruction. . .

Since the election, things have gone from bad to worse for Democrats in the South. In Louisiana, the state's attorney general and five state legislators - all Democrats - have switched to the Republican side since the 2010 midterms.

The Republican consolidation of the South over the past two years is hard to dispute. But is it a permanent reality or simply the latest swing of the political pendulum in the region? Not surprisingly, the two parties offer vastly different assessments."

Read the Washington Post, Will the South stay solidly Republican?

"Lawmaking can be a frustrating business, especially when you're outnumbered. But some Democratic state legislators have recently embraced a simple tool to gain leverage: the empty chair." Read the Washington Post, Democratic legislators embracing tactic to gain leverage: Fleeing.

A sad commentary on the the party.

Cheer Up Monday -- Childhood Innocence (Posted Early)

You'll be laughing till Monday:

New Score in the Health Care Lawsuit: US 3 - VA 1 and FL 1

UPDATE: Unconstitutional, but still enforceable, if the government appeals the original ruling "within seven days and [seeks] an expedited review at the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals." Read the Wall Street Journal, Judge Says Health-Care Overhaul Can Roll Out While Government Appeals, which includes a link to check the status of "the 22 cases challenging the health-care law" at the Kaiser Health News scoreboard.

To read the order potentially staying his find that the health care law is unconstitutional, click here.

To read some of the other recent court documents, click here.

"A third federal judge upheld the constitutionality of the Obama health care law, which two other federal judges have ruled against." Read The New York Times, A Third Judge Validates Health Care Overhaul Law.

Free Speech, Is It All or Nothing?

UPDATE II: Chief Justice "Roberts called 'startling and dangerous' the government's argument that the value of certain categories of speech should be weighed against their societal costs when protecting free speech." Justice Alito would disagree. Read the Washington Post, Alito stands alone on Supreme Court's First Amendment cases.


UPDATE: Free speech means all of it, at least so long as the speech is on matters of public concern, the relationship between speaker and subject was not a private grudge, and speech is said from a place where the speaker has the right to be. Read the New York Times, Justices Rule for Protesters at Military Funerals, or read the Supreme Court opinion.

Antichrist Obama, God Hates Adultery, You're Going to Hell!

Any problems with those statements?

Then what is the objection to God Hates the USA, Thank God for 9/11, Thank God for Dead Soldiers, Semper Fi Fags, Priests Rape Boys, or God Hates Your Tears?

Read the Washington Post, High court struggles with funeral protest case.

No Class Like This at My School

According to Northwestern University spokesman Alan Cubbage:

"Northwestern University faculty members engage in teaching and research on a wide variety of topics, some of them controversial and some of at the leading edge of their respective disciplines, The University supports the efforts of its faculty to further the advancement of knowledge."

Their dedication to the advancement of knowledge is commendable. Case in point:

"A Northwestern University professor concluded a discussion of bondage and other sexual fetishes in his human sexuality class by having a woman take off all her clothes, climb on stage and graphically demonstrate the use of a sex toy." Read The New York Times, Northwestern Uni Defends Sex-Toy Demonstration.

I liked this quote from the article:

"'It is probably something I will remember the rest of my life,' said senior Justin Smith, 21, one of the students who stuck around voluntarily after class when students were told about what they were about to see.

'I can't say that about my Econ 202 class and the material that I learned there,' Smith told The Chicago Tribune."

For a more graphic description of the events that day, read EdenFantasys.com, Northwestern Students Treated to Orgasm Demo.

Republi-CONs, and Their Mutually Beneficial Relationship With Their Corporate Overlords

"Corporations are restricted in making contributions to Gov. Bobby Jindal of Louisiana. But they can give whatever they like to the foundation set up by his wife." Read The New York Times, Wife’s Charity Offers Corporate Tie to a Governor.