A reply to Scott's comments on my post; 'Respect.'

(Thanks xexus!)

As for Scott, um…xexus got my point, and I think you missed it. I was raised a Catholic, went to church every Sunday, attended CCD or Catechism, and eventually was confirmed into the Church. Hell? I read about it. Church? Yup! I’ve been there. But I guess I just don’t see God being that much of a hard-ass. I mean, first off, just so we’re on the same page here, which bible are we going by for this discussion?

I think the core message of God, or ‘The Word’ as xexus put it, is to be cool to each other. Don’t steal the other guy’s stuff, be kind, help those with less than you, and try to be a good person. And I think my whole point is; you must tend to your own garden before you try and plant zucchini in mine, bitch! ;-)

PS: Scott said he would pray for me, for which I thank him. After all, I could be very wrong about everything, in which case I need all the help I can get! But I’ve a quick aside on prayer...I've thought a lot about this, and pretty much any prayer other than something along the lines of ‘please forgive me,’ seems pretty egotistical...a sin of pride, if you will. But what the heck do I know? Actually, appealing to God and expecting anything at all seems pretty egotistical. But now I’m hurtling down the path that leads to the debate regarding mans free will vs. fate in the context of an omnipotent God. And I’m just not up for that right now!

From Salon.com War Room - No spy probe? It was the Decider's decision

July 18, 2006

When the Justice Department's Office of Professional Responsibility revealed earlier this year that it couldn't investigate the Justice Department's role in approving George W. Bush's warrantless spying program because its lawyers had been denied the necessary security clearances, Democratic Rep. Maurice Hinchey said he wanted to know who made the decision to deny the clearances so that he could "reach out to those responsible for stifling the investigation" and "identify a way for a probe to resume."
It looks like he just got his answer.

At a hearing this morning, Senate Intelligence Committee chairman Arlen Specter asked Attorney General Alberto Gonzales why OPR's lawyers were denied access to the warrantless spying program when "many other lawyers in the Department of Justice had clearance."
Gonzales' response: "The president of the United States makes the decision about who's ultimately given access."
-- Tim Grieve

To the NH Democratic Party upon receiving my 1st Newsletter from them:

To Whom It May Concern:

I’m a Democrat…I’m a letter writer…I feel I should get off my butt and do some more, and I want to get involved in my local (Meredith Dist. 3) election. So, I found out who the incumbents are and who’s recently signed up to run against them…Somewhere in there I called your office and the nice person on the other end helped me figure a lot of this stuff out. I also signed up for the newsletter.

This is my first newsletter from y’all and I’m sorry, but I must give you a bit of guff! Now, I’ll admit, I have to learn a bit more about this Coburn guy and his proposed gas tax/tax freeze thingy…but do me a favor. You’re flogging the flip-flop thing like a pissed off, un-cool, little kid.

C’mon! We’ve got to be WAY better than that! Look, I’m all for giving it right back to ‘em, but at least we should keep up rhetorically! Use a republican catch phrase that’s been in rotation within the last three years! Flip-flop…I mean…Geeze…don’t mess around, the word is ‘hypocrite!’ Or ‘he has no core beliefs’ or…? I don’t know, give me a day and I’ll come up with at least five better things than ‘flip-flop!’ The fact that y’all used ‘flip-flop’ only makes me believe that ‘He was for it before he was against it’ was discarded as too obvious.

We’ve spent WAY too long letting the ‘other’ guys set both the tone and the topic of discussion, and here you are sounding like a guy in a crew cut and a neck tie in 1968 exclaiming “Far-out!” …Sigh…and to think we’re supposed to be the ‘cool’ ones ;-) …Don’t mince words; don’t buy into the trap of restating the lie! The Democrats need to re-claim the debate! All I see is Democrats reacting, reacting, reacting…time to get on the offensive, time to tell the WHOLE story.

(Don’t’ get me started on the liberal media…ah, if the liberal media and Santa Clause could only muster their powers there would finally be peace in the world.)

And to think it was the Left that taught the Right how to run a successful grass roots campaign…how did we let that one go? Did we get complacent? Personally I think J.Q. Public is tremendously complacent, the other guys just know how to push their ‘social issue’ buttons better, and are shameless in the pushing. That combined with the fact that J.Q Public’s attention span is less than half of one news cycle.

We cannot let ourselves be solely cast in the role as ‘opposition.’ We must grab the middle ground of common sense. We must remake ourselves in the image of the ‘reasonable’ guy. Let the other guys sound hysterical and wring their hands. Let us stand for the collective ‘everyman.’ We must recapture the debate.

Ok. I’ll stop. Sorry. I just want to see us make some gains in this mid-term, in the State of NH and in the country. We need this one. The whole world needs this one. Really, let’s try and not *&$$& it up. So… keep me posted. I’m a Democrat, I want to do something, and I’m a bit pissed off. Keep me in the loop!

"...your own, personal, antichrist..."

Some days are better than others on the Left side of the fence, and this I think is one of 'em! Not only did the likes of Orin (anti-choice) Hatch come out in favor of expanding federal funding for stem cell research, but...

(Please don't make me explain that you can kill frozen fetus's for fetus-head-soup (or whatever you want) in the private sector already. Funny how Mr. 'I will veto any law that condones killing something' has never bothered to try and pass a law stopping the very same kind of privately funded stem cell research...hmmm... This current boondoggle is about whether or not you can kill frozen embryos higgly-piggly with federal funds...as opposed to throwing just them out with that fruit from last week that's gotten kinda mushy...Hey! How old is that pizza?)

What's more, Ralph Reed failed in his bid for Lt. Governor or Georgia! Anyone who knows me, knows that I've really disliked Mr. Reed since back when he was the head of the Christian Coalition...ah, I remember cutting his picture out of USA Today and sticking push pins into his eyes...good times! Anyway, Mr. gambling-gays-and-sex-are-bad seems to have gotten himself into a pickle over taking money from a convicted felon (Jack Abramhoff)! Yep! Seems that an American Indian gambling casino gave the money to Ralph through Jack, in order to wage war against another gambling casino! Who, not coincidently, was the first casino’s competition! Did I mention that there's a special place in hell for religious hypocrites? Anyway...Ralph Reeds defeats are my joys! Mean? Vindictive? You’re damn right!

A.C. is a felon, or should be...

A reply to the A.C. story from Salon below - Chosen as an 'Editors Pick'

I just read about this over in 'fix' section and basically asked the same thing! Why don't they turn over the e-mail to the police or FBI or Secret Service or whomever handles mailing poison through the mail and have 'em kick in her door! Do a little looking around; make sure our A.C. isn't up to something she shouldn't be. There are, supposedly, consequences for making public threats, and taking credit for possible terrorist actions. Wouldn't it be nice (cue Beach Boys) to see A.C. writing her column from inside a prison cell, or in a home for the incurably insane? (…Maybe if we think and wish and hope and pray, it might come truuuuuue…)

From Salon.com War Room - Ann Coulter, felon?

An envelope containing a suspicious white powder showed up in the mailroom at the New York Times last week. We can't tell if she's joking or not -- really, can we ever? -- but Ann Coulter is claiming that she's responsible.
Raw Story ferrets out the news from an item in Women's Wear Daily's Memo Pad blog. Memo Pad's source at the Times said the powder incident makes Coulter's call for the death penalty for Bill Keller just "a little less funny." "I wonder," the source said, "if she considers herself at all responsible when lunatics read her columns and she says that we should be killed."
Memo Pad asked Coulter about the incident. Her response? "So glad to hear that the New York Times got my letter and that your friend at the Times thinks I'm funny. Good luck in journalism and please send me your home address so we can stay in touch, too."
The white powder turned out to be harmless, but perhaps it's time to fight fire with fire anyway. If Coulter thinks that reporters at the Times should be tried for treason -- and she does -- wouldn't it be fair game to say that Coulter herself should be tried for threatening to use WMD or using the U.S. mail to send threatening communications? Those are federal crimes, and it seems to us that Coulter has just admitted committing one.

-- Tim Grieve

From Salon.com War Room - No spy probe? It was the Decider's decision

When the Justice Department's Office of Professional Responsibility revealed earlier this year that it couldn't investigate the Justice Department's role in approving George W. Bush's warrantless spying program because its lawyers had been denied the necessary security clearances, Democratic Rep. Maurice Hinchey said he wanted to know who made the decision to deny the clearances so that he could "reach out to those responsible for stifling the investigation" and "identify a way for a probe to resume."
It looks like he just got his answer.
At a hearing this morning, Senate Intelligence Committee chairman Arlen Specter asked Attorney General Alberto Gonzales why OPR's lawyers were denied access to the warrantless spying program when "many other lawyers in the Department of Justice had clearance."
Gonzales' response: "The president of the United States makes the decision about who's ultimately given access."

~Tim Greive

From Salon.com War Room - U.N. report: Iraq on a 100 dead a day

According to a new United Nations report, nearly 6,000 Iraqi civilians were killed in sectarian fighting in May and June. As Reuters notes, any "estimates of mortality from violence" are necessarily approximate in "a country with barely functioning public institutions where relatives routinely remove the bodies of victims for burial with little legal formality." Still, even as a rough estimate, the U.N. number is more than a little breathtaking. Six thousand deaths in two months is almost 100 deaths a day in a country with just 26 million residents. Adjusted for population differences, that would be the equivalent of a 9/11 about every two and a half days in the United States.
-- Tim Grieve

Respect. (Or why you should tell people to take their religion and shove it up their ass.)

I was always taught to be polite. You know the old chestnuts ‘if you can’t say something nice, then don’t say anything at all’ and ‘do unto others…?’ I was taught to be tolerant and respectful of other people’s beliefs. I was taught in school that this country had both a ‘freedom to worship in your own way’ and a distinct separation of church and state.

Well, I’ve been thinking.

In this awfully politically correct world I think we’ve given religion way too much leeway. We bend over backwards not to offend this Jew, Christian, Muslim, or Great Spaghetti Monster believer. But they don’t respect us. They don’t tolerate us. They brow beat our politicians they condemn our entertainment, books, and music, they wring their hands, they set themselves up as examples of how to ‘live right’ and then? (See Jimmie Swagart, and for a more recent example, Ralph Reed.) They damn us, they shout at us, they threaten us, and in some extreme cases they shoot doctors, and try to blow us up. These people do not deserve your respect.

And where are the so-called religious ‘moderates?’ I blame them for letting the whacko’s co-opt their faith! So, next time your thinking you’ll keep your mouth shut because you don’t want to offend someone’s faith, well, fuck ‘em! Tell them they can take their lip service to god and shove it up their ass!

So now YOUR thinking…

‘What kind of a faithless heathen is this guy?’

Well, let’s see…NONE OF YOUR FUCKING BUSINESS!!!

I keep my own council when it comes to God. Why don’t you try it? And, while you’re at it, try and rein in some of the more fanatical followers of your particular faith.

I believe at the core of most faiths is ‘love.’ Love of God and love or your fellow man. And you can’t love someone when all your thinking is ‘damn, this guy is going to hell!’ or ‘I must kill the infidel!’ That type of thinking tends to cloud reason. We all make choices, and we all have to live with the consequences.

If you think I’m on an express train to hell, what’s it to you? Leave me alone. Heal thyself. Tend your own garden. Let he who cast the first stone be free of sin. Do unto others.

Try and be a bit more tolerant you self-absorbed-bat-shit-crazy-motherfuckers! We’ve put up with a lot of your shit over the years and I’ve just about had it. I’m sure there is a special place in hell for religious hypocrites. And that’s the thought that keeps me going, the one that gives me a grin.

Steve McBrian for State Representative!

Well...that would be fun wouldn't it? I would love to run for office. So, anyone want to give me a big pile of cash-money? C’mon! This could be fun!

Anyway, this morning I was feeling very self absorbed so I Googled 'Steve McBrian' and I found that there is a 'Steve McBrian' running for State Rep. in Indiana's (fightin') 74th district. Here's the link:

http://www.mcbrianindiana74.org/


After reading the other Steve’s web page it's pretty obvious that we're not completely simpatico...ah well, it takes all kinds!

Apparently it even takes people who claim to want less government intrusion in their lives who, in spite of this claim, seem determined to shove their social agenda down our collective throats by trying to ban abortion, gay marriage, and contraceptives. But yeah, they want less government intrusion. Whew! Could you imaging what they would have in mind for MORE intrusion?

Senator Judd Greg (R) NH - Is a Traitor!

In a recent letter to the Laconia Citizen Senator Greg wrote a letter patting himself on the back regarding the passing of more money for homeland security and intelligence, etc. So, I thought I’d take a page out of the radical right and accuse him of treason! So, I sent this in with no inkling of sarcasm…we’ll see how it flies!

Staying vigilant on homeland security

Judd Greg is a traitor! In his letter to the editor of the Laconia Citizen Senator Greg openly and seemingly gleefully spells out or nations plan to defend our boarders. He gets into exact monetary figures and on which programs the money will be spent. How can he do this? Doesn’t he realize that by writing this letter he is supporting the terrorists and what they stand for? He is, just like the New York Times, giving away the house! How can we protect our boarders if the terrorists know exactly what we’re getting up to? He even specifically mentions an additional 45 million dollars that will be spent on intelligence. Good job Judd! Now they know we’re looking for them! Judd Greg obviously hates America and everything we stand for.

From the American Conservative Blog.

About fifteen minutes after writing my entry called 'the Other Guy' I found this entry. It's nice to see that someone beside myself figured this one out! This gentleman’s blog described itself as 'pro-conservative anti-socialist' writing.

Friday, July 08, 2005

Dear American Conservative Blog readers, after careful consideration, I have decided that this site can no longer be dedicated to supporting either the current right wing movement in America or the Bush administration. It is extremely unfortunate that sometimes we get so caught up in what we think is right that we are blinded by the truth.I'm afraid that President Bush has betrayed the trust of every American. Democrat and Republican, liberal and conservative. The right wing movement has also betrayed its stated principals of conservatism by supporting President Bush. I know I can't convince ACB readers of these views, so I won't bother trying. I only hope that you will find for yourself that President Bush and the right wing movement have been one big lie. Thank you all and goodbye.
posted by AngryCocker at 11:00 PM

The Other Guy

Here's a question; how do you have a discussion, or argument if you will, with someone who thinks they are right, you are a radical and all your opinions are colored as such, yet you read the news (several hours a day) and all they do is watch MSNBC for thirty minutes while drinking their coffee in the morning?

Have you ever tried to have a theological discussion with a zealot? It’s a very similar feeling. The political zealot, or more accurately lemming, I have in mind knows what they know and wont be dissuaded, and ironically, they think the same of me. Except, of course, in this particular case I happen to be very well read in mainstream, non-hysterical, news.

Why do conservatives support this administration?

Strangely enough there are still folks out there that think we have a conservative Republican administration. Now, as I understand it, the traditional conservative wants lower taxes, more states rights, less meddling from the federal government, a balanced budget, lower federal spending etc.

Other than lowering taxes how is our current government in any way similar to what I've outlined above? Under the current administration we've experienced record spending (even without a two-front war), we've seen a budget surplus turn into a record deficit, and through a variety of ways they have tried to get their fingers into our lives by championing anti same sex marriage, shutting down planned parenthood, limiting contraceptives, railing against so-called 'activist' (federal AND state) judges (at least when it suits them), and a completely silly flag burning amendment. Not to mention a long line of politically motivated non-binding resolutions like the resent 'prevail-in-the-war-on-terror-support-our-troops' boondoggle.

You can lead a horse to water…

I guess the question becomes how do we start to make people pay attention? And once we have their attention, how do we make them learn, or educate themselves. And what’s more, how do we get them to educate themselves on something that doesn't spoon-feed them their opinion. Unfortunately, at the end of the day, we all have to think for ourselves and we CAN NOT rely on ANY news organization to give us the whole story.

I hate to quote a movie, but here goes; "Democracy is advanced citizenship."

It's time for more of us to step up to the plate, open our eyes, and try to see the true lay of the land. Try to strip away the slimy veneer of politics, use your common sense, and decide for yourself. It seems amazing to me that if you tell the average citizen what he can’t do, he gets PISSED. Tell him what his opinion is via the TV news, and he just buys it wholesale! You should get pissed when someone tells you how to think. But then you need to back that up with some mental shoe-leather. Find out who’s right and who's wrong. You'll probably find the answer lies somewhere in the middle. We live in a gray world that politics tries to make black and white.

Still not willing to get out and find the truth?

Then do us all a favor next election day and stay home. This is the adult table. You kids go play...

Neil Young - self-appionted 'Rush' of the Lakes Region

A response to (the other) Neil Young's recent letter:

Firstly, I agree with Mr. Young (has to be a first time for everything!) that more people should get involved with letter writing etc. They should also endeavor to get their news from the source (AP, UPI etc. where basically all major news outlets get their 'raw' news), as apposed to talk radio or opinion columns, as they tend to be, you guessed it, opinion! In other words 'not necessarily the WHOLE truth.'

But I ask, why do you print Mr. Young's letters so frequently? (And, as of late, not mine! ;-)) It's not as if he has no other outlet. He has both a column in that local bastion of right wing thought the Weirs Times and a radio show! Give me a column in your paper and I promise never to write you, or any other local newspaper, another letter-to-the-editor! More participants? Maybe Mr. Young should give the rest of us a chance!

Secondly, can anyone tell me what the heck his letter was about? Now, I'm prone to ramble a bit, and I'm no English major, but...this guy changes topics like some people change clothes! The letter starts out asking for more participation from folks in letter writing and call in shows, then inexplicably wanders into a discussion of a nice kid wishing everyone a happy 4th, then waxes reminiscent about 'small town life', then suddenly takes a (right) turn to defend A.C.'s alleged plagiarisms. (You'll have to figure out who A.C. is yourself as I refuse to give that poor excuse for a human any more print than is already attributed to (hint, hint!) her.)

Now, I've read his column in the Weirs Times too, and here too he adopts his 'Pollack-esque' form. It's like reading selected responses to a letter that you've never read. So how's this guy get all the attention? He has ideas he wants to express, sure, and he likes calling people he doesn't agree with by quaint little nicknames like 'Liberal Lady' and 'Kennedy bum-kisser' in print. But does the (bush-bum-kisser) write well enough to deserve all this exposure? Hmm?

One last thing regarding his defense of A.C., Mr. (bush-bum-kisser) Young wrote:
"Attribution is the right thing to do - I do it all of the time - but when does a universal thought put into print become somebody else's words? Attributed to the Volkswagen commercial - "Writers and callers wanted.""
In fact most 'Universal thoughts' are indeed someone else's words. (see Mark Twain, the Bible, Gen. John Stark, etc.) At that point they're called 'clichés', or for the more revered ones 'wisdom.' Let's take music for example; one of the Beatles songs, 'Yesterday' I think, has been re-recorded by more artists than any other song ever. Does that mean the Beatles (or Michael Jackson in this case) should give up defending their copyright just because the song has become virtually 'universal?' Look, the bulk of columnists out there do what A.C. does every day and never get accused of plagiarism. How come? Oh wait, I know! It's the Liberal Media picking on her and only her right? I knew it! They're always getting up to those dirty tricks!

As for your 'attribution' I'm pretty sure you wouldn't have to 'attribute' your take on the Volkswagen ad because you didn't quote it exactly or represent it as your own idea. What you did falls under the category of 'satire', which, I don't believe, requires any attribution at all. What A.C. did was to re-print, and represent as her own ideas, whole sentences (from several different newspapers) and I believe in one column, whole paragraphs of a report that was not her own. That's plagiarism. Sorry. But really, could we expect any less from A.C.?

Thanks for letting me participate!

Wanted: More participants - by Neil Young

Laconia Citizen - Letter to the editor - 7/13/06 - by Neil Young



Wanted: More participants



Editor, The Citizen

The suggestion that only a very small percentage of listeners to a radio talk show will ever pick up the phone and become a caller — so it is with folks who read a daily newspaper or weekly — a few become contributors to the "Letters to the Editor" page.

While delivering The Weirs Times on Tuesday, the Fourth of July, a young man at Shaw's Gilford gathering carts in the parking lot was wishing everyone a Happy Fourth of July.

I congratulate Manager Ken for employing such a thoughtful young man.

A couple of days ago my wife asks, "Do you know Normand Goupil?" Is his wife Alyce? Does he live on Warren Street? Did he work for Pike? Yes.

Betty is always stunned at the number of people I know in Laconia (all ages). Well, this is where I have spent my whole life — along with so many others who are natives.

And it saddens me when one of them leaves us — they are part of my (our) history.

A number of years ago friend Paul and I were in Butson's on a Sunday afternoon. Folks were saying hello — calling me by name — me asking them how the children are — some by name.

Paul who is New Hampshire-born says, "You know everybody. I wish I still lived in my hometown." Now when meeting old school "chums" we talk about how we made it to be this old.

One of the loyal listeners and callers to the radio program is fondly called "the liberal lady." Last Saturday she began with wanting to know what we thought of the plagiarism by Ann Coulter. I defended Ann — and later asked: what would the "LL" say about Doris Kerns Goodwin (noted historian and Kennedy bum-kisser) and others of her group who have been named as plagiarists?

Well, now, according to Associated Press Lee Salem, editor and president at Universal Press Syndicate, the company that sells Ann's columns: "There are only so many ways you can rewrite a fact and minimal matching text is not plagiarism. Universal Press Syndicate is confident in the ability of Ms. Coulter, an attorney and frequent media target, to know when to make attribution and when not to."

Attribution is the right thing to do — I do it all of the time — but when does a universal thought put into print become somebody else's words? Attributed to the Volkswagen commercial — "Writers and callers wanted."

Niel Young

Laconia

The Weird Times

My mom always used to say,

“Don’t run in the house!”
“Stop shaving your sister!”
“No, that's not where mustard comes from.”
“Never blog angry.”

She also used to say,

“Don’t wish your life away.”
“When you're older”
“Well, it's MY house”

And my favorite: "Don't forget to wear your rain-coat"

But I digress...

So I'm sitting here. Am I angry? No…it’s more than that. It’s an understanding that Nothing. Is. The. Same.

I’m sitting here clinging to my keyboard with one hand and griping my...

Beer

with the other wondering how this could possibly happen?

Right here! In our very midst!

So I write this, hoping to put into words the anger, the dismay, the utter horror I felt when I discovered the sinister truth behind the 'Weirs Times'. It all started a few weeks ago…

“The Weirs Times? Heck, I’ve seen it around for years!”
“Gosh, I’ve always just loved the picture on the masthead!”
“You always see it in restaurants and stores around the area.”

Yeah, sure, been around for years. A freebie newspaper I thought to be a kindly little tourist rag.

BUT NO!

As I flipped through the pages of the Weirs Time for the first time I actually felt my soul being pulled through my third eye as I stared into the abyss that is the Op/Ed page of the Weirs Times.

Yes. It sucked that much.

Suddenly I knew exactly how that bat-shit-crazy McCarthy bastard must of felt like! I’d opened my eye’s to another world, a world where wrong was right, up was down…well, you get the picture.

Terror? Sure, there was terror…but there was more, there was exhilaration! Like generations past I’ve discovered there's a traitor in our midst! Nay! A spy! Little did I know the ‘Weirs Times’ is some sort of right-wing propaganda flyer!

Who'd-a-thunk-it?

In the mean time, we’ll keep an eye on the Weirs Times…

redwhiteandbleu...

Happy Independence Day! Blah, blah, blah...Just keep a weather eye out for those wrapping themselves in the flag ("This man voted against a flag amendment...! etc.), read, question, read some more, get pissed, question...Keep a weather eye out.

PS: speaking of Independence Day...Let's give a big ol' shout out to the French, without whom we would have had a tougher time achieving said day! And they did it by helping us whip those pesky allies of ours, the English!

("It seems we've been bailin' those boys out since double-ya double-ya two...")

Here! Here!

They can't even make a half-way-decent cup of coffee!

Pomme frits, croissant, espresso, wine, great cheese...the French know how to do it! And, except for that whole 'Waterloo' thing, and yeah, there was the 'Maginot Line', but aside from that they've really kicked some ass!

Shit, a Frenchman even invented the fax machine!

Fuck the English and their lame-ass food! Allies indeed! What have they ever given us besides an invitation to leave, taxation without representation, and a reason to re-build Washington...?

I mean...They eat their toast COLD for the love of Pete!!!

Give me a Frenchman and his taste in food, and the world will turn! God Bless America! Vive Le France!

So...how 'bout all you ignorant motherfuckers out there just shut up already...

Yeah, the French, they suck...well what about the English? What about Us? Ask an American Indian how HE feels on 'independence day'...

Sigh...

Happy Independence Day!