When Facebook Fails

You get your message out in another way. And then post it to Facebook!



Fine then. I'll post it this way. I am a resourceful man used to circumnavigating IT bullshit.

I even had trouble getting this far. Must be solar flares.

We Are Ancient!

This is embarrassing but I'm telling it anyway.

Sheldon was just telling me about his computer at our first job together, and he said it didn't have a mouse.

What?

How can a computer not have a mouse??

Then I had to think back for a few seconds and remember that we were using pre-Windows units. All data entry, and tab over to the next field.

Could I cope with that now?

Might I also admit that I have enjoyed FM AM radio, 8-tracks, and the beautifully immediate editing capabilities of cassettes.

I'm not sure if I ever owned a recordable 8-track. How much do you think those might have cost?

5 Year Blogiversary! YAY!

I am tired of politics. I am tired of Republicans. I am tired of Democrats. I am tired of evil. I am tired of greed. I am tired of Netanyahu. In fact, I am tired of Israel. I am tired of war. I am tired of division. I am tired of terrorism. I am tired of weather. I am tired of the Pentagon. I am tired of media. I am tired of manipulation. I am tired of Wall Street. I am tired of speculation. I am tired of religion. I am tired of intolerance. I am tired of the Federal Reserve. I am tired of pointlessness.

I am tired.

Happy 5-Year Blogiversary to meeeee!

I Can Do This Here

No Facebook needed.

Login with:

Does anyone else hate this shit? I mean, come the fuck on!

Why do I need so many login options?

Does this not remind you of deregulation circa 1984 when you used a pay phone and there were buttons to press for whether you wanted your long-distance carrier to be AT&T, Sprint or MCI? There were others.

What fucking difference does it make? Deliver the fucking message!

How Do You ====Know?

Like,,,, I dunno. Things happen and you start to realize. Yes, that's IT!!

Spring Cleaning

This is what happens when you start a business in your home for about 3 years.

Those two towers of boxes on the right are all crammed full of paperwork which I am technically saddled with until around 2017. Unless, you know, some mishap occurs or something.

Those Damn Far Lefties

I still see this shit all the time about "far lefties" in Congress and that "far left" Obama.

Get this straight, you stupid fucks. The political spectrum isn't linear like a ruler. I'm pretty far left (and pretty conservative in many areas), and if you were to place me on a 12-inch ruler, I might even be right (or left?) on the convenience hole which allows you hang it from a nail in the wall, the one to the left of the one-inch mark.

I keep looking for these "far left" members of Congress, and seriously, I'm not seeing many, from my perspective. Russ Feingold of Wisconsin was pretty cool until he got beat on Tuesday. Yeah, he was the guy involved in that campaign finance reform with that other "far left" guy: John McCain.

So, when these idiot people starting bitching about the "far left," I think they are actually bitching about the moderates. Lo and behold, we have something in common!

The political spectrum isn't linear like a ruler, thankfully, because life would be pretty boring and simplistic if it were. It's more 3-dimensional actually, which must be quite a challenge for these folks who like to keep it left vs. right. Or at the very least it's like a box, with a left and right as well as a top and a bottom. (I won't blow your mind right now with depth perception.)

So, heed my advice. If you want to be taken seriously in your critique of current politics, get a perspective of where you are on the linear "playing field." Because a politician on your 5 1/2" mark isn't far left. In fact, you have no idea how left left can be.

Just saying. And I'm right.

Why I Am An Angry Voter

Some Democrats In Name Only don't get no respect. And it's not because they aren't real Democrats with real progressive values; it's because they aren't perceived as worth the effort by the Democratic National Establishment.

The National Democratic Establishment is precisely the reason why I am reluctant to vote for anyone but a 3rd party if I find myself in a lesser or two evils situation.

Case in point, both in Arkansas, (where I won't be voting anyway since I don't live there):

1. Bill Halter, clearly the more progressive, vs. Blanche Lincoln in the Democratic primary earlier this year.

Lincoln squeaked through that one when she clearly shouldn't have because the national Democratic party refused to move left...not one fucking inch.

Sen. Bob Menendez, chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, said in a statement that Arkansas Sen. Blanche Lincoln has "proven once again she is a true independent voice for the people of Arkansas."

They were not willing to follow the winds within the local Democratic camp, frustrated by Lincoln being a true DINO, and thinking her incumbency would prevail in the end. Wrong. Bad move, and Democrats will pay that price on November 2nd.

2. Joyce Elliott vs. Tim Griffin (Karl Rove protoge) in Arkansas' 2nd congressional district.

The 2nd district, dominated somewhat by Pulaski county (Little Rock), a reliably Democratic district, being vacated by Democrat Vic Snyder, is slated to swing heavily in favor of Republican Griffin this year. I chalk this up to two facts: a) Elliott has the same skin color as the much-hated Kenyan president, and b) the Democratic committee wrote her off as a loser and spent their supporting funds elsewhere...Harry Reid comes to mind.

So...pardon me if I refuse to automatically throw my support to the Democrats, even in a state where they have a chance to win, if I'm not even 10% as enthusiastic about their positions and their candidacy (thinking Democrat Bill White of Texas) as I would have been had I been able to vote for Halter and Elliott.

This is why I get frustrated by the guilt-trip that voting for a 3rd party is a wasted vote, or that we must hold our noses in many cases and vote for the Democrats because the Republican alternative is repugnant. Yes, the Republican alternative is quite often a disaster of epic proportions waiting to happen, but voting for some Democrats is like rewarding the abusive spouse. Some of us are fucking fed up with the abuse and are ready to walk away.

I don't want to hold my nose when I vote. I don't want to reward greed and corruption in an effort to avoid more greed and corruption when I vote. I want to hold my head up and vote with pride for someone I'd be thrilled to represent me in office. Someone who is on the record as shutting down the bullshit. Even if they don't stand a chance in hell of winning.

If enough people would do this, it would send a message, sooner or later. We need to stop playing the money game and the bullshit game.

Boehner Fails in Cigarette Promotion

Too bad the Boehner doesn't share the same attitude about pot, something which actually has some benefits.

Mr. Boehner said he and other Americans should have the right to decide for themselves.

Yeah, tell that to the tens of thousands (and I'm being nice) of Americans serving time for marijuana convictions.

Fucker.

"Christ, What a Hysteric"

The HBO series "True Blood" is all the rage these days. Rolling Stone devoted a cover to it. And it's pretty humorous if you want my opinion, given that it is a vampire series. I mean, come on, how do you promote a vampire series without fangs or blood?

[Oh, screw you, Bhotofucket!] Glad I keep backups:




Someone was offended by it. And I didn't create the title of this post; she did, along with a "Trigger warning for sexualized violence."

I've heard that about me.

Please. Can we separate fiction from reality? I know it's all too easy to draw them together with metaphors, but... just saying. Get a grip. (And regarding that boob grip, they are a couple. Wanna do it in fake blood? Be my guest! Free country!)

Some of us still have the ability to make distinctions and draw lines.

Fuck CAMP

I hate CAMP. So damn stupid.

"To point out the obvious, in almost 30 years, CAMP has been unable to reduce marijuana use or availability," said Mike Meno, communications director for the Marijuana Policy Project. "All it does is pay for law enforcement officers to go out in the woods and pull weeds. Every year, they find more and more, and that just motivates illegal growers to plant more."

"CAMP is an enormous waste of money -- I've even heard law enforcement refer to this as helicopter rides," said Margaret Dooley-Sammuli of the Drug Policy Alliance in Los Angeles. "It's fun for them, but spending this money on that doesn't do any good, and that's a shame when we're in such dire budgetary shape on all levels."

Bite Me, Bhotofucket!

I was just in my Photobucket account when I noticed they have shitcanned another round of photos I've been using on my blog. In one album, a photo titled "janetboob" as received the big red TOU flag. Come on, it's been sitting in the account how long??

Then I jumped to an album where I store recurring images for use when I need them: the children of the Westboro Baptist Church idiots holding up the "God Hates Faggots" sigh, the Flying Spaghetti Monster poster which I had in my sidebar, and lastly the graphic I use for my "Factoids from the Deep" posts. It featured the creature from the lagoon going after a naked woman who had all her naughty ladybits covered up with black dots anyway.

This screen shot I took (above) is also stored in my Photobucket album, aptly named "Bhotofucket."

I seriously need to find another less-anal offsite storage for photos that's cheap or free. Anyone have a favorite? This has been going on with me and Photobucket for quite some time and I've had enough. Remember the problems I had with photos of vegetables in the shape of penises?

I'm done with Bhotofucket.

Hurry Up and Wait

I seriously have a love/hate relationship with airlines. And when you factor in things like the TSA it really tilts in the direction of hate. But at least I'm not dealing with that tonight.

I'm just sitting around waiting for txrad's flight to get off the ground in Denver so I'll know for sure when I need to leave here to pick him up. He should have already been airborne by now but the flight is delayed 65 minutes due to a "mechanical" issue.

As I was typing that sentence, txrad called my cellphone to say the scheduled departure is now 9:20 Denver time instead of 9:10.

At least I can sit here at home and be tired and grumpy... waiting. Poor txrad already was facing a long layover which has now amounted to about 4 hours in the Denver airport. That's equal to a round-trip flight between Denver and Austin.

What a waste of time. I guess that's one reason airports have lots of bars.

UPDATE: Oh for fuck's sake! The flight is now delayed another half hour and will not depart until 9:40 Denver time. Cancel the damn flight already!

Assuming it leaves then, I won't need to be at the airport until 1 AM.

I Hate To Say This

But we might need to start thinking about a challenger to President Barack Obama in 2012..from the true left.

That address to the nation tonight just about sealed the deal for me.

But thankfully, most of us are engaged in Mafia Wars, and Farmville, and SocialCity, and we don't need to be concerned with reality in the least.

Come the fuck on, people! Are we gonna sit around planting virtual crops and harvesting a perfect bouquet, or are we gonna change some shit?

Just curious.

Pelosi DID Have the Votes!

Finally, on Sunday, the House passed health care reform! The historic vote was 219-212.

It's very clear who the assholes are, and their constituents need to show them the exit.

Let's start with Boehner. I've been completely fed up and disgusted lately with him and his ilk spewing nonsense.

The House Republican leader, Representative John A. Boehner of Ohio, said lawmakers were defying the wishes of their constituents. “The American people are angry,” Mr. Boehner said. “This body moves forward against their will. Shame on us.”

Sorry, dude. Do you mind if I call you dude? You got it all wrong. You represent a district in Ohio, not the nation as a whole, and whether or not your agenda truly reflects your constituents, or just your well-to-do, white right-wing Republican constituents, remains to be seen.

If you look at the map of voting patterns by members of the House, it would seem to me that a slim majority did indeed follow the wishes of their constituents: the left coast, New England, more lefty segments of the midwest, the independent progressive areas of the Southwest, and some impoverished areas of the Deep South where people most definitely should benefit from this reform measure.

So, in short, Rep. Boehner, with all due respect, blow your inaccurate statement right out your ass. And there are quite a few of your esteemed colleagues I'd like to see packing their shit up in boxes.

Representative Paul D. Ryan, Republican of Wisconsin, denounced the bill as “a fiscal Frankenstein.”

Representative Lincoln Diaz-Balart, Republican of Florida, called it “a decisive step in the weakening of the United States.”

Representative Virginia Foxx, Republican of North Carolina, said it was “one of the most offensive pieces of social engineering legislation in the history of the United States.”

Bullshit. Enough of these tea-baggeresque inaccurate theatrics. Without a doubt, these selfish, hypocritical, reprehensible stink bombs who pass themselves off as leaders will continue their fight against fairness and compassion for millions of Americans who struggle daily against a corrupt system favoring huge profits for executives and shareholders at the expense of Americans in dire need.

I sincerely hope they pay a price at the polls someday.

The legislation is far from perfect, and frankly I am embarrassed that this is the best the United States of America can do right now, with the slimmest of margins. However, the alternative would have been unthinkable and far worse. At least now we have a door wedged open which will allow us, in the future, to improve upon what we now have, to reap the harvests of what's right about it, and to repair what is still broken, such as the outrageous hardships imposed on women who want or need an abortion.

Despite my embarrassment that this is the best we could do after such a long hard slog over the past year, I will still take it with pride that we are moving forward again.

It is a rare day when I can say this, but I am very proud of President Obama and especially Nancy Pelosi today. I am proud of the 219 Democrats (well, most of them. Stupak is still a jerk.) who voted to send this important legislation to the President's desk.

Feeling good about the direction of America is such a rare event, I feel as if I'm dreaming.

Click the map to visit the New York Times Interactive Map of Votes.

Lastly, I'd like to give a special shout-out to Representatives Mike Ross and particularly Marion "Good Riddance" Berry, both Arkansas Democrats. Rep. Berry was initially on this NYT map yesterday as a yes vote and somehow turned into a no vote. Given that Rep. Berry represents a huge swath of the poverty-ridden Mississippi Delta in eastern Arkansas, this is a shameful vote. "Good riddance" indeed. Both of those votes should have mirrored District 2 which you'll notice on the map in western Mississippi. Kudos to Bennie Thompson of that state for actually showing some guts and rational leadership. You made a Delta boy proud.

Marion Berry's pathetic spineless excuse? That the anti-abortion provisions of the bill don't go far enough. So, it's better to continue punishing children born into poverty without access to health care. Nice going, prick.

The Watch List

My name could just as easily have been Al Green but it wouldn't take much effort for someone to figure out I'm not the Al Green. I shouldn't even need to make an attempt to sing "Take Me to the River" to prove it.

So, why does the TSA have such a fucking hard time figuring obvious things out, and applying logic?

The Transportation Security Administration, under scrutiny after last month’s bombing attempt, has on its Web site a “mythbuster” that tries to reassure the public.

Myth: The No-Fly list includes an 8-year-old boy.

Buster: No 8-year-old is on a T.S.A. watch list.

“Meet Mikey Hicks,” said Najlah Feanny Hicks, introducing her 8-year-old son, a New Jersey Cub Scout and frequent traveler who has seldom boarded a plane without a hassle because he shares the name of a suspicious person. “It’s not a myth.”

Michael Winston Hicks’s mother initially sensed trouble when he was a baby and she could not get a seat for him on their flight to Florida at an airport kiosk; airline officials explained that his name “was on the list,” she recalled.

The first time he was patted down, at Newark Liberty International Airport, Mikey was 2. He cried.

He was 2. Honestly, I just don't think I have it in me to continue with this absurdity. What can I say to top that? Who is training these people? Maybe they should just change his name to Winston Michael Hicks.

Mario Labbé, a frequent-flying Canadian record-company executive, started having problems at airports shortly after Sept. 11, 2001, with lengthy delays at checkpoints and mysterious questions about Japan. By 2005, he stopped flying to the United States from Canada, instead meeting American clients in France. Then a forced rerouting to Miami in 2008 led to six hours of questions.

“What’s the name of your mother? Your father? When were you last in Japan?” Mr. Labbé recalled being asked. “Always the same questions in different order. And sometimes, it’s quite aggressive, not funny at all.”

Fed up, in the summer of 2008, he changed his name to François Mario Labbé. The problem vanished.

Hmm. Easy enough. So what's the point of this stupid "watch list" anyway? Can they tie the names to an actual photograph, or a description of the person on the list? That might make it easier for the TSA screeners to tell the difference from a potential terrorist and a baby traveling with his or her mother or parents.

Even with some interesting connections, the absurdity didn't stop.

Mrs. Hicks, a photojournalist who herself got Secret Service clearance to travel aboard Air Force II with then-Vice President Al Gore, anticipated additional chaos following the attempted underwear bombing. Before leaving for the Bahamas on Jan. 2, she reached out to Congressman Pascrell’s office, which then enlisted a T.S.A. agent to meet the family at the airport. Even this did not prevent Mikey from an extra pat-down.

Is there no way out from this maddening chaos? I really hate to think that I may never fly again but unless they get this bullshit under control, it's going to need to be a dire emergency to get me within five miles of an airport.

The Big Problem

In a 38-24 vote, the New York State Senate rejected a same-sex marriage bill.

“Certainly this is an emotional issue and an important issue for many New Yorkers,” said Senator Tom Libous, the deputy Republican leader. “I just don’t think the majority care too much about it at this time because they’re out of work, they want to see the state reduce spending, and they are having a hard time making ends meet. And I don’t mean to sound callous, but that’s true.”

Yes, it is true. But this issue has nothing much to do with the "majority;" it's about those of us in the minority who are being denied equality in having our relationships equalized with those in the majority.

Oh, and it's also about the Bible.

During debate, Sen. Ruben Diaz, a conservative minister from the Bronx, led the mostly Republican opposition.

“If you put this issue before the voters, the voters will reject it,” Diaz said. “Let the people decide.”

Sen. Eric Adams, D-Brooklyn, challenged lawmakers to set aside their religious beliefs and vote for the bill. He asked them to remember that once even slavery was legal.

“When I walk through these doors, my Bible stays out,” Adams said.

“That’s the wrong statement,” Diaz countered later. “You should carry your Bible all the time.”

Fucking ridiculous. And a VERY big problem.

I Beg To Differ

It's been a hard week with no blogging, but txrad and I are discussing politics, the state of the nation, let's be jolly, come on and share the good times while we can, along with the sunshine, there's gotta be a little rain, sometimes.

Afghanistan came up, along with a major cramp in my left foot.

30,000 young and unemployed bodies isn't so bad to put on the front line for a cause that is about as clear as oil.

Jimmy Carter was not owned by anyone except his god. The press derides him as the worst president ever, when in fact, he was among the best.

Sometimes we'll cry.... and we'll know why...just you and I...

Because you know, the Presidency is a high office. Shhhh, tis 4:20.

And higher ups don't let high control things. The president is a FUCKING PUPPET.

There. Was that enough? Did I satisfy a need? A posting gap?

Now I've just got to let the next Nancy Sinatra tune enter my realm.

Political Reform

Let's keep this simple. Here's what we need:

1. Ban political parties and their machinery. No Democrats, No Republicans, No Greens, no Independents like Lieberman, just people.
2. Ban political contributions greater than $100.
3. Ban political advertisements in any medium, since it's all negative lies and bullshit anyway.
4. Make politicians run on their individual personal platforms.
5. They get their message out via interviews and website propaganda.


Reform. Are you ready?