Groothuis's Hypocrisy on Civility

Lately Mr. Groothuis, over at The Constructive Curmugeon, posted something about publishing civil discourse on his blog, including the following thought: "As is typical, Darwinists insult, condescend, and label anyone who disagrees as an ignoramus. The policy of this blog is to not post insults and invective." (Emphases added.)

Hmmmm, really? Labeling others as ignoramuses is not civil, perhaps ad-hominem? But a quick search of his blog reveals the use of the word ignoramus(es) several times (see below). The author? Why, Groothuis himself. No one should take lessons on civility from a theocratic censor.

• Slippery slopes do exist. Legalizing abortion on demand led to an overall cheapening of unborn life in America. The argument was that abortion would only occur in "hard cases"--threats to the mother's life, extreme fetal deformity, etc. Now people have abortions for sex selection and to murder Down's babies--80-90% of which are now killed before birth. The slope is real, Mr. Jones. To say otherwise to be be [sic] a flagrant (if popular) ignoramus. (From "Tony Jones on Perverse Unions". Of Jones he also said this: "He stares into the camera and opines idiocy with great smugness...")


• But Obama, like the good liberal ignoramus that he is, trusts "the international community" (read the UN) more than the historic strength of his own country. The foolishness of this man is breath-taking, mind-boggling, and bone-chilling. (From "Ignoramus In Chief")


• Any presidential candidate who claims he does not know when human life begins or when a fetus gets human rights is both a moral and biological ignoramus and unfit for The White House. (From "Propositions to Ponder Considering the Presidency")

That is not all, of course.

Groothuis calls "ignorant Americans" people who are swayed by "Obama's pseudo-gravitas" (in "It Gets Still Worse: O's Anti-Semitism Connection.") He calls "ignorant Christians" those who do not share his own view on abortion (in "Obama on 'The Least of These'.") He said that "The euphoria over Obama can only be explained on the basis of massive ignorance and massive credulity." (From "Review of Mark Levin, Tryanny [sic] and Liberty", emphases added. One can just assume that those who voted for Bush's first term, and especially for second, were enlightened Christians--oxymoron anyone?)

You know, I am no Christian, but even I remember hearing something about "casting the first stone" or being good "examples to the flock."

Had enough of condescending hypocrites, yet?

Sha-really?

I read this in disbelief, obviously on the pages of The Constructive Curmudgeon, who earns yet another dishonorable mention in the annals of blogging with this post about the truly dismal and ill-conceived Stupak-Pitts amendment (in that it discriminates against a class of women--poor women--while preserving the right to any kind of abortion for those who can afford one):

"I am somewhat happy about this vote, but...what this means, if the public (statist) option goes through, is that many women may claim rape or incest in order to get federal funds. When the civil government promises to pay, many people lie to get it. Consider all the Medicare fraud going on! That means pro-life people will be paying for abortion that they do not agree with."

Yes, I can just see scores of accidentally impregnated women ruining their brothers or fathers' lives under baseless accusations of incest, or accusing strangers of rape so they can get that much sought after abortion. To make a statement like the one in italics, Groothuis must really have no shame, no morals. The solution for reducing fraud and abuse is obviously not to ban a service, product or whatever, for all. It is to go after those guilty of fraud. But the worst has yet to come:

"In fact, I do not think rape or incest justifies abortion, since a human being has been conceived, however wrongfully. You don't solve one problem (illicit, immoral intercourse) by another one (aborting an innocent human being made in God's image). I do not want my money going to pay for these abortions." (Emphases added.)

Hey Doug, guess what? Not everybody on this planet is convinced that we are all made in your god's image. (How cruel would that be?) You and your fellow theocrats must stop interfering with the non-privileging covenant that the Founding Fathers you revere when it's convenient to you have made for posterity.

Moreover, as stated before, I do not want my tax dollars going for illegal wars or to subsidize education at Christian colleges, but you know what? Shit happens in a pluralistic society.

And regarding the ludicrous, deliriously theocratic statement that one should force a victim of rape or incest to carry the pregnancy to term (why, because it's a gift from god?) in spite of the will of the unwanted fetus's host, the raped mother, I am really sorry that there is no hell bad enough (or no hell at all) for people like you, Mr. Groothuis. People who believe in the Constitution and freedom only as long as it conforms with their fanatical, fairy-tale-modeled view of how things should be.

Now tell me: for a non-believing American, given the statements Mr. Groothuis made in his truly appalling post, what is the difference between an Islamic extermist and a Christian extremist? (I am not talking about terrorists, of which Christians re not devoid, either.) Theocrats are theocrats, the world over, no matter what jersey they wear.

Close as it is to Sharia law, you could call Mr. Groothuis's view of a truly Christian society "Sha-really". Truly evil and shameful, whatever your intentions.

Teabaggers: Swallow This! (Pill)

Health care reform has passed the House. Well, I never!

One Republican even voted for it. So not all Republicans are heartless, politically and financially motivated dicks. All, that is, but one. Congratulations for being on the losing side of morality, history, and politics.

Another Hero: Earl Blumenauer, D-OR

To paraphrase: Republicans could have passed anything they wanted on health care during the 6 years when they and Bush controlled everything. They did not. They have met the challenge "not to govern".

Jim McDermott (D-WA), My New Hero

Just heard a one minute speech by Jim McDermott on the floor of the House. In a nutshell? Republicans hate government. They did nothing when they had all the power. Remember what they did during Katrina? Clear, concise, cruelly true.

When/if a clip of McDermott' speech is available, I will post it.

My Dream Outcome for the House Health Care Vote

The health care reform bill passes by one vote: Rep. Owens (D-NY-23). Bachmann, Palin, and Limbaugh choke on one of the pieces of crap they have been dishing out to the teabagging crowd. Oh, wouldn't that be sweet?

How Will the House Health Care Reform Plan Affect You?

McJoan at the Daily Kos has found a practical and useful interactive tool that you can use to see how the House's Affordable Health Care for America Act will affect you, based on your current coverage situation.

Listening to Speaker Nancy Pelosi from the House Floor

It sounds like we have the votes to pass, H.R. 3962 on health care reform. The road will still be long and difficult. Passage in the Senate is not guaranteed.

I have to say, having listened to about 2.5 hours of debate, that Republicans are--for the most part--sour grape dickheads. For about half of the 2.5 hours they have done nothing but fear-monger, lie, misrepresent, and acted like their plan is far better. On the contrary the Congressional Budget Office says, in so many words, that their plan is a fraud. Not only that, they had years since 1994 to do something about health care reform. Instead, they chose to obstruct, defend the status quo, and make the lives of hundreds of million of Americans more miserable than they already were.

To this moment, they are still talking about the fact that this bill will destroy jobs, increase taxes, kill seniors, land Americans in jail, lie, after lie, after lie.

What the Repugnant Ones' don't say in their floor speeches is that taxes will be raised by 5.4% on individuals making more than $500,000 and couples making more than $1 million a year.

What they also don't say is that small businesses that the bill is supposed to put out of business because of health care mandates are exempt below a certain size or income.

What they refuse to acknowledge is the fact that guaranteed health coverage is particulary important now that unemployment has broken the 10% threshold, and that real unemployment (which includes those who are looking for full-time employment but can only find part-time jobs or who have stopped looking altogether) has reached 17.5%.

They accuse Democratic health care bills to forecast cost increases of 8% a year (a dubious claim, to be sure), omitting the fact that health insurance companies have been increasing premiums at a yearly pace of 12%.

They warn us about skyrocketing deficits when in fact the CBO has projected that in the first 10 years of the bill's implementation costs will be reduced by $100 billion.

They want to scare us into thinking that the government will play interference between doctors and patients, when in fact the American Medical Association, the AARP, and countless other medical advocacy groups (including nurses and other practitioners) back the Democratic reform plan.

And finally, the Repugnant Ones keep misrepresenting the cost of the bill, putting it at $1.3 trillion over ten years, where in fact the CBO has rated the cost at $894 billion. Consider the fact that Republicans have not had any qualms about supporting Bush's three trillion dollar war or voting for this year's defense budget of $600 billion.

This is why Republicans have earned the moniker of Repugnant Ones. There is nothing they won't do or say to protect the moneyed interests that promote their careers, no matter what the cost, in dollars and lives, to the American people.

On the Fort Hood Killings and Islamophobia

The man responsible for the slaughter of 12 comrades and the injuries sustained by many others at Fort Hood was a Muslim. So the Islamophobic crowd has lost no time decrying Islam and Muslims, as if all Muslims were equal. You can see what I mean below.



No one questions that the action of Major Hasan are unspeakable and no one doubts that Islamic terrorism is a problem. But no one should forget that we do not yet know if this is an act of terrorism or simply one of rage (big difference), nor that many Muslims serve honorably in the U.S. military, day in, day out. Often these soldiers are subjected to the harassment and the suspicions of their comrades, but they still choose to discharge their duty with honor among many difficulties. That's why I am posting the picture below, as a reminder that bigotry and hatred are as worth fighting against as terrorism is.


You should read this article, too, from the Huffington Post.

Ft. Hood Killings

I am not very familiar with the ways of the Military, so I was surprised to learn--in the wake of today's killings at Fort Hood, that soldiers do not typically carry weapons on base. Only military police and authorized security personnel do. This was a shocking revelation, because every time there is a shooting at a school, in a civic centre, or any public place whatsoever, the Second Amendment freaks (as opposed to ordinary Second Amendment supporters) always say that if teachers, students, employees, the general public (anyone really) carried a weapon all the time we would not have anything to fear, or--at the very least--we'd be able to respond to fire with fire.

I always thought such argument insane, and I was heartened to hear Lt. General Robert W. Cone, commanding officer at Fort Hood, say this about the fact that soldiers do not carry weapons withing the base's confines: "As a matter of practice, we don't carry weapons here, this is our home."

The GOP Health Care Reform Plan

Previously I wrote that Republicans believe that there is nothing wrong with health care, nothing to fix. I was wrong. Republicans do not think that things are not bad. They think they are not bad enough.

If you think that's hyperbole, read this.

Kos Gets It. Do Democrats?

The latest post at the Daily Kos is titled Motivate the Base. It contains the following explanation of Conservadem logic:

1.Do nothing this year, so they can get reelected
2.So they can do nothing again next cycle, so they can be reelected
3.So they can stick around to name post offices and issue "National Bratwurst Day" proclamations

Nailed it.

Names Of The Dead

Rep. Alan Grayson (D-FL) came up with a few pretty brilliant ideas. For example, this week he recited the number of deaths in each congressional district attributable to lack of health care. Needless to say, Republicans went ballistic about it.

Another great idea was to create the website Names of the Dead, which lists people who died for lack of health care and their stories. You should visit it, particularly if you are a reform skeptic. And if you are not, then pass it on to those who are.

Rep. Grayson quoted Truman, who--as one of his supporters pleaded with him to give his opponents hell during the 1948 presidential campaign--replied: "I never give them hell. I just tell the truth and they think it's hell."

Some things never change.

The Problems With Last Night's Election Results

Markos Moulitsas of the Daily Kos has this interesting analysis of last night's election results: The Democratic base collapsed.

The risk is that other experts will explain the defeat of the Democrats who ran for governor in NJ and Virginia with their unpopularity or the fact that they ran bad campaigns. I don't buy that explanation, because while there are some bad Democrats, and god knows there are many, the alternative--Republicans--is even worse. The real problem is Democrats who do not stand up for the values they were elected for, as Markos explains in his post.

Another problem is that in time of economic crises a majority of electors still buys the Republican rhetoric that the solution to everyone's problems lies in lower taxes (which benefit middle- and lower-class Americans only marginally) and fewer regulations (which never benefit anyone other than corporations or the very wealthy), in spite of all contrary evidence, which by now abounds. These solutions have been tried over and over again by Republicans over the last 30 years and--while they may bring a small dose of temporary relief--they wreak havoc and lead to disaster for average Americans in the long run. It is hard to believe that the American people are so stupid that they keep buying the Republican "free-market" mantra, but the evidence is under eyes. We look away at our peril.

The Clash of the Teeny-Minded Narcissists

McJoan at the Daily Kos gives a good analysis of Douche Lieberman's appearance (yesterday) on the eminently unwatchable Face the Nation. Both of these idiots (Lieberman and Schieffer) vie for relevance, one by prancing around the Senate with his Joker-like grin, threatening to single-handedly kill health care reform while the limelight shines on his ephemeral ego-boosting trip, the other being as insipid as possible and holding back the punches, in the hope he will get to moderate yet another presidential forum or debate before he, hopefully soons, abandons the stage.

They are both excellent examples of how mediocrity prospers in today's United States and how the media reward political pettiness.

Healthy Hypocrites

Jim Hightower chastises 55 particularly annoying hypocrites for fighting against the public option.

There ain't a hell hot enough for any of them.

Our Nation's Twisted Priorities

Read and grrrrrrr!!!

(Note: hc stands for health care)

This Man Is a Genius

Stephen Colbert is a genius. His staff, I am sure, deserves credit, too. But they are led by a true, indomitable genius. Period. Last night's episode of the Colbert Report is one for the ages. You can watch the best moments below.

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Joe Lieberman Is a True Independent
www.colbertnation.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor Religion

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
The Word - You-Genics
www.colbertnation.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor Religion

Returning DOUCHE Lieberman to Irrelevance

Senators Reid and Durbin (D-NV and D-IL, respectively) are open to majority vote to beat health care filibuster, thus returning DOUCHE Lieberman to the irrelevance he belongs to (complete with stripping him of all committee positions he currently holds, hopefully.)

My Letter to Douche Lieberman's Office

Dear Sen. Lieberman:

I am writing in dismay as I have just learned that you plan on supporting a GOP filibuster of any health care reform bill that contains a public option. Apparently, you oppose the inclusion of the public option in the final bill on grounds that it would be too expensive.

Two things: as Marcie Wheeler notes here (http://emptywheel.firedoglake.com/2009/10/27/hey-reporters-it-might-be-worth-pointing-out-lieberman-is-wrong-or-lying/) you are either misinformed or intentionally misleading. Worse, you had no qualms supporting what economists Linda J. Bilmes and Joseph E. Stiglitz called "the three trillion dollar war." Was that not expensive enough for you to oppose, Sen. Lieberman? And lest you should counter that health care reform is not an issue national security like 9/11 and terrorism, consider the fact that since 9/11 hundreds of thousands of Americans have died of preventable deaths, which proper and timely health care could have prevented or delayed.

Your argument against cost does not make sense, Senator. Which leads people of ordinary intellect like me to believe that something else is at play here. Whatever it is, do not shame yourself or the people you represent by denying the American people an idea whose time has come.

Angrily,