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MrScorpio's Journal - Archives
How the hell can we fix major problems with the issues of unemployment, the environment, Medicare, Social Security and the like when one side of the political spectrum is permanently fixated on, not only their own crotches, but the crotches of every single other person in this goddamned country? What is it with the Right Wing and the Republicans? Why is it that 90% of everything that they babble on about is crotch related? If Ziggy Freud were alive today, he'd have a field day with these so-called grown ass men and their utter inability to progress beyond the Phallic Stage. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychosexual_... "In a boy, a phallic-stage fixation might lead him to become an aggressive, over-ambitious, vain man." If that doesn't describe the Right Wingers as a whole, I don't know what does. Abortion, premarital sex, same sex issues, anchor babies, porn and on and on and on. Vitter is a fan of sexualized infantilism and Santorum is apparently stuck at the Anal Stage of development, which is a prelude to the Phallic Stage. If Man on Dog can bother to graduate to the next stage, he'd simply get stuck in the mud with the rest of his cohorts. Not much of an improvement. Lately, over here with the so-called adults, we've been stuck at the Weiner Stage. But it should be important to remember how we got here. More Wingers and their fixation on other peoples crotches, of course. In spite of what you think about the man himself, he had to be dragged kicking and screaming into this entire issue about his OWN crotch. And when ever was he fixated on the crotches of other people before this circus started? Anyone? When it comes to crotch fixation, the Left has nothing that comes close to what the Right is always up to. This is why we're always surprised and appalled when they make an issue out of it… It doesn't make any fucking sense. The fact is that we have things to fix, instead of getting bogged down in their crotch ogling as they are always wont to do. The biggest problem with the Right Wing's crotch fixation is that it's completely counter-productive TO fixing problems. Take abortion for example. No one wants an abortion if they can avoid it. ANY abortion provider with tell you this simple fact. So, why is this so hard for the Wingers to understand? The vast majority of elective abortions occur in the first trimester. Let's say we, as a nation, focused on promoting methods and medicines that prevented unwanted pregnancies instead. Assuming that fetuses that are carried to later terms are actually wanted, it should stand to reason that the vast majority abortions carried out in the later trimesters are not elective and are usually health related, such as endangering the mother's life or some kind of congenital defect. By reducing early abortions to a rate of nil through education and ready access to contraception and simply regarding late term abortions as undesired, yet necessary medical procedures, plus a concerted effort to promote more healthy pregnancies of those that are wanted, we'd pretty much eliminate abortion as a political issue in this country… Am I right? Except for one apparent conclusion: The Anti-Choice crowd are big fans of abortion as an issue. And will do everything that they can to keep someone else's crotch the center of all of our attentions. They're doing everything to keep people uneducated, kill off public medical services if abortion is otherwise provided, restrict access to health insurance, fight the development and access to contraceptives and so on… These are things that would actually PROMOTE abortions and NOT reduce them. But instead, they promote hatred of women as sexual beings, promote misogyny by telling women that they shouldn't have control over their own bodies and remain focused on the prenatal issues with a virulent form of fetus worship. As George Carlin once quipped: "If you're pre-born, you're fine, if you're pre-schooled, you're fucked." Gawd forbid that these fetus worshippers would actually care about raising happy, healthy children into good productive citizens who can look forward to a decent standard of living. I mean that's just too fucking hard for these assholes. It should be obvious to a blind person why the Wingers are so enamored with crotch related issues to the detriment of EVERYTHING else other than lining their own pockets… That's ALL they got. They're completely INCOMPETENT. This Crotch fixation game that they have going on is nothing more than a ruse to get people roused. It's phony moralism, because they really don't care about anyone else other than themselves. If they didn't become the Crotch Party of America, they'd be as dead as Julius Caesar as a political force. It's a survival tactic in its purest form. The funny thing is that they're allowed to go along with it, as if it's the legit thing to do. The corporations that own our media helps them promote this bullshit, because if we actually looked around and saw are fucked we really are, we wouldn't be focusing so much on everyone else's crotch and would actually get shit done. If we got shit done, those corporations might not all be sitting as pretty as they are. Soooo… It's become that we as a country should be labeled "Crotches 'r Us" instead of the United States of America, because of our apparent love of crotches. We'd be a country that makes our own goods, fixes our road and bridges, generates clean and renewable energy, educates our population, gives everyone access to cheap and free healthcare, reduces the building of an unnecessary global war machine, if we left everyone else's crotch alone. It really took me a bit of time to see the big picture, but when I read story after story with all Wingers essentially saying the same over and over and over again, the picture comes into sharp focus… They're completely unable and unwilling to pull their heads from their own asses. 
It's because we make a national pastime of kicking people when they're down. One bad break brings a lot more insults to injuries. It doesn't matter what "side" you're on. All sides do it gleefully.
Make a mistake and you're toast.
Lose your job, get a minor conviction, get caught doing something that you otherwise shouldn't be doing and you might as well hang yourself. Because you're going to fall off the planet, at least where this country is concerned. Once you're shit outta luck, there are lots of people who can exploit your shit-outta-luckness with a very lucrative and perfectly legal business model.
Hell, you don't even have to screw up… All you need to have done to you is to be classified as an "outsider". Then you're NEVER legit.
Disenfranchising voter rolls, mass round ups of undocumented workers, denigrating public servants and private sector community workers… It's all part of the game.
When people are classified as "useless" and kicked to the curb en masse, then a cycle starts that never stops…
We can never stop looking for Wiccans to immolate. Too much fun!
The rest of us, we're scared of being next. Which is exactly how the big boys love to have us.
Besides we shouldn't ask for whom the fiery stake burns, right? For at any given time, it could burn for us.
So, I don't apologize for taking sides and staying loyal… After all, I'm a Scorpio, that's how we roll. I stick with Democrats and have done so all my life, even when they screw up. At least I have a side to stick with. When a Democrat is down, I'd rather pick him or her up. I'd rather be a friend and lend a hand up, instead of someone who turns his back. What embarrasses me isn't what someone else does, it would be if I turned my back on a friend.
I don't think that I could look at myself in the mirror if I did that.
Which is why it bothers me that the same goes for the poor, the unemployed, the person paying back their debt to society and the people who are trying to make a better life for their families even if they have to cross some artificial border, and the cheer squad is always out to get them. The chorus is happy to say, " Gimme an F ...u ...c ...k ...'e ...m ...a ...l ...l. What does that spell? FUCK 'EM ALL!" Nothing leaves and emptiness in the pit of my soul like shit like that.
I'd rather look for the best possible deal for everyone, rather than cheering on the select few genetic lottery winners, as they roll their loaded dice and win again.
I figure that we're all better off when we're ALL better off.
If we want to turn this country around, we should all be a bit more loyal to ourselves and look out for each other, instead of promoting the rich fuckers who are getting even richer by getting us all to fuck each other over… And cheering about it.
Each of those little dots aren't stars… They're not even galaxies… Or even clusters of galaxies… They're SUPERCLUSTERS of countless galaxies.  Notice how our supercluster (The Virgo Supercluster) is so close to the center? That's because we can only see to a certain limit in all directions. Just imagine what's beyond our limits. Who knows, maybe even Superclusters of universes! Makes you feel kinda small, don't it? So, when you're so busy thinking about your worries, something like this should shed a different light on the big picture… At least I hope it does. Have a Happy D-Day.
At the expense of the no-so-well-off many, then you get the situation that we find ourselves in America today:
Where pain, exploitation and misery becomes so ridiculously profitable, because it's admired and promoted as a national pastime.
Where honesty, kindness and compassion aren't really considered virtues, they're relegated to a definition of weakness.
Where the dreams of one's avarice is a goal to be strived for.
Where the diminishment of other human beings is a sport.
Where a person's own shame and fears become the impetus for imposing as much misery as they can upon others.
Where truth dies early and often.
Where unconditional love is as rare as air is on the ocean's floor.
Is this right?
Where are we going and what will happen when we get there? And when we do, will we freely admit that it's something that we've done to ourselves?
What's to be gained for all of us if we sacrifice our dignity, compassion, love, honesty, kindness and willingness to be humane for something that hurts us all in the end?
What must we do to resolve these problems and do we have the will to do so?
I don't know.
But in the interim, we can take some time out for something else...
Think with me, if you can, about the good people who have given us so much and taught each of us what it means to be a good person... Remember what they meant to us this day,
Remember the lessons that they taught us about what it means to be a decent human being. To those who have given us the tools to help find a better way.
Thank you and may you have a peaceful Memorial Day.
The mere fact that the Right can spout just about any kind of utter bullshit about people that they hate (Dems, the Poor, the Undocumented, Non-Heteros, Union Members, Non-Xtians) and to an all too willing audience, who'll gladly scarf up that fecal smorgasbord like a starving castaway should tell ANY thinking person that it's never been about the QUALITY of the message… It's about the CREDIBILITY of the messenger in those slimy circles.
There's a technical term for this phenomenon, but I forgot what that is a while back… I'm sure that you smart folks know what I'm talking about.
So you can't talk sense into these hateful, GOP humming folks with facts and figures, while they're expecting a big payoff all over their already pasty white faces from the turgidity of their corporate prostituting idols… You're better off finding the nearest wall and whisper sweet-sweet nothings into an electrical socket.
No, what has to be done is that we have to go after the CREDIBILITY of the Right Wing message machine. And for this, you have to play dirty; you get the messengers to admit ON CAMERA just how fucked up they are and you blast that shit all over the place.
The reason that the MSM WON'T do this is because their paychecks DEPEND on a constant flow of bullshit… If things go too well for the Democrats, you can bet, dollars to donuts, that they'll bring in and certify the ramblings of ANY whacked out Right Wing Lie Jockey, just to "create" the illusion of a debate.
They'll sit there nodding their carefully coiffed, pointy little noggins in a state of blissful abeyance, as a vomitinous spew of inanities launch out of the mouths of the Winger media whores like an errant MX missile on a mission from Gawd. Stop being angry at the media, they gave up any kind of honorable stake in a fair contract with the body politic a long-long time ago.
The job of spreading what the Teabaggerati infected Right Wing running dogs in elected office are openly saying has be done by ordinary people…. VIRALLY!
Newt the Snoot indicated, after his Ryan budget faux pas last week, that if your quote him in context and verbatim with uncut video tape as he assailed the Ryan plan, that it would be very problematic for him. The fucker just went and spil't the durn beans. THAT'S how you go after him and all the other repugnant GOP fucks out there… Use their own words.
It's nice for us the use viral media to demonstrate of callous, ignorant and rapacious nature of the elected slime devils in tailored suits, but it's another thing to move out of our comfort zone and demonstrate to the Rank and File that their leaders don't give a royal fuck up the ass about them either. You gotta spread the word. You have to be nice when you do it. You have to treat the Rank and FIle as if you're looking out for THEM against a class of assholes who wouldn't piss on them even if they were on fire.
These people are already apoplectic, what needs to be done is to SHIFT their apoplexy onto a proper target… Bring them motherfucking chickens home to roost.
Trust me, the results will be amazing…
And a whole lot of fun too.
I must say, that in all my years on DU, I have never seen a more dazzling display of utter nonsense peddled in a post than the one you've posted. A skill that you've demonstrated in the art that can be creditably compared to the works of Roethke or Morgenstern, or yet even a Suess or Carroll.
What a marvelous work of art it is… A veritable masterpiece of rhetorical BS, so full of complete non-sequiturs, circular logic, half-assed reasoning, fallacious arguments and strawmanisms, that if you could frame and hang it, that it would be put on prominent display in a museum like the Louvre or the Prada. This utterly verbose, yet totally unconvincing argument that you've so carefully constructed will definitely put you in the annals of some BS Hall of Fame, to be sure.
I must say that the way that you can fill a page with words, and yet, not make one convincing point at all renders you into a class all your own. And the way that you take a turn of a phrase so that it means absolute nothing, such as, "Whites in the US have a lot of historical privilege due to our history…", has to indicate some sort of mad genius at work here. As a matter of fact, you referred to either "history" or "historical" an overwhelming NINETEEN times by either not citing where you get your information from or by getting it all completely wrong.
Impressive, my friend… Most impressive.
How are you able to do this? The statistical probability of such an effort can only be described in terms of googles, as mere common numbers can't suffice to conceptualize what you've accomplished.
The way that you can even misrepresent your own stated positions was dazzling indeed. I think that a slow clap by all is appropriate at this juncture.
Your ability to wield repetition, much like the way Errol Flynn could wield a foil, demonstrates your all too considerable skill in the art of rhetorical merrymaking. Your entire argument is based solely around your premise that things are the way they are merely because you say they are. You then recycle it ad infinitum so adeptly that it is quite the indication of how you clued us all in to your brand of mad ingenuity. It's akin to a sort of fractal geometry of words.
At first, I wasn't sure of your keen abilities… But now you've gone and spilled all of the beans.
I must say that I admire you… You are quite the piece of work.
In conclusion, let me say that despite your skills at filling pages with words merely for the sake of filling pages with words, I can not in all honesty treat anything you've written with any kind of serious regard. Entertaining and noteworthy, yes… But not the work of effective debate or thoughtful consideration.
I fully expect you to double-down in reply, as is your wont… But I must kindly predict that such an effort on your part will be all in vain.
There is a concerted effort to undermine confidence in the Democratic Party on the net by right wing operatives.
Their main target is the President, of course, but it extends to all Democrats. It's absolutely NOT about promoting an actual Republican platform for running the nation instead of the Democrats... That's because the GOP actually hasn't figured out how to do that. They're too focused themselves on raiding the Treasury.
However, the web is chock full of all kinds of anti-Obama agit-prop, from stuff made in some kid's basement to carefully constructed OP-EDs from so-called "Democrats", who just happen to be on Fox News' payroll. Of course, the PUMAs love to add their digs as well. The Right provides lots of cartoons and opinion pieces for their own consumption and this stuff is conveniently available for any opposition-to-Obama minded Democrat who wants to make a point.
I figure it like this, perhaps there are people on the left who oppose the President and perhaps some of them MAY have supported him in the past, (Shallow support indeed, I say). But of course, a lot of the opposition comes from a segment of the left that has NEVER supported Democrats, but election season after election season, seek to glean as many votes as possible from Democratic voting blocks to pad their own numbers in failed attempts to get elected to office. Far be it from them to actually build support for themselves from independents, instead of trying to cannibalize Democratic voters.
That does two things, weakens Democratic voting blocks and stirs dissension among a large segment of Democratic voters. If I saw that kind of thing from a Right Wing perspective, I would view that disunion as a target rich environment.
The best way to do that is go into some site that has a large range of opinions about different things, (Not hard to find in any kind of Democratic site), and then commence to stir the pot.
Add "caveats" that "I've been a Democrat all of my life" and then state that that person's "dissatisfaction" with the President has made then angry and upset. The winger doesn't even have to out themselves by adding right wing talking points, because there's enough resentment already out there for folks to cheer on that rabble rouser. And be mean... The meaner the better, the cheer team just eats that up.
One good way to stir dissent is suggest that the President should get a primary. Since his 8 1/2 hour filibuster last week, some on the net are suggesting that Sen. Bernie Sanders take up that call to challenge the President. I can't think of a better way for right wing trolls out themselves, because as you and I both know, Bernie Sanders is a SOCIALIST PARTY MEMBER and NOT a Democrat. Democrats know better, most of your wingers couldn't be bothered with telling the difference.
And most of all, the Republicans themselves, with their utterly rock-solid obstructionist tactics are leading the way. In spite of the way that THEY play the game, I'm sure that all of them understand that most people aren't aware that the presidency is not a dictatorship and has severe limits on its power, the Senate Republicans understand this situation the best. So, our winger operatives are very much free to go around and portray the President as "weak" because Obama's preference for getting something (anything) out of a fractured Congress than nothing at all. Again, no Right WIng talking points are needed, just play on Democratic disunion.
These kind of comments are all over the net, it it's quite obvious that such a commonality of themes stems from a concerted effort.
I'm absolutely convinced that Democratic Sites are under attack at this very moment. And it's a shame.... It's a shame that Democrats themselves aren't differentiating our own penchant for differences of Left Wing and Democratic opinions from an actual Right Wing campaign to cripple our effectiveness.
But America is NOT a liberal country.
Frankly, it's NEVER been a liberal country and I can pretty much guarantee that it won't be a liberal country in any of our lifetimes.
Pretty much every progressive move that America has made throughout its existence has come about because of one of three reasons:
- Correction of a gross oversight
- Correcting of a rightward turn gone horribly wrong
- Somebody figured that they could make some money out of it
If America hasn't found a reason to go left, based on one of those three choices, then you can bet dollars to donuts, that it will go right.
Right is the default position in this country, along with reactionary and self-indulgent and spiced with a collective memory that's shorter than that of a two-day old puppy. You can forget appealing to American's reasoning that we're better off being a social-democracy like much of Europe. Let's face it, these are people who can't even figure out that English and Spanish are both European languages that are spoken on this side of the pond, not 'Murikan and Mexikin. So it's pretty easy for them to divorce the roads that they drive on and the clean water that they drink from the taxes that they need to pay to keep them drivable and drinkable.
So, it really is no surprise that the GOP made gains...
The American people weren't forced to reject them and they ALWAYS have to be forced to reject Republicans, they're the Golden Boys and BMOCs. Those guys make them feel good.
US? We're the Nerds... Although they may need the nerds to figure out how to fix all the problems that are created by the arrogant and incompetent Golden Boys, they'll never, ever love us.
We remind them too much that they have to face responsibility from time to time.
And responsibility is rarely ever fun or self-indulgent.
There are times when I look at other people on this planet and I wonder if I was dropped on the Earth by Aliens... Looking at this most recent conversation about the man/woman dynamic is just one of these times.
Before I start, let me say that I don't claim to know everything, I just know what works for me. Being raised primarily by women, however, I think gave me a head start.
Here are TEN things that you should consider when you're meeting women.
First up, women are HUMAN BEINGS. They're not objects of any kind, they're not property to be owned, or female dogs, or anything other than HUMAN BEINGS... they're PEOPLE. And they really appreciate it when you treat them like people.
Second, I'm willing to bet that a lot of them are smarter than you are... Especially, in that treating PEOPLE like PEOPLE department. It would help you in the long run if you really remembered that.
Third, since women are PEOPLE, of course there are good women and bad women, like people in general. Repeat: Basically the rules for both good and bad women are the same for PEOPLE in general. Bad women lie, cheat, steal and kill. Good women don't, just like people in general. Just because some strange woman that you meet in the street or a bar doesn't want to sleep with you, (because I guess that you're not treating her like a human being), it doesn't make her a bad person... As a matter of fact, chances are that she won't sleep in because you're acting like an ass probably and that, my friend, means that she's probably a GOOD PERSON instead.
Forth, A SECRET: Most women won't tell you this, but take it from me that most women are actually highly sexual people. That's right, women enjoy sex... Imagine that. But it comes with rules, of course:
1. Women prefer to choose whom they have sex with. Each woman has her own idea about whom they choose to have sex with, when and why.
2. If you're in doubt about whether a woman wants to have sex with you, refer to rule 1.
3. Harassing women on the street for sex is not a good way of going about changing their minds when they have decided that they don't wan't to have sex with you. Again refer to rule 1.
4. Rape is not sex, it's violence and women generally don't enjoy being violated.
Fifth, RESPECT for women goes a long way in getting women to like you. Sex may or may not be in the outing... But, it's best not to expect it to be. Respect for women has it's own special perks... Like friendship and not getting slapped with restraining orders.
Sixth, You're in no right position to judge any woman that you meet on her looks, her weight, her choice of attire, her drink of choice, her career, her choice of sex partners, her intelligence, or anything else about her... Unless she trusts you enough to ask you for your opinion. If you do have her permission to offer it, remember that RESPECT is the best way to go.
Seventh, when it comes to engaging her with rude language about sex, unless she gives you her permission, it's best to keep your mouth shut about the subject.
Eight, If you really can't fight the urge to say hello to a strange woman that you've never met before... The best way to go about it is just to say "hello", or "good day", don't leer or stare, or stalk her... Just extend a friendly, respectful greeting and be on your way. Chances are that you'll leave her with a favorable impression about yourself. If it's meant to be, it could work out in the long run.
Ninth, if you wouldn't say something to your own mom or sister, you probably shouldn't say it to a strange woman in a bar or on the street.
And finally tenth, if a woman doesn't want to talk to you, obviously you haven't taken into consideration anything that I've said. Which means more than likely, that you're doing it all wrong. So, start at the top of my list and try it all over again.
I'm sure that there things that I missed, but that about covered the basics. Once you get the hang of it, it really works well from there on out.
Of course, if anyone has any problems about what I've just wrote, feel free to let me know about it.
Have a pleasant day.
I've decided to erect a scale of stupidity to identify stupid people based on their political activity.
As always, this is completely non-scientific and utterly arbitrary.
Enjoy.
So far, I've identified four types of stupid people political activities and here they are:
The lowest level of stupid person consists of a someone that I'd like to call "The Doofus". Your standard Doofus is pretty harmless and is very much non-political. If a Doofus even bothered to vote, it'd be a major scandal in Doofus circles. Most of the time, whenever this happens, it's because a Doofus was so drunk that he mistook a polling place for a titty bar. And while in a drunken stupor he pushes buttons and flips levers and before you know it, he get's an "I voted" sticker slapped upside his forehead. Doofuses are always good for a laugh, great people to hang out with when you're in need of some booze and broads. And, most of all, a Doofus doesn't have a mean bone in his body.
Most of the time, you never have to worry about the political activities of Doofuses. They don't want or have any.
The next highest level is made up of "The God-Damned Idiots". I'm sure that you remember that rant that I posted earlier in the week. These people are almost like your Doofus, except that they feel an overwhelming need to delve into the miasma that is politics. And when they do, they quickly find themselves in way over their pointy heads. The problem with God-Damned Idiots is that they're always ill-informed or uninformed... And are always too stubborn and obtuse to realize that they need to change their ways. You'll usually find your standard God-Damned idiot holding a misspelled sign in a three person protest, or calling in on the Republican C-Span telephone line to complain about how badly Obama is leading America into Nazi Germany. God-Damned Idiots do vote. But they always vote AGAINST their best interests, because they're either mean spirited or too stupid to know better, or both. Don't discount greedy as well.
Your basic God-Damned Idiot is almost always a Teabagger.
At the third highest level we have "The Shit For Brains Dumbass". Shit For Brains Dumbasses are separate from the Doofuses and God-Damned Idiots in that they're so completely paranoid that being armed and dangerous is a necessity for them. These people think that Alex Jones and Glenn Beck and perfectly rational sources of information. They think that they need to act right away and use their guns against an oppressive US Government before their guns are taken away from their cold, dead fingers. Which is usually how their guns are taken from them eventually. Shit For Brains Dumbasses are quick to fear and anger and very slow to reason. Shit For Brains Dumbasses think that shooting something of someone is the best way to address their own paranoia issues.
We usually hear about these el stupidos whenever they're conducting wild shooting sprees, where they almost always end up dead with fifty million bullets in their asses.
The fourth and final level is made up of "The Fucking Morons". These are the most dangerous of them all... For they are the public office holders. Either elected or appointed, these incompetent brain donors have the ability to harm everything and everyone in their path due to fact that they can enact fucking moronic laws and regulations. Fucking Morons are great for advancing the Doomsday Clock a few ticks forward now and again. The nature of American laws is that they're supposed to cover the lowest common denominator, so their stupidity can affect us all. Illegal wars, tax breaks for the rich, bad economic policies and kicking poor people in the balls are just some their handiwork. They have the benefit of money and power backing their elections, and once in office, they have access to all of OUR money. The Fucking Morons love both the God-Damned Idiots and Shit For Brains Dumbasses alike... It's their base, baby. Once they're in office, it takes a shitload of effort to get them out.
Fucking Morons are not in officer for long, unless of course, their representing a place that's made up of mostly Doofuses, God-Damned Idiots and Shit For Brains Dumbasses who vote for them. If they don't last long, you can find them twirling up a storm on Dancing With The Stars.
There you have it, the four levels of political stupidity.
I'd like to dedicate this OP the the hard work of the great Fucking Moron, Rep. Louie Gohmert of Texas. He's an inspiration for stupid people far and wide.
You know, I've been giving some thought as to why nearly a third of Americans have consistently voted against their best interests for at least a good forty years. This phenomena is quite remarkable, when you think about it, that in the short history of industrialized constitutional republics, the United States of America has one the worst records of consistently providing quality of life comforts for all of its citizens. Even before American industrialization, merely being a non-while, non-male, non-rich, non-adult, non-English speaking, non-Christian, non-land owner meant that your life was going to be pretty much a living hell of constant toil and very little to show for it. Hence came the rise of the various labor, suffrage, abolition, civil rights, gay rights, immigrants rights and gender equality rights movements throughout the years, as well as a countless number of subsets of other, more specialized ones (If you've ever seen any protests by an enraged gaggle of geeks, dweebs, nerds, spazzes, furries or other assorted freaks, you'll know what I mean). It's always been a fight to get ahead in this country and stay there. There's nothing new about this; it was in all the history books for all of us to read about it in school... if we bothered to. And besides, it's quite natural for anyone to yearn for their piece of the pie. As a matter of fact, one of the best things about America is that the fight for the piece of the pie has been a battle that most of us were and are entitled to. Unfortunately in this country, getting the assholes who actually OWN the pie to share it has been our epic struggle since the time from when we wore powdered wigs and three cornered hats. We all were not equals back then (and many still aren't today) and there always seemed to be those who had their whips, truncheons, nooses or guns in hands to stand in the way of that quest for equality. The goal of universally applied rights and privileges is the cornerstone of American democracy, and once extended, should never be allowed to be taken aback. This is an important point that I had to make, so keep it under your hat, because I'm going to come right back to this later on. Given all that boring crap that I've just made you yawn with, I think that it's about time that I'd get to the point: So, why do Americans go out of their way to shoot themselves in the feet? Everyone's got an answer, of course, and we've heard them all. It's the fault of the politicians, the clergy, the media, the god-damned idiots, the snooty assed intellectuals, the banksters, Hollywood, the corporations, the lobbyists or whomever. No, I humbly propose another answer. I say that we're in this mess today because of the marvelous effectiveness and general pervasiveness of Good Old American Bullshit*. Bullshit is and what has always made America great. Everything in this country runs on it. Bullshit seeps out of all of our red-blooded American pores. Bullshit is always there, no matter where we go. Bullshit watches over all of us at night when we sleep (and yes, you Matrix fans, it's there when we pay our taxes). People in other countries yearn for our Bullshit, as they scarf it up and regurgitate back to us with everlasting glee. We dedicate entire industries and even whole cities to the manufacturing, exportation and promotion of our primo American product, pure, uncut Bullshit. Hey, what would Hollywood, New York and Washington DC be without it? It's no coincidence that the centers of entertainment, commerce, politics and finance go hand-in-hand with the highest concentrations of American Bullshit. No, as a matter of fact, It's quite essential that they do. They pursue each other in an obscene ballet of magnetic attraction. Money and power seeks bullshit and bullshit seeks money and power and it's an endless cycle that spreads itself centrifugally outward, engulfing us all mercilessly, with every revolution. How good is this stuff? DAMN good. Think about this, our Good Old American Bullshit* is so damn good that anyone, and I mean ANYONE, can be taken in by it. I don't care how smart and savvy you are, I guarantee that, at least once in your life, you've been taken in by its power. You could be young or old, rich or poor, fat man of skinny man or whatever, if you turn your back on it for a second, it'll get ya. Now, it's not to say that we have some kind of Bullshit monopoly in this country that no other countries have. Of course, not. But when you compare the quality and quantity of Bullshit that we produce in this country against all others, it's quite clear to the naked eye that we have them ALL beat down pat. When did Bullshit begin? Oddly enough, it began at the beginning. Bullshit was used to spread lies since day one in this country. Take the prime example of the Preamble of the Constitution: “We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America. This Bullshit was written at the very same time and was codified in the very same document to exclude whole classes of people from everything on that list, unless you were a white, land owning male. The very nature of all the struggles that I mentioned in the very first paragraph were based on the tremendous effort to reverse the utter Bullshit written in that one quote. The men who wrote those words and signed their names to the document knew full well that it was complete Bullshit AT THAT VERY MOMENT. They figured that it was more convenient to have their successors clean up their Bullshit, instead of telling the truth by saying that they're making the world safe for white guys and fuck everyone else. Bullshit operates in both form and function alike and is applicable in lot's of different ways even to this day. Take Coca-Cola, for example. Here we have a company that has operated globally, chiefly of the Bullshit premise that a substance that once had cocaine as an ingredient and is now composed of carbonated water, high fructose corn syrup or other sweeteners and various other additives is somehow more palatable than plain, fresh, clean water. Bullshit has made Cola-Cola into a multi-billion dollar corporation that's recognizable in every corner of the planet. Bullshit rules. So how does this work? It works because we let it work. Bullshit operates through a well oiled machine that produces Grade A American Product for what ever the occasion. You've got a situation? Yes, there is a solution. Facts, truth, faith and history are no match against the tremendous power of Good Old American Bullshit* and sometimes, depending on who's using it and how it's being used, all four may even depend on it, For every fact and figure that you can think of to advocate for the increase of quality of life in America or the advancement of equality, there exists one (or many) Bullshit counter-arguments to oppose them. The Bullshit in everyone's opinions allows them all to float together on the top. The formula for the production of Great American Bullshit goes down like this: On the basis that it is more important to create equilibrium and equal value for everyone's OPINION, regardless of the facts that may or may not support that OPINION, rather than on the actual facts themselves. We're encouraged not to care about facts and figures, unless they SUPPORT our own opinions. Despite evidence that the opposite is true, our opinions are what matters the most, not our facts. For example: I believe that the Earth is SIX THOUSAND YEARS OLD. It doesn't matter that the Earth is actually a tad over FOUR AND A HALF BILLION YEARS OLD. Because you see, I'm entitled to the rights that allow me to have my opinion OVER THE FACTS THEMSELVES, by using a claim of religious doctrine. I congregate with other people who hold the same OPINION as me, and we form a coalition to protect our God given right to piss all over science and actual fact. Our right to our OPINION is king, facts, on the other hand, are merely inconsequential. You can apply this same process to politics, economics, history or whatever. Opinions are highly encouraged and many times they are substituted as fact. That's how Republicans claim that they're trying to protect the Constitution by gutting it. Or how Teabaggers can claim that they're standing up for freedom and democracy by supporting the corporations. Or even how people can be convinced it's best to work longer hours and for less pay, especially if allowing the top two percent to pay less taxes that only result in making the rich richer and the poor poorer. Private, self-subsidized health insurance is better than public, tax-subsidized hospitals. Gutting unions makes getting a job easier and better to work at. War promotes peace. Destroying our freedoms, in fact, saves them. Usually when we see things like that, I know that I chalk it up to the power of Bullshit. What is there to do? Normally, at this point, I do my damnedest to sound optimistic, or proffer a solution, or even issue some kind of rallying cry to arms. But not this time. It's not even worth the time or effort. It's just that I recognize the fact that if you give anyone the right to maintain and promote their own fucked up fears, prejudices, hatreds, mis-perceptions, greed, gluttony, lust and delusions, many people will take up that offer quite gladly. They'll wholeheartedly take in all the Bullshit that fits well with their pre-conceived notions, place it gently in a cradle, feed it, burp it and change its diaper. They'll do it happily, even if that Bullshit stands to grow up to be a murderous thug, that'll slaughter them all in their sleep. There really is no defense against a portion of the society that gleefully works against their own self interests. The rest of us, however? Well. what can I say? We're not so easily taken in by the awesome power of Good Old American Bullshit* and we do our damnedest to help ourselves, by doing what's best for the country. I'm sure that I'll hear a reply of "Bullshit" from some of you over this. It never fails. Just tell me what you think. I'll listen. Either way...Thanks. *Accept No Substitutes.
You've been one for your entire adult life.
Now despite your apparent lack of mental agility, critical reasoning skills, capacity to apply nuanced concepts to everyday situations, self-awareness, tolerance for diversity, understanding of complex political and economic mechanisms and generalized open-mindedness, your god-damned idiocy really never seemed that much of a problem for you.
You've always worked hard, raised a family, put a roof over their heads, drank beers with your buddies, hunted in season, watched the game on Saturday, went to church on Sunday, paid your taxes, saved up for your retirement and lived a generally productive, albeit non-descript, life. None of that complex political and economic mumbo-jumbo, that those Sunday morning talking heads and C-Span jerks always seemed to jibber-jabber about, really seemed to matter in the great scheme of things.
That was, of course, until things "CHANGED".
Your dollar doesn't seem to buy what it used to, that house that you worked so hard to own has become a monkey on your back, your job is fixin' to be outsourced, your fruity nephew in fruity California is about to get married to his fruity boyfriend, there are funny looking brown people who speak in funny sounding languages queuing up outside the Home Depot for work all the time and there's a Black Guy, who may or may not be some radical, hippie, Muslim, Commie from Africa taking up residence in the White House.
That's right, your world has turned Upside Down.
What do you do?
Well, because you're a god-damned idiot, you really never paid attention to civics, social studies and history in school. Those talking heads and jerks are always acting like that they're better than you are, because they use a lot of ten dollar words to talk over your pointy head. None of your beer drinking cohorts, hunting buddies, fellow church-goers or neighbors seem to know what the hell is going on and besides, every one of them are just as confused, angry and desperate as you are. Your politicians are utterly remote and uncaring. And you know full well that you don't have enough power or money to matter.
You're pissed off and you have no idea how or where to direct your piss offedness.
That is until, The TEBBAGGERS came to town.
These are people who are just like you, they've hit all the marks that you've hit all your life. They're all stupid, angry and confused (You really identify with that), yet, they've come to town with an important message from on high in the Stratosphere from the likes of people like Fox News, Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh.
That message is that you have every right be pissed off. No one is looking out for you, especially that radical, hippie, Muslim, Commie Black Guy in the White House. He's too busy trying to take your guns away, invalidate your marriage license, raise your taxes through the roof, kill off your mom, give your job away to those funny sounding brown people, turn your church into a Muslim terrorist cubby hole and turn America into a Commie experiment full of white people in concentration camps (at least, that's what Fox, Beck, Hannity and Limbaugh said). You have NO reason NOT to trust them. Yes, these people who look just like you and are sounding just like you, have your best interest at heart... Because, you believe them when they tell you that they're all JUST LIKE YOU (Don't mind that fact that they're all millionaires and have never worked a hard day's labor ever once in all of their collectively pathetic lives).
They tell you that, to keep America free, we need to ensure that Social Security and Medicare are kept out of the hands of of a government that's currently being run by that radical, hippie, Muslim, Commie Black Guy from Africa, no matter what. That we must drill our way out of the dwindling of finite resources and that we need to keep the tax breaks for the relative few who can buy multi-million dollar yachts, jetliners and 100 room mansions with their pocket change. They tell you that ONLY your collective screaming and hissyfitting will save the day. That you DO matter, just as long as you're loud and parrot their talking points ad nauseum. They tell you that this is how the Forefathers made this country free and wrote the Constitution. They tell you you that your conservative beliefs are the solution to the problem (that they, in fact, created).
And yes, you believe ALL of this, because you're a god-damned idiot.
Now, I know that this goes against everything that you know, because you really don't know anything about what you're screaming about, but have noticed that everything that Fox, Beck, Hannity and Limbaugh said is wrong (That when it came down to brass tacks, your idiocy did not stop the people who aren't idiots from going forward and pulling your sorry, stupid asses along for the ride (at least part way)?
Well, of course not.
Let's not forget that you are, in fact, a god-damned idiot. And it's on the strength of that idiocy that your core beliefs never have to waver in the face of counter cyclical facts and absolute truth. Your idiotic "reality" insulates you from all of that. It keeps you warm at night and keeps the fires of anger, fear and confusion well stoked in your empty head like burning hot embers.
I'm sorry to say this, my idiotic friend, but there is no help for you. Because, in spite of all your vigorous teabagging, very little has changed. You've been so very angry all for naught. Yes, all you've done is dig a bigger hole for yourself. If you don't believe me, just take a look at your credit card bills since you've started on this teabagging adventure. Missing work and taking trips to a very expensive Nation's Capitol adds up, doesn't it? And I bet that your son has been talking to his fruity cousin in fruity California while you've been on the road. Apparently, teabagging is causing more problems than it solves. Perhaps, you should try something new?
Now, I have an honest suggestion and perhaps one that may make some sense for you to heed... Just follow Sarah Palin's sterling example: Quit.
Quit teabagging, because it hasn't stopped a damn thing. Quit listening to Fox, Beck, Hannity and Limbaugh, because they all have not told you one true thing. They make all of it up as they go along So turn it all off, you're better off using a Magic Eight Ball for answers. Quit buying so much ammo. You're making it scarce and running up the price so that it'll be harder to buy for hunting season. Quit standing out in the hot sun on the Washington Mall holding hand painted signs that are barely legible, because you scrawled them in a fit of anger. I bet that you never even wore enough sun screen, now did you? C'mon, the last thing that you need is skin cancer, you've got a house to maintain for you and your family. Quit, being so angry all the time. It runs up your blood pressure and makes you grit your teeth. The last thing that you need is a heart attack. Don't even bother voting, because Sarah won't be on any ballot this November, and none of the other candidates can hold a candle to her awesomeness. Especially, those Republican guys. Quit worrying about that radical, hippie, Muslim, Commie Black Guy in the White House. He's not going to be there forever. Heck, if you turn off your radio and TV, you can barely even notice that he's there at all. That's because, after he's gone, you'll still have your guns and mom will have never been a hundred miles from any direction close to a "Death Panel" and the Government will have not put its grubby hands on Social Security, Medicare or the Internet. They have other, bigger, oily fish to fry.
Quit worrying so much. You don't see Sarah worrying, now do you?
Do you know why? Well, it's because she quit, of course. And guess what, if she can do it, so can you.
Go back home. Post your thoughts on Facebook. Drink a beer. Get a life.
Quit being such a god-damned idiot.
Take it from a friend who cares; you'll feel much better about everything if you do.
This is an insidious idea from those that promote white privilege through the hatred of non whites, and it's been around for quite a long time. They use inflammatory language to rally the white working class to defend themselves from perceived threats.
We've seen this in the past: "So-called Civil rights people like, Martin Luther King are communists, and if they get their way, gangs blacks will rape our white women at will."
We see it today: "Gangs of dangerous Mexican criminals are crossing borders, stealing our jobs and killing white ranchers and New Black Panthers! New Black Panthers"
Fox News is the forefront promoter, encouraging white fear, depicting a black president as some kind of communist black separatist with an agenda to make white people pay for their sins.
Most Republicans, although they're not the biggest cheerleaders of this strategy, are simply turning a blind eye and disavowing any knowledge that such a thing is going on, only because they stand to gain politically from a white wave of backlash against a "racist" black president.
It's a cynical combination of dirty politics and exploitation of national anxiety about race.
Because of it everyone is walking on glass and trying not to get cut, from the President on down.
The people who are behind this are the worst enemies of racial and class justice in this country. Because, if they keep most good people fearful and unsure, these promoters of white privilege and hatred can stop people who have more in common than uncommon from coming together and working to make all of our lives better.
Qui bono?
When the fear mongers and distorters of the truth have their successes, not you and I.
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