Hmmmm... You know, I really would have imagined that I would be part of something like this, rather than sitting on the sidelines saying "Please! Please, fellas! Let's all be nice!"

Jeff Goldstein is angry about Hundred Percenter's with-us-or-against-us attitude on Terri, and especially angry about what seems to me to be a gratuitous remark about getting his "beenie" in a twist.

I suppose that could be read, charitably, as a reference to the old academic beanies worn by freshmen in, like, 900 A.D., but I kinda doubt it.

HundredPercenter baits back about Goldstein being a crybaby.

I realize this is a highly emotional issue. One reason I've managed to maintain some amount of perspective -- despite being strongly in the pro-Terri camp -- is that I know good-meaning and good-hearted people that, for whatever reason, just don't seem to get what this case was about.

Whether wrapped up in abortion rights, or mistakenly thinking this was a standard right-to-die case, or being subconsciously biased against the Christian right, or putting a bit too much faith in the rulings of a single judge, or just being not very well acquainted with the facts of the case -- a lot of people of good will have erred in their judgment and have supported, with good but mistaken intentions, the euthanization of physically-healthy woman on the thinnest possible evidence that such constituted her "true wishes."

They're not bad people. They're good people. They are just, like many good people are from time to time, very wrong about something rather important.

We will disagree from time to time. Not just on the right, but between right and left. And -- can't believe I'm saying this -- we can disagree without being disagreeable.

We can. I personally choose to be disagreeable, of course, but we -- by which I mean "you" -- can manage to remain civil, if we try.

I think I might have mentioned this before, but it's still worth remembering. I was posting on Slate's Fray at the time of the Clinton Impeachment Wars, which made for very angry and often personal on-line spats. During a particularly nasty exchange, one guy popped in-- a guy I'd never seen before -- and shared these words of wisdom:

You guys know that when the space aliens come, we're all gonna be on the same side, right?

Something to think about.

But HundredPercenter -- not looking to get de-linked or anything, but have a bit of caution about plainly Jew-baiting remarks. What does that accomplish? Nothing, nothing except animosity and hurt feelings.

Plus, those people control the media.

Thanks to Windrider 95.

Playing Ref: Jeff, I think you were way out-of-line to insult someone as a "Christ-humper." You're guilty of the same sin you're protesting, and the "she did it first" defense won't wash.

You can insult someone you're angry with without also insulting believing Christians, too.

Don't defend it. Apologize and retract. You're better than that. I think.

A quick apology is usually better than a prologned bout of back-tracking and "explaining." It's quick and painless and you even gain "manful admission" points.

Posted by: Ace at 09:51 AM | Comments (80)
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Their headline, not mine:

Thief Steals Poop From Woman Walking Dog

Police said they were searching for a gunman who ran up to a woman while she was walking her dog Monday night and grabbed the bag she was holding. It contained poop.

When the gunman discovered what was in it, he threw it down in disgust, pointed his gun at the 32-year-old woman and demanded money....

He then aimed his .22-caliber semiautomatic at the dog, named Misty, and pulled the trigger twice but the gun didn't fire.

Bear in mind that the bag containing the poop was most likely not a Kate Spade leather daypouch. More likely a paper or plastic bag.

And yet this gunman was all hot for that paper or plastic bag. Think of the bountiful riches it might have contained... tampons, Tropical Fruit Tums EX, maybe a hot-dog or pretzel.

Dave from Garfield Ridge quoted Spaceballs the other day: "Evil will always triumph, because good... is dumb."

Fortunately, in most cases, that's actually 100% backwards.

I have to give Yahoo props for using the word "Poop" in a headline.

Somewhere in New York, Robert Smigel, the guy who does Triumph the Insult Comic Dog, just smiled and said, "Thank you, God. Now I can milk this stale bit for at least one more month."

Thanks to GregS.

Posted by: Ace at 08:04 AM | Comments (5)
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Sounds nuts, I know, but if you need to show ID to get a library card, I really think it's not an invasion of privacy nor a chilling of voting rights to show an ID when you vote for the government of the United States.

Woot! Right Wing News F I N A L L Y acknowledges the Only Important Blog On This Internet as one of his favorite blogs. And at number nine, no less.

Welcome to the party, pal.

Posted by: Ace at 07:46 AM | Comments (12)
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The amazing thing is that she lived as long as she did, without food or water.

Jesus, you'd almost begin to suspect she was a basically healthy woman capable of living a longish life so long as she was the subject of "heroic medical intervention," i.e., water and nutrition.

Obviously sad news. Now Michael Schiavo can continue tormenting the parents by not even agreeing to their requests for a Catholic burial.

Life is for the living, and funerals especially so. A lot of people seem blithe about euthanizing this woman on an ex-husband's say so. I kinda think this funeral dispute demonstrates a certain amount of bad faith and vindictiveness. For the love of God, you're killing their daughter; can't you even give her the sort of burial the parents wish?

But no. Another one of Terri's strangely detailed oral demands about her death involved cremation. And it's soooo important to cremate her, because, you know, like she's going to know the difference.

Let me just say on a personal note-- a close family member has indicated to me her desire to be cremated upon death, chiefly because she doesn't want to be such a bother to the surviving family. And of course I would respect that wish... unless it was extremely important to other family members. I really don't think she'd mind if I arranged a burial instead, if it could bring peace or comfort to those she'd be leaving behind.

But... Terri wanted to starve to death. Terri wanted to be cremated. Terri seemed to be quite the gabber with respect to issues of death, near-death, and its aftermath.

A sad day.

We've come to the point where you don't have to execute a living will to indicate your intention to die when deemed inconvenient by your family. Henceforth, death is the default; you need to sign a living will to make clear your desire to live.

Although, who knows-- somewhere down the line, I'm sure a clearly stated, signed, and witnessed "I would like to live" living will be invalidated on the say-so of a fled husband as well.

Too Late, But a Good Point: Many liberals were as outraged by this Kafkaesque tragedy as many conservatives. But oddly, not as many as you might have expected. Mickey Kaus notes that it's the liberals wo are most likely to posit "medical miracles" just around the corner due to, say, stem-cell research, and yet notes, quoting an email correspondent:

In watching the coverage of the Schiavo saga unfurl I am struck by the absence of the pro-medical miracle Left, if I may so anoint them.

Well? Are these medical miracles on the way or not? If they're not, then shut up about stem-cells. If they are-- why shouldn't Terri Schiavo have had the benefit of being allowed to live until the coming of these medical breakthroughs we're all so eagerly anticipating?

The Good, the Bad, and the Vicious: You know, people who wanted to keep Terri alive are so plainly evil they deserve to have their computers infected with a virus. Maybe if the computer gets really infected, we can euthanize it as well.

LesbienCestMoi, an angel in this fight, warns that emails from "JebBush@myflorida.com" contain a virus (scan down for second entry).

I'm so glad that all on the left care so passionately for the principle of the right to free speech without "chilling"... or computer virus payback.

That said-- there were some liberals who showed not just conscience but bravery on this issue. They knew damn well they were going against The Collective; they did so anyway.

Hell-- even Jesse Jackson. Jesse Jackson!

Posted by: Ace at 07:16 AM | Comments (62)
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Vote for Judges is annoyed at the liberal elitist preference for rule by a judicial revolutionary vanguard.

Posted by: Ace at 07:03 AM | Comments (8)
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Don't ask how. I've got my sources.

Go here for the background; or just download the must-listen tapes from here. WARNING: Not safe for work, and not safe for home, either, in at least 12 states (consult your local statutes if you're unsure).

Veru Strong Profanity/Sexual Content Warning For Rest of Post. You know the sort of things this guy says.

PS! AllahPundit Update Added Below, Too! more...

Posted by: Ace at 10:06 PM | Comments (27)
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Just one less body I have to clamber over in my well-nigh inevitable rise to fame and fortune beyond belief:

I've told myself when I began to blog that I will carry on as long as I enjoy myself. This blog has been more for myself than for others. When it came to a point where I began to write for others, I knew something was wrong.

I didn't start this to make money. But now, I'm too preoccupied with Google Adwords and how to make more money.

And?

I didn't start this to build big traffic. But now, I'm too preoccupied analyzing traffic patterns and how to build them further.

I don't understand what you're driving at.

I didn't start this to become India's top blogger or to be the most influential one. But now that I have, I'm too preoccupied retaining that position.

India has bloggers? Shit, how many? Seems like a smaller market; maybe I should try my luck over there.

What is the deal with nan? Is it a bread, is it a pita-- what is it?

See, nothin' to it, really.

Obviously, somewhere I lost focus. And I quite don't like that.

Hmmm... this is startin' to sound like whiny pussy-shit to me.

There are other exciting things I'm very passionate about. And I would like to focus my time and energy on them.

I've got other things I'm passionate about, too. Like selling cool-ass t-shirts, and whining for donations.

And porn, of course. But what are you going to do with the other ten hours of the day?

Just kidding, really. This does get to be a grind, like anything else. But, as Ensign Mayo said, "I've got nowhere else to go... I've got nowhere else to go...! Oh boo hoo, boo hoo fuckin' hoo..."

Via Insty.

Posted by: Ace at 06:51 PM | Comments (18)
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You want a piece of this, Tina?

Ya better think about it.

Annoying. She's vapid and chatty enough in written articles and on TV; she'll be positively insufferable in the loosey-goosey medium of the blog.

I have a feeling she'll be making Michael Musto seem like a formal technical writer.

But I will make her my dirty dirty blog-whore. That is my promise to you, my good readers.

Posted by: Ace at 05:50 PM | Comments (22)
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I'm re-linking this because I was just discussing this deal with a poster via email. A couple of people have told me this post actually helped them realize they had panic disorder and convinced them to get the treatment for it they needed.

So, who knows, it's possible there are a couple of newer readers out there who need to read it too.

Long story short: if you're experiencing odd panic attacks -- which you might be calling "anxiety," incorrectly -- you're not going crazy, you're not going to die, and there's nothing wrong with you that can't be fixed -- relatively easily, in 90% of cases.

And you must get it fixed. Don't keep living with it.

Panic gave me the worst years of my entire life. I want those years back, but they're gone forever now.

Posted by: Ace at 04:02 PM | Comments (42)
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Pretty embarassing... now they're the fourth most-watched (ahem) cable news network.

Whatever MSNBC is paying Keith Olbermann, CNN Headline News should double it... to keep him working at MSNBC.

Posted by: Ace at 03:04 PM | Comments (5)
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