August 02, 2011
— Ace A little schadenfreude. If we're miserable, at least they're more miserable.
AllahPundit rounded up reactions to this deal last night, with Peter Kirsanow providing one of the more displeased takes on the right.
Many British papers are declaring this to be Obama's surrender. One quotes American liberal-but-won't-say-so Dave Wiegel:
This debt deal is a gun-to-the-head recanting of everything Obama and his Democrats say they believe in.
And of course there is Paul Krugman's continued hysteria.
Republicans will surely be emboldened by the way Mr. Obama keeps folding in the face of their threats. He surrendered last December, extending all the Bush tax cuts; he surrendered in the spring when they threatened to shut down the government; and he has now surrendered on a grand scale to raw extortion over the debt ceiling. Maybe itÂ’s just me, but I see a pattern here....
Make no mistake about it, what weÂ’re witnessing here is a catastrophe on multiple levels.
It is, of course, a political catastrophe for Democrats, who just a few weeks ago seemed to have Republicans on the run over their plan to dismantle Medicare; now Mr. Obama has thrown all that away. And the damage isnÂ’t over: there will be more choke points where Republicans can threaten to create a crisis unless the president surrenders, and they can now act with the confident expectation that he will.
In the long run, however, Democrats wonÂ’t be the only losers. What Republicans have just gotten away with calls our whole system of government into question. After all, how can American democracy work if whichever party is most prepared to be ruthless, to threaten the nationÂ’s economic security, gets to dictate policy? And the answer is, maybe it canÂ’t.
One thing I notice from a lot of leftists today (like that other columnist whining about "terrorists" earlier) is how quickly the left proclaims that democracy can't work... when they lose a political fight.
Their entire definition of democracy (and government) "working" is "The left wins." The moment the left does not win, democracy is ruinous.
This is not new, of course. One critical difference between a classical liberal (of which "conservatives" are one strain) and a leftist is a respect for the process, the procedure, of democracy.
Leftists do not have any great regard for the process of voting, or for securing the consent of the governed. What they care about almost entirely is outcome -- if democracy can produce the outcomes they wish, then bully for democracy; if it results in outcomes they oppose, then perhaps we need to look at another system.
Perhaps one in which some kind of educated, civilized Vanguard (to give it a name) makes all important decisions on behalf of "The People."
This is not new. This is the standard leftist model, dating back all the way to 1793 and the Reign of Terror in the French Revolution.
It's similar to (and not coincidentally so) the divergence between leftists and classic liberals on economic opportunities versus economic outcomes. Classic liberals desire a system in which economic opportunities are maximized, a system in which the most people possible will be prosperous; leftists fixate not on the process of wealth creation but only the machinery of wealth confiscation and redistribution -- determined to intervene (and take away people's liberty) in order to arrange outcomes the way they wish.
People like Krugman support democracy in exactly the same way they support capitalistic enterprise -- which is to say they don't, but need to occasionally mouth platitudes about each to hide their real agenda of destroying both in favor of a socialist tyranny.
Krugman's colleague at the Times, Tom Friedman, has been championing the supposed efficacy and wisdom of the Chinese autocracy for a year now. Democracy's nice and all, but if we're going to really solve this Global Warming Varying crisis, we're going to need to better insulate the government from the desires of the people.
There is an old saying that democracy is the absolute worse form of government, except for all the others.
But there remain true believers in critical institutions who are pretty willing to give that other form of government another chance.
Just one more chance. It'll be different this time. We know better now. Whereas previous tyrannies of the left thought they were smart enough to actually make all this work, we actually are smarter.
For a more sanguine take from someone on the right, moderate-ish conservative Jon Podhoretz thinks Obama's bluff was called, and, precisely as he described it, it did turn out to be a bluff.
After his bluff was called...
[J]ust 10 days after Obama insisted he would not agree to any deal without tax hikes -- "Don't call my bluff, Eric," he warned House Majority Leader Eric Cantor -- he assented to a deal without any tax hikes."I'm going to the American people on this," Obama told Cantor. And he did. He gave three press conferences and a nationally televised prime-time address from the Oval Office. And over the course of the week he did so, his poll numbers plunged 10 points.
...
There was no evidence from the political behavior of the major players that Obama was winning any argument on any point.
...
What do you call a leader who can't lead -- who has lost the ability to turn the public discussion and turn the conversation in the direction he wants and needs it to go?
You call him a loser.
"This may bring my presidency down," Obama reportedly told Cantor in their testy exchange, "but I will not yield on this."
He yielded on this. And it may bring his presidency down.
Posted by: Ace at
10:33 AM
| Comments (287)
Post contains 970 words, total size 6 kb.
Croc tears from jerks who know they escaped with the Least of the Worst
Posted by: SantaRosaStan at August 02, 2011 10:37 AM (UqKQV)
Posted by: J.J. Sefton at August 02, 2011 10:37 AM (UlUS4)
Posted by: Mjim at August 02, 2011 10:38 AM (rN9Na)
Posted by: Bob Saget is a tired depressed hobbit today at August 02, 2011 10:38 AM (F/4zf)
Whereas previous tyrannies of the left thought they were smart enough to actually make all this work, we actually are smarter.
This is going to sound arrogant as all hell, because it is, but I am in the upper percentile of iq. By the theory set forth by Our Betters, I am one of the few qualified to rule. I find it fascinating that I am not considered to be one of those worthy of making decisions for The People, despite being actually smarter, since I don't think the correct thoughts. Funny how that works.
The flip side to this is that I sure as hell don't want people like me in charge, with the notable exception of my being in charge of Alextopia, since it is a miracle that I manage to keep myself alive on a daily basis. Basic practical matters like not walking into walls are sometimes beyond me.
Posted by: alexthechick at August 02, 2011 10:38 AM (VtjlW)
Libs know that this Deal of the Century could have been better but it could have been much much worse: It could have actually cut actual spending...
It could have balanced the budget; it could have called for another kabuki dance before the 2012 elections.
For the Usual Suspects, what they got today could have been substantially worse, and they know it. The Lamentations are mostly for Show ( not for Go )
Posted by: SantaRosaStan at August 02, 2011 10:39 AM (UqKQV)
Posted by: Methos at August 02, 2011 10:40 AM (sOXQX)
Posted by: The Political Hat at August 02, 2011 10:40 AM (XvHmy)
Posted by: FireHorse at August 02, 2011 10:40 AM (gTGz3)
Posted by: Empire of Jeff, Jesusland Liberation Army - Political Terror Brigade at August 02, 2011 10:40 AM (lbo6/)
Woo. Socialist morons that will permanently destroy our way of life because they don't understand basic principles of the economy and human nature are also pissed. Woo.
Posted by: William at August 02, 2011 10:41 AM (77TeU)
Posted by: J.J. Sefton at August 02, 2011 10:41 AM (UlUS4)
Posted by: © Sponge at August 02, 2011 10:41 AM (UK9cE)
The Ron Paul loving cat thing out of NYC said this was a WIN for the Dems.
I'z confused.
Posted by: laceyunderalls at August 02, 2011 10:41 AM (pLTLS)
Posted by: DJIA -200 at August 02, 2011 10:41 AM (sOXQX)
Or they whine to the courts for a remedy.
Or they try to recall democratically elected officials.
Or my favorite, they dust off the constitution and try to declare something unconstitutional.
There is an old saying that democracy is the absolute worse form of government, except for all the others.
Excellent video on this right here.
Posted by: Prezznt Barack J. O'Carter, above you all like a god or something at August 02, 2011 10:42 AM (4136b)
Posted by: George Orwell at August 02, 2011 10:42 AM (AZGON)
Posted by: The Political Hat at August 02, 2011 10:42 AM (XvHmy)
They're also insane.
Posted by: toby928™ at August 02, 2011 02:40 PM (GTbGH)
Yeah, there's that. Whenever they don't get what they want, they bitch and whine and call us terrorists and Gnat-sies.
We've heard all their sh+t before and it's the same Stink. It don't mean that sanity prevailed, or anything, or some such thing..........
Posted by: SantaRosaStan at August 02, 2011 10:42 AM (UqKQV)
The flip side to this is that I sure as hell don't want people like me in charge, with the notable exception of my being in charge of Alextopia, since it is a miracle that I manage to keep myself alive on a daily basis. Basic practical matters like not walking into walls are sometimes beyond me.
How you managed to be a conservative is beyond me.
But we love you for it.
Posted by: Sean Bannion at August 02, 2011 10:43 AM (sbV1u)
Posted by: Lee at August 02, 2011 10:43 AM (BD1aO)
Posted by: Random Libtard at August 02, 2011 10:43 AM (d0Tfm)
But YES, Republicans should be ready to do the right thing if they win next year. It was to a large extent dissatisfaction with Republican Congresses acting like Democrat-lite that gave the Democrats their victories in 2006 and 2008. Disillusioned independents and swing voters decided to give Democrats another chance.
Republicans will get about the business of cleaning up the mess not because it is their inclination or because they are actually smarter this time around. They will do it because our backs are against the wall and there is no alternative to aggressive action on spending.
Meanwhile, Democrats are in denial about the crisis. Reid promises to block any "itty bitty nitty gritty committee" report that doesn't include matching tax increases to the spending cuts. Obama wants more stimulus. They just don't get it at all.
Posted by: Adjoran at August 02, 2011 10:44 AM (VfmLu)
Posted by: Ben at August 02, 2011 10:44 AM (wuv1c)
Of course it is. It's the Liberals second holy grail, after national healthcare.
Posted by: toby928™ at August 02, 2011 10:44 AM (GTbGH)
Posted by: George Orwell at August 02, 2011 10:45 AM (AZGON)
We the unwilling, led by the unknowing, are doing the impossible, for the ungrateful.
We have done so much for so long with so little, we are now qualified to do anything, with nothing.
Sounds about right...
Posted by: Sean Bannion at August 02, 2011 10:45 AM (sbV1u)
Posted by: huerfano at August 02, 2011 10:46 AM (iezIp)
Posted by: I get my news from Jon Stewart at August 02, 2011 10:46 AM (AZGON)
Posted by: AoSHQ Stylebook at August 02, 2011 10:46 AM (GTbGH)
and aimless and powerless and adrift on a dreary sea of slobbering blather
Posted by: SantaRosaStan at August 02, 2011 10:46 AM (UqKQV)
Jeff,
Jesusland Liberation Army - Political Terror Brigade
That is SO stolen. I'm making myself a colonel.
Posted by: imp at August 02, 2011 10:46 AM (ds8Yk)
Posted by: Raised Eyebrow at August 02, 2011 10:46 AM (k2jB2)
After all, how can American democracy work if whichever party is most prepared to be ruthless, to threaten the nationÂ’s economic security, gets to dictate policy?
The irony, it burrrrrrrrnnnnnsss!!!
Posted by: al-Cicero, Tea Party Jihadist at August 02, 2011 10:47 AM (QKKT0)
Posted by: MWR, proud Tea Party Hobbit at August 02, 2011 10:47 AM (4df7R)
Yup. Look what they're whining about - no tax increases (maybe). As if that really matters - historically, government gets about 18-19% of GDP regardless of the particulars of tax rates. So they're most upset over something which is largely irrelevant, except as a symbol. Yet the loss of that symbol is enough to make them lose their minds.
Meanwhile, more imaginary money is spent, government grows larger, and the debt piles up. Situation normal for those fucking imbeciles.
Posted by: Waterhouse at August 02, 2011 10:48 AM (7+Jsh)
They always think they COULD be happy, if only things would changed, but they never are.
Jaime Glazov wrote a small pamphlet years ago that said much the same thing. It was called "15 Tips on How to be a Good Leftist."
If you ever see a copy, snag it. It's hilarious.
Posted by: Sean Bannion at August 02, 2011 10:48 AM (sbV1u)
Posted by: joncelli at August 02, 2011 10:49 AM (RD7QR)
Well, I still can't tell if conservatives won this go-round or not. It doesn't look like anything got cut, the debt ceiling got raised and we have a new level of bureaucracy burearockracy bullshit added on top of that with this new supercommittee to spend more money we don't have.
I'm going to the liquor store, anybody want anything? I saw the Valu-Rite truck go by with the weekly supply of 55-gallon drums of our favorite swill on the back. The driver should remember not to park that thing in the direct sun...
Posted by: BackwardsBoy at August 02, 2011 10:50 AM (d0Tfm)
And, however discomfited we may feel about this deal, we can certainly take pleasure in leftist pain.
Posted by: JEM at August 02, 2011 10:50 AM (o+SC1)
Jesusland Liberation Army - Political Terror Brigade
That is SO stolen. I'm making myself a colonel.
Posted by: imp at August 02, 2011 02:46 PM (ds8Yk)
Ooh, oooh *waving arms like a lunatic* Can I be in charge of the Jesusland Re-Education Camps?
My curricula kicks ass, I promise!
Posted by: eastvalleyphx at August 02, 2011 10:50 AM (qiOph)
Obviously I'm glad if this hurt Obama politically, but the way we're going to win is by fielding a strong candidate and, following the primary, backing him/her with all we have.
Posted by: Y-not at August 02, 2011 10:51 AM (5H6zj)
Posted by: Empire of Jeff, Jesusland Liberation Army - Political Terror Brigade at August 02, 2011 10:51 AM (lbo6/)
How you managed to be a conservative is beyond me.
Combination of genetics, upbringing and some really really amazing teachers. I do think there is something to the argument that politics are influenced by genetics. A larger amount of my political theory than I like to admit stems from the fact that I am independent by nature. My mother says that from when I was very little I wanted to do everything on my own. I didn't even like to be held when I was sick. So when that personality trait slams into a theory that says I need to give control of my life up to other people, well, fuck that shit. I will come up with a theory to support my inherent need to be in charge of my own life. Any implications that those on the other side are whiny little crybabies who can't take care of themselves are wholly intentional.
Posted by: alexthechick at August 02, 2011 10:52 AM (VtjlW)
Hi, everyone.
I'm the year 2012. Don't mind me; just taking a few notes.
Let's see...Republicans sign onto to the largest debt limit increase in history.
Okay. I'm done. See you all later!
--2012
Posted by: 2012 at August 02, 2011 10:52 AM (G/zuv)
Posted by: Ray-Gun Ronnie at August 02, 2011 10:53 AM (JMsOK)
they are always, ALWAYS holding the threat of revolution to our head.
no they aren't. They always have the threat of RIOTING. We hold the threat of revolution.
Posted by: imp at August 02, 2011 10:53 AM (ds8Yk)
it's not a contest, the less miserable one wins nothing.
this should be the headline on every paper in the country:
"Progressives over power TEA Party, western civilization hardest hit."
my advice, go to your grandmothers house and steal her cat food, you'll be glad to have it before you know it.
Posted by: Shoey at August 02, 2011 10:54 AM (jdOk/)
Jesusland Liberation Army - Political Terror Brigade
Can I be Generalissima in charge of Stomping? Pleaaaaaaase?
Posted by: alexthechick at August 02, 2011 10:54 AM (VtjlW)
Posted by: huerfano at August 02, 2011 02:46 PM (iezIp)
This.
A few years ago, I was traveling with some co-workers to a meeting in NH's north country. It was a beautiful summer day, sunny and clear as a bell. The White Mountains were crisp against teh sky and Franconia Notch was just about the prettiest I'd ever seen it. One of my co-workers, the one who was driving, made the observation that, "It's days like this, traveling through country like this, that I remember why I love working in New Hampshire."
Needless to say, the ex-hippy leftist dickweed co-worker in the passenger seat immediately launched into the typical tirade about how NH may be pretty but we have fucked up politics; stupid, illiterate citizens; we're obsessed with "local control" and "individual rights"; and we've got the temerity to embrace the motto "Live Free or Die," as if the loss of a little freedom was somehow worse than death.
He couldn't just look out the window and say, "Yeah. It's beautiful." He had to rattle off a litany of every grievance he had against New Hampshire, past, present and future. It took all the strength I had to refrain from beating him bloody about the head with a tire iron for being a sour-faced killjoy while shouting, "Then move to fucking Massachusetts, pinko commie asshole!"
I was very glad when I got to leave that job.
Posted by: MWR, proud Tea Party Hobbit at August 02, 2011 10:55 AM (4df7R)
Let's see...Republicans sign onto to the largest debt limit increase in history.
--
The cure for that is running a man from Texas against Obama's job-killing record.
Posted by: Y-not at August 02, 2011 10:55 AM (5H6zj)
Posted by: Faptain America the Tearrorist at August 02, 2011 10:55 AM (ECjvn)
Wow, I actually found a .pdf of "15 Tips on How to be a Good Leftist."
Just read the table of contents, you'll get the gist. But if you want to laugh your ass off, read the whole thing. This was written in 1988, and it could have been written yesterday.
Posted by: Sean Bannion at August 02, 2011 10:55 AM (sbV1u)
Posted by: Jeffrey Quick at August 02, 2011 10:55 AM (g9neE)
Posted by: lowfibass at August 02, 2011 10:56 AM (T1ZAZ)
Times like that you wish you had the James Bond ejection seat.
Posted by: Waterhouse at August 02, 2011 10:56 AM (7+Jsh)
Liberals are mentally ill.
Posted by: Jumbo Jogging Shrimp at August 02, 2011 02:49 PM (qjUnn)
Ayup. All 30% of the population.
Posted by: ErikW at August 02, 2011 10:56 AM (IhhDF)
This is on of my biggest fears. If VAT becomes a reality, we're sunk.
Posted by: Lauren at August 02, 2011 10:57 AM (frrvB)
Posted by: George Orwell at August 02, 2011 10:57 AM (AZGON)
Posted by: alexthechick at August 02, 2011 02:54 PM (VtjlW)
Go on.
Posted by: eastvalleyphx at August 02, 2011 10:57 AM (qiOph)
I love that part.
Posted by: SlaveDog at August 02, 2011 10:58 AM (9fDAi)
Posted by: lowfibass at August 02, 2011 02:56 PM (T1ZAZ)
I have no idea what that is, and frankly I'm scared to Google it lest there be gruesome pictures involved, but no. No, it is not wrong. If there's something wrong with wishing disgusting, embarrassing, but non-life-threatening maladies on these ticks in office (I want them humiliated, not dead), then I don't want to be right.
Posted by: MWR, proud Tea Party Hobbit at August 02, 2011 10:58 AM (4df7R)
Funny, wasn't it supposed to the Republicans who wanted to play games with the debt ceiling.
Projection. Every single one of there slanders against Conservatives is them projecting themselves onto us. You just can't treat these people like a honest enemy.
Posted by: That's Mr Hobbit to you at August 02, 2011 10:58 AM (sbaXF)
Posted by: joeindc44 at August 02, 2011 10:58 AM (QxSug)
Wow, I actually found a .pdf of "15 Tips on How to be a Good Leftist." Just read the table of contents, you'll get the gist. But if you want to laugh your ass off, read the whole thing. This was written in 1988, and it could have been written yesterday.
Posted by: Sean Bannion at August 02, 2011 02:55 PMMe, too. I bookmarked it and I'm going back to read it later.
Posted by: huerfano at August 02, 2011 10:58 AM (iezIp)
2010's right. The Reps bought this craptastic pantload hook line and sinker
Y's right too. The debt ceiling vote really does leave Perry as one of the only viable candidates to actually fight Obama instead of "offering a [slightly] different vision"
Posted by: col. imp, JLA-PTB at August 02, 2011 10:58 AM (ds8Yk)
Nice job Rush, you stupid fuck, I'm sure THAT is the kind of talk that will rally everyone to our banner for 2012. I would LOVE to hear from Rush exactly what bill he imagines could have passed the Senate and the WH, since of course, a bill that cannot do those things is a complete waste of time. So Rush, either share with us your magic formula where we get everything we want and have to give up nothing or shut the fuck up disparaging our leaders.
It's time for team ball and long ball people. You want a better result? Take more power in 2012. Don't be a damned whiny crybaby like Rush.
Posted by: Bill Mitchell at August 02, 2011 10:59 AM (uVlA4)
Posted by: Empire of Jeff, Jesusland Liberation Army - Political Terror Brigade at August 02, 2011 10:59 AM (lbo6/)
Posted by: Paul Krugman, sawed-off little no-neck bastard at August 02, 2011 10:59 AM (w41GQ)
Posted by: Faptain America the Tearrorist at August 02, 2011 02:55 PM (ECjvn)
You don't find them a little too salty? I use them to season my clam chowder, personally.
Posted by: MWR, proud Tea Party Hobbit at August 02, 2011 11:00 AM (4df7R)
With a list of impeachable offenses as long as my arm already, he more or less had to...
Posted by: djsmokybacon at August 02, 2011 11:00 AM (Et2aK)
I would like very much to obtain a position in the new Empire of Jeff Organization.
There's an endurance test so....start fappin'
Posted by: Sean Bannion at August 02, 2011 11:01 AM (sbV1u)
I've got a little strategery for leveraging this liberal rage. Froma Harrop among others is saying to primary Obama's ass. Well, I wrote to her and pointed out there's an issue that could bring him down bad: Operation Fast and Furious. The quicker and harder that story is pushed, the sooner Dems can find a credible challenger. I'm also mobying this message at Kos where they're rumbling about primarying him.
Hey. Just trying to help.
Posted by: Local Workers 666 at August 02, 2011 11:01 AM (oTa7p)
Posted by: Empire of Jeff, Jesusland Liberation Army - Political Terror Brigade at August 02, 2011 11:01 AM (lbo6/)
Posted by: Waterhouse at August 02, 2011 02:56 PM (7+Jsh)
Oh God, that would have been so sweet. Hit the button just as we're approaching the Notch, where there's a gloriously steep drop-off from the highway to the tree-filled valley below...
*yearns*
Posted by: MWR, proud Tea Party Hobbit at August 02, 2011 11:02 AM (4df7R)
Posted by: nerdygirl at August 02, 2011 11:02 AM (eMPxE)
Posted by: Paul Krugman, sawed-off little no-neck bastard at August 02, 2011 02:59 PM (w41GQ)
New keyboard. You owe me. NOW.
Posted by: MWR, proud Tea Party Hobbit at August 02, 2011 11:02 AM (4df7R)
So I've been wondering. Is that pronounced "TEER" or "TARE"? Do you fap until you cry or do you fap until you tear something?
Posted by: Y-not at August 02, 2011 11:02 AM (5H6zj)
There's an endurance test so....start fappin'
Posted by: Sean Bannion at August 02, 2011 03:01 PM (sbV1u)
BINGO!
Posted by: eastvalleyphx at August 02, 2011 11:02 AM (qiOph)
Posted by: nerdygirl at August 02, 2011 11:02 AM (eMPxE)
I'm taking this thread hostage, right after afternoon tea.
Posted by: fluffy, filthy Skandi hobbit at August 02, 2011 11:03 AM (SwkdU)
Who stops? I got crying lefties. There's fap-fodder for a week at least.
Posted by: Faptain America the Tearrorist at August 02, 2011 11:03 AM (ECjvn)
Comrade General Buck Turgidson
Posted by: J.J. Sefton at August 02, 2011 02:41 PM (UlUS4)
Posted by: LeMay, C at August 02, 2011 11:03 AM (EG/p1)
Oh, is Bill Average Joe?
Then the same applies to you Joe (if it is Joe), for being a douchenozzle.
Posted by: col. imp, JLA-PTB at August 02, 2011 11:04 AM (ds8Yk)
"If we're miserable, at least they're more miserable."
Ah yes, the liberal creed. Don't try to make things so that hard work can make some lives better, make it so that everybody's life sucks equally.
Posted by: NC Ref at August 02, 2011 11:04 AM (/izg2)
"It's time for team ball and long ball people."
Oh God...You Again.
You know, if you were a Conservative you might have the knowledge you'd need to understand that this crap, "It's time for team ball and long ball people," has nothing to do with the principles involved.
Obviuolsy, you don't understand that the reality based analysis and the facts are on the side of the people who disagree with the Marxist Left. We are a team...the problem is your not part of it. You're part of a bigger, but less principled team called the "Establishment", and you are part of the problem in our eyes, in other words you're a clear enemy!
Posted by: Ray-Gun Ronnie at August 02, 2011 11:05 AM (JMsOK)
Posted by: nerdygirl at August 02, 2011 03:02 PM (eMPxE)
Forget new front teeth. I want THIS for Christmas.
Posted by: MWR, proud Tea Party Hobbit at August 02, 2011 11:05 AM (4df7R)
If every Republican votes with us in 2012 we would lose in a landslide. We MUST have Independents and Independents are NOT ideologues. They just want government that works and that means compromising.
We control 1/3 of government and got 2/3 of what we want. It's a win, take it and aim for 2012.
Posted by: Bill Mitchell at August 02, 2011 11:05 AM (uVlA4)
He couldn't just look out the window and say, "Yeah. It's beautiful." He had to rattle off a litany of every grievance he had against New Hampshire, past, present and future. It took all the strength I had to refrain from beating him bloody about the head with a tire iron for being a sour-faced killjoy while shouting, "Then move to fucking Massachusetts, pinko commie asshole!"
I was very glad when I got to leave that job.
Posted by: MWR, proud Tea Party Hobbit at August 02, 2011 02:55 PM (4df7R)
Betcha would have paid good money to have him sitting in a James Bond ejection seat right then. Press the red button. KA-POW, SHA-WING and the libtard is heading for the mountains!
Posted by: The Robot Devil at August 02, 2011 11:05 AM (136wp)
Yes, drawing attention to the fact that the GOP establishment sold us out is totally the problem-rather than the obvious fact that the GOP establishment sold us out.
Posted by: Methos at August 02, 2011 11:05 AM (sOXQX)
I am practiced in the arts of Tea-rror.
It's pronounced like a cracka with 6 Sam Adams beers in his belly trying to say
Tea Party Terrorist too fast.
Posted by: Faptain America the Tearrorist at August 02, 2011 11:06 AM (ECjvn)
Posted by: 80sBaby at August 02, 2011 11:06 AM (o2lIv)
Yes. You will be responsible for supplying your own black miniskirt.
Toenails to be red for Casual Fridays.
Other than that, you're free to run your department as you see fit. I don't like to micromanage.
Black miniskirt - check.
Red toenails - check.
Hmmm, what to choose for the Department of Stomping theme song. I am torn between Head Like A Hole and Don't Worry Be Happy. Decisions, decisions.
Posted by: alexthechick at August 02, 2011 11:06 AM (VtjlW)
Nice job Rush, you stupid fuck, I'm sure THAT is the kind of talk that will rally everyone to our banner for 2012. I would LOVE to hear from Rush exactly what bill he imagines could have passed the Senate and the WH, since of course, a bill that cannot do those things is a complete waste of time. So Rush, either share with us your magic formula where we get everything we want and have to give up nothing or shut the fuck up disparaging our leaders.
It's time for team ball and long ball people. You want a better result? Take more power in 2012. Don't be a damned whiny crybaby like Rush.
Posted by: Bill Mitchell at August 02, 2011 02:59 PM (uVlA4)
they have sold us down the river, you idiot.
take your "team" and stuff it up your ass sideways with a pineapple.
Posted by: Shoey at August 02, 2011 11:06 AM (jdOk/)
Posted by: I'm in a New York state of mind at August 02, 2011 11:06 AM (4sQwu)
Yep, we really got our asses handed to us on this one.
Another such defeat and we are *snicker* undone.
Really, with losses like this, who needs victories?
Posted by: The Communist Elites at August 02, 2011 11:06 AM (xy9wk)
Yes, drawing attention to the fact that the GOP establishment sold us out is totally the problem-rather than the obvious fact that the GOP establishment sold us out.
Posted by: Methos at August 02, 2011 03:05 PM (sOXQX)
Hey, just becuase they f**ked us, doesn't mean they don't love us. It means they despise us...
Posted by: The Robot Devil at August 02, 2011 11:07 AM (136wp)
Posted by: 80sBaby at August 02, 2011 03:06 PM (o2lIv)
when they start jumping off buildings i might crack a grin.
Posted by: Shoey at August 02, 2011 11:07 AM (jdOk/)
So, in short, there was never any possibility of a real 'win'.
You could argue it's Fabian tactics - to win by not losing, to bring self-doubt and exhaustion to the opposition, to convince those on the sideline of the fecklessness and incapacity of your adversary.
Maybe we could have done better, and certainly we might have looked stronger, had the House and Senate GOP caucuses been reading from the same playbook a little sooner. But we are where we are, and the Democrats are still paddling a very leaky boat toward November 2012.
Posted by: JEM at August 02, 2011 11:07 AM (o+SC1)
Posted by: Soap MacTavish at August 02, 2011 03:03 PM (vbh31)
I'm going with the hardcore assholes, I don't count the squishes because ya never know. They might smoke something good and vote the right way!
Posted by: ErikW at August 02, 2011 11:07 AM (IhhDF)
Stop hitting me.
Posted by: strawman at August 02, 2011 11:08 AM (GTbGH)
Posted by: joeindc44 at August 02, 2011 11:08 AM (QxSug)
I dunno. Considering I heard most of what Bill Mitchell was saying from various people last week, he's completely real. On the other hand, there's something too self-aware in that writing...
Posted by: Bevel Lemelisk at August 02, 2011 11:09 AM (TpXEI)
Posted by: joncelli at August 02, 2011 11:09 AM (RD7QR)
Black miniskirt - check.
Red toenails - check.
Hmmm, what to choose for the Department of Stomping theme song. I am torn between Head Like A Hole and Don't Worry Be Happy. Decisions, decisions.
Please send the pics ASAP, and I like the subtle irony of "Don't Worry Be Happy"
That's my vote.
Posted by: Sean Bannion at August 02, 2011 11:09 AM (sbV1u)
Hmmm, what to choose for the Department of Stomping theme song. I am torn between Head Like A Hole and Don't Worry Be Happy. Decisions, decisions.
Posted by: alexthechick at August 02, 2011 03:06 PM (VtjlW)
I vote for "Don't Worry, Be Happy." There's something schizophrenically perfect about using such a laid back song as the soundtrack to vicious, repeated head stomping.
Oh, but I'm only assuming this will be head stomping. Do you intend to stomp other areas instead? Or perhaps in addition to?
Posted by: MWR, proud Tea Party Hobbit at August 02, 2011 11:10 AM (4df7R)
Posted by: The Robot Devil at August 02, 2011 11:10 AM (136wp)
Posted by: joncelli at August 02, 2011 11:11 AM (RD7QR)
Posted by: Bill Mitchell at August 02, 2011 02:59 PM (uVlA4)
Hey, Bill. Fuck off and die. Rush was just pointing out the obvious about this trainwreck. At least he read the bill. Have you?
Posted by: Soona - Tearorrist at August 02, 2011 11:11 AM (Nahpo)
Posted by: Grimaldi at August 02, 2011 11:11 AM (CgMAQ)
Black miniskirt - check.
Red toenails - check.
Oh! Oh! Oh!
Make sure you add the 4-inch stilettos - black preferred. Don't forget!
The uniform is very important.
Posted by: Sean Bannion at August 02, 2011 11:11 AM (sbV1u)
By passing nothing, the budget would have been balanced immediately and debt accumulation stopped. Which is only the starting point, as getting the debt to 0 (and no longer paying interest on it) is the goal. We traded that away for nothing.
We control 1/3 of government and got 2/3 of what we want. It's a win, take it and aim for 2012.
We got 2/3 of what we want? Srsly? So if we got half again the non-cuts and slightly less than the repeal of the Bush tax rates, you claim we would have gotten all we wanted?
There is a "we" here, pal. You aren't part of it.
Posted by: Methos at August 02, 2011 11:12 AM (sOXQX)
The soft anal prison rape of low expectations.
Posted by: sifty the Tearrorist at August 02, 2011 11:12 AM (ECjvn)
Posted by: joncelli at August 02, 2011 03:09 PM (RD7QR)
they didn't panic enough when the threat of no new credit card was out there, and now they are in a panic because nothing has been done about the debt.
they wanted that the other way around.
Posted by: Shoey at August 02, 2011 11:12 AM (jdOk/)
" just a few weeks ago seemed to have Republicans on the run over their plan to dismantle Medicare"
Dismantle Medicare? Like the $500B that ZippyCare steals from Medicare?
Boy, that Krugman's a dickless douchebag.
Posted by: apb at August 02, 2011 11:12 AM (Ljbw1)
Posted by: eastvalleyphx at August 02, 2011 03:12 PM (qiOph)
I hope you are kevlar reinforced.
I know I am.
Posted by: Sean Bannion at August 02, 2011 11:13 AM (sbV1u)
Posted by: joncelli at August 02, 2011 03:09 PM (RD7QR)
That Soros. What a guy.
Posted by: Soona - Tearorrist at August 02, 2011 11:14 AM (Nahpo)
Posted by: Dave at August 02, 2011 11:14 AM (Xm1aB)
Posted by: The House of Representatives at August 02, 2011 11:14 AM (AZGON)
@109
Bill,
"If every Republican votes with us in 2012 we would lose in a landslide. We MUST have Independents and Independents are NOT ideologues. They just want government that works and that means compromising."
Again......you don't really understand as much as you think you do. This is about saving the country not winning elections. If we put Republicans in that let Democrats roll over them, then what is the point? "Compromising" with people who do not repsect the history and founding documents of the country, and who's main goal is to change radically from it's wheelhouse is not compromise.....
If Americans are dumb enough to keep putting Democrats and Establishment Repoublicans in office, then they get what they deserve. I have accepted that, why haven't you? I have prepared for it, why haven't you?
There has been too much damage done to believe that it can be saved just because Republicans win majorites. That is not even close to good enough. We need Super Majoirties of Principled Conservatives including the Executive Branch. That's highly unlikely to happend!.....So spare Us Please!
Posted by: Ray-Gun Ronnie at August 02, 2011 11:14 AM (JMsOK)
Oh, but I'm only assuming this will be head stomping. Do you intend to stomp other areas instead? Or perhaps in addition to?
I believe in taking a whole person, holistic approach to the stomping. Thus the use of aromatherapy oils on the heels. It's the little touches that matter.
Make sure you add the 4-inch stilettos - black preferred. Don't forget!
Mais naturellement! Though blood red is an acceptable alternative.
Posted by: alexthechick at August 02, 2011 11:15 AM (VtjlW)
Posted by: ParisParamus at August 02, 2011 11:15 AM (yp/tJ)
It's time for team ball and long ball people. You want a better result? Take more power in 2012. Don't be a damned whiny crybaby like Rush.
*yawn* your schtick is getting boring. Everybody knows where everybody else stands on this by now. And you either believe we have more time (Specifically 2 years of more time) or you don't.
If you do: Big WIN!.
If you don't: Last Opportunity Lost.
Since it is all about predicting *what exactly will happen* over the next two years, there really isn't a good objective way to argue the point. Esp since we are heading into uncharted monetary waters.
So you can just figure me into the latter of those two camps.
Well I guess the tears of unfathomable sadness from the left will sweeten my tea while I watch the collapse proceed unabated. So there is that...
Posted by: MikeTheTearorristHobbitWereMoose (Fully DOOM! Certified and Compliant) at August 02, 2011 11:15 AM (0q2P7)
At present, if you tell me that Terrorists attacked a group of children, I would assume the Terrorists just negotiated a 10 cent discount on a glass of lemonade from the kid's lemonade stand.
And what of the future? In 2051, schoolchildren might well wonder how budget negotiations felled the WTC, or why a bunch of airline passengers would sacrifice their own lives to keep a bunch of congressmen from passing financial legislation. What new term do we use to set them straight?
No one - not even Jonah Goldberg -- is addressing this point. Any ideas here?
Posted by: Sweet Lou at August 02, 2011 11:16 AM (WrHFg)
Posted by: George Orwell at August 02, 2011 11:16 AM (AZGON)
Mais naturellement! Though blood red is an acceptable alternative.
Yeah, but only on Wednesdays. The real serious work is done in black. Of course, the soles must be red on both days.
And french manicure on Mondays. It's admin day at the office then and we like the troops to look sharp.
Posted by: Sean Bannion at August 02, 2011 11:16 AM (sbV1u)
To be fair, Boehner got 100% of his Pell grant money...
Posted by: Bevel Lemelisk at August 02, 2011 11:17 AM (TpXEI)
What would have passed both houses, though? The House did their part on that after months of work (to finally organize around it) and McConnell stabbed them in the back. But the chance of it becoming law the session was incredibly slim. The Senate Rs still should have tried their best, but it was a long-shot.
Posted by: 80sBaby at August 02, 2011 11:17 AM (o2lIv)
what is the word that we describe the type of people who commit acts of violence targeting non-combatants in order to intimidate and create an atmosphere of terror?
Enemies of the State?
Works for me.
Posted by: Sean Bannion at August 02, 2011 11:17 AM (sbV1u)
Posted by: Empire of Jeff, Jesusland Liberation Army - Political Terror Brigade at August 02, 2011 11:18 AM (lbo6/)
Ha ha, good one. We will only increase the debt 98% of the dems.
Posted by: 2013 repub congress and prez at August 02, 2011 11:18 AM (0f7gD)
Posted by: LizLem at August 02, 2011 11:18 AM (lSuMX)
Posted by: Mr. Pink at August 02, 2011 11:19 AM (VidfH)
Posted by: Dave at August 02, 2011 11:19 AM (Xm1aB)
Posted by: Jim Treacher at August 02, 2011 11:19 AM (X3KAb)
They're failing, miserably. Gold at $1653.
Posted by: Retread at August 02, 2011 11:20 AM (G+7cD)
Posted by: George Orwell at August 02, 2011 11:20 AM (AZGON)
FIFY
Posted by: MikeTheTearorristHobbitWereMoose (Fully DOOM! Certified and Compliant) at August 02, 2011 11:20 AM (0q2P7)
'80sbaby probably can answer this question better than I, but from a quick glance around, I think it is some kind of "independent" national bank that would help finance the construction/repair of public works projects.
To wit - it's another yawning black hole to throw money into, money that we don't have and money our grandkids will never even get to see before it is spent.
Posted by: Kratos (Ghost of Sparta) at August 02, 2011 11:20 AM (9hSKh)
Posted by: George Orwell at August 02, 2011 03:16 PM (AZGON)
Infrastructure Bank - because the Fed. just has too much light shining on it, so we'll create another bank that no one is watching that we can borrow billions of more dollars from.
suck it wingers!
I do what I want.
Posted by: President Toonces at August 02, 2011 11:21 AM (jdOk/)
Posted by: joncelli at August 02, 2011 11:21 AM (RD7QR)
George? George? where did you go George?
Posted by: MikeTheTearorristHobbitWereMoose (Fully DOOM! Certified and Compliant) at August 02, 2011 11:22 AM (0q2P7)
Posted by: Mr. Pink at August 02, 2011 11:22 AM (VidfH)
There are (at least) three things that make lefty rage at Obama of no value to non-lefties. One is: The fury of people who believe that everything that can or should be done (or allowed) can and should only be done (or allowed) via politics is a fury released via politics—an increasingly fascistic politics, as things remain undone. That's bad.
Two: They worship their heroes negatively. They love Obama—or Che or Mao or Margaret Cho or whoever—primarily because they think their hero offends your ideas of what a Real American™ says, believes, "looks like," etc. As long as that's true, they'll never leave Obama, or anyone like him. He's not-you, not himself. (Obama's the first big-time American politician who seems fully aware of this. That's bad.)
And 3: On the level of professional commentary, the rage is all fake, a tactic—stoked, not felt. The [whatever]-listers hit a set of trigger words and fright images ("choke gun!"), and the troops get the message: "We need a real lefty next time, to crush those dirty fucks." And they get ever closer to one, while declaiming "America's rightward drift," etc.—and everyone buys it. It pushes the whole polity left. (In which party would, say, Paul Ryan's budget plans have found a happy home in, say, 1921? Hint: You won't answer that honestly.)
But really here's the deep-down thing: Human nature isn't a "classical liberal"—and it's less so the deeper down into it you go, and our lefty pals (especially mine) are going deeper down into it every day, and their constant outrage at everything and everyone else all the goddamn time is evidence of it.
You know how babies hate life? How they'll tear your eyelid off or slam the dog in the face with a fuckin' brick if you don't stop them?
We're gettin' there.
Posted by: oblig. at August 02, 2011 11:22 AM (xvZW9)
Posted by: Jean at August 02, 2011 11:22 AM (5HAgy)
Dunno about the Dow, but there is a lot of support around 1260 on the S&P
Posted by: Bob Saget at August 02, 2011 11:22 AM (F/4zf)
Of course it is. It's the Liberals second holy grail, after national healthcare.
Don't forget about me!
Posted by: Abortion at August 02, 2011 11:22 AM (71LDo)
Quit humping Generalissimo alexthechick's leg. She needs it for stomping or she's gonna fall behind on her quota.
It's all I have to do today!
Posted by: Sean Bannion at August 02, 2011 11:22 AM (sbV1u)
Posted by: George Orwell at August 02, 2011 11:23 AM (AZGON)
Posted by: sifty the Tearrorist at August 02, 2011 11:24 AM (ECjvn)
Posted by: Dave at August 02, 2011 03:19 PM (Xm1aB)
I'll never vote for a D and I sure as hell won't vote for an I.
Posted by: ErikW at August 02, 2011 11:24 AM (IhhDF)
People who are saying they are done voting Republican need to wise up and fast.
Of course we're not happy with this latest deal, but just exactly how much can we expect based on the current representation.
We have an excellent chance of taking the Senate decisively and of installing a much more conservative president.
One more election! Could mean everything? Do not sit it out!
Hell, I voted for McCain....and Dole...and George H. Bush. I can do it again if it means saving the country. And you can too.
Posted by: Dave at August 02, 2011 03:19 PM (Xm1aB)
and has your vote for McCain, Dole, Bush Sr. actually saved the country?
... then you may want to rethink that strategy.
Posted by: President Toonces at August 02, 2011 11:24 AM (jdOk/)
they didn't panic enough when the threat of no new credit card was out there, and now they are in a panic because nothing has been done about the debt.
they wanted that the other way around.
Posted by: Shoey at August 02, 2011 03:12 PM (jdOk/)
Oh! This reminds me!
I saw upthread the discussion of the left being mentally ill. Agreed. They are completely divorced from reality. But I put that at about 20% of the population - the hardcore leftists. Then there's another 30-40% who are just mind-bogglingly stupid. Then mention of the credit card in Shoey's comment reminded me of another co-worker story (same job as the earlier anecdote, too - I think I was the only sane person working there). Back in 2008, when the big financial collapse started, the woman who worked in the cubicle next to me was freaking out. Her daughter worked for a bank and, "She told me that the government is going to shut off everyone's credit cards! No one's going to be able to use a credit card! And I need to buy food! I have nothing in my cupboards and I was going to go shopping tonight and I can't if I dont' have my credit card!"
I tried to explain to her, very politely, that there's a difference between banks tightening the criteria for a person to be extended credit, such as for a house or a car loan, and the government cancelling everyone's credit cards. "Your credit card is fine," I said. "You just might have trouble getting another one, and don't be surprised if your interest rates skyrocket. But the country would literally shut down if everyone's credit cards were suddenly turned off like a light switch. For better or worse, the country is built on credit."
"But my DAUGHTER said! And she works at a BANK!"
"I think you misinterpreted what your daughter told you." And you're a blithering idiot, too, was the silent addition to that particular comment.
So, if you're trying to figure out if people are aloof or just very, very stupid, I use this as exhibit A for the very, very stupid option. The stupid ones tend to be the conspiracists who believe everything the talking heads tell them, whereas the aloof ones tend to be the ones who can't even name the VP.
Yet they can all vote.
God save us.
Posted by: MWR, proud Tea Party Hobbit at August 02, 2011 11:24 AM (4df7R)
Fuck that shit. None of those qualifies as "saving the country." If we don't get someone with a plan to balance the budget before he/she seeks reelection, and we actually have time to wait to solve the debt problem, we're better off burning down the GOP and replacing it with a party that obeys us.
Posted by: Methos at August 02, 2011 11:25 AM (sOXQX)
A way for States to accumulate more debt without issuing bonds no one will buy because their credit is shot. Just think of it as being forced as a taxpayer, to buy California bonds at practically no yield so we can put in sweet sweet high speed rail between LA and San Fran. Then later default and stiff you with the loss.
(Go ahead repossess my high speed rail, I dare ya)
Posted by: MikeTheTearorristHobbitWereMoose (Fully DOOM! Certified and Compliant) at August 02, 2011 11:25 AM (0q2P7)
Posted by: GolfJonesObama at August 02, 2011 11:25 AM (Q5RiE)
Reid, McConnell, and Boehner's agreed to it. Some items and structure were shared by both bills, though Boehner's was the primary. But a majority of the similarities were due to items on which they already agreed. Pell Grants was a last minute bipartisan agreement (before the release of the BB) and one of the things I dislike about the bill.
Posted by: 80sBaby at August 02, 2011 11:26 AM (o2lIv)
Posted by: UpChuck Schumer at August 02, 2011 11:26 AM (Q5RiE)
Posted by: Merovign, Dark Lord of the Sith at August 02, 2011 11:26 AM (bxiXv)
Posted by: George Orwell at August 02, 2011 11:26 AM (AZGON)
Posted by: Jean at August 02, 2011 11:27 AM (5HAgy)
Posted by: nickless at August 02, 2011 11:27 AM (MMC8r)
Posted by: Mr. Pink at August 02, 2011 11:27 AM (VidfH)
Posted by: Hussein the Plumber at August 02, 2011 11:28 AM (jx2j9)
Posted by: JohnJ at August 02, 2011 11:28 AM (Tt6ky)
Well maybe if they become dispirited they will only bother to vote once...
Posted by: MikeTheTearorristHobbitWereMoose (Fully DOOM! Certified and Compliant) at August 02, 2011 11:28 AM (0q2P7)
BackwardsBoy - The GOP has a modest majority in the House and fiscal conservatives have a modest majority in the House GOP. The Senate is far out of reach ...and then there's the White House.
Yeah, I remember the numbers and the possibility of a genuwine, real, live victory in the first major Tea Party Battle of Capitol Hill ('011). I hit on it over at my little blog yesterday. I knew we wouldn't get anything tangible this time, but it was nice to think about.
What we did do, tho', was bring the leftists' outrageous level of spending to the attention of the otherwise clueless masses. And we also started talking about real cuts to government, which is truly historic since it's never happened before in my lifetime.
On the downside, we sorta lost the PR battle to a certain extent. Chrissy Mathews and her BFF's did their best to insure that. So your Fabian analogy might not be too far from the mark after all.
Posted by: BackwardsBoy at August 02, 2011 11:28 AM (d0Tfm)
Posted by: FRONT TOWARD LEFT at August 02, 2011 11:28 AM (cbyrC)
But if an R dares to call a D a liar, well, then, that's hate speech!
Posted by: 80sBaby at August 02, 2011 11:28 AM (o2lIv)
Posted by: Dave at August 02, 2011 11:28 AM (Xm1aB)
Exactly, we are in a slo-mo French Revolution.
Posted by: PJ at August 02, 2011 11:29 AM (FlVA8)
Posted by: Hussein the Plumber at August 02, 2011 11:29 AM (jx2j9)
Posted by: joncelli at August 02, 2011 11:29 AM (RD7QR)
Oh quit. Nobody will sit it out, but don't expect that somehow the repubs will get a clue about not continuing ridiculous spending. (see medicare prescription law)
Posted by: Guy Fawkes at August 02, 2011 11:29 AM (0f7gD)
The authoritarian übergrowth deal made by Republicans with Obama/Reid matters.
Posted by: Bluffy Obama at August 02, 2011 11:30 AM (lpWVn)
Posted by: George Orwell at August 02, 2011 11:30 AM (AZGON)
Posted by: t-bird at August 02, 2011 11:30 AM (FcR7P)
"Universal suffrage" is one of those good idea / bad idea things. The inverse is inevitably abused, but its it really worse?Posted by: Merovign, Dark Lord of the Sith at August 02, 2011 11:30 AM (bxiXv)
Exactly, we are in a slo-mo French Revolution.
I think Jeff has a Guillotine Squadron at the ready for this.
Posted by: Sean Bannion at August 02, 2011 11:30 AM (sbV1u)
It's unpopular but we need to have a serious discussion about this. We need to up our standards for who can vote in this country. I think it's the only thing that can save our Republic. I'm not talking about a poll tax or anything of the sort. But there's *no* reason why someone who thinks a President can pay her mortgage/gas should have a vote count as much as someone who educates themselves on the issues.
We need a basic civics test of some sorts.
Posted by: laceyunderalls at August 02, 2011 11:30 AM (pLTLS)
Posted by: Empire of Jeff, Jesusland Liberation Army - Political Terror Brigade at August 02, 2011 11:31 AM (lbo6/)
Posted by: Nevergiveup at August 02, 2011 11:31 AM (i6RpT)
Poor Jon Stewart.
Jon Stewart Slaps Down Obama For Debt Deal: ‘You’re Not Pinning This Turd On Us’Posted by: stuiec at August 02, 2011 11:31 AM (Di3Im)
Posted by: George Orwell at August 02, 2011 11:32 AM (AZGON)
I want answers from the AG and investigations by DOJ, dammit.
Posted by: Fritz at August 02, 2011 11:32 AM (/ZZCn)
---
I have a friend with a 3-year old daughter who's absolutely adorable most of the time. And once tried to bite his throat out when he took a toy away. Her liberal mother thinks it's "cute." (He just kind of frowns and shakes his head when the topic comes up).
Posted by: Methos at August 02, 2011 11:33 AM (sOXQX)
You know who else is like this? Proponents of sharia law.
Normal human beings outgrow this kind of shit before they hit middle school. The ones that don't make life hell for the rest of us.
I made that point in a thread this morning. It's like liberals stop developing mentally at age 14.
Funny, I don't remember feeling age 14 was a warm fuzzy cocoon, but evidently liberals do because they never leave it.
Posted by: Sean Bannion at August 02, 2011 11:33 AM (sbV1u)
And NASDAQ is falling, but S&P stubbornly remains at 1261. With gold continuing to climb I'm about to cross into paranoia territory re the S&P and wonder if they're reporting it in real time.
Posted by: Retread at August 02, 2011 11:33 AM (G+7cD)
Ah, it is a good day...
Posted by: steve walsh at August 02, 2011 11:34 AM (wFwCH)
Posted by: Hussein the Plumber at August 02, 2011 11:34 AM (jx2j9)
Not portable enough. That squadron is outfitted with diesel chainsaws instead.
See?!?! Who says American ingenuity can't solve any problem??!
Posted by: Sean Bannion at August 02, 2011 11:34 AM (sbV1u)
Posted by: George Orwell at August 02, 2011 11:34 AM (AZGON)
Funny, I don't remember feeling age 14 was a warm fuzzy cocoon, but evidently liberals do because they never leave it.
There is no force on earth as cruel as a pack of 14 yo girls. That explains so so much about the Left.
Posted by: alexthechick at August 02, 2011 11:34 AM (VtjlW)
Fuck Jon Stewart the Hipster Clown. Wake me when he kicks.
Until then, nothing he does could interest me.
Posted by: sifty the Tearrorist at August 02, 2011 11:35 AM (ECjvn)
Posted by: AuthorLMendez (Formerly YRM) At Work at August 02, 2011 11:35 AM (yAor6)
Dr. Boehner: Bandages?
Dr. Obamarielosi Leeches?
Murmers.....
We have agreed on Bandaids!
Posted by: MikeTheTearorristHobbitWereMoose (Fully DOOM! Certified and Compliant) at August 02, 2011 11:35 AM (0q2P7)
Someone linked a story earlier from CBS (? I think?) where they walked back Biden's comments and said he didn't call tea party people 'terrorists'. Now Carney apparently just said those comments were part of an 'emotional' and 'passionate' debate.
Um, which is it assholes -- did he say it or not? Sounds like he did!
Posted by: laceyunderalls at August 02, 2011 11:35 AM (pLTLS)
Posted by: George Orwell at August 02, 2011 11:36 AM (AZGON)
Um, which is it assholes -- did he say it or not? Sounds like he did!
Posted by: laceyunderalls at August 02, 2011 03:35 PM (pLTLS)
C'mon, you know the answer to that.
Were Carney's lips moving?
Then he was lying.
Posted by: Sean Bannion at August 02, 2011 11:38 AM (sbV1u)
Posted by: sifty the Tearrorist at August 02, 2011 11:38 AM (ECjvn)
King Barry Soetoro. Has a ring to it.
Yeah, when that happens the first Committee of Correspondence begins.
And you know where that ends.
Well....if you're JEF you don't, because you don't know history. But to the rest of us...
Posted by: Sean Bannion at August 02, 2011 11:39 AM (sbV1u)
Posted by: Hussein the Plumber at August 02, 2011 03:28 PM (jx2j9)
Other than the unions and Dick's re-election campaign, what did you think they were going to spend $2.5 trillion on?
Posted by: Soona - Tearorrist at August 02, 2011 11:40 AM (Nahpo)
Posted by: sifty the Tearrorist at August 02, 2011 03:38 PM (ECjvn)
He gave a speech today. That will offset any bounce he gets from his birthday.
Posted by: Hussein the Plumber at August 02, 2011 11:40 AM (jx2j9)
"WAH! You only gave us $2.4 trillion more dollars?!"
No tax hikes, spending cuts, their inability to get their $2.4T upfront, the BBA vote, and potential cuts to Medicare (MediScare being the 2012 silver bullet). They wanted a clean debt ceiling increase, no strings attached. Obama also put his own reelection above that of the congressional Dems.
Posted by: 80sBaby at August 02, 2011 11:40 AM (o2lIv)
There is no force on earth as cruel as a pack of 14 yo girls. That explains so so much about the Left.
*shudder* I'm having flashbacks to sophomore year... They were like hyenas. Snarling, snickering, bitchy hyenas.
Posted by: MWR, proud Tea Party Hobbit at August 02, 2011 11:41 AM (4df7R)
Posted by: Soona - Tearorrist at August 02, 2011 11:41 AM (Nahpo)
Posted by: George Orwell at August 02, 2011 11:41 AM (AZGON)
Posted by: joncelli at August 02, 2011 11:42 AM (RD7QR)
There's an obvious loss of privacy in the process, but I think one solution would be to weight everyone's votes by the amount of federal tax they paid since the previous election.
Perversely, if you want your vote to count more, you could always 'donate' more in taxes than are legally called for.
Posted by: Methos at August 02, 2011 11:43 AM (sOXQX)
But then, y'all have the whole multiple orgasms thing going for you...
Sigh. Yes, sadly they do.
Posted by: Sean Bannion at August 02, 2011 11:44 AM (sbV1u)
Posted by: J.J. Sefton at August 02, 2011 11:44 AM (UlUS4)
Posted by: Ian S. at August 02, 2011 11:44 AM (tqwMN)
Posted by: J.J. Sefton at August 02, 2011 11:45 AM (UlUS4)
Posted by: 80sBaby at August 02, 2011 11:45 AM (o2lIv)
Posted by: joncelli at August 02, 2011 03:42 PM (RD7QR)
It's true. But then, we've got to have SOME perks for having to put up with the shrill, vain, and crass members of our gender. I mean, we have NOW. Tell me being associated by gender with that group of harpies isn't a special hell all its own.
Posted by: MWR, proud Tea Party Hobbit at August 02, 2011 11:46 AM (4df7R)
Posted by: Retread at August 02, 2011 11:46 AM (G+7cD)
Honestly, who cares if those leftist retards are upset? They're always pissed off about everything. It's their default state of being.
What matters is that this deal sucks. The can has been kicked down the road and right over the dead end railing separating the road from the 200ft cliff we're about to plummet down.
All this theater and there were no real cuts.
Talk about all day fucking long and it still boils down to the fact that Presidick Piss-pants shoved through a permanent 30% spending increase ON TOP of the ruinious effects of Obamacare.
And he got away with it.
It ain't gonna much matter who got the big fake "win" when we enter into a worldwide depression.
Posted by: Warden at August 02, 2011 11:46 AM (HzhBE)
Posted by: George Orwell at August 02, 2011 11:47 AM (AZGON)
Hah, but that isn't the bar I want to be measured by.
Sounds like Allen West's tweet that Obama, Reid and Pelosi would have been worse. I replied to that tweet:
With all due respect Congressman, the benchmark isn't "We aren't as bad as Reid, Pelosi, and Obama".
Posted by: blindside at August 02, 2011 11:47 AM (x7g7t)
There's an obvious loss of privacy in the process, but I think one solution would be to weight everyone's votes by the amount of federal tax they paid since the previous election.
Posted by: Methos at August 02, 2011 03:43 PM (sOXQX)
Or how about the amount of land they own?
Posted by: ErikW at August 02, 2011 11:47 AM (IhhDF)
(suckers)
Posted by: blindside at August 02, 2011 11:48 AM (x7g7t)
Posted by: Empire of Jeff, Jesusland Liberation Army - Political Terror Brigade at August 02, 2011 11:49 AM (lbo6/)
Posted by: sifty the Tearrorist at August 02, 2011 03:38 PM (ECjvn)
He gave a speech today. That will offset any bounce he gets from his birthday.
Posted by: Hussein the Plumber at August 02, 2011 03:40 PM (jx2j9)
What bump? We're long past the point where seeing America's First Black President (Yes Sir!) enjoying the perks of office gives us a warm and fuzzy feeling. In a nation with nominal 9+ percent unemployment (and double that in real unemployment), pictures of our elected leader living high off the hog are way more likely to depress his ratings than elevate them.
Even his base is going to say, "Gee, I see the budget cuts don't impact the entertainment and refreshment budget for our Dear Leader!"
Posted by: stuiec at August 02, 2011 11:49 AM (Di3Im)
Posted by: George Orwell at August 02, 2011 11:50 AM (AZGON)
Or how about the amount of land they own?
No, no, no. The number of nubile young daughters they have.
Y'all are forgetting where you are.
Posted by: BackwardsBoy at August 02, 2011 11:52 AM (d0Tfm)
Posted by: joncelli at August 02, 2011 03:42 PM (RD7QR)
It's true. But then, we've got to have SOME perks for having to put up with the shrill, vain, and crass members of our gender. I mean, we have NOW. Tell me being associated by gender with that group of harpies isn't a special hell all its own.
Posted by: MWR, proud Tea Party Hobbit at August 02, 2011 03:46 PM (4df7R)
Come, come now.
Oh, wait - you wrote a response to joncelli? I kind of stopped paying attention at "multiple orgasms."
Posted by: stuiec at August 02, 2011 11:52 AM (Di3Im)
Our enemies know it, and now we know it too: if you stepped on Obama, he wouldn't even crunch.
Posted by: Brown Line at August 02, 2011 11:53 AM (VrNoa)
Posted by: LizLem at August 02, 2011 11:54 AM (lSuMX)
Posted by: Empire of Jeff, Jesusland Liberation Army - Political Terror Brigade at August 02, 2011 03:49 PM (lbo6/)"
Funniest comment I've read for a while. This is the standard.
anyway, since I'm not so funny I'll just laugh that the left doesn't understand why they lost in 2010. Obamacare was not popular, and that's why the democrats lost power. They can ram things down America's throat to a point, and they crossed that point a while back so they are going to have to accept the pendulum swinging to the right.
If they really wanted to avoid more Bush and Palin they should have governed in a way this country would like. It's not complicated.
Posted by: Dustin at August 02, 2011 11:56 AM (519+h)
I get the frustrastion about ignorant people whose votes are easily bought but I resent the idea that broke ass folks (such as myself) don't have the intelligence to cast a well-informed vote.
I know Vic is all about Heinlein's idea and others think that you should have skin in the game to vote.
Sorry that my lot in life doesn't measure up to yours and I don't deserve to cast a ballot.
That's fucked up.
Posted by: ErikW at August 02, 2011 11:56 AM (IhhDF)
Um, no. My idea is that the folks paying for government should have the primary say in what it does. To the extent owning land facilitates your income, it would be beneficial, but the land ownership itself isn't that great of a criteria.
Does someone on a half acre lot inside some major city limits get more or less weight than 2 acres in the suburbs? Does it depend on the assessed value? Does it depend on whether it's actually owned free and clear or mortgaged? Does the spouse of the landowner get a vote and how does it get weighted?
That all seems like too much room for shenanigans. 'What you paid the government' is just a number that can be quickly and inarguably determined.
Posted by: Methos at August 02, 2011 11:59 AM (sOXQX)
Anyway, it's as if the leftists I know thought they bought "intelligence offsets" simply by realigning their political affiliation. Unfortunately, I tend to be on the independent cynical side, so I'm apparently "stupider" than people who can't even do basic math.
Posted by: The Ghost of Flannery O'Connor at August 02, 2011 12:00 PM (DNX55)
Posted by: Waterhouse at August 02, 2011 12:02 PM (7+Jsh)
The country has become ungovernable. Hear me? UNGOVERNABLE!*
*at least until a Republican is President, in which case a Democrat filibuster will be an exemplary example of glorious Democracy in action.
Posted by: The entire NYT staff at August 02, 2011 12:02 PM (SY2Kh)
Posted by: Methos at August 02, 2011 03:59 PM (sOXQX)
That was kinda my point.
Life would be a lot easier if we didn't have government inspectors looking up our ass with a microscope.
Posted by: ErikW at August 02, 2011 12:05 PM (IhhDF)
Er, I am also broke ass. I'm just brainstorming here. Part of my devious plan is to dupe lefties into balancing the budget with their desire for voting power.
Posted by: Methos at August 02, 2011 12:06 PM (sOXQX)
252It's unpopular but we need to have a serious discussion about this. We need to up our standards for who can vote in this country.
the answer is to only allow net taxpayers to vote, by which i mean only those who have to pony up a check in april, you don't write a check, you don't vote period.
we all know that the taxpayers should be deciding things but we have all bought into the notion that we are a pure democracy, which is not surprising seeing that we are told by our betters over and over again that we live in a democracy, but in fact we live in a Republic which incorporates democratic elements.
one man, one voice, one vote...
bullshit, some poeple have no business voting because they have no stake in the nation's prosperity.
if you are a government employee or dependent (and that means you, all you SS receipients) you are living off of tax money, which means even though payroll taxes come out of your check, they all only going back to the place your paycheck came from - the General Fund - no revenue is generated in that transaction as it does when payroll taxes are collected from a private enterprise.
Posted by: Shoey at August 02, 2011 12:06 PM (jdOk/)
Ann Coulter is Hannity, how can someone so smart be so wrong on this issue?
bubble-living - it's makes even smart people seem stupid.
Posted by: Shoey at August 02, 2011 12:10 PM (jdOk/)
My idea could work with a national sales tax instead of income tax-based, but you'd then have government collecting data about your purchasing patterns. Maybe we could do away with all tax and run government on donations.
Posted by: Methos at August 02, 2011 12:11 PM (sOXQX)
What needs to happen now is to focus efforts on ousting as many of the Democrats and RINOs that are up for re-election next year, in both Capitol chambers.
Posted by: Blacque Jacques Shellacque at August 02, 2011 12:19 PM (1rHeD)
Suck it, you socialist pricks! SUCK IT!
Posted by: MCPO Airdale at August 02, 2011 12:20 PM (FAyWo)
These people cannot simultaneously be ardent socialists and absolute pretenders when it comes to their litany of complaints. Either they are true believers who feel any concession hurts their idea of a socialist utopia or they are all masquerading as Democrats. So I fail to see why we are should support statements much like "Bush is brilliantly evil yet too stupid to tie his own shoes" when both cannot be true. On my part, I believe them because they have repeatedly proven the belief in their dream, that they will go to great lengths to advance their cause. YMMV.
Posted by: 80sBaby at August 02, 2011 12:23 PM (o2lIv)
We have bipartisan political cover. So suck us off.
Posted by: Obama, dummy dems, esq. at August 02, 2011 12:26 PM (sOXQX)
Make sure you add the 4-inch stilettos - black preferred. Don't forget!
Mais naturellement! Though blood red is an acceptable alternative.
Posted by: alexthechick at August 02, 2011 03:15 PM (VtjlW)
Posted by: Radical Redneck at August 02, 2011 12:27 PM (cOyko)
Why is it that the Impure continue to put lipstick on this steaming file of crap and tell you its Sophia Loren?
Obama got everything he wanted. Doubt massive new taxes are coming? Anyone want to bet no one on this super politboro will be a conservative. Just more Ersatz Republicans who wish to continue spending your money.
But don't think for yourselfs and ask about this pig in a poke. Listen instead to the crocodile tears and "don't throw me in the briar patch."
This is truly pathetic Ace.
Posted by: Molon Labe at August 02, 2011 12:27 PM (g5MrG)
But if it makes you feel better about getting taken for a ride and blowing a rare opportunity to really cut government spending - woohoo.
Posted by: MlR at August 02, 2011 12:28 PM (Qsfvj)
Doesn't prove "the deal" was good--only that the 2 sides are very, very far apart.
Which we already knew.
"The deal" did/does suck donkey dick.
Posted by: Mitt Romneycare at August 02, 2011 01:14 PM (K/USr)
Posted by: Always a Witch AudioBook at August 02, 2011 03:51 PM (fhv4U)
Hide Comments | Add Comment | Refresh | Top
64 queries taking 0.2568 seconds, 415 records returned.
Powered by Minx 1.1.6c-pink.
Or something.
Posted by: Navin R Johnson at August 02, 2011 10:34 AM (qvb/m)