Tea Party: When it's Time to Go
I attended an afternoon tea party on Sunday at the home of one of my friends who has what appears to be a fortune. None of us know where she got or how she made her money, but it's pretty obvious she has a lot of it.
It was all ladies, most of whom are straight and over 50, yet four other lesbians and I were invited because it's apparently chic for rich, single ladies to have lesbian friends.
The food was fabulous, the weather was perfect, and our hostess must have had her gardener working overtime, because her yard was festooned with every flower that can grow in South Texas. Gorgeous.
All in all, it was a lovely, relaxing afternoon... until Mary the Republican who smells like a ten-pound block of Camay soap came over to say hello.
At the time, I was talking politics with some rational, Bush loathing folks, one of whom had just attended a fundraiser for Hillary Clinton and found her charming.
I was dying to ask her more about the meeting, but then Mary the Republican sort of squeezed herself in between us and started yammering about how she still thinks Bush is doing a fine job. She even said she'd vote for him again.
I felt my jaw clench and tried to remain in a suitable tea party disposition, but my date was making crazy eyes at me so I'd keep myself in check.
Just as my voice started to amplify a bit about gas prices, Mary the Republican butt in and said, "Well, you'll be happy I didn't vote in the Republican primaries because I am voting for Kinky Friedman for governor."
Instantly, the ice melted and we actually high fived.
My date and I used the detente to slip into the next room, where we found seats at a nice, isolated table.
Alas, we were quickly joined by a 65-year-old British lady who loves to tell and retell the same stories in excruciating detail. Her appearance was followed quickly thereafter by Mary the Republican who smells like Camay soap.
We were cornered.
We'd just gotten cups of scalding hot coffee, so we couldn't exactly gulp and go.
But then when the British lady started telling us for the third time about the wrought iron planter her husband had gotten her for their patio, we developed asbestos mouths, downed our coffee in two gulps and got up to leave.
I was just glad the event was alcohol free, because between the cheap soap using Bush lover and the British Jabberjaws, I would have told one she was crazy and the other that she needed to shut the hell up and stop telling the same stories.
Otherwise, it was a lovely afternoon.
Sunday, April 09, 2006
Saturday, April 08, 2006
Let Them Pack Heat?
I am against handgun ownership.
I think the framers of the Constitution had in mind muskets when they gave us the right to bear arms in the Second Amendment. I doubt they imagined modern automatic weapons with laser gunsites and armor piercing ammunition.
Muskets used lead balls packed in a paper cartridge which also held gunpowder. The balls came wrapped in a loosely fitting paper patch that formed the upper part of the cartridge.The lower part of the cartridge contained the gunpowder. They loaded the gunpowder first, followed by the paper from the lower section of cartridge used as wadding. Then they loaded the ball and the upper piece of cartridge. Finally, a ramrod served to compact the ball and wadding down onto the gunpowder. The process took a while.
Loading a musket gave potential victims (or bad guys) plenty of time to de-escalate the battle by getting the hell out of firing range.
You could also spot a guy carrying a musket from a block away.
George W. Bush's first act as Governor of Texas was to legalize the carrying of concealed handguns.
Yes, in Texas, anyone with the proper permit can pack heat anywhere they want, unless a business (such as a bar or government property) posts a sign that specifically prohibits it.
That's not so uncommon in the other 50 states, either. In fact, only six states prohibit the carrying of concealed weapons.
I wonder what pro-National Rifle Association/Pro Gun Bush would do if he were to appear in an outdoor venue and everyone in the crowd was legally packing a handgun or a rifle?
Would he trust that everyone in the audience carefully complied with the brief gun safety course they took before they got their permits?
Would the Secret Service check everyone's permits, then allow them to proceed to their seats with their guns at the ready?
The Constitution also guarantees citizens the right to peaceful assemblies.
If a group of peaceful protesters swarmed the gates of the Crawford Ranch carrying concealed handguns or non-concealed rifles, do you think the Secret Service or local police would enforce either constitutional amendment and allow the peacefully assembled group to continue their protest?
Just wondering.
I am against handgun ownership.
I think the framers of the Constitution had in mind muskets when they gave us the right to bear arms in the Second Amendment. I doubt they imagined modern automatic weapons with laser gunsites and armor piercing ammunition.
Muskets used lead balls packed in a paper cartridge which also held gunpowder. The balls came wrapped in a loosely fitting paper patch that formed the upper part of the cartridge.The lower part of the cartridge contained the gunpowder. They loaded the gunpowder first, followed by the paper from the lower section of cartridge used as wadding. Then they loaded the ball and the upper piece of cartridge. Finally, a ramrod served to compact the ball and wadding down onto the gunpowder. The process took a while.
Loading a musket gave potential victims (or bad guys) plenty of time to de-escalate the battle by getting the hell out of firing range.
You could also spot a guy carrying a musket from a block away.
George W. Bush's first act as Governor of Texas was to legalize the carrying of concealed handguns.
Yes, in Texas, anyone with the proper permit can pack heat anywhere they want, unless a business (such as a bar or government property) posts a sign that specifically prohibits it.
That's not so uncommon in the other 50 states, either. In fact, only six states prohibit the carrying of concealed weapons.
I wonder what pro-National Rifle Association/Pro Gun Bush would do if he were to appear in an outdoor venue and everyone in the crowd was legally packing a handgun or a rifle?
Would he trust that everyone in the audience carefully complied with the brief gun safety course they took before they got their permits?
Would the Secret Service check everyone's permits, then allow them to proceed to their seats with their guns at the ready?
The Constitution also guarantees citizens the right to peaceful assemblies.
If a group of peaceful protesters swarmed the gates of the Crawford Ranch carrying concealed handguns or non-concealed rifles, do you think the Secret Service or local police would enforce either constitutional amendment and allow the peacefully assembled group to continue their protest?
Just wondering.
Will Ford Bow to Homophobic Pressure?
PlanetOut Network
DETROIT -- Ford Motor Co. shareholders will decide whether to amend the company's equal employment policy to exclude sexual orientation after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission denied Ford's request to keep the issue off its proxy statement, the automaker said Tuesday.
Ford's policy now says the company won't discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation, gender, religion and other factors. Shareholder Robert Hurley of Alton, Ill., has submitted a proposal recommending Ford change its policy to exclude any reference to sexual interests, activities or orientation.
Ford asked the SEC to exclude the proposal from its proxy statement, saying it would hurt the company's ability to recruit employees because some universities require companies to include sexual orientation in their policies. Ford also said publicity over changing the policy could hurt sales to gay rights supporters.
But in a recent decision, the SEC said Ford can't exclude the proposal. The SEC said a rule that allows companies to reject proposals that deal with "ordinary business operations" doesn't apply to this case.
Ford is sending its proxy statement to shareholders Friday, spokeswoman Becky Sanch said. Shareholders will vote on the proposals and the results will be announced at the company's annual meeting May 11.
"We will include it, and we will have our comments in the proxy statement," Sanch said.
The SEC agreed with Ford's decision to keep other proposals off the proxy statement, including one that would have required the company to pay managers no more than $500,000 per year.
Ford has had an ongoing struggle with the American Family Association and other right-wing groups about homosexuality. In December, Ford said it would stop advertising its Jaguar and Land Rover luxury brands in gay publications to reduce marketing costs. But after meeting with several gay rights groups, Ford said it would put ads featuring all eight of its brands in gay publications.
Last month, 19 right-wing groups reinstated a boycott against Ford over the issue. The American Family Association said Tuesday that it supports the SEC's decision.
"I find Ford's logic in asking the SEC to omit the resolution interesting," AFA Chairman Don Wildmon said in a statement. "In essence Ford is saying they are concerned that a boycott by homosexual groups would financially hurt the company, but the boycott by the pro-family groups will not."
Ford shares were unchanged at $7.77 in afternoon trading Tuesday on the New York Stock Exchange.
PlanetOut Network
DETROIT -- Ford Motor Co. shareholders will decide whether to amend the company's equal employment policy to exclude sexual orientation after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission denied Ford's request to keep the issue off its proxy statement, the automaker said Tuesday.
Ford's policy now says the company won't discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation, gender, religion and other factors. Shareholder Robert Hurley of Alton, Ill., has submitted a proposal recommending Ford change its policy to exclude any reference to sexual interests, activities or orientation.
Ford asked the SEC to exclude the proposal from its proxy statement, saying it would hurt the company's ability to recruit employees because some universities require companies to include sexual orientation in their policies. Ford also said publicity over changing the policy could hurt sales to gay rights supporters.
But in a recent decision, the SEC said Ford can't exclude the proposal. The SEC said a rule that allows companies to reject proposals that deal with "ordinary business operations" doesn't apply to this case.
Ford is sending its proxy statement to shareholders Friday, spokeswoman Becky Sanch said. Shareholders will vote on the proposals and the results will be announced at the company's annual meeting May 11.
"We will include it, and we will have our comments in the proxy statement," Sanch said.
The SEC agreed with Ford's decision to keep other proposals off the proxy statement, including one that would have required the company to pay managers no more than $500,000 per year.
Ford has had an ongoing struggle with the American Family Association and other right-wing groups about homosexuality. In December, Ford said it would stop advertising its Jaguar and Land Rover luxury brands in gay publications to reduce marketing costs. But after meeting with several gay rights groups, Ford said it would put ads featuring all eight of its brands in gay publications.
Last month, 19 right-wing groups reinstated a boycott against Ford over the issue. The American Family Association said Tuesday that it supports the SEC's decision.
"I find Ford's logic in asking the SEC to omit the resolution interesting," AFA Chairman Don Wildmon said in a statement. "In essence Ford is saying they are concerned that a boycott by homosexual groups would financially hurt the company, but the boycott by the pro-family groups will not."
Ford shares were unchanged at $7.77 in afternoon trading Tuesday on the New York Stock Exchange.
Thursday, April 06, 2006
DeLay's Departure WILL Help the Democrats
In this wacky world of GOP politics, up means down and winning means losing.
So often, one can listen to a GOP politician speak and assume the opposite of what they say as truth.
Case in point, Tom DeLay.
In his pathetic exit speech, he said he didn't want his re-election race to turn into an advantage for the Democrats who'd use his campaign as a symbol of the GOP's culture of corruption.
Does that arrogant clown actually think his exit will make us forget what a crook he and his GOP cronies are?
Like convicted felon and GOP lobbyist Jack Abramoff, DeLay is an indicted criminal whose time in power was running out.
Assuming he's guilty is about as sure a thing as assuming Saddam Hussein is guilty, yet we will not find a GOP who would verify that assumption.
Surely, DeLay's vacant seat will be filled by a Democrat.
Many open seats will be filled by Democrats come November.
It's not that the Democrats have done such a great job of pointing out their differences or clamoring for GOP accountability- it's that vermin like DeLay and Abramoff have done all the heavy lifting for them.
In this wacky world of GOP politics, up means down and winning means losing.
So often, one can listen to a GOP politician speak and assume the opposite of what they say as truth.
Case in point, Tom DeLay.
In his pathetic exit speech, he said he didn't want his re-election race to turn into an advantage for the Democrats who'd use his campaign as a symbol of the GOP's culture of corruption.
Does that arrogant clown actually think his exit will make us forget what a crook he and his GOP cronies are?
Like convicted felon and GOP lobbyist Jack Abramoff, DeLay is an indicted criminal whose time in power was running out.
Assuming he's guilty is about as sure a thing as assuming Saddam Hussein is guilty, yet we will not find a GOP who would verify that assumption.
Surely, DeLay's vacant seat will be filled by a Democrat.
Many open seats will be filled by Democrats come November.
It's not that the Democrats have done such a great job of pointing out their differences or clamoring for GOP accountability- it's that vermin like DeLay and Abramoff have done all the heavy lifting for them.
Wednesday, April 05, 2006
Deputy Press Secretary for Homeland Security Arrested on Pedophile Charge
Once again, DHS Director Michael Chertoff has shown us he hires high ranking employees without vetting them, then proceeds to let them run amok without anyone being accountable.
The deputy press secretary for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security was arrested Tuesday for using the Internet to seduce what he thought was a teenage girl, authorities said.
Brian J. Doyle, 55, was arrested in Maryland where he lives on charges of use of a computer to seduce a child and transmission of harmful material to a minor. The charges were issued out of Polk County, Fla.
Doyle, of Silver Spring, Md., had a sexually explicit conversation with what he believed was a 14-year-old girl whose profile he saw on the Internet on March 14, the Polk County Sheriff's Office said in a statement. The girl was an undercover Polk County Sheriff's Computer Crimes detective, the sheriff's office said. He also gave the girl his home phone number and his DHS-issued cell phone number.
I know a female DHS agent who poses as an underage kid and monitors Internet chatrooms and IM's, specifically looking for pedophiles.
Little did she know she could have landed one just by calling the Home Office.
Is anyone else besides me feeling like the Department of Homeland Security is the biggest government boondoggle in American history?
It's the place to work if you're a lazy, shiftless, career civil servant with psychiatric problems.
You're doin' a heckuva job, Cherty.
Once again, DHS Director Michael Chertoff has shown us he hires high ranking employees without vetting them, then proceeds to let them run amok without anyone being accountable.
The deputy press secretary for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security was arrested Tuesday for using the Internet to seduce what he thought was a teenage girl, authorities said.
Brian J. Doyle, 55, was arrested in Maryland where he lives on charges of use of a computer to seduce a child and transmission of harmful material to a minor. The charges were issued out of Polk County, Fla.
Doyle, of Silver Spring, Md., had a sexually explicit conversation with what he believed was a 14-year-old girl whose profile he saw on the Internet on March 14, the Polk County Sheriff's Office said in a statement. The girl was an undercover Polk County Sheriff's Computer Crimes detective, the sheriff's office said. He also gave the girl his home phone number and his DHS-issued cell phone number.
I know a female DHS agent who poses as an underage kid and monitors Internet chatrooms and IM's, specifically looking for pedophiles.
Little did she know she could have landed one just by calling the Home Office.
Is anyone else besides me feeling like the Department of Homeland Security is the biggest government boondoggle in American history?
It's the place to work if you're a lazy, shiftless, career civil servant with psychiatric problems.
You're doin' a heckuva job, Cherty.
Tuesday, April 04, 2006
Ronnie Earle: 10 Tom DeLay: 0
Shakespeare said in MacBeth, "The lady doth protest too much, methinks."
After all the denials and hissing and spitting like the rattler he is, Tom DeLay decided to throw in the towel and soon will step down from his seat in Congress.
Not only that, he plans to leave Texas and move to Virginia.
Texas soon will become a cleaner place.
All that remains is for Travis County D.A. Ronnie Earle to put DeLay on trial, convict him and send him to prison...hopefully in Virginia.
Once he's served his sentence, his career as a lobbyist might not seem so filled with potential, unless he's lobbying for improved prisons.
It's a beautiful day in Texas!
Shakespeare said in MacBeth, "The lady doth protest too much, methinks."
After all the denials and hissing and spitting like the rattler he is, Tom DeLay decided to throw in the towel and soon will step down from his seat in Congress.
Not only that, he plans to leave Texas and move to Virginia.
Texas soon will become a cleaner place.
All that remains is for Travis County D.A. Ronnie Earle to put DeLay on trial, convict him and send him to prison...hopefully in Virginia.
Once he's served his sentence, his career as a lobbyist might not seem so filled with potential, unless he's lobbying for improved prisons.
It's a beautiful day in Texas!
Monday, April 03, 2006
Bill Maher's closing remarks on his recent show
Mr. President, this job can't be fun for you any more.
There's no more money to spend--you used up all of that.
You can't start another war because you used up the army.
And now, darn the luck, the rest of your term has become the
Bush family nightmare: helping poor people. Listen to your Mom.
The cupboard's bare, the credit cards maxed out.
No one's speaking to you. Mission accomplished."
"Now it's time to do what you've always done best: lose interest
and walk away. Like you did with your military service and the oil
company and the baseball team. It's time. Time to move on and try
the next fantasy job. How about cowboy or space man?
Now I know what you're saying: there's so many other things that
you as President could involve yourself in. Please don't. I know, I know.
There's a lot left to do. There's a war with Venezuela.
Eliminating the sales tax on yachts.
Turning the space program over to the church.
And Social Security to Fannie Mae. Giving embryos the vote."
"But, Sir, none of that is going to happen now. Why?
Because you govern like Billy Joel drives.
You've performed so poorly I'm surprised that you haven't given
yourself a medal. You're a catastrophe that walks like a man.
Herbert Hoover was a shitty president, but even he never
conceded an entire city to rising water and snakes."
"On your watch, we've lost almost all of our allies, the surplus,
four airliners, two trade centers, a piece of the Pentagon and the
City of New Orleans. Maybe you're just not lucky. I'm not saying
you don't love this country. I'm just wondering how much worse
it could be if you were on the other side."
"So, yes, God does speak to you. What he is saying is: 'Take a hint.'
Amen
Mr. President, this job can't be fun for you any more.
There's no more money to spend--you used up all of that.
You can't start another war because you used up the army.
And now, darn the luck, the rest of your term has become the
Bush family nightmare: helping poor people. Listen to your Mom.
The cupboard's bare, the credit cards maxed out.
No one's speaking to you. Mission accomplished."
"Now it's time to do what you've always done best: lose interest
and walk away. Like you did with your military service and the oil
company and the baseball team. It's time. Time to move on and try
the next fantasy job. How about cowboy or space man?
Now I know what you're saying: there's so many other things that
you as President could involve yourself in. Please don't. I know, I know.
There's a lot left to do. There's a war with Venezuela.
Eliminating the sales tax on yachts.
Turning the space program over to the church.
And Social Security to Fannie Mae. Giving embryos the vote."
"But, Sir, none of that is going to happen now. Why?
Because you govern like Billy Joel drives.
You've performed so poorly I'm surprised that you haven't given
yourself a medal. You're a catastrophe that walks like a man.
Herbert Hoover was a shitty president, but even he never
conceded an entire city to rising water and snakes."
"On your watch, we've lost almost all of our allies, the surplus,
four airliners, two trade centers, a piece of the Pentagon and the
City of New Orleans. Maybe you're just not lucky. I'm not saying
you don't love this country. I'm just wondering how much worse
it could be if you were on the other side."
"So, yes, God does speak to you. What he is saying is: 'Take a hint.'
Amen
Sunday, April 02, 2006
Just in time for Hurricane Season
Six months ago, Michael Brown "resigned" as the head of FEMA.
After Brownie did his heckuva job in the wake of Katrina, Bush made a speech in front of a spectacularly backlit Jackson Square in New Orleans, and assured the American people that anything and everything would be done to restore New Orleans to its original grandeur.
Now six months later, the Gulf Coast is still in a state of wreckage and Bush hasn't even bothered to hire a new FEMA Director.
Michael Chertoff, Bush's Director of the Department of Homeland Security, would be the new FEMA Director's boss. We haven't heard anything about him locating a new FEMA chief, either.
Why is that?
Because both are in so far over their heads and so unqualified to do their jobs, they may not even understand the dire need for a new FEMA chief to hit the ground running and train FEMA response teams in effective disaster relief in time for the upcoming hurricane season.
Right after Katrina hit last August, Bush attended a fundraiser in California, then some country singer named Mark Wills gave him a guitar as a gift.
He posed for pictures pretending to strum the guitar, just like Nero played his fiddle while Rome was burning.
Six months later, the comparison strengthens.
Where is El Kabong when we need him?
Six months ago, Michael Brown "resigned" as the head of FEMA.
After Brownie did his heckuva job in the wake of Katrina, Bush made a speech in front of a spectacularly backlit Jackson Square in New Orleans, and assured the American people that anything and everything would be done to restore New Orleans to its original grandeur.
Now six months later, the Gulf Coast is still in a state of wreckage and Bush hasn't even bothered to hire a new FEMA Director.
Michael Chertoff, Bush's Director of the Department of Homeland Security, would be the new FEMA Director's boss. We haven't heard anything about him locating a new FEMA chief, either.
Why is that?
Because both are in so far over their heads and so unqualified to do their jobs, they may not even understand the dire need for a new FEMA chief to hit the ground running and train FEMA response teams in effective disaster relief in time for the upcoming hurricane season.
Right after Katrina hit last August, Bush attended a fundraiser in California, then some country singer named Mark Wills gave him a guitar as a gift.
He posed for pictures pretending to strum the guitar, just like Nero played his fiddle while Rome was burning.
Six months later, the comparison strengthens.
Where is El Kabong when we need him?
Saturday, April 01, 2006
Like Trying to Piss Up a Rope
At MoveOn.Org's urging, I called Senator John Cornyn's (R-TX) office yesterday to ask that he support Sen. Feingold's motion to censure Bush.
The staffer who answered the phone could barely disguise his contempt.
Naturally, during the hearing Cornyn led the GOP pack in attacking Feingold's proposal and branding it as a political ruse.
I suspect that Cornyn would have led the attack even if every constituent in his district had called to ask him to support Feingold. He's a slithering reptile, in up to his eyeballs in Bushian graft and deception.
I hope, come election time, that the republicans have been caught up in so many scandals and crimes that Texas Senators Cornyn and Bailey-Hutchison both get thrown out of office and into courtrooms to defend their indefensible actions as senators.
They say that time wounds all heels, but when?
I hope to hell Russ Feingold runs for President in 2008. He's got the one thing most Democrats are seriously lacking.
Balls.
At MoveOn.Org's urging, I called Senator John Cornyn's (R-TX) office yesterday to ask that he support Sen. Feingold's motion to censure Bush.
The staffer who answered the phone could barely disguise his contempt.
Naturally, during the hearing Cornyn led the GOP pack in attacking Feingold's proposal and branding it as a political ruse.
I suspect that Cornyn would have led the attack even if every constituent in his district had called to ask him to support Feingold. He's a slithering reptile, in up to his eyeballs in Bushian graft and deception.
I hope, come election time, that the republicans have been caught up in so many scandals and crimes that Texas Senators Cornyn and Bailey-Hutchison both get thrown out of office and into courtrooms to defend their indefensible actions as senators.
They say that time wounds all heels, but when?
I hope to hell Russ Feingold runs for President in 2008. He's got the one thing most Democrats are seriously lacking.
Balls.
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