Contributed by: filbert Friday, February 05 2010 @ 02:52 PM CST
I’ve gently re-formatted the Whip, the better to shine a light on the rampant epidemic of blithering idiotry amok upon the world.
In case you’re wondering, “blithering idiotry” has its foundation in 1) believing you know better than someone else how they should run their lives, and 2) acting on that belief, almost always to the ultimate detriment of that other person, not to mention the corruption of your own soul in the process. And it’s everywhere, but nowhere more concentrated than in governments big and small, and those sad, sorry people making up those governments.
It is not a virtue to be generous with somebody else’s money. SECTION TWO: Things That Amuse Me:
Simians and other aminals*:
Camel burger newest “healthy” option on Dubai menu [*1] — Mmmm….camel burger….
Wild sloth killed by small spectacled owl in Panama [*2]
*Yes, I know it’s “animals,” it’s just that I always found the childhood mispronunciation really, really cute . . .
Travel:
Southwest Installing Wireless Internet Fleetwide [*3]
Frontier Airlines to announce new Denver routes today [*4]
Allegiant Air CEO discusses Hawaii, MD-80 fleet
Cruise Diva Selects the Most Romantic Ships at Sea [*6]
Allegiant Air CEO discusses Hawaii, MD-80 fleet [*5]
Frontier Adds Seven New Cities From Denver with One Thing in Common [*7]
Sports:
LXXXVIII Lines About XLIV Super Bowl [*8]
Cornemann named to academic all-district team [*9]
NCAA tournament expansion still possible [*10]
West Virginia president apologizes for rude fans [*11]
No. 5 Tennessee beats Arkansas 74-57 [*12]
Callahan cracks top-10 in Jackrabbit win [*13]
Chism leads No. 14 Vols past LSU 59-54 [*14]
UMKC snaps losing streak with 58-56 win over North Dakota State[*15]
Video. HD. Yes. [*16]
Science Fiction and Writing:
No SF today. And I’m tired of cutting/pasting.
Science, technology, and space:
Cassini Gets Life Extension to Explore Saturn Until 2017[*17]
Pluto turning brighter and redder, pictures show [*18]
U.S. teens lose interest in blogging: study [*19] — Wheeee! More blogging for meeeeee!
Physicists Prove Teleportation of Energy Is Possible [*20]
Associative memories [*21]
TV’s New Deal: more money, less channels [*22] — I do believe the TV networks are trying to commit suicide . . . or maybe they haven’t heard of that “Internet” thing that seems to be all the rage with the kids these days . . .
In their words: Experts weigh in on Mac vs. PC security [*23]
Miscellany (amusing things not fitting above, or below):
The obligatory “NBC offers racist lunch menu or something” post [*24]
We are all sheep: Avatar, Bayonetta and the hypnosis of low-brow culture [*25] — But are we Demonsheep? It is possible that the author of this had a point. If so, I’m not sure what it was. People who use sentences like “Humans exist as caged subjectivies.” are being willfully obtuse, and easily ignored. But it was a vehicle for a Demonsheep joke, so what the heck?
Washington cities clamp down on bikini baristas [*26] — Could be painful. Or kinky, if you are of a certain . . . um . . .
SECTION THREE: Politics: The neverending battle against blithering idiocy:
People doing potentially good things (including sightings of politicians doing something less than totally idiotic):
The Gitmo Rebellion [*27]
The Tea Party’s Focus: Elections [*28]
Government Cannot Be Cut [*29] — Correctly identifying the problem is the first step in solving it . . .
Chuck DeVore: “Read My Lips: No New Demonsheep” [*30] — and . . .
Demonsheep.org [*31]
RINOs Are F’n’ Awesome: Rasmussen Puts Kirk Up by Six Over Mob’s Juicebox Guy; Has +37 Lead With Indpendents [*32]
In Defense of Mark Kirk [*33] — The perfect is the enemy of the good . . . baby steps, people, baby steps . . .
‘I Don’t Know What Their Motivation Is’ [*34]
With Scott Brown America Chose the Pickup Truck Over the Prius [*35] — The BI Watch for Mr. Senator Brown is about to begin . . .
The Table [*36]
Time: How Republicans Could, If Everything Including the Kirk Race Breaks Their Way, Get to Ten [*37]
A Word About Republican Obstructionism [*38]
Fiorina: I’m So Totally Psyched at Reaction to Demonsheep Ad [*39] — I really don’t know what to do with Demonsheep stories now . . .
Scott Brown Sworn in as GOP’s 41st Senator [*40]
Video: “Too Late to Apologize” [*41]
Fox News: Palin Camp Fires Back at Washington Post [*42]
VIDEO: Hey, King George: It’s Too Late to Apologize! [*43]
Hitler Is Informed About the Demonsheep Campaign Ad [*44] — YouTube video . . .
Are PAC ads running in your area hitting Democrats for wasteful spending and bribes? [*45] — An interesting story–and why giving to PACs is not always a waste of money . . .
How to Get Our Democracy Back: If You Want Change, You Have to Change Congress [*46]
Clarence Thomas loves to hang out with law students “at their joints, with dead animals on the wall, and old tags… and food I can’t eat.” [*47]
Liveblogging National Tea Party Convention – Friday AM [*48]
The cure for blithering idiocy: freedom and individual liberty (yeah, I know–ooh, ick, philosophy!):
My Testimony at House Hearing about Comcast-NBC Deal [*49]
More Literature of Liberty [*50]
“Too Late to Apologize”: Music video as history lesson [*51]
The Center Of American Politics[*52] — and BOTH political parties find themselves to the “left” of the American people — a highly untenable position . . .
Distracted by “Wantingtobelieveism” [*53]
I may be tolerant, but don’t ask me to accomodate savagery-And yes, some people are savages. [*54] — Personally, I prefer “barbarians” . . .
Clarence Thomas on Citizens United, Corporate Speech, and the State of the Union [*55]
Burnt Offering: Common Sense Health Care Solutions From An Everyday American [*56] — Why is the assumption made that the good health of another person is my responsibility? Or yours? Or anybody’s but that person him- or herself?
The Brilliance of That Hayek vs. Keynes Rap [*57]
Austrian Business Cycle Theory and Global Crisis [*58] — The Austrian economists are right. Keynes and pretty much every government official are all wrong.
Wage Earners and Employers [*59] — “It is a myth that there prevails a conflict between the interests of the corporations and firms and those of the people employed by them. In fact, good profits and high real wages go hand in hand.”
The reality of President Obama as a blithering idiot (and he’s the President, so he gets credit, if that’s the word, for the entire Executive Branch):
City still waiting for reimbursement from Obama’s 2008 visit [*60]
Evil Tax Cuts & Humpty Words [*61]
Shocker. Obama Gives Liberal Stump Speech- Takes Shot at Birthers at National Prayer Breakfast (Video) [*62]
Tax-Credit-for-Hire: Another Failed Stimulus Policy in the Pipeline [*63]
Speaking of “echo chambers” [*64]
‘Tough’ Decisions on Spending Include $2.5M on Super Bowl Ad [*65]
Figures. Obama Relies on Jim Crow Law In Opposing Free Speech Ruling [*66]
The Other War That Isn’t Covered by Obama’s Spending Freeze [*67] — The War on Recreational Pharmaceuticals really is money down a rat hole, you know. We tried Prohibition in the ’20’s. Didn’t work then. Doesn’t work now, unless what you’re trying to do is fund organized crime groups. Hmm . . .
All the President’s Budget Assumptions: The 2011 budget contains more rosy scenarios than a romance novel. [*68]
Obama: You can disagree with me without questioning my citizenship [*69] — News flash, sport, I don’t give a damn where you were born . . .
Government Response to Upside-down Faxes [*70]
Obama hints to Dems: If you don’t pass ObamaCare, you deserve to lose the midterms [*71] — It’s not “doubling down,” it’s “all in.” Are YOU all-in for socialism?
Take Responsibility? Moi? [*72] — “One wonders whether the day will ever come when Barack Obama accepts the fact that he is President and has been for a while. . .”
Tougher Standards For Bad Borrowers Who Don’t Exist [*73]
No one is buying Obama junk anymore [*74]
Struck Down: Feds refuse to explain how agent injured Daily Caller writer [*75] — This sounds like a scene out of “24” or maybe “The X-Files.” It leads one to speculate on such fictional accounts as an intentional hit on a fairly harmless gadfly reporter/commentator, and the subsequent coverup . . .
WSJ: Families With $45k AGI Face 41% Marginal Tax Rate Under ObamaCare [*76] — Translated from the Bureaucratese: If your adjusted gross income on your income tax form is more than $41,000, then you will pay 41% of any raise, bonus, or any other increase in your family’s income to the government. If 41% doesn’t make you concerned, or even upset, what percentage would? Why should you give nearly half of every additional dollar you make to the government? If you support “health care reform” then that’s exactly what you’re asking for.
Unemployment drops to 9.7% [*77] — IF you don’t count the hundreds of thousands of people who have simply given up looking for a job . . . there are a lot of people increasingly suspecting that they’re fiddling with the numbers. They’re the government–they have motive, and they have opportunity . . .
Border inspectors to check for risky food, drug imports [*78] — Uh, isn’t that what they’re supposed to be doing?
Politicizing Justice? Obama names DNC member Tim Purdon as a U.S. Attorney [*79]
Jobs, Unemployment And “A Deficit Of Trust” [*80]
The Super-Sized Census Boondoggle [*81]
Team America: Regional Police [*82]
5 Myths About White House Immigration Reform[*83]
The reality of Washington Democrats (and Independents, and Socialists) as blithering idiots:
Democrats balk at $30 billion tax credit for employers [*84] — Tax cuts good, tax credits bad. This could potentially move into “Potentially Good Things,” but we are talking about politicians here, and Democrat ones to boot . . .
“Pay as you go” = Delay as you go; Update: House embraces $14.3 trillion debt ceiling, 217-217 [*85]
Feingold opposes amending Constitution to revive McCain-Feingold [*86] — Proving, I suppose, that blithering idiots can in fact learn . . .
Democrats protect backroom deals [*87]
Government Is The Answer To Economic Prosperity? [*88] — And you thought I was kidding when I said that Democrats, collectivists, and socialists everywhere believe exactly that a while ago?
Democrats double down on backroom deals [*89]
Dems Haunted by Revived Stereotypes [*90] — They are who they’ve always been . . . they’re just not bothering to hide their socialist, totalitarian leanings any more . . .
Do Democrats Lack a Conscience? [*91] — The Democratic Party leadership certainly does. I don’t know for sure about the rank and file . . . some of them appear to. I hope a lot of them do, and will check their consciences often about what their party is doing to their fellow citizens, and to this country . . .
Senate Democrats Upset that Obama did not Wave Magic Wand to Pass Health Care Reform [*92] — It’s bad when the greatest hope of the American People is that the blithering idiocy of their political leadership will save them from that very same blithering idiocy, but there it is . . .
The reality of Washington Republicans as blithering idiots:
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Other blithering idiots at large making life difficult for regular folks:
Criminalizing Politics [*93]
Baaaaaaad: Worst campaign ad ever [*94] — Demon sheep seem to be slipping into the idiocy category, although some people still think they’re “teh awsome” . . .
Dem candidate in IL has record of domestic violence [*95]
Stay Classy, Dems, Massachusetts Edition [*96]
DC Trawler: Jim Treacher Accident Update [*97]
Shocker: Democrats Want Another Do-Over on Nominee [*98]
The War on Toyota [*99]
Race Baiters and Political Correctness [*100] — There is a large segment of the American population who needs to switch to decaf. Now.
12 Year-Old Hauled From School in Handcuffs For Doodling [*101] — Many of those people who need to switch are in charge of our public schools.
Opposition Research: because blithering idiocy can be dangerous, especially when organized into idiotic groups with idiotic ideologies:
The War Against O’Keefe, Breitbart, et al [*102]
Busted– The Left’s Racist Smear Campaign Against James O’Keefe a Complete Fabrication [*103]
Big Government’s Cronies: The real reason politicians like complicated tax and regulatory schemes [*104]
The Left’s Selective Outrage: When Movies Do and Don’t Influence [*105]
How Unions Work [*106]
Until Tomorrow [*107]
The Great Crash [*108] — Featuring this quote, which hits the bullseye:
I believe collectivist ideology is an offense against liberty, and also a tragically inefficient means of addressing the social problems it professes to care about. A study of history shows that every form of collectivist ideology has grown increasingly vicious, and eventually murderous, as its ruling elite struggle to retain power. There is one other reason I’m opposed to collectivism: it’s doomed to fail.
THAT is why I and so many others oppose what Obama and the Democrats are doing. It is truly a slippery slope, and I think they have fallen off of the lip of reason into the abyss of fantasy–and horror. And I don’t want the rest of us dragged down after them.Liberal Hate Speech — “when liberals rant, it’s called free speech; when conservatives rant, it is hate speech.”
Gallup: Majority of Dems View Socialism Positively [*109]
Taking Insurgents Out of Politics [*110]
Liberals Wouldn’t Have to be So Condescending if The People Who Disagreed With Them Weren’t Such Idiots [*111] — Just goes to show . . . one man’s blithering idiot is another man’s “liberal” . . .
The Keith Olbermann Memorial “Special Comment” on blithering idiots in the Media:
Keith Olbermann knows how to treat the ladies [*112]
MSNBC Echo Chamber: When Leftists ‘Debate’ Movies [*113]
Adios, Olbermann? [*114] — From a certain point of view, it would indeed be sad . . . oh, what am I saying? I would gleefully metaphorically dance on his metaphorical career grave, singing and pausing only to metaphorically water the graveside flowers with my own metaphorical bodily fluids. (What? Too much? You think? Really? Oh, well, OK . . .)
Disgusting Bottom-Feeder Andrew Sullivan Now Pushing Loopy Left-Wing Conspiracy Theory That Gitmo Guards Are Snuffing Terrorists and Faking Suicides [*115]
Media Matters Should Actually Listen To….The Media [*116]
Black Debater From ‘Race and Conservatism’ Event Defends O’Keefe, Slams Blumenthal [*117]
Tea For Two, and Two for Teabagging Yahoo News [*118]
NBC Cafeteria Celebrates Black History Month With Fried Chicken Special (Update)[*119]
SECTION FOUR: Case Studies in Blithering Idiocy
“Global warming” aka “Climate change” — or should that be “Climate Reform?”:
When You’ve Lost Greenpeace … [*120]
Lord Monckton wows Melbourne [*121]
Telegraph: India to ‘pull out of IPCC’ [*122]
Climate Change Scientific Consensus Cloudy as Ever [*123]
Omitted: The Bright Side of Global Warming–It seems the U.N. IPCC only tabulates the benefits of climate change when they are outweighed by the costs. [*124]
Is This the CRU Whistleblower? [*125]
12 inches of Global Warming [*126] — YouTube video . . .
Credibility is what’s really melting [*127]
Health care “reform” aka health insurance “reform” — or should that be health care “change?” Perhaps “Global healthing?:
Big Tort Means Big Problems for US Health Care [*128]
Has Obamacare Already Won? Existing Government Programs to Take Over Health Care by 2012 [*129] — Obama said it himself–he doesn’t give up, he doesn’t quit. He doesn’t take no for an answer. He knows better than you. Shut up, sit down, and let him run your life.
The Economy (Can the blithering idiots bring down the most productive economy the world has ever seen? Yes, They Can! Will they?):
Donations to Colleges Down 11.9% in 2009 [*130]
Mortgage rates rise above 5 percent — first boost in a month [*131]
NY Fed chief worries about recovery’s strength [*132]
Foreign affairs and National Security (Will blithering idiots get us all killed, or make us all speak Spanish–or Chinese–or Arabic–or all three?):
A Growing Disconnect [*133]
Helping Homeland Security [*134]
Diplomat Whose Name Is Dirty Word in Arabic Rejected as Saudi Ambassador [*135] — See, if you hadn’t scrolled all the way down, you would have missed this, yah?
“China Rising?” The Post Gets It Mostly Right [*136]
Obama Administration Discovers Trade–As Another Great Excuse to Grow Government! [*137]
China “indignant” on U.S. arms sales to Taiwan [*138] — It makes sense to piss off China only if you’re trying to tear the U.S.A. down . . .
The Morning Whip is a (mostly) daily review of what’s out there that caught my attention, sometimes but not always posted before 11 am Central time in the U. S. of A., unless I just don’t feel like it that day, am out doing something more important or more fun, or I’ve been abducted, detained, arrested, or otherwise flummoxed by the agents of blithering idiotry.
I surf the Web, so you don’t have to! (which would be a trademark, but come on, who am I kidding?)